#Concorde takes a trip

[el-blog-pepe]

To Kick the Habit.

Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: #698 To Kick the Habit St Patrick’s day is coming, Concorde takes a trip and Meaghan Markle’s back on Instagram. https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/joseph-mc42/episodes/698-To-Kick-the-Habit-e2h44o2

[drconstellation]

Stocktaking in the Basement

Aziraphale's Edinburgh Journey: Part 3

Usually one would think of going through their memories as a learning experience as more of a "rummaging around in the attic" metaphor, since the brain, the keeper of memories, is in the highest part of our bodies. But one of S2's underlying themes is the looming Second Coming and the resurrection of the dead, so its underground that we need to head - to the basement.

Aziraphale does a great deal of "stocktaking in the basement" during his trip to Edinburgh. He recalls the encounter with the body-snatcher Elspeth and her companion wee Morag in 1827 on the way up, has his memory jolted by the statue of Gabriel to something more recent, then thinks about what happened in 1941 on the way back. We are largely going to deal with aspects of the 1827 minisode in this meta, and some possible implications for S3.

Lets have a look at why this year, 1827, was chosen for this minisode. The Anatomy Act of 1832 gave doctors and medical students legal permission to use donated bodies for research and educational purposes, and was made so to stop the distressing trade of body snatching that was occurring at the time. But this minisode isn't necessarily about stopping that activity, rather the reasons for doing it in the first place. Looking at Strong's Concordance, as we must, in the Greek, 1827 gives us "convince" or "prove to be in the wrong." This sounds about right for this minisode, which includes the conversation about poverty inducing more opportunities to be wicked, which somehow leads to holiness, from the book. The minisode shows how Aziraphale has this idea turned around for him - he's convinced otherwise, and shown how his initial beliefs about the practice turn out to be wrong.

Also, around 1827 is the time when the building of private mausoleums was at its peak. A mausoleum was (and still is) a display of wealth, so featuring one here plays into the story in the minisode of the virtues of poverty versus the rich. (It's also a call back to the origin of the Bentley's number plate, which was written on a mausoleum in a Monty Python sketch.)

Digging Up the Past

Shax does her own stocktaking when she receives the above push-back from Crowley, and realizes that Aziraphale is not in the bookshop at all at that moment, and goes looking for him. Later, she digs up his own dirty past to taunt him with, in an effort to make him crack and give up Gabriel.

But why is Aziraphale digging up this particular memory at this time? We know he is fond of Edinburgh and has visited many times, so this particular memory must contain something of importance for us to see.

There is the title of the minisode, some Masonic symbology and the metaphorical act of the snatched bodies as the dead rising from their graves which all point us in the direction of the Second Coming and Judgement Day, which we will cover in Part 4, so we'll put that to the side for the moment.

Changing Sides

Let's have a look at some of the blocking of the scenes in the Resurrectionists minisode. This wont cover everything, so if you do go back to have another look at it yourself, do pay close attention to who stands where.

When we first meet Crowley and Aziraphale in 1827, they are standing on what we think of as their "normal" sides, angel on the right and demon on the left. Elspeth, caught in the act of body snatching, is even further to the left, the real demon on the scene, which actually pushes Crowley back to the middle ground.

Straight afterwards, we see all three of them walking together through the streets of Edinburgh. Crowley is still in the middle, but now Elspeth is in the angel's position and Aziraphale on the far left as a demon, as they all discuss the virtues of poverty. Oh dear, Aziraphale, you're losing the argument here, and losing badly!

Inside Mr Dalrymple's rooms, Aziraphale decides to take matters into his own hands, where he thinks he is doing the right thing, and miracles the first body into soup. Elspeth is caught innocently in the middle of this, and Dalrymple is on the demonic left.

A conversation is had with Dalrymple following this. Crowley is hidden in the right-hand chair, Aziraphale, who needs to be swayed, is in the middle, and Dalrymple is still on the demonic left.

After heading back to the cemetery for another body, Crowley and Aziraphale inspect some of the protective measures set up to guard the graves. Crowley is still on the moral right, questioning if the rich are more worthy of being protected from body snatchers than the poor.

Despite changing his mind about body snatching, Aziraphale still ends up on the wrong side of the argument in the end. As a giant Crowley looks down on the two of them, its Aziraphale standing on the demonic left side as the virtues of poverty lose out once more.

Timely Lessons

Back to the fireside chat with Dalrymple. We have this heartfelt reaction from Aziraphale when he learns the preserved specimen he is holding came from a seven-year-old boy.

