#still not even a third to goal since it started in July

[booasaur]

Something really amazing happened in France, and I think it'd help us in the US to learn about it. Forgive the long read, but I think this is genuinely great both because of what happened and how.

So as some of you might have seen, in a decision historians will debate for years (mostly to figure out just WTF he was thinking, even though he is alive right now and can be asked), the French president, Emmanuel Macron, currently in power and THREE YEARS before the scheduled election, seeing the far right rise in popularity decided to dissolve the assembly and hold snap elections.

577 seats were up for grabs. Remember that number. Since half of that is 288.5, 289 seats are needed for a majority.

The first round happened last week and boy, was it bad. The far right made HUGE gains. It won or was in first place in so many races. And Macron's party ended up third!

Overall, this is how things ended up after the first round:

Far right bloc: 33%

Left bloc: 28%

Macron's centrist party: 20%

Conservatives: 7%

The way the French system works is that if a candidate gets over 50% of the vote, they win outright, and some of the far right did manage that. But, many races went to a runoff.

Immediate projections after were that the far right bloc might win anywhere from 240 to 310 seats, a catastrophe.

A shameful swing to the far right leading to the first time they'll be in power since the 1940s? Yes, but maybe not??

This is where things get interesting.

Unusually, a lot of these runoffs are 3-way, instead of a simpler 2-way choice. And in pretty much every case, that helps the far right.

So on June 30th, the night of the first round, this is how things went down:

Immediately, the left parties put out the call: anywhere they were third, they withdrew and their voters would go over to whoever was running against the far right candidate. Their goal: form a "republican front" to block the far right. The far right cannot get 289 seats.

Macron's bloc was not so...motivated. Different people put out different instructions: in some places, if they were third, they should drop out, but only to help the center left, not far left, in other places, see how far you are, only then drop out, that kind of thing.

The conservative party simply said they won't drop out and won't give their voters instruction either way in races they're not involved in.

Late night developments:

More people in Macron's party are now beginning to realize the situation and starting to coalesce around whichever candidate can beat the far right one. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, from Macron's party, says clearly the priority is to block the far right. BUT, some Macron spokespeople on TV say they'll form a coalition only with the center left and conservatives, splitting the left bloc if needed. Some individual Macronists still saying they won't drop out, even if there's no hope of winning.

Lol.

So, now July 1st:

Only half so far. In one race, where the sister of Marine Le Pen (the far right leader and the face of their movement) was leading, the third place Macronist refused to bow out.

Excellent quote from another Macronist:

Perhaps realizing the same thing, that Macronist in the race against the Le Pen sister now drops out.

In some places, third place Macronists are dropping out DESPITE Macron bewilderingly telling them NOT to?

Halfway through the day:

Of the 311 3-way or 4-way runoffs, the number is down to 135 because of these candidates dropping out: 121 Left, 56 Macronists, 1 conservative.

Oh, there was this, in case people had any doubts about how terrible the far right are:

And to show the selflessness of the left:

July 2:

The deadline to decide if they want to stay in a runoff is today.

A dozen new third place Macronists who said they'd stay in have now dropped out. One got a call from both the PM Attal AND Macron to drop out, signalling the dawning understanding of the importance of this moment.

Even some conservative party members are now backing the left candidate who faces the far right.

A Macronist who had 30.55% of the vote in the first round and came in third to the far right's 33.11% and left's 32.73% and who would have been tempted to stay has dropped out.

The deadline to stay in or not has now passed.

Look at these far right shenanigans!

Macron still being a freaking loser:

July 3rd:

In the end, of the 311 3- or 4-way run offs, only 91 left. Some polls come out that have the far right getting between 190 to 220 seats.

July 4th:

New polls say the balance of the voting itself isn't transferring between the left and center and predictions have risen for the far right, now predicted to get between 210 and 250 seats.

July 5th:

New polls again, left voters now predicted to do better transferring vote to the centrists, decreasing the far right projections again.

However, scandalous reporting emerges: while Attal was trying to fend off the far right, Macron was not only NOT taking the far right seriously, he was undermining efforts to defeat them. His team shrugged off the first round results and celebrated a BIRTHDAY as the results were still coming in?

July 6th:

A few runoffs happened yesterday, nothing much unexpected, some left and center wins.

July 7th:

The day of reckoning. At this point, the expectations are that the far right won't come close to that 289 number but could still easily have the most seats.

GUYS.

It's over and the left are in the lead!

A LOT of cases where a leftist or centrist was 2nd in the first round and now won.

Amazing:

SO many lessons to take from this.

First, you have to vote! You have to. You can't do anything without voting. The freaking French, who'll protest for anything, are showing up to vote. If you're trying to achieve any kind of result and it's not going to happen by January 2025, you have to vote now.

But just as importantly, the left and center (and even conservative) parties made very key decisions. They were all lucky that Attal, who Macron chose, saw the big picture, bigger than indeed Macron could. A stupid selfish centrist leader could have still ruined everything if it were up to him.

TL;DR: After a disastrous first round in the national French elections where the far right was on the cusp of taking power, the left and center formed a strong coalition and through the power of voting and unity, overcame the far right AND their selfish centrist president to win.

[satlun]

Vacation Boy: Johnny Utah x fem!reader

Genre: slow burn, fluff, and definitely angst Trigger Warnings: Johnny Utah's sweetness

It was a hot summer day in the middle of July that you will always remember.

Author's Note: I really love this one. I feel like I really wrote it down from my heart. It's like I put my soul into it. Yeah, I hope you guys enjoy!! ♥️

April 18, 1992 at New York

It is a move-in day for the new job you just got here after graduation, at the big city. You drop your bags and luggage on the floor immediately right at the moment you close your apartment's door. Five-hour flight from Idaho and you just finished moving your stuff in, you're really tired.

Your eyes look around the apartment. It a mess, you can't even have a bed or even a space on the floor to sleep on. You just bought a new bed today and it will deliver within two days, guess you have to sleep on the floor tonight. How bad. You kick the boxes away from your way before stepping in the middle of your room, looking around and thinking which box you should open first or maybe you just move them to one of the corners and open them tomorrow. You sigh.

And another thought kick in, maybe you should open them now before the delivery delivers your bed which is so big, too big for one person but you don't care actually. You sit down on the floor that have many boxes around you. You decide to open the boxes that you packed up your clothes first. You put your clothes into your closet and dress up at the same time. Some clothes you haven't wear it since you bought them and some clothes you haven't seen them but your mom probably packed them for you? You try the new ones on while looking at the mirror. Your eyes admire the dress you're wearing on until your gaze spots the box that says “old stuffs” through the mirror. You turn around and walk to it. You're a person who loves keeping things as your memories, postcards, letters and souvenirs.

The box that full of stuff you have collected, you smile while picking them up. Your old memories start to come into your mind. You really love this feeling, it is good if you understand. The feeling and the emotion during those moments will come across your mind. You grab many things out of the box until the last piece, your old diary which there is no page left.

You open shortly from the first page until the last page. Your eyes roam through it until you spot one page on 17th July last year.

July 17, 1991

I met a guy on the vacation... five days ago on 12th July at Latigo beach. He was a cool guy I met on the last day of my vacation. We talked and had a lot of fun there... he has pretty brown eyes and beautiful hair. I need to write about him before all the memories are gone. I don't want to forget about him. He's the most handsome guy with the most precious soul I have ever met. When he was in the sea, surfing was so amazing. Him and surfing was a bond. All of his friends were nice to me and they had their amazing goals. I wish he still thinks about me honestly even I am not that pretty but he really gets my heart...

You are lost in your memories, all the feelings get back to your mind. The beach, the wind, the sun and him...

...

It was a hot summer day of the mid July at California and it was the last day of your vacation. The sun didn't rise yet since it was only 6am in the morning. You walked down the stairs from the road to the beach alone since your parents were still asleep. You wanted to see sunrise at the beach before you leave because first you had to leave so early in the next morning second Idaho doesn't have beaches third you don't go to beaches so often even beach is your favorite place.

Your eyes looked around the beach. There was no one here except a guy around your age surfing alone in the sea at this early?? Well, that was quite interesting. The water must be so cool sine the sun didn't rise yet. That was what you thought. You sat down on the sand with your casual clothes which actually were the clothes you wore last night. The beach was very quiet that you could only hear the wave and the wind, so peaceful. You always love California because your dad talked about it a lot and his favorite song is Hotel California by Eagles which your dad always listens to it since you were young. You wished you could stay here forever, you would build a small house next to the beach and you might actually start learning how to surf. You thought it was cool, how come people stand on those boards and surf on big waves? That must relate with physics but it was still cool for you. You really wanted to learn it one day.

After a while of sitting and glancing at him time to time. You know it was hard to look somewhere else when no one was there except this guy. You could say, he wasn't that good in surfing but you didn't want to judge anybody so you tried to stop thinking about this mysterious stranger guy. You distracted yourself by looking at the sun which was starting to rise. Just a little.

Right now, the guy was swimming closer to the shore. You feel a little bit nervous because there was only you here all alone and what if he says, “You stared at me. Are you a psycho?” What are you gonna do! You just hoped that he didn't notice that which was impossible. He was now walking up to the beach, seems like he was walking to you. Oh my- you felt like you just wanted to disappear. Please please please, I didn't mean to stare... what? Did he just give you a smile?

“Hi?” The guy looked down at you with a soft smile while the sky was starting to become yellow. “Hi” You answered as he slowly sat down next to you, not close. It's good since he was a completely a stranger, not bad for the first impression. “What brings you here this early?” He looked at you before rubbing his head with a towel. “The sun... and what about you?” You looked at him with his wet hair, he didn't look at you but the sun. It was raising. “If I say myself?” He said and finally looked at you once again. What does it mean ‘myself’? “You mean– you, yourself just want to be here this early. That's all?” His eyebrows raised. “A shot in the dark.” He chuckled. “It's not that hard.” You shrugged your shoulders and gave him a smile and the conversation became silent, it was awkward and he was just wiping his face with the towel. “You surf a lot?” It was a dumb question actually but who cares, you hate dead air. “Lately, yes. I'm practicing it. I just caught my first tube this morning.” You just nodded and then continued the conversation. “I always appreciate people who can surf... you know. How can people stand on that board and surf in big waves? It is just cool for me.” His chuckle was so cute... what? You mean it was soft and whatever. As if he could read your mind. “It must be something about physics but I don't know, not my type.” Not his type? It was a joke he meant he didn't even care about physics since it wasn't his favorite subject. “Then what's your type?” He could answer it in a second. “Athletic” It was obvious that he liked athletic, his body and his spirit? “I see...” The sun rose now. You could see it clearly now. You glances at your watch and it was 7am. “You live here?” His soft and deep voice interrupted you. “No. I'm on my vacation, tomorrow is my last day.” He nodded before giving you a glance. “How was your vacation?” He asked. “It was good. I had a lot of fun here.” You always love it. Everything all just gave you peace to your mind and soul. It was like another kind of healing. “I'm glad you had a lot of fun here.” His beautiful smile formed on his face again. Your heart almost skipped a beat but you tried to keep it cool. You glanced at his board. “I wish I could surf.” He believes that the only thing that is matter is ourselves. If you want to do something, you should do it. “You can try. Just do it. Do it for yourself.” You sighed in desperation. “I want to... but there's no beach back in Idaho.” “You are from Idaho?” He raised his eyebrows. “Yes” You looked at him. “I've never been there but I would love to one day.” “You should. It's great. I can tour you around.” It was a joke but what if it sounds weird... “Yeah. It would be nice.” He smiled at you and all of your concerns were gone. He is the kind of person who makes you feel comfortable while you're talking to. “It may have indoor surfing places in Idaho maybe?” he gave you an advice. “I think it has but it can't be campared to this actual sea right?" You span your arms to the sea. “The real waves and the real sea water.” His eyes followed your hand and nodded. “Yeah. You're right. This one is better.” He gave you a smile while looking at you.

For a moment, you saw him glancing at his watch, it almost 8am and he seemed like he needed to go. He grabbed his surf board and stood up, ready to leave. “Do you wanna... eat lunch together?” Did he just ask me on a date or something? Your delusions consumed you again. You hesitated at first because you just had no idea about your answer if it should be; “Yes, of course I'm so glad you ask me!!” Or “Okay, sure.” Or “no... I already have a plan” because he is still a random guy that you just met. However, he had no harm you could feel it. So, your answer was, “Sounds good. Sure. Where?” He pointed at the sidewalk restaurant near the beach which was still close now. “There” you stood up and followed his finger. “Okay. 12pm?” You asked “Yeah. 12pm.” He was about to leave but something made him stop and turn around. “I'm Johnny.” That was it, you thought he wouldn't tell you his name. “Y/n. Nice to meet you.” You gave him a quick smile. “Same here.” He gave you a soft smile like the first time he did before leaving.

