#thank you michael fassbender what is everyone else doing for real.

[philcollinsenjoyer]

FINALLY SOMEONE IS NAKED ONLY TOOK AN HOUR THIRTY MINUTES.

[aion-rsa]

Cruella: Does Every Villain Need a Sympathetic Origin Story?

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Clearly this isn’t your parents’ Cruella De Vil. This isn’t even your Cruella De Vil. However, there is something fiendishly charming about seeing Emma Stone charge into a ballroom and light her black and white dress on fire, revealing a chic red number beneath that would do Scarlett O’Hara proud. If fashion is a statement, Cruella is here to say the villain has just arrived!

Yet one can’t help but shake the certainty that by the time we actually learn the plot of Disney’s Cruella reimagining, Cruella will be in anything but black and white, or fiery red. Rather Cruella is obviously posturing to take a sideways approach to an old classic. But then again, that increasingly feels like the only direction these Hollywood redos know: the sympathetic origin story for an iconic villain.

To be clear, we’ve only gotten a glimpse of Stone as the new Cruella, and she looks absolutely fabulous in a black leather coat and cane, purring, “I’m only getting started, darling.” There’s a wildness about this interpretation befitting our current era where Harley Quinn is the hero of her own story, and Wade Wilson now leads a Disney franchise. Nevertheless, when I watch Cruella on the edge of tears in the trailer, barking defiantly that she is CRUELLA—and seemingly embracing an unfair reputation that other characters may be placing on her—a nagging question persists in the back of my head: Do we really need a sympathetic Cruella De Vil?

The trend of supervillains getting intellectual property-expanding sob stories is nothing new, be it at Disney or anywhere else in Hollywood. Maybe 25 years ago when folks liked their villains big and outlandish—think Glenn Close in Disney’s previous live-action remake of 101 Dalmatians—it was novel to see the antagonist become a tragic protagonist. But like everything else with modern blockbusters, that all changed a long, long time ago with something called Star Wars.

Back in 1977 when the original Star Wars movie was released, many audience members left the theater giddy about the world George Lucas created. In a galaxy far, far away, every pop fantasy of the mid-20th century—Wizards! Knights! Princesses! Samurai! World War II ace pilots!—was thrown into a massive cauldron that seamlessly blended these elements.

Luke Skywalker’s galaxy felt like a real place of exotic, lived-in locales, all of which captured that dirt-under-the-fingertips, tactile quality so rarely seen in fantasy stories. Sure the characters might be archetypes, but they came with histories which gave their fantasy space battles human density. Old Ben Kenobi fought in the Clone Wars with Luke’s father Anakin, who was “a gifted pilot.” But what exactly was a clone war? And why was there more than one of them? Also, what did a Jedi’s “more civilized age” look like for Luke’s papa?

For more than 20 years, no one knew the answer to those questions, which made them all the more intriguing, and the “lore” of this fantasy evermore mythic. Then came Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, the first modern blockbuster prequel devoted to filling in the gaps left by a beloved classic’s mysteries. That movie’s problems are numerous, but at its core the most persistent, lingering issue may still be the reveal that Darth Vader was once a blonde haired little boy with the emotional range of Beaver Cleaver. Of course everyone knew in the abstract sense Vader was once a child… but did they ever really want to see it?

Additionally, did anyone really want to learn Anakin Skywalker’s reason for turning to the Dark Side is because of a bratty streak that followed him into adulthood? Probably not.

Nonetheless, all three Star Wars prequels made massive amounts of money and rather than becoming cautionary tales of what happens when you attempt to explain away all the mysteries of a beloved character, they were the first steps toward a modern staple of media regurgitation where seemingly every mug, pug, and thug would get their own sympathetic redo.

Since then, we’ve learned on screen that Spider-Man’s arch-nemesis Venom, is really a well-intentioned bloke caught in a bad romance (with his alien space buddy), Batman’s arch-nemesis the Joker is really just a Travis Bickle clone with mommy issues, and Maleficent, the reigning empress of badassery in the Disney Villain canon, was really just a woman scorned by Sleeping Beauty’s toxic father. Even Hannibal Lecter became a victim in Hannibal Rising, and the Wicked Witch of the West starred in the most popular Broadway musical of all time… where it turns out she was the hero in a conspiracy with the Scarecrow to pull one over on Dorothy.

To be clear, some of these spinoffs and reimaginings work quite well. Even if I personally am a bit chagrined at Todd Phillips’ Joker being nominated for Best Picture, Joaquin Phoenix’s sad sack killer clown created the space for a riveting performance that reminded mainstream audiences that movies can still be for adults. In another comic book movie, Magneto’s heartbreaking backstory in the Holocaust was expanded in 2011’s X-Men: First Class, which made an already relatively complex supervillain just that much more compelling in Michael Fassbender’s hands.

Overall, however, this approach has left something to be desired. And to get back to Cruella, her remix as a misunderstood tragic heroine appears to owe most of all to Maleficent. In 2014, Disney made a killing when they cast movie star Angelina Jolie as their very best big bad, a character so evil in 1959’s Sleeping Beauty that she was willing to knockoff a princess simply because no one sent her a party invite. That’s cold. And it’s wickedly entertaining. Hence why Maleficent scared and captivated generations of children.

Some characters are just too good at being bad.

The marketing of Maleficent leaned into this with a melancholic cover of Sleeping Beauty’s Tchaikovsky-inspired theme song, “Once Upon a Dream.” Now in a minor key, the new version sung by Lana Del Rey promised a scarier, more menacing version of the story, which was then confirmed by Jolie’s wonderfully devilish laugh. The big bad was finally going to have her day at the ball.

But when the movie actually came out, we learned that Maleficent was an enchanted fairy who’d been wronged. In the end, she didn’t hate Elle Fanning’s Princess Aurora. In fact, she loved the little royal and tried to save her from the curse she herself cast in a fit of justified anger. Ultimately, the sorceress adopts Aurora as the daughter she never had after disposing of her now abusive father. That’s certainly an interpretation. I guess.

It also proved massively successful in the short term, opening at a staggering $175.5 million in its opening weekend worldwide, and grossing $758 million total. Those numbers also exclude merchandising and home video revenues. If you want to know why we’re getting the punk rock Cruella, look no further.

However, did a lot of folks really like Maleficent? It made all the money in the world based on that devious marketing campaign that promised a shocking tell-all about Disney’s closest approximation to Lucifer, but by the time a sequel limped into theater five years later, relatively few seemed to still care about the misunderstood, freedom fighting warrior fairy Jolie played. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil ostensibly continued the good fight but flopped at the box office with a cume of $491.7 million, barely more than half of what its predecessor made. (Don’t cry for Disney though, as Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and remakes of Aladdin and The Lion King in the same year made Maleficent 2 look like a clerical error.)

What this whole sputtering franchise reminds us though is that some characters are better left bad, and the mystique of the unknown is an end unto itself. While I enjoyed Phoenix’s take on the Joker, there is little argument the character was even scarier with a PG-13 rating when he manifested out of thin air, like Beelzebub, in The Dark Knight. Or to take a step away from just villains, was Han Solo really any cooler when you learned how he got his name in Solo: A Star Wars Story? Or could you have gone your whole life without knowing thanks to The Hobbit movies that Gandalf and Galadriel were kind of, sort of, just maybe friends with benefits?

The allure of Cruella De Vil is right there in her name: She’s a cruel devil. How could she not be when her entire ambition in Disney’s classic 101 Dalmatians is to skin puppies for their fur coats? Finding out she used to fight the power before hoarding it may make a lot of money, but it doesn’t make her necessarily more compelling.

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[madamrogers]

Tag Game

I was tagged by @sielustaja a small eternity ago to this funny game! Thank you x

Nickname: I’ve had a few nicknames in my life but feel free to make some up!

Real name: Jenna

Zodiac sign: Capricorn

Height: 168cm

What time it is: 7:40 PM

Favorite musician(s): Nightwish, Imagine Dragons, Sunrise Avenue, Keiino, Woodkid, several others

Favorite sports team: Sports team...? I don’t play or watch sports, to be honest

Other blogs: @madamrogersstorytelling for my writing, @kissamieli is my Finnish blog

Do I get asks: Sometimes yes, but feel free to send me asks!

How many blogs do I follow: Too many to mention and keep up with things...

Any tumblr crushes: I love my mutuals and seeing them on my dash and messages always makes me really happy! You know who you are x

Lucky number: 5

What I’m wearing right now: Black leggings, a t-shirt, warm fox socks and a flannel shirt

Dream vacation: I’m very eager to explore things and go everywhere but right now I’m really interested in going around Scotland

Dream car: I’ve always wanted to have a cute and small car but on the other hand... a big SUV? Ahaha :’D

Favorite food: Fries, pasta, Chinese, ice cream

Drink of choice: Water or apple juice

Languages: Finnish, English, Swedish and I have studied German and Spanish

Instruments: I don’t properly know how to play anything. I’ve learned some little things on guitar, drums and piano, mostly for school but I cannot really say I play anything

Celebrity crushes: Ben Barnes, Sam Claflin, Chris Evans, Michael Fassbender... There are so many of them! Go on my tag “lumberjack vikings” and you’ll find them all!

Random fact: I love hats and I cannot wait for spring to come, so I can wear them again!

I’m tagging @billrussos @padfootagain @delicatelilyflower @suchatinyinfinity @something-tofightfor @carol-damn-vers @whostheblondegirl @jennareedus @missmarcheline @filismaiden @wolfnotadevil and everyone else who sees this! Feel free to ignore

[tamayokny]

Name ten favourite characters from ten different things (books, tv, film, etc.) then tag ten people

This was extremely difficult to do. The first two were easy, since they are my ride or die, but choosing 10 different characters? From ten different things? I don’t know if I even like 10 different things, but I found some loopholes, lol.

tagged by @bpdanakins <3

1. Lara Croft - Tomb Raider

Lara Croft has been one of my idols since I was a small child. My mom had bought Tomb Raider: Starring Lara Croft and Tomb Raider: Adventures of Lara Croft for my sister on the PlayStation. I remember watching my sister play it, and then sometimes I was allowed to play it. I continued the Tomb Raider legacy throughout the years.

Lara Croft is just. Amazing. I love every version of her. Classic Lara deflected the life her parents had wanted her to have, and paid the price for it. Did that stop her? No, it did not! She was able to make her own mark in the world. LAU!Lara wanted to find out what happened to her mother, and honestly I love Keeley Hawes as Lara. She was witty and funny, and Legend is one of my favorite TR games. And Reboot!Lara? I love her. I honestly don’t care what people say, Reboot!Lara is great! Her first game is also fun to play. Each version of Lara Croft offers something different, and I love it. While many of Lara’s core values are in each incarnation (adventurous, ambitious, brave, etc.), each brings a new perspective which I enjoy!

Fun fact: my irl best friend and Lara share the same zodiac sign!

2. Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch) - Marvel

I LOVE WANDA MAXIMOFF WITH ALL MY HEART!!! She’s a huge comfort character for me. She’s one of the most powerful mutants (yes, I am ignoring the retcon), and she’s complex. Wanda first appeared in X-Men #4 alongside her brother, Pietro, as members of Magneto’s Brotherhood. Eventually, the twins become heroes and join the Avengers.

Wanda’s mutation is magic; probability, to put it at best. She can warp reality. While she is strong, she is also human. Many remember her best as having a mental breakdown and creates House of M (influenced by her beloved brother). After this, she goes off the radar for a few years before her reincarnated sons find her.

