#sage to: samantha

[thishadoscarbuzz]

304 - American Psycho

Time to get controversh with with one of the most argued about films of the century, 2000's American Psycho. Based on Bret Easton Ellis' lightning rod novel, the film passed through multiple directors before landing in the inspired hands of Mary Harron. The independent director struck the right satirical note on Ellis' difficult blend of consumerism and masculinity, and found a flawless muse as the titular psycho Patrick Bateman in Christian Bale. But the film's sex, violence, and dark humor incited its own controversies and was too much for the Academy despite the praise for Bale's performance.

This episode, we talk about the film as a launchpad for Bale's adult career and how his lesser known status at the time almost lost him the role. We also talk about Bateman's musical obsessions, the other casting choices for Bateman, and Reese Witherspoon joins our Six Timers Club.

Topics also include the Broadway musical version, the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, and 2000 Best Actor.

The 2000 Academy Awards

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[womenofwrestlingfashion]

Not You’re Average Pearl Mesh Midi Dress in Sage from Windsor (n/a)

[moviehealthcommunity]

American Psycho (2000)

This is a Movie Health Community evaluation. It is intended to inform people of potential health hazards in movies and does not reflect the quality of the film itself. The information presented here has not been reviewed by any medical professionals.

American Psycho has strobe lights in a dark nightclub in the second scene of the movie, ending when the pop music is replaced by piano music. The rest of the film has no strobe effects.

All of the camera work is either stationary or very smooth.

Flashing Lights: 4/10. Motion Sickness: 1/10.

TRIGGER WARNING: Immediately after a man is stabbed, his assailant stomps a dog to death. Other instances of remorseless violence may be disturbing. Some dialogue is disrespectful to sex workers, homosexual people, and Jewish people.

Image ID: A promotional poster for American Psycho

[autumnalarchives]

Characters with S names: Sage, Sam, Sawyer, Seedling, Sevan, Silkwhisper, Steph, Strawberry, Stingray, and Sully! By far the biggest batch, though I'm not sure how I ended up with so many S characters

[fxirytxlcfxtc]

Tag Dump, 7/??

[sukiithedummii]

Can I have more pretty plz,, uhhh look in the tags I’ll tag. Fandoms I’m into therefore can take characters for,, you can also request like characters from fandoms I’m not in but I can’t promise I’ll do them or at least if I do they won’t be. That good

Taking an idea from. Rand,, um

Give me things to draw

Plz

[trippinsorrows]

ltye: in your hands

authors note: welp. here i am, once again. we're back with yet another 'what if' scenario, prompted by you lovely people in an ask that i can't seem to find to link right now. smh.

words: 3.3k

warnings: none. just sam being sam.

song inspo: in your hands by halle

Roman should have stuck with his first mind. Stayed home. Texted her some excuse about being caught up with work. She would have never found out the truth, and even if she did, he wouldn’t have given two fucks. 

Because this shit doesn’t seem to be getting any better. 

This dating thing. 

It’s gotta be at least the fifth or sixth one he’s taken her on, and each one has been just as miserable up until the point where he gets her on her knees, gagging or bouncing on his dick the minute they get back to his penthouse. Anything before that has been irksome, borderline miserable. 

Samantha is stunning. Has been since they were kids, and her body is the most desirable of the women he has on his roster. She leans on the thinner side of what he prefers, but the tits and ass are decent, regardless. She’s also just as kinky as him, which is why they’ve worked all these years.

But, the more “dates” Roman forces himself to power through, the more he’s starting to feel like bedroom activities is where it stops for them. 

Technically, he’s always known this. Even if he did have some level of desire to be in a real relationship with someone, which he doesn't, it would never be her. She’s vain, condescending, and seems to think she’s somehow better than the other women he fucks with.

If only she realized he views her just like he views the rest of the women. A warm body with a wet cunt to help him get his dick wet. 

“Roman!” Her voice cuts through his inner dialogue as he focuses on her cleavage. The dress she wore, short and tight, doesn’t help his desire to skip to the fucking part of this evening. “Did you hear what I said?”

“No.” Roman sees no sense in lying to her. “I probably don’t care either.”

She rolls her eyes and proceeds to continue like he literally didn’t just tell her he doesn’t care. “I was saying we should go somewhere.”

He’s partially intrigued now. Mostly because he’ll probably need to set her ass straight. “Where?”

She smiles and shrugs. “I don’t know. I was thinking Bora Bora.”

He shakes his head. “So go.”

She frowns, clarifying. “I said we should go, Roman.”

He scoffs, looking off at the ice sculpture in the middle of the upscale restaurant. A waste of money, in his opinion. “What the hell makes you think I have time to go to fucking Bora Bora with you?” He really wants to ask her what makes her think he would want to in the first place, but he’s trying to be somewhat less of an asshole to see if maybe this could work.

His Wise Man’s nervous voice balanced out with sage wisdom returning to the front of his mind.

“If the Elders are to force you into a marriage, why not with someone you already know? Especially someone who you know would have no issue in giving you an heir.”

If only Samantha wasn’t so fucking annoying.

She leans back in the chair. “You make time for these dates.”

Out of obligation. But, he won’t say that. “Yeah, but I can get my nut and send your ass packing in the same night. Can't do that if we're out of the fucking country.”

“You’re suck a di—”

“I’m so sorry.”

Soft. It’s the first thing that comes to mind hearing her voice. Light, almost. Kind. Even with just three words being spoken. And that’s just based off audio. Visually, Roman’s thoughts take an entirely different direction.

Stunning. 

Roman’s seen, entertained, and done a lot more with some beautiful women in his time, but the one standing at their table seems to have something more than all of them put together. She’s beautiful, easily one of the most gorgeous women he’s ever laid eyes on. And her smile, small but genuine makes him pause. As does her body.

She’s wearing the same uniform he’s noticed on the other waitresses, but none of them fill them out like she does. The white, long sleeved shirt that’s tucked into the knee length black pencil skirt can’t hide the curves he can practically see through the bland outfit. Nice, heavy breast. Curvy hips, thick thighs and an ass he can partially see from the front. 

This. This is his preferred body type. A woman who has something he can grab onto when he’s fucking her from behind. And Roman can only imagine what it would be like to be holding onto those luscious hips of hers while he—

“Oh my god, are you stupid?” Samantha’s annoying voice once again pulls him from his carnal fantasies. She gestures between herself and him. “Can you not see we’re in the middle of something?”

The girl, who Roman would guess is in her late twenties, early thirties at most, immediately looks repentant. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—I was just going to apologize for your wa—”

“Whatever.” Samantha lifts her hand, silencing the girl who’s now looking down at her shoes, clearly embarrassed. “What’s the special for this evening?”

“What’s your name?” Roman’s question comes out at the same time as Samantha’s inquiry. However, his voice clearly presents with more of a commanding nature. 

She swallows. “S–Solana.”

Pretty. Just like her. 

Samantha notices the way Roman is looking at her and is fully confused as to why he’s asking this fat troll for her name. She cuts in again, in that same nasty tone. “Hello? I asked you a question.” 

Solana is clearly struggling with Samantha’s aggressiveness, Roman wondering why this bitch is directing whatever unresolved feelings she has onto this innocent girl. “Umm, I think—”

Samantha scoffs, nose turned up. “You’re our waitress, and you don’t even know what the evening special is?”

“No ma’am, I do. I’m sorry. It’s just—it’s been a long day.” There’s a weight to her words, a sadness in her voice and in her pretty brown eyes. Roman notices all of these things and finds himself wondering what the story is. Everyone has one, and hers is suddenly of interest to him. For reasons he cannot understand. 

“Pretty unprofessional to bring up your personal life, don’t you think?”

Solana closes her eyes, pausing before answering. She looks exhausted. Mentally and physically. “It’s Squab. That’s the main co—”

“I’m a vegetarian. I don’t eat meat.” Roman rolls his eyes. This hoe has been saying that since they were in high school, yet every so often she goes back to having a normal fucking diet only to switch back to that salad shit. “What’s on your—”

“I’ll do us both a favor and get her to shut the fuck up.” Roman has had enough, both of Samantha’s grating voice but mostly her being a bitch to this girl for no reason. He’s a dick on the regular. He knows this. But, never has he come across someone like this Solana woman who, with just her presence alone, exudes such softness. Like, she doesn’t have a mean bone in her fine ass body. And she clearly doesn’t because anyone else would have probably lost their job by cussing Samantha out. Not that it wouldn’t be deserved.

Roman catches the faintest hint of a smile on Solana’s face as she redirects her attention to him. “Give her the salmon. I’ll take your best steak. For wine, you carry Madeira?” 

She’s pulled out her notepad and finishes taking down the order before answering with a nod. “Yes, sir.”

Roman’s jaw clenches at that sir bit. He could ruin this girl. “What do you recommend?”

She’s visibly taken back by his question, probably by the fact that he’s asking her for her opinion. “Umm—”

“Roman, I can rec—”

“I didn’t ask you,” he cuts that bitch off with the quickness, eyes never leaving the pretty girl before him. “I asked Solana.”

Her smiles widens as she answers in a more confident tone. “Julio Barros…..1950.”

Roman smirks. 

