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bakubabes-and-ramble · 4 years ago

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Headcanon: The Gundalian culture is based on individualism, the Neathian culture is based on collectivism

Race interpretation part one: Neathia

Summary: The Neathian culture is built on the core values of communities and collective thinking. While conformity within the society is of a high level, they pursue a 'closed gate' diplomacy towards other races - resulting in a 'bubble' phenomenon and becoming vulnerable to losing their sense of belonging. Centralised urban system, with regional reciprocity and redistribution, whereby the Queen plays a coordinator role, and exists as a unifying symbol along with the military.

(Wall-of-text warning ; with block-breaker illustrations, but a huge amount of information ahead.)

Okay, this topic is something I was thinking about for a long time, and I finally hit the point to collect my thoughts and write them down. I've seen a lot of people trying to build up/further and enrich the cultural and social-political features of the alien races we've seen in the series (namely Vestals, Neathians and Gundalians), and I felt some inspiration to put my take on these things into words.

It's not only intriguing to try one's hand on the world-further-building, but I felt, I have to explain how I imagine the build-up of the Neathian and Gundalian culture and society to make the story of the 'Neathian Special Squad' ('NSS') more understandable 'symbolically' and from the aspect of a 'cultural clash'. /For those, who follow the NSS: This is something that definitely happens later on, you just don't know about it yet./

I have to put a small disclaimer here: This entire piece of writing was conspired out of fun and passion towards the series. It was not meant to be a 100% professor approved scientific research, but a seemingly logical untangling of my personal train of thoughts concerning the fantasy creatures of the third season. And this means, there is going to be some personal opinion mixed in as well (especially at the rewriting parts).

I wish the readers to enjoy reading it regardless. You are always free to disagree or not to take it seriously. :) To me, headcanonizing and imagining things always meant to be fun.

Side note: I'll add canon elements as examples or refer to the events of Gundalian Invaders, although I have to admit, I'll do this mostly from memory. So If I get anything wrong, or just remember incorrectly, you are welcome to add-in or correct me! :)

Season: Bakugan: Gundalian Invaders (and Mechtanium Surge)

Language: English dub

Okay, let's go!

Gundalian Invaders - Slightly rewritten

The first and foremost reason I actually started writing this post, is because I had some issues with the characterisation of the Gundalians and Neathians in the third season. One side is depicted blatantly, purposelessly and one-dimensionally evil, while the other is portrayed to be the goodie-two-shoes victims with no backlashes. I wanted to swing over this simplicity and make an attempt at explaining, how I imagined these races to function. These interpretations were explored with the intention of both keeping the main features of the races, staying canon-compliant where possible, but change canon elements/propose ideas to turn the races into interesting (and on a theoretical level functioning) societies.

For these added or assumed ideas to work, some lore elements have to be changed or removed: For example the way Bakugan got to be on the planets. For this explanation see: a further point below.

This post discusses only Neathia for now. (Gundalia will probably get it's own post, as there is much more canon-divergence to be talked about.)

Neathians

1. The beginnings and core values

Due to the power of the Sacred Orb, almost the entire planet have relished in a lush fertility since the beginnings. (And this is why there are huge plants in their jungles. The wildlife also experienced a great upsurge by the life-force of the Orb.) This prosperity quickly enabled the Neathian race to organize into a peaceful and sharing society, because the wars over resources became redundant and unnecessary. The established racial mindset reallocated the focus from the individual needs to the communal efforts, and gives a ground for the Neathian values and collective thinking up to even the days of the season.

Neathians think mainly in groups: Let those be pairs (e.g. Fabia and Jin as fiancés; Linus and Neo Zipperator as brawling partners), teams (Neathian Special Squad; Friendship circles), communities (Castle Knights), and the biggest of them all, their entire race. These are all bigger or smaller communities within communities, and they play a major role in how Neathians perceive the world and themselves. Being in these relationship structures defines their place, grants them their basic mental frame, which they are able to think in, and not only their resources, but also their goals are shared with each other. This kind of goal assimilation is what makes them really efficient team players, and also provides them a strong social support from a mentalhygiene perspective. This important role of the sense of belonging makes Neathians both empowered while being in close social constructs , and extremely susceptible to losing these connections.

Thinking like this, when Fabia lost her fiancè or Linus lost Neo, their grief extended further than their deaths or the traumatic events. Losing strong bonds like these put Neathians in a technical identity crisis, as it is a part of their personal perception and mental frame which were dismantled through these events. We have seen Fabia going to extremes to retrieve Aranaut - and to retrieve that part of her, which was lost with Jin. Just as when Rubanoid was handed to Linus, a new connection was formed to either replace or continue the old one in a different form. Fabia's communal bonds were successfully restored, when she also became a member of the brawlers.

The Neathian society is based on caring and cooperation to achieve a collective well-being. This is why communities play such a major role in their self-perception and world-perception.

2. Open-sources, but enclosed diplomacy

For most part, I've always imagined the Neathian race as an although proud and generous, but closed society. They share commodities with each other - within their society -, but it is very important, that only within it. The outside world (meaning outside of their habited planet) is fundamentally shut out of these transactions.

I often refer to this phenomenon of enclosedeness as the 'Neathian bubble':

Not only their mindset operates in closed communities, but their diplomacy too. They are generally passive towards other races, missing trust and a reason to pick up the communication /Up until the Gundalians came and the war started/. This perspective could be applied to understand, why could they be more insistent on and better at operating defensive mechanisms (layered shield generator), than initiating communication with the rest of the universe (Unlike Gundalians, Neathians have no ships or bigger means of transportation. Yes, teleportation is accessible for them, but I don't think they use it that often outside of Neathia.)

I treat this as an explanation for why Neathia had only asked for outside help after the second shield generator went down - the situation became desperate and already being involved in the conflict, it was time to try and reach out for aid. According to these headcanons, I also think, Serena wasn't putting - or at least shouldn't have put - faith in the Brawlers so easily. The reason they weren't tested to prove their trustworthiness further than one question, is because she trusted Fabia's judgement. Without the support of a Neathian, outlanders are almost automatically dismissed. Their (or their Queen's) empathy and compassion may overwrite this code, but even by then they have to be made certain by proving the cause.

Just as when Fabia accepted Ren, because she had seen how much he tried to prove himself. Winning Neathians’ trust is supposed to be a big and determining moment, because they ‘internalise’ you into their scoiety.

Neathians are capable of empathy and kindness (this is something they actively practice among each other), even towards outsiders, they just need time and proof to accept them. Trust is just not automatic towards them, and even so they keep their distance until they get used to it.

3. Personal paralel counterparts - Night elves and the Highborne of WoW

When I think about Neathians, I often put them into paralel with the Night elves and the Highborne from World of Warcraft. For most part, I use their artistic motives, architecture, fashion and cultural approach as an inspiration for Neathians, as they are recognised as 'The pretty space elves' in my book too.

Beside the above mentioned, what could be imported from their WoW counterparts is a rather matriarchal social apparat. For example, Neathians traditionally having a Queen, and women being present in the military or in higher positions, playing important roles. //Just as by the Night elves leadership, religious and military roles being traditionally occupied by women (priestesses, wardens, sentinels).//

Another elven impression, which is more or less universal, is their sense of pride (I like to say it as the expression of 'Neathian pride '). Highborne in World of Warcraft are a quite prestigious race and are usually said to be a little 'aristocratic'. I can imagine the Neathians being lightly less, but somewhat similar on these terms, when it comes down to interacting with their own or other races: For example being proud of their appearance (Emphasizing their unique V-shaped forehead with adequate clothing and accessories), structuring buildings and constructs based on aesthetic instead of real functionality (using diamond as the main material of construction, structuring buildings with elegant but futuristic shapes), or being confident and showing immovable standing and opinion on things (towards outsiders).

As far as I know, the Warcraft elves used to be similarly passive and uninitiative - even mistrusting - towards other races too. And in this, it played part, that they also had exclusive access to a powerful source of power and prosperity, the Well of Eternity (an almost one-on-one counterpart to the Sacred Orb).

While the half-tribal connections of the Night elves derive from their ancient bonds with nature and druidism, the Neathian society feels more likely being based on a futuristic envisionment of these social relations. A civilisation that perfectly blends technology (teleportation technology, communication devices) with classic fantasy elements (knights), while still remaining tribal in the core (shared communality is just put into a modern environment). /Although I like to lean more into the fantasy setting, the technical advancement is undeniable there./

4. Overall economy

If we wanted to negotiate about their economy, I would say reciprocity and localised redistribution are the dominant mechanisms of it. The basic definition of economy builds on the premise of distribution of scarce resources. In this case, resources are not scarce, in fact, due to the Orb they are very much prosperous and renewing. This accessibility discounts the value of the traditional market trading, and supports the establishment of semi-centralised recollection and redistribution. The semi-centralisation here means regional production and consumption, whereby the accomodation of the population happens mainly territorialy, but these regional centres still have a connection to each other and the capitol. This economy is based on caring and well-being, and the high level of conformity and trust within the collective society results in a lack of currency usage (so, my headcanon is basically, that they don't use money).

5. Urbanisation and territorial layout

The reason we talk about a more physical apsect of the planets, is because the core values of the races both play a role, and mutually affect how I imagine their civilised hubs being developed. Communities form hubs and cities with strong connections - just like their society!

When I mentioned localised redistribution, I was also refering to the urban structure of the Neathian planet. Important to note, that Neathia is not just a city, or a country - just like Gundalia, it's the entire planet. What we've seen in the show is the capital of their urban system - which makes sense to be technically built around / in the immediate enclosure of the Sacred Orb, for it's the source of the relishing power. Assuming this, along the capital there could be a centralised territorial layout with rural areas (cities, villages), and untouched wilderness (due to the overflourishing flora and fauna; the urbanisation doesn't affect the entirety of the planet, there are a lot of uninhabited/uncharted areas).

Here is a simple schematic illustration of the above.

The rural hubs not having physical connection with other centres due to the dangerous and untamable wilderness (see: Giant plants in the show) could have lead to the advancement of the teleportation technology. The cities are connected through this port-system, and also with the capital, which serves as the centre of the network.

6. The role of the queen and the military

The main purpose of the current Queen is an overall governance with the direct help of a council consisting of the local leaders of the hubs. The queen bears not only a political, but a symbolical importance to the people. The concept of the Queen is a unifying symbol, someone who watches over the nation. The Neathians can stand behind her and being represented by her. But it's important to note, that her status is not as glorified as to be a despotic being, and her power is not extending much further than overall policies, diplomatic representation and helping the transactions of the local leaderships. There is much more power and independence shifted into the regional governance, rendering the Queen's position to be an effective coordinator between them and unifier, who keeps the nation together. /Still thinking about the way the queen is chosen/comes to the throne, but I had the idea of the next Queen being elected by the current Queen, so the order of succession is not based on the Queen’s family, nor being a community vote of the people./

The peace-oriented existence in itself doesn't require a military to exists, therefore I treat the Castle Knights as a mainly defensive organisation. This military serves as Neathia's defenders, bearing symbolic and community building purposes. Among the Castle Knights - just as the name itself suggests - the traditional medieval knight values show up primarily, such as loyality, humility, courage, faithfulness and the act of mercy. In their comprehension, being a Castle Knight is an act of service towards their country and the Queen, and is not mainly for warfare reasons. (To some extent, I assume martial arts and other forms of fighting - even brawling - is essentially a spiritual activity, which they pursue in order to keep their inner- and physical balance.)

As we've seen it the show, I assume the Palace also functions as the military's operation base. The head of the military is the current commander (formerly Jin, recently Elright), and under them operate several divisions with captains as division leaders. The separate divisions are Physical Fighting (both with weapon, like those defensive shock-sticks the guards are using - formerly offensive melee weapons until the fall of NSS - and hand-to-hand combat, e.g. used by Fabia), Technical staff (operating the shield generators and overseeing their areas) and Bakugan Brawling (this headcanon part is still under construction, but Elright used to be the former leader of this, and the reason he was promoted to commander after Jin’s death, is because the Neathians' realisation of the war swinging in favor of the Bakugan fights, so it was logical to put him as the next 'general leader'). /There may be other divisions outside of these, I just put out some ideas here./ Every guard receives education to some extent in all of these fields, but they end up specialising in something.

//The Neathian Special Squad (NSS) had it’s own divison under Captain Pyrehart, they were a special strike team with a unusual task: Staggering, forcing back or just divide the Gundalian leadership’s attention from focusing on their assault. Basically poking them with melee weapons until they either go away, or can’t concentrate on helping their Bakugan on the field and their monsters get defeated. According to the story - made up by me of course - after a tragedic mission this unit wasn’t restored, and the war effort shifted onto long-range fighting with Bakugan, Gear and Bakugan Assaults.//

7. So...where are the Bakugan?

They have been mentioned here and there, but I'm sure, whoever made it this far into this theorising information dump, may wonder at this point: 'But what about the Bakugan?'

My simplest answer is, that I firmly want to believe, both Gundalia and Neathia had a civilised and established culture before the Bakugan appeared there.

According to the original lore, Bakugan existed on the planets since almost the beginnings. Now, this is part of those lore bits I would definitively change during a rewrite: I want to believe, Bakugan only appeared in their very recent history, almost as recently, as on Earth and Vestal itself.

Perhaps a Bakugan lore- and GI rewrite explanation deserved it's own post, but for the further understanding allow me to explain here a little: A similar event of raining cards - what the first season started with - occured on Neathia and Gundalia too, caused by the dimensional boom of Michael Gehabich and his transporter. The twist on this - and the effective solution to the problem of possible timeline inconsistencies - is that although the explosion caused this interference at one point in time, across cosmos and universes time flows differently. So technicaly the result of it - the raining cards and Bakugan being transported into the particular worlds - could happen at different point of their relative times - even years earlier or later! On Neathia and Gundalia it could happened a few years before on Earth, which covers most of the questions of the timeline-consistency /such as Ren being assigned to watch over Linehalt as a child etc./

Bakugan coming to these places has only an added effect: Just as on Earth, they are not (yet?) integrated into the society and culture of the planets so deeply to be any kind of pillar of their existence or basic civilisation. There could be a start (as having specialised researches, technology revolving around Bakugan, taking part in the war,..) regarding this internalisation process, but it still runs on the surface, and not in the 'veins' of the culture.

I hope this breakdown made sense in some form or another. I just felt an urge to pour out the content of my head. Looking back,this became longer and more detailed, than I originally intended, while also surely missing things because there is no worldbuilding without holes or further questions. The attempt to lay down the basics was made regardless haha!

As always, feel free to disagree and follow your own visions concerning the races and worldbuilding. :) This post was made to reflect back my personal interpretation of Neathians - just for fun and thinking out loud.

For the very end, I leave a disclamer here, which was supposed to go at the beginning, but it felt redundant to put there, so here it is:

I tried to approach it from a more sociological side, as focusing on a bigger, overall picture, common features, than create exact statements. (I would rather call this a speculation regarding the features of the races themselves, their core values, common attitudes, mindset - and this doesn't mean other questions are fully out of the picture. We are just discussing things, which can be derived from the features of the society itself, and make up a more or less coherent chain of thought for now. Other 'for fun' or miscellaneous headcanons, like fashion or physical traits will be covered another time.)

Thank you for coming to this TED mambling!

#bakugan #gundalian invaders #neathia #gundalia #headcanon #long post #text #bumblispeaks

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kiirokero · 4 years ago

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Zephyr (MYG)

Zephyr: A soft gentle breeze; Comforting wind on a hot summer's day.

Part of the “Protect the Village!” Oneshot series.

Masterlist

Pairing: Florist!Yoongi x Reader

Genre: Fluff, mentions of death (not major, don’t worry) Yoongles doesn’t know how to express himself, soft boi hours.

Note: Time for me to pass out. We’re back on schedule hoes. :)

Summary: First, it was flowers for your grandmother. Next, it was flowers for a sick friend. Now, its flowers because the handsome flower shop owner lives in your head rent free.

Word Count: 4.3k

A dense, luscious forest surrounds Bangtan Village. Filled with sturdy oak trees and delicate blooming flowers. As far as the eye can see, it’s nature. Trees stretch to the heavens, touching the sky with their strong appendages. Flowers draping over the petrichor forest floor, gracing those who walk through its lush maze.

It’s magical, really. Some rumour that Bangtan Village is ancient, rivaling the Mayans. Local historians say that the people here were protecting something that lays dormant in the forest. What that relic is? A mystery to most. But town elders always warn against wandering in the woods. Whispers of a magical heart that keeps the town alive roles through the town every year after New Year’s celebrations.

Because nobody knows why every year the village gets a new influx of natural resources

But thanks to this odd phenomenon, Min Yoongi never runs out of flowers. Peonies, sunflowers, hibiscuses. Every kind of flower grows in that forest, regardless if it scientifically should. Everyone collectively dismisses the impossible things that go on beyond those trees. Ignorance is bliss.

So because of the logic defying forest, Min Yoongi always has the best flowers. Which, in turn, means you always know where to find spider lilies.

Any event. Birthdays, weddings, minor celebrations. They always called for flowers. That was your motto. Flowers make everything better. Roses here, daisies there. Nothing can go wrong with flowers. They can make someone smile, ignite love, mourn a loss. Flowers can do anything, and your glad Min Yoongi indulges your thinking.

She loved roses.

Your grandmother was a bit old-fashioned. Not the most tech savvy, would rather do things by hand, and was a sucker for a beautiful red rose. Maybe it was because those were the flowers in her wedding bouquet. Or maybe its because your grandfather always brought her one every single day before he passed. It doesn’t matter.

What matters is your getting her those roses, one last time.

When you first walked into Min’s Flowers, it had a peculiar petrichor smell. Like the shop was in an endless cycle of spring. Solf showers and light rays. It was a comforting calmness that soothed the cracks in your heart. Every which was there was a flower resting in peaceful serenity.

All the flowers seemed to look dreary, or maybe the soft petals were acting as a mirror, reflecting the melancholy of the day. You wouldn’t know. The only thing currently on your mind was red roses. Red roses. You needed to get those red roses.

Walking deeper into the shop, the walls greeted you with blissful silence. Not a sound was made, not a person in sight, shopkeeper or customer. It was just you and the flowers. A cruel thing, really. Alone with beautiful works of art that couldn’t distract your racing mind with words, only looks. But everywhere you looked, memories of your grandmother lingered. You needed words to revive your slowly beating heart.

“Hey, can I help you with anything?” A gruff voice sounded through the hazy, quiet aura of the shop. Turning around, you saw a man with scruffy noir hair. He wasn’t the tallest, but wasn’t short either. He had sharp brown eyes that emanated a hidden warmth encased in cool glass. His skin was as pale as petunias and he wore a desaturated blue apron with flowers peaking out of the pocket.

“I’m looking for red roses...” You somberly informed, unable to keep the emotion out of your voice. His cat-like eyes slightly softened, flashing a look of sympathy for your lost soul. You wondered if he often encountered lost souls here in the shop, using his business as a pit stop in a wayward journey. “I have just what you’re looking for,” He said, gesturing me to follow him.

He led you through the shop in silence, like a drifting ghost. He floated elegantly through his shop, uncaring of the twist and turns that appeared in his way, even if there were few. Soon, he led you to an area full of roses, all different colors. White, blue, yellow. It was a beautiful image.

But he walked passed them, going towards a door in the back. “Where are we going?” You asked, stopping just a bit behind him. “Those roses are pretty, yes, but I think you need something more,” He said, face unchanging from a stoic expression. He opened the door, walking inside to grab something out of the artificially sun lit room.

Reappearing, he held a bouquet full of two dozen bright red roses. The petals undamaged, their color as lush as the day they came out of the Earth. “I’ve been saving these for a special occasion, I think they’d be of use to you now,” The man said, handing you the bouquet, You held them gently, afraid to damage the perfect flowers.

“How are they so perfect?” You marveled, unable to peel your eyes away from the beauty of which you held. “A lot of odd things happen in Bangtan,” Was his answer, nothing more. “Go on, I’m sure you have somewhere to be,” He said, putting a soft hand on your back, guiding you to the entrance you came in from.

