#sophie will be the one who's trigger-crazy

[jewishicequeen]

Every time someone makes a Howl's Moving Castle AU I have to physically remind myself they're not doing it about the book.

Anyhow, if your Sophie isn't ready to murder people she's not a good Sophie

[thekatebridgerton]

More humorous takes about the Bridgerton brothers that make me laugh is that I cannot stress enough, how much I love their 'unhinged for wife' energy. Because it's just so funny

Anthony, like, you can see it, he's not even trying to hide it, he can and will be a meanie to his nemesis Kate who he also happens to love more than life itself, and to everyone if they don't fall in line. that's his whole mojo. People meet him and know at first glance that Anthony Bridgerton will not hesitate to use a gun if the occasion calls for it, because he outright intimidates people into submission. So good luck trying to mess with him or with his wife. He will end you. Have you seen him play against his wife in Pall Mall. He loves her, but he will not lose to this woman! She will one day respect him!. He's the boss of the house dammit (he's not, it's Kate, but she lets him think he is)

Colin is my favorite. because he looks nice and he looks friendly, and he would totally sink to the deepest of the low to have Penelope the moment he kissed her. This man is absolutely as unhinged as Anthony possibly more so, and he hides it so well, that everyone thinks he's the most charming brother. In fact the only person who knows how crazy Colin really is, has to be Penelope. Colin can talk his way out of anything (even a murder sentence. Do you ever wonder why nobody has ever sued Penelope for defamation? Because I sure don't), he's a people person. It's maddening, I want to convince people that Colin is the worst of the worst, and people are still like 'but he looks like such a harmless guy, just look at him eat that eclair' yeah! I know! that's how he got to Penelope! he was all cute, pretending to be nice and by the time she discovered he was the devil in disguise, he already had blackmail material on her!!. Men like Colin scare me, because I know he's bats*t but I just can't prove it.

Benedict and Gregory are just the same version of unhinged, just in a different font. Because they actually believed themselves to be the sane ones and then they met their true loves and you see that sanity? it went out the window.

Benedict used to think he was such a gentleman, who respected ladies and would never dishonor one, and guess what kind of obsessive idiot he turned into the moment Sophie said 'no' to his seduction tactics, be my mistress this, be my mistress that, Sophie ( and I) just knows Benedict's thought process alone should be landing him in jail instead of her, but he gets away with it, because apparently annoying her to death doesn't actually count as a crime. And the thing is, that she's the only one who triggers the crazy in Benedict, he's perfectly sane with everyone else, but it's her and only her who has him going all naked swimming in the lake, and obsessive paintings of her face plastered on all his sketchbooks (and his home, actually I'm pretty sure Benedict has a secret Lady in Silver shrine somewhere in My Cottage, that he took down before Sophie could find out about it) , not to mention his whole 'F society if I can't f Sophie' love at first sight excuse that somehow everyone swallows without questioning how crazy Benedict actually is.

And then he had to go teach that to Gregory! And Gregory was such a sweetheart, I actually thought he was going to make it to half of his book without going unhinged and then Lucy tells him the name of her fiancee and he goes ' wait, I know the guy, he's super gay, I can't let you marry him... ' my brother in the force what is your problem! Leave the girl alone. She's your friend, stop stalking her, she's got her own problems to deal with!! Lucy did nothing to deserve how Gregory randomly went from nice guy she was super supportive of in the courtship of her best friend, to kinda obsessive dude who won't leave her alone and wants to ruin her arranged marriage (let's ignore that said arranged marriage needed to be ruined and it might as well be by him). Guy was a green flag for Hermione but the moment he began fixating on Lucy, homegirl kinda saw the light and was like ' he's crazy, yup, totally mad.. about me sure, but this guy... He's never been told no in his life and it shows, it shows for miles'

And I just laugh so hard because people look at Anthony's fed up face and somehow think that he's the worst to fear in in the Bridgerton family. But nobody knows just how crazy his brothers are, except their wives. At this point Anthony's resting B face has to be some sort of defense mechanism because he had to grow up with Benedict and Colin while trying to raise Gregory. He may look intimidating but he's actually a reasonable man if you think about it. But his brothers, those three are just hiding their unhinged for wife energy a lot better. And you just don't want to know what kinda chaotic crazy thing they're capable of doing if they think it would impress Penelope, Sophie and Lucy

And that's the tea.

[bridgertonbabe]

I’m popping this here in case you get the urge

But the great Cluedo incident of ‘19…

I need to know what happened!!

BSSG Group Chat

Penelope: So other than all of that

Penelope: How did you enjoy your first game night @ Phillip @ Michael?

Michael:

Phillip: ⬆⬆⬆

Michael: To say I didn't enjoy a single second of last night would be an understatement

Simon: Yeah sounds about right.

Phillip: I can't lie.

Phillip: I did google how to go about getting a restraining order.

Penelope: Honestly Phil that's fair

Simon: I did the same thing after my first game night with them

Phillip: Did you actually go through with it?

Simon: I really was on the verge of it ngl

Simon: But alas, I knew it would be far more trouble than it's worth.

Simon: And besides I should have known what I was marrying into after my first game of pall mall 💀

Penelope: And look as much as we love you guys, if the events of last night were enough to scare you off we'd completely and whole-heartedly understand if you wanted to go NC with the rest of the fam.

Phillip: Just one question

Phillip: Is it just game nights and pall mall that sets them all off like that?

Michael: Yeah we really need to know now if they're triggered like that by anything else

Michael: Because if so...

Simon: It's only anything competitive that sets them all off in that way.

Simon: You have my word on that.

Penelope: ⬆⬆⬆

Penelope: Yes and they're particularly at their worst when they're playing as a family.

Penelope: They really know how to push each others buttons but none of them know when to draw the line

Michael: Yeah no shit

Michael: I managed to pick up on that last night when I was trying to put out an actual fucking fire

Simon: I do have to say that last night was an all time low

Simon: They really were all at their absolute worst

Simon: Even I didn't think they could collectively be that bad, especially after the Pictionary incident of '16

Phillip: I mean I guess it's somewhat of a relief to hear that last night wasn't just a bog standard Bridgerton game night

Phillip: Though from the way you guys are talking about it and now with the mentioned "Pictionary incident", it seems their game nights are always a cause for concern and never fun in general

Michael: Very that

Kate: What?!

Kate: What are you talking about?

Kate: Of course game nights are fun!

Penelope:

Simon: Kate

Simon: Are you actually insane

Kate: Just because last night got a little bit crazy doesn't mean game nights on the whole aren't fun!

Phillip: A little bit crazy????

Penelope: Kate multiple people had to go to hospital last night

Kate: Yeah and?

Kate: It's not like it's the first game night we've ended up in A&E

Michael:

Michael: What do you mean this isn't the first game night that you've ended up in A+E?????

Phillip: ⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆⬆

Phillip: ???????????????

Penelope: Kate 2 casualties as a result of a Bridgerton game night is to be expected but 9 is still nine more than any of us would like

Michael: 2 casualties...

Michael: 2 CASUALTIES IS TO BE EXPECTED?!?!?!?

Phillip: I

Kate: Omg Pen it wasn't 9 casualties

Kate: The doctors were just covering their arses with keeping most of them in over night

Kate: They were fine

Simon: They had smoke inhalation Kate

Michael: Your husband had his eyebrows burnt off

Penelope: Which is what happens when you and Anthony throw a tandem strop and set the kitchen alight

Kate: Objection!

Kate:

Kate: If you want to point the finger at who caused the fire then look no further than your wife @ Simon

Simon: First of all I wasn't pointing fingers

Simon: And secondly I was too busy trying to stem Greg's bleeding to notice the fire happening or who caused

Kate: Deflect all you want but your wife was the firestarter 🔥🔥🔥

Kate: The number of casualties was only so high because of her

Penelope: God I just hope Sophie's ok

Michael: Yeah ngl she's the only one I'm concerned for

Kate: I'm sure she's perfectly fine

Kate: Seriously you guys need to chill

Kate: I don't know why you're all being so negative about last night

Phillip: HYACINTH BOUGHT A FUCKING SWITCHBLADE TO A GAME NIGHT

Michael:

Kate: Omg why are you so mad?

Kate: It's not like she attacked you

Phillip: Oh and I should be so fucking grateful should I???

Phillip: That after attacking 3 others Anthony wrestled it off of her before she could get to me????

Michael: Who tf even let her have a switchblade in the first place???

Penelope: I did tell Colin he'd live to regret getting it for her

Phillip: And he got it for her because?!?!

Penelope: It was the one thing she asked him for when he was in Japan and he thought she just wanted it for ornamental reasons even though I explicitly warned him that definitely wasn't the case

Sophie sent a photo

Sophie sent a photo

Penelope: Omg Sophie!!!!

Penelope: 😍

Sophie: Everyone, meet Alexander 💙

Simon: Oh thank god, congrats Soph! x

Michael: Aw made up for you Soph, he's a right lil beauty! 😘

Phillip: Congrats Sophie 🤗

Penelope: He's so beautiful 🥰 how did it go?

Sophie: As smoothly as it could be considering he's 3 weeks early

Michael: I have to say Ben's rocking that eye patch

Sophie: I mean it's not exactly the get up I expected our son to meet his dad wearing but c'est la vie

Simon: How's Charlie finding being a big brother?

Sophie: I think he's more delighted with his dad looking like a pirate than with his baby brother tbh

Sophie: He very excitedly went to his dress up box and put on his pirate costume so he could be just like his daddy and refused to take it off when we were taking photos of him with Alex.

Sophie sent a photo

Penelope: Oh bless him he looks pleased as punch

Sophie: He couldn't hand Alex back to me fast enough so he could have a sword fight with Ben and make him walk the plank

Phillip: Btw just wanted to say Sophie that I'm really sorry that El accused you of faking your water breaking just to get out of the game.

Penelope: I'm sorry on Colin's behalf too Soph

Sophie: It's ok guys, I appreciate it and besides you were the ones who called the ambulance for me.

Simon: Unlike someone.

Michael: @ Kate

Kate: Omg Alex is absolutely gorgeous, congrats Soph! x

Simon: ...

Simon: Anything else you'd like to say?

Penelope: Yeah any apology to extend?

Kate: Ok ok ok

Kate: Sophie I know I didn't believe you were in labour and refused to call an ambulance

Kate: But from my side of things it just seemed really convenient that your contractions started just as you were losing

Michael: This isn't an apology???

Simon: Your newborn nephew isn't evidence enough that you were clearly in the wrong???

Kate: Ok fine I'm sorry for not calling an ambulance when you needed it Sophie!

Sophie: K.

Kate: But I will add, who's to say she didn't fake contractions and then get induced once she got to the hospital?

Sophie has left the chat.

Michael: Jesus fucking Christ

Simon has removed Kate from the chat.

Simon has added Sophie to the chat.

Simon: Don't worry I removed her.

Sophie: Thanks Simon x

Phillip: One more question.

Phillip: Did the Bridgertons corrupt Kate to be like that or was she god forbid like that anyway?

Penelope: Unfortunately Kate married in being equally as deranged as them in any competitive setting 😔

Michael:

Simon: Very that.

[jokeson-u]

So I was thinking about the part of Sophie's interview where she mentions that the town thinks she killed her father. And I feel like the school/town could generally be split into two factions in the wake of the news of Natalie's dad's death spreading.

#1: People who were aware on some level that Natalie's dad was abusive. This division has two subsections:

A. they think that maybe she did it, but they don't necessarily blame her/think she's crazy because of it. Some are avid believers that he had it coming, others just don't think she should be crucified for being an abused kid who maybe had enough or did it in self-defense. Van, Lottie*, and Taissa types.

B. they'd rather not think about it too hard, and find it easier to go along with the rumors. This ranges from actively participating in rumors, to being a passive listener. Mari, Jackie, and Shauna (mostly out of influence, otherwise she'd be in subcat A- but usually, she's a silent listener in these moments) types. I'd say most of the school is split between this, and the 2nd/final category below.

#2: People who didn't register any abuse and think she's some psycho junkie or whatever. This would largely be peers who were engrossed in themselves and their friends, and townsfolk who only knew of the Scatorccio family by word of mouth.

*I'd also like to say that I think Lottie knew Nat didn't kill him. We know that Lottie had a level of clairvoyancy even on her meds pre crash. I don't think she knew the details, but I think she had a very strong 'gut feeling' that the gun went off in front of Natalie, but she wasn't the one who pulled the trigger. She can't speak on that without further questioning from people, and she can't confirm it, obviously, without asking Natalie directly. But that's part of why she's in the first subsection of #1.

