#update blue filter over it? bad choice. hate it.

[erintoknow]

so unfamiliar now

Spiraling - A Fallen Hero: Rebirth Fan-fiction

Unless you want Ortega hounding you to the end of your days, you’re going to have to put on a show and convince her she doesn’t need to keep worrying about you. You’re fine. Everything’s fine. She’s fine. Wait – [Horseshoe Crab]

It’s my birthday today so have a second update this week!!!!!

[Read on AO3]

If you’re going to get Ortega to lay off of you, you need to start thinking about your appearance again. Dressing in hoodies to look inconspicuous doesn’t do you any good if it actually ends up drawing more attention to yourself. So… What do you dress like?

Once upon a time Ariadne fancied anything and everything from skirts and the femmest outfits she could get her hands on all the way to shrugging on a leather jacket and gloves as part of her roller derby get-up. What could possibly be a logical progression from that?

Don’t want to look too affluent. A waste of resources. But you don’t want to look destitute either. So… Clean, some color. Mostly greens, some purples and black for variety. Cloth and cotton, things you can layer. Mix in some new items with thrift store purchases to fill out the rest.

One day at the mall, you stumble across a cute pair of shoes with a 1” heel and add them to the pile. The old Ariadne would never have worn something like that, but fuck her. She’s dead.

Should you start doing make-up again? Stare yourself down in the mirror in the morning and make a face. Bad enough you have to see that wretched thing as much as you do already. The concealer work is enough. Leave the eyeshadow and lipstick in the past. Anyone misgenders you, you can just beat the shit out of them. It’s 2020 now, you’re totally allowed to do that, super villain or no.

God. Do you look human yet? You don’t feel it. What is Ariadne like? How do you play this? Do you play up the stutter or tamp it down? Does she find it cu– Fuck. Fucking hell. No. No you are not thinking about that. Jesus fucking christ.

You pull fabric around your shoulders, frowning in disapproval at the mirror. Once upon a time, Ortega’s mother gave you a serape like this for Christmas. That one was a rainbow of color. This shawl is a duller green, with a white geometric pattern along the edges. Still, it’s long enough, draping down to your waist. You could hide your arms completely underneath, maybe a few other things if there was a call for it. Kind of like the cape for your villain suit.

So is this you, now? Or at least, if not you; is it Ariadne? You’re allowed to change, right? Will she even buy it? You’re not sure that you do.

When you get the phone call from Ortega one evening you go along and let her make plans. You’ve got time to kill before your next big operation anyway. And you can field test your new wardrobe.

–––

“Ariadne! Hola!” Ortega raises her arm, a bright smile on her face. Looks like the last of the stitches are gone. Thank god. She’s got jeans on, another flannel shirt. No jacket today? If it wasn’t for the gave-away glint of metal embedded in her arms and hands she’d look like a textbook middle-age butch lesbian.

Did she always dress like that? Is it because she’s seeing Jane now? Swear she flirted a little more femme when she was with men. Not that you were paying attention at the time. Of course not.

Shut up.

You raise your hand back, “Hola yourself. Y–you look happy today.”

“I like the new look.”

You blink, glance down at yourself. Doubt creeping back into your head. “Uh. Well. It’s uh, it’s just stuff I had… laying around… you know.”

“Uh-huh. I’m sure.” She doesn’t believe you at all, damn her.

“D–don’t think it’s for your benefit!” You hiss back, you reach up and grab the edges of your shawl, pulling the green fabric closed over your body. “B–because it’s not!”

Her smile broadens. “I didn’t say anything, Ariadne.”

“F–fuck you.”

“I like the shawl, it’s cute.”

Oh god. You can’t look at her. Face warm. Ortega has a girlfriend, what the hell is she doing? “G–good for you. You um, you want to – to get on with w–whatever the fuck we’re doing today?”

“Alright, alright.” She laughs, turning and beckoning you to follow. “We’re already here actually.” Ortega gets about halfway to the front doors before she realizes (acknowledges?) that you aren’t following her. She turns her head, flaps her arms in a ‘what?’ gesture.

Pulling your shawl tight around you, there’s newfound gratitude for how your sunglasses help to mask your eyes.

You stare up at the front facade of the Los Diablos Children’s Hospital, white tiling and red brickwork and dozens of little panes of glass like too many eyes. “Ortega…” you try to keep the panic out of your voice. “I thought you said we were doing something fun.”

She walks back to you, tight frown on her face. “We used to do this all the time, remember?”

You stare at her, “Do what?”

“Visits? Readings? You know?”

Bite your lip, is that true? Ortega seems so sure of it, but… Thinking back to hospitals all your memory coughs up is a very different kind of picture. One that makes your stomach roil and your head dizzy. True or not there’s still one problem: “Ortega… I’m trying to keep a low profile, remember?”

Ortega sighs and pats you on the shoulder. “Look, there’s no PR crew, no cameras, I haven’t even told Chen. The only person who knows we’re coming is the lady in charge of managing volunteers, Sue, and as far she knows you’re just a friend I’m dragging along.” She steps beside you, hooking her arm in yours. “So, you’ve got nothing to worry about, okay?”

You tense up as Ortega half-walks, half-drags you to the doors. “If – if, um – ninjas descend from the ceiling and kidnap me, I want you to know…”

“Yeah?”

“I f–f–fucking hate you.”

Ortega laughs, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Bright lights and white walls, men and women in scrubs, medical masks. You keep your shades on, damn politeness. Mercifully, hardly anyone spares you a thought, eyes sliding off. Fewer people than you'd believe recognize Ortega out of her Ranger’s outfit. At the same time, you do get the sense she’s a known quantity here, this isn’t her first rodeo. You’ll just have to trust her; there’s an uncomfortable thought.

You wish you had the Rat-King handy, you can wrap a song tight around your head but you could stand to have a little help filtering out the background noise. Maybe it’s your own baggage, but the chatter of hospital thoughts always has this tension to it – forced cheeriness.

Hang back and let Ortega talk to the front desk, a few minutes of waiting and the woman, she mentioned, Sue? –Susan?– comes out frowning behind the too-thick fireproof doors. Straight brown hair, dressed in white, stud earrings.

It makes an interesting contrast between her and Ortega. Ortega’s sporting her Ranger-branded sports jacket today. Ranger-blue indigo shirt underneath. Her bronzed skin a touch darker in shade than her conversation partner. It’s a good look for her – the outfit that is.

You guess.

Not that you’re an expert on Ortega’s style choices or anything.

What do you care what she looks like?

You don’t.

Shut up.

Sue and Ortega make small talk, and Ortega keeps glancing your way. Expecting you to join in? You’d rather hang back. Not talking to any doctors today, thanks.

You worry the sleeves of your shirt, pulled down to the wrists. Rub the fabric between your fingers, trace patterns over your thigh, anything to do that isn’t further chewing up the inside of your cheek.

It’s been weeks now and neither one of you have discussed the kiss in the Hospital. Maybe Ortega doesn’t even remember. Some drug-fueled fever dream.

Or…

Or maybe she hated it? Is politely letting you pretend it never happened. She’s with Jane, you have to remember. Ortega is a lot of things, but she’s not a cheater.

And now Ortega’s beckoning you over. Welp.