AZIRAPHALE: [takes the jar] Well, that's a foot. So it's definitely not a foot. [laughs] DALRYMPLE: That's my point. If you two smart gentlemen can't identify it, then what are my students to make of it? I removed this tumor from a seven-year-old boy. AZIRAPHALE: Oh. Oh dear. And… Is he…? DALRYMPLE: [shakes head] And that is why we need a steady supply of cadavers. We need to cut. If we can't cut, we can't learn. If we can't learn more, a lot more, then how on earth are we going to win the battle against monstrosities like this one? I'm just trying to save lives and teach students. I either end up with a knighthood or condemned as a resurrectionist and hanging from a rope.

This, I feel, is an important lesson for them, and it seems for Aziraphale in particular. Why? This part focuses more on his reaction to the tumor, rather than Crowley's, and when we focus on Aziraphale it has ramifications for the future.*

A physical problem is usually easily identified (such as the foot). But what if the problem is invisible, because its on the inside? How do you see into a body, find a problem and make it visible, if you have not been presented with this problem before? Or perhaps you know something is wrong, but don't know what to call it?

It doesn't even have to be physical, it can be a mental, or a psychological problem. One still has to learn how to "see" the problem, to identify what it is (such as a particular pattern of behaviour) and to know the best course of action to overcome it.

Crowley wishing for more murderers to facilitate Dalrymple's research is one thing, but not being able to save a 7 year-old boy...this is the theme of the death of innocent children we've seen repeated throughout the series (the Flood, Job's children, the aborted attempt on Adam, the Crucifixion, and the implications around Crowley's Fall, to name a few.)

This also plays into the "representation matters" theme from the end - you can't be what you can't see.

This is not a lesson about the fact that they care, because they do, but how they learn to see the real problem in the first place.** I'll be interested to see the matching scenes/parallels to this in S3.

The Two Dalrymples

It has not gone unremarked that there is a Dalrymple mentioned in S1 as well - Witchfinder Colonel Dalrymple, who made the fancy Thundergun that was taken to Tadfield to shoot the antichrist with.

Now we can talk about the connection between the two Dalrymples - they are both about removing "monstrosities" from humanity.

Take the line in the passage above: "If we can't learn more, a lot more, then how on earth are we going to win the battle against monstrosities like this one?"

As I've mentioned before, the root of the word monster is from the Latin for monstrum, "a divine omen (of misfortune)," but also monstrare, which means "to point out," which bring us back to this scene in S1, on the tarmac of the Tadfield Airbase:

Aziraphale took Witchfinder Colonel Dalrymple's Thundergun to remove the monstrosity that was Adam the antichrist to save humanity, and Mr Dalrymple the surgeon is trying to learn how to remove and save humanity from the monstrosity we know as cancer. I'm just making a spot now on my S3 bingo card for a third Dalrymple mention, that will no doubt have some connection to the removal of monsters and/or monstrosities from the world.

Balancing the Books

The final bit of stocktaking might just be the coldest part of the whole recall process.

When Aziraphale calls from the cemetery in Edinburgh, he mentions Dalrymple's fate to Crowley:

AZIRAPHALE: Oh, do you really think so? Um, Crowley… Do you remember Dr. Dalrymple, The one who bought, err… CROWLEY: Wee Morag's body. Not a doctor… A mister, yes! Yes, whatever happened to him? AZIRAPHALE: [reading pamphlet] He left Edinburgh in disgrace. And then he killed himself. CROWLEY: Mmm.

Mmm, indeed. They might have saved Elspeth from Hell to meet up with wee Morag again, but the count of souls was still balanced out in the end, with Dalrymple heading the other way. The last time we see him he is still on the demonic LHS of the screen in blocking as he pays for wee Morag's body. Hell had him marked well in advance of his demise.

Time to move on to Part 4: Judgment Day, where we look at all the signs that the End Times are approaching. Again.

Thanks to @vidavalor for the thematic inspiration for this post.

For further reading:

You Say Potato, I Say Excellent! Or blocking, accents and legacy of morality tales in ‘The Resurrectionists’ minisode PART II by @pommedepersephone

The linked post at the beginning Historical Analysis: class and injustice in 'The Ressurrectionists' minisode by @bowtiepastabitch is here.

An intro to Elspeth and wee Morag being parallel characters to Aziraphale and Crowley by @good-soupmens I'm going to follow up on this in Part 5.

*I explained in Part 2 that I believe we are being shown the future through Aziraphale and his parallel characters, Beelzebub and Maggie. Another reason for this is that in S1 is that Anathema is one of his parallels, and she is also caught up with living in the future through the prophecies of Agnes Nutter. In contrast, Crowley's story, and that of his parallels, such as Gabriel and Newt, are about the past and trying to live the life you want that isn't bound by expectations. Urrgghh, I can see I might have to expand on this somewhere later.

