#what if that had been emily mortimer.

[maraczeks]

friends s4 thread pt 2

[sexualintimidationdemon]

Day 5

Reflections on: Scream 3 (2000)

100% Cotton is a very bad name for a TV show.

It seems like everyone and their dog (there is a cute dog) is in this movie. Lance Henriksen (Aliens (1990)), Scott Foley (Felicity), Roger Corman (king of B-movies), Parker Posey (Josie and the Pussycats (2001)), Emily Mortimer (hollow bones), Kelly Rutherford (Gossip Girl), and Heather Matarazzo (Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)) are only a fraction of the cast. Jay and Silent Bob are also in this... in character?? So the Scream movies exist in the same universe as they do? Oof.

Contains dialogue such as: "Who's gonna kill what they can't find?", "Why did you have so many secrets?", and "What he did to her made her a slut." I think this movie may be bad.

This is just a straight up comedy. The cast includes two actors (Parker Posey and Matt Keeslar) who were also in Waiting For Guffman (1996) and it made me wish I was re-watching that instead of this.

The killer faxes a script he's writing and it's like kryptonite for actors. THEY HAVE TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!

Carrie Fisher plays a woman who is not Carrie Fisher but looks a lot like Carrie Fisher FOR NO REASON!

This feels like it could be part of the Scary Movie (2000) franchise.

Dewey believes women. THANK YOU Dewey.

Infuriatingly, much of the plot hinges on magical Talkboy-esque impossible technology. Especially not possible 24 years ago.

Why has Courteney Cox been cursed with terrible hair in all the Scream movies? In previous instalments she had bad chunky highlights, in this one it's an awful wig with baby bangs.

Josh Pais, as a sarcastic sidekick detective, is the only actually funny part of the film. The lead detective is played by Patrick Dempsey who, when asked by Sidney what his favourite scary movie is, leans in close and flirt-whispers "My life.", to which she responds "Me too." This movie is bad.

I hope this is the last Scream movie that is about the fictional "Stab" movie franchise.

Following Shakespearean dramatic rules, this movie ends with romance and thus it is a comedy.

[adamwatchesmovies]

Hugo (2011)

Martin Scorsese is not known for his family films. You associate the name with gritty crime stories. So what drew him to Hugo? Perhaps he wanted to try something different? On top of being suitable for the whole family, the picture makes impressive use of 3D and special effects. If you’ve seen Hugo the whole way through, you’ll know why. I suspect Scorsese connected to this story on a deeply personal level.

In 1931 Paris, 12-year-old Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) maintains the clocks at Gare Montparnasse railway station. His alcoholic uncle Claude officially does the work but he’s been gone for months and as long as the machines keep the time, Station Inspector Gustave Dasté (Sacha Baron Cohen) won't ask any questions. This means Hugo is free to focus on the automaton he and his father were repairing before he became orphaned. Hugo keeps to himself, occasionally stealing parts from a toy store owner, Georges (Ben Kingsley). After he is caught and his book on the automaton is confiscated, Hugo befriends the toy maker’s goddaughter, Isabelle (Chloë Grace Moretz). He hopes she can help him get his book back.

There’s no way you can guess where this movie is going. The surprises along the way are a big part of the fun and the screenplay by John Logan (based on The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick) is in no hurry to get to its big reveals. As Hugo goes about his day, we meet all the characters who frequent the station. Richard Griffiths plays a man pining for a dog owner (played by Frances de la Tour) whose pooch can’t stand him. Shy Inspector Dasté wants to approach a beautiful flower saleslady (Emily Mortimer) but is embarrassed by an old war injury. Christopher Lee plays the owner of a book store who probably knows more than he lets on, Papa Georges is hiding something from Isabelle. And then there’s the automaton Hugo is repairing. How is it tied to his father? There’s enough going on with these characters that it doesn't matter if you don't know where the plot is going. You’re having a great time simply getting to know them, admiring the performances (Moretz does a flawless accent) and enjoying Scorsese's direction. Check out the way the camera moves down chutes, through crowds and then into the secret openings into Hugo’s home or the breathtaking shots of a long-gone Paris.

Ultimately, this is a small, personal story. The world’s fate does not rest in the hands of Hugo. The secrets we uncover deal with very human tragedies but it’s shot like all of reality hinges on the lonely boy finding a friend. After Hugo is over, you remember specific shots, specific characters and the emotions you felt while watching them. These would attract any director but I suspect Scorsese wanted this project specifically because the film contains numerous references to specific events in the history of cinema. We see a clip of Harold Lloyd’s Safety Last! and the film’s most iconic shot is re-imagined later on. The Montparnasse derailment of 1895 is reimagined and Scorsese gives us to opportunity to relive the shocked reaction audiences would’ve had while viewing “L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat” - that famous shot of a train coming towards the camera that supposedly had audiences falling out of their seats in terror - by shooting it in 3D - literally having the train come right towards the screen and frighten us. There are many other references to the history of cinema throughout. If you love movies, you’ll get an extra kick out of these scenes.

Hugo is moving, warm, romantic, tragic and exciting. It goes in unexpected directions and the surprises make the movie feel big while also keeping it small and intimate. The performances are excellent, the characters fully realized. The only mark against it comes from the presentation. This movie is meant to be seen on the big screen and in 3D. Few people will be able to see it that way now. If that’s the only flaw you can find in a movie, it's doing a lot of things right. (On Blu-ray, September 25, 2020)

[weclassybouquetfun]

Apropos of nothing.

Random luck of the universe, indeed.

FILM AWARDS SEASON CHECK-IN Part Deux - No Spoilers

THE GOOD GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY- People can like - or not like - what they want. I can only control what I like. But when I read about people who didn't like GLASS ONION I just think, "Do you just not like fun?" This is a fun film. It's hilarious. I think it improves greatly on KNIVES OUT, which I felt was overpraised. It loosens up Daniel Craig's Benoît Blanc giving him a personality instead of letting his accent do all the work. I found it very clever and entertaining and if Rian Johnson can continue to improve on these films, I would love to see more outings with the character.

THE MENU: Another fun film. Dark comedy directed by Mark Mylod (SUCCESSION) and written by late night comedy writers Seth Reiss and Will Tracy ( which is remarkable because there is nothing less funny than light night comedy). Centered around a group of strangers who congregate for a night of high dining under Chef Slowik (Ralph Fiennes who can always be trusted to bring dry wit to the table). While I love Anya Taylor-Joy, I think too many of her characters - or rather, how she plays them - are too one-note; too cool and even-keel. Ralph Fiennes continues to be a delightful actor. BABYLON: A stunner. Maybe it's because I love Old Hollywood and loved all the touches and references to that era (Margot Robbie's character is a nod to Clara Bow, even using a quote attributed to Bow as one of her lines. Brad Pitt is drawn after John Gilbert; Jean Smart a Louella Parsons type).

The trailers can't do all 3 hours and 9 minutes of the film justice, but I think it encapsulates the journey the film takes.

People are already dismissing it as a fawning love story to Hollywood and they're not wrong, but it is a film that doesn't litigate the past. It shows all the seediness within Old Hollywood. The heartbreaking desperation of those who dreamt of being stars. It's an unconditional love of accepting an era warts and all. Margot Robbie gives it 1000% percent. Paramount is running Robbie as Lead and while there are some tremendous female lead performances this season -Olivia Colman in EMPIRE OF LIGHT, Danielle Deadwyler in TILL, Cate Blanchett in TÁR and Michelle Williams in THE FABLEMANS. While I want Danielle Deadwyler to win, I would be so happy if Robbie did. I can't imagine Emma Stone had this role before her. As great as Stone is I don't see that character as richly drawn if it had been another actress doing it.

More films. NO SPOILERS.

RRR: This film is what people meant by crowd-pleaser. My audience was so hyped during this film. Spontaneous clapping and cheers all throughout the film. We were all joined in our love for the over-the-top action, the comedy and the smiting of British soldiers. Like BABYLON, it's a bit over 3 hours but doesn't feel like it. The leads, the story, the action is outstanding. CGI? A bit dodgy, but it's so deliriously fun.

It is on Netflix but as their US distributor stated at the screening Netflix has dubbed it into Hindi instead of using the original Telugu, so if you want the real deal it is in theaters.

WHITE NOISE: I like films that takes big swings and this and BARDO: FALSE CHRONICLES AND A HANDFUL OF TRUTHS certainly do that and for that alone it makes me love a film. Noah Baumbach's adaptation of Don DeLillo's novel. It was once consider not filmable but Baumbach assembled a great cast to give it the old college try.

The cast makes it work. Much like Cate Blanchett in TÁR who masterfully delivers dialogue that could easily be sedam Driver is able to make it entertaining. Same with Gerwig, Don Cheadle...essentially the entire cast (which includes Andre "3000" Benjamin and Jodi Turner-Smith in small roles, and younger actors Raffey Cassidy and Sam and May Nivola (children of Emily Mortimer and Alessandro Nivola).

