#she’s a great runner up!

[bearlytolerant]

Evil God Theory part 1

Hello! I have seen theories going around about who the two baddies in the gameplay video at the end are and I just wanted to take some time and share my thoughts.

I believe our lovely little tentacle armed baddie is the goddess Andruil! Below I’ll lay out some entries and photos as to why I believe it is her.

Under cut because this is a long post!

From the wiki:

Andruil was indeed the hunter. She made great and terrible weapons: a golden bow crafted from the gathering storm and the screams of the south wind and a golden spear of unbearable heat crafted from the radiance of stars.

Have a look at this spear from the concept art. I circled it in red:

From Unreadable Elven Writing codex entry:

She shook the radiance of the stars, divided them into grains of light, then stored them in a shaft of gold. Andruil, blood and force, save us from the time this weapon is thrown. Your people pray to You. Spare us the moment we become Your sacrifice.

And from the description of the bow Andruil’s Gift:

She took the gathering storm, trapped its fury in golden limbs, and strung it with the screams of the south wind. Andruil, blood and force, your people pray to you. Grant that your eye may not fall upon us. Spare us the moment we become Your prey.

A picture of said bow but I flipped for the point of this post’s sake:

Excerpt from Elven God Andruil codex entry:

One day Andruil grew tired of hunting mortal men and beasts. She began stalking the Forgotten Ones, wicked things that thrive in the abyss. Yet even a god should not linger there, and each time she entered the void, Andruil suffered longer and longer of periods of madness after returning.

Andruil put on armor made of the void, and all forgot her true face.

This character in the photo definitely seems to be masked and would be a good reason for many to forget her face if it became a permanent fixture.

More from the same codex entry:

She made weapons of darkness, and plague ate her lands.

If that’s Andruil’s dragon/dragon form those lands certainly look plagued and blighted. At first I thought this might be the same ritual spot as the one in gameplay because the tall statues match up but this area seems different with what surrounds it (more buildings here and the ritual area itself seems flatter). Make what you will of that.

Anyway, back to Andruil being our baddie on the left. I think the headpiece resembles a bow, especially the Andruil’s gift bow. But also with her having gone to the void and if we associate void with blight, her being tentacle-like/more skeleton, is very reminiscent of these characters too:

Here’s some poor quality pictures I attempted to grab of other parts of her other than her face to showcase similar features:

But yeah, she looks kinda like a blighted mage/god thing so if it is Andruil, it would explain why she looks like some of our other chatty friends from the deep roads.

One last photo is her mosaic pulled from the Andruil Goddess of the Hunt codex entry on the wiki:

While her bow in this pic matches up better with a different statue, the lines behind her could represent her void-like tentacle appearance. This is my weakest piece of evidence for Andruil but I still think it should be here.

Anyway, this is all I have for now! I’ll be making a post on the other figure too, but separately because I maxed my limit on photos with Andruil. If you made it this far, thank you!

[spicymancer]

OC DNA for Monster Researcher Eclair! Her original characterization was a lot more subdued and demure. Nagato Yuki-esque. Eventually she sort of ended up being much more proactive and earnest. Anyway you can find the original template here!

[cheecats]

TWO OF THEM!!

White Shark has the biggest, most obvious crush on her, but Road Rash cannot catch a hint and also just wants to beat his head in with a rock for being annoying

[beskarfrog]

been thinking about a dinluke blade runner au all day (mostly i just wanna put luke in fancy clothes)

[urnumber1star]

Don't you just love making aus of YOUR OWN STORY!?

(I have three for BRA lmao I need help)

[jessicatredes]

🎥 movie scenes & their screenplay 🎬

BLADE RUNNER 2049 dir. denis villeneuve screenplay; hampton fancher & michael green

[docholligay]

Hope is a good thing and we all love hope, me included, so this is not a criticism, this is just me talking out loud.

I actually think what I love about this, is not the hope of it, and that wouldn't be the light of it for me, but the determination. The tenacity. The resolve. I know that's a lot harder to work into these contexts because people are not turned on or inspired by the idea of determination, and this DOES dovetail with my belief that hope is when we believe in something enough to work for it. But I think it downplays Ahiru somewhat not to point out that her real strength is that she will not give up. She won't surrender to this. I think that's a sign of character.

I think that's her real power.

