#sophie's opinion corner

[your-local-soph-loll]

i kin him

nuff said

[your-local-soph-loll]

Oh my god, yes!!!!! I like, 100% agree with you there, bud.

Like, please, for the love of god, stop telling kids to stop "overreacting" because they aren't. They haven't experienced much, so running out of their favorite snack or losing a toy actually feels like the worst thing that's ever happened to them.

And referring to kids as "things" is just messed the fuck up, man. They're human beings too, even if they're inexperienced at it.

So let this be a lesson to you for the next time you see a kid crying over what seems to be a minor inconvenience.

Sophie out.

fun fact if you refer to children as "things" and use "it" when referring to children and are happy to see children cry and get hurt im stealing something from your house

[tip-top-cloud-surfer]

To Be a Man (Part 2) - Hangman

Pairing: Hangman / Wife!OC (Sophie)

Word Count: 3.0k

This work, all my works, and my entire blog are 18+ Only

Warnings: Non-Traditional Family Dynamics; Marriage of Convenience/Necessity; Implied Sexual Content; Jealous!Jake; Cocky!Rooster; Third Person POV, Named OC kids and Wife, No Physical Descriptions of Any OCs

Summary: Hangman and Sophie move to Miramar. The Daggers meddle.

Prologue Part 1 Part 3

Master List

“Alright, ready?” Jake asked Leila and Tyler, who were both practically bouncing where they stood.

“Ready!”

Jake placed the key into the lock on the front door of the new Seresin family residence in Miramar before swinging the door open. Leila and Tyler let out a squeal each before racing inside, eager to see the house that would be their new home. Sophie smiled and thanked Jake for holding the door for her before heading inside herself.

She had seen the house very briefly over FaceTime, since she had been busy holding down the fort back in Lemoore while Jake got everything prepared for their move to Miramar. And, after all, it was mostly his money going towards paying for it, so she didn’t offer her opinion on too many things. She told him to just find a house with three bedrooms and not too much work and that was it.

But when she spotted the little breakfast nook like she had talked about; and the big window in front of the kitchen sink like she wanted; and the backyard with the swings that Leila asked for; and the basketball hoop that Tyler wanted at the end of the driveway, she didn’t doubt that Jake put an excessive amount of time into finding the perfect house for them.

Jake watched Leila and Tyler explore, opening the back door for them so that they could run down and explore the yard. Turning back to Sophie, he paused when he caught her blissful smile as she spun around the living room, taking it all in.

“I didn’t do too bad, did I?” Jake asked, leaning on the wall.

“It’s perfect,” Sophie assured Jake, walking over to him.

Watching Leila and Tyler out in the backyard with a soft smile, she turned back to Jake with an expression that he had seen about a thousand times for her. She gave him that look when he offered to marry her, when he actually did, and for just about everything insignificantly small and beyond. She always spoke like he didn’t need to get her anything, when he was willing to give her the world if that was what she wanted.

“Thank you. I feel like I’ll never repay you for all of this.”

“You don’t have to repay me,” Jake reminded her, causing Sophie to nod slowly.

“I know, but—”

“—The truck is here!” Leila shouted, causing Jake and Sophie to turn to her.

Jake stepped outside to see the moving truck pulling around the corner. Jake’s truck and Sophie’s car were both already jam packed, but they still needed a moving truck for the bigger items and a lot of their other crap. Jake walked out to greet the movers while Sophie moved to entertain Leila and Tyler in the backyard, out of their way.

But when Sophie spotted a set of three cars rolling down the road and park in front of their new home, she couldn’t help but look around the house curiously. She quickly recognized the Bronco and Coyote’s truck and walked over to greet them. She wasn’t expecting anyone to come and help them move in, but any help was welcome.

“Javy!” Tyler shouted, darting around Sophie to greet him.

Leila was right behind Tyler, though she moved to quickly greet Phoenix, who she was starting to look up to with greater reverence. Jake was thrilled about that. Really thrilled. But Phoenix seemed content to act as a guide to Leila. Sophie wondered if in ten years, that would involve helping Leila sneak out under Jake’s nose, though she didn’t think too hard about that yet.

“You guys didn’t have to come and help us move,” Sophie stated as the entire Dagger Squad stepped out of their cars. “We didn’t help any of you move.”

“We all moved into apartments,” Coyote pointed out, standing up with Tyler on his back. “And we all knew that Hangman would never ask for help.”

“No, he wouldn’t,” Sophie mused as the aviator in question made his way over to them.

“I don’t remember sending out invites,” Hangman drawled, moving to stand next to Sophie, earning an elbow to the side.

“They’re here to help,” Sophie insisted, causing Jake to turn to her.

“We don’t need help.”

“Sure, we don’t,” Sophie replied with a bright smile before turning back to the Dagger Squad. “Come on, let me show you guys everything.”

“But,” Jake started to protest.

“Looks like you were overruled,” Phoenix mused, causing Hangman to sigh.

“Yeah, Jake, you were overruled,” Leila laughed, adding about four extra r’s to the last word.

“Alright, that’s it.”

Sophie looked back over her shoulder to see Leila squealing as Jake picked her up and spun her around. She giggled and lightly punched at Jake’s back, asking to be put down, but Jake pretended to not hear her and went about his business as if she wasn’t there. Smiling softly to herself, Sophie turned back to the truck to give out directions for where to put everything.

With the two movers and the Dagger Squad, the move was progressing very quickly. Sophie stood in the kitchen, gently unwrapping and putting away all of the kitchen supplies. Just as she was struggling to open another box, a hand reached out to help her.

Except it wasn’t her husband’s.

“Need some help with that?” Rooster asked, wearing a flirtatious smile.

“If you don’t mind,” Sophie replied, passing the box over to him. “Thank you.”

“Anything for a woman as beautiful as you,” Rooster returned, slicing open the box.