Gerwig and Danny Elfman on panel.

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT: Searing look at the brutality of a war and the folly of men who sacrifice people lives just for their own glory and gain. This is the first film role for Felix Kammerer who got it straight out of theatre school. He is devastating as a teen solider who realizes too late that he and his friends have been sold a bill a goods about the nature of war. Director Edward Berger (with Felix Kammerer and Daniel Bruhl who executive produced the film and has a role in it)

It's brutal but that's what I loved about it. War should not be glossed over and glamorized. THE PALE BLUE EYE: I am putting this in the GOOD pile even though it probably belongs in the MEH pile because I have never been disappointed in a Christian Bale/Scott Cooper collaboration. This could have been better as it drags in the middle, but it is a promising film and Bale is never not good.

Bale and Scott Cooper

Adaptation of Louis Bayard's novel about a retired detective (Bale) who teams up with a West Point cadet by the name of Edgar Allen Poe (Henry Melling, THE BALLAD OF BUSTER SCRUGGS, THE OLD GUARD, Harry Potter whichever film) to uncover the murder of a cadet. I liked the idea of a Sherlock-ian Poe but the film is a pretty straight-forward mystery; as grey as its scenery. But Bale and Melling (who is one of my new favourite actors) are so good. THE MEH THE SON- Florian Zeller's companion piece to THE FATHER. In a lot of ways this is a better film than THE FATHER because I preferred the performances in this more. I think Sir Anthony Hopkins chews the paint off of scenery and I felt he teetered on hamminess in THE FATHER, but he has one scene in this (and a standout scene in ARMAGEDDON TIME) that shows why he's so great...when he manages to not go full ACTOR. Vanessa Kirby is also impressive. However, for me it felt like the cast was trying to wring some emotionality from this dry, mediocre script and for that they should be applauded. On the merits of the story itself, I think PSAs have more heart. THE FABLEMANS - There's been some comparisons of Steven Spielberg's THE FABLEMANS to Alejandro González Iñárritu's BARDO: FALSE CHRONICLES AND A HANDFUL OF TRUTHS because both films are film à clefs, both films are viewed as indulgent (THE FABLEMANS at a 2 1/2 hours; BARDO 2 hours and 54 minutes (apparently there is a cut that has 20 minutes shaved off, but I saw the longer one).

But if I had to choose one over the other I would go with BARDO. Yes, it is so abstract at times, so surreal and yes, indulgent, but it's not safe. THE FABLEMANS is safe. It's covered in bubble wrapped and handled with gloves. It's behind protective glass it's so safe. For a movie about his love of film and family, Spielberg and co-writer Tony Kushner seems to keep the passion at arms length. But there were high points. Michelle Williams is terrific and the storyline about the parents is much more interesting than anything about young Steven...I mean, Sammy's, life. SHE SAID: This could have been and, perhaps, should have been a TV movie. My issue with the film isn't really the film itself. The acting is fine but staid (with the exception of Samantha Morton who only is in one scene and blows everyone else out the water), the story functional, not unlike reading an article. But it was hard to view the film on its merits when the absurdity of a film saluting the women who exposed Harvey Weinstein, yet it is coming from an industry that shielded Weinstein and rewarded him all the while. DEVOTION: Based on Adam Makos' biography "Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship, and Sacrifice" about the camaraderie between Ensign Jesse Brown and Lt. Tom Hudner (played by Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell, respectively)

In many ways I liked DEVOTION better then the other films on this list. It's a throwback to old war films which is to say it's not about battle, it's about friendship and duty and valor. Great chemistry amongst the cast, you completely buy the friendship between Brown and Hudner. It is it a solid film. Sony is really pushing it there have been tons of screenings like one hosted by JJ Abrams, another by Amanda Seyfried whose husband Thomas Sadowski costars (and is quite good in it).

[rjjameshiii]

RJ's Platinum Collection #18: The Council

Achieved on 1/15/2023 at 2:41 PM

Remember when I said that the reason I played Gabbuchi was because it was going to be taken off the PS Plus free collection by the end of January?

Yeah, that is also why I got the Platinum for The Council. I had initially been interested in it because of my love for story games where your choices affect the plot, and when I realized I had less than five days before it was taken off PS Plus, I decided to dive in and get the platinum trophy!

Set in 1793, you play as Louis de Richet, a member of a secret organization called the Golden Order, which is basically the Illuminati because it's made up of a bunch of rich influential people who are secretly dictating world history behind the scenes. Louis is traveling to the manor of a man named Lord Mortimer for a meeting of the Golden Order alongside people like George Washington and Napoleon Bonaparte, but his real agenda is to figure out what Lord Mortimer has to do with his missing mother - and then a bunch of REALLY weird shit happens.

I started off the game intending to go into it blind, getting my first trophy after the first scene.

1/44: Fantastic Pair - Get rid of von Borchert with your mother.

Then Louis makes his way to the island, where you get to choose one of three careers for him - detective, diplomat, or occultist. I decided to choose making him a detective and immediately failed all of the dialogue options I had in the first scene.

2/44: Novice Detective - Become a detective.

At this point I decided I didn't have enough time to go into this game blind, so I started using a guide. Because of that, I re-started the game and switched to being a diplomat as per the guide's recommendation.

3/44: Apprentice Diplomat - Become a diplomat.

And I began to play the game while following the guide to a tee, allowing me to breeze through the confrontations and puzzles.

4/44: Missi Dominici - Persuade Cardinal Piaggi to give you the letter.

5/44: The New Order - Choose to stay with George Washington and Emily Hillsborrow.

6/44: Out Of Breath - Drop to 0 effort points during a quest.

7/44: Sweet Dreams - Complete the first quest.

8/44: Sober - Complete a quest without using consumables.

9/44: Seeker Of Truth - Conduct the investigation about your vision.

10/44: Eyes Don't Lie - Convince Emily Hillsborrow of the purity of your intentions when she surprises you in her room.

11/44: Rough Night - Complete the second quest.

12/44: Starter, Main Dish, and Coffee - Use exactly a consumable of each type during a single quest.

13/44: Jack Of All Trades - Acquire ten skills of Level 1 in the same game.

14/44: Quick - In the same game, choose 20 answers before the time is up.

15/44: Motherly Embrace - Manage to get Elizabeth Adams to talk about her past.

16/44: Imperial Nobility - Persuade Napoleon that he can trust you.

17/44: Influential People - Complete the third quest.

18/44: Battle-Hardened - Reach Level 5.

19/44: Cicero - Overcome 5 confrontations in the same game.

20/44: Your Suspicious Mind - Draw Emily Hillsborrow's secret out of her.

21/44: Forbidden Fruit - Join Emily Hillsborrow in your room.

22/44: Once Upon A Time... - Complete Episode 1.

Weirdly, Episode 1 is the only of the five episodes where you get trophies for making story-branching decisions, which I found strange considering there are a ton of other, much more important choices in all the other episodes, but oh well. I continued playing the game with the guide and found myself still getting genuinely invested in the characters and story.

23/44: A Tragic Fate - Complete the fifth quest.

24/44: The Nightmare - Complete the sixth quest.

25/44: Into The Lion's Den - Complete Episode 2.

26/44: Dangerous Stakes - Complete the eighth quest.

27/44: Double Game - Complete the ninth quest.

28/44: The Hand of Tyr - Complete Episode 3.

29/44: Leap of Faith - Complete the 11th quest.

30/44: Specialist - Raise a skill to Level 3.

31/44: New Blood - Complete the 12th quest.

32/44: Veteran - Reach Level 15.

33/44: Welcome To The Family - Complete Episode 4.

34/44: Final Vote - Complete the 14th quest.

35/44: Mind Maze - Complete the 15th quest.

Eventually I reached the final confrontation of the game, and I realized something was off. Despite having followed the guide perfectly, or so I thought, I was somehow out of effort points, which I needed in order to pass the final confrontation. I do not know where I messed up along the way, but I had zero points to use, and as a result I failed the confrontation and got the worst possible ending in the game at the last moment.

Sorry Louis, guess you're trapped in a coffin for all eternity.

36/44: Carrion Comfort - Complete the story.

After that, all I had to do was replay Episode 1, choosing the final career option of occultist, and making all of the opposite choices then what I had originally made.

37/44: Hazards Of The Trade - Be disfigured by Gerard von Borchert.

38/44: Novice Occultist - Become an occultist.

39/44: Ancien Regime - Choose to follow Sir Gregory and Cardinal Piaggi.

40/44: Son of Lafayette - Assist George Washington.

41/44: Close Call - Avoid being used as a punching bag by Jacques Peru.

42/44: Fearless - Open Pandora's box.

43/44: Knight In Shining Armor - Accept to follow Elizabeth Adams.

And thus I was able to get the Platinum, only two days before this game disappeared from PS Plus forever.