I love Wanda because she has heart, courage, and cares for others. She’s intuitive and sensitive and, in many ways, reminds me of myself. I genuinely love Wanda with all my heart. She remains to be my number one favorite superhero. I wish more people knew her--the real her. The MCU does not do her (or her brother) justice. At all. (At least AOU kind of got their “reluctant villains to heroes” origin story well enough?)

Also: fuck you Marvel for retconning Magneto as the Maximoffs’ father. It’s been 5 years but I still elect to ignore that.

3. Phoebe Halliwell - Charmed

Growing up, Charmed was one of my favorite TV shows. To sum it up, it’s about a group of sisters who discover that they’re witches. Specifically, they’re the Charmed Ones and they protect the innocent. For awhile, I’ve said that Piper is my favorite sister but after my last rewatch, I say that Phoebe is my favorite.

At the beginning of the series, Phoebe was the youngest and the rebel of the family. Before the pilot, Phoebe was living in New York but we see her move back in. We also see that she has a strained relationship with her eldest sister, Prue, due to her scummy fiancé. Phoebe is also the reason why their magic was unlocked. (As children, their powers were bounded in order to keep them safe.)

Over time, we see Phoebe mature more. However, there are a few things that never changes with Phoebe. She’s kind and caring for others, always wanting to help them no matter what. (She shares this trait with the youngest sister, Paige.) She is deeply connected with her emotions (which causes her to gain the power of empathy in season 6). Phoebe has also had rough luck with love (see: Cole the demon, etc.) but no matter how much she gets hurt, Phoebe still has hope. She still has love in her heart. No matter how much she gets knocked down, she finds a way of getting back up, and I admire her a lot for it.

4. Catelyn Stark - A Song of Ice and Fire

Family. Duty. Honor. This is House Tully’s family motto, which is deeply embedded into Catelyn. Catelyn was married to Ned Stark during Robert’s Rebellion, after her former betrothed was murdered in King’s Landing (who, ironically, was Ned’s older brother). Their wedding night resulted in the birth of their firstborn: Robb Stark, heir to Winterfell and King in the North.

Catelyn Stark is the mother of the wolves, and her love for her family is no doubt a core of her character. However, Catelyn is clever and if you mess with her, you will certainly gain her wrath. Her eldest values her for her wisdom, and will turn to her for help. She will do anything for her family, such as freeing Jaime Lannister to get her girls back, or offering herself to save her eldest during the horrific events of the Red Wedding.

Catelyn is murdered, along with majority of the Stark party, at the Red Wedding. However, she is resurrected and becomes Lady Stoneheart. Stoneheart is out for vengeance, because she believes all of her children are gone; taken by the enemy. Stoneheart murders Frey or Lannister alike--whoever is associated with them. She holds no mercy.

There is so much more to Catelyn that I could go on, but I will stop here. (Besides, I need to reread the books again!) I will say this: fuck you, D&D.

5. Erik Lehnsherr (Magneto) - Marvel

MAGNETO TIME? MAGNETO TIME.

Erik Lehnsherr was a young boy when World War II happened and because he was Jewish, he was sent to Auschwitz. His family did not survive, but Erik did. Depending on what you follow on, Erik either A) escaped with Magda (who is the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver’s mother) and started a life with her or B) he hunted down the men who worked for Sebastian Shaw (movie universe).

Anyway, Erik had been a mutant since around the time he was sent to the camps and after the horror and trauma he’s faced, Erik decided that mutants would never be accepted by “their less evolved kin”. So, he became Magneto, a protector for mutants and enemy for humans.

Magneto is only one side of the coin, however. Charles Xavier is a longtime frenemy of sorts, both having different perspectives in life. Xavier believes in coexistence, but Magneto believes otherwise. He had seen what humanity is capable of, and he never wants that to happen again. If he must be a villain, than so be it.

Magneto is beautifully complex. He has done some questionable things (I’m thinking of the comics for this one), but he has also done great things for his people. “Never again,” he says. He fights to keep it that way. Magneto is sympathetic at best, and I certainly understand where he comes from. Tell me this: if you were Magneto, what would you have done?

Also: while Michael Fassbender is not Jewish in any way, he did one hell of a job portraying this amazing character.

6. Kira Yukimura - Teen Wolf

I wasn’t planning on adding Teen Wolf to the list, but here I am.

Kira was introduced to us in season 3b, written as a “new love interest” for Scott McCall. I remember a lot of fans of a certain ship were pissed, but whatever. I’m not here to talk about romance.

So, in 3b Kira was a new student, with her dad as the new history teacher at Beacon Hills High School. She’s of both Korean and Japanese descent, and she ends up playing an important role in the story arc. We find out that she’s a Kitsune, thanks to her mother who explains how a Kitsune and a werewolf must come together to defeat the Nogitsune, who happens to be possessing the loveable Stiles Stilinski.

After this, Kira becomes a part of the McCall Pack and Scott’s girlfriend. In my opinion, they’re cute together but many people hate them together. Oh well. Kira also becomes a badass in her own right, as her abilities evolve. However, in season 5, the creators put her on the shelf, as she trains with Skinwalkers and is never seen again. I am so fucking MAD about that.

Like many characters on this list, Kira has heart and courage. She’s a bit of an introvert but she is loyal, and cares for her pack. She’s cute and a bit goofy. She is skilled and deadly. Kira is one of the coolest characters Teen Wolf had, and the way they treated her was disappointed. (Even though after her death, Allison was always mentioned/connected in some way. I like Allison, don’t get me wrong but all I can say is: interesting...)

Fun fact: Arden Cho, the actress, is the VA for Sam Nishimura in Tomb Raider (2013)!

7. Lois Wilkerson - Malcolm in the Middle

The mother of four boys, the matriarch of the Wilkerson household is not one to push around.

Lois has had a rather rough life. Her parents were not the best, and everyone tries to push her down. However, Lois fights back and is not afraid to stand up for what is right. Francis, her oldest, describes her as an absolute menace and while her sons and husband fear her, they also admire her for her strength and courage. Lois is tough as nails, but she can also break, too. However, her family--the family she and Hal created, no one else--is there for her. Lois is incredibly strong willed no matter what, and I love her so much.

8. Theon Greyjoy - A Song of Ice and Fire

No words can describe on how much I love this fashionable war criminal.

Before the start of the series, Theon is a hostage/ward of Lord Stark, as a result of his father’s failed rebellion. Theon was a reminder that if Balon Greyjoy pulled something again, his last (male) heir would get the chopping block. Pretty brutal for a young child, right?

Now, at the start of the series, Theon is nineteen and is seemingly best friends with Robb Stark, the heir to Winterfell and the North. He shows loyalty to Robb and the Starks, claiming that Lord Stark was like a father to him. He’s also skilled with archery and, like I mentioned earlier, fashion.

Then A Clash of Kings occur, and we began to see how Theon Greyjoy is.

Robb Stark has been proclaimed as King of the North, and sends Theon to the Iron Islands in hopes to gain allies with Balon Greyjoy. However, this does not occur. Old Greyjoy says “fuck that and if you’re [Theon] aren’t with us, then you‘re against us.” We see Theon conflicted, but we also see how strained his relationship with his father is. In the end, Theon joins the Greyjoys, and promptly sacks Winterfell. However, that is not the end. Theon is tricked by Ramsay Bolton and this vile man takes Winterfell. I believe while he took the women and children captive, the men were killed...save for Theon, of course.

Theon is held captive by Ramsay Bolton, and is tortured quite brutally. Theon goes through a lot in this time. His appearance had changed drastically: black hair turned white and brittle, he becomes skin and bones, and loses a few fingers and toes. Theon is no longer Theon. He became Reek. The new Reek.

Then, Jeyne Poole (or Sansa; I hate you D&D) arrives, under the guise that she is Arya Stark and she is to wed Ramsay Bolton. Jeyne begged Theon to help her, but he is in no position of power. He is a completely broken man. Time flies by. Jeyne is in absolute misery but with the help of Mance and some spearwives, Theon is able to escape Winterfell with Jeyne during a winter storm. Currently, in the books, Theon is set to be executed by Stannis Baratheon, who is currently holding him captive.

Theon Greyjoy may be a fuckup, but to me he is such an amazing character. He holds much conflict, from being a hostage/ward to Prince to prisoner. Theon Greyjoy may have done a lot of shit, but he is also a survivor. Everything he has been put through, he somehow lives to see another day. Despite holding negative feelings to Lord Stark and everyone around, claiming he owed no one anything (fair enough), he loved Robb. When Theon had found out he was murdered at the Red Wedding, you know what he thought?

I should have been with him. Where was I? I should have died with him.

Theon is far from perfect, but that is what makes him great. He has come so far, and I hope his journey does not end any time soon.

9. Suki - Avatar: The Last Airbender

Zuko may have the best redemption arc (or does he? See above.), but Suki holds a special place in my heart.

We first meet Suki season one, on Kyoshi Island. She is the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, and effectively puts Sokka in his place. However, when Sokka requests a few lessons, Suki is happy to help...as long as he followed the guidelines.

Suki is a certified badass. Although a non-bender, Suki has incredible skill and event went against Azula. However, Suki and the others surrendered (so that Appa would not be captured), leading to her imprisonment at Boiling Rock. Eventually, Sokka and Zuko free her (with the help of Mai). After this, Suki joined the Gaang in ceasing the 100 Year War.

Suki is strong but like many other characters in this list, she has heart. She is an effective leader and fighter, offering her help whenever she can. Too bad she was never mentioned in The Legend of Korra. Suki is underrated and she deserves more love and respect.

10. Max Mayfield - Stranger Things

We first meet Max in season 2 as the new girl in Hawkins. She seems like your average girl but she quickly gets tied into the party after Lucas begs her to show her what has happened with him and the rest of the party. However, there’s a lot more to Max.

Max moved to Hawkins with her mother, stepfather, and stepbrother. It’s easy to see that Max and Billy, her stepbrother, do not get along. Billy is outright mean to her, lashing out at practically every chance he gets. Max fights back, however...especially when he threatens her friends.

In season 3, we finally get to see Max and El bond. (Thank God we didn’t have to put up with the “jealousy” tidbit. I would have--) El believes that Mike is lying and Max is like, “Well yeah. Come on let’s go to the mall!” and the girls have a blast together. I was so happy to see the two bond and have fun. I was so happy that El was spending time with someone other than Mike. I was so happy the girls were having fun by themselves. Honestly, the best part of season 3 was them becoming friends.

I love Max because she is confident and is not afraid to speak her mind. She’s funny and in many ways, we are alike. (Especially with our attitudes on boys and relationships.) However, Max is also vulnerable. We see this with her stepbrother, especially in season 3 I think. Their relationship was drastically different in season 3 and while many didn’t like it (myself included)...I also thought about Max. She’s a young girl and no matter how much bad blood was in between them, it will be traumatizing to see a transformation like this to someone you know quite well. It would be scary.

Anyway, I love Max.

Honorable mentions: Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat), Ororo Munroe (Storm), Jean Grey (Phoenix), Anna Marie (Rogue), Sam Nishimura, Malia Tate, all of House Martell, Dustin Henderson...

Thanks for reading! I hope you all enjoyed reading this. Tell me, do I have a certain type of character that I’m attracted to? Also, I’m not sure who has all done this, so if you haven’t it: who are your top 10 favorite characters? Let me know!

[kimnamjooonz]

Blank Space - Episode 6

Bad Blood

Songs That inspired this chapter: 

High Hopes - Panic! At the Disco

Bad Blood - Taylor Swift

Cause, baby, now we've got bad blood, you know it used to be mad love, so, take a look what you've done, cause, baby, now we've got bad blood.