Take a breath, in – hold – out. You’re not scared. What are you scared of? You are Ghost, the mysterious plight of Los Diablos. They ought to be scared of you. Ortega taps the side of her head. No shades? You make a face and she gives you a serious look. You huff and pull them off, fold up and tuck them in your purse. White walls. White lights. Can feel your heart jump. Fuck. Ortega smiles at you, you fake a smile back.

You’ve got this. Everything’s under control.

Here we go.

Sue hands the two of you off to a nurse who in turn acts as your guide. You trail behind, not paying much attention to his and Ortega’s conversation. What you bother to pick up confirms that Ortega’s made a habit of these low-key visits apparently, to different hospitals across the city. Ever since returning to the Rangers.

Did Ortega used to drag you along to official Ranger PR events? You can almost remember. The memory of remembering. Try to think too hard about hospitals though, and you get panicky. Short breath. Little dizzy. A hospital is the last place you want to pass out at, thanks but go fuck yourself.

–––

A pair of tiny arms clings to your leg and a jolt of panic shoots through you. “Uh… H–h–hello?”

A girl with cropped brown hair stares back up at you. “HI LADY! I like your hair!!”

You glance at Ortega, she’s got her back to you, teaching a boy how to do some fancy handshake. You catch the eye of the nurse, hanging back by the doorway. He gives a small smile. No help there. Look back down at the kid, “T–th–thanks? Um– Don’t you want to talk to Charge over there?”

She remains undeterred. “What’s your name?”

“Ari?”  You glance towards Ortega again. Help. She remains utterly unaware of your plight.

“Are you a boy or a girl?”

You choke. “W–w–what? I’m uh– I’m a girl.” Fuck. What did she pick up on? You usually pass just fine these days. Could just die right now, that would be great, thanks.

“Oh. Okay!” There is absolutely no hint of embarrassment in this girl’s mind. “Are you Ms. Charge’s girlfriend?”

You hunch down and very gently try to pry her arms off your leg. “What um, what gives you that idea?”

She tilts her head, staring you down with full intensity. “‘cause you keep looking at Ms. Charge AND everyone knows the hero’s girlfriend ALWAYS has red hair!!”

You smile to hide the panic. “W–what uh, what makes you say that?”

She gives you a doubtful look, can’t believe an adult doesn’t know this. “‘cause it’s in all the movies!! Duh!!”

“Ari!�� Oh thank god. You breathe a sigh of relief as Ortega walks over, the other kids curiously watching behind her. “Making friends?”

“Hi Ms. Charge!!” The little girl fixes her full attention to Ortega.

“Hello!” She smiles widely, “Introduce me to your friend, Ari?”

“Uh–”

“My name is Casey!” The little terror cuts in. “SHE never asked!” Casey huffs. “Your girlfriend is RUDE Ms. Charge.”

“Girlfriend?” Ortega raises her eyebrows at you.

You shake your head wildly, suddenly way too warm. “S–s–she came up with that one herself!”

An hour and a half later of helping Ortega handle the meet and greet and you’re free again.

You slip your shades back on as the two of you exit the hospital. Run a hand through your purse to find the chocolate bar, peel off the wrapper at one end with shaking hands. “That was… that was something.”

Ortega claps you on the back and you stumble forward a step. “See? I told you you’d be fine.”

“Y–yeah, well…” You frown, “If you d–don’t hear from me in a week, you only have yourself to blame.” You break off a piece of chocolate, “Want any?”

“I’m good.”  Ortega smiles, you shrug and pop the candy into your mouth “So…” Her smile fades as she glances towards you, “what did you think?” The two of you leave the parking lot, walk the sidewalk, you follow her lead through the streets.

“What d–did I think?”

“Want to come with me the next time I go?”

You give her a wry smile, “Y–You’re not gonna just, uh, just spring it on me again?”

She smirks back at you, “Me? Spring something on you? Never.”

“F–f–fucking smug-ass liar.” You punch her in the shoulder, and Ortega overplays it, comically swinging to the side. “W–why do I keep letting you do this to me?” You keep asking yourself that, and the answer hasn’t gotten any less terrifying.

“Do you remember the last time we did one of those visits?” Ortega glances at you as the two of you hurry across the street.

“When was that?”

“It must have been… well, right before–” She grimaces.

“Oh.” You chew your cheek, trying to think back. Can feel your stomach lurch as the world tilts under you. You have to stop and steady yourself. Cover it up by shaking your head. “I… kind of do? I–I–I haven’t thought about this in years, sorry.” You furrow your eyebrows, “I…”

“You were–” Ortega stops herself, “Oh, sorry, go ahead.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, finish your thought, it’s fine.”

Damn.

“I… think this might be… um, the first positive experience I’ve had with a hospital in… in years.” You grimace, keenly aware of the line you’re skirting. “Between uh… you in the hospital and…”

“And…?” Ortega slows down to match your pace.

Shake your head, “No, it’s – it’s nothing. Sorry. I don’t want to talk about it.” You try to smile even though it feels fake. “What were you going to say?”

“Oh, well–” Ortega rubs the back of her neck, “I was just going to say; I had to step outside to handle a phone call. And–” She laughs, “You were on the verge of panicking, all ‘Charge! Don’t leave me alone with these kids!”

You come to a stop, and groan, run a hand over your face. “Oh my god.”

“You remember now.”

You bite your lip, nod your head. “Uh-huh.”

“How did you get into teaching them about taxonomy? You never told me.”

You can feel the heat on your face now. “Okay. Look. It–it–it made sense at the time okay!? I thought it’d be easiest to keep them from going crazy if I r–r–read them a story?”

“Okay?” Ortega stops walking, leans her shoulder against a boutique storefront’s window, watching you with a smile. You cross your arms under your shawl to try and keep your hands from shaking.

“Okay. So. I just – just grabbed the first children’s book I saw. It–It–it was this animal book? I think? But it was all cutesy and inaccurate.” You bite your lip. “And when I pointed out a mistake, they all laughed so… I just… kept… doing… that…?”

She laughs at you.

You cover your face in your hands, heat going straight to your ears. “D–don’t laugh!”

Ortega covers her mouth, “Okay, okay. Sorry, you’re just so–”

You drop your hands to your sides, “I’m just so what?” You narrow your eyes at her.

She doesn’t miss a beat. “We’ll have to get you a book to read, the next time we go.”

Oh god.

“You’re going to – to kill me Ortega…”

Her smile falters, “I hope not.”

The two of you walk the next block in silence. Is it as awkward for her as it is for you?

Finally Ortega stretches her arms over her head and says, “I don’t do these hospital visits often enough these days.”

Watch her face from the corner of your eye, trying to get a read on her. “How come?”

Ortega sags, shoulders slumped forward. “Too easy to get caught up in work. Especially lately.”

Ah.

You have to keep your face blank, don’t let your heart race. “S–still obsessed with trying to figure out Ghost?”

She gives you a grim smile. “You know it.”

[artificialqueens]

Follow Ev'ry Rainbow ('Til You Find Your Dream), Chapter 5: Climb Ev'ry Mountain (branjie) - writworm42

A/N: Last chapter, Vanessa was scolded for her performance as a postulant and learned that she might not pass to the next stage of becoming a nun. This chapter, Vanessa sees a familiar face, and then is given an important choice.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE WITH THIS CHAPTER, guys!!!! I hope y'all enjoy it. I can’t promise updates will come faster–I still have Come Hell or Full Circle and the librarian con fic, plus a few other prompts–but I hope it’s worth it!!