44/44: Knight Of The Golden Order - Collect all the trophies.

This game has terrible models, the game mechanics are weird, and the voice acting is mediocre. However, I think that the game makes up for this with a genuinely intriguing story that had a lot of plot twists. I also think my experience was dampened by the fact that I was literally on a time crunch - if I had bought this game and played it naturally, maybe it would have been a more fun experience.

Rating: 7/10

[imperiuswrecked]

If you could pitch a solo for Pietro, what are some arcs you'd like to see and characters you want to be part of the cast?

Anon I have been thinking about a solo comic series for Pietro for years. *years*.

Cast: Pietro Maximoff, Luna Maximoff, with appearances from Wanda Maximoff, Lorna Dane, Billy Kaplan, Tommy Shepherd Erik Lehnsherr, Magda Eisenhardt (flashbacks), Remy Lebeau, Mortimer Toynbee (Toad), Fabian Cortez, Anne-Marie Cortez, Exodus, Emily Guerrero.

My longest running pitch for a series under the cut bc its long as hell

Plot: Something Wicked this Way Comes:

Pietro Maximoff's family is disappearing, one by one members of the Magnet Family go missing and no clues left behind. It's as if they simply vanished into thin air. Pietro knows someone is targeting his family and is trying to keep his daughter from being the next to vanish. The first six issues focus on Pietro realizing that his family is gone, he goes to Magneto who says something cryptic about his past finally catching up with him however he vanishes before anything else is spoken. Pietro's mission to find his sisters, nephews, and father is kicked into overdrive and he has a list of suspects, first and formost: Exodus and Fabian. Both deny they had anything to do with it but Pietro isn't convinced. He hires Remy to discreetly follow and see if he can find out more since Remy is very good at sneaking around. Meanwhile Pietro is trying to be the best single father he can to Luna since Crystal is off in space doing space stuff. He is also trying to date Emily but every date is interrupted by some hero stuff, either he or she or both of them have to run off in the middle of their dates and it's really frustrating since Pietro really likes Emily.

Pietro's recurring nightmares of losing his mother, and then the rest of his family are wearing him down as he tries to unearth what Erik meant about his past, he spends hours and hours on researching Erik's past, this series will involve Pietro discovering more about Erik and Magda and also exploring the generational trauma Pietro experiences from both sides of his history/culture. He even tries to go back to his extended Romani family, the Maximoff's extended family I mean, to discover anything more about Magda and Django's family (in this comic it would be revealed that Magda was Django's family member and that's why the High Evoluntionary adopted them to the Maximoffs, I wanted to say Magda and Django are brother and sister but the shifting timeline would not make that work since now we have too many years between the twins birth and being put into suspended state before they are sent with the Maximoffs) when he wakes up one night to find Luna in an cocoon and Fabian and Anne-Marie ambushing him. Anne-Marie assures Pietro that Luna is alive and well, and that it is just her mutant gene finally activating, Fabian explains how valuable Luna is now that she is proven to actually be a mutant, and how they have been waiting for this moment. They want to raise the Acolytes again with Luna as it's figurehead, they want to be the power behind the throne and use their new followers to finally bring mutant kind into a human mutant war. Anne-Marie wants to teach Luna how to use her powers without it hurting her since recently her powers have grown stronger. Using her mind control ability she makes Pietro race around the world to tire him out while they make their escape. (to add since Krakoa is a thing now when it wasn't before in my plots, basically the Cortez Twins got sick of Krakoa and left after Anne-Marie is resurrected).

Pietro breaks free of the mind control to race back home to find no one there, as he drops to his knees in despair, *cue angst moment here as he fears for the life of his daughter* Toad arrives to beg for Pietro's aid. Something is hunting him and he can't escape it, he calls upon an old favor that Pietro owes him, because Toad had saved the Twins lives during one of their adventures after they left the brotherhood together and traveled. Pietro agrees to help him only if Toad agrees to schmooze up to the Cortez Twins to help Pietro save his daughter. As Remy catches Pietro up on what he has learned, Pietro, Remy, Emily, and Toad have to find and save Luna before she disappears too, and the figure out Toad is being hunted by the same person because he knows something from Erik's past. The major villain of the series would be a new character who has been capturing everyone, and it would be someone from Erik's past, I still haven't decided if it should be a red skull type of villain but with powers or someone else. Anyways, plot plot more plot, basically the summary of the series would be about family, dark kept family secrets, Pietro saving his family even if it's at the cost of himself (he lives, it's fine) and lots of family and character moments. It would be a type of action/mystery drama.

Oh and Luna gets Moth wings as her x gene mutation since she already has inhuman powers. The retcon is undone in the first comic. I would want this series to run for at least 30 - 60 issues to wrap up this whole plot, (Though I would be LUCKY if I got 12 issues :/) and there would be all kinds of smaller villains Pietro faces, as well as Exodus coming back to cause chaos. Some more original characters to serve as Pietro's rogue gallery.

[the-celluloid-correspondent]

Lars and the Real Girl

A delusional young man strikes up an unconventional relationship with a sex doll he found online.

Lars and the Real Girl is a film that is weird, depressing, and yet, uplifting. Throughout the film, I was just filled with loneliness and depression, just like Lars. Even after watching this film, I still don't know what emotion I would use to describe it other than depressing. Craig Gillespie and Nancy Oliver have truly crafted an unconventional love story within mental illness.

The story is a hard look at mental illness and the effects of loneliness. While watching the film you can tell that Lars clearly has mental health issues. Lars's character is both creepy and caring at the same time. We see him come to terms with his fears as he becomes more and more attached to his doll. It's both depressing and creepy to me. I could heavily relate to his loneliness but was creeped out by his way of finding his happiness. However, in the end, I guess it gave him what he needed to take on the real world.

Ryan Gosling steals the show in this film. I am so used to seeing him in roles as the charismatic and charming man, that to see him play a mentally ill loner was shocking. He showed off a range that I had no idea he had. He perfectly portrays a man just looking for a partnership, but is so afraid of humans he resorts to a doll. Emily Mortimer is excellent as a woman who just wants to help her brother-in-law but does not know how. Patricia Clarkson was another performance that I was surprised by. The rest of the performances in this film were great.

The cinematography and the score were outstanding in this film. I would say my biggest complaint with this film, was that the entire town essentially played with Lars's fantasy. I was expecting Lars to face some kind of bullying or harassment from the locals. At one point I was expecting him to be jumped and heated, but nope. It feels bad that I am saying this, but this would have been a conflict that I would have liked to have seen because it would have been the most realistic. Other than that, this film is nothing but depression and loneliness with a glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel.

I am giving Lars and the Real Girl, a B+.

[project-aphelion]

12.23.2021 - Chapter 3 (again)

Word Count

> Chapter 3: 7180

> Total: 16845 (including a bit of Chapter 4)

WAHOO first update on this blog!

So what’s been going on? Let’s see...I took a massive commission, and that basically took up most of my free time, which meant I barely had time to write. (I don’t mean to sound ungrateful since I Am getting that cashmoney; just explaining what happened.) And THAT is the reason I haven’t updated since........September. Wow.

But added to that, this chapter was also stumping me. Lots of worldbuilding, lots of dialogue, plus it’s just a longggg chapter. Now, I’ve technically already made an update for this chapter, but that was only the first pass revision. I gave it a second revision (which ended up changing a LOT), and then a polish pass. It’s still not perfect, but hey, it’s workable!

So here’s what’s up:

What’s Different?

Chapter Summary: Shelby (Bee) and friend Idan escape from hitting Cay in the head and have issues over the fact they basically left him to die. Bee receives a job offer that seems too good to be true, but she refuses it. Which ALSO leads to issues between her and Idan.

Added:

> A more thorough description of Mortimer, the person attempting to hire Bee.

> Better explanation of the war and the disaster that made Es the sad little planet it is.

Changed:

> In revisions, a lot of my focus is on adding emotions. But in this particular chapter, I actually toned down the emotions. Originally Bee reacts terribly to the job offer, shouting “What?” and freaking out, but after ruminating over why the chapter isn’t really working, I realized she should be a lot more jaded. Her reaction now is more like a “.......wtf.”

> That being said, I also upped Bee’s homesickness to her home planet.

> Speaking of her home planet, I changed its name from Bolerre to Bi-Xing. I just wanted a little Chinese pizazz in there :<

> Okay, this one was kind of a net neutral. Originally, Bee and Idan live on Bee’s ship. In the first pass revision, I realized it wouldn’t make sense for Bee to still have her ship (her ship is dead. What’s she going to do, hire a crane operator to lug it around for her? She’s BROKE. She’s an ILLEGAL CITIZEN. anyway), so I changed it to what’s basically a homeless shelter. But then I realized I needed there to be a ship for climax purposes, so I changed it back to a ship, except now it’s IDAN’s ship. (Or his uncle’s, but whatever.)

And now, an excerpt.