Exactly what he was going to order.

“I’ll take it.”

Their gazes linger on each other a second too long for Samantha’s liking as she cuts in once once more. “You can go now.”

Solana’s smile drops again, Roman suddenly finding himself all annoyed. Her smile is something pretty that he wouldn’t mind seeing more of, though that irritation is waned as he’s granted the view of her nice, round ass and curvy hips swaying as she walks to the back to turn in their order.

Samantha reaches over and touches his hand, Roman snatching it back and sneering at her. “What?”

She sighs. “Baby, I’m trying to talk about us.”

And just like that, he’s annoyed all over again. “There is no us.”

Samantha looks sad only for a brief second. “Roman, I’m not stupid. I know what these dates have been for. You’re trying to see if it could work.”

“If what could work?”

“Us.” She goes on to share. “There’s rumors that the Elders have been putting more pressure on you to settle down and make an heir.” Sam leans over the table, intentionally trying to emphasize her cleavage. It’s nice. He’ll give her that. But, he’s certain it’s nothing compared to Solana though and those big breast of her hers. “I can do that for you. Be that for you. Be your wife. The mother of your children.”

Not a damn thing she’s saying sounds even the least bit desirable. At all. 

“I mean, we’ve been fucking around since we were kids. Why not make it official?”

For a lot of reasons. All the reasons. The main one being Roman don’t like this bitch unless she’s choking on or riding his dick. 

What he does like, however, and finds solace in is the interactions with Ms. Solana as the evening goes on. They’re not very often outside of her bringing the bottle of wine and their food when it’s ready as well as a check-in here or there on how they’re doing.

Each time Samantha sending her the dirtiest look or just being an ol’e nasty bitch, to which Roman shuts down, cutting her off and even telling her to shut the fuck up.

The girl is just trying to do her damn job. And as his eyes locate and land on her on several different occasions, he can see that she works hard. Moving from table to table, almost saddened facial expression indicates she’s on the receiving end of more verbal lashings from people like Samantha.

That actually pisses him off, Roman having to control and stop himself from doing some out of pocket shit. 

Again, for what reason, he hasn’t the slightest clue. He just knows those brief glimpses of her actually smiling, usually when she’s chatting with a coworker, do something for him. 

Maybe even to him. 

And unbeknownst to him, the intrigue goes both ways, because as shitty a day Solana Miller was having, the handsome stranger with the rude girlfriend or wife or whatever has somehow, someway made this day just a little bit better.

It’s been some time, if ever, Solana has come across someone with such a presence about them. Him dining at this uppity restaurant she was able to score a job at tells her that he’s wealthy. His disposition and the fact that he somehow secured it to where the surrounding tables of where he sits have been marked as unavailable tells her that he has pull. But, the way he interacts with her, a literal nobody, she’s not sure what that means.

Especially with the beautiful woman he’s with, because while Solana thinks she’s every bit a bitch as most of the women who come into this place, she’s a stunning bitch. 

Which is why Solana can’t allow herself to believe that that equally beautiful looking man is looking at her in any sort of capacity. 

There’s no way in he—

“Solana.”

And just like that, she's frowning again. “Mami?”

The last thing she expected to see this evening was the sight of her mother, already dressed in her scrubs, baby in her arms. 

Solana’s baby. 

Her 11-month–old daughter, Soraya. 

The shock wears off as Nina gets closer, Solana shaking her head, “what are you—”

Nina shakes her head, face apologetic and tone contrite. “I’m so sorry, baby, but I got called into work. I can’t watch Raya.”

Shit

It's inconvenient, but Solana understands it. She remembers the countless times Nina had no other option but to leave her with a neighbor after being called into work at all kinds of hours. She’s always worked so hard to take care of the two of them when Solana was growing up. 

“It’s okay, mama.” Solana easily reaches for her daughter, a wave of relief and happiness washing over her as she holds and kisses her baby. The source of all her joy. All of the struggle, every bit of it, is worth it as long as she has her daughter. She’d do anything for her. “How was she?”

Nina gives a small chuckle. “She’s like you were and still are. An easy child.” Solana kisses Soraya’s temple. “Sol…..” And just like that, Solana already knows she’s probably not going to like what she’s about to hear. “I know you’ve said you don’t want to go after him for child support, but it’s not fair for you to be out here working two jobs while putting yourself through school to take care of his child.”

Solana holds Soraya just a smidge tighter. “She’s my baby, mami.” 

Nina counters. “She’s his biological child.” Solana looks away, hopeful her manager, Aldis, doesn’t come out and scold her for this little interaction. She’s scheduled to clock out in another half hour anyway. “He should be paying you child support.”

Her mom is right. Solana knows this, knows that it’s not fair for her to have to be the sole provider for her baby girl, while Cruz lives his best life as an absentee, deadbeat dad. And she’s considered on several occasions going to the courthouse to see what she needs to do to get that ball rolling. 

But, every time, she’s haunted by something he said the last time they spoke, not even a month after her daughter was born. 

“Don’t you get it? We were fine before she came in the picture! We could be fine again if she wasn’t.”

Solana’s never been more disturbed than she was to hear those words leave his mouth. That’s why she’s glad he’s gone, that he wants nothing to do with her or his child. Because she would never trust to leave her baby girl with him in the first place.

And if that means she does it without him contributing financially, that’s exactly what she’ll do. 

Solana shifts Soraya from one hip to the other. “I don’t need him, mami.” And she doesn’t. Because if Solana had to resort to sex work to take care of herself and her daughter, it’s exactly what she’d do.

Nina gives a heavy sigh. “Mija, you know I help you when I can.”

“I know.” Because she does. But, the same way that times are hard for her. They’re hard for her mom, too. Everyone’s struggling these days, it seems. Everyone except the rich people who wine and dine without a care in the world around them. “I’ll be okay.”

Always will be.

Nina gives a knowing nod, hugging her daughter and gently taking her granddaughter’s hand, kissing it, speaking in Spanish. “I’ll see you later, okay? Abuela loves you.”

Solana smiles. “Thanks, mama.”

“Always, baby.” 

Nina reaches Solana the diaper bag, Solana placing it on the bar stool, knowing it’s bound to be left alone. These rich ass people would never bother with the Ross purchase. With a final parting smile, Nina is off to the hospital, leaving Solana with her daughter who’s just now waking up.

“Hi, baby girl,” Solana giggles at the almost cranky expression on her baby’s face. Raya is definitely not the happiest camper when being woken up. 

A glance at the time reminds Solana that she technically is still on the clock and really shouldn’t have her child with her. But, with no other option, she accepts she’ll just have to clock out early and take whatever those consequences are.

But before that, the least she can do is grab the bill from the table where the handsome stranger and his girlfriend sat. She’s briefly disappointed to see the table empty, even if she remembers his deep voice thanking her for her assistance this evening as she brought them that same check earlier. 

It’s a silly thing, really. And she tries to push away the disappointment at not properly telling him goodbye. A stranger. 

Silly.

Soraya grasps at the collar of her shirt while Solana walks over to the table, pausing as she gets close enough to see that there’s more than just a bill with a signature. There’s cash. A stack of it. Money in hand, she’s confused, because this man paid with a black card, so what—

“Good.” 

Solana gaps and spins around, her eyes widening as she looks up. He’s a lot taller than she realized, burly body nearly eclipsing her view of anything else, silky black hair in such a neat, perfect bun. “Wanted to make sure you got it.”

Brows furrowed, it’s hard for her to speak for a lot of reasons. One of which is the fact that this man cannot be real. A man cannot be this handsome. But, he is real, and he’s looking at her.

And Soraya. 

“I—” She shakes her head, clearing her throat. “Is this—you already paid—”

“That’s not for the bill,” his voice is so velvety, smooth, and deep. “It’s your tip.”

Eyes widening, her gaze snaps to the wad of cash as Soraya continues to grasp and squeeze her shirt. She doesn’t even need to count to know that this is a nice amount of money. 

Too much.

“I can’t—it’s too much.” 

He chuckles, “do I look like I can’t afford it?” Her eyes roam over his big, muscular build dressed in fine, expensive looking clothes. He just oozes wealth. 

And power. 

“N–no.”

“Dealing with Samantha, trust me, you earned it.” Solana looks down, wanting to hide her small smile. His gaze redirects to the child in her arm. “Who is this?”

And just like that, Solana’s proud smile returns. “My daughter, Soraya.” It’s like Soraya knows she’s being discussed, lifting her little head to look at Roman. A big grin on her face before she buries her face into Solana’s neck. 

Roman makes a sound, and she can almost swear she sees the smallest smile on his handsome face. “She looks like you.”

That creates such a warm, fuzzy feeling in her stomach, “thank you…..”

He looks at her a bit confused, like her unspoken question surprises him, before answering. “Roman.” Roman. “Roman Reigns.”

Roman Reigns. Even his name is powerful.

It fits him.

Solana shifts Soraya around as she starts to get wiggly in her arms. “Well, thank you, Mr. Reigns.” She’s certain the shock of just how much money this random, rich stranger has given her hasn’t truly set in. Because if it had, she’d have a much more visceral response. 

A lot more.

“Roman,” he corrects. “Call me Roman.” 