Sophie instantly raised an eyebrow, confused at Rooster’s phrasing. Unbeknownst to Sophie or Hangman, the rest of the Daggers had a silent mission of their own. They all saw just how Hangman pined after his wife. They saw the looks that they shared. They saw the subtle way that Sophie could calm him down with a hand on his arm or get him to shut up with a quick look.

And all that they needed was for Hangman to admit it. Because they couldn’t sit through a fifty-slide presentation as Hangman asked for their opinion on a perfect house and then just went with his gut in the first place. They could not do that again.

Hangman walked into the living room with a couch in between him and Coyote. Setting it against the side wall, Jake straightened up to see Sophie in the kitchen, still unpacking the utensils and everything. But she wasn’t alone this time. Rooster as there, smirking like an idiot, as he helped Sophie put away the glassware into one of the cupboards.

“You need help?” Jake immediately asked, walking over to where Sophie and Rooster were standing.

Coyote shared a look with Phoenix, who stood a few paces away. Phoenix shook her head, thinking that the whole jealousy card was overdone and a bad idea. But, hey, she wasn’t going to pay Rooster’s dental bill if he really pissed Hangman off.

“I think that we’re good,” Rooster replied, shooting Hangman a smirk that drew some kind of primitive growl out of Hangman’s chest.

“We’re fine,” Sophie stated, brushing some of her hair back. Smiling at Jake, she gestured towards the door. “Go grab the mattresses before Fanboy convinces Tyler to ride down the stairs on one.”

“You sure?” Jake insisted, glancing over at Rooster with a sharp glare. “I don’t mind.”

“I’m sure,” Sophie replied, having her own particular system in the kitchen.

Jake, a bit defeated, shot Rooster a look of death before walking off to start the process of moving the mattresses upstairs. Coyote and Phoenix shared another look before Phoenix rolled her eyes. Squatting down to Leila’s height, she offered Leila a small smile.

“Want to go work on that sign for your room?”

“Yeah!” Leila agreed excitedly, leading Phoenix out of the house.

Jake, Payback, Coyote, and Fanboy worked together to drag all of the heavier furniture upstairs with some help from the movers. Sweating, Jake wiped his forehead with his forearm after he and Coyote finally got the dresser upstairs and into the master bedroom. But he paused and spun around when he heard Sophie’s laughter echo up the stairs.

“Hey, did you want all of the boxes marked—” Bob started to ask before Jake moved right past him, heading downstairs quickly. “Okay then.”

Jake turned the corner and spotted Sophie kneeling on the countertop as she put away some plates and bowls and other stuff that they didn’t use too often up high in the cabinets. And Rooster the fucking bane of Jake’s current existence, stood right behind her, handing her items. And when Sophie sat up to put the items away, Rooster had a complete, uninterrupted view of her ass.

“Oh, hey, Hangman,” Rooster greeted him, waving condescendingly as Jake nearly combusted.

“You want to do some actual lifting, Rooster?” Jake snapped back, gesturing to the other dresser.

“Oh, but the view’s so nice here. Out your lovely window, I mean,” Rooster replied, causing Payback to choke on air.

“Rest in peace, Rooster,” Fanboy joked, making the sign of the cross.

“I should probably run out and grab lunch for anyone anyways,” Sophie stated, slowly getting down from the countertop. Rooster offered her a hand, which she took, before hopping down completely. “I was thinking pizza and some beer.”

“You need any help with it?” Rooster offered, causing Sophie to turn.

“Oh, I’ll be fine. Thanks.”

“Any time.”

Sophie grabbed her purse off the table and moved to grab her keys. Passing by Jake, she gently grabbed his hand, immediately breaking his death stare into Rooster’s skull.

“You want anything special?” she asked, smiling up at him.

“No, I’m fine.”

“Alright. Just text me if you need anything. Oh, and make sure that Tyler has his snack,” Sophie stated, checking her watch.

“Already did,” Jake reported, causing Sophie’s smile to brighten.

Pressing a lingering kiss to his cheek, she walked off, promising to be back with lunch. Jake watched her go before turning back to Rooster with the same death stare. Rooster waved to Jake and Fanboy swore that he saw steam pouring out of Jake’s ears.

But then Leila ran into the room with her sign, eager to show Jake her little project.

“Jake! Jake! Look at what I made!”

“What’d you make, Princess?” Jake asked, kneeling down to her height.

“It’s for my room,” Leila announced proudly.

Jake looked down at her sign and laughed a classic dad laugh when he saw the writing. On a thin piece of wood, Phoenix had painted a simple ‘No Boys Allowed’ in big black letters. But underneath, written by Leila in magic marker, was a little addendum of ‘But Not Jake.’

“It’s amazing, Leila,” Jake praised, studying the sign. “You think you can make one for your aunt too?”

“But what about Tyler?”

“You can add him to your aunt’s sign. But emphasize the other part, okay?”

“Okay.”

Standing up slowly, Jake turned to shoot Rooster one last glare before calling for the other Daggers to put their asses into gear. Sophie eventually returned with a stack of pizzas and some beer for the adults and some lemonade for the kids. They set up shop outside on the deck, which was mostly shaded from the sun, and took a well-deserved break.

“I made a sign for your room!” Leila shouted, causing Sophie to turn to her.

“Did you?”

“Yeah! Phoenix helped with mine! And Jake asked me to make one for you!”

“Did he now?” Sophie mused, taking the sign from Leila’s hand.

She smiled and let out a laugh when she spotted what Leila had written. Just as she was about to comment about it, however, Rooster slid into the seat beside her.

“What do you have there?” Rooster asked, resting his arms behind Sophie.

“Just a sign that Leila made for Jake and my room,” Sophie replied, showing it to Rooster.

“Is that negotiable at all?” Rooster questioned, causing Leila to frown dramatically.

Before Sophie could even attempt to respond, Tyler’s laugh made her turn quickly. Jake was out in the backyard, doing pushups with Tyler on his back, giggling and holding on tight. Jake didn’t even look like it was a struggle, though Sophie had to assume he was sore from all the moving.

