#she looks like her father more than cressida

[thepettymachine]

It's Chanel's bday and her cake got set on fire. But she got the Perspective trait

[rose-edith]

Being a plus size Bridgerton sister would include:

•All your life you’d felt like an imposter, bigger than your sisters- sturdier- curvier. You felt less than, despite being physically more than. And you felt that no one ever really understood that.

•Your mother and Lady Danbury saw no flaws in you, thought you were absolutely beautiful, and kind and clever- but they believed you were simply crippling shy. So naturally, they went out of their way to help ‘bring you out of your shell’. Which yes, was as utterly hellish as it sounds! It meant rounds of introductions to eligible men, being pushed to the centre stage at all family functions, dressed in more jewels than anyone else. They really wanted to make you sparkle, because to them, you were already a diamond. You had been the apple of your Father’s eye before his death, and everytime Violet looked at you, it was Edmund she could see.

•as for the Queen? You may well not exist. She wasn’t even the slightest bit perplexed or excited by you. Which suited you fine!

•Anthony is SO protective of you, and following his marriage to Kate, she becomes protective of you too. Kate and Anthony stare at any members of the ton who even dream of thinking anything unkind.

•On his travels, Colin makes sure to collect for you the most beautiful jewellery or paintings or fabrics. Colin is tender with all his siblings, but he’s the one who listens to you most when you’re upset- he’s the one who sees it, and does his best to support you and build your confidence. Whether it’s fashionable or not to dance with your own sister, Colin will always take you for at least one turn about the floor; he can’t bare for you to be overlooked or be left ‘on the shelf’.

•Benedict is also your number one fan, at balls and social events he’ll often help you to escape- whether he takes you for a turn about the room, to get a drink, or to help you leave early if you’re just not feeling it.

•Growing up, you couldn’t help but be envious of Daphne, of her looks, her success on the marriage mart, her beautiful life with Simon. But as you grew, she showed you that real beauty comes from within anyway. Simon loves you too, finding you to be amusing, clever and witty. As for their children- well, you’re their favourite Aunt!

•Eloise was aloof as ever, she understood rationally and practically why you were somewhat on the outskirts of society. But she enjoyed not being the only one on the outside looking in; and sometimes when she needed an out you would cause a diversion, and vice versa; Eloise was an ally!

•and hand in hand with Eloise came a friendship with Penelope. You realised almost immediately that Pen was Lady Whistledown, but you never told a soul. Not Pen, not Eloise, not anyone. You were proud of Pen for using the harsh reality of a lonely life to create something meaningful; to carve her own career. Penelope was your friend, though she was Eloise’s best friend. She was at your side when Cressida cut across your heart with her barbs and remarks, and when Cressida “accidentally” cut Penelope up, spilt her drink or split her dress, you would retaliate in kind- most notably resulting in her perfectly smoothed down hair getting dislodged when she “tripped” over your out-stretched foot at the drinks table. ‘Poor Cressida!’ You had cried with devilish delight. ‘What an awful spectacle to befall you!’ The music stopped and everyone turned to look as the mighty Cressida crumbled. What an elated victory indeed.

•Francesca was in and out of your lives, going to Bath and escaping the misery of a lonely life in London. But she would send you music; and suddenly the world wasn’t so blue.

•Your favourite people of all to be around though? Hyacinth and Gregory. They were young, brains like sponges ready to learn and laugh and they love you without reservation. You spend afternoons drilling them with dances, playing archery, games, stealing cakes from the kitchens.

•but like all your family, there’s only one thing you ever wanted really: to find love. You just weren’t foolish enough to believe you’d find it yet, but maybe, just maybe, you’d be surprised when love fell directly into your lap.

[quotergirl19]

Lord Debling is looking for a love match and he takes an immediate liking to Penelope Featherington but he can see there is something between Miss Featherington & her friend Mr. Bridgerton who keeps a suspiciously close eye on her. Penelope assures him that they are childhood friends so Debling makes a point of telling Colin that he will do everything in his power to make Penelope happy because she’s is exactly the sort of woman he’s hoping to secure for his wife. Debling goes on to express his surprise that Colin did not marry her himself since he clearly cares for her and must know that it would be a terrible waste for such a remarkable woman to become a spinster when she’s such a rare jewel and Colin appears quite taken with her.

Colin immediately tells Debling that Penelope is his oldest and dearest friend and with no father or brother to look after her, he has promised to look out for. He insists he only wants what is best for his friend but Debling’s not fooled and proceeds to watch their interactions very closely.

Forgetting that they shared the first dance of the evening together, Colin takes Penelope’s hand for a dance and he is clearly unsettled by his conversation with Debling. He tries to ask Penelope if she thinks she might come to love Lord Debling but she doesn’t want to talk about it and it’s clear Colin believes Penelope is forming an attachment to the gentleman. He is visibly bothered by this.

When the dance ends, Violet, Anthony and Portia Featherington all notice that Colin fails to bow and release Penelope, instead he keeps her in his arms, starting a third dance which is immediately noticed by another several members of the ton because more than two dances is improper and widely considered to be an engagement announcement. When Penelope tries to tell Colin that people are watching them, he doesn’t care.

Again, Colin asks Penelope if she believes she might come to love Lord Debling and she tells him she is fond of him but does not know if that will ever become love, adding that she has had to abandon any hope of love in order to focus on securing a match at all. It dawns on Colin that Penelope is guarding her affections which seemed unlike her. He asks if she is scared to risk her heart because of what he said last season. He tells her not to let anyone or anything ever make her feel unworthy of great love, that she’s more deserving of happiness and devotion than she realizes and Penelope nearly bursts into tears hearing that from Colin of all people and she flees the ballroom.

Colin immediately follows Penelope out into the garden insisting that she’s the best person he knows and she will make some gentleman a very lucky and happy man no matter who she chooses to marry. He insists she should not rush or settle, that she should wait for love. Penelope pleads with him to stop but Colin continues, insisting that she doesn’t see herself the way he sees her. That she thinks she’s invisible but he sees her and he thinks she’s perfect. Intelligent, loyal, kind and beautiful… everything a good man could ever hope for and right there in a moonlit garden, Colin Bridgerton kisses Penelope Featherington and it is glorious. But they’re witnessed by Cressida Cowper who intentionally brings Colin & Penelope’s disappearance to the attention of Lord Debling who leaves the party but later wishes Penelope every happiness with her Mr. Bridgerton when their paths cross again after the engagement between Miss Penelope Featherington & Mr. Colin Bridgerton is announced.

[benjinoff13]

as promised, my theory about Cressida and her infamous sleeves this season

this is the first time we see Cressida and Eloise together, something about this is immediately really noticeable, Cressida’s sleeves look super normal, apart from having a bit more fringe on her coat and her hair she’s pretty much dressed the same as all the other ladies, now what do we learn about them in this scene? it soon becomes clear that Eloise and Cressida became friends over the summer (i think it was summer?) while both their family’s were at the countryside, now before i get into this more it’s important to explain my theory which is:

Cressida’s parents have her dresses designed with big sleeves to keep others (in this case mostly Eloise) at a physical distance

a bit of backstory about this theory before we get back to that first screencap

i don’t remember where or who but someone said that they thought Cressida has had “an incident” before, meaning her parents have already realized that Cressida maybe is into girls/women in a way, maybe she’s had a friendship that was clearly turning into more or her parents even caught her with someone, ofcourse they would keep this under wraps cause if they didn’t Cressida would never find a husband and the family's reputation would be ruined, but Cressida’s parents (this theory is mostly geared towards her father) are doing everything in their power to prevent it from happening again in order to make sure Cressida gets married asap, they may even want her out of the house because they don’t want her as their daughter anymore

now back to this screencap, Cressida doesn’t have the crazy sleeves yet, her father probably thought that his daughter’s friendship with Eloise was a temporary thing, to the outside world there are no two people that have less in common than Eloise Bridgerton and Cressida Cowper, everybody is surprised by their friendship and so Cressida’s parents must have assumed it was only temporary, just a “summer fling” so to speak, but they're wrong and in this scene Cressida and Eloise are seen in public for the first time, arm in arm, no shame, not caring about the looks and the shock of other people, simply, genuinely, enjoying each other company, to the surprise of the ton and the viewers themselves even