She waggled the picture. “You said you didn’t know why he was chasing you.”

“Does it matter?” Idan said with all the venom of an angsty teen.

Bee guessed it didn’t. She let Idan grab the photo back and give it to Arada.

“Thank you, Idan,” Arada said, and incredulously, Bee thought she detected a hint of warmth in her voice. Then she turned back to Bee and her expression went cold once more. “Well. I would ask you to go back and grab more stuff, but we have a job offer for you.”

“Who’s we?”

“Me. My friend.” She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder, indicating the other side of the hatch door. “Offer. Do you want to hear it or not?”

Bee blinked, still caught on that one word—friend. Arada had a friend, and somehow that was harder to swallow than the Alabast bomber hiding in a ghost town with a child. Who in their right mind would choose to be friends with someone so sour?

The disbelief must have shown because Arada was slanting her a needled look. Bee quickly schooled her expression. “Offer. Right. Yes.” She almost added please, but managed to bite it back.

I love writing Arada, btw. She’s so mean and cool.

Anyhoo c’est tout au revoirrrrrr

-Emily

[beware-of-you-98]

Do have any sad/angsty headcanons of Emily’s childhood? Like before 15? I love your hc lists, they’re always so good 🥺

i can certainly try!!

(ow i hurt myself really bad with this one)

tw//mention of conversion camps but it’s brief

emily, as we know, had very absent parents (or at least a very absent mother) from a very early age

she’s learned to rely on herself from an early age because of this

like, yeah, she has nannies, but she’s firm on being very independent

(this type of thinking leads to early compartmentalizing, which never ends up being a good thing)

once, emily breaks her arm when she’s four years old and no one noticed for three days because she hid it so well

[her arm still hurts from time to time even now because of this injury]

her mother makes her take ediqute classes to be a prim and proper lady but emily finds ways to skip the classes

she much rather sit alone in the library and read

her favorite stories are the ones where knights rescue princesses

she always imagines herself as the knight, but still as herself because girls can be heroes too!!!

if she wants to fight dragons and carry a sword and rescue pretty princesses, no one can stop her!!!

when she’s six, she begins to sneak out into the woods to play “rescue the princess”

with no friends, she has to use a lot of imagination, but she makes it work

one day, she befriends a raven by feeding him pieces of her lunch that she doesn’t eat

she knows the knights in her storybooks have horses, but she thinks a raven will work fine as her sidekick

she names him mortimer

mortimer gets spooked away when emily first picks up a stick to use as a sword, but once he realizes this weird, tall, featherless bird won’t use the stick on him, he stays

mortimer follows emily around as she stops through the trees, loudly proclaiming that she is “dame prentiss” and that she will slay the dragon to rescue the beautiful princess

mortimer is emily’s only friend, really

when her mother tells emily that they’re going to movie, she honestly has a full blown panic attack because what about mortimer???

he won’t know she left!!!

he won’t understand!!!

what if he’s sad??

what if he thinks she rescued the princess without him???

would he be mad??

he helped too!! mortimer deserved to know!!

she can’t just leave her best friend behind!! surely her mother will understand that, right?

her pleas fall deaf on the ambassador’s ears

emily’s devestated

they move across the world

emily kinda shuts down after the move

she barely talks

she can’t find it in herself to read any more knight stories— they make her too sad

she thinks about mortimer a lot

one day, she thinks she sees him and cries when she realizes the bird is a crow and is definitely not her friend

the ambassador signs her up for piano lessons after that to keep her in the house at all times

after her schooling lessons, emily is forced into the main room with the grand piano

the piano teacher her mother hired is a kind young woman that speaks to emily in a very soft, very friendly voice

she has carmel hair and really pretty hazel eyes and tells emily that her name is miss howard

she looks just like the princesses in emily’s storybooks

miss howard is really patient with emily

sometimes, they don’t even play the piano during emily’s lessons

sometimes they just talk about emily’s day

emily thinks it’s nice—she’s never had anyone to talk to

miss howard listens to emily when she has a bad day

she doesn’t tell her that “a prentiss never shows weakness”

miss howard lets emily cry when she needs to

she lets emily talk about mortimer

she doesn’t call him a stupid bird

miss howard thinks mortimer sounded like the greatest friend [he was]

one day, emily breaks down because her french lesson didn’t go so well and her mother forgot it was her birthday.... again!

when she goes into the main room for piano lessons, miss howard is sitting at the piano with a small cupcake and a candle in the shape of the number 8 sticking from the top

in her hands is a small present that she gives to emily once she’s done singing happy birthday to her

emily bursts into tears because she’s so overwhelmed that miss howard remembered her birthday

she throws her arms around her teacher when she opens her gift— a small crocheted raven that looks exactly like mortimer

emily whispers that she wishes miss howard was her mom instead of the ambassador

the next week, emily has a different piano teacher and never hears from miss howard again

emily moves around a lot during her childhood, and since she’s already lost two friends very near and dear to her, it’s hard for her to let people in

by the time they locate to the western part of the united states, emily is 12 years old

the ambassador puts emily in a private, all girls boarding school

emily gets picked on... a lot

the other girls make fun of her because emily carries around the gift from miss howard everywhere she goes (it brings her comfort)

they make fun of her accent

and the fact that she’s not entirely fluent in english

(she’d honestly like to see any of those mean girls try to attempt to be fluent in russian and french)

she spends most of her time hiding in the school’s library and crying in the bathrooms

she’s hiding in the stalls again after being pushed into the lockers one day when another girl comes in and sits outside the door of emily’s stall

emily recognizes her green socks and cuffed pants— the girl is in her chemistry class (audrey, emily recalls)

audrey is quiet for a long time before saying “those other girls are jerks”

emily’s response is a sniffle and scuffing her shoes against the tile floor

audrey tries again, but her voice is softer

“i really like your bird”

emily timidly sniffles “thank you”

“what’s his name?”

emily pauses

“mortimer”

“i like that name”

audrey begins to sit with emily at lunch

she’ll go out of her way to find emily in the library and sit with her so she’s not alone

they don’t talk at first

emily is very wary of audrey’s intentions and doesn’t trust her

but she doesn’t push her away either because audrey doesn’t make fun of her and she likes mortimer

the day emily decides to fully trust audrey is when audrey stands up for her when she’s getting picked on in the halls

audrey stands between her and the bullies and yells at them about how awful they are because “emily is a great person” and “emily’s so sweet and she doesn’t deserve this shit”

emily wonders if the way her heart flutters is the same way the princesses felt when the knights rescued them in her storybooks

she feels special— no one has ever stood up to her the way audrey did

they become inseparable after that

emily and audrey become roommates later that year

audrey helps emily come out of her shell and teaches her how to stick up for herself

emily tells audrey about moritimer, the real one, and miss howard

audrey listens

she always listens

she’ll hug emily tightly and just hold her in her arms

(emily wonders if it’s normal for her to feel so safe in her best friend’s arms)

(she wonders if it’s normal that her heart skips a beat, her breath catches in her throat when audrey smiles at her)

(she wonders if it’s normal for her to get so excited when audrey holds her hand, even though her hands get clammy)

(she wonders if it’s normal to want to kiss your best friend, even if they’re both girls)

they’re skipping class one day, walking hand in hand down the stream behind the school

audrey is abnormally quiet and emily asks her what’s wrong

audrey won’t tell her for the longest time

she lets go of emily’s hand and leans against a tree, biting nervously at her nails

emily gently grabs her wrists and pulls her hands from her mouth

“hey... you can tell me anything, you know that right?” emily whispers

audrey finally meets emily’s gaze brieflt before she sighs

“...is it bad that i really want to kiss you?”

emily’s heart skips a beat

“no, it’s not”

she pauses briefly before adding softly “you should”

audrey is emily’s first kiss

it’s so soft and so perfect and everything like fairytales describe it as

audrey calls emily her girlfriend and she completely swoons

she hasn’t been so happy in years

she doesn’t know how the ambassador found out

but she’s called to the office one day snd faces her very angry mother

the ambasssador chews into her like emily’s never been before, swearing and red in the face from screaming

the ambassador pulls her out of the school right then and there and tells emily that they’re moving to rome

she refues to let emily see audrey again and has her assistant go pack emily’s belongings while she continues to scream at her in the car

she tells emily that this type of behavior is something she won’t tolerate

she says that if she ever catches emily with another woman like that again, she’ll send her off to a camp

emily never sees audrey again

it’s only when they land in rome that she realizes that the ambassador’s assitant never packed the crocheted mortimer

[writingwithcolor]

Find your next diverse read! #2 (WWC Reader Publications)

We asked you to tell us about your publications, and here they are! 

These are the eleven (11) books submitted to us, written by Writing With Color readers. 