Also, I didn't mention Laura Lee because I think she's her own category lol. She tried remaining neutral, but strongly condemn murder, but also wanted to like. Let Natalie know she can be 'absolved of her sins,' especially because her father wasn't a 'holy man' LMAO. She was warned not to say any of that and does her best not to 💀

[yutahoes]

Polarity

Teaser -Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four

characters: mafia boss! Yuta Nakamoto x innocent! florist! reader

summary: While running away, you seemed to be moving closer to the man you were avoiding. Are you even heading to the right direction?

chapter word count: 2.5 k words

chapter genre: suggestive, a little fluff, a little angst

chapter warning: descriptive dirty thoughts (MC is down bad), alcohol, nightclub, a little jealousy? (but you didn't hear it from me)

a/n: Posting early because of the Yuta cover from Cut Magazine. I don't know where this is going but I hope you'll like this chapter.

There are a lot of triggers that don't sit well with minors so please keep in mind that some scenes are disturbing and purely fictional. Inspired by Koi to Dangan.

taglist: @sourirensoleille @kyuprincess @nuoyipeach @anonjyxd @a-bts-world @a-place-filled-with-random @smolbeanieee @yumilovesavocado @imnotsureokay @dhaly-g @spicyryujin @doodoodove @blueeyedlove-blog1 @kosmoreads @joepomonerof @calipsou @yutadae @juungvely @hangyeomcult @cherrphoenix @itsyntt

“Y/N,”

He whispered against your ear causing the hairs behind your neck to rise up in goosebumps. His lips hovering above you, his breathing hot and rugged. “Y/N…” You didn’t know your name could sound that erotic.

His scent engulfs your senses: the mixture of musky cologne, sweat, and the pungent smell of blood. The feel of his tongue on the side of your neck ignited a fire inside of you. His fingertips against your skin feel so hot that it burns where he touches you.

“Y/N, I want you.” 

You opened your eyes followed by a loud gasp as if your breathing was knocked out of you. You feel feverishly hot, sweat soaking your body. What was that about? You breathed heavily at the vivid image of the mafia boss from your dreams. His black hair, his piercing eyes, his red lips, his tongue. Wait, hold up. Do not think of that last thing, Y/N. 

But it feels so real. 

You glanced at the spot on the back of your hand, the spot where he licked the salt from before, and felt it pulsating. Why does your skin still remember how soft his tongue is? 

And when you close your eyes, you can see his smile and hear his laugh. The ringing of his voice calling your name kept repeating in your ear as if it were an illusion.  

This is so crazy. He’s making you crazy. 

This is bad.  So bad.

“You look bad,” You stared at Sophie in surprise. Is it that obvious that you had a sleepless night because of Yuta? You sighed, maybe it is. “Are you not comfortable with working in the club?”  

Frantically, you shook your head. It was the opposite, rather. You were never that close with a lot of girls before. The waitresses were so kind to you, always complimenting and saying that you’re doing a great job. The hostesses were also friendly to you, except for Lexi who seemed to hate you so much. But then, like what Aeri claims, she does hate everyone. “I’m just too occupied lately.“

“Is it a guy?” Yes. “A customer in the club?” Yes. And he’s a mafia boss. “Don’t tell me it’s your dad again.” 

You smiled then nodded. Another white lie. Ever since you met Yuta, you have been lying a lot.

And you were reminded of him once again. 

A sigh escaped your lips as you shook your head, trying to focus and desperately staying away from the thought of him. 

You might have the power of attraction. First, when you considered selling yourself, you were almost kidnapped and sold. Second, when you needed a high-paying job, you found Sophie’s friend which is Aeri. 

Then, there’s Yuta Nakamoto. 

You were so guilty of the dirty intrusive thoughts forming in your mind that you cannot look him in the eye. Why is he even here today? Normally Mark will accompany the young girl or the kind middle-aged lady who you saw with her back in the mansion. Why is the mafia boss with her today? 

Sophie was the one entertaining them and you were just standing by the counter, trying your very best to not look at him. 

But how can you do that when he’s wearing an all-black ensemble with his leather jacket and a tight-fit shirt that highlights his chest? How can he look so good in those clothes?  

He’s just a typical customer, Y/N. He’s not the guy you were dreaming about. 

But you’re having a hard time convincing yourself when he turned to you holding jasmines and lavenders. It’s not the clothes, you thought. He does look good. Too good. 

Focus, Y/N. 

Your eyes wandered to the little girl looking at you with a beaming smile on her face. If only you can speak to her. Immediately, you took a piece of paper and wrote ‘Hi, do you want to pack the flowers with me?’ and then showed it to her. You noticed that during the first three times she entered the shop, she watched you carefully pack the flowers she ordered. The next time, with the help of Mark, she was resting her elbows on the counter where you were working. 

The young girl looked at the man she was with then smiled when he nodded at her. Excitedly, she ran to your side and you prepared a small chair for her to stand on. You didn’t actually know her name but it would be weird to ask for it. All of them, Mark and the older woman who sometimes come with her, just refer to her as ‘young lady’. So maybe you’ll just settle on that. Besides, you’re not in the position to ask about it anyways. 

You gestured at the wrapping papers, wanting to ask for her choice of color but she only gave you a confused look. It would be nice if you speak the same language. Quickly, you scribbled on the paper asking her what color she wanted for the paper and the ribbon. She chose a light pink wrapping paper and white ribbon which perfectly compliments the combination of violet and white flowers they chose. A smile escaped your lips as you watched her little fingers put the ribbon around the bouquet. These are very fragrant flowers and the color fits so well with her white dress. 

“You look so pretty.” You pat the top of her head gently, smiling at her. A wide smile can be seen on her lips and you were reminded of how much she looked like Yuta when smiling. You blinked in realization. They always address her as ‘young lady’ and she looked like Yuta. She must be Yuta’s child. Then that means he is married. Why are you thinking erotically of a married man? 

Your eyes diverted to Yuta’s fingers. If he truly is married, there should be a ring on his finger. But there were multiple rings on his finger that made you gulp. How would those cold metal feel against your skin as he touches you? 

“Y/N.” Sophie called that snapped you back to your senses. Your eyes went to Yuta’s who was looking at his fingers and then at you while cocking his head to the side, an eyebrow raised as if asking you a question. He caught you staring at him. This is bad. “Are you still sleepy?” 

You shook your head then started the cash register, telling Yuta the price of the flowers. He handed you a black card and you marveled at the veins along the back of his hand and his dark leather watch. The visual looks so good that you can just imagine him touching you roughly. You want that leather watch on his wrist as he touches the sensitive parts of your body.  “Are you working tonight?” Once again, your senses came back. You should really stop daydreaming like this. You only nodded, not fully understanding his question, before returning his card. “I’ll see you tonight.” 

The young girl waved her hands excitedly as the two left the shop and you were just as dumbfounded as earlier. “What was that?” Sophie asked as you let out a heavy sigh. What is wrong with you? It’s affecting your job. You wouldn’t be surprised that Sophie will be mad that you messed up this customer’s order. “You and Mr. Nakamoto…” Wait, she knows him? “Are you together?” 

What? “No.” 

“Then what was that? 'I’ll see you tonight'? Do you know each other?” 

Maybe this is your chance to come clean to your friend. A chance to lessen the white lies you have been saying to others. So you shared how your father owed money to him and that it was the reason why you asked to work in the club. You even shared that he’s a VVIP in the club and that he saw you there once. Although you missed a few details, it felt good that you somewhat told someone about this. 

“Then why is he looking at you like that?” 

“Like what?” 

“He looks at you like he wants you.” 

You shrugged. “He wants to kill me, that’s why.” 

Sophie chuckled. “No, Y/N.” She started with a haughty smile. “From the way he looks at you, I think he wants you. Period.”

No. You shook your head. That is impossible. 

Yuta is a married man. Yuta has a child. He frequents the club which even earned him the VVIP status. He’s a player. And most of all, Yuta is a mafia boss. 

Why would someone like him want someone like you? 

You laughed at the idea. That was so stupid. The funniest thing you heard in your life. 

Then why are you so disappointed that the VIP room where you’re assigned is for a different customer? He isn’t that bad. A businessman who often travels abroad and is just looking for someone to brag about his journeys to. His story of how pristine the waters are in the Maldives and how majestic the mountains of the Alps make you want to travel the world as well. But for now, you’ll settle on just listening to stories of actual people who can afford to go to those places. 

You desperately try to listen to his stories and laugh at his jokes. But all that was running through your mind is the term 'I’ll see you tonight'. Why would he say that if he wouldn’t come tonight? Is he here already? Maybe in the special VIP room? And with his favorite hostess, Lexi. 

Should you consider being a hostess and charm Yuta? 

The assigned hostess came to your customer and he thanked you for keeping him company, giving you some cash while tapping your shoulder. To your surprise, Mama greeted you outside the hallway. “Mr. Nakamoto is requesting for you.” You bit your lip to stop yourself from smiling too wide. “And he requested the special room with the comfiest bed as well.” What? The statement made you blink in surprise. Why would he do that? 

Mama was just smiling as she walked you to the VIP room. She gently knocked on the door and came Yuta’s voice telling her to come in. “Good luck, Y/N. You’ll need it.” 

Your palms felt sweaty as you greeted the mafia boss who was seated on the couch. His leather jacket from early the day was discarded on the handrest beside him and you gaped at the black muscle tee he is wearing. “Please sit down.” He gestured for the space beside him. “Busy night?” 

You shook your head. It’s still kind of early so the customers aren’t coming in yet. “Mama said it’s the comfiest bed. Take a rest if you need to.” Take a rest? Why? “Earlier, your boss said that you’re sleepy. You should sleep now.” 

Wait, that’s why he asked for the comfiest bed? Of course, Y/N, what were you thinking? Are you expecting for something more? “I’m fine. I’m still clocked in for work so I can’t…” 

“If you’re worried about Mama, I can assure you that she won't get mad at you.” He claimed then drank some of the liquid in his glass. From the looks of it, he settled on Brandy tonight. “Besides, it’s me who requested that you rest.” 

But you didn't need to. You didn’t want to. You wanted to spend some more time with him. “I’m fine, really.” 

He leaned on the couch, giving you a side glance. “Suit yourself.” He finished the remaining of his drink and you were quick to refill it with the liquid he was drinking. “How was the job here? Is it tiring?” You wondered why he’s curious about that. And what exactly are you going to say to him? That you are getting paid to listen to those men who wanted to brag about themselves? 

You only shook your head then smiled. “It is a nice experience,” you mumbled, “I’ve always thought of hostesses and what they do in a negative light but I realize how important they are. They’re like therapists.” You grinned then remembered what Aeri told you, “Half-naked therapists.” A chuckle can be heard beside you, the side of Yuta’s lips curled up. “They’re really cool in that aspect.” 

“So you wanted to be one?” 

You shook your head, laughing. “I’m not fit to be a hostess. Have you seen how pretty they are? Lexi even looks like a Greecian Goddess…”   

Yuta snorted which made you look at him. What was that reaction? “Every girl is pretty in their own way, Y/N.” You noticed how he reached for the glass using his right hand then hissed before quickly changing it to his left hand. “Every girl is pretty half-naked.” 

But you didn’t even hear that statement and reached out for his right hand. Earlier, he was wearing the leather watch on that wrist but now it's gone. “What happened to your wrist?” It looks so swollen that it's almost purple in color. You took a block of ice from the bucket before placing it on his right wrist. It looks so painful. 

“A wrong punch to someone’s face.” You hissed. That must really hurt a lot. “It’s nothing, Y/N.” 

“Did you at least let Jaehyun see this? You should ask him to check…”  

“Do you like Jaehyun?” 

You looked up in surprise but were startled that you were almost near his face. His eyes were sparkling. It must be the lights. His eyes are normally piercing, deadly. But why does it look so soft as he looks at you? 

You lightly coughed, feeling the cold ice melting on your fingertips. “Jaehyun?” You laughed then shook your head, removing the melted ice and replacing it with another block of ice. “He knows the right words to say, I’m convinced he’s a playboy.” Yuta drank the brandy in his glass in one shot, not reacting to what you said. “And my dad would kill me if I ever get associated with the mafia.” You stopped, realizing what you just said. That is so offensive that you quickly regret spewing those words. 

“Of course,” Yuta claimed in a soft voice, “Fathers don’t want their daughters to be associated with the mafia.”  

Your mind was swirling. Yuta is married. Yuta is a dad. Yuta is a mafia boss. His daughter is associated with the mafia. 

You just stepped way beyond the line. “Could you check if Lexi is done with her VIP?” You just angered the mafia boss. You only nodded, stood up then bowed at him. 

Why are you so stupid, Y/N?  