Cressida’s father doesn’t like this one bit, Cressida has only held a friendship this long one other time and he didn’t like the way it ended at all, so he decides he needs to get ahead of it, it needs to be subtle, he can’t keep them away from each other cause Cressida’s impression on the rest on the ton needs to be excellent should she ever find a husband, a friendship could actually work in her favor given it's a respectable one, he can’t tell her to not see Eloise again (we soon learn), so what does he do? he creates a distance, a barrier, something that prevents them from walking arm in arm like we see them do in their first scene together, something that prevents their hands from brushing each other or their elbows touching while they walk, clothes are everything, fashion is everything, Cressida’s looks have always been extravagant, this is where he gets the idea to order Cressida’s mother to tell the modiste “big sleeves”, disguising it as a fashion statement

the next time we see Cressida is here, her sleeves aren’t that crazy yet but noticeably bigger and broader than in that first scene, and it gets crazier from here, we see that it doesn’t quite do what it will do in the future which is to create a distance between these two, but, this is lady Danbury’s ball, the first of the season, the event of the season, the moment to impress the queen, they can’t take fashion risks so they play it safe while also testing their new technique of keeping Eloise at a respectable distance

enter the third time we see Eloise and Cressida, no big sleeves but a huge coat that flows down and outwards, look at what it does to the distance between them while they walk, the idea is working, atleast that's what Cressida's parents think

below are the next two times we see Cressida, the photo on the left isn't that interesting for this theory, one thing that i did realise in this scene is that ladies walk and talk next to each other, ladies and gentlemen make connections while dancing, they're facing each other, the big sleeves make sure people on Cressida's sides (women) stay at a distance while people opposite her (men) can still connect with her, the theory holds up (i recommond rewatching this scene if you're interested in Cressida/Eloise cause Cressida does something really cute where she leans down to hear Eloise better)

the photo on the right however is very interesing and maybe even one of my biggest pieces of "evicende", we can see that Cressida isn't the only one that wears these extravagent dresses with huge sleeves because her mother is wearing the exact same style of dress, in this scene lady Cowper says "You may think me harsh Cressida, but, if you knew the ways your father is trying to put me under his thumb... He has reduced our allowance by half." we learn here that lord Cowper is extremely controlling, not only of his daughter, but of all the women in his life, he sees them as his property, he decides what they wear, where they go, who they talk to, how much money they have, he controls everything, lady Cowper is dressed to keep other men away because she is his property, Cressida is dressed to keep other women away because nothing is allowed to distract or keep her from marrying a man

now there's this next scene, when you first take a quick look it doesn't look like much, there's nothing new about this, until we look at what Eloise does, she reaches out to Cressida and touches her arm, holds it tightly even, when you look closer you can see Eloise and Cressida's ladies maids (I think that's what they're called) in the background, knowing what we know about lord Cowper, even Cressida's maid is under his thumb, she's probably been ordered to watch everything Cressida does and report back to him, maybe she's even been told to keep a closer eye on his daughter's relationship with Eloise specifically, when she comes home later she tells lord Cowper about the physical contact between Eloise and Cressida, he starts to worry and realises his plan might not be working, leading to Cressida's biggest sleeves yet in the bottom photo

look at those things, there's no way Eloise and Cressida are linking arms or brushing hands with those tents attached to Cressida's shoulders, she can still dance with potential suitors cause they will be opposite of one another but when ladies talk to other ladies they're next to each other, we see this over and over again in the show, you will barely see two women talking and have them stand directly face to face

next time we see Cressida and Eloise together is at the library, there's something very noticeable about this photo, the big sleeves are nowhere to be seen, but in the background we can see Cressida's parents, at all other events we've always only seen Cressida's mother present but now her father is with them, Cressida doesn't need the sleeves cause her father is there to watch her every move and listen to every word she says to other people, and she knows this, she appears tense the entire scene (a combination of knowing she's losing lord Debling to Penelope but also feeling her father breathe down her neck)

look at how close Eloise's face is, most of Cressida's dresses wouldnt't allow this, her face would be touching Cressida's sleeve, that barrier isn't on Cressida's dress today, instead the other barrier, her father, came with them to this event

between this screencap and the next there is one more scene that i haven't included but is maybe most important to Cressida/Eloise, it's the "I should like to call on miss Cowper a moment" scene, now i could write a whole other essays about this scene but I'll spare you guys, when it comes to this specific theory I'm explaining here there's not much to add, what is important in this scene however is that when Eloise exits the room we hear lord Cowper say that Cressida cannot see Eloise again... but why not? maybe it's because he knows about Eloise's views on marriage and he's afraid that she will have a bad influence on Cressida but his tone lets me believe that there's more to in than that, he's so angry, he knows that there's more going on even if Eloise and Cressida might not even know themselves

we see Cressida and Eloise together one more time, eventhough lord Cowper told Cressida to not see Eloise again she has big sleeves again, maybe because he was doubtful that she would listen, cause she didn't, she talks to Eloise and spends time with her, for everyone to see, out in the open, she even refuses when Eloise respectfully tells her that it's okay if they can't see each other for a while, she and Eloise laugh together and Cressida aks Eloise a question she's been dying to answer her entire life, a question that no one has ever asked her before, a question that gives them the opportunity to further deepen their relationship, she simply asks Eloise "And how do you see things exactly?" and Eloise's entire face lights up

if you've read this whole thing you're up for a veteran's discount

no but seriously thank you for reading my yap session and please let me know your thoughts in the comments or tags

part 2

reminder that this is simply just a theory (that will probably be disproven after 3B is released)

[personality-corner]

Bridgerton MBTI

Daphne Bridgerton - ESFJ

Daphne is motivated by the social norms in her society, and is very aware of how others are feeling. She cares a lot about what other people are doing, and tries to control the emotional environment to secure a match for herself. But this extends far beyond herself, she uses her emotional awareness to help Marina, and to call out Anthony when she notices he has feelings for Kate Sharma, rather than Edwina. Her awareness of how society works, and her own experiences seeing love with her parents have also influenced a lot of her decisions.

Simon Basset - ISTP

Simon lives by his own logic, and often refuses to live by the objective rules set by society. He initially doesn’t want to have kids, because to him, that means letting his abusive father get what he wants. However, because of his logical view, he often ignores the emotions of others, and doesn’t think about how his actions affect everyone. He enjoys activities like boxing, as it keeps him busy and he also makes rather impulsive decisions to help with his Ti and his own plans.

Anthony Bridgerton - ESTJ

Anthony is the oldest brother in the family, and therefore has the most responsibilities. He genuinely cares for his siblings, but shows this through his controlling tendencies and by taking a logical and objective approach to their projects. He nitpicks Daphne’s prospects to the point to where she is unhappy, and he also refuses to acknowledge his own feelings when it comes to marriage. He is very connected to his Si, which makes him haunted by the memory of his father, leading him to make many decisions based on tradition and knowledge of his environment.

Kate Bridgerton (nee Sharma)- ENTJ

Kate is very similar to Anthony in many ways. She too, cares for her younger sibling and does so through an objective and controlling lens. She also refuses to apply emotions to her decisions, ignoring the fact that she does have feelings for Anthony, as his marriage to Edwina would be objectively better than a marriage to her. The main difference between Kate and Anthony, however, is that Kate’s decisions are based around ideas and the future rather than tradition and the past.

Penelope Bridgerton (nee Featherington)- INFP

Penelope’s emotions are a guiding factor to her character- for better or for worse. She sometimes gets so obsessed with how she is feeling that she doesn’t stop to think about how her actions may be affecting those around her. However, her Fi is also her greatest strength as well. She is very critical of her environment and is able to focus on what she’s feeling, desiring a love match rather than a security match. Oftentimes, she confuses fiction for reality, which is the main reason her mother doesn’t like her reading books.

Colin Bridgerton- ENFP

Colin is a dreamer, who is so focused on exploring the unknown and his thoughts, that he ignores what is right in front of him. It took him years to figure out that Penelope liked him… and that was only after Penelope explicitly told him she wanted to be more than friends. Not only this, but he is constantly looking at his own emotions to figure out what needs to happen. He unintentionally ruins Penelope’s proposal, because he realized that she doesn’t love Debling and that he wants her to be with him.

Eloise Bridgerton - INTJ

Eloise tends to focus on a select few ideas, and doesn’t like to explore anything else that is critical of these ideas. Because of this, she tends to ignore or be unaware of what is going on around her, and how her ideas are not useful to everyone. She is constantly reading books and pamphlets, which is where she obtains a lot of the knowledge she does, and is constantly talking about this knowledge. She also has very strong Fi, criticizing Cressida when she does something that is against her morals.

Benedict Bridgerton - ESFP

Benedict likes to live in the moment, and appreciate his surroundings. He does this through art, and sometimes sex. He has been known to participate in orgies and theeesomes for the sake of it. Unlike many of the other Bridgertons, Benedict seems less concerned about societal pressures as a whole. He doesn’t scold Eloise when he catches her smoking and instead asks her for something to smoke. He is more concerned doing what he wants than appeasing structure rules or appeasing society.

Violet Bridgerton - ISFJ

Violet’s experiences are the guiding point of her character, and are exactly why she wants what she does for her children. She is a huge advocate for marrying for love, because she had married for love, and was very happy within her marriage. Despite this, she is also aware of social rules and tries her best to encourage her children to follow them. She scolds Colin for “encouraging inappropriate conversations” when he starts joking about sex to Eloise. She also encourages Eloise to attend balls, and interact with suitors.

Francesca Bridgerton - ISTJ

Francesca wants a love match, but unlike Daphne or Anthony, she would prefer to not have many suitors. Francesca is comfortable with silence and knowing the environment she is in, and is often eager to talk about subjects she is knowledgeable in, such as piano forte. She also seems to be comfortable in a routine, doing the same things as she normally would on the day of her presentation because it is “just another day.”

To Be Typed: There will be another post, as Tumblr only allows ten pics per post, so I decided to make this post more centered around the Bridgertons and their love interests. I’m going to hold off on typing Hyacinth and Gregory until later seasons.