[insideyourimagination]

you know what it is…it’s the fact that will has been open about having OCD, anxiety, depression, dyspraxia and having su*c*d*l thoughts that i admire so much. being diagnosed with a learning disability (dyscalculia) and having depression & anxiety and dealing with su*c*d*l thoughts myself, it just makes me feel so seen.

[askkrenko]

Goblin of the Year 2022

And the winner of 2022′s goblin of the year is...

YOU!

That’s right, you. As you’ve all chosen to abandon decorum and societal norms this year to go full-on Goblin Mode, making it 2022′s Word of the Year, even if it is two words. But one word being two words is okay, because going Goblin Mode is all about saying screw it to rules and regulations. 

Enjoy the collapse of society, my fellow goblins, and enjoy your well deserved award as this year’s Goblin of the Year! 

[fideidefenswhore]

anyone else watching the latest of the crown?

[uhyeahnoabsolutelynot]

the juxtaposition between how joel acts in the ep4 scene with the little girl clicker climbing into the car with ellie and how he acts in the hospital is delicioso

[inspectorspacetimerevisited]

Considering the first time Rachelle D. Tavies served as show runner, the Infinity Knights had been wiped out by the Time Wave, but later turned up in great numbers,

it makes one wonder whether she’s trying to pull the same bait-and-switch on viewers this time, too.

‘I’m the last of my kind. All the Infinity Knights are gone, for good.’

[rosielovesf1]

spilling secrets on stream | LN4

what better place to hard launch a relationship than twitch?

word count: 1.3k

warnings: none!

author's note: it's been so fun thinking up little story ideas and this is the product of one of them. fair warning that it's been forever since i've played fortnite so probably not very accurate when it comes to that 🤦‍♀️ thank youuu for reading and have a great day!!

also my requests are open if you would like to see a certain story/driver!! 🫶

“Hi guys, sorry I’m late,” Lando said, adjusting his headphones as he started the stream. There were a surprising number of people online for this Thursday afternoon, but he had posted on his story that Max would be joining him, so that could explain the popularity. Not that he would ever tell him that. 

“Max is joining now.” He stretched his arms over his head, smirking when the chat quickly noticed the sliver of skin he’d exposed in the simple motion. Oops. “Is Max with you right now? No, chat, I’m in Monaco. How’s offseason? It’s good. I’ve been doing a whole lot of nothing.” 

Lando read through and answered a couple more questions until Max’s face popped up on his screen. 

“Hello hello,” Max said, waving to the camera. “How are we, chat? What are we playing?” 

After a couple minutes of debate, they decided on Fortnite. The first round was short lived- Lando got shot pretty much immediately. Now, him and Max were two of ten players remaining, but the sound of the front door opening caused him to turn his focus away from the game. 

“y/n?” Lando called out after muting himself, turning away from the screen to see if his girlfriend had just arrived home. 

“Bro, what are you doing?” Max protested, his character running circles around Lando’s still one. Two other characters spotted them over a nearby hill and started firing immediately, with Max left alone to defend them. “You muppet!” Within seconds, Lando had died, and Max didn’t have enough time to resuscitate him in the midst of defending himself. 

“My bad.” Lando turned back to the screen, laughing at Max’s distress. 

“That was entirely your fault.” Max responded, pausing to look at his phone alert from Lando. 

I think y/n just got back and she doesn’t know I’m on stream. Can you stay on until I get back? 

Even though Lando and his girlfriend were practically living together at this point, staying at each other’s homes almost every night during the offseason, they were yet to make it official in the eyes of the public. Max knew this better than everyone- often having to cover for the couple when they weren’t cautious enough- and smirked as he typed back a yes. Lando took that as a sign to communicate his exit. “Be right back, chat. Don’t be too mean to Max while I’m gone.” 

He opened and shut the door to the room behind him, padding down the soft carpet runner of the hallway. “y/n?” Her bright pink trainers were by the front door, and seeing as he could hear the shower down the hall, she must’ve just come back from a run. 

All of a sudden, music started blasting- a Doja Cat song, Lando knew from y/n's time on the aux whenever they were in the car together. 

