#marco refuses to be written

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Jesse Duquette

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

March 18, 2025

Heather Cox Richardson

Mar 19, 2025

On Saturday, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered that the Trump administration stop deporting anyone from the United States under the authority of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act and that the planes carrying individuals to prison in El Salvador be turned around. Despite the order, the administration declined to bring the planes back, and administration officials appeared to mock the order, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio reposting the message of Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele that read, “Oopsie… Too late,” along with a laughing emoji.

On Sunday, lawyers from the Department of Justice suggested that the planes were outside the jurisdiction of the U.S. when Boasberg issued the order, or that the order didn’t take effect until it was entered into the electronic docket, although his verbal order that he said had to be “complied with immediately” came about 45 minutes earlier, before at least one of the planes landed.

On Monday the Justice Department unsuccessfully asked a federal appeals court to remove Boasberg from the case. In a hearing, Boasberg asked the administration to clarify its actions after it appeared to defy the court by rushing the planes off the ground and to El Salvador. In response to the Justice Department’s claim that the judge’s orders had no authority over the flights once they left U.S. airspace, the judge noted that the power of the federal courts does not end at the end of U.S. airspace. Boasberg also appeared to reject the claim of the DOJ lawyers that there is no judicial order until it is published in a written filing. The DOJ also refused to tell Boasberg anything about the flights, saying that even their number was a question of national security, although the administration had talked extensively about them on public media.

Boasberg scheduled another hearing today to get the DOJ lawyers to answer the questions they had refused to address.

This morning, President Donald Trump took to social media to call Boasberg a “Radical Left Lunatic of a Judge, a troublemaker and agitator who was sadly appointed by Barack Hussein Obama, was not elected President—He didn’t WIN the popular VOTE (by a lot!), he didn’t WIN ALL SEVEN SWING STATES, he didn’t WIN 2,750 to 525 Counties, HE DIDN’T WIN ANYTHING! I WON FOR MANY REASONS, IN AN OVERWHELMING MANDATE, BUT FIGHTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION MAY HAVE BEEN THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR THIS HISTORIC VICTORY. I’m just doing what the VOTERS wanted me to do. This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!”

Trump’s post sounds as if he is nervous about the increasing unrest over his policies and is trying to convince people that he has a mandate although in fact more people voted for other candidates in the 2024 election than voted for him. But it was his suggestion that any judge with whom he disagrees should be removed that sparked pushback from Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts, who issued a statement saying: “For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

Roberts wrote the Trump v. United States decision of July 1, 2024, establishing that presidents cannot be prosecuted for crimes committed as part of their official presidential duties, and it seems likely that Trump did not expect a rebuke from him.

U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang also sought to stop the administration’s power grab. In a scathing 68-page decision, Chuang found that the actions of Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency” to destroy the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, “likely violated the United States Constitution in multiple ways.” Chuang explained that the destruction of USAID hurt not only the 26 current or recently fired employees and contractors of USAID who had filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency.” That destruction also hurt “the public interest, because they deprived the public’s elected representatives in Congress of their constitutional authority to decide whether, when, and how to close down an agency created by Congress.”

While the question of who is in charge of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency is such a mystery that it has spawned its own social media hashtag—WITAOD, for “Who is the administrator of DOGE?”—Chuang clearly identified Elon Musk as the person in charge. Trump “identified Musk as the leader of DOGE,” he notes, and “Trump and Musk held a joint press conference in the Oval Office to answer reporters’ questions about DOGE.” Chuang noted the many, many times when Trump called Musk DOGE’s leader.

In the lawsuit, USAID employees argued that Musk has acted as an officer of the United States without having been duly appointed to such a role. The Constitution provides that the president can appoint such officers, who exercise “significant authority,” but that they must be confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate. Musk, quite obviously, was not. The White House has tried to get around this issue by claiming that Musk is only an advisor to the president, but Chuang wasn’t buying it. “[B]ased on the present record,” he wrote, “the only individuals known to be associated with the decisions to initiate a shutdown of USAID…are Musk and DOGE team Members.” Musk therefore “exercises actual authority in ways that an advisor to the President does not.”

Chuang ordered that parts of USAID must be restored, although what effect that will have is unclear since the agency has been destroyed.

Trump continued his attack on the rule of law today when he fired the two Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission, which protects consumers from collusion and anti-consumer practices. The firings leave only two Republicans on the commission and leave it without a quorum to do business. Beginning with the 1935 case of Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, the courts have established that the president cannot fire officials in agencies created by Congress without a serious reason like neglect of duties. Legal analyst Mark Joseph Stern wrote: “Trump’s action here is brazenly illegal under any interpretation of the law as it stands.”

Trump held a phone conversation today with Russian president Vladimir Putin, allegedly about a proposed ceasefire in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump boasted that he would end Russia’s war against Ukraine in a day, and he is now eager for any end to the hostilities. But Putin seems less eager to reach a solution than to demonstrate his dominance over Trump. Today, when the phone call was scheduled, Putin was on stage at an event. When his interviewer asked if he needed to go because he would be late for the call, Putin dismissed the question and laughter broke out. Brett Bruen, president of the Global Situation Room public relations firm wrote: “Making leaders wait is an old Putin power play. But, this is pretty brutal. Putin is publicly mocking Trump.”

While Trump’s team portrayed the conversation as productive, Putin maintained that Ukraine was the aggressor in the war, although it was Russia that invaded Ukraine. Putin also demanded that the U.S. and allies must stop all military aid and the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine, conditions that would hamstring Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion.

Finally today, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has proposed addressing the H5N1 bird flu that is decimating U.S. poultry and cattle farms by simply letting the disease run rampant. He suggests such a course would permit scientists to discover birds that are immune to the disease.

But veterinary scientists say that letting the virus sweep through flocks is “a really terrible idea, for any one of a number of reasons,” as Dr. Gail Hansen, a former state veterinarian for Kansas, told Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times. Chickens and turkeys don’t have the genes to resist the virus, and every infection is a chance for the virus to mutate into a more virulent form, one of which could mutate so it could spread among humans. If H5N1 were permitted to infect 5 million birds, “that’s literally five million chances for that virus to replicate or to mutate,” Hansen told Mandavilli.

The danger of this shoot first, ask questions later attitude of administration officials was on display today in articles about the men deported to El Salvador. A Washington Post article by Silvia Foster-Frau followed the story of four Venezuelan friends who had come to the U.S. illegally. They shared a townhouse in Dallas, where immigration officials picked them up last Thursday. The men signed deportation papers, expecting to return to Venezuela, but although there is no record that the men committed crimes in the U.S. and their families insist they are not affiliated with the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang whose members White House officials claim were on the weekend’s deportation flights, the men are shown in the videos of those deported to prison in El Salvador.

A Reuters story by Sarah Kinosian and Kristina Cooke reported that family members who suspect their loved ones have been sent to El Salvador have launched a WhatsApp helpline.

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[rollinouttahere-writes]

More Little Lucky AU prompts because I want to get these written down so I don't forget them

During the time between encountering Laboon and getting to Whiskey Peak, Lucky follows Vivi around on the Merry while fawning over how pretty her hair is. Vivi almost has a heart attack when Lucky says she "looks like a princess".

Lucky trying to pick a fight with Bellamy because he was mean to her friends.

Kaku straight up kidnapping Lucky when he goes to survey the Going Merry because he got possessed by paternal instincts upon seeing a battered child. Internally panicking on the way back because oh no he did not think this through at all.

Garp being extremely concerned about Lucky being mixed in with a bunch of pirates and his unhinged grandson. He tries to get her to call him grandpa only for her to say no because he beat up Luffy and she's mad about it. Garp is devastated by the refusal.

I have lots of ideas for the Whitebeard Pirates

Marco tells her that Whitebeard isn't supposed to be drinking any alcohol, so whenever she sees him drinking she gets this sad look on her face and asks him why he's drinking stuff that makes him more sick. This doesn't stop him entirely, but he does avoid drinking when she's likely to catch him because her kicked-puppy face makes him feel bad. Marco spoils her a bit every time she says something because this has been a critical success in his book.

Thatch loves cooking/baking with her and teaching her how to make new things. He makes a big deal about every new thing she makes to hype her up and keep her interested. By the time the timeskip is over and the Straw Hats get her back, she has noticeably improved her skills and Sanji is seething on the inside over someone else teaching her.

Izou, bless him, tries so hard to style her hair. Unfortunately, small children are not good at sitting still for extended periods of time so he's fighting for his life trying to finish any complex hair style. Even when he can finish, Ace typically messes it up within the hour with his roughhousing.

Lucky does have her own room on the Moby Dick, but it's debatable if she even knows where it is. She's so used to sharing a room with others that she hates sleeping by herself. Ace's room is her main go to, but she has sleepovers with her other uncles too. Never Whitebeard though. She's afraid he'll roll over and squish her.

Whitebeard really enjoys having a kid so young on board again, he'd almost forgotten how fun that age was. Lucky climbs all over him like a human jungle-gym and he just lets it happen while trying to maintain his tough guy facade.

[cozage]

The Daughter's Return Part 3

Chapter 20: The Battle of Marineford

Start From Beginning | Next Chapter | Table of Contents | Read on AO3

Characters: female reader x Portgas D. Ace Word Count: 3.1k Note: Just wanted to preface this story by saying this will NOT be a word for for recount of Marineford. I took some slight creative liberties because...well, I hate regurgitating the same story that's already been written word-for-word.

--

Marco stared down at you, still holding you firmly against the floor. Your widened eyes alerted him, and he turned around to find a massive ship falling from the sky.

“You have to get below-”

A giant crash came off the starboard side of the ship, cutting off his words. The surprise made you both freeze, trying to listen to what was being screamed down below. 

“Who is that?” you whispered, but Marco only shushed you. He was looking to your father for guidance, but Whitebeard seemed just as confused. 

“Nobody is moving from that ship,” Whitebeard said, his eyes on the battlefield. “It must be abandoned.”

“No.” You shook your head and finally pushed Marco off you to set up. You were still hidden from the Admiral’s sight, which seemed to satisfy everyone. “I heard screaming.”

“Then they died on impact. Perhaps an enemy attack gone wrong,” Marco offered, to which you shrugged. It still didn’t feel right, but you didn’t understand how it got to this place. 

The fighting began to pick up again, and you could hear swords clanging against each other. 

You continued to stay low, occasionally peeking over the bannister to gather more intel about the battlefield. Little Oars had fallen on a segment of the wall and prevented it from raising, which meant you had a way to get in. Your path to Ace was becoming more clear. 

“ACEEEEEE!” A very familiar voice shouted, causing your ears to perk up. “I’M HERE!!”

“LUFFY!” Ace shouted, solidifying your speculation. 

You stood to your feet, looking at the strange ship that had crashed into the sea a few minutes before. It was him. Ace’s little brother. The pirate with a 300,000,000 berry bounty on his head. 