Sebastian was pacing around his apartment, still overwhelmed by the events of the day. He had just got a text from his girlfriend asking him if she could drop by and he had said yes. Maybe this way he could calm his mind a little. Damn Morgan Llewellyn and the effect she had on him. Probably she had that suffocating effect on everyone not just on him. The irony was that he had been in the company of that woman for a little more than an hour and apart from shouting at him she had not shown any other kind of emotional reaction towards him. Apart from mild anger. He heard soft knocks on the door and he immediately went to open. There was his girlfriend, Florence, with her usually kind face. He had met her through his friend Will, who thought she was a good change to Sebastian, who was used to date actresses. And Will had been right. Florence was very different from all of her past girlfriends and the polar opposite of Morgan Llewellyn. Florence was beautiful in her own way even though she didn't have Morgan's bombshell figure and that tall frame. Florence had sweet sky blue eyes while Morgan's could cut your soul in half with that electrifying purple-blue ones. To sum up, Florence was like a soft breeze while Morgan was a category 5 hurricane that caused havoc wherever she went. ''How are you?'' she looked at him with concern in her eyes. ''You look really bad. Is it about that thing you had for that new movie you were cast in last week? Did it go wrong?'' He threw himself on the large couch and Florence sat beside him. ''It's my co-star. She's not exactly a pleasure to work with. I got a little late and she rose hell.'' he didn't say that he hadn't got a 'little' late but a lot late. Florence felt bad for him. Not getting along with a cast mate was probably the nightmare of every actor. ''Is she a diva?'' That surprised Sebastian. Of all the faults Morgan had, she definitely wasn't a diva. At least that wasn't his first impression of her. ''No. She's just explosive and overreacts a lot. I don't like her.'' Florence totally believe that. Unlike Chace, she didn't know him that well to notice when he was lying to himself. ''Wait a second... isn't your co-star that purple-eyed woman? I swear I saw something on the Internet about her.'' ''Yeah, it's her. And Morgan doesn't have purple eyes. That's just a myth the media is spreading to hype her up.'' ''I read that she is the new the new face of Cartier and Chanel. Is that true?'' Florence found incredible that a woman who had spent so little time as a well known celebrity was getting so many important deals. ''Believe me, I didn't ask her. I was too busy being shouted at.'' Florence felt a bit of pity for Sebastian. That Morgan woman sounded awful. But she couldn't judge her when she didn't know a thing about her. Maybe she was anxious or she had a tight agenda and couldn't waste the minutes Sebastian had made her waste. Maybe he had really ruined her day. ''Sebastian, love, are you sure she didn't have any plans that you may have ruined by turning up late?'' Sebastian remembered what Michael had told him after the read through. ''Michael Fassbender said that thanks to me she had got late to an audition.'' Florence looked at him with alarm in her eyes. ''But I don't believe him. People like her don't have to go to auditions. She gets the roles offered. Do you think she knocked on Chanel's door and begged them to be the face of the brand? No, Chanel begged her to be.'' Florence looked at him with all the seriousness in the world. ''You don't know that. Remember she's in the beginning of her career. You were once in her place and you know how it feels.'' Florence had made Sebastian feel quite guilty. ''Why don't you call her and ask how did her audition go. And apologise to her.'' Sebastian laughed. ''Do you think Morgan gave me her number? Do you think I was brave enough to ask for it?'' Florence rolled her eyes. She didn't know if Morgan was really intimidating or Sebastian was overreacting. ''I'm sure someone else in the cast has her number.'' Sebastian knew that showing a little bit of interest for his co-star's career was the right thing to do. But he didn't want to. ''Okay'' he finally gave up. ''I'll call Michael.''

Morgan was laughing at something Joe Alwyn had said while drinking from her glass of champagne. She and Joe weren't the only ones there, of course. In that table of a trendy Tribeca restaurant were Emily, Michael and his wife, the wonderful Alicia Vikander. ''I really wanted to meet Sebastian'' said Alicia, after Joe had finished with his story. ''You'll do it soon, but today he's being punished by us.'' Michael was joking with that. As weird as it may seem, excluding Sebastian from a cast dinner hadn't been Morgan's idea at all (it hadn't even crossed her mind). It had been Michael's. But it was just for that night, until everyone forgot that incident of him getting an hour and forty five minutes late. They were not going to be mad at him forever, more or less on the contrary, they were all ready to forgive him. But on the next day. ''What did he do?'' she asked. ''Got late for almost two hours because he was in a date and ruined everyone's day, including Damien.'' Emily informed her. ''Well, that was rude.'' admitted Alicia. ''And Morgan was the only one who was brave enough to call him out'' added Joe. ''It was fantastic.'' Morgan, who had lost track of the conversation with the Sebastian Stan topic, was examining her reflection on the champagne glass, making sure that her intentionally untidy updo was in its place. She snapped out of it when Joe said her name. ''Did you do that?'' asked Alicia with her eyes wide open. ''Yeah, but I kind of regret it now'' those were her fangirl feelings coming back to her. ''I think I overreacted'' ''No way'' Alicia defended her. ''What he did was wrong and he deserved to be called out.'' ''And he was on a date. He knew he had to be professional with his cast mates and director but he blew it.'' said Michael, who apparently was still mad. ''I have the feeling that he lied to us.'' Morgan had thought about and reached that conclusion. ''Who knows...'' Michael was talking when his phone rant. ''Look, this is quite a coincidence... hello Sebastian...''' Everyone was in silence. The least thing they wanted was Sebastian to know that all of them were out in a cast dinner without him. That was cruel and Morgan felt really bad about it. Suddenly Michael covered the speaker of his phone. ''Long story short...'' he whispered to Morgan. ''...I told him you were late to an audition and that's why you were so mad at him. He's asking... if I knew what happened to that and if he really ruined your life.'' Morgan was surprised. Who knew he had that on him. ''You lying....'' Alicia reprimanded him. ''Tell him...'' her ego was telling her to take advantage of the situation and make him feel bad for a while, even though she knew he'd find out the truth sooner than later. It had been his fault after that. ''...it was too late'' No one noticed the little smile on her face.  She knew she was going to feel guilty about it later but at that moment she didn't care. Everyone felt silent again, listening to Michael give Sebastian some explanation about Morgan missing her audition. ''That was absolutely evil'' Alicia looked at his husband with disappointment. Morgan was already feeling guilty. Her usual self would just laugh at it but at that moment she was confused. She was starting to feel drained after all the strong emotions of the day. Everything had happened so fast that she hadn't had a lot of time to process. She had met the man she had been 'in love' with for years, who was now her co-star. And she had shouted at him like a crazy woman. And she had went from being a nobody stuck in Caernarfon to dine with Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Emily Blunt and Joe Alwyn in a span of two weeks. It was no surprise that her mental system was collapsing. And that was just the beginning. She still had to share many romantic scenes with Sebastian and thanks to all the gods that Damien hadn't thought of including a sex scene in there. ''Morgan? Are you okay?'' Alicia asked her with concern in her eyes. ''Yes. I was thinking that we should forgive him.'' ''Who?'' Joe asked. ''Sebastian. Yes, he got late but... he didn't killed anyone for that. And... we win nothing if there's bad blood among us. If we want everything to work out fine, we should be a team. And, for all I know he's a good guy that maybe he's going through a rough week.'' Morgan wanted to believe in that. In five years Sebastian seemed like the best guy ever, super sweet, dedicated and pure gold. It could be that his real life version was the opposite of what she believed him to be. Maybe his new girlfriend was a bad influence on him. Oh goodness, why she hadn't though of that yet. After all, she didn't know who the chick was. She could be a hot mess. Suddenly Morgan felt a rush of anger she hadn't felt in a long time. Thankfully Sebastian was going to spend more time with her on the next three months than with his girlfriend and Morgan swore that she was getting him back to normal, even if that was the last thing she did. ''What if that new girlfriend of his changed him?'' Morgan words were received with a wave of approval. ''Yeah, that's totally possible'' Emily said. ''I know people that were complete sweethearts and became assholes after getting a new partner.'' ''It happen to the best of people.'' Alicia nodded. ''Well, he's spending three months with us and after this he'd be the one he was before.'' Michael said and Morgan wanted to get up and hug him. ''I all for it'' Morgan hadn't been more sure of anything in her life. Well, maybe she had but that was not the point. ''Let's do this for him'' Joe laughed out loud. ''Oh my God! RIP to that unknown woman. She has a storm coming by the name of Morgan Llewellyn.'' everyone seemed to agree with him. ''And all of us, that have some common sense. This is teamwork after all, isn't it.'' Everyone nodded. ''And I wouldn't be surprised if he falls madly in love with Morgan in the process.'' said Alicia with a playful smile on her face. ''We can all see that you two make hell of a couple. You'd kick the Beckhams completely out of the picture.'' Morgan let a humble smile to be drawn on her face. She would have danced throughout Manhattan like a madwoman after Alicia's words. But she controlled herself to perfection and no one remotely suspected her real feelings. ''No, no, I don't want him as a husband.'' she also had a humble look in her eyes. ''As a colleague, I think he's really talented but those attitudes just gets him a bad rep. And he doesn't deserve that, let alone if it's someone else's bad influence on him.'' ''That's why we should help him. I hate to see good talent wasted.'' Morgan kept herself from smiling. ''Let's take a picture!'' said Michael holing his phone. Morgan straightened the front of her silky black ankle-length Chanel dress and placed herself in the middle of Emily and Alicia, smiling.

Sebastian had a spent a really boring night watching some unremarkable movie with Florence. It was better this way because he wasn't in the mood of talking. Suddenly his phone beeped. He knew exactly what it was because he may or may not have turned on the notifications of Morgan's Instagram post. He hurriedly opened it. There she was smiling, like she was having the time of her life, with the rest of his cast-mates. She didn't look like someone who had missed an important audition. Be damned Michael Fassbender's lying ass. He took a better look at Morgan, who was in the middle of Emily and Alicia Vikander (who wasn't even en their movie, to begin with). There seemed to be nothing but love and good vibes among them. He didn't know if he felt sad at being left out or angry about it. To hell, he was not going to apologize to Morgan, let her ego suffer a little bit more. ''Are you okay?'' Florence asked. The movie had ended and he hadn't even noticed. He was with his wide eyes fixed on the phone. ''Yes.'' he lied. He tucked his phone in his pocket and then turned the TV off. ''I think, I should go.'' a part of her wanted him to ask her to stay and spend the night with him. But that moment never came. ''Yeah, I think you should'' he said instead. ''I mean, don't take it wrong, my head is about to explode and knowing that tomorrow I have to see her again doesn't make things easier.'' Florence knew who 'her' was and she felt a soft pang of jealousy. Yes, she had been all for Sebastian apologising to Morgan but, what then? What if she forgave him and they became perfect friends? They'll have to act as lovers for three months and they wouldn't be the first actors to confuse the on screen feelings. Her relationship with Sebastian was still on its early stages and it wouldn't be too hard for someone like Morgan Llewellyn to shatter it to pieces with one glance of her impressive blue eyes. And she wasn't sure about Sebastian feelings for her. Yes, he liked her but that was probably everything. But if it was about love she was sure that Sebastian wasn't there yet. He wasn't in love with her and he won't be for a long time, let alone with someone like Morgan in the middle. Or maybe she was starting to get paranoid. But no matter what, Morgan had become a shadow lingering on her mind. And she hadn't even met her yet.