“y/n,” Lando laughed, knocking on the bathroom door, “I’m on stream darling.” It wasn’t that he minded the noise, or that the chat would know very quickly that there was a girl in his house (he wasn’t really the Doja Cat type). If it were up to him, he would’ve posted y/n the day they had made it official, four months ago. But they’d decided to wait a bit and enjoy the privacy. 

No response still. He tried the bathroom door handle but it was locked. She must’ve not known he was coming home, Lando thought cheekily to himself. Otherwise, it would’ve been open. He gave up and retreated back to the room with his setup, shooting a quick text over to y/n that he was home. 

Lando settled back into his chair, turning the camera on. “Alright, chat, I’m back. Sorry to leave you with Max.” 

Max raised an eyebrow at the music that filtered in through Lando’s mic, choosing not to comment on it. The chat wasn’t as sly though, with every other comment questioning the source. 

“Didn’t know Lando was a Doja Cat fan. I’m not.” The ambiguous comment sparked even more questions, and Lando just shook his head jokingly as they started another game. As he died for a third time, Max cursing and threatening to find someone better to play with, the music cut and the distant sound of the shower running stopped. 

“Lando?” y/n called out, freezing as she read over his text in the hallway. Lando’s eyes widened and he quickly muted himself, sliding his headphones off. As he stood up he heard y/n's footsteps nearing the door and managed to shut the camera off just in time. 

Lando pulled open the door and the scent of coconut and hibiscus floated in. y/n looked up at him with wide eyes in sweatpants and a stolen Quadrant t-shirt, her hair still wet from the shower. 

“I’m sorry! I didn’t realize that you were streaming.” She peeked over his shoulder and her eyes widened at the rapidly scrolling chat, the viewers going crazy about the distinctly female voice they’d overheard. Max had given up at pretending to ignore them and had shut off his camera as well, only adding to the viewers assumptions. 

He pulled her into a hug, mumbling “You smell good.” into her hair as a way of greeting. She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed tightly, rocking back and forth. 

“Did they hear me?” 

“Yeah.” They shuffled over to the computer together, her almost afraid to read the chat that was still scrolling at a million miles a minute. Lando read out one comment that said “can Lando’s girlfriend fight?” and raised a questioning eyebrow at the girl next to him. 

“Heck yeah. Look at these muscles. Try me.” She bounced back and forth on her heels, hands up in a boxing stance.

Lando laughed at her, locking her in a headlock that she quickly wiggled out of. “Not fair,” she whined. “Caught me by surprise.” 

He pulled her in front of him to straighten out the locks of hair he’d mussed, and kissed her forehead before looking down at her. “What if we told them about us right now?” 

“You think?” She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, and he ran a gentle thumb over it to get her to stop. 

“I think they’re going to love you as much as I do.” She leaned into him at that statement, and he watched her eyes as she seemed to process his statement. 

“Alright,” she still looked hesitant, but brightened up as she opened her mouth to speak again. “I’m already wearing the right shirt and everything.” 

“Quadrants #1 fan.” He smiled, pulling her over to the computer. They split the chair so that both of them could sit, and she draped her legs comfortably over his. He rested one hand on her thigh, using the other to restart the stream. “Ready?” 

She nodded, and all of a sudden they were back online. 

“Hi, chat.” Lando smiled, laughing as the comments started pouring in. “I’ve been meaning to introduce you to someone. This is my girlfriend, y/n.” 

“Hi, everyone,” y/n said, sporting a smile to match her boyfriend’s. “How are you doing?” 

“Finally.” Max let out a sigh, clicking his camera back on. 

“Thanks for covering for us, Max.” The trio sat and talked for a little bit, y/n answering questions for her from the chat that Lando pointed out every once in a while. They eventually turned the game back on, y/n holding her own and often outranking Max and Lando. In the midst of waiting for a new game to load, Lando wrapped an arm around her waist, squeezing her side. 

“I’m so glad I get to show you off now.”

@landonorris: kiss me more 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

@y/nl/n: cat’s out of the bag 🤭

[hoe4hotchner]

Can I please get one where Aaron is doing the run in that one episode and the reader is at the finish line and meets the team there for the first time as his girlfriend and jack is like “yeah this is my dads girl.” I just feel like it would be a cute interaction.