...

11.50am at California State was really hot. Your face was so sweaty, your legs rushed to the door of the sidewalk restaurant and got in. The restaurant was still hot because there was no air conditioning. You sit on a table, waiting for Johnny to come. Your clothes were changed to something prettier. Well, you didn't mean to impress anyone but yourself. Right?.... RIGHT?

After a while of waiting for him and it was already 12pm, he finally showed up in a tight grey shirt which made him look different in good way. His hair was now dry and was set perfectly. He literally could pull anybody he wanted. That was your weird thought. When Johnny spot you, he rushed to you with the same soft smile immediately. You didn't know if it was the weather or it was him that made your heart melt.

“Have you been here long?” He sat down in front of you as you shook your head. “No. Not at all.” Johnny nodded as an answer before picking up a menu. “What would you like to eat today?” When it comes to food, it always be a hard decision to make. Usually, you just order the same same thing but maybe this time you should try something different. “I have no idea... could you recommend me something good?” He gave you a smile and show the menu for you. He pointed his finger on shrimp and fries. “Sure. This. Is my favorite.” It sounds good shrimp and fries. You gave him a nod and smiled at him. He has a good taste in food. “Shrimp and fries, 2 please?” Johnny called a waitress and ordered the food for you and him. It was not a date right? But you couldn't help to think it that way. He set his hair perfectly... it wasn't that necessary to do it just for eating lunch in this weather with a girl he just met. Whatever.

After the waitress went to the kitchen, Johnny started talking to you. “Where did you visit this morning?” He shot you a question. “Santa Monica Pier. There are amusement rides and many other things.” You explained to him while your eyes are looking around the restaurant and switch to him time to time. It was hard to just stare and focus on him. You meant he was kind of... handsome? It was just hard you know. “That is my favorite place when I was a kid. You like to play something exciting?” He raised his eyebrows because that is his favorite thing as well. “Oh no. Not at all. But my younger brother does so he dragged me there.” Johnny laughed at your answer. “You have a younger brother? I wish I had one.” He gave you a smile before looking out the window, watching other kids playing around the beach. “Oh please. You wouldn't like it that much.” You chuckled. “How come?” He was curious. “He is naughty and ugh so on. You will understand if you have one.” You paused for a moment before continuing to speak. “But I do wish I had an older brother.” Johnny switched his gaze on you again. He noticed your eyes that full are full of hope. “So you're the oldest?” He asked. “Yeah.” He inhaled and exhaled softly as he put his hands on the table. “Being the oldest must be very hard. You know, they have to be good at everything and also have responsibility at the same time. And we are just teenagers who just want to have fun.” He paused and notice that you were listening to him carefully so he started to tell you more about him. “I really understand that feeling. I'm an only child and the things aren't that different.” All the things he said was just right. You the oldest and it feels like everything or every weight is on your back. You have to handle it. You must. “As if you can read my mind.” You chuckled to make the conversation felt less intense. Johnny flashed his soft smile at you again. That was his deadly weapon of killing you. “How many years apart are you and your brother?” You didn't expect that even you were about to ask him about his age either. “11 years. I'm 22 and he's 11.” Johnny nodded as the waitress served us our food. “I'm 24... let's eat.” You both smiled at each other before eating his favorite food. You hadn't tried it before and it was better than you expected. Maybe stepping out of your comfort zone or the same thing you usually do aren't that bad. You try something new and you may accidentally found your new favorite things.

30 minutes later of talking and eating food, you both stepped out of the sidewalk restaurant. You looked out at the sea which the surface was reflecting the sun and the heat. “So... me and my new friends have a party tonight and the beach... if you want to join you can come.” He interrupted you. “Thank you but... I don't want to interrupt your party...” You chuckled at him. The truth was you just hate meeting new people sine you have social anxiety. “It's alright. Never mind.” He seemed like he was about to leave. So, this was gonna be your last time of seeing him?? That's it? “Maybe it's not that bad– I'll go.” His smile was formed from excitement you could tell. You wished you could make him smile forever, it was like sunshine in a daylight sky. “See you there at 7pm.” Johnny pointed at some space at the beach, and you nodded as understanding.

...

The weather is completely different from the day and the night. The wind makes you feel cold. Both of your hand brush your arm while walking down the stairs. You can see a group of teenagers walking and dancing around a bonfire at the beach. It must be them, his new friends. You just hope that he was already there because it was gonna be weird if a stranger showed up at Mr.Nobody's party.

That moment Johnny saw you first. He stood up and rushed to you immediately, noticing your reaction. “Are you cold?” You just nodded and walked along with him. “Come closer to the bonfire.” He led you to the bonfire that was around by his friends. You sit down on the log he already prepared for you. Suddenly, all of his friends noticed your presence. They walked to you and started to talk. “This is Bodhi. Bodhi, this is y/n.” Johnny introduced you to the man who was a bit older than him and his blond hair was really memorizing. “Nice to meet you, Bodhi.” Bodhi just nodded before sitting next to Johnny. “Your girlfriend?” Johnny refused immediately. He didn't want you to make you feel uncomfortable at all but it was also still hard to control his friend's mouth. “No. She's my new friend.” His deep voice and the reaction of protecting over you was a thing. “I'm sorry for my mouth.” Bodhi made a joke before offering his hand to you, you shook his hand and gave a quick smile.

Bodhi was scary for you at first. However, the moment after you both had a conversation about many things, especially the 50 year storm. You started to see him differently. He wasn't that bad. He was a cool guy. You loved when he talked about the ocean and the sea. As if he was a son of a mermaid or something. His spirit that he had towards the marine life was just really cool. He was a cool guy with his big goal. You just hoped that if that time comes, he would be able to go to Bell's beach in time and achieve the ultimate ride.

An hour later, the boys and the girls decided to play football. “Come, y/n” Bodhi called you while holding a ball in his hand. “Thank you... but I prefer to watch.” Well, because you're not good at athletic at all. You didn't want to embarrass yourself as well so refusing him was the best choice. “Come on.” Bodhi tried to convince you and Johnny noticed that. He walked to you and said something quietly. “If you don't want to, it's okay. I'll talk to him.” When you heard him saying that, all the thoughts you had towards athletes were changed. Well, Johnny really affected on you that much. You hesitated for a moment and then you realized that you wanted to get out of your comfort zone and tried something new. If you accidentally embarrassed yourself then it was going to be alright since this was the last night of staying here. They were not going to remember your embarrassing moments forever. You didn't answer him back except walking into the crowd, ready to join. A smile formed on his face while his eyes followed you.

You started to play clumsily. It was kind of embarrassing but whatever. You tried to not care and it seemed work. Fun made you forget all about those thoughts. You played and you fell off over and over but you could still laugh and smile because it was really fun. Johnny always cheered you up for the whole game. “You're doing great.” Or “Keep going.” He said softly to you for the whole time.

Almost an hour later. It was 9pm. It was the time to go back to the hotel. You had to leave early in the morning and your parents must be worried about you now. “Are you leaving?” Johnny noticed that you started to look back at the hotel and wipe all the sand from your pants. “Yeah” you said. “Safe flight, y/n!” Bodhi and his friends shouted at you. You just said thank you to all of them. “I'll walk with you.” Johnny said quietly. You insisted him to stay here but he didn't listen. It was completely dark and he was worried about you.

The only sound you could hear is the waves. It was not totally dark, it still has light along the road. He was walking along the beach with you. You talked about how fun it was and how cool his friends were. He chuckled with every word you said. “So, I hope it will be one of your best memories of traveling here.” Johnny looked at you while your hair was flowing because of the wind. “It definitely is... thank you, Johnny... you really made my vacation so special.” Johnny nodded and smiled. “No problem. You deserve it.” You smiled and looked over the sea, thinking about tomorrow. You had to leave very early and you didn't think that you would see him again. “What time will you leave tomorrow?” Johnny interrupted your thoughts. “6am. I don't want to leave.” You sighed. “I wish you could stay here forever too.” That moment your heart was beating so fast. His voice, his words and the atmosphere. As if he was about to say something and you didn't want to ask him either. If he wanted he would. “I will come. Tomorrow. 6am to send you.” You raised your eyebrows immediately. Gosh, you thought this was gonna be the last time you saw him. You flashed a happy face to him. “Thank you, Johnny. It's kind of weird that I just know you for a day but... you know I feel comfortable around you and... I feel like I could talk about anything with you.” Johnny chuckled and looked at the sand that was stepped by our feet. “I feel that way too. I'm glad I know you.” And you said back immediately. “I'm glad that you said ‘hi’ to me.” You both laughed. “I saw you glanced at me... maybe you just wanted to talk?” You were caught off guard. He noticed that you actually glanced at him tome to time while he was surfing. “There was nobody there except a guy surfing. You can't blame me.” You both laughed out loud. “Sure. I can't blame you for looking at this good surfing man.” You just shook your head and shrugged your shoulders. “Don't stop alright?” He's confused. “Stop what?” “Surfing. You seem... very happy and– very concentrated while surfing. It is like you are in your own world. I think surfing really matches you.” Johnny nodded and smiled. “Sure. I will keep that in mind.”

You both finally arrived at the front of your hotel. You turn around to see him again before walking into the building. “Good night, Johnny.” He sighed and smiled at you. “Good night, y/n. See you tomorrow.” You smiled back and walked into the building, you walked and turn back and walked again. Johnny laughed at your actions. He waited for you until the elevator's doors closed and gave you a smile as you did the same then he finally turned around and walked away.

...

The next morning at 5:45am. You were waiting your parents and your brother to put the luggage into the car. You said to them that you wanted to see the beach for the last time and you would be back by 6am.

You ran across the road, down to the beach, looking around hoping to see him sitting somewhere waiting for you but there was no sign of him at all. You waited and waited and waited... 5:48... 5:54... 5:58... 6:00... he didn't come as he said... as if it was all just a dream you had last night. As if it wasn't real. As if it hadn't happened... you lost in your thoughts while turning around to find him every direction. There was no one, only the sea and you.

You gave up and left.

...

July 17, 1991

I met a guy on the vacation... five days ago on 12th July at Latigo beach. He was a cool guy I met on the last day of my vacation. We talked and had a lot of fun there... he has pretty brown eyes and beautiful hair. I need to write about him before all the memories are gone. I don't want to forget about him. He's the most handsome guy with the most precious soul I have ever met. When he was in the sea, surfing was so amazing. Him and surfing was a bond. All of his friends were nice to me and they had their amazing goals. I wish he still thinks about me honestly even I am not that pretty but he really gets my heart. I can't forget him and I will never forget... but why? Why didn't you come? Why didn't you send me? Why? Why Johnny...? I waited but you didn't come... you didn't...

You close your diary and smile to yourself in tears. Nothing you can do except the memories that have left in your mind. You will never be able to forget him. His smile, his eyes and his spirit. You don't think you will ever find anyone like him anymore. You wish you could go back in that time to see him again, to start it all over again.

How is he now? What is he doing? Is he still live in California? Does he still remember you? These thoughts don't stop coming across your mind. All you can do is imagine, imagine that he is alright, he is still surfing, he is still in California and he is still remember you. And you will never know that your imaginations are true or not...

END (Don't be sad I still have end credits down below)

...

Fun facts: you can skip this part lol. It's not necessary.

The diary part was inspired from my own diary that I wrote about a foreign man I met a year ago at a beach. This is the actual text: Monday, 17 July 2023 I'mma talk about my vacation boy that I met him on 12 July at ____ beach. Damn, he's my type. We accidentally made eye contact two times. He has tanned skin and pretty face. I can't remember him now omg and I have short sighted and that's fucking bad. I couldn't see him clearly. I just know that he's the most handsome boy that I've ever met on this trip. He was in the sea with an old man (his father?) I actually think he has a brother too. I just realized that these two boys were the boys that I adored when I first got to this beach before finding other beaches to swim on this island. Wish he still remembers me. Honestly, I'm not that pretty but he got my heart. I can't get him out of my mind, almost two fucking days now. Author's Note: It's really cringe but I think it's funny so I would like to share with you lol.

I love writing diary because I always forget get things so I think it's nice if I just write them down

I really have a box full of stuff, post card, and letters from my friends. I love collecting them.

My father actually loves Hotel California by Eagles and I do love California too, one of the places that I would like to live.

I wish I had an older brother 😭

Someone told me that being an only child means you have to be good at everything. It used to encourage me but at some point I felt like I'm just a girl you know I can't be good at everything. What are you expecting from me??? It's like the only child/ the oldest child thing if you know you know.

...

End credit? YES.

