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ruby-red-inky-blue · 2 years ago

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rewatching Pride and Prejudice (2005) and I -

i really do love this movie so much it’s stupid

as an adaptation i don’t think it holds up as well as i thought, specifically because Darcy isn’t unlikeable enough at the beginning. At the first ball he looks like a stressed-out puppy who has lost sight of his human and Lizzie is frankly cruel for judging him so harshly, the man is clearly drowning

like the point of darcy isn’t supposed to be that he was never really a jerk but that he was a complete jerk but *changed*

do i care though? no. MacFadyen’s Darcy is a hot mess and it’s a delight to watch

hand flex

Bingley and Mr Collins are possibly even funnier than i remembered (”No I mean it’s a pleasure that she’s here.......” Bingley don’t do it don’t do it dear god - “...being ill...” Oh god Bingley why) but there are some gems that I didn’t even catch before:

the proposal scene. my god. Collins just hands her the tiniest flower. Elizabeth is sat right in front of a ginormous ham the whole time. Neither one is looking at each other. it’s so funny.

I’m not even halfway through and Lizzie thinks Darcy is so hot. I feel like that didn’t happen this early on in the book and it’s honestly so funny because I cannot believe that she hates him because a) aforementioned kicked puppy look and b) she just. She just thinks he’s so hot. Nobody’s buying it Lizzie.

also Darcy’s look of raw unbridled terror at the sight of Lizzie keeps getting funnier. Emma gave the nosebleed to the wrong Austen character, 2005-Darcy just getting a straight-up anime nosebleed at the sight of Elizabeth at Rosings and everyone freaking out over the blood on Lady Catherine’s expensive carpets?? Honestly I wouldn’t even have batted an eye at it, he is so into her and would burst a blood vessel out of sheer distress.

the odd little pre-proposal scene where he bursts in at the Collin’s and runs back out a minute later? I’d forgotten, like...

(his little glance. Like the briefest recollection that, ah, yes. Chairs. Anyway - )

(the way he declines a cup of tea so incredibly earnestly with a look of utter bereavement on his face is so funny to me. You’d think he’d come to tell her that her entire family had died.)

the lead up to the proposal is so dramatic, and i think every viewer under the sun knows what is coming, but i would just like to point out that in a different movie this shot reads vaguely like a period horror film:

his entrance is so sinister?? he’s obscuring the shot with that dark coat and towering over the camera and Lizzie - and then cut to the next shot where we’re right back to deplorable puppy, this time of the fell-into-a-pond variety

my god there is no preamble, he just starts ranting. i’ve consumed this scene in gifs only for so long i remembered it as pretty romantic if misguided but this is a trainwreck

see the first couple of lines here are where this is an odd adaptation. He’s so tortured you don’t even really notice that he’s kind of insulting her at first, and Lizzie seems genuinely concerned when she says “I’m sorry to have caused you pain” when in the book that is not the vibe I got, and then it kinda seems like it escalates a little too much

that said, it’s still glorious. I’m watching through my fingers. I can’t bear it.

Elizabeth Bennet, here seen looking at “the last man in the world I could ever be prevailed upon to marry”

sure, girl.

controversial opinion, but somehow, in a movie with famously grandeous beautiful Jane Austen language, this line is my number two most swoonworthy line of the movie:

same, Lizzie.

the scene where Darcy gives Lizzie the letter is gorgeous. It’s also quite strange? it does somewhat suggest that she knew he would turn up - he literally pops up in the mirror as if she’d said Bloody Mary three times, and she doesn’t seem remotely surprised to see him

also while I assume that was normal back then it does amuse me that he just up and walks into someone else’s house - and what did the servants think? he certainly wasn’t dressed for a visit, and young Miss Bennet certainly wasn’t dressed to receive visitors in any case! Scandalous!

if that letter had been read to Lizzie as it is to the viewer, she wouldn’t harbour that much lingering resentment. 10/10, no notes.

dramatic single tear when she talks about Darcy to Jane *sniff*

“Oh no, let’s not [see Darcy’s estate]. He’s so - he’s so - he’s so - he’s so rich!” oh Lizzie...

Lizzie’s acrid little giggle when they lay eyes on Pemberley SENDS me. It’s both “of course he’d live in there” and just a little bit of “....shit is this what I was offered?” and honestly, i get it

i’m not saying people didn’t have rooms exclusively for their collection of marble statues on a working estate, but it does seem... a bit much. Especially that you would have all of these lovely images of mythology and ancient nobility and then a bust of yourself right slap in the middle?? Like Darcy isn’t the type to comission a bust of himself, but even if we assume that his late father comissioned it (already a bit of a stretch since the bust hardly looks that much younger than Darcy) whose idea was it to put it there, among nymphs and gods? Was it in his father’s room and Darcy looked at it after his father’s passing and just went, it’s a statue isn’t it, just put it with the others?

that said, the woman is done for (they even ASK her if she thinks he’s handsome like they don’t have eyes or something)

Georgiana and Darcy are so cute i can’t -

also Darcy once again first dramatically appears in a mirror - I get it Joe, I get it, it’s a theme, they’re so alike, Lizzie is seeing it now (it’s pretty cool i don’t know why i’m so glib about it)

WHY IS THIS SHOT THO I’m dying this is so dramatic:

“I thought you were in London!” “No. No, I’m not.” What you are is a desaster, Darcy.

The fiddly hands, the talking over each other, the almost yelling every other word, Lizzie is so desperately searching for ANY topic of conversation and he’s so stupidly earnest about her inconsequential traveling plans and god they both look like they’re about to start sobbing this SCENE

“We’re going to Mattlock tomor-” “Tomorrow??!” Stoppp my heart

also the closeup of the hand say what you will but Joe Wright knows his audience

not Lizzie jumping headfirst into a storage room and hiding behind a curtain when she sees Darcy at the inn. i mean i would have done the same probably but still

Georgiana digging poor Darcy’s grave in 30 seconds flat:

immediate flirting of the most desperate degree, and Mrs and Mr Gardiner stood right behind them for the whole thing, visibly wondering what the hell is happening:

also Darcy doing anything to keep Lizzie around longer is so precious. Look at this man. This man does not fish with strangers. This man fishes in solitude. That is clearly why he fishes in the first place. Now he’s inviting some old man to fish with him. Just so she won’t leave.

Behold, a masterpiece:

“This is grave indeed... I will leave you. Goodbye.” WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS

god I love Lizzie taking Lydia’s wine glass away and then taking a good long sip herself because it’s all so hard to stand. And then suddenly in the middle of all her insipid chattering Lydia gives a damn fine observation of Darcy (because she isn’t prejudiced... get it) and takes back her wine glass

sidenote but i love how affectionate the Bennets are with one another, it’s so sweet

just this:

Lizzie now hiding behind walls as there are no storage closets or curtains available

Darcy started wearing stripey waistcoats. You know who else wears stripes a lot?

-”I return to town tomorrow.” -”So soon!” oh how the turntables

Bingley and Jane are almost as tragic als Lizzie and Darcy. Jane is so dense where Bingley is concerned. And I would have LOVED to see how Bingley roped Darcy into roleplaying??? his engagement??? He’s playing Jane

Mrs Bennet sloooooowly herding everyone into the kitchen because Jane may get engaged so NOBODY MAKE ANY SUDDEN MOVEMENTS HE’S SKITTISH (except Jane obviously. Jane needs to be there. For Jane’s engagement. Naturally.)

meanwhile Lizzie and Darcy mourn the one that got away, apparently separated by a single tree

i love those little shots of everyone at Longbourne at nighttime, it’s so domestic and sweet, with the servant singing to herself and the sisters spending time together

“Perhaps Mr Collins has a cousin” is an underrated line for sure

the whole scene with Lady Catherine is WILD like she arrives in the dead of night, no servants no nothing, impertinent with pretty much everyone in the house, only Dame Judy Dench could pull this off

here it is, the biggest swoon of the entire movie bar none (again, controversial, but they improved on Jane Austen here. I will take no criticism at this time):

“One word from you will silence me on the subject forever.” and she just gazes at him silently! they’re a lot

I really do feel for Darcy, he makes his whole speech and Lizzie just looks at him and takes his hand and says “well then” and “your hands are cold”, like, girl, you’re killing this man

(yes the sunrise forehead lean is peak romance i’m not made of stone!)

Okay so from Mr and Mrs Bennet’s point of view, Lizzie got yelled at by an elderly aristocrat in the middle of the night and when they woke up the next morning this dude that Lizzie has proclaimed to hate for half a year now is asking for her hand in marriage, looking like he literally rolled out of bed and walked into Mr Bennet’s office. And now Lizzie tells Mr Bennet that she loves Darcy while Mrs Bennet watches him pace holes into their front yard. Can’t blame them for being slightly confused tbh

Darcy did not - I cannot stress this enough - Darcy did not go home to change??? He went into Mr Bennet’s home, still half-dressed, in only a shirt and that dirty-ass overcoat, no hat no waistcoat no CRAVAT like a HARLOT he couldn’t wait two minutes, men of his standing wouldn’t have been seen on the street looking like that, this is how you go and ask for your future wife’s hand in marriage?? This man is so horny

and probably terrified she’s gonna change her mind

this scene!!! they’re so cute

the revolving door was unfortunately only invented in the late 1800s, because there would have been a prime opportunity for a dad joke for Mr Bennet otherwise

Lizzie and her father laughing the exact same way is the sweetest, most touching way to end this film (we don’t talk about the weird Sixteen Candles ending okay? Okay.)

i love this movie so much i’m not even mad i had to pay three euros to watch it again, 11/10, a delight

#pride and prejudice #pride and prejudice 2005 #keira knightley #matthew macfadyen #carrie watches #it's been SO LONG i forgot how trash for this movie i am #the last time i saw it was a few years ago dubbed into german with my parents #and i spent most of it having to explain to my parents why this is actually a funny movie because they were (inexplicably) bored

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samwilsonshandsandass · 3 years ago

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I Think I'm Seeing Triple

Pairing: Sam Wilson x Sam Wilson x Sam Wilson x reader x Bucky Barnes x Bucky Barnes x Bucky Barnes Summary: You just want to get settled in in your hotel room for a weekend conference, when your room is also given to two other attendees of the conference. And then something happens no one can explain and four surprise guests are also in the room Warnings: Smut, oral (f and m receiving), spanking, choking Word count: 3240 A/N: @keanureevesisbae were suffering together because of a post with four pictures each of Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan and then I had a thought and got some inspiration.

You went up to your hotel room after the first getting to know each other event at the weekend conference you had to go to. You hadn’t even put your shoes near the door when it opened and in came two other attendees. You knew who they were, had seen them all over the newspapers and also columns. Sam Wilson aka Cap and Bucky Barnes aka… he wasn’t the Winter Soldier anymore and you didn’t know if he wanted to claim that title to morph it into something good or if he was called something else. So, Bucky Barnes.

Before you could ask them what they did in your room, and how they got a key card when it was clearly booked, and before they stopped their bickering about who was the blanket hog, there were two flashes of golden light and from each flash tumbled a pair of men identical to the pair of men who just walked into your room. Just their clothing separated them from each other.

“Who are you?”

Sam Wilson asked and looked at someone who seemed to be his friend. Although that friend had entered the room beside him.

“I’m Bucky” The one spoken to, said.

“No, I’m Bucky!” A third version of the man said.

“And you?” The one who seemed to be the actual Sam, wanted to know.

“Sam.”

“Who am I then?”

“My less attractive twin?”

“Ha-ha.”

“So, There’s three Sams. And three Buckys. That’s not weirder than other things we were confronted with. And you are?” The Bucky who had entered the room with the first Sam questioned and looked at you.

“Y/N” You answered slowly. “And why are all of you in my hotel room?”

“We’re here because the person at the reception told us this room was available. We’re last minute additions to this weekend conference” That was one of the Buckys. He gestured to himself and one of the Sams.

“O- kay. And you four?” You looked at the seemingly identical versions of the Sam and Bucky who were supposed to be here.

“There was a flash, everything went cold and now we’re here” The third Bucky replied.

“We had something similar happening” The Sam in the middle said.

“Alright. Okay. Cool. I’ll just be blunt and say I wouldn’t have been opposed to one Sam and Bucky being in the same room for an entire weekend” You mumbled after you looked shortly to the heavens.

“You do know we’re supposed to actually attend meetings and workshops and networking events, don’t you?” The Bucky you dubbed “Bucky number one” asked you.

“Stickler for principles…” Sam number one grinned. “I know you. You’d do anything to get out of at least the networking events.”

“Of course I would! Still doesn’t change the fact networking just means getting drunk and fucking someone just for the sake of fucking someone. I’m not for that. And I can’t get drunk.”

You saw the other two Bucky’s nod in agreement.

“So, that’s the defining trait of the different Bucky’s” Sam number two smiled.

“As if you like what comes out of these events” Bucky (you couldn’t say which) grinned back.

“No, I’d cook for someone first. Be a gentleman.”

“See. And I’d take her dancing.”

You cleared your throat.

“I still don’t understand all this” You stated.

“Me neither” Bucky number three. “Maybe we could each explain the basics of yourselves.”

“Good idea. So. In this universe, my universe, you” You sat back on the bed and pointed at Sam number one, “were a para rescue and then used what you learned during that time to save the world. And you” You looked down at Bucky number one who was laying on your belly, “were a P.O.W. during World War II and then basically got turned into a human weapon and got frozen to keep your body the way they needed it to be. You were found and then, a year later in probably the technologically most advanced country on earth you finally got freed for good from it all and now use your skills for good as well. With him as your partner.” You pointed at Sam number one again.

“Wait. You had a second World War? We only had one. You know, the one from 1914 to 1918?” Bucky number two asked. “What happened in your universe?”

“The Germans thought the cure for their humiliation in Versailles could only be coped with by committing genocide and reaching for world domination.” Bucky number one explained. “And my best friend got quite big and muscle-y because of that. Why didn’t the Germans do in your universe what they did in mine?”

“Some Germans had their heads on straight. Fought back when the political landscape of 1920s Germany was close to morphing into street terror and they succeeded. They stayed a democratic country and that was that.”

“My Steve got all the muscles as well.” Bucky number three smiled. Then it fell from his face. “We actually served together, after he changed like that. When the Germans and their allies were defeated, Steve went on to train new recruits back home and I went to Korea.”

“So, you aged normally. How come you’re here now with a body like back then? And why are you also looking like that, when there even wasn’t a second world war and in theory you should’ve lived a long live and, no offence, be long underground?” You wondered and looked between Bucky number two and three.