The next day Morgan and her assistant Lucas were in her Porsche happily singing while he recorded it and posted it to Morgan's Instagram stories. ''I HAD TO HAVE HIGH, HIGH HOPES FOR A LIVING, SHOOTING FOR THE STARS WHEN I COULDN'T MAKE A KILLING, DIDN'T HAVE A DIME BUT I ALWAYS HAD A VISION, ALWAYS HAD HIGH, HIGH HOPES'' Of course that Morgan had updated Lucas with everything that had been side in last night's dinner with the cast. She had to get that out of her chest and she knew that Taylor was not going to approve. Lucas, not only agreed with Morgan but also couldn't wait for the show to start. He was sure that Morgan and Sebastian were going to make their own movie outside from the movie their were supposed to do. ''Let's sing this part'' Lucas was turning on the camera. ''MAMA SAID DON'T GIVE UP, IT'S A LITTLE COMPLICATED, ALL TIED UP NO MORE LOVE AND I'D HATE TO SEE YOU WAITING, THEY SAY IT'S ALL BEEN DONE BUT THEY HAVEN'T SEEN THE BEST ON ME, SO I GOT ONE MORE RUN AND IT'S GONNA BE A SIGHT TO SEE'' Lucas posted the videos knowing that all her followers were going to enjoy seeing her singing Panic! At The Disco out loud. ''So, what do you have to do today?'' asked Lucas, with his iPad on his hands ready to take notes and plan the day. ''Rehearse some scenes with Sebastian that we'll film tomorrow. I'm not looking forward to it, believe me''. ''Weren't you going to forgive him?'' ''Yeah but it depends on whether he came back to his normal sweet self and not yesterday's idiot.'' Lucas didn't need much information to know why was that Morgan so on edge when it came to Sebastian Stan. ''Admit it, girl. You have a crush on him.'' Morgan eyes were wide open. ''Lucas!'' she tried to look outraged but it didn't work on Lucas. ''Well, maybe. I mean, not anymore but I used to be in love with him for five years. He was my celebrity crush.'' ''Oh my Gosh, Morgan! Did you have a Tumblr dedicated to him?'' ''Yes but...'' Morgan's cheeks were a little pink. ''...if you tell a living soul about this I'm turning you into jelly. It's really embarrassing.'' ''It is.'' Lucas admitted. ''Did you read dirty fiction about him?'' ''You're making me want to die.'' Morgan was really embarrassed of that. If was all fun and games when she was in Caernarfon, in the middle of nowhere  and he was somewhere being his famous shiny self. Now, not only they had met but also, they weren't in the best terms. She just wanted to forget of those times she had wasted by reading dirty fanfiction about him. ''You can make those a reality, you know'' he was with his eyebrows raised and a mocking expression. ''Lucas Williams!'' Amanda shouted. ''That is just... outrageous''. Lucas just laughed making sure of not shocking Morgan again if they didn't want to end up crashing the Porsche to a fence. When they got to the studio Morgan was still red because of what Lucas had said. But all this was over, wasn't it? Maybe she would have liked to have the sweet version of Sebastian Stan, the one she believed she knew, but as real life love interest, no thanks. Taylor had been right when she had said that earning the reputation of a homewrecker so early in her career was a potential disaster. Even if Sebastian and her girlfriend had been together for little more than a month, it was not Morgan's place to break this. It could totally ruin her career and not even Sebastian Stan was worthy of that. But then... if they broke up with zero involvement from Morgan... well that was another story. She just wanted to rid him of her bad influence, not steal him for herself. And it was a real unlucky coincidence that the first person she saw when she was parking her car was none other that Sebastian Stan himself. She mentally cursed. But she knew that sooner or later she was going to see him so let's get over this as soon as possible, apologise for screaming at him and make things right once and for all. Lucas started giggling. ''Control your emotions, Williams. This is not a circus... yet.'' ''Taylor told me to tell you...'' begged Lucas. ''...that please don't make things worse.'' ''I won't'' she was pretty confident about this. Sebastian seemed to be taking his time locking his car and Morgan just wanted to hurry up and get inside before he did. Yes, she was chickening out and she had no problem admitting it. It was better to avoid trouble and maybe it'll just fade. But when he saw Morgan almost running to get to the door Sebastian hurried up to catch her. Morgan was opening the door when he was just behind her. Lucas scurried away where he wasn't seen but he could hear everything. ''Llewellyn'' ''Stan'' By the way they spoke each other's names it was clear that none of them wanted to take the first step towards peace. Sebastian was still hurt about the cast dinner he hadn't been invited and the invented failed audition. Morgan's mood had turned when she saw his sour face. ''I heard about your audition. Luckily you didn't took it to hard, I saw you were pretty happy last night. But don't you worry, you'll get more chances. After all, everyone probably want to offer roles to the latest overnight success.'' Wait a second, what had he just called her? Overnight success? What was wrong with this guy? Apparently he was still mad for some reason but if he wanted war, he'd get war. Inside the studio, the rest of the cast and Lucas were listening to every single word, with stunned faces, waiting for Morgan to clap back. An that she did. ''Yeah, it's awesome to get my first lead role in a movie directed by an Oscar winner at just 25. It's a pity we can't say the same about everyone. What were you doing at that age? The Covenant?'' Back inside, the rest of them were looking at each other with astounded expressions. ''She killed him with that'' mumbled Lucas. ''Straight to the wound'' said Joe. ''Can't say he didn't deserve it. He called her 'overnight success'''. ''I thought we were rooting for peace?'' asked Emily. No one answered. It was obvious that between Morgan and Sebastian was not going to be peace any time soon. Sebastian was cursing inwardly. Damn Morgan, she was a tough contender. And she also knew about The Covenant, for god's sake. It was hard to recover from that burn. ''Yeah, you start with whatever you can get, as maybe you know or maybe not, who knows. What I know is that soon after The Covenant I was working for Marvel.'' for sure that Morgan couldn't compete with that. She may have got the lead role in a film but at least she was not getting the chance to play a superhero any time soon, and for god's sake, let's keep it that way. ''Probably you've heard about Marvel before even if you're not a part of it.'' Morgan knew where he was going and she had the comeback ready. ''Rubbing Marvel on her face'' mumbled Joe, who looked like he was watching a football match instead of his cast mates fighting. ''Weak. Morgan is going to get him again, just wait and see.'' ''C'mon,'' Morgan rolled her eyes. ''Even I in the monologue of Macbeth had more lines than you in The Winter Soldier movie. But...'' she batted her eyelashes in an exaggerated way. ''...everyone to their talents I suppose.'' With utmost elegance she turned around got away from him. ''I told you, I told you!'' Joe's face was a mixture of intimidation and admiration. ''She destroyed him.'' ''Where you listening?'' Morgan had opened the door and found all of them behind. ''This is so embarrassing, I'm so sorry. But I wanted peace, I swear. But apparently that's not what he wants. He hates me and I'm not going to stand there peacefully, I'm going to fight back'' She stopped talking when Sebastian got inside, looking grim as hell. No one really knew how the rest of the day went on without incidents. Let alone how Morgan and Sebastian managed to rehearse a whole scene to such extent of perfection that almost left Damien in tears. Maybe they were both proud and stubborn but they weren't unprofessional. They knew what was expected of them and that was what they delivered. ''I love them'' commented Christine, the casting director, to Damien. ''You knew what you were doing when you cast Sebastian instead of Tom or Timothee. He matches Morgan so well, they are fire.'' ''Yeah. It's a pity that they don't get along very well off screen'' well, that was an understatement. ''I thought they were similar but it seems they clash in everything.'' Christine looked at him with a 'Seriously?' expression. ''They are not just similar. They are the same person. Humble origins, dedicated, beautiful, hard working, professional, proud as hell, stubborn, passionate, sarcastic, classy, nice to everyone except to each other and there's probably more to discover.'' ''They make such a beautiful couple, with all that beauty.'' Damien looked at Morgan and Sebastian, who were rehearsing. ''Not only an on screen couple but off screen too. Imagine that.'' ''You just have to wait.'' Christine was pretty confident. ''One day they are going to put their pride down and realize what a team they make. They'd be unstoppable.'' ''I can't wait for that to happen'' confessed Damien, still looking at Morgan and Sebastian. They looked like lovers. ''Do you want to see the magic, Christine? Wait until I tell them to stop and see what happens'' Christine motioned to go ahead. ''You two can stop! You were awesome!'' The reaction was almost funny. They immediately jumped back into reality and stood as far apart as they could, not before shooting a glance of dislike to each other. ''Okay, tomorrow is the last day you'll have to rehearse one of the most intense scenes'' both of them looked alarmed. ''Don't worry! I won't make you kiss, yet. I know you two are not on the best terms, which about that, I highly recommend you get over it for your own sakes.'' Morgan mumbled a not so subtle 'thank god' that Sebastian didn't miss. Finally, Damien let them go, which they did without even glancing at each other.

''He's a... TROLL!'' yelled Morgan, once she was back at her apartment. Taylor was sitting on the couch, eating marshmellows, watching Morgan pace up and down and yelling. ''Overnight success? If someone here is an overnight success that's HIM. He's only relevant because some teenagers on the Internet lust over him.'' Morgan had forgotten to mention that she had been one of those people that had helped to boost Sebastian Stan's career on the Internet. And had also lusted over him. ''Morgan, c'mon. You called him untalented and we both know that he's not. And he knows you're not an overnight success.'' ''He's a idiot'' Morgan was a hundred times convinces that what she was saying was true. ''You didn't think he was an idiot last month when you were captioning pictures of him with the words 'Please choke me daddy'''. Morgan looked mortified to the extreme. ''I just want to throw myself out of the goddamned window.'' instead she threw herself on the couch, face down. She knew that what Taylor had just said was true and there was no excuses. ''Don't do it'' Taylor recommended her. ''We're just on the third floor. You won't die, you probably just break a leg.'' Morgan just groaned something that Taylor couldn't understand ''You know what's the worst part?'' she suddenly asked. ''That we were awesome together.'' that wasn't what Taylor imagined that Morgan was going to say. ''I've never felt this good working with someone before. He's really good. And he managed to bring the best of me... and the worst at the same time.'' Taylor didn't know what to say so she decided to change the topic. She stood up from the couch and grabbed a box that it was sent to Morgan that evening. ''They sent you this from Chanel and I've never been so jealous of something in my life before.'' Morgan took from the heavily decorated box five lipsticks, all of them decorated with an elegant M in gold. ''These are a exclusive shade of red made specially for you. No one else in the world has it. They called it the Morgan, so imagine.'' Morgan had loved them so much that it made her forget the mess with Sebastian. ''Don't tell me the fragance is exclusive.'' she pulled a luxurious bottle with the same elegant M. ''Because if it is, they read my mind. I love it.'' ''Yeah, it is made just for you'' Taylor was already resigned to the idea that all these brands were feeding Morgan's ego. ''I love my life.''