Thank you 3000 to Holtz for beta-ing, and to her gf (hi) for encouraging me and assuring me that people haven’t forgotten about this fic and want to see it updated. YOU ARE TRULY THE BEST! <3 <3 <3

Three days had passed since Vanessa’s meeting with Mother Nina, and things settled into some semblance of peace again. Classes resumed as usual, Masses were attended, chores were completed and prayers were whispered into the quiet of the convent’s chapel. No one talked about Vanessa’s latest mishap, or mentioned that postulant reviews were coming up.

But that didn’t mean that Vanessa had stopped thinking about it. On the contrary, it was almost as if Vanessa’s mind was overtaken by catastrophic thoughts; about whether her prayers were enough, whether she would pass, whether becoming a model citizen-nun would be enough at this point. The possibility of failure seemed to wait for Vanessa at every corner, and every single move she made felt dangerous, like it would either make or break her career. Still, life went on, and so Vanessa surrendered to the fact that all she could do was go with it.

She was doing just that, walking from the postulant classroom over to the vegetable garden where she’d be doing her afternoon chores, when suddenly, life threw her something new. Something blonde, green-eyed and proper, sitting on the bench outside of Mother Nina’s office.

So maybe this woman wasn’t so new–still, having her in the convent was unexpected, and like almost all unexpected things, Vanessa couldn’t help but gravitate towards her.

“Hey!” Vanessa jogs up to the woman, smiling and waving, but her pace slows when the woman jumps a little, turning to her with confusion in her eyes.

She doesn’t remember me. Vanessa cringes, a sinking feeling of disappointment beginning to weigh down her chest. Of course the woman wouldn’t remember her; it had been three days, and they’d met in a split second, not even introducing themselves. Still, it stung–that split second, the feeling of the woman’s hands on her waist and the look in her eyes, had stuck in Vanessa’s mind for days. Surely, the woman could remember something of Vanessa in turn? “Sorry, um… Do I know you?”

Apparently not.

“Oh, sorry!” Vanessa laughed, “I don’t think we actually introduced ourselves. A few days ago, I almost tripped and fell on the convent grounds–you saved me.” she smiled warmly, excitement blooming in her chest when she saw what just might have been a light switch on in the other woman’s eyes.

“I’m Vanessa.” she continued, extending a hand. “I’m one of the postulants here.”

“Nice to meet you, Vanessa.” the woman smiled, taking Vanessa’s hand in a warm, firm grip. “I’m Brooke Lynn Hytes.”

Brooke Lynn Hytes. It was a pretty name, one that Vanessa repeated in her head as Brooke continued to speak.

“I’m here to see Nina, actually. Um–Mother Nina. She’s just Nina to me.” Brooke laughs nervously, rocking back on her heels a little.

“Oh, you looking to volunteer with us or something?” The thought of working alongside Brooke, handing out pamphlets with her and serving children orphaned by war and petitioning to get legal help for refugees, was exciting, somehow, something she both pictured vividly yet was afraid to, lest the dream not come true.

“I’m just here to see Nina. Just visiting.” Brooke shook her head, and just like that, the fantasies building up in Vanessa’s head deflated again.

Darnit.

Well, at least Brooke was here, and if the sudden embarrassed look painting itself across her face indicated anything, it was for more of a reason than ‘just visiting.’

Gossip was a sin; Vanessa knew that. Nosiness was a sin, Vanessa knew that too. But she also knew that just making conversation, just chatting with someone who she happened to have met before, who she happened to want to get to know better, was alright in God’s books. So what was the harm in asking?

“You a friend of hers or something?”

“Or something.” Brooke shrugged. “We met a long time ago.” Was it just Vanessa, or did Brooke seem stiff when she said it?

“Oh, nice! Before your daughter?” call her petty, but Vanessa couldn’t resist–she wanted to know how old that kid was, judge how unacceptable it had been for her to just stare at her like that. But she realized with a jolt that the question had backfired–Brooke really was stiff now, her whole body becoming rigid and eyes becoming lost for a second before she snapped back to attention.

“We were both much younger then.” Brooke replied tersely between pursed lips, frowning deeply and flushing scarlet.

“Oh.” better not push it; she could tell that Brooke was rapidly becoming upset, and she didn’t want that–not when the woman had been so kind to her before, and certainly not now that Vanessa knew she was friends with Nina. No, that would certainly be a bad career decision. So instead, she excused herself, reasoning that she was late for her gardening duty, anyway.

“Say hi to Mother Nina for me!” she kicked herself inwardly as she tossed the line over her shoulder, cringing when she realized how stupid it sounded. Say hi to Mother Nina. As if she didn’t do that enough every day, even when saying hi meant getting another lecture.

Honestly.

Still, even after an hour of weeding endless tomato plots, she couldn’t help but wonder what exactly Brooke was seeing Nina for, or if she was okay.

–

Another day, another meeting in Nina’s office. Vanessa tried her best to stay gracious, tried her best to be humble and hopeful, but she couldn’t help but have a sinking feeling in her chest as she walked over to Nina’s office. She should have bore it; she should have kept it quiet. She should have refused to let it bother her as she walked through the hallway, racking her brain for what she could possibly have done this time. But she couldn’t, and so her heart continued to sink, like it had for weeks.

The thing was, one’s heart could only ever sink so low before it hit rock bottom. And for Vanessa, that rock bottom was a pit full of anger.

She was doing everything she could. She was doing everything right. The last few days, she’d been a model citizen–she’d participated appropriately in all her lessons, completed her duties so well that even Ra’jah had praised her, although the nun looked like it might kill her to do so. She had prayed diligently, been on time for Mass, and had done it all genuinely. Not just to pass, not just to be noticed or have her efforts praised, but because the last ‘little chat’ she’d had with Nina had lit a fire under her ass.

The way I’ve been acting has been of no use to God. she remembered saying it with a shaking voice, her face burning with shame despite the fact that she had been hidden behind the opaque veneer of a confessional screen. I’m going to change.

She had meant it with all her heart, she really had. And as far as she was concerned, she’d made good on that promise, to a highly effective degree.

So why the fuck wasn’t it paying off?

“God fucking dammit.” she wiped a hot tear away from her eyes, still too frustrated and angry to care about the words that had just come out of her mouth.

Why the fuck didn’t they want her? Why the fuck did they hate her? What possible sin had she committed that she was too stupid to see?

Why couldn’t she do anything right?

No. It wasn’t her fault–it was everyone else. A bunch of stuck-up, self-righteous bitches who thought they knew and served God better than she did. Who hated her and came for her just because she was a little different. Hell, God had never actually said anything about half the things Ra’jah told Vanessa and the other postulants about conduct. So how dare they pretend with such absolute certainty that their opinions were the absolute truth?

Well, she was done being meek and modest. Done taking it lying down. No, this time, she’d give Nina and the others a piece of her mind–

“Vanessa?” Nina peered at Vanessa from her office door, a concerned frown painted on her face, and suddenly, all of Vanessa’s burning anger dried up into embarrassment and shame. “You okay?”