“But I have to pay!” You protested, but the man didn’t stop guiding you. “Consider it a gift,” He shrugged. “But I don’t even know your name,” You argued, looking at him incredulously. “It’s Yoongi, what’s yours?” He asked, tilting his head slightly. “Y/n,” You answered. “Well Y/n, it was nice to meet you. Now go on, I hope those roses bring peace,��

You didn’t go back to Min’s Flowers for three months. You decided it would be best to mourn in your own way, by yourself. That didn’t mean your close friends didn’t keep an eye on you though, Jimin and Jeongguk would never let you forget that they were there for you. Whether it was late night junk food runs to Hoseok’s store or messing around with Taehyung at the bakery. They made sure you knew they were there, waiting for you when you were ready to be picked back up and put back together.

Which you were. You picked yourself back up and hammered yourself together. Life didn’t wait for anyone. Seasons still changed, flowers still bloomed, zephyrs still came and went. Maybe the tape you used to patch yourself up was still a bit brittle, maybe the glue you used to fill the cracks in your heart hasn’t quite dried yet, but you were okay.

And Jimin was not. Poor bastard caught a nasty case of the flu and has been miserable ever since. Jeongguk and you have been taking care of him whenever you could, and when he started complaining about missing the outside, flowers seemed like the perfect remedy. “I really like yellow and white chrysanthemums”

Those were Jimin's words when you asked him what his favorite flower was, and by golly were you going to get him the prettiest yellow and white chrysanthemums ever. So that’s how you found yourself back at the shop which aided your once wayward soul.

The shop still had that same comforting petrichor scent. Memories of the pixie like world that the flower shop simulated came back to you as you saw the same flowers in the exact same places as last time. When you first came to the shop, you had a heart leaking with melancholy. Now, you have a heart with scars and a mission to make your friend feel better.

“Oh, you’re back,” A familiar voice said. Turning, you saw the same man as before. He had mint hair now, standing at the counter. “That I am, Yoongi,” You said. You don’t know why the name stuck in your head the way it did, but you couldn’t forget it. Every time you thought about getting some flowers, Yoongi popped into your head.

It surprised Yoongi that you remembered his name. He thought that the interaction between the two of you was significant to him and him only. But hearing your soft utterance of his name made him freeze longer than he should’ve. “I’m surprised you remember me,” He said, cracking the slightest of smiles.

“You’re memorable, I suppose,” You chuckled, taking a few steps deeper into the indoor forest that was Yoongi’s flower shop. “So what brings you here this time?” Yoongi asked, not taking his eyes off of you. “My friend’s sick, so I wanted to get his favorite flower to cheer him up,”

Yoongi nodded, walking around the counter to stand in front of you. “Well, I can guarantee that I have it here. What are we looking for?” He said, voice unchanging from a dull tone. “Yellow and white chrysanthemums,” You said, and Yoongi didn’t need to hear anymore before he was guiding you once more through the shop. The floor was slightly wet, showing that Yoongi had watered the flowers recently.

Quietly, he led you to where he kept the chrysanthemums, gesturing one of his hands to the yellow and white ones. “Go ahead and pick. A dozen flowers are 9,000 won,” Yoongi said, walking away to do his shopkeeper things.

That day you stayed in the shop a bit longer than you expected. You and Yoongi talked for what seemed like forever. Maybe it was minutes, maybe it hours, you wouldn’t know. You didn’t care, Yoongi was like a breath of fresh air. A whispering zephyr during the summer solstice.

So you kept coming back, again and again. Every day after work you made your way to Min’s Flowers, eager to talk to your new florist friend. You would arrange bouquets with him, tell him jokes, watch movies on the tv he had in the back. No matter the day or the weather, you never failed to meet with Yoongi every single day. Sometimes with Jimin and Jeongguk, sometimes alone.

You couldn’t get enough. Yoongi couldn’t get enough, and that scared him.

Min Yoongi was a quiet man. He preferred to stick to himself, hoping to limit the amount of human interaction he had on a daily basis. It’s not that he didn’t like people, per se, but he just rarely got along with others. It was a problem for him since Kindergarten. Being overly blunt with peers or arguing with the teacher.

He just drove people away with his cold aura and “unforgiving” personality. Yes, Yoongi had friends. He had Hoseok, Namjoon, Jin, Taehyung, even Jimin and Jeongguk hung out with him from time to time. But he’s never had that certain type of connection with someone.

Yoongi used to think he was critically apathetic. That no matter how much he wanted to bounce off the walls in celebration when Taehyung met his business goal, he couldn’t. He couldn’t muster up anything other than a “That’s good, I’m happy for you,” And he was! He knew he was, but he didn’t quite express that he was.

It left Yoongi feeling inferior, like he was a bad person. What kind of friend comforts you after a breakup by saying, “Love is dead anyway,”? Min Yoongi, apparently. Yeah, Yoongi had feelings. Things made him sad, mad, happy, annoyed. He wasn’t entirely broken. But those feeling felt like they were dampened, diluted.

“Aren’t you happy? Sad? Mad?” Those were the words Yoongi dreaded, because the answer was always yes. Yes, he was happy that Jin got a girlfriend. Yes, he was sad that Jeongguk couldn’t find the person painting flowers all over Bangtan village. Yes, he was mad Jimin shattered one of his terracotta pots. He just didn’t express it well.

But you never seemed to care.

You took Yoongi’s blunt words at face value. You believed him when he said, “That’s funny,” at one of your embarrassing childhood stories. You didn’t question why he wasn’t crying during “The Notebook” even if the tragic story silently broke his heart. You took his small smile just as seriously as you would a full one. That made Yoongi happy, even if he couldn’t express that to you.

You didn’t treat Yoongi’s lack of expression as a bad thing. You didn’t think he was cold and uncaring, because you knew he was. Actions speak louder than words. When he bandaged your ankle after you slipped in a puddle one day in the shop. When he gave you half of his granola bar after hearing your stomach rumble. Or how he never fails to ask how your day went, even if it sounded rather uncaring to the average person.

Yoongi didn’t know when it happened or how. Yoongi didn’t know why your simple touches turned smouldering to him. Or why your smile was a picture he’d look at forever. He doesn��t know when he started eagerly looking at the clock, waiting for 4pm when you’d undoubtedly would come visit him at the shop. Yoongi didn’t know when it hit him, when his horribly suppressed emotions made him feel something like no other.

Yoongi didn’t know when he fell in love with you, but damn did he fall hard.

“Alright Yoongs, I agree with you on most things, but mint chocolate ice cream is definitely not it.” You argued, poking his carton of green ice cream with your spoon. “Well, coffee-flavored ice cream is weird too,” Yoongi retorted, stuffing a spoon full of ice cream monstrosity into his mouth. You dramatically gasped, “Yoongi! Coffee is totally a valid flavor,” You laid your head on the table inside Yoongi’s back room, putting a hand to your heart, “You wound me,”

Yoongi rolled his eyes, going back to his pint of frozen goodness. “You’re ridiculous,” He said, shaking his head. “Hold on, I speak Yoongi. You just said that I’m funny and you love me,” You teased. Yoongi felt his face slightly flush at your words, but he cleared his throat, changing the topic. “Whatever, wanna arrange a wedding bouquet with me?”

You quickly sat up, stars in your eyes as you ecstatically nodded your head. “Hells yes!” Yoongi hummed, grabbing both pints of ice cream and putting them away in the mini refrigerator he had. “Let’s go then, I already have my work space set up,” He said, walking out the room to which you happily followed him.

“So, a marriage? Is it a big one?” You asked. Yoongi shrugged, sitting down in his work chair to which he already had a spare one set up next to it. “I guess, I mean, how big can things get in Bangtan Village?” He said, picking up roses and cutting off bits of their stems.

“I dunno Yoongs, remember that time you found a huge sunflower in the forest? Bangtan Village may have a small population, but things can get pretty weird here,” You chuckled, joining Yoongi in his somewhat tedious task. “Yes, you are correct. Many things in that forest surprise me.” He said, nonchalantly.

“Really? Are there fairies? White stags? Gremlins?” You asked, turning towards the man contently snipping away at the stems next to you. “You and your fairy tales,” Yoongi sighed, secretly finding your interest in the unexplainable cute.

The two of you worked together in silence, enjoying each other's presence as the artful skills Yoongi had with flowers created beautiful bouquets. But the silent atmosphere was suddenly broken when your phone rang. Fishing it out of your pocket, Jeongguk's face appeared on the screen. You excused yourself and answered the phone outside, leaving Yoongi alone in the room. To him it felt a bit colder now.

A couple minutes later, you peaked your head in the door, gaining Yoongi’s attention with a smile. “Sorry to say this Yoongs, but I have to help Jeongguk with something,” You said. Yoongi felt disappointed, but his face remained unchanging. “Oh... Okay... Do you- Nevermind,” Do you have too? Is what Yoongi wanted to ask. He didn’t want you to go, he wanted you to stay and make pretty flower arrangements with him. But he couldn’t express it.

“I’ll be back tomorrow, don’t miss me too much, okay?” You joked, bidding the gruff florist a farewell. Yoongi tried to. But he really did miss you. Not only that, he felt... Jealous... He found himself wishing he was Jeongguk or wishing that you left your phone on silent so you wouldn’t hear his call.

It was selfish, Yoongi knew that, but that didn’t mean the feeling didn’t go away. He didn’t like this feeling. His emotions may feel weaker than others, but jealously always came on strong. Why did he have to be like this? Why couldn’t he just admit his feelings for you, ask you out on a date, tell you all the things that ran through his head about you?

He needed to do something. What if Jeongguk made a move on you? What if you guys were kissing right now? Or worse, on a date... Yoongi’s heart felt heavy. His heart was heavy and his stomach was queezy.

One good thing came from Yoongi’s less than normal emotional responses. It meant embarrassment and shame were less of a bitch. Still total bitches, but bitches on chill pills. “Alright,” Yoongi told himself, “Operation fuck my emotional response and ask Y/n out on a date is a go,” Yoongi immediately pulled out his phone, dialing his friend Jin.

“Hello!” Jin answered. “Hyung... I need your help with something.” Yoongi said, his voice deadly serious. “What’s up?” Yoongi took a deep breath, wiping his sweaty palms on his apron.

“You have a girlfriend...” Yoongi blurted out

“Yes...?” Jin chuckled

“And you asked her out,”

“That is correct.”

“How did you do that?”

Yoongi heard Jin’s squeaky laugh through the phone. “What?” He asked, confusion clear in his voice. “How d'you ask her out...?” Yoongi asked again. “I told her that I had feelings for her and asked her to go out with me,” Jin answered, most likely shrugging those broad shoulders of his. “How were you able to express your feelings?” Yoongi sighed.

Jin was well aware about Yoongi’s trouble expressing himself in a way that didn’t make kids cry from his scary, brooding face. He had even helped him on a few occasions when he had to apologize and look like he meant it, (Whether he really did or not) But expressing a feeling like a crush or even love, was different for everybody.

“Yoongi, are you trying to ask that Y/n girl out?” Jin inquired, hearing a thing or two about you from when Yoongi dropped hints here and there. “Yes...” Yoongi said, resting his chin on his hand in defeat. “Yoongi, buddy, there’s no “right way” to express your feelings to somebody, you just have to do it in a way that is right for you.” Jin advised.

“But the way I express things isn’t particularly... Nice,” Yoongi said.

“Yoongi, if she likes you too she’ll accept that your just you,” Jin stressed, “And if what you tell me about the way she treats you, I’m sure she’ll understand just how hard and serious it is for you to admit something like this,”

Maybe Jin was right, you’d get that he’s basically head over heels for you, right? You know how he operates. You always treated him like a normal human with normal expressive capabilities. Okay, he’ll do it.

Yoongi can’t do this. What was he thinking? Inviting you over at 9pm to “help him with flowers” was probably the worse idea he’s ever had. You probably think he’s a weirdo. More of a weirdo than he actually is. What is he supposed to do?

Well, it was too late. Because you just came barging through the door with a bag of takeout and that beautiful, blinding smile on your face. “Yoongs!” You exclaimed, placing down the food and giving him a hug. “Another emergency flower order?” You asked, taking out styrofoam containers and disposable chopsticks.

“Um... No. Yes... No,” He said, unusually indecisive. Yoongi sighed, sitting down at the table and taking a huge bite of the food that you handed him. “Yoongs, are you okay?” You asked, brows creased in worry. “I’m fine,” He shrugged, but you knew better.

“Are you sure? You seem a bit off,” You pushed, hoping he would give you the honest answer. “Mhmm. I just- uh... I’m just tired,” He answered, turning his attention back to his food. You frowned, picking your lukewarm dumpings.

You liked to call yourself a Yoongi translator. You knew a lot about his body language and usage of words. “I’m fine.” Usually meant just that. He was fine and meant it. But paired with his odd behavior just moments ago, you knew something was up.

But you also knew that Yoongi wasn’t an expressive person. He didn’t show powerful emotions very often. Yeah, he’s genuinely smiled before and chuckled. However, that was few and far between. Yoongi wasn’t good at expressing himself, and now that fact only worried you more.

“Hey Yoongs, you know the meanings of different flowers right?” You asked, brewing up an idea in your head. “Um, yes. You revealed that embarrassing fact when you snooped through my old books.” He said, raising his eyebrow incredulously. “What are you planning?” He asked.

You said nothing, instead opting to grab Yoongi and drag him out into the store. “Tell me how your feeling, but with the flowers,” You said. Yoongi looked at you like you’ve grown 3 head, “What?” He asked, still sounding iconically unimpressed. “I know something’s bothering you. I know it’s hard for you to express things sometimes, so tell me without words,” You explained, urging Yoongi to do as you say. “You don’t know the meanings though,” He argued. “Wrong. I studied them for a month straight to impress you. It’ll be fine,” You gave him a smile, and he felt his resolve breaking.

Yoongi thought about it for a second. Originally he was planning on just forgetting his entire plan and watching trash tv with you in the back until the sun came up, but this could work. Does he want it to work? Will you understand what he means when he gives you a pink camellia? Will you be weirded out if he presented you with red chrysanthemum?

It was worth a shot.

Yoongi sighed, giving into your admittedly smart idea. This could work. Yoongi ran around the shop, picking out flowers of different kinds and colors, coming back to you with a messy bouquet. “Okay, lets begin. You won’t have to talk or explain, you can just nod your head,” You said. Yoongi nodded, handing you his first flower.

A yellow hyacinth.

“Jealousy? Are you jealous of someone?” You asked,

Yoongi nodded.

A vine of ivy

“...Friendship? A friend? Are you jealous of a friend?”

Another nod.

Gardenia

“Secret love... You have a crush on somebody?” Your heart stung a bit at that one, but you schooled your emotions. This was about Yoongi, not you. “Your jealous of your crush?” You asked, but Yoongi shook his head no. “Your jealous of... your crushes friend...?” You guessed, Yoongi nodded, stoic face still unchanging.

A red columbine.

“Anxious, your crush makes you anxious?” You asked. Yoongi didn’t answer right away, but he lifted his hand and made a “sort of” motion. You racked your brain again for a moment. “Having a crush... makes you nervous?”

Yoongi nodded

“Is it because your bad at expressing yourself?”

Yoongi gave you a ‘duh’ face, holding out another flower.

A yellow carnation

“They rejected you?” Yoongi shook his head, pointing back to the red columbine, “Ohhh, you’re scared that they will reject you.” A nod.

Yoongi had one more flower left, but he didn’t give it to you just yet. He hid it behind his back, away from view, so you opted to cheer him up a bit in hopes that you’ll be able to comfort him enough to express this last thing. “Yoongs, you’re a great dude! Anybody would be lucky to have you! Sure, maybe your not as dramatic as me, but you care in your own way. That’s all that matters,” You said, giving him a smile.

Yoongi looked away from you to the side. He wasn’t usually a nervous person. Why is he so nervous? Why is this the one emotion that’s cripplingly strong? He could do it. He didn’t even have to say anything, just hand you the goddamn flower. He’s psyching himself out. Quickly, he thrusted the flower towards you without thinking.

Chucking, you took it in your hands

A red rose.

I love you.

“Yoongi, you should give this to your crush, not me,” You chuckled, but Yoongi didn’t move, just stared at you with unimpressed eyes. “Yoongs, you don’t mean...” “I love you,” He blurted out, a soft blush dusting his cheeks. “Y-You do?” You asked.

One last nod.

“Sup loser,” You lovingly greeted your grumpy boyfriend, giving him a kiss on the cheek. Yoongi rolled his eyes, wrapping an arm around your waist from where he was sat in his work chair, meticulously finishing up his last order of the day. “And you claim you love me when you treat me like that,” He said, voice gruff and scratchy from not using it for a while.

“Yeah, yeah, I love you too,” You chuckled. Yoongi bent down under the table and grabbed a flower, wordlessly handing it to you. “A red camellia?” You asked, taking a whiff of its pleasing aroma. “I’m expressing,” He said, and you nodded, understanding.

Yoongi’s gotten a bit better with expressing himself, but it can still be hard for him. As a solution, he talks to you in flowers when he wants to say something but can’t form the words. “You’re the flame in my heart too Yoongs,” You smiled, kissing the top of his head

Yoongi might not know the exact moment he fell in love with you. All he knew is that it happened swiftly and silently.

Like a zephyr on a warm day.

#yoongi #min yoongi #suga #yoongi x reader #bts #bts fic #bts oneshot #yoongi oneshot #fluff

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krislammsidbtjournal · 4 years ago

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Creative-Problem Interviews

INTERVIEW 1

About Jay Josue. Jay Josue is Sr. Art Director in Los Angeles and currently works at Arcana Academy, an Ad Agency located in Venice. Jay is also a freelance concept and title designer. His selected work can be seen in The Current War (2019), Citizen (2016), Me and Earl and The Dying Girl (2015).

How do you generate ideas? (How, when, and where are you inspired? What inspires you?)

Jay is a big believer in completely submerging yourself in the world of your project. For example, when Jay was working on The Current War (2019), he engulfed himself in learning everything about the Industrial Age. He gained every bit of knowledge about the electricity titans that were Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, and Nikola Tesla. Although Jay’s role in the project was more aligned with typography, he stressed that you need to dive into the world and sit with it. “Find an entry-level way to enter the world in any way, shape, or form. From there, you will begin to see the narrative pulled from the styles, history, and aesthetics of your research”.

When asked what inspires him, Jay answered, “Everything. Everywhere. Anytime.” Jay finds beauty in everything and draws on the emotional presence of his surroundings. He stresses that we often find ourselves strenuously seeking inspiration versus letting our subconscious do the work – it is why our greatest ideas come from the shower. An example of this is when Jay looks at a building, he not only sees the building holistically, but he draws his attention to the inner workings of the multiple layers that make up the building.

What obstacles do you face in coming up with a new idea, and how do you overcome them?

Due to the fast-paced nature of his work, Jay often finds himself challenged with what he calls “Trend Traps.” There is a time and place where a project can take the likings of the newest design trends. However, Jay always strives to come up with something more meaningful in his work.

When asked about overcoming challenges, Jay answered, “As cliché, as it sounds, thinking outside the box helps me combat trend traps.” He encourages always looking at the problem from different angles and allowing yourself to zoom out of the logical problem and think more emotionally. Jay concludes, “By giving yourself a broad perspective in problem-solving and sitting in the world, you will produce more meaningful work.”

What process(es) do you use to solve problems?  

Identify the task at hand.

Be comfortable with the information and sit with it.

Research and place yourself within that world.

Begin ideating through sketching, mood boards, scanning books, etc.

Start experimenting through mock-ups and prototypes.

Distill your best ideas and see what works (perhaps ideas 1 and 3 can be the immediate solution).

Execute and continue polishing your final piece.

Finally, deploy.

Jay shared that his process is akin to a fine-artist discipline. Sometimes, the process can hinder his creativity, so he seeks the delicate balance of building parameters broad enough where he can still play without limitations.