“Roman….” 

Something indecipherable flashes in his eyes, something that makes her feel a bit unnerved under his intense stare. It’s broken, however, by her now irritated daughter.

“Mama.” Soraya makes her dissatisfaction at being still for too long known by punching her tiny fist against Solana’s chest. “Mama!”

“Shhhhh,” Solana kisses her temple, trying to quiet her down before someone makes Aldis aware of her presence. She looks at Roman, eyes softening, “thank you again.”

Truly. Honestly. He hasn’t the slightest clue how much this will help her. It’s why she can stand here without anxiety and concern about making it to the bus stop on time. Tonight.....tonight she’ll treat herself and her baby with calling an Uber instead. 

Might even stop and pick up dinner.

Roman nods, eyes briefly glancing at her daughter again, the smallest smile on his face. “I’ll see you later, Solana.” His head dips a bit in acknowledgment towards her baby. “Soraya.”

The smile is plastered on her face even as he walks off without another word. And it’s only a good two minutes later that she catches onto what he said. A certain word in particular standing out the most. 

What did he mean by later?

[padfootagain]

Love in Verses (XVIII)

Chapter 18 : ‘What the devil do I care what I know, and what I say?’

Hi! Here is new chapter! This is a very important chapter… I hope you like it!!!

I hope you like this chapter! Tell me what you think!

****

Pairing: Hozier x fem!reader (professor!AU)

Warnings: slow burn, angst, hurt, hurt/comfort, tooth-rotting fluff in later chapters, some scenes in later chapters will have heavy sexual themes even if it’s not explicit nsfw description, so minors here

Summary: Your life seems perfect. You're engaged, your career is thriving as you become an assistant professor at Trinity College, and this Andrew Hozier-Byrne you're sharing an office with seems to be a nice guy you hope to call a friend soon. Life seems to be smiling at you... until everything goes sour. When your fiancé breaks up with you, your perfect world shatters. And when your colleague also gets his heart broken soon after, your shared office seems to be a curse rather than a blessing. But Andrew seems determined to mend your broken hearts... Will things finally go according to plan?

Word Count: 3472

Masterlist for the series – Hozier’s masterlist – Main masterlist

Wisdom

This I say, and this I know: Love has seen the last of me. Love's a trodden lane to woe, Love's a path to misery.

This I know, and knew before, This I tell you, of my years: Hide your heart, and lock your door. Hell's afloat in lovers' tears.

Give your heart, and toss and moan; What a pretty fool you look! I am sage, who sit alone; Here's my wool, and here's my book.

Look! A lad's a-waiting there, Tall he is and bold, and gay. What the devil do I care What I know, and what I say?

Dorothy Parker

Classes for the first semester were over. The Christmas Holiday season had come to a close as well, leaving you buried under piles of articles and documents and books to help you get ready for the new classes that would start after the end of the exams.

It was snowing outside, a part of the Liffey had frozen during the night, apparently. Some idiot had tried walking on it, had fallen into the river, you had heard it on the news. He was equipped for a swim in cold waters, but still… how silly people could be…

You were in bed, you checked the time on the alarm clock on your bedside table. Almost midnight. You heaved a sigh. You ought to stop, catch a few hours of sleep before heading to work tomorrow. But you had a thousand things to do and to plan and… God, so many things still…

You were distracted by the vibration of your phone on the bed, looked for it in a hurry under the covers. You frowned as you read Frank’s name on your screen, picked up with a worried frown on your brow. Something ought to be wrong…

“Hello?”

“Y/N?”

You recognised the sound of his voice. He was drunk and had been crying. When the two of you were together, he was only in this state when you had a huge fight.

“You’re alright?” you asked him, knowing the answer.

“No, I’m not… God, I’m really not, Y/N. Can you… can you pick me up? I’m drunk, I can’t drive, I don’t know where to go… Christ, I’ve fucked up so bad tonight… please, help me…”

You looked at all the work you had left to do, looked at the time again, but heaved a sigh. Not accepting to help wasn’t even a possibility…

“I’ll come and pick you up. Where are you right now?” you asked him, and you heard the sigh of relief he heaved at your words.

“I’m downtown. At a pub… hang on, I’ll give you the address…”

“What happened? Where’s Samantha?”

He sniffed.

“We had a row.”

You nodded, not surprised.

“Like… a huge one. Our first row. I… I’ve fucked up. She’s home. I can’t go home, I don’t know where to go…”

“You can stay at my place for tonight,” you offered. “It’s alright, I’m on my way.”

“Thank you so much, Y/N… thank you,” he mumbled, the lilt of his accent more pronounced as his words were slurred by alcohol.

“Don’t mention it. I’m leaving now, stay where you are.”

You hurried out of bed, put on some clothes, grabbed your keys. You typed a text while you were in the lift.

Hi, Andy!

Just a warning: Sam and Frank had a row tonight, seems quite bad. Omw to get Frank from some bar downtown. He’ll stay at my place for tonight. Sam might call you too.

You were walking to your car when he answered.

Thanks for the warning. Sam has just texted me, I’ll go to hers.

Good luck with Frank.

You sat behind the wheel, locked your car before answering.

Good luck with Sam too!

You were about to put your phone away in your purse when it vibrated again.

Tell me when you’re home, okay? It’s late.

A tender smile softened your features.

Will do xx

You put your phone away, started driving. It took you a while to find the pub, but Frank was eager to leave, and you were relieved not to have to fight him for his car keys or something like that. Instead, he obediently entered your car. His eyes were red and puffy, he stunk of whiskey, cheap beer, and cigarettes.

“Thanks,” he mumbled, voice made deeper by the liquor, words slurred.

“No problem. Let’s go to my place.”

He nodded in silence, dried his eyes.

“What happened?” you asked as you drove, the streets empty at this hour, the lampposts the only sources of light in the sleeping city as clouds heavy with rain were hiding the moon and stars.

“Sam and I had a fight.”

You hummed.

“What was it about?”

“Something stupid. Fucking stupid.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, like… something about the wedding. About the guests we should put together, and I was like… like who cares? People can just… sit… wherever they like. But she was making plans, and I took the piss, and she got… so fucking mad and…”

He sniffed, looked by the window at the empty streets.

“Was fucking stupid.”

“You got angry?”

“Yeah.”

“And you said something stupid?”

“Yeah. How do you know?”

“You generally say stupid and hurtful things when you’re really angry.”

“I don’t mean them.”

“I know. It still hurts.”

He heaved a sigh, rested his forehead against the windowpane.

“I think it was a long-time coming though. We’ve been bickering a lot. I don’t know… it’s just been a lot of stress these past few weeks. I thought it would be better after the New Year’s Eve party, but it wasn’t.”

You slowly nodded.

“I mean… you’ve been moving very fast through this relationship. Maybe you’ve skipped a few steps along the way, and you’re feeling it now.”

He remained quiet for the rest of the drive. When you reached your apartment building, he stared at you, but said nothing.

You helped him through the elevator and hallways all the way to your flat. You texted Andrew that you were safely home while Frank was struggling with his shoes.

Andrew answered in seconds with a thumbs up.

“You think I’m making a mistake, don’t you?”

Frank’s voice brought you back to your apartment, made you put your phone away and turn to him instead.

You weren’t quite sure what to answer, even if this was the perfect moment to speak your mind. You were too taken aback for that.

“Everybody does,” Frank nodded. “Everybody thinks I’ve lost my mind. Maybe I have… I don’t know anymore… Maybe… Maybe I’ve made a mistake, and I shouldn’t have left and… I don’t know… I don’t know…”

“I think you’re moving very fast. I think all this is going too fast,” you spoke with a gentle voice, moving closer to him. “I mean… you pushed back the engagement, then the wedding, when we were together. While this is so sudden… Everything about you and Sam seems sudden.”

Slowly, Frank nodded.

“I don’t know… I don’t know what to do, I… I want it to be fast though, I don’t want to think things through this time around. I don’t want to be cautious, the way we were, you and I, Y/N. I just… I want to live this fully.”

He rubbed at his tired eyes.

“I’m sorry, I don’t make any sense right now…”

“You should go to bed,” you gave him a sad smile, but he didn’t notice, he was too tired for that, or… you didn’t know why… but he didn’t notice.

You gave him a pillow and a blanket so he could settle on the couch, he thanked you, closed his eyes.

Before you could move away, he grabbed your hand in his, gave it a tight squeeze. You wanted to cry now.

And then, he surrendered to sleep, and he let go.

Sam wasn’t crying anymore when Andrew arrived to her flat, but her eyes were red and puffy with tears that had already fallen. She let him inside, offered him something to drink while he took off his coat, gloves, beanie and scarf, but he declined. He turned to her with a tender smile, something full of compassion.

“You’re okay? How are you feeling?” he asked with a voice he made deeper than usual, knowing it calmed her down.

“Not great,” she admitted.

“You had a fight with Frank, then?”

“Yeah… we… I… It was pretty bad.”

“Bad?”

“It was a big row.”

“Was he mean to you?” Andrew’s voice shook, a frown digging a line between his eyebrows. “Did he threaten you?”

“What? No! Of course not! We just had a row.”