“See, you weigh nothing,” Jake joked, causing Tyler to pout.

“I do weigh something!”

“I can’t seem to feel it,” Jake returned, causing Leila to run down there.

Climbing up onto Jake’s back too, Leila laughed along with her brother as Jake continued to do pushups with them on his back. And despite their efforts and their giggles, Jake kept going. Rooster glanced over at Sophie to see her sitting a bit perched on her seat, lips slightly parted with her tongue licking her bottom lip before taking it in between her teeth. Hell, someone could have waved a hand in front of her face and she wouldn’t have blinked.

“Well, I think that confirms it,” Phoenix stated dryly, sharing a look with Coyote.

“Alright, I think that’s enough,” Jake called, putting his knees down.

“Ha! We won!” Leila shouted victoriously, pointing up at Jake.

“Nuh uh!”

“Yeah huh!”

“Nuh uh!” Jake replied dramatically, causing Sophie to smile to herself.

Leila and Tyler continued to squabble with Jake, but he returned it just the same. Stepping up onto the deck again, Jake deposited Tyler onto Coyote and Leila quickly ran to Sophie’s side. And sat right in between Sophie and Rooster.

“Jesus, it’s hot out,” Jake complained, moving to sit beside his wife.

“You’re the one who had to go and do extra pushups,” Sophie pointed out, earning a smirk in return from her husband.

“Just had to prove a point. That’s all.”

Pulling off his now sweat soaked shirt, Jake sat down beside Sophie, who couldn’t help put trail her eyes down his chest. Cracking open a beer, Jake rested his arm firmly behind Sophie, leaving no room for Rooster’s own, and took a long sip.

“You call that chest hair, Rooster?” Jake joked, gesturing at the small patch on Rooster’s chest.

“Jake,” Sophie admonished, though there was barely any force behind it.