Book Titles

Always Darkest

Commonwealth

Faerie Rising: The First Book of Binding

Fate (The St. Cloud Chronicles) 

A Hero’s Tale

Less than Three

Moonrise

Not So Stories Anthology

OPEN: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes

The Path to Dawn

To Whom it Doesn't Concern

--

Book Descriptions

Title: Always Darkest

Author: Jess and Keith Flaherty | @demonsrunlit Series: Yes Buy: Amazon Premise:  Supernatural meets Good Omens with a dash of romance and divine chaos.‪ Ben wants a vacation away from Hell, but Mal reveals a path to redemption instead. ‬ On the run from Heaven and Hell, a demon becomes a hero. Themes/Elements: Dark Fantasy, Paranormal Romance MC Race/Ethnicity:  White  Other Characters: White  Other Diversity: LQBTQAI+, Religion

--

Title: Commonwealth (Patreon series) 

Author: Adam Lee Series: No Buy: Patreon  Premise: In a near-future U.S. that’s become a hyper-capitalist dystopia of inequality and climate change, a small band of dreamers fight to bring back the vanished era when people worked together and helped each other. Themes/Elements:  Individualism vs. mutuality, capitalism vs. socialism MC Race/Ethnicity: Biracial black/white Other Characters:  Latino (Mexican), Jewish, Japanese/Chinese Other Diversity: Economic and environmental justice, sexism and pregnancy discrimination

--

Title: Faerie Rising: The First Book of Binding

Author: A. E. Lowan | @aelowan (multiple authors) Series: Yes Buy: Amazon Premise: 

Winter Mulcahy is the last wizard in the city of Seahaven, WA and all that stands between the fractious preternatural population and total chaos. Holding the city together by the skin of her teeth, the blood of her friends, and an addiction to stimulants that is slowly killing her, the young wizard is approached by a pair of sidhe lords. They claim that her city is harboring a fugitive who has kidnapped a sidhe prince, and that they are on a mission to rescue the boy.

Winter must investigate this fugitive to get to the truth of the kidnapping, discover the cause of the surges of wild magic tearing open rifts between realms across her city, and navigate the deadly waters of preternatural politics before Seahaven both figuratively and literally rips itself apart.

Themes/Elements: Addiction, redemption, found families MC Race/Ethnicity: (multiple POVS)

Young black hero just coming into his powers

Teenage wizard who proves that weight won’t slow her down

Physician at the breaking point who is addicted to stimulants

Two bisexual men in a dance of attraction (one survivor of childhood sexual assault)

Young trans man who will play a larger role in the second book

Gay Viking vampire king and his lover. 

Afro-Latina wolf queen 

Afro-Latino Lion King

--

Title: FATE 

Author: Jade Stewart | @j-a-stewart Series: Yes Buy: Amazon Premise:  FATE is a YA fantasy novel about a teenage girl from the Bronx who realizes there’s more to her new home in Buffalo, and herself, than meets the eye. Themes/Elements: Urban fantasy, magic/wizards, werewolves, vampires, benefits of hard work, fate, moving to a new city, romance, revenge MC Race/Ethnicity: African-American Other Characters: Japanese, Jamaican-American and Romanian (mixed race), & American Other Diversity/Topics: Anti-bullying, high school, friendship

--

Title: A Hero’s Tale

Author: J. Stern | @theactualjstern Series: No Buy: Amazon Premise: Sam Garrett is determined to be a normal kid in spite of his superpowers, only to have his resolve questioned when his powers are exposed to the world and he becomes the target of a powered villain determined to remove all powered from the world. Themes/Elements:  coming of age, superhero MC Race/Ethnicity: African American Other Characters: Black, mixed race Philipino and Mexican, Greek Other Diversity: queer characters of color (bisexual and trans), queer characters, disability (Deaf), mental illness (PTSD, anxiety), gender parity of characters

--

Title: Less than Three

Author:  Téa Belog | @transannabeth Series: No Buy:  Amazon | Books2Read | Goodreads Premise: Ren has been in love with his best friend for the past three years, Calliope has spent most of her life dancing, and Ingrid plans to start over in college, to go beyond what held her back in high school. Less Than Three is a collection of three short stories about a group of friends. Together, they shoulder their way through romance, all-nighters, and the occasional dragon. Themes/Elements: Romance, friendship, coming of age, mental illness, and college MC Race/Ethnicity: Japanese and Black (Calliope and Ingrid respectively, individual POVs) Other Characters: Indian, Vietnamese, and white Other Diversity: LGBTQIA+ (trans and nonbinary characters, gay characters), depression

--

Title: Moonrise (interactive novel)

Author: Natalie Cannon Series: No Buy: Choice of Games Premise: You’re here. You’re queer. You’re a werewolf. Who will you kiss under the moonlight? Themes/Elements: queer femme werewolves, fighting for humanity or giving into the beast, romance, aligning with the tradition of the Masquerade or breaking free with the desperate Rogues, found family MC Race/Ethnicity: Intentionally left up to player interpretation Other Characters: Black, Japanese, Mexican, Jewish Other Diversity: Lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, asexual, polyamorous, aromantic, trans, nonbinary gender options and/or characters. Amputee character. Mental illness mention

--

Title: Not So Stories Anthology

Author: Multiple authors of colour Series: No Buy: Goodreads Premise:  Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories was a timeless classic. It is also deeply rooted in British colonialism. Not So Stories attempts to redress the balance, bringing together new and established writers of colour from around the world to take the Just So Stories back; giving voices to cultures that were long deprived them. Themes/Elements: Fantasy, ghost stories, fairy tales.  MC Race/Ethnicity: Various Other Diversity:  LGBTQIA+ characters

--

Title: OPEN: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes

Author: Emilie Nantel | @emilienantel Series: No Buy: Emilie Nantel  Premise:  A queer, polyamorous romcom for millennials, OPEN: A Tale of Love, Mermaids, Bassists, & Creepy Dudes is the story of Amy, bi, 25, in an open relationship, navigating the ups – dating gorgeous people – and downs – trying to avoid creeps – of the Montreal dating scene, when she falls in love with a hot bassist. This was not part of the plan. Themes/Elements: Queer found family, polyamorous relationship, friendship breakups MC Race/Ethnicity: White Other Characters: Black endgame love interest; half Filipina/half White best friend Other Diversity: Polyamory, bisexual MC, a cast all across the LGBTQIA+ community, MC is fat and has anxiety.

--

Title: The Path to Dawn

Author: Miri Castor | @miricastor Series: Yes Buy: Amazon Premise: Opal Charm is still grieving the loss of her brother when she meets a mysterious student in her class. Through their budding friendship, Opal discovers she has special powers, powers that brother once had. But she must learn how to wield them before an evil force destroys all that she loves. Themes/Elements: PoC kids/teens with superpowers, platonic relationships, family ties, light and darkness MC Race/Ethnicity: Black Other Characters: Filipino Other Diversity: LGBTQIA+ (Book 2) & depression

--

Title: To Whom it Doesn't Concern

Author: Wisdom A. Yarborough Series: No Buy:  Amazon | Goodreads Premise: (TW Suicide) 

A kid at Mortimer’s school has thrown himself off the roof. Everyone is freaking out, and trying to deal with the situation, while Mortimer wants this all to just pass as quickly as possible. It wasn’t like he was close to the kid who died, so there’s no reason to be concerned, or to even care? …Right?

Themes/Elements: Dealing with loss/grief, Suicide/Depression/Mental Health & Healing MC Race/Ethnicity: White  Other Characters: Topher, the love interest, is Pakistani-American. Mortimer’s ex girlfriend is black.

Other Diversity: Topher is Canonically Pansexual, Mortimer realizes he’s bisexual throughout the story, Many characters suffer with depression, and depression/suicide/suicidal thoughts are a huge part of the themes of the story, and coping with those feelings.

--

Read the first book share here: Find your next diverse read #1

Folks - If you read any of these books, please leave the author a review.

WWC Reader Publications - Winter 2019/2020 

[queen-of-my-goofball-army]

"Howl won't come here. He doesn't need your help. He can fix his problem with his demon on his own. I'm certain of it.

So you think you've got it bad?! I've never once been beautiful in my entire life!" (Sophie, Howl's Moving Castle.)

If just one Miyazaki female lead was my ultimate favorite, if I could watch one for the rest of my life and none of the others my choice hands down would be Sophie Hatter. When I was seven and saw this movie for the first time she instantly sucked me into this world full of magic and mystery. I was engrossed in her journey of how she and the wizard Howl fell in love with one another. The beauty of this movie is something that I can just rewatch again and again.

To me, out of all of Miyazaki's female leads I relate to Sophie the most. Her strength, her overbearing heart that can often take over her every action, her willingness to help others even when their problems shouldn't affect her, her kindness towards those that have worked hard to earn it, and her tender and loving nature even if it's sometimes tough love. For much of my life I haven't related to any of Miyazaki's female leads. I loved their strength and their determination but I could never see myself in their actions. Sophie was the first one where I looked at her and went "Oh, yeah that's me. I'd make that exact same decision if I was in love with a pretty idiotic wizard." Her love is what guides her every decision and I related to that notion.

