#Learning how to drive

[ari-ana-bel-la]

Hi Ari, I love your stories. I was wondering if you could write something about Lando and his teenage daughter where he teaches him how to drive… but she's more reckless than him.

It's called talent

The sun was shining over Monaco, and the air had that lazy, warm summer feel to it—the kind of day meant for lounging in the pool, sipping something cold, and definitely not teaching a teenager how to drive. And yet, here Lando was, standing beside a tiny red Mini Cooper, looking at his 17-year-old daughter like she was a ticking time bomb.

"You ready?" he asked, offering her the keys.

Yn looked at him with the most mischievous grin he had ever seen. "Born ready."

That should have been his first red flag.

“No, like actually ready,” Lando clarified. “Have you read the manual I gave you?”

“What manual?” she blinked.

“The one titled ‘So You Don’t Crash Your Dad’s Expensive Car’—I left it on your bed.”

“Oh, that,” she waved a hand. “I thought that was a joke.”

“It wasn’t.”

“Oh.”

Lando sighed and handed over the keys. “Just… remember, it’s a Mini. Not an F1 car. We go slow. Like turtle slow. Got it?”

Yn nodded solemnly. “Understood.”

Five minutes later, she was doing 60 on a narrow residential street.

“YN, SLOW DOWN—THERE’S A CAT—THAT’S A CAT, OH MY GOD—”

“Chill, Dad! I saw the cat!”

“You saw the cat and still did nothing?!”

“I was giving it a thrill,” she grinned, keeping her hands at ten and two like a perfect little driver while going dangerously over the speed limit.

Lando was gripping the edge of his seat so tightly, his knuckles turned white. “Okay, pull over. Pull over right now before my soul leaves my body.”

Yn huffed but pulled over—kind of. The car bumped the curb, mounted it slightly, then rolled to a stop halfway in a bush.

"Perfect parking," she announced proudly.

Lando just blinked. "You... you parked in a hedge."

“It’s nature’s parking spot,” she shrugged. “Eco-friendly.”

“Get out,” Lando said weakly. “I need a moment to realign my chakras.”

Yn stepped out and watched him crumble onto a bench, head in hands.

“You know,” she said thoughtfully, “you’re kind of dramatic.”

Lando peeked at her through his fingers. “Dramatic? Dramatic?! I’ve risked my life on track dozens of times, been nearly t-boned at 300 kph, and nothing—NOTHING—has come close to the terror of watching my child take a corner like it’s Eau Rouge.”

“I took it beautifully,” Yn defended. “You’re just not used to my style.”

“What style? Reckless abandon with a hint of ‘I saw this in Fast & Furious’?”

She grinned. “Exactly!”

He groaned and pointed to the car. “Okay, new plan. We drive to an empty parking lot, and you can try again. No pedestrians. No cats. No trees.”

“Boring,” she mumbled, but got back in the car anyway.

The parking lot, thank God, was truly empty. Just wide-open space and a few faded lines. Lando climbed back into the passenger seat, took a deep breath, and handed her a water bottle.

“Hydrate,” he said. “Not because you need it, but because I need at least 30 seconds of peace.”

Yn took a sip, then slammed the bottle down into the cupholder like she was pitting.

“Alright,” she said. “Pit stop complete. Rejoining the race.”

“It’s not a race,” Lando muttered. “It’s a lesson. A very slow, very gentle, very careful lesson.”

Yn smiled sweetly. “Sure, sure.”

She proceeded to floor the gas, spinning the tires a bit before taking off in a wide arc across the lot. Lando let out something between a gasp and a scream.

“Did you just drift?!”

“No!” she yelled over the screeching tires. “I slid with confidence!”

“Oh my God, you’re me—but worse!”

“Thank you!” she called back.

“I didn’t mean it as a compliment!”

They fishtailed once more before she finally eased up on the accelerator. The car wobbled to a stop, and she looked at him expectantly.

“Well?” she asked. “How was that?”

Lando stared at her. “Terrifying. But... weirdly impressive?”

“Exactly,” she nodded. “You always told me driving was about feeling the car. I’m feeling it.”

“You’re violating it,” he corrected. “The car has rights.”

After fifteen more minutes of watching his child whip donuts in a car not meant for donuts, Lando declared a break.

They sat on the curb, each with a soda, Lando looking exhausted and Yn practically buzzing with energy.