“Jesus! What time is it??” Johnny shouted at one of his colleagues. “It's only 7am, dude.” It pissed him off. “Fuck!” He had an urgent case this morning at 4:30am. He needed to come to the office and worked on it until the time flew so fast that he didn't notice it at first. “Why you look so hurry, man?" The guy spoke calmly to him. “I gotta go.” He grabbed his things, rushing out of the door and left the office immediately. He got the urgent case and he didn't come to surf this morning like usual. Today is also the day you left and he planned to come and sent you. He didn't even give you his contact which was the worst mistake he ever made.

It was raining when he arrived at the beach, running down the stairs and you weren't there. He looked around hoping that you might still here, sitting somewhere at the beach but then he realized that it was impossible. You were actually gone and gone forever... he looked around with tears in his eyes, trying to find you. Then, he realized that he will never see you again. The most beautiful woman with the most lovely soul he had ever met. Your laugh, your eyes, your face, your lips, everything about you is breathtaking and he will never forget those things no matter how many years will pass. This beautiful soul will be kept in his heart forever...

END (I think the end credits made it sadder.)

© satlun, 2024 : DO NOT PLAGIARISM OR ANY OTHER WAY OF REPHRASING

[mysterious-moonstruck-musings]

Updates & WIP Wednesday

First up on my list of updates... We're coming up on the one year anniversary of Destiny & Deliverance, which is on July 11th. I still can't believe it has already been one whole year since I posted the first chapter. I'm also still in shock that I spent 10 months working on it (and finished it). It was a crazy ride, but it has connected me with all of you lovely people, and for that I am grateful. 💜 To celebrate, I have given the masterlist a little facelift with a new graphic. I also plan to finally get the one shot posted that I had planned for May (sorry, life got a little crazy). More on that below.

I have no ideas on what else we can do to celebrate. If you have a suggestion, send it my way. I’m open to asks though. If there is something you've always wanted to ask about this fic (inspiration, clarification, etc), jump into my inbox and I would be happy to answer it. 😘

My second update.... The Light in the Darkness masterlist got a little facelift too. Have I started on this yet? No. I had planned to work on it while working on Closed Position, but I do not have the brain power for it. I have a feeling it’s going to take a lot, emotionally, to do Dieter's POV as he struggles with his mental health. I'll get to it at some point, but it may be a bit. Rest assured, I do still plan to follow through with it.

Now for my third update... Written in the Stars is inching closer to being finished. My goal is to have is ready to post in time for the one year D & D anniversary as a way to celebrate. You know me, it will have angst and feels, but we know it has a happy ending. Now, enjoy your teaser below.

Summary: Dieter and Natalia receive an unexpected phone call that results in an emotional journey and an expansion of their little family. It takes a deeper dive into events that are mentioned in the Epilogue. It can be read as a standalone fic.

“How are you feeling about things?” I inhaled deeply and held it for a moment, “I don’t know…definitely overwhelmed with everything that needs to be done.” His eyes narrowed, “You know that’s not what I’m asking.” He’s too damn intuitive, I was totally avoiding the real conversation. “I’m not sure, honestly.” “Baby, you need to be open with me. I know what you’re doing…don’t shut yourself off.” I puffed air out of my cheeks, “Ok, fine… I feel a little disconnected from it…like an outsider. It’s awkward because you already have a bond with him and I’m not really sure how to be part of that. I know he isn’t as comfortable around me either. I can sense it.” Dieter pulled me into a hug, “He’s a shy kid on the best day. After you spend a little time with him, he’ll open up. You’ve gotta open up some too though.” I nodded. I knew it was true, but also knowing that this was meant to be temporary was making it hard for me to do that. After seeing Luca and what his life must have been like made me realize I could actually get attached to this kid. Even though I had been worried about being able to bond with a child that wasn’t my own, I could feel my maternal instincts kicking in.

Can't wait to share the rest of Luca's story with you all! Plus, more daddy Dieter. He's too damn cute.

💜Mysty

PS: If any of you tagged folks would like to join in on WIP, jump in!

D&D Taglist:

@rhoorl @bitchwitch1981 @readingiskeepingmegoing @runningmom94  @for-a-longlongtime 

@hisandsnakes @chaoticfestninja @survivingandenduring  @partyofone3413 @wannab-urs 

@cakipy-blog @titlee78 @poodlebae @guelyury  @missladym1981 

@maried01 @alokaerza @samiamproductions @misstokyo7love  @themonadiaries-blog 

@madnessofadaydreamer @darkheartgatita @avastrasposts  @weho2kcmo @harriedandharassed 

@tkchaos @girlofchaos @yghuibt  @musings-of-a-rose @annieispunk 

@sarcasm-theotherwhitemeat @copperhalfcent  @bunniboo0015 @indiegirlunited @babycatkitty 

@stevie75 @jessthebaker  @angelofsmalldeath-codeine @txlady37 @knownasyami 

@annalovesflorida @imdrinkingpedro

[cobaltcarbonpotassium420]

skin to skin - shidou ryusei

tags / warnings: kinda fluffy, shidou is a little confused about his feelings but that's okay, gn! reader, moderately suggestive content but nothing actually happens, not proofread

author's note: first actual fic??? i'm a lil bit bored so why not. i think shidou might be a little ooc in this perhaps but i tried my best! i'm also a little worried that i implied anything too much about the reader's appearance, so i am very very sorry if i did. constructive criticism is appreciated, though i might cry tbh. exams have me fucked up. enjoy!

his hands roam. they don't have any particular goal. he only glides his fingers gently over your skin, exploring the terrain while you sleep. the warm summer air is oppressive, so the duvet has long since been replaced for a much thinner, almost useless blanket. its use is less for warmth than modesty, not that such a thing was really necessary when shidou had already seen everything there was to be seen about you.

his hands traverse over your thighs, still hovering over with a touch so soft he might as well have been dragging a feather along your sleeping form. sure he might have seen everything, but had he ever truly indulged his other senses in you? perhaps he had tasted you, even some hours later you still lingered on his tongue. it's a bitter, salty taste that sent his nerves into overdrive when the first pang hit. he can recreate the moment in his mind, but it never gets him going quite as much as experiencing it does. thoughts are just thoughts, they're never true to the experience.

that's two senses shidou could tick off of his list of ways he knows you, and now he was about to tick off a third. he had felt you before. he held you tight and close, but the sensation was never what he was focused on. he was familiar with how light and malleable you felt in his hands, but truthfully he never indulged in the details of your body. why would he? at the end of the day, your relationship was largely transactional, with very few feelings atttached besides pure, unadulterated lust and passion. he knew your body the way a student might know a book for a class they had to take - they read the summary half an hour before the lesson, and have a vague grasp of the concept, but the details elude them. shidou decided for once to be a good student and learn those details for no reason in particular other than the fact that he was stuck in your apartment with you on account of him having been evicted for threatening other tenants in his old building, and the warm july night kept him awake.

so he goes about slowly studying you, trying not to rouse you from your sleep. his hand starts on your thigh, and slowly travels its circumference. you're laying on your side, back facing shidou, hair carefully tucked under your head (shidou had complained about it getting in his face while he slept before, and threatened to cut it off himself if you didn't do something about it), soft breaths escaping past your lips, and completely unaware of shidou's touch on you. he hopes you don't wake up and then misinterpret it for something more romantic and intimate than it is. he's just indulging his curiosity and trying to stave off the boredom from struggling to fall asleep.

he feels how soft you are, a fact he already knew, but never like this. he feels a slight dryness to your skin too, and thinks that perhaps you should invest in a good lotion, not that it mattered much to him. he doesn't care about something as menial as whether you're moisturising properly, but he knows you might. people less confident than him often look for silly insecurities that no one else could give a single shit about. he won't point out your dry skin. he doesn't care enough, he thinks.

his hands travel up further, and on the sides of your legs he can feel the evidence of the tight grip he held you in just hours earlier. he scowls slightly, thinking that something so unsightly and vulgar shouldn't be on you. it grosses him out a little, though he couldn't pin point why. he assumes its because someone like you doesn't deserve to have a reminder of someone like him on their body. shidou isn't completely satisfied with that answer, but he leaves it as it is, he's not a fan of overthinking things.

his hands now reach your hips. as his fingertips skate over the landscape, he feels stretch marks that go down your thighs and around to your back. he could follow these trusty guides to the back but chooses not to, he's too tired for that. instead, he follows them up to your hipbone, and he feels you stir. he retracts his hand, afraid you'll wake up and wonder what he was doing. any misinterpretation of his actions on your part could have devastating repercussions on the relationship between the two of you, and shidou makes an instant decision to lie and say he accidentally grazed his hand over you while turning in his sleep, should you interrogate him about what he was doing.

but you don't. you're still asleep, you just moved your leg a little, perhaps feeling his ticklish touch in your sleep, and assuming it was some annoying mosquito that came to feed from you while you slept. shidou waits a moment before resuming his late-night study session, listening to the occasional car drive by late in the night. light from the streetlamps and moon float into your open window, and the music from the corner shop across the road accompany it. the sound is tinny, and shidou is surprised it can even be heard all the way over in your apartment. the cashier is probably blasting it from the radio to stop the warmth from coaxing them to sleep.

a minute passes, and shidou gingerly places his hand back on your hip. with the way you've moved, he can slightly feel your hip bone poking out, and the change strikes him as a slight surprise. your soft body and his mindless journey have both been interrupted by the feeling of the hard, smooth bone of your hips. it's just a small intrusion though, and he traces it up and down with his ring finger a few times, suddenly conscious of how unpleasant his skin is compared to yours. callouses line his hands from long and difficult workouts; a figure like his came at a price. he's not insecure of them, but sometimes he picks at his callouses when he's bored and needs something to do with his hands, which in turn makes his skin raw, and lifting weights immediately becomes a much more painful activity.

amid his little sidetrack in thoughts, shidou's hand slips off of your hip bone, and ends up on your stomach. he knows for a fact that if you were awake you'd try to slap his hand off, saying that you feel fat when he places his hands on your pillowy tummy. its another insecurity that he doesn't see the value of. another pointless thought wasting space in your mind. he stretches his hand out over your lower belly, and gently tucks his fingers in on the far side, under where gravity has pulled your skin and organs to create a natural pouch. it radiates heat, and ordinarily shidou would retract his hand. he doesn't need something else to make him uncomfortably warm, not when he's already sweating slightly in the middle of the night from the hellish heatwave that feels like its attacking your apartment relentlessly. he decides this spot was made for his hand by the gods though, its the perfect size to provide him with a little grip on you, and the softness just makes it all the more perfect to hold.

the thought crosses his mind that if you were to wake up, you'd definitely misinterpret his actions. your presence is so soft and pleasant though, and your body is so perfectly moulded to fit into his grip that he decides just this one time to enjoy the feeling. he tentatively moves closer to you, yet again trying not to wake you, and decides he'll explain himself in the morning.

[laufire]

april reading meme!

BOOKS

We Will Devour The Night by Camilla Andrew. The version I read is available in the author's ko-fi (aninkwellofnectar), and the final version will come during fall of this year. I've talked about this saga before (The Essence of the Equinox), and I still recommend it to those of us who like complex characters (especially female characters), gothic horror, and lush prose. This is a sequel, and I like it even more than the first instalment. It gets deeper into the darkness of the world and it's an amazing read. The third and final part has started been posted on ko-fi as well, for anyone interested.

Why Does He Do That? Inside The Minds of Angry and Controlling Men by Lundy Bancroft. I wish I could make everyone read this book. It wouldn't fix everything, because it runs against a lot of people's deep-seated belief systems, but maybe it would make SOME of them start second-guessing those beliefs... Anyway. A MUST read in terms of abuse and intimate partner violence.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. I read the book for the first time about 15 years ago, and only reread it now. I loved it even more than the first time. The atmosphere, the revenge tale, the love story between Catherine and Heathcliff, all the ways these families' lives affect the others, how you have to parse through Nelly's account of events... I still wish I could hit Lockwood in the head with a stick lol. Just once. Not even too hard! But hit him in the head, I would xD

COMICS

Batman: Huntress/Spoiler - Blunt Trauma. One of those "it could've been so good if it was good" comics. It would've had to NOT been written by Dixon, of course. His ideas about these two characters are palpable here. He's met real women and girls, I know this, but he's completely failed to take anything from these meetings into account to understand them as people. And boy, does it show in his writing.

Green Lantern: Willworld. I've had this comic in my list for aeons and I moved it up when I found out its author would be writing Jason's upcoming ADITF "what if" story starting July. I really liked this one, and how it showcased Hal's character. It's not a guarantee I'll like his Robin Lives run, because comic writers have biases and blind spots and huge gaps in their knowlege regarding certain characters, but "he seems to be a good writer" is already a huuuuge leg up compared to most modern Jason content lol.