“Luffy,” you breathed out, a smile growing on your face. So he had found out about Ace’s capture. Perhaps he wasn’t totally clueless.

“Ace’s kid brother?” Marco asked, looking at the young boy skeptically. “He’s got quite a crew.”

You frowned, Marco’s words sinking in. “Those people aren’t his crew. In fact…” you scanned the area around the ship. “I don’t see his crew at all. Those people are-”

“Criminals. Pirates sent to Impel Down,” your father chimed in, looking at them all. “How the hell did they break out?”

You had to assume the answer was Luffy. He had a tendency to make mayhem.

You could hear screaming between Luffy’s makeshift crew and the Navy, but you took the time to quickly assess everything. You could make it to the ship Luffy was on, and run with him. You knew he would make it to the platform, especially with help from people like Crocodile, Buggy,  Ivonkov, and…

“Jinbe,” you whispered. 

You had heard he had been captured and sent to Impel Down for disobeying the Navy and refusing to fight in Marineford. But he was here. You almost cried from relief. It had been so long since you had seen him, and yet everything about him remained the same.  

You had been so focused on Jinbe that you hadn’t seen Crocodile sneak up behind your father, trying to go in for a strike. 

But Luffy was instantly there, blocking his strike and kicking Crocodile away from your father to protect him.

“Listen, brat,” Crocodile growled. “If you want to save Ace so badly, go do it. I’m here to kill Whitebeard and that’s it.”

“So this old guy is Whitebeard, huh?” Luffy said, his skin glowing with a pink hue. “Well, he’s Ace’s friend, so I won’t let anything happen to him!”

You snickered lightly at his words. Nobody could deny they were brothers. 

“Runs in the family, huh?” Marco whispered, and you nodded in agreement. That was an understatement.

“You came here to rescue your big brother?” your father asked Luffy, staring him down. 

“That’s right,” Luffy said, giving a slight nod. He had the look of pure determination in his eyes. Failure was not an option.

“You’re just a kid. What can you do?” your father scolded, and you flinched at the harshness of his words. “A squirt like you is going to get slaughtered real easy!”

“Shut up! You don’t even know me!” Luffy shouted back, and you had to stifle another laugh. “I know what you want! If you want to be the king, you gotta go through me!”

“Just like Ace,” Marco mumbled, rolling his eyes. You gave him a grin in response. 

The two had an intense stare off, your father doing his best to intimidate Luffy. But you knew Luffy. He wouldn’t back down, no matter what the odds looked like. 

“What a cheeky punk,” Whitebeard said, giving his smile of approval. “Don't go crying if you get a few boo-boos.”

“Yeah right! I’m not old like you!” Luffy shot back, the two of them turning to face Marineford together now. 

“Just sit tight, Ace. I’m coming for you.” Luffy said, and then turned to your father. “Old man, there’s something I gotta tell you…I heard on the ship that the Navy is moving up the schedule. They just have to get set for something first.”

Your heart quickened and your eyes darted to Ace. You couldn’t lose him yet. You weren’t ready to watch him die. 

“Thanks for letting me know, kid. Glad I ran into you.” Your father’s eyes moved to you, looking for some kind of strategy guidance. Your mind was racing as it ran through the options. You had to get to him as fast as possible. 

“Sure thing,” Luffy said. “Hang on Ace! I’m on my way!” 

Luffy began to run away, but you couldn’t let him go without you. 

“Luffy!” you shouted, pulling away from Marco and walking towards him and your father. “Hang on a second!”

Luffy’s head whipped around, and a smile broke across his face when he saw you. “You made it back to the ship okay! Good to hear!”

There was no time for small talk. You had to get to the point. “Luffy,” you warned. “Marineford is full of traps. You have to be careful.”

“Do you know where they are?” Luffy asked, his dark eyes looking at you. He trusted you. You could help him.  

This was your moment. Your time to break away. 

You nodded. “I do.”

“Great!” Luffy grabbed your hand and ran toward the railing, picking you up as he got ready to jump. “Come with me and show me!”

“No!” your father yelled, helplessly watching the two of you jump over the side of the deck and towards the battlefield. 

“Get back here!” Both Marco and Whitebeard roared simultaneously as you hit the ground, but found your footing and began sprinting, refusing to look back. 

You ran next to Luffy, swiftly keeping up with him. You found the weak spot on your shackles and quickly snapped them off, just like Rayleigh had shown you. You still had your weakened sea prism bracelet on, but you could feel energy course through your veins now that you had the marine-grade stone off. Your body felt lighter and more free, like you could do anything. 

Like you could save Ace. You were getting closer by the second. 

“Look!” One of the soldiers shouted. “Someone’s on the ship with Whitebeard!”

You risked a glance back, but you only saw Squard standing with him on the deck. No Naval threats were advancing on your father thankfully, considering he had sent most of his commanders to trail you. 

Though it was strange to see Squard on the ship. You distinctly remembered placing his ship in the rear of the fleet to keep him and his men protected. 

It was even stranger to see him unsheathe his blade. And then stab your father in his chest. 

You let out a garbled cry, immediately stopping in your tracks. All of Marineford seemed to pause, watching in a mix of awe and horror. What the hell was Squard doing? Your father had saved him from a life of evil, called him one of his own. And he was returning the favor by stabbing him in the chest?

“No,” you whispered. Your feet began to move back to the ship, trying to find a way back to him. You should’ve never run away. You should’ve stayed. You could’ve stopped this if you had been there. You should’ve seen this betrayal coming. 

Marco was by your father’s side in a flash, throwing blue flames at Squard to force him away. The three of them spoke, but you couldn’t make out any words.

Your heart pounded in your chest as you watched the three men converse. You felt sick to your stomach as you watched the wound in your father’s chest leak blood. 

And then your father leaned forward toward Squard and wrapped him in an embrace. 

You couldn’t help but think back to your last arrival home, when you had expected a harsh scolding, but all you had received was his arms wrapped around you. You weren’t sure why Squard had done what he had, but it was clear the Whitebeard had forgiven him. 

Just like he had to you, when you had stabbed him in the heart by lying to him and losing Ace. And getting everyone into this huge mess in the first place. 

If anything, all of this was your fault. 

Someone touched your arm, causing you to flinch. Luffy’s eyes looked at you, wide and determined. He was clearly surprised by this, but neither of you had time to waste. 

“I know he’s your old man-” Luffy started. 

“Let’s keep moving,” you nodded. One small wound wouldn’t stop your father. He would be fine. You would get Ace back and pretend like this never happened. 

As you continued forward, things moved in a blur, as they often do in battle. You knocked out two Marines and stole their swords, easily keeping up with Luffy. Parry one, dodge a blade, stab and slice when you could. But always keep moving.

After a while, you started to let Luffy do the battling. He was good at wiping out lots of Marines at once, and you could hear a group of pirates running behind you to offer support. 

You could hear Marco’s wings flapping overhead, and you knew he was waiting for the perfect moment to scoop you up and take you back to be imprisoned on that ship. But you wouldn’t go back. Your father could fend for himself. You would never stop fighting until Ace was back in your arms and you had given him a proper ass-kicking. 

Explosions raged, soldiers fell, and yet you stuck close by Luffy, steadily making your way toward the platform. You could feel Ace’s eyes on you, but you refused to meet them. You didn’t want to know what he was thinking. You didn’t care. Once he was safe, he could yell at you all he wanted. You had plenty of yelling to do as well. 

You were doing well keeping up with Luffy, despite the inability to catch your breath. You were thankful he was doing most of the fighting, because you were exhausted just from running alongside him. That baby you carried was back to being an annoyance. If you would have joined this fight at your full power, the Navy wouldn’t have stood a chance. You would have destroyed them before-

A large hand wrapped around your wrist and pulled you, causing you to cry out in shock as you were yanked backwards. 

“Get off!” you screamed, swinging a blade around to meet your assailant. 

“Easy!” Jinbe scolded, ducking out of the way. “You’ll kill someone with that thing!”

“Jin…” You couldn’t bring yourself to say his name. “You’re on our side?”

He gave a swift nod. “I promised I would never fight against you, didn’t I?”

Tears welled in your eyes, and you had to fight to keep them from spilling down your cheeks. You couldn’t afford to be weak here. You had to save the crying for later. 

Luffy, as oblivious as always, didn’t even notice as you wiped your eyes. He was glancing between Jinbe and the wall. 

“Can you get us across?” Luffy asked, staring up at the wall. 

Jinbe chuckled. “I can get you across. She stays with me.”

You groaned. Of course he had been recruited to keep you contained; to take you back to the Moby Dick. 

“She’s coming with me,” Luffy said. “Ace has to see us fighting for him.”

“Do you want to go over the wall or not?” Jinbe asked him, his grip still firmly around your wrist. 

“Go Luffy,” you urged him. You wouldn’t be much help over there anyway. You might even hinder him from progressing. And you had a feeling that whatever Jinbe had in mind for getting Luffy over the wall wouldn’t work for you. 

“I’ll make it,” Luffy said, giving you a nod in thanks. 

“I know you will.”

The second Jinbe let go of your wrist, you took off in another direction. You could hear him shouting for you, but you ignored him. There was no way you were going back to that damned ship. There were plenty of family members you could help. 

You slashed through the crowd, taking down every uniformed officer in your path. You had always loathed sword training days in Wano, but they were finally starting to pay off. Perhaps you would practice more often. 

If you got out of this alive. 

A cheer of pirates off to your left made you risk a glance over, and you saw Luffy being shot through the sky, onto the next phase of the rescue. As much as you wanted to be with him when he freed Ace, you were grateful you weren’t on that journey. It was something only a rubber man could survive. Even though you weren’t with him, you found yourself smiling. He would make it. 

“Don’t move!” A shrill voice shouted, and you felt the barrel of a gun press against your lower back. 

Shit. You had been distracted for one second, and now you were at the mercy of some rookie navy man. 

“Drop your weapons!” He commanded, his voice slightly more authoritative. He probably had no idea who you were, or else he would’ve fired already.

Your eyes glanced to the sky as your swords clattered to the ground. You could see Marco’s shadow circling, trying to find the perfect opportunity to intervene without getting you killed. 

“Please don’t shoot,” you whispered, throwing false fear into your voice. You put your hands up, trying to think of some crazy story. You just needed him to believe you for a fraction of a second so you could disarm him.  

“And why shouldn’t I?” The barrel jammed into your spine, causing you to flinch. 

If you didn’t have this baby, bullets would mean nothing. This cadet would already be on the ground seeing stars.

A large, familiar shadow cast over you. “Because if you do, you’re dead.” Your father’s voice boomed from behind you. “So how about you go ahead and lower that gun, boy.”

The pressure at the base of your spine quickly receded, and you could hear the gun clatter to the ground. 

“Please-” the cadet started. 

“Get out,” Whitebeard growled. 

The sound of footsteps quickly receding made you relax for a moment. You bent to the ground and picked up your swords.