Bucky number two snorted. “I know what you mean. After school, I actually got a scholarship, one of the few back then, for Teachers College, which is a part of Columbia University. I became a Math and Physics teacher. After some years, the university offered a few places in an experimental study about nitrogen and cryogenesis.”

“And I suspect you accepted one?” Sam number three asked.

“Yep. Wanted to see what progress the future made in science and to have the body and age and mind to enjoy it all fully.”

“That takes being a nerd to a whole new level. I thought the Bucky I know was flexing!” Sam number one exclaimed.

“Just because I could read the Hobbit when it came out and you couldn’t?” Bucky number one shot back.

“You read that, too?” Bucky number two and three exclaimed.

“No matter the universe, they’re nerds” Sam number two mumbled.

“And you two? What happened with you in your universes?” You looked at Sam number two and three.

“My and Sarah’s parents died quite a few years ago. My nephews were little, and yet, I thought I’d help my family more if I went off to the air force. Sarah wouldn’t have that and then the community got wind of my plans and they kept me there” Sam number two smiled. “I took over more of the workload to keep our fishing business afloat so Sarah could focus more on the kids when they were really little. When they got bigger, we shared the workload more equally and still do that now. Haven’t regretted not moving away one day.”

“I also didn’t move away. Well, not entirely to Washington, after our parents died. I worked my ass off to get into an undergraduate program for social work and now I’m working as a counselor for families in tight spots in St. Bernard” Sam number three told.

“Okay. This is quite much, but I can work with that. Or at least understand more. Want to know something about me?” You looked around at the six men around you.

“Isn’t that confusing for you?” Bucky wanted to know.

“On every level, yes. So, I’ll just concentrate on the fact there’s six handsome and hot guys and just one of me.”

“That’s certainly something” Sam smiled.

“Yeah” You laughed quietly and took his hand.

You felt him stroke the back of your hand and move towards you. With a half smile and half lidded eyes, he pecked your lips. He moved back slowly. You cradled his head in your hand and pulled him in again, scratching his head all the while and earning a moan. You moved your lips against Sam’s, sucking his tongue into your mouth. He chuckled against your lips and moved back again. This time just enough to be able to bite your lips and then move his tongue against your lips again.

When he allowed you to breathe, another Sam asked: “You gonna hog her all for yourself or let us have a piece, too?”

“As if I’d deny myself the joy and pleasure of all of you…” You simpered.

“Well then” He pulled you up to stand and walked you to the middle of the big, fluffy rug in front of the bed.

Sam stood in front of you. With a faint smile, he unbuttoned button for button on the top of your dress. At the same time Bucky knelt behind you and let his hands wander from your ankles to the hem of your panties. He pulled them down slowly, until they caught on the hem of your stockings. Bucky pulled them down as well and put them on the ever growing pile of clothes near the foot of the bed.

“Would you look at this body!” Came from the direction of the bed, where the other two Buckys sat when the Sam before you let your dress fall from your body.

“God” That drawn out moan came from the loveseat with two Sams on it.

You smiled and opened your eyes, looking around to see the four men naked and teasingly stroke their cocks.

“C’mere baby” Sam purred.

The two men who had just undressed you went over to the bed. You stood in front of the loveseat.

“And where am I sitting?”

“Laying” Sam smiled and pulled you down.

Your torso laid across the legs of the Sam sitting left and your thighs across the Sam on the right. You wiggled your ass jokingly until you felt a gentle spank on the right cheek.

“We’ll be the ones to make you move, baby. You just relax and take it” Bucky said from the bed. You had no idea which one.

“Although that doesn’t mean we’ll be soft” Another Bucky said. You could hear the smile in his voice.

“I don’t think she wants us to be soft. Well, maybe a little?” The Sam who had your torso laying on his legs, questioned.

You looked up at him and opened your mouth to answer but before you could, he slipped two fingers into it. His other hand wandered to the nape of your neck. He started massaging it, and with a guttural moan, you spread your legs.

The Sam with your legs on his thighs now kneaded your butt, lulling you into a sense of security and comfort.

Then came the first spank. Pretty light, on the left butt cheek. You squeaked in surprise.

Before you could say anything, he landed a slightly harder spank on the right one. You whimpered.

The third spank was even harder, on the left cheek again.

The fourth spank made your ass cheek jiggle and yourself moan.

Sam continued in that tempo and alternated the cheeks with every other spank. The other Sam moved his fingers in and out of your mouth at a different pace, not giving you a chance to get used to just one rhythm.

From the couch pants and moans could be heard. Sam didn’t let you move your head, squeezing instead of massaging your neck each time you wanted to look in the direction of the bed.

“No looking, baby. You just feel and hear.”

You nodded as best as you could and felt a visceral need in your core. You tried to alleviate it, humping the side of Sam’s thigh.

“You need something more, baby?”

You mumbled around the other Sam’s fingers.

“I’d say that’s a yes” The Bucky in the middle of the bed grinned.

“C’mere baby.” Both Sam’s helped you up and got you in front of the bed.

You looked up at Bucky and he petted your cheek.

“Ready?”

You nodded and knelt in front of Bucky and another Bucky pushed your head down to make you take everything until you gagged. They both gave you short periods of reprieve when one of them pulled a little back until they made you gag again. With each gagging noise you made, you felt yourself getting wetter.

Suddenly you felt the tip of a cock between your ass cheeks. With a sigh, a sigh as if he came home, the man behind you penetrated you slowly, making you feel every inch. Bucky pushed you down quickly. The pace made your eyes water and a tear fall but that didn’t keep you from recognizing that beautiful brown skin in the corner of your left eye.

“We’re so good, we make you cry?” Sam grinned, showing his canines.

You nodded once when you heard a growl above you. Suddenly your mouth was empty and not a second later long ropes of cum hit your face.

You opened your eyes just in time to see Sam’s hand rubbing your clit as he pulled your back close to his chest. You felt the warmth of his chest and his accelerated heartbeat at your back. He bent forward to caress your neck. Sam kissed your neck and bit every spot he had just caressed. You bucked against him, trying to get him moving deeper into you. You felt him smile against your neck where he had just sucked. He pressed his index and middle finger to your clit. He tapped it and with two further movements, you felt him squeeze your neck and with a long whine you came.

You wrapped your hands around Sam’s left wrist and that did it for him. You felt him spurt into your core and your legs trembled a little with the aftershocks.

“God…” He moaned into your neck and kissed it.

“J- just me” You mumbled in a haze with a grin.

You heard several chuckles from the bed. Someone pulled you slowly up and put you on the bed. Several people stroked your body and kissed you softly. You, in turn, caressed Sam’s face and could almost hear him purr under your touch.

When you felt like you were in the here and now again, you laid on back on the bed, the head in the lap of one Bucky with one Sam kissing the life out of you. He had his hand wrapped around your throat and squeezed now and then. You were moaning and whimpering continuously but you didn’t know why exactly. Maybe it was because Bucky massaged your head. Maybe it was because Sam choked and kissed you so beautifully.

And maybe it was because what happened between your legs. Looking down your body, spread out like a feast, you saw one brown haired head. Two strains had escaped the low bun and stuck to his face with his spit and your slick. Next to Bucky, there was Sam. This was the Sam with longer curls. Perfect to rake your fingers through and pull him even closer to you.

Both of them licked, nibbled and sucked on your private parts and on the tighter rim a little below. Occasionally they bumped heads and shoulders, chuckling each time. Each chuckle sent vibrations through you and made you pull their hair. Every time you did that, they moaned. Even more vibrations went to your clit. A vicious cycle.

Until they stopped everything.

Although you wanted to form words of protest, nothing articulated came out of your mouth.

You saw the two grinning at each other and they rammed three fingers each in you. Three in your pussy and three in your ass. You could only moan and your back arched up.

Bucky attacked your g spot right away and Sam hammered into your ass. With the contrast of that to the kissing of the other Sam and the head massage by the other Bucky, you couldn’t focus on anything, just letting it happen. Out of the blue, you sensed something warm and wet and occasionally sharp on your nipples and your neck. You could only guess that was because of the other two.

With one more come hither motion of Bucky, you screamed into Sam’s mouth and came. You felt your walls spasm and spasm and spasm. Yet, Bucky didn’t stop. Each time your pussy let up, there was another come hither motion and Sam hadn’t stopped fingering your ass once.

Sam and Bucky bit your nipples until they were swollen and the Sam who still had his hand around your neck, squeezed.

Your body, that hadn’t ceased moving since your scream, spasmed as a whole and then everything went black.

---

As you came to again, one pair of Sam and Bucky were grinning up at you and two pairs were grinning down at you.

“There she is again” Bucky smiled.

“I take it you’re satisfied?” Another Bucky asked you cockily.

You nodded, panting.

You were maneuvered until you laid on a mountain of pillows. From that position you could see all six men gripping their erections. Your body was sweaty, spit from six men clung to it, your face was painted with the cum from one of the Bucky’s and between your legs there was a mess of the cum of one of the Sam’s and yours. Still, you wanted more. And you knew how to get it.

You made grabby hands, decidedly close to the men’s cocks. They grinned and moved closer to you.

“Please?” You made puppy dog eyes at them.

“How can you say no to this very beautiful and very naughty girl?” One of the Sam’s mumbled to himself.

“You don’t, never!” Bucky answered and started jerking faster.

You licked your lips and sat up a bit. You didn’t want to miss one second of this show. Their hands went over their cocks, faster and faster until the six faces contorted in pleasure and you saw your belly and breasts be painted by their cum. It was accompanied by several growls and whimpers.

You smiled tiredly, when the six collapsed around you. You pulled them closer, reveling in their warmth.

“Gimme some minutes, doll” Bucky whispered into your ear.

After some time, he went and got several warm wet washcloths. He and another Bucky cleaned you up softly. Only after that, did the men clean up themselves. You turned on your side, tired and sated. Sam pulled you into his chest, Bucky molded himself to your back and put his legs over yours. The other four cuddled up to you three in the middle, making you a tangle of seven people in the middle.

“Does one of you know when the first meeting of tomorrow starts?” You yawned.

“At nine” The Bucky of this universe mumbled.”

“The cyborg strikes again” A mix of a yawn and smile was audible in his voice. “Do we have to attend that?”

“I think so.”

“Ugh. And what about the four not from here?” Sam wriggled his arm free and hugged one Bucky and one Sam to his back.

“No idea” The Sam hugged by Sam shook his head.

“Let’s sleep for now. We can worry about that tomorrow” The Bucky between the two Sam’s said.

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newstfionline · 3 years ago

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Tuesday, August 24, 2021

Portland protests see clashes between far-right, far-left groups (Reuters) Protests by rival far-right and left-wing groups in Portland descended into violence on Sunday, as the opposing sides engaged in clashes and at least one man was arrested for firing a gun at demonstrators. Nobody was hurt in an exchange of gunfire—and by Sunday evening there was no word on any injuries in numerous other skirmishes that saw opposing sides brawling, dousing each other in what appeared to be bear spray and breaking car windows of rivals. Police Chief Chuck Lovell said during a briefing on Friday that officers would not necessarily intervene to break up fights between the groups. But he added that “just because arrests are not made at the scene when tensions are high, does not mean that people won’t be charged with crimes.”

Henri hurls rain as system settles atop swamped Northeast (AP) The slow-rolling system named Henri is taking its time drenching the Northeast with rain, lingering early Monday atop a region made swampy by the storm’s relentless downpour. Henri, which made landfall as a tropical storm Sunday afternoon in Rhode Island, has moved northwest through Connecticut. It hurled rain westward far before its arrival, flooding areas as far southwest as New Jersey before pelting northeast Pennsylvania, even as it took on tropical depression status. Over 140,000 homes lost power, and deluges of rain closed bridges, swamped roads and left some people stranded in their vehicles.

Classes starting, but international students failing to get U.S. visas (Reuters) Kofi Owusu occasionally waits outside the U.S. embassy in Accra to ask fellow students what they have done to secure a timely visa appointment. Classes for his master’s program at Villanova University in Pennsylvania are scheduled to start Monday, but his in-person interview appointment for a first-time U.S. student visa is still nine months away. It’s the second time the political science student from Ghana won’t make it to the United States in time for school. Visa processing is delayed as U.S. embassies and consulates operate at reduced capacity around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving some students abroad unable to make it for the start of the academic year. The wait and the hassle threaten both the country’s standing as a preferred choice for international students and their economic contribution of around $40 billion annually to many universities and local economies. New international student enrollment in the United States dropped 43% in fall 2020 from the year prior, months after COVID sent the world into lockdown. The number of new students who actually made it onto campus in person declined by 72%, according to an enrollment survey by the Institute of International Education (IIE).

FDA approves Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine (Bloomberg) The pioneering coronavirus vaccine made by pharmaceutical companies BioNTech and Pfizer was granted full approval by U.S. regulators. The government imprimatur is expected to trigger a flood of mandates by municipalities, agencies and private employers that had been waiting for the Food and Drug Administration sign-off. Following the announcement, the Pentagon said it would make vaccinations mandatory for military personnel worldwide and President Joe Biden called for mandates by companies.

Hospitals and Insurers Didn’t Want You to See Their Prices (NYT) This year, the federal government ordered hospitals to begin publishing a prized secret: a complete list of the prices they negotiate with private insurers. The insurers’ trade association had called the rule unconstitutional and said it would “undermine competitive negotiations.” Four hospital associations jointly sued the government to block it, and appealed when they lost. They lost again, and seven months later, many hospitals are simply ignoring the requirement and posting nothing. But data from the hospitals that have complied hints at why the powerful industries wanted this information to remain hidden. It shows hospitals are charging patients wildly different amounts for the same basic services: procedures as simple as an X-ray or a pregnancy test. And in many cases, insured patients are getting prices that are higher than they would if they pretended to have no coverage at all. This secrecy has allowed hospitals to tell patients that they are getting “steep” discounts, while still charging them many times what a public program like Medicare is willing to pay.

‘A Beautiful Feeling’: Refugee Women In Germany Learn The Joy Of Riding Bikes (NPR) Like most Americans, I learned to ride a bike as a kid. I still remember the glee after learning how to ride a bike on a subdivision road where I grew up in Florida. But girls around the world don’t always get to experience the joy of a first bike ride. In some countries, conservative societies frown upon women and girls who ride bikes—it’s not considered dignified or appropriate—and gives a girl too much independence. Joumana Seif, a Syrian lawyer and activist, recalls riding a bike as an 11-year-old in the capital city of Damascus. “For the people [watching on the street], and even for the children, it was shocking to them that I was riding a bike. They started to say, ‘Oh, shame on you, you are a girl riding a bike,’” Seif says. “It just wasn’t in our culture.” But it’s never too late to learn. In Germany, a nonprofit group called Bikeygees is teaching refugee women from countries such as Iran, Iraq and Syria how to ride. Since the group first started, it has taught 1,100 women how to ride a bike, says founder Annette Krüger. “It is possible to change the life of a woman in two hours. It is really magical,” says Krüger, an avid cyclist. “It’s a beautiful feeling when a person is riding a bike,” one refugee says with a broad grin.