JLA: World Without Grown-ups. This was interesting because I've watched the Young Justice (cartoon) version of this premise, which is VERY different, from the villains to their goals to the handling of the crisis (since the cartoon had an established teen team), down to the emotional beats (the Zataras). They're too different to be compared, tbh. This one was quite fun though, and it made me feel very fond of Bart. Also Tim's parasocial relationship with Jason's memorial made an appearance LOL.

Colin Wilke's appearances. I am MOURNING this kid. He has like 9 appearances (and a couple of them are barely a few pages) but each one is gold. Bring him back. Make HIM Damian's best friend. Integrate him in the storyline!! His character and his dynamic with Damian had so so much potential. I am definitely going to include him in my fics.

Batman: Li'l Gotham. (plus the two stories introducing it in Batman Annual #27 and 'Tec Annual #11). A couple of things conspired (including me finding out there's a version of Colin in this lol) and I ended up reading it while I was sick. It's mostly fun fluff (as opposed to just corny fluff) and a quick read without much meat in it, but a few things nudged the inspiration muscle and Dustin Nguyen's art is adorable.

Batman Tales: Once Upon a Crime. I liked this one more than the above! It follows in that universe (a Gotham where everything is smaller and cuter lol), mixing it with some fairy tale vibes. Pinocchio!Damian is A Concept. Although my favourite story was "The Snow Queen", with Mister Freeze. The art goes into a whole other level in all of these, but especially that one.

Batman: The Chalice. Bruce Wayne receives the Holy Grail. I read this one in my list of Talia appearances and hers is the part that interested me: Ra's wants the Grail to make her immortal, like him, and Talia tells him that she has no desire to live forever. Her words are "Having lived my life in your company, the prospect of eernal life is not the attraction for me it might be for another." There are A LOT of things you can read into that sentence, and one of them, to me, is the idea that death to Talia would be an escape from Ra's, which is... interesting. Sidenote: this one was written by Dixon, who once in a while gets his wired crossed and is not wholly terrible with female characters xD

Ghost/Batgirl. I hadn't heard of Ghost before but I'm kinda curious after reading this mini run. I found a lot of the concepts it worked on (resurrection, mind control, etc.) quite interesting, although I ended up feeling the execution didn't delve too deeply into them. It's an story I might want to reread and pick apart at some point, though.

JLA: Tower of Babel. Yeah, THAT arc lol (also part of my Talia-reading). I also read JLA Secret Files and Origins #3 (in May, though), which shows Talia's whole thoughts on it as she steals the plans + some of the consequences the whole thing has for the other bats whose teammates no longer trust them (Dick, Tim, Barbara) + the wording of Bruce's contingency plans (which btw includes acceptance of lethal methods against Clark lol)... he certainly got off easy after this añsdlkfjasdf. Honestly, imo, the most selfish, cowardly thing he did was walking out before the JLA could tell him they'd voted him out. I know he and the comics probably won't frame it like that afterwards, but that's how it felt to me. The very least he could've done is face his teammates.

[aus-wnt]

Caitlin Foord: ‘Men think women’s football is a ‘pussy’ sport’

Despite overtaking the Wallabies to become the third most popular national team in Australia, Matildas star Caitlin Foord says some Australians still see women’s football as a “weaker sport” - but she predicts that’s about to change.

Australians are on the cusp of witnessing one of the country’s most significant sporting tournaments when the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 kicks off this month here and in New Zealand. And the excitement is demonstrably palpable: with more than a million tickets already sold, the event (which takes place from July 20 till August 20) is on track to become the most attended standalone women’s sporting event in history.

For Matildas star forward Caitlin Foord, this World Cup will mark her fourth; in 2011, she became the youngest Australian ever to play in the tournament. ​​And to think her record-breaking career may never have happened. “Rugby league was what my family supported and I wanted to play rugby league when I was younger,” Foord tells Stellar. “But my nan told Mum that if she let me play then she would never speak to her again. So that went out the window. But if there were more girls playing at the time, and [if] it was more normal for girls to play, then I don’t even know if I would have gone into football.”

Like many children, Foord’s introduction to soccer began when she was a sporty nine-year-old playing with the boys during lunch at her school in the Illawarra region of NSW. “I was tearing the boys up a little bit, and they asked me to join the local team with one other girl,” Foord recalls. “Mum was hesitant because I was already doing a lot of other sports like Oztag [a non-tackling version of rugby league], and surf lifesaving. But then I got a little bit of help from my sister, who told Mum, ‘She’s really good, she beats all the boys at school.’”

In her first match, she scored six goals, and from there, she never stopped playing. “Before I started, the game wasn’t as professional as it is now, but I probably wasn’t thinking about that,” Foord admits, adding that since she wasn’t much of a student at school, she was all too happy to find herself playing for Sydney FC as a 16-year-old in 2010.

But as her abilities developed, so did the opportunities for women in the sport. Foord moved to the US to join New Jersey side Sky Blue FC in the inaugural National Women’s Soccer League season in 2013. She then signed with Vegalta Sendai in Japan in 2017. Now she calls London home, after renewing her contract with powerhouse Arsenal FC, where she’s played since 2020. “My transition in the game came at the same time that the game was growing,” she says. “It kind of just fell into place for me as I went up the ranks.”

Parallel to Foord’s personal career, the women’s game itself has made huge inroads. In 2019, Football Federation Australia signed a four-year-agreement with the player’s union, Professional Footballers Australia, that would see the men and women’s national teams receive equal shares of national team generated revenues. And, thanks to the likes of high-profile teammates such as Foord and captain Sam Kerr – arguably the greatest Australian football player – the Matildas have this year overtaken the Wallabies and are close to overtaking the Kangaroos to become the third most popular national team, according to independent market research firm Futures Sport & Entertainment.

Foord says the bond within the Matildas is a special one. “We’ve all grown up together,” she explains. “We’re a close-knit team. We’re not just teammates, we’re all friends, as well. We all thought that was the normal thing. But being overseas and playing with girls from different nationalities, I’ve heard people say they hate going into the national team. I find that so hard to believe because we love being around each other and I think that’s unique.”

Foord enters the World Cup with not just this camaraderie, but also a considerable home-field advantage and a golden opportunity to raise the profile of women’s soccer in the country. “Football is the world game, yet I’ve had a couple of conversations with people around home and they still don’t really see the women’s game,” Foord tells Stellar. “When we play overseas, it’s on at 3am.”

Which is why this upcoming World Cup is so pivotal. “Australians love sport, so I feel like they just need to see us and that’s enough,” she continues. “That’s all we need. That’s going to be the turning point, especially for the males who have spoken down on the sport before or think of women’s football as a weaker sport or a ‘pussy’ sport. But once they watch us and see how tough the game is and how we all get stuck, that’s all it needs.”

Following the team’s fourth-place finish at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the Matildas are expected to go deep in the Women’s World Cup. This year’s tournament offers the field a record $165 million in prize money, more than three times the amount from the 2019 Women’s World Cup (though far less, still, than the almost $700 million offered to the men at the 2022 World Cup).

Even so, if the Matildas take out the title, Foord says she will celebrate by purchasing some jewellery.

“As an athlete, I’m used to wearing tracksuits and comfy clothes and the odd dress for an awards night,” she says. “But the older I’ve got, the more I’m into fashion.

“I didn’t grow up with money or anything like that, so when I see something, I don’t buy it straight away. If I’m constantly thinking about it afterwards, then I know I really want it – and I’ve always wanted a Cartier ring. If we went on to win the tournament, I’d buy the one I absolutely love, which has diamonds in it.”

But no matter what happens, Foord plans to keep on kicking on. “All the benefits that come with the game now, me and the girls were part of [building] that,” she says. “We’re obviously grateful for what we have now, but we know it still deserves more – and we need to keep pushing.”

[sovvannight]

My Year in Writing, 2023

And this is another situation where I wish I could pull up last year's post to use as a pattern, but I can't because my writing blog got deleted, so I'm feeling a little lost.

But I can at least see the graphs I made last year in my writing progress tracking spreadsheet, so that give me a bit of a hint as to what I would normally post here.

I wrote 183,465 words on 2023. It's my third year in a row of increases (thank you, Julie and the Phantoms!) and my first year over 150k, which was my goal for the year. I'm at 856,124 words since 2017.

I'm also super excited about winning NaNo for the first time since 2017. November was my most productive month, followed by February, when I spent most of the month working on Baby, This Rain Changes Everything, which I guess I was just excited about because I had a lot of 1k+ days.

Part of the 44k increase from 2022-2023 was due to NaNo, but I also increased my average daily word count for non-NaNo months from 291.8 to 387.5. And I do write every day--December 31 was day 2,395 of my write-ever-day streak.

What I Wrote

Other than 2% of my words for the year for Garfield, a Teen Wolf Movie fix-it fic, everything else was for Julie and the Phantoms: 81% on various scenes for Electric Boogaloo, 12% for Baby, This Rain Changes Everything, and 5% on two different AU fics that I may convert to original fiction instead.

Plans for 2024

So, the saying goes something like, "Write a million words, throw them away, now you're ready to be a writer." I didn't realize it until I was writing this up, but I'm going to hit a million words next year.

And I have to admit, in the last few months, I've started to think about writing and publishing original fiction. And that's partly because the JatP fandom is dying--I'd think the drop in kudos was because I suck, but I've seen declining kudos for new fic by big name fans, too, so it's not just me. No judgement on the fandom, it's just the nature of things. I've left a couple of fandoms myself because of a new hyperfixation. But at the same time, I had this AU idea in the spring, and thought to myself, are you really going to write a whole novel-length fic for 20 kudos?

I think I'd rather earn a couple hundred bucks instead, which seems like about what I would net if I self-pub. And I'm poor, so any little bit helps. Plus, I don't know, I just feel ready. It's partly because I read some pretty bad books this year, and it's like, OK, this got published, and in one case it got optioned and made into a TV show, and I feel like I can do better.

So, my plan for 2024 is:

Write the last ~9 scenes for Electric Boogaloo.

Write season 3, AKA the Electric Boogaloo sequel. Boogaloo is probably going to reach somewhere around 300k total, but I'm aiming for something more like 150k-200k for the sequel.

Finish the two Arrow fics I still can't give up on, even though I haven't worked on them in years. One just needs another 2k, and the other maybe 15k.

Transition to original fiction, taking the idea I had for a JatP boy band AU and "filing off the serial numbers" as I go. (Or something else--who knows what I'll be most interested next fall!)

In terms of word count goals:

I want to hit 50,000 for NaNo in November. For April and July Camp NaNos, I want to write 1,000 a day, so 30k and 31k.

I want to take it somewhat easy in the three months after NaNo events, so May, August, and December - 600/day, or 18,600 words/month.

For the other six months out of the year, I'm going to try doing "NaNoWriWeek" or 1,667 words/day for the first week of the month and then 600/day for the rest of the month, which will get me around 25k per month.

All of this totals up to about 300,000 words.

[courtney-deserved-better]

🦋🌈,💌

🦋what are you most insecure about when you post a fic?

hmm i guess i worry that people will somehow be offended/upset by it? which is pretty irrational considering i write pretty tame stuff compared to a lot of td fics that are out there but im still an anxious mf. ive also gotten weird about the word count in that it HAS to end in a 0 or a 5 but 0 is ideal. but i write in the pages app and so the word count on that and ao3 is a little different so sometimes ill post a fic that i think has an even word count and then it shows up on ao3 differently and then ill panic and add/subtract a few words from the fic to make it right before anyone sees even though i am definitely the only person who cares about this. im weird about numbers

🌈is there a fic that you worked *really fucking hard on* that no one would ever know? maybe a scene/theme you struggled with?

OH MY GOD hawaiian style KICKED MY ASS!!!! i literally wrote three different versions of the first chapter because i could not get it to work i stg that fic was like pulling teeth. i was also visiting my family for thanksgiving around the time i was writing it so i had no privacy and would go to the library to write it and stay there until it got dark out because i was so determined to finish that fic as slippery slopes was on something of a hiatus and i wanted to give you guys more story before the year ended. writing that fic mentally and physically exhausted me lmao

💌share something with us about an up-and-coming work (WIP) that has you excited!

im working on my courtney time travel au and we are getting closer and closer to one of the first major turning points of the fic!! im ~5 chapters away from a moment ive been excited to write for MONTHS. my goal is to get to that scene before july as by then it will have been a year since i started working on this fic!! im 20 chapters/50k words/200 pages in and only roughly a third of the way through the fic. so im definitely strapping myself in for the long haul on this one but when the time finally comes that it's complete and i start posting it i will literally be so excited to share it with you all!! and so proud of it

[fandomtransmandom]

TW/CW: Trauma, Mental Illness, Mental Health, Self-Criticism, Schizoaffective Disorder, Mania, Bullet mention, Food. (In video: Alcohol mention, Food mention, Diet discussion. Mortality/Death references.)