“I’m not going back,” you said sharply, determined to hold your ground. 

“I didn’t ask you to,” your father snapped back. 

“Good!” you hissed. You were afraid to look at him, so you didn’t. You lowered your voice before you added, “Thank you.”

He didn’t say anything more as the two of you moved across the battlefield, trying to protect your family while also moving closer to Ace. Even with his wound, your father kept a pace so quick you were having trouble keeping up with him. Maybe you were just getting slower. You’d have to train harder in the future.

You could see the platform again finally. You could see Ace, and you finally met his eyes. Even though his face was filled with horror, he was still so beautiful. You wanted nothing more than to run your fingers through his hair, to kiss his chapped lips, to be wrapped in his arms again. 

A shot of pain coursed through your left arm, and you cried out as a navy officer kicked you down to the ground. He seemed just as surprised as you that the blade had struck you. 

He quickly backed up, choosing to retreat rather than deal a finishing blow. A strange decision for a captain to make, given that he certainly knew who you were. Why run?

Not that it mattered. Your father quickly followed him and spilled his blood before he had a chance to blink.  

And then the sound of a cannon brought the Navy’s plan together. The captain had meant to be a distraction. He had meant to keep you and your father in a stationary place, so that the cannonball would end one of you. He hadn’t expected you to fall to the ground, because he had planned to keep you busy while the cannon took aim. 

“No!” you screamed, already knowing what would happen. You couldn’t stop it; your knees were still weak from collapsing. 

Your father was back overtop of you in a flash, protecting you from the hit he knew was coming. You wanted to beg him to run, but you had no time. You had been foolish; you deserved that hit. Not him. You were tired of everyone else sacrificing themselves for your mistakes. You were supposed to be better than this. You were the best strategist on the Grand Line. How had you missed something so obvious?

The cannonball struck true a moment later, straight into your father’s chest. You screamed out, but he stood tall and firm, as if it hadn’t even affected him. 

“Dad,” you cried. “Please-”

He refused to acknowledge you, though. Instead, your father stood in front of you, trying his best to remain on his feet and keep you protected from further harm.  

This was the worst day of your life. There was no comparison. 

And then somehow it got worse. You could see Sengoku’s arm fall, giving the order to execute Ace.

You could hear someone screaming as the blades began to fall toward Ace’s tender neck. Your ears began ringing, your vision became blurry. Then you realized it was you who was screaming. 

You wanted to rage, to kill everyone on this battlefield. But all you could do was scream. Scream and scream and never stop. Ace was going to die right in front of you.

As the blades fell swiftly, your last thought was that it was all for nothing. And then an overwhelming presence washed over you, knocking you into unconsciousness.

--

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[older-brothers-room]

Chasing Amy: A Review

Overview/Plot

A wonderful installment in the Kevin Smith films, aka Jay and Silent Bob Movies, Chasing Amy stars Joey Lauren Adams as a happy lesbian named Alyssa who meets dude bro duo Holden--Ben Affleck--and Banky--Jason Lee--at a comic convention. As Holden learns more about Alyssa, he falls in love with her, and Alyssa figures out her identity as gay women who is still exploring. Holden has a massive hang up in their relationship when he learns about Alyssa's wild and adventurous sexual past. After a while of arguments and distance from each other, the couple part ways when Holden suggests the only way to make himself feel less conservative in the bedroom, for Banky to get over his lesbiophobic ways, and for Alyssa to feel closer to Holden, is for the group to have a threesome. Many years later Holden is no longer in a work partnership with Banky, and sees Alyssa one last time to give her a comic he made of her.

Archie is not fucking Mr. Weatherbee!

Strengths

Where I think this movie is strong is at its characters and plot points. With it's overt commentary on things such as racial inequality, gender, sex, and sexuality, it creates this beautiful atmosphere of drama and keeps you watching while also being well balanced in its light hearted versus its more serious moments. It chooses to focus on the issues of the couple and Holden's unwillingness to accept Alyssa's past sexual adventures while adding in some light touches of Banky's animosity towards lesbians and himself losing Holden as well as the blurry line that can be platonic vs romantic relationships.

Since you like chicks, right, do you just look at yourself naked in the mirror all the time?

Favorite Moments

My favorite part is whenever Alyssa is is arguing with Holden. Joey Adams is such a wonderful actor. Her moments are powerful and emotionally charged and the writing really lends it's hand to hit the watcher in the feels. The character herself has so much agency it's delightfully refreshing to see compared to more modern film. I love the fact they they didn't end up together in the end. Holden's suggestion of a threesome isn't what Alyssa wants. She sees the move as clumsy, and while she still loves Holden, she refuses to be used like that. It's a powerful choice to have the lead couple break up and stay broken up in the end, and it made my heart sore with happiness. These two were only meant for a short while, and tha'ts okay.

Men need to believe that they're Marco Fucking Polo when it comes to sex.

Character Spotlight

Hooper, a gay black comic artist and one of Alyssa's close friends, is introduced in a way that might have you thinking this was written by a conservative white guy. However, this movie was written by a white guy who is normal style. It becomes a little more funny on the second watch. Hooper has an on-going argument with Banky over weather or not Archie from the famous comic book was gay or straight. He makes few appearances as he is a side character, but those appearances are full of energy and he is so atmospheric.

I want you to go down to the corner store, and buy yourself a clue.

Weaknesses

Some of the shots in this movie are simply a product of their time that no longer hold up. Shaky homevideo-esque shots that tend to bother me personally. Other than that, I have very little complaints. Maybe Banky was a little over the top but in the end it was theatrical and made the story more interesting. Not every moment is vying to grab your attention but comparing this to modern movies where everything is stated for a watcher I'd actually call that a blessing.

have you ever seen a nun call a small child a fucking cunt rag?

Final thoughts

This movie is a 5/5 platonic dates and a bonus bisexual flag from me. I wish more movies could even begin to handle romance like this one did. Alyssa had agency and stood up for herself, Holden was frustrated with himself more than anything, Banky couldn't handle the thought of losing his friend. This is one of my most beloved Kevin Smith movies, no matter how fucking sick as hell Dogma is (review coming soon for that movie.) You should watch this for it's wonderful acting, for Jay and Silent Bob (who has a long story this time,) its story, and if you wanna find out why it's called Chasing Amy.

[misfitwashere]

March 18, 2025

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

MAR 19

On Saturday, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered that the Trump administration stop deporting anyone from the United States under the authority of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act and that the planes carrying individuals to prison in El Salvador be turned around. Despite the order, the administration declined to bring the planes back, and administration officials appeared to mock the order, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio reposting the message of Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele that read, “Oopsie… Too late,” along with a laughing emoji.

On Sunday, lawyers from the Department of Justice suggested that the planes were outside the jurisdiction of the U.S. when Boasberg issued the order, or that the order didn’t take effect until it was entered into the electronic docket, although his verbal order that he said had to be “complied with immediately” came about 45 minutes earlier, before at least one of the planes landed.

On Monday the Justice Department unsuccessfully asked a federal appeals court to remove Boasberg from the case. In a hearing, Boasberg asked the administration to clarify its actions after it appeared to defy the court by rushing the planes off the ground and to El Salvador. In response to the Justice Department’s claim that the judge’s orders had no authority over the flights once they left U.S. airspace, the judge noted that the power of the federal courts does not end at the end of U.S. airspace. Boasberg also appeared to reject the claim of the DOJ lawyers that there is no judicial order until it is published in a written filing. The DOJ also refused to tell Boasberg anything about the flights, saying that even their number was a question of national security, although the administration had talked extensively about them on public media.

Boasberg scheduled another hearing today to get the DOJ lawyers to answer the questions they had refused to address.

This morning, President Donald Trump took to social media to call Boasberg a “Radical Left Lunatic of a Judge, a troublemaker and agitator who was sadly appointed by Barack Hussein Obama, was not elected President—He didn’t WIN the popular VOTE (by a lot!), he didn’t WIN ALL SEVEN SWING STATES, he didn’t WIN 2,750 to 525 Counties, HE DIDN’T WIN ANYTHING! I WON FOR MANY REASONS, IN AN OVERWHELMING MANDATE, BUT FIGHTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION MAY HAVE BEEN THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR THIS HISTORIC VICTORY. I’m just doing what the VOTERS wanted me to do. This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!”

Trump’s post sounds as if he is nervous about the increasing unrest over his policies and is trying to convince people that he has a mandate although in fact more people voted for other candidates in the 2024 election than voted for him. But it was his suggestion that any judge with whom he disagrees should be removed that sparked pushback from Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts, who issued a statement saying: “For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

Roberts wrote the Trump v. United States decision of July 1, 2024, establishing that presidents cannot be prosecuted for crimes committed as part of their official presidential duties, and it seems likely that Trump did not expect a rebuke from him.

U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang also sought to stop the administration’s power grab. In a scathing 68-page decision, Chuang found that the actions of Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency” to destroy the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, “likely violated the United States Constitution in multiple ways.” Chuang explained that the destruction of USAID hurt not only the 26 current or recently fired employees and contractors of USAID who had filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency.” That destruction also hurt “the public interest, because they deprived the public’s elected representatives in Congress of their constitutional authority to decide whether, when, and how to close down an agency created by Congress.”

While the question of who is in charge of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency is such a mystery that it has spawned its own social media hashtag—WITAOD, for “Who is the administrator of DOGE?”—Chuang clearly identified Elon Musk as the person in charge. Trump “identified Musk as the leader of DOGE,” he notes, and “Trump and Musk held a joint press conference in the Oval Office to answer reporters’ questions about DOGE.” Chuang noted the many, many times when Trump called Musk DOGE’s leader.

In the lawsuit, USAID employees argued that Musk has acted as an officer of the United States without having been duly appointed to such a role. The Constitution provides that the president can appoint such officers, who exercise “significant authority,” but that they must be confirmed with the advice and consent of the Senate. Musk, quite obviously, was not. The White House has tried to get around this issue by claiming that Musk is only an advisor to the president, but Chuang wasn’t buying it. “[B]ased on the present record,” he wrote, “the only individuals known to be associated with the decisions to initiate a shutdown of USAID…are Musk and DOGE team Members.” Musk therefore “exercises actual authority in ways that an advisor to the President does not.”

Chuang ordered that parts of USAID must be restored, although what effect that will have is unclear since the agency has been destroyed.

Trump continued his attack on the rule of law today when he fired the two Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission, which protects consumers from collusion and anti-consumer practices. The firings leave only two Republicans on the commission and leave it without a quorum to do business. Beginning with the 1935 case of Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, the courts have established that the president cannot fire officials in agencies created by Congress without a serious reason like neglect of duties. Legal analyst Mark Joseph Stern wrote: “Trump’s action here is brazenly illegal under any interpretation of the law as it stands.”