“Yea–Yes, Reverend Mother.” Vanessa breathed out shakily, wiping her eyes and cursing herself for just how wet the corners of her sleeves came back. “I’m fine. Just–just a bit frustrated, I guess.”

“I’m sorry.” Nina’s voice was soft and remorseful, but she said nothing else, only gestured for Vanessa to follow her inside her office.

Vanessa took another deep breath, her heart pounding so hard she thought she might throw up, and stepped through the door.

–

“You want… You want me. To be a nanny.” Vanessa repeated, still not quite believing what she’d just heard. If she’d just heard it; it couldn’t be, that couldn’t have been what Nina had called her in for, it was too out of the blue–

“Yes.” Nina repeated, nodding resolutely. “I want you to be a nanny.”

“So are you like, kicking me out, or–”

“No, no, no.” Nina shook her head, then sighed, dropping her head into her hands. “Look, Vanessa, this isn’t–this isn’t a punishment or a sign that you’ve failed. That’s not why I’m offering you this position.”

Offering. So it wasn’t an order. Granted, Vanessa wasn’t sure that made things any better, but at the very least, it meant that there was a chance she could reject it without being kicked to the curb.

Vanessa breathed out a deep, relieved sigh, any remnant buzz of anger or tension finally filtering out of her body.

“So why me?” It was a fair question–if the offer really was just because Nina thought Vanessa would be the best for the job, then what was it that singled her out for it?

“Because of the nature of your faith.”

Vanessa looked up with surprise, half expecting Nina to take it back, to explain that it wasn’t a good thing. But Nina looked absolutely serious, earnest, even.

“Your faith is unique, Vanessa. The kind of faith we’ve frankly lost here. You see things with childlike eyes, and always want to take on challenges. You still have connections to your roots, and you’re fiercely passionate about it. And that kind of stuff makes you amazing at evangelism and service. You have the kind of faith that’s joyful and worth sharing. The kind that can’t be contained, and that’s a good thing.

“The person looking for a nanny wants someone gentle, kind, and passionate. She wants someone who can teach her kids traditional values while still teaching the values of justice and standing up for yourself. She wants someone who can get through to her kids–they’ve been trouble in the past, don’t respond well to authority keeping them down. So I think it’s best to send someone who won’t expect them to be kept down. Someone who approaches all those values differently. And I think you’re perfect for the job–because you can set a great example for them and get through to them. Heck, you’ve stayed true to yourself and to what you think God wants from you no matter how the sisters here have tried to stamp those qualities out–who better to teach children those same things?

“Look,” Nina softened again, her voice becoming gentle. “I think the greatest injustice the Church does is teaching people that holy vocations are somehow better than everything else. But they’re not. Because we can only do so much–only what the Church tells us we can do. But God–well, God is outside of the Church. God is bigger than the Church. And if anyone can match all that God has to offer outside of what the Church captures, it’s you.”

It took a few moments for Vanessa to process everything that was being said, everything those words truly meant. And when it did finally sink in, she couldn’t help it–tears began to prickle at the corner of her eyes, her chest tight and yet expanding all at once with a feeling she couldn’t quite describe. Pride, and vindication, and the invaluable feeling of finally being seen.

She wasn’t in trouble. She wasn’t inferior. She was enough. More than enough, in fact.

She was exactly what somebody needed.

“So what do you say?” Nina asked, her eyes intent as she watched Vanessa wipe her eyes and take a few deep breaths. “Will you do it?”

Vanessa took another deep breath, her head spinning. Regardless of what had just been said, there was still so much to consider about the decision. What she would tell her friends and family. Whether or not she’d still be a nun. Whether she’d be happy, whether she could come back if she wasn’t. How much training she’d get. Whether she’d be paid a salary or not. Whether she was really equipped to deal with the actual caretaking aspect of a nanny’s job, as opposed to just the role model side of things. And before she could make a true decision, those things needed to be considered.

So she said just that, and negotiations began.

[fisherandhunterblog]

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Introduction: Online purchasing of fishing equipment could seem tough for individuals that are new to it, and this is because of the abundant brands that make different products that offer the same services.  However, after reading this article, you should be able to decide on some of the equipment you need to buy. Here is a list of the Top best seller fishing equipment on renowned website; Amazon.com. 1.      The Yakima Bait Rooster Tail

Check Latest Price  Product description The Yakima Bait Company was established to produce the best, world's finest and also the most effective fishing lures.  The Yakima Bait Rooster Tail is one of the evidence of the domination of the company. The product comes in different colors suh as Frog (FR), Frog Spring (FRS), Frog Bleeding (FRB) Features ·        Unique Spinning Action ·        In-Line Weighted Body Design ·        Pulsating Hackle Tail Attracts Fish ·        Genuine Silver, Brass, or Copper Blades The product has a 4.5 star review on Amazon.com and here are some comments customers made after purchasing the product.   Customer Comments I.       "If you like chasing the slime darts then these are a nice inexpensive lure that casts well and you won't be too upset if you get snagged."   II.      "Just like advertised .... three rooster tail lures but they are not much .... cheap poorly tuned lures. Would probably not buy again"   III.    "These are great spinners, 1.0 out of 5 starsGreat lures, if they all show up!"   2.           GSI Outdoors Halulite Microdualist Two-Person Cookset

Check Latest Price  Product Description Going for $54.95, the Haluite Microdualist should be your best fishing buddy, it has a perfect pot and lid combo which is perfect for stove top cooking.  For personal safety, it is more advisable not to use directly over a campfire. It has a 1.4 liter pot and lid combo which would help transform your meal into very delicious dishes.  There is a stuff sack which you can put in everything after cooking. It does not come in various colors, it has a single color. Features ·        Helps save fuel ·        Very compact ·        Easy to move around This product has a 4.7 out of 5 star review on Amazon.com and here are some customer's comments regarding the product, they are both positive and negative, but the positive definitely outweighs the negative. Customer Comments I.       "This is quite possibly the best piece of camping gear I've ever bought. Every element seems thoughtfully designed and solidly constructed of sturdy materials.  A good example is the handle that folds over the top to securely lock the whole thing together--it looks great and works even better.  The nesting concept isn't unique (and I cross-shopped several other brands), but it's executed to perfection here in a compact, lightweight form factor with just enough room for a stove and fuel tank.  Pair this kit with an inexpensive folding stove for a cheaper alternative to a Jetboil system, and it serves two people! This will serve double duty as a useful tool for camping trips and a key element of our disaster/bug-out bag" II.      "This set is absolutely perfect for two people. It's compact, lightweight, and brilliantly designed.  I love that I can fit my ultralight stove and fuel can inside the nested cook set with ease. The entire package weighs fewer than 800 grams with a full fuel tank." III.    "The handle is sturdy and doubles as a lock for the lid to keep everything together in your pack. The lid has a convenient strainer and the little lid handle/tab is diminutive and effective.  The neoprene sleeve drink cups seemed a bit gimmicky to me at first, but they work fantastic. The multicolor bowls and cups (orange and blue) nest perfectly together and make it easy to keep track of whose is whose.  I also like that this is anodized aluminum and DOES NOT have a not-stick coating. I HATE the toxic non-stick stuff and refuse to use it as it will for sure flake off and end up in my food.  You could use sand and water to clean up this pot if you wanted to. We mostly just use it to boil water." IV.    "The pouch is optional but serves as a small water basin washing dishes. If you were looking to save a few grams you could leave it behind, but it works great as a tub.  We used it to settle turbid water before pumping. Slow work, but better than clogging our water filter!"   3.    Primus - Classic Trail Stove