**Crowley, with most of his story in the past, shows us an example of this with his "looking where the furniture isn't" comment.

The other posts in this series can be found here:

Part 1: Detective Aziraphale Part 2: Aziraphale-Beelzebub Parallels Part 4: Judgement Day Part 5: I Know Where I'm Going

[gatabella]

"I was surprised how much of my high-school French came back to me. Bogie was very proud of me speaking the language. It was very halting, but they understood me - vocabulary small, accent good. I felt mysterious and exciting speaking French… Immediately I could see how artistic the French were - the simplest food looked beautiful, the furniture, even farm furniture, had its own unique flavor and tremendous style. I told the driver to warn me before we reached Paris so I could prepare myself. I was breathless with anticipation. The green of the French countryside was unlike any green I had ever seen. Suddenly he said, 'You can see the Eiffel Tower - in about ten minutes we'll be in the center of Paris.' I held Bogie's hand tightly - I couldn't believe I would finally be there. I must have been French in another life, or why did it mean so much? And then there it was - Arc de Triomphe, Place de la Concorde, the Seine, Louvre, Left Bank - the beauty of it! My eyes were not big enough to take it all in. And then the Place Vendome and the Ritz Hotel, where we were going to live. Paris seemed so open - no crowded New York streets, no skyscrapers - the Paris sky so blue - our suite at the Ritz so romantic."

-Lauren Bacall on her first trip to France in 1951

[hooked-on-elvis]

Elvis' worry and wholeheartedly support to Priscilla

Elvis was about to film the MGM picture "Speedway". On June 10, Presley and his entourage (wives included) boarded on the Grey Hound bus that George Barris had "customized so lavishly for Elvis". Filming began on 26 June 1967. Scenes were shot at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.

Great news fell on the Presley family just before the trip began.

Priscilla had her own reasons for resentment. Just before they left on the cross-country trip she found out that she was pregnant. Her first reaction was one of anger. Before the wedding she had asked Elvis if she should start taking birth-control pills, but he was adamantly opposed because, he told her, they had not yet been proven to be medically safe. She saw pregnancy as the end of all their dreams. "If I were pregnant, I knew that our plans to travel would have to be postponed…. For the first year I truly wanted to be alone with Elvis, without any responsibilities or obligations." She approached Elvis with a considerable degree of trepidation. "I expected him to react with the same mixed reactions I felt, but he was ecstatic… and immediately wanted to tell everyone." The instant that it was confirmed, he informed his father that he was going to be a grandfather. "You’re going to be a gray-headed granddaddy," he teased him in the doctor’s waiting room, as father and son shared a moment of unalloyed joy. Priscilla was determined not to let pregnancy interfere with her normal life; "as far as I was concerned, the less people mentioned about my looking pregnant, the better," and she went on a program to lose, rather than to gain, weight. She experienced periods of despondency nonetheless, and she made no attempt to hide her deepest feelings from Joanie Esposito, who observed that "it just took all the glow off." For all of Priscilla’s deep-seated ambivalence, Elvis' own feelings seemed to run remarkably true. When Priscilla, in a moment of despair, confessed that she was contemplating abortion, Elvis said he would support her in whatever she chose to do. Brought face-to-face with the necessity of actually making a decision, she realized she couldn’t go through with it. "'It's our baby,' I said, sobbing. 'I could never live with myself, neither could you.' There were no words, only his smile of approval; he held me tightly in his arms as I cried." And when he announced her pregnancy on the movie set, handing out cigars to cast and crew, he showed nothing but paternal pride, mixed with the understandable bewilderment of most first-time fathers. "This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me," he told reporters. "We really hadn’t planned to have a baby this soon. [When] Priscilla told me the good news… [at first] I was so shocked I didn’t think I could move for a while. Then it began to dawn on me this is what marriage is all about." The Colonel confessed that he, too, was surprised, "but I’ve already got a Contract drawn up for the new Presley singer."

Excerpt: "Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley" by Peter Guralnick (1998). Chapter "The Last Round-up: June 1967–May 1968"

The Presleys: Elvis, Lisa Marie and Priscilla

[raainberry]

Record and Rewind

« Photographic film is a chemically reactive material that records a fixed or still image when the film is exposed to light. »

fem!idol x gn!reader

Fluff

synopsis - while on one of your many solo adventures, your signature scent unexpectedly draws in the love of your life to you

word count - 1.5K words

A/N - I got inspired after seeing a picture of Sana and her friends in the snow on Pinterest so I wrote this with her in mind. I don’t use her name though, so feel free to imagine whoever you want. Also if anyone’s actually reading this, this is only part 1 of 2, I’m new here and I thought I would test the waters with it. All feedbacks are welcome, if you’d like the second part, let me know!