Triumph at the finish line | [A.H]

𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨: 𝘈𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘏𝘰𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘹 𝘧𝘦𝘮!𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘞: 𝘕𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘧𝘧 𝘞𝘊: 0.6𝘬 𝘐'𝘮 𝘴𝘰 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢!! 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘏𝘰𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘱𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘥𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳. 💕💕

           The finish line came into view, and Hotch pushed through the final stretch of his run, his breaths coming in steady, controlled bursts. It was the annual FBI triathlon, and the exhaustion from the event could be felt in every single one of his muscles, but his determination never wavered. With the crowd cheering on, he kept his eyes forward, focused - until he spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

           You stood at the edge of the crowd, scanning the sea of runners, nervous excitement bubbling inside you. It was your first time meeting the team, and though you’d been looking forward to it, there was a flutter in your stomach. But when your eyes locked with Aaron’s, all that nervous energy seemed to dissolve. His expression softened as he saw you, and the exhaustion on his face melted into something else entirely - surprise, warmth, and something unmistakably affectionate.

           He crossed the finish line, sweat beading on his forehead, and almost immediately approached you. You smiled wide, waving slightly, feeling a rush of warmth spread through your chest at the sight of him.

           "Hey, you," Aaron breathed out, a small grin tugging at his lips as he reached you, still catching his breath but clearly happy you were there. His eyes sparkled in a way they only did when he was with you.

           "Hey," you replied softly, stepping closer. "I couldn’t miss your big finish."

           He let out a light chuckle and leaned in to press a soft kiss to your forehead, before embracing you in a tight hug while ignoring the bustling crowd around you. For a man who was so reserved in public, especially at work events, the gesture felt so intimate and personal, making your heart skip a beat.

           Before you could say anything more, a small voice piped up from nearby.

           "Daddy! You didn’t tell me she was coming!" Jack’s voice was excited, and when you glanced over, there he was - Aaron’s little boy standing next to the team, his wide grin full of delight. The BAU team stood behind him, all of them watching with varying degrees of curiosity and amusement. "This is my daddy's girlfriend!" Jack turned back to the team for a split second, still not able to pronounce his r's fully. Your heart melted as you heard the way the little boy spoke.

           Aaron’s smile grew as he looked at Jack. "I wanted it to be a surprise," he said and then turned to you with a playful glint in his eyes.

           Your heart fluttered as Jack bounded over to you, full of energy. "Hi!" he greeted you enthusiastically, and without hesitation, he hugged your legs.

           "Hi, Jack," you said with a warm smile, reaching down to ruffle his hair gently. "You did great cheering your dad on."

           Jack beamed up at you, then looked back at Aaron with a wide grin. "I like her, Daddy! She’s really nice. Can she stay with us forever?" Jack ran to his dad hoping for a quick answer to his question.

           Aaron laughed softly, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he looked between you and Jack. "Yes, buddy, she will."

           The BAU team, still watching from a few feet away, chuckled quietly amongst themselves. Penelope Garcia let out a soft, “Aww!” while Derek Morgan elbowed Spencer Reid, who raised an eyebrow with interest.

           Aaron finally turned toward them, gesturing you over with a gentle hand on your lower back. “Everyone, this is my girlfriend. I figured it was time for you to meet her."

           You smiled a little nervously, but the team’s welcoming nature was immediate. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” JJ said with a kind smile, followed by a nod from Emily, who added, “We’ve heard a lot about you.”

           “Only good things, I hope,” you replied, your cheeks warming slightly.

           "Mostly," Derek teased, giving Aaron a look that earned him a small but amused eye roll from him.

[ceilidho]

‘John price with a single mother this’ ‘Simon Riley with a single mother that’

Yeah yeah keep yapping. Now ME? I think we’re seriously undervaluing the sheer perfection that is Johnny fucking MacTavish with a single mother. He’s insufferable. If there’s an opportunity to worm his way into your life permanently, he’s taking it. My brains fixated on newly moved in neighbour reader and Johnny just comes back from being deployed and there’s this pretty woman next door and woah! bonus points! She has a baby!

He’s bouncing off the walls. He’s sick. Almost first thing he does after seeing you come in and out the flats alone a few times is ask if your lad is around. Has to try so hard to pretend to be sympathetic when you say he did a runner when he found you you were pregnant.