“You sure you weren’t born on a racetrack?” he asked.

Yn smirked. “You tell me. You were there.”

“Yeah, and I thought I’d get a quiet, artsy kid who liked books.”

“You got a speed demon.”

“Who drives like a gremlin on Red Bull.”

“Red Bull gives you wiiings,” she sang, then shot him a devilish look. “Can we try the main road again?”

“No.”

“Come on!”

“No.”

“Pleeeeeease—”

“Absolutely not.”

So of course, fifteen minutes later, they were back on the main road.

Yn was doing… okay. Lando had convinced her to use the blinkers, at least. She still approached turns like she was setting up an overtake, but progress was progress.

“Okay, we’re going to do a parallel park now,” Lando said, pointing at a spot between two cars. “Nice and easy.”

Yn studied the spot. “It’s kinda tight.”

“You’ll fit.”

“Isn’t this why we have parking sensors?”

“Yes, but this is about learning—”

Yn floored it into reverse, twisted the wheel, and—miraculously—slid into the spot in a single, perfectly timed move.

Lando blinked. “Did you just… nail that?”

“I think I did,” she said casually. “Skill issue?”

Lando stared at her. “Okay, that was illegal levels of good. How?”

“Watched a TikTok.”

“Excuse me?”

“Yeah, this guy was like, ‘if you turn the wheel when the back wheel hits the curb line, you just vibe it in.’”

“You vibed it in?!”

She beamed. “Like butter.”

“I don’t know if I’m proud or deeply, deeply afraid.”

“Why not both?”

They kept driving, Lando slowly realizing that while Yn’s approach was… unconventional, she did have a natural instinct. She didn’t second-guess herself. Her reactions were quick. Maybe too quick.

At one point, she saw a yellow traffic light and instead of slowing down like a normal human being, she shouted “YOLO” and gunned it.

“WE DO NOT YOLO AT TRAFFIC LIGHTS,” Lando screamed.

“WE DO WHEN THEY’RE AMBER!”

“Amber means slow down!”

“Amber means commit!”

They made it through. Barely. Lando aged ten years.

“Okay, okay, I think that’s enough for today,” he muttered. “Let’s go home.”

Yn looked disappointed. “But we didn’t even get on the motorway.”

“YOU THINK I’M GOING TO LET YOU ON THE MOTORWAY?!” Lando shrieked. “That’s where real people drive! People with families!”

“I am your family.”

“And I’d like to keep you! Preferably alive!”

She pouted. “You’re such a dad.”

“Yeah, because you’re such a menace.”

They pulled into the driveway, the car only grazing the bushes slightly this time.

Lando stumbled out, clutching his chest. “Okay. We’re alive. The car’s alive. My sanity is… hanging by a thread, but technically alive too.”

Yn jumped out and stretched her arms above her head. “That was fun.”

“That was something.”

“I think I’m ready for my license.”

“You are not.”

“I’m gonna tell Mum you said I could.”

“She’ll call me and scream. Please don’t.”

Yn winked. “Only if you let me try the motorway next weekend.”

Lando stared at her like she had just suggested they rob a bank. “Absolutely not.”

She was already texting someone. “Too late. Told Uncle Daniel I did a drift.”

Lando froze. “Oh no.”

“Now he wants to come next time.”

Lando fell to his knees in the driveway. “Why, God? Why have you cursed me with adrenaline junkie genes?”

Yn patted his head. “Because you’re fun, Dad. And because you didn’t raise a quitter.”

“No,” he said, rising slowly to his feet. “I raised a goblin in sneakers.”

She grinned. “You love it.”

He sighed. “Unfortunately… yeah. I kinda do.”

“Motorway next week?”

“Only if you promise not to yell ‘YOLO’ at any point.”

“I can’t make that promise.”

“Then we’re taking the bus.”

“LAME.”

He opened the front door. “Better lame than crashed.”

Yn followed him in, already pulling up motorway driving tips on her phone. “Do you think you can draft on the motorway?”

Lando paused. “If you ask me that again, I will enroll you in go-kart school all over again.”

“I’ll win again.”

“Not the point!”

“Still counts.”

Lando flopped onto the couch with a groan, tossing the car keys far out of reach.

Being a father, he thought, was one hell of a ride.

Almost as wild as being in a car with Yn.