“Could you take a few pictures of me and my friends?”

The voice brought your attention from the cloudy sky down to the face it belonged to. Or at least half of it, seeing as they were wearing a mask like everyone else.

It was a woman about as tall as your shoulders, handing you what looked like a film camera. The device hung there for a few seconds as you processed the request. She had pulled you out of a pretty deep trance, but you grabbed it nonetheless, nodding.

Not a sound came out from behind your own mask, not finding any reason for it. You only focused on fulfilling the duty you suddenly got entrusted with.

The woman excitedly ran up to three other women, who you only assumed were her friends, and as she did so, you looked down at the camera in your hand.

You were surprised to see your own reflection in the objective pointing directly to your face. A small chuckle escaped your lips at the sight, and an idea was quick to appear in that creative brain of yours, as it was always the case when confronted to such opportunities.

While a lot of those have lead you to what could be considered as odd situations, this one was part of the softer, more normal and innocent ones.

So you quickly executed it.

“Is everything okay?”

A different voice startled you, catching your attention. Surely one of the woman’s friends, you just couldn’t tell which one though, as you tore your eyes away from the lense and found all of them looking at you with the same questioning look.

“Yes, sorry.” You spoke up, voice cracking softly enough for it to go unnoticed. A product of this solo trip on which you obviously rarely spoke.

You lifted the camera up to your eye, perfectly framing the group of girls who offered a collection of poses, all concording with one another. Some chemistry they had, one that could only be birthed through a long time friendship.

It was somewhat nice to witness such complicity. It reminded you of your own friends, and you suddenly felt a bit sentimental as a memory flashed in the back of your mind. It felt like a lifetime ago you had gotten all together and captured moments like you were doing for those girls.

Hopefully you would get to meet again soon.

“Okay, I think that’s enough.” The black haired one of them laughed.

You nodded in agreement, although the words weren’t directed at you, and met them all halfway to give them back the camera.

The group of friends thoroughly thanked you and released you from duty soon after, to your delight.

Not that it was the worst time of your life—far from that, you loved to help. You simply happened to want to tend to other activities on this short break from this snowmobile trip.

So, glad you could help, you parted ways in good fashion, bowing respectfully before grabbing the notebook from your back pocket.

You found a seat on a bed of snow, undoubtedly covering a small patch of dirt in the middle of these woods, and looked up to find the clouds again.

Your gaze traveled back and forth from the sky to the paper in your lap, hand gliding across it as you drew the sights that caught your attention.

The photographer duty was long gone from your mind in just a few strokes of your pencil, just as was the world around you.

Completely immersed in this hobby of yours, you became oblivious to the most obvious happenings around you.

The small family having a snowball fight not too far away from you, that group of friends joking around a little farther, the guide restarting his snowmobile…

None of those so much as ticked off your mind.

Not even her.

The one your heart would be longing for to the point you’d feel your mind drifting.

The woman you’d just taken a picture of.

Granted, it was a group setting, but it was only a matter of time until you asked yourself how you couldn’t have noticed her.

But boy had she noticed you.

She couldn’t help but feel her eyes drawn to you ever since you parted from her small group.

Your scent had her hypnotized as soon as it had reached her brain.

That sweet, sweet perfume. It hung in the air, surrounding her when you stood near them earlier.

Saying she loved it would be coming short of whatever it was she felt. It had quite the effect on her, so much so it took a beat to realise where it emaned from.

When she did though, it was only natural for her to want to comment on it. To point out how she loved the sweetness of it. That the vanilla her nose picked up on was heavenly.

That one was undoubtedly a strong ingredient in the confection, yet it was so soft in the air. Surely tamed by the blurry floral notes she could make out.

It all blended and landed so well, it felt as though everything was so perfectly dosed and thought out.

She had never smelled anything like it.

There was so much she had to say, but there’s only so much you could tell a stranger. Even though she usually experienced no difficulty in engaging with those, this time was different.

Time was limited on this break, and truth be told… You did not seem open to such a conversation.

So she decided she’d simply let you know she liked it.

However you were gone before her brain even settled, unknowingly leaving her with questions on the tip of her tongue.

So now there she was, stealing glances at you as if it would bring her the answers that had been ripped away from her.