I broke two million words on AO3! 

So it’s time for another rambling personal post. Since I began sharing my work in July of 2020, I’ve learned a lot:

-What it’s like to live in near constant fear of criticism about the (296 and counting…) stories I hold dear, and still leave them up for anyone to read and comment on. Please, please be kind!

-The value of friendship. Everyday I am mystified as to how I have multiple friends. Which probably sounds pathetic, but to me it’s joyous. I’ve also learned the importance of cutting people out of my life for the sake of my own boundaries.

-How to process my trauma through narrative and the immense feeling of purpose I experience when someone trusts me to weave their history and hurts into a request.

-The importance of routine for my mental health. Doing the math, I wrote an average of 2,293 words a day. Now that’s a far cry from the 7,000+ I cranked out during the first six months, (thanks ✨mania✨) But still, I stuck with it. I don’t work because I have schizoaffective disorder and my symptoms make things like going out and interacting with others difficult, but I try to treat writing like a job to establish structure in my life.

-To challenge negative thinking. Especially when it comes to comparing myself with others and setting unrealistic standards. I know I’ll never be the best writer. I may have a shot at most prolific in the fandom, ha, but art is subjective. I almost always use OCs and write from third person POV, which many people dislike. But I am learning to be okay with that. Because ultimately, I love, love, LOVE writing. I love Bill and Conan. I love whiling away hours in daydreams until pieces of plot slide into place. Sitting behind the keyboard, completely unaware I’m typing and losing myself in Barry’s bullet-ridden angst, or silly and saucy Richie smut. So even if no one reads my fics, I will continue to write. Because in the words of my beloved Conan:

“The goal for me has always been–when I feel down, or I’m losing my way, or ‘what’s the point?’–is I want to make stuff I’m proud of. I want to make as much of it as I can while I’m alive.”

To celebrate, I bought a little five inch ice cream cake and coincidentally I got this Milo Dean-inspired tattoo a few days ago. Behind my ear because, as Bill said, “The voice in your head is wrong,” and I need that reminder.

In addition to the friendships and lessons, writing also brought me a wonderful partner. And for the holidays/our two year anniversary, she got me a Cameo from Jordan Schlansky! See below. What a hilarious and amazing gift! Guess @martymcdie88mph’s various tasks include being the raddest girlfriend ever.

I think that’s all for now. Before I start another steamy Conan one-shot, I want to thank everyone who’s read my stories, left kudos, commented, and made requests. I truly can’t express how indebted I am to you all for your kindness and support. Your praise keeps me going and helps me counter the cruel thoughts bogging me down. I especially want to thank the handful of friends who read consistently and fuel me with compliments. Not sure if any of you would want to be tagged in this post, so I’ll refrain. But you know who you are and I love you.

And though I pray Bill and Conan are never exposed to the horrorshow of my AO3 account or my existence in general, I hope they’re aware of the happiness their brilliance, humor, and beauty provide. The love. Because without these tall, blue-eyed, assless comedy men, I wouldn’t be here. Neither would these two million words. 

So thank you, fellas. I owe you everything. Until the next million rolls around...🧡

[altschmerzes]

and what is this "still upcoming favorite stuff in my dead are mine" that you speak of? not to sound like a broken record but i have been waiting for chapter 6 since july and it is killing me! please drop some clues or teasers or anything!!

ahhhhhh yeah i know it's been a long time!!! it's getting edited, and it'll be up soon, i'm sure!! if it's any consolation chapter 6 is i think about 30k so there's that. below the cut is gonna be some bullet pointed varyingly-detailed references to scenes coming up that i really love, and also a somewhat extended preview clip from the opening of chapter six!

every character in this fic gets at least one hug - and yes i do mean every single one - and i'm looking forward to THAT very very much

there's a scene late in chapter 6 which can best be summarized as 'judith earns her girl scout first aid badge and harrow, who comes from a planet without medical care, sees someone perform cpr in front of her and is like What The Fuck-'

harrow learns she likes having her hair played with and she WON'T actually die on the spot if she lets someone do that

harrow has a bit of a strong reaction to the way someone refers to gideon and gideon is like ???? ? ???? ?? ????? ? ??? about it

harrow has a dream about the third

cam holds it together Until She Doesn't

the teens act like teens and harrow would like to know Is This Allowed

"And there they sit in silence with their hands haphazardly, unfamiliarly linked between them: Harrowhark Nonagesimus and Silas Octakiseron, alone together in their damnation."

and the clip from six (cw for described like.... harrow is building a new body for palamedes so. there's that.)-

It feels like an eternity passes before Harrow has regained enough strength to be sure that she is up to the task of recreating Palamedes Sextus’s body from nearly nothing. She knows it’s no longer than half an hour. The short distance that the brightest spot of light visible through the half-destroyed ceiling moves before she lifts herself from her slump against the vacated cot says as much. It feels like a lot longer.

During that half hour, Camilla makes Harrow drink an unholy amount of water, and the quiet sound of Magnus speaking to Jeannemary and Isaac floats over to her for so long that she wonders how he hasn’t run out of things to say. They don’t seem to reply much, and the longer he talks the less they do, until Harrow would guess it has just been Magnus’s voice for maybe ten minutes. Sometimes she hears Marta and Judith, though their exchanges are brief and purposeful.

Neither of the Eighth move or speak at all. Colum lays in a deep and impermeable unconsciousness, barely breathing while his heart labours through beat after sluggish, exhausted beat. Silas is awake, but he may as well not be. He stays exactly where he’d ended up, slim hand pressed to the thready carotid pulse in his cavalier’s neck, face buried against the couch cushion and his own crumpled arm. The only way Harrow can even tell he’s not sleeping is the lines of his body. He’s just too tense to be asleep.

The tangle of dirty, bloodied hair that hangs loose down Silas’s back bothers Harrow. She doesn’t like to look at it; it makes her anxious in a way she can’t quite explain.

Harrow doesn’t bother telling anyone what she’s doing when she determines she’s ready to set upon the next task. She simply hauls herself up off the cot, coughs the lingering trickle of blood from her throat, and starts for her goal without a word.

Lifting the sheet and pulling it away, Harrow gets down onto the ground and studies the remnants that she and Camilla had managed to collect in the blown-out crater where Palamedes had died. There’s more than she feels like she remembers there being, but less than she’d hoped. Harrow squints hard at the chips. She chews the inside of her cheek thoughtfully, and begins rearranging the fragments. It may not help much, but she at least wants all of the pieces they do have in the right places before she really gets down to trying to make anything out of them.

One by one, Harrow cracks the knuckles on each of her hands. There really isn’t a point to doing it except that the repetitive movement and the pops that send a slight ache through her hands are soothing. The voices in the room, as well as the faint shuffling fabric noise that means someone is moving, die out and fall quiet as the others notice what she’s doing. Harrow ignores them. Footsteps approach and someone crouches behind her shoulder, and she ignores them too. She knows what Camilla sounds like by now, the rhythm of her steps and the pattern of her slightly-quickened pulse, and besides, Harrow has a job to do.

Unfurling a fully-formed skeleton out of the fragments that they had so painstakingly collected should be child’s play, but Harrow finds herself oddly anxious, concentrating hard on details she could do in her sleep. She needs every piece and particle of bone to come out perfect. The skeleton is the scaffolding on which all else is built, and if she makes a mistake at this stage, there will be no point in the rest of it. Harrow spends a particular stretch of time meticulously shaping Palamedes’s skull from the soft clay of osteocytes that respond to her whims as if they are part of her and not of him. She redoes the curve of his left eye socket four times. There’s a faint, persistent imperfection in its shape, a flaw in the degree of the slope where the zygomatic bone meets the frontal bone of the face.

They’re his most striking feature, Palamedes’s eyes. Harrow would never forgive herself if she were to take that away from him, change it irrevocably through shoddy craftsmanship. She would never forgive herself if she were to take that away from Camilla. She cannot be the reason that Camilla Hect looks at her necromancer’s face and doesn’t see the boy she’s always known, just as she has always known him.

Camilla shouldn’t be watching this. Harrow can’t see her, bent as she is over the newly built skeleton at her knees, but she doesn’t need to see to know that the Sixth cavalier has barely so much as blinked since this work began. Even knowing both of these things — that Camilla is watching and that she shouldn’t be — Harrow also knows that it would be futile to attempt to get her to look away. There isn’t enough energy to waste any on a fight like that, not when it would be lost before it truly began. Instead, Harrow relegates the thought to the far recesses of her overtaxed brain and shackles it there, ordering it to sit down and be quiet. Camilla’s presence, her attention, lays over Harrow’s back like a heavy cloak.

Now that the skeleton — the scaffolding — is complete, deciding where to move next is tricky. It makes the most sense to progress methodically system by system, perfecting one before taking up the next. A few issues quickly arise with that plan, however. For one, Harrow can’t build the organs until she has something to hold them in, but she also doesn’t want to wait until the chest and abdominal cavity are sealed over to construct them. The nerves and vasculature present a similar problem. She stares at the bones for a while, turning the issue over and over in her head.

When Harrow progresses from the skeleton and into the meat, it reminds her of stitching lace. She weaves the body together in a complex series of stops-and-starts, periodically diverting from one area to finish another, then returning to the first. She slicks ribbons of cartilage and tendon along the lines of the bone to thread the joints together, puts down layers of muscle tissue, building out a home for the organs. Those are harder — the structure of each is so complex, so different from the one beside it, and Harrow has never spent much time with flesh magic. She almost wishes the Third necromancer was here, just so she could consult with someone who truly understands what lies around and between the bones she is so familiar with.

It helps that the bits Harrow had to begin with — the bits from which all the rest have been grown — were formed from cells that carried Palamedes’s DNA signature. Those cells, the strands of microscopic code inside of them, remember the person they used to be — the shape of him, the way he was built, the way he existed and functioned — it’s all in the memory of those cells. All Harrow has to do is coax her magic into listening to them, following his lead. It’s like a river that’s run dry, swelling again with new water after a long rain and racing down the same path that it has run for centuries.

When she’s finally finished, has put the finishing touches on the monument that she built to house the only person who has ever been truly able to challenge her skill as a necromancer, Harrow regards the body with a critical eye. No matter how she studies him, she cannot find a flaw, and she studies him for quite some time. She isn’t forgiving about it, either. Harrow goes so far as to lay a palm across the cold, dead forehead and peel back the lids to study the empty, clouded-over grey eyes.

The body that Harrow has raised for Palamedes Sextus out of dust and blood and little confettied bits of bone is perfect. There’s even a chip in his front left incisor that Harrow remembers in a faint, shadow of an impression, though she’s not entirely sure when she would have seen it, and a tiny scar almost hidden in his hairline above his right ear. She hopes that Palamedes feels the same when he wakes inside of it. Hopes it feels as perfect to him as it looks to her.

After she has determined this, Harrow waits there, bracing herself on the bruisingly hard floor for a few moments longer, just looking at him. She’s no longer looking for anything in particular. She’s just looking at him, at the still face and the closed eyes, the short hair that lays neater than she’d ever seen it in life. It’s a sharp contrast to the other bodies she has fixed. Palamedes’s hair is clean and orderly, like he’s just freshly washed and dried it.

Palamedes looks strange to Harrow like this. It unsettles her. He looks young and human, laying there still and quiet on the ground, more like a boy and less like a sentient sheaf of grey papers wearing glasses. The lack of his glasses probably contributes to the impression, and Harrow concludes that the effect of seeing him without them is profoundly eerie. It makes her want to hunt down a pair to place over his eyes, though he could make no use of them in this state.

There’s only one thing left to do now, before she goes back in for him.

[xtruss]

All 5 Indiana Jones Movies Ranked, Including ‘Dial of Destiny’! All Five of Harrison Ford's Indy Films Definitively Ranked From Worst to Best.

— James Hibberd | Sunday 02 July 2023 | The Hollywood Reporter

Harrison Ford in 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' Lucas Film

With the release of Harrison Ford’s final Indiana Jones film, The Dial of Destiny, the saga is officially over. But before we put all five movies in a museum, let’s take a look back. Below, The Hollywood Reporter ranks Dr. Jones’ adventures from the worst to the best. It’s a franchise that helped define the summer blockbuster and represented some of the best work of creators George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and Ford — who will probably be forever more closely identified with his intrepid archaeologist than any other character from his career.