Gunfire at Kabul airport kills 1 amid chaotic evacuations (AP/Foreign Policy) A firefight at one of the gates of Kabul’s international airport killed at least one Afghan soldier early Monday, German officials said, the latest chaos to engulf Western efforts to evacuate those fleeing the Taliban takeover of the country. The shooting at the airport came as the Taliban sent fighters north of the capital to eliminate pockets of armed resistance to their lightning takeover earlier this month. The Taliban said they retook three districts seized by opponents the day before and had surrounded Panjshir, the last province that remains out of their control. The tragic scenes around the airport have transfixed the world. Afghans poured onto the tarmac last week and some clung to a U.S. military transport plane as it took off, later plunging to their deaths. At least seven people died that day, in addition to the seven killed Sunday. Tens of thousands of people—Americans, other foreigners and Afghans who assisted in the war effort—are still waiting to join the airlift, which has been slowed by security issues and U.S. bureaucracy hurdles. Meanwhile, Afghanistan faces a quickly deepening economic crisis, with financial hardships increasingly affecting those in Kabul and other cities. Banks remain closed, food prices are rising, and the value of the local currency has plummeted. The suspension of commercial flights to Kabul’s international airport has in some ways exacerbated the crisis, halting the flow of some medical supplies and aid.

US special operations forces race to save former Afghan comrades in jeopardy (ABC News) Current and former U.S. military special operations and intelligence community operatives are using their own networks of contacts to get elite Afghan soldiers, intelligence assets and interpreters to safety as they’ve become increasingly disillusioned and fed up with the U.S. government-led evacuation effort in Kabul, ABC News has learned. One informal group, dubbed “Task Force Pineapple,” began as a frantic effort last weekend to get one former Afghan commando into Hamid Karzai International Airport as he was being hunted by Taliban who were texting him death threats. They knew he had worked with U.S. Special Forces and the elite SEAL Team Six for a dozen years, targeting Taliban leadership, and was therefore at high risk of reprisal. The former elite commando was finally pulled into the U.S. security perimeter at the airport, where he shouted the password “pineapple” to American troops at the checkpoint. Two days later, the group of his American friends and comrades also helped get his family inside the airport to join him. Other former members of the military and CIA have consolidated their own efforts with a separate group calling itself “Task Force Dunkirk,” a reference to the massive evacuation of British and other Allied forces from France in 1940 under threat of the Nazi juggernaut. Task Force Dunkirk and the groups it has banded together with have helped get at least 83 at-risk Afghans out of the country.

Lebanese hospitals at breaking point as everything runs out (AP) Drenched in sweat, doctors check patients lying on stretchers in the reception area of Lebanon’s largest public hospital. Air conditioners are turned off, except in operating rooms and storage units, to save on fuel. Medics scramble to find alternatives to saline solutions after the hospital ran out. The shortages are overwhelming, the medical staff exhausted. And with a new surge in coronavirus cases, Lebanon’s hospitals are at a breaking point. The country’s health sector is a casualty of the multiple crises that have plunged Lebanon into a downward spiral—a financial and economic meltdown, compounded by a complete failure of the government, runaway corruption and a pandemic that isn’t going away. The collapse is all the more dramatic since only a few years ago, Lebanon was a leader in medical care in the Arab world. The region’s rich and famous came to this small Mideast nation of 6 million for everything, from major hospital procedures to plastic surgeries.

China changes law to allow married couples to have three kids (NY Post) China will now allow married couples to legally have a third kid amid concerns that its shrinking number of working-age people will threaten the country’s future prosperity and global influence. China has tried for decades to control the population, beginning with a policy imposed in 1979 that strictly limited couples to one child. Couples who didn’t follow the rule faced fines or loss of jobs—and in some cases, mothers were forced to undergo abortions. A preference for sons also led parents to kill baby girls, causing a massive imbalance in the sex ratio. The number of working-age people, meanwhile, has fallen over the past decade and the population has barely grown, adding more strain to an aging society. With growing fears that the country would grow old before it became wealthy, the family planning rules were changed for the first time in 2015 to allow two children.

Cases up down under (CNN) Australia, like China, New Zealand, and some other countries, has attempted to completely eradicate Covid-19 inside its borders. The strategy had largely worked until recently; Australia has just 44,026 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 981 deaths. But several major cities, including Sydney, Melbourne, and the capital Canberra, are again under lockdown as authorities struggle to contain an outbreak of the Delta variant. On Saturday, thousands took to the streets of Melbourne and Sydney to protest the long lockdowns; hundreds were arrested, and at least seven police officers were injured during violent clashes. In an opinion piece published Sunday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison hinted at an end to the country’s zero Covid-19 infections strategy, but warned Australians to expect a rise in infections as restrictions relax.

#headlines #news

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rrhaenya · 3 years ago

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Rules: Answer 21 questions and then tag 21 people you want to get to know better.

(I won't tag 21 people. Lol :D) I haven't been tagged but I'm bored and feel talkative rn, so there we go

Nickname: I don't really have one anymore, which I find very dommage :( in elementary school, my bf called me Milli or Melli, in high school I was Mel (bc I don't identify with Melli, I always think about so very girly and pretentious, no offense ofc :D) and since I'm at university, I'm simply Melina again. #backtotheroots. My flatmate sometimes jokingly calls me Spackulatius, which is his neologism derived from Spekulatius (a German sweet Christmas pastry) and Spacko (a non-politically correct term for so clumsy and stupid).

Zodiac: I feel like during the past few years, horoscopes and zodiac signs got so so hyped on tumblr. I don't really believe in stuff like that but a few weeks ago I downloaded an app to finally get full insight into my chart 😂 for me it's a fun pastimes (excuse me if I make mistakes in English) 🤗 so, I'm a Cancer Sun, Aquarius Moon and Scorpio Rising.

Height: 173cm/5'6"

Last movie I saw: Cinema: La boda de Rosa (Rosa's wedding. A Spanish movie w English dubs for me, the miscommunication of the ppl in the movie made me very aggressive). At home: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Last thing I googled: Tavi Gevinson, bc her name popped up in my brain yesterday w/o any specific reason and then I saw a post on tumblr which said she now starred in Gossip Girl. I often google random people

Favorite Musician: Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Kaleo, Seeed, Dicht & Ergreifend, Faber & many more

Song stuck in my head: none. Or maybe Måneskin's I Wanna be your Slave.

Other blogs: None

Blogs following: 230 or so. Which is not very much, considering I'm on here for almost 10 years (...crazy). I guess it's bc I'm not always active on here and bc I don't create any content or tell much about myself. But I'm totally fine with that :)

Amount of sleep: 😅 I sleep so much, omg. 10-11 hours. That's my depression waving at you, say hello 👋🏻 but atm it's more like a habit and not bc I feel like shit lol

Lucky number: have none

What am I wearing: Rusty-red linen shorts and my favorite white cotton top from Greece

Dream job: not a good topic.

Dream trip: I wanna see the US so bad. But also Cuba, Russia, NZL, Scandinavia and much more. But I also wanna travel more in Germany, there are so many places I've never been to before...

Favorite food: I love food in general. Yum.

Play an instrument: None and I don't miss it. My whole family is utterly unmusical.

Languages: German, English. I ~understand written French and the well-pronounced TV News-French. A bit of Spanish.

Favorite Songs: Nah, I can't answer that one. Way too many. I have over 3000 favorite songs in my Spotify Library

Random Fact: I have had 6 fingers on each hand when I was born. Now I only have the normal amount :( 😂

Describe yourself as aesthetic things: A summer thunderstorm. The blue of the mountain sky. A road-trip along the méditerrannée. A salty sea-breeze on a cloudy day in Brittany, France.

I tag @scienceoftheidiot, @whenwinterfell , @muc-c , @greenjuicegirl , @orangebubbblegum , @writtenbycaringomens , @revelrydarling ,@judasfrenchkiss. No pressure, have a nice day my loves 💕

#about me #tagged #and by bf i mean best friend not boyfriend. i had no boyfriend in elemantary school 😂 hell #i still have no boyfriend at age 25 🤣😐

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7wanderingpaws · 4 years ago

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wait you speak seven /7/ languages???? ???? i might have scrolled tooo much on your blog and i saw you answered an ask... do you maybe speak korean? hope it isnt personal since you didnt want to elaborate on exact languages you speak.. i loveyour stories a lot and you became even more interesting omg HOW did you learn them?? im studying japanese and korean but its so hard!! love you!! also you dont need to answer this if you dont want too

Hi! ❤ oh >.< I dont talk about it because this blog is just for writing/kpop entertainment - I dont think people care enough about who I am, and many are fast to think I brag, etc so I just dont do it ^^

Anyways, THIS MIGHT BE LONG so watch out! Read only if you are interested about my TED talk on learning Korean (and other languages) haha 😊

I do speak Korean! I write my research papers in Korean after all so... I guess I can state that. As for the rest... well I was born into a bilingual family! And Im from a small country that is overlooked by literally everyone (I barely ever met people who know my country) so learning “the big” languages like English/German is a must - I learned both since I was very young and during my young days not much was dubbed into my native language so I had to watch it in a language of another country... If you speak English and German, you can learn quickly Norwegian - I did that with the help of my Norwegian friend!

As for Korean - its difficult when you first start, but I learned Korean within two years - Im now advanced. I have to say I was lucky since I already spoke many languages and I can refer to all of them if I dont get something in Korean! Otherwise its just your determination. Also, do NOT study for the sake of language exams (TOPIK) - unless its the only thing you need. I never did that, topik is only a paper to prove something to the administration. Unfortunately, if you want do masters/doctoral studies in Korea, you need to study other, more advanced/difficult texts than is topik.

Plus, use LingoDeer - its the best app for Asian langauges that explains sentence structure as it is in Korean, NOT the way English is structured. English has very little in common with Korean, it would be of no help to you. I dont know much about Japanese, I only understand some words thanks to Korean. But my Japanese friends were able to learn Korean fairly easily given their grammar/syntax is similar :) Frankly, only a few days ago I started learning hiragana just for fun but I dont think I will study it seriously haha.

Also, last advice - I would not study two languages at a time if you are really serious... But that is purely the way I work. I cant do it now at my age. I know I can learn a language a bit faster, so I make sure I focus on it only, and later when I feel confident, I would start the second language. But once again, that is just my opinion because I know myself >.<

I hope I helped? Good luck with studying and thank you for being interested haha! ❤❤❤❤❤❤

#ask #languages #korean

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macybeckham7 · 5 years ago

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Olympic Dreams - James Maddison

In the skating world everyone who was anyone was raving about the uprising star that was YN YLN. She was the perfect figure skater, she had grace and elegance along with the strength to do all the difficult jumps and lifts. She was perfect doubles and even better as soloist. Everyone dubbed the 19 year old to be go to the Winter Olympics 2022 and get Team GB atleast two medals.

YN dream for a young age was get into the Olympic program. Wanted to follow in her mother’s footsteps. At a young age she always felt alive on the ice, had no fear and always was the first to try a new move without a thought. Her coach and mother always stood on the sidelines and winced at all the near misses, but she always go up and brushed herself down and tried again. Practice always saw YN the first one on and the last one off.

Her whole life has been dedicated to skating, her eyes on the next upcoming competition and going out their and smashing it. Also being the skater to beat and making a name for herself, people often saying she’s the Serena Williams or Lebron James or CR7 to the figure skating world.

Nine months ago anybody would say YN had her world at her feet, most likely to be on the plane to China with her spot in Team GB. She was in a relationship with James Maddison, who met at an event and they instantly just clicked. With him being an athlete he understood the grind, he understood the rollercoaster of emotions and he just knew she needed him. He would be her medic and always look after her, and he was always her ice bath buddy because ‘nobody deserves to go to hell and back alone’. They were eachothers biggest supporters, they even taught eachother their sport. Her favourite member was getting James onto the ice, he had a strong grip on her waist as they did a two person train, she skated faster as she held onto his hands and all she could hear was him shouting and swearing. Definitely showing her he wouldn’t be hanging up his boots for skates, anytime soon.

Thursday 23rd of September was when YN’s whole world came tumbling down. Rehearsals with the three of them on the ice was normal, the coach telling the pairing where they need to clean up more. While YN and Isaiah listener fully.

James sat high up in the stands and watched eagerly.

He has already been in complete awe when she skates, how elegantly her body moves and the sheer power she has for the jumps. He loved watching her as a soft smile sits on her face as if it just can’t naturally to her.

He felt himself grimace as the pair didn’t do a lift correctly, Isaiah managing to put her down gently as YN put her hands out on the cold surface. The coach called out for them as the duo talked it out before they went from the top. They got through the dance, James smiling like a Cheshire Cat as they managed to nail the one-hand exit with Isaiah holding her above his head.

It all went wrong in a blink of moment without YN falling, her knee caught Isaiah head and she went down cold.

James jumped from him chair and raced down as her coach instantly skating towards her lifeless body.

...

YN felt her heart rate raise as James parked the car in the training rink car park, her mind instantly going back to last time she was here.

‘Hey, you’ve got this’ James says softly as he takes her hand and gently squeezes.

Her eyes water. ‘I don’t think I can’ she whispers.

He could see just how distraught she was and how traumatised she still was. The last nine months have been tough on her as she nursed her injuries and was back on the road of recovery.

‘Hey you are YN fucking YLN, she can do anything she puts her mind too’ he gives her a goofy smile.

He climbs out of the car and walks round to her side, he opens the door for her as she rubs her knee and climbs out. James holds her hand as they walk in together, her eyes look around the training centre where she had so many good memories but all it was painted with painful ones.

In her head she could see hear the ambulance sirens and the medics and James’ voice as they put her in the back to get her to the hospital.

She walked into the changing rooms, she changed in her normal skating outfit her black leotard, her cardigan, her tights, her little skirt and her leg warmers. She took a deep breath as she put on her sparkling white skate boots. She walked to the mirror and looked at herself, if you were to tell her she would be back she would of laughed, with her injuries she thought her dream was over. She ran her fingers through her hair before feeling the scar, she turned her head to see the 4cm war wound.

She quickly tied her hair up and walked, her eyes fell on James, she took the guards off the blades and walked to the edge.

