#; tales.

[acekthe]

this wasn’t how the morning was supposed to go  of coffee stains and goodbyes    ›   featuring jes

had it not been for their clumsy attempt at catching the books they had in hand, ace probably would have been able to save the fall of the coffee cup. he saw it coming from his periphery but his reflexes hadn’t been fast enough, the lukewarm content spilling all over her white turtle neck, staining the rest of her plaid blazer too. he mutters a curse beneath his breath as he ushers for the staff if they have any paper towels in hand, the woman rushing to the back room to grab some. 

“you good?” he asks despite himself. there’s a line creasing between her brows and he can tell she’s a little flustered. soon enough the expression turns into a pout, probably sulking at the thought of walking around with a giant stain on her clothing.

”i look like a giant mess.” she whines quietly and looks up at him with a frown. 

he can’t stop the quirk that takes over his lips, an eyebrow cocking slightly. “just a little mused, but nothing too bad.” the assurance isn’t enough for her and he can tell by the way she dabs at the front of her chest, his eyes falling over the brown pigmentation against the white fabric. 

“tell you what,” he starts, moving to assist her. he keeps in mind to be careful and wipe around at areas not too close to her chest area. “we can head back to my hotel and i’ll lend you something clean. i’m sure you’ll be able to work something out with this blazer of yours, it wont look too bad.”    

the flicker of hesitation in her eyes is brief, probably just desperate to rid of her coffee stained coffee. he laughs at the thought, casually flinging an arm to rub at the small space between her shoulder blades. even as they’re heading out of the shop she’s fussing and sulking about so he continues to soothingly rub the same spot. “it’s fine, jes. you’re just going to make it worse. besides, you smell good with that coffee stain on you, i’m feeling all energized.” 

he knows she’ll not take the teasing lightly and she doesn’t when he feels her jab her arm onto his side. he groans but grins to himself, leading the way back to his hotel room.

they don’t take a long time in the hotel room, with jes continuing to complain about her soiled outfit as alex quickly tosses her a neutral colored top, something he knows she’d appreciate as to not stick out like a sore thumb in the crowd. “it’ll be baggy casual,” he teases in his best fashionista tone, lounging on the sofa while waiting for her to change. 

the thought of someone else in his clothes catches him in a rather uninhibited emotion, even anticipating how she’d look like in it. he can’t say he’s imagined her clad in his clothing from the short amount of time that they’ve gotten to know one another but now that the idea has crossed the threshold of his thoughts, he cannot get it out. so when she steps out of the room while tucking at its length unceremoniously, he holds his breath and just stares.   

“it looks good on you,” he compliments, running a tongue over his lower plush. he knows exactly the reason why he suddenly feels heated: it all has to do with the sight of her in his shirt, eating her in its size. he could be mistaken but he thinks he reads a flustered expression cross her features before she flashes him a bashful smile. 

and now a few hours later he finds himself standing right beside her, a stupid grin plastered to his face. his cheeks are so stretched against the biting january wind from smiling so widely but he doesn’t really notice, not when jes is right beside him. he steals a glance. she looks comfy and cozy and warm and there’s nothing more satisfying but the sight of her winter kissed cheeks and the sated expression she wears. 

“so this is it,” she breaks the comfortable silence as her uber pulls up the curb, its hazard lights blinking momentarily. she looks up at him, her eyes twinkling against the rays of sun, feeling himself sinking in her dark orbs. “i’ll text you later?”

his smile falters a bit as he reaches down for her hand, bearded mouth brushing delicately over the back of it as he presses his lips to her warm skin for a fleeting kiss. “yeah, text me once you’ve made it to the airport and when you land.” he holds her gaze and her fingers, giving them a gentle squeeze. “i’ll see you next time, yeah? besides,” he tugs her closer to him, wrapping an arm around her waist for an embrace, giving the hem of his henley shirt a playful pull. “i need to collect this back. this is one of my favorites so i’m going to trust you to take care of it for me.”   

[telltaletypist]

i am a woman at war with herself, torn forever between my love of detective fiction and my hatred of cops and cop media

[io-lu-art]

A tale of Ba Sing Se.