The Greecian Goddess came in her tight-fitting black mini dress and red stilettos. Lexi really looked so pretty. She fits so well with Yuta. “You’re becoming Mr. Nakamoto’s favorite,” she claimed. You just stared at her. What should you even tell her? “But I should warn you that Yuta is always like that to newbies.” Of course. It’s not like you’re expecting for more. 

Right? 

“Besides, he had never moved on from his first love.” 

The door opened and you got a glimpse of the piercing look from Yuta. 

Yuta is married. Yuta is a dad. Yuta might be cheating on his wife with Lexi. Yuta is a playboy. Yuta is a dangerous man. There are a lot of red flags that you can associate with the man. 

But the reddest of all red flags is him being the mafia leader. 

Chapter Five

[atopvisenyashill]

general thoughts

i do love the way robert is clearly manipulating ned in the opening of ep 6 but ned is just so high and pissed off and now deeply triggered he’s just like “alright whatever you say i guess.”

emilia is not good enough to sell this “i’m doing instinctive and kinda dodgy morally speaking blood magic” scene. i really love the way they link dany’s weird magic to bran’s weird magic by having bran have his own “instinctive and morally dubious magic ingrained in his bloodline” moment, once again, they do a really good job linking parallel storylines & concepts with the way they order the scenes. i’m very curious to know when this stops lmao

“where’s bran?” “i don’t know i’m not of your house” this entire exchange is exactly why Jon hates Theon so much akskdj

“you don’t have the right-“ “to what to save your brother’s life? it was the only thing to do and I did it!” i really like this exchange, i think it would hit more if robb looked like a 15 year old and theon looked like a 19 year old but they both do a really good job here.

that muttered “fuck off” from mord really cracks me up

doreah trying to stand in front of dany when viserys holds the sword out at her…

the way robert’s parting words to his son and heir are “you’re a shitty ass heir, i really fucked you up lmao. now leave.” and joffrey goes from looking devastated to closing himself off and stomping out.

cersei keeps staring at ned to see if he suspects anything in the background it’s kinda funny

this entire scene with jon throwing a tantrum is exactly why theon hates jon so much akskskkdkskksjdjdjd

sam asking pyp to sing for him and pyp angrily stomps away……..i love these boys so much. kit’s acting is sooooo bad in these scenes omg.

damn is this a safe space. can i say something about khal drogo and jason momoa in this part. aksjdj.

actually……..is this a safe space can i say something about [redacted]/drogo & dany………………………….

all the acting in the scene where the stark girls are taken is really good. framing of it and jumping between the two is really good, juxtaposing not just septa mordane & syrio forel as mentors to the girls, but also what the two will face next - sansa the unwanted attentions of the men around her while living as a hostage, arya the fear and desperation of living among the smallfolk in general but especially during times of war. the minor tweak with septa mordane here is good.

the toner they got on emilia in the dothraki lands is so fucking bad like it looks soooo obviously like she’s wearing makeup

“who do you really serve” “the realm my lord, someone must” this would hit harder if i didn’t know where varys goes in this show.

i know i keep saying this but lena headey never winning for this is crazy. sophie turner only being nominated one time is crazy. sean bean not getting a nomination for this is crazy.

i know i know WHY but WHY is alliser thorne allowed to publicly beef with a teenage boy and when that teenage boy gets mad, it’s HIS fault. why isn’t ALLISER confined to quarters for purposefully going to a kid who is worried his dad & sisters are gonna be executed and laugh at him and make fun of his fear of his family dying 😭 jeor mormont why are you a BITCH just like jorah

i really love the way drogo phrases dany pushing against his own power. “look at my son inside her, makes her grow fierce.” undercutting both the point she’s making and the anger she’s expressing, and praising himself while he does it. what a vain, self involved idiot lmao.

but also. can i say something about khal drogo again.

“there’s no mention of arya” “no,” robb said miserably. richard really got that miserable look down.

the way that joffrey leans forward to petulantly spit “you’re too old to protect anybody” and slooooooowly leans back with a sneer as cersei takes over. the little jump when barristan throws the sword down. the slight slowing down showing us everyone laughing at barristan and the cut to sansa’s devastated face at the scene. but then he cuts pycelle off for sansa, and it’s all,,,,,, oh but he’s nice to me that must mean something!! it’s so good.

changes i noticed

cutting the fever dream is the dumbest thing this show ever did

i know george hated that boar hunting scene bc “it wouldn’t just be six dudes hoping to meet a boar” and he’s valid but i do love renly snapping at robert even tho it’s all a bit too ooc to take seriously. i like that they wanted to make this point about “nostalgia is a liar” and the only person who could make that point to robert’s face and not die is renly & ned and NED sure isn’t gonna do it, it’s just that they had to rework renly a LOT in order to make it work. altho i don’t feel like they rewrite his reputation - brienne & loras still idealize him, margaery & olenna seem to think he was goofy as hell, so it’s not imo a TERRIBLE reworking of him. we’ll see how i feel when we get to stannis i guess.

i love theon begging ros to try to get her to stay and be his mistress but she’s keeping it professional the whole time, just completely refuse to play into his fantasies about her. i feel like it really speaks to how pathetic theon’s status is as a hostage but it also feels like their own take on tyrion/shae which misses the point there a bit. it’s fine i love ros lol.

on god the littlefucker sexposition scene is worst scene in the show. like, yeah petyr evil monologuing to some of the sex workers tracks with how they’ve characterized him but it’s just so unsubtle and also, the way they characterize him is a deep departure from the book where he’s a lot more subtle than this in how he gets away with his nonsense.

theon feels bad about himself after being snapped at, and losing ros, so he goes to antagonize osha only osha cannot be antagonized, and sees right through to his worst insecurities and pokes at them. i also love the constant wildling dig about everyone else being southerners also makes theon as curmudgeonly as it does jon snow lmao.

it’s so annoying how horny they make sam. exactly like the weird change to tyrion.

richard madden has grown as an actor imo because while he has the Big Dick Energy down, he doesn’t quite nail the moments where robb is talking about his fear. tbf it could also be bc they cut the scene where they really dig into robb’s fears when he and bran cry in the dark in his room, and i feel like if they had asked more of him, he might have risen to the job.

that said, there’s a clear reframing here where we follow robb’s pov and not theon’s or bran’s in many of these winterfell scenes, and that sure is annoying. like the scene opens on robb, follows his face, follows his thought process. instead of focusing on theon’s reaction, or bran’s bewilderment with northern politics. i think showing us scenes that Could exist that we wouldn’t be privy too early on is fine (ie the cersei & robert talks, the boar hunt) but they should make an attempt to keep the framing book accurate. am i nitpicking. i think i’m nitpicking. richard does a good job with the “golden child” thing, you can really understand why the starklings and theon all orbit around him.

[aardvaark]

I watched Leverage growing up and when I eventually discovered the fandom online/on tumblr I was genuinely shocked to see everyone hated The White Rabbit Job when it had been one of my favorite episodes as a teenager. I understand it's fucked up (part of why I liked it) and a little or really a lot campy/unrealistic (part of why I liked it) but I always like (as an exception to the norm ofc, it works best when it's rare) when the mark is sympathetic, and I liked the weird dream state stuff, and what the story brings out in Sophie and Parker's characters/narratives (and Nate, too, and his arrogance/brilliance/faith in the team). I don't think it's necessarily still one of my favorite episodes but I still enjoy it, although I understand better why some people don't like it. It's just funny to me every time I think about it because I always remember my initial reaction of "what do you MEAN people dont like the white rabbit job????" < totally mystified teenager me

huh, i had no idea it was so unpopular! definitely not one of my favourites, and i can see why it might not be well-liked, but i didn’t know how much people disliked it. i’m pretty new to interacting with the fandom here. im guessing the problems are how much they mess with a guy who’s fairly decent iirc and how the idea of that kind of psychological manipulation happening to you would be pretty terrifying. i can understand that. sometimes surreal things are kinda triggering for various reasons - paranoia, delusions, OCD, etc. and no it’s probably not the most realistic of their cons haha!

though mainly i liked the parker moments anyway, not so much the con. there’s:

one of the last major moments in the sophie & parker relationship arc, with sophie saying she trusts parker to talk to the mark alone.

parker proving that sophie was right to trust her, too, because she talks the mark down by herself, and she does it *as parker*, not as a grift and not trying to emulate sophie. she does it in her slightly awkward, very parkerish, completely valid way - she’s earnest and brave, and it’s not what sophie would have said (sophie would probably be very sweet and soothing) but she doesn’t have to talk to people like sophie. parker’s own way of connecting works, possibly better than sophie’s method would have!

parker opening up a little about her brother. and talking about her Feelings to a stranger!!showing a bit of vulnerability and sharing!!

parker coming back at the end and asking if they’re all good, sophie asking her if they’re all good, and parker saying they are.

THE line "they thought i was crazy, but i never was! i never was" which is SO important. parker’s always taken it on the chin when people say she’s crazy, insane, that there’s something wrong with her (and not in the now-affectionate eliot way). people have told her that for a long time. maybe she’s even believed it. but now she insists that not only is she not crazy now (ie after some time with her new family who’ve helped her heal), but that she was never crazy - not when she was a traumatized and grieving autistic kid, not when she was a scared and closed off teen or young adult, not when she does or says things that people call "weird". and she says it like a realization and she sounds so determined and insistent and aaahh!!! it’s just so important!!!!!

anyway yeah. i guess i don’t know about the episode overall, but i enjoyed the parker moments. she’s my favourite, im not even gonna pretend lol. i really like the sophie & parker relationship beats in this one and that it shows how incredibly far parker has come - without changing who she is at her core. that’s how i viewed it, at least! totally willing to hear other opinions tho :)

[legionnaireslover]

Does anyone have a "decoder ring"?

Found this on Mstoxictea's blog today...

I lost my "Haters' Crazy Talk Decoder Ring" so I'm unable to make any sense out of the latest Mstoxictea's rant.

Who is this "individual" who personally got "$300 million" from, I gather by the tags, Disney?

And what does that have to do with BC? I thought the Hater narrative, according to Gator, is that Disney was keeping BC's money SAFE from Eeeeeevil Sophie, in a "trust" - so has that changed and now Disney is "stealing" from BC???

It's hard to keep up with the Hater narrative!

And since when is BC "beimg (sic) denied access to big screen NON-TRIGGERING roles"??? How about this -

"Highly anticipated", "one of the most anticipated... ", "Chalamet isn't the only big name... Benedict Cumberbatch was recently announced... " - that sounds like a VERY big deal for BC!

But I guess Mstoxictea will say that role is "triggering" so it is included in the alleged "abuse" of BC!

But in fact, the Haters probably consider ALL roles to be "triggering" so they still "win" the argument... IN THEIR MINDS!

In reality though, BC's career is doing fine! He's choosing roles that HE LIKES and that fit in with his family life. And that will NEVER satisfy the Haters of course!

And of course we get Mstoxictea's latest rage points about "female representation" in the tags - kind of strange since SHE AND THE REST OF THE HATERS ABSOLUTELY TRASHED "THE END WE START FROM" WHICH WAS THE EPITOME OF FEMALE REPRESENTATION IN FILM MAKING FOR NO OTHER REASON THAN THE FACT THAT SOPHIE HUNTER CUMBERBATCH WAS INVOLVED!

But HYPOCRISY THY NAME IS HATERS seems to be the order of the day!

[ahoyimlosingmymind]

You dislike Sophie? Any particular reason?

This is all my opinion, I'm not even concrete in it ngl, there's just lil things that irk me about her character. I also haven't read the books in a fatty minute, so maybe I'm just delulu. its also 2am so hehe

Similar to how I feel about Keefe, it really comes down to execution of her character for me. I don't have as in depth thoughts on her as I do about Keefe's character, but anyway-

I really really loved her in books 1-5. <- I just think this was the golden age for the books in general but I digress. She was very moral, sweet, and logical. She rushed into danger and questioned things, which landed her in hot crap sometimes. But there was always a REAL motive behind her desire to not listen to the authority figures. She was really relatable in the way she wasn't totally over-powered, still trying to find her footing in this new world etc

But then, at some point, I'm not really sure WHEN it happened, Shannon decided that every single one of her female characters needed to be a girl-boss. No exceptions. And this was when I noticed the shift in Sophie's character. She lost her distinction a bit imo. you could easily interchange any of her 'Girl power'-esque lines with any other girl in the series and I wouldn't blink. That's how little her 'confident character development' sticks out to me. Because it comes off as FORCED.

here's the thing. Sophie already was a girl boss character. It was obvious. From book 1, she was brave and selfless and moral and strong... I love her for that.