She put her foot out and everything froze. Her breathing fastened as she felt her heartbeat in her stomach. Her eyes scrunched closed as she replayed the moment she hit the ice.

‘So what does that mean?’ James questions the Doctor.

She cleared her throat trying to stop her emotions. ‘It means there’s a 50% chance I could get back to full fitness and an even slimmer chance I could get back in the rink, right?’

The doctor gave her a sympathetic look and nodded. James spoke to the doctor more as YN zoned out. She completely breaking down as the doctor left them.

‘It’s all over J, all my dreams crushed in that moment’ she broke down with James instantly pulling her into a hug.

‘It’s not over, you are YN bloody YLN, you will show everyone that you’ll fight and beat the odds. 50% chance that you’ll get back, no that 100% and you will be at the Olympics’ he confidently. ‘Chilly and I are pretty excited to go to China and you are not getting in the way of that’ he joked making you laugh.

‘Come on’ her coach appeared infront of her. ‘You’ve defeated the odds, don’t let yourself get in the way now’ she puts out her hand which YN takes and gets back on the ice for the first time in nine months.

They skated around the rink, with her coach keeping a close eye on her, she was instantly like duck to water. She still had some stiffness in her knee but she was able to skate. A few weeks went by and her difficulty level of spins and jumps increases, everyone could see that she had lost that sparkle in her eye, it was as if she had put on the safety breaks, and she often looked like bambi on ice.

YN let out a frustrated moan as she puts her hands on her head as she just slides across the ice. She directs herself towards James who is calling her over.

‘Don’t push yourself too hard, I know you are blind-sighted because of all the pressure on you and the dreams, but is this all really worth it?’ He questioned. ‘You are not fully back and you are working towards tryouts to get on the team?’

She started to get aggravated by him.

‘Is all this worth a gold medal? One more bump to the head and then-’

‘DON’T!’ She shouts. ‘If it was the other way round you’d do anything to go to the World Cup! I can do this, and I’m going to do it’ she states. ‘I can get whatever I put my mind too, remember’ she mutters before skating off.

James letting out his frustration as he kicks the board making everyone look at him.

....

Fast forward to February 2022 and YN was at the Olympics, living her complete Olympic dreams. James and Chilly was there supporting her just like they planned.

Her leg shook slightly as she stood in the changing room with James, they were holding each other as he tried to control her emotions. The last few months have been hard work and James saw that first hand, whenever it went bad they would argue just because he was trying to look after her. But it never went down well, but she knew he always had her back.

‘You’ve got this’ he whispered as his arms tightened around her. ‘You’ve beaten the odds, show the doubters wrong’

He gently caresses her cheek as he sees her eyes glisten and sparkle.

He leans in and kisses her. ‘Now go get that gold medal’ he smiles.

It was the second day of the competition and YN and Isaiah was still in the running. They were the last to perform so they knew exactly what to do. As they appeared on the rink the audience cheered waving the England flag.

James was on the edge of his seat, he felt sick to his stomach as he did the whole routine with you. He felt himself stop breathing at every lift and solo turn. He relaxed a little more every time you both executed your skills so cleaning and perfectly. Everyone was so awe struck of the two skaters we they gave the perfect story, his eyes landed on their coach and he could tell she was pleased. By the end of the routine James had tears in his eyes, as YN tried to keep her emotions in check.

There was a bit of a wait until the scores came in, YN instantly fell to the ground as she felt her heart burst as they got a 159.31 which had just taken the gold medal from the Germans.

James ran down and engulfed his girl, she wrapped her legs around him as he spun them around.

‘You done it’ he gushed. ‘I love you so so much!’

Her lip quivered as she realised that all her hard work has paid off.

#olympic dreams #james maddison imagines #james maddison blurb #james maddison

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lyricfulloflight · 5 years ago

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What I’m Reading Now Tag Game

I, like many fanfic readers, used to not read fics if they weren’t complete. But, now that I’ve been reading fic longer and perhaps because I’m a writer who starts posting a lot of things as I write them, I now read WIPs. And I think sometimes we don’t give WIPs enough love or attention. They are awesome - it’s like traveling back in time to when you only got an episode a week of a TV show and had to wait months over the summer for a new season (no binging possible)! And even when they aren’t finished and it seems like they may never be, I find myself so happy to be able to read what is there, because it is often so, so good.

So I am challenging people (myself included) to post some fic recs of WIPs that you are loving right now. It’s okay if the WIP last updated three years ago or last week - if you are reading it now (as in within the last few months), spread the love and help someone else discover a new fic they might not have tried!

My Top 5 WIPs Rec’s of the Moment

(All my recs are Cherik fics, cause that’s what I read and write. Please post recs from any fandom, I’m just a weirdo who is a bit obsessed).

1. Bright Metal on a Sullen Ground by Lynds

“Erik and his band of rebels have finally defeated Shaw, taking the throne of Genosha. All Erik wants to do is get on with ensuring his kingdom, his people, are now free to have the security and peace they deserve, but Emma and Janos insist on some big audience to show off to the neighbouring countries, thank those who gave them support, and glare at those who didn't.Can they really blame him for causing a scene when Westchester strips a man naked and offers him to Erik as a bed slave?“

Lynds always writes a wonderful tale. And its King Erik and bed slave Charles - who can resist that? I cannot wait for more spunky Charles and befuddled Erik interactions!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22548877/chapters/53883007

2. Lehnsherr & Xavier, Attorneys At Law by Lindstrom

“Broke and hungry, former billionaire and new law school graduate Charles Xavier takes a desperation job at Frost & Shaw, a small civil litigation law firm. His mentor, Erik Lehnsherr, is gorgeous, awkward, and keeping secrets . . . some of them dangerous. Charles has to face his own weaknesses if he’s to help Erik, and when they land in the biggest civil rights mess since the 1960s, Erik’s secrets just might destroy them both.“

This fic is amazing! I seriously squealed with delight when it updated recently. Erik and Charles are both hiding things (when aren’t they, really?). Very intriguing character choices, particularly with Erik. Wonderful slow build relationship between the two men. Just, so so good.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21017942/chapters/49987823

3. In Service of the King by pinkoptics and FuryRed

“The people of Britannia have been saved from an unbearable fate at the hands of Emperor Shaw. In order to express their immense gratitude, they offer the ultimate tribute- Charles Xavier, the beloved son of their leader.Far from naive, and even before agreeing to be made a gift, Charles is only too aware of what such an arrangement will entail- a life spent on his knees for more reasons than one... But upon arriving on Genosha’s shores, it soon becomes clear that sexual submission may not be all that is desired of Charles, and that King Erik may have some notions of how he wishes to be serviced that are not at all what Charles expected...“

Okay, they haven’t updated in a while, but you know what, I still reread what is available this January because it is so good. And so hot. If you’re looking for steamy Cherik with a pinch of dub-con (please read the authors’ note) this might be the fic for you!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14698299/chapters/33965364

4. Shrapnel by librata

“It's late 1940, and tensions between the Axis and the Allies are tightening. Displaced and alone, 16-year-old German Jew Erik Lehnsherr finds himself employed as a servant by some snobby, terrible family in England whose house is far too big and whose money never seems to end. The worst part is, he isn't just mucking stables or cleaning plates–-he's tasked with tending to the whiny, disabled son named Charles, who might just drive Erik into absolute madness.Or, the World War II fic in which Erik and Charles experience a changing world and a lot of teen angst.“

I love historical Cherik - love it. This fic also has a bit of a Secret Garden vibe, which I love. The tension is so good. Another great slow build relationship between the boys. They still have powers, they’re still achingly complex and sometimes you want to punch them you’re so upset with them. In other words: perfection.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18998767/chapters/45116065

5. It’s Been a Long Time by Gerec

“It's been fifteen years since Erik last saw Charles Xavier, when they fell in love over the course of one unforgettable summer. Since then their lives have gone in very different directions, though their short love affair left an indelible mark that still ties them together.A 'Call Me By Your Name' inspired au.“

I love the non-chronological structure of this fic. It hurts, but in just the right way. So much angst. It feeds my shipper soul. Also, I have never seen the movie, or read the book this fic is based on (though I have a general idea of the plot) and it hasn’t decreased my enjoyment of the fic whatsoever.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22132870/chapters/52828009

Tagging: @akasanata, @jackyjango, @gerec, @fullmetalcarer, @cherik-123

#tag game #wips #show them some love #cherik fics #cherik #i love wips #seriously don't be afraid readers #join us

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clintbartonswife · 5 years ago

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Forever

@witch-of-letters thanks for requesting this! I diverted from it slightly but I hope you still like it

Pairings: Steve x Reader, brother!bucky Warning: swearing, mentions of abuse masterlist

For as long as you can remember, it had been the three of you against the world.

When you and Bucky were 6, you had gone to the park to play when you saw a scrawny blond getting the ever-loving shit kicked out of him in an alley way by a guy who was easily a good few inches taller than him.

“Hey!” Bucky had shouted, rushing over to help, “Leave him alone”

You had followed your twin, and without much of a struggle had sent the boy on his way.

“I had him on the ropes”

You had offered a hand to help him up, offering him a soft smile.

“Sure you did punk” Bucky said, matching your smile as he rested his hand on the boy’s shoulder

“Jerk”

When you were 8, you learned the reason why Steve never backed down from a fight.

Bucky and you had snuck over to Steve’s apartment after dinner one night, climbing the fire escape into his room, only to be met with the sound of muffled sobs.

“Oh my god Steve are you okay?”

You rushed into his room through the window, Bucky close behind you.

“What – what are you doing here?” he asked, trying to choke down his sobs, “you shouldn’t be here”

“We were gonna ask to see your sketches, punk. What’s happened?”

The two of you fell into silence as a heavy thump was heard through the thin walls of his bedroom walls, followed by Sarah’s heaving sobs. The sound made Steve curl up into a ball again, whimpering at the sound of his mother’s crying.

“She locked me in so I couldn’t help” he sobbed, “he won’t stop hitting her”

You exchanged a look with Bucky, pure shock overtaking you. You had no idea this was going on, but suddenly a lot of Steve’s stubbornness was starting to make sense. Pulling him into a hug, the two cocooned him between you for the rest of the night, holding him as the repetitive thumps echoed through the small flat.

When you were 15, the love you had for Steve started to blossom into something more.

You were sat next to him, eyes closed as the familiar scratching sound of charcoal on paper filled your ears. Bucky was out on a date with a girl called Belle, leaving you and Steve alone together. For the past few years, due to Bucky’s ‘charming good looks’ as your ma had put it, he had been going out with a lot of women, meaning that you and Steve would often hang out in the afternoons together.

“Are you drawing me Rogers?”

“Wha – no – I thought you were asleep”

You had opened an eye lazily, an easy-going smile on your face.

“And waste time with you? Never. It’s just relaxing to hear you draw”

You noticed that the more time you spent with him, the more nervous you got, and every time he’d call you ‘doll’ you’d get a weird feeling in your stomach. Rebecca had called you out, saying that you were sweet on him one night – something you avidly denied at the time – but the longer it went on, the less you could deny it.

When you were 17, you couldn’t deny your feelings anymore.

Men had started taking an interest in you in the past few years, often trying to ask you out on dates around the town. Thankfully Bucky had managed to scare most of them off from the outset with his protective brotherly nature, but unfortunately some were still brave enough to ask.

“Want to go out dancin’ sugar? You look real pretty in that dress”

You had resisted the urge to roll your eyes, sending a silent plea for help to Bucky and Steve before turning back to the man in front of you.

“No thank you, but I’m sure Cindy would be interested, she’s been making eyes at you since you walked in”

Setting his eyes on the blonde at the booth opposite, he gave you a polite nod before making his way over to her.

“Why wont they stop” you groaned, slumping back in your seat unceremoniously, “I’m not interested in them!”

“You haven’t been on a single date Y/N, it’s become a sort of competition in the neighbourhood” Bucky frowned, obviously disapproving of them using you as a bet, “what’s the reason you haven’t gone on one anyway?”

You glanced at Steve quickly, crossing your arms.

“I’m waiting for the right person”

Bucky caught your gaze and his mouth dropped open, slapping Steve’s shoulder rambunctiously.

“Well would ya look at that!”

“Bucky!”

“Are you gonna tell him or am I gonna have to do it for you? Both of you are blind fools I swear”

You blushed, making eye contact with Steve before looking away to the floor, leaving Steve a stammering mess as he figured out what was going on.

“Me?”

“It’s always been you”

When you were 18, you both said ‘I love you’ for the first time.

You had forgone going to the dance hall with Bucky and his date, opting instead to stay in the boy’s apartment. With the gramophone you had borrowed from Mrs Gillert upstairs, you twirled around the room in Steve’s arms, bare foot and care free.

“I’ll never understand why out of all the boys in Brooklyn you chose me” Steve admitted quietly, “I always dreamed about it, but I never once thought I’d be good enough for you”

“You’re everything to me Stevie”

“I love you, doll”

A blush bloomed on your cheeks, happy tears filling your eyes as you met his lips in a sweet kiss.

“I love you too”

When you were 20, you saw Steve break for the first time since you were children.

His mother had been ill ever since his father’s death a few years prior, Bucky picking up an extra job just to help him pay for her medicines, but she was just getting worse. A few hours before she went, Sarah had grabbed your hand, intertwining your fingers and placing them over her heart.

“You’re good for him” she said, voice shaky and weak, “Promise me you’ll look after him”

“I always will – Buck and I have his back Sarah, you know that”

You held him that night as he sobbed, the last of his family dead and gone, only passing him over to Bucky to make some dinner (which you forced him to eat). The situation felt very reminiscent of that night years ago, the three of you knowing that in that moment, there was nothing you wouldn’t do for the other.

When you were 24, your life started to crumble around you.

After the announcement that the USA was joining WW2, Bucky and Steve started training in Goldie’s gym every day for 3 hours, eager to join the fight.

They ignored your protests, Bucky insisting that it was the right thing to do.

He was approved, Sargent Barnes of the 107th, ready for deployment in a few weeks. Steve, on the other hand, was not so lucky. Though it was horrible to say, you had never been so glad for his illnesses as that day.

He wouldn’t stop though, and on Bucky’s last night he ran off to the sign-up tent again. As always, the two of you followed him, ready to stop his mess, only for Bucky to cave in and let him try.

“You stay with him, okay? I’ll see you back at the house”

You just nodded, giving your brother a hug before following Steve again, holding his hand in yours.