“I believe that’s checkmate,” Coyote told the other Daggers, who were snickering among themselves.

~~~~~

After they ate lunch, the Daggers put together most of the other major pieces of furniture and at least got it semi-set up before the Daggers left for the day. Leila and Tyler were tuckered out very quickly and were in bed by eight, sound asleep. Tyler was even snoring. And that left Jake and Sophie alone for a few quiet moments.

“I think this is the last thing today,” Sophie decided as she tucked the sheets under their mattress. “We’ll get the rest of the important stuff situated tomorrow. Maybe Leila and Tyler’s rooms. And then I’ll just unpack when I have a moment.”

“Yeah, I don’t think we need to call in the calvary again,” Jake stated, carrying over the comforter.

Sophie looked up at Jake through her eyelashes as she slowly reached over to help Jake unfold the blanket. She paused in thought for a moment as she tucked the edge of the blanket into the space between the mattress and the frame before turning to Jake.

“Are you feeling okay, Jake?”

“A little tired. But otherwise, fine. Why?” he asked, folding the comforter at the top of the bed.

“You were showing off at lunch.”

“I was just trying to prove a point to Tyler, that’s all,” he replied, avoiding the real question there.

“So, it had nothing to do with Rooster then?” Sophie smiled to herself when she felt Jake’s gaze on her as she turned to pull out the pillow from the box. “You know, you only pull out that pushups routine when you’re feeling insecure.” Sophie fluffed a pillow before turning to Jake. “And Rooster wasn’t even slightly subtle.”

“I’ll beat his ass the next time I see him.”

“I’m assuming that it was some kind of dare,” Sophie returned, brushing off the entire interaction. “I’m not worried about it.” She tossed the pillows to Jake, who set them on the bed in order. Folding up the cardboard box, Sophie shot Jake a small smile as she slipped out the door of the bedroom. “And you shouldn’t be either.”

Jake looked up from the pillows, watching Sophie walk off for a silent moment before letting out a breath to center himself. Maybe he did lose his shit a little bit out there. But, in all honesty, he could have been far worse given the game that dumbass Rooster was playing. Running a hand down his face, Jake let out another breath and turned for the bathroom.

Sophie returned to the bedroom after tossing the cardboard box into the pile and turning off all of the lights. She paused when she heard the shower running and Jake’s suitcase open on the floor. Reaching behind her, Sophie closed the door to their bedroom and walked over to the bathroom door.

Jake let the hot water roll down his back and soak his hair. Running a hand through his hair, Jake spun around when the shower door opened, letting in a rush of cold air. Sophie stepped inside the shower as she locked eyes with Jake. Shutting the shower door behind her, Sophie took a step closer to Jake, letting the warm water spray hit her.

There was a beat longer of silent, burning staring between them, before Jake leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Sophie’s lips. She quickly returned it, reaching up to cup his cheeks. Jake pulled her flush against him, brushing his hands down her spine. Pulling away for a moment, Jake rested his forehead against her own and stared into her eyes once more.

“The kids are asleep, right?” Jake asked softly.

“Completely knocked out,” Sophie assured him.

“Good,” Jake replied, brushing his thumb over her cheek. Reaching down, he grabbed the back of her thigh and hoisted her right leg around his waist, causing Sophie to grab his shoulder for stability. “Wouldn’t want them to walk in on this.”

Prologue Part 1 Part 3

Tags (Just People Who Asked for More/Part 2):

@ahopelessromanticwritersworld @whoeverineedtobe @dingochef @mayhemmanaged @xkylo--renx

[lotusishere]

Man I wish people didn’t pick and choose who to hold accountable in kotlc. “Fitz should be held accountable!” “Keefe should be held accountable!” “Sophie should be held accountable!!!” “Tam should be held accountable!” How about instead of looking at people to blame for their actions that were provoked by years of torment and trauma. We focus on the fact they need therapy and that yes they all have flaws. I don’t like when people look at Fitz’s flaws but if Keefe were to do the same thing it’s a problem. I hate when Sophie does something but if literally anyone else were to do it it wouldn’t be a problem. I think it’s weird to favor others flaws over others. They have all made mistakes. They are all children and they’re all growing. Some mistakes are hard to forgive or more past but there’s a difference between holding a character accountable and punishing them for your emotional opinion about their decisions.

Also let’s remember that nobody is pointing the fingers at the real opps in the story. I don’t get why people are hating on Fitz, Sophie and Keefe more than Gisela and her group of terrorist and the bipolar council, with the fresh beat band birds in the corner (Black Swan)

[your-local-soph-loll]

I mean, yeah. That's kinda why I headcanon Sweet as like, 14 years old. \_/(−∪−)\_/

still absolutely confused how people see the scc as adults. Just look at sweet and listen to the way they talk!!!!!! That's not an adult that is a child that still gets piggyback rides and still plays Webkinz!!! The most 13yo character I have ever seen

LITERALLY!!!!!STILL GETS PIGGYBACK RIDES!!! SAYS PLEASE AND THANK YOU (ART BY NELNAL ON TWITTER. I DO NOT HAVE A LINK IVE HAD THESE IN MY PHOTOS FOR A WHILE)

[tchaikovskym]

Howl's moving castle movie did a lot of things differently, but I think I should point out that Howl had full on cool as hell wizard spells/battles in the book, that, in my humble opinion, beat the whole bird war thing

I mean:

Howl’s arms moved, heavily, as if he was lifting a large weight, until they were raised high above his head. He shouted out a strange word, which was half hidden in a crack of sudden thunder. And the scarecrow went soaring away.

---

Sophie and Michael looked too, and found a huge cloud boiling and twisting just above the chimney tops. It was black and rotating on itself violently. White flashes that were not quite like light stabbed through the murk of it. But almost as soon as Michael and Sophie arrived, the clot of magic took on the shape of a misty bundle of fighting snakes. Then it tore in two with a noise like an enormous cat fight. One part sped yowling across the roofs and out to sea, and the second went screaming after it.

---

A ball of pale fire rolled lazily up in the distance. It must have been enormous. The bang that went with it only reached the watchers when the fireball had become a spreading tower of smoke. The line of people all winced at the blunt thunder of it. They watched the smoke spread until it became part of the mist on the marshes. They went on watching after that. But there was simply peace and silence. The wind rattled the marsh weeds, and birds began to dare to cry again.

---

Howl only needed to take one look. He stood up in a hurry. He held out one hand and spoke a sentence of those words that lost themselves in claps of thunder. Plaster fell from the ceiling. Everything trembled. But the stick vanished and Howl stepped back with a small, hard, black thing in his hand. [...] He held the black thing between both palms and pushed his hands together. The Witch’s old heart crumbled into black sand, and soot, and nothing.

---

The room turned dim. Huge, cloudy, human-looking shapes bellied up in all four corners and advanced on Sophie and Michael, howling as they came. The howls began as moaning horror, and went up to despairing brays, and then up again to screams of pain and terror. Sophie pressed her hands to her ears, but the screams pressed through her hands, louder and louder still, more horrible every second. (this is from when howl got mad abt sophie messing with his shampoos and indirectly making him ginger btw)