Trump held a phone conversation today with Russian president Vladimir Putin, allegedly about a proposed ceasefire in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. During the 2024 presidential campaign, Trump boasted that he would end Russia’s war against Ukraine in a day, and he is now eager for any end to the hostilities. But Putin seems less eager to reach a solution than to demonstrate his dominance over Trump. Today, when the phone call was scheduled, Putin was on stage at an event. When his interviewer asked if he needed to go because he would be late for the call, Putin dismissed the question and laughter broke out. Brett Bruen, president of the Global Situation Room public relations firm wrote: “Making leaders wait is an old Putin power play. But, this is pretty brutal. Putin is publicly mocking Trump.”

While Trump’s team portrayed the conversation as productive, Putin maintained that Ukraine was the aggressor in the war, although it was Russia that invaded Ukraine. Putin also demanded that the U.S. and allies must stop all military aid and the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine, conditions that would hamstring Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion.

Finally today, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has proposed addressing the H5N1 bird flu that is decimating U.S. poultry and cattle farms by simply letting the disease run rampant. He suggests such a course would permit scientists to discover birds that are immune to the disease.

But veterinary scientists say that letting the virus sweep through flocks is “a really terrible idea, for any one of a number of reasons,” as Dr. Gail Hansen, a former state veterinarian for Kansas, told Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times. Chickens and turkeys don’t have the genes to resist the virus, and every infection is a chance for the virus to mutate into a more virulent form, one of which could mutate so it could spread among humans. If H5N1 were permitted to infect 5 million birds, “that’s literally five million chances for that virus to replicate or to mutate,” Hansen told Mandavilli.

The danger of this shoot first, ask questions later attitude of administration officials was on display today in articles about the men deported to El Salvador. A Washington Post article by Silvia Foster-Frau followed the story of four Venezuelan friends who had come to the U.S. illegally. They shared a townhouse in Dallas, where immigration officials picked them up last Thursday. The men signed deportation papers, expecting to return to Venezuela, but although there is no record that the men committed crimes in the U.S. and their families insist they are not affiliated with the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang whose members White House officials claim were on the weekend’s deportation flights, the men are shown in the videos of those deported to prison in El Salvador.

A Reuters story by Sarah Kinosian and Kristina Cooke reported that family members who suspect their loved ones have been sent to El Salvador have launched a WhatsApp helpline.

—

[mamamittens]

Had a funny thought about a fem!Ace AU where all that charisma and good looks from her parents coalesced into her being absolutely

Postiviely

Fucking adorable.

Like, from day one this girl has folks fawning over her, even when she was chewing on table legs cause she was still a feral fucking brat.

Like, all those good looks hit so hard from day one it looped from (age appropriately) sexy to just timelessly adorable. Nothing she does changes this. Even as a pirate, Marines are half trying to save this clearly air-headed cutie from the poor decisions of those scoundrel pirates holding her up as a figurehead.

This is absolutely not the case but Garp thinks it's funny and half refuses to believe otherwise so he throws his weight in to support that idea.

Anyway, Ace is still a bit bratty with a heart of gold and genuinely, truly cares about the people around her. She's not as concerned about her father's shadow because she's too busy being pissed that out of all that terrifying legacy she managed to only get Lethal Cuteness.

Dadan has an interesting time raising her cause she's not immune to cute, she's just so pissed at how quickly those watery eyes get to her it ends up failing anyway. Dadan does, however, meticulously teach Ace caution about her looks and how to best use them and when. She's strong enough on her own to not worry too much at least, but it's a much more prepared and cautious Ace that leaves Dawn.

She's very put out when it's confirmed by Shanks that the cute is almost certainly from her mom cause Roger was definitely an idiot at times, but no one was cooing over a grown man like they would over her. She did get most of his coloring though. She thanks her lucky stars she doesn't have strawberry blond hair or the airhead allegations would never die, no matter how many times she sets marine bases on fire.

Anyway, the funniest part is that there's a mix up or someone gets the bright idea of having her taken out by other pirates since other warlords clearly weren't cutting it. Or at least 'scaring her off from the dangerous world at sea since she somehow hadn't gotten overwhelmed yet, that poor girl'. Which leads to the false claim she wants Whitebeard's head.

She's so pissed about it cause it's even written with an undertone of an enamored relative cooing about a toddler offering to beat up someone's husband if he doesn't treat their favorite auntie right or something. It's so condescending and if she didn't know full well it wouldn't help at all, she'd actually kill Whitebeard just to shove the obituary down the author's throat.

Which leads to the inevitable clash of wills where she (in a rare display of what's left of her bratty childhood self) whines that she has no intention of killing Whitebeard.

"I can already see it now!" Ace whines, throwing her hands in the air as Thatch and Marco give each other a look. Whitebeard watching in great amusement. "I could have all the strength and power in the world! Able to kill you with a flick of my finger before you could even blink! And! And you know what would happen?!"

She whirls around to glare at Thatch and the man instinctively steps back, hands up in a placating gesture like it's flu season and the nurses were ready to put the shots in dart guns if anyone else tried to run.

"Uh... We'd be very sad?" He tries lamely, struggling to not coo at the soft pout that transformed Ace's sharp features to round, apple cheeks. Face flush as she stomped her foot with a strangled screech.

Whitebeard was exactly no help at all, it was all he could do to not pick her up and cuddle the tantrum out of her--like she was five.

"The next FUCKING DAY--THE PAPERS WOULD BE ROLLING OUT! EVEN IF THERE WERE THOUSANDS OF WITNESSES AND LIVE COVERAGE BY EVERY HARD ASS MARINE AND GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL--UGGGH!" Ace shot of flickers of fire, sparks that flew from her hair as she ruffled it aggressively. Black curls dancing around her face and shoulders. Just as suddenly she deflated, huffing in defeat with a dramatic pout. "Oh, the strongest man finally gave up his reign of terror--just couldn't bring himself to fight back against wittle Cinders Ace! Heart probably gave out at her little cutie pie attempt to stand strong against a big, mean, pirate! Poor thing, bet she didn't even know what was happening until it was over! Whitebeard, dead by natural causes due to old age. Good riddance. Hope someone saves that poor, silly girl from all those nasty pirates taking advantage of her!"

Thatch awkwardly pat her shoulder, cautiously consoling her.

"Aw, honey, it's alright. We were there front and center when you fought Oyaji! You knew exactly what you were doing! And crazy strong too--where the hell did you even come from?! Papers say East Blue but they're also pretty biased about you so..." She huffed but he wasn't scorched, so Thatch considered it a win.

"Nah, I'm from the East Blue... Well, I was born in the South but my mah died in childbirth and Gramps brought me to his home island. Maman raised me from there." She sighed, lightly flicking his hand off her shoulder, which Thatch removed without complaint. "Been like this from day one. Can't have shit around here without some asshat talking about me being so damn cute and precious. Setting them on fire only does so much... For some reason most think I do it on accident? Like, no???? I set your dick on fire after hitting on me for half an hour and putting your hand on my waist, that shit was intentional."

Ace whines some more.

Whitebeard doesn't seem dissuaded in the least from adopting her. Yeah, she has issues, but it was arguably one of the funniest problems a pirate could have.

Too cute to commit crimes.

[drcyrusbortel]

A Whisper In Polyester

Ship: Starco

Summary:

Sleeping in microgravity is a funny business. Sleeping bags can be used at any angle, anchored to any convenient surface. Air currents blowing across your face soothe and relax, and prevent the accumulation of lethal amounts of carbon dioxide. Some say the dreams are better, more vivid. And so are the nightmares.

Fluff, tie in to Space Unicorn.

=/=

This author does not own the Star vs the Forces of Evil franchise. This story was written for personal amusement.

=/=

“Star! Star! Help!”

Marco flailed his arms in vain as he continued to sink into the pitch-black depths of Europa’s subsurface ocean. His thick, titanium diving suit was dead, his comms were down, and the diving-suit-clad zombie dragging him down refused to let go of his leg. He took a deep breath, and looked down, his helmet lights illuminating his yellow, Michelin-man-like legs.

Instead of a single diving-suit clad zombie, a horde of them now clawed at his suit. Marco looked more closely at the zombies. Some had charred, red skin, broiled by ship-to-ship lasers. Some had been half-spattered into goo by kinetic projectiles. And some, victims of anti-ship particle beams, were in the throes of radiation poisoning, vomiting their guts out, their hair gone, and their skin burnt, moaning in pain…

All were clad in the uniforms of the Japanese Space Defense Force. Enemy combatants, killed on his orders.

His suit sprung a leak, and the overwhelming stench of the alien ocean – window cleaner, compost, and coal tar – wafted into his nostrils. He tried to pinch his nose, and smacked his arm against his visor.

“Marco! Marco!”

“Star? Is that you?”

Star, helmet lights blazing and arms outstretched, grabbed Marco’s hand.

The fetid water filled his suit fast, and Marco took a deep breath. This didn’t make sense. The immense pressures of the deep ocean should have knocked him out instantaneously. And zombies weren’t real.

“Marco! Marco! Wake up!”

=/=

Commander Marco Diaz, Joint Government Space Force, awoke with a jolt, and, writhing in his microgravity sleeping bag, slammed into the figure floating over him before careening into a wall.

“Ow! Marco! Are you up?!”

Marco looked around the habitat. Fireproof Velcro. Sleeping bags. His handheld and laptop, which he had left floating in the center of the room and were now pressed up against an air vent.

And in the middle of it all, Star Butterfly, her long hair spread into a broad fan that seemed to cover the whole room.

“Sorry.” He rubbed his forehead. “Just a bad dream.”

“The uhhh… underwater zombies again?” Star pulled herself against Marco’s sleeping bag.

Marco nodded as they drifted towards the ceiling. “Yeah. Europa… really messed me up.”

“Do you… want to talk about it some more?”

Marco shook his head. “It’s late. You need the rest.”

Star opened her mouth to protest, but fell silent as she examined the pained look on Marco’s face.

Marco closed his eyes, trying his best to think of anything other than water and death.

A sturdy weight clamped over his chest, and he began to feel around. Another sleeping bag had been belted to his. He opened his eyes as Star snuggled into her own bag.

“Star, I don’t think…”

“Shhh. It’s okay.” Star hushed. “More mass means less acceleration for a given force. When we’re together, nobody’s going to be pushing us around.”

“More inertia.” Marco replied.

“Yeah, so things can stay the same.” Star said.

Star began to drift off to sleep. Fans whirred gently as they detected the room’s increased occupancy, and the gentle hiss of a valve echoed through the ventilation system.

“Forever?” A whisper in polyester.     

Star mouthed her reply.

“Forever.”