“Steve please, you’ve tried enough. I can’t – I can’t lose both of you”

“I have to try, don’t you see? If I had stood up to my dad then maybe – maybe ma wouldn’t have gotten so sick and-“

“No. Steven Grant Rogers don’t you dare think like that. That was out of your control-“

“But I can help here. Please, just let me try. One last time, doll, I promise”

You sighed, ducking your head to hide the tears that had begun to gather in your eyes, nodding dejectedly. Steve pressed a kiss to your forehead, his hand slipping out of yours as he began to walk away.

“I’ll be back”

Not a minute later, you were approached by a middle-age German man, and the rest was history.

When you were 25, you rescued your brother from HYDRA’s clutches.

After deciding that, fuck it, you’d follow Steve to the ends of the earth, you had accepted Dr Erskine’s offer and became the first female candidate for the super soldier serum. The following madness that ensued left you, now dubbed Liberty Prime, and Steve, Captain America, new dancing puppets for the government. That is, of course, until you heard of the 107th’s fate.

Taking the jet offered by Howard Stark, you and Steve had ignored your orders and broken out all the POWs that had been taken, eventually finding Bucky in a small lab, strapped down onto the table. After a very quick argument (“What the hell have you done?”, “joined the army”) and a dramatic fight with a dude with a red face, you were on the way back to base camp, holding hands with your two favourite boys.

Once Bucky was out of the med tent, the three of you went back to your bunk, huddling together like you did when you were kids the silent promise of forever suspended in the air.

When you were 27, the realities of war caught up to you.

Being a member of the Howling Commandos, you had seen a fair amount of horrifying stuff, but nothing could prepare you to see your twin falling from the train, mere centimetres from Steve’s hand.

The two of you were inconsolable, only talking to each other because you were the only ones that understood. Nothing would ever be the same.

So when it came to making the call to put the plane in the ocean, you both decided stupidly fast.

“I love you, doll” “I love you Stevie”

You tucked your head into the crook of his neck, fully submerged in his embrace as the jet went down.

“’Til the end of the line”

But now, as you woke up in the sterile hospital room, you were alone.

No Steve, no Bucky. Alone.

“What the hell?”

Your last memories of the ship crashing into the cold sea made no sense as you stared at the blank white walls around you, eyes blowing wide in panic. Your fighting instincts instantly kicked in, pushing yourself off of the bed and into a defensive position.

A crackly tune filtered out of the radio, the weird calmness of the room making you uneasy.

“Miss Barnes, it’s good to see that you’re awake”

You spun around to stare at the newcomer, the woman looking an awful lot like Peggy.

“Where am I?”

“You’re in a –“

She was cut off by a large man pushing her out of the way, his eyes wild and searching.

“Y/N?”

“Steve?”

“Don’t listen to them – somethings sketchy – the walls aren’t real” he urged, grabbing my hand and punching his way through the set’s walls, “We need to get out of here”

“How are we alive?” I asked frantically, keeping up to speed with him as an alarm started to blare through the building.

“I don’t know”

As you burst out of the building and onto the streets, you could immediately tell something was wrong. Your hand immediately flew to his arm, clutching his bicep as you were forced to a halt by black cars surrounding you. He pushed you behind him slightly, taking a protective stance in front of you as you searched the area for a way out.

“At ease, soldiers! Look, I’m sorry about that little show back there, but… we thought it best to break it to you slowly”

You moved to the side slightly, coming out from behind Steve, despite his quiet protest.

“Break what?”

“You’ve both been asleep. For 70 years”

Ever since Fury had broken the news you refused to be separated from Steve. They seemed to have expected that though, as the housing they provided was set up for two people.

“We’ll leave you alone for the rest of today for all of this to sink in” an agent explained, “If you have any questions just press this button and someone will come running”

You nodded politely as she left, still in a slight daze as you stared at the luxurious apartment.

“They’re going to want us to fight”

“I know”

“Will you?”

“Im with you Steve. I’ll follow you til the end of the line”

He took your hands in his, pressing light kisses to each knuckle.

“For Bucky” he said, voice cracking slightly.

“For Bucky”

_______________________________________________________________

Steve Taglist: @patzammit

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duhragonball · 5 years ago

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Dragon Ball Z 200

So we’re finally in the last leg of DBZ. The previous episode offered a glimpse of it, but Episode 200 is where we get to see the whole thing. Starting with this episode, the OP was changed to "We Gotta Power”, complete with a new animation focusing on Gohan as an 18-year-old high school student. The implication was that Gohan was taking over the role of the main character due to Goku’s absence, but that idea didn’t last very long, if that was ever really the idea at all.

For the next dozen or so episodes, though, Gohan is definitely the protagonist. Seven years after the Cell Games, he’s enrolled in a brick-and-mortar school. This is never fully explained beyond Chi-Chi’s belief that his home schooling curriculum was no longer enough. What changed? Did Chi-Chi want him to socialize more? Or were there no correspondence courses left for him to tackle?

The reason I bring this up is because there was a very good reason for home-schooling Gohan: the nearest classroom is hundreds of miles away in Orange City. It’s a quick commute for Gohan on his father’s Kinto’un, but it’s still a long way to go for a diploma that Gohan’s only a few months away from earning anyway.

Oh, and it’s not Orange City anymore. This is it’s first appearance, but this is Mr. Satan’s hometown, and in honor of his glorious victory over Cell, the citizens renamed the place “Satan City.”

You’d think a town famous for being the home of a world-saving hero would be light on crime, but actually no. Satan City is riddled with crooks. Pretty brazen ones too. I can’t tell if the crooks in this arc are just nuttier than usual, or if this standard Dragon Ball hyperbole.

Gohan’s been here a couple times before to set up his enrollment in the school, and he’s run into criminals every time he’s been here. It’s to the point where he’s more annoyed than disturbed.

So he foils these guys’ bank robbery, but to avoid unwanted attention, he turns into a Super Saiyan first, figuring the transformation will disguise him. He does the cool spot where he catches and crushes all the bullets they shoot at him...

Then he wrecks their getaway car with a ki wave. Once they’re down, he changes back to normal and acts like another innocent bystander. Then this girl shows up and demands to know who did all of this.

One guy in the crowd recognizes her as Videl, and he tells her that the guy who stopped the crooks was wearing an Orange Star badge, signifying that he’s a student at Orange Star High School...

...Just like Videl.

Speaking of school, it’s almost time for it to start, to Videl goes to class and starts asking around about the “Golden Warrior”, which is the unofficial name Gohan has earned for his vigilante activities.

On the left we have Sharpner, who’s some sort of jock, and he’s got blonde hair, so Videl figures he’s as likely a suspect as she’s going to find. But Sharpner’s too busy training for sports to do any crimefighting. On the right is Erasa, who’s also blonde, but Videl never bothers asking her.

Then Gohan shows up, and the teacher introduces him to the class. People can say that Gohan didn’t do anything during the seven year gap, but this teacher knows what’s up. Perfect scores on several subjects. Gohan was plenty busy all those years.

Erasa invites Gohan to sit with her because she finds him cute. She also informs Gohan that Videl is the daughter of Mr. Satan. Videl recognizes Gohan as the kid she saw at the bank robbery, but doesn’t connect him to the Golden Warrior.... yet. Erasa tells Gohan about the Golden Warrior, and he realizes that his disguise has backfired. Too many people have seen him fighting crime here, and if he’s not careful someone will figure out that it’s him.

What threw me off watching this in Japanese was when this teacher started speaking. In the dub, she has a thick German accent, and it’s an English class, but it’s an English class for English speakers, so she’s talking about prepositions or some crap like that. In Japanese, she’s teaching a foreign language course, so she reads English out of a book. So for a hot minute this lady speaks English, and she sounds really fluent, which really took me out of the story for a second.

But the gag here is that these kids are all having a side conversation during the lesson. Videl’s friends are satisfied that Gohan’s not blonde enough to be the Golden Warrior, but Videl isn’t so sure, since his outfit matches the description, and she’s heard of fighters who could change their hair color, because her father encountered Super Saiyans at the Cell Games. But her dad dismissed this as a trick, so she’s not sure what to make of it.

So the point of all of this is that Gohan is trying to make a life for himself in peacetime, and he’s convinced that he can’t reveal his true strength around anyone, which is why he doesn’t want anyone to connect him with this Golden Warrior business. But he’s too clueless to avoid slipping up in other ways, like when Erasa asks him where he lives, and he tells her he’s from a village hundreds of miles away.

This English lesson also serves as a way to reintroduce Mr. Satan to the story, since the textbooks feature him. Gohan reads aloud how Mr. Satan won the 24th Tenkaichi Budokai, and I think this is the first mention of this. Prior to this episode, Mr. Satan was said to be a combat sports champion, but it was never specified just what competition he had won to earn the title. Also, everyone kept acting like the 23rd Budokai was the last one. I suppose it’s possible that the 24th tournament could have been held after the Cell Games, but I think it’s commonly accepted that it happened before the Cell Sagas, and Mr. Satan’s world championship accolade was in reference to that victory.

Anyway, here’s the champ sneezing in his dojo. See, there’s this superstition in Japan where if you sneeze, someone must be talking about you somewhere, so whenever Mr. Satan sneezes, he observes that this must be true, because he’s so famous.

Never mind that shit! Here comes Freddie Mercury! I’m pretty sure this was unintentional but you never know. I don’t much care because HOLY SHIT THIS GUY LOOKS JUST LIKE FREDDIE MERCURY AND IT’S AWESOME.

What makes this so great is how there’s absolutely no self-awareness to it. The dub of Dragon Ball Kai seemed to play with the idea a little, but there’s only so much you can do, since this character is a no-nonsense gym coach making these kids play baseball. And that’s perfect, honestly. If there were a bunch of Queen references worked into this scene to beat you over the head with it, it would be dumb, but as it is there’s really no way to tell if this is a coindidence.

During the game, Gohan resolves to hold back his true strength, since Chi-Chi and Bulma warned him that it might cause trouble if people knew the truth. That’s kind of sad, actually. It’s not until we get to this episode that we realize that Gohan hasn’t had much of a normal life. To him, fighting super-battles is pretty typical, and he really doesn’t know how to even pretend to be a regular guy, no matter how badly he wants to fit in.

But it’s also kind of sad because he is half-Saiyan, and while he was raised as an Earthling, he really doesn’t have a way to express that aspect of himself. This is where Goku’s absence is most sorely felt. Yeah, Gohan can manage without him, and he can get through school somehow, but you’d figure it’d be nice if he could go home and his orange space dad could tousle his hair and then they’d horse around in the woods until dinnertime.

Anyway, Gohan’s so determined to keep his strength a secret, but when he goes to catch a fly ball, he ends up floating in midair while he decides what to do with it.

Then he throws to the catcher, and he’s so thrilled that he didn’t kill the guy that he doesn’t realize that he jumped like fifteen feet in the air a minute ago.

Also, Gohan knows nothing of baseball, but that’s fine in my book. Baseball is the fucking worst. He stands on the opposite side of the plate from the way he’s going to swing, but Coach Mercury doesn’t mind. Gohan can swing any way he likes in this class.

But Gohan’s plan is not to swing at all, since he’s concerned that he’ll hit the ball too hard and expose his secrets. But Sharpner throws a fastball at his head, thinking it’ll give Gohan a scare. Trouble is, Gohan doesn’t even try to dodge it, probably because he doesn’t see it as a threat. So he gets hit in the damn face with a baseball and just no-sells it.

But Gohan’s thrilled because this means he can go to first base without having to hit the ball. So thrilled that he doesn’t notice how shocked everyone is.

EVEN FREDDIE MERCURY IS AFRAID

Videl wonders what all of this could mean. How could someone so goofy be so handsome... I mean strong. Strong. Yeah, that’stheticket.

After gym, everyone wants a piece of the Gohan pie. Sharpner invites him to join the boxing club, since he’s stronger than he looks. I was setting up a “Sharpner’s also thirsty for Gohan joke” just now, but now that I think about it, maybe that’s not such a silly idea after all. I do know that Erasa’s into him, since she asks him to give her a ride home, but Gohan explains that his “car” only has room for one.

But Videl follows him after school, and she only ever sees him on foot. How very dreamy--suspicious! Get ahold of yourself, Videl!

But Gohan notices her stalking him and he gives her the slip by jumping on top of a building at super speed. “Gosh,” Gohan says, “I never realized so many people wanted to rock my bod.”

Then he flies home on the Nimbus, and to be honest I just included this screencap because I love the color scheme.

#dragon ball #2019dbliveblog #great saiyaman saga #gohan #videl #mr satan #erasa #sharpner #freddie mercury #now i'm on your track #and i'm in your mind #and i'm on your back #but don't look behind #i'm your meanest thought #i'm your darkest fear #but i'll never get caught #you can't shake me shake me dear

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smokeyloki · 6 years ago

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Fiddlesticks! - A Cherik Ficlet (Concept Credit: @pippa-writes)

Again, I would like to thank @pippa-writes for providing the concept for this ficlet. Three drafts and a lot of frustration turned out this little one-shot, and I sincerely hope you all enjoy it. I’m much better at writing than I am at drawing, at any rate.

@pippa-writes

@ladycavalier

@peppermintdoodle (since I saw a post somewhere saying that you wanted to read more Cherik stuff...)

Also a disclaimer that I’m not the best at fluff. I’m not terrible at it, but it’s definitely not my forte.

The trouble started less than a month ago, during one of their music lessons. Erik been playing a simple arrangement of “Ave Maria” as a warm-up, and Christine Daae’s voice danced along with the piano keys. All was going well until the fifteenth measure, when a poorly-placed note snuck into a chord and brought the whole score to a halt. He sat there, fingers frozen to the keyboard, eyes fixed on the offending composition.

“Fiddlesticks,” Erik had muttered.

He later chalked up that particular word to Christine’s presence, and he was grateful that he had not said something indecent. He was certainly capable of it, if his earlier years of parroting the vulgarities of stagehands and opera-goers were any indication (just ask Gerard Carriere). More recently, he’d also taken to dabbling in Swedish, German, and Latin literature, and could employ crude phrases in a variety of languages. But to speak in such a crass manner in front of a lady, especially one such as Mlle. Daae…that would be no fit behavior for a gentleman!

This would have been the end of it if Erik hadn’t forgotten about the misplaced note and brought the same score to their next lesson. It all began innocently enough, just as before, and once again the squalling dissonance reduced both student and teacher to unexpected silence. The lull was broken, finally, by a single utterance from a disgruntled Maestro:

“Fiddlesticks.”

This time, he could have sworn he saw a small smile pass over Christine’s countenance when she heard him.

“Ave Maria” was re-worked in a single afternoon. He could replace an unnecessary or incorrect note…but “fiddlesticks” could not be so easily gotten rid of. It was nuisance enough when he caught himself saying it throughout the day, but a close proximity to Christine Daae made it worse. Even the slightest inconvenience in her presence seemed to warrant the silly phrase, and Christine’s poor attempts to hide her amusement when he said it became less and less resolute.