''She's a snake.'' Sebastian was pacing up and down his apartment. It was his friend Will the chosen one to listen to his whining. ''She's the living embodiment of a cobra. I don't know what I'm going to do to survive for  three months around that venomous woman.'' Will wanted to say that she couldn't be that bad but he didn't know Morgan Llewellyn and she could perfectly be as bad as Sebastian said she was. ''I've heard a lot about her but never even saw a picture of her.'' Sebastian wanted to tell Will how lucky he was. Life without Morgan was a peaceful life. In two days she had irrupted into his life and messed it up. ''She's on Instagram. Just look her up. In three weeks she has more followers than me.'' Will typed something on his phone and immediately his expression changed to one of amazement. ''Is that her?'' for a second he believed that he was on someone else's Instagram page. But Sebastian nodded. ''Oh my god. She looks more like a Victoria's Secret Angel than an actress. She has legs for days.'' Sebastian didn't like at all that Will had found Morgan pretty. ''She's more beautiful in person, even when she was calling me untalented. She's as tall as me without heels.'' he realised that he was complimented Morgan instead of bashing her. But facts were facts. ''It's weird because I've never had a co-star that's so insufferable. Not Chris, not Margot, not Nicole, not Denise, well, no one before. Morgan is at the bottom of the list. Ironically, she's probably the most talented of them all.'' ''What?'' the least thing that Will could imagine was that Sebastian was going to call Morgan talented. And let alone, more talented than Nicole freaking Kidman. But Sebastian was nodding. ''I don't know where she was all this time and why she hadn't had a big role before because she's really good. Future Oscar winner kind of good. Personality wise, she's my least favourite co-star I've ever had and she earned  that title in two days which is a record. But talent wise... she's the best person I've ever worked with, without any doubt. She blew me away. And that was with just the rehearsal of an scene.'' ''This is insane.'' mumbled Will. ''Maybe.'' Sebastian was sure that Morgan will drive him insane. He heard his phone beep. It was a notification from Morgan's Instagram. ''Why does she get free stuff from Chanel and I still have to pay for everything?''

On the last day of rehearsing things between Morgan and Sebastian got even worse, if that was possible. They weren't on speaking terms and they carried on for the whole day without saying a word that wasn't on the script. But suddenly they snapped for something stupid and five seconds later they were shouting at each other with Damien and the rest of the cast as the audience. The only one who looked surprised by the situation was Joe. The rest were sort of enjoying the show. ''EVERYTHING ALWAYS HAS TO BE THE WAY YOU WANT IT. WHY? BECAUSE YOU'RE BLOODY SEBASTIAN STAN, WHO WAS IN BLOODY MARVEL? NO ONE CARES!'' she shouted at him. ''SNAP OUT OF IT PRINCESS! IF SOMEONE HERE WANTS TO GET EVERYTHING THEIR WAY, THAT'S YOU, LLEWELLYN!'' The weird thing was that no one really knew why they were fighting this time. ''IT'S NOT THE WAY I WANT IT, GET IT INTO YOUR HARD HEAD, STAN! IT'S THE WAY THE SCRIPT IS WRITTEN! BUT I GUESS YOU KNOW BETTER THAN DAMIEN NOW!'' ''Aren't we going to stop them?'' asked a nervous Joe. ''Let them vent out'' Damien was resigned to it. ''This was going to happen sooner or later, we all saw it coming.'' ''MAYBE NO BETTER THAN DAMIEN BUT I KNOW BETTER THAN YOU! I HAVE FORTY ACTING CREDITS LLEWELLYN!'' Morgan laughed. ''AND  IN HALF OF THEM YOU WERE LITTLE MORE THAN AN EXTRA, YOU DON'T HAVE MUCH TO BRAG! DON'T THROW YOUR 'CREDITS' AT MY FACE BECAUSE IT'S NOT GOING TO WORK!'' ''YOU DON'T HAVE EXPERIENCE IN THIS BUSSINESS!'' ''BUT I GOT THE LEAD ROLE, DOLL! AND I WAS CAST FIRST SO IF SOMEONE'S OPINION COUNTS HERE, THAT IS MINE! IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, YOU CAN LEAVE AND WE'D GET YOUR REPLACEMENT IN FIVE MINUTES!'' then she turned around dramatically. ''Someone can please get me Timothee Chalamet!'' Then she left the set being an absolute fury. ''GUESS WHAT, PRINCESS!'' he shouted before Morgan left. ''I'M NOT LEAVING. I'M STAYING. SO YOU BETTER DEAL WITH IT!'' ''TROLL!'' she shouted from the outside. ''SNAKE!'' he shouted back. A bit embarrassed, he glanced at his director and cast mates. All of them looked only sightly amused, except Joe. ''Sorry for that. But life would be much better with Saorise Ronan as the lead. '' ''Saorise is extremely talented but my lead is Morgan.'' Sebastian knew beforehand that Damien was always going to defend Morgan. ''Just go and relax for a bit. We start filming tomorrow so you'd better get your head clear.'' Sebastian left thinking that Damien was asking for a miracle. There was no way to keep his head clear. He was so on edge that at this moment he'd have preferred to film The Covenant all over again. Yes, that movie sucked and The American Dream will probably get several Oscars but in The Covenant he had Toby and Chase while here he was stuck with Morgan Llewellyn. Back in the set, Joe was still quite shocked. ''Kid, someday is going to be you the one screaming to someone else. It happens to everybody at some point.'' Michael told him. ''Did it happen to you?'' Joe couldn't imagine Michael screaming to anyone. ''Yes. In the set of The Light Between Oceans there was a woman who shouted at me the same way Morgan shouted Sebastian. She's now my wife. So, it may be a happy ending to the pitiful beginning of Morgan's and Sebastian's story.'' ''So'' apparently Damien was changing the topic very quickly. ''Who wants to see the Knicks against the Nets tomorrow at Madison Square Garden? Because I got tickets to the cast. It may be a nice treat after the first day of filming.'' Everyone agreed. Going to Madison Square Garden was always a nice experience. ''And what about Morgan and Sebastian?'' asked Emily. Everyone knew why she was asking that. No one was very excited with the idea of both of them shooting each other killer glances through the whole match. For sure, they'll kill the mood. ''Don't worry about them. They'll be okay, sooner or later, you'll see. Maybe they'll never be friends but they'll have to learn to be civil around each other. Okay, you're done for today, see you tomorrow.'' The three of them left, talking about Sebastian and Morgan. ''Yes, the fight was fun for a day but it has to stop'' Damien was thinking out loud. ''I'm sorry for this. I truly am. Pete...'' he called his assistant. ''Call their agents.''

P.D Okay, hell broke loose. Imagine whoever the hell you want as Florence because I don’t have anyone in my mind to fit that role.

Morgan throughout the episode:

Sebastian and Morgan during the episode:

(They are Slytherin and Gryffindor of course)

[fussingoverfassbender]

By NST Entertainment - May 24, 2019 @ 10:15am

IT’S been a long ride, 11 movies on, in the X-Men film franchise since the first one hit cinemas back in 2000. But the conflict between humans and mutants continues to grow and the thrilling adventures and dramatic stories endure.

The 12th and latest instalment, titled X-Men: Dark Phoenix, marks the directorial debut of writer and producer Simon Kinberg, who is no stranger to the X-Men screen universe.

A writer for The Last Stand (2006), Days Of Future Past (2014) and Apocalypse (2016), he produced First Class (2011), Deadpool 1 & 2 (2016 & 2018) and Logan (2017) as well.

Kinberg was also executive producer for the TV series The Gifted and Legion, both of which are part of the X-Men film franchise.

In his capable hands and through his astounding vision, the new movie sees the X-Men facing one of their gravest and most personal challenges to date.

Dark Phoenix is set in the 1990s and the team attempts to embrace a newfound heroic status and acceptance within society.

But their close bond is slowly shattered when the extremely powerful mutant with telepathic and telekinetic powers, Jean Grey (played by Sophie Turner of Game Of Thrones fame) merges with a strange, extraterrestrial force, one that boosts her already strong abilities to previously unknown levels.

Years of repression are torn asunder as Jean begins to find herself and master her new powers, even as those around her start to wonder if she’ll be a threat to the world.

It doesn’t help that a mysterious alien with an agenda (Jessica Chastain) is exerting an influence on the already unstable persona of the powerful mutant.

The ensemble cast sees many actors and actresses returning to their previous roles for this movie, including Michael Fassbender, who plays the charismatic mutant Erik Lehnsherr aka Magneto.

Fassbender has been playing the troubled, driven mutant, who can control magnetic fields and manipulate metal, since First Class.

In that time, he’s seen the character develop as a leader in his own right, and struggle with the treatment of mutants by society in general.

Fassbender, nominated for two Oscars in his career to date, has appeared in films such as Macbeth, 12 Years A Slave and the more recent Alien entries.

Below, he talks about the character-based focus of the film, Erik’s development through the years and the comfort level between the actors on set.

WHAT BROUGHT YOU BACK TO THE FILM SERIES?

I loved the journey up to Dark Phoenix and specifically wanted to come back because Simon was directing.

I wanted to lend whatever I could bring to the table for him. He was such a fantastic collaborator and engineer of First Class, Days of Future Past and Apocalypse and to see him get in the director’s chair, I was really excited for him.

THIS IS SIMON’S DIRECTORIAL DEBUT. HOW WAS HE AS A DIRECTOR?

He was very relaxed and very confident. It seemed like he’d been doing it for years. He’s been on so many massive films and been an integral part in so many of them.

He’s also a very smart man, he’s the kind of guy that doesn’t speak unless he’s educated on something or has knowledge on it.

He observes, he listens — all the ingredients to make a great director. I think he bided his time and felt like he was ready to have a go at it.

WHERE DO WE FIND ERIK IN THE NEW MOVIE?

He’s finally become the cult leader that was always alive in him! (laughs) He’s formed Genosha, so he’s managed to create this community, independent state/nation where mutants can live in harmony and without attack. Anyone who agrees to pitch in and do their part are welcome there.

It’s self-sufficient, it’s off the grid, and it’s his struggles through the series, certainly when I was playing it, culminating in this physical place.

Since his family has been ripped away from him, from what happened to him as a child and then, of course, with his wife and child later, well, that sense of death is always with him.

But this is a mature Erik. He’s more at peace and he only leaves this haven out of loyalty. It’s like an old Western. He’s got to go on his mission.

THIS FEELS LIKE SIMON DRIVING IT TO BE MORE CHARACTER-BASED. WAS THAT YOUR FEELING?

I think he wanted to strip everything down, boil it down to the bones… even visually, the way he shot it, a lot of it is handheld, and I’m not wearing any Magneto costumes.

The helmet is there but everything is pared down to be a character exploration.

DID THE OTHERS LOOK ENVIOUSLY AT YOU IN YOUR TURTLENECK AND JEANS?

I don’t know. I certainly was very thankful that it was an easy in and out for me, especially if you look at what Nicholas (Hoult) goes through each day as Beast!

Compared to him, I definitely got an easier route.

THERE’S A LINE IN THE FILM ABOUT THERE ALWAYS BEING A SPEECH FROM XAVIER. DID IT FEEL LIKE SIMON PLAYING WITH THE TROPES OF THE GENRE?

Exactly. We’ve all heard the ideology, whether they’re playing chess together or Charles is talking to him telepathically. There’s this back and forth.

It was a nice little tongue-in-cheek moment in the script, which is kind of like the Indiana Jones moment where he just pulls the pistol and shoots a guy instead of getting into hand-to-hand combat. That was fun!

JESSICA JOINED THE CAST THIS TIME. DID YOU GET TO ACT WITH HER ALL?

It was great to have her join us. We didn’t really have a lot of scenes together, just a few moments together in the final act of the movie.

She’s present with Jean, and so it mainly was acting beats that I had any interaction with her character.

It’s a very technical aspect to it. You’ve got to make sure that the timings are right and knowing that a lot of things are going to be added in later. It’s making sure those rhythms are correct. More than anything else, it’s a very technical exercise.

IS IT SOMETHING THAT YOU’RE USED TO THESE DAYS?

Absolutely. When I started doing effects movies, you had to imagine what they were going to put in later. There was some storyboarding stuff but now they’ve got pre-visualisation stuff that they show you on a laptop, to see what it’s going to look like and the geographical elements.

Of course, you know it’s going to be a lot more fantastical when the team has spent some time on it. I enjoy the technical challenges. It’s another thing that needs to be learned, and it’s something that is fun to explore.