He visibly relaxed, took a step closer to her. They were standing in her living room, the night was quiet. He wanted to reach out, but he didn’t dare.

“What was it about? Do you want to talk about it?”

She shrugged, but took a step closer to him too, standing close, so close… He could have pulled her into an embrace so easily…

“We fought about the wedding. We… we don’t want the same thing.”

“About what?”

“Silly things. Unimportant details, to be honest. But I didn’t know how to react to it… like… I know you sigh a lot when you’re annoyed. I know your voice quietens first, and then you raise it. I know you get petty when you’re really angry. I know you need to spend time alone to cool down. I know you’ll want to have the last word no matter whether you’re right or wrong, but you’ll never admit it. I know that it’s useless to simply bury the hatchet, that you’ll bring it up again later if we don’t discuss it when the issue arises. I know you don’t talk about what you feel, that I should not be offended if you just lock yourself up in your office until you’re calmer and we can talk about it. I know it’s useless to make you acknowledge your feelings. I know you’re so fucking stubborn when you really want to be. I know… I know how to deal with you, even with your anger, even with the ugliest of your feelings. Cause I… I know you. But I didn’t know how to handle him. I got mad, and he got mad and I didn’t know what to do. And I made things worse. I don’t know what to do…”

She looked up at him with this specific gaze, and he knew what she needed. He knew it, because he knew her. And she had just told him what he was already painfully aware of, that she knew him like the back of her hand. And perhaps this was the part he missed the most now that he was alone. That he used to have someone who knew him so completely.

He wrapped his arms around her, because he knew she needed a hug. She needed to feel safe and warm, and indeed she rested her head on his shoulder easily.

He held her close, the way he had thousands of times before. He always found solace in it, something soothing, anchoring. When she rose to her tiptoes to kiss his cheek, to thank him in a whisper for coming, his chest grew a little warm but he was surprised when his heart didn’t stumble. It didn’t rush, didn’t miss a few beats. It remained steady, although it was content. And the arms that used to soothe him were a nice embrace, a gentle shelter to rest, but they lacked something. Something… he wasn’t sure what it was. He knew that he didn’t feel the way he used to when they held on each other before. He knew he felt less than before.

They remained motionless, bathed in silence for a few minutes, the sound of their breathing the only sign of life in the room. His mind wandered off, instead of being anchored in the moment, unlike the way she used to force his brain to quieten down. Instead, he thought about the classes he had to prepare for the rest of the year, the exams coming up, he thought of Frank and was angry at him for hurting Sam, and he thought of you. He was suddenly worried about you, he hadn’t received any text from you yet, to tell him you were home. Were you alright? It was so late into the night and you were driving to a pub downtown, after all…

He felt his phone buzzing in the back pocket of his jeans, pulled away from the hug. He didn’t notice Sam’s puzzled expression.

“Andy?” she looked up at him with a questioning look.

He didn’t notice she was speaking. He heaved a relieved sigh instead.

I’m home. All good xx

He answered with a mere thumbs up.

“Andy?”

This time he looked up from his phone, put the device in his back pocket again.

“Yeah?”

“You’re okay?”

But he knew her. He knew her better than anyone else in this world. He knew this question meant ‘who is texting you at such an hour?’.

“Yeah… erm… It was Y/N. Frank called her to pick him up at a pub.”

“Did he?” she asked, clearly jealous.

Andrew hummed and nodded.

“He’ll stay at her place for the night.”

“Right…”

She seemed uneasy now. Worried.

“And why was she telling you this anyway?”

“Because you asked me to come here too,” he merely answered.

“So, she picked him up?”

“Yeah, they’re at her apartment.”

“Why is she telling you all this?”

“It’s late. I asked her to tell me when she’d be home, just to make sure she was safe.”

She stared at Andrew with an unreadable expression, one he didn’t know how to analyse, despite how well he knew her. Was it a new one? Did he simply… fail at reading her this time?

“Can you stay tonight?”

The question came out of the blue, took him aback.

Stay the night…

“I… don’t want to be alone,” she whispered.

And Andrew wasn’t sure what she meant. Probably for him to sleep on the sofa, but there was something in her eyes… No, she didn’t mean for him to sleep on the sofa…

It was his chance to get her back, and he knew it. He knew it. He could have her back, maybe, he could try, at least…

He thought about kissing her then, closing the distance between them, finding back what they had lost. But instead, he…

Instead, he thought of your lips on his, of your weight in his arms, of your kiss on his cheek while a new year was born.

He wanted to kiss you. He didn’t want to kiss Sam at all…

He didn’t want Frank to be with you now, in your apartment. He didn’t want you to kiss him, he didn’t want you to be with him, and God almighty, he could feel his heart racing at the thought that you could have sex with him…

Slowly, he shook his head.

“I don’t think it would be a good idea,” he mumbled, his voice not sounding like his own.

“But I…”

“I’m sorry… I… I should go. I should go…”

He hurried to her front door, while Sam remained standing in her living room, too stunned by Andrew’s actions to move or say anything. Before she could go back to her senses, Andrew had left.

He had left. When he sat down behind the wheel, he didn’t know what was happening, couldn’t understand his own actions. He could have tried to get Sam back, and instead… instead he had thought of you, he had… he had wished it was you who stood there before him, offering him a chance to kiss you…

Fucking hell… he bloody liked you. He liked you. He liked you enough to push Sam away…

Holy shit…

Andrew was pacing before a tired Alex, who was sitting on his sofa.

Andrew was lucky his best friend was a night owl like him, but even if he naturally longed to go to bed at an unreasonable hour, Alex was still longing to bury himself under his warmest blanket and finally go to sleep now that it was almost four in the morning.

But Andrew was still pacing. He had called Alex after leaving Sam’s flat, panicked, talking too fast about ‘catching feelings’ and ‘being a fucking eejit’ and ‘ruining everything’. Alex invited him to come over, and now Andrew was burning holes in his carpet…

“This is so bad, Alex. So fucking bad…”

“Calm down, it’s alright. You have a crush on Y/N, so what?”

“SO WHAT?! SO WHAT?! I don’t want to have a crush on Y/N! I want to have Sam back!”

“Not anymore, apparently.”

Andrew threw his hands up in the air in frustration. He had a thousand things to say and couldn’t speak them out loud, he just couldn’t. He was never good at this, opening up about his feelings… He buried them instead, and let them gnaw at his heart. Was it healthy? No, but he couldn’t help it. And then he wrote about it, and he felt better, lighter, and things were alright again.

But right now, he was too much in a state to grab some paper and pen and put it all down.

“This can’t be happening, Alex” he shook his head. “I can’t be catching feelings on Y/N.”

“Why not? She sounds like an amazing woman!”

“She is! Don’t get me wrong, she’s… incredible! But I want Sam.”

“You don’t anymore.”

“Of course, I bloody do!”

“Why did you push her away tonight, then?”

But Andrew wasn’t ready to admit that.

“I don’t know… I don’t know…”

“You’re falling for Y/N.”

“She’s my colleague! We share an office! We’re friends! We’re trying to get back with our exes! She’s still in love with the guy!”

“Well, tell yourself those arguments, cause apparently they haven’t prevented you from falling for her…”

“I haven’t fallen, I just… I fancy her, ‘s all.”

“Yeah, of course. Of bloody course.”

“Alright, I need to think straight.”

“Why do you want to get back with Sam so badly anyway?”

“Because… Because I love her. Because she… I’m…”

“The honest answer,” Alex argued, staring mercilessly at his friend.

And Andrew hated him at that moment, for knowing him so fucking well, for not cutting him any slack, for pressing him on into acknowledging how he felt… even the ugly side of himself…

He stuttered, went silent, but Alex was there to push him again. Until Andrew turned to the window and stared at the inky sky where not a single light remained uncovered by heavy clouds. All darkness. The kind so absolute, one would not see a thing if they were lost in it.

He imagined your features on that darkness, painted it with the colour of your eyes, the softness of your skin, the warmth of your lips, built your image on the nothingness of the world.

He wanted Sam… he wanted…

“I want someone to know me,” he whispered, feeling the heaviness of the confession drain all his strengths out of his body, feeling empty as he let the words leave. “I want… I want to be known. I want companionship. I’m afraid to be alone. I’m scared. I’m scared no one else is ever going to know me the way Sam does, and love me anyway. After all, even she couldn’t…”

He fell silent, sniffed as tears gathered at the corners of his eyes.

“God, it’s so fucking hard to be unknown. To have no one like that anymore… It feels so fucking lonely…”

Alex had gotten up without a word nor sound, rested a hand on Andrew’s shoulder.

“Someone else can learn to know you that way again, Andy. You deserve it. You deserve to be loved for who you are. Maybe Y/N could…”

But Andrew shook his head, shook himself out of his friend’s grasp.

“No! No, this is ridiculous! I want Sam! I want Sam! I don’t want Y/N! It was just a flukes, just a glitch, just… I don’t know, a moment of madness! But I don’t want Y/N, I don’t like her, I want Sam…”

“Andy…”

“I want Sam. I must want Sam.”

Andrew rubbed at his forehead, tightly closing his eyes.