Check Latest Price  Product Description Primus’ Classic Trail Stove has been proven to be; simple, very classic and also durable. If you are going fishing, camping or any outdoor adventure, then this cooking gear would work perfectly for you. To heighten your cooking ability on your next outing or fishing voyage, ensure you get this product.  The crosswire pot which comes with the product acts as a built-in windscreen, the stove can also be equipped with a piezo igniter which makes matches useless.  The stove comes with nylon storage and transport bag. Features ·         Lightweight, compact camp stove ·         Manual ignition ·        10,000 BTUs of heat ·        Three-minute boiling time ·        Includes nylon storage bag ·        Eight-ounce weight This product has a 4.4 out of 5 star review on Amazon.com. The price has been beaten down to favour customers from $31.00 to $27.04. Here are some few feedbacks from customers that have already purchased the product. Customer Comments I.       "just got this stove in today. I immediately grabbed my camping cookware & tested it. I have a 20 ounce GSI Glacier Stainless Minimalist pot & brought it to a boil in 5 minutes or so (in 40 degree F ambient).  I used an MSR 8 ounce propane cartridge for the fuel & seated it on a MSR Universal Canister Stand.  This entire set up is extremely compact & light weight. It just plain works & will not take up half of your pack! I am a kayaker & used to bring a Coleman burner, tank, & stand with me.  It is huge & heavy (when trying to bring only the bare minimum). I'm absolutely stoked that I won't have to bring the Coleman with me on my next trip, which will likely be in a week or two.  See the picture below. It gives you a good idea of the size of the Primus/MSR set-up & the size difference when compared to my Coleman.  I included a roll of duct tape in the picture for reference. I also took & couple pictures of the burner with the GSI Minimalist & an MSR pan on it.  Note that Primus says you have to use their cartridges for this burner. That is for liability purposes on their end.  The MSR propane cartridge works just fine and is EXACTLY the same cartridge as the Primus one. When you put them side by side you can tell they came from the same factory." II.      "Very nice stove, good design in general and very solid. It is a real torch and I like the broad burner head, very similar to my Coleman Peak II gas stove.  You can stortch it up to boil water or turn it down to just a simmer and the broad heat doesn't make a hot spot in the bottom of the pan. There are a few things that reduced it's star count, and they include; 1) it is pretty heavy for a stove of this type, at 7.5oz it is almost a half pound.  This is a result of the traditional super Primus structure, a brass valve and either chromed brass or heavy stainless for the upper part.  This will last till your grand kids are old, if propane is still even available then. 2) It come in two parts, the burner top and the valve assembly. So they need to be screwed together before attaching to the fuel can and use.  A bit of bother and potential to get dirt in the jet. But it makes it fold down small and goes in it's nice mesh bag. 3) When you unscrew from the fuel can you need to do so quickly as the fuel will shoot out a bit.  The needle that allows the fuel to come on is a bit long so the stove assembly unscrews enough to lose the O-ring seal before the needle has let the fuel turn off.  Again, not a big thing but an annoyance and something to be aware of. 4) The knob looks to be plastic but perhaps is actually Bakelite or some other heat resistant product.  There is no warning about not using with a wind screen but if it is plastic and used with a wind screen it could melt the knob. Unknown at this point."   4. Piscifun Spinning Reel Lightweight Smooth Fishing Reel 10+1BB Carbon Fiber Drag Powerful Spin Reels

Check Latest Price  Product Description This Machined aluminium braid ready spool goes for $37.97 on Amazon.com, and it comes with a rotor and Graphite body which helps provide a lightweight design.  The lightweight does not actually diminsh its strength and durability. There is just a single color for this product.  The Piscifun venom Spinning Reel has a three carbon fiber drag system which has a capacity of up to 26.5 pounds of fish stopping power, and this makes it the perfect choice for salt and fresh water anglers. Features ·        It is Braid ready ·        Lightweight ·        Unparraleled stopping power ·        Anti-corrosion The Piscifun venom Spinning Reel is rated 4.6 out of 5 stars by verified buyers on Amazon. This product has only colour 2000 model. These are some few selected comments from customers that have purchased and made use of the product. Customer Comments I.       "the 4000 version was on sale for $36. If it worked i'd be content, but it actually seems to work very well and functioning like something much more expensive.  It's a smooth running reel with nice feel to it. the drag seems smooth but I have not had it long enough to really push it or the claimed drag ratings.  I have not taken it apart to see how much grease was used, but I expect it's not too bad from what I can see taking off the handle.  This is the cheap style handle with a screw on the opposite side to hold it and and allow changing sides. Its not the nice screw in style like the Honor series reels.  That's not really an issue, but for salt water it's another non-sealed hole into the gearbox." II.      "I needed a reel for surf fishing. There is no free lunch out there when it comes to salt water gear.  Its $120 for anything beginning to resemble sealed, but this one should be a great value with the help of simple maintenance.  Will update this is anything happens...I'm not expecting any weak links" III.    "The reel arrived well packaged, and on time. This reel was purchased to on a 2pc rod that I carry in the truck and use to fish the local ponds.  I was pleasantly surprised with it's performance. The reel has a smooth drag and, because of it's weight, makes it easy to fish for several hours with our too much fatigue to my hand/arms.  I've only had the reel for a couple of weeks so time will tell how this reel will hold up. Right now, I have high hopes."   5. Lowepro Whistler BP 350 AW (Grey) . Professional Grade Outdoor Adventure Camera Backpack

Check Latest Price  Product Description This amazing whistler pack would give you unbeatable return for your money if you are an adventurer who loves carrying camera, video and functional outdoor gear.  With this pack, you can now capture those beautiful moments on the sea without having the fear of losing your equipment while you are on the voyage. Features ·        Equipped for the extreme ·        Enough space for you camera, personal items and fishing equipment ·        Heavy duty which means you can attach anything you wish. ·        Protetive from any form of weather This product stands well with customers because it has a rating of 4.3 stars out of a possible 5. Is it worth it to purchase this product? Let's see what customers have to say about that. Customer Comments "I'm a wedding photographer and was looking for a good-looking backpack for destination weddings.  While I don't do crazy outdoor stuff, my gear gets (ab)used pretty good. I went between the Whistler 350 and a cheaper no-brand pack, and ultimately decided on this one for it's sturdiness and size.  It fits all my travel gear perfectly - two full frame Nikon bodies, 70-200mm, 85mm, 50mm, 35mm, two flashes, a flash stand, and little accessories like batteries, PocketWizards, etc. It's a bit tight, but it fits!" "One thing I specifically love is that it opens up in the back, which is super nice for when you're standing in line and there's no way for you to see what's happening in the back...  It basically makes it robbery proof. It also doesn't look like a typical camera bag, really unsuspecting!  The quality and craftsmanship is outstanding - and really, after owing two other LowePro bags, I didn't expect anything less." "The one thing that is a bit 'oh well...' are the shoulder pads. Being a girl, these are just way too wide for my body.  My husband however commented right away, that the fit is suuuper comfy. I take it with a grain of salt." "The one positive thing I could say about this but don't know for sure. This is built thick heavy and possibly tough. If you are out at sea or in a hurricane, this would be five stars."   Conclusion With the help of this article, you must have been able to select the fishing equipment that appeal to you most from the list which has been provided. Purchasing any of the equipment listed above would never leave you with regrets.   Facebook Twitter Instagram Pinterest Google-plus Android

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[firesprite85]

Well after all the havoc, madness, mayhem and time we are now back at school and hopefully back into routine.