[dvilkings]

my predictions for the bridgerton show and its remaining seasons/bridgerton siblings and their romance stories, the order we will see them all.

all the speculation surrounding who is going to be the next mc in bridgerton s4, and of course i am hoping and wanting it to be benedict. but i do think it actually will be him and not eloise.

yes, eloise’s story comes directly after polin’s, jump started by their engagement. but that is also due to the time jump polin’s story has so that pen and eloise are older and settled into the titles of “spinsters”. in s3 eloise is only in her 2nd season out, and would not be considered a spinster yet for another season or two. and also considering the fact that it would have just been another year (2 in total) since marina and philip got married, so her children would not be that old. in eloise and philip’s story, the children are a big component, and them still being toddlers/babies wouldn’t push the story like it should. (yes they could alter it, but i don’t see that happening).

as for benedict, his story offers the perfect time jump. if he were to meet sophie at the last ball at the end of s3, it would offer the perfect opportunity for a time jump between s3 and s4, perfect for ben to have been searching for his mystery woman during that time (and perfect for philip’s children to grow in time for eloise and his story).

it also brings in the build up we have seen so far for the cowper’s. cressida’s mother’s name is “araminta” and they would not have two characters of the same name, especially one uncommon as araminta (the same name of sophie’s stepmother in the books). and seeing a little more of a glimpse into cressida and her parents, even her father, it makes sense that they could be the ones connected to sophie. not to mention cressida being such a more complicated character than the audience had thought, honestly being a good mixture of rosamund and posy (sophie’s step sisters).

it also wouldn’t quite make sense for eloise to be next to have her romance. she is still young, and we have not seen any build up for her yet (the letters, the mysteriousness that leads to her running away to philip). meanwhile, we have seen constant build up for benedict, especially after his short talk with anthony in s3e1 where he mentions he liked stepping in as viscount to look over the estate while kanthony were in their honeymoon because it gave him purpose and something to do, the exact thing he seeks for in his own story and is delved deeper into then.

people will counter that eloise’s story starts because of polin’s engagement so it’s a direct correlation. and that’s how it was in the books, but i don’t think that’s how it will go in the show. i think her catalyst will be benedict getting married instead. her relationship with ben has shown to be closer and more pronounced than her other siblings, and with her and pen’s relationship still being unsteady and unsure what will happen at the end of s3, it doesn’t quite make sense for it to affect eloise as hugely as it does in the books. i think even polin’s engagement/marriage will spark eloise to start writing letters (i see polin travelling for awhile for their honeymoon, sparking eloise to want to write letters to pen and colin as much as she can, sparking further her writing to philip upon hearing of marina’s death (probably having heard of it before polin does so feeling a sense of responsibility to write to him in their stead)).

having benedict’s story come next will also we a good segway into seeing life outside of society. with eloise, francesca, hyacinth and gregory’s story not set majorily in the eyes of the ton and society, but benedict’s have some of both, being a good start to transitioning the show to that side of this world that has been built.

this way, s4 would still center around benedict and his romance with sophie, most likely after she has run away from her home (so we will probably see the flashbacks to those events throughout the season as it will have been a few years). and it also gives some time to build up eloise’s story more and maybe hearing of marina’s death, etc.

and of course, the remaining seasons will still continue in the order of the books. in s4 (benedict) and s5 (eloise), we will see more of francesca and john, them marrying, being introduced to michael, john’s death, and maybe a little bit of the separation between frannie and michael. which will lead to their story as s6, right after eloise and philip. and hyacinth and gregory will be older (and their actors as well so it won’t be inappropriate for them to have their own adult romance stories told). so for s7 and s8, they will step into their stories with gareth and lucy

you can see i have thought a lot about this and i appreciate anyone who has read this far lmao. but i would love to hear other people’s thoughts as well!!!

[i-am-trying-my-best-okay]

God I know it's so unlikely and it will never happen but: slow burn enemies to reluctant but understanding friends to an actual understanding friendship to lovers for Eloise and Cressida?

Like, it's literally right there; first, they were enemies, having entirely different out looks and circumstances and how they cope with those. Then, when Eloise was at her lowest, Cressida once again extended a hand of friendship, and so it began. But they still don't seem to understand each other in full, moving past one another. Eloise is unable to give proper support to Cressida for what she is going through, and Cressida is unable to understand Eloise's mindset. Neither of them seem to be properly clicking with the other, like when Cressida tries to open up about her situation and Eloise brushes it off with a joke or when Eloise finally opens up about her ideals of the world only for Cressida to brush her off for a chance with Lord Debling. Again and again we see the two of them facing a misunderstanding with each other, how Eloise didn't want Cressida to bully Penelope and Cressida thought it was just what she should do as a friend, and Eloise immediately accusing Cressida of betraying her confidence when it was actually just Eloise speaking too loudly. The two can just never get a grasp on the other.

But it makes sense; Cressida was raised under a dictating father and a mother that is forced to bend, and as a result she has this constant pressure from her mother to find a husband before her father finds a worse one. Cressida sees life as a set of two choices, all of which involves a man dictating over her, in both her past and future, and her survival depends on her doing whatever it takes to choose the better option. Eloise, meanwhile, has an academic understanding on what it would be like to have a man abusively rule over a woman, and it's due to this that she develops her ideas on how to stand against this, resolving to never have that happen with her. But society keeps telling her time and time again that she must get with a man, and given all she knows about how men dictate over woman, she naturally wouldn't want to be put in such a position.

So given their circumstances it makes sense that they have a completely different perspectives. Cressida's view of friendship is essentially just being mean or gossipy to other girls outside of the group and then laughing about it, but at the end of the day they're competition more than anything. And Eloise has never had a friend other than Penelope, whom she's known for years and have a more comfortable understanding of (until recently). But, there's also a genuine desire in each of them to understand the other, and I think with the way things are going, the two will find genuine understanding soon.

Eloise probably didn't think much of Cressida being put in the position she was; she probably just thought of it as the same as every girl in the ton being pressured to be married, not understanding the actual real life abuse that was threaded into her situation. But when she went over to Cressida's house, and witnessed first hand her situation, she was slapped in the face with the reality of it, of Cressida's situation. With that, I think she grew to understand Cressida a little more, and probably get a better idea on what women go through in a family with a dominating and abusive male figure. Because yes, like state before, Eloise definitely had an academic understanding of it, and she for sure felt the limitations put on her through societal rules and restrictions, adding to her anger. But she never felt the source come from her family, not really; that was a place where she could feel comfortable. It would feel disheartening for her family to dismiss her ideals so easily, feeling as if they're not really hearing her and making her feel all the more isolated and restricted by the world, but she never felt unsafe to voice her feelings. With Cressida, I think she got an idea of what it would be like to be unsafe in your own home due to a domineering man, to have a family that at the end of the day didn't have your best interests at heart.

Honestly; with the character arc Eloise has going on, it's really sad, but I think (hope) by the end of it that it impacts her for the better. As of now, it seems she's sort of given up actively rebelling against society, too worn down by the constant rejection of her outlook, of her plea of wanting to be treated equally tossed aside so casually, like she's being silly. At least before, she had Penelope to talk her feelings out on, but with Penelope gone and going through that whole scandal, I think Eloise just got tired of pushing. So she took the hand of Cressida, tried to get more into the things she'd protested against for so long. I think Eloise had sort of this thing going on where she associated all the typical things of being a 'woman' as being oppressed, and that's what caused her to immediately dismiss them, such as fashion. And it would also make sense to form a resentment towards something you don't want to do, but are constantly being pressured into doing, while everyone acts like you're the one that's being unreasonable. I think with talking to the other girls and now trying to fit in, I think she's going to realize these hobbies themselves aren't the source of oppression. And with coming to understand the actual terror of Cressida's situation, I think she views the other debutants as more than just a part of that oppression as well. This closer look at the system I think is giving Eloise some perspective, and I think at the end of it she'll come out of the second part of the season back to being the feminist idealist we all know, but a bit more aware and knowledgeable of what she wants to do, understanding that simply knowing that the system is wrong and saying it's wrong won't provide the change she wants. I think before she thought if she just explained why it's wrong than people would understand, but she's coming to realize the system is much more ingrained then that. I hope by the end of the season, she knows how she wants to promote change (I really hope she doesn't keep this defeatist mindset she currently has cause that'd be really sad).

As for Cressida, I think she just viewed Eloise as strange at first, someone who didn't fit in and didn't grasp the way society was; she probably never thought someone would reject society on purpose, and that Eloise just didn't understand. She might have originally thought that Eloise would be easy to manipulate because of this, as this is her understanding of friendship, but when they actually began getting to know each other, discovering that Eloise didn't fit in with society on purpose, it probably completely baffled her. At every turn Eloise keeps doing things Cressida never expects; not wanting to pick on her former friend who had hurt her, visiting Cressida at her home to see if she's doing alright. It's because of just how different Eloise is that Cressida is navigating a new way of being to make their friendship work; to not spread idle gossip when Eloise tells her something, even if it puts her in a lower standing with the other girls. It all comes down to Cressida not understanding her, but desperately wanting it, asking Eloise about how she sees the world.