It’s not only being in time with the actors. It’s also being in time with the stunt team, if you’re on wires it’s the riggers… everybody is communicating in the same rhythm. It’s like a dance and I enjoy that.

HOW IS THE FEELING ON SET?

At the beginning, you’re really trying to bond with everyone. You’re getting to know each other and those sorts of silly games, I know they can be a little annoying if people are trying to gather order on set but they’re also very important for the actors to get to a personal level with one another, to be comfortable with one another, and to have that camaraderie.

We trust each other. We depend on each other and we all like each other. So it’s just the maturation of that relationship.

ARE YOU EVER TEMPTED TO SEPARATE YOURSELF, TO GO METHOD WITH MAGNETO’S FEELING OF ISOLATION?

It depends what my mood is on the day. There are times where I’ll just go away and find a corner where I can just be by myself if I need to be in more of a meditative state.

We’re all at ease with one another. We all know each other very well and it’s whatever each of us needs to do.

There’s always a respect there about whatever the other person’s process is and if anyone is ever struggling on camera, or in a moment, we’re all there for each other 100 per cent and we want everyone to be the best on these sets.

WHAT IS THE OVERRIDING THEME OF THE MOVIE THIS TIME?

I think the seed of talking about female characters and power was there from the beginning. Simon had unfinished business after The Last Stand, and you could tell from Apocalypse that he was putting this story in place, setting it up.

So, the germ of that was there and the timing, as it happens at the moment just seems to be in sync with what’s going on in the real world.

But Simon’s always been of that mindset, the equality across the board for both the female and male characters.

WERE YOU GLAD NOT TO BE THE THREAT THIS TIME?

I was a little bit jealous, to be honest. “What? Somebody else is causing trouble?” Apocalypse already stole that from me in the movie before so I was getting used to it!

DO YOU SEE YOU THIS AS A POTENTIAL SWAN SONG FOR THE CURRENT TEAM? WOULD YOU COME BACK AGAIN IF ASKED?

I have no idea! It’s not my issue to deal with, I’ll leave it in the hands of people who’ve got it. I’m not spending much time thinking about it, I’ve had a great journey on these four films, I’m happy.

If something comes up that looks interesting, I’m always willing to read and take a look but I’m perfectly happy.

X-Men: Dark Phoenix opens in cinemas on June 6.

[barrykeoghans]

BARRY KEOGHAN

By Johnathan Shia for The Last Magazine

Barry Keoghan is ready to grow up. The Irish actor is making the usual progress in real life—having celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday last month with box seats at a Lakers game thanks to his girlfriend and cake and Champagne at the Chateau Marmont courtesy of Yorgos Lanthimos, who directed him in the unnerving new film The Killing of a Sacred Deer—but it has been slow going on screen. “I want to transition into a man now,” he laughs. “I’m twenty-five and I played sixteen-year-olds twice this year.”

But Keoghan has those two teenage roles to thank for his breakout year, with a supporting part in Christopher Nolan’s World War II epic Dunkirk and now as the terrifying antagonist in the festival favorite Killing of a Sacred Deer, from one of cinema’s most idiosyncratic directors. “I had a list of directors I wanted to work with when I signed with my agent in Los Angeles and Yorgos and Chris Nolan were on that list,” he recalls. “It was like I attracted them, like the law of attraction.”

Born and raised in Dublin, Keoghan did not have an easy childhood. His mother died of a heroin overdose when he was young, and he was shuffled between foster homes until his grandmother took him and his brother in. When he was seventeen, he saw a notice for an open call for non-actors for a film called Between the Canals and booked it. “Acting wasn’t something I set out to do,” he says. “As I did it, bit by bit I started getting interested in it, and I was getting paid for it as well, so happy days.”

After a few more films, he came to national attention in 2013 in the organized-crime series Love/Hate, playing a cat killer and perhaps first demonstrating his penchant for dark roles. Around that time, as work kept coming, he decided to quit school to focus on acting as a career. “I remember not being able to go back to school,” he says. “I wasn’t good at school, to be honest. It didn’t work for me, and I was like, ‘No, I can do acting, I don’t care.’ I was starting to get interested as well in the craft of developing and playing characters and putting someone else’s shoes on for a little while, so that really got me.”

Over the next few years, he appeared with Jack O’Connell in ’71, about the Northern Ireland conflict, and Michael Fassbender in the crime drama Trespass Against Us, and went to Sundance with Mammal, in which he embodied his homeless teenager Joe with a wild intensity. With no formal training, Keoghan seems to have an intuitive sense for character, as well as an inborn restlessness and inquisitiveness. “I’m always asking the question, ‘What can I do different? What can I bring to it?’” he explains. “I suppose it’s down to what you express, and I like to contain a lot. It keeps people wondering.”

Keoghan shares this dismissal of easy answers with both Nolan and Lanthimos, and he spent several months last year filming Dunkirk and Killing of a Sacred Deer back to back. In the former, he plays George, who helps Mark Rylance pilot a small boat across the English Channel to rescue some British soldiers played by Cillian Murphy, Fionn Whitehead, and Harry Styles. That meant many weeks at sea—actually, a lake—with the celebrated Rylance and Murphy, and Keoghan says that his first experience on such a large studio production was illuminating in many ways. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to working with [actors like that],” he says. “You kind of get all that out of you before you go on set, but you always lose your breath a little bit. Then once you get chatting to them you see that they’re just normal and that breaks.”

But it is Killing of a Sacred Deer that will be seen as Keoghan’s true international breakout, thanks to his mesmerizingly unsettling turn as Martin, a lonely teenager who insinuates himself into the family of Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, and their two children. The film, which won Best Screenplay at Cannes in May, has the same deadpan tone and eerily relatable profundity as Lanthimos’s 2015 cult hit The Lobster, with an added twist of violence and revenge. “I’m a huge fan of his, just the worlds he creates and that he has his own rhythm and language and style of acting,” says Keoghan of Lanthimos. “He’s a genius.”

Somewhat surprisingly, given the cohesiveness of the archly straight-faced performances, Keoghan says Lanthimos is a relatively hands-off director. “He gave very small direction,” he explains. “I think that’s a part of his way. He does everything in the casting room. He figures you out and he says he wants to cast not the acting ability but the person who he’s interested by as a human being.” Instead, the director made the cast perform physical exercises with tennis balls and pens while reciting their lines. “It’s all part of distracting us from attaching emotions and feelings like you do in other movies,” Keoghan says. “He makes you contain a lot, so there’s a storm going on up here, but it’s all minimal.”

One additional benefit of Lanthimos’s style was the ease with which Keoghan was able to shake off his troubled character and the somber themes of the film. “He’s quite dark, but it was very refreshing for me because you don’t attach all these emotions to it,” he laughs. “I was able to go home and dig into a pizza and watch NFL and chill because I didn’t go home drained going, ‘Aw, I had to cry today on set.’”

With the film now in theaters in America and rolling out across Europe, the response has been unsurprisingly disconcerted—which Keoghan says is exactly how they would want it. “It’s a challenging movie,” he admits. “Just like The Lobster, it’s up for grabs. I’ll bet your feeling and my girlfriend’s feeling towards it are completely different. It’s a film that has a ton of layers and everyone walks out with their own interpretation.”

The Killing of a Sacred Deer also served as Keoghan’s initiation at Cannes, where it won the award for Best Screenplay. “Jake Gyllenhaal was sitting in front of me and Charlize Theron was over there,” he recalls. “Watching it with all those people for the first time was an experience. I was super proud of what Yorgos had done with it and what everyone else put into it. It hit me then and there that I’m part of a masterpiece.” Still, Keoghan says that the attention the film garnered proved to be overwhelming at times, although the experience served as invaluable practice for the international press tours for Dunkirk and the theatrical release of Killing. “I had about sixty interviews in a row with Colin and I just wasn’t ready,” he says of press day at Cannes. “I couldn’t get my answers straight.”

Still living in his native Ireland in Killarney, Keoghan says he is ready to continue his international ascent. 2018 will see him in Black 47, about the Great Famine, opposite Hugo Weaving and Jim Broadbent and in the heist drama American Animals. The rare free time that he does have is taken up with boxing, a lifelong hobby, and photography, which Lanthimos encouraged by giving him a Nikon after their film wrapped. But even as he stretches himself in other directions, acting is currently front and center for Keoghan. “It’s a fun job. You’re always learning and you get to do so many things,” he says. “You get a pass to be anything. You can play a rally driver’s life or you can be a pilot. You get to experience all these things and that interested me.”

The Killing of a Sacred Deer is out now.

[ahah1127]

Everyone else is weighing in, I will too

Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander packed some sunglasses and an itty bitty polka dot bikini and headed in paparazzi-rich Ibiza for a vacation ... I mean photo shoot.  Some fans, including me, were turned off by the behavior, and Alicia’s most ardent supporters who believe that you can’t be a real fan without fawning over their relationship want to believe that the only reason possible for being turned off is some sort of distraught panic over discovering a man who was never going to kiss us is kissing someone else. Wrong. Here’s my reason -

During one of his acceptance speeches for Moonlight (I THINK the Independent Spirit Awards) Barry Jenkins thanked Paula Woods and said that when they began the awards campaign, she told him to be honest with her about who he is, and she’s put that out there. That’s what a great publicist should do. For the years that they were together, I think that is what Paula did for Michael which is why there were some interviews where it seemed he was hitting on the reporter, cracked jokes that raised eyebrows, etc. That’s his charm, and she wasn’t scared to put it out there and figured out venues where it would work.

The problem with the Ibiza pics (and the Venice pics before that) is that they don’t reflect that same guy who would show up at press events with the glazed over eyes of a stoner, would hit on reporters, etc.  Other than having a beer and a cigarette, they don’t seem like the Michael who charmed many of his fans. Genuine works. Creating an image doesn’t work ... even for actors. I want genuine, goofy, slightly inappropriate with a super expressive face to return.  Give me that, he can make out with anyone he wants.

[lithugraph]

92 Things

I got tagged by @gummyboots

Thanks, it was fun!

I guess I’ll tag @niniel-kirkland and whoever else that sees this and wants to do it (totally optional, as always).

LAST:

1. Drink:

wine

2. Phone call:

My husband

3. Text message:

My two best friends

4. Song you listened to:

Death Cab for Cutie: “You Are a Tourist”

 5. Time you cried:

Why do these things always want to know this!?  I’m not a crier, all right?  I do get choked up at things, but I rarely cry.

HAVE YOU:

6. Dated someone twice:

No.  If I didn’t like you the first time, why would I like you the second?

7. Kissed someone and regretted it:

Yes.

8. Been cheated on:

Not…that I know of?  (And don’t really care)

9. Lost someone special:

Who hasn’t?

10. Been depressed:

College.  Round 1. Sophomore year.  I don’t even like thinking about it now.

11. Gotten drunk and thrown up:

Ugh, yes.

LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS:

12-14:

Sea green, purple, stormy sky grey

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU:

15. Made new friends:

Yes.

16. Fallen out of love:

Nope.

17. Laughed until you cried:

Yass.

18. Found out someone was talking about you:

No.

19. Met someone who changed you:

no

20. Found out who your friends are:

I’ve always known who my friends are

21. Kissed someone on your Facebook list:

Yes (see #2)

GENERAL:

22. How many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life:

All of them.  If I don’t know you in real life, I’m not gonna accept your FB friend request.

23. Do you have any pets:

2 cats.

24. Do you want to change your name:

I wanted to when I was younger, but I’m too used to it now (and I think it fits me)

25. What did you do for your last Birthday:

Dude, I don’t even know.  My birthday is New Year’s Day.  It’s hard getting people together who aren’t hungover, okay?