INTERVIEW 2

About Blake Hill-Saya. Blake Hill-Saya is a published author and is the founder of Tenacity Communications, a verbal branding agency in Los Angeles. Blake is also a professional opera singer and licensed physical therapist. Blake brings a unique perspective in her writing with her multifaceted career background.

How do you generate ideas? (How, when, and where are you inspired? What inspires you?)

As a verbal coach, Blake is inspired largely by the conversations she has with her clients. One of her foundational questions is, "Tell me about a time with your job where everything just went incredible and tell me how you were feeling." Blake explains that such questions do not often get posed on clients when attempting to find their brand. What she finds from that question is an interesting language where the brand's true essence comes out.

Blake's original work is inspired by the entire literary landscape and the panoramic view it offers. She habitually reads all day and spends her time listening to podcasts about writing, seeking inspiration by writing down new phrases she has not tried out before or looking to see where she could insert herself into the story. Essentially, Blake enjoys and is inspired by the journey in which it took the author to get to where they are and finds a way to find her journey.

What obstacles do you face in coming up with a new idea, and how do you overcome them?

When it comes to obstacles, "writer's block is a real thing," and for Blake, it manifests when she is either overwhelmed or burnt out. For Blake, it means it is time to get active. She goes on what she calls "writers walk," where she puts on an audiobook of some of her favorite authors or writers. "I like to restore my faith in good writing and feeling like I have a companionship." She can also be found with a notepad on these walks to help with her writer's block. Blake has also adapted the advice by the late author Ray Bradbury which is to read two short stories and one poem.

As a musician, Blake has found that one way to combat being overwhelmed is with a few minor mental tricks which can be applied to any problem. When she needs to learn a new music piece, she breaks them out into portions and gets to rehearsing. Similarly, she finds herself repeating to herself, "just write X number of pages" to get the juices flowing with writing. "You have to find a system that works for you and stick to that system."

What process(es) do you use to solve problems?

Listen and sit with your client. Do it gracefully and inquisitively. Make them feel cared for. Often with businesses, you can get bogged down with business jargon, but as a consultant, you're able to harness the power of listening.

Build a structure but remember to remain flexible. For example, come to a meeting with prepared questions, but don't structure yourself so much that you can still react at the moment. You want your client the walk away to feel like they've been seen and heard.

Always follow up with a thank you email and a personal touch to know that "Hey! I see and hear you, and I'm on your side!"

INTERVIEW 3

About Jourel Baello. Jourel Baello is a Site Merchandiser at MeUndies where he oversees the digital storefront of MeUndies.com, CA-based underwear, and loungewear company. Jourel brings a broad perspective on fast fashion with his unique career journey from traditional brick and mortar retail to eCommerce. Before MeUndies, Jourel worked at Guitar Center as their eCommerce Specialist and spent seven years at Cotton On climbing the corporate ladder from Sales Associate in-store to eCommerce Merchandise Analyst at their LA headquarters.

How do you generate ideas? (How, when, and where are you inspired? What inspires you?)

MeUndies is a key player in the subscription-based business model, so in order to stay ahead, Jourel looks to the industry for emerging trends to elevate their customer experience. He reviews the competitive landscape and finds opportunities other brands may have that MeUndies could bring to the table.

What inspires Jourel is that eCommerce is still relatively in its infancy compared to the larger scope of retail. “Being at the forefront of what eCommerce can become excites me as an early pioneer in the space.” Jourel is also inspired by the ever-changing playing field eCommerce brings. He concludes, “There is no wrong answer, just lots of testing and different ways to approach problems. Finding the piece of the puzzle that no one else can provide is such a fun challenge.”  

What obstacles do you face in coming up with a new idea, and how do you overcome them?

The biggest challenge Jourel faces is centered around bandwidth with the Developers and Engineers. MeUndies, like any eComm retailer, runs 24/7, 365 days of the year, which is great when collecting feedback on how to make the user experience better, but difficult when all of those changes become overlapping projects. Additionally, more pressure is added around seasonal promotions such as Black Friday where a set of new ideas are introduced. Jourel overcomes these challenges with transparent communication with his team. He reviews the project pipeline and identifies areas where things can be moved around. Then, with the blessings from his senior management, he optimizes new deadlines and manages deliverables. “I constantly revisit our roadmap because of how fast things are changing.” Jourel expresses that it is imperative to see the view of each project and its relation to how it may impact other projects.

What process(es) do you use to solve problems?

Ideating – What is the problem at hand? Are we able to come up with a hypothesis? What questions can we ask?

Cross Functional Discussions – Align with outside departments to ensure goals they have in mind are being addressed.

Internal Team Discussion – Discuss with the internal team about research and findings. Discussing what next steps are if it’s needed to go back to ideating phase.

Test. Test. Test. – Aggressively testing to see what options work and narrowing down solutions.

Analyzing Results – Reviewing test results and make implementation decision. At this stage, it can become iterative which helps drive clarity.

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purplesurveys · 4 years ago

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1110

survey by evening-hush

Can you drive yet? Tell me what you think about it: I love being able to know how to do it. It’s super convenient and I appreciate how it allows me to travel on my own time and schedule.

What is your favorite time period in history to learn about? When it comes to learning history, it’s not really so much a certain period I like reading about but rather the sub-topic under it. That said, I like learning about social history the most. I’d much rather learn about the recipes people used to make than the weapons they used in war, or who conquered which lands.

What's the saddest report you have ever seen on the news? It unfortunately makes for somewhat frequent news here, but I always hear of news clips covering discarded fetuses - and sometimes even days-old infants - located in a trash bin. It makes me infuriated too, but for the most part it’s heartbreaking.

Describe what your smile looks like: I think I have quite a cheery smile. I just get insecure sometimes because of my teeth, but most of the time I like to smile big and have it look genuine.

What colors do you associate with all of the four seasons? As someone from a country that doesn’t actually get to experience any of the four seasons, here’s what I think of each: winter is white, summer is sky blue/yellow, spring is yellow/pink, and fall is maple-ish/orange.

In your honest opinion, what is the scariest sea creature you know? Erm, probably those deep-sea creatures that look more like rocks than fish.

Don't you think old people are awesome? I think most Baby Boomers suck, but there are some rare gems out there, I guess.

What is your favorite day of the week? Why? Friday, of course. Reaching the end of the day, knowing there’s a full weekend ahead of me, feels super relieving and freeing.

What time do you usually get to sleep at night? It varies. On weekdays I’ll sleep anywhere between 9-11 PM; and more recently, for weekends, I’ve been trying to stay up until midnight or beyond because I want to be able to catch up on the hobbies I don’t get to do on weekdays.

When you text, do you use text lingo? If it’s with a friend, yes. Never with a client or anyone I’m communicating with for official work purposes.

Oh! What's your name? Robyn.

Who would you cast to play you in a movie? I guess the obvious choice would be Vanessa Hudgens since she’s Filipina?? but idk. It would be neat to have someone as badass as Florence Pugh or Emma Stone to play me, though.

If you could go back in time & live in any decade, which would it be & why? I’d shake it up and pick some random, obscure, perhaps unremarkable decade like the 1570s. Just so I have absolutely no clue what to expect.

What superpower do you think would be the most handy in times of trouble? Manipulation of thoughts/emotions. It’s not the most ethical, but that’s not what we’re talking about here lmao.

Do you believe there is just one love for everyone, or...? I believe everyone can have their own truth when it comes to love.

What natural disaster scares you the most? Earthquakes.

Why are you best friends with your best friend? She just gets me, I guess. We get along very well, our humors match perfectly, but most of all she’s patient with me and I’ve always been able to see that she genuinely cares about me.

What quirk bothers you the most about other people? People are so quick to cancel others these days; it’s amusing to watch people enthusiastically pick fights over just about anything.

Would you ever marry for money? The idea itself is attractive, but I’m not sure I would actually push through with it. I think I have to love someone should I ever marry them.

What is one of the toughest things you have ever had to do? Move on with my life. Acknowledge the ugly emotions and acknowledge that I’m not doing ok.

What outrageous career could you see yourself wanting to do? This is outrageous for me, but modeling. The career itself is not strange, but I used to want to be a runway model in my early teens and it’s funny to look back on now.

Do you world peace is truly a possibility in the future? No.

What song lyrics best reflect your personality? Idk about personality, but right now, “Why do memories glow the way real moments don’t?” is super relevant to my life at the moment.

In what way would you want to help change the world? Being one with marginalized groups in their various fights and causes.

Do you think it is important to tell the truth or spare someone's feelings? It depends on the gravity of the situation, I guess? Like white lies are fine, but in more serious situations it’s always better to tell the truth. I remember that when my great-aunt died last year, all her siblings made it a point not to inform their brother (my great-uncle) who recently had a heart surgery and was thus very vulnerable and could possibly have an attack if he ever found out. They kept it from him for nearly the entire year and it drooooove meeeeee nutsssssssss. I suppose it was understandable for the first few days, but when those days turned to several months, I started to wish they’d tell him sooner because I felt like it would be a lot worse once he learned she’d been dead since the start of the year. Anyway, I was recently informed he knew about it already and I never heard drama come out of it, so I guess it was dealt with well.

What is the most awkward moment you have ever had to endure? Ugh, probably that time an online delivery arrived at home and it was a fucking vibrator/dildo meant for my parents.

When driving down the road looking for an address do you turn the radio low? Hahahaha yessss.

Pretend you are a really good cook, what meal would you make? Risotto.

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your closet? Why? My mom jeans. It’s a classic look that always works, plus it’s super comfy.

What do you think of when you look at the stars? Looking up at the stars means I’m thinking hard. It gets me in a reflective mood.

If you could say ONE THING to the president, what would it be? Ughhhh fuck you get your presidency over with already we are all fucking tired.

What is your favorite kind of weather? As long as it’s chilly I’m happy.

If a turtle doesn't have a shell, is he homeless or naked? Both, I guess?

What's one thing you feel you must do in your life before it ends? Travel to a different continent.

What Disney princess are you most like? Personality wise, I mean. Ariel was such a hopeless romantic and reckless and dumb when it came to love, so let’s go with her.

Tell me about your worst fashion mistake: I was a late bloomer and let my mom buy my clothes for me at ages where I definitely should’ve already stopped doing so.

Do you believe in astrology? No.

Do you look into people's eyes when you talk to them? Not always.

You can have one of the following two things: trust or love. Pick one. Don’t they come together though? If I love someone it means I trust them?? But it’s whatever. I’ll go with trust.

Are you the kind of friend that you would want to have as a friend? Yeah, I think I’m thoughtful and I like that I’m good at remembering small details about my friends. I’d love a friend like that.

What would be harder for you, to tell someone you love them or that you don't love them? Probably that I don’t. I’ve never had to do it before, either.

What do you think is the most important thing in this life is? Self-satisfaction.

What did you think about this survey thingy? :] Nice roster of random questions! I personally enjoyed it.

#survey #surveys

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mouthtrashworld · 4 years ago

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HEAR ME OUT: PARIS HILTON INSPIRED ME TO GO TO ART SCHOOL

HEAR ME OUT: PARIS HILTON INSPIRED ME TO GO TO ART SCHOOL AND BECOME A FILMMAKER.

My sister and I played it cool until my parents dark purple grand caravan left the driveway. We knew we had to conceal our excitement of being home alone for a few hours in order to not seem suspicious. It was our chance to watch whatever trash was on television that day without the normal censorship our parents had set on us. My mother strived to win the gold medal for being a helicopter parent and my dad just agreed with whatever she said. Somehow we were always a step ahead of them. There was a vast lack of communication within my household which lead me to crave answers and sneak around to get them.

We really made a day of it. We pulled our big fluffy comforters off our beds and brought them to the couch, gathered every unhealthy snack from our cabinet (which was difficult as my mother kept a strict, low carb, low sodium, no sugar menu to chose from in our house) and hung heavy blankets over the windows to block out the glare on the 30 inch Panasonic VHS combo unit. My older sister, Cate, had control over the remote, she knew which channel number MTV played on and she memorized the Parental Control Password that was set on various channels that aired the exact rubbish it was to protect us from, but quickly became our favorite shows. At the time I didn’t even really know how Cate found out these shows existed. Our amount of media consumption was little to none. Living in a tiny town in Pennsylvania, attending private Christian school and hardly having a social life; our only connection to whats out there

would be the local blockbuster that my mother skirted us in and then quickly out of after renting wholesome family movies. I remember slipping away from my moms watch just long enough to find the “1 Night in Paris” sex tape DVD that was made in 2004 with Rick Salomon (who by the way has been married to Pamela Anderson TWICE!) and Paris Hilton as the star. A few years later, The Simple Life, featuring Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie became a huge success for Fox and was later taken over by E! network. The glimpse of the DVD cover was so scandalous I felt guilty just for looking at it. We were a few years late, really just catching the reruns of the show that E!, MTV or VH1 would play during the middle of the day, but we ate it up nonetheless.

The first episode I ever watched was on Season 5. The two girls become camp counselors and every week a different theme and set of campers come in to encounter their shenanigans. This episode was “Fat Camp” and the first order of business was for Paris and Nicole to give the campers enema’s before they start their week of dieting and exercise. It was absolutely ridiculous. I felt bad that these campers who fell victim to their bratty comments, yet my sister and I couldn’t take our eyes off it. Reality TV works in that way you know, where you feel bad, but not bad enough because its not your life.

Soon Cate and I started adding other reality shows to our pallet of rebellion. The Girls Next Door, a reality show about Hugh Hefner’s girlfriends living in the Playboy Mansion. Real World Cancun, AKA Jersey Shore before there was Jersey Shore. And of course The Hills where Lauren Conrad and Heidi Montag live it up in Orange County, a place I

thought was made up until I visited there in 2014. But the Simple Life remained my favorite of them all. But Paris Hilton was my first glimpse of glamour, so she always remained my favorite. Granted, Kim Kardashian has seemed to surpass her on many levels after starting out as her intern. And sure maybe Paris is an heiress who will never run out of money or resources and people behind her, producing her, but Miss Hilton found a savvy way to brand herself right at the pinnicale of the internet and she still had to work for it. As a filmmaker I am hyper aware of the way we consume media, which is why I’ve taken such an interest to Paris and this manipulation she had turned into an art form.

Before we go on, in case you don’t know how Paris got famous, I’m here to give you a brief backstory. Paris Hilton, heiress to the Hilton Hotels empire, was actually raised a lot like me. Her parents were strict. She wasn’t allowed to wear makeup or have much of a social life. I believe her parents knew what kind of name she bared and the harsh reality that could come with it, so they kept her on a tight leash. Despite their efforts to keep her tame she slipped away, out into the world long enough to meet famous photographer David LaChapelle, who became enamored with Paris and her sister Nicky, and insisting he take their photo. She knew it was highly against her parents rules to engage in that kind of activity but she went for it. He designed an elaborate set and costumes for them and they went ahead naively thinking the photos would be just for them to admire in private but were later were published in a 2001 Vanity Fair issue, getting her in a whole lot of trouble. She later had to turn down and offer to do Playboy because her parents would disinherit her. By the time she was 18 her career as a model

and professional partier could really take off. Paris became absolutely obsessed with fame. She came up with a formulated routine on how to grab the paparazzi’s attention. She would find all the places photographers would be hanging out that day and go to every single location just to be seen and her plan really seemed to work. She was the bright and shining star of every tabloid in America. She describes in the documentary film, “American Meme” how desperate she was, spending hours searching for a place with someone, anyone to take her picture no matter what it took. Her paparazzi access seemed responsible for Paris to become a household name. — add on?

We have to remember that this time, 2007-2009, was a turning point, as smart phones and blackberries were now in almost every American’s pocket and we were craving the tea more than ever. Tabloids started working around the clock to deliver us the latest scoop at the now possible all hours of the day; i.e. the tragedies of Amy Whinehouse, LiLo and her drug escapades, Britney Spears and her hairless melt down, the list goes on. We asked for it, we got it and kept asking for more. After Paris sought out these outlets, the offers poured in. Her own show, movie roles, modeling for brand name designers, she became a DJ, became an author, a business woman, a fashion designer she owns hotels in Dubai and is currently carrying a hefty 10.5 million instagram follower count.

I know what you’re thinking, like okay so who cares about this rich “bimbo” (dubbed courtesy of a New York Post article circa 2007) but just hear me out. Most of us can relate to her story and if not, at least to some of her tactics. What I grew to realize after becoming social media obsessed (possibly because I was deprived as a child) is that

no matter how information changes or what new technology comes to pass it along to us, we will always be doing it in the same way. I watched Myspace come and pass, seeing thousands of singers, bands and actresses get discovered through that site, even some playmates in Playboy magazine. I saw Facebook allow us to put every single thing about our lives on blast at any minute of the day. Twitter allows us to barf our thoughts up in once 180, now 280 characters, Vine stars made 6 seconds videos and now make 6 figures from their fame and last but not least Instagram, and trust me when I say I cringe having to say this, “influencers” sell to us with every photo or video they post. Whether that be a lifestyle, a product or just themselves as a person. A vast majority of us have to admit that we are drinking the juice. We ourselves are partaking in marketing our “best life” being lived via Instagram. So ask yourself, what is the difference between what we are doing on the Gram versus what Paris was doing in 2006, showcasing her persona to the media in the only way it was accessible at the time? Why not manipulate it the same way it manipulates us? Find out where the quote on quote Paparazzi are and market yourself the same way reality stars did.

Not that I have the intention to come up in the same way some of these heiresses who’s names are already famous or these vine stars or twitter comedians did but I have the power to show a portion of the world who I am and what I can do to earn my career as a filmmaker and communicator via social media.

I realized that what I was doing as a little kid, waiting for my parents to leave to seek a world outside my own is exactly what Paris did. She took the risk and got the answers.

Her obsession with fame coincided with my obsession with social media, to communicate and or get my work out there. I’m just trying to work system to brand myself. My research shows that the reality show we down load from an app store and place in our pockets has led me to some big wins. Upon getting hired for shoots or my work recognized in some way, I see there is a formula to the entire thing. When to post, how to post, who to follow, etc. I have no producers behind me to curate my Instagram, I have no connection to someone with a big name. All I have is myself to show for what I can do and if I keep going back to the place with the most access to the loudest voices , like Paris did I may have a shot at getting my own voice out there and I will say more important things than “thats hot” I promise you.

In the end I think that the reason I clung to Paris and her story so deeply was because it was virtually first and foremost example I had and to as impressionable young woman, that kind of thing sticks. The definition of success and how to obtain it was taught to me was by sneaking her show on a Saturday afternoon while my parents when to Shop Rite without me. I’ve just stayed observing all the ways fame has developed via internet and can lead to success. But the beauty of the defying gravity factor is that this blond “bimbo” and many other “bimbos” like her have done the same thing, most without the Hilton name. All I did was think twice before I believed that reality television was just a trashy phase. Instead I realized that I, like many others, am still consuming similar content in 2009 now in 2019, the difference is its in the palm of my hand and I’m deciding to take advantage of it.

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raysofcrosby · 5 years ago

Text

WHEN YOU’RE READY

𝘨𝘪𝘧 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵 (𝘹)

𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥: yes | no

𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨(𝘴): angry nolan, bad words and mentions of std’s

𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵: 4,901

𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦: so i’m not a huge health expert, so there’s a good 90% chance that the way the appointment in this goes, isn’t factual. so please don’t attack me lmao. tbh this idea came to me while i was cleaning out our garage??? like i think this is gonna be a multi-part imagine??? safe sex is important everybody!!!! even if you’re on bc, condoms are important so please be safe!!!! ok enough rambling, bye!

“Chlamydia! The stupid asshole has Chlamydia!” You screamed, pacing back and forth as you waved the piece of paper in front of your best friend, Nolan's face. “He has Chlamydia and he wasn’t even going to tell me!”

“Well, do uh...have you er—“ Nolan asked, the tips of his ears turning red as he scratched at his neck.