The issue is that the narrative became aware of it too. And started TELLING us instead of letting her actions speak for themselves.

This telling was greatly reinforced by characters like Ro who always has to comment on being bad ass. And like- Linh losing some of her original softness for the sake of being 'powerful' and I AM ALL FOR empowering stories and characters- but when they lose the original aspects of their personality for the sake of it?? That's not growth, it's erasure. Confidence and softness aren't mutually exclusive. And when Linh was first introduced, that was one of the shining aspects of her personality. But now, There's so little distinction between a lot of the girl characters now for this reason. They serve as a comment on society, they're vessels to embed a message into. And they lose their individualism within that. BC THE MESSAGE WAS ALREADY THERE. IT DIDN'T NEED TO BE EXPLICITLY STATED EVERY OTHER PAGE. *cough* sorry.

And sadly, Sophie's character got lost in the sauce with it for me. (And it does not help that the side cast of characters is so vast they kinda blend together as well)

What really got me though, was when she started making weird choices that felt like forced edginess. Like burning down the storehouse. She's done some crazy stuff in the past, but I was always on her side. but this time??? no.

THERE WAS VALUABLE STUFF IN THERE. That was pure shock value. Because wdym we've been scrambling for answers for the past several books, and when Sophie stumbles upon a storehouse stock full of Neverseen stuff she just... burns it to the ground?? Like wasn't Gisela's Arche-something in there?

Sophie had no issue letting Alvar go for some info in regards to Keefe, but then she get's his mom's book of plans and BURNS IT???

And I get her thought process behind it was "The Neverseen has taken everything from me, so I'm going to take something from them. I'm tired of always sitting back and just reacting and never being proactive." I GET THAT. But burning the storehouse was SO not the moment lmao. She's also traumatized and the Neverseen is very triggering for her obviously, which means she doesn't always have the clearest thoughts in regards to it. But BOI-

I might just be an asshole. Idek.

I made a previous post talking about how unfair she was to Fitz when they were dating. It's buried in my blog somewhere. But she was not a saint in that situation (neither was he.) but just like Keefe, the narrative doesn't hold her nearly as accountable as it does when it comes to basically everyone else.

I don't hate her at all, but yeah idek. I'm tired lol

[twistednuns]

October 2023

A lazy Sunday in bed with Sex Education and cake until Sandra summoned me with a bossy voice note and I joined the others at Oktoberfest. At one point there were several unicorns flying through the sky (in balloon form). Then I went on a little adventure with Sandra, Robert and David. Selfies at the mirror cabinet, crashing into each other with bumping cars, throwing balls into mouths, gifting red roses to each other, attending the flea circus. Man, I love this gang. I told David that he's naturally gorgeous when he inquired about the fate of his full beard and in hindsight I realised... he actually IS really cute. Also way out of my league? Sigh.

Cycling to school for the first time. Any excuse to escape public transport. But I was surprised by how quick the journey felt! I'm planning on taking my bike more often as long as the weather permits.

My first proper Kundalini yoga class! I kept up beautifully and it wasn't even too weird. Afterwards I appeased the teachers anxious, barking dog by giving her a few good scratchies. Oh, and I met a silky smooth and shiny black cat on the way there!

A return request for a lamp I'd bought turned into... a free lamp. They just let me keep it.

Not sure if it's a good thing but at least it was amusing: waking up in such a crazy mood that I constantly made weird noises and commented on what I was doing in strange accents. That's why I'm never bored.

Garlic-filled green olives.

Swimming in the river. In October! I enjoyed the public holiday at Isar with Ben, Taffy and Lu.

A nightly walk through the neighborhood. Picking up a very affectionate cat who purred all the time. Following a toad. Hanging out in the playground.

Finding out about an Alan Rickman movie I really wanna see: Truly, Madly, Deeply.

I picked up a few vegetables from my neighbours' garage and there was a chonky red and white tomcat. We started "talking" and I was CHOSEN. He wrapped himself around my neck and started purring, basically making out with me. Lots of boops!

I had so much energy in Lucie's Yoga class. I sang all the mantras, kept moving, meditating, even performed a headstand! And I learned a trick with the Yoga belt: making a loop and putting it over me leg and head helps me stretch and twist my upper spine!

A weird half-lucid dream about my dying parents in a mansion. Almost like an epic family saga, one of these long novels with too many characters.

Learning from Sophie Passmann's book Pick Me Girls that I was never special. At all. It's funny - and sad - how many things we have in common.

A long video call with Fox. Unboxing the parcel I'd sent him, sharing book recommendations and going through our many lists together.

My date with Christian. Taking the BDSM test on the big leather sofa at Flex together (100% brat?). He noticed we were actually in the kissing corner and made like nobody was watching. We talked about Integral Psychology (I couldn't get Treya Wilber's quote about love at first touch out of my head), my shadow/mum's death and his depression. We went home together. How is this so intense. High on connection.

Madonna's Don't Tell Me playing while walking to the subway one evening, looking up to the stars, feeling gratitude of this fantastic new plane of existence I'm on. I never knew bliss like this. Tell me love isn't true / It's just something that we do / Tell me everything I'm not / But don't ever tell me to stop

The crisp chop chop sound the knife triggered when it dismembered a chunky carrot.

Scalp-brushing.

Hopping around on Hanna's trampoline machine in the physio practice.

Meeting Michael for the first time! I promptly took him to a burner get-together at Tatjana's place and we got along famously. I also enjoyed creating naughty poetry with Ben and hugging Robert for a few moments longer than necessary. I had a great conversation with the British guy whose name I never learned and loved Sandra's soft fur coat - couldn't stop touching it.

Another nightly playground visit.

An unexpected nude selfie with greetings from the Mediterranean from Galya and Nagu.

Milk foam. / Arriving in the kitchen just in time to prevent the milk from boiling over.

Sunday afternoon at Alte Pinakothek with Katharina. I love that woman and I desperately want her to become one of my best friends. We interpreted the art, paid attention to details, textures, colours. Looked at Tilda Swinton's favourite painting (her partner is a childhood friend of K's ex). Then we got some juice and eggplant bread sitting outside a cafe in Schwabing, playing with tiny spiders and chestnuts. Talking about health, sex and love, fashion, all the important things in life.

A brainstorming session with Fox. Getting the zoomies. Interpreting my OSHO stalker card.

Sandra sending me cute photos of me and David.

A deliciously ripe mango from the Canary Islands. A clementine giving me Christmas vibes. Cosy and nostalgic mint tea.

London Philharmonic Orchestra - Adagio for Strings Op.11a / immediate calming effect, it makes me feel like I'm walking through a dramatic movie.

Cycling to the cafeteria. Someone had a beautiful grey Sheba cat on their lap on the driver's seat of their car, letting it look out the window. Someone else was blasting Toto's Africa and I sang along. I managed to produce a loud whistling noise with my fingers!

Salted Pistachio nut butter cups.

Gifting myself to a beautiful yellow and purple bouquet of flowers (my favourite colour combination).

My new acid yellow blazer.

Staying super calm and positive during a painful medical procedure.

Taking the liberty to leave work instead of suffering through the whole day when I noticed I had tonsillitis again.

Coming up with a sexy mission for Lena and Max.

555 is associated with change, personal progression, and transformation. "It is a sign from the divine that you are undergoing positive changes in your life."

Cycling to Westpark to meet Vroni. The smell of mulch in the air (reminds me of home).

Feeling energetic, strong, powerful (still can't do a headstand without walking up a wall though).

Manu showed up at choir practice again! And Kathrin wants me to prepare a song to check out my voice for a possible solo.

Dusting the whole apartment. Filing paperwork. I love it when I happen to be in the mood for annoying tasks like that.

An inspired dinner & theatre date with Becky (visiting Raphael's opening of Animal Farm).

The very spontaneous decision to turn around and go home with Christian in the middle of the night. Touching him felt electric again and his apartment was incredibly gorgeous. I loved waking up surrounded by nature, meeting the chickens and a shy cat. Meditating in the sun. A debate about AI over breakfast. Playing with his son's toys, receiving one of his tiny toothbrushes (pink with stars and a suction cup). Chestnuts. Reading a picture book to him after giving him a massage.

Lush fields of sunflowers in the sunshine. Fall foliage. Butterflies and a vegetable garden outside C.'s house. More chickens outside the wholefood store on my street.

The first persimmons of the season. Biting into a jam-filled gingerbread heart.

A newfound obsession with Jupiter. Its symbol consists of 2+4, my two favourite numbers. Gustav Holst's The Planets suite.

Morning meditation (autumn vibes, windy with lots of crisp leaves flying through the air - cosy). Starting Roger Zelazny's Lord of Light over breakfast (I'm already hooked). Invitations, coincidences, good conversation. Finalising the stamps (following advice about "Doing the thing" I'd received in a newsletter the day before).

A new musical era? I've started listening to more classical music, being naturally drawn to it. I find it to be very uplifting, making life a little more cinematic .

I got dressed up for Avantgardista and felt comfortable and hot in a see-through top with black jeans, cowboy boots and my new Desigual leather jacket. I looked objectively cute! My hair cooperated and I came up with an asymmetrical flitter make-up idea: Multichrome flakes under the right eye, little gemstones under my left eyebrow to accentuate the highest point (stole the idea from Eric in Sex Education).

Spending Saturday evening surrounded by so many burners, old friends and new ones. Finalising my friendship with Robert at Chili's kitchen table. Starting to flirt with each other ("Just to clarify: I do wanna make out with you but I'm afraid of Sandra" - "Yeah, me too!" / he kept following me around a little bit and stayed close. I love how loyal and playful he is).

Tiny kisses from Sandra. Really great fashion and accessories, so many ideas for my own art projects and future Burn outfits. Christian showing up behind me (with Elena - I was a little jealous). Waving to Heike and Stefan from across the catwalk. Chili repeatedly offering to hold my chewing gum for me. Bringing out my dominant streak (the outfit must have done it). Sharing pinsa and a taxi.

Sending a selfie of Katharina and me to her ex (who we both know): "Hey, I stole your ex!" (He was totally fine with it) Damn, we looked extra cute. I loved our connection. What a unique and genuine person!

Playing Spin-the-bottle. Daring tasks. Connecting with Uli. Falling asleep on the big sofa, waking up surrounded by four lovely human beings in a cuddle puddle. Handing out double massages. Breakfast delivery with extra buttery croissants. My head in Christian's lap. Eye contact and kisses from above.

Luna is such a gorgeous, gentle and ethereal human being. She has this soothing voice, is so supportive and drove us all home on Sunday. And do I even need to mention her fantastic new green latex dress? I loved learning about her job in Game Design, bonding over our nerdiness.

Making plans for a mystery dinner together - Indian food, costumes and a murder case.

Christian coming over for dinner. Sitting in my kitchen in a bathrobe. Black candles lit. I love how comfortable he feels in my apartment. Watching scenes from controversial movies in bed, realising we both have quite unusual and eclectic taste. Being reminded of old fantasies and habits. Seeing his face light up when he saw a little video clip his son had sent him, telling him he missed him. His excitement when I told him about Björk's Cornucopia Tour. We made rough plans to go there together. Daring to tell him that I'm kinda into him.

Still, again, always, a little morning request to hear Run Away to Mars by Talk. 3, 2, 1 I miss you.

Now I've even started to find tiny glitter stars on my apartment floor. This one probably came from Christian's facial glitter? It's magic.

Remnants of summer: Yellow dahlias and a bush still full of ripe raspberries in the neighbours' garden. An older couple making out on the subway like teenagers - holding each other's faces, eyegazing.

An insight I had about gender-aware language (that it might actually emphasize inequalities and differences) in a discussion with Raphael.

An easy-breezy lyrics round at Pub Quiz. Slapping Dennis (with his consent). Being reminded of I Don't Want to Miss a Thing by Aerosmith.

I've been listening to so much more music lately: Björk - Venus as a Boy / Billie Bird - La Nuit / Villagers - Courage / Danit - Cuatro Vientos

Beautiful spheric wall art on my daily bike route. A woodpecker crossing my path in flight. The effect I seem to have on women these days. Peculiar.

Forest & Shore Thrive Hair Oil.

Subtle flirting with my colleagues.

A substitute lesson with the 9th-graders. We practiced some Speeddating! I had so much fun with the older kids. I'm a little sad about only teaching years 5+6 at the moment.

My first Joy of Connection event - ecstatic dance turns cuddle puddle. I loved Stefan's music and touches and was surprised and happy that Katharina and David showed up. Lovely vibes, massages, first attempts at contact improv. An Indian girl developed a crush on me.

A cute date with Atabak. He brought me dark sea salt chocolate! I love talking about language, culture and art with him. He's super gentle but intense and calls me cute one.