Irrational thinking, sure, but it was the least of her worries. Especially when her friends noticed her behavior and decided not to let this pass under any circumstance.

The afternoon dragged out, the sun only setting after the woman had experienced an unseen before number of playful elbows to the back and teasing jokes.

That trip had turned into quite the teasing fest. It would have been fun if she weren’t the sole target.

Yet as much as she despised it at the time, she could never be more thankful for her friends and what they pushed her to do that night.

While everyone enjoyed the barbecue provided by the trip, all engrossed in conversations neatly guarded by the thick structure of none other than igloos, you made your way out of the one you’d been assigned to.

You’d shared the meal with three other people, a small group of friends who’d come all the way from Canada. They were nice, you had spent a good time, but you weren’t there to make friends.

So when you finished your meal, you excused yourself before stepping out to do what you were there for : appreciate the weather.

Winter, the cold air and winds, the snow… It was a tough season to love, but growing up in a region like Hokkaido sure made it easy for you. Having spent the better half of your childhood in a place like the south of Spain only sealed the deal.

One thing you were never going to get used to though, was stepping out in that weather.

Might as well step into a freezer, it would be the exact same, you thought, the temperature difference between the hot barbecue smoke and cold breeze hitting the sensitive skin of your cheeks.

But boy did it feel good.

You took a deep breath in, feeling the cold air slowly relieve your stuffed lungs before letting out a sigh. The steam spread in the air near your lips before vanishing, and you pulled a piece of paper out from the warmth of your pocket.

You resumed the origami you’d started a few minutes ago, another hobby of yours that made the sound of utensils clacking inside the few igloos around you fade out after a while, only to be replaced by the sound of… steps?

Your eyes shifted up towards the familiar sound of powdery snow being crushed beneath the feet.

The decorative string lights surrounding the iced out restaurant offered a dim and ambient lighting.

Quite the setting for a first meet.

The woman stopped to stand beside you, all cozy looking with her face practically burried in her scarf, her body lazily wrapped in one of those trendy black puffer jackets.

You didn’t think the sight could get any cuter until you noticed the warm smile hiding behind the fabric, and you froze.

Your eyes met.

Knees became weak as hearts went on a marathon.

Not a good mix if either of you were counting on winning that one.

Finally close enough again, your scent engulfed her lungs as she breathed it in, all while her eyes took you in.

She had seen your face from afar about an hour prior, when her friends pulled her attention to you as everyone started up their dinner. She had never been so thankful for contact lenses in her life.

All she had seen so far were your eyes, and while these mask wearing times made way for a few disappointing reveals, yours turned out to only be a teaser of what was hiding behind that cloth.

Needless to say, she found you beautiful.

Amazing perfume, pretty face, seemed to be the artsy type… As much as she wanted to respect your obvious yet unspoken want to be alone, she was but just a girl.

Her friends agreed, she had no choice but to talk to you. At the very least she had to try.

“Hi.” She spoke up, breaking the unofficial staring contest.

That voice, you recalled…

“Is everything okay?”

So it was her.

“Hi...?” You answered, your tone letting her know you wondered about her sudden presence. “Are you looking for something?”

The woman let out a soft chuckle.

“Yes. Your perfume."

[niqhtlord01]

Humans are weird: Calm under pressure

( Please come see me on my new patreon and support me for early access to stories and personal story requests :D https://www.patreon.com/NiqhtLord Every bit helps)    

Makabo had been tour guide on the galactic cruise for over seven solar cycles, or at least he thought it was seven cycles; time tended to get distorted when you spend so much of it traveling between star systems.

Employed by the Furg Dar travel and relaxation company, he worked aboard the flagship cruise liner of the corporation. A massive three hundred story tall space liner known as the Jewel of Concord, it was fitted with thousands of rooms, pool decks, casinos, buffet habitats, and every other wonder your overly excited tourist could dream of and catered to just about every species in the known universe.

As a tour guide Makabo would lead guests off ship in a special transport down to worlds the galactic liner would pass by and take them on an away mission. They’d get to sight see, take several photos, sometimes collect shiny rocks that caught their attention; but in most cases Makabo had seen them just complain about the temperature and demand to be taken back to the Concord.

Every outing he would deal with the same whining guests and every time he would debate just leaving and returning to his dream job of creating musical motion art back on his homeworld. Each time though he was reminded the benefits he, and subsequently his family, were provided via the company and realized he was stuck here for the foreseeable future.

Looking back at everything maybe that was where it all went wrong Makabo thought as he now sprinted through the darkened corridors of the liner. If he had been spending less time contemplating his situation and more time watching his guests he could have caught the problem before it had even happened.