And yet, how could explain to her the reason for “fiddlesticks”? He couldn’t expect her to understand how he felt the need to tip-toe around her, using only gentle movements, gentle voice, gentle words. He couldn’t even explain it to himself! So when “fiddlesticks” slipped out when he fumbled with his flute, he’d rather have her tittering behind him than have to engage in a conversation so mortifying that it would send him to an early grave.

He would speak to Carriere on the matter, except that it was so trivial. That, and the resident Opera Manager didn’t know about Erik’s nightly excursions with Christine Daae. And even if he did, he would no doubt make some vague statement regarding how nice it was that Erik could make the young lady laugh. Erik had already considered this point, but there was a fine line between giving Christine some merriment and him becoming the source of merriment.

Still, it was either confront Christine on the matter or subject himself to her giggles. He chose the latter.

There were days, even in the life of a Phantom, that went better than others.

If anyone had seen the elusive Opera Ghost earlier that day, stalking the secret passageways of the Opera Populaire with a stack of music under one arm and a glower fixed behind the smiling gape of a mouth on what he had dubbed his “night sky” mask – deep navy in color and flecked all over with bits of gold paint, with a grotesque grin carved underneath a thin, hooked nosepiece – that person could have easily concluded that today was not one of the “better days”.

His morning routine had passed without hitch, but an early afternoon excursion to his private box was interrupted by a certain Mme. Giry. Once a humble box-keeper, someone of little consequence to Erik, she had become a prominent member of the Opera House, mainly due to the small fact that she knew the secret of the Opera Ghost. Not only did she know him, but she had a tendency of being forward, blunt, and demanding; a harsh personality combination of which Erik was not exempt. Today, her complaint concerned his “pranks” on the dancers. The feather in her cap quivered as she talked up to him in stage whispers about his childish behavior:

“And how do you expect, Monsieur, for ‘your’ dancers to perform well if they’re scared out of their wits? Or hiding in a closet for fear of glimpsing the Phantom?”

Erik would have brushed her aside and gone about his business if it had been any other member of the opera company. However, it was Mme. Giry, and this alone was enough to trap him for the entire length of her outburst. Only once she had exhausted herself of all words and insulting phrases did she drop him a stiff curtsey and flounce off. Her feathery hat bounced along with each step.

The accusatory speech lasted roughly twenty minutes, so Erik was well out-of-sorts by the time he reached Box 5. Upon seating himself in the shadows of his box, though, he came to a sad realization that La Carlotta was directing the company as they swept and scrubbed the main stage. Her presence was wholly unnecessary, and anyone else would have thought the same. After all, there wasn’t a spotlight for her hog, nor a recital for her to butcher. Yet she was there, dressed in some ridiculous drapery and far too many feathers, waving her hands and shouting orders at anything that moved. Erik endured her grating voice for a full fifteen minutes before finally being chased below, where he spent a good deal of the afternoon sulking in the hallways.

There was a moment of brief respite in his house on the lake, where he worked for several hours on a small composition. A few rough patches were smoothed out, and he was just getting himself immersed in his creative process when a clock in an adjoining room chimed a reminder that lessons with Christine Daae was approaching.

So, with his rounds ruined, La Carlotta’s screeches still ringing in his ears, and his composition abruptly interrupted, there was more than ample explanation for the dark cloud which hovered over Erik’s head as he entered the small piano room with a bundle of sheet music tucked under one arm. Christine was already there, busying herself with some of the stretches shown her by Erik in past lessons. She greeted her Maestro with a smile and cheery “hello!” His response, in contrast, was curt and through pinched lips.

However, once seated and the music spread out on the piano, he relaxed, and soon Christine’s voice soared through the air as he coaxed a gentle melody from the ebony keys.

All would have been well if they hadn’t hit a rut.

There was a section in Christine’s new piece which had caused her some trouble in their past lesson; Erik had been in a better mood, then, and they’d set it aside to review later. That course of action, though, had one glaring flaw, being that “later” was “now”, and every hiccup of Mlle. Daae pushed Erik’s aggravation further.

No bit of advice, no changing of the tempo, nothing Erik tried seemed to help. Christine would continue to trip up on a run of the aria, and they would back-peddle and try again, only to produce the same results. Each time, Erik’s glower would deepen, and his brows drew together underneath the mask – at least, it seemed to Christine that the space around his eyes scrunched together in such a way as to suggest the furrowing of her Maestro’s brows – and his muttered grumblings grew louder and more pronounced until she could hear them plainly.

“Fiddlesticks!”

The word had ingrained itself in Erik’s vernacular; he didn’t seem aware of its being used. The funny phrase leaped from his lips, loaded with annoyance and frustration. And every time he said it, despite his ever-darkening expression and the vehement anger with which he punctuated the word, Christine couldn’t help a faint smile. Even as she tripped over the troublesome section of her piece, thus adding to her Maestro’s sour mood, she found it difficult to concentrate on her notes.

“No!” Erik suddenly exclaimed. He brought his hands down, hard, on the keys, creating a discordant “bang” that mingled with the echo of his shout.

“It’s all wrong,” he continued. “You’re singing it wrong, and no matter how many times I’ve gone over it, you refuse to get it right!”

Christine was frozen to the ground, mouth still open in mid-run. Erik’s outburst, so uncharacteristic of his usual genteel demeanor, had taken her quite by surprise. Not to mention that he had chosen to direct his frustration towards herself! Now the room had become far too quiet, and she discovered a need to busy herself with some distraction; a clutter of instruments had been moved to this room earlier, so she left her Maestro to stew over his piano music while she fiddled with a trombone.

“It’s-” he grumbled, leaving his sentence unfinished.

Christine glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. She had a sudden impulse, a daring notion that lodged in her throat. A second of tense silence passed, a moment which Christine spent assessing her Maestro’s stony countenance and considering whether her idea would drive him further into frustration.

“It’s fiddlesticks,” she whispered, loud enough to be heard across the room.

Erik turned his head in her direction.

“It’s fiddlesticks,” Christine said again. This time, it was accompanied by a slight coloring of her cheeks and a brief smile.

The dark cloud which hung over Erik’s head lifted, but then his lip stuck out and he glowered at the piano. It took Christine a moment to realize that her Maestro was pouting. It was such a funny notion to her, watching a full-grown man in a mask throwing a fit like a petulant child, that she giggled. Then the giggle grew stronger and longer.

“It’s fiddlesticks!” she shrieked, clapping her hands together.

Erik watched the hysterics unfold. His pride was sorely bruised, but he couldn’t help being befuddled at the same time.

“What’s so funny?” he demanded in what he hoped was a strict voice.

It had no effect; in fact, it seemed only to fuel Christine’s laughter. She was wiping tears from her eyes.

“It’s…just…so…fiddlesticks!” she gasped.

“You’ve made that point quite clear,” Erik responded dryly. He closed the piano case and stood. Christine ran around the piano to grab hold of his arm. When she did, it was Erik who found himself unable to move.

“I’m…sorry…” she tried to say. Her Maestro attempted a glare, but his lower lip trembled, and there was no longer any real glint of anger in his eyes. Then she hiccupped – she couldn’t help herself – and that broke her Maestro. His frown twisted itself into a smile, and he chuckled, ducking his head and turning aside. Christine released her hold on him, now safely assured that her Maestro wasn’t going to steal out of the room in a dramatic fit. As for Erik, he returned to the piano and began gathering his music. He had a suspicion that further progress that evening was an impossible venture.

Behind him, Christine kept repeating “fiddlesticks”. Each time it was accompanied by a peal of laughter, which, as he listened, began to take on the same musical qualities of her speech and song. Perhaps her giggling wasn’t as awful as what he first supposed.

“I think we’re done for the night,” Erik announced. Christine’s response was another hiccup, muffled behind her hand.

“So soon?” she asked shakily.

Erik nodded, but showed her his own now-smiling face so she wouldn’t feel that she was the cause of the abrupt end. “You must work on that aria, Mademoiselle. I’ll bring you a copy tomorrow night; then you can go over it yourself after our lessons.” He paused. “And I suppose I must be working on my vocabulary.”

“You are rather predictable sometimes,” Christine murmured. She drew nearer; he could feel her proximity and felt a stifling need to brush past her and give himself more breathing space. Tucking the music under one arm, he turned his attention to the instruments stacked against the wall.

“Whoever did this ought to be sacked,” he said to no one in particular. He stooped to pick up a trombone as Christine Daae passed him.

“Good night, Maestro,” she whispered. She touched his hand with her own, though whether it was intentional could not be said. Through his glove, the warmth of her little hand seeped into his fingers and raced up his arm, filling his whole self. An indescribable sensation struck him like a bolt of lightning; it was beyond any adjective, anything “fantastic” or “wondrous”; “magical”, “enchanted”, or “beautiful”. These and more, certainly…so he chose to be wordless and watch her go in silence.

Then the trombone slipped through listless fingers and bounced off his left foot before crashing to the ground.

The string of words which followed, some bizarre, all colorful and rather distasteful in nature, made him glad indeed of a music room which had been fully emptied of sweet, innocent sopranos.

#POTO #Phantom of the Opera #Cherik #1990 Phantom #Charles Dance Phantom #writing #my writing #phandom #phanfiction #fanfiction #enjoy peeps #All you phantom folks #and other various readers #I may post this on fanfiction #If I do I'll link that somewhere

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cillaivory · 6 years ago

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I decided to take a break from packing and do something historical, based on @aph-fanficchallenges writing meme and the #6 one, “a historical piece.”

I feel like there isn’t much in terms of the actual history, but from a character introspection or whatever. The backdrop to this is the Slovak National Uprising, which took place from August 29 to October 28 in 1944.

I’m not going to take up all the pre-story notes so I’m going to drop a few links to read up on it, because a few key events are mentioned or alluded to:

Wikipedia | WWII Database | European Network Remembrance and Solidarity

Uuuuhmmmmm a lot of things are said in this story that idk would ever be said by a nation to their leader, but I like to think nations probably have snapped on a leader before, because they also represent the people and also, they too have emotions and morals and opinions.

Ondrej (Slo) just is also so very tired of the bullshit.

There are mentions of Velvet Pair (because this garbage trash writer likes them too much). You should all know Ivan, and Tereza is Cze.

August 30th, 1944

Smoking had been a nasty habit that he knew she never would’ve approved of, even in the times they were not together.

The cigarette hung from his lips as he watched the buzz around him, catching a few words of conversation here and there. The words “Fascists” and “German” were tossed around a few times, but currently, they were riding the high having taken Banská Bystrica. As a man, he felt proud of these brave souls, fighting for the rights they deserved.

But as a country, he felt useless.

The Lieutenant Colonel approached him, saluting him as he held his gaze. “Pozdravy,” he welcomed. “It is nice to see you out with the true people of the nation.”

And ouch, that hurt pretty bad.

He kept an icy exterior, trying to let the comment roll off his back. “I have been feeling a bit of tension, I figured I should see what exactly is going on.” The man sneered, as his eyes darted around the headquarters. “Are you prepared for a counteroffensive strike against your efforts, Lieutenant?”

“I have the spirit to fight for the land I long for, Sir.”

He smiled. “Then that’s all I can truly ask from you.”

September 1st, 1944

The Lieutenant Colonel had become a general the day before, after having been disarmed on August 31st.

He had heard the news before he went and sat in the office of a man he could honestly say he did not care for - even if he was a man of God.

The cross against his skin ever so slightly burned. He thought about the man before him, how much tension he had caused. Many people - good people; good husbands and wives and mothers and children and brothers - had been sent to their death by this man’s hand.

If he squinted, he could faintly see the strings on his hands that once upon a time, Tereza had pointed out. He smiled, remembering her sweet, elegant voice as she pointed.

Ondra, look. The puppet strings are moving, ever so slightly. Must be hard, when the master is all the way in Germany.

“I received word you went to Banská Bystrica prior to our disarming of it.”

He blinked, nodding his head gently. “Áno, sir. I felt the tension and they are my people.”

His president scoffed. “Well, those people are trying to destroy the sanctity of the state you and I are working hard to create. No matter, those who were caught, were shipped off to Germany.”

He did not need to be a rocket scientist to figure out what that meant. He clenched the arms of his chair, realizing this man, the man that was dubbed Vodca, was sinister, in this regard. People were caught and with no regards to any family or friends they may have had, were sent to be killed.

Well, if he were completely honest, he knew the man before him was just there in his fancy office with his fancy titled for formalities sake. He was just there because he could be, because it made it look like Slovakia was actually in control of his own land and actions.

"Vodca, sir...?”

“I have no time for idle chat, please. If you must say something important, say it now.”

He bit his lip and shook his head. He rose from his seat, leaving the room without a second word.

October 5th, 1944

His body was tired. His body was weak. His heart was heavy and he realized that deep down, everything was falling apart.

Ivan was a terrible man - or to him, he was, in this very moment. He had no regards for the fact that his own people were trying to do what they could to resist this occupation. Ivan had no compassion.

There was a promise, and prior to this, Ivan had apparently always been a man of his word, until the support never came on time. He kept asking the man what was going on.

September 8th came and the next thing he knew, the Dukla Pass Offensive had started. He was furious the offensive came too late, in his opinion. Ivan had said it was foolproof and that it wouldn’t take long to get to Slovakia.

The next thing he knew, it was October, and the Soviet forces had yet to reach him.

He assumed it was not all on Ivan’s shoulders. The 1st Czechoslovak Army in Slovakia (also known as the former rebel forces), without a doubt, had began to split and fracture. Nobody could seem to agree. He could feel as if his limbs were being ripped apart.

He rolled over onto his stomach and reached under his pillow, examining each and every envelope he had saved during the last few years. The neat handwriting formed poetry on the page, trying to play it off as if everything were better than it would be.

And soon, my love, you’ll be by my side again.

He knew she was currently trying to secure more support. He knew that when all was said and done, he’d be with her again, under the same roof. That was the plan of the Army. That was the plan of the Allies.

But this plan seemed more like a dream. He crumpled the letter, biting his lip.

“Please,” he choked out, “don’t let this be a dream.”

October 26th, 1944

“I did what I could, Ondrej.”

Ondrej knew that seeing her was dangerous, even though he still loves her, but right now, he is Slovakia. He is a state, protected by German forces, who have viciously taken down the people who created the 1st Czechoslovakia Army in Slovakia.

“It’s hard being Czechoslovakia without my Slovakia,” she whispered, leaning closer to him. He frowned.

“Terezie, my love, what happened?”