You stopped and stood directly in front of him, the piece of paper feeling like it was on fire as you held it in your hand. “What?”

“Have you...” His eyes shifted from the paper to you and then back to the paper. “You know...”

Now it was your turn to turn red from embarrassment as his eyes stayed glued to the piece of paper. You and Nolan have been best friends since you were kids, sharing all the awkward moments that growing up with an opposite-sex best friend had to offer. He was (unfortunately) there for your first period, your parents gave you joint sex talks after they walked in on the two of you sharing a quick, experimental kiss when you were 10 (which also marked the end of your joint sleepovers) you knew each other’s, body counts— there was nothing in this world that could make you feel embarrassed in front of him...or so you thought. Because him asking you whether or not you have an STD was brand new territory and you didn’t like it.

“No,” You stared back down at the piece of paper, looking for the date. “But the results say he came in Tuesday last week and we haven’t had sex—“

“Nope, stop right there.” He held up his hand and got up off of the couch, walking towards the kitchen and grabbing his keys off the counter. “I guess our parents duel birds and bees talk didn’t scare you as much as it did me, because if it did— you’d be more aware of STD’s and getting tested.”

“Oh trust me, I was scared the moment your mom brought out the fresh produce.” You replied, cringing at the memory of your parents teaching you about condoms. “But we haven’t had sex in—“

“Doesn’t matter Y/N! Who’s to say he hasn’t had....” He paused as the elevator doors closed behind you. He couldn’t even bring himself to say the word— and you were thankful for it. “What I’m trying to say is, guys are idiots. He could have had all the signs and ignored them and not realized something was wrong until too late and that’s why he got tested.”

When the elevator doors opened again, he walked ahead of you and you followed behind like a puppy. “What you need to be focused about, besides getting tested, is why the hell he’s had these results for almost two weeks and hasn’t told you.”

“Oh trust me, I’m giving him an ear full the next time I see his sneaky ass.” You mumble, getting into Nolan’s car and putting on your seatbelt.

He didn’t say another word as he left the parking garage to his apartment building and began driving down the road. You were equally as calm as you were embarrassed right now, and you had Nolan to thank for it. He’s been your rock since you were kids, even taking you under his wing the moment that you decided to move to Philly last year, for a job opportunity that you couldn’t refuse and one that your parents didn’t understand. He and his teammate, Travis let you stay with them rent free until you could save up some money and find a place. But instead of finding a place, you found Preston.

Nolan was supportive of course, but his unease about just how soon you and Preston moved in together was not something he ever shied away from. The two of you even got into a huge argument about it the night before you moved in with Preston. The worst argument you’ve ever had, one that had you thinking that you’d probably never talk to one another again. But the next morning, Nolan had an edible arrangement sent to your desk with an apology and everything’s been well ever since. He’s always been supportive of you, no matter what you’ve done— and now is no different.

“Um Nol, this isn’t the way to my doctor's office.”

“That’s because we’re not going to a doctors office. You need results quicker than what a doctor’s office an offer. Not three days, not next week, now.” He pulled off the road and into the parking lot of a small clinic. “So, you’re doing a walk-in and getting your results the same day.”

“Do I even want to know how you know where a walk-in clinic is?” You asked, your eyebrows raised. It was hard to imagine that he’d ever had to come here for testing— oh God, what if he’s come here for another reason?

Nolan laughed, shaking his head as he opened his car door. “Never for me. Travis has made a visit or two after some...interesting encounters.”

You let out the breath you hadn’t even known you’d been holding and got out of the car. “I was about to say, I’m way too young to be a Godmother, Nolan.”

He mumbled something before getting out of the car. It was low, but it sounded like he said “you don’t have to worry about that,” but then again, this mumbling was a lot lower than his normal incoherent mumbling. So you probably misheard him. You shook it off and got out of the car, following Nolan into the small clinic. You didn't know what you were expecting. Any time you've ever gotten blood work or any kind of medical test done– it was at your own doctor's office.

There were four other people sitting in the waiting room, and you couldn't help but wonder what they were here for. Or if just by simply looking at you, they knew that your scumbag of a boyfriend had possibly given you chlamydia. "Here."

You shook yourself out of your thoughts to find Nolan shoving a clipboard into your chest. "What is this?"

"You were off in Y/N-land, so I got your paperwork. Just fill it out and then hand it off. She said a doctor should be with you shortly." He walked towards two chairs in the corner and sat down, patting the one next to him.

Your legs felt like jello as you followed suit and sat down. Picking up the pen that was connected to the clipboard, your eyes skimmed the paper. It was asking for basic facts like your name, age, insurance provider, and what you were there for– nothing too intimate. Though you knew the nurse or doctor you'd be cared by, would ask them as soon as you walked through that door. You slowly filled out the information before walking back up to the women, giving her a smile as she took the clipboard from you. "Just have a seat and we'll have someone with you in just a moment."

You nodded, turning back and immediately bumping into a little boy, no older than four. "Sorry." He giggled, running past you and over to a woman sitting by the small play area. No sooner than he bumped into her legs, she looked up and gave you a smile before returning back to filling out her paper.

A chill went down your spine as you walked back to Nolan and you could feel your palms begin to sweat. What if Preston had given you Chlamydia? What's the treatment? What if you had something worse? What were you going to tell your parents? Would you tell your parents? Surely Nolan wouldn't rat you out. Oh God, Nolan. He's as recognizable as a mall Santa. There's no way word won't get out that the Nolan Patrick, a Center for the Philadelphia Flyers, was sitting in a walk-in clinic with a nervous looking girl.

You could see the headlines now. 'Has Nolan Patrick knocked up a girl?' 'Tis the season for hockey– and a baby?!' You couldn't even begin to think about the mean tweets and comments on Instagram without feeling the least bit nauseous.

"Hey, you okay?" Nolan whispered, leaning over to you.

Whether it was his voice or the sudden realization of your situation, you got chills down your back and up your arms. "You should leave. I don't want you to get ostracized or something for being seen at a clinic with me."

In true Nolan fashion, he rolled his eyes. "I'm not letting you do this alone."

The door separating the waiting room from the rest of the clinic opened and a middle-aged woman in scrubs stood there with a clipboard in her hand. "Y/N L/N?" It freaked you out the moment her eyes landed directly on you without looking anywhere else in the room.

"Come on, let's go," Nolan said, wrapping his hand around yours and standing up, almost dragging you with him to the back room.

He hadn't let go of your hand the entire walk down the hallway and into a private room, only letting go when the Nurse told you to sit up on the exam table. And even then, he scooted the free chair closer to it in case of any emergent hand holding. "So Miss L/N, you wrote down that you're here for a Chlamydia test, is that correct?"

"Y-Yes ma'am." You replied, playing with your hands as your eyes darted around the room taking in all of the informational posters.

Like a well-oiled machine, she took your blood pressure and temperature, marking them down onto a piece of paper before looking at you again. "Are you having any symptoms?"

You opened your mouth to speak and your throat felt a little dry. You took a small breath and exhaled. "My boyfriend got tested last week and he uh....he has it. So I thought that I'd get tested..."

Her eyes immediately looked at Nolan with raised eyebrows. "Did you just do a Chlamydia test or a full STD screening?"

After her question went unanswered, Nolan looked away from a poster on the wall to see her staring at him. His cheeks immediately went red as his eyes widened. "Oh no. No, no I'm not–" he cleared his throat, giving you an embarrassed look. "I'm not her boyfriend."

"He's my emotional support best friend," You smiled, reaching for his hand and squeezing it. "He actually drove me here."

The nurse gave you a smile before turning back to Nolan. "Will you be getting any testing done today, young man? Or just her?"

"Just her."

She nodded and turned back to you with the clipboard in her hands. "Do you want him in the room when I ask these questions? They get a little personal."

"That's okay, I'll just go ahead and excuse my–"

"No!" You held onto his hand tighter, giving him a pleading look. "He stays. Otherwise, I think I might faint."

Nolan squeezed your hand back and leaned into his chair as the Nurse nodded her head. "Okay, so these are just some basic questions. There's no need to be nervous or scared, I'm here to help you figure everything out, okay?"

You gulped and nodded, feeling the nerves surge through your body. "O-Okay."

"Have you or your boyfriend ever had an STD before?"

"I haven't, no," You shook your head, burrowing your eyebrows as you thought about Preston and his sexual history...which you realized you hadn't really known much about. "I don't know about him, though."

"That's okay, no worries." She smiled, scribbling down. "How many people have you had sex with?"

"4, including my boyfriend and he's the only person I've been having sex with for the last 9 months."

"The kind of sex you've had?"

You felt your body begin to heat up at her question. She really wasn't kidding about how personal they got. You were starting to question whether or not you should have had Nolan leave the room. You glanced over at him to see that he was looking at everything except for you, probably trying to make himself seem invisible...but the flush of his cheeks shows that he too was feeling a little embarrassed.

"Um...everything?" You squeaked, feeling your heart hammer at the fact that your best friend now knew that you were no longer untouched in the backdoor apartment. Something that you two never really dwelled on the topic at all, but he still knew that you weren't the biggest fan. Your eyes went back to Nolan and his head was now ducked and staring at the floor.

"So, Vaginal, Oral, Anal–"

"Yes, yes, next question please."

God, if you're listening...please swallow me up right now.

"How often do you use protection? And is there anything else you do that could increase your chances of getting an STD?" How she was able to keep a stone cold face as she asked these questions, you had no clue. Because between both you and Nolan, you'd think that the two of you were tomatoes.

"Um...maybe like, 50% of the time, I guess? I've got the implant in my arm, but he switches on and off with condoms. And no, nothing that comes to mind."

She scribbled down the information onto the paper and gave you a reassuring smile before placing the clipboard down onto the counter and opening some cabinets. "Now, I know you came here just for the Chlamydia test, but is there any other testing you'd like to get done? Pregnancy? A full STD screening?"

"Um, sure? I guess."

She wrote some more stuff down on the clipboard before walking over towards the door. "Give me a minute and I'll be right back with the doctor, okay?"

She walked out of the room and it was as if she took all of the air with her. The tension between you and Nolan was so heavy, it was suffocating. "So, babies..."

"WHAT?"

He stood up and walked across the room, pointing to an anatomical poster of a baby in the womb. "There's a lot of babies in this room."

You could tell that he was trying his best to relieve the tension, but he was ultimately failing. "Sorry, you had to sit through that. If I would have known the kind of questions..."

He shrugged his shoulders and stuffed his hands into his hoodie pockets. "S'okay. It was uh..." He rubbed the back of his neck and you could tell he was trying to fight his body from letting his cheeks redden even more. "Educational?"

You burst into laughter as the tears you'd been holding back released themselves. Out of all of the things, Nolan calling the fact that he learned you'd done anal...educational. "I love you," you sniffled, wiping your cheeks as he came and sat down next to you again. "What am I going to do? What if I have it? What if I'm pregnant? What if–"

He covered your mouth and while he had a smile on his face, the calmness in his eyes spoke to you the most. "What you're not going to do is give yourself a panic attack, okay?"

You nodded and he dropped his hand, reaching down and holding yours. "Then what am I supposed to do?"

He looked around the room, his eyes settling on a stack of pamphlets on the counter. He got back up and looked through them, coming back with what looked to be like one from every pile. "We read up on it. So if your results do come back positive, you have the right information and treatment so you won't send yourself into a panic attack."

He sat down and placed the pamphlets down next to him, taking both of your hands in his as you sniffled again. "I'm right here Y/N and I'm not leaving, okay? Whatever happens, you'll have me right here by your side."

He reached up and wiped your cheek, giving you a smile as you nodded. The door opened and the nurse from earlier came back in with the doctor by her side. "Hi Y/N, I'm Dr. Pippen," He smiled, extending his hand to you before turning to Nolan. "And this must be the emotional support best friend."

"Nolan, sir," Nolan replied, shaking his hand.

"Nice game Friday and an even better win," He replied, turning back to look at the paper the Nurse had written on. "So, what we're going to do is a basic STD screening and then a pregnancy test. Have you ever had any of those before?"

"No sir, never."

"Alright, so Chlamydia and Gonorrhea tests can be done through urine samples, so we'll have you pee in a cup and that's how we'll do your pregnancy test as well. Those results you'll be able to receive tomorrow." He flipped the paper over as the nurse prepared the sterile cup and pulled out packaged needles and labeled tubes. "Now, for the rest, we'll be taking small blood samples and those can take another day or two depending on how backed up the lab is."

"What are the rest you're screening for, sir?" Nolan asked, interacting during your appointment for the first time.

"HIV, Syphilis, and Hepatitis B." He looked up from the clipboard and gave you a reassuring smile. "Based on your answers, it's a slim chance that you could have any of those, but it's never a bad thing to be safe, okay?"

You just nodded and looked at Nolan as you heard the Nurse start to prepare to take some blood samples. "Hey, how are we ever supposed to get matching tattoos if you're freaking out over some tiny needles," Nolan whispered, the glint in his eye telling you not to worry.

"Go ahead and clench your fist for me, honey," the nurse said as you felt her tie the rubber band on your arm. "Perfect, now you'll just feel a pinch."

"Do I still get artistic control of our said, matching tattoos?"

"As long as you don't make it frilly and girly, of course." He said, but you knew he was lying based on the fact that he had three flowers on the inside of his bicep– one of his mom and the other two for his sisters.

"I'm going to pick the frilliest and girliest tattoo ever then."

"Okay, now we just need your urine sample and then you're done." The nurse said, turning back and placing the two tubes of blood into a plastic bag. She turned back to you and handed you another plastic bag with your information on it and a plastic, clear cup. "The bathroom is just right across the hall."

You took the materials out of her hand and were amazed at how solid your legs felt for the first time since finding (bf) paper results. Opening the door, you turned back one last time and looked at Nolan who gave you a small smile and a thumbs up. You turned back and left the room, letting the heavy door close behind you before walking into the bathroom.

You've peed in a cup before, sure. To get your job you had to take a drug test and that wasn't nerve wracking. But this, this was a test that would show whether or not you had two sexual diseases or if you were going to be a mother in 9 months time. Undressing from the waist down, you hovered over the toilet and closed your eyes, trying to relax your hand holding the cup from shaking. Unless you wanted to chug a few bottles of water, this was your only chance to get the test done and leave the clinic.

When you were done, you closed the cup and put it in the bag sealing it. As you washed your hands, you looked at your reflection in the mirror. Your eyes were puffy from your short stint at crying, your hair a little bit of a wreck– but otherwise, you looked the same. You didn't look how you had been feeling the last few hours– different, changed... as nothing would ever be the same after finding out that your boyfriend could have potentially given you an STD.

Walking out of the bathroom and back into the private room, you put the cup in a small tub on the counter and the nurse smiled at you. "I'll go ahead and print you off a copy of your test order and then you're free to go, I'll take you back out front."

You followed her down the hall and through the door, back into the waiting room again, Nolan still by your side. We stood at the front, waiting for her to hand you the printout. When she did, You gave her a thankful smile. "We'll call you with the results, have a nice night."

Walking out of the clinic, you'd expected for the sun to be completely set and the nightlife of Philly to be alive. Yet the sun was only beginning to set and traffic was at ease. It was strange because being in that clinic...it felt like you were in there for hours. Where when you looked at the time, it had really only been 45 minutes. You and Nolan had kept quiet as you got into his car and began to pull out of the parking lot. Coming to a stop, he placed his hand on top of yours and looked at you. "What do you want to do?"

What you wanted to do was drive out to an abandoned lot, get out of the car and just scream– to let out your frustrations. And even though you knew Nolan would support it full heartedly, maybe going to an abandoned lot at this time of day wasn't the best idea. So instead, you took a deep breath, squeezed his hand and said, "take me home."

––

Nolan was against dropping you off at your apartment and leaving you there to talk to Preston alone but after insisting and then threatening to cut his hair while he slept...he finally left. You didn't want Nolan to be there when you had the talk with him because you were already embarrassed enough at the fact that he had to take you to the clinic to get tested. Having him hear you argue with your boyfriend about how the hell he got Chlamydia and if he was going to tell you, wasn't something you wanted him there for.

The front door to your apartment opened and Preston strolled in, closing it behind him and hanging his keys up on the hook. "Hey babe," He said, sounding relaxed and happy as he made his way over to you in the living room. "Is everything o–"

That's when he must have seen it, his unfolded test results sitting directly in front of you, face up and in full view. You had your hands tucked beneath your chin as you stared at the paper. "Sit down."

"Where did you get–"

"SIT Preston!" You yelled, keeping your eyes on the paper because you knew the moment that you looked him in the eyes, your facade would fall and the tears would spill.

You reached out and slid the paper over towards him. "Y/N, I can explain."

You let out a gutted laugh, finally looking at him. "Please do! Please explain to me why I found a positive test result for Chlamydia from almost two weeks ago, sitting on the counter!" His eyes stayed looking down at the paper as if he was reading it over. But you knew better, he was just too chicken to look you in the eye. "How?"

You already knew the answer, you just wanted him to say it. To see if he was capable of being an adult and facing his problems head-on. The way his eyebrows furrowed and straightened out again as he chewed on his lip, was showing you that he was contemplating his explanation. The truth or a lie? "Maybe you–"

"Don't you even go there, Preston."

He sighed and rubbed his hands down the front of his face as he fell back into the couch. "It was only two times."

In an instant, it was like those five words sucker punched you so hard in the gut, that you could feel the pain in your back. "O-Only two times? ONE TIME IS BAD ENOUGH PRESTON! BUT TWO?!"

"Y/N, please it was a–"

You held up your hand to silence him, feeling your bottom lip tremble as you collected your thoughts. "I had to get tested today, Preston. Nolan had to drive me to the fucking walk-in clinic to get tested for Chlamydia and every other fucking STD in the book because you can't keep your minuscule dick in your pants?"

You stood up and held your hands out to calm yourself, looking at him. "And you have the fucking guts, to say it was only two times...and that it was a mistake," you laughed and shook your head. "Fucking unbelievable."

You heard the couch shift back as he stood up fast, clenching the paper in his hands. "Why were you even going through my stuff?"

"You left it on the kitchen counter, genius!" You said, turning your back to him and crossing your arms. "Get out."

"What?" He asked, scoffing at your demand. "This is my apartment! I'm not getting out of my apartment."

"Fine," You turned back to him, glaring at him. "Then I'm leaving. I'll come back for all of my stuff."

"Come on, Y/N, let's talk this out like adults and–"

"ADULTS?" You laughed, shaking your head. "WE'RE YOU EVEN GOING TO TELL ME?"

He stood there, his eyes switching constantly between the floor, his test results and you. "Eventually."

"Eventually," you threw your hands up and let them fall against your legs. "Eventually, doesn't work for me, Preston. You're putting my health at risk because you're too much of a coward to tell me that you cheated on me and the skank you did it with gave you an STD."

He lunged forward and grabbed your elbow as you went to walk away from him. "Y/N–"

"Let go of me, Preston!"

No sooner than the words left your lips, your front door burst open and Nolan came storming over towards you. In an instant, Preston's grip was ripped from you as Nolan pushed him against the wall, his forearm pressing against Preston's chest. He turned to you and nodded his head down the hall. "Y/N, go pack a bag," he turned back to Preston and glared at him. "You're leaving."

"Y/N, please don't! We can–" His voice choked off as Nolan slid his forearm up higher towards Preston's windpipe.

"You don't talk to her, you don't look at her," He looked back at you, "Y/N, now."

You turned away from the scene and rushed into the bedroom you shared with Preston. Reaching under the bed, you grabbed your duffel bag and raced around the room, grabbing as much as you could from your assigned drawers, your side of the closet and any of the electronics and other small stuff you'd need. You zipped it up and tossed it over your shoulder, walking out of the room to see Preston still pinned against the wall. He looked in your direction and nodded to his right, signaling for you to go towards the front door.