Maybe he could have seen the guest get bitten by the Vespid insect and given them first aid right there and then. Maybe he could have seen the signs that something was wrong and sent them immediately to the medical wing instead of allowing the guests to disperse throughout the ship after returning from the away trip. Maybe if he had filed a fully detailed report someone would have noticed the signs and stopped the outbreak before it had even started….

Or maybe it was the guests fault for taking off their protective gloves so they could run their fingers through the strands of a tendril flower and completely ignore the safety instructions the automated instructor had given prior to departure.

Regardless of how it had happened an hour after their return a report of a violent altercation was reported on Buffet deck 17 between two guests. When security arrived the altercation had sprawled out into a full-scale riot as hundreds of guests were now reported to be engaged in brutal acts of violence. Security reported that those committing the acts of violence had green veins pulsating just under their skin and foam pouring from their mouths like rapid beasts.

Security had tried to keep it contained, but because the ship had been designed to make buffet decks one of the most easily accessible areas on the ship those infected began pouring out in every direction. Before anyone knew what was going on over fifty decks were reporting outbreaks of violence and what security forces had been dispatched were cut off and completely unable to contain any of it. The captain had been in the process of ordering the blast doors for those areas sealed off when the infected breached the main generator relay. The engineer’s screams and panicked shouts could be heard over the intercom just as power went out for the entire ship.

Makabo had been alone in a break room waiting for the next tour to set off when that happened. The emergency lighting had kicked on a minute after the lights had gone out and the break room was cast in a red glow.

Tilting his head Makabo could hear strange things coming from outside the room but before he could even stand up the door to the break room was violently kicked in. One of the maids was grappling with what appeared to be a maddened guest chomping his teeth towards their neck like a rabid animal.

The two tumbled into the table he had been sitting at and went sprawling to the floor as the maid barely kept the deranged guest at bay.

“Help me!” they screamed finally snapping Makabo out of his bemused state.

Grabbing hold of the guest he tried to haul them off the maid and for a few fleeting moments it looked like it was working. The maid was able to scramble back on their haunches before the guest rounded an elbow right into Makabo’s face and he lost his grip. The guest then lunged at the maid as they screamed and dug their teeth deep into their exposed throat.

Makabo watched in horror as the guest bit into the twitching maid over and over; green veins budging across their body as if they were ready to burst from the skin.

Not knowing what to do next Makabo sprinted toward the door and ran down the hallway as fast as his feet could take him.

Now sprinting through the crew hallways Makabo could see that this nightmare was worse than he could ever imagine. Bloodstains splattered across the walls and decking, while the bodies of dead crewmembers littered the grounds where they had fallen; much to his horror some were starting to twitch and fidget as their veins began glowing ever so green.

He had just turned a corner when he heard a throaty cry of agony behind him. Looking back to much his dismay he saw a mob of infected guests running straight towards him. They shoved and bumped into each other like a pack of drunkards and yet their eyes and open mouths held nothing but madness. The mob was only a few paced behind him when a voice called out to him from further down the hallway.

“Out of the way!” Not knowing who was shouting at him but seeing no better option Makabo leaped to the side of the hallway as a pair of flaming bottles flew mere inches from his face. The bottles smashed into the oncoming mob, spraying the group of them with the liquid before the flames ignited them all.

Makabo watched as the mob all but halted their mad rush as the burning infected guests began screaming and flailing about wildly. Some tripped and toppled to the floor sending those behind them who had continued running after Makabo tumbling to the ground themselves as they too tripped and were subsequently set on fire.

Watching the horrific display play out entranced, Makabo as he gasped for breath; his fear induced flight having left him exhausted to say the least. He may very well have just laid there until the flames had died away were it not for a pair of strong hands grabbing him and hauling him to his feet.

Makabo looked up and saw that his savior was a guest, but unlike those chasing him seemed fully in control of their faculties and at the very least wasn’t trying to take a bite out of his flesh. They were covered in bits of torn furniture that had been crudely wrapped around their body by bedsheets in some sort of improvised armor.

As Makabo took in his savior he saw them pull another bottle from their waist with a rag hanging out of it and ignite it before hurling it again into the burning mob of infected.

“Run now,” they shouted through their face coverings, “talk later.”

Without saying another word the guest turned around and began running as fast as they could in the direction Makabo had been running previously. Dumbfounded, Makabo quickly followed his savior down the hall as the burning wall of infected shambled after them. -----------

Following the armored rouge, the pair went through a number of side passages, corridors, and part of a buffet deck. Several times they hid as an infected guest or more often mob of infected shambled their way by before resuming their journey; though to where Makabo still had no idea.