26. What time did you wake up:

5:30 am.

27. What were you doing at midnight last night:

Sound asleep – first time in daaaaaays!

28. Name something you can’t wait for:

Summer session to end.  Also, Thor: Ragnarok – the previews look so badass!

29. When was the last time you saw your mom:

July 4th holiday

30. What is one thing you wish you could change in your life:

Nothing.  Every time I think of something I wish I could change, I think of all the ways experiencing that thing has benefitted me.  Retrospect, I guess.

31. What are you listening to right now:

Of Monsters and Men: “Lionheart”

 32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom:

Yes.

33. Something that is getting on your nerves:

Nicotine withdrawal

34. Most visited website:

google

LOST QUESTIONS. I JUST PUT IN RANDOM INFO ABOUT ME

35. Mole/s: 

I totally have the APH Austria chin mole, y’all.

36. Mark/s: 

Like from surgery, or stitches?  ‘Cuz I have quite a few of those.  Two on my left hand and two on my chin.  

 37. Childhood dream:

Finding dinosaur bones

 38. Hair color:

Auburn

39. Long or short hair:

Some people would call my hair short (it’s chin length), but to me, it’s long, lol!

40. Do you have a crush on someone:

I watched the Assassin’s Creed movie just for Michael Fassbender, okay?

41. What do you like about yourself:

Everything.

42. Piercings:

Ears.

43. Blood type:

A-

44. Nickname:

Rammstein

45. Relationship status:

See #2

46. Zodiac:

Capricorn

47. Pronouns:

I / Me

48. Favorite TV Show:

The Americans, Deutschland 83, Doctor Who, Band of Brothers, Sherlock, Downton Abbey, Supernatural, Farscape, Battlestar Galactica

49. Tattoos:

Yes.

50. Right or left hand:

right

51. Surgery:

Yep – left index finger.

52. Hair dyed in different color:

My hair has been every shade of red imaginable.  Also a silvery blonde that I rocked for almost two years, but it was murder on my wallet and my scalp.

53. Sport:

I played soccer in elementary school, and I don’t mind watching it either. Fencing is one I’ve always wanted to learn.  And I love to run, I just have no time for it right now.

55. Vacation:

What is a vacation?

56. Pair of trainers:

Converse, Converse, and more Converse

MORE GENERAL:

57. Eating:

Not right now, but I’m probably gonna have some chips later.

58. Drinking:

Wine.

59. I’m about to:

Post this.

61. Waiting for:

Whether or not I got this scholarship

62. Want:

To get the scholarship!

63. Get married:

See #2

64. Career:

Web development or cybersecurity – preferably penetration testing/ethical hacking

WHICH IS BETTER

65. Hugs or kisses:

How about shaking hands?  (Not a fan of physical contact)

66. Lips or eyes:

Eyes.

67. Shorter or taller:

Taller

68. Older or younger:

Older.

70. Nice arms or nice stomach:

IDGAF – if I think you’re attractive, you’re attractive

71. Sensitive or loud:

Sensitive – I get over stimulated by loud noises easily

72. Hook up or relationship:

either

73. Troublemaker or hesitant:

Hesitant – though I can be very spontaneous, so long as it goes exactly as I planned ;)

HAVE YOU EVER:

74. Kissed a Stranger:

No.

75. Drank hard liquor:

Yes.

76. Lost glasses/contact lenses:

Nope.

77. Turned someone down:

…probably?  Wait..yes. Yes, I have.  But in my defense, I had no idea I was being asked out to begin with, so….

78. Sex on the first date:

That’s a no for me.

79. Broken someone’s heart:

Yes.

80. Had your heart broken:

No….because I have no heart to break, ha!

81. Been arrested:

No.

82. Cried when someone died:

Yes.

83. Fallen for a friend:

Yes.  My life in high school, summed up right there.

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

84. Yourself:

Always.

85. Miracles:

Maaaaaaybeeee?

 86. Love at first sight:

So, funny story:  When I first “met” my husband, I was at your typical college house party.  I knew no one there, save my best friend and her boyfriend.  Well, when I got there, she was nowhere to be seen, but I happened to bump into her boyfriend who told me she was consoling a friend of theirs who had just been dumped. Fast forward a bit, I find my best friend, and after a drink or two, I’m feeling more relaxed, so we go hunt down some grub left out on the patio buffet.  Hiding on the patio (everyone else was inside by now) was the guy she had been consoling earlier.  Despite my growing inebriation, I take one look at this guy and have this single thought flash through my head: “That’s the man you’re gonna marry.”  I push it away, namely because I was enjoying being single and at the time, he reminded me too much of my ex, so I avoided him and didn’t even talk to him that night.  I didn’t even know his name yet.  Fast forward four years later, and that thought that flashed through my head that night came true.  Go figure. Was it “love at first sight” or some freaky premonition?

87. Santa Claus:

I used to.  And yes, I still critique the Santas at the mall.  I mean, if you’re gonna dress up like Saint Nick, you need to legit look the part.

88. Kiss on the first date:

Sure.

OTHER:

90. Current best friend name: 

Not giving their names even though they’re not on here, sorry.

 91. Eye color:

Chestnut brown

92. Favorite movie:

These movies, I can watch over and over again: The Pianist, Midnight in Paris, Moana, The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Disney version), Captain America: The Winter Soldier, District 9, Star Wars IV, V, VI, and VII, and Hunger Games – all 4 movies.

[intrepidolivia]

Alexandria Country Club 3

Pairing: NeganXOlivia (OC)

Warnings: cursing, discussion of violence, sexual thoughts

Summary: AU! Negan returns to work after the parking lot incident. He meets Olivia’s best friend. They have an evening out which increases their desire for one another. Then Olivia returns home to a very unpleasant discovery.

A/N: Somebody help me, I can’t stop writing this fic. Cameo appearance by @adair-donovan Liv’s best friend (and an awesome RP’er). Let me know if you’d like to be tagged!

Mondays were always slow, particularly when it was raining. A retiree or three might come in the club for lunch, but it was unlikely anyone would be out on the green. It wasn’t a bad job, but days like that one were always long.

Negan found himself making security rounds just to pass the time, though his thoughts were preoccupied. He’d enjoyed the previous night. That gave him a lot to think about. He found himself glancing at his phone at frequent intervals, wondering if Olivia had messaged. Wondering if he should.

“Hey, Negan,” a voice behind him broke his reverie.

He glanced back. One of the women who ran the pro shop, Carol, pointed up the hall. “Rick was looking for you.”

He nodded. He’d expected as much, after all. He still doubted Chet had turned him in, but after parties Rick tended to at least glance over the security tapes. The incident in the parking lot would certainly have got his attention.

“Thanks,” he said to her, flashing a wide grin on his way past.

Rick was behind his wide oak desk sorting paperwork when Negan entered, pausing only briefly to rap his knuckles on the doorframe. He flopped into one of the overstuffed leather chairs, leaning back.

“You rang?”

Rick glanced up, his blue eyes mildly annoyed. “Were you going to tell me you beat the holy hell out of three guys in the parking lot, or were you saving the lawsuit for a surprise?”

Negan chuckled. “I didn’t hurt ‘em that bad. And if you saw the footage you know they started it.”

“Yes, they did. You sure as hell finished it, though.” Rick sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Chet Applegate, Negan. His family have been members of this country club since the goddamn Mayflower dropped his ancestors here.”

Applegate, huh? He’d recognized the little punk, but hadn’t put a last name to him. No wonder Rick was pissed. Negan shrugged. “He should have known better than to try to take on security at his family’s legacy club. Has there been a complaint?”

“Well, no,” Rick allowed.

“I don’t think there will be. He’s probably embarrassed he got his ass handed to him. And he probably doesn’t want his bullshit in the cloak room brought up. I told you we need a security camera in there.”

Rick frowned at that. “Was he stealing?”

“Worse,” Negan said. He tried to keep his voice neutral. He’d been pissed before, but now that he’d spent some time with Olivia… He wanted to kick the little shitstain’s ass all over again. “Had one of the bridesmaids cornered in there. Wouldn’t let her out, trying to paw her at least.”

“She all right?”

“I caught him before shit went very far. He was pissed about it. That’s why he and his buddies made the mistake of jumping me in the parking lot after I walked her to her car.”

Rick ran a hand through his dark hair and sighed. “I guess I can’t really blame you,” he grumbled.

“Fuck, no. It’s those little fucks fault I had to go and fuck them up.” Negan grinned, folding his arms behind his head. Rick gave him an annoyed glance and his grin widened. “What? I’m supposed to watch my fucking language out there. I got to let loose sometime.”

“Fine, just try to stay out of trouble. Chet lives out of state going to some ivy league school. If there’s a fuss I’ll tell his parents I fired you. It’s not like they know who the hell you are anyway.”

Negan chuckled and gave him a salute. “Good deal. Am I dismissed?”

“Yeah, I’ll let you know if there’s anything else. And I’ll look into putting a camera in the cloak room.”

Negan stood. “I’ve only been saying we needed one for a year,” he griped. “How’re the kids?”

Rick grinned at that. If there was any subject he loved it was that one. “Good. Real good. Carl’s been on the honor roll. I may have promised we could get a dog if he keeps it up. Judith’s growing like hell, even though I can’t get her to eat anything but macaroni lately.”

“Kids survive somehow,” he assured him. “Tell Carl to keep practicing batting, don’t let him get out of practice because of all that book shit.”

Rick rolled his eyes. “Yes, thank you, I’ll get right on that.”

Negan headed back out, chuckling to himself. He wasn’t at all surprised Mr. Chet hadn’t turned him in. Hopefully the little prick would go back to his ivy-league school and that would be that.

He paused, pulling out his phone. It was nearly lunchtime. He knew it was customary to wait a day or two after a date before contacting the other person. There were rules for how the game was played.

He was also more aware than most people of what wasting time could cost. And frankly, he hated head games.

So, do you do the 9 to 5 thing? Or does your bookstore have weird hours?

He decided to do a quick patrol of the building while he listened for the chime of his phone. The rain outside made things dim, the quiet pattern of sound felt sleepy and relaxing. His phone buzzed in his pocket.

Off today, actually. Over at my friend Adair’s place.

Adair? Should I be jealous?

He smiled a bit. She’d mentioned the name in passing last night, though they hadn’t spoken much about him. He couldn’t resist teasing a little, though.

No :) He’s practically my younger brother. And I’m not his type.

Oh? Are you sure? I thought smoking hot redhead was everyone’s type.

Well, yes, he does appreciate a smoking hot redhead if it’s Michael Fassbender. Also he’s fussing at me to be nice and take the compliment, so thank you. You’re not hard on the eyes yourself.

Good to hear, I don’t even moisturize.

So I’m guessing you’re not exactly busy securing the country club on a rainy Monday.

No, not really. Spoke to the boss man about a security camera in the cloak room. He’s finally going for it.

Good call.

So, when are you free again?

He figured there was little point in being coy. He wanted to see her again, and if she wanted to see him, well, there was no point in delaying. It was perhaps dangerous, getting so involved so quickly, but he couldn’t help himself.

I’m indisposed tonight, but free much of the week. If you don’t mind a late dinner depending on the day. I close the shop Wednesday and Thursday, that’s at 8.

Tomorrow?

It was probably too fast. He didn’t want to come off as creepy or possessive. Or just plain desperate. But the truth was, he couldn’t get enough of her. There was a pause, and he texted again.

Or Friday maybe, if that’s too soon.

No, tomorrow’s great. Sorry that took a minute, Adair was demanding to meet you. Want to pick me up at his place?

Can do, doll. Just let me know where and when.