Where to start? You’ve missed so much I’ve been gone so long ...

Well summer flew past and yet took forever whilst it was happening? What’s that all about??

Little Dude has been a mix of devil spawn and a huggy love bug all holiday.

He has been totally adverse to washing or dressing or even leaving the house a lot of the time.

His latest threat is “you hate me, you don’t care ‘bout me, I leaving” which has resulted in our need to up our home security I lot. We’ve had new front and back doors installed which has been amazing as these ones both lock from the inside too which is perfect. The back gate is still an escape route for him but it’s not used as often as he can be caught before then. So still a work in progress.

We have had so many tantrums out and about in town lately that I would be surprised if the whole town doesn’t know who he is yet.

The meltdowns haven’t been as often but we have avoided so much to reduce this for him.

Meds have been a complete nightmare. One of the best things of getting back to school is that he will be taking his daytime meds there Monday - Friday!

Little Dudes EHC Plan has finally been written up and finalised, even if it does have errors in it, so we are looking further into schools and organising adjustments for him now. fingers crossed for more news there soon.

The first day back at school was today. I can not believe that my boys are growing up this fast. Little Dude is now in year three and Big Bro is starting his GCSEs this year!! I got to see his timetable today and I’m so jealous I wish mine was that cool when I was at school!

Little Dude seems to have had a good first day back. He’s come home tired but happy. He still likes his teacher and his LSA whichbis ace.

Wow just got a phone call from Little Dude’s teacher while I was typing this (seriously if it’s not kids or Pup bugging me while I’m sat on the loo it’s a phone call that I can’t ignore) She has told us that Little Dude has been very good today. He has done some joining in and had good interactions with other children at play time. He didn’t eat very much lunch but I think that’s a mix of first day nervous and his meds, we will need to keep and eye on it but it should settle down again soon.

Will update on Big Bro’s day soon.

Daddy has had it tough lately with big work changes and a few life choices to muddle through as well as Little Dude being very demanding of Daddy’s time and attention. Daddy seems to be settling into things now but life is still hit and miss with so many aspects still upnin the air that he’s not finding much time for himself to just breath. He’s sleeping less and less just to find some ‘me time’ for himself after little Dude has gone to sleep.

Big Bro is in a bad place. We have had a lot to go through with him and he needs a lot more of our time then he has been getting. We have missed so many warning signs from him and as a Mammy I am feeling so very bad for not seeing or hearing his cries for help. Thank fully he came to talk to me and confused his demons to me before things got to dark for him. There is a very long road ahead of us but we are at least now walking along in the right direction, I hope. Either way we are now walking it as much together as we can xx

Pup is getting so big now it’s crazy how much he has grown and yet he still looks like a pup. We’ve had his 1st birthday and the 1st anniversary of him joining our family two big mile stones for him xx

Sammy the turtle is doing great. Her tank has had a few new designs to find the best possible arrangements for her and it seems she mostly likes it now she just doesn’t like the filter and heater to actually stay attached to the side.

Sid the Pleco has grown a few more inches over the summer too. He’s massive now!

Moriarty the big goldfish doesn’t seem very happy at the moment. His tail is very droopy and he’s getting slower in his swims. We have done several water changes and have installed a new much bigger external filter to his tank and stopped heating the water as it was getting too hot for him during the heatwaves anyway. We have adjusted his feeds so as not to over feed him and have tried different additives in the water but nothing seems to be helping him.

Out tropical tank has had some issues. We have no light in it as the hood lights wouldn’t work and the extra one we bought broke so now we are back to square one with that. We lost a fair few fish over the heatwave and now have some babies that were given to me as a present from MumC. Little Dude has got into the adorable habit of checking on the tank each day to check if they’re are any dead fish so that they can be taken out and looked after.

The house has been totally messed up over the summer so we get the FUN of getting that squared back to normal again. I had a Mammy fail with at least one of my holiday buys. I tried to get the boys a Kinect for the Xbox one only I didn’t know it needed an adapter too which didn’t come with the main hardwarepurchase so that’s annoying.

We didn’t get to go on holiday this year but there will be other opportunities in the future I’m sure.

The garden needs a LOT of work doing to it so hopefully with the slightly cooler weather we can get more done out there over the coming weeks.

Exciting news from the extended family is that two new babies are expected soon. One baby blue and one baby yellow. So I get to make up some nice gift baskets for the Mammy’s and new arrivals which I’m looking forward too.

Well hopefully I’m all caught up now and I’ve explained our long break. I should be back up and typing again now though so here’s to the days to come.

[infotainmentplus-blog]

Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS review: Is it worth that premium? Huawei is one of the few brands keeping the luxury phone trend alive. It doesn’t have diamond-encrusted notches or Vertu-level pricing, but the Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS reaches well beyond its Huawei P20 stablemates with a 1,695 euro (~$1980) price. Unlike Vertu’s simple “glue precious stones onto this two-year-old phone” philosophy, Huawei and Porsche Design opted to actually bring tangible improvements to this phone. Is the Mate RS actually worth the price though? That’s what our Huawei Mate RS review will tell you. Huawei Mate RS review notes: I used the 256GB Mate RS for just over two weeks as my primary smartphone. I stuck to home Wi-Fi for the most part but used the Cell C network otherwise. The phone runs EMUI 8.1, based on Android 8.1, and has the May 2018 security patch. Show More Design “This looks just like a Galaxy S9 Plus,” was my first thought upon peeking at the front of the phone. Just like the S9, the Huawei Mate RS has a dual curved display, with curved corners and tapered left and right edges — which make the phone feel thinner than it is — and a notch-less top bezel. With its dual curved display and reflective glass back, the Mate RS certainly feels like a Huawei flagship. The phone’s reflective glass back certainly feels like a Huawei flagship, even down to the separate Huawei and Porsche Design logos. I usually moan about glass backs due to their fingerprint magnetism, but the Huawei Mate RS didn’t gather nearly as many prints as I thought it would. I’m not sure if this is due to an oleophobic coating or a tweaked finish, but it certainly made for a pleasant surprise. The company also changed a few things compared to the Huawei Mate RS’ P20 stablemates, delivering a vertically stacked triple-camera setup in the middle rather than off to the side. The other big design change is that Huawei and Porsche Design shifted the fingerprint scanner to the rear. There’s also an in-display fingerprint scanner, so if you’re going to have two, it makes sense to slap the second one on the back. All in all, there’s some Huawei DNA in here, but the Huawei Mate RS feels very different to the P20 series. Which is a good thing, given our impressions of last year’s Porsche Design Mate 10. Related Articles 40 megapixel shootout: Huawei P20 Pro vs Lumia 1020 Consensus has long held that, when it comes to photography, more megapixels is not always better. Quality over quantity, as they say. Yet in 2018, an industry-leading smartphone shooter boasts a 40 megapixel camera — the … Huawei P20 Pro review: The Galaxy S9 killer 40MP, the world’s first triple camera, 5X Hybrid Zoom, artificial intelligence in all the ways, and the most unique color on any smartphone ever. These are just some of the features Huawei is hoping will … The phone’s power and volume keys are on the right, its IR blaster is on top, and there’s a dual-SIM tray on the left (no storage expansion here). Its speaker and USB Type-C port are at the bottom. There’s no 3.5mm jack here, unfortunately, so you’ll need to use the included dongle for your legacy headphones. The phone has IP67 water and dust resistance, so it can survive a pool dunking or rainy weather, but its glass design makes it less durable, as glass doesn’t usually hold up too well after a tumble. You should probably use the included case or buy one for maximum protection. While it’d be a shame to cover up the Mate RS’ beautiful frame, dropping a phone this expensive would be even worse. Display The Mate RS features an AMOLED screen, much like the Huawei P20 Pro — but this time without a notch. I still don’t understand why more brands don’t retain a minimal top bezel instead of forcing a notch, but c’est la vie. The Mate RS also delivers a resolution boost over the P20 Pro’s Full HD+ display. Its 2,880 x 1,440 screen soundly trumps the P20 Pro, landing between the standard S9 and S9 Plus. You can’t watch 4K videos natively, but text is sharp and viewing photos is a pleasure. We noticed some color shift on the edges of the display, but that’s unfortunately normal for phones with curved displays. Read: The Mate RS doesn’t have a notch because Porsche Design hated the idea The phone’s 6-inch 18:9 AMOLED screen melts into the borders when turned off while delivering those trademark deep blacks when on. Huawei even lets you turn UI elements like the navigation key dock and first-party apps black (these don’t work in third-party apps). In any case, it’s clear the Mate RS screen is a technical improvement over the P20 series. If things still aren’t quite to your liking, you’ve got a few adjustable settings. There’s manual and automatic color temperature adjustment, a blue light filter, and size tweaks for text and other UI elements. Performance Under the hood, the Huawei Mate RS sports the flagship Kirin 970 chipset, 6GB of RAM, and 256GB or 512GB of storage. The internal storage unfortunately isn’t expandable, but it’ll more than enough for most people. The Kirin 970 doesn’t have the latest Arm cores like Qualcomm, nor does it have as many cores as Samsung’s GPU, but the phone is still one of the fastest I’ve used in a while. Apps launch quickly, scrolling through the Twitter feed is usually effortless, and web browsing doesn’t feel slow at all. The Kirin 970 is older than its rivals' flagship silicon, but it still delivers the goods The phone also handles multitasking without breaking a sweat. I tried jumping from the YouTube app to the preinstalled music player to several games and beyond, and came back to find my YouTube video still paused on the same spot. Not bad. In the gaming department, I usually use NASCAR Heat Mobile as my pixel-pushing title of choice, owing to its field of more than 40 cars. The Mate RS offered a very smooth experience, with little perceptible slowdown. We also tried a few more graphically intense games, like FZ9, PUBG Mobile and World of Warships, and all of them ran smoothly (or as smooth as can be for PUBG). So if you want to play visually demanding games on the go, the Mate RS will definitely let you crank things up. We ran the phone through Antutu and GeekBench 4 to get a feel for where it stands compared to the competition. The Kirin 970 shows its age here, lagging behind Qualcomm and Samsung’s latest silicon. The Mate RS’s scores are closer to last year’s devices, like the OnePlus 5T and Google Pixel 2 XL. The Antutu score of 210,117 lags behind the OnePlus 6‘s more than 260,000, and the Mate RS’s GeekBench 4 numbers aren’t as impressive as the OnePlus 6’s 2,454 single-core/8,967 multi-core figures. So the Mate RS delivers smooth performance in practice, despite benchmarks that lag behind other 2018 flagships. Battery Endurance is another story — this phone chugs on and on. The Mate RS’ 4,000 mAh battery easily handled a day of music videos on YouTube, sprinkled with WhatsApp messaging. Heck, I got between seven and eight hours of screen-on time out of the phone most days, all while listening to YouTube for most of the workday too (Wi-Fi and mobile data enabled, auto-screen brightness and smart resolution enabled). If you need a phone that can deliver two days of usage, the Mate RS won’t need to stretch as much as rival devices. Unlike the P20 series, the Porsche Design phone also supports wireless charging, which worked fine with my Samsung convertible charging pad. However, the phone often vibrated, indicating it wasn’t charging properly. Moving the pad to a flat position fixed the issue. Charging time wasn’t as brisk as a fast charger, but it certainly beat charging through a computer. There are two fast chargers in the box (with American and European plugs), presumably for the benefit of the high flyers this phone is marketed towards. Cabled charging will get you to 50 percent capacity in around 30 minutes compared to 45 minutes or so with wireless charging. Fingerprint scanners Huawei might not be the first company to include an in-display fingerprint scanner, but the Chinese brand might be the first to include two scanners. After using the Huawei Mate RS for a while, I can see why. Editor's Pick Vivo Nex review: Frustratingly imperfect, undeniably desirable (Update: Video added) The best part of the move to truly bezel-less phones is the weird and wacky solutions to the question of where to put everything that used to live above and below the display. Front-facing cameras, … The under-glass fingerprint scanner takes about a second or two to unlock. It’s “fast” enough to not be a major issue, but long enough that you can’t just quickly tap and go as with the rear scanner. I don’t really mind the unlock time, but the accuracy can be irksome. It felt like maybe one out of every four or five attempts were unsuccessful. Sometimes three attempts in a row didn’t do the trick either. This is sadly par for the course at this stage of the under-glass scanner game. Blindly trying to unlock your phone via this scanner (made by Goodix) is an issue too, as you have to hold on a very specific part of the display. Even subtle haptic feedback would’ve improved the experience. A Vivo Apex-style approach (made by Synaptics), which turns the entire lower half of the display into a scanner, would’ve been cool, but the tech probably isn’t ready yet (Vivo even switched from Synaptics to Goodix with the Nex, the commercially available version of the Apex concept phone). If the under-display scanner was the