But since we’re starting at the bottom, that can only mean that we must first discuss…

Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf in ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.’ Paramount/Courtesy of Everett Collection

5. The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

A hokey ramshackle mess. Everything about the fourth film feels weirdly distant and off somehow; slathered in a CG haze. Even the glossy cinematography by the usually stellar Janusz Kaminski manages to make scenes that were shot outdoors look like they’re inside a studio, while the less that’s said about Indy’s son Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) and his Tarzan swing the better (in fairness to LaBeouf, one suspects no actor could have made his character work as written). In other Indy movies, you try to pick out the best sequence; here, it’s a fight for the worst (most pick the infamous “nuke the fridge” scene; my choice is the cemetery brawl with the parkour warriors — because you didn’t even remember that one, did you?). An Indy film’s MacGuffin might not be the most important element, but it’s not unimportant either, and Dr. Jones’ quest for an alien artifact leads to a groaner of climactic sequence and some franchise-worst effects to top it all off. It’s the only film of the five that feels like a slog.

Lucas Film

4. The Dial of Destiny (2023)

Not as bad as the Cannes buzz suggested, yet not nearly as good as fans had hoped, Dial of Destiny represents a clear step up from Crystal Skull while still ranking below the original trilogy. The de-aged Indy opening sequence is surprisingly decent and the film effectively shuffles along for most of its run, with Phoebe Waller-Bridge bringing some bright energy as Indy’s goddaughter Helena Shaw and Mads Mikkelsen ever-watchable as villain Jürgen Voller. Ford is compelling when he’s given something to do, though Indy sometimes feels like a frustratingly passive character. But after two hours of teasing the idea of Indiana Jones traveling back in time, the payoff is letdown. Instead of revisiting, for instance, a moment from Indy’s storied past — it’s so easy to imagine Voller wanting to use the Dial to get the Ark of the Covenant during Indy’s Raiders adventure, or the Holy Grail during Last Crusade, to accomplish his goal of helping the Nazis win World War II — we instead are transported to an ancient Roman battle the audience doesn’t care about. Even Voller’s plan of traveling to 1939 to kill Hitler was a more exciting idea, and for the big climax Voller and Indy are separated and left with nothing to do – except perish in plane crash and get punched out, respectively. (“Continental drift!” should be adopted as a term for whenever a movie or TV show takes an abrupt, disappointing turn). Ultimately, Indy is left in a fine place, yet one wishes the filmmakers could use a Dial of Destiny to go back and rework the film’s third act.

Paramount/Courtesy of Everett Collection

3. The Temple of Doom (1984)

Temple of Doom has been criticized (including by Lucas and Spielberg) as being overly dark (its release helped inspire the PG-13 rating), and there are indeed moments that feel like they cross the line for what these movies are supposed to be (like that whipping scene). It’s also been justifiably criticized as leaning heavily on offensive racial stereotypes as Indy stumbles onto a child-enslaving Thuggee cult in India. Many also find Kate Capshaw’s shrieking Willie Scott off-putting. It’s tough to transition from all these elements to an “and yet…” but…and yet…when the film works, it has some of the best sequences in the franchise: The nightclub opener, the raft escape from a crashing plane, the will-they-or-won’t-they seduction scene, the spike room, the climactic bridge showdown — all terrific, and Ke Huy Quan’s Short Round is occasionally winsome too. Many outlets are placing Dial of Destiny above Temple of Doom on their ranking, but there’s nothing in Dial more exciting than moments like “no one’s flying the plane!” or “prepare to meet Kali — in hell!” (Admittedly helping matters: Ford is peak Hot Indy in this one.)

Paramount/Courtesy of Everett Collection

2. The Last Crusade (1989)

The Last Crusade is many Indy fans favorite of the bunch, and it’s easy to see why. The film is a delight — the warmest and funniest in the franchise — with a deft and witty script by Jeffrey Boam. Sean Connery is spot-on as Indy’s father, Henry Jones, and their interplay is at turns playful and touching (after Henry uses his umbrella to compel birds to strike an attacking fighter plane, the expression on Indy’s face as he’s silently overwhelmed by unexpected love for his father gets me every time). The score is one of John Williams’ best. The Last Crusade also has the strongest ending in the franchise, with its three-challenge booby traps and a feeling of genuine urgency with Henry’s life on the line (even factoring in the ridiculousness of the Crusade Knight — the film is a bit too goofy at times). Henry finally calling his son “Indiana” and gently telling him to let the Holy Grail go is one of the saga’s loveliest beats, and their extended sunset ride over the closing credits is so idyllic and gorgeous that arguably nobody should have attempted to make another Indiana Jones film after this one.

Paramount/Courtesy of Everett Collection

1. Raiders of the Lost Ark

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the closest you can find to a perfect action film. After his WWII comedy 1941 bombed, Spielberg was out to re-prove himself to Hollywood and it shows: Every scene is impeccable, starting with the opening temple raid that became one of the most iconic (and parodied) sequences in movie history. Ford deftly balances gravity and humor, demonstrating at turns competence and fallibility, as Indy struggles — and fails, time and time again — yet stubbornly refuses to quit. There are so many moments one could single out, and even the quiet ones are great. The lecture hall scene is a master class in delivering a ton of exposition in a compelling way (credit to screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan). The map room scene keeps the audience enthralled by simply showing Ford spending four minutes figuring something out — nearly all the storytelling is done on his face. Karen Allen’s savvy and punchy Marion Ravenwood was ahead of her time as strong action co-lead. And the truck chase remains one of the best stunt sequences ever shot. What does it say about the evolution of Hollywood filmmaking that the Indy film made with practical effects — aside from some dated climactic animation — and for the least amount of money (just $20 million/$78 million with inflation) visually remains the saga’s strongest and most grounded-looking entry? Clearly, top men — and women — were working on this one.

[bbq-hawks-wings]

Participant beware!!!

This seems very much like another notification I got from Facebook itself regarding a settlement lawsuit.

I have come to inform you that if you wish to participate in the payout you are well within your right and may very well enjoy that cash for your participation and it might very well be in your personal interest to do so-

HOWEVER,

In the process you lose the right to hop on a lawsuit regarding this privacy and third-party info sharing problem against Facebook again in the future.

Whether this is forever into the future or just regarding the time span listed is unclear to me (I assume the latter), which leads me into the perfect segue to my most important point:

Read the terms and conditions for ANYTHING before you follow through with it!

This third-party sharing may be not be a big deal to you personally, so a cash settlement may be in your interest. However, if you're someone who has a problem with Meta and what they've been up to, DO NOT ACCEPT THE PAYOUT OR APPLY. That's not a guarantee that you'll see your goal through (since when have we seen the people really score a major win against a megacorp - let alone FACEBOOK - through the justice system lately, for real? Not often, sadly.) BUT it will allow you to participate in legal proceedings later down the line if you so choose/have the opportunity.

I'm Folks™ who has a bone to pick with Facebook and the shenanigans they've been involved in for years - and notice that the range of dates goes all the way back to 2007. If I applied for this settlement, I lose the ability to go after FB/Meta for basically anything they've done (at least regarding my data, if not more) since before I even started using the social media platform.

Last month - June, 2023 - investigations were launched into Instagram for being a prolific platform for the procurement and sharing of child exploitation material. Instagram was bought by Facebook in 2012. The fact that the above screenshot with the same kind of cash carrot payout offer I took was given to me by FACEBOOK ITSELF IN MY NOTIFICATION FEED makes me very suspicious.

Edit: checking this again, you're automatically included in this claim whether you're aware of it or not as a Facebook user or past Facebook user (say your account was deleted for whatever reason) and if you fail to opt-out you will still lose the ability to sue them over this once the deadline (July 26) is past. So if you'd like to stick it to Meta another way, head on over the claim site and opt-out. I guarantee few have actually done it so far.

[ID: a link preview of a stock image coffee table with a laptop with the facebook logo on the screen with text on top that says 'anyone who used facebook in the last 16 years can now get settlement money. here's how." end ID]

Time Sensitive- Apply before August 25th, 2023 (8/25/23)!

Filing a claim takes less than ten minutes, and can be done HERE

Excerpt from article:

Anyone in the U.S. who used Facebook in the last 16 years can now collect a piece of a $725 million settlement by parent company Meta tied to privacy violations — as long as they fill out a claim on a website set up to pay out money to the social network's users. 

The settlement stems from multiple lawsuits that were brought against Facebook by users who claimed that the company improperly shared their data with third-party sources such as advertisers and data brokers. The litigation began after Facebook was embroiled in a privacy scandal in 2018 with Cambridge Analytica, which scraped user data from the site as part of an effort to profile voters.

Meta denied any liability or wrongdoing under the settlement, according to the recently created class-action website. However, the agreement means that U.S. residents who used Facebook between May 24, 2007, and December 22, 2022, can file a monetary claim as long as they do so before August 25, 2023. 

Please reblog to signal boost this! As many people as possible should know about this to make their claim, if you don't do anything you don't get anything. It takes less than ten minutes to file and pick your payment option including pay/pal and ven/mo .

[soccerdailyuk]

Erik ten Hag can unleash his new Manchester United midfield for the first time vs Real Madrid

Erik ten Hag can unleash his new Manchester United midfield for the first time vs Real Madrid When Manchester United announced their starting lineup for the game against Arsenal at the MetLife Stadium on Saturday evening, everyone immediately focused on one particular player. Andre Onana had become the center of attention since his recent transfer from Inter Milan to United, which had been finalized just two days before. Despite the whirlwind of events, he wasted no time and joined his new teammates in New Jersey after completing the necessary formalities at Carrington. Considering the tight schedule and the quick turnaround, it was unlikely for Onana to start in the match against Arsenal. As expected, he was not included in the matchday squad, but he did take part in the pre-match warm-up, giving United's fans in the US their first glimpse of his abilities at Old Trafford. With a few more days of training under his belt, the chances are high that Onana will make his debut for United in their game against Real Madrid in Houston on Wednesday evening (early Thursday in the UK). Manager Erik ten Hag will be eager to see how he performs and how well he integrates with the team. If given the opportunity to start as the goalkeeper, Ten Hag might finally select a starting lineup in this pre-season that closely resembles his strongest XI, although they will be missing the striker that Manchester United desperately want. With less than three weeks left before their Premier League opener against Wolves, the match against Madrid at NRG Stadium will mark the halfway point in their pre-season schedule. As time keeps passing, Ten Hag will soon have to consider fielding his strongest XI and prepare them for the season's first game. However, changes at halftime and various moments during the second halves of matches are still expected during pre-season. In their initial three first-team friendly matches, Manchester United mixed youth and experience from the start, and the victory against Arsenal on Saturday saw the return of the club's international players, who didn't participate in the wins against Leeds United and Lyon before traveling to the United States. Despite all the available players against Arsenal, Kobbie Mainoo retained his place in midfield for the third consecutive game. He was joined in the midfield by Mason Mount, who also earned his third successive start, along with Bruno Fernandes, who returned to the team. During the first half, the trio of Mainoo, Mount, and Fernandes demonstrated excellent chemistry, displaying a clear understanding of their respective roles and responsibilities on the field. Mainoo, who has been the standout player during the summer friendlies, played a crucial role in both goals and once again seized the opportunity to impress Ten Hag and secure his place in the team for the upcoming matches next month. At halftime, Mainoo, Mount, and Fernandes were substituted, leading to a different midfield-three for the second half. Scott McTominay, Christian Eriksen, and Casemiro took their places on the field, all of whom returned to training at Carrington in mid-July after their international duties in June. Casemiro is the definite starter among the trio in Ten Hag's preferred midfield for this season. With Mount's arrival, he will be competing with Eriksen for the No.8 position, while Fernandes, serving as both captain and influential player, will surely occupy the No.10 role. The first half in New Jersey saw Mount and Fernandes playing together for the first time, which might encourage Ten Hag to consider adding Casemiro to the midfield instead of Mainoo. This move would allow him to test his strongest midfield combination. It is widely believed that Casemiro, Mount, and Fernandes will make up the primary midfield trio for the team, providing Manchester United with a well-rounded mix of defensive expertise, energy, ball-playing skills, and creativity. Certainly, bringing Casemiro into the team and replacing Mainoo would not be a criticism of Mainoo's performance, as he has been outstanding in the last three games. The decision is simply about exploring how Casemiro can fit alongside Mount in the midfield. As the start of the season draws near, Ten Hag understands the importance of seeing Casemiro, Mount, and Fernandes playing together as soon as possible. The upcoming match against world-class opposition in Madrid presents a perfect opportunity to test this new midfield combination and see how they perform together on the field. Erik ten Hag can unleash his new Manchester United midfield for the first time vs Real Madrid Read the full article

[sie-rui]

❀ 20 TIMES IN 10 YEARS | TOKYO REVENGERS 🤍 sano shinichiro 💿 female reader, second pov (you/your), angst and fluff, pining, hurt no comfort, tw: canonical character death, au - canon divergence, imagine 📅 july 29, 2021 🔗 masterlist ,, inspired

sano shinichiro’s love for you doesn’t change, even throughout the years. ten years has passed but the way he looks at you is the same as when he first fell in love with you.