The two of them and their differences, while they don't have a perfect understanding yet, it's their differences that are forcing each other to change their perspective on the world; possibly for the better. My hope for the second part of the season is that the two of them form a more understanding bond. I know the two of them probably won't become a thing; it'll probably turn out with Cressida getting with Lord Debling, the two of them bonding over having difficulties with their family's, and then Cressida now having the space, resources and freedom to discover who she is with Lord Debling as her husband while constantly being away. Honestly I'd be happy if they two just formed a really close and deep friendship. HOWEVER, it wouldn't be out of the question if Eloise and Cressida HAPPEN to form something romantic while Lord Debling is away, and he's away very often and for years at a time, so it'd be a good set up for the two of them.

[mx-piggy]

some creloise, peneloise and cressida cowper thoughts because i'm drunk and bored and have bridgerton brainrot and i need my perspective to be heard even if no one agrees.

cressida is so drawn to eloise because el has a family life that is the antithesis to her own. where eloise can be supported by her family even when she is on the brink of ruin, cressida must endure her mother and father's ceaseless criticism when she isn't actually doing anything wrong. her major fault is cruelty, but her parents don't care about that; she is a failure, to them, in her inability to secure a husband.

cressida is cruel because that is all she knows. her parents are cruel to her by criticising her so much, and her mother especially cannot wait to put down others, so of course she's this way. she can't help it because it's what she knows.

but, she resents her mother for putting her down so often. she doesn't want to be this way, to be like her. part of her wants to spite the woman whose approval she innately craves. so, she's desperate to befriend eloise, someone who has what she doesn't. a supportive family. a rebellious spirit. she won't let such desperation be shown, in case it's mistaken as a weakness that she can be criticised for. she just persists, because if eloise will be friends with penelope of all people, the kind of woman cressida has been taught to look down on, then surely she would be friends with her, someone more respectable than an insipid wallflower?

and, now that they're finally friends? she admires eloise's rebellious spirit. she wishes she could live so freely, with the unconditional love and support of her family. but, alas, that cannot be the case. still, she knows that eloise is different to the women and men she is surrounded by. el is brilliant. it's thrilling.

as for eloise? eloise seems to attract cruel company. first, the ton's most notorious yet anonymous gossip. then, the young woman of the ton most known for her cruelty. but, at least cressida wears her cruelty on her sleeve. like eloise, she is imperfect.

and, maybe, eloise is just desperate to not be alone.

eloise wants to impress her new friend by conforming, just a tad. she changes her clothes, she tries to talk about things that women should talk about. but she can't, and that's okay with cressida, for the most part. in fact, it's a nice change from talk of stitches.

eloise is surprised by cressida in the reverse way to penelope. where penelope's cruelty is well-hidden beneath an unassuming persona, cressida's cruelty is her most prominent attribute. but, it is entangled with a broken young woman who doesn't know how to be much beyond cruel. it's not unlike how penelope has been so demoralised by society that she lashes out through an anonymous identity.

but, el can't stand for cruelty. so, she expresses disapproval of cressida's cruelty, and at times cannot look past it. and, it breaks cressida's heart that that's all that eloise seems to see in her. she's accused of spreading colin and penelope's secret, and she cannot help but be reminded of every time her parents have disapproved of her for absolutely nothing.

perhaps cressida shares more similarities with penelope than she knows, and perhaps that's why eloise can't help but be drawn to her.

[sweetbuckybarnes]

Are You so Desperate to Get Away From Me?

Pairings: Colin + Penelope Bridgerton

Summary: After Penelope tells Colin and Eloise about Cressida blackmailing her, instead of Colin speaking to Cressida - Penelope decides to take the situation back into her own hands.

Main Masterlist | Polin Masterlist

"You have made that high a sum?" Eloise asks.

"Slightly more, if we are being honest..." Penelope trails off.

Eloise and Colin looked at their best friend/wife in surprise. "All this time?" Portia asks.

Penelope looks down at the tip of her shoes which just about poked out beneath her dress.

"You are not paying her," Colin tells her, walking away, determined to come up with a plan.

Penelope looked from Colin to her mother, who was encouraging this behaviour, then over at Eloise who simply nodded.

Penelope had always been a daddy's girl, it broke her heart when he died, and the reason why nearly broke her completely. But in the same aspect, she was also her father's daughter. She nodded back, turned on her heel and headed out of Bridgerton House to the house she shares with Colin.

If anyone was going to quieten Cressida, it was going to be her.

After retrieving the sum for the floorboards, she made her way by carriage to the Cowper House.

"A visitor for you, Miss. Cowper," her lady's maid told her. "One Mrs. Penelope Bridgerton," she moved out of the way, so the short redhead could walk in. This was the first time she had even been called 'Mrs. Bridgerton' but it wasn't by her husband.

Cressida and her mother stood up, welcoming the newly married woman. "May Mrs. Bridgerton and I have a moment alone, mama?"

Her mother's eyes bounced back and forth between Cressida and Penelope, before relenting and retreating.

"I see you have come to your senses?" Cressida asked.

"Is this truly how you want to be banished from society?"

"Because of you!"

Penelope shook her head. "No, Cressida. You did it to yourself. When I wrote as Whistledown, I was never, never harsh or insulting. You tore every family to shreds, just because their daughter was not your friend or their son rejected you."

Cressida bristled at her words. Penelope lifted her shawl and collected the packet she had brought. After the redhead had passed over the packet to the blonde, she looked at the pound notes. "This is not ten thousand."

Penelope shook her head. "No. It is twelve, and if you spend it right, it should get you to wherever you wish to go and live the rest of your life in luxury."

Cressida looked between the money and the famed Lady Whistledown. "I did not think you would pay me, even such a large sum."

Penelope shrugs her shoulders. "I know we have never gotten along, we are more like chalk and cheese than anything else. But I do hope you find what you are looking for."

Just as Penelope was going to leave, Cressida called. "Are you going to write more Whistledown columns?"

Penelope makes a little noise from her nose. "Whistledown has caused too much pain, I think it is time to let her go. And maybe I could turn to novels for my nephew and niece," her sister-in-law Daphne's two young children Augie and Belinda.

Cressida nodded, watching as the redhead left. She looked at the packet and where Penelope had just left.

Penelope returned to Bridgerton House, after her conversation with Cressida, seeing her mother and Colin still discussing a way to deal with her.

Penelope picked up a sandwich from a plate, walked past the pair and went to take a seat beside Eloise.

"I will just have to go speak to Cressida and beg for her mercy," Colin sighs, leaning back into the chair he had claimed and running a hand along his face.

"Do you really believe Cressida believes in mercy?" Penelope asks, sitting down beside Eloise. "Besides, I have dealt with the situation."

"You paid her?"

"Where do you think I have been for the past two hours?" Penelope says, taking a bite of her sandwich, only glancing at her husband's face for a moment - seeing the guilt flood it. He hadn't noticed she had left.

She let out a sigh and stuffed the remaining of her sandwich in her mouth. "Oh, Penelope," her mother sighed, catching the unladylike movement.

She got up from where she was sitting and was just about to leave the drawing room. "Where are you going?" Colin asks.

"I was going to spend some time with Gregory and Hyacinth and then I am going to visit my new sister," as she walked away, she stopped on the edge of the drawing room doorway. "It might be nice to bond with Augie and Belinda, especially after Daphne's open invitation after the engagement was announced.

Not our engagement, the engagement.

Colin got up from his seat. "Hastings is a day's ride away, Pen. Are you so desperate to get away from me?"

Penelope looks at him. "I believe it is you, who has been keeping your distance, Mr. Bridgerton. I shall leave you to decide how you want our marriage to continue."

Penelope sat in the drawing room of Hastings House, waiting for her new sister. She admired the wall fixings and the paintings.

"Penelope? What are you doing here, where is Colin?" Daphne asked as she walked into the drawing room, carrying Belinda.

Penelope sighed gently, looking down at the end of her dress. "Colin and I are currently not on the best terms... I thought I should leave the house to him, and if it is possible, I could stay here until he knows where he wants our marriage to go."

"Oh, Penelope," Daphne took a seat next to her new sister, making sure Belinda was safely cradled in her lap. "Why have you fallen out?"

Penelope looks over at Daphne. "I am Whistledown..."

Daphne's eyes widened, and looked at the tiny redhead, who is also the notorious gossip writer. Who saved her from a disastrous marriage to Lord Berbrooke. The duchess nodded her head. "Do not worry, Penelope. You can stay here as long as you need."

"Thank you, Daphne. Are you sure you want Lady Whistledown staying in your home?"

Daphne took Penelope chin between her fingers. "You saved me from a horrible marriage to Lord Berbrooke, and you supported my marriage to Simon, as well as Anthony's marriage to Kate. Even with all the somewhat harsh things you have written, you have always tried to put your best foot forward."

The following day, Penelope was spending time with Augie in the nursery. She had a large smile on her face and laughed happily when the door opened and Daphne revealed herself.

"Penelope? There is someone here to see you," the duchess tells her new sister-in-law.

Penelope looked away from her nephew to Daphne. There was only one person who could be asking for her, and it wasn't her mother or Eloise. She let out a sigh, she had to speak to her husband - no matter what the outcome might be.