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♥︎♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

Authors Note: Hey loves. I hope you enjoyed reading this story. My requests are always open for you!

-♡○♡

[chromatheantishipper]

Can't wait to hit a proshipper with my car today!

[lazybtchneedstostudy]

(Travelled to my granny today and the weather in Germany is immaculate again T.T)

Tuesday, the 5th of March 2024

Things I got done today:

💎 laundry

💎 6 exam simulations in my driving test

💎 started one Italian lesson

💎 worked more on the calendar

💎 got back to the sellers of the items I bought lately

Things I need to get done:

💎 make a doctors appointment

💎 finish my Italian lesson

💎 10 exam simulations of the driving app

💎 study chapter 1-4

💎 last machine of laundry

💎 vacuum

💎 clean out ipad storage

💎 final version of my calendar

💎 to do list in calendar

💎 start meds again

(Since I’ll be at my grandma’s the next few days and going clubbing on Friday, I will be able to take care of all of this things starting Saturday lmao.)

Meme for today:

[lulufuntes]

Do you ever feel like learning a new skill can get scary? And you feel like you are only going to mess up again and again just because you are being taught by a parent...? No? Just me? Okay...

Well, I am learning how to drive...

I first learned at a driving school in El Salvador. 16 classes in total. They expect you to know what you are doing... I got better there since I practiced with two professional driving school instructors and in a quiet park. Was only there for two weeks for vacation.

But coming back home to NYS *where I live*, I feel like I lost some of the stuff I learned... I had four lessons with my dad in October of last year, but that did not stay in my memory until I got into the driving school and had what my dad taught me repeated.

I had two lessons with my mom here back home... I think I disappointed her because she saw me crying after I went up on the curb twice *yesterday and today* She [my mom] nearly argued with my dad...

My dad said "Poco a poco". My mom... She got mad. Before we came home, I gave her a hug but she walked back to the car...

My mom understands that I am learning but... 16 classes in El Salvador and I should know by now!

What if I keep messing up and keep upsetting my mom....? I love my mom..🥺❤️

Help... I need hugs... *Grabby hands like a little child*

[salamispots]

it got turned into a 17" x14" pillow instead haha

[quietstime]

🍒

[phelon147]

Just saw a car crash on the road but i looked away. This is why i don't have my driver's liscense (yet)

[opuestocomplementario]

don't you love when your parents are super annoying about you driving but the time where you could drive with them (bc you are not even able to start the car by yourself) they either: leave the house, take the car that you are supposed to use, is too dark, you have to study OR WORST: all of the above, at the same time

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Who is this sassy lost child?

[First] Prev <–-> Next

[kyuyua]

My httyd era came back and hit me like a truck so here’s my obligatory hijack too

[sloasis]

Eddie was in an active warzone , bleeding out while Buck was making drinks and watching that firefighter movie in Peru btw .

[lazybtchneedstostudy]

(Gnocchi with sauce, I made with my friend today)

Sunday, the 3rd of March 2024

Things I got done today:

💎 5 driving test simulations

💎 lesson of Italian

💎 working on my calendar

Things I need to get done:

💎 10 simulations in my driving app

💎 clean out my iPad storage

💎 study chapter 1-4 of my driving book

💎 lesson of Italian

💎 do laundry

💎 vacuum

💎 therapy

💎 do todo list for the week

💎 start my meds again

💎 try on my new jeans and get back to the seller

💎 finally get back to the seller who sold the Kpop stuff to me in the past week

Meme for today:

[limeshade]

She wipes her mouth. Picks up an old, broken REBELLION HELMET. Puts it on, just 'cause.

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS (2015) Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan, J. J. Abrams, Michael Arndt

[lazylittledragon]

ok someone please correct me if i'm wrong but am i weird for thinking those 'audiobooks don't count as reading' posts are ableist as fuck????

[trash-shrike]

God don’t look at me

For Tamlin Week 2025, Day 5 - Biting / Chest @tamlinweek

[destinysbounty]

One thing that kinda chaps me about how the Ice Emperor is typically characterized by a lot of the fandom is that if you really pay attention to how he behaves in the Ice Chapter, he isn't the aggressive, confrontational villain he's often made out to be. In s11, most scenes we see of the Ice Emperor actually depict him as a very passive and sedate character, preferring to rest on his throne and contemplate rather than taking action. He never acts unless Vex implores him to do so, and even then he usually defaults to the less ruthless choice until Vex cajoles him into opting for something more brutal. The first time we see the IE defy Vex in any capacity is when he chooses to spare Lloyd rather than killing him instantly. Judging by Vex's surprise at this, and IE's unabashed trust in his advisor, I would hazard to guess this is the first time Zane has ever pushed back against one of Vex's suggestions.