You walked by Preston, not even bothering to give him a second look as you stood by the door, shuffling side to side as Nolan glared at Preston once more. "You better pray that her test results come back negative or so help me God, I'll come back here and personally kick your ass." He pushed him further against the wall before letting him go, pushing a finger into his chest. "Let's get one thing straight. Whatever her insurance doesn't cover from this testing, you'll pay. We'll be back tomorrow to grab the rest of her stuff around noon. You can either be here, hide away in a fucking corner and not speak or you can choose not to be here when we are. Either way, if I find out that you're trying to contact her, I'll come back and kick your ass."

Preston just nodded his head frantically and Nolan sent him another death glare before walking over to you. He wrapped his arm around your waist and lead you out of the door and into the hallway. He kept you close to his side, even taking the bag away from you and carrying it himself as he led you to the elevator of the building. As soon as the doors closed behind you, Nolan leaned back against the elevator wall, his arms crossed. "You never left...did you?"

He looked away from the control panel and over at you. He stood up straight and walked over to you, wrapping you in his arms and hugging you tight. "I told you I wasn't leaving you Y/N." He pulled back and made you looked at him, his face stoic. "I'm not leaving your side ever. Whatever you want to do, I'll support you. Whatever you want me to do, I'll do it."

You stared up at him, noticing the way that his eyes took you in and hugged him tighter, pressing your face into his chest. "Take me home, Nol."

#nolan patrick #philadelphia flyers #nolan patrick oneshot #nolan patrick imagine #nhl oneshot #nhl imagine #hockey oneshot #hockey imagine #philadelphia flyers imagine #philadelphia flyers oneshot #my writing

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welcometoitalia · 6 years ago

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21 Cultural Pointers about Life in Italy

1) TIME: Kick off your shoes, throw away your watch... everything is relative. Whilst much has improved in recent years, trains, buses and people tend to work on an "approximate" timetable. Learn patience and go with the flow.

2) LANGUAGE: Other than in Northern Europe, English is not as widely learnt and used in Italy. Until recently, French was promoted above English. Italians suffer from a sort of language inferiority complex so that even those who do speak good English are convinced that they do not and therefore only speak when absolutely necessary. A common mistake in listening to an Italian speaking his mother tongue is to assume that they are angry or excited. This is not always the case as you may witness in seeing two Italians "argue" and then kiss each other on both cheeks and disappear for an Aperitivo (pre-dinner drink).

3) NATIONALISM: As reflected in regional dialects, modern Italy was actually only unified in the mid 1800's. Still today, great divisions exist between North and South. This means that culture, traditions and life style vary significantly between the various provinces. True allegiance is to the local town or province and less to Italy as a whole. If you want to compliment an Italian, remark kindly on his home town.

4) POLITICS: Often called "the Politics of Favors", politicians don't fade away, they just become prime minister for the 10th time! Bringing down Government is a national pastime, averaging nearly one government for every year since World War 2. Reflecting the national divide, Italy has a strong ex-communist and a strong ex-fascist block. Most Italians believe the country is successful despite the best efforts of the government; tax avoidance is another national obsession. One of Italy's stronger parties is dedicated to the break up of Italy. Lega Nord (Free the North) has a passionate following - in the north! To mis-quote Beppe Grillo, a famous Italian commentator: “One Italian makes a Latin lover, two together can never agree, whilst three make up four political parties.”

5) DRINK: Italian bars often double up as coffee shops as there is a much more limited drinking culture than in other European locales. Italians on the whole do not have a "drinking culture"; many bars reflect this less intense relationship with alcohol, although the club scene is more "traditional" in its appeal. Wine is often less expensive than bottled water and whilst a staple feature of Italian meals, it is very rarely drunk to excess.

6) FAMILIES: Careful of stereotypes but, whilst waning, the family is central to everything and all. It is normal for unmarried children to live at home, even if they are in their 30's and 40's. Children move away... to the house next door! ;) ... and shouting between balconies to borrow some sugar is common. The grandmother plays the role of matriarch and family members like to turn up for a meal and are gladly received.

7) RELIGION: Catholic, of course (about 90%). Strangely though, Italy now has one of the lowest birth rates in Europe, So called Mafia bosses may fastidiously attend church on Sunday and married Catholic men may happily have an “amante” (lover). Many Catholics are uncertain if they are Christians as well as Catholic, such is the hold and “brand” strength of the Catholic church. Church attendances are, however, in decline and the number of new priests has declined by 85% in the last 50 years.

8) SPORT: One thing all Italians agree on is the national football/soccer team, often referred to as Italy's "true" religion. When Italy won the World Cup, people took to the streets in their cars, blowing horns, standing on car roofs and the entire nations transport system ground to a halt for hours as Italians demonstrated their passion for the game. Other sports take a back seat although cycling, volleyball, skiing and Formula One have their place on the front pages. One of the largest selling national newspapers is entirely dedicated to sport (LaGazetta dello sport).

9) WORLD AFFAIRS: Not our affair... so who cares, right?

10) FOREIGNERS: In most cases are greeted with enthusiasm and delight, although heavy non-European immigration has started to create phobia and resentment of the non European invasion in recent years.

11) FOOD: Italians are passionate about... Italian food! So much so that even when abroad, many Italians will go out of their way to seek out the nearest Italian restaurant. Each region of Italy has its own "local dish" and each dish may be prepared in a different way according to local custom. A wedding meal may last more than 6 hours and feature up to 20 courses. Such is the strength of Italian food that finding a Chinese, Mexican, or other type of restaurant outside the big towns is a challenge.

12) DRIVING: The Italian zest for life is well reflected in the Italian driving style! Cars are viewed as a status symbol; Italy has one of the highest percentages of Mercedes owners in the world. Speed limits, like train schedules, are considered approximations. Recent clamp downs and a new point system is beginning to dampen this zest and the best advise for foreign drivers is not to panic if a car cuts in, speeds by, or tailgates you. Don't worry, they have had lots of practice and are very good at it!

13) QUEING: Or lines. Until recently, the concept was an enigma for Italians. The advent of supermarket deli ticket lines and other such devices are being readily adopted and even when no line exists, Italians appear to have an uncanny sense of when it's their turn.

14) GREETING: Even vaguely familiar acquaintances will kiss each other on each cheek, but a hand shake will suffice. “Buongiorno” (formal) and “Ciao” (informal) being the classic accompaniment, followed by "come stai?" - the (informal) “how are you?”. In English-speaking countries, it's normal to reply "fine, thank you" even if you feel awful, in Italy they may well tell you how they actually are! Failure to greet or say goodbye to somebody can be taken as an insult.

15) FASHION: Italians will generally conform to the latest fashion trends, colors and styles, indeed foreigners can easily be spotted, even in a crowd, as they often do not conform to this hidden code. Italians take pride in their dress and are much more brand-conscious than some other nationalities.

16) BUSINESS: Italians prefer to do business with those they know and trust (hence, the relatively low success of Internet companies). Unlike some other industrialized powers, the back bone of the Italian economy is based on people, not multinationals. This is reflected in the proportionally high level of family businesses. Even large Italian businesses are often originated, directed or owned by a family (Benetton, Fiat etc). The local family shop concept still prevails, even though supermarkets are beginning to change the fabric of shopping.

17) PLANNING: Whilst many Northern Europeans are busy planning their next summer holiday in September the year before, summer holiday catalogs in Italy are not even printed till March! Planning ahead is considered restrictive and often Italians will decide what to do for the weekend on Saturday morning. Don't try and force Italians to plan, or expect next seasons bus timetable to be published months before.

18) EUROPEAN: Italy is a great believer in “voting European”, agreeing to many issues and then simply not implementing the directive. Italians themselves see Europe as an escape clause from their own government's perceived incompetence and corruption, however when put to the test, Italians in reality dislike anybody who tells them how to live their lives. Most Italians were enthusiastic about the Euro, until they found that most shop keepers used it to increase prices twofold.

19) HUMOR: Warning: “Sarcasm is not defined”. Do not try sarcastic or ironic jokes on Italians, many will think you are serious. Humor is a lot more lighthearted and obvious (Benny Hill was a big hit) and Italians are not afraid to make fun of themselves. The famous Oscar-winning actor and comic Roberto Benigni once remarked: “If the Berlin wall had been built by Italians, it would have come down on its own.” The prime-time nightly comedy program “Striscia la Notizia” goes out of its way to poke holes and find humor in Italian news and politics. Few Italian comedies work well when translated but have an avid following in Italy itself.

20) TELEVISION: Italians love game shows and reality TV (Big Brother is a yearly event). Like Italian fashion, brand names are important. The host's "brand" is critical and what he or she wears is critically examined. Nearly all shows feature "dancers or assistents", nearly always women, and nearly always clad in mini skirts and revealing tops. Where other countries would cry foul, Italians revel in the female form and are happy to have it presented to them as often as possible, even when totally irrelevant to the show.

21) HOTELS: Contrary to popular belief there is no unified star rating system in Europe. Each country provides its own system. A hotel's ambience is not assessed in any system, only facilities. In Italy, a 3-star hotel will have a restaurant, on-suite bathroom, bar, and lounge area. Room sizes in Italy are below the European average, mainly because many hotels are converted residences. Most hotels are family-run with attentive, very friendly service and homecooked meals. It is not unusual for the grandparents to take over responsibilites when the owner is away or to be greeted during school holidays by the 14 year old son (who probably speaks better English than the parents). This family atmosphere is one of the charms of smaller Italian hotels.

Oh, and one last warning: be careful of the stereotypes. Whilst you can always draw a thread (or even a rope) of similarity (as above) between the nationals of a country, the extent and size of the thread can vary.

Edited and adjusted from an article by A. Reed, a Brit in Brescia, Italy

#italians #europe #europeans #culture #culture clash #stereotypes #customs #italy #italia #humor #politics #food

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astrology-with-charu · 5 years ago

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Gemini Season & New Moon in Gemini June #Astrology #Horoscope

Bike riders are out on the roads with a devil may care attitude - you know Gemini season is here.

Socially distancing, the neighbours are celebrating birthday screaming from one balcony to another cute wishes, you know Gemini season is here.

Something inside you doesn’t let you sit - you pace, you tweet, you read, you tweet again, you have to have to tell someone that thing you might have heard & might be true or not - you are 60% sure it’s true, ok 50% sure, ok who is ever more than 30% sure of anything anymore & subtract 10% cause it was told by my aunt to my other aunt, you know Gemini season is here.

Silly antics & a bit of belly laughter - it was a joke, a bit of tall tale - but it made you laugh didn’t it - when we are able to joke a little bit even in middle of a pandemic - you know Gemini season is here.

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This is one of those rare years as 2020 has decided to be on all accords, where Gemini Season is beginning with a new Moon - Sun & Moon in Gemini - oh that’s not all Mercury, Venus, North Node in Gemini !!! That’s a lot of exclamation marks & it deserves it so.

Gemini heavy energy keeps things light within even when we don’t know if this is hope or delusion - there is no way to tell right now. Gemini season brings overload of information but there is no discretion in that - we don’t know what’s false what’s true.

It’s information - unprocessed, raw - all for our quick consumption & action. But we mutate, grow mentally in Gemini season - we are able to use all of that information coming our way to create something meaningful. We always walk off wiser, learning, reading, writing, selling, creating something of real commercial value after Gemini season - our mind grows as does our knowledge. And reskilling is what I feel we must dedicate this season to.

We will have the stormy summer of eclipses which I spoke of in my Eclipse note

(https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/847026582432180/)

but we will have Sun in topical zodiac sign of Gemini till 20 June - giving us flexibility, agility to mutate to new life situations. But things aren’t going to be fixed in stone - expect speed, too much information / news coming our way, things changing quickly but trust also your capacity to respond to it.

This new moon in Gemini which will have strong influence on us for next two weeks - walks the thin line of hope & delusion. At 2° Gemini it prompts return to State of Innocence, to never loose that child like belief in marvel of life - imagination, play, possibly bringing us back to books & games we enjoyed as a kid.

This is a bit of discovery process - discovery of new & of what looks impossible. We to some extend are prompted to not poke holes in our imagination - not shoot darts of reality at the moment. Sometimes hope in current moment is more important than thinking about larger life plan - small victories are more important than waiting to win the larger scale life battle. There is a bit of self indulgent denial of uncomfortable truths in this moment.

2° Gemini in Sambian astrology is depicted as “Santa Clause furtively filling stockings hanging in front of the fireplace” - there is a deliberation in creating optimism cause this journey of discovering the impossible that we are on requires a bit of faith, just pure child like faith in life. And the new moon at this degree of innocence is trying to gently wake that back up in us - through play, through reminder of the past, even through this lovelorn nostalgia doing circles in our mind. We are being reminded that we dream, we hope & we create from a place of possibilities not from a place of lack. It’s reminding us possibly of happy times so we can start working on creating happier ones.

You and I both know there is a whole lot of misinformation & sometimes unfounded optimism which is doing rounds. But within limits is that so bad ? Neptune is a strong influence right now & will be till mid June - that breeds deception, misinformation but it also rules miracles, faith, solidarity, higher octave of Venus - selfless love & compassion for others in the common boat. But it’s not the music of sinking titanic that Neptune is blaring, though many of us would be strongly hearting the blues cause the cocktail of Venus retrograde & Neptune square usually ends up in nostalgia or worst romantic mistakes. Neptune creates the fog of hope too - helping us walk beyond our current existence & our current limitations. Helping us do things that are frightening sometimes even heroic. Beautiful things come out of loss sometimes with Neptune faith cause it dissolves what’s not real in our life.

Conjunct the fixed Star Alcyone - known for Mercury of Freud - this is opportunity to plant a new seed devoid of judgement cause there is possibility of real insight provided we don’t yet - not yet - poke holes in the possibility by making a list of all the reasons why it won’t work. Return to state of innocence requires more than just laughing with your friends again - it requires us to create hope against hope. Collectively it puts the responsibility on all of us to put our thinking caps on, leaving the wallow of the past behind to create for the future. This is the star of Leonardo da Vinci - inventive, artistic, visionary. It’s linked with blindness to what’s in front of us but it’s also linked to third eye opening - there is potential for a visionary idea, real insight provided we stay off our own rushed judgements against our own possibility of success.

But this is your vision - not of a cult leader - that’s where we need to be careful of the deception element of this season. Easy test is to know whether you are working on your imagination & idea or another man’s dream that was sold to you. This star is also linked to Jim Jones - you know the spiritual leader that led a flock of 500 followers to mass suicide on the basis of his “spiritual” vision - yes one of those we gotto stay off.

As I mentioned in North Node In Gemini & South Node In Sagittarius note -

(https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/849354288866076/)

road to success till early 2022 is to learn to see world in simpler terms & making life decisions using facts not philosophy - no cults, manipulators of information calling themselves “guru or Teachers or worst saviours”, staying in present - here & now, not a 2030 plan but a now & here plan, empty mind of old information / learning / philosophies- reskilling, staying local versus globe trotting, flexible, media savvy, staying off extreme belief systems & extreme philosophies, staying far off from people peddling those as well. Rahu will continue to manipulate & exaggerate information - think of time post 9/11 when north node was last in Gemini - think of information/ misinformation spread post that as well as impact on our belief system, faith & on mundane level how globalisation and travel was changed forever.

While you sift, sort absorb information overload, stay on a plan - don’t get distracted by theories of people peddling them for click baits & views. Your time is precious & this period is crucial for you to reskill, learn, get more involved in your local communities, become a student of life - that feeling of being a student who hasn’t yet chosen his or her specialisation - he/she is confused yet full of possibilities cause anything is possible & there are multiple options cause everything is being recreated in some ways.

Both Mercury & Venus in Gemini are out of bounds till early June - this is our mind & heart together in uncharted territory. It’s great for developing new ways of thinking, hearing those imaginary noises in our head 😉, lateral thinking, learning information on things we didn’t think possible before. Shocking talks with no way of knowing validity of the tall claims by people, our talk till atleast 9th June will have no censors, no limitations. It will lead to the diplomatic issue on global relationships in first ten days of June which we spoke of in Venus retrograde videos & notes. We would say things we haven’t said before but we would also open ourselves to possibilities we haven’t opened ourselves to - out of norm bold expression of unique. If you listen to Howard Sterns - he has Mercury out of bounds! It gives creative talent for dissolving boundaries of what is normally possible - we are able to go unorthodox and with Mercury zooming ahead of Sun it’s the time to try the untested.

This will happen in love & intimacy too with Venus out of bounds - but remember Venus is retrograde - experiment but don’t get attach to whatever quirky pleasure or relationship you are trying out. It may not fit post the retrograde so don’t overextend financially or emotionally or in fashion / dramatic change in looks - we are bound to go for the ne real tried before fashions & styles.

In this out of bound period - you would find yourself or yours taking the risk to go for a job or career or project never tried before but more to their liking.

Next week 25-27 May we would see a display of exaggeration or hyperbole unfortunately & it will escalate tensions. There is need for adjustments on these dates - need to be flexible to see things from others perspective as our compulsive side or of others we deal with can get out of control. Arguments are possible as anything that’s being created contrary to what we want can bring up fears or rule us up while our mind & heart is out of bounds. We would need to consciously stay humble in our talk but still communicate what we need.

On 28th May North Node in Gemini will meet Mercury first time in 19 years - unicorns won’t fly but we would get amped up to talk & a chance discussion or messaging or thought can give a hint like boulder to a growth opportunity. Next 6 months we are going to be growing it & perfecting over next 18 months with North Node here. If you miss it don’t worry - we can’t really miss our destiny - we would have Sun make the same aspect right before summer solstice in June. But make an effort on these days to listen to signs, to yourself, as you would be just beginning to develop awareness to what growth opportunities north node in Gemini will bring to us. 28 May, 19 June & 5 August are exact dates when our personal planets would make first contact with nodes - support required to respond to upcoming opportunities usually comes on those days so listen in.

On 29th May all the way to end of month - Saturn with Virgo moon will guide us to partition our big ideas into actionable steps. Words may not come out in the way we want - I won’t choose this time for external communication but more for a step by step plan & to create real ways to create gains from those out of bound ideas.

While eclipses will bring storms & fated changes - Gemini season always reminds us to not forget to play, connect & laugh.

https://www.facebook.com/595133057621535/posts/860613727740132/

After a bit of panic attack, I played Candy land today - we are never too old to play, never too old to learn new skills - many brilliant ideas came from play!

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spnsimpleman · 6 years ago

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The Unknowns: Thirty Five

This is a continuation for The Unknowns. A one-shot turned into a long ass Prologue. One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Eleven Twelve Thirteen Fourteen Fifteen Sixteen Seventeen Eighteen Nineteen Twenty Twenty one Twenty Two Twenty Three Twenty Four Twenty Five Twenty Six Twenty Seven Twenty Eight Twenty Nine Thirty Thirty One Thirty Two Thirty Three Thirty Four

Dean x Psychic!reader

Teaser/Summary: An AU sparked from a songfic challenge, The Unknowns is based on Season One Episode Nine, Dean met reader in Lawrence as a child and they created an unbreakable bond. At the end of The Unknowns, reader decided to stick with her boys because she felt something coming but she holds secrets; one she holds close to her heart and a few that she doesn’t even really know yet.

Word count: 4373

Lines from “All hell breaks loose- Part One” in bold.

The dream started as it always did but this time I noticed the scent of the trees and fragrant mud was missing. Then Lily was stumbling and racing through the trees. She streak in front of me from left to right like a dark blur with blonde hair.

I reached out for her instantly recalling when the ground crumbled away under her, but I could reach her this time, I would save her this time. I was so close but when I grabbed her arm, she spun toward me suddenly rigid and her skin melted off her face before the rope appeared around her neck. I clawed at it, trying to get it off despite the slick liquid and gunk continuing to cover the worn, tightly woven fibers. It cinched tight, ripping skin from my fingers. It ripped her out of my arms straight up to the windmill spinning wildly above.

I failed. Again.

My scream was drowned out by the shushing trees and children’s laughter cackling at the sight above me. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, couldn’t do a damn thing but watch her move higher as the rope wrapped around the windmill wheel. Her body dangling for the birds and bats that shrieked and swarmed.