“Ivan’s boss focused his energies on Hungary and Poland. The other Allies... there was no support. I couldn’t...” Her voice cracked. “Your people are so brave, Ondra. So very, very brave. I wish I could have done more.”

“So many of my people are dead, and nobody will have closure.”

Tereza’s eyes widened as she stepped away from him, looking up. He probably looked a bit of a mess, with his hair wild and tangled, dark circles under his eyes, and his uniform unkept and messy. He wished he could’ve cleaned up a bit, for her sake.

But, he knows he’s too tired, and to be fair, she looked like she had also seen better days.

“It hurts to see you like this, lover,” she muttered, taking his hands in hers

“The resistance is done for,” he told her. “Or, for the most part. But I think my people have fight left in them still.” She laughed as he brought her tiny hands to his mouth. She flushed.

“I feel that soon enough, this war will be done for.”

He hopes, for his sake, she is right. Because he didn’t think any more people needed to die.

October 30th, 1944

He stands next to his president as he holds the celebration in the city it all began in. Two months ago, he walked the streets to see the leader of the resistance, to see what the people felt.

Now, he stands before the people, as the Vodca rambles about the German soldiers who bravely stopped the uprising, and how he, as a great leader, will make sure the lives of the Slovak soldiers are spared.

Ondrej looks on into the crowds, his heart empty. From his lips hangs a cigarette (a nasty habit, really) as he tries to fill the hole with something. Some people are proud and celebrating, but he can’t figure it out.

Somewhere, his people are sad.

When the celebration ends, he’s on his third cigarette and he turns to his president. He claims he had saved Slovakia from a bombardment, that he was able to save lives. Standing on the streets of Banská Bystrica, he feels nostalgia wash over him.

“I was here when it started,” he whispers. The president gives him an odd look. “I was here and saw the soldiers that were deported. The ones you knew about. Now, you want to save them?”

“With that rebellion ended, I can safely say I will try,” the president replies.

“The main part is over, but my people keep fighting.” He looks up to the sky. “The Germans will kill collaborators. And you know they won’t be the only casualties that will occur.”

“We do what we need to do.” The president eyes him, dangerously. “As a nation, I thought you understood.”

“Nation or not, I have feelings and morals.”

“As a nation, you are to sit down and do as your told.”

That is the straw that breaks the camel’s back. The president is glaring, but Ondrej - no, Slovakia, shakes his head. He cackles, sending chills down his own spine when he realizes how cold he sounds. The president steps back as he crosses his arm.

“How many more people have to die in order to appease your puppet master?” he snarls under his breath. “You immoral, son-of-a-bitch. You broke up Czechoslovakia, you participate in the murder - genocide - of my people, and you expect me to sit and be quiet? You may be the president, the Vodca, but you are nothing more than a placeholder until the Germans take over.”

The president sputters, as if trying to control the nation. He grins, eyes dark with hate. He feels the spirit of those who keep fighting surging through him. He thinks of Tereza, of Czechoslovakia, of himself, of the people, of the God he prays to every night to make it through to the next day.

He knows that Tereza is right. There is no denying that what happened with him is part of the larger scale, that Slovakia has also made a mark on the war. A war, he can feel, is coming to a close very soon.

“The end is near, and when it comes, I’ll be back on the streets, holding a celebration.” He declares this boldly, pointing to his president. “And when I hold this celebration, I will present the people with your fucking head on a stick.”

#aph fanficchallenges #cc's fanfiction #aph #hetalia #aph slovakia #mention of velvet pair #mention of aph czechia #also mentions of aph russia.

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chachamare · 4 years ago

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Ok so I am currently in exam mode and I am applying for my Masters degree at the same time (yes I am nervous 😓). Now I've been watching bollywood since I was a kid my dad had a gf that would ONLY watch it so it stuck with me.

You mentioned a few of my favorite actors there. And movies too. My favorite actor is Aamir Khan

Here are some actors that I've seen every movie that they're in especially Deepika and Amitabh .

There's a handful of actors that rub me the wrong way over the years

Ohhh good luck with that sweetie!! 😖 you got this!

Ohhh that’s so nice haha you grew up with them 🥺 Aamir Khan is just... a daaamn fine actor 😞👌 Love him. I watched just a few German dubbed Bollywood movies when I was a child but only really started last year. I’ve seen Thugs of Hindustan a few weeks ago with some friends but Pink not! I’ll note it down to watch it

I like Deepika Padukone and Amitabh, always happy to see them :) Respect for having seen so many movies with Amitabh, he has so many! I saw Alia Bhatt in a few as well, really liked her in Gully Boy. Varun Dhawan seems to be popular, I only saw him in Kalank I think but I wasn’t really a fan of that movie.

Yeahhhhh Idk if you mean the same actors but.... from the big 3 Khan’s, I really despise Salman 😒 no idea why so many people even like him with all the shit he pulled. I’m also really not a fan of Shraddha Kapoor? Like I saw her in Ek Villain, Stree and Bhaghi and her acting is so bad I can’t deal with it 🙈 I don’t have anything against her person as with Salman but I’m never happy to read her name in a movie. Do you watch only Bollywood or Kollywood and Tollywood too?

#ask #la-deesse-of-darkness #personal

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sinceileftyoublog · 7 years ago

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Live Picks: 5/11-5/20

Jess Williamson; Photo by Kari Rosenfeld

BY JORDAN MAINZER

I’ll be in London from tonight until the 19th, so I wanted to get you covered until the 20th!

5/11: Shabazz Palaces, Empty Bottle

When we saw Shabazz Palaces at Riot Fest last year, we noticed the headiness and understated nature of the set in comparison with other sets at the festival. Seeing them in a small venue, in contrast, is ideal.

Experimental hip hop band Leaf Set opens. Jill Hopkins of Vocalo Radio DJs before the show.

5/11: Kem, Anthony Hamilton, & Eric Benet, Wintrust Arena

The R&B Super Jam tonight at Wintrust Arena features a diverse lineup. There’s quiet storm artist Kem, who mixes spirituality and love on albums like Intimacy. There’s the best known, neo soul singer Eric Benet. And then there’s Anthony Hamilton, whose Back To Love remains one of the best R&B albums of the decade and who often finds himself collaborating with hip hop artists, unlike the other two. Whether they play together or alone or a mix of both, it’ll be sure to be a great show.

5/11: Loma & Jess Williamson, Schubas

Loma, the band consisting of Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg and Emily Cross and Dan Duszynski from Cross Record, has only their self-titled debut, which we enjoyed very much. In a headlining set, they should be able to play most or all of it. The extent to which they replicate live an album that’s loaded with effects and nature sounds is to be seen.

Jess Williamson follows up 2016′s great, stark Heart Song with something much more expansive. Cosmic Wink, out today, is her Mexican Summer debut. It’s inspired by her move from Texas to California, new love, and the death of her dog. “When I don’t know what home is, I can turn into your arms,” Williamson sings on album closer “Love On The Piano”. It’s a sweet sentiment, but the rest of the album, despite the romance, still has those Texas high and lonesome qualities--it was recorded there, after all. Opener “I See The White” recalls some of the more melancholy tracks on Angel Olsen’s My Woman, while the Rhodes-laden “Wild Rain” is desolate and emotive.

Williamson will also be doing an in-store performance and signing at Shuga Records at 5 P.M.

5/11: Bing & Ruth, Constellation

The last time we saw ambient classical collective Bing & Ruth, they put us in a trance playing their great No Home of the Mind. Sine then, they’ve released an EP, Dorsal, as well as a single, the gorgeous “Quebec (Climber)”, released as part of the upcoming Stadiums & Shrines 10th anniversary compilation Dreams.

TüTH, the industrial project of Disappears bassist Damon Carruesco, opens. Brent Heyl DJs before the show.

5/11: Meat Wave, Catapult Records & Toys

Here’s what we wrote about Meat Wave when they opened for Hot Snakes at Thalia Hall back in March:

“If you’ve read us for the past few years, you know we love the songs and shows ever-ascending local heroes Meat Wave, having covered three different sets of theirs. Their last full-length release was 2017′s The Incessant, but earlier this year, they released two new songs, one-minute stomper 'Shame' and creepy slow-burner 'Dogs At Night'. Subtle, but still just as pummeling; their set should contain a lot of the latter, and not much of the former. Be thankful for that.”

Local two-piece punk band Drilling For Blasting and UK grunge band Strange Planes open.

5/11 & 5/12: Lizzo, Aragon

I’ve been a fan of Minneapolis hip hop artist Lizzo since her 2013 debut Lizzobangers, which she followed up in 2015 with Big GRRRL Small World. The former established her as a dexterous, hyperactive MC with a feminist tilt. She showed off her singing chops on the latter. But her 2016 EP Coconut Oil and tracks she’s released recently see her going in many different directions. The title track to the former is soulful and infused with gospel, while new tracks like “Truth Hurts” and “Fitness” are some true Lizzo bangers.

Fleetwood Mac worshipers Haim headline.

5/12: Helen Money, Hungry Brain

Cellist Alison Chesley is classically trained, but that’s right where formality ended. She started Verbow with Jason Narducy and then, after Verbow broke up, was a session musician in Chicago. But it wasn’t until her first solo album Helen Money and her subsequent adoption of the moniker that she truly started pushing the cello to its limited. Fast forward to 2016, and Chesley released her magnum opus Become Zero. Featuring Neurosis’ Jason Roeder and Rachel’s Rachel Grimes, Become Zero is a true mash of genres, bending the lines between experimental noise and metal while Chesley used digital processing for the first time. It was to great effect, as she made an album as full of sorrow and empathy as harsh soundscapes.

She plays with Peter Maunu and Carol Genetti, who play an opening set of their own.

5/12: Moritz von Oswald, Smartbar

Moritz von Oswald was one of the most influential 90′s dub techno producers, having done great work with both Basic Channel and Maurizio. Over the past 10 years or so, he’s branched out under his own name, whether with Detroit pioneers Carl Craig and Juan Atkins, by himself, or with the Moritz von Oswald Trio, his project with Sun Electric and Vladislav Delay. (I’m particularly fond of their album Fetch.) The Hamburg master should give a fantastic DJ set.

Deep techno DJ Olin and TEXTURE Detroit resident and founder Soren and Jacob Park open.

5/12: Speedy Ortiz, Subterranean

In 2015, Speedy Ortiz followed up their great debut Major Arcana with the even better Foil Deer. Supporting that album, they improved tenfold as a live band. When they went to record what would become their third album Twerp Verse, the 2016 U.S. presidential election happened, and they scrapped the strictly personal stuff and went political. Sadie Dupuis and company have always been political from a social and feminist perspective, but not so outspoken as on Twerp Verse. Musically, the album is consistent with Dupuis’ solo project Sad13, embracing the synth and Dupuis’ ever-improving voice over the wiry guitars for which the band first became known.

Local hero Nnamdi Ogbonnaya and Ohio band Didi open.

5/12: Vijay Iyer Sextet, Constellation

Vijay Iyer is captivating by himself and in duo form. So performing his sextet material (last year’s great Far From Over) with a steady band (besides a set of rotating drummers) should be a captivating live show. The band includes horn players Graham Haynes, Steve Lehman and Mark Shim alongside bassist Stephan Crump and drummer Marcus Gilmore.

There are two shows: one at 8:30 P.M. and one at 10:00 P.M.

5/13: Bill MacKay & Ryley Walker, Cafe Brauer

They’ve already turned upside-down one wholesome holiday. Whose to say they won’t do it at Mother’s Day Brunch at the Lincoln Park Zoo? Over/under on Walker banter about yoga pants stands at 2 jokes.

Walker’s release shows for his new record Deafman Glance, out next Friday, are on 5/18 and 5/19. We previously wrote that Deafman Glance is “an arty record, subdued, embracing of free jazz and minimal synth music as much as folk.”

5/13: Obituary, Pallbearer, & Skeletonwitch, Metro

Obituary’s self-titled album, released last year, wasn’t just a return to form. It’s one of their best records, one that stands to refine the death metal tropes the band has been exploring from the get-go, from the swirling riffs of “Kneel Before Me” to the stomping “Lesson In Vengeance”. The songs should sit well beside the band’s catalog.

Last year, Pallbearer followed up their breakout album Foundations of Burden with the divisive Heartless. We liked but didn’t love Heartless. Either way, whatever you think of the band, they’re becoming better and better live. They just released a new single, “Drop Out”, and mini-documentary to go along with it, as part of Adult Swim Singles Program. It’s your typical track from the Arkansas band: lead singer Brett Campbell goes full-on Ozzy Osbourne, while the divide between the sky high electric guitars and guttural electric bass is larger than ever.

Despite turning over band members quite a bit, Ohio metal band Skeletonwitch is remarkably consistent, from 2011′s great Forever Abomination to 2013′s Serpents Unleashed. They release their sixth full-length Devouring Radiant Light in July and have released a single, the epic and black “Fen Of Shadows”. It showcases new vocalist Adam Clemans (who first appeared on their 2016 EP The Apothic Gloom) while reminding you why you’ve always loved the band: the dynamism between guitarists Nate Garnette and Scott Hedrick.

German thrash metal band Dust Bolt opens.

5/14: Damien Jurado & The Light, Lincoln Hall

Singer-songwriter Damien Jurado has been popping up here and there since the 90′s to release an occasionally jaw-dropping, brilliant record, like 2003′s Where Shall You Take Me? or the trilogy of Maraqopa, Brothers and Sisters of the Eternal Son, and Visions of Us on the Land. A week ago, he released his 13th studio album, the gentle The Horizon Just Laughed. While it might not have the psychedelic leanings of his best work (save for “Silver Timothy” sibling “Florence-Jean”), it’s sparse and gorgeous nonetheless.

Afro-folk singer-songwriter Naomi Wachira opens.

5/15: Justin Townes Earle & Lilly Hiatt, SPACE

Justin Townes Earle played City Winery back in February. Here’s what we wrote about him then:

“The Justin Townes Earle of 2018 may not be as exciting as the same singer-songwriter who released the mighty one-two punch of Midnight at the Movies and Harlem River Blues almost 10 years ago, but he’s got so many good songs across his discography that it’s almost better to see him live than take a deep dive into his discography. He quietly released his 7th album, Kids in the Street, in 2017, and it’s probably his best since Harlem River Blues, but you know the crowd’s gonna cheer the loudest for 'They Killed John Henry' and 'One More Night in Brooklyn'.”

Nashville singer-songwriter Lilly Hiatt recruited a new band for her third album Trinity Lane, and it’s her best record yet. With John Condit on guitar, Robert Hudson on bass, and Allen Jones on drums and production by Michael Trent of Shovels & Rope, Hiatt has found the perfect sound for sad stories like “The Night David Bowie Died” and honky tonk jams like “See Ya Later” alike.