He’s actually spectacular with babies. Makes a point of it whenever he sees you with the kid too; always makes her chuckle, goes out of his way to prove that he’s great with kids. Works his way into it, builds a rapport so when you’re called into work for an emergency you just can’t miss the first person you go to for babysitting is Johnny. When you get back, he’s ‘asleep’ on the couch with the baby on his chest and you just don’t have it in you to wake him so you just sit on the other end of the couch and wait. When he does ‘wake up’ it’s a bit late to be kicking him out so you just offer to let him stay night (this becomes a reoccurring theme).

Starts referring to the you and baby as ‘the bairn’ and ‘his lass’ long before he even asks you out. Asked out for drinks? No, sorry. He’s got to go home to his lass and the bairn. Is he busy this weekend? Yeah he’s taking his lass and the bairn to the amusements. Frequently confuses work colleagues and friends alike because when did Johnny have time to A. Get a girl and B. Shag her enough to knock her up???? Will NOT correct anyone who calls him your husband or the baby’s dad, and will actually get upset if you do.

The moment you agree to go out with him he’s micromoving you into his flat (he’s already looking for houses). Has pictures of you and the baby up on his wall in less than an hour of you being his girlfriend. The ‘spare’ crib is already assembled. He’s already picked a ring. He’s insane. He’s in love. He’s known you for like three months. He’s already got the next like two pregnancies planned out (he wants a big family. No he hasn’t asked you yet). Actually kind of deludes himself into forgetting the baby isn’t his biological child. Wdym it’s not his kid it looks exactly like him??? I think he would actually get a little violent if the baby’s father randomly popped up demanding visitation out of the blue. Said baby’s father is not heard from again.

Anyways I’m insane and in love with Johnny MacTavish and his silly deranged ways send tweet

i want you to know that i woke up to get some water in the middle of the night and happened to check my phone and see this and i had to physically hold myself back from answering it at like. 3am.

first of all, i love you. second of all? i love this. i have been repeating "his lass and the bairn" in my head for like five hours now. johnny deluding himself into thinking the baby is actually his? that little gasp you heard was the last little bit of air in my lungs escaping before i expired and died.

there's no way he wouldn't end up saying something batshit crazy like "look at his wee little nose - just like his daddy's huh?" and you'd just be frozen staring at the two of them. maybe your baby's nose does look a little like johnny's but - that doesn't mean - is he just joking or -?

[darkbluekies]

The track runner reader fic w/Silas got me thinking👀

Hear me out okay..

Ballerina reader x Silas

How would he react to see her practice,her shows

Swan lake, Giselle..

Italian fouettés, Entrechat quatre x3 royale, Developpe A la Seconde etc

Yk the high extensions,leg holds the whole shebang

Just a thot👀

Stolen part

Yandere!mafia x fem!reader

Summary: you've finally been granted to do ballet, but when Silas sees you upset, everything turns into a nightmare

Warnings: yandere, mentions of blood, broken bones, a lot of guilt and confusion, panic attack(?), reader just feeling horrible

Word count: 2.1k

A/N: I took some creative liberty with your request, I hope that's okay. And uh, I know 0 about ballet, so take this with a handful of salt<3

One performance — that’s the deal. One single performance and then you’ll go back to normal life. You nearly fainted when he told you that you could do one dance, after months and months of begging, pleading and crying. You almost started threatening him when you became desperate enough. 

“Well … we’re here”, Silas sighs as his men stop the car. “You know the rules, don’t you? Do we have to go through them again?”

“No, I know them”, you smile. 

You take his hand while exiting the car. Silas smiles and squeezes your hand softly. It’s worth all the trouble, he tells himself. If you’re happy, then it’s all worth it.

When you enter the practice room, you’re met by a dozen other girls wearing the same clothes as you. It’s been such a long time ago that you’ve felt so … included. There’s a certain feeling about wearing the same thing that creates a unity you can’t explain. 

“Run along”, Silas tells you, giving you a small push towards the group. 

He walks over to the instructor. He can tell right away that she knows who he is. He braces himself. She can either call the police or let him go. If she decides to call the police, he’ll have to create a blood bath and snatch you back in the car. 

“Can I have a word with you?” Silas asks politely. 

“Sure”, the woman answers hesitantly. 

“I can tell by the look on your face that you know very well who I am, so I want to make a deal with you.”

“What type of deal?”