For much of my life I've admired Sophie's strength. She got a curse put upon her but instead of wallowing in her self pity she decided screw this noise I'm going to become a cleaning lady for this creepy old castle that all those rumors talk about. My love of strong female's in film mostly stems from my love of Sophie. She had to have a strong backbone in order to put up with Howl's dramatics and everyone around her gossiping. She had to have a sharp tongue in order to shut that down so that she could focus. I was always shy and meek growing up. I knew the kind of temperament that I wanted to have though. I loved that raging fire inside of Sophie that told her yes don't take that lying down.

Sophie's kindness to me is remarkable. I don't know about most of you but if somebody put a curse on me I would not want them to live in the same general vicinity as me. Especially if that curse was something that altered my entire life like being old did Sophie. But it's that kindness that she saw a sickly old woman and couldn't just let her strive on her own. No matter how much she had hurt her that didn't matter. What did was that she was a human being that deserved love just like everybody else. What might seem to some as "stupid" or "flighty" or even "too nice" at seven I saw somebody with a similar heart as my own. Her empathy for others is what drives her to do the things that she does. I'm also a good chunk of the time driven by my empathy for those around me. I'm always willing to help a friend in need even if it puts myself in harms way.

Also can we talk about how Sophie is really the only one, other than Kiki, who struggles from self worth issues? She never thought that she was beautiful or anything that special. All that mattered to her was work. It was her hat shop and getting things done over there. It didn't matter to her that she wasn't the prettiest girl around. Even though sometimes her feelings got the better of her she powered through and tried her best to remain happy for the other people in her life. Kiki was my favorite when I was a baby but the older I got and seeing Sophie changed everything for me.

Sophie is actually rather interesting because she has two voice actresses! One for old Sophie and one for young Sophie. They interchange and go back and forth depending on if she's old or younger. Emily Mortimer voices young Sophie in a very kind and sympathetic way. While Jean Simmons voices older Sophie who's a bit harsher but still has that kindness to her. They're both just super genuine and and just kind.

Miyazaki films are full of amazing characters and while I love way too many of them there are only two that I would consider my favorites from both genders. Funnily enough they are *not* a pairing so it's not Howl. As much as I love his pretty dumbass nature I have one boy that I would prefer and would fight for 10/10.

[lilydalexf]

hi! i hope you're doing okay amidst the coronavirus frenzy. do you happen to have great recs for multi-chaptered xf fics? preferably AU... i need to lose myself in a little reading bubble lately because the news is super depressing and i feel like i've read a lot of the long fics out there already. thank you so much for your help!

Thank you for the ask! I hope you (and everyone else) is doing well. There are lots of multi-chapter fics in my posts of novel-length fic recs: part 1, part 2, part 3. Many of those stories are AU, but here is a list of AU stories. Not all of them are multi-chapter, but they are all great.

This list of AU stories is HUGE, so it’s behind the Keep Reading cut. First, please enjoy this AU-style gif of Mulder and Scully playing house in Arcadia.

All Things Bright And Green by DBKatePost-“Herrenvolk” AU. Mulder escapes with the child Samantha clone and with Scully, all three go into hiding. Months pass, Christmas is near and the struggle to find joy begins.

The Ballgame by @dksculderScully takes a case in her hometown, an old flame causing mixed emotions for her and Mulder.

Beating the Darkness Back by AnjouWhere do we go from here, now that we are free?

Breathe by TerriIt’s set in the future after Mulder has disappeared and a fearful Scully gets in contact with him.

A Candle for Katherine by MarasmusSometimes it’s the friends you make along the way that make all the difference.

Cubed by Louise MarinScully does a little body-swapping of her own. Can she and Mulder make it back to each other? Do they want to?

A Different Place by @myownsuperintendentHerrenvolk AU. When Mulder successfully brings one of the Samantha clones back from the farm with him, she must learn to adapt to a different life.

Eleventh Hour by Rachel AntonSome feeling defy the confines of time.

False Memories by ZuffyTwo years have passed since Mulder left. And then a woman walks into a bar.

Five Things That Never Happened to Dana Scully by anythingbutgreyDana — and she is always Dana now — looks out the window. She has stopped waiting. Instead, she watches.

Five Years and One Night by ShalimarThis starts post “Kitsunegari” and is full of spoilers including all of season 5. It deals with the events in “Emily”.

if you weren’t so by @seek-its-oppositeDreamland AU. “Thanks for coming out there with me,” he says, like she didn’t leave him alone last night.

In Absentia by QofMushDoes absence make the heart grow fonder or smarter?

In My End is My Beginning, Katabasis, and Homeostasis by JohnieSamantha is found and some truths are finally uncovered, but can Mulder deal with them? / Scully deals with Mulder’s disappearance. / Mulder deals with Scully’s disappearance.

An Inconvenient Truth by @mldrgrlAU Prompt: The events of Tithonus happened Post One-Son because Scully needed a break from Mulder and partnered up with Ritter on the Fellig case

Jasper’s Last Thought by MD1016Scully is abducted again, and returned to find her world has changed.

Katherine of Ireland by Jenna ToomsThe King is dead. Long Live the Queen.

The Long Road to Improbable by @mldrgrlWhat if the flashbacks in Per Manum dated back to season 5? What happened between then and Requiem?

Love, The Missing Word by Sarah KileyMulder and Scully are drafted into WW III. Is distance making the heart grow fonder?

Mobius by L.A. WardWhile investigating the disappearance of a physicist, Scully finds someone she didn’t expect–Mulder.

A Notorious Affair by Nicole PerryMulder and Scully in Hitchcock’s movie ‘Notorious’.

Old Growth Forest by AndreaMulder and Scully investigate the disappearances of homeless people in Madison, Wisconsin and seemingly end up suffering the same fate.

Prelude to an X by Helen WillsMulder’s a freelance journalist and Scully’s just been assigned an “X” file to work on, when they meet.

Road Markers by anythingbutgreyThere are anniversaries she can’t shake. Dates have, over the years, many years, worked their way into her mind as an internal clock.

Rules of Life and Death by @dksculderMulder is presented with a list of conditions he must fulfill to receive an inheritance. Can Scully help him accomplish all of the tasks?

The Sin Eater by Jane MortimerScully disappears into a mysterious vortex and Mulder makes an unbelievable sacrifice to ensure her safe return.

the shadow knows by captaingeorgyMSR AU

Shopping List by threeguessesScully has too many rolls of toilet paper for just one person.

Sinners Come Down by @poeticsandaliensSix years into her marriage to Daniel, Scully meets Fox Mulder at a bar one night, and they get talking and fucking over alcohol and self-pity.

The Smell of the Person You Love by @mangokiwitropicalswirlHere’s some plotless NSFW smutty Thanksgiving AU pie

Tandem by @alienqueequegIn 1988, a young Fox Mulder tries out yoga after a difficult case takes a toll on him.

The 13th Sign and Seven Days in May by Prufrock’s LoveMulder saw no reason for life, death, sex, Armageddon, or emotional dysfunction to stand in the way of true love. / It might be the end of the world. Fox Mulder had a psychic vampire on the loose, a six-year-old son in tow, a ton of emotional baggage, and an FBI budget, but at least he wasn’t dead. Mulder felt things were looking up - romantically and apocalyptically.

Triangulation by LeyannHe finally tracks them down in Oxford in mid-October.

The Unfinished Universe by RevelyMSR. This story wasn’t AU when I started it, but now it is.

Untitled AU by @foxmuldersau where mulder and scully get married during the events of christmas carol/emily, believing it will aid scully in the adoption process. after emily dies, they’re still married

Untitled AU by @frangipanidownunderWeird little five para AU set somewhere in Wales in some unspecified medieval time

Untitled AU by @how-i-met-your-mulderAU where M and S get together during the cancer arc

Untitled AU by @leiascullyAn AU where Requiem never happened.

Untitled AU by @leiascullyMulder told Scully he would do whatever he could to help her adopt Emily and she took him up on it.

Untitled AU by @lyndsaybonesAU where Mulder and Scully move in together circa s7

Untitled AU by @lyndsaybonesAU where Scully is shot instead of Diana

Untitled AU by @mldrgrlau where scully is reassigned from the x files but mulder isn’t

Untitled AU by @real-cream-cheeseAcademic AU

Untitled AU by @real-cream-cheeseset post-orison/pre-en ami, pure angst

Untitled AU by @spookysadsophiePrompt: Mulder and Scully have sex during Pilot, Scully gets pregnant, moves away and meets again at Thanksgiving (prolly a couple of years later) bc Mrs Scully invites him.