[fata-vocant]

medieval backstreet boys: you are… my friar

[cocopudu]

mane 6 but they're gen 2 !? 🌟⭐️✨💫

[julnites]

Red riding hood comic collab with the wonderful @yeehawpim (go check out their blog for loads of great comics!) 🌷 See the layouts he did here!

[thecollectibles]

Bluebeard by Marjolaine Roller

[trudlejack]

(+part 2)

[soothedcerberus]

Does anybody remember Dragon Tales? 🥺

[cpericardium]

I wanna read this so bad

[acekthe]

@mcmxcvixi

the plan was to leave for the night unnoticed and unnoticed he did as best as he could. hell, he even purposely lost in the game he’s best at just to prove the point. 

but being a wallflower has never been his forte. in a pool of men all clad in their well ironed suite crisped to perfection, ace practically sticks out like a sore thumb. but perhaps the fact that he can’t stop stealing glances at the petite woman right beside him alludes to that. at first it was because of the way she played - poorly, really, like she’s never been dealt a hand of cards before. in fact, if she were to admit that it’s her first time actually playing, he wouldn’t be surprised. however, the more he attempted to read her bluff, the more he actually looked. 

truth be told, she’s a curious little thing. for starters, he can’t fathom what she may be doing here. amongst the group of stockholders for hanjin group’s newest project, she seemed to have been the youngest participant. a maiden in her twenties perhaps, white skin that looked like it would be velvety soft to touch, red lips that contrasts vividly against her fair complexion. her long dark hair tumbles into soft curls over her neckline, wispy and almost.. tempting him to reach for it and curl a strand along his forefinger.

to his credit, the intel he was assigned ton have been ticked from his checklist. he knows the names, knows their occupations. after an hour and a half of playing poker and getting the important part of his assignment accomplished, a little room for actual fun and entertainment is well deserved, no? 

he’s never been good at sticking with his plans after all and that’s exactly why he’s so good at what he does. instead of keeping to himself, he finally breaks the silence between them after taking a long swig of his whiskey. at this point, his guards are down and his tongue is loose. if not now, when? 

“you don’t play cards often with these men, do you? they made a fish out of you.” long appendages begin to roam the inner pockets of his coat, finally meeting her gaze as he pulls a cigarette. he feels himself drowning in the dark hues of her eyes, lips quirking slightly. “you mind?”

[telltaletypist]

your favorite youtubers and content creators are about to be offered some tantalizing tv/streaming deals so we're all about to find out who the real working class allys are

[fairydropart]

Meet me at the hollow log

[star-ocean-peahen]

After watching Cinderella (the original animated movie, which was my favorite as a child), it strikes me how it solves many common problems people have with this fairy tale. Like:

Why did they try to identify the mystery girl using her shoe size? Because the bullheaded king's only clue to her identity was the shoe the Grand Duke picked up off the steps.

Why didn't the prince recognize her by her face? Because his father wouldn't involve him in the process at all, and wasn't the one going around trying to find her.

Why did the prince want to marry a lady he only met that night? Because his father was going to force him to marry someone, and he genuinely liked this woman.

Why did Cinderella want to marry a man she only met that night? Because marriage was her best and most secure way to freedom. Fucked up, but you can't say it's unrealistic for the setting of a fairy tale. She also genuinely liked him.

If they're using the slipper to find her, wouldn't it be more sensible to search for the person with the other slipper? Yes. The King is purposefully nonsensical and the Duke is purposefully terrified enough of him to carry out his orders to the letter. Furthermore, they end up doing that in the end anyway, because the Duke's glass slipper is shattered, and Cinderella brings out the one she has to prove her identity.

Why didn't the stepmother and stepsisters recognize Cinderella at the ball? Because they were dancing too far away, and then left the party to dance in private, which was possible because the King wanted very badly for his son to hit it off with someone and tried to arrange the best conditions for that to happen.

Why didn't Cinderella save herself? Because in real life, abuse victims should not have to shoulder that responsibility, and usually can't. In real life, you need and deserve an external support system. Asking for help, in this kind of situation, is very important. She is saved by others because she is loved. Because she is not alone. Because she has friends who love her, and want her to be happy and safe and free. Because in real life, people who want to help someone who is suffering are like the mice. We can't pull out miracle solutions, but we can provide companionship and if we're in the right place at the right time, we can help the person find a better life.