[multi-fandom-lunatic]

This is just a fun little ask that you totally don't have to respond to but I love answering asks so I thought maybe you might like another outlet to rant.

Question:

Do you think that as Shannon has made kotlc and more sokeefe-centric series that the depth/your enjoyment has consiquncially goen up or down? (or do you not believe that Shannon hasn't made the story more sokeefe based?)

Fully open to all opinions (you always word your rants so well so I was wondering if you'd like to answer)

Hi! Always love a good outlet to rant.

I fully think that Shannon has made KotLC suuuuper Sokeefe centric. The earlier books did have inklings of Sokeefe but it took a very sharp turn toward romance in Nightfall.

But, at the same time, I do think that Shannon's marketing has a lot to do with it. The way the book, and the way the Shannon percieves and talks about the book is geared toward Sokeefe. So, this bleeds into the fandom.

But, I still think that there's way too much Sokeefe in the books. I don't say this because I don't like romance (I very much do), it's because I think Sokeefe is quite a boring ship. They're personalities don't seem to contrast each other, clash, or parallel each others. Sometimes, though, there's some comparisons drawn, like Keefe and Sophie both being used by Gisella and the Black Swan respectively, but it's never delved into. Both in the plot, and their personalities, they just aren't compatible. What makes them the most popular ship is simply because Shannon is putting them in situations where they have to interact, and in those situations she forces Keefe to say some romantic/lame one liner that Sophie just ignores. It's only popular because Shannon is trying so, so hard to make it likeable.

I do think the series is worse now that Sokeefe is a main focus. But my main reason is because they just aren't interesting. After reading KotLC, for the longest time I just wasn't ready to read any fantasy romances because I was convinced that the romances would be bland and forced (I was a new reader, cut me some slack). But I picked up books that had characters with chemistry, who were actually compatible with each other and had good writing and it made the biggest difference.

I wish that there was focus on the other characters. Not just romantic relationships. The friendships, the familial bonds (and betrayal), the rivalry. All of these are there in Keeper, sure, but romance takes such a priority that all of these are cast aside. In truth, I'd even bargain for a different romance. Like, give me the Dex-Tam-Biana love triangle. Give me Marella x Linh. GIVE ME STINA AND JENSI.

I honestly think that Shannon either struggles to write not Sokeefe, or refuses to because of marketing. Either way, it's a shame, because her other characters have such potential to be explored.

But, I doubt, 11 books (well, technically 9) books into the series, changing course will do the series any good. If Shannon suddenly pivots to Dex, Biana and Tam, I would be instantly suspicious and I think it would be out of place. Right now, I think Sokeefe is like damned if you do, damned if you don't. Shannon drove herself into a corner with it. Hope the series improves despite it.

Thanks for the ask! I rarely get KotLC related asks on here. It's really refreshing.

[noturlondonboy]

No More Excuses//Katelena

Chapter 9: When It Rears Its Ugly Head

Pairing: Kate Bishop x Yelena Belova

Chapter Summary: The girls go see a movie and then head to a bar to just relax and enjoy each other’s company, but trouble arises when a toxic face from Kate’s past shows up.

A/N: I hope you hate this man as much as I do.

Chapter Warnings: alcohol, men being assholes, harassment, PTSD, trauma

Kate lets Yelena pick the movie when they shuffle into the first theater they can find, which happens to be small and vintage and ultimately adorable. She goes over the options for a small moment before excitedly beckoning to the reruns of Howl's Moving Castle, and Kate lights up with a grin at her decision. They get ridiculously cheap candy from the snack counter and scurry down the hallway.

Apparently Howl's Moving Castle had been on a list of Yelena's of things to watch because of her intermittent internet browsing, and Kate made a mental note to properly introduce her to Studio Ghibli later on.

The movie is an instant hit with Yelena, of course, who is so enthralled with the gorgeous art style and music that she doesn't even remember to touch the Reese's Pieces Kate convinced her to try. Here and there she mutters her thoughts, commenting on how sad it was that Sophie thought so little of herself, how much she adored Calcipher, how she thought that the rings were the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Kate probably didn't pay as much attention to the movie as she should have, but to be fair, she had seen it a million times and knew most of the lines anyway. She really only had eyes for Yelena; the way her nose scrunched when she smiled, the honey curls loose around her neck, the way the deep, sticky red of her lipstick moved with her mouth when she laughed and when she cried.

By the end of the movie, Yelena looks as if she's gone through the five stages of grief. Her cheeks are flushed and the tears, both genuine and from laughing, have smudged the corner of her eye makeup, which in Kate's opinion, only enhances it. The assassin is chatting Kate's ear off, who has to admit that her energy is the most addictive drug she's ever come in contact with.

"Kate Bishop!" Yelena yells for the millionth time as soon as they're outside the theater, hands grabbing her friend's arms and almost shaking her. "That was beautiful!" She bursts into a stream of excited rapid-fire Russian, her accent so thick that Kate thinks she could wrap herself in it and snuggle down for a night of listening to Yelena talk.

Yelena suddenly squeals and throws her arms around Kate's waist, lifting the archer off of her feet and spinning her around. "Kate Bishop, thank you thank you thank you!" She presses her lips to both of Kate's cheeks in swift kisses, her laughter and smile so contagious that Kate can't help but laugh along, even though her face is burning and her stomach is doing unsanctioned flips.

"Why are you thanking me?" Kate asks, her grin so wide her cheeks start to ache. She is still in Yelena's arms, the assassins grip strong and sure and oh-so warm. "You're the one who paid for the movie, Yelena."

"Yes, but I would not have ever gone to see it without you!" Yelena lets go of Kate to place her hands over her heart with a wistful sigh, her eyes closing. "Oh, Kate Bishop, I loved it so much."

Kate's heart is thudding against her chest, but she pushes it down and takes the blonde's hand. "I'm glad," she says softly.

Yelena's lips curl up at the corners, and the snow is still falling lightly out on the cold New York streets, a few flakes sticking to her dark lashes. "Me too."

There's another moment, then. Right there, just the two of them. Yelena knows, and is less afraid than she was even three hours ago, but it is heavy in her chest and she doesn't know if she can take the weight yet.

"Time for drinks, Kate Bishop?" she says coyly, raising an eyebrow. The air is crisp and wonderful in her lungs when she takes a deep breath, and it eases the squeeze on her heart.

Kate's grin is blinding, and she nods. "Absolutely."

--------

They end up walking until they find a cozy looking bar, and Kate holds the door open for Yelena before following in behind her. They are immediately enveloped in music that is somehow both quiet and loud but I still rather pleasant, the aroma of coffee and alcohol mixing together, and the glow from several assorted colors of fairy lights strung up in just about every inch of the place.