“And anyway… even if I don’t want Sam anymore, I can’t fall for Y/N. That’s just… that would just make everything so fucking complicated, and she’s so great, I can’t risk to lose her like that… That would be insane.”

“So… you could want someone else? I could introduce you to someone…”

“We’ll see… we’ll see… I… I don’t know.”

Andrew heaved a sigh, feeling the heaviness of sleep creep up his body. He looked at his watch.

“Christ, sorry, mate… it’s so fucking late… I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. You can sleep on the couch tonight, it’s too late for you to drive, and you’re too upset for that.”

“Thank you.”

“Anytime, mate.”

They exchanged a pair of tired smiles, and while Alex was gone looking for some spare blanket and pillow, Andrew was gathering his thoughts and feelings. Trying to calm down.

He wasn’t falling for you. He didn’t have a crush on you. He wanted Sam, he didn’t want you. He couldn’t want you.

Andrew didn’t like you… he couldn’t like you…

… right?

[dead-lights]

grand occult baking championship || episode 1.7

Just a little interlude before judgment!

In case you haven't seen it, I've been posting little interviews with the cast. Please feel free to send me questions, anonymously or not! I'll put them up in batches between posts.

first // prev // next

Most characters have canon origin stories! It's just Elle, L, Brandy, and Morgyn who don't. Caleb isn't wrong about how long it would take to get through it all, but I can make some space at the bottom of the post :)

canon

Most of this comes from dialogue from Werewolves, which I put up here.

Celene & Lou: attacked by Greg while on a date after Lou provoked him - she took the cure, he thought he could ride it out.

Lily: fled into the tunnels when Vlad tried to turn her, where she was bitten by a rabid werewolf. Spent years wandering around feral before Kristopher found her.

Caleb: turned by Miss Hell in a bar bathroom with the door on backwards. It's unclear whether he asked to turn or not, but I'd say most likely not.

Jacob: got lost in the woods as a small child after being traumatically separated from his family. He was hunted by a werewolf and a vampire, and then rescued by Kristopher.

Wolfgang: visited Moonwood Mill to escape the rat race in San Myshuno, decided he liked the werewolf lifestyle, and asked Kristopher to turn him.

Inna: turned by Caleb in the official trailer. Based on promotional material and the paintings from vampires, she seems to have been a thrall for centuries before that, possibly as early as the 1600s.

Darrel: born a spellcaster. Because he has the strong bloodline trait, he must be at minimum a 3rd generation caster.

Emilia: recently ascended according to her household description, presumably by Morgyn, since they're the only sage she knows by default and they're both friends with Grace and Tomax.

deadcanon

Elle: born a vampire during the first half of the Century Conflict. Her parents were former spellcasters who were turned during Operation Eternal Flame.

Brandy: attacked and almost killed by a member of her girlfriend Samantha's coven of origin. Samantha turned her to save her life.

L: an orphaned street urchin. Was accidentally transported to the Magic Realm after pickpocketing a spellcaster and taking his Glimmerstone. She met Keisha and immediately started badgering her for power and secrets.

Morgyn: a teen runaway. They found instructions to get into the Magic Realm in a library book, thought the whole thing sounded extremely rad, made their way to Glimmerbrook, and immediately started badgering Tess for power and secrets.

I wanted a Century Conflict veteran, which is why I made Elle so old. Brandy possibly has a mundane brother, so I didn't want her to have been born vampire. I love foundlings in stories (yes, I'm a big Mandalorian fan, fuck off) so yeah Morgyn and L are foundlings.

[80ssuperstar]

Hey Guys I made this Story that's based on The Ancient Indian Tale of Prince Rama and Princess Sita and the Ten Headed Demon Ravanna but I made it different with the Characters like: Prince Mordecai and Princess Samantha, Ravanna, Hanuman, Bharata, Indrajit, Manthara, Surpanakha, Queen Kaikeyi (Prince Mordecai's Jealous Stepmother)

THE STORY OF MORDECAI AND SAMANTHA:

Once upon a time, in the magnificent kingdom of Ayodhya, there lived a noble prince named Mordecai, beloved by all for his wisdom, courage, and kindness. He was the heir to the throne, destined to rule alongside his beloved wife, Princess Samantha, a woman of unparalleled beauty, grace, and compassion. Their love was the envy of all who beheld it, and their kingdom flourished under their benevolent rule.

However, their happiness was not to last, for lurking in the shadows was the wicked ten-headed demon, Ravanna, whose heart burned with jealousy and malice. Ravanna coveted Princess Samantha for himself, and he plotted to separate her from Prince Mordecai and claim her as his own.

Mordecai: "My dear Samantha, our love is like the eternal flame, burning bright amidst the darkness. Fear not, for I shall always protect you, my beloved."

Samantha: "Oh Mordecai, my heart sings with joy at your words. Together, we shall overcome any obstacle that dares to challenge our love."

One fateful day, as Prince Mordecai and Princess Samantha were taking a leisurely stroll through the enchanted forest that surrounded their kingdom, they came across a wounded deer lying in agony. Princess Samantha's compassionate heart was moved with pity, and she beseeched Prince Mordecai to help the poor creature.

Samantha: "Mordecai, look! A wounded deer lies in distress. Please, we must help it."

Mordecai: "Fear not, my dear Samantha. I shall use my magic to create a protective circle around you. As long as you stay within its bounds, no harm shall befall you."

That night, as Princess Samantha rested within the safety of the magic circle, she heard a terrible cry echoing through the forest. Believing it to be her beloved Mordecai in grave danger, she rushed to his aid, unaware of the treacherous trap that awaited her.

Samantha: "Mordecai! I hear cries of distress! I must go to him at once!"

Mordecai: "No, Samantha! Stay within the circle! It is not safe!"

But it was too late. Ravanna, with his dark magic and deceitful wiles, had disguised himself as Prince Mordecai and lured Princess Samantha out of the protective circle. Seizing her in his powerful grasp, Ravanna vanished into the depths of the forest, leaving behind naught but despair and heartache.

Ravanna: "Foolish princess, to trust in the illusion of safety. Now you are mine, and no one shall stand in my way."

Prince Mordecai, upon discovering his beloved Samantha missing, was consumed with grief and fury. Determined to rescue her from the clutches of the vile Ravanna, he embarked on a perilous journey, aided by his loyal companions, including the mighty monkey warrior Hanuman, the valiant prince Bharata, and the wise sage Vishwamitra.

Hanuman: "Fear not, Prince Mordecai, for I shall lend you my strength and my cunning. Together, we shall vanquish the foul demon Ravanna and rescue Princess Samantha from his grasp."

Bharata: "My lord, I pledge my sword and my loyalty to your cause. Let us march forth and bring justice to the wicked."

Vishwamitra: "Prince Mordecai, the path ahead is fraught with danger, but with courage and determination, you shall prevail. Trust in your heart, and victory shall be yours."

And so, Prince Mordecai and his companions embarked on a perilous quest, braving treacherous jungles, raging rivers, and dark caverns in their relentless pursuit of Ravanna and his captive, Princess Samantha.

Along the way, they encountered many trials and tribulations, including battles with Ravanna's fearsome minions, such as his son Indrajit, the demoness Surpanakha, and the wicked maid Manthara, who sought to thwart their noble quest at every turn.

Indrajit: "You dare to oppose my father, Ravanna? Prepare to face the wrath of Indrajit, the mighty warrior prince!"

Surpanakha: "Ah, Prince Mordecai, how handsome you are! Why waste your time on that insignificant princess when you could have a powerful demoness like me at your side?"

Manthara: "Princess Samantha is a threat to my mistress's ambitions. I shall do everything in my power to ensure that she remains in Ravanna's clutches forever."

But through courage, perseverance, and the power of their unwavering love, Prince Mordecai and his companions overcame every obstacle that stood in their way, drawing ever closer to their ultimate goal of rescuing Princess Samantha from the clutches of Ravanna.

At long last, after a fierce and epic battle that shook the very foundations of the earth, Prince Mordecai confronted Ravanna in his fortress atop the towering mountain of Lanka, where Princess Samantha was held captive.

Mordecai: "Ravanna, your reign of terror ends here and now! Release Princess Samantha, or face the wrath of a righteous prince!"

Ravanna: "Foolish mortal, you dare to challenge me? I am Ravanna, the Lord of Lanka, the most powerful demon in all the realms! You are no match for my might!"

But Prince Mordecai, fueled by his love for Princess Samantha and the strength of his noble heart, fought with a courage and determination that knew no bounds. With the aid of his allies and the blessings of the gods themselves, he clashed with Ravanna in a battle that shook the heavens and the earth.

In the end, it was not the strength of arms or the power of magic that determined the outcome, but the purity of Prince Mordecai's love and the righteousness of his cause. With a final, mighty blow, he vanquished Ravanna and rescued Princess Samantha from the darkness that had ensnared her.

Mordecai: "Samantha, my beloved! Are you hurt? Fear not, for you are safe now, and I shall never let harm befall you again."

Samantha: "Mordecai, my hero! Oh, how I have longed for this moment! With you by my side, I fear nothing, for our love is stronger than any magic or malice in the world."