Why didn't the fairy godmother save Cinderella from her abusive household, or try to help her sooner? Because she's magic, and magic can't solve your problems. Quote: "Like all dreams, well, I'm afraid it can't last forever." This (and Cinderella's dream of going to the ball) is a metaphor for pleasurable things in bad circumstances. An ice cream won't get rid of your depression, but it will provide you with momentary happiness to bolster you, as well as the reminder that happiness in general is still possible for you. Cinderella doesn't want to go to the ball so she can get away from her stepmother and stepsisters, or so she can meet someone to marry and leave with. She wants to go to the ball to remind herself that she can still have things she wants. That her desires matter. This is important because the movie does a very good job of illustrating Lady Tremaine's subtle abuse tactics, all of which invisibly press the message that Cinderella doesn't matter. While going to the ball and fulfilling her dreams may not be a victory in the material sense, it is still a victory against Lady Tremaine's efforts.

Why is Cinderella's choice to be kind and obedient framed as a good thing, when you are not obligated to be kind to your abuser? This one walks a very fine line, but I think the movie still makes it make sense. Lady Tremaine never acknowledges her cruelty. She always frames her punishments of Cinderella as Cinderella's fault. Cinderella is interrupting, Cinderella is shirking her duties, Cinderella is playing vicious practical jokes. Cinderella is still a member of the family, of course she can go to the ball, provided she meet these impossible conditions. Lady Tremaine's tactics are designed to make Cinderella feel like she must always be in the wrong and her stepmother must always be in the right. If Cinderella calls her stepmother out on her cruelty, or attempts to fight back, Lady Tremaine can frame that as Cinderella being ungrateful, cruel, broken, evil, etc. If Cinderella responds to her stepmother's cruelty defiantly (in the way she's justified to), she's not taking control out of Lady Tremaine's hands. Disobedience can be spun back into her stepmother's control. She wants Cinderella to be angry and sad and show how much she's hurting. So since Cinderella is adapting to her situation, she chooses to be kind. Not only because she naturally wants to be and it's part of her personality, but because it is a form of defiance in its own way, and it allows her to keep a reminder of her agency and value. Her choice to be kind is her chance to keep her own narrative alive: she is not obeying because her stepmother wants her to and she has to do what her stepmother does, but because she wants to. It's a small distinction, but one that makes all the difference in terms of keeping her hope and identity. (Fuck, I wrote a whole paragraph about how this doesn't mean you can't be angry at people who hurt you or that you need to be kind to deserve help, and then deleted it by accident. Uh. Try again.) Expressing anger and pain is an important part of regaining autonomy and healing. Although it is commendable to be kind while you are suffering, it is NOT required for you to get help or be worthy of help. If Cinderella's recovery was explored beyond "happily ever after" she would need to let herself be angry and sad to heal. Cinderella is not only kind because it comes naturally to her, but because it's her defense against the abuse she's suffering. Everyone's story and experiences are different, and one does not invalidate the other.

Bonus round for answers that aren't part of the movie:

Why didn't Cinderella run away? Where would she go? Genuinely, in hundreds-of-years-ago France, where would she go if she snuck out of the window with a change of clothes? With her step-family, she's miserable and abused, but she's fed, clothed, and in no danger of dying or being taken advantage of by anyone other than her stepmother and stepsisters. Even if she escapes and manages to find financial security, her stepmother might be able to find her and get her back.

Why didn't Cinderella burn the house down with them inside it/slit their throats in the night/poison their food/etc.? Because that's a revenge fantasy, and this story is a fantasy about being saved. There's nothing wrong with making Cinderella into a revenge fantasy. That's perfectly fine, as long as you acknowledge that the other type of fantasy is also a valid interpretation. (I mean, the original fairy tale features the stepsisters getting their feet mutilated and all three of them getting their eyes pecked out, so go for it.)

Why isn't Cinderella more proactive in general? Because she's a child who has been abused for the back half of her life, who has had to be focused on survival because. you know. she's an abused kid.

How did she dance in glass slippers? Gotta agree with you there man, that's weird.

[morning-star222]