Untitled AU by @scapegrace74-blogRoyalty AU

[ravensbystarlight]

New Shazad interview by Jamie Steinberg for starrymag

Highlights New projects -

Q) What are the recent projects that you are working on? A) I filmed a rom-com in Glasgow and the highlands called Falling for Figaro, which premiered at TIFF in December and January. It was with Danielle McDonald who was amazing in Patti Cake$, Hugh Skinner who is incredible and Joanna Lumley the legend. It’s about a woman who gives up her finance job to study opera in the highlands. I play the boyfriend from the finance world who she ditches. 

I just finished filming The Pursuit of Love with Lily James, Emily Beecham and Andrew Scott, adapted and directed by the wonderful Emily Mortimer. I played the stable boring husband, a young Oxford don in the 1930’s.�� 

I’ll be playing opposite Lily James in a film written by Jemima Khan and directed by Shekhar Kapur in December.

Interesting answer on his view of social media

 Q) You are a part of social media. Are you looking forward to the instant fan feedback you’ll be receiving from US audiences? A) There are some good things in regards to social media – social awareness, justice, giving a voice to people who have not been heard, but for me I’m not a fan of its role in our everyday lives, it’s a bit soul destroying, messing up our heads, too stimulating. Definitely not good for the youngsters. I was told to get it as it would benefit my career, but I just don’t use it that often and I have an old phone so can only do it when I’m at home on me iPad so don’t think it is benefiting me the way it should be haha.

A few Star Trek Discovery questions

 Q) We absolutely loved you on “Star Trek: Discovery.” How difficult was it for you to learn Klingon? A) I, luckily, didn’t have to learn that much as I became human early on. Kenneth Mitchell and Mary Chieffo got the short straw on that one. Q) Voq and Ash were so incredibly different from one another. What kind of challenges did you face portraying this dichotomy? A) You had to build two separate characters and find the small things that linked them.

Q) What did you personally take away from your time on the series? A) That uniforms are uncomfortable and we should all wear comfortable clothes for the rest of our time on this planet.

Message for his fans

 Q) What would you like to say to everyone who are fans and supporters of you and the work you do? A) For fans of the work I do, I love you and hope I continue to make good choices and try to make some good movies and television for you to watch.

[truthisgoldenau]

IT'S PRIDE MONTH

for a moment there I accidentally had Pierce's photo under Marian's name oop

Time to officially confirm some AU canon LGBT stuff! Each character is their own pride flag but I'll add in other stuff that's canon in universe plus some bonus stuff at the bottom.

First up is Freddy Fazbear Jr! Gay all the way.

He's definitely the "move I'm gay" type

Was honestly super freaked out to tell his dad but went with the bold approach of bringing home his first boyfriend and blatantly announcing their relationship as such as a challenge and was honestly surprised his dad wasn't bothered by it

He was around 13 at the time and so the twins and Fred were still in touch with Maddie's parents and brother. All three were incredibly supportive (and still would be)

He absolutely had a crush on Bonnie Burnette even though he had never talked to him. Since the twins and Bonnie went to the same high school he knew of Bonnie, thought he was a dreamboat, but because Bonnie was somehow in with the popular kids (it was the money 100%) Freddy didn't even bother

Frankie Fazbear! My ace son! (The ears are wrong blame the app lol)

Honestly doesn't even know he's ace until much later

He's had crushes before but he's never been in a relationship (part of it is the attempt to communicate since he's mute sort of stops him)

He wasn't even sure it was worth mentioning to his dad so Fred never knew

This boy can hold so much love in his heart but he's not a very physical person that's all

Fred Fazbear Sr! YES. HE'S BI.

Only Maddie even knew he was bi. That he knew of. Some people probably figured it out with his over the top always on personality.

Fred was constantly sure that Pierce picked up on it particularly after the Christmas mistletoe fiasco but if Pierce gave a shit he never said anything.

Frankly it was amazing that more people didn't pick up on it. He was over the top about everything until a point.

While he didn't overreact to his son very blatantly announcing he had a boyfriend, he was very proud of him. It was a very Fazbear family way to come out. Even though he got so distant, he was always proud of his boys.

Bonnie Burnette! Also bi!

Being constantly surrounded by the popular crowd and always being the sort of stand out with purple hair and stupid purple bunny ears didn't do much to make Bonnie feel like he could even tell anyone he was bi.

Really the only reason he was even in the popular crowd was he was rich.

It made him less of a target for bullies at least cause the jocks wouldn't stand for anyone messing with him.

Knew Frankie from math class and honestly wished he could have talked to the quiet kid with bear ears as an alternative to the entirety of the popular group

Sort of in the background of the AU story very quietly develops a crush on Freddy and then thinks "oh God I like the troublemaker NO"

Chandler Cicily! Lesbian!

Would absolutely describe her sexuality as "girls"

She's starting to discover it during the AU (even if it's not a topic that comes up but that's why there's this post about stuff lmao).

She's the baby of the group since she's 16 when the story starts and relationships aren't important to her yet

But the crew still support her when later she's like "maybe I just wanna bake things for a cute girl and let her put flowers in my hair is that too much to ask" (Marian always chimes in with "mood")

Marian Mengele! An absolute bi icon!

Listen, her one goal in life may be to find her lost childhood friend, but that doesn't mean she's solely interested in this one Irish redhead

That said she's definitely only dated redheads

She's not afraid to be open about her orientation. It doesn't bother her. She's seen as weird already what can it hurt.

That said she falls for Finn so goddamn fast when she finds him that she questions herself and then is like "no wait I'm definitely not straight"

She's very upfront with Finn about it. There's no reason to hide this from him (or anyone) and if they're a thing she wants him to know.

Finn being the wonderful human being still loves her and it doesn't bother him. Why should it? He's just happy to be with someone who loves him.

Chetana might be Chandler's fake big sister but Marian is like fake mama when it comes to Chandler finally coming out.

God bless Finn for being the kind of person to sit and let Marian braid his hair with flowers because that's one of Marian's favorite things to do when her partner has longer hair and Finn's never really bothered with keeping his hair short THESE TWO ARE ICONIC I love them

Pierce Graves! A shitty pansexual icon

First off he absolutely knew that Fred wasn't 100% straight he had no idea how it wasn't immediately obvious to everyone

That said Pierce literally did not give a shit who knew about his sexuality

As shitty as his whole personality was he could turn on the charm easily

His parents definitely knew but he was already a punk ass rebellious teen at the time so they have him the "be careful, don't get anyone pregnant" talk and worried from afar. If it bothered them, Pierce never knew because they made sure that he could still count on them (even though at the time Pierce didn't really talk to them much about anything)

Fred absolutely knew though I mean they were good friends

He's not a romantic. He's never really had a meaningful relationship because he's not that type of person. To be honest, there's a piece of him that saw relationships that worked and wondered how that would feel but he knew that wasn't for him. He figured that out way early on when he asked his granddad why he didn't have a grandma and Mortimer Graves didn't sugarcoat the answer. "She wasn't happy with me. I gave her the choice. She could stay and be miserable with my lack of a decent personality even though I was already struggling to not be such an ass or she could go and find someone who actually made her happy. She chose happiness, and while it sucks that she drifted out of my life and your dad's, she's better off."

Pierce could frankly always tell that he was more like his granddad and as much as he sometimes wanted to know if he could even out up with a meaningful relationship, he avoided it. Better to not hurt anyone and wonder than to become the catalyst for someone else to overcome, right?

Fritz Smith! Gay!

The shy bumbling mechanic of the early 90s Freddy's ? Gay? It's more likely than you think

He was still far in the closet in the 90s He was young, living at home still because he had just gotten out of school, and while his parents weren't super conservative, he also didn't know how they'd take it

Found a friend in the day guard Mike Schmidt early on. Mike was looking for a roommate since his last one had moved out and Fritz jumped at the chance

They are like totally boyfriends by the time they cameo in the story though

Mike Schmidt! Another gay icon!

Mostly invited Fritz to live at his apartment because he felt bad that this poor shy mechanic was getting constantly harangued about the animatronics having problems

Was glad to let Fritz complain about it and even cry it was very stressful but Fritz needed the money

Mike liked him. It would be hard not to really. Fritz was a sweetheart.

Mike didn't ask him out till much later though he wasn't quite sure that Fritz was gay and didn't want to ruin their friendship.

Luckily it didn't and as it turns out they worked well in a relationship.

Fritz's parents had to take some time to get used to it when finally Fritz got the nerve to tell them but as soon as they did there was no end of support from them

Mike's parents were the opposite which was mainly why he already lived by himself but oh well he got a cute boyfriend and cool parents-in-law later it was kind of a win

Daniel Hartford-Dunn! Gay!

Presenting Maddie's older brother!

outside universe fact, he's loosely based in my actual cousin who lives in California with his husband.

He's 7 years older than Maddie was. Despite that, they were still close. Maddie's parents wanted more kids but struggled to get the two they had.

He's an accountant for a corporation and his boyfriend (and later his husband) is a pilot.