And so, Prince Mordecai and Princess Samantha returned triumphantly to their kingdom of Ayodhya, where they were greeted with jubilation and celebration by their grateful subjects. Their love had been tested and proven true, and together, they ruled wisely and justly for many years to come, a shining beacon of hope and inspiration to all who beheld them.

THE END!!

I Hope you guys liked it 😊🥰

For: @fxe4596 , @nicomxm23 , @mordorigs , @jgquintelslut , @pinkcandycatmakesart , @anifaz , @isrrael120 , @notadumbdog , @martingeekermmd , @eeveepalooza , @apollothedeity, @sidoresca, @siinhorhy, @insomniacz, @rhyliethecaterfly , @yeetafry, @at-weeb96, @kiwithekool11437, @kiko2032, @orchestralauthor, @untitled14360, @loudlyhappycupcake

[duckprintspress]

Celebrate the Year of the Dragon with 26 Dragon-y Books!

大家，新年快乐！Happy New Year, everyone! Today, February 10th, is Lunar New Year, and in many countries that use the lunar calendar, the new year to come is the year of the dragon, so we thought it’d be fun to share some of our favorite books featuring dragons! These books have a mixture of dragon type (some more Western, some more Eastern), and some are queer and some aren’t. The common theme is the prominence of dragons in the plot, because we LOVE dragons!

The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng (Chronicles of the Bitch Queen series) by K.S. Villoso

When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill

Highfire by Eoin Colfer

After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh

Copper Coins by Mu Su Li

The Tea Dragon Society (The Tea Dragon Society series) by K. O’Neill

Hands Off, Evil Dragon! by Kitty Roe Factory

Dungeon Meshi by Ryoko Kui

Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee

Wyrms: An Anthology of Dragon Drabbles by Eric Fomley

To Shape a Dragon’s Breath (Nampeshiweisit series) by Moniquill Blackgoose

The Priory of the Orange Tree (The Roots of Chaos series) by Samantha Shannon

Seraphina (Seraphina series) by Rachel Hartman

Sorcerer to the Crown (Sorcerer Royal series) by Zen Cho

The House of Binding Thorns (Dominion of the Fallen series) by Aliette de Bodard

Wild Magic (The Immortals series) by Tamora Pierce

Dragon Slippers (Dragon Slippers series) by Jessica Day George

Dragon (Five Ancestors series) by Jeff Stone

Magyk (Septimus Heap series) by Angie Sage

Dragon Keeper (Dragon Keeper series) by Carole Wilkinson

Eon: Dragoneye Reborn (Eon series) by Alison Goodman

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (Where the Mountain Meets the Moon series) by Grace Lin

Dragon-Ridden (Dragon Ridden Chronicles series) by T.A. White

His Majesty’s Dragon (Temeraire series) by Naomi Novik

In the Vanishers’ Palace by Aliette de Bodard

What are your favorite dragon books? We’d love to add to our list!

The contributors to list this are: @thechaoscryptid @owlouterbridge @hermit-writes @nursinggeek @unforth @Shadaras @hairasuntouchedaspartoftheamazon @tryslora and an anonymous contributor

[sunflowerseedsandscience]

Various Storms and Saints- Chapter One

Previous Chapters: Prologue

Maybe it was because he'd never had any relatives or close friends have kids, but for Mulder, the hospital had never been a place he associated with joy.

His earliest hospital memory had been when Samantha had broken her collarbone, and since his mother had decided the incident had been his fault-- hadn't she told him a hundred times that the rope swing was too worn out to play on, so what had he been thinking?--most of what he remembered from that particular hospital trip had been his mother's cold anger. He'd been taken to the hospital two years later when Sam had disappeared, when first responders worried he might be in shock, and that visit had been no better.

All of Mulder's adult hospital experience up until this point had been similarly awful. Visiting injured witnesses or colleagues, meeting family members in the waiting room to deliver bad news, suffering through injuries of his own... and now, most recently, the interminable vigil by Scully's bedside, watching and waiting while the cord tethering her to life slowly frayed to nothing.

But now? As Mulder strode down the hospital hallway towards from Scully's room, where she sat waiting for him, alive, awake, and returned to him beyond all probability, there was nowhere else he'd rather have been. Even the drab green linoleum was beautiful to him as he raced along it towards her room. Her mother and sister had been with her earlier, and under their close watch he hadn't been able to be as free and open with her as he would have liked. Maybe today his luck would be better and she'd be on her own.

But then again, maybe not.

"Hi, Mulder!" Melissa greeted him enthusiastically before Scully had even had a chance to open her eyes. She leapt up from her seat by the bed and embraced him, catching him off guard. Over her shoulder Scully looked on with an amused expression, clearly enjoying his discomfiture. As soon as Melissa released him he approached the bed, and after a brief hesitation, he bent and kissed Scully's cheek. Her face flushed red as he straightened up, and he could feel Melissa's eyes on him as he took a seat by the bed.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Tired," Scully said, chuckling ruefully. "You'd think I'd have more energy when I've done nothing but lie in bed all this time, but...." She sighed and shook her head. "I'm still exhausted."

"You have to give yourself time to heal," said Melissa sagely. "Your body knows what it's doing. You have to trust it."

"Thank you, Melissa. As a medical doctor, I am, of course, entirely unfamiliar with the workings of the human body." Mulder laughed, his chest flushing with warmth. This was the Scully he knew, the Scully he'd missed: the dry wit, the impatience with anyone trying to tell her something she already knew better than they did.

"Doctors really do make the worst patients," Melissa intoned, and Scully scowled at her.

"It's one thing to know something clinically," Scully said. "It's another thing when you're the one stuck in bed, waiting to have enough energy to be on your feet for more than fifteen minutes at a time."

"Well, be a good patient and do what your doctors tell you," said Mulder. "The quicker you heal, the quicker you can come back... and Skinner really doesn't like me investigating cases on my own. He's probably not gonna get a full night's sleep until you're out there keeping me in check again."

Scully frowned. "Mulder," she said, "what are you talking about? The FBI has me doing autopsies. I can't exactly watch your back from the morgue." And suddenly it hit Mulder: she had no idea about any of what had happened while she'd been missing. As far as she was concerned, the X-Files were still closed, he was still on wiretap duty, and she was still expected to teach pathology at Quantico once she'd recovered enough to return to work. He grinned, about to tell her... and then stopped.

Scully's involvement with him had been exactly what had put her in danger in the first place. She never would have been abducted if she had stayed safe in the morgue. They'd taken her because she had refused to stop helping him... and because he had refused to stop asking her. If he offered her the chance to come back on the X-Files as his partner--and he had zero doubts she would take it, if he did offer--what else could happen to her down the line?

"What?" Scully frowned at him, concerned. His hesitation must have shown on his face. "Mulder, what is it?"

If he didn't ask Scully to come back to the X-Files with him, she would find out about it, one way or another. And she would be furious. He could lay out his concerns, he could try to dissuade her, but consequences be damned, it had to be her choice.

"Skinner re-opened the X-Files after you were taken," Mulder said, and the pure joy on Scully's face somehow made his heart both swell and sink at the same time. "But listen, Scully, you need to think long and hard about it before you come back to work with me."

"No, I don't." Mulder glanced at Melissa, sitting in the corner and watching the exchange with great interest, and wished he'd waited until he and Scully were alone.

"Yes, Scully, you do. They went after you because we kept working together."

"You have no way of knowing-"

"Yeah, I do. None of this would have happened if I'd left you alone." He glanced at Melissa again. "You should at least take the time to discuss it with your family. You don't need to decide right now."

"There's no need, Mulder," insisted Scully. "It's my decision. I want to work with you on the X-Files again." She set her jaw and glared at him, daring him to keep trying to talk her out of it. At a loss, Mulder looked at Melissa, who held up her hands.

"Don't ask me to intervene," she said, smiling. "You should know Dana well enough by now to know that once she decides to do something, there's no talking her out of it."

Mulder smiled reluctantly. "Yeah," he said. "I do."

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

Scully kept trying to hide her yawns behind her hands so Mulder wouldn't see how tired she was, but by the fourth time, it was clear she didn't need to bother. Melissa and Mulder were so deeply engrossed in conversation that she might as well not have been in the room at all. Mulder was regaling Melissa with stories of the cases they'd investigated together back before the X-Files had been closed, and Melissa, predictably, was fascinated.

"So the murdered officer's consciousness was possessing the little girl?" Melissa asked.

"Not quite possessing, not the way you're thinking. It was more of... a reimbodiment. It ended suddenly the moment Officer Morris's unfinished business with his killers had concluded."

"Wow," breathed Melissa, sitting back in her chair. "You never told me about any of this, Dana." She and Mulder looked towards the bed just as Scully unsuccessfully concealed another yawn. Mulder stood, smiling sheepishly.

"I think that's my cue to head out and let you rest," he said. He approached the bed and took Scully's hand, giving it a squeeze. "I'll come by after work tomorrow, okay? Give Skinner a call whenever you're ready and we'll get the paperwork started to get you reassigned." And with a nod and a smile to Melissa, Mulder was gone.

The moment the door had closed, Melissa sprang up from her chair and came to sit on the bed. "Wow, Dana," she gushed. "He's not just cute. He's gorgeous."