"Are you ready?" Daphne asks.

Penelope shrugs her shoulders. "Not particularly, but I do not have a choice."

Augie's governess came back into the nursery and took over from where Penelope finished.

Sat there, sitting on one of the settees was Colin, tapping his fingers on the armrest. "Pen!" He quickly got up from the settee and waited for Penelope to join him - but she stayed about a foot away.

"Good morning, Mr. Bridgerton."

Colin's nose twitched. He hated it when she called him Mr. Bridgerton. "I had tried to separate you from Lady Whistledown, because I could not comprehend how my best friend could be the most notorious gossip writer in London. But, when I was reading the letters you had sent me, I realised. You have always had one voice. The sweet, caring, quick witted best friend who have been so lucky enough to fall in love with."

Penelope took a few steps forward so she was within arms reach of Colin.

"I think, in truth, I... I have been envious of you, of your success, of your bravery. And now, I simply cannot believe that a woman with such bravery, loves me. How lucky I am, to stand by your side, and soak up even a little but of your light. If my only purpose in life is to love a woman as great as you, then I will be a very fulfilled man indeed."

[simplydannie]

WARNING: This story slightly mentions a sensitive topic (SA).

Before Mount Rageous, the twins lived in the under city: Under Rageous.

Life wasn't perfect, but when they had their parents, it was happy. Until one day an accident leaves them orphaned and at the hands of their evil aunt.

One day, Velvet has enough and runs away with her brother, where they meet someone who swears here's there to help.

They were only twelve at the time.

Their parents died two years ago, leaving them at the hands of their aunt… an evil woman who had no love for either of them. She’d ignore Velvet, which was fine for her… but Veneer, she hated him most for some reason.

There would be times after school that the twins would be doing their homework, she would come in and yank Veneer by the hair, pull him into a room… that’s when Velvet would hear the cries….

….. She’d beat him…..

Velvet would notice for the most stupid reasons too: the dishes weren’t put right, something was out of place, he was in her way… the list goes on and on. She was always angry and for some reason, Veneer was the person she took her anger out on.

One day Velvet made it worse for her brother. She brought him into her room to do homework. They did the chores they were supposed to when they came home.

SLAM!

They heard the front door…. Aunt Cressida was home. Velvet could see her brother tense up, but he never looked up from his homework. They heard the foot steps heading upstairs and straight to her door.

WHAM!

Cressida kicked the door open.

“The dishes… I said they needed to be separated in a particular order!” She stared straight at Veneer. “Why can’t you ever do anything right!” She went straight for him, but Velvet intercepted.

“I put them away this time!”

Cressida stopped. Velvet waited for her to be yanked by the hair, waited for her to be pulled away into another room. But she never touched her…Cressida only glanced at Veneer….Velvet didn’t like the way she looked at him…

“You’re growing to look a lot like your father.” Cressida said as she cocked her head…. She was their mother’s sister, why was she bringing up their dad?

…. She walked away, touching neither of them.

“Can I sleep here tonight Vels?” Veneer asked her. She nodded. There was only one way she would keep her brother safe, and that’s if he was close by.

The evening turned to night. Velvet was preparing her bed for Veneer to sleep in. He had brought his pillows and everything for a “sleepover” with his sister. He was giddy.

“Stop being so happy!” Velvet scowled.

“I can’t! It’s like a sleepover!” He smiled.

The door opened behind them.

“What’s this?” Their aunt asked.

“Veneer is sleeping over. It’s not a school night anyways.” Velvet said.

“Did you ask me for permission?”

“No. But it’s in the house. We’re not going anywhere.”

“I don’t want you brats staying up all night laughing and talking. I have sleep to get! Now off to your own room Veneer!” She demanded. Veneer looked at his sister, he didn’t want either of them to get in trouble. He gathered his things and walked back to his room. Velvet saw Cressida eye him suspiciously. She then turned to Velvet.

“To bed. Now.” She slammed the door shut.

Velvet couldn’t sleep. She lay awake staring at the ceiling of her room. The night wasn’t completely dark as the light from the upper atmosphere of Mount Rageous glowed. One day, her and Veneer would be up there, away from this gutter, this life. It wasn’t perfect, but when their parents were here, it was happy.

She continued to listen… to listen for any cries of pain…. She heard nothing… only silence…. And that terrified her more than anything. Hours had passed, she couldn’t help it. Velvet tiptoed to her door and opened it ever so slightly. She listened in for any sounds…. Silence. Velvet continued to tiptoe to her aunts room. Inside she could hear soft snores, she was asleep.

She made her way to Veneers door and opened it quietly. That’s when she heard soft little cries and saw her brother sitting at the foot of his bed hugging his knees.

“Ven?” She called out softly. He didn’t turn to look at her, he only rocked back and forth hugging his knees.

“Ven? What happened? Are you okay?”

He still did not answer her. His eyes were glued to the ground, tears coming out. What happened? She hadn’t heard any cries, any screams… was he just this traumatized…she placed a hand in his shoulder. That’s when he looked up to meet her eyes.

“V-Vels….” He murmured. Veneer clenched his knees tighter. He began crying uncontrollably. “S-she… did something to me…”

“What did that hag do Vennie! I swear I’ll beat her!” Anger began to grow inside her… she hated Cressida… HATED her.

“Don’t be mad.” He said in between cries.

“Why would I be mad?”

“….she said she would hurt you too. She told me she would lock my door and go and hurt you.” He hugged himself, “So I let her. I tried not to cry or scream because I knew you would wake up and come to me….”

“WHAT DID SHE DO.” Velvet demanded now. He looked at her with sad eyes, tears wetting his entire face.

“….. She….. touched me, Vels…. I didn’t like it…..I didn’t like….” He began to cry again. Velvet had no words… she only stared at her distraught brother…. His innocence practically taken away now. He dared not cry for help because Cressida threatened to hurt her… he allowed Cressida to do that to him….because of her. Velvet clutched her fists…. This was enough.

She stood up and marched off.

“Vels?” Veneer called out to her. Velvet grabbed a lamp from a nearby drawer and marched straight into Cressidas room.

“Vels!” Veneer tried stopping her again, tripping and falling on his own feet. The commotion woke Cressida.

“What do you-“

SMACK!

Velvet stuck her across the face with the lamp, leaving her unconscious.

“DONT TOUCH HIM EVER AGAIN!” Velvet screamed at the top of her lungs. She raised the lamp to strike her again. She felt small hands wrap around hers, pulling her back, pulling the lamp away.

“Vels no!”

“SHE HURT YOU.” Velvet began to cry hugging her brother. Veneer returned the embrace…. It really was just them in this under city…no one would dare help…. They had to get out…. Velvet wrapped her hand around Veneers and pulled him to follow her…..she ran.

Pulling her brother, she ran straight out the door, down the street. She had no idea where, but they needed to get as far away from that place as possible.

“Velvet!” She heard her brother cry out to her.

“Just run Vennie!”

They ran…. and ran…. and ran…leaving everything behind with no sense of direction.

Shady Rageouns ran the streets at this late hour, so Velvet guided them to an empty lot, free of anyone. They took shelter behind a dumpster under an artificial tree.

“What are we going to do?” He asked her.

“I…. I don’t know Vennie…. We just needed to get out of there.” Velvet looked up at the lights of Mount Rageous. “Up there! We need to get up there!”

“That’s impossible Vels. No one down here ever makes it up there.”

“…. We have to try…..”

Holding on to each other, they closed their eyes and drifted to sleep.

They were awoken by footsteps nearing them. Velvet was the first to open her eyes. Veneer woke up making a soft noise. She covered his mouth with her hands and held him close. The footsteps got closer, and closer. The dumpster was moved exposing the twins.

“Well what do we have here.” Said the voice. It was a Rageous teen, about five years older than they were. Pale skin like them, except he had back stringy hair that stuck out under a dark brown beanie.

“Told you I saw them come this way.” Next him a Rageous child, maybe only seven. Pale skin and long dark pink stringy hair fell to her waist.

“Go away!” Velvet screamed.

“Easy kid. I’m not here to hurt you. Im here to help you.” The teen said. Velvet and Veneer don’t move, they don’t budge.

“I’m Scipsio. And I know a place for runaways just like you here in Under Rageous. Come on.”

[rainybraindays]

Saying this as someone who was bullied, and who is fat, but a corner of this fandoms unwillingness to give Cressida any sympathy while stanning Penelope is weird to me.

Cressida and Penelope are incredibly similar. Their mothers are both abusive women who look down on those around them. They both enjoy gossip, they both have a mean streak, and they're both in similar positions this season.

But for some reason Penelope is forgivable but Cressida isn't?

People often talk of Portias cruelty (though they often downplay it but thats a different post) and how its why Penelope does a lot of what she does, but its the same with Cressida.

As early as s1 we see Cressidas mother brushing her off, she says to violet "My Cressida may have the fortune, but Daphne has the face." And if I remember correctly Cressida is beside her as she says this. Her mother casually insults her, in public to a rather influential person, with no care for her daughters feelings. In s3 its even more blatant with how the moment Cressida voices how she's not interested in Debling her mother starts in on how shes 3 seasons in an unmarried, how shes on the road to spinsterdom. She says "you may find me cruel" and then guilts her with how her father is cutting their allowance to justify it. Cressida has no siblings so Araminta has made every other girl in the ton her competition to a far greater degree than other girls, because while they all seem to have friend groups, Cressida doesn't consistently have the same friends. How is she able to keep a friend when the one time one shows up to see her, shes told shes not to be seen with her anymore?