This is not to say the Ice Emperor is without cruelty or brutality. He is still a very menacing presence in his own right, and he absolutely has gallons of blood on his hands. That cannot be understated. But on his own, without a wormtongue whispering in his ear, I personally think the Ice Emperor would have been...well, not necessarily a kind person, but significantly less ruthless. He's a passive and dare I say tired person who prefers to sit on his throne and wait for orders rather than taking any form of initiative on his own. He's barely even a leader or a tyrant in any true sense of the term, really -- he's just a glorified weapon Vex keeps stored on a shelf until he's needed.

This actually makes sense when you consider Zane's element. Ice is in its very nature a slow and sedate thing. Temperature is shaped by the speed and movement of particulates -- the faster molecules move, the hotter things are. Whereas when things get colder, molecules move much more slowly. (That's perhaps a bit of an oversimplification, but I'm not going to give a lecture on thermodynamics in a post about silly lego people). And the Ice Emperor...well, he's very much encased in ice. He has to physically pry himself off his throne, and the staff has long been frozen to his hand. The whole world is in a similar state as well. Entire swathes of the population have been cryogenically frozen, and the world is so cold that it's exceedingly difficult for fire to thrive. And many other fans have speculated that the reason Akita is able to look the same age despite decades passing is because Zane's corrupted ice has overwhelmed the land so profoundly that everyone is more or less frozen in time.

Ice is a slow, sedate, passive thing. It does not demand anything of you except that you cease movement. Likewise, the Ice Emperor in his truest state is a sedate, passive character, only stirred out of his meditations when Vex compels him into action.

True, he's often depicted as a generically ruthless tyrant in most iterations after s11, but those can usually be chalked up to Zane's unreliable self-perception. This is how Zane interprets his behavior as the Ice Emperor, rather than the actual reality of how he truly behaved. Zane resents that part of himself, and that resentment has warped his understanding of who the Ice Emperor truly was. Which in itself is rather tragic considering Zane's identity issues. That is to say, Zane is so terribly blinded by his trauma and self-loathing that not even he can see himself for who he truly is.

(Cough cough that one quote in Dragons Rising: "Zane had such impressive shoes to fill. No one could ever live up to him, perhaps not even Zane himself.")

Anyway, even if people disagree with this interpretation of the Ice Emperor's character, I personally find it much more compelling to view him not as a generic murderous tyrant...but as an old, tired machine who cannot conceive of his personhood outside of his own weaponization.

By extension, this actually makes Zane's post-s11 coping process a lot more complex as well. The popular narrative is that Zane needs to learn to accept that what happens wasn't his fault, that he had a whole chorus of extenuating circumstances working against him, and that it's actually quite impressive just how many things had to go wrong all at once for him to become evil. And that's fair, but I also think the truth of the matter is more complicated than that.

Zane knows, deep down, that the Ice Emperor's actions weren't his fault -- and that's exactly what terrifies him. Because if he accepts that he was little more than Vex's mindless weapon, then he has to admit that his greatest fear has come true. He spent decades as a mindless, soulless machine, only ever acting on the will of another person, all while being endlessly manipulated by a cursed artifact, rather than having any true agency of his own. When his friends tell him it wasn't his fault, it's not a comfort but rather a painful reminder of how long he spent as someone else's drone. When the people of the Never Realm forgive him and let him return home unobstructed, a part of Zane resents it because it means they, too, acknowledge his absence of free will.

In my eyes, Zane post-s11 is someone who feels that he needs to be blamed, needs to be hated and despised and shunned -- because if people hate him for what he did, then that means it really was his fault. And if it was his fault, then that means he didn't lose his free will after all. It means he didn't spend 50 years as someone else's empty plaything. It means he didn't spend more of his life as a mindless weapon than as a true person.

Yes, Zane needs to learn to stop blaming himself for the Ice Emperor's actions...but how can he let go of the blame when it's the only thing keeping him sane?