“If you don’t call the cops on me and give my girlfriend an honest chance — because I know that she’s magnificent — I will fund your entire club. All clothes, all expenses, all props, venue, is on me. Fair?”

The woman thinks for a moment. Silas know that the club is underfunded. He knows that she has to agree.

“Okay”, the woman says shortly. 

“Good”, Silas replies and waves at you to come over. 

You skip over with sparkling eyes. He pulls you in to kiss him, in front of everybody. His kisses are always controlled by him, but they always show extremely much love for you, a deep hunger nothing can satisfy. 

“My men will stay to supervise, to make sure nothing happens to you”, he says and gives you another kiss. “Have fun now, little thing. I’ll see you soon.”

You nod. Silas squeezes your shoulder, gives the group of ballerinas a warning stare and then leaves. 

You return to the group. The people who knows who Silas is give you nervous gazes and the ones who don’t look at you with jealousy. 

Well, this is starting off great, you’ll absolutely make many friends.

Time goes on. Silas enjoys seeing the wise smile on your face every time you exit the building after a practice. Every time you’re in practice, he takes the opportunity to do some errands. He always makes sure to come pick you up clean, never covered in blood. 

But one day, you’re crying when you meet him. His heart drops in an instant and he thinks that putting you in ballet was a mistake. It wasn’t worth it at all. 

“What happened, baby?” he asks worriedly and takes you in his arms. “What did they do to you?”

You struggle to talk through your violent sobs. He believes that you’re having a panic attack, but you can still move relatively well. Silas grabs your shoulders and waves at his men to come over. 

“Y/N, what did they do to you?” he asks and looks at his men. “Did any of the others hurt her?”

The men shake their heads. 

“Y/N!” Silas says sharply. 

“I-I didn’t … get … the ... lead role”, you manage to get out through your sobs. 

You know it’s silly, of course. Honestly. It’s childish to cry over not being the main character, but this was your only chance to be on stage before you’ll get pulled back into capture. You’ll never have this much freedom again. It’s embarrassing to cry about this, and you know that very well, but they don’t know how much you’ve suffered to even be in the practice room. 

“You didn’t?” Silas asks shortly. 

“No”, you cry. 

Silas turns to his men and hands you to one of them. 

“Bring her to the car”, he says. “I will be back soon.”

He disappears into the building. The practice room is empty, apart from the constructor who is cleaning up after today's class.

“Oh”, she says, noticing him. “Can I help you?”

“If you're smart, you can”, Silas says coldly. “I heard that Y/N didn't get the lead role. I'm just wondering why?”

“She wasn't exactly what I had in mind for this particular role … I mean, she's extremely good, but just not what I had in mind when I visualized the lead. She's a runner up, though.”

Not good enough, Silas thinks.

“Okay”, he says and nods. “I see.”

Without waiting for an answer, he turns around and leaves. Anger is burning through his chest. Seeing you so upset makes him see red. He would burn down the entire world for you to watch you smile. He walks back to the car where you sit in the backseat and the two men in the front. 

“Hey, baby”, he smiles and sits down beside you. “Are you feeling better? Should we get some food on the way home?”

You nod. Silas smiles and wipes your tears. His men are forced to hear how he sucks the air out of you in the backseat. He devours your lips, trying to comfort both you and himself. He holds you in his arms, letting you cry. The more you cry, the more embarrassed you feel. You’re ashamed because you can’t understand why you are so upset over it. It’s just a role, you’ll still be on stage, won’t you? Is it because you think that you’re better than the others? That you deserve the position of the lead? Do you deserve it because you’re so good or because this is your only chance? The others have many more opportunities to get the role you want, why can’t you just get one? You’ll never be seen again, why can’t you get it?

Why are you thinking like this? You’re not entitled to anything. Has Silas imprinted the narrative that you’re so special, so wonderful that deeply into your brain? Do you believe that you’re this special, one of a kind person that deserve everything because you’re so special? 

“Baby, what’s wrong?” Silas asks, caressing your cheek. “You look so thoughtful. Let me in.”

“I- … I- …”, you start, but can’t seem to talk — you can’t even formulate your own thoughts.

“Breathe, baby. It’s okay, you’re with me now.”

“I am breathing … I just …”

“Just …?”

You shake your head. 

“Just hungry”, you lie. “And tired.”