I closed my eyes. Maybe I couldn’t do anything but I wouldn’t watch.

“Protection, Princess. You get through this and you’ve got it.”

His voice slithered over the skin of my arms and down my spine. I grit my teeth and shivered. Silence dropped over me so quickly, I flinched and opened my eyes. The windmill was empty, the main drag of the old town dead once again. The yellow-eyed demon stood in front of me, his hands tucked in his jean pockets.

“Get through what?”

“Everyone else thinks there can be only one at the end of this ride,” he nodded, “yes, everyone here. Well,” he glanced up at the windmill, “everyone left standing, but you. You’re special.”

“Yeah, yeah. King and Queen, yada yada.”

“Not quite, but I need the best to lead my army. If you want Sammy to survive, you need to come out on top.” I growled and lunged for him. A single blink and he was gone.

“Sammy was my favorite,” he taunted behind me, I spun around, “my natural, but then I saw you and you, my girl, bring a little more to the table even without my something extra. I’ve pushed all the pieces into place but it’s up to you two to pull it out. I can’t do everything for you. You’ve got to prove yourself and if you fail, you’ve still given me ideas for the other generations. The one that almost got away.”

His grin made my stomach churn and the image of little Rosie playing in her front yard burst into my mind. I couldn’t tell if he put it there but the thought alone made me cringe.

“I will get away.” It was pathetic but he was giving information. I couldn’t process it all let alone figure out what could be close to the truth right away. I needed to play along for so long as I could.

“But Sam can’t. I can track him anywhere.” He smiled and his eyes held too much. “That little something extra.” He cocked his head, “I’ll let you in on a little secret,” he strode toward me and I rooted my feet into the ground so I wouldn’t budge. “He has my blood rushing through his veins.”

Before I could argue, everything around me changed and I was back in Sam’s nursery. Only something was very different. A tall, dark shadow stood in front of Sammy’s crib, the demon dominated the cheerful room. Suffocating it.

I moved closer, then around to the side and watched the blood drip from the demon’s wrist landing on Sammy’s tiny lips. I lunged forward and went right through the demon.

“Can’t do anything about it now.”

The room in the old house flickered back. Andy was still sleeping on the table, Jake standing guard at the doorway, and I slept on leaning against Sam. I looked into Sam’s face, even in sleep he seemed tortured. “It means nothing.”

“Oh, but it does. You’re not even his blood and yet you’d protect him until your very last breath.”

“He wouldn’t protect you.”

“You’d be surprised what someone would do when they’re shown the truth.”

My blood boiled at what he could’ve told Sam, what he could possibly be saying to him that caused that face. “I know the truth. You are a plague and you think you’re special because you think big, but you’re just like the rest.”

He flashed his wrist and the blood flowed down his arm like a snake. Hot, wet liquid splashed against my lips and I gagged. “I said you could keep both of them, Sammy and Dean.”

I snarled, “you don’t get to call him that.” The hot liquid splashed my tongue and I gagged again.

He raised his hands, “there can be two leaders but only a king AND a queen. Call me old-fashioned but thems the breaks. You’d be able to protect everyone your heart desires.”

“Right and all my dreams will come true when the glass slipper fits.”

“I have no preference for fashion, but like everything that is worth anything in this world, you have to fight for it. If you two are the last standing, I’ll let you both live.”

“So, this is a kill camp.” He smirked. I pictured bashing his teeth in with a shovel. “You’re still hiding something.”

“Clever girl, I keep my cards close. That’s how I’ve survived this long.”

I jerked awake to someone saying Ava was gone. I grabbed Sam’s arm as he stood, “wait. Trap.” I was still stumbling to catch up with the rapid flip. The demon’s words echoing in my head, my blood heated, and my arms itching to swing that shovel.

“We need to find her.”

I crossed my arms and stared at Sam desperately trying to get my bearings, but it was Jake who forged ahead, “so you get to pick who should be protected and who shouldn’t?”

“She didn’t say that.” Andy came to my defense and Sam gave me a look. This was a powder keg situation and I could be playing right into the demon’s hands.

“We stay in groups.” I looked at Jake, my stomach turning as the words spilled out, “you two stay together, watch each other’s backs.”

Jake’s brow furrowed, “you really think Ava could what? Hurt us?”

“She thinks she could be possessed and we can’t rule it out,” Sam gave him a stern look and I shivered.

“The last time someone went off by themselves, we found her dead.” Jake looked at me.

I glared right back, “I found her in the woods and yes, she was with me when she fell and disappeared. You have your strength, Andy can put things in people’s heads, Ava has visions and so does Sam. I can feel people and what I feel from her is different from the rest of us. She’s not scared here like we are. That’s not a good thing in this situation. So be careful.”

His eyes softened along with the rest of his body. Maybe not knowing what I could do had put him more on edge around me.

“We’ll check around outside, you guys stay here in case she comes back. Maybe she just went to the bathroom.” Sam looked out the window. I didn’t like that we were splitting up again. I understood it, but I didn’t have to like it.

Sam and Jake moved together out of the room, “Sam!” He turned around just past the doorway and met my gaze, “its blood isn’t stronger than us. It doesn’t mean anything.” His eyes flared along with guilt, fear, and concern. Too much. So the demon did say something to him. But Sam knew what he had done to me in my dreams, that I understood. He gave me a tight smile and a nod before following Jake.

I turned to Andy, “did the yellow-eyed demon come to you in a dream?” He nodded. “Son of a bitch is playing us against each other. You were right about the hunger games.”

“This is bad.”

“Yup.”

He glanced down at my hand, “you got any more of those Sage bats?”

I chuckled and squeezed the bat in reassurance. I hadn’t even realized I had grabbed it upon waking, “you get that iron poker and we watch each other’s backs. Okay?”

He looked around, “you know I used to think it’d be cool to fight in a zombie apocalypse when I was a teenager. I was an idiot.”

“I wanted to be a G.I. Joe when I was a kid.”

Andy grinned, “why am I not surprised?” He shook his head, “I think it’s in the other room.”

We both turned at the laughter outside the window to our right. I moved toward it and checked the salt on the sill. Unbroken. I searched outside and saw Sam walking one way down the road and Jake the other. “So much for staying together.” I should probably feel ashamed at how much relief that brought me, but I didn’t.

I watched Sam walk a few buildings down and look around. An icy prickle tingled on the back of my neck. “What room was that poker in?” I turned when he didn’t answer and found myself alone. “Andy?”

I moved to the doorway and tightened my grip on the cedar branch. I looked both ways down the hallway but there was no one. A creak in the board above my head was followed by another and another. I tried to recall the layout of the house as I stepped into the hall and remembered a stairway leading upstairs at the back of the house. I moved quickly with quiet steps down the hall and made it halfway up the stairs before the prickle sunk its teeth into the base of my skull viciously. I winced and took the rest of the stairs two at a time.

I gripped the banister at the top, “Andy!” The chill spread through my veins at the hard thud downstairs then Andy’s scream pierced through me with a pain I had to work hard to block out. “No. No, no!”

I forced my legs to move back down but they were wooden. By the time I reached the bottom, I was crying and Ava’s scream was echoing in my ears. I pushed myself through the hall and the front door banged open.

Sam met my gaze and Ava screamed again. He followed the scream, rushing into the front room.

“Sam! I just found him like this!”

“What happened?”

“I don’t know.”

The lie practically seared through me and I couldn’t hear any more. Rage boiled the ice out of my veins and I strode into the room glaring at her. “You lying bitch!” Still no fear, no real emotion that would explain the tears streaming down her face, not even the anger that caused my own.

Her eyes narrowed when she looked at me, “you’re just jealous.”

I pressed my fists into my thighs, “yup, that must be it.”

“Who did this?” Sam was by the window pointing at the broken line of salt then moved back toward me watching Ava.

“I don’t know, maybe Andy…”

“Andy wouldn’t do that!” Sam and I spoke at the same time. I met his gaze trying to get him to read my mind. She was a part of all this.

Sam looked back at Ava, “what happened to you?”

She glanced at me then wiped her eyes and focused on Sam. “Had you going though, didn’t I? Five months you said, right? Children like us just keep showing up.”

I glared at her, my fists digging into my thighs. I couldn’t speak through the rage and the small amount of disbelief at how casually she spoke about killing people. Sam wanted to believe that they could all be saved but he forgot that in this life, in this world, not everyone wanted to be saved.

If Dean had been killed, would I?

“How could you?”

I flinched at Sam’s words even though they were directed at Ava.

“I had no choice. It’s me or them.”

“You always have a choice, you just refused to see it!” I seethed. Sam’s gaze was on me, concerned and worried. I told Lily we’d be safer together, she started to feel safe around me before... Andy had felt safe around Sam, I wanted to keep him safe. He was supposed to be safe with me.

“No, I refused to stop fighting what I am, who we are, Sam.” She still stared at him like he was the only one in the room or maybe the one she needed to convince.

King and Queen.

Maybe I wasn’t the only one he was selling that too. “It’s not who you are, it’s just something you can do. That’s the only reason the demon wants you.”

She continued her rant like I didn’t even exist. I saw red.

I wanted to reach for Sam, to pull him behind me because she wouldn’t get him to agree with her and then she’d kill him. She would try to kill us both. I gripped the branch in my hand and looked at the window. If she continued proving her point to Sam, I could fix the break and she wouldn’t have her handy killing machine within reach. I moved toward the window.

“Sorry, Sam, but it’s over.”

I jumped for it as the black smoke poured in. I brushed the salt over the break trying to fill the hole but froze at the sickening crack behind me. I spun around raising the bat to strike but froze. Jake dropped Ava to the ground. Sam was staring at Jake but had moved over a step in front of me. We were all stuck in a tableau, waiting for someone to snap, to show their true colors. I was waiting for Jake to try to attack one of us.

Sam snapped out of whatever held him and grabbed my hand, “let’s go.” He was moving with me before I could argue, not that I would, but Jake was different. I couldn’t read him and I didn’t want him behind us. A sob stuck in my throat when we moved around Andy. I couldn’t look down, I couldn’t see another person the demon ruined today.

Sam practically dragged me out of the house while I kept Jake in sight.

“What about the acheri demon?” Jake came up alongside Sam.

I tensed, squeezing the life out of Sam’s hand as he continued his long-legged stride.

“No, Ava was controlling it…” I dug my nails into his skin and he hissed, “we gotta go.”

“Not we, Sam.”

Sam finally stopped and looked at Jake who was staring at our combined hands. I knew where this was going. My stomach dropped at Jake’s mention of the yellow-eyed demon but my muscles were already gearing up to run as Sam tried to talk some sense into someone who already found his own truth. I tugged Sam’s hand, trying to force him away from Jake, but he wouldn’t budge.

“How do I know you won’t turn on me?”

“I won’t.” Sam was resolute but there was no change in Jake.

“I don’t know that.”

“Okay, look.” Sam pulled out his knife and held it up.

My insides screamed as I stared at the metal. Sam bent to place it on the ground and I squeezed his hand again. No, SAM! PLEASE NO! He gave me a small smile, confident that he could get Jake to see his way. I couldn’t pinpoint what was locking my jaw shut.

“Come with us, Jake. Don’t play into what it wants.”

Jake watched him and then placed his own weapon on the ground, but I didn’t sense any change. He wasn’t on board, his resolve had only strengthened. He was just playing the hand Sam dealt.

As Sam dropped his guard, Jake’s intent surged forward slamming into me. I dropped Sam’s hand and shoved him away, “NO!”

Twin bursts of agony ripped through my shoulders and I was airborne. I crashed into something too solid and the crack echoed inside my skull. I struggled to get air into my lungs, struggled to make sense of too many body parts screaming at the same time. I lifted my head despite the sirens wailing inside it and a broken chunk of wood dug into my arm at the movement.

Through blurry, red-streaked vision, I watched Sam stand up in a field. Jake strode toward him. He was going to kill Sam, his intent pulsed throughout his entire body. He was going to kill my baby brother.

My vision faltered, the scene wavered and changed. Images flickered to life, streaming so fast. The boy who always wanted to measure up, the boy who always wanted to be a contributing part of his family, who wanted to be just like his big brother no matter how many times we told him he was so much more. The boy who wanted to soothe all those who suffered. The teenager who had dreams that soared into the sky, who worked his ass off only to have them snatched away and burned to the ground by the very same demon who whispered devious things in his ear as well as the man who would kill him.

The sob burst through the images and the two men were trading blows beyond the fence. That goddamn fence. My body hurt everywhere but I forced my arms to lift me against what remained of the stairs.

There had been too much taken away by that demon who thought he could control everything, but this was one plan that wouldn’t come to light, wouldn’t come to pass. If I had anything to do with it, there would be no more death tonight.

The pain licking up my spine and the agony bouncing around inside my skull started to dull. An icy hand caressed my chest. It… was slowly leeching away the pain.

I’m not ready to say goodbye! I pushed to my knees, the lack of pain like a hand at my back helping me up.

The depth of that hole I had almost succumbed to, the pain that Dean had survived, the anguish Sam had to go through… too many times.

An icy dread pierced my head. Rage boiled my blood. Close but not… mine.

“Dean.” He was close but not close enough. Something irreversible was barreling toward us. Or maybe it was just me.

I looked at my baby brother facing away from the man lying prone on the ground. Did he feel Dean?

Jake will kill Sam. The voice whispered in my ear, in my head. My voice.

Sam was completely unaware of the danger at his back. “Sam.” My voice was too small, too hoarse.

The soldier, the marksmen, and the witness. Was I the witness? Relegated to watch as everything played out, as my brother died and the other sacrificed himself?

Sacrifice. Dean would do anything for him.

I said you could keep both of them, Sammy and Dean. He knew. He knew Dean would give anything… he would sacrifice his own life for his brother.

I could already see it playing out. We’d fight about it, over it, and both of us would try to give ourselves for him because he always deserved better. Jess might try too.

Sacrifice. What if… not Witness… the other translation that so very often was called witness…

Language changes. Pamela’s tired voice rang in my head.

In a few old texts, a witness oftentimes meant and/or became a martyr.

A warrior’s sacrifice will prove fruitful...

Dying wasn’t easy, but it didn’t hold a candle to those that were left behind, those forced to continue on. I tried to thrust the thought aside, I wasn’t going to die. I wasn’t ready.

What if it was the only way to stop it? I didn't want to say goodbye, I didn’t want to do this to them but I would do anything to save them.

Too many warriors had already sacrificed for this. Lily, Andy, countless others. Generations of them gave their lives for a cause not their own while so many didn’t even know.

That hole yawned wide in front of me, the pain radiated through every pore of Dean, through Sam.

Sam deserved so much more than he’d been through. I had been blessed, although it wasn’t easy, I had a charmed life. I had them. I had Pamela and my mother. I had Bobby and Jess and Sam. I had so many years with Dean.

Panic ripped through me but it wasn’t mine. Dean was so close and yet so far. He wouldn’t be able to stop any of it.

My vision blurred as I pushed back up to my knees. I couldn’t remember falling down. Didn't matter.

I swallowed the cry as the remaining pain in my head screamed in protest at every small movement.

‘And you, my father on that dad height,’ My father’s voice so animated in my head, in the air before me, ‘curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray. Do not go gently into that good night.’

Maybe I hit my head harder than I thought. I reached out to the other end of my tether, Dean, make sure he gets to experience what we did. Make sure he lives.

How anyone could choke on words in their head was completely beyond me but it happened as I tried to let him know one last time. I love you. Forever and ever.

“NO!” Dean roared from somewhere in the woods. So, so close.

I was already on my feet. My numb legs, becoming swift, carried me toward Sam as Jake got to his feet so much closer, the blade shining in his hands.

Jake thought I was already dead and maybe I was, but I still had one thing left to do.

My father’s voice rallied as I pushed every last bit of energy into my legs and stretched out my hands toward Sam who faced me with confusion twisting his features, ‘rage, rage against the dying of the light.’

“MOVE!” The energy lit every nerve in my arms ablaze and just before Jake and I reached our target, Sam flew out of the way and I collided with Jake.

He stared down at me, his eyes screaming shock and pain that I, by some small mercy, couldn't feel. Electric sparks popped between my fingers and smoke rose from Jake’s jacket where my hands were pressed against his chest. I hissed, “fuck you.”

His body trembled and he shoved me away.

I saw the dark sky. The stars so bright out here, shining down on unholy ground. The world shuddered. I wished I could see Sam just one last time. See Dean. I’m so sorry.

“NO!” Sam’s voice was warm and neat just like it should be. “What were you thinking?!” His dirt-streaked face suddenly filled my vision blocking the stars, but I was grateful.

“Sammy.” I wanted to wash it all away. Clean the dirt and muck like I used to when he was little before he wouldn’t let me clean him anymore. When he no longer came to me for help with the nightmares.

“I'm right here. I’ve got you.” His voice cracked but it was still whole. He was still whole. “What did you do?”

What I had to, Pumpkin.

He sucked in a breath, eyes wide. Darkness consumed me, not even the stars pricked through that deep blanket.

“Talk to me, hey, please open your eyes, sweetheart.” Dean, he was right here when I needed him. Just like always.

“I’ve got a pulse but it's thready. Can you feel her?”

Help him, Sammy. He’ll need you.

“NO!”

“Wha... did you hear... is that?”

“Come on, hang in there. We’ve got you. Keep the pressure here. You got anything? We’re right here, sweetheart. Please… please don't. Don't leave me.”

My dad sat beside me with the book open on his lap. “Daddy, what does he mean? How can you rage against the dying of the light? Does he mean night time? I hate bedtime too.”

His soft chuckle rolled along my skin and vibrated so nicely in my chest, “no, honey bee, he’s talking about death. He’s telling the people to fight with everything in them against it.”

“But death is natural. Everybody dies.”

“Very wise, but sometimes it feels sudden because we don't know when…”

“Like Miss Mary.”

“Yes, like miss Mary and what if miss Mary were able to fight against the dying of the light just for a few more moments to tell you she loved you, to tell Sam and Dean and John, do you think it would be worth it?”

I thought it over. Would Mary want to tell me that and if she could, would it make her feel better? Would I feel better if I got the chance to tell her what she meant to me? The answer resounded in me with such force, I nodded, my head bouncing like it was on Susie’s trampoline. “Yes, definitely.”

He smiled, his warmth flooding me, “then you will certainly not go gently into that good night.”

“Y/n! Please… please stay with me.”

The smallest hint of Dean’s pain finally echoed inside my chest and I sucked in a breath at his broken plea. Y/n, please say something, please be there.

I summoned the last scrap of energy I had left and reached for him. I followed the thread that led to him and pushed all the love I could his way, and ever.

I wrapped myself around him and held on hoping against hope that he could feel it. That he could feel me and know that I would never let him go if I had the choice.