=/=

[opera-ghosts]

OTD in Music History: British composer and suffragist Dame Ethel Smyth (1858 - 1944), the first female composer to ever be granted a damehood (in 1922), is born in London. Few figures in musical history have led a more colorful life than Smyth. After having a bitter fight with her father over her desire to pursue music as a career, Smyth was allowed to study composition at the Leipzig Conservatory. Although she left after only a year (disillusioned with what she considered to be the low standard of teaching), her brief attendance there put her in contact with a host of musical luminaries including Clara Schumann (1819 - 1896), Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), Pyotr Tchaikovsky (1840 - 1893), Antonin Dvorak (1841 - 1904), and Edvard Grieg (1843 - 1907)... and upon her return to England, she also formed a fast friendship with Sir Arthur Sullivan (1842 - 1900). Smyth's extensive body of work includes two notable operas: - For more than a century, "Der Wald" (1903) claimed the distinction of being the only opera composed by a woman to have ever been produced at New York's Metropolitan Opera (until Kaija Saariaho's [1952 - 2023] "L'Amour de loin" was premiered in 2016). - "The Wreckers" (1906) is also widely admired, and considered by some critics to be the greatest and most historically important British opera composed between Henry Purcell (1659 - 1695) and Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976). Smyth’s last major completed work was a symphony entitled "The Prison" (1931). By the mid-1930s, she had gone almost completely deaf. But that's not all. Smyth was *also* a prominent British suffragist (she was imprisoned for her political activism) who lived openly as a lesbian at a time when such things were almost unheard of. At the age of 71, she fell in love with writer Virginia Woolf (1882 - 1941), who was nearly 25 years her junior. Woolf was both alarmed and amused, comparing it to “being caught by a giant crab." The two women eventually settled into a close platonic friendship. PICTURED: A formal portrait photograph showing the young Smyth her beloved dog, Marco. Also shown is an 1931 autograph letter written and signed by Smyth concerning her musical activities.

Smyth rescued Marco from the streets of Vienna during his student days at the Conservatory. In her memoirs, Smyth later described Marco as “half St. Bernard, and the rest whatever you please.” Marco quickly became the joy of Smyth's life, and he would happily spend hours lying quietly by her side as she composed -- often with his head resting on the pedals of her piano. Marco’s most infamous moment undoubtedly occurred when Smyth was invited to attend a rehearsal of Johannes Brahms' (1833 - 1897) F minor Piano Quintet that was taking place at Brahms's apartment. Although Smyth wisely left Marco tethered outside, he simply refused to be parted from her for that long -- and so at some point while the young Smyth was inside seated at the piano and turning pages for Brahms, Marco managed to get loose from his leash, dash up two flights of stairs, nuzzle open the unlocked front door, and make his way into the drawing room where Brahms and four local Viennese musicians were rehearsing. Bounding onto the scene, Marco immediately dove under the piano (overturning the cellist's music stand in the process) and wiggled his way in between Smyth and the astonished composer. As Smyth later described it, Brahms “rose to the occasion” and “laughed till he got purple in the face" while happily petting Marco. (No word on how the cellist reacted.)

[beardedmrbean]

Ukraine said talks with the United States in Saudi Arabia were progressing "constructively" on Tuesday, with a partial ceasefire with Russia on the table hours after Kyiv conducted its largest drone attack on Moscow in three years of war.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga attended the meeting in Jeddah – which Russia was not participating in – as President Donald Trump ramped up pressure on Ukraine to end the war that began with Russia's 2022 invasion.

The talks follow President Volodymyr Zelensky's public dressing-down at the White House, after which the United States cut off military aid, intelligence sharing and access to satellite imagery. 

Ukraine is hoping the offer of a partial ceasefire in the sky and at sea will persuade Washington to restore the assistance.

"We are ready to do everything to achieve peace," Ukrainian presidency chief of staff Andriy Yermak told reporters as he entered Tuesday's meeting at a luxury hotel.

A Ukrainian official, who requested anonymity, later told AFP the talks were "going OK, a lot of questions have been discussed".

Kyiv said the "largest drone attack in history", in which hundreds of drones slammed into Moscow and other areas overnight, was intended to push Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to the aerial and naval ceasefire.

"This is an additional signal to Putin that he should also be interested in a ceasefire in the air," said Andriy Kovalenko, a national security council official responsible for countering disinformation.

Three people were killed in the attack, which both sides said was the biggest so far on Moscow. Russia's army said it intercepted 337 drones around the country.

Minerals deal

Zelensky, who met Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler in Jeddah on Monday, left the White House late last month without signing an agreement pushed by Trump that would give the US control over Ukrainian mineral resources.

Zelensky has said he is still willing to sign, although Rubio said it would not be the focus of Tuesday's meeting.

Rubio, who is accompanied by national security advisor Mike Waltz, said the aid suspension was "something I hope we can resolve" in the talks.

"Hopefully, we'll have a good meeting and good news to report," Rubio said.

Rubio said the United States had not cut off intelligence for defensive operations.

"The meeting with the US team started very constructively, we continue our work," Yermak said on social media Tuesday. 

Asked whether the overnight drone attack could derail peace talks, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov said: "There are no (peace) negotiations yet, so there is nothing to disrupt here." 

He also declined earlier to comment on Russia's stance on the proposed partial ceasefire.

"It is absolutely impossible to talk about positions yet," he said. 

"The Americans will find out only today, as they themselves say, from Ukraine to what extent Ukraine is ready for peace."

For its part, Russia has escalated strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure, and said it had retaken 12 settlements in its Kursk region that Ukraine had captured in a bid for bargaining leverage.

Rubio seeks 'concessions'

In the infamous White House meeting last month, Zelensky refused to bite his tongue in the face of criticism from Vice President JD Vance, with the Ukrainian leader questioning why his country should trust promises from Russia.

He has since written a repentant letter to Trump.

Faced with Washington's pressure, Ukraine will lay out its support for a limited ceasefire in the sky and at sea, a Ukrainian official told AFP on Monday.

Rubio signalled that the Trump administration would likely be pleased by such a proposal.

"I'm not saying that alone is enough, but it's the kind of concession you would need to see in order to end the conflict," he told reporters.

"You're not going to get a ceasefire and an end to this war unless both sides make concessions."

Rubio said he did not expect to be "drawing lines on a map" towards a final deal in the Jeddah meeting, but said he would bring ideas back to Russia.

Rubio and Waltz met last month with counterparts from Russia, also in Saudi Arabia, ending a freeze in high-level contacts imposed by former president Joe Biden after Russia defied Western warnings and launched its invasion.

Trump last week also threatened further sanctions against Russia to force it to the table as it carried out strikes on Ukraine.

But Trump's abrupt shift in US policy – including suggesting Ukraine was to blame for the war, and recently siding with Russia at the UN – has stunned many allies. 

Rubio said Monday that the United States would also object to "antagonistic" language on Russia at an upcoming gathering of Group of Seven foreign ministers.

[llycaons]

reread 83: LET'S GO!!!!!!!!

DO YOU THINK YOU'RE HELPING??? MARCO???

all alone in this panel...just repeating her name over and over again :(

he doesn't even consider she's not human...he's so in denial

not too late for what? to become the enemy of the catholic church? come with us to where? to be arrested and confined? to leave imuri to die?

literally everyone who is close to priest: imuri may be a demon, but she's a mentally and emotionally stabilizing force in his life and he really needs her and cares about her. marco swanning in going welll YOU guys have missmanaged the situation! and immediately creating a situation in which priest attacks his fellows, runs away from the chuch, and seek refuse in HELL. this needed a more delicate touch!!!

oh I wonder if dante knew about imuri. it wasn't really relevant, ig. he seemed to like that priest had someone to be with and didn't really think about her more than that. hehe. verge and priest are paralled in this arc, but dante and the boy are the two catholic priests who are in love with people on the other side. and dante's gay and the boy is horny...really not the picture of a perfect catholic priest the church has in mind huh. or I guess if they can ~overcome temptation~ they are...ugh. but they're people with the right to themselves, and the series knows that and shows it in like a very kind way I think

ohh his angel halo! and it's black and smoky!

fucking hell is he trying to kill them? leah and barbara are in there!

fucked upppp. because that's her admission. he knows what she's apologizing for

the 'oh, man' is really good. very much imuri's style of dialogue

ALL ALONE....

I hadn't even remembered that this happened....what a move to pull. daniel's like OKAY we can get him now and priest pulls THE MOST POWERFUL DEMON LORD?? out of his back pocket? they're so fucked

crazyyy how immediate this is. like she is INSTANTLY there. only issue w reading on mangadex is they split up these two-page spreads so it's hard to tell what the full picture is unless you cut and combine them like this

this is the full quote from the inferno, we're about to see, btw. it's really astonishingly beautifully written

'Before me things created were none, save things Eternal, and eternal I endure. Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.'

IT'S TIME!!!!!!! oh I am grinning so hard. I LOVE these panels. definitely some of my favorite in the series. levy snaps up priest and imuri and goes, and the priests are left racing rather pathetically after him

as for the quote, it's just an intro phrase. what comes next for priest priest is somewhere he's never gone before, certainly. both physically and emotionally

bloody gun in a pile of candy. ain't that just the way. dante's jaw is a bit horrifying, but for shooting himself in the head he actually came out fairly unscathed besides from being. dead. verge pulling dante's body to the mouth to get to gehenna like that is so sad bc verge isn't too short but he still isn't the size of a grown man and he's struggling. and CRYING....yeah verge I think you might still be in love with him!!

the quote is a part of a phrase that doesn't mean a lot on its own, but I believe the entire quote essentially means 'the only things that exist in hell are things that can survive it' it's a dark and torturous way to state it, so tonally I think it matches really well

this part of the story is also the most direct reference to dante's inferno. dante and virgil, going into hell, dante as a mortal man and virgil as his guide and friend. virgil was a roman poet who I THINK was trapped in purgatory bc he was a pagan who lived before jesus. am I going to have to sparknotes dante's inferno? I really don't want to....I have negative interest in Italian poetry I'm going to be so real. just the aesthetics and some references would be great for me😭

anyway purgatory must be full to bursting. hey god this was a pretty fucked-up system you devised here. I feel like so many bible stories are god being like oh mannn that's fucked up I gotta change it and then killing thousands of people or creating a guy just to die for everyone. well maybe if you were omnipotent and all-knowing and merciful as you pretend to be and demand worship for THIS WOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED 🙄

'eternal I endure' over images of priest over imuri's body, himself enduring, and the dream world dissolving....really neat juxtaposition

pretty straightforward. satan know they're here. ABANDON ALL HOPE!!!!!

CLAPPING AND CHEERING AND SCREAMING!!!!! I see dragons. I see collapsing buildings, I see floating ice shards, I see a ruined city, I see flames and skulls. what kind of place do we have HERE!!!!

END!!! OF!! PART!! FIVE!!! LET'S GO!!!!!!!!

[cozage]

The Daughter's Return Part 3

Chapter 10: Change in Plans

Start From Beginning | Next Chapter | Table of Contents | Read on AO3

Characters: female reader x Portgas D. Ace Word Count: 1.2k

Sanji was the first to approach your unmoving form. He sat in front of you and held out a plate. 

“You should eat. Ace told me you needed to eat.”