"Is he?" Scully closed her eyes and leaned back against her pillow. "I hadn't noticed." A blatant lie, of course, but right at that moment, all Scully wanted to do was sleep.

"You're really not interested in him like that?" Melissa asked, a peculiar, almost hopeful expression on her face. "Not at all?"

"He's my work partner, Melissa. And my friend."

"Then...." Melissa bit her lip. "You wouldn't mind if I asked him out, would you?"

A weight seemed to drop into Scully's stomach.

Yes. She did mind. She minded very much, in fact. But how could she possibly admit that to Melissa when she'd been trying so hard to claim that she didn't feel that way about him? She swallowed hard. She could claim that it might compromise her professionally, if Mulder and Melissa dated and it didn't work out. But....

"No, of course I don't mind," was what she heard herself saying instead.

Melissa beamed. "I'm gonna go see if I can catch him before he leaves," she said, and leaping up off the bed, she rushed out of the room.

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

Mulder's hand was on the door to exit the hospital when a voice behind him called his name.

"Mulder, hang on!" He turned to see Melissa Scully hurrying out of the elevators and rushing across the lobby towards him. He crossed to meet her, immediately concerned.

"What's going on? Is your sister okay?"

"She's fine," Melissa assured him with a wave of her hand. "She's probably going to be asleep before I even get back up there. I just had something I wanted to ask you before you left." For some reason, her cheeks flushed red. "I was wondering... if maybe you might like to get coffee with me sometime?"

Whatever Mulder had been expecting, this was definitely not it. For a moment he wondered if he'd understood her correctly, but really, why else would the question make her blush unless she meant it the way he thought she meant it? Still, best to be sure. He'd misread more than a few signals in his time.

"You mean like a date?"

"I don't really like to put labels on things, but... sure, a date, if you want to call it that. I asked Dana if she minded my asking you and she was fine with it, so don't worry about that."

A confused mix of emotions settled in the pit of Mulder's stomach. Scully had told Melissa that it was fine. What did that mean? Was it "fine" as in, "I'm fine, Mulder," when she clearly wasn't fine? Or was it "fine" as in it truly didn't bother her? The thought that Scully wouldn't care at all if he went out with her sister was somehow troubling.

But Melissa was standing there, waiting for an answer. Did he want to have coffee with her? She was an undeniably beautiful woman who seemed genuinely interested in the things he had to say. He'd asked women on dates with far less to go on than that.

Really, why the hell not? It was just coffee.

"I'd like that," he said. "Let me get your number."

Melissa beamed.

[hazyange1s]

MC: Diana Blackwine

Basics

Full name: Diana Seren Blackwine

Nicknames: Di, D

Gender: female

Species: witch (and technically a starseed but that’s on the DL)

Date of birth: February 2, 1875

Nationality: Scottish and Welsh

Blood status: pureblood

Wand: vine, phoenix feather, 10 1/2 in, supple

Appearance

Hair color: jet black

Hair style: worn down in loose curls or in half-up styles

Eye color: teal

Skin tone: pale/peachy

Height: 5’2”

Body type: petite

Clothing style: rich jewel tones and cool shades (blue, purple, silver), smooth and light fabrics (satin, silk, cotton)

Accessories:

Blackwine family ring

moonstone necklace (gifted to her by Ominis)

scarf lover…like, a whole collection

Other distinguishing features:

scar over the bridge of her nose (from an inferi in the catacombs the night of Solomon’s death)

light freckles over her nose and cheeks

star shaped birthmark on her wrist

Personality

Traits: artistic, compassionate, spiritual, wise, diplomatic, indecisive, absentminded, self-righteous, people pleaser

Likes: sweets, winter, classical composers, art, theory, random acts of kindness

Dislikes: yellow, frogs, closed-mindedness, being forced to act on a whim

Fears: loss (of loved ones, of herself), change, small spaces, FROGS

Hobbies: painting, violin, stargazing, cartography

MBTI: INFJ-T

Enneagram: 5w6 (592) so/sx

Zodiac: aquarius sun, pisces moon, libra rising

Temperament: phlegmatic

Archetype: The Sage

Similar characters: Feyre Archeron, Belle (Beauty and the Beast), Katara, Luna Lovegood, Sam Winchester

Family/Friends

Father: Bennett Blackwine

Retired Unspeakable —> astronomer

Pureblood wizard

Killed during a home break in when Diana was 14

Ravenclaw alumnus

Mother: Guinevere Blackwine (Faughn)

Pureblood witch

Portrait painter and poet

Killed alongside Diana’s father

Slytherin alumnus

Aunt/Guardian: Celeste Blackwine

Pureblood witch

Owns a clothing shop

Ravenclaw alumnus

Pet: Saoirse

Scottish fold

Gifted on her thirteenth birthday

Loves Ominis’s cat Phoebe, lounging in the common room, and annoying Raegan’s Phoenix

Friends:

Ominis Gaunt

Sebastian Sallow

Raegan DesRosiers

Poppy Sweeting

Amit Thakkar

Samantha Dale

Magic

Boggart: two cloaked figures

Patronus: black mare

Polyjuice: turns shimmering indigo and tastes like blueberry syrup

Amortentia: Jasmine, chamomile, dark chocolate, and paint

Special abilities:

Ancient magic - especially gifted in weather spells (don’t mind the sudden thunderstorm over the castle… she’s just having a bad day.)

Seer (receives most of her prophecies through dreams, but is also skilled at tarotmancy and osteomancy as well as astrology)

Backstory

Born on the Isle of Skye in Glen Sligachan, Scotland, Diana was raised as the only daughter and heiress to the Blackwine fortune; a family of the sacred 28. She often traveled with her parents, as their lines of work took them all over Great Britain and Northern Europe.

When Diana was around age seven, her governess began to report frequent distractions, being late to lessons, and speaking out of turn - which caused her parents concern. She was believed to have a behavioral disorder and was promptly given a slew of experimental drugs to remedy it… with no luck.

Her father was patient and understanding, while her mother was a different story; especially when Diana grew older and still showed no signs of possessing magic.

When Diana was fifteen, her manor was broken into in the middle of the night. By the time she awoke to the sound of screams and made it to the study, her parents were both dead - and the murderers gone. This is the trigger for her magic to be awakened, which shatters every piece of glass in the room the moment she finds them. The case remains unsolved for many years.

But she gets her Hogwarts letter (as Raegan did) just after the funeral, and finds hope in what’s to come despite the horrors that follow her.

Academics

Best subject: Divination

Favorite subject(s): Astronomy. Divination, and Charms

Favorite teacher: Onai

Worst subject: Potions

Favorite subject(s): Astronomy and Divination

Least favorite teacher: Shah “asTroNoMy is nOT dIVInaTIOn”

Quidditch: Seeker in seventh year (voluntold to play by Raegan)

As a student:

Teacher’s pet without even trying to be

Late to almost every class and has too much missed Potions homework to count

Miraculously avoids most trouble (it’s not miraculous, her friends just take the detentions for her)

Future

Career: Astronomy Professor and Seer

Diana goes back and forth for a long time on her career choice - wanting to stay true to herself and help others at the same time. So, she winds up following in her father’s footsteps, and becomes the new Astronomy professor once Shah retires. She also takes over for Professor Hecat as the Head of Ravenclaw house (quite fitting). On the side (and when she eventually leaves Hogwarts for good), Diana is known to help local residents by offering Divination services such as tarot readings and osteomancy - and her predictions, when they come.

Spouse: Ominis Gaunt (m. 1896)

[marcmarcmomarc]

My version of @pmpknsoup’s post again, smaller and simpler.

This could be either a short like the ones from Volumes 4-6 so that Volume 10 can focus on the story, or something an episode of Volume 10 would include, but fade to the biggest interesting parts of Ruby’s explanation and not spend too much time on it so as to keep the plot moving.

INT. THEODORE’S OFFICE IN SHADE ACADEMY - EARLY EVENING

When Ruby apologizes for how long it’s taken to reveal where they’ve been.

When Ruby reveals that The Girl Who Fell Through the World is real, everyone is confused.

When Ruby recites the story of Penny she told to the toy soldiers, the gang, especially Winter and Pietro, grows emotional.

When Ruby reveals that the Curious Cat saved them from being beheaded, everyone grows interested.

When Ruby mentions being drugged by the Herbalist and almost giving into her past self, the group ranges from confused to nervous.

When Ruby talks about Ascension, such a concept catches the interest of the gang.

When Ruby reveals that Neo fell into the Ever After with them, too, Ren, Nora, Oscar, and Emerald grow worried.

When Ruby reveals that a grown-up Jaune with long hair and a beard was the Rusted Knight, everyone jumps back in shock.

When Ruby talks about the “punderstorm” and reveals that Yang and Blake are now girlfriends, everyone’s hearts melt.

When Ruby reveals that Jaune had been unhealthily protecting the Paper Pleasers and named them after everyone there, not a word is spoken as everyone exchanges concerned and uncomfortable looks with each other.

When Ruby talks about the Paper Pleasers offing themselves by drowning in the koi pond dam, then her blowing up at the others, everyone leans in anxiously…

…while Weiss, Blake, Yang, and Jaune share looks of guilt.