The next evening took its sweet time in coming, in his opinion. Eventually, though, he was rolling up to a rather sizeable house in what he always thought of as the ‘ritzy’ part of town. The grounds were well maintained, and the house was much fancier than he’d been expecting. He double-checked the address to reassure himself he was correct as he drove up, but there was Liv’s little mini-cooper outside the monstrous structure. Surprised and feeling a little underdressed in jeans and a leather jacket, he rang the doorbell.

He half expected a butler. Instead, the door was opened by someone he first took for a kid. He was small, an inch shorter than Olivia at least, and slender, with a youthful face and dark hair that brushed his shoulders. The impression of youth was only intensified by the baggy jeans and oversized hoodie he was wearing. Big blue eyes flicked up and down, appraising him.

“Yep, you’re Negan all right,” the young man declared. He stood aside to let him in.

Negan raised an eyebrow, stepping in. “Yeah, that’s me. You must be Adair.”

The young man nodded. “Uh-huh. Come on in, Liv’s upstairs doing some hair thing.” He closed the door and beckoned. “Want a drink while you wait?” He padded down the hall and Negan saw no alternative but to follow him.

The house was as well kept on the inside as it was outside. The kitchen was black and chrome, a magnetic strip of knives over a generous countertop, hanging pot racks, and some forms of machinery he wasn’t clear on the purpose of.  “Nice place.”

Adair smiled a little. “Thanks, technically it’s my parents’ but they’re out of the country indefinitely. Tea, water, lemonade, coffee? You’re going to be driving I assume so I won’t pull out the booze.”

The boy was interesting. The house certainly spoke of the sort of wealth that was common at the club, but he was pretty sure he’d never seen him before. He had an Asian cast to his features that was fairly distinctive. “Lemonade sounds great, thanks.” He sat at the kitchen island where the boy indicated, watching him get a glass. “So, I take it Liv described me or something?”

Adair smirked, glancing back at him. “Nope. But a rugged silver fox with a voice like melted chocolate, wearing a leather jacket. and who looks like he could kill a man with his bare hands? If there was checklist for ‘things that are Olivia’s catnip’ you’d tick off most the boxes.” He set the glass of lemonade down and leaned his elbows on the counter.

Negan chuckled. The kid certainly wasn’t shy about saying what he thought. “Well, good to know I guess.”

The young man nodded and smiled. “Yeah. I’m glad to see her dating again. And she seems to like you. If you treat her badly they’ll never find your body.” The smile never left his face.

The lemonade paused halfway to Negan’s lips. “I’m sorry. It sounded like you just threatened me?” He was more bemused than angry. Threats usually came in the form of shouting and spur-of-the-moment passion. The casual tone threw him.

“Not that I’m expecting you will, mind you. But while she’s upstairs I just wanted to make things clear. I care about Liv very much. If things don’t work out, that’s one thing. But if you don’t treat her right I’m going to be upset.” The young man propped his chin on his hand, his dark blue eyes steady on Negan’s. “And I will address it.”

Negan paused a long moment. The kid looked deadly serious. He couldn’t help himself; he grinned widely. “Damn, you mean every word of that, don’t you? I’m three times your size and you do not give one single fuck. I got to be honest, I believe you.” He saluted Adair with the glass and took a long swallow of lemonade. “I’m gonna do my best to treat the lady like she deserves. Will that do?”

Adair nodded, his smile a little wider. “That’ll do.” The young man looked up as Negan heard footsteps behind him. “Liv, you didn’t tell me he had the sexy Viking look going on!”

He turned in time to see the pink tinge spread across Olivia’s cheeks. She looked pretty of course, in a snug green shirt and jeans that hugged her curves. Her hair was pulled up in a messy twist, and a delicate choker circled her throat. She rolled her eyes at Adair. “I apologize,” she said, and smiled at Negan. “I see you’ve had the Adair experience.”

He grinned. “Yeah. I approve. The kid’s a badass.”

Adair gave a soft huff, and Olivia chuckled. “He’s a legal adult, not a kid,” she chided.

Negan waved a hand. “Sweetheart, at my age anything under 25 is a kid. 30 if I’m feeling especially grumpy.”

Olivia laughed “I hope he wasn’t too prickly. I haven’t dated in a while and he’s a bit protective.”

“‘He’ is still in the room, Liv,” Adair said.

“Nah, I don’t blame you. Lots of assholes out there,” he said to the young man. He turned back to Olivia. “Hell, you know that, what with Chet trying to paw you the other day.”

He realized too late that she was trying to signal him to silence. He glanced at Adair, who was glaring daggers at her.

“Who’s Chet?” he demanded.

She sighed, looking at the ceiling as though asking for divine intervention. “Just a jackass at the wedding. Negan took care of it.”

The young man turned his diamond-hard gaze on Negan. “He tried to paw her?”

“Yeah, I intervened. He jumped me in the parking lot and I’m pretty sure I broke his arm.”

The young man nodded, a pleased smile spreading over his face. “Oh, good. I like you. Stop calling me ‘kid’ though.”

Negan laughed. He couldn’t help himself. “Deal.”

Adair gave Olivia a sharp look. “This isn’t over, by the way. Some reprobate tries to force himself on you and you don’t think it worth mentioning?”

“I didn’t want to worry you,” she began.

“Well, good fucking job,” he sniffed. He gave Negan an arch look. “Well, this is what you’re buying into, sexy Viking. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. She’s impossible.”

Negan gave Olivia a wolfish grin, his eyes flicking over her. He didn’t bother to hide his appreciative glance. “I think I might be able to handle her,” he purred.

He was thoroughly gratified when her cheeks bloomed pink.

Adair grinned and waved from the doorway as they drove off, and Olivia laughed softly. She rolled her eyes and looked at Negan.

“Jeez, he’s gonna kill me,” she sighed.

Negan chuckled. “He’s just looking out for you, sweetheart. Like I said, I can’t blame him. Lots of dangerous folks out there.”

“There are dangerous folks in here,” she smirked.

He grinned at her, winking. “Yeah, but we’re on the same side. Speaking of, you said you had an idea for tonight. Care to share?” She’d been a good sport about the bar last time, so it was only fair he let her pick for the second date.  She hadn’t told him to dress up, so he figured it probably wasn’t too fancy, but she seemed the type to go for a more… elegant scene.

“Yup, dinner with entertainment,” she smiled brightly.

She refused to tell him more, only giving him directions as he drove. Eventually he gave up trying to pry it out of her, and decided he’d just trust her. Finally, they pulled into the parking lot of a Japanese style building, complete with a little bamboo garden and pond outside.

“I probably should have asked if you like Japanese food before we got here, but honestly, this is hibachi. It’s only barely Japanese.” She smiled as she got out of the car.

“Well, I can’t say. I’ve never had it,” he admitted, looking over the exterior.

She linked an arm through his. He was starting to like that. She was a little thing, much shorter than he was, and having her holding his arm made him feel like he was protecting and supporting her. “You haven’t? Oh, you’re in for a treat. There’s going to be fire and flying shrimp, and sake of course.”

He had to admit, she hadn’t been kidding about it being dinner and entertainment. They shared a jug of hot sake while they watched their dinner prepared on the table in front of them. He hadn’t seen quite so many fireballs during a meal since he was a teenager going camping with a bunch of other teenage boys, one of whom was a pyromaniac. They laughed at each other’s attempts to catch the shrimp thrown at them in their mouths. And the food was pretty good, too.

Olivia was delicate and elegant in some ways as well. She handled her chopsticks neatly and with well-practiced ease, and spent half the meal trying to teach him how to use his. He managed to get one shrimp into his mouth with them and declared victory before switching back to a fork.

At the end, her cheeks flushed from the sake, she insisted he try green tea ice cream. It tasted like sweetened grass clippings to him, but he enjoyed watching her eat it, her eyes closing almost sensually as she savored the flavor.

He hated that they both had to work the next day. It was probably too soon to get physical, but watching her enjoy her dessert made him want to see what sort of expressions she made enjoying other things. Every time she leaned on him, every time she adjusted his fingers on his chopsticks, or insisted on pouring his sake for him, he just wanted to put his hands on her.

After dinner, rather than going to the car, she took his hand and led him around the restaurant. To his mild surprise, there was a park. A walking trail of blacktop surrounded a small lake and an expanse of grass dotted with trees. It was getting dark, and lights flickered on here and there, illuminating the trail. She laced her fingers with his as they walked.

For a time, neither of them said anything. Dinner was resting comfortably in his stomach, and the sake left him warm and content.

Eventually, she looked up at him. “We going to do this again?”

“You mean the Japanese or the whole dating thing, darlin’?”

Olivia smiled a little. “Both, I guess.” She bit her lip. “I like you. I’d like to keep seeing you.”

He grinned. “That works out, then. I like you, too.”

“Okay, then,” she said, ducking her head with a wide smile.

He paused, putting his fingers to her chin, tipping her face up. “And I gotta say, you make getting shrimp bounced off your forehead look fucking hot.” He winked.

She giggled, and began to say something. Before she could, he leaned down and took her lips with his own.

They moved to one of the benches eventually. He was careful, not putting his hands anywhere too suggestive, much as he wanted to. He wanted to devour her, mark her neck, taste her. He held himself back, though, letting her set the pace. He wasn’t going to take anything she wasn’t willing to give. And beyond that, there was still a small part of him, still raw and wounded, that held him back.

Her response to his kisses was tender and slow at first, but he sensed the underlying heat. She wanted him, perhaps as much as he wanted her. Even so, they both held back. Never quite crossing the line into a true invitation. They were in a park, true, but the spot they were in was secluded, and no one else was around. They could get away with a great deal, tucked away like that.

Eventually, they pulled apart. She was panting, her lips swollen, her hair mussed. She’d wrapped her arms around him, under his jacket. Her breasts pressed against his chest. She fit so nicely into his arms.

She swallowed, raising a hand to cup his cheek. “I don’t want to stop, but…”

“We both got work tomorrow,” he finished.

She bit her lip. “And… this is fast.”

He nodded. “This is fast.”

Olivia took a breath. “We don’t… we don’t know each other that well yet.”

He stroked his hands up and down her back. “We don’t.”

“I’ve got… there’s things in my past,” she said softly.

He smiled a little, leaning down and kissing her again. “I’ve got a longer past than you, baby,” he said softly.

She nodded, and smiled a little. “It’s hard to care right now.”

“You ain’t fuckin’ kidding,” he chuckled. He sighed, and made himself stand up. Her body pressed close was decidedly not doing anything to help his current predicament. He took her hands, helping her up as well. “So in the interests of our mutual work situations and peace of mind, I guess we should head on back now.”

He didn’t mind quite as much as he thought he would. Yes, he wanted her. He wanted her so badly he could taste it. But he wasn’t going to be an asshole. He could wait for her to say yes properly. Then he would fuck her brains out.

After he dropped her off at Adair’s house, he drove home. It was later than he’d normally have been out on a work night, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. It was worth being a little more tired than usual tomorrow. It wasn’t like there would be any sort of crisis. There were no events planned. Hell, Rick probably wouldn’t even notice if he was late.

He locked his apartment door behind him and eventually settled into bed. He was just drifting off when his phone rang. He picked it up, peering at the screen and frowning.

It was Olivia.

He answered it. “Hey, doll, I miss you too, but isn’t it a little late?”

“Negan…” she said.

He sat up. Something in her voice set off alarm bells in his head. “Livvy? What’s wrong?”

“I… I just got home. Someone put a letter under my door.” She paused, and he heard her take a shaky breath. “It’s a death threat.”

@noodlecupcakes @feistybaby