Meeting Benni and Steffy for dinner at Giorgia. What a great evening. Benni got me to different spheres again and I loved the stories they shared. We took selfies in the mirrored toilet together and made plans to meet again soon!

A very chill and calming breathwork session at Yoga Garden.

Following an impulse to drive to Augsburg for the Kinky Amore Party. Meeting lovely burners. Grounding C. through a trip. Letting him cut my duct tape outfit off me. Walking through the empty streets together in the early morning. Driving back to Munich during sunrise. Holding hands on the gear stick. Kinky bathroom session. Closing the blinds, spending the rest of Saturday in darkness. Talking for hours. Massages. Getting up close to midnight to eat potatoes and cauliflower. Falling asleep again. Cataloguing all my old maps and charts in the morning. My pillow smelled of him.

A long walk through the forest on a sunny Sunday afternoon. I immediately felt calmer upon entering the woods. The smell was enticing. I found hazelnuts, took a lot of gorgeous photos. Then I put on the inline skates I had with me in my backpack and skated back to my bike. I was honestly surprised that it went quite well!

Meeting Max and Lena. Interesting conversation and playtime. She was super cute, I loved touching her.

Biting into a crisp, buttery croissant.

My connection with Fox. Mutual understanding, inspiration, playfulness.

Walking to school in the morning. I Do the Rock on my headphones. A sudden whiff of sugar and cinnamon, reminding me of my grandma and, weirdly, the bakery at Niederbayernschau.

The life is juicy feeling. Delicious moments and experiences. Feeling like I've leveled up, vibrating on a higher frequency. Manifesting what's to come. Love, safety, adventure, creativity, stepping into my power.

Someone in my yoga class told me how fascinating and beautiful she found my hip rotation. She said she wanted to stop her own Asana and marvel at my flexibility.

The moment I realized I wasn't wearing any make-up (and didn't have to wash my face).

Finally finishing the Playspace Bingo.

Fancy shopping at Muji. I got crisps with old French cheese and a huge sandalwood candle.

Meeting David at work. I love him so much.

Visiting Robert's new apartment. Snacks on the balcony. Seeing Sandra together. Kebabs on a park bench. Train and bus and car ride. He's super touchy and cuddly!

The madness that was Hamburn. Chaotic, stressful, vibrant, pulsating. Wow. Here are a few film stills that live in my head rent free: the long drives with my dudes (Frank, Robert and Uli but on the way back Celia came with us) - Robert and I were such a good team; driving, cuddling, massaging and supporting each other, great conversation and DJ-ing / a moment with Uli on the bar floor, almost kissing after dinner, and an honest conversation about his cancer journey; giving him an exciting challenge for his free bingo space, witnessing how much he was into it; and sharing his apple lollipop / talking to Idan (who still intimidates and confuses me) and Alma (I'm not sure how that immediate level of conversational depth came to be but I went along with it) / dancing with Robert to Oops I Did it Again and seeing him match my energy on the actual dancefloor; going absolutely bananas (Fusili!) / roleplaying our way through the admission procedure: drawing numbers, going along with the tasks and challenges, reading a fantastic story about wolverines, filling out a crazy form and putting Robert on a leash - conveniently, I had a washing line in my bag / lying on the lower bunk bed in the Play-Playroom with Robert, Koali and Ole; reading picture books to each other; toys and candy, vibrating walls / witnessing a very strange scene when the hypnosis duo came in with one of their many victims and Undine said that none of that had ever happened... / walking through the forest, alone, in the middle of the night / taking turns drawing a scene with Robert in the Expresso Tipi, getting buffed / a great conversation about self development with Celia and Josef (who are both coaches) in the welfare room; the two woman doctors who came in just to hang out with me, eat snacks and listen to Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield / exchanging long, sensual massages on an actual massage bench with R. / taking a Lindy Hop class, being lead, slowly getting the hang of it (muscle memory), fighting over Robert and then with him, landing on his face (contact improv) / early morning sauna and quick swims in the ice cold lake / receiving hard slap shots from Jo in drag / recording "podcast" episodes about how much we missed Sandra - receiving her hilarious replies / getting dressed up for the 80s party, taking cute photos / going all kitty on Nas, propositioning him to play because he doesn't speak my native language (bingo task) / seeing Marta dance with a crystal ball player - their interaction was magnetic, she kept following the ball with her gaze and movements / walking out of a door, a flock of people at the bottom of the stairs; playing queen, waving to my people - everybody immediately played along //

[bridgeporthq]

Oh, look! It’s [SOPHIE JOHNSON]! I heard they’re [33], a [FEMALE], use [SHE/HER] pronouns, have been in town for [33 YEARS] and are actually from [BRIDGEPORT]. They are currently working as a/an/the [MANAGER AT SOAP OPERA LAUNDROMAT] and living in [OLD LYMEMOUTH]. You know, I personally think they look like [DIANNA AGRON], but that’s crazy, right?

BIOGRAPHY

Triggers in Bio: Drug/Alcohol Use, Deadbeat Parents

If there was any family that shouldn’t be having kids, it would be the Johnson family but after discovering the financial assistance they could receive from having children Tiffany and Terry went on to have 4 of them. Growing up she saw her parents abuse the system meant to take care of families. Despite all the assistance the family received hardly any of it went toward the kids. Instead the people who were supposed to take care of her and her siblings traded this assistance for cash to use towards cigarettes, drugs and alcohol. Seeing that their parents weren’t going to step up and take care of them, that responsibility fell on Sophie’s shoulders. Someone needed to take care of her and her siblings after all. She did odd jobs during school to make sure they had some money. What she couldn’t get with the money she earned from working she didn’t see anything wrong with shoplifting it. She was just a young kid after all with too many responsibilities for someone her age.

On top of working as much as she could Sophie managed to get straight A’s in school. It wasn’t surprising when she was offered a scholarship to her dream school after graduating. It was a difficult choice, but she knew her siblings needed her. Instead of heading off to get an education she stayed in town and got a full-time job to help her family. Was it hard to watch her fellow classmates head off to college? Yes, but it was one of the many sacrifices she was willing to make for those she loved. And love them she did despite not finding out until she was an adult that they weren’t even her full siblings. It seems like her mother wasn’t that faithful and had an affair with her dad’s best friend. Sophie was the result of this. Since finding out she’s met her biological father a few times even going to synagogue and celebrating Hanukkah with him. It isn’t the closest of relationships, but it was nice to have a father figure in her life.

As time passed, she found herself moving into a place not too far from her parents so she could still be there for her siblings. Though she never got the college education she hoped she’d get, she did manage to work her way up at work until she became manager of the laundromat. As her siblings got older and they needed her less and less, she managed to gain more of a life outside of her family. Her dating life wasn’t the most active but that didn’t stop her from having a daughter a few years ago with an off again/on again boyfriend. Despite her siblings’ reinsurance that she’d never be like their parents now that she’s a mother it’s a fear that won’t go away. She knows they’re right but it’s still something that keeps her up at night. Is this the life she thought she’d end up with? No but she wouldn’t change it for the world!

[bookwyrminspiration]

Crazy theory time: what if Keefe goes to the human world and discover that some humans have the potential of manifesting? And that is the reason Gisela gave this talent to Keefe.

oo this is interesting. I've said it before and I'll say it again: when it comes to Keefe and Lady Gisela there are so many unknowns and that both leaves a lot open for speculation/theories and also makes it super difficult to actually speculate/theorize.

I've also said before that I have a difficult time believing a lot of possible plans of Lady Gisela's simply because what she did to Keefe was so vague that I just!! Can't imagine she could possibly know the outcomes enough to plan things so specifically and have so much laid out. I mean, having a child with an empath after drinking two strange substances and then exposing that child to two strange substances resulting in a never before seen ability? I'm sure there's a lot Shannon's not telling us but also!! That doesn't seem like something that would have a conclusive enough result for her to predict and then base an entire future plan around.

However, I shall suspend my disbelief long enough to say that perhaps! Perhaps she really could guess all this ahead of time and knows exactly what Keefe will be capable of! Does seem like the kind of thing Shannon would write.

Back to your theory though: I don't think it's impossible! Humans have been a consistent background plot thing for the entirety of the series, most often brought up in the context of Sophie but also sometimes about things that aren't her childhood. So for them to come back into the story and have more plot relevance (even if that isn't a specific human) isn't completely out of the picture. I sometimes wonder if Shannon will have Sophie (using her influence) convince those in power to reinstate the human assistance program. Not necessarily reveal the entire hidden world, but just...give help. There are so many things that humans suffer from that elven help could fix and giving them that assistance from afar seems like something Sophie would be in support of and push for.

To bring Keefe into it, his ability was created by Lady Gisela. He's an experiment of sorts, though she wouldn't want to call him that. So we have to look at what she wants and what she knows. We know that she knows of Vespera, of her work. And that work was all of humans, human experimentation. So if humans do have the potential for manifesting, some sort of latent ability that could never be activated without a trigger and without any elves capable of pulling that trigger, they'd have to create one. We also know that humans are a lot more susceptible to elven powers; telepaths hear their thoughts without trying, empaths feel their emotions, etc. In Keefe's case, is it so far of a jump to say that whatever his new ability is--one powerful enough to numb several elves and "Even Ro and Sandor" (Unlocked 572)--going to be very very effective on humans? Perhaps even powerful enough to trigger whatever dormant abilities lie in the species?

Actually I'm gonna temporarily divert and focus just on that quote I pulled from Unlocked. Keefe's new ability worked effortlessly on at least three species, and I'm willing to bet it would be the same for the other intelligent species as well. That is...unheard of. Not even Sophie has that kind of ease between species. Sure, she can read their minds, but it's difficult and strange. Keefe just numbed an ogre and a goblin like it was nothing. That...is very unusual.

Back to the theory though! Which is now begging the question: why would Gisela want humans to have abilities? How does this benefit her?

It's possible that with humans manifesting abilities, she could build a reservoir of unanticipated power, humans fighting against elves. The elves wouldn't know what to do about it, and their minds wouldn't be able to handle the violence the way humans could. Perhaps that's the real benefit, people who can fight without the risk of guilt destroying them. But that does come down to her being able to convince and control whatever humans she assembles, given that she gets what she needs from Keefe. I feel like it might be too difficult.

Additionally, giving a species with population numbers in the billions abilities would really upset the entire world, and if she can't control it then I can't see it working out in her favor. She is one elf among billions of humans, so it seems too risky unless she's just assembling a small group of people to fight for her.

I think it might be more reasonable for her to instead leverage this information against the rest of the world, but then again if she knows this already then why go to such length to mess with Keefe's genetics and give him this new ability? She already has that information. Maybe there needs to be at least one example, and in that case she needs Keefe to initiate that one example (for drama it might be sophie's sister, Amy) to prove to the others. But that would be a lot of work for just one human...

Overall, i don't think the theory is impossible!! It definitely bring up a lot of questions that we can't answer without information in those last two books, but is intriguing nonetheless. I'm definitely eager to find out what's planned for Keefe and what that ability does, as we got so little information on it before he left!! And all the mentions of humans could be building up to something bigger, especially since Sophie thinks they deserve better and her morals drive this entire series.

[cricketchaology]

the bile of the beast

this fic includes discussion of the symptoms of PTSD, especially as it relates to eliot's past with violence (including allusions to sexual violence). if these topics are triggering for you, please proceed with caution.