When Ruby reveals that Neo made clone illusions of their dead allies and beat her up with them, then gave in and drank the poison tea, everyone regards Ruby sorrowfully.

When Ruby reveals that Summer lied to them and left with Raven before never returning, then Raven cracks about how she told Summer, “First time for everything,” the gang gives her a look.

When Ruby reveals that she decided to be herself, came back, and helped the girls beat the Cat, everyone cheers for them.

When Ruby reveals that Neo used the Jabberwalkers to eat the Cat, everyone is shocked again.

When Ruby shares the Brother Gods’ backstory, and Nora jokes that the Tree was their mom and kicked them out for misbehaving, the gang can’t resist growing hysterical.

When Ruby announces that she’s not giving up the fight to save the world anytime soon and gives her speech, the gang congratulates her.

Starring the voices of:

Lindsay Jones as Ruby Rose

Cristina Vee as Robyn Hill

Aaron Dismuke as Oscar Pine

Kara Eberle as Weiss Schnee

Katie Newville as Emerald Sustrai

Caiti Ward as Velvet Scarlatina

Barbara Dunkelman as Yang Xiao Long

Samantha Ireland as Nora Valkyrie

Neath Oum as Lie Ren

Burnie Burns as Taiyang Xiao Long

Jason Liebrecht as Qrow Branwen

Anna Hullum as Raven Branwen

Howard Wang as Whitley Schnee

Arryn Zech as Blake Belladonna

Miles Luna as Jaune Arc

Tara Platt as Kali Belladonna

Anairis Quiñones as Harriet Bree

Michael Jones as Sun Wukong

Dawn M. Bennett as Elm Ederne

Shannon McCormick as Professor Ozpin

Additional Voices (no individual lines, but can be heard chattering, sobbing, gasping, cheering, laughing, and exclaiming, “Ooh,” and “Aww”):

Sena Bryer as May Marigold

Ashley Burns as Coco Adel

Tiana Camacho as Glynda Goodwitch

Cam Clarke as Bartholomew Oobleck

Michele Everheart as Fiona Thyme

Dave Fennoy as Dr. Pietro Polendina

Gavin Free as Scarlet David

Caitlin Glass as Willow Schnee

Mick Lauer as Marrow Amin

Cherami Leigh as Ilia Amitola

Marissa Lenti as Joanna Greenleaf

Joe MacDonald as Yatsuhashi Daichi

Aaron Marquis as Nolan Porfirio

Elizabeth Maxwell as Winter Schnee

Max Mittelman as Fox Alistair

Josh Ornelas as Sage Ayana

Anthony Sardinha as Peter Port

Kerry Shawcross as Neptune Vasilias

Keith Silverstein as Professor Theodore

Melissa Sternenberg as Maria Calavera

J. Michael Tatum as Klein Sieben

Kent Williams as Ghira Belladonna

Anne Yatco as Xanthe Rumpole

[roguerevieweradl]

Heathers Review (Pelican Productions) - 12/09/2024

Stepping into Heathers, I knew we were in for a wild ride, but I wasn’t prepared for the sheer power and presence of this cast. 

Tayla Prime as Heather Chandler was an absolute force of nature. She dominated the stage with so much authority that I found myself genuinely intimidated from the audience! I wouldn’t dare cross her Chandler—if I were in Westerberg High, I’d be running for the hills. It was a performance that oozed confidence and power, embodying the iconic ‘mythic b****’ perfectly.

Teagan Garvey as JD had some great moments, especially in the beginning where he played up JD’s charm to a T. His descent into madness was compelling, with Garvey really showcasing the complexity of the role. There were a few moments where his vocals fell a little flat, but overall, he was stellar and brought a lot to the table.

Then there’s Samantha Keough as Veronica—wow. I have never been so in awe of a voice. She didn’t just deliver; she owned the character, adding her unique vocal flair rather than just doing a by-the-numbers version of Veronica. I’d go so far as to say she’s one of the best Veronicas I’ve seen in Adelaide!

Caitlin Laventure as Heather Duke was a standout for me. Talk about a triple threat—the dancing, the singing, the acting, all flawlessly executed. I honestly can’t believe she isn’t already a staple in the professional scene. It was hard to keep my eyes off her whenever she was on stage.

Lily Horton-Stewarts Heather McNamara was another highlight. "Lifeboat" was a real emotional journey, and she took the audience right along with her. I could feel her anxiety bubbling under the surface, and when it broke, it was powerful. A beautifully crafted performance.

And then, Darcie Yelland as Martha—my heart. She brought so much warmth and life to Martha that you just wanted to give her a hug. By the time "Kindergarten Boyfriend" hit, I was a complete mess. It’s a challenging role to pull off, but Yelland absolutely nailed it.

I have to mention my favorite duo of the night: Zach Bartlett and Freddie Windle as Kurt and Ram. These two bounced off each other perfectly, delivering the humor and energy the roles require. They’re an iconic duo, and I truly hope to see them working together in the future!

Hannah Brown as Ms. Fleming brought so much life to the ditzy teacher role. You could really sense how much she cared about her News Crew… which made for a lot of laughs. I thoroughly enjoyed watching her performance!

The song of the night had to be ‘My Dead Gay Son’. The dads, Leo Sage and Hanno de Klerk, absolutely nailed it! The audience couldn’t stop clapping, and we just wanted more. Well done to both actors for a standout performance.

The ensemble deserves massive credit as well. The choreography and vocals were tight and well-constructed, with each piece fitting together like a perfectly synchronized puzzle. You could just feel the joy radiating off the entire cast, which gave the performance an extra spark of magic.

As for the set design, it was nothing short of spectacular. I loved the concept—especially how the brick wall split apart, and the two-story levels made the stage feel dynamic and immersive. I found myself wondering how long it took to build because it was just so beautifully crafted.

The lighting was also brilliantly executed. I loved how they played within the scheme. My favorite moment had to be during the bomb sequence, where the stage transformed into what looked like a disco ball for just a moment, symbolizing the explosion—it was an inventive and effective choice.

Sound was mostly on point. While there were a few minor issues with mics not being turned on in time or some effects coming in late, the sound mix overall was fantastic. Missing a couple of lines didn’t take away from how well everything sounded.

Big shoutout to the creative team. You’ve put on an amazing rendition of Heathers, and I’m excited to see what you all work on next. Overall, this cast for Heathers knocked it out of the park. From powerhouse performances to stellar ensemble work, this show was a treat from start to finish.

[david-goldrock]

[instrumental opening]

[Verse A] They found a time to break your heart, eh? And the world like nothing happened, is spinning, eh? what can I say? let's see No, I don't have any clichés to throw around anyway If it hurts, then it hurts I'm here, if you want it, you know, to drink, to pour your heart out It's hard to see you fade away And also, you know what? maybe it's too early to get dirty After all, maybe you will come back, maybe there will still be wedding Actually fuck it, bitch Come on, let them know it hurts Even for Peres they once broke a heart Man, what is he dealing with? Guilt, pity, lonely heart I understand it's a little hard to cheer up But I checked the statistics and hear me out:

[chorus] This too shall pass Like the Kinley, like the Techno, like the Crocs This too shall pass Like the film, like Lior Miller, Samantha Fox This too shall pass Like the CDs, like the Walkman, you'll see soon, yo, yo Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass

[Verse 2] And the days pass slowly Suddenly the hardest is on Saturday Suddenly advice comes en masse They all became professors at Bassa (gloom, depression, disappointment. From the arab for swamp) Look at the full glass I poured some whiskey in it, it will be enough for another hour I have no advice, because who am I? You're smart, you understand it's temporary Yeah, right, you'll be a little scarred Life is not Seranga, not everything is smooth And how did Hazal say? (short for "our sages may they rest in peace") "Love will come and at the end you will say it was luck" Until then, put the head on a dune In the headphones - Tuna's disc I need you to be strong So that when I'm down, you'll remind me

[chorus] That this too shall pass Like the Kinley, like the Techno, like the Crocs This too shall pass Like the film, like Lior Miller, Samantha Fox This too shall pass Like the CDs, like the Walkman, you'll see soon, yo, yo Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass

[chorus 2] Like the talk show, like Napster, Club Soda This too shall pass Like Netscape, like Blockbuster, Golden Channels This too shall pass Like the y2k bug, the Tamagotchi, you'll see soon, yo Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass

[bridge] Like Kapolski, like the pouch, the T.L.V (Confectionery chain) This too shall pass Like the tyrannosaurus, like the grunge, a home phone line This too shall pass Like Ruth Gonzalez, Ronen Harazi, Dana Modan Like the Skinny, the tavern, the Eden Band, Eyal Barkan (1. jeans, 2. a boy band) Like Hulk Hogan, like hangover, Michal Zuaretz, Richard Gere (an actress) Hanoch Rosen, Sadam Hussein, Bureaks films, Karin Ofir (1. a mime, 2. a genre in Israeli film, 3. an actress) Like Tel'ad, like the milk caps, the Macarena, the innocence (a film studio) Like the roller skates, Peter Andre, the Atari the loneliness

[closing] (Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass Time heals everything, it heals everything If not all, the majority and that too will pass