Kate whistles lowly, taking it in on a slow circle. "How have I never been to this place before now?" she mutters, finding herself falling in love with the establishment immediately. It's all one big, open space, with the bar against the back wall, each side wall full of different booths, tables, and variously decorated seating areas, and the rest of the floor appears to be where the dancing happens.

There seems to be only about two dozen people dancing, and only a couple of them are hammered enough to be throwing limbs around and grinding on each other. The rest are either slow dancing with their respective partner or friend, or letting themselves loosen up.

Yelena's grin is feral as she takes it all in, and when her eyes light upon Kate after a moment, the glow in them intensifies. The archer swallows, knowing her face is hot but not being able to do much about it.

"Hi there, ladies!" A deep voice calls out from somewhere to their right, and a tall, friendly looking man wearing entirely black with a safety vest appears from the crowd, walking towards them. "So sorry I didn't catch you at the door, but I'm the bouncer. Can I see some ID?"

Kate smiles apologetically and nods, digging through her wallet before handing her ID over. The guy looks it over for a moment and gives it back, then turns to Yelena. "And you, ma'am?"

Yelena doesn't move, and her voice is dry. "I called ahead. Fanny Longbottom."

Kate doesn't know how she keeps herself from choking on her own spit and laughing so hard she shits herself, but the bouncer looks over a list on his phone and confirms a few numbers with Yelena before letting them know they're good to go.

Yelena looks at Kate and notices the way she's barely holding herself together, and the assassin rolls her eyes. "Don't," she says in warning, her face grave but tone light. Kate wisely keeps her mouth shut.

They make their way to a booth where they have a clear view of the bar, dance floor, and both exits; Yelena tells Kate to sit while she grabs them drinks.

The archer settles into the booth and admires the leather upholstery, which is in much better shape than you would expect from a New York bar.  The hanging light above the table is a warm orange, and Kate leans further into the cushion, looking forward to the rest of night.

That is, of course, until a figure appeared in front of the table, much too tall and masculine to be her Yelena.

"Hey there, Baby Girl."

Kate feels her stomach blanch, and she does her best to keep the anger from showing through her face as she slowly turns to face the man who spoke. He was tall and lean and had short cropped hair, and Kate could barely stop herself from kicking him between the legs.

"Connor." She grit her teeth tightly and sat up tall, not bothering to make her face look pleasant. "I hope you remember I still have a restraining order against you."

Connor laughs and dares to sit in the booth seat across from her, leaning back and folding his arms across his chest. In hindsight, Connor looks completely harmless. He's wearing a simple blue henley shirt and converse, his hair is well kept, and his smile is dorky. But his eyes hold a gleam that Kate had managed to forget, and seeing it light upon her again has her blood boiling.

"I figured since your MILF of a mommy is in prison, I might try to say hi again." He leans forward, his elbows bracing on the table as he gives a wink. "Without any money to pay the police, how are you supposed to keep a restraining order in the first place?"

Her tone is cold and sharp, and she knows he can see the fire in her eyes. The jab at Eleanor simmers in the back of her mind, and Kate pictures getting to throw him into a wall. "I'm still rich as hell, Connor, and I have more money than you'll ever make in a lifetime. Leave before I call my security in and get you arrested." Kate didn't have official security, but she knew Yelena could chop this man into pieces without breaking a sweat.

For a moment, he looks enraged at the comment on his financial situation, but Connor only laughs, and his lips twist into a cruel smirk. "Girly, we both know you don't have security." He's staring into her, gaze challenging and rotted, like he's trying to tear down her defenses and scare her into submission.

"Leave," she hisses, body shaking with the anger she wants to hit him with. It had been so long since she felt this way. So upset that she could burn the world down with it. So afraid she might kill someone in her frenzy.

"No." His answer is simple, and Kate feels her heart fall with a thud. She recalls the feel of his hands on her wrists, his words mocking and laughing when she tries to get away. He was detained before he could seriously hurt her, but she remembers.

Yelena appears, a full shot glass in both hands, her face stone cold and murderous. "Who the fuck are you?"

Translations: none

Kate Bishop counter: 4

This chapter's meme:

Comments/reblogs/notes make my day :)

[the-great-gullon-incident]

Elves vs humans and dealing with guilt and other conflicts.

This post is mostly based on Tiergans line of dialogue in Exile:

“Good Girl” he said, releasing her. “If any thoughts like that start to rear up, you must shove them away - immediately, do you understand?”

He specifically says to shove them away. Which I think is a philosophy many elves seem to have of ignoring the problem, running away from it, avoiding it. Because confronting pain normally leads to more pain before it gets better, and elves like to believe they live in a perfect world without pain. And since they don’t deal with this grief opting to shove it away instead, to the dark corners of their mind, into a bottle, the guilt slowly grows over time. Eventually breaking them.

This also reflect how Elves deal with conflicts. Elves continue to ignore growing problems and conflicts, so bent on keeping up the illusions they’ve built for themselves about how their world is perfect and peaceful. So when problems arise they pretend they don’t exist, erasing them from their memories. And those problems and conflict can only be shoved away for so long before they grow to big, and if the elves continue to ignore these conflict they will break.

Meanwhile how humans, or more specifically Sophie, deal with their guilt. They confront it. They’ve built up tools across the millennia to deal with their guilt and emotions in a way that doesn’t break them. Are these tools and methods perfect? No. But they true to deal with them.

Taking a more specific look at Sophie she’s someone who constantly confronts her guilt and talks herself through it. She lets herself go through the pain instead of hiding it all away and let’s it out before it breaks her. When she’s talking about her guilt over what happened with Alden she tries to talk about her feelings. Something she was taught constantly in the human world to do, and as something positive. She’s used to talking about her feelings and having someone reassure her or just help her get through whatever’s happening in her life. Even if that person is herself. Elves just don’t seem to be in a strong practice of doing this. They do it for smaller conflict obviously, but bigger problems come to close to shattering their illusions that they refuse to talk about it or mention it.

This again comes into how Sophie deals with her problems. She comforts them, head on. While closer in the middle she seemed to be taking a slightly more elven way of dealing with things. Waiting until the neverseen actively made themselves a threat before she did something(this doing something is more than many elves would’ve done mind you), but as the series went on, especially after Nightfall when she was reunited with her human roots, she’s begun taking in more and more human ways of dealing with problems. Confronting them, starting to deal with them on the offensive rather then the defensive. This clashes violently with the elves ideologies and puts her on the ends with most of her friends who even if they have adopted some of Sophie’s more human ideologies still fall into many classical eleven opinions and worldviews. With the exception of those that have been in the outskirts of elven society. Who have seen how elven world views have failed people before and are far more willing to question classical elven schools if though because if it.(And while this also includes Linh she seems more against Rayni then Sophie lighting the fire and just vaguely sides with the rest of her friends because they’re the only support system she feels she has at the time while her previous one she no longer feels is actually helping her)