READ ON AO3

it's san lorenzo (again, but different than it used to be) , and it's sweeter this time. it's fake blood on sophie's dress and damien's smirk melting off his face, a president's hands on nate's lapel. it's righting a wrong, but it's also a burning warehouse a country or so away, cops called and infiltrating, and they won't find who did it because eliot is a professional, always has been. they'll find a room full of messy corpses, turning in the evening sun, each as nameless as the last. moreau likes his men to be nothing (outside of him).

it's something eliot knows intimately: the way moreau can sink his teeth in so slowly you don't release you are nothing but a chew toy. and it's an odd thought when you are the dog, that your hide is flea-ridden and blank. that you are the soft toy he humps in the yard, not the doberman across the street that bears its teeth behind the screen door of close-cropped control. that, sometimes, you aren't even the weapon. sometimes you are the display: the show dog, heeling at the hand that no longer bears a treat. that your ribs are the home of boot-toes, breaking you down to the red dust you thought you escaped when you took up the mantle of a flag all those years ago.

so he holds the bottleneck. he clinks the right glasses, smiles appropriately in a way he prays reaches his eyes because sophie will notice if it doesn't and he can't. he's not feeling the happiness he knows is supposed to rise in his stomach at revenge because this isn't, the shapes are all pulled too long, too neat. it's moreau, it's messy by nature, it’s bloodied hands and broken chairs and little bits being removed from base-spine with even tweezers, folding on the floor like christ in the tomb, listening the tut-tut-tut of a man who doesn't love, but he loves you , or you think he does. eliot's grip tightens at the notion.

cause he knows moreau. he knows moreau like the back of his hand. knows how many times each knuckle's been busted and finger broken, constellation tracing each freckle. he knows moreau like a typewriter knows the author's touch, pounding away till the letters are worn. he knows moreau, which he means he knows it's not over, which means he can't stop running because he never, ever could, and it's why he's here now, with a team that knows him too much for him to stay. who will act like tomorrow is a new day, a free one. like with the italian off their backs, nothing is hanging over their heads.

tomorrow is day one of post-post moreau. it's not the first time he's escaped, and it won't be the last. it is a fact he knows the team won't understand- not when they got off easy, this time. last time it was by the skin of eliot's teeth, shoulder bullet-lodged and airplanes unnamed as he crossed ocean after ocean just to put enough distance between him and the hammer so that he could avoid being the next nail. he wasn't free then. wasn't free a day after moreau, wasn't even free before, because when moreau wants something, he gets it. and he wanted eliot spencer less then than he wants him now. the thought makes his skin crawl, remembering the heat of the brand as it grew closer to his inner thigh, kissing the hairs near his groin before drawing away. because moreau doesn't even need to lay claim to own you, just has to say he did. just has to release that wolf-grin and hold your collar like its always been his.

eliot's spent years clawing at that loop, the necklace that bites too tight around his skin even when no one else knows. he cooks, and he smiles, but it's always there, always weighing on the nape like a hand, skin pinching. he's spent years scratching and howling, enough that the red ring is more evident than the too-tight collar itself. enough that he knows it doesn't come off. to know even a moreau locked in a hole in san lorenzo is still the one he remembers, even if the shape is different.

so when nate offers up a glass of whiskey, raised high by an unshaking hand, it takes everything in eliot to smile, lift his beer bottle, and cheer.

///

he does not remember much of the first day post-post moreau, which is something that scares him. he's not sure how it passed him by; he remembers waking up in the hotel, turning in sunbeams as they scrape past the window screen. he remembers the panic of nate not answering the door when he knocked, and he remembers slamming his body into it until he saw nate alive and well, but he doesn't remember the conversation that followed. he doesn't remember what comes between the elevator and the airport, or what movie hardison played on the flight, or how many seats were unfilled. they're the kind of lapses that could get him- get all of them, he amends, wondering how he could forget- killed. because what eliot lacks in computer skills or acting ability he makes up for in counting hats, mapping exits. he pays his stay in blood.

except he doesn't now, or he's not supposed to. the thought haunts him the rest of the flight. he's barely conscious when they arrive back in boston, his head swimming between the then and the now, post and post-post. he doesn't even realize they've landed till the seatbelt light flickers off, and his hands go to help sophie carry all the luggage she packed in place of the carryon he didn't need.

because eliot never travels with a suitcase. when he arrives, the clothes will be laid out on the bed that’s been paid off for the next few nights. the most that ever belongs to him are the shoes, but even that is a danger- particulates are easily traced, so the red dirt is disposed of every other week, burying the people he isn't supposed to say he's been. disoriented as he is, he winds up picking up a stranger's briefcase before he realizes it's the weight of paperwork-filled folders and not a sniper rifle nestled intimately inside.

he drops it like the handle burns. the movement is abrupt enough that his elbow nudges nate's side. his furrowed brows say we need to talk.

eliot wants to meet his eyes but can't. instead, he grounds himself, taking enough of the team's bags that the straps start to wear into his skin, pulling him from the nothing that's begun to spread from post to post-post. he's silent on the drive home, oddly unperturbed by the fact that parker insists on driving (something about how airplanes don't feel fast, and she wants to feel fast, and everyone being too tired to argue) . he doesn't so much as grumble as he makes a roundabout the vehicle, jabbing each tire with the tip of his toe. he stares at the license plate for a moment too long, trying to remember why he's in boston before nate shouts something along the lines of "come on, let's get home."

it's raining; something eliot doesn't register till they've arrived at the office and are piling out of the car. his arms are loaded with bags by the time he hears someone say, "we'll worry about the luggage later," which they surely said before he loaded up. by the time he makes it inside, his hair is curling at the ends in a way it never did in the before- cropped too short then for even damien to find much comfort in running fingers through, though he'd do it anyway. petting more than soothing, and the difference was something eliot learned to sense before the hand was even laid down, the way a knee aches before a storm.

the thought must show on his face, or maybe his disheveled appearance is enough to earn the concern coloring his team as they stare at him, dripping in the doorway with their luggage draped across his body all pack-mule-like. he's shivering, though he isn't exactly sure why, by the time they pull the bags from him, ushering him upstairs as the bar staff eyes them no more curiously but perhaps more timidly than usual. the soles of his shoes squeak against the vinyl, and he flinches, thinking about all the ways a wrong sound could get him killed. moreau is tut-tut-tutting in his ear again, like before, in the during .

the whole team is talking, mumbling mercies and platitudes, and his heart is racing in his chest, pounding like heels on rooftops and down staircases in foreign countries. the rain beats down on the window like fists, like prisoners you knew before they were prisoners and allies you used to trust, and he's not really breathing; the air in the crawlspace is too thin. his hands are shaking, and his CO is saying “steady, steady,” whispering it like a mother to her babe, and the shot rings out with that familiar flashbang of lighting.

"stop," he mutters, and it feels like too much noise, too much noise (surely, they're going to catch him this time). "please, stop. stop."

the air falls quiet, like new york news as the death of osama bin laden is broadcast, like hushed last phone calls on the plane going down, army basecamps right before the armada. it's quiet like death is- like two lovers who don't know each other yet. like hair coiling, blackening, burning in the heat. his breath hitches like he can remember it.

"...eliot?" parker asks, because she's parker, crazy by design, but even now, she isn't touching him, though her hands are outstretched like she wants to. hardison looks at her like she has horns, like she's breaking a vault while the sirens scream, and she is, in every conceivable way. it makes eliot ache in a way he didn't know he could still feel. it makes him want to be the person she thinks him to be.

he meets parker's gaze like he's staring down the business end of a gun. like being the fish in the barrel.  he averts her gaze, transfixed on the city skyline behind her, peering through beating rain. he's scanning for men laying belly-down on balconies, sniper's trained and at the ready. he struggles to make out the horizon through obscuring strands of hair he doesn't remember growing out. he swallows, fingers flexing with a familiar hunger for hurt.

before he's aware of it, he's being lead to the couch, his soaking jacket somehow shed without his knowledge (he was too busy counting hats, mapping exits. moreau wants to know how many hats). the sofa is soft beneath him, swallowing him in warmth better than his standard-issue sleeping bag, and he's helpless against the hands on his shoulders pushing him purposefully deeper. the nails are enough for him to know it's sophie, even though he can't fully see her in front of him. the hair is tucked behind his ear with a tenderness he didn't know still existed. that he doesn't think he can deserve.

he isn't sure how long he sits there, his hands shaking in his lap. he isn't sure how long the silence permeates till it's replaced with the sound of knife striking board, and he comes to understand that Chopped reruns have been playing on the screens ahead, and it's sweet because they think he'd like it, not because he does. his boots have been unlaced, pulled from his feet (now bare, like christ folding on the floor in front of the disciples, moreau saying "wash my feet, eliot") and set gently near the end of the sofa. the thermostat has been turned to a temperature he lovingly calls "oklahoma august," which the rest of the team always whines is too hot, and the smell of thai food from his favorite food truck seeps into the air. he hangs on the scent like a cartoon character to fresh pie on the window.

it's too much like post , rather than post-post, the way they smile at him shambling to the island. the ache of the fights from the past weeks are starting to catch up to him; without a fresh neck in his hands, it's easier to remember the skin peeled from his knees. seeing him, nate holds out a steaming plate of his favorite and eliot takes it slowly. he stares down at it, enchanted by the authenticity of it even after it's pulled from a takeout box.

but you don't eat things you didn't see prepared; it's a lesson he learned after being poisoned in some hole in south america, and that he risked with every hors d'oeuvre moreau would hold to his lips, saying taste this, meaning die for me, like the sound of vultures overhead. something must change in his eyes because nate isn't smiling anymore. because nate is reaching out, taking the plate back, and it's clear that he doesn't understand what he's done wrong, no one does, not even sophie, if the way her gaze fluctuating between eliot and nate is to say anything.

"i'm not supposed to eat anything i didn't cook," he instinctively explains (this must be a test), wanting the sad look to leave hardison's eyes. "you either. i'm not supposed to let you eat anything i didn't prepare- that i didn't taste."

a beat of silence follows, heavy like the snow piling on slates, like soot on a seven-year-old brow. nate breaks it hesitantly.

"eliot-"

"let me taste your food," eliot says, all too much like the during and unlike post or post-post; it's too soft and ungrowled, too eliot and not enough spencer .

the look sophie shares with nate is deadly- like hiroshima at ground zero or kitum cave circa 1980. there's a silent battle wagging there, one eliot can't find the energy to care about because, without even a second of hesitation, parker hands him her plate of too-sweet noodles. she smiles at him, strange in that way parker always is, like a rat taking trap-bound cheese.

eliot takes care, inspecting the color, the smell, and though all of it is wrong, it's parker's, and it smells like how parker likes pad woon sen, which a post , but not post-post, eliot would have the energy to despise tenderly. but that's not who he is now, twirling noodles up on the fork, chewing garishly until he can gulp them down with confidence, like swallowing a key and knowing they can't beat it out of you. like downing the rations before the taste of them reaches your brain. he hands the plate back, feeling lighter, and hardison must be able to tell because he offers his dish up next. he watches as eliot inspects it thoroughly like a jeweler counting carats. the process doesn't take long, and, after a few minutes, each takeout box has been combed through for error, and eliot has determined they are safe enough to settle at the bar for the meal.

he doesn't sit down though, isn't supposed to. he goes to check exits, to stand by the door. he thinks about meetings in moreau's office, thinks about clubs and bars and women in bikinis that moreau never wanted to touch. because women were shows- because if moreau wanted something, he got it, and eliot knows this, so he knows moreau didn't want the women. he knows that moreau hungered for something different- not younger, but meaner. harder. he thinks about moreau in the sauna, beckoning eliot over, saying dismiss your post and meaning drop to your knees, folding before him like christ, like washing feet, like intimacy anew. he thinks about hardison, tied to the chair, and about chapman and his gun and moreau towel-drying sweat from his skin. he thinks about the kick, the move he invented, and hardison sucking air from the pneumatic, thinks about sucking air and-

///

"pause the show," sophie says, right before eliot goes from nervously checking the locks for the dozenth time to crumpling to the floor, his fingers digging claw-like into the edge of the doorframe. his breaths are too quick, huffing in and out, in and out, fast as chopper blades overhead screaming against wind. his whole body is vibrating by the time ted's voice is cut off, hand closing over the cloche in slow motion.

parker is the first to him, light on her feet and perching in front. she observes him like a cat might a dead bird; curiosity and hunger, unfamiliar yet innate. but then that hunger fades, is sated, and she's tucking her knees beneath her body and folding herself by eliot, kneeling. she surrounds him, skin heavy like a blanket, and eliot melts into her like one fades into the air after jumping from a plane- the way the heat melds to your back as an explosion follows you out the door.

with only slightly more hesitance, hardison joins them on the floor, his long arms enveloping them. eliot's hair tickles his nose, hardison's soft breaths blowing them away, then pulling them back like the ebb and flow of waves lapping a shoreline. he closes his eyes for a long moment, batting away the thought of water filling his lungs, and reopens them to find nate staring down awestruckenly.

sophie smiles softly in a way that means she knows something no one else does, cracking the mark open like a pistachio shell. hardison squints, searching for an answer, but she gives none. instead, she pulls nate away by his wrist, casting a look across the room before quietly trailing up the staircase, leaving eliot, parker, and hardison tucked tightly into the corner.