The first time he confessed to you, he was barely fourteen years old and running a rising gang named Black Dragons. Everyone who had heard of his name had all thought that he was some tall, broad, male with a lean body who can defeat anyone that dares to defy him.

Your first thought of Sano Shinichiro was that he’s a dork.

He tried a pickup line on you. A cheesy pickup line, shameless, but even you could see how he looked like he was about to die inside from embarrassment. He was shorter than you expected, thinner as well, quite lanky and his hair was almost ridiculous and he had a cute smile that if he hadn’t said it himself, you wouldn’t have believed that he was the Black Dragon’s president.

He was cute but not your type.

You rejected him mercilessly, turning around and walking away, planning to erase him from your mind. You weren’t looking forward to getting into a relationship, it has never been a top priority, and it never will be.

The second thought of Sano Shinichiro that you realized was that he was persistent.

After you rejected him, Shinichiro just doesn’t want to leave you alone. He made it his absolute goal to find you after class to ask you out on a date or a study group (he says it’s with Black Dragons that had Takeomi Akashi from the class next door along with Imaushi and Arashi a few classes down) but you know well that he’s going to find a way to shoo them away so it’ll only be the two of you.

“Why do you like to annoy me so much?” You groan, ready to throw him out the window, knowing that he’ll survive since it’s only the third floor. He’d break a lot of bones though but you sure do hope it’ll give him a concussion, might actually get him to be smarter.

“Because I like you.”

“Don’t.”

“Y/n-san,” he sighs, a little blissfully. “Liking you isn’t something that’s going to change now or ever. It’s not just some kind of joke I’m doing for fun, it’s basically my life now.”

“Go kill yourself and get a different life then.”

“Then, I’ll still like- no, love you in my next life!”

The fifteenth time he confessed, it wasn’t some poorly planned event that ended with him saying some pickup line or giving you a bouquet of flowers. No. The fifteenth time he confessed after being quiet for almost a year was in your third year of highschool, two years after he left Black Dragons to the next generation since he decided to take classes seriously.

(You wanted to believe that it wasn’t because of you. That it wasn’t because you told him to think of his future more. But everyone knew why he started attending classes more regularly, why the Black Dragons had a different leader now after it’s sudden takeover of Tokyo.

You knew as well and you hated how it made your cheeks flush at the thought of him giving it all up just because you said so.)

The fifteenth time he confessed, you opened your window to hear him singing for you with Imaushi playing the guitar, Akashi awkwardly smiling and clapping his hands along. You knew that Imaushi wasn’t exactly playing the guitar though (that guy can’t play shit) since you spied Arashi trying to hide a speaker behind his back as Shinichiro sings his heart out.

“Sano, it’s literally ten in the evening, my neighbors are trying to have a peaceful, silent night and they’re going to kill me!” You call out but Akashi only snorts as Shinichiro continues on. There were three kids on the other side of the street, just sitting on the curb and you almost scream knowing that they were probably way past their curfew and Shinichiro’s probably responsible for them because of fucking course.

(Shinichiro was, indeed, responsible for them and he couldn’t leave them alone in the house since their grandpa was out in the countryside. He had no choice but to bring them along!)

You slam your windows shut and for a short second, you thought that Shinichiro actually shut up and decided to go home as you make your way downstairs, but no. He’s still going strong.

When you open the door, dressed in your pajamas and a hastily put on coat, Shinichiro’s expression brightens up immediately, stopping in his goddamn awful singing. Imaushi stopped “playing” as well but the speaker was turned off exactly five seconds late so it was obvious what was actually happening here.

“Y/n-”

You walk past him, crossing the empty street, knowing that your neighbors were probably looking at you now. You stop in front of the three kids, one of them looking eerily similar to Shinichiro but with blond hair while the girl had some resemblance. “It’s cold and I’m sure that bastard just dragged you out here without feeding you, am I right?”

“I fed them!” Shinichiro whines but the blond kid nods and the other two soon follow. “Oh come on! Mikey, I gave you a whole box of dorayaki earlier!”

You roll your eyes, smugly patting the blond- Mikey’s head. “Come inside. I’m sure I still have some snacks left from yesterday. You can warm up there as well,” you smile at them which elicited a gasp from Shinichiro and a snort from Arashi. The only expression you ever gave Shinichiro is an annoyed frown, and here you were smiling at kids, at Mikey, the brat.

“What’s your name?” You ask the only girl in the group, taking her hand to help her up. She gives you a hesitant wary look, scanning you up and down for two whole seconds as she pats her skirt down.

“Emma.”

“I’m Mikey!”

“I’m Edward!”

“It’s still a stupid name,” Emma comments, rolling her eyes but the two of you seemed to have come to an agreement as she wasn’t acting hostile. “That’s Baji. They’re both idiots.”

You held in a sigh. Kids. They’re kids. They’re adorable kids. You’re taking them in.

Emma doesn’t let go of your hand as you start walking past Shinichiro (who was currently gaping at you) and the rest, Mikey and Baji trailing behind you while bickering over something. “L/n Y/n, nice to meet you. I’m glad that you aren’t like Sano-san over there, Emma-chan.”

“I’m glad as well, Y/n-nee.”

“Wait, Y/n-”

The door shuts behind you, Emma staring at the closed door while Baji struggles at the genkan with his new shoes, Mikey only toeing off his slippers with a curious hum as he looks around. “Does anyone want ramen?”

(Shinichiro stands outside, silent. He blinks at the closed door before turning to Akashi who was nearest to him. “Did��� Did she just kidnap my siblings and Keisuke?”

Arashi shrugs dismissively. “Doesn’t that mean the two of you are married now?”

“I don’t think that’s how it works,” Imaushi only comments, ready to chuck the guitar into the trashcan.)

The twentieth time he confessed, you were both 23. It was his birthday.

Celebrating at some cheap rentable room, you can’t help but wonder how you ended up so deeply integrated into this group when just ten years prior, you were about to have an aneurysm every time they were mentioned. Troublemakers.

Perhaps this all started after you decided to take Emma, Mikey, and Keisuke in on that one night five years ago. Emma started wanting to hangout with you and Mikey was quite curious though he denies it. Somehow, it ended with you hanging around Sano household as well, learning some tricks from their grandfather and ending up meeting some of Black Dragon’s members.

“Y/n, have some more!” Akashi beckons, pouring even more into your glass, laughing joyously and probably won’t be remembering anything tomorrow. Arashi looked as if he was about to cry at some unsaid story and Wakasa was silent, staring blankly at the ceiling and probably as drunk as Akashi.

You couldn’t even remember how you ended up here. Was it when you stopped by Shinichiro’s shop earlier to pick up a handkerchief you forgot the last time you came to visit and they noticed you so they dragged you along as well? In the first place, why did you visit last time again…? Mikey and Emma don’t hang out around Shinichiro’s bike shop so why were you there?

Didn’t you want to tell Shinichiro something?

You sip on the liquor on your cup, leaning back on the worn-out couch as Akashi punches in a song, pushing the second mic to Arashi. Closing your eyes, you prepared yourself for another ear-damaging round of singing.

Shinichiro chuckles, deep, intoxicated, beside you, resting his cheek on your shoulder and snapping you back to consciousness when his breath fans your neck. You glance at him as he stares at you; eyes revealing more than his lips could.

You didn’t move away or push him to fall off the couch, something you would have done if you were fourteen or even seventeen. You just sit there, frozen as ice and hard as stone and Shinichiro starts to smile.

“I really do love you, Y/n.”

A hitch of your breath and your eyes regretfully becoming teary as you look away. This is why it’s always so hard to completely push Shinichiro away. He looks at you like this, he says words like this. He’s just so stupidly loyal that ten years later, it’s still you he’s saying those words to when there were better girls out there—girls that would treat him better than you do to him.

Stupid. Stupid Shinichiro. Stupid Sano Shinichiro.

I hate you so much.

“I know,” you murmur. Stupid Shinichiro. It was getting harder and harder to reject him.

“I think it’s supposed to be about time you actually answer me,” he grins, boyish as if he was back to being a middle schooler, his eyes twinkling and the different party lights illuminating his face as Akashi continues on screaming incoherently in the background.

“I did.”

“Properly,” he chuckles, burying his face on your shoulder playfully.

He knew it. He already did. From the way you faltered, from how you started to treat him differently, from how you started to compliment him (though backhanded) and even how you started to finally look him in the eye—like he’s actually there, a person and not just some dust you could wave off.

He knew it, noticed it earlier than you did two years ago. That was why he stopped confessing momentarily. Paused on his nineteenth confession because he knew that you needed time and space before you could completely accept your own feelings.

You already lost that day, five years ago, with Mikey, Keisuke, and Emma. You lost the day you started humoring him with responses and conversations, albeit dry and sarcastic. You lost the day you passed him a copy of your homework back in the first year of highschool and told him to think more about his studies and his future.

“Tomorrow,” you start and he looks up seeing you staring in front of you as if you weren’t speaking to him. “I’ll give you an answer tomorrow.”

Shinichiro smiles.

You gave him an answer the next day. You surrendered to your heart, surrendered to the dizzying emotion that always wraps around your head whenever Shinichiro looks at you like how he looked at you ten years ago. In love.

“I really do love you, Y/n.”

“I know… And I do as well, Shinichiro.”

This time, there was no grand confession, no grand courting. Shinichiro only told you that he loved you, always had, in that karaoke room on his 23rd birthday. Something so simple and yet it was the one who took your heart the most.

It was the one that officially binds you together.

It was the one that locked your fate, secured it tightly and made sure that you won’t be able to escape.

Escape the funeral that came barely two weeks later.

Stupid. Stupid Shinichiro. Stupid Sano Shinichiro.

I hate you so much.

You sit there, not knowing what else to do. His voice still in your ears, ringing; and his smile will haunt you forever, until the end of your days and beyond.

“Then, I’ll still like- no, love you in my next life!”

Your eyes water as you sniffle, hands clenched on your fist, shoulders shaking. A laugh leaves your lips garnering looks from everyone else in the room including the Sano siblings.

You better find me first then.

Maybe you’ll fall for him faster, maybe it won’t take him ten years and twenty confessions. Maybe, next time, you’ll be a little more honest, to Sano Shinichiro and to yourself.

[eemoo1o-animoo]

Went to the Kuro tag for the first time in forever, saw your live blogging of the book of the Atlantic, liked your takes, went to your profile, liked your takes there, followed you

Currently looking for ppl to talk about black butler with so >~>

Your blog says you got opinions about claude and Sebastian, never considered that ship before; wanna tell me about it?

*wheezy fucking WHEEZE*

Aww, got me blushing I see. (It’s also a relief to see my blog back in the tags after the fortnight long shadowban lol definitely not scarred by that).

Relatively new to the fandom (I’d say since mid-July this year but I genuinely can’t tell you for certain, but I’ve known of the anime since the day I added it to my Netflix list after over-hearing someone talk about it and then just never watched it, and so eventually it got removed from Netflix anyway so), but I finally got into it because of an amv of an awesome cover where on the original video (of the cover) people were saying they found it because of a Black Butler amv. Of course, I did the opposite, lmao.

I’m not a manga reader, although I would like to be, and I do/have spoil(ed) myself for most of the lore from the wiki and talk of the manga stuff. Just thought I’d get that out of the way.

It’s interesting how s2 isn’t apart of the manga, because it is an interesting concept (more demons), and I just think that that Sebastian deserves another demon to be petty and to twirl around with, you know?

Lmao, the “live reactions” are relatively spontaneous. I just watch something and I’m like “oh my god oh my god, so like” and on one of my posts I speculated (never reading the manga but knowing of R!Ciel) and someone commented “Yeah, that’s exactly what happened”. And I’m like “haha, well fuck me I am the messiah”.

And thanks for the follow! I really appreciated that! (Again, it’s a baby blog only made in like, early October maybe after I realised I was spamming my main with too much Kuro, so I’m always so glad that someone finds interest in it.)

Feel free to talk/ask anytime, also.

As for Claudebastian… well, for one, I try tagging my posts as concisely as I can, so for the whole “shipping timeline” I suppose you could search for #claudebastian on my profile. (Is that link working? I don’t think it is.) Or #seblaude, because they’re tagged with both.

I also do character playlists for Kuro (an incomplete list, because I couldn’t do anything during the shadowban). Plus, fanfiction. My AO3 is linked in my bio, and the majority of that pseud’s works are Claudebastian.