Thirty Six

@duchessofwinchester , @jodyri , @jencharlan , @deanssweetheart23 @torn-and-frayed , @chrisatplay , @mogaruke, @captainemwinchester, @ashrod98 , @mrswhozeewhatsis , @caitsymichelle13 , @escabell , @thealyana , @michellethetvaddict , @ashch , @rashinyx2002 , @tamtamlov

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royal-red-asks · 6 years ago

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18 Links That'll Make You a Better SEO Beginners

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Simply by optimizing Youtube videos, your web site will get traffic from Search engines as well as the movie publishing platform, so make certain your video titles and explanations are SEO friendly to create them rank on search. It might be the case (and I actually surmise this) that the introduction of the certain SEO technique initially unnaturally raised your rankings for your own pages in a way that will Google's algorithms do not accept of, and once that issue is spread out throughout your own site, traffic begins to weaken or is slammed in the future algorithm update. Technical optimization consists of every thing that SEOs do to create it easier for search motors to find a website. Our SEO company ranks are based off of issues like affordability, the other providers they provide, and the history they have with their present and past clients. Together with the quality content, the relevance of back links will also be a main aspect of SEO 2018 in order to consider. Yes, I agree along with you Karthikeyan Maruthai, We Need to Know Above Off-page SEO Methods to Achieve Very Good Position. As mentioned over, speed will be paramount intended for SEO in 2018, leading all of us on to Accelerated Mobile Web pages (AMP). Therefore, on top of content marketing and advertising, SEO now should be profoundly aligned with your company's PAGE RANK efforts. For these reasons it offers each a huge SEO value (it's one of the most essential ranking factors), along with a clickability” worth (it serves as a inspiration for people to click). The particular SEO trends and technique in order to rank websites higher changes quick because of the emergence associated with new technologies and changing consumer behavior. It is often used simply by mobile users on a big scale which made it the powerful SEO trend for this particular year. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION trends in 2018 considers the particular important issues SEO practitioners require to think about in 2018 as well as the path taken by travel search motors and SEO in general. When you know you have EXTREMELY low-quality doorway pages on your own site, you need to get rid of them or rethink your SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION strategy if you want in order to rank high in Google intended for the long term. Brian Dean stated that Without having Keywords there is no this kind of thing as SEO”. The strategies in online advertising are as competitive or mainly because quickly evolving as search motor optimization (SEO). As the particular main foundation elements of SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION for example keywords, metadata and optimised images will remain an essential part of an SEO technique, this will no longer become the main priority. one. Guest Posting - Link developing will be a huge SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION practice in 2018 and past, since it has been for very some time. Ultimately, success within SEO in 2018 and forwards is determined by creating amazing content plus which makes it as simple as possible for search motors to understand precisely what that will content is about. SEO is a marketing and advertising discipline focused on growing presence in organic (non-paid) search motor results. It will be helpful when you share some on-page SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION tips and how to execute a keyword research.

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lustandlordsrp · 4 years ago

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The Eccentric | Safiye

Twenty-Four | The Honble. Safiye Delaval Barony Delaval of Seaton Deleval

Formally or Informally Announced: The Honble.Miss Safiye Delaval

Addressed on Formal or Informal Social Correspondence: Miss Delaval

Formal Correspondence Salutation: “Madam,”

Informal Correspondence Salutation: “Dear Miss Delaval”

Addressed in Speech: Miss Delaval

Referred to in Speech: Miss Delaval

Social Correspondence Signature: Safiye Delaval

Biography

There are many young ladies set upon the social scene every year for one singular purpose. Marriage. Clad in dazzling gowns accessorized by brilliant baubles each young miss wears the finest fashions of the season like armor preparing for the war ahead hoping to taste victory before the bitter prospect of spinsterhood settles in. Thrust upon the floors of the grandest ballrooms and only naturally accepting the most exclusive invitations delicately gloved hands and sweet, simpering smiles hide ravenous witches in search of only the most advantageous of matches. It is a terrible thing to be a young lady with few prospects in the world beyond becoming someone’s wife. It’s an awfully exhausting existence for anyone to run around in a silent panic scrambling to climb the social ladder and worrying what others’ opinions of you were.

Yet there perhaps is a girl who exists still that has always been from the day she was born so frightfully unafraid of the world before her. Perhaps such a girl exists and has yet grown into a ravishing young lady who would rather than fish for the marrying sort of man with lacey things and silk stockings sketch the sea creatures of the Aegean Sea or travel the world to culture herself and experience other worlds?. Could there be a young lady that delights with the talk of many strange things and wonderful oddities thought dreadfully unacceptable for a young lady to be interested in? What young woman would rather tinker with mechanical toys and a menagerie of interesting and well-cared for animals than gossip over the marriage market? Could there be such a creature whose signature color mirrors the sea in which her family made their name and fortune showing a great devotion to it rather than pretty pastels other young ladies wear to blend into someone’s drawing room walls? Was there a being who had just enough of everything to take bits and pieces of her soul and give them freely to those who needed light in the darkness of their little corner of the world? Should such a woman exist she would almost certainly be a Delaval. Safiye Delaval to be exact. Could anyone expect anything less from a personage born from within the ranks of quite the larger than life family. The Delevals certainly had in the short amount of time since their prolific rise into nobility amassed a reputation for being quite outrageously wealthy, massively entertaining and extremely eccentric. Even before the Delavals were given the Barony of Seaton-Delaval and only styled as simple Baronets certain members were never far from a scandal sheet as admirals, sea captains and the occasional amorous gambling soldier and member of parliament. Great Uncle Francis himself was either being lauded for his many great deeds, his plethora of adventures or his penchant for several different vices and trickery among hosting the most glorious parties with his signature flare. His story though is not the story many are as interested in now but that of his great niece born sixteen years after his death and only a year after her family was given their hereditary title.

To understand the wondrous young woman, the magnificent and strange creature that inhabits Seaton-Delaval Hall in Northumberland overlooking the sea and views of Cheviot Hills in all their breathtaking wonder we must consider what a scandalous pair her own parents were. We need to look into the past to see what makes her human and yet divine in all her many foibles and odd little quirks she survives on. We must go back to the days when Grandfather was building their small empire only twelve years before Safiye’s birth and the ultimatum he gave his only son. Sir John, only a Baronet at the time, had spent many years slaving away to establish them as a family to be reckoned with and one that had many successful enterprises. He’d paid his brother an annuity for possession of Seaton-Delaval Hall and all that came with it. His birthright. That single purchase allowed him to build up rich agricultural endeavors, lucrative mining operations, collieries and establishing a fleet of merchant vessels and shipping contracts with the East India Company and would see exorbitant wealth when managed properly by the extremely business savvy Sir John come to the Delavals opening doors that had never been open to them before. It would open doors for his son, John the younger. Truth be told, Sir John had always been the most tame child when it came to the ‘Gay Delavals’ as they were already well known as. John the younger though was a little too much like the individuals that had caused them to earn that moniker. He was such a handsome young man with access to more money than he’d ever know what to do with it and a world his father only had a taste of. With luscious locks, ruggedly handsome features and a healthy dose of charm it was hard for such a young man not to know how attractive he was and with that came a certain level of blind arrogance. Foolishness. John the younger was a stupidly good looking young man and in his day his foolishness would get him in a world of trouble but it would lead him on the journey to find Safiye’s mother. In a failed attempt to romance a serving girl and her utter refusal of his affections ( via an extremely embarrassing injury from a swift kick ) Sir John was tired of his son’s foolishness knowing well what such foolishness resulted in. Sir John Delaval, a most wealthy and influential man was not about to bankroll another relative who knew not the cost of what they did. Thus Safiye’s grandfather expressed to his son that for the coming social season he would not spend it at one party or another but making a name for himself proving he was worthy of the dynasty they hoped to build or end up penniless.

So it was that the social season of 1775 was missing one of the most eligible bachelors and notorious rakes. While others were at balls, sneaking kisses in dark corridors living as if there was no tomorrow John Francis Delaval faced savage seas deciding to take up his father’s challenge with the East India Company. On rolling decks with wave that threatened to capsize the massive merchant vessels, John would kiss the wood of the imperial docks in Istanbul. Originally he was set only to be an observer on this trade mission because the East India Company had a high regard for his father and young Delaval was an unproven food. Fate had other plans and in the audience with the new Sultan he proves immensely useful even befriending the humble and pious ottoman sultan. For a few short months John stayed here offering to act as a liaison between the company and the emperor and when it was time for John to leave the sultan gave him two gifts- a letter for King George expressing a wish to open up further trade with England and a wife. It was a most irregular marriage between persons of two different worlds but the Sultan wouldn’t allow his good friend John Delaval to leave without a wife like any proper man be he Christian or Muslim ought to have. At the end of the social season in which he’d attended none of the grand parties he was presented at the final ball of the season “Sir John Francis Delaval, Bt. and his wife, Lady Ayse Delaval”. A horribly smitten pair of the oddest love birds took the floor and John could barely be parted from a gorgeous woman many young ladies despised for a few years to come. After all an unknown woman from a far away land stole away a rich suitor. Ayse was an incredible woman and a bit like what her daughter would be to some lesser degree. England and its customs were strange to her but Sir John, the eventual 1st Baron Delaval took a great shine to his only daughter in law. It may not have been the most traditional course to follow but he took the woman under his wing and along with his second wife trained her up in the ways of a proper English lady and business-minded person to help run such a large estate. Safiye’s father would need a steady hand to help him even if he’d proven to have changed his foolish ways and show he had it in him to do the right things Sir John desired. Safiye’s mother took to it like a fish to water and could be seen working hand in hand with her father in law and husband operating under the guise of a personal secretary but being a nearly equal partner in decisions. It hurt no one that again she and her husband were madly in love and threw grand parties bringing a little of the Delaval flair to each following season no matter if they weren’t technically a noble family yet and did whisper across the table to one another in three different languages. They were wildly cultured, wickedly entertaining and until better and more exciting news would come along we’re quite the magnets themselves for gossip when they weren’t enjoying a ‘quiet evening’ on their estate. From such a spirited and intriguing couple could one expect anything less of their children but to be similarly interesting? Examining the past and her unique parentage it should’ve been hardly surprising that Safiye would do something entirely different than most young ladies of her age?

One could go on and on about the days between and before Safiye’s birth. An author could recall the the four brother including a set of twin sons that came before her or the lands and titles that would be granted to grandfather who by the time they were elevated to the Barony Delaval of Seaton-Delaval Hall could see his line ensured on into the future beyond his son. Truth be told those days following the marriage of John Francis Delaval and Ayse were inconsequential, lackluster and hardly worth mentioning until Grandfather’s favorite was born. Safiye was the true wonder of their house. On the 19th of February in the year 1787, Safiye Caria Elaine Delaval was born. Small galaxies were brought into existence, sparkling like the heavens full of a thousand stars wondering just how vast her world really was. Her brothers were already growing too quickly for their own good and just two to three short years after her own birth they would be sent off to Eton to spend their days being educated like proper lordlings as and she would have rule of their roost. That wasn’t entirely accurate, no - an old man growing older by the day would walk hand in hand with his only granddaughter and he could deny her nothing. There was such a larger than life spirit in her - an infectious joy and desire to live life as one saw fit.

It could be claimed that there had been no more happier child, none more blessed than she to be beloved and carefree. A country girl yes and somehow a cosmopolitan and curious young thing. That was just as she was a child no more than ten or eleven and those had been her days from the beginning. Eyes shined brighter than the sun and within them lay those small galaxies a light with a hunger to know and understand the world around her in an age of innocence. Giggles filled the corridors and great hallways of home and across England at the feet of seas and persons she would grow the strongest bonds of friendship from pauper to near princes and she would consider them her family. Safiye when she found her tutors lacking in the knowledge she desired, Grandfather commissioned her a vast library to be added on to the house and took to looking for professors that were progressive and forward thinking for his little dove. Safiye saw the world changing and heard the many lectures in London from learned men and scholars, peeking at the essays printed by the Royal Society and naturalists and pleaded with her doting Grandfather and father to have an education like her brothers were given who were now marrying or going to work for the family businesses. There was some trouble yes from a girl who believed firmly in the things at such a tender age so passionately as she did viewing the world differently than most could imagine. A blossoming young woman was a character strong and understanding, only seeking to appreciate her world and the odd things for the strangely beautiful subjects they were.. From the moment the happy little child picked up her first pen, instrument, mechanical toy or cautiously reached out to touch a wild thing a course was set in motion that would forever change her from what she could’ve been. The girl had opened Pandora’s box but it was not evil and misery that fell out; rather further curiosity it was no longer possible for a girl to be like all the other young ladies and be as they had always been locked in competition in a world designed by men.

Oh heaven’s above she was a luminary youth, a girl who blazed forth into the world like the brilliant burst of light. It became quite established that her definition of what a lady should be and the standards that had been in place for an age were different. The Haut Ton could be cruel and could whisper about her eccentricities, her supposed failings using the blanket word ‘odd’ for how she was, baptizing her as something of an acquired taste that because of her family’s great wealth was fascinating in the same breath. Safiye was a gentle woman yes, she knew proper etiquette and how to embroider and all sorts of domestic minded ways of thinking but a well informed and educated miss craved more like those Delavals before her. She enjoyed travel, exploring sciences, the proper and ethical care of animals and to what the rest of the world defined as bizarre to their narrow understanding of the world. Like any true Delaval there were parties, many parties and incredible tricks and near feats of magic and illusions. There was no party ever had before like a Delaval affair and while Safiye hadn’t debuted yet she certainly had a hand in each of them from the menu and music and each stunning display of affluence was a delight to the senses even more astonishing than the next bringing pieces of the world she adored and was eager to teach others about in such a way it fascinated to know end and gossip columns talked about it for weeks. If she was not off on her own grand adventures on what would become her family’s ancestral home working with tenant farmers and the merchants that would pass through the port there or the many beloved pets and plants she carefully looked after a young woman wandered London. Safiye would walk museums, sit in on lectures of the most peculiar things often thought to be far beyond a woman’s understanding, and enjoy the talks of naturalists and adventurers - of engineers, physicians, mathematicians and fascinating weird and fickle subjects. If it were not London however it was at her dear friends estates enjoying their company and towards the end of grandfather’s life when the young lady had grown into quite the young woman at his side serving as his private secretary and travel companion. In hindsight in her short life that was just as challenging as it was enchanted if one asked her now what her favorite days were; they would be the final few years of grandfather’s life. When he retired from his seat in parliament, when the once Sir John handed over the reins to his son and his sons decided he would take a leisurely stroll about the mediterranian. Safiye suspected always that was the reason she hadn’t debuted when other young ladies her age had officially entered the marriage market and higher society at 20 and 21 that she was off painting seascapes with an eye on and old man and her grandmother enjoying a day at the beach. It was a bittersweet sabbatical from the rigors that were the Haut Ton, of London & English society and excess that she did admittingly enjoy. There was a near constant stream of letters between her and friends - loved ones she’d promised always to write to and to father she communicated Grandfather’s health for Grandmother’s letters embellished the truth. Upon her return to Seaton-Delaval Hall it was clear the final days of the man who’d built their name were over. He’d softened yes - Baron Delaval enjoyed the grand parties and the mechanical contraptions Safiye tinkered with or the animals and people she doted on without judging their lots in life knowing all things deserved a wonderful life. He even apologized to her father for how hard he once was and the three women that were with him in his final breath were Grandmother, his second wife, Ayse’s mother and his most precious one.

After the death of the 1st Baron Delaval , Safiye went through the traditional period of mourning for a grandparent which was six months. It was dreadfully hard for a young woman to be swimming in fine black gowns for a child who had been raised in bright, bold colors with a deep devotion to sea green. Despite how wildly she’d grown up there was that brief period of time where she never left their lands and even her own friends saw less of the wildly entertaining and strange bird she was. You only saw glimpses of her in the moonlight, sitting atop a high garden wall in a nightgown talking to the moon. Safiye even took to speaking to her plants, humming to the large number of them in her conservatory. Young lady Delaval seemed only to have time in those six months to spend it with the land and animals that were always her pieces of heaven. Thankfully much to the pleasure of her friends and close companions she did come out of the haze of grief but did not debut that year or the next. Rumors have been circulating that there had since the death of her grandfather been a rift between herself and her own father and her utter refusal of having to be painted up as the picture of perfection and put out on display in hopes to catch a good husband. Her duty to her family now was to secure such a man and like all other young women marry and conform to societal rules. These rumors, true or not would’ve rendered her a most ineligible woman, too independent, to out there and confused about the proper way of things. If it weren’t for her money or her beauty not that Safiye put much stock into either thing herself and did her best instead to be a proper human being such talk would be unforgivable in the eyes of the Haut Ton - a daughter outright refusing her father’s wishes ( not that again such gossip was true ) is seen as fire; flavor to a fascinating young woman that would be a prize to any ambitious man. We see her now, this particular young lady, an eccentric, independent and intelligent young woman thrust upon the marriage market. At twenty-four we see her finally enter the fray officially as a marriage prospect with an astonishingly large dowry that could easily secure any man’s position in this world for an age. Truth be told, the Safiye that delights in novel things such as education, business, agriculture, engineering, the arts and an appreciation for the unknown oddities in life has been her decision all along. Her brothers were either married or about to be and it had been widely thought at one point among the family that Safiye Delaval as wildly wickedly wonderful as she’d never desired to be married herself. Perhaps her head up until now had been full of thoughts of a singular lifestyle breaking boundaries and antiquated rules and truly pioneering a change women deserved or to do something worthwhile with her generous allowance to help the poor and suffering. Perhaps there had existed dreams in that marvelous mind of doing something unheard of but here a lady stands at the edge of the unknown when so much of the world and her own companions’ lives are changing. Dressed to the nines in the most lavish designs she enters the marriage market, presented by her mother the Baroness of Seaton-Delaval making the choice to find a good match for her family’s sake. That after all would be her only reason to enter the Haut Ton as a potential match so that makes a person wonder what sort of situation would call for a singularity surprising young woman to submit to the rules she herself never cared much for? Only time will tell but Safiye has arrived and so the game begins.

#ll.taken #ll.bio #ll.theeccentric

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aion-rsa · 4 years ago

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Warrior Season 2 Episode 1 Review: Learn to Endure, or Hire a Bodyguard

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This Warrior review contains spoilers.

Warrior Season 2 Episode 1

Now that the Warrior world is established, the season 2 premiere concerns itself with more character development and the interweaving of story arcs. The action, however, is even more promising as the season premiere opens with (what else?) a fight scene.

When we rejoin Ah Sahm (Andrew Koji), he’s getting beaten and bloodied again, locked in combat in a new no-holds-barred arena, the Barbary Coast Fight Pit, and flashing back to his brutal defeat by at the hands of Li Yong (Joe Taslim) last season. It’s a decent fight scene that shows off Koji’s intensity. His manager (and new cast addition), Rosalita Vega (Maria-Elena Laas) senses that he’s working out some issues since Ah Sahm is back with the Hop Wei and doesn’t need to earn money in the pit. He’s got something to prove and it may take all of season 2 to prove it. And as the show catches up with the rest of the cast, it’s clear that Ah Sahm isn’t the only one starting anew.

While bringing flowers to the graves of his wife and two boys, Dylan Leary (Dean Jagger) crosses paths with another new addition, Sophie Mercer (Celine Buckens). Despite their class differences, they spark an immediate chemistry, teasing of things to come. Sophie is a promising addition to this season. She’s a fresh young face that brings a new spunk to the show. Unfortunately, her personal values come from a position of naive entitlement, which will surely backfire in the world of Warrior. Later, tensions grow over breakfast between Mayor Samuel Blake (Christian McKay) and Penelope Blake (Joanna Vanderham) about her hiring of coolies in her metal factory, Mercer Steel, an action that opposes his political platform. When Sophie joins them, she proves to be another thorn in Samuel’s side. The sisters have their own tension with Sophie being young and idealist while Penelope is jaded and pragmatic.

Meanwhile, back at the brothel, Ah Toy (Olivia Cheng) makes a sexy entrance down a spiral staircase in a resplendent cheongsam dress, showing off how season 2 is prepared to elaborate on its costumes. Until now, the fashion in Warrior has been strictly period. This season, Ah Toy’s outfits and makeup have gone overboard with outrageously baroque fantasy outfits. Ah Toy’s mascara looks more like something from a modern day rave than the late 19th century, but it’s still San Francisco, after all. The fantastic costume design echoes the precedent martial arts series, Into the Badlands, which was a fantasy where all the attire was dazzling. Warrior also imitates Into the Badlands with its guitar riff soundtrack but will have to step up its fight choreography to reach their level.

As she tends to Ah Sahm’s post-fight injuries, they discuss a new gang that he saw at the Barbary Coast, the Teddy Boys, who wear cut off queue trophies on their jackets like scalps. Ah Sahm wants revenge but Ah Toy has reservations. They’ve been too active lately and she doesn’t want to draw more attention from the Bulls (the SFPD). But Ah Sahm is resolute and Ah Toy concedes to help him. The relationship between Ah Sahm and Ah Toy is developing. They are more like siblings than Ah Sahm and Mai Ling and it’ll be interesting to see how that progresses in Season 2. It’s refreshing to see them not fall into a sexual relationship, as most of the other couples on this show do in typical soap opera fashion.