Last time he saw his nephews in person was at Maddie's funeral. He misses them terribly but over the years less and less contact came from his brother in law

Sometime in 2006 though he ends up getting a call from his nephews and there's this great reunion.

He's just. This chill older guy. Who loves his family. And doesn't care what people think.

Since I can't put anymore photos, here's the bonus content!

-as mentioned last night Dr. Phillip Guy is on the ace spectrum. I don't have anymore details about that at the moment unfortunately.

-Charlie Emily is a lesbian. The Emily twins were born in 1980. They haven't appeared in the AU yet even as cameos but they exist. Considering in AU canon the Emily family is alive and well in Hurricane, Utah without an Afton to be found, Charlie's dating her childhood friend Jessica at around the time the AU events are happening.

-Sammy Emily is trans and bi. Both Henry and his wife (who I know I at one point named but don't remember what it is anymore) love their two daughters to pieces.

That said I'll make a post at a later point introducing the Emily family because so far I've only officially given the design for Henry and not the rest.

In line with canon, Spring Bonnie/Springtrap can be counted as gay.

While Fred kept the shows at the diner pretty simple and straightforward, there was definitely this subtle underlying idea that Spring Bonnie and Fredbear were a content gay couple although if asked it was easy to present them as friends. At least, that was during '81-'82

However!

Fred also had Henry help him program in a special one time only song called Springtime for his and Maddie's anniversary in 1983, which was of course a love song. Fred always thought of that as being mostly for his wife, and partially as a turning point thematically for the two characters.

Henry was on board with this. They still kept it subtle, but there were clear moments where it was pretty much certain that the only way to interpret Spring Bonnie and Fredbear was as a couple. It was either so subtle that no one was bothered or Spring Bonnie's chosen voice was so ambiguously non-binary that no one thought it was odd.

Fred had plans for it to become more "canon" but never got to implement them since Spring Bonnie got damaged before he could.

Springtrap, being sentient and able to later interpret his emotions, is very confused about how he as a machine was meant to feel about this character he knew but the more sentient he becomes the more aware he is that he misses Fredbear and that he loved him. It's the cause of a lot of internal conflict for him. But he can be counted in the category of LGBT characters in the AU.

Happy pride month ya'll! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈

[mia-ugly]

Six(teen) Sentence Sunday

Hurtling toward getting an update ready for Monday. This chapter is fully out of control and may need to be cut in half. Maybe. Anyway. My WIP Wednesday submission was pretty sparse, so have some extremely ridiculous sex-cottage happenings (with some none too obvious foreshadowing.)

For your nerves. And that.

“Shall I show you upstairs?”

Crowley tries not to answer that by dropping dead. He nods, because if he doesn’t at least nod then he’s going to try to speak. And speaking is out of the question right now, is not going to go well for either of them.

So Crowley nods, and follows Az up the stairs.

The top floor is almost entirely taken up by the - the bedroom. Mostly the, er, bed. There’s a whole wall of windows, and it’s sparsely furnished, all piles of white linens and pillows.

There’s also an enormous clawfoot bath-tub in the corner, overlooking the lake.

“Ngk,” says Crowley.

Suddenly this seems like a terrible bloody idea. At least one that will be impossible to survive, that is already wrapping its bony fingers around Crowley’s throat, pressing its thumbs against his windpipe.  Crowley was all ‘oh let me book us a holiday to sort our shit out’ and then apparently had no qualms with Beez renting them a fucking Honeymoon Sex Cottage.

(Keep fucking breathing.)

“There’s a washroom through there, but the bathtub is - um. As you see.”

“Yeah, huh, very - uh, fancy. Look at that, can just - nice windows, bet they’re double-paned - you know I might call Beez, let them know we’re here and - that it’s just - tip-top or - yeah, I’ll call them. Should I call them? I’ll call them.”

“I’ll leave you to it,” Az says quickly, and he almost trips in his haste to get back down the stairs.

Crowley watches him go and then doesn’t call Beez. Certainly not - what, so they can shout at him? Instead, he looks at the very fluffy, very soft, very large bed. He looks at the bath tub. He walks to the windows and looks down at the lake, before pressing his forehead to the glass.

(“Uh - no, not that one -“ Crowley reaches over, trying to steal the remote from Az.

“Whyever not? The Thing About Roses - it looks utterly charming.”

It certainly does fucking not look charming. The image on the screen is a room full of pink and white roses, with twenty-something Crowley (shitting Christ, look at his hair. What a prick.) making eyes at Emily Mortimer.

“It’s fluff is what it is. That much sugar’ll rot your teeth.” Crowley makes another lunge for the remote, but Az yanks it out of his grip.

“I like a bit of fluff. And look at the volume on those curls - no, I think we simply must watch this one -”

When are we? Was this mid-Season One? Or Season Two? What hotel was it, what sofa, what month, what bottle of wine? Was Crowley already hideously in love but not knowing the word for it? Or was he thinking that word in his head already, tracing its outline on his palm, biting it into the meat of his cheek at night when he should have been sleeping? Was he already lost in the woods, looking desperately for a North Star to lead him out again? Or was he following that flickering light deeper and deeper between the pine trees, certain that rescue would be just around the corner -

“Trust me, you don’t want to watch it. It’s a bunch of romantic nonsense, the worst sort of cliché.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re in it. And you know I love a good third-act chase to the airport. A grand romantic gesture.”

“You’re so full of it,” Crowley shakes his head.

“Public love confessions -”

“Shut up. It’s absolute drivel -”

“Rose petals on sheets, slow-dancing in the kitchen -“

“That sort of nonsense never happens in -“ Something twings in Crowley’s memory. “Wait - have you already seen this film?”

Az blinks at him. His face goes absolutely blank. “No. Haha, no. I’m just - just listing the worst sort of clichés. Why? Is there actual kitchen slow-dancing? Recorded footage of Anthony Crowley swaying to soft rock? My dear - I must insist that we watch it now.”

“If you press ‘play’ I’ll not be responsible for my actions.”

“Why?” Az looks at him, and his face isn’t blank anymore. It’s warm, and slightly pink (the colour of rose petals.) “What will you do?”

“I will ensure that everyone on set gets the youtube link to a certain ‘karaoke scene’ from a certain early 2000s indie sex-romp.”

“You wouldn’t dare.“

“Try me, angel.”)

When Crowley pulls his head back from the window, there’s a smudge on the glass from his greasy skull. Great. Good start. 

Leave a mess all over the glass, leave your grimy fingerprints all over Az Fell, and see what happens. See how quickly it takes you to ruin something beautiful.

[mattkeepsrambling]

Relic

When I have watched horror movies, I have always done it in under my optimal conditions. If I go to the theater (in the before times), I made sure it was one of the earliest showings. That was so that I would have enough day left to fill my head with other images and therefore reduce the nightmare risk. The ones I have watched at home are watched with lights on, blinds up and, again, as early as possible. Slowly but surely, I am getting to the point where I can watch horror movies as they were intended; at night with the lights off. I achieved half of that today when I watched "Relic." I may have watched it in the morning, but the lights were off, and the blinds were drawn.

When her mother goes missing, Kay (Emily Mortimer) and her daughter Sam (Bella Heathcote), go to her house. She turns up a few days later with no answers as to where she had been. It soon becomes clear that something sinister is happening. 

What I loved most about "Relic" was that the horror was not necessarily something tangible. There was no demon or psycho killer. Edna (Robyn Nevin) has dementia, and it manifests itself in various ways. Most notably, the physical changes to the house. It just hit me as I sat here and typed up this review, but the house is a manifestation of Edna's dementia. The most straightforward example is that the house has lots of black mold spots that grow as the movie goes on. This is analogous to the deterioration of Edna's mind. It is quite an interesting parallel being made between the two.

A lot of the scarier moments come from building up tension. There is no musical score to accompany the actions on screen. As an avid movie-goer, I have become attuned to musical cues and what they mean. If the music starts building up, it helps to add to the suspense of that scene. There is nothing like that here. This adds a lot to the uneasiness of the movie.

I have a hard time judging performances in a horror movie since I am pretty new to them on this scale. I can quickly tell you what makes an excellent dramatic or comedic performance. I have seen millions of them (that might be a slight exaggeration, but just go with it). I haven't yet seen enough horror movies to gauge the good from the bad. That being said, Mortimer does an excellent job with how subtle her terror is at the beginning of this movie. She is terrified for her mother's well being. She can't say where she has been and won't talk about it worries her. She has so many moments where she has to reevaluate how she sees her mother.

This might turn into a longer post later, but I am slowly starting to figure out what I love in horror movies. It's these more subtle ones that I gravitate to. I don't need gruesome deaths or jump scares; I actually still hate those. I love the ones that mess with your head a little and let you fill in the blanks. Your mind will make things much scarier than anything the director can show you.

8/10

Rated R or some horror violence/disturbing images, and language

1hr. 29mins

Available to rent on iTunes or Amazon