I suppose the main things to know about me and Claudebastian is:

I first hate-shipped Clannah(?) because I resented them both.

By episode five, Bedewed Butler, (an episode I only remember the name and number of because I had to type it out like a million times when I made a bunch of GIFs for the episode, all under #my gifs and #they’re gay your honour) I started to ship them.

I made a headcanon list regarding them so I could work past the week of writer’s block I had for my second one shot (which I’m still writing and hope to get out later today if I’m so lucky).

My first Claudebastian fic that I made is the one mentioned on top, aka. an unfinished one shot trilogy that I made before even finishing season two and labelled His Mate, Loving (The Claudebastian Collection), because I wholeheartedly expected it to be my one and only Claudebastian work.

I was wrong.

My second published work for Claudebastian (third for Kuro as a whole) is Dear Claude, something which I tried leaving as a fic with an ambiguous relationship/feelings, but it was kinda hard to write that way.

I intend on writing a platonic Grellebastian friendship fic (bit of angst, one sided Grelliam, Grelltaker as the end goal maybe, possibly, who knows) which you can probably find under #grelle fic.

That fic is currently back in action, so to speak, after I’ve watched BoA.

Which is infuriating because I hesitated to watch season three in fear of killing the Claudebastian mood (it did not, probably because of William being there lol), and same goes for Book of Murder, but then I went into Book of Atlantic so I could make GIFs for an up and coming Grelle vs The Undertaker character analysis, but came out with the inspo for Claudebastian slipping away (and after such a good week/maybe two weeks of writing little and often for that one shot).

Kind of re-contemplating the toxic Clauannah marriage (again). Fuck my life.

The theme is kind of a reference to my reactions to season two (and Claudebastian) clogging up my main and resulting in the creation of the blog. Plus I ship them.

Sorry if this doesn’t serve as much of a reply to your questions, but I tried. Feel free to ask again when you’re able!

TL;DR — I’m a rambling idiot.

[not-the-tie-youre-looking-for]

Something that's been bugging me for years since the Legends finale. If Zhan had been the writer for Rebels, do you think he would have had Thrawn bomb Lothal to bring Ezra out? On the one hand, from Legends Thrawn's portrayal I imagine he would without a second of hesitation. On the other, Canon Thrawn has been much more... restrained? And on a third point, there's the fact that Legends and Canon Thrawn seem like they really could be the same person just at different points of time. cnt in next

...I'm just curious if anyone else was curious if Zhan agreed with that direction taken. Which, on that note, did Zhan ever say anything about his thoughts on how Rebels handled Thrawn? Both from a writing standpoint as well as an acting and musical one (Thrawn's various leitmotifs)?

Oh man. Ohhhhhhhh maaaaan. My friend, you have asked exactly the right person this question, because not only have I wanted to talk about this multiple times before, but I also have ~receipts~. 👀

⚠️Spoiler warnings for Star Wars: Rebels, The Mandalorian, the canon Star Wars novels Thrawn, Thrawn: Alliances, Thrawn: Treason, Thrawn Ascendency: Chaos Rising, and Thrawn Ascendency: Greater Good, and the legends Star Wars novels Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, and Outbound Flight.⚠️

Oh man. Where to begin.

Lets start with who Thrawn is, because depending on who you ask, you're gonna get different answers—whether you're strictly a Legends fan, Dave Filoni, a guy who's only seen Thrawn in Star Wars: Rebels, Timothy Zahn, or just a writer/artist fan like me.

To Timothy Zahn, the man behind our favorite chiss, Thrawn is a character that is constant in both attitude and personality throughout all of his content. In multiple interviews, ranging from Thrawn's debut in Rebels to the latest about the writing of the Ascendancy Trilogy, Zahn states that Thrawn in canon and Thrawn in Legends are indistinguishable.

And so I present the receipts:

In a 2017 interview with The Verge on writing the first canon Thrawn book Thrawn, Zahn is asked the following question and responds as such:

How do you navigate bringing back a character who already has an extensive backstory and audience expectations, with telling a new story that fits in the new continuity?

Actually, I didn’t find that to be a problem. I’d never written Thrawn in this part of the Star Wars timeline, so it was simply a matter of bringing him into the Empire and chronicling his rise through the ranks. It’s still the same character as in the 1990s books, just a decade or two younger and in a very different military and political environment.

In another interview with The Verge in 2018 (a few months after the finale of Rebels aired) about writing Thrawn: Alliances, he repeats this sentiment twice:

Thrawn feels like if it had been written before the canonization purge a couple of years ago, or if you squinted a bit, it would serve as a perfect setup for Heir to the Empire.

Oh, I don’t think you need to squint at all. I wrote him in these two books to fit in with everything else I’d done. So if someone at Lucasfilm snapped their fingers, and suddenly all of my other books were canon, and there would be no real retrofitting that would have to go in. It would all fit together.

Thrawn: Alliances feels more at home in the new canon, especially because Thrawn has been fleshed out a bit more in Rebels. Was there any adjustments for that?

Not really. I’m getting to play with more canon characters like Vader and Padmé and Anakin, but the character himself, I still see him as the same person. He’s got goals, and he won’t necessarily share them with you, but he as long as you’re going the same direction, he’s happy to cooperate and assist along the way.

...and this is referenced again in a 2020 interview with Polygon about writing Thrawn Ascendancy: Chaos Rising:

Along with Thrawn’s appearance in Rebels, Zahn would pen a new novel, Thrawn, that chronicled the character’s early days as an Imperial officer. Zahn didn’t have to change anything with the character, telling me in 2017 that “he’s like an old friend who I understand completely.” While Heir to the Empire was no longer canon, a reader could easily read Thrawn as a precursor to that classic novel. Thrawn went on to become a major presence in Rebels, and Zahn continued to explore his origins in Thrawn: Alliances and Thrawn: Treason.

The next day, an interview with IGN was published on the same subject:

Thrawn is an especially unique case because Zahn has been able to effectively continue the work he started way back in 1991 with Heir to the Empire. That novel may not be a part of official Star Wars lore any longer, but as Zahn explained, Thrawn himself is basically the same character regardless of continuity.

[....] The closest comparison between Chaos Rising and Zahn's earlier EU work is probably 2006's Outbound Flight, which is set during the Clone Wars and details the first encounter between Thrawn and the Galactic Republic (while also retroactively laying the groundwork for elements of Heir to the Empire). That novel is no longer canon, but Zahn told us he prefers to operate as if it were. He's making a concerted effort not to retread the same ground as Outbound Flight and to avoid contradicting the events of that novel as much as possible.

So yeah. In Zahn's opinion, Legends Thrawn is Canon Thrawn is Book Thrawn, and there is no difference whatsoever between Thrawns in, say, Outbound Flight, Heir to The Empire, Alliances, and Chaos Rising. I wholeheartedly disagree, but lets move on.

Now that the books are out of the way, its time for Rebels.

In July of 2016, after the trailer announcing Thrawn's canon debut aired, Dave Filoni had the following to say about Thrawn's character in regards to Timothy Zahn:

“I was pretty adamant with a couple of people saying, ‘Listen, we need to have Tim sign off on this. This is kind of a waste of time [otherwise],'” says Filoni. “We, of course, can do what we want with a character that Lucasfilm owns, but without Tim’s okay, what does it mean? That’s not going to be good. Once we had some stuff, we wanted to do what we thought was right and make the character. Then we brought him in. We had the production fully prepared. I said, ‘Look, if there’s something that Tim says that I think is really valuable, even if it changes something dynamically, we need to be ready for that and see what we can do.’ I wanted to make sure we did this right by everybody. We brought him in and we didn’t really tell him why. We just flew him up to Lucasfilm and sat him down in a theater and said, ‘Hey, we’re bringing Thrawn into the show.’ He was like, ‘Wow.’ and I said, ‘Yeah, wow. And I’m going to show him to you right now and you let me know what you think.'”

(Before we continue, keep that first highlighted sentence in mind for future reference. I'm going to come back to that later.)

Fortunately, Timothy Zahn was delighted at the show’s approach to the Empire’s imposing blue-skinned Chiss.

“We showed him some of the scenes with him,” Dave Filoni recalls. “He looked like a kid in a candy store. I think it meant a lot to him not just because it was his character, but because you have to imagine what he went through when it was announced that everything is Legends now, not Expanded Universe. I get that and I’ve always appreciated the work that goes into the Expanded Universe… For Tim, I think it was us saying, ‘No, no, no. We really like your character. We want him to be part of the real thing. The canon universe.'”

So in 2016, before we even saw Thrawn in action beyond a trailer, we were told that Zahn gave the OK, and he was chill with the way Thrawn was created in the show. In 2017, he gave a little more of the background of this process in an interview with FANgirl Blog:

The events of Thrawn dovetail closely with Rebels and shed light on some of Thrawn’s more seemingly surprising actions on the show, like when he appears to lose his temper and yell at Lieutenant Lyste. What was it like to see Thrawn come alive onscreen? Is he how you’ve pictured him in your head?

I don’t see my characters in terms of voice or appearance, but rather as personality or attitude. That said, I very much enjoyed the way the Rebels team brought him to life, in his appearance, voice, and actions.

I also appreciated the freedom I had to tweak certain incidents, such as the one you mentioned, and give additional or alternate explanations for the viewers who may have thought those were somewhat out of character for him.

He doesn't really elaborate on this, but we can assume he had SOME creative input on Thrawn's character, and he was overall pretty happy with the choices made in the show.

But then, we have this from that earlier 2017 the Verge article:

When did you learn that Dave Filoni was intending to bring Thrawn to Rebels, and did you have any input into how the character would be handled?

[...] I didn’t have any real input into how Thrawn was going to be handled, mainly because the lead time of an animated series is so long that much of season 3 had already been finished. But I trusted Dave and the team to do the character right. After all, why bring him into Rebels if you were going to drastically change him? Having seen the entire season now, I think we can agree that my trust was completely justified.

So... he didn't have "any real input," but was satisfied with it in the end? I guess? I don't know. We're getting into some contradictions now.

The last thing I've got in regards to Rebels is an interview Zahn did with the YouTube channel Star Wars Explained after the finale aired, where he responds to the following:

“So, maybe let's jump over to Rebels for a little bit. Now that it has wrapped up, how do you feel Thrawn was represented in Star Wars: Rebels?”

“They did a really good job—they not only understood the character and how to write for him, but they also understood the meta around how you defeat him. The only way to defeat Thrawn is to throw something at him he can't control, or can't anticipate. Given perfect knowledge and control, Thrawn will always find a way to win. But they understood, this is how you defeat him, these are the things we can use against him... so his portrayal in general, is very good; he's smart, he's anticipating, he's a step ahead of everybody, he's looking at clues and picking up on them, so I was very pleased with how the Rebels team handled the character."

I think these quotes answer many of your questions, so to answer your initial question: If Zhan had been the writer for Rebels, do I think he would have had Thrawn bomb Lothal to bring Ezra out?

Yes—but ONLY because at that point, the only established™️ Thrawn content was found in Legends, where Thrawn was a ruthless and calculating warlord.

However!

I do believe that if given the chance to re-write the Star Wars: Rebels finale using his now-canon novels as a solid background TODAY, Zahn would choose to not let Thrawn bombard Lothal's Capital City.

I believe this because he made one single very interesting creative choice when writing Thrawn that completely overwrote Thrawn's pre-established Rebels character: Thrawn was not responsible for the civilian deaths on Batonn—Pryce was.

And that's that on that.

A few months ago I would have ended it there, but today, Thrawn's story is no longer just contained in the novels and Rebels, but also in that of The Mandalorian.

This is where I will proudly say I have no idea what the fuck is going on. Before The Jedi aired, I was 100% sure that the next time we saw Thrawn, it would be nowhere NEAR the Empire, because Zahn was pretty adamant in the novels that Thrawn was only in the Empire to help. His. People.

So now he's apparently doing fuck-knows-what in fuck-knows-where and is STILL associated with the Seventh Fleet and Imperial Warlords???

Huh??? Despite the fact that he held no true loyalty to the Empire or to the Emperor??? It's been months and I'm still confused as fuck. Add to the fact that Zahn also doesn't know what the fuck is going on to the equation and we get a big fat question mark with one pretty clear answer that Filoni said himself that we have to keep in mind:

"We, of course, can do what we want with a character that Lucasfilm owns."

So I don't think Zahn has much control over Thrawn as we would all like to think. We can hope he gives us the crazy Thrawn and Ezra Space Adventure™️ novel all we want, but ultimately, Thrawn's fate does not rest in his hands.

If you guys have more to add please let me know!!! This is, obviously, a topic I am very passionate about, so I'd love to hear your thoughts!