Bill O’Hara (Kieran Biew) is still working as a debt collector for Zing (Dustin Nguyen) to settle accounts from season 1. Later, O’Hara tries to escape his service to the Fung Hai Tong, but takes money from Zing anyway. O’Hara uses it to buy steak for his family, but his wife Lucy (Emily Child) grows suspicious about where he’s getting it. O’Hara knows being a Tong-controlled cop won’t end well.

While walking about Chinatown, Mai Ling (Dianne Doan) and Li Yong meet a lemon vendor. Like Ah Toy, Mai Ling’s costumes are also leveling up. While Ah Toy’s dresses are becoming more sexy (befitting of a brothel madame), Mai LIng’s outfits are now leaning more towards a fantasy warrior princess. The exaggerated costumes are anachronisms but serve to distance the fiction from history. And the exotic clothing is easy on the eyes. Seeing that the vendor’s wife is sick, Mai Ling shows some compassion and buys their entire stock of fruit. Then they cross paths with Ah Sahm and Young Jun (Jason Tobin) and more tensions percolate.

Ah Sahm and Mai Ling cross at a temple where she is offering lemons to the altar for their deceased parents. Warrior takes some liberties with Chinese culture here because lemons aren’t common funerary offerings. They are usually only used when certain rituals call for five fruits. The five fruits represent the five elements and are colored green, yellow, red, white, and black, and lemons would be used for the yellow. The most common fruits for offering are oranges, which stands outside the five element color scheme. However, while California is a major orange producer now, those might not have gotten to San Francisco as readily back in the 19th century. Lemons are commonly grown throughout the area so perhaps the writers are accurate here. Afterwards, Li Yong and Ah Sahm stare each other down, teasing an inevitable rematch.

The Teddy Boys cut the queue off a Chinese man, accusing him of stealing jobs, raping their women, and bringing disease. Sound familiar? Warrior has become uncomfortably timely in regards to modern day politics. The Teddy Boys start to lynch the man, but Ah Sahm, Ah Toy and Lai (Jenny Umbhau) come to his rescue and kill all the gangsters in a bloody act of vengeance. It’s a sanguineous fight scene with throat slitting, dismemberment, and lots of gratuitous sword stabbing. Most of the fight sequences here are one action to one take where it is simple to swap in stunt people. Koji delivers some nice more complex combos that show off his martial arts background and Umbhau demonstrates her acrobatic skill.

Umbhau is a stuntwoman by trade and perfectly cast in Warrior. While many of the cast have come to Warrior with minimal martial arts background, Umbhau stands alongside Koji, Nguyen and Taslim, all of whom have practiced martial arts long before they joined the show. She came to the U.S. to be part of Cirque du Soleil, but the show was unfortunately shut down and she’s been stuck in the states due to the pandemic ever since. Hopefully, her exposure on Warrior will bring her more opportunities to move on.

O’Hara and Lee confiscate Wang Chao’s (Hoon Lee) illegal weapon cache to pressure him into giving up the swordsman. Chao deflects O’Hara by implying he knows about his connections to Zing. Merriweather (Andre Jacobs) continues to pressure Penelope to buy Mercer Steel, when the injured coolies arrive. Back at the brothel, Ah Sahm tries to buy a lead on an alternate molasses source from Chao, but he denies him. Chao tells Ah Toy to cool it with the vengeance because it’s affecting his business. Ah Toy serves Chao tea, which he accepts casually with one hand, a Chinese faux pas because tea is always accepted with both hands, even when poured by a whorehouse madam. Chao says he’ll see his secret, but that’s left for a future episode.

At the Barbary Coast Fight Pit, Ah Sahm beats down another challenger and then taps Vega for information. As a typical writing device, the Fight Pit bookends this episode, which was directed by writer Jonathan Tropper. Given that this is Bruce Lee inspired, the fight choreography is a key element. This season opener brings the fight focus on Koji as the lead, but fails to deliver anything that inspiring. With so many martial arts based television series recently like Cobra Kai, Wu Assassins, Warrior Nun, the aforementioned Into the Badlands (although this was cancelled), and the upcoming reboot of Kung Fu, Warrior must really up their fight game if they want to stay ahead of the pack.

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The final scenes of the season opener feel more like an epilogue. It would’ve been more elegant to leave it with the bookend fights, and then the final teaser for the next episode. There’s a scene of Walter Buckley (Langley Kirkwood) picking up a prostitute that’s superfluous. It’s a nod to his depravity but his manipulations of the Mayor have already betrayed his villainy. Then in bed, Li Yong and Mai Ling discuss Ah Sahm with some gratuitous nudity. The episode ends with an explosion as Leary lights a cigar, igniting the possibilities of the next episode.

The post Warrior Season 2 Episode 1 Review: Learn to Endure, or Hire a Bodyguard appeared first on Den of Geek.

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x-xkingofgamesx-x · 4 years ago

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Watched 'Pokémon: I Choose You!' recently.

This movie was just too much in so many ways.

You are warned, spoilers ahead, but this movie is from 2017 so if you haven't watched it so far then you're probably not going to.

The animation was cute. Totally. It definitely has that going for it.

Essentially, this movie is the Greatest Hits of the Indigo League first season, but in hyper drive and sans Misty and Brock, inserting instead Verity and Sorrel as his companions, and a douchebag named Cross as his rival in the place of Gary Oak.

The movie isn't entirely rehashing the first season of Indigo though. There is a plot point focusing on Ash's sighting of Ho-Oh upon leaving Pallet Town and getting the living shit kicked out of him and his reluctant sparky companion by a swarm of Spearow.

In this version, Ho-Oh gifts Ash with a Rainbow Wing, which makes him the Chosen One, meant to be the Rainbow Warrior (Ash Ketchum and Ho-Oh say Gay Rights). He is supposed to, essentially, find the source of the rainbow which is where Ho-Oh lives, and he wants to fight the gay bird.

So, we have our plot, yes?

Oh no.

This is more of a loose and vague goal at the end of the tunnel rather than a driving force for the plot.

What we do get is:

A retelling of 'Charmander- The Stray Pokémon', in which Ash finds Charmander dying in the rain after being abandoned by his trainer for being too weak.(Cross was the douchebag owner that abandoned Charmander). Instead of being taken to a PokéCenter, they just hole up in a cave and Sorrel mixes a medicine for him.

In this scene we also delve into a bit of the history of the supporting characters that we know nothing about up until this movie. This includes one of the most traumatic backstories that I've heard in Pokemon. And you get to watch a Pokemon literally freeze to death it was super fucked up.

The appearance of not one but FOUR legendary Pokémon (Ho-Oh, as well as all three Legendary beast Pokémon, Raikou, Entei, and Suicune. {The legendary beasts don't... Do any of their legendary stuff. They mostly just show up to look impressive, and not a damn thing in the plot would change if they were not there.})

Ash getting STOMPED by Cross in a fight with his now evolved Charmeleon. Cross feeds him all this vitriol about the strength of a Pokémon being more important than the bond with said Pokémon. Ash has *a moment* and gets real problematic for a few minutes, saying that his Charmeleon is weak and that Pikachu would have won that fight. When Pikachu gets upset at Ash for this, he says that he wishes he had gotten a Squirtle or Bulbasaur instead of Pikachu and Charmeleon. (I actually gasped at that. It was so mean and so out of character for Ash Ketchum.)

Pikachu runs away and Ho-Oh's magic straight up does some Ghost of Christmas Past shit to Ash and he gets thrown into a world where Pokémon do not exist and he has to learn some life lessons and find renewed appreciation for his Pokémon before he is brought back to Pokémon World.

Retelling of 'Bye Bye Butterfree!' because gotta get in at least one of the episodes that makes kids cry, yeah?

Then ah, they end up finding the mountain where Ho-Oh lives and Ash has a fight with Cross there, who thinks that HE should be the one to fight Ho-Oh. In that fight we have another Evolution, enter Charizard. Anywho, Cross steals Ash's Rainbow Wing which goes all... Evil. And OH! turns out there has been a fucked up Pokémon named Marshadow living inside Ash's shadow the whole show, who was waiting for this moment and steals the corrupted wing and turns all the Pokémon into sleeper agents.

At this point Ash is fighting all of these Pokemon and they are losing this fight pretty splendidly. So, he asks Pikachu to get into the Pokéball to keep him safe. But Pikachu hates pokeballs refuses, as one can expect. What happened at this point weirded me out a little bit if we're being perfectly honest. So Ash asks Pikachu why he won't get into the Pokéball and Pikachu responds to him. In human words. Which really freaks me out.

But Pikachu says, 'Because I always want to be with you,' which is sweet and tender and very heartwarming.

So then at this point Ash forces his little tiny electric rat into the Pokéball to keep him safe and precedes to get hit by six Hyper Beams directly in the back.

This, as you can probably guess, made Ash disintegrate entirely.

Like dead. Super super dead.

But, in true Pokemon fashion, pulling from the end scene of Pokemon: The First Movie- Mewtwo Strikes Back-- of course he doesn't stay dead very long. We end up seeing Ash in the afterlife. He hears Pikachu crying for him and ends up following his voice back into the world of the living and Pikachu's love ends up creating a new body for this kid.

Then at this point Cross learns his lesson, Ash has learned some valuable life lessons, and they are able to get the Rainbow Wing back from Marshadow. This, of course, brings in Ho-Oh who decides to oblige Ash with a Pokémon battle.

Now, this is the moment that we've all waited for right? The entire movie has been about getting this Pokémon battle with Ho-Oh. This should be a really epic battle scene that would be a really great way to end this movie right?

That is where you would be wrong, however. We get to see the first two or three moves in this battle and then it cuts out and the next scene is Ash walking a fucked up Pikachu into the Pokemon Center, and they insinuate that this was a really amazing battle but they did not actually draw out the battle for us to watch.

I know this may sound like quite a bit of plot to go into a movie.

It's a good chunk of the information from the first season of the Indigo League.

And I do want to remind you that there are 82 episodes in the first season of the Indigo League for Pokémon.

They shoved all of this nonsense into a single hour and a half of content.

By the end of this movie I was just baffled and confused and did not know how to feel about it.

Anyway there's all my thoughts about this movie and none of it really matters. Just like this movie.

#pokemon #pokémon #pokemon i choose you #pokémon i choose you

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setepenre-set · 7 years ago

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Love and War (chapter 5)

Strange Magic

Bog/Marianne, T rating

This is a story about two kingdoms, side by side, but worlds apart. And at war.

When the Bog King finally wins his war against the Fairy Kingdom, he decides that a political marriage with the eldest daughter of the deposed Fairy King will help to promote peace.

Obviously, he’s never met Marianne.

AO3 | FFN

Marianne hadn’t realized, before, how much more pleasant Bog’s law against love made her life.

Now, everywhere she looks, she sees couples holding hands, staring dreamily into each other’s eyes, kissing—there is entirely! too much! kissing!

All she hears is love songs and poetry and syrupy sweet declarations of devotion.

It’s horrible.

Planning Dawn’s wedding is a special kind of torture, especially since Marianne feels terribly guilty about how much she hates it. She’s happy that Dawn’s happy, of course, and she’s glad that Dawn is marrying someone she loves, the one person, in Marianne’s estimation, who might come close to deserving her.

But.

There is only so much talk of which love songs will be the best to dance to, what flavors the little heart-shaped wedding cakes should be, what expressions of affection the bride and groom’s vows of eternal love should include—

There’s only so much of that sort of thing that Marianne can take without wanting to scream.

Dawn has designed her wedding gown herself, of course, as well as Marianne’s gown. Marianne is disconcerted to find that her primrose-petal wedding dress has started a new fad. Dawn’s wedding promises to be the event of the season, and all of the really fashionable ladies are planning to wear dresses made of flower petals to it. This means that none of their dresses can be made ahead of time, as the flowers will wilt.

Some of the more frugal ladies might settle for gowns made of fabric that has been shaped into petals and then sewn together, but anyone who can afford the fresh flower gowns definitely intends to have one. Another trick the overwhelmed seamstresses have come up with is making an under-gown of fabric, which the petals can then be sewn to, but, as Dawn informs Marianne, the truly modish regard this as gauche and not to be considered.

The allure of the fresh flower gowns is in how delicate and ephemeral they are. Apparently.

“…right,” says Marianne, who definitely just came up with the idea on a cruel whim to torment her husband-to-be.

The chosen flower for the wedding party is to be violets: blue petals for Dawn, and deep purple ones for Marianne.

The dresses won’t be made until the day of the wedding itself, but after the royal seamstress takes their measurements, fabric mock-up dresses are made, so that Dawn can approve the final designs. Dawn is a perfectionist where clothing is concerned, and she adjusts the design of all the gowns several times, necessitating alterations and more trial fittings.

It is during the third round of fittings that Marianne finds she cannot bear another instant and has to excuse herself for a moment. She slips into an empty room a few doors beyond the fitting room, leans against the window sill, closes her eyes, and breathes.

The sound of the door opening and then closing again as someone enters makes her eyes fly open, and she turns, her heart in her throat, somehow convinced that it will be Bog, that he’s finally decided to stop avoiding her, the way he has ever since that night in her bedroom and—

It’s not Bog.

It’s Roland.

“No need to look so sad, now, Marianne,” Roland says with a smile that she would have found charming, once. “Help is here.”

He’s wisely elected to stay a few paces away from her, this time, out of striking distance.

“Roland,” Marianne says, lip curling.

He gives her another smile, and Marianne feels—very cold, all of a sudden, and very far away, looking at him. She looks at him, and it’s almost as if she’s never truly seen him before.

I used to think I was in love with you, she thinks.

For the first time, the thought brings with it no bitter wave of self-disgust and self-recrimination. Instead, Marianne feels only a distant kind of amazement, and gratitude at her narrow escape.

“So what’s the plan, Buttercup?” Roland asks, his hand going to the hilt of his sword. He turns his head just slightly, making the sunlight from the window hit his hair at a more direct angle, making it glow gold.

If Bog were here, she could look over at him and meet his eyes, and she would have to hide a smile at the way he’d raise his eyebrow because she’d know without either of them saying anything that they’d both be thinking what a twit, and then later Marianne would do an impression of Roland and both of them would laugh and—

Marianne comes to herself with a start, terribly aware of everything, all of the sensory detail of this moment, the fabric of the trial dress against her skin and the warmth of the afternoon sun and the solid expanse of the floor beneath her feet.

And she knows, suddenly, that she will not do it. She will not conspire with Roland—with anyone—against Bog. She will take her plans for rebellion no further.

“The army is ready to strike anytime you say go,” Roland says, teeth gleaming.

Marianne draws herself up to her full height.

“Go. Away,” she says.

Roland blinks.

“Beg pardon?”

“Go away,” Marianne repeats. “I do not want to talk to you. I do not want to look at you. Go away.”

Roland’s handsome face twists.

“You need me!” he says. “You need my help!”

Marianne laughs.

“I don’t want your help. I want nothing from you—nothing except your absence.”

“I command the army!” Roland says, striding towards her, his face thunderous. “Maybe you’ve forgotten that little fact! They won’t move without me, so if you want your coup, Marianne, you’d better—”

Marianne punches him.

Her fist hits him squarely in the face; he stumbles back and falls to the ground with a clatter of armor on stone.

“I have no desire for a coup,” she says, looking down her nose at Roland. “And when you address your queen, you will use her proper title.”

Roland gapes at her, his hand on his bruised face. Sadly, there doesn’t seem to be any blood coming from between his fingers; Marianne had been hoping she might have broken his nose.

She bares her teeth in a threat of a smile.

“And the proper title for a queen,” she says, “is Your Majesty.”

Roland is still staring at her in speechless shock as she sweeps from the room.

Marianne strides down the hall to the fitting room again, takes a deep breath, fixes her smile so that it’s less like a snarl, and opens the door.

“There you are!” Dawn says, her wings fluttering with excited agitation. “Come over here, Marianne; I want to look at the bodice of your dress again.”

Smiling, Marianne does as her sister asks, her shaking hands hidden in the fabric of her skirt.

Roland paces the empty room, his sixth circuit since Marianne knocked him down and left. She’d struck him! His face is probably going to bruise! His face!

She’s clearly out of her mind; what did she mean, she has no desire for a coup?! She can’t possibly like being married to that—that—

The King is a goblin, for goodness sake; you aren’t supposed to want to marry goblins!

If only Marianne hadn’t discovered him with Bella on their wedding day. Then he would be the one married to Marianne, and he wouldn’t need her approval for the coup. He would be able to start the rebellion in his own name.

Everything was so much simpler when Marianne was in love with him.

Why can’t she just let the whole Bella incident go? All right, so Marianne’s pride must have been injured, but surely he’d humbled himself enough to appease her, at the Spring Ball, a few months after she left him at the altar! He’d serenaded her publicly, begging for her return; shouldn’t they be even, now?

If only the Sugarplum Fairy had been released back then; he could have used one of those love potions she’s always talking about instead of going to all of that trouble with the singing and the choreographed dancing and the—

Roland stops his circuit of the room.

A love potion.

The Sugarplum Fairy is back in the fairy court. There’s no reason he can’t use a love potion now, is there?

Oh, it’s illegal, of course; the King has lifted the ban on love but not the law against love potions.

But that’s just a technical detail. The Sugarplum Fairy babbles on and on about her love potions to anyone who is willing to listen (and also to people who are not willing to listen). It won’t take more than a little nudge to get her to go back to making her potions.

And when Marianne is in love with him again, she’ll be eager to get rid of that goblin husband of hers. Roland will have his coup.

He’ll have his crown.

Roland pictures it; visualizes it: the crown, sitting on his head. Him, sitting on a throne. No more bowing and scraping and gritting his teeth and pretending not to see the way people look down their noses at him, pretending not to hear them whispering about the shame of his family history.

Nobody talks about a king like that. Nobody looks at a king like that.

He lets out a long breath, feeling calmer, his head held high, as though he already wears the crown.

Now, what’s the best way to go about this? He can’t ask the Lady Plum for the potion himself, otherwise she’ll be suspicious when Marianne suddenly comes back to him. Who can he convince to get the potion for him?

He runs through his mental catalogue of his current sweethearts, trying to decide which one is the most gullible.

Celeste, he decides. Definitely Celeste.

He twists his finger in his hair, making sure it’s lying just right across his forehead, and then strides out of the room and down the corridor towards the rooms of the palace chambermaids, in search of Celeste, planning what he’ll say to convince her.

I’ve heard that love potion can be a powerful aphrodisiac for two people already in love; wouldn’t you like to try it, darlin’?

Yes, that’s perfect. Obviously Lady Plum will know better; if Celeste mentions the supposed aphrodisiac qualities of the potion, Lady Plum will set the girl straight and he can’t have that. A simple matter, to make Celeste too embarrassed to ask a lady about aphrodisiacs. Roland will craft a sad story for her to tell to Lady Plum instead—unrequited love, desperation, sorrow, the works. The Sugarplum Fairy won’t be able to resist.

And when Celeste brings him the potion, he’ll switch it out for a bottle of powdered rose and violet petals, maybe some crushed mica thrown in for sparkle. She won’t be any the wiser when the two of them dust themselves with that, instead of the potion. Her own silly head will probably convince her that she feels the effect of the potion regardless.

Besides, Roland has excellent technique; doesn’t need an aphrodisiac to make a lover’s head spin. Roland has made a study of pleasing other people, both in and out of bed.

He’s always thought Marianne might not have been so quick to break their engagement, had he ever bedded her.

Roland’s heart and feet are light as he makes his way to the servants’ quarters, and he whistles a tune beneath his breath as he walks, that song Marianne was so fond of, when they were courting.

Take my hand; take my whole life, too—

I can’t help falling in love with you.

...to be continued.

Thank you for the reblogs and the comments! They always make me so happy. I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

#strange magic #butterfly bog #bog/marianne #love and war #arranged marriage au

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