After several more close encounters the two came to their destination. A hallway had been barricaded off with various furniture pieces that looked sturdy enough to keep out the infected. The figure approached the barricade and tapped three times on what looked like a bedframe from one of the nearby guest rooms. Makabo watched as the bedframe slowly slid to the side and provided an opening which the armored figure quickly slipped through, only turning to motion Makabo to follow. Squeezing through the tight gap, Makabo was surprised to see that on the other side was a sharp contrast to the horror filled corridors he had been running through.

There were easily two dozen guests of various species all huddled together in the hallway. The doors to the guest rooms on either side of the hallway were all open and the contents of them had been removed to erect the barricade Makabo was passing through as well as one at the opposite end of the hallway creating a safe area. Boxes of supplies were strewn across the hall or stacked against the sides while guest rummaged through them.

At each barricade were multiple guests wearing similar makeshift protective clothing armed with iron bars torn from the walls or wooden poles with knives taped to the end of them like the spears of primitive species.

As Makabo passed by them one of them held out an arm blocking his path while the others began padding him down and looking underneath his torn uniform.

“What are you doing?” Makabo demanded as he tried to swat away their hands. The guard that had blocked his path hefted their iron bar underneath Makabo’s chin to stall him.

“They’re searching you for bite marks.”

Makabo looked past the guard blocking him to see his savior had removed their protective coverings and was now sitting on a nearby chair. Much to Makabo’s surprise they were a human male with hair the color of a dying fire.

“You think I am one of them?” Makabo asked, though he stopped attempting to block the search of his person.

“Possibly,” the human replied, “and if you are they are going to put you down right now and throw your body down the nearest elevator shaft.”

The calmness of their voice at uttering such a brutal outcome made Makabo stand perfectly still as the guards finished their pat down and turn to give the thumbs up. They stepped back and allowed Makabo to pass which he gratefully did with haste to find the human extending a hand towards him.

“Nathan Philips.” The human introduced themselves as Makabo took their hand and shook it.

“Makabo Tunt.” Makabo replied as he let go and took in his surroundings.

“Thank you for saving me.” Makabo said as he sat down next to Nathan. “I doubt I could have outrun them.”

“Don’t think much of it.” Nathan replied with a smile as he reached into a nearby box and threw him a canned drink. “In truth I was more interested in seeing if there were any escape pods left on your level and just found you along the way.”

Makabo caught the can and popped it open. “Why didn’t you use the escape pods on this level?” The concord was equipped with escape pods on every other deck so there should have been several dozen on this one. Venturing down to where Makabo had been would have taken him far out of his way.

Nathan shook his head. “A lot of people tried, but there were just too many of them pushing and shoving each other. By the time they had sorted it out the infected reached them and it went south fast.”

He took a sip of his own drink and savored the flavor. “As soon as the warning sirens began sounding and people began sprinting like the devil was nipping at their toes I knew the only chance we had was to avoid the crowded areas, so I barricaded us in.”

Makabo looked at both barricades again, then back at Nathan. “You did this?”

Nathan smiled. “I started it, but I was only able to finish it with the help of everyone else here.” He waved a hand at the guards and other guests. “They didn’t seem to believe me at first, some even left saying they were better off making for the escape pods; but once the screaming started they got the hint real fast.”

Makabo slowly sipped his drink. The events of the last three hours all finally catching up with him now that he had a moment to stop and think, to reflect. He felt his heart beating faster as if they were going to burst from the sheer terror when Nathan spoke again.

“We’re holding up here for now, scavenging supplies and searching the ship where we can for escape pods.”

Nathan pulled out a data pad and flipped through several files until a picture of the ship appeared. The area they were in was marked green, while several of the surrounding areas were marked red with a human skull and cross bone. No doubt those areas were where the infected were heavily concentrated. He shuddered seeing how much of the map was red.

“You seem to be handling this rather well.” Makabo said looking up from the map.

Nathan’s expression softened. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” Makabo said waving his hands around to this makeshift encampment of safety, “guests turning into flesh hungry monsters left and right and here you are calm and collected; making plans for survival while getting others to safety.”

To Makabo’s surprise Nathan laughed, spilling some of his drink in the process before setting it down.

“Yeah, I can see why that would be a bit strange.” Nathan said, wiping the strands of drink dripping down his face. “You could say we humans have a rather…..interesting, perspective when it comes to these kinds of situations.”

“You’re people have been through this before?”