Eloise is the first true friend shes had in years, and its clear through their interactions that while Cressida can be cruel, its not all she is. The cruelty is a shield, much like Whistledown is for Penelope. The main difference is that while Cressidas cruelty is open and known, Penelope is hiding the worst parts of herself. Part of this is because while both Araminta and Portia are open in their cruelty to their daughters, the former is overbearing while the later is neglectful.

While Penelope has been left alone to try and find a husband, given up on before her presentation, Cressida is constantly thrown at everyman who seems to be looking for a wife. Theres no attempt to have her actually form a connection, which I'd argue is part of why her courtships never leave the early stages. She puts on an act for them, likely at her mothers insistence, much like Portia insists Penelope play dumb for Debling.

People also keep asking "why isn't Cressida considered a spinster?" When she very nearly is? She says it herself, her mother says it, this is her last year to really have a chance. The only reason she wouldn't become an actual spinster is because th Cowpers have connections the Featheringtons don't, and are not against marrying her off to the first old friend of her father's who is willing.

Cressida has done everything she can to draw attention to herself, her hair, her clothes, they scream "look at me!" She has put on mask after mask to try and be the woman whichever man she may be speaking to may want, and has failed everytime. She is one of, if not the last, of the girls in her debut year who has yet to get engaged, or even close to an engagement, and she is scared. Anything she does in part 2, I expect because at this point she has three (known) failed courtship attempts, and the threat of a man the age of her father as a husband hanging over her head.

Cressidas been a bully, thats true, but shes also being abused. If you can justify Penelope as Whistledown because shes bullied and shes abused, but can't even find sympathy for Cressida you should maybe think about why ones negatives are okay, but the others aren't.

[thekatebridgerton]

Eight deadly sins: Bridgerton partners edition

Companion piece to my 8 deadly sins Bridgerton siblings edition. So let's get started

Kate: Wrath

I think I chose her as Wrath because its the driving force behind most of her actions in TVWLM. Take playing pall mall, she doesn't want to win, she just wants Anthony to lose. Anthony pisses her off so much during their book that her almost in perpetual state of annoyance drives most of the actions she takes and also, it is often mentioned in later books, how much Anthony dreads making his wife angry. If you ask me, out of both of them it's Kate who has a tiny bit of an anger management problem. ( She's capable of ruining Maria Rosso whole career in a pique of annoyance, just sayin)

Sophie: Lust

Self explanatory. Sophie spent her entire book acutely aware that her lust for Benedict was a particularly terrible weakness of hers and as such she guarded herself against sleeping with him with all trough thick and thin. So much that when she does fall into bed with Benedict it makes her feel like she betrayed herself and makes her want to immediately run away from the situation.

Penelope: Pride

Penelope's pride was what ultimately led to her downfall. So proud of Lady Whistledown, so happy to have made a name for herself right under the ton's nose, so confident nobody would ever figure it out. Penelope likes being the smartest person in the room, she likes the invisible power her secret gives her. So much that the moment Cressida tried to take credit for LW Penelope's pride wouldn't let her get away with it! And her hurt pride also leads her to lash out at Colin when he discovers her secret. It's her life work! She's not going to let anyone minimize what she's achieved

Simon: Vanity

He does think he's hottest snack in the room and needs protection from matchmaking mamas. No Seriously all jokes aside, for someone that insecure, he does have a very high opinion of himself that borders on vanity. Simon has worked all his life to build his public image, to hide the parts of him that his father deemed undersirable and cultivate an image of aristocratic aloofness. It's Daphne seeing past all that, which makes Simon break character and start liking her

Phillip: Sloth

More like, he was content with the bare minimum, before Eloise came into his life. Most of Phillip's sins in TSPWL can be blamed on inaction, some because he didn't know what to do,(deal with the aftermath of Marina's death) others because he was too passive to actually do what needed to be done (take charge of the raising of his children) Phillip is content with inaction, with isolation and distance. That's all he's ever known. At least until Eloise lights a fire under him and pushes him to make things right

Michael: Gluttony

I guess I put Michael in this category because Gluttony is the sin of overindulgence and he's the merry rake. Michael is an overindulgent person, not just in Francesca's eyes, but also in the eyes of everyone else. Which makes it ironic that the only thing he's had restraint in, has been his desire for Francesca.

Gareth: Greed

His greed comes in good faith okay. We still love him. But truth be told he still has to replenish his family fortune by marrying an heiress and he's still looking for the family diamonds for this reason. Gareth's greed is ultimately channeled into healthy outlets but we all know that had lady Danbury left him to his own devices, he would undoubtedly have married for money

Lucy: Envy

Like Gregory, Lucy ended up getting envy by process of elimination. Which is fitting considering that while she doesn't Envy anyone's life, she does envy the fact that they have a choice in the outcome of said life. Lucy's entire life has been controlled by her uncle while Hermione and Gregory did grow up with families that let them have a choice in how they wanted their lives to be. Even Richard has more choices than she does. And Lucy envies them for this. Not to the point of wishing anyone ill, but yes to the point of trying to make sure the people she loves don't squander the chances they got, because she doesn't get to have those chances

An: honestly this post was hard because I do think all the Bridgerton partners are Angelic beings who have done nothing wrong. Still I did my best with the prompt

[kingdom-of-sins]

Things I didn't like about Bridgerton season 3 part 2

I don't know how you all feel but to me it felt like Polin were not given enough screen time. They felt like side characters in their own season and had far less screen time than Daphne x Duke and Kate x Anthony.

What was the point of Lady Danbury's brother? To show Violet's garden is in need of a gardener? But I kinda like how Lady Danbury was scared her brother is going to ruin the life she has built. I have seen many posts that say that her brother was only 10 when he told their father she was running away, and that she should forgive him, but she was a girl who had no freedom and no say in her life and had to marry an old man against her will. She had valid reasons to be skeptical of her brother even after so many years. Some traumas and betrayals just don't heal even after a lifetime. From her point of view she was being forced to marry against her will while her brother was the favorite, had all the freedom and inherited everything.

Kate and Anthony's chemistry has been through the roof.

Francesca and John had such a sweet build up but the show just ruined it in the last episode.

I have no problem with Michaela but I was really looking forward to Michael since their book was the first one i read from the series. It would be hard to get over that disappointment unless Michaela is portrayed amazingly and doesn't make us feel that "Michael" would have been better.

But seriously, Francesca just got married with the one person who understands her silence and loves her. Was it really necessary to show that she was disappointed in the kiss and immediately started batting for the other team? They could have shown Francesca gradually being attracted to Michaela. How they executed it was disrespectful to John's character.

I was expecting an epic showdown between Penelope and the Queen...not really. But I feel like Penelope meeting the Queen before the public reveal would have been nice. It would have been an interesting scene. And then the Queen coming to reveal her publicly, showing support indirectly.

Too many Mondrich family scenes. Makes me think they might make one of their kids Gregory's or Hyacinth's love interest. I know Hyacinth's love interest is related to Lady Danbury but the show is changing things already so it might be possible

Benedict is still floating around aimlessly. At least his friends with benefits are hot

Colin gave me the ick most of the season. Was expecting a lot more from him.

I kinda feel bad for Cressida but also hated her even more when she started blackmailing Penelope. Lol Colin only made it worse. Would like to see her return to society in a more positive role.

And Lord Debling just disappeared? Did he marry some plants or animals?

Overall an underwhelming season for me. I think next will be Benedict's season and hopefully it will be better

[swallowedbyfandom]

Portia had always assumed Penelope to be just like her father but clearly she is wrong. Her youngest clearly has inherited more of her cunning than Portia had ever dreamed. She had thought her too innocent and clearly corrupted by the Bridgerton ideals of "goodness" to understand that manipulation is the most valuable skill a Lady needs to survive society and marriage.

She had believed her daughter too fanciful and romantic to make a proper match. She understands now that her Penelope is in fact a vicious creature, she is also incredibly skilled and subtle. The kind of skilled that comes with practice and time. It was remarkable. She just watched her daughter call the season's most eligible bachelor a failure and she made him love her for it. She had not understood completely until Penelope explained it. That is how subtle she was. Christ, she is impressed. To think she had that type of talent just living under her roof all this time.

Curiosity makes her accept the dinner invitation Viscount Bridgerton sent for her and Penelope that evening. The entertainment she got from watching her daughter verbally spank the self righteous out of Eloise Bridgerton makes the entire night worth it. Looking at the besotted face on of the third boy when they arrived she already knew what the Viscount would want to discuss.

Penelope makes sure she looks the picture of untouched innocence when they head to dinner. One because she knows Anthony is going to claim Colin compromised her and they have to now marry. Second El is petty and will likely be dressed like a Cressida copy. She wants to highlight the difference between her and Cressida to Ant, Kate, and Violet by making her fashion choices look as vulgar as possible by contrast. She is going unravel Eloise through sheer manners. She is going to use her most gentle and airy tones. She wonders if El will make it to the fourth course.