Ace’s name made you flinch, but other than that you showed no sign of seeing or hearing Sanji. In a sense, you didn’t hear him. Everything felt distorted, like you were underwater or in a dark and echoey cave. 

This wasn’t happening to you. It couldn’t happen to you. Ace would be back soon. This was all a big misunderstanding. 

“Come on,” Sanji said. “I hate to see you like this, darling. You need to eat. He’s not worth it.”

Tears filled your eyes. “You don’t know anything, Sanji,” you snapped. “So don’t talk about things that you don’t understand.”

He seemed startled that you addressed him, but he took that as a good sign. “Listen, you’re a beautiful lady. You don’t need him, so just-”

“I need him,” you whispered. “I need to find him. I need-” you eyes widened. “His vivre card,” you breathed.

You rushed to your feet and raced to your bag, pulling out a clip of papers.

Whitey, Brew, Dad, Marco, Jinbe, Izou, Curiel, Shanks, Namur, Haruta, Epoida. 

You looked again. Whitey, Brew, Dad, Marco, Jinbe, Izou, Curiel, Shanks, Namur, Haruta, Epoida. 

No Ace. His card had drawings of hearts all over it. You did it so his card would stand out against the others. It was impossible to miss. But it wasn’t there. 

“Luffy!” you called out, clipping the papers back together. “Did Ace give you a piece of paper?”

“A paper?” Luffy asked, staring at you confused. 

“A paper.” You held out your other vivre cards as an example. “Like this?”

Luffy stared at your hand long and hard, and then shook his head. “Nope.”

“Luffy.” Panic was rising in you, desperation beginning to spill into and seizing your muscles. “Give me the paper.”

“He didn’t give me one.” Luffy turned away from you, unable to meet your eyes. 

You knew he was lying. You could see it written all over his face, which is why he was hiding it from you. But could you fight him for the possibility of getting Ace’s vivre card? You didn’t even know where the card was hidden, and Luffy wouldn’t give that information up, even if you did try to beat it out of him.

Plus, beating up Luffy meant beating up his crew too. Could you fight every Strawhat here? Logistically, it’d be a walk in the park. But you weren’t sure if you could live with yourself. You’d have to convince him. 

“I promise I’ll give it back when I’m done with it, Luffy.”

“He only gave me the snail,” Luffy said, his lip sticking out in defiance. 

“Please,” you begged. “Ace will die without-”

“Ace won’t die!” Luffy yelled, glaring at you. “Have more faith in him! He has faith in you!”

Your lower lip trembled, and you bit it to keep it steady. Luffy clearly knew nothing. Ace didn’t have any faith in you at all. Or else he wouldn’t have left.

“Luffy!” Sanji screamed back in your defense. “Don’t yell at a lady!”

“You’re yelling at Luffy now!” Zoro yelled.

“Yeah, ‘cuz he’s an idiot, idiot!”

“You won’t find it,” Luffy assured you, ignoring his crew. “I don’t have it.”

You knew he did have it, but you couldn’t bring yourself to take it from him by force. So you walked to Yuba with the crew, hoping that he might change his mind the more you were together. 

You didn’t eat. Sanji begged and pleaded with you, but you refused meals. You considered laying down and never moving again, letting your bones get covered by the sand. 

“You’re being dramatic,” Luffy finally said, shoving a spoonful of stew in his mouth. “Ace knows what he’s doing. He’s not stupid. And if you’re really actually mad at him, you need to just go punch him. Don’t suffer because you’re mad. That doesn’t make any sense.”

“I can’t find him, Luffy,” you hissed. “That's why I need that piece of paper you have.”

He stuck his lips out again, pouting at your aggression. “I told you I don’t have a paper.”

You rolled your eyes, clearly not believing him.

“Besides,” Luffy added. “Someone else has to have this paper you keep talking about, right? Go ask them!”

You perked up at that thought. All of the subordinate captains had each of the commander’s cards. Which meant Whitey would have Ace’s card. If you could convince her to give you his card, you’d be able to follow it back to him. 

“You’re right,” you agreed, reaching for your spoon. You unconsciously ate while you thought, trying to work out the kinks of the plan. 

It could work. It would take some time, but Ace had left you all the money. You could probably buy a small, old sloop. If you couldn’t afford one, you’d just steal it and leave the money you had as payment. 

You still had Whitey’s vivre card, and you knew she was in Paradise. Brew was as well, if Whitey wasn’t able to help you out. You had plenty of people who had Ace’s card. 

And just like the ship, if they wouldn’t give it to you, you’d steal it. You’d find a way back to Ace so you could fight Teach together. Together, with your strategy and his power, you were certain you could do it. You were certain you could win. Your spirits lifted just a little bit, thinking about the possibility of meeting back up with Ace again. 

You all only made it about halfway to Nanohana before Luffy demanded they turn around and head back for Rainbase. 

But Rainbase would only delay you further, and you didn’t have a moment to waste. 

“You guys go,” you said. “I’m going to keep on going to Nanohana and find a ship.”

“Are you sure?” Nami asked. “What if you get lost?”

“I’ll be fine,” you said. “It’s only another day or two, isn’t it? It can’t be that hard.”

“A lady shouldn’t travel alone,” Sanji said. “What if-”

“Sanji,” you laughed. “I could kick anyone’s ass who’s on this island right now. Yours included. I’ll be fine.”

Sanji collapsed backward, overtaken by your words. 

“Follow the brightest star in the sky at night, and use the sun as a guide during the day,” Vivi offered, trying to give you a crash course of desert survival. “Nanohana is south-east, so follow the sun in the morning, and keep it to your back in the evening.”

“Ace wanted you to stay with us,” Luffy said. “But if you need to go find him, then you should.”

You gave him a polite smile, trying one last time. “You could give me something that would help speed up the process.”

Luffy deadpanned. “Don’t have it.”

You rolled your eyes, laughing lightly. “Alright, alright.”

You gave them all a deep bow. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me. Even when I didn’t want it.”

“It’s nothing!” They all said in unison. 

“I’ll see you around, Luffy.”

“See ya!”

And with that, you and the Strawhats went your separate ways.

--

Tag list! @taeyoge @teiza @tojislawyer @trafalgardnami @bloopbopsblog @dancingnewcat @dxestyi @flooofity @nyxthedragon01 @deadsnothere @h-rhodes1598  @morgyyyyyyy @trafalgardvivi  @fiestynatureweeb @frogpogjoghurt @beepboopcowboy @ms-portgas @luvyallbabes @appalost @zuchkaa @saybeyonce @stray-npc @kitsunechan707 @theyluvmesblog @heartysworld @aira-needs-sleep  @mothmomjay @ophelias-flowerss @aqualein @sehyojae

[vettelsbitch]

#kidfic anon oh my God, can't believe I've got my own # that's insane

And with your explanation, yes yes, I have to admit, you're probably right. Buuuuut is it too early on to ask how you think, Cele would make a move? During one of their movie nights? After dinner? Is Teo already fast asleep next door or is Luca involved? Too many questions and I am grinning like an idiot <3

Hi bestie! Of course you get a #! You're making me want to write this so much <3

I haven't thought that far in advance yet, maybe in honor of Bezz's birthday today it could happen when Marco comes back from celebrating his birthday with his friends, Cele convinced him to leave Teo with him so he can go out with Luca and Pecco, and he goes out and has a great time but he also can't stop thinking about Teo and Cele, cuddling on his couch watching one of the spiderman movies for the hundredth time and he really misses them. It's not that he doesn't want to spend time with his friends but he really misses Mateo and Cele. So he tries to leave after only one beer, Pecco tries to protest but Luca lets him go with a knowing look.

He gets home and he was right, Teo is cuddled against Cele's chest on the sofa, almost asleep and when Marco opens the door his head pops up, curls bouncing. Cele's head pops up a second later, and Bezz is just like "I missed you guys".

They finish the movie together, Marco is giddy but stopping himself, he tells Cele he can go, that he's with Teo, but Cele refuses, tells him he still needs to see how the movie ends. Ofc bezz doesn't want him to go, but he feels he needs to give Cele an out always.

Then, when they both tuck Teo into bed, and Marco almost tears up when Mateo asks Cele to give him a good night kiss too, Cele pushes Bezz to the living room, pushes him on the sofa and goes to the kitchen, grabbing a spiderman muffin he had bought and the little birthday candle, lighting it up and quietly singing him happy birthday not to wake up Teo.

When bezz blows out the candle, Cele has said "remember your wish". As soon as the little bit of smoke dissipates between them, Cele rushes forward and pressed a kiss against Bezz's lips. "I hope I'm not wrong about your wish." (Bezz did wish for something like more nights like that). And they just spend the next thirty minutes kissing and making out on the sofa like teens. Cele does go back to his flat tht night, Bezz still wants to take it slow.

And Luca absolutely asks him the next morning if he got his twink.

Buuuut don't take this as absolutely written in stone canon because it might change, just an option as to how it could happen.

[onenettvchannel]

THIS JUST IN: 'Hailey's On It' ends after a historic One Season in Series Finale with a worst cliffhanger end [#K5NewsFMExclusive]

(Written by Marco Ubaldo Diaz / News Reporter of Disney XD News)

OCEANSIDE, CALIFORNIA -- The final new episode of "Hailey's on It!" concluded with a worst shocking cliffhanger for one (1) historical season as Hailey Alohilani Banks was caught allegedly cheating with her new boyfriend (Mr. Sanjay Singh), during a prom date of Oceanside High School (OHS) in the state of California last Friday night, which was first released online early Saturday morning (May 18th, 2024 at 12mn) on Disney NOW and therefore later that same day on Disney Channel at 8am (Pacific local time).

DWFH-FM 97.7mhz's K5 News FM: Dumaguete got an exclusive scoop that it was due to a new fictitious mobile app called 'SnackMatch' (a derivative version of 'Tinder', owned by Dingles Worldwide Snacks and Tires Corporation [DWSTC]) based from a suggestion by Ms. Genesis. Surprisingly but suddenly, there will be two (2) red flags in the prom date night at OHS as one SoKor-FilAm (South Korean-Filipino-American) named 'Scott Denoga' unexpectedly a victim of 3rd wheel relationship. For Hailey however, suspiciously ends up cheating with Sanjay, after Mr. Denoga invited her as a new boyfriend and en route via Limousine Car to the Oceanside High School for "Totally 80's to the Max" event because of this aforementioned matchmaking app.

For a brief context of what is this show is all about… "Hailey's on It!" is an American animated television series that follows the adventures of 'Hailey Alohilani Banks', who was an ingenious and purposeful young teenage girl in Oceanside, California, United States of America (U.S.A.) that faces different challenges with a positive attitude and quick thinking, free from future robot enemies known as Chaos Bots.

The show is designed to inspire and entertain children with Hailey's problem-solving skills, which can be used to handle unexpected situations with full creativity and confidence. This typically features Hailey facing a new problem in each episode, which she solves by the end, often learning valuable lessons along the way. Its humorous narrative style, vibrant animation as well as engaging fictional lead protagonist characters make it popular among its newly targeted audience for Americans.