///

the seconds evade him while he sits there, sobbing on the floor. it feels like a weakness, something he should be hiding- he hasn't cried like this since the night his momma died (not in his pristine funeral suit. his father has pulled his tie-tight and said, "now don't you embarrass me," and he didn't then- made sure he never did again.) he hadn't cried like that the entire time during , or post , but now it was post-post and here he was, broken to bits on the wooden floor of a dingy bars' loft in boston.

not for the first time, he finds himself wondering how the hell he ended up here. how he escaped the during , how he made it to post-post. because, really, he's seen greater men die on their first tour. he's been in the hellholes they strung soldiers up in, purple heart wearers bleeding nothing but red, red, red- and he's been that man, russian roulette spun and against the odds making it a baker's dozen rounds before the tortures tired of threats and moved onto toenails. even then, he didn't cry like this- if he did cry, well, that was sweat in his eyes. that was him praying to a lord he stopped believing in at 18, saying, "if you get me out of this one alive, i'll get better" and it never, ever being true.

he isn't aware that parker and hardison have been whispering a mantra of "it's okay, it's okay, eliot, you are here, you are ours" until they pause for breath until parker's voice is addressing hardison, asking, "hey- hey, if it's too much, it's okay. you can take a break."

it's then that he realizes he isn't the only one praying then; they all are, the shoulders of his shirt on either side soaked through, not by the unrelenting rain but by the two closest things he has to family. that hardison's voice has gone from soft and strong to shaky: a leaf resisting those oklahoma winds rising from 40 to 50, from cold fronts and warm one crashing and crushing everything in their path as they war with one another. that parker's body has cooled as she gifted her warmth to eliot's still rain-frozen form.

it's then that he realizes he's lucky. that san lorenzo is sweeter because parker dashed it with maple syrup when he wasn't looking- that hardison replaced the whiskey sours with sodas. that post-post doesn't fit any of the characters sophie has taught him to play, and that he doesn't need to count the hats because nate already has; he knows each shape and each color, the brand names printed on the bill.

the next breath is a little deeper as hardison whispers, "i'm good, i'm good," across him to parker, and eliot feels the rattle of her head against his neck more than he sees it. the way they draw in a little closer, the way parker subconsciously syncs their breathing like sophie's taught her to do with marks, but it's different because eliot isn't a mark- because it isn't post-post, it's something different entirely.

it's the scent of his favorite thai food crusted in the corners of an unwiped mouth. it's his closet being reorganized by color, his go-bag packed with money he didn't put there. it's in-jokes and damnits and distinctive sounds. it's not explaining because they won't make him.

when his breathing is finally stable, he feels them pull back- not entirely, but enough that there's an instant ache in eliot's gut for them to come back to him. hardison's brows are knit, all the anger of the week prior washed away and replaced with nothing but care. parker is smiling gently with that even present lilt to her eye- like she's stolen his watch and is waiting for him to notice.

with slowly re-steadying hands, eliot brushes the last remnants of tears from his face, feeling his cheeks flush slightly when his father's voice tries to rise from somewhere within him. as though feeling the demon climbing up, hardison places a hand on the outskirts of eliot's bicep, holding him gently- grounding him.

"you good?" hardison asks simply, but the question makes all the raw things in eliot sore again in the way a second-day sunburn feels; not quite painful, but omnipresent. warm.

"yeah," he finds himself saying, and it's not something a post eliot would mean, but maybe a post-post eliot does. maybe a post-post eliot can. he finds himself smiling at the notion.

"yeah, i am."

[batwomanupdates]

A war is coming to Gotham on The CW’s “Batwoman.” And though it may look like Safiyah and Roman Sionis are the ones waging it, the wildcard in the battle between good and evil is Circe Sionis because, according to Wallis Day — who plays both Circe and Kate Kane, currently duking it out for control of her psyche — Circe “has the ability to really f— up Gotham.”

Granted, that’s thanks in large part to her new toys. By the end of this week’s “Batwoman,” Circe has not only tricked the Bat Team into showing her the Bat Cave, but she also runs off with the suit and some dangerous toys, the most powerful of which is a chunk of Kryptonite that she uses to make some “alterations” to the suit. It’s a terrifying moment, but one that was really fun for Day to play out.

“[She’s] deranged, yeah. That’s why it’s so much fun,” Day tells TheWrap. “‘Cause like, the first day I did it, one of the execs was on set and I was, like, ‘Too much? Too far?’ And she was like ‘No, we kind of love it!'”

With that kind of free rein, Day really dug in. And if that crazy look in her eye as she destroyed the suit seemed a bit familiar, you can chalk it up to genetics. According to Day, her evil tendencies were naturally pretty similar to her on-screen sister Alice (Rachel Skarsten).

“It’s so funny because we picked very similar characteristics, like, character traits for the craziness,” Day says. “I actually had to change a few of mine because they were my natural gut instinct but I just thought, ‘It’s gonna clash with Alice too much.’ So I actually changed quite a few traits before I brought Circe to life.”

Ironically, at this point, Alice seems to be the key to freeing Kate from her mental prison and the control of Circe.

“Alice is absolutely the key. There’s a lot of things in Kate’s life that are precious to her and important to her, and that could be the trigger, the ‘thing,'” Day says. “But I think that there’s nothing stronger than the twin relationship and the twin bond. I think Alice is the only person that holds that key. And you’ll see that play out.”

The importance of Alice is admittedly a gut punch to the rest of the Bat Team, but perhaps for no one more than Sophie (Meagan Tandy). After a beautiful reunion last week, “Kane, Kate” pulls a full 180, with Circe openly mocking Sophie for her affections and the ease with which they could be manipulated. Even for Day, it was a tough moment to get through.

“It wasn’t Kate!” Day says. “It wasn’t Kate, and I think that’s the most important thing. Because when I read it, I was like, ‘Wait, no! That can’t happen.’ But yes, and you know what? You’re so right. She’s like, not even a soulmate; she’s like a twin flame for Kate. They belong together so bad, and me and Meagan love that. And I think when that moment of betrayal comes, it broke both of our hearts, honestly, to even do it.”

More

[certifiedmarkleetrash]

songs that make me feel like a main character (includes kpop)

*I made this playlist on spotify, I know I could link it, but I know some of these songs do not tickle everyone’s fancy. ALSO, I listen to a wide range of music (kpop, pop, rock, etc., so its kind of everywhere*

*added the Spotify link*

Please feel free to suggest songs that make you feel like a main character, I would love to listen to them!

I may or may not get some of these songs off of tik tok and if you work at Aeropostale, you might recognize a lot of these songs

I will add new songs too!

Girls in Bikinis - Poppy

12345SEX- UPSAHL

Zombie (English Ver.) - DAY6

Afraid -DAY6

1 to 10 - DAY6

Love me or Leave me - DAY6

Day and Night - DAY6

Stay Tonight - Chungha

Lies - Will Jay

Cosmic Love - Florence + The Machine

Electric Love - BORNS (yes I know the dude is problematic but this song is a main character bop)

Dark Paradise (Parov Stelar Remix) - Lana Del Rey, Parov Stelar

Wildflower - 5SOS

No Shame - 5SOS

Role Model - Phoenix

On My Own - 3LAU, Nevve

In Degrees - Foals

No Going Back - Yuno

Fading Youth - Punctual

Maybe You’re the Reason - The Japanese House

The Hype - LEISURE

All For Us - Labrinth, Zendaya

Sundress - A$AP Rocky

Dang! - Mac Miller, Anderson .Paak

Ladders - Mac Miller

Best Friend - Sofi Tukker, NERVO, The Knocks, et al.

Swan Song - Dua Lipa

Rocket Girl - Lemaitre, Betty Who

Graffiti - CHVRCHES

I Think I’m OKAY - Machine Gun Kelly, YUNGBLUD, Travis Barker

So What - LOONA

Blinding Lights - The Weeknd

Sexy, Free & Single - Super Junior

The Chaser - INFINITE

Treat People With Kindness - Harry Styles

That’s The Way It Is - Daniel Lanois

She - Harry Styles

To Be So Lonely - Harry Styles

Falling - Harry Styles

Psycho - Red Velvet

Adore You - Harry Styles

Watermelon Sugar - Harry Styles

Golden - Harry Styles

But, Honestly - Foo Fighters

Spark - Taeyeon

365247 - DAY6

Deep In Love - DAY6

It’s Okay To Cry - SOPHIE

Lights Up - Harry Styles

My Body - Young the Giant

False God - Taylor Swift

I Forgot That You Existed - Taylor Swift

Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince - Taylor Swift

The Archer - Taylor Swift

WHO DO U LOVE? - Monsta X, French Montana

FACE - Woosung

Best Part - DAY6

Wanna Go Back  - DAY6

Time of Our Life - DAY6

Awkward Silence - Stray Kids

Illusion - ATEEZ

CROOKED - GDRAGON

Don’t Need Your Love - NCT Dream, HRVY

ME - CLC

gogobebe - Mamamoo

Bon Bon Chocolat - EVERGLOW

Photograph - Def Leppard 

Butterfly - LOONA

WANT - Taemin (bop of 2019, fight me)

We Must Love - ONF (stan ONF you cowards)

Youth of the Nation - P.O.D.

Don’t Blame Me - Taylor Swift

I Did Something Bad - Taylor Swift

Sassy Me - Red Velvet 

My My My! - Troye Sivan 

Anybody Out There - Young Mister

Bloom - Troye Sivan

Shout - Tears For Fears

We Are The World - U.S.A. For Africa (can we do a reprise of this for the pandemic PLEASE)

Hysteria - Def Leppard

Livin’ On A Prayer - Bon Jovi

Don’t You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic - The Police

Everybody Wants To Rule The World - Tears For Fears

Woman - BoA

Replay (PM 01:27) - NCT 127

1, 2. 3! - Seungri (I hate you seungri, rot in prison, I also hate you put a bop this good)

SEE SEA - Hyolyn

NANANA - IMFACT

I’m Not Afraid - Holland (stan Holland YOU COWARDS)

BLUE MOON - Kyeongri

1, 2, 3 - NCT Dream

Beautiful Feeling - DAY6

Naughty Boy - PENTAGON (okay but who else cried rtk ep 3)

Seesaw - Suga of BTS

Euphoria - Jungkook of BTS

HANN (Alone) - (G)-IDLE

Youngblood - 5SOS

Now or Never - SF9 (bop of 2018 I will fight you on this)

Taking Off - ONE OK ROCK

What’s Good - SVT Rap Unit

Take What You Want - ONE OK ROCK, 5SOS

SUNSET - Kim Donghan

Better Better - DAY6

Feeling Good - DAY6

We Are - ONE OK ROCK

Something New - Taeyeon

Forever Young - BLACKPINK

Take Me Higher - A.C.E.

Spotlight - Pristin V

Good Evening - SHINee

Needing/Getting - OK Go

This Too Shall Pass - OK Go

Call Your Name - JBJ

Trigger - VIXX

Shine - Pentagon (okay but also bop of 2018, and ptg should of gotten their first win with this song, ROBBED)

Egoist - Olivia Hye of LOONA, Jinsoul of LOONA

LIKEY - Twice

I Wait - DAY6

I Smile - DAY6

I Loved You - DAY6

INTRO: Neo Got My Back - NCT

BOSS - NCT U

THANKS - Seventeen

Bad Boy - Red Velvet

LOVE SCENARIO - iKON

Take The Dive - Jonghyun

Heroine - Sunmi

Greedy - Ariana Grande

She Is - Jonghyun

Born Hater - Epik High, Beenzino, Verbal Jint, et al.

Run Away With Me - Carly Rae Jepsen

new - Yves of LOONA

I Just - Red Velvet

Crazy Sexy Cool - ASTRO

Callin’ - A.C.E.

ON/OFF - ONF (stan [and I cannot emphasize this enough] ONF you cOwArDs)

I’M THE ONE - MXM

MOVE - Taemin

Sting - Stellar

You & I - One Direction

Ride - Lana Del Rey 

Pied Piper - BTS

Like This - Pentagon

Don’t Know You - HEIZE

LOVE ME LOVE ME - WINNER

Story of My Life - One Direction

Act My Age - One Direction

Clouds - One Direction

Night Changes - One Direction

Girl Almighty - One Direction

Don’t Hold Me - DMEANOR, Swings

What U Do? - EXO

You Better Know - Red Velvet

View - SHINee

Singing In The Rain - Jinsoul of LOONA

Long Road to Ruin - Foo Fighters

My Hero - Foo Fighters

Will - Jeong Jinwoon, Tiger JK

Really Really - WINNER

I - Taeyeon, Verbal Jint

Why - Taeyeon

WAKE ME UP - B.A.P.

I Got Love - Taeyeon

Deepened - Brave Girls

Learn to Fly - Foo Fighters

Walk - Foo Fighters

Everlong - Foo Fighters

Into the New World - SNSD

Wheels - Foo Fighters

Come on Get Higher - Matt Nathanson

Wonderwall - Oasis

Alone - Heart 

Home Sweet Home - Motley Crue

God is a woman - Ariana Grande

Maker - Big Wild

Me and Michael - MGMT

Are You Bored Yet? - Wallows, Clairo

God’s Menu - Stray Kids

fever dream - mxmtoon

Prom Queen - Beach Bunny

Close - Nick Jonas, Tove Lo

[author-luna]

Villain!Sokeefe/Ruewen family AU

Hi there everyone! A little while ago, a friend and I were talking about Sokeefe and what might happen in book 9, and then I had this idea for an AU where Sokeefe as well as the Ruewen family (Gardy, Edaline, Sophie and alive!Jolie) have been villains all along.