[your-local-soph-loll]

Why do I have the strong feeling that Sweet would emit this kind of crackling static noise while they're sleeping, kind of like an old radio would?

Like, it'd be kind of like this:

[vwritesaus]

The drawing room in 102 Cornwall Gardens is perhaps Alastair’s favourite room in the house. Aside from the bedroom, where he spends his mornings counting freckles on Thomas’s cheeks and nose, and listening to his lulling heartbeat in the evenings, it is the one room that lends itself to a life of peaceful leisure: of card games that go well into the night, of tea and sandwiches with family and friends who come to visit, of deep and meaningful discussions laid out upon cushioned sofa corners and warm arms, and of chai lingering on the tongue and on soft lips.       It’s a room decorated in hues of crimson and burgundy and a touch of olive green, with a large Persian rug and a handsome bookshelf in one corner. There are armchairs and sofas in viridian green, tables and chairs of polished walnut wood, and Thomas’s overflowing writing bureau. Alastair has fond memories of watching him hunched over a moleskin journal, chewing on a thumbnail and frantically scribbling with a thoughtful frown gracing his forehead, and will no doubt have many more in the years to come. On the other side, a cabinet reserved for spare weapons sits by the door, housing Alastair’s spears and daggers—for the favoured ones with their beautiful handles have their own special storage space in the bedroom—and Thomas’s swords, as well as some extra seraph blades.       Needless to say, in the grand scheme of things, the drawing room is the perfect space. Alastair wonders what the point of all the other rooms is when he is of the opinion that he can happily spend all of his time in here. Which is precisely what he’s doing right now.       He’s curled in the corner of one of those viridian green sofas, holding a book in between his fingers. His legs are in Thomas’s lap, and a beautiful tartan blanket—a housewarming present from Sophie Lightwood—covers them both. It’s a rather miserable night to be outdoors, the weather cold and windy and on the precipice of some kind of snowstorm, if one has to hazard a guess. But it provides the ideal ambience, complemented with a roaring fire in the grate and the heady scent of cardamom-spiced tea wafting from Royal Doulton china.       Unlike his beloved, Thomas has not joined in with a book of his own. Rather, he is dozing, his neck resting on the back of the sofa and his eyes shut, thick eyelashes casting soft shadows on his cheekbones. His waistcoat lies open, fully unbuttoned, as well as the first couple of buttons on his shirt. How he’s not cold like this, Alastair has yet to understand. Though Thomas has been this way for the past twenty minutes regardless of feeling cold or not, and Alastair would think he’s properly fallen asleep if not for the way his fingers gently stroke Alastair’s legs over the blanket.       Alastair grabs the moment to take in the way the fire’s golden glow splashes over Thomas, highlighting the smattering of freckles on his face and the backs of his hands, the soft dip of his upper lip, and the thick eyebrows that grace his forehead. He’s studied them in great detail this past year, learning how they appear in natural sunlight as it quivers into existence through the bedroom curtains, or under moonlight on a stroll home or on patrol. He’s come to know the lovely and stupid things that come out of Thomas’s mouth, how his brain works and the words he writes, the melodies he hums and the Spanish he mutters when he thinks Alastair’s not listening. He’s an expert on how the rough calluses on Thomas’s hands feel against his skin, in his hair, against his palms and equally callused hands, and on the care behind every touch, every rendition of I love you, and every kiss.       He’s tattooed Thomas Lightwood onto his soul, and even now he thinks just how lucky he is.

continue reading on ao3

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just a quick little thomastair fic i wrote for @drunkonimagination that she insisted i post kajshdasd

i know i'm late to the christmas/end of year holiday celebrations, but here, have a cosy post-canon thomastair oneshot ft. seasonal vibes :>

more fics to come soon, and that's a promise. this year i'm determined to write as much as humanly possible 😤

~

tag list: @alastairstom @thomastaircompassrose @faithfromanewperspective @ferrari-go-vroom-vroom let me know if you’d like to be added to or removed from the tag list!!

[austenhowe]

I'll ask for nothing else if I get this in show canon

alright, walk with me. if they're bringing cressida back in s4 for sophie's intro and with francesca still married to john and with eloise trying to figure herself out, I want a drawing room scene where cressida and michaela interact (read: lowkey flirt).

crackship, I know, but the potential for jealous!francesca (aware of her feelings) and jealous!eloise (confused and unaware of her feelings) with sophie and benedict falling in love and side-eyeing the gay drama subtly unfolding is just too delicious and can deliver a "kill three birds with one stone" scenario (the first of its kind but gay math so it checks out).

assuming that cressida's role will that be of a close friend accompanying sophie in navigating the london season after having been essentially exiled to wales, I imagine she'll only be comfortable interacting with sophie and that she'll be reluctant to engage in small talk with any of the bridgertons present.

now, I don't recall if they ever showed intimate dinner parties in the bridgerton universe (that wasn't for the sake of a betrothal) since they only show balls, but for the sake of this scene a small dinner party is held by a mutual acquaintance after the masquerade ball.

so, in this setup, we'll have benedict, sophie, francesca, john, michaela, eloise, and cressida along with about 5 other dinner party guests (not important for the bit but you can round it out with whoever else you want to bear witness to this scene) in the drawing room before dinner.

my headcanon is that cressida is not too fond of reading because she's dyslexic (undiagnosed due to the time period; can explain away the whole "she can't write whistledown 'cause she's stupid and doesn't read books" thing they tried to set up as hilarious in the show; she's smart, cunning, and observant ffs!) but that she enjoys listening to people read to her.

I imagine michaela stirling is the smoothest and most considerate angel in england and with everyone else paired off in conversation she approaches cressida. she's impartial and only knows about the whistledown drama from what eloise shared with her while they were in scotland, that is to say that she has no qualms conversing with this reserved and softened version of cressida cowper.

she strikes up a conversation with cressida, inquires about her time in wales, her hobbies, her opinions about society, etc. and she's kind to her. cressida, greatly moved and appreciative of this kindness, engages michaela as well, asking about her and scotland and her opinions on various other subjects.

they eventually get to the topic of books and cressida tells her that she's not much of a reader. she adds that she reads uncommonly slow and she loses her train of thought too fast since she has difficulty focusing on the words on the page but that she enjoyed hearing stories. so michaela offers to read to her.