In the 30th final new episode called "I Wanna Dance with My Buddy", Hailey's plan to go out with Mr. Denoga on a dance night event and confess her feelings to him gets spoiled when a compatibility app claims they are incompatible with each other, just like Ms. Destiny. But on the dance floor, they do not jive well.

Kristine Sanchez, a locally active social media influencer and the ex-boyfriend of Mr. Denoga, informed him that he has been doing it all wrong in the mobile algorithm survey because he redoes the surveys on the 'SnackMatch' app, and he finds himself compatible with Hailey per the potential match between Butter and Lobster. Excited, he becomes eager to go out with her that night but Hailey had already dated any one of Usher’s fictional back-up dancers or an endorser for the cologne advertisement like Mr. Sanjay Singh whom she just met from 'Botany Camp' where she mentioned him as friends and later becomes her new boyfriend.

Fortunately for Mr. Denoga, he is assuring that the suspected 3rd wheel relationship with a new girlfriend of Mr. Sanjay to be supposedly dating with Hailey is an absolute red flag and hits a major roadblock. Beta urgently reminds Hailey about her duties with the list item #143, but she refuses to let said list, or Beta, be in control of her life. She rips into pieces her confession letter in the advertised flyer and then throws it into the garbage bin.

Sometime later during the prom dating night in the "Totally 80's to the Max" dance event, a scene of a catastrophic future flashes in front of Mr. Denoga as Beta later tells him about the list item Hailey has been hiding from Sanjay, which badly surprises Denoga with a worst cliffhanger end.

It is way undetermined if Hailey ending up having sex with Sanjay throughout the night, and possibly getting married instead of Mr. Denoga at the end of the prom dating night at Oceanside High School in California: "In case I haven't said it lately, thanks for being a great friend. Y'know, I don't think cookies and lobster sound so bad together", Hailey said. Per the end credits at the photo booth, pictures are taken without any problems and everyone goes home for the night, leaving for a 2nd Season abruptedly scrapped by Disney after one season, which never to be animated and greenlighted due to low popularity of the fanbase.

Despite the upcoming scrapped episodes in Season 2, we obtained the exclusives in the episode titles are 'Say Funcle', 'Mean Squirrels', 'Nobody Puts Beta in a Corner', 'Dead Bots Tell No Tales', 'No Money, More Problems', 'Trick or Traitor', 'Night of the Living Pumpkins', 'Diss and Break Up', 'California Schemin', 'Suddenly, Sanjay', 'Cirque du Bro-leil' and 'Dude, Where’s My Cousin?'.

In the follow-up leaked scrapped episode script of 'Say Funcle' involving a 3rd wheel (known as the Love Triangle) or unexpected character developments in the relationships of Hailey Alohilani Banks, Sanjay Singh and Scott Denoga. Introducing a third wheel or exploring themes of cheating could indeed create a dramatic and suspenseful plot twist, leading to a cliffhanger ending that leaves viewers intrigued and eager for the next episode from the Season 1's final episode as a series finale. Such narrative choices can add depth and complexity to the characters and their relationships, making for compelling storytelling in the series.

The scrapped episode in the lost media follows Hailey and her friends dealing with challenges and adventures at Funcle Fest. Hailey hides a unique talent from Mr. Sanjay, but when he discovers it, he appreciates her even more. The said episode also features Beta struggling with a disco protocol and ultimately combusting, leading to a humorous and unexpected ending which the list item was quite censored to the public.

Now, to sum it all up, there are two (2) common red flags that may arise in relationship based from a final new episode of "Hailey's on It": Forced Cheating and a 3rd Wheel. Some of the red flags in relationships that may suggest on both sides including… Love bombing and rushed intimacy very early on; Overt jealousy, possessiveness, or attempts at control; A perfect persona that seems too good to be true; Secrecy or a lack of transparency in actions and communications; Changes in behavior or routine that are unexplained; And emotional distance or a lack of intimacy.

On the other hand in 3rd wheel… Ongoing tension and arguments may indicate that the 3rd person like Mr. Sanjay (the new girlfriend with Hailey) is becoming too involved in the relationship; Emotional distance between partners, where one partner like Mr. Denoga may be sharing more with the third wheel than with their significant other; Secrecy or deception regarding the nature of the relationship; And prioritizing the third wheel over the partner, which can manifest in time spent, emotional investment or decision-making.

The unhealthy relationship couple of 'Scailey' (Hailey Alohilani Banks and Scott Denoga) must seek emergency professional help at Good Therapy San Diego (GTSD) in Oceanside City to explain the unexpected behavior with Mr. Sanjay from the 'SnackMatch' matchmaking app, which can be turned over alone to Mr. Denoga. It is best to maintain open and honest communication with their partner about her feelings and concerns; observing behavior and communication patterns; set clear boundaries and expectations for transparency and fidelity; and invest in the relationship by spending quality time together like Hailey and Denoga, ensuring both partners' needs are met.

The thing is, one whole season of the American cartoon series of "Hailey's on It!" is not enough. Fans of the show wants to give themselves more, but the popularity is losing interest in the fanbase and never to be animated & greenlighted by the Disney Television Animation (DTVA) staff. Although in real life like Scott Denoga, the shipping name between Hailey and Sanjay are now called 'SanLey'. Denoga is at risk by permanently breaking up with her during the prom date night. The 2nd Season may potentially soon in the works for production, except for the leaked episode scripts can be finalized in the final version, which is subject for the last resort approval.

We try to reached out with Dingles Worldwide Snacks and Tires Corporation [DWSTC] (whose the matchmaking developer app of 'SnackMatch') to address its relationship policy issues, but it refused for a comment via E-Mail correspondence on our news team to K5 News FM Dumaguete.

For now, Denoga needs to take time in Season 2 to accept his defeat if its greenlighted by Disney Television Animation, in order to address a list item #143 that needs to be seriously done before Chaos Bots ending up for a mass murderer to avoid these red flag relationships and disasterous events at the end of the prom date night.

SCREENGRAB COURTESY: Disney Television Animation via DisneyNOW VIDEO BACKGROUND PROVIDED BY: Tegna

SOURCE: *https://haileysonit.fandom.com/wiki/I_Wanna_Dance_with_My_Buddy *https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/HaileysOnItS1EP56IWannaDanceWithMyBuddy *https://disneynow.com/shows/haileys-on-it/season-01/episode-30-i-wanna-dance-with-my-buddy/vdka36641651 *https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hailey%27s_On_It! *https://thecoastnews.com/new-disney-animated-series-takes-place-in-oceanside/ [Referenced News Article via The Coast News] *https://haileysonit.fandom.com/wiki/Oceanside_High_School *https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Scott_Denoga *https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Genesis *https://www.goodtherapysandiego.com/oceanside-therapists.html *https://desuarchive.org/co/thread/143702889/#q143711342 *https://www.healthyplace.com/relationships/celebrate-love/my-partner-cheat-never-29-red-flags-that-may-suggest-a-cheater [Referenced Editorial Article via Healthy Place] *https://verywellmindset.com/what-are-red-flags-in-a-relationship/ [Referenced Editorial Article via Very Well Mindset] *https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/finding-true-love/202005/six-signs-emotional-cheating [Referenced Editorial Article #1 via Psychology Today] *https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-the-sheets/202109/why-people-ignore-red-flags-trouble-in-their-relationships [Referenced Editorial Article #2f via Psychology Today] *https://maplewoodcounseling.com/relationship-red-flags/ [Referenced Editorial Article via Maplewood Counseling] and *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkJzXH3qZZI [Referenced YT VIDEO via Psych2Go]

Always stay informed and entertained with OneNETnews and OneNETtv Channel. Championing in the service of the Filipino, Dumaguete and Negrosanon's News Leader!

-- OneNETnews Online Publication Team

[midnightraine131]

Pairing: Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart

Minor: Levi Ackermann/ Hange Zoe, Historia Reiss / Ymir

Tags: Fluff, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Teenage Love, Awkward First Times, Slow Burn, POV Armin Arlert, Bottom Armin Arlert, Wet Dreams

Warning: R18 contains sensitive topics

If you are easily triggered by religions, specifically Christianity and Catholicism, I don't think this fic is for you.

I have nothing against these religions and this fic is anything but serious.

Summary: They say the most judgmental people are those who attend church on Sundays.

Despite growing up in a Christian household, Armin Arlert felt overburdened by the pile of ministry activities assigned to him. So he made a pact with himself to never follow in his father's footsteps and become a pastor. With the goal of saving enough money to persuade his parents to let him move to another state after high school, he started accepting paid essay projects in school in secret.

Everything in Armin's busy life seemed manageable until he met Annie Leonhart, a Californian girl whose parents had moved her against her will to Vermont. Upon discovering Armin's secret business, Annie approached him with a unique request- to write love letters for a long-distance lover. To craft the perfect love letters, she would help Armin embark on a journey of firsts— his first kiss, first hug, first date, and first everything in a relationship.thing in a relationship.

‐----‐------‐-----------------------------------------------

Armin stared at the ceiling of his bedroom, which probably hadn't been dusted off since last year. He was quite certain that a spiderweb had recently formed in the corner just above his bed.

No, it wasn't just his imagination or a result of a lack of sleep. That was indeed a real spider web.

Sighing for the third time since he woke up, he decided to finally leave his bed and took the feather duster from one of the cabinets, stood on his bed, and dusted off the ceiling.

Armin hadn’t checked his phone to see the exact time yet, but it was still in the middle of the wee hours, about one or two hours before his father would knock on his door to ask him to join the early morning devotion. It was Sunday, which meant he would be busy later in the day, but his body refused to go back to sleep. He tried to keep himself busy by cleaning his room and organizing his books, from his school textbooks to books on How to strengthen your faith in God written by pastors his father had met at a church conference in New York.

Despite all his efforts to keep busy, he couldn’t get his mind off his previous conversation with Annie the night before.

“Who reads love letters nowadays? Does she think this is 1965 London?” He whispered in annoyance as he stacked his old notebooks inside one of the shoe boxes.

Rejecting her request was probably one of the toughest decisions he had made as a young adult. Guilt crawled back into his chest as he recalled the disappointed look in her eyes when she failed to get help from him. Armin wondered why she couldn’t write the letter herself; she could've expressed her feelings better.

Or?

It could be that she had already tried but couldn't come up with the words.

Armin closed the shoe box and slid it further beneath his bed.

He sighed.

Whatever the reason, Armin didn’t know. He had already given his answer, and that was that.

When Armin was sure that everything was in order in his room, he walked to his bedside table and pulled the charging cable from his phone. He scrolled through messages in his inbox and found a text from Marco from the night before.

Marco: Hey, man. Are you free for a call?

Das won’t be able to make it to church tomorrow.

He has some school projects due.

Can you substitute for drums tomorrow?