“It’s okay, you’ll get some food soon”, Silas promises and kisses your lips once again. “We’ll stop by McDonald’s.”

You get your food and you eat together with Silas in your bedroom, but you can’t stop thinking about the lump in your stomach. Why are you so upset? Why can’t you put words on your feelings? 

You lay awake the entire night in your empty bed (because Silas is out working) and think. Crying over not getting the lead role won’t make you enjoy the last few weeks in the club. Ballet is your true love, you should do everything you can to enjoy it — specifically because you’ll not get it back. You should be happy with your role — you’re even a runner up! That’s fantastic. You breathe out. Ease sets into your heart. It doesn’t matter what role you get, as long as you have fun. 

When you enter the practice room the next time, you can tell that something is wrong right away. The girl who got the lead part … has crutches. You feel a shiver run down your back. Mortified, you shake your head. Silas. He must have done something to give you the lead role, that you so desperately wanted. He never got to know that you became satisfied with your original role. Guilt washes over you, suddenly you feel extremely sick. You need to take a hold on the wall to not fall. One hand presses against your chest to not vomit. 

“Y/N, are you okay?” one of the body guards asks as they hurry over. 

You nod sloppily. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck, oh my god. This is all my fault. 

This is what you had been feeling bad about — finally you can put words on that weird feeling in your stomach. You were scared that Silas would do something to the girl that got the lead without even noticing it. If anything, that shows how close you know Silas.

“He … he did this … didn’t he?” you whisper, feeling distant. 

“The boss couldn’t stand to watch you be upset”, one of the body guards answers quietly, only for you to hear. “He made sure to get you the role he wanted.”

You’re freezing. That poor girl. Suddenly you don’t want that part anymore. The part is dirty, and your hands are covered in blood. 

Your mind is anywhere but in practice when you dance your stolen part, but your body works for you. 

Silas is standing out in the parking lot a wide smile when you walk out. He opens his arms for you, but you don’t walk into them. 

“Are you happy now?” he asks. 

“You shouldn’t have done that, Silas …”, you say quietly and shake your head. 

He tries to grab you, but you jerk back. Silas frowns. 

“But you wanted it”, he says. “You had a panic attack. I gave the part to you.”

“Silas, I feel extremely guilty. I stole her part. It’s not fair.”

He grabs your shoulders and force you to look at him. 

“The world isn’t fair, little thing”, he says. “If you have some power, use it. I want to use my power to make you happy, baby. You’ll do better than that girl ever could. You should have gotten that part from the very beginning.”

He gives you a kiss and brings you to the car. 

When the day for the performance arrive, you refuse to come out of the dressing room. The costume looks horrible on you. You can only see the other girl in the mirror. None of the other girls have talked to you after the lead girl ended up with crutches. They all know why you got the role. And how you got it. 

“We start in five minutes, get out!” the instructor tells you and basically pulls you out on stage. 

You see a lot of familiar faces in the crowd. Silas has brought as many of his men as he possibly could. Silas himself is sitting in the front row with his right hand man beside him, smiling at you. You look around. All his men are smiling at you. Weirdly enough, it’s somehow cute. They all look like they could kill anyone in any second, but the second you look their way, big, genuine smiles creeps up on their faces. Turning them from killer machines to teddy bears. 

You dance to the best of your ability. This is what you’ve been begging and pleading for. Better enjoy the spotlight while you can. You can’t help but feeling dirty throughout the performance. Silas, however, has never looked this proud before. 

The second the applauds roll in, you fall to your knees, crying. You fulfilled your childhood dream, but at what cost? A girl broke her leg because of your emotions, you stole her role … you’re covered in dirt that you can’t wash off. You don’t deserve these applauds. You don’t deserve any of this. 

“Y/N!” Silas gasps and runs up on the stage with his right hand man by his side. “Are you okay, baby?”

“I want to go home”, you sob. “Get me out of here.”

Silas nods and waves at his men to walk out. He picks you up and follows his men. 

“You did so well, baby”, Silas smiles while walking. “I’ma always proud of you, but this was something else. Everyone saw how absolutely fantastic you were. You’re an absolute badass, baby. I fucking love you so much.”

You smile slightly. It’s finally over. You’ve achieved your dream — although you wish that you never had done it — and now, you’re going back to your locked bedroom. You almost long for it.