this interaction doesn't go unnoticed by the other occupants of the drawing room. in fact, it's an intriguing sight.

they break for dinner and are separated by the seating arrangements but they pay attention to each other's polite conversations with their respective seat mates.

francesca and eloise are keenly aware of the two unexpected but loyal conversationalists and in turn make for inattentive conversation partners all throughout the meal. sophie and benedict are engaged in their own conversation but they are not insensible of michaela and cressida's budding friendship.

after dinner, they return to the drawing room. francesca is enjoined to perform on the pianoforte, with john dutifully turning her pages. sophie is invited to dance with their host. eloise is cajoled into dancing by benedict to distract her from her concentrated staring at cressida who takes a seat in the opposite corner of the room.

michaela having returned from stopping by the library to fetch a book of poetry sits beside cressida and offers to read to her. cressida is struck by her thoughtfulness and accepts, a curiously soft look upon her face. they pass the time reading and listening to poetry and discussing the verses.

to sum up: michaela is glad to have made a friend, cressida is equally as glad to have made a friend and also develop a crush (she already knows she's into women), francesca further confirms her suspicions about her own feelings, eloise still doesn't know she's into women but clocks the vibes of michaela and cressida (leading to her own questioning and subsequent realization) and sophie and benedict are having the time of their lives falling in love.

like give me a full-on ensemble season of the fruity bridgertons while further setting up the romantic threads for the next ones. the comedic (possibly angsty) potential of simultaneous gay awakenings stemming just from michaela's presence and influence is too good lol.

I need michaela stirling to be fully involved front and center in the next season just to spite the haters. just give me all the gays please and thanks!

[eastgaysian]

i do generally agree with people saying the stuff with sophie + jess in the last couple episodes has felt awkward and kind of shoved in last minute. like oh right they elected a fascist as president, we should acknowledge that racism exists in the world but ultimately it's still in service of kendall's character. that being said, at least in my opinion, throughout the show there are instances of unconscious(?) racial bias on the part of the showrunners, but there are also instances that demonstrate some degree of awareness and concern wrt the intersection between racism and capitalism. like i wouldn't say these 3-minute asides to go hey right kendall's daughter is indian and kendall's assistant is Black are, like, 'good,' but i also can't say it would have been 'better' to have continued with the show's established pattern of never openly acknowledging race, esp given the stronger political focus of s4

basically i guess i'm saying that i don't think there's much sense in critiquing these scenes individually, instead of the general way the show has been constructed from the start at the expense of characters of color/critique of racial capitalism. like the succession writers kind of painted themselves into a corner wrt race and i think have realized this as the show draws to a close, but you don't get in that corner unless you made some choices at the start

[dathen]

They had each been stabbed, it seems, and the Hungarian police were of opinion that they had quarrelled and had inflicted mortal injuries upon each other. Holmes, however, is, I fancy, of a different way of thinking, and holds to this day that, if one could find the Grecian girl, one might learn how the wrongs of herself and her brother came to be avenged.

GET EM SOPHY!!!!

The ending of this case as written is sad and abrupt, but it’s the first one where the Granada adaption made me actually angry. The added sequence of them pursuing the kidnappers and finding them on the train is a delight, and there are so many good moments on the train itself, and then….they inexplicably change Sophy from “stabbed her brothers’ murderers to death and escaped” to “I still love him even if he killed my brother,” just so Holmes can call her cold-hearted and cruel?? What the FUCK is with this slander that is fully opposite of the story as written?!

The rest of the episode is so good, and it would have been SO sexy if they cornered the villains only to discover Sophy had stabbed them already.

[soulsxng]

"...Take these to Helai for me."

"How much do you want me to get for them?"

"It's not to sell them. I want him to see if it's possible to make something similar, but more...controllable. Until I can be sure that she doesn't intend to run off, I need a leash, so to speak."

Gold flecked eyes watch from afar as Allisae revels in the return of her powers, and he can feel a smile tug at the corner of his lips. For all the trouble it was to get this far, he had to say that it was paying off nicely. The look that Sophie was giving him, however, saw his expression temporarily sour, instead.

"Don't start; if I wanted your opinion on the matter, I'd have said as much. Besides, if she behaves, then I won't have to use it at all. Now go, before I send Ophan or Yori, instead."

[anti-benophie]

Hey!!! welcome

 Hey guys! I decided, with the impending S4 start filming,  and the constant hate the benophie and their friends kanthony stans always spread to anyone,  with their elite groups ( some of them think are better than others) , there needed to be a safe space for others to come and rant/vent about the shippers and the ship itself! I was  a fan of the whole show but then when i saw the mistreatment towards fans even of their own ship i say, wow, crazy behaviour I know they can be super nasty shippers to the rest of us, general viewers or fans of other ships OR ALL SHIPS, because god forbid you to like the show itself. So I just wanted a place for people to talk about them, etc. We can talk about actors, ships and fans here. Honestly im taking this blog as a personal space to rant about all i dislike and i hope some people join me here to do the same Yes, I’m aware that there are nasty shippers in every corner of the fandom, but that’s true everywhere lbr here. This is about Benophie’s and kanthony`s specifically. I will be leaving anon ON so if y'all aren’t comfortable being 'seen’ by those shippers, you can say what you think without being worried about them attacking you. They’ve doxxed,  they’ve talked about our bodies and criticize characters bodies, also spread unhealthy stereotypes, just because is MORE sexy, or the only sexy things,  all over us not liking their fictional ship , or like one particular ship, or when we criticize either half of said ship, or the actors, god forbid us to not like the actors I also think we’re VERY much allowed to criticize benophie or kanthiny, which are very toxic but their fans refuse to see it. The hate poor Edwina has been receiving, for her the racism doesn't matter???  and criticize the actors and whoever will be the actress  of Sophie and their actions with other actors. Honestly LT has been really nice to all the other actors but his fans are SO SO NASTY. Moreover, why didn't he have an instagram account?? SA: why she never left likes or comments on her co-stars of Bton posts??? etc etc Anyhow, that’s why I made this blog! Feel free to pop in and say hello or just start sharing your negative thoughts/opinions on them If you send this blog hate, I’ll just roast you for being a dick like the cheater, the man who was a jerk with his siblings or the one who insisted on a woman to be his mistress, or ignore it which will probably just annoy you so maybe think twice before doing that. To end my presentation i will thank enormously @antipolin account for being my biggest inspiration and because seeing that blog give the last push to decide to do this. Hope many people will be happy