So sorry to bother you at this time.

Armin pursed his lips as he typed a response, but he left it unsent. There was no point in replying if he was going to say no. It had been a year since he last practiced drums. He didn’t know the song lineup for tomorrow, and even if he did, he needed some time to practice again, or he'd embarrass himself in front of the churchgoers. Plus, he didn't want to be on the same stage as Jean.

Armin turned his head, slightly tilted, and switched off his phone, shoving it under the pillow. He stood up and made his way to the bathroom. As soon as he opened the bathroom door, a faint smell of bright citrus greeted his nostrils. It must have been Annie’s perfume from the night before. He reached out to take the rubber band from the top of the tissue holder to tie up his hair, but something caught his attention.

He had a habit of folding the tip of the tissue paper into a triangle shape. Aside from it looking neat, it would be easier to pull it down the next time he needed to use it.

Armin grimaced at the thought of her faking an emergency. At the very least, she could have put on a more believable act — such a weird girl.

The boy spent the last hour arranging his toiletries, replacing doormats and restocking toilet paper. He lit a scented candle before he decided to get ready for the day. He picked out the best suit he had: a well-pressed white long-sleeve shirt and a navy-blue necktie that his mother had given him on his 15th birthday. He laid the garments on his bed along with matching trousers.

It must have been around a quarter to six when his dad knocked on his door to ask him to join the morning devotion. He obediently followed the old man and went on with his day, almost forgetting about Annie.

Once he and his family reached the church, his father went to one of the rooms to speak with some leaders. Armin immediately approached Marco as soon as he spotted him with the band. He apologized for not reading his text message earlier. The freckled boy shrugged his shoulders and assured Armin that there was nothing to worry about since Das had made it to the church on time.

Next, Armin attempted to approach Jean, since he was still a member of his group, but the taller boy didn't seem to be in the mood for conversation, so he was ignored. Later, Armin found out from Marco that Jean’s mother had discovered some erotic magazines under his bed and had informed the pastor. So, much to Jean’s dismay, he received an invitation from the pastor to attend a prayer meeting after the service.

It wasn't good news for Armin either; it meant he had to stay back with Jean for the prayer meeting since he belonged to his group. That was the downside of being a youth leader.

Glancing at the multimedia team, who were busy setting up cameras and lighting on the podium, Armin tried to spot any sign of his green-eyed best friend, but it seemed he hadn't yet arrived at the church, as usual. He found Zeke in the control room, placing large headphones over his ears as he conducted a sound-check.

Then he looked around and spotted his mother sitting in the front row, engaged in a conversation with Mrs. Jaeger. The walk down the aisle was not as easy as on ordinary days, but on Sundays, as the son of a pastor, people would swarm around Armin, asking him random questions such as, "How are you?" "We saw your family picture on Facebook — such an admirable, perfect family." "How's your youth group going?" "How's school?" "Oh, you look so much taller than the last time I saw you."

Interactions used to be fun when Armin was young, but nowadays, he's growing tired of faking smiles. Out of politeness, he acts the same way—faking, pretending, lying. Armin could tell he's been good at acting like the perfect son. But in the eyes of God, he's not, and he's tired of it.

"Armin!"

He whirls around, flashing the same fake smile he has displayed on his face for the past twenty minutes. "Hi, Floch!"

The ginger-haired boy with a horrible bird's nest hairstyle nudged him on the shoulder as he walked alongside him. "Have you asked Ymir and Historia about the youth camp?"

Not this question again.

Armin inhaled deeply before responding to the question. "Not yet, but I don't think—"

"Deadline for registration is tomorrow. You can ask them to sign up then if they really can't make it — we'll just give their slots to other people. Registration is free unless they have already confirmed, so nothing to worry about," Floch suggests, shrugging his shoulders before he turns and disappears into the crowd.

Armin wasn't fond of Floch's idea. As far as he remembers, nothing had been mentioned about registration fees when the leaders briefed them about the camp. But maybe nothing would be lost if he could give it a shot when he drops by Ymir's house after school tomorrow. That's what he thought.

As soon as the boy settled himself next to his mother, he greeted them, acknowledging their presence. Mrs. Jaeger waved at him, smiling. He sat properly, like the model son he is, before his eyes wandered — glancing at the podium, at the crookedly mounted lapel, and at the people taking group photos in the corner of the room. He overheard his mother opening another topic to talk about with Mrs. Jaeger.

"Mr. Leonhart cannot make it today," his mother sighs. "I'll need to send him today's gospel." She picked up her phone from her bag and snapped a photo of the monitor on stage with some Bible verses written on it.

Mrs. Jaeger leaned closer to Mrs. Arlert's shoulder to barely whisper, a conversation Armin could clearly hear. "I heard he's having trouble with his daughter. You know, the one who just moved here from San Fran."

"Oh, really? I met the girl once; she seems nice. What about it?" Mrs. Arlert inquired while texting the person they were gossiping about. Multitasking clearly runs in the Arlert family. Armin rolled his eyes at the thought.

Read more

[mai-atsumi]

Introduction/ Requests (Open)

I am Mai, a Jojo and One Piece fanfiction writer, and I'm here to tell you what to expect from my work:  1. Inconsistency- I don't usually have a defined post schedule 

2. I don't specialize in angst, and Im bad at it, but I am much better at writing fluff and smut

3. I have favourite characters, and I write about them more often

✖= Smut

❤= Fluff

★= Angst

☀= Platonic

✓=Family

☎=Sensitive content 

Warnings that apply will be in the beginning notes

Rules: 

When it comes to requesting your favourite character, you have to know what is and isn't okay

NSFW/SMUT: Only characters over 17 can be requested for NSFW. This is because if I were to write explicit content with characters under the age of 17 that would be counted as writing bout' children and I'm not cool with that

➨ Exceptions are kissing and making out for some characters (Characters that are 14 or younger obviously won't be making out with anyone) 

I also write character x character!!!

Things I refuse to write: 

Scat play (You are not 5) 

Pedophilia 

Zoophilia (And I mean a full-on ass animal like a squirrel, that's actually nasty) 

There's probably more, but I don't really want to know more than I already do

Examples of things I can and will write: 

Non-Con/Rape (Depends)

Stalking 

Human Experimentation

Ect.

Things I can do:

One Shots

Head Canons

Short stories

ect

Requests (Open): 

When giving me a request, I would appreciate it if you got specific

As the reader here's what you can request: 

Reader Pronouns: Gender Neutral Pronouns, Feminine Pronounds, Masculine Pronouns. (I do not use Neo or custom pronouns) 

Reader's Gender: Female, Male, TransFem, TransMasc, Gender Neutral/ Non-Binary

You can also ask for a gender-swapped character (Ex: Female Joseph Joestar, Male Nami) 

Relationship: You can request to have a history with your requested character. (Ex: Avdol's girlfriend, Smokey's best friend, Bruno's older sister, Luffy's sister, Smoker's rival, ect) 

Plot: If you have a specific prompt or idea, like the plot or storyline please say so. (Ex: Proscuttio and Pesci go out on a mission with Reader to kill a politician who is hosting a ball and Pesci and Proscuitto fight over who gets to dance with Reader) (Ex. Reader is sick and Lisa Lisa is taking care of her,) (Ex. Ace meets an old crewmember from the spade pirates and falls in love)

Writing style: Poetry, Novel, etc 

Multiple characters

Alternate Timeline/universe: The Twilight thing where everyone is either alpha, beta, or omega, Modern timeline, School Au, Ect. 

Example of a request: 

Cherryberrylady: Heyyy Mai! (>_<) Can you write an Annasui x Reader? Like, I really want it to be like, Annasui is stalking Reader a little, like putting cameras in her house type stalking, and in her car too maybe. and like Reader is going home and Anasui is watching them thru the cameras and Annasui like, watches them masturbate..? and he hears them moaning his name. (づ￣ ³￣)づ  Its okay if you don't want to tho!!! Also maybe end it where Annasui talks to Reader the next day and asks them out. ( ﾟヮﾟ) Also!! when it comes to the reader can you make their pronouns gender-neutral? 

Mai-Atsumi: Of course, and your request was so greatly written- Only the best of the best could've made such a perfect request... Or

Numberoneacecocksucker: Hey Mai, can I ask for a pre-timeskip Ace x reader where the reader is a member of the Whitebeard Pirates as Thatch's younger sister and Thatch doesn't want Ace to go after his sister but Marco also likes reader to? Make sure its Female gender/pronouns please! Mai-Atsumi: Sure thing! Ill get to it right now! Right after I finish my other request!

[mariacallous]

MANILA, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for a deadly bombing at a Catholic Mass in the Philippines on Sunday that killed at least four people and injured 50 others.

The attack was carried out in a university gymnasium in Marawi, a city in the south of the country besieged by Islamist militants for five months in 2017.

The Islamic State group, which wields influence in the country's south, said on Telegram its members had detonated the bomb.

Earlier on Sunday, before Islamic State's claim, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr condemned "the senseless and most heinous acts perpetrated by foreign terrorists". Police and the military strengthened security in the country's south and around the capital Manila.

In Rome, Pope Francis offered prayers for the victims during his Sunday address, and, in a separate written message, appealed to "Christ the prince of peace (to) grant to all the strength to turn from violence and overcome every evil with good".

Law enforcement operations to bring to justice the perpetrators of the "terrorist activity" will "continue unabated", Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told a press conference.

There were "strong indications of a foreign element" in the bombing, Teodoro said, refusing to elaborate so as not to compromise ongoing investigation.

Fragments of a 16-mm mortar were recovered at the scene, senior police official Emmanuel Peralta told the press conference.

HIGH ALERT

The blast in Marawi, capital of Lanao del Sur province, followed a series of military operations against local pro-Islamic State groups in the southern Philippines, the military chief said.

One on Sunday in Lanao del Sur led to the killing of a leader of the Dawlah Islamiya-Maute group.

"It is possible that what happened this morning was a retaliatory attack," Armed Forces Chief Romeo Brawner told the press conference.

The Islamic State-linked Maute seized Marawi on May 2017, seeking to make it a Southeast Asian "wilayat" – or governorate - for Islamic State.

In the ensuing five-month battle, Islamist fighters and Philippine forces killed more than a thousand people, including civilians.

Images shared by the Lanao del Sur government on Facebook showed military officials surveying the gym at the Mindanao State University where the blast occurred, which appeared intact except for burn marks in the centre.

Videos posted by DZBB radio on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, showed rescuers carrying injured people out of the gym on plastic chairs.

Police offices in Mindanao and the capital region were placed on high alert and police checkpoints tightened "to prevent possible follow-up incidents", police official Peralta said.

The coast guard directed its districts to intensify pre-departure inspections at ports.

Mindanao State University said in a Facebook post it was "deeply saddened and appalled by the act of violence that occurred during a religious gathering". "We unequivocally condemn in the strongest possible terms this senseless and horrific act."

The university said it was suspending classes until further notice.