The idea couldn’t leave my mind so here I am.

Word count: 2.9k

Trigger/ Content warnings: mentions of nightmares

Please don’t hesitate to message me / tell me in the comments in case I should add any warnings!

My idea for it was that during Keefe’s time with the Neverseen, they were able to get him on their side

They make him work as a double agent, while thinking he is loyal to them

His joining is fueled by the fact that he feels like the Black Swan isn’t doing anything to help them nor are the utilizing them how they should

He knows that they could defeat the Neverseen in the bat of an eye, if only the Black Swan helped them reach their full potential by not sheltering them

But Keefe has his own agenda, which involves shattering both the Black Swan and the Neverseen

In his opinion, both organizations are hopeless and the best way to actually achieve what they want is a different approach

His plan is to get both the Neverseen and the Black Swan to destroy each other as well as the council, leaving the elvin world exposed

Then, in mits of all chaos, a new organization should take the position of power and work to redefine the elvin values and society

He has thought quite far ahead, but a lot of stuff is still up for debate and he doesn’t really mind because he knows he’ll come up with something in time

After he comes back, he finds it harder to play pretend than he originally thought it would

He can’t bring himself to think about the betrayal everyone would feel after they find out

Even worse, how Sophie would take it all in

After all they’ve been through and how she still trusted him, he can’t take any risks

One day though, when he and Sophie are both hanging out together and the topic of the Neverseen comes up, he can’t take it anymore

It slips out of him before he can even think about it

and suddenly it’s quite, too quiet and yet so unnervingly loud because the blood is rushing in his ears and the air is swirling and Sophie is just shocked

he scrambles to explain what he meant, cover up or anything

but then Sophie just starts shaking and oh god he really messed up didn’t he-

he is convinced that she hates him now but then the shaking turns into faint giggles and the giggling turns into soft laughter which then erupts into a laughing fit and he just wants to call Elwin so he can check on her

after a little while Sophie calms down and sits down, her hands in her lap and her eyes looking at him expectantly

at first our boy is just confused but the she tells him to sit down and explain

when he looks at her like she went insane she tells him that she knows him, he would never do that if he didn’t find value in it

so, he sits down and tells her all about it

from the very start, how he spend his stay to how they recruited him and about why he joined and his own plans

Keefe talks for a while, and when it all come to end, he is surprised by how much better he feels, almost like a weight has been lifted off him and he could finally breathe

Sophie stays quiet for a while, her eyes looking into the distance

Keefe stars fidgeting and pulling loose gras out of the ground because the silence is heavy and he thinks that she definitely hates him now

when Sophie finally looks at him, she is smiling, s m i l i n g and he thinks she finally went crazy

she seems to have read what he thought on his face because now shes pouting and she hit his arm in a playful manner, which leads Keefe to throw a handful of grass on her and suddenly they’re rolling around, chasing each other and laughing like normal people

when they finally stop to catch their breath and they find themselves under Calla’s tree which is ironic, Keefe thinks

the silence now isn’t heavy, it’s comfortable like they've came to a silent agreement

when Sophie speaks up, Keefe can’t help but feel nervous

he is expecting a lecture, a list of things he already knows, maybe even a screaming match because that’s what he deserves

instead, Sophie just whispers a single phrase

‘I trust you’

and it’s enough to bring tears to his eyes because she still trusts him, she isn’t going anywhere and she is still his friend

and then they talk for hours

it’s about everything and nothing in particular

they exchange stories and jokes, laughter echoes through the air followed by a light hearted silence and for the first time in ages Keefe feels like everything might turn out good and he dares to hold on that bit of hope he usually tries to suffocate

Sophie herself feels the same

she thought about yelling at him or scolding him, but deep down she knows that it doesn’t matter

and when she said she trust him, she meant it with each fiber of her body

a little voice in her head tells her that she’s laughing with the enemy and that she’s foolish for trusting him, that she’s a traitor herself for doing it but she snaps back saying that maybe she wants to be a traitor and that she doesn’t care, and the voice shuts up

for the next few days, the voice keeps whispering that she is the enemy as well because she’s trusting Leefe, but whenever she says that maybe she wants to be the enemy, the voice shuts up and that makes her think

Keefe made good points, his plan could use some improvement but the point still stands

her thoughts are constantly running and circling back to the same question ‘Where do I stand? What can I do?’

and at night, the overthinking gets to her

her dreams are haunted by what if’s, but one dream stand out to her

that night, she dreamt of her friends, her family, Keefe and herself in a future where there is no Neverseen

in her dreams, her friends and her were at the beach in San Diego, Linh is playing with the water and everyone is just having fun

when she turns around, she sees Grady and Edaline laughing with her human parents and she hears her human dad’s barking laugh echo as he retells a story from her childhood

she feels a hand on her shoulder and when she looks up, Keefe is standing besides her, looking fondly at the scene

he notices her staring at him and he looks down to her,a soft smile on his face as he whispers ‘We did it Foster’

she jerks up from sleep and she could swear that she can still hear the laughter, smell the water and feel the lingering touch of Keefe’s hand on her shoulder

that night she realizes that this is the future she wants, one where she doesn’t need to hide her human self

she lays awake for hours, and the next morning she finally makes a decision

in the night, when she lays awake, she mentally reaches out to Keefe, and when he opens his mind to hers, he is confused

but with an unbelievable determination she tells him that she is joining him

there is a lot of arguing from his side, but Sophie expected as much

she tells him that if he doesn’t want her to work with him she’ll join the Neverseen on her own so he gives up for now and tells her he will make arrangements for her to meet the others

after the meeting, they take Sophie in as part of them

obviously they don’t trust her from the start and she has to work very hard to earn their trust

they give a lot of assignments that involve morally questionable things that Sophie at first refuses to do but gives in

wherever she goes to these type of missions, she mentally seeks out the comfort of Keefe’s mind, who gladly will distract her, comfort her and talk to her until she feels better

it isn’t a pleasant thing for her to lie to her friends so openly, and she often struggles with hiding it, but Keefe is always right there to help her

they keep talking at night, just basking in the security of each other’s mental presence

because sometimes, things don’t seem that bad when you have a friend by your side

Sophie’s telepathy gets even stronger with the help of Gethen, who teaches her how to hide things securely from Fitz and Mr.Forkle

‘Gethen is okay I suppose’ Sophie begrudgingly admits one night during their nightly hangouts, after Keefe asked her about their training session

he teases her and laughs at her when she threatens to mentally slam a pillow at his head, but secretly she find that his laugh is quite adorable

after the Nightfall fiasco, Vespera and Gisela finally start trusting Sophie more because she kept up the facade so well

they call a meeting with her to ‘formally introduce her’ and during the meeting, she’s a bit nervous

of course, she has been kinda member all this time, but now being officially part of them was making her giddy with nerves

they do the protocol of introducing her to everyone, making her swear herself in, talk about her position yada yada, but the only thing she can focus on is Keefe's hand that intertwined itself with hers under the table and three familiar hooded people in the back

at some point during the meeting he had grabbed her hand to stop her from tugging on her eyelashes and to keep her grounded and steady, and to be fair, the soft circles his thumb kept tracing over her knuckles and the menatlly reassuring things he said to her were soothing and kept her from freaking out

but as much as she wanted to focus on the meeting, her attention kept going up to the three hooded figures in the back

she couldn’t help but feel like she had seen them before, their posture and presence so familiar

she was so distracted she barely noticed how everyone left the room, leaving only Gisela, Vespera, the hooded figures, Keefe and her in the room

when Keefe squeezed her hand, her attention snapped back to the room and she noticed that the figures came closer

Gisela suddenly asked her and Keefe to keep calm since they would now let them into the identities of three of their members

once the hooded figures let down the hoods, Sophie might have yelped in surprise and Keefe might have pulled her closer,just to put his arm around her and there is a tiny chance that Sophie buried herself deeper into his comforting side hug

in front her stood her parents, her elvin parents and with them their daughter she saw them mourn

it didn’t make sense to her how Edaline smiled at her and how Grady sheepishly scratched his neck and especially not how Jolie, the Jolie form the pictures and Prentice mind, shyley waved at her

Gisela and Vespra left them alone and told them to explain and sort it out

the moment they left, Keefe and Sophie started bombarding them with questions

finally, Grady and Edaline explained that Jolie had joined the Neverseen a while before she joined the Black Swan and how she recruited them

her death and all the mourning was just an act to keep everyone from questioning them when they try to get information or when they try to spy on the council

Jolie told her about how she was able to make herself a new identity under the name Trix

upon asking how she could be Trix if his ability was being a Guster and Jolie being a Conjurer jolie answered that she kept gusts of wind stored in the void that she could use and redirect to her liking

they tell them about their positions and how they actually always assisted them in some way, and Sophie feels abit betrayed for not knowing earlier

her and Jolie talk for a bit, getting to know each other and Sophie decides that Jolie is quite amazing

Edaline notes that they should go before someone notices their absence and Sophie takes her home crystal, leaping her and Keefe back to Havenfield

for a second they stand in the living room, hands intertwined and faces close

and before they could speak, they hear someone clear their throat and Sophie lets go of Keefe’s hand in embarrassment

Keefe is a bit upset, he already missed the way Sophie’s hand had fit into his own and the comforting feeling of rubbing his thumb against her knuckles

with a glare, Grady sends him home

after Gardy leaves him alone, he smirks to himself and makes it his mission to hold Sophie’s hand often

now time skip to Unlocked

at first, Keefe didn’t plan on telling Sophe where he’s going because he still was convinced that he is a danger for her

but 2 nights away from the lost cities and he suddenly found Sophie towering over him, hand on her hips and a glare so deadly he probably would have been 6 feet under

sheepishly, he asked her what she was doing here and she just punched his arm

cue an hour of lecturing about how they were in this together and he shouldn't have left without telling her

that’s when it dawned on him

why was she here, and if she was here with him, who was in the lost cities

she sat down besides him, setting down a backpack and saying that she was also a runaway

for the next month or so, they wandered around the world

with her teleporting, their birthfounds and Keefe’s new abilities, they had no problem at all with traveling and staying undercover

in the lost cities, Grady and Edaline helped keep the suspicions at bay

they covered for them and made sure no one found them

cue another showdown between the Neverseen and the Black Swan

this time, it’s a full force one and everyone instinctively knows that this battle is the last

all the intelligent species hold their breath as the war rages, gnomes and elves fighting on each side with all they’ve got

there are losses of course, but the biggest one is when Sophie and Keefe suddenly appear in the middle of everything

their friends stop and look at them with bewilderment, and it soons turns into shock when Keefe takes out a microphone like thing and tells everyone to freeze

as the battle stops, Sophie whistles a tune and Silveny descents from the sky

she lands in front of them and gently, Keefe helps her up and sits behind her

their friends would love to follow them with their eyes, but their gaze is fixed into the distance, and so, they don’t notice how Silveny flies them up to the middle and how Sophie starts expanding her mental grip on everyone

when she finally has everyone listening to her, she takes turns with Keefe to tell them about the future, how both the Neverseen and the Black Swan can’t guarantee a good life for them and the council even less

they end their little speech with them asking their friends to trust them, and Keefe sends everyone but Fitz,Biana,Linh,Tam,Dex,Marella,Wylie,Stina,Bronte Grady and Edaline to sleep

they land and talk with their friends, telling them everything that has happened, from them joining the Neverseen to their time in the human world

and as they stand there, all the stories told and feeling laid bare, they hold each others hands

they know that there is a high possibility of their friends not forgiving them or even not wanting them back

they also know that they might have to leave the elvin world behind forever

that's why they hold each other, because they know that as long as they have each other, the world can throw anything at them and they will get around it

because when Sophie lovingly whispered ‘As long as we have each other, we’re invincible’ after Keefe woke up from a nightmare, it was a promise

and as Keefe whispered a ‘It’s us against the world’ back, it was a mutual understanding,a promise and a reassurance that tells the world ‘We belong with each other, each a heart and a soul that is stronger together’

so when Biana breaks out into a sprint to hug them and everyone joins, hugs exchanged, laughter echoed and stories told, they don’t let go

the future might be uncertain, but it’s a bit better if you have friends with you to stand against the uncertainty