5/16: Asking Alexandria, The Forge

Back in January, Asking Alexandria co-headlined the Riviera with Black Veil Brides. They co-headline The Forge with Black Veil Brides this time. Here’s what we wrote about them then:

“British metalcore band Asking Alexandria perhaps peaked with 2016’s The Black. While their new self-titled album, released last month, is an interesting departure in their sound, opting for more straightforward, melodic hard rock, it makes you miss the band’s louder moments.”

Scottsdale metalcore band Blessthefall open.

5/16: Rival Consoles, Empty Bottle

Persona, the latest album by Rival Consoles, is purportedly inspired by the Ingmar Bergman film of the same name. What’s more obvious is its obsession with perception, space, light, and darkness. His use of analogue-heavy synths, acoustic and electric instruments, and effect pedals creates a sonic world that travels faster than the speed of light between beauty and ugly. Songs titled like “Unfolding” do what their title suggests, slowly developing into a beat. The title track skitters, “Memory Arc” attacks like a monster, and “Phantom Grip” loops ominously. And then there’s Nils Frahm collaboration “Be Kind”, a truly light moment on a record, and one that exemplifies the spirit of shared label Erased Tapes.

Local experimental acid house project Africans With Mainframes opens.

5/16: Jean-Michel Blais, Constellation

Quebec composer and pianist Jean-Michel Blais has been slowly rising over the past few years. His debut album II was followed by an especially inspired collaboration with CFCF on last year’s Cascades EP, four tracks of original material and one John Cage rework. Today, he releases his second solo effort Dans ma main, which sees him combine his usual piano-led intimacy with synthesizer textures.

5/16: Power Trip & Sheer Mag, Reggie’s

Dallas thrash metal band Power Trip just released a collection of their earliest non-LP recorded material, showing the raw areas from where they came. 2013′s Manifest Decimation was their debut, but it was last year’s Nightmare Logic that brought them beyond the metal spheres to spots like a co-headlining tour with Sheer Mag.

As a live band, Sheer Mag stood out even before they released their best songs. Now that they’ve released the tracks, they’re on top of the world. Last year’s proper debut Need To Feel Your Love was an effective juxtaposition of 70′s radio rock with radical politics, accessible and loud enough to land on our top albums of the year list.

Orange County hardcore band FURY and DC punks Red Death open. The same bill plays Empty Bottle on 5/19.

5/17: Prong, Bottom Lounge

Groove metal legends Prong are still going strong. Albums like the excellent Carved Into Stone and last year’s Zero Days show that the band is still capable of telling a musical story from start to finish while making room for meaty riffs and complex arrangements, holding up alongside their 80′s and 90′s work.

New York alt metal band Helmet co-headlines.

5/17: Josh Rouse, SPACE

Josh Rouse’s best record is 1972, which combined 70′s songwriting and production techniques with personal, political songwriter. Love in the Modern Age is the 80′s equivalent. Is it as successful? Of course not. But the similarity between the two albums makes me think Rouse will play lots of 1972 favorites.

Synth pop singer-songwriter Deanna Devore opens.

5/17: Marc Ribot, Art Institute of Chicago

Marc Ribot is one of the most creative guitarists around. I’ve seen him do a one-man score to Charlie Chaplin’s The Kid, play with his Ceramic Dog band, and jam with Los Lobos’ David Hidalgo. This time around, he’s doing an in-gallery solo performance at the Art Institute of Chicago in response to the paintings of Ivan Albright, presented in association with the exhibition Flesh: Ivan Albright at the Art Institute of Chicago.

5/17: Wye Oak, Thalia Hall

The Louder I Call, the Faster It Runs completes Wye Oak’s transition from raw, guitar-and-drums folk band to expansive synth rockers. Front woman Jenn Wasner’s pop project Dungeonesse and solo project Flock of Dimes as well as Wye Oak’s previous two albums, Shriek and Tween, are clear predecessors to the new record, the band’s best since Civilian. Natural and unbridled, it shows the least restrained version of Wasner and percussionist Andy Stack. The title track’s interweaving arpeggio synths and squawking guitars are the perfect soundtrack to a song poking fun at those trying to find order within chaos. The vocal-driven, cinematic “My Signal” and layered, washy “You Of All People” round out the album’s highlights.

Philadelphia indie rockers Palm open.

5/17: Charly Bliss, Empty Bottle

Charly Bliss frontwoman Eva Hendricks told us regarding the band’s live show, “Our live show is probably the most important aspect of making music for us, so we always want our shows to be as satisfying and fun as possible!” Their debut album Guppy (one of our favorites of 2017) was already fun and continues to satisfy well into 2018. There’s a reason this show is sold out.

Punk band Skating Polly opens.

5/18: Objekt, Smartbar

We haven’t heard much from avant techno genius Objekt since his great 2014 debut Flatland--apart from a few singles here and there. Maybe he has new material. What better place to debut it than Smartbar? Mixes of his old material works, too.

Pre-party for the Movement festival in Detroit. Stripped-down techno DJ Helena Hauff headlines. Local busy and prolific DJ Justin Aulis Long opens.

5/18: Raekwon the Chef, Promontory

Raekwon is responsible for some of the best rap albums ever, whether as a member of the Wu-Tang Clan or solo. Next Friday, he’ll be playing solo hits and Wu Tang Clan songs with the Mo Fitz Band backing him up. Though he may start with tracks from his most recent album The Wild, he should eventually delve into 36 Chambers and Cuban Linx classics, perhaps even performing for other Wu-Tang members, dead or alive.

Raekwon also is somehow playing another set this night at Bourbon on Division. DJ Ryan Ross opens that one.

5/18: Fever Ray, Metro

A Fever Ray show is not to be taken lightly, since Karen Dreijer doesn’t play very often, either as a part of The Knife or with her solo project. Plunge, last year’s follow-up to 2009′s self-titled album, was a stunning achievement. It was one of our favorite albums of last year due to its outspoken politics, frank sexuality, and chaotic beats. She revealed her live band members in a video for standout “IDK About You”.

There are two shows: one at 6:00 P.M. and one at 10:00 P.M.

5/19: TesseracT, Metro

British band TesseracT prove that djent prog metal can actually be tasteful in addition to good. Their masterpiece, 2013′s Altered State, was cohesive and actually beautiful at times, particularly thanks to vocalist Ashe O’Hara. Over the past two albums, including last month’s Sonder, the band has reunited with old vocalist Daniel Tompkins. While his vocals are more cliche whiny than O’Hara’s, the band’s instrumentation remains vital.

Australian metal guitarist Plini and rockers Astronoid open.

5/19: Pig Destroyer, 3 Floyds

Alexandria grindcore masters Pig Destroyer last left us in 2012 with their opus Book Burner. It was fast, violent, and truly dangerous-sounding. Next Saturday, they’re one of many bands playing 3 Floyds’ Dark Lord Day, which we’ve covered twice. To a drunk crowd wanting to hear favorites, expect them to...well...bounce all over the place.

Death metal band Dying Fetus headlines. The abrasive Revocation, blackened thrashers All Hell, jazz-metal outfit Brain Tentacles, and blackened doom two-piece Canyon of the Skull also play.

5/19: Elizabeth Cook, City Winery

Two years ago, we caught singer-songwriter Elizabeth Cook admirably perform songs from her latest release Exodus of Venus, an album inspired by death and tragedy. Over the past year or so, however, she’s been performing lots of new songs that should be out on a new record this fall. She should pepper them into her back catalog next Saturday.

Singer-songwriter Caleb Caudle opens.

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ampfilmworks · 4 years ago

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Cyprus looks for a piece of the action with ‘Olivewood’ movie industry

The Mediterranean island of Cyprus is shooting for the stars in its latest bid to attract investment, offering “aggressive” incentives to promote a fledgling film industry the locals dub 'Olivewood'. In an effort to woo international movie makers, the government is offering cash rebates of up to 35pc to production companies, with further tax discounts on the table for infrastructure and equipment investment.

And while some European countries offer even greater savings, the Cypriots have another not-so-secret weapon in their arsenal: sunshine.

Lefteris Eleftheriou, chairman of the Cyprus Film Commission, says: “In effect, Cyprus is one big studio with 320 days of sunshine and vastly different natural backdrops to choose from, all within a one or two hours’ drive.

“Also, because our island is on the same latitude as LA, the angle and the quality of light is the same, so you can shoot something in Cyprus at 10am and then shoot another scene at 10am in LA and the shadows cast on the windows and the streets will be the same. Not many countries have this.”

Cyprus’s film ambitions were first revealed in 2018 when invitations were delivered to more than 40 directors across the globe, one of whom was Dimitri Logothetis, the man behind Kickboxer: Vengeance, a remake of the martial arts classic that saw the return of Jean-Claude Van Damme.

“I didn’t want to go to Cyprus,” he admits. “I had just returned to LA from a three-week vacation in Greece, but my friend and fellow producer kept bugging me about it so we went to hear about this cash rebate programme. While the minister of finance was taking questions, I looked at him and said, ‘Well, I have this film and it’s ready to go. Who do I need to talk to?’ Everyone fell quiet. They weren’t expecting any of the producers they’d brought in to be ready to produce.”

The film Logothetis had ready to go was Jiu Jitsu, a $25m action movie starring Nicolas Cage as a martial arts expert battling an alien. It is now the first Hollywood film to be shot entirely in Cyprus for more than four decades and it was released by Paramount Home Entertainment in the US and Canada last month.

“I couldn’t have filmed Jiu Jitsu in America,” Logothetis says. “Everything is a lot more expensive and to film in Cyprus was at least 50pc or 60pc less than it would cost to shoot in the States.” For Logothetis the biggest draw was the cash rebate offered by the Republic of Cyprus.

“As cash rebates go, 35pc across the board, including ‘above the line’ costs, is a very aggressive rebate. Cyprus needs to keep that edge, and it makes economic sense to do so because for every dollar or euro a country spends on a film, they get seven in return. That’s why Ireland is doing so tremendously well. Films boost the economy and production teams inject a lot of cash into economies because we have to pay for hotels, food, car, fuel, buildings and construction amongst a host of other things.”

Although filmed in Cyprus, Jiu Jitsu is set in Myanmar, and with Cage involved in the project, the film garnered much local media interest during the six weeks of filming in summer 2019. However, Cage is not the first A-lister to film on the island.

The first Hollywood film shot in Cyprus, The Beloved starring Raquel Welch, was filmed in the village of Karmi in 1970. It was not a great critical success, though one reviewer did praise the film for the “splendid quality of light for which the island is noted”. Three years later, Peter Sellers filmed the pirate comedy Ghost in the Noonday Sun.

For Logothetis, the experience has been positive enough for him to return to the island, scouting locations for his next project. Though he readily admits to liking Cyprus, he is also a realist; like many independent movie makers before him, shooting outside the US is often a financial necessity. The same model was adopted by the 'spaghetti' western directors of the 1960s, who chiefly filmed in Spain.

In its heyday, Spain became the backdrop of a huge number of classics such as Sergio Leone’s Dollars trilogy and Sergio Corbucci’s Django. Today many of those iconic sets have been abandoned or turned into western-style theme parks, but Spain remains in the game and is a strong competitor in the European hustle for movie dollars. For Greg Johnson, a producer and lecturer in film studies at Yale University, this is one of the biggest challenges facing Cyprus in getting Olivewood off the ground.

“The Cyprus programme is in some ways competitive with other tax regimes. Spain's advantage is a highly developed film infrastructure and crews. There are also other tried and true competitors for big budget films such as Romania and Ireland, both of which have considerable EU and Hollywood track records as well as state-of-the-art facilities.”

The lack of facilities is an acknowledged weakness in the island’s grand plan, but Logothetis says the landscape will look very different in a few years.

“I needed to bring the team over from Thailand that I used in Kickboxer 1 and 2 to build a number of sets,” says Logothetis. “While we employed 200-plus Cypriots, we still had to bring in 50 or 60 other crew members from other countries, and the fact is, you need a crew. Spain has a crew and an infrastructure and stages, and they had it way back in the 60s. So did Italy. They don’t have that in Cyprus, but what does exist here is an extreme will to make it happen.” Local producer Marios Piperides agrees: “We are missing the infrastructure of places like Malta, but they have been doing this since the 60s. It is going to take some time, but there is progress, year on year, and the more films happening here, the more we can start to support.”

Piperides, who is currently filming a €2.5m French, German and Cypriot co-production on the island called Tel Aviv/Beirut, describes the government’s raft of incentives as “an open door for bigger films to come”. Another production, SOS: Survive or Sacrifice, fronted by William Baldwin, also shot on the island last year.

“Previously you could not survive working as a freelancer or crew member here with only one or two films per year, it was impossible," says Piperides. "But now, if there is steady work with five, six or seven films a year being made, local and international productions, then you can put more people into the system that can support the industry."

Ministers are actively pursuing private investment to hurry the industry’s evolution.

George Campanellas of Invest Cyprus, the national investment promotion agency, says talks are ongoing with a number of film studios, despite the difficulties of the coronavirus pandemic. "They are a clear sign of international interest in Cyprus," he says. "This is a great time for film investors to get on board." While a lack of studio infrastructure might strike most people in the movie business as a handicap, Logothetis remains unfazed. “For independent film makers it’s getting tougher and tougher to make the movies they want to make. I don’t want to make a movie for two or three million dollars; I did that 25 years ago. I’m just not interested in that. I’m at the top of the threshold and my movies deliver.

“Now I’ve made a great action film and built the infrastructure needed for that film within budget, and I’ve already had conversations with Paramount to make Jiu Jitsu 2. “If Olivewood wasn’t a viable alternative to Hollywood, I’d have gone home.”

Telegraph Media Group Ltd.

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amazingproductschristmas · 4 years ago

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Yesterday was a As I Have Loved You Love One Another John 13' 34 T Shirt busy day of meetings and airplane travel for peter and connor but last night peter took some time to share his thoughts on the passing of the great christopher lee christopher lee was the tallest actor I ever knew he was also by far the most literate when we first met in a los angeles studio where he was recording his lines as king haggard in the last unicorn he had just recorded haggard’s speech about his first sight of unicorns and I mentioned that it was probably my favorite speech in the book he immediately wanted to know well did I do it properly we can always redo it right here of course he’d handled the lines perfectly but writers and writers’ opinions about their work mattered intensely to christopher that same afternoon we discovered that between the two of us we we could call to mind just about all the lines of g k chesterton’s poem the rolling english road we also discovered a mutual need to hit the 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