only option, I’d probably get used to it. Fortunately, the rear scanner is present, more accurate, and as fast as they come, so I never had to. The rear scanner supports the usual Huawei tricks like swiping down for the notification shade, lateral swipes for browsing photos, and acting as an extra shutter key. If unlock speed and accuracy are important to you, use the rear-mounted scanner; the in-display scanner is just too slow and unreliable. My only real complaint here is I’m not always sure when I’m touching the scanner. I would’ve liked the ridge around the fingerprint scanner to be more prominent or the scanner to have a different feel from the rest of the back. Speaking of biometrics, the Huawei Mate RS doesn’t use any fancy 3D facial recognition, but face unlock is super fast anyway. I’d say it probably takes one or two seconds at most for the phone to recognize my mug. Unlock times and accuracy are generally fine in low-light, but pitch black darkness is a no go. Camera The Huawei Mate RS has a virtually identical camera setup to the P20 Pro. It’s got a triple camera setup on the back (40MP f/1.8, 20MP monochrome f/1.6, 8MP telephoto with OIS), and a 24MP front-facing shooter. Daytime shots are vibrant and sharp — though not always perfect. I noticed some color bleeding on occasion (mainly when using the wide aperture mode) and Android Authority’s own Rob Triggs previously explored the P20 Pro’s tendency to over-sharpen images. Focusing isn’t always reliable either, (especially when using the aperture mode) though overall the phone is a photography powerhouse. The Master AI mode also automatically tweaks settings when it recognizes a scene. It works well for flora, food and landscapes, but I found it occasionally annoying. When I wanted to take a photo of a page from a book, the phone insisted on switching to the document scanning mode. This could be useful, but a “do you want to scan a document” prompt would’ve been preferable when all I wanted was to share a page on Twitter. The company’s camera app could also do with a few UI tweaks. Why is there a quick toggle for Moving Images but nothing for HDR? As it is, you have to dive into the settings menu to enable HDR. The phone generally delivers great dynamic range, although HDR does a good job of taming elements like clouds and the sky. It’s not quite as dramatic as the difference between SDR and HDR on the Pixel 2, but it has its uses. It still tends to occasionally saturate everything and give a cartoony look to scenes, but Huawei is way past the ghosted HDR snaps of the Ascend P8. Overall the Mate RS is a photography powerhouse, but it has its quirks. The triple camera combination delivers two more major perks: better digital zoom (up to 5x) and better low light shots. You don’t quite get DSLR-quality zoom, but I was very happy with results most of the time. Either way, it’s preferable to the bog-standard zoom of most other phones out there. A shot at 1X zoom. A picture at 3x zoom. Going to 5x zoom yields many details. The Huawei Mate RS delivers great night shots on its own, but its night mode takes things up a notch. When set to auto, the phone basically acts like it’s doing a long exposure, but it’s actually stacking a series of shorter exposures to reduce blur and improve brightness. The results can be fantastic, although some elements can look weird (cars won’t leave light trails but will still look blurry). DOWNLOAD THE FULL-RES PHOTOS The night mode also lets you adjust shutter speed and exposure. When you adjust the shutter speed, it actually behaves more like a manual mode, delivering proper long exposures. Nevertheless, if you want to do light painting and other low-light tricks, Huawei’s dedicated mode is still available here, offering presets for the usual stars, traffic lights, water, and so on. Huawei’s aperture mode is back too, along with the ever-popular portrait mode feature. Blurry edges still creep in when you look closely, and portrait lighting effects are unpolished and feel like a lame copy of the iPhone’s effect. Still, I like the added flexibility of the aperture mode, especially when combined with the preinstalled filter that delivers color pop effects. Hopefully, the company will add more editing options, because I’d like the ability to highlight exactly what should appear in color or monochrome. As it is now, you can adjust the aperture to tweak the effect, but that’s all. Everything in focus tends to get the color treatment. Fortunately, these leaves were grey already. The Huawei Mate RS supports 4K, 1080p at 60fps, 1080p at 240fps, and 720p at 960fps recording, to name the main video shooting modes. The super slow-mo isn’t quite as nifty as Sony’s solution, which allows you to record a standard clip and tap a “slow-mo” button when you want to record a 960fps snippet. The 720p resolution makes for some jagged edges, and focusing can occasionally be an issue, but it’s a neat tool to have nonetheless. It's disappointing the extra cash doesn't get you photos any better than the P20 Pro, but the results are still great. The 24MP selfie camera does the job just fine as well, although it can blow out backgrounds like the sky during the day. Unfortunately, HDR isn’t available via this camera, which is a shame. Portrait mode shots are also a treat here, though my habit of throwing in a thumbs up throws off the dodgy edge detection. Low-light shots predictably see a drop in detail and jump in noise, but there’s always a screen flash to help. On one hand, it’s disappointing to see your extra cash isn’t buying anything more in the camera department compared to the P20 Pro. On the other, the P20 Pro’s photography experience is so great that I’m happy with the results anyway. Software EMUI 8.1 shows how far the Android skin has come, with its mix of skeuomorphic design and Samsung’s TouchWiz. It’s still not everyone’s cup of tea, but it delivers some useful features and carves out its own identity. As with many Chinese skins, Huawei ditches the app drawer out of the box. I’ve grown used to this change after using the Xiaomi Mi 4 and Huawei P9 as daily drivers in recent years, but you can always turn the feature on in the display menu. EMUI has plenty of useful features, but there's still room for improvement The company also opted to include a gesture-driven UI, like last year’s P10 series. Fortunately, this isn’t enabled by default so you can easily avoid it. I would’ve liked to see a Samsung-style faux home button, as the ability to press hard to go home, no matter the app, has become mighty convenient after using the Galaxy S8. Speaking of older additions, Huawei retained the double knuckle tap gesture for screenshots, which, in theory, I find more intuitive than Samsung’s wax-on-wax-off palm gesture. It’s not the best gesture in practice, as the phone occasionally misses my double tap. You can always just hit power and volume down instead. There’s a theme store for changing up the look of EMUI, a phone manager hub (for tweaking mobile data settings, cleaning up storage and more), the preinstalled music, video, and gallery apps, and Huawei’s Health app. Other solid software features include a biometric safe for media and apps, an eye comfort mode for filtering blue light, a mobile data blacklist for apps, Dolby Atmos support, flip to mute, drawing a letter to open apps, and a simple, easy UI for anyone that finds EMUI a bit too complicated to navigate. There’s also bloatware like Booking.com and Quik, though it feels like Huawei is long past the Galaxy S4 stage of tossing in everything and the kitchen sink. Specifications Porsche Design Huawei Mate RS Display 6-inch curved OLED display 18:9 aspect ratio 2,880 x 1,440 resolution Processor Huawei Kirin 970 RAM 6GB Storage 256GB or 512GB Cameras Rear: 40MP main camera 20MP monochrome lens 8MP telephoto lens Front: 24MP camera Battery 4,000mAh Non-removable Wireless charging Software Android 8.1 Oreo Porsche Design skin Colors Red, Black Price 256GB version: €1,695 (~$2,103) 512GB version: €2,095 (~$2,599) Availability April 12 - China, Hong Kong, and Macau Sometime later - France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the U.K., and Switzerland Gallery Pricing and final thoughts The 256GB Huawei Mate RS has a European price of 1,695 euros, compared to the P20 Pro’s 899 euro (~$1,050) price tag. Meanwhile, readers in the U.K. can expect to pay 1,500 pounds (~$1,980). Up the ante to 512GB and you’ll be paying 2,095 euros (~$2,450). It’s unclear if the U.K. will receive the 512GB model. For what it’s worth, the device retails for 26,000 rand (~$1,920) here in South Africa, which is more or less in line with European pricing. The Huawei Mate RS is available in black or red. So fans of the twilight P20 Pro are out of luck. The phone may be eye-wateringly expensive, but it’s more than just a rebranded Huawei flagship — unlike previous Porsche Design phones. Between the notch-less OLED screen, generous storage space, wireless charging, and dual fingerprint scanners, the phone certainly has several notable perks. So if you like the idea of a P20 “Premium” and don’t mind spending the cash, it’s definitely worth a look, even if you don’t end up walking out with one. Everyone else should wait for Huawei’s next flagships which may well include some of the same additional features. That’s it for our Huawei Mate RS review. What do you think of this premium phone? Let us know in the comments. , via Android Authority http://bit.ly/2m3QMEw