Makabo was genuinely surprised to hear this. He had heard humans were a rather barbaric species, but to have encountered and survived similar events such as this shows a hidden cunning.

“Yes, and no.” Nathan replied.

Something must have shown on Makabo’s face as Nathan continued. “We had these video games, electronic entertainment, that depicted events like this and we’d play them trying to survive and win.”

“This is your form of entertainment?”

Nathan chuckled. “You think that’s bad, you should get a look at our movies.”

[hunter-rodrigez]

I feel like most people don't quite realize just how fast the International Space Station moves.

With a regular, modern-day airliner, it takes around 8 hours to fly from New York to London.

In a Concorde, the fastest commercial airliner ever built, it takes a little under 3 hours.

In a "North American X-15", the fastest airplane ever built, it would take 78 minutes at top speed. Although this airplane cannot fly that far, especially not at that top speed.

In comparison, on the ISS, this trip would take ELEVEN MINUTES.

This thing moves at 28,000 km/h. Anything moving this fast inside the atmosphere would just instantly burst into flames and completely disintegrate.

This thing moves so fast, the astronauts see 16 sunsets and sunrises every day. That's right, it moves faster than the earth's rotation... A LOT faster.

[amtrak-official]

Heads up for anyone traveling through the Northeast Corridor in the near future, by train or by other method - The storms in the area have been causing severe delays and cancellations on both flights and trains due to outages and flooding, and for rail passengers in particular this summer has also been hot enough to cause delays by itself due to trains needing to run more slowly so as to not potentially warp the tracks. Please be aware of this when traveling, and also for Amtrak passengers taking thruway buses further north of Boston, given the delays you may want to consider buying the bus tickets separately from the train ones where possible - I know off the top of my head they sell thruway tickets on Concord Coach Lines buses from South Station into ME and NH, but those Amtrak thruway tickets are technically only good for travel the same day, while tickets bought directly through CCL's systems are open ended and good for 3 months on one-ways and 6 months on round-trips. In my experience the drivers tend to be understanding about it, but the official policy is that they're supposed to be used the date listed on the Amtrak ticket, so to save yourself the hassle it might be worth picking them up through CCL's system instead of Amtrak's. (Also I'd say avoid buying through Megabus if you can, those ones are only good for the trip you select and Megabus charges a transaction fee where CCL doesn't, which tends to push the price higher than buying through CCL in the first place unless you get the super cheap ones a good month out). Thought it was worth giving a heads up about!

Sincerely,

Someone who saw a person waiting an extra three buses for their passenger to come up on a thruway ticket a couple days ago due to the delays south of Boston even before the storms. It's oooooo it's something y'all good luck

This is very dense, but has good info. Read through it if you are taking a NEC train soon

[crowleybigbang]

Crowley Against Humanity Round Up

Well, well. Just as we near the spookiest time of the year, we're ready to give you some time to savour the mastery we provided, and let you enjoy it between a candy and a scary movie.

So, let's see, below the cut, the many ways our minions entertained you:

Week 1

@petrichoravellichor opened file and gave us the amazing "Inner Demons" (to read on Tumblr or on our trusted AO3), in which Crowley has to deal with more than Dean in his demonic form.

Then it was @hectatess' turn, with her "To Reclaim A Throne" - which you can read here. What says on the tin: Crowley comes back, and he has to take back what belongs to him, from unlikely adversaries and new alliances.

Then, @hectatess and @hobbitual-psychick-art-stuff partenered for another story, "A Hell Of A Birthday". In which the very important matter of leaving a certain alone on her birthday is pondered - just to begin. The story is here, and the art is here.

SIlasBaran (who's not on Tumblr, because Hell is fine, but this site? Please.) warmed up with a blurb. Curious about new popes are chosen? Well... "When In Rome" can be enjoyed here.

@punk-is-notdead wrote us a piece to make USA's recent political past a little more bearable. "Demons Trump Politicians" can be read here.

Week 2

@hobbitual-psychick-art-stuff wrote a story and made art for it. She didn't need anyone, or this event, but decided to join in anyway, as any smart demon would. "In The Seventh Circle Of Hell Sinners Must Endure A Bespoke Suit" , in which a trip to Hell becomes an introspective endeavour, can be read here, while the art can be found here.

Who doesn't need more hellhounds in their lives? @jenniferb-art got you covered and arted for the event! Her piece "The Bestest Girl" can be loved here but it also came with a story from SilasBaran - which you can read here.

@hectatess then did strike again, and wrote "Plaid And Craig: quite the combination" - in which Crowley knows where to find the perfect dram, and we get to see the Winchester plaid from up