Eloise makes her first move by insinuating how unwelcome Penelope is. "I must say I am surprised you see you here."

Politely I inquire, "Who were you expecting? You seem to be excessively dressed for a simple meal without company."

She lets Eloise stew while she enjoys her first course. It takes her more effort than she cares to admit to avoid blushing at the looks Colin keeps sending her. Luckily before she can embarrass herself Eloise butts in. "I saw Lord Debling's carriage outside your house today."

"How lovely for you. I did not know you were an admirer of carriage design."

Eloise spluttered at that. "I am not."

She continues to return El's volleys with the bare minimum of interest and information. It only takes until the beginning of the third course for Eloise to lose her temper. She snaps rudely and loudly. "I think Cressida will make Lord Debling a charming wife."

She hears Violet sharply call Eloise's name.

Finally she lets her composure slip. Colin can do with some healthy jealousy and Eloise needs to learn to shut her mouth. "Lord Debling is a true gentleman and a deserves much better than Cressida Cowper! "

"Cressida is not nearly so cruel as you make her out to be."

Harshly I respond.

"Cressida is exactly as cruel as I make her out to be. The fact that you do not see that, clears up any doubts I had about the end of our friendship. Cressida has spent our entire childhood verbally and physically harassing me."

"She has gone out of her way since I have come out in society to spread lies and rumors about me. To loudly deride my weight and appearance in front of suitors. She has spilled countless drinks on me and destroyed any gown she could see I enjoyed."

"Just this season she purposely tore my emerald gown forcing me to leave Lady Danbury's ball early or risk a scandal exposing myself, while you stood there watching like a mindless doll. She continued to chase after Lord Debling even after he entered a formal courtship with me. You assisted her I might add. You absolutely do not get to defend that vile girl to me. "

"Seeing how far you have fallen gives me second hand shame. We are friends no longer Miss Bridgerton, you will cease your childish attempts to provoke me. Feel free to never speak to me or about me again. I am a Lady and I will continue to comport myself like one even if you do not understand the importance of such manners."

"Good luck, Miss Bridgerton you will need it. Miss Cowper is fond of blackmail ask the Duchess about it, if you doubt me."

Rising to her feet she addresses Anthony, Kate, and Violet. "I apologize for making a scene in your lovely home. I believe I have worn out my welcome here. Thank you for the invitation but I believe it is best if I depart."

Violet is suddenly on her feet dragging Eloise off to parts unknown and ordering Greg and Hy to listen to Kate. Colin impulsive brute that he is, lifts her up bridal carry and walks off with her. Good lord, his fast pace is making her bosom rub tantalizingly against his chest. Gah she has terrible taste in men. That type of behavior should not be attractive.

Her mama and Anthony are hollering about propriety, liberties, and marriage. Honesty for a newlywed Anthony is still remarkably uptight. She would expect it from her mama but Ant is a reformed Rake. He should not be so easily scandalized.

She notices Kate is now nowhere to be found. God, she is going to be the only person with sense trapped in the study with three marriage minded morons. Well, this will be a delicate act to balance. She has a plan that Colin will no doubt do his best to ruin. He seems to be showing clear signs of Bridgerton obsession and general spoiled entitlement.

She means to stay calm and demure. Tragically Colin opens his mouth and ruins all her plans by being an utter fat wit.

"Do not worry, mother will straighten Eloise out. We will fix this. You and El will apologize and once we marry you shall be sisters."

She decided right then, she will take no prisoners tonight. The nerve of this arrogant boy! She shall shame him into tears.

"There will be no apologies. I am done with your sister. I will continue to be civil in public. She gets nothing more from me. Her behavior this past year has opened my eyes enough to see our relationship was not worth saving."

Colin sits there dumbfounded while Anthony and her mama settle in.

Anthony takes over, alternately apologizing for Eloise and scolding Colin for his behavior.

"Thank you for coming, Lady Featherington. It has been bought to my attention that my brother has compromised your daughter. I will of course see this situation rectified as soon as possible. I shall get a special license issued for them as soon as we come to an agreement. My family greatly adores Miss Penelope and will ensure she is well cared for."

Her mama's brows are practically in her hairline by the time Anthony is done speaking.

She interrupts before this can go any further. "Lord Bridgerton there is no need to offer marriage now."

"Miss Featherington my brother told me he has ruined your marriage prospects and compromised you last night. We are an honorable family. My brother will do the right thing and marry you."

She scoffs looking him in the eyes.

"Lord Bridgerton, I am not going to subject myself to rumors of marital entrapment to appease your hypocritical sensibilities. Mr. Bridgerton announced at my mama's ball that he would never dream of courting me. He has since returned to society and has spent the entire season kissing hands and flirting around with any lady under the age of 30. Your brother agreed to help me find an appropriate suitor. I have spent my season courting a respectable gentleman before your brother crashed his proposal for my hand. To accept a hasty proposal from Colin now is as good as an admission of guilt to all those who claim he has taken my virtue."

"I did not accept your brother's offer of marriage last night I shall not accept it tonight. That you seem to think I have so little self respect that I would agree to this is offensive. There are no witnesses to speak against my virtue, there is only speculation. I will not marry unless I choose to."

She turns to look at Colin's beautiful face, to memorize the way he looks at her with his heart in his eyes, before she shatters both their dreams. It is a gamble she is taking. If she is right, he will fight for her. If she is wrong then it is better to know now.

Colin takes her hands. "I do not understand. Help me understand. I declared myself to you. I love you. I want to marry you, Pen. You want to be married, you want to have a home, you want children. I will give you that."

He kisses her fingers after every sentence.

"I love you, I do. I have loved you in some manner for most of my life. However, I cannot marry you, Colin. I don't trust you anymore. What marriage can last without trust? And Colin, you don't respect me enough for marriage. You would not act the way you do is you had ever truly respected me."

Her beloved Colin kneels before her once again. As she continues.

"You claimed you have wanted me for weeks and I believe you. I knew you wanted me. You have never been able to hide your feelings from me. However you wanted to impress Stanton and Fife more. Tell me Colin, did you hesitate because you were unsure or did you hesitate because it was Penelope Featherington?"

"God, Pen. Stop. It is not like that. What cause I have given you to doubt me so?"

"You promised to protect me Colin, and less than an hour later you had thrown me under a carriage to boast your status among men you have told me you do not respect. Whether you admit it or not you believed yourself above me."

"I ignored you after you made a mockery of me last year to your peers. More so when you came back like an entitled peacock and attempted to use that false charm on me. That you thought your new looks and Rake mannerisms were enough to make me fall at your feet was most disappointing."

"I gave you a chance after you gave me a sincere apology. You told me you were not the same man you were last season when you apologized. You were partially correct, you are much more self aware this season. However Colin, you are still making the same mistakes. You claim to be a proper gentleman but you associate with the most classless individuals you can find. Men whom make sport of despoiling ladies? If you sleep with dogs you will get fleas, Colin."

"Last year I looked at you and thought you were astonishing. A special breed of gentleman who honors his words with actions. I had thought you were one of the few who understood the value of a lady beyond bed sport. In short I thought you were special, Colin. A man worthy of my regard. This season I looked at you and thought you common."

"I have watched you swagger about playing pretend as a cautionary tale. I look at you and it scares me to see what happens when one tries to gain validation from society. I had wondered where all your bravery went? You spent time encouraging me to be myself all while hiding away the best parts of yourself. What is the point of fitting in if it leaves you so exhausted? You have been miserable, Colin. So I have to ask, do you dream of me?Or do you dream of the security I provide for you?"

Colin looks pained as he interrupts her monologue. "Darling, please. Do not for a second doubt my feelings for you. I love you to your bones. If I am hasty it is because I want to begin our lives together."

She allows herself to gaze deep into his eyes before continuing.

"How can I know that? You have changed Colin! I am not speaking on your physical changes. That is a minor superficial change, that matters not to me. I am speaking of your... " " I am speaking of.."

She inhales deeply before she cups his face in her hands . She lets out a whispered plea.

"Tell me Lord Fife is lying. Tell me you have not become one of the unsavory cads you have warned me against. Tell me you do not frequent the brothels. Tell me you have not fallen so far. Tell me you are not claiming to have loved me while making merry in such a place. "

Colin wraps his arms around her waist while he weeps into her lap. His loud wails her answer. Her mother, Anthony, and Violet watch appalled. She distantly wonders, when did Violet show up?

She whimpers in distress. "Oh. I hadn't wanted to believe it. You have spoken so strongly against the practice before. You warned me a true gentleman would never expose his lady to such a health hazard. What does it mean Colin, that you would risk me?"

"You have watched me all season with heated eyes of intent. Yet you never came to call. You have never declared your intentions. You did not court me as is proper, as I deserve. You have done nothing I have been taught to expect from a gentlemen who is serious about taking me to wife."

"I am no mistress Mr. Bridgerton. Yet I feel as if you have been pursuing me as one. I shall not abide by such behaviors. I have standards and you have not met them."

If possible his weeping gets louder. She has never seen Lord Bridgerton look so horrified.

"I am going to go, now. Please, release me. Your touch makes me feel cheapened."

She allows some delicate sobs to escape. Her Colin weeps so harshly his entire frame and hers shakes with it. He pleads with her almost hysterically. "There has been no one else once I realized my feelings for you. I went with them but I did not partake. I have not sought any ladies since I realized I want to marry you. I swear. I shall visit the physician. I shall visit two physicians. I shall court you properly. None shall doubt our union. I shall fix this, I swear it."

She reaches for Violet and allows herself to break down in her arms. She feels terrible that she has subjected his mother to this scene. However Colin is a mama's boy the shame of her knowing of his misdeeds will be a lesson he will never forget. She can feel Violet's tears run into her hair as she tries to soothe her.

"Oh, my dearest Penelope. Just let it all out. I will make sure he grovels appropriately. Agatha and I will handle anyone who questions your virtue, due to Colin. That Cowper girl will not be allowed on our estate anymore, my darling. I had no idea she was harassing you so. It is okay, darling girl."

She will miss Violet and Hyacinth the most when she goes. She is leaving at the end of this season either for a honeymoon or for country living. She just wants her freedom.

Her mama rings for tea and cake when they get home. Luckily her mama gives her time to change into a comfortable nightgown and banyan. She wants rest so she can be nice and refreshed for tomorrow's schemes. Also there is a ball tomorrow night and Penelope intends to look divine for it.

They sit in Portia's tacky sitting room sipping tea in silence for a while. Portia seems to lose her patience after their second cup of tea.

"Penelope have you taken leave of your senses? Why would you deny a Bridgerton match? Why would you address such a topic? Why?"

She lets out a deep sigh. She imagines, I wanted to, is not an answer her mama will accept.

"Colin expected to be my husband but has done nothing to earn me. I will not have him until I feel he has atoned for his previous mistakes. He has had years to open his eyes and see me. That he did not notice me before is not a crime. That he noticed me and carried on like a coward is."

Her tone is more callous the longer she speaks. Frankly she doubts her mama wants to hear that she brought up Colin's whoring to deflect attention from letting him pleasure her in the back of a carriage. No. She shall keep that secret to the grave.

"I do not care for the company he keeps. Now that he knows that company is responsible for making him lose my esteem he will associate with them no longer. Plus Lord Fife has been working against him for years and Mr. Bridgerton is too naive to notice. I was providing him that notice. While also knocking him off his high horse." "Really mama it is a multipurpose attack. I torn him down with the shame of his own actions because his actions were shameful to me. His actions will reflect poorly on me. I will not marry some whore monger. He has always prided himself on being the perfect gentleman."

She shrugs her right shoulder, carelessly. "He is not perfect. He is just a man. He needed to be humbled. Frankly, he was getting too arrogant, too comfortable."

Her mother seems to evaluate her forever before dismissing her. She heads to her bed chambers with her mother's cackles ringing through the door. Dash it all. She will lock her door and windows and sleep this evening off.

[joulex]

Predictions for bridgerton s3 part 2 from someone who hasnt read the books but vaguegly knows what happens

- im kind of conflicted on lady w, cause it would make a change in the show if penelope were to quit as she does in the books, but given that penelope wont be as prevalent in the show moving foward, it leads me to believe that they would stick to it? Idk if thet would revele it, maybe they come to some agrement with the queen so that in order for her to not be like shamed in society, she will not tell everyone that penelope is lady w if she quits and they can move foward from there

-prudence (i think thats her name) will be revealed to be a lesbian or some kind of gay. she looks so sad whenever shes kissing her husband and shonda has talked about exploring queer stories and as much i would like it to be cressida and eloise i asume they would go that route

-i kind of want to see colin find out about lady w once hes already married to penelope maybe, i think it would be boring if they were to interrupt ANOTHER WEDDING

-cressida blackmailing penelope somehow with lady w as a revenge for lord debling maybe. And the stress of that, eloise, colin, etc, is what will make her pass out at the engament party (if im guessing correctly by the clips)

-Im basing this of a tiktok i saw about the actor being credited on part 2 buuut theo makes a comeback, maybe helping penelope in one last big lady w blast, or (most likely) after the queen does the reward for finding put who lady w is so maybe eloise tells cressida about the printer thing she discovered in s2 and cressida goes there and finds theo. Im going insane

-i personally believe benedict season is next bc it has been a long time and idk how much longer than they show him painting, fucking, etc, etc without getting repetitive, and this is my theory on how he meets sophie: theres the mascarede ball (if i remeber correctly that how he meets sophie) at the end of the season, after polin wedding, the woman he was fucking i dont remeber her name, stops talking to him or they get in a fight of some kind and benedict wants to get her back, so he goes to the ball and he thinks that its that woman and they somehow end up dancing and hes startruck bla bla you know the drill. The dance is over, sophie runs off and benedict, still beliving shes the other woman chases her BUT stops when he stumbles INTO THE WOMAN AND REALISES THAT THE GIRL HE WAS DANCING WITH IS SOMEONE ELSE, AND CANT STOP THINKING ABOUT IT. This is more of a fanfic concept and theory rather than a prediction but i needed to share it. (I realize now that this theory does mot make sense given the speculative actress that is going to play sophie, but i took so much time writing that im going to left it here)

The other option is that the lady is sophies stepmother and she says that shes running out of money or something so she marries so that she doesnt go broke and breaks things off with benedict and he sees sophies father with the lady and bumps into sophie, whose there with her father, so to make the lady jealous dances with sophie but they end up getting along and benedict is starstruck but he asks for her name she runs off(? Bc of something idk im not that creative and bc this is taking place in a mascarade ball, benedict doesnt know neither her name or her face. So s4 will have benedict after a time jump of a year o more maybe (he forgot her voice idk) with a conflict between the lady, bc he genuenly liked her, and getting to know sophie and the strange memory of her in that dance.

- i think francesca will get engaged by the end of the season or will be very close to it.

Anyways i almost wrote a s4 script in this more than imagining what will happen in part 2 but oh well :)

[girllookingoutwindow]

Rewatching thoughs of 3x06:

Portia chaperoning Polin is a hell of fun.

I like Luke Newton acting but the way he always enters in the rooms always make me feel off. Like, that I can't believe it. Lmao.

The ring and the tint in her hand was beautiful. Like LW was between them, and part of the holly matrimony as well.

Sheeps are better than the old man, Cressida.

Why Violet dress looks same that the flowerpots?

Love siblings fight. Eloise is right, Gregory it's the best brother.

Very small? You're going to marry? What's small about that?

It's not just gossip Eloise. Maybe Pen was just a teenager that more power she understood but LW is a part of her. I know what writing means. You cannot ask a writer to stop, it's like asking to kill a part of their soul. A part that even you Eloise love.

I love the Queen. She reminds me my piano teacher where I was a kid trying to look angry with me.

Prudence being hormonal and jealous it's fun.

Portia is the best character of this show. After Penelope of course.

Dreams? She's right. Maybe I will do a set of gifs of that. Portia has the right feeling. Better than me? The majority of parents are worst than that.

I love Benedict, but I never like what the show does with him. Idk. He deserves better.

Torture Colin? Maybe it's because you can't accept it?

What the story about the club? I never understood what they were trying to do with them?

Ah, Polin looks so cute in the chapel. Hate when shows do the the reason to not marry thing. It's so lame.

Lady D / cockblock

She says she loves him and he looks happy but he doesn't believe him. Love Polin dancing, cute.

Cressida saying to Eloise the same Penelope did. Ohhh.

I want to eat chocolate now Mr Finch. Bad idea.

I don't understand why they destroyed Francesca story that way. Violet was right after all.

Pen, don't destroy them. 🥺

She said to him that she loved him and now he writes again. Colin is so a wife.

I liked green more, Portia.

You cannot stop writing, she's right. Love her friendship. She had the most beautiful dress.

Why Cressida father is always screaming? It looks like someone that doesn't go to the toilet frequently.Cressida doesn't know how to write, what suprise!

Tilly is beautiful.

Colin is searching for Pen. Don't worry boy, she's going to be there. I love that he's always searching for her.

Oh , Prudence! You don't need a reason to cry.

The flowers wer cool. The bugs were better. LW won.

Dancing again! They're that couple that always dance together.

Violet is bad in lying. Why changed Fran story? I liked the idea of slow love.

Lady D and Eloise are jealous sisters. He was a child, but I understand her, maybe blaming him was a way to protect herself of the pain.

Paul is very direct. Don't waste any time.

And still dancing. Cute. I love the colour of Cressida 's dress but it looks cheap. Where is Fife? I wanted someone to punch him!

Polin problems with the dancing? Foreshadowing and writing conflict. Worth it of you? I forget adding that part today.

I love how LW has so many fans. The Q is me when one of my students tries to cheat in a test.

Oh worry Colin!!! The drama!!!

Eloise and Penelope are a chaotic duo. I knew Pen wouldn't be able to stop writing, it's more strong than her. Yes, it's about having a voice. But the smile in her face. She feels alive again.

Colin!? Soap opera! I don't know but I can't take Luke seriously when he's trying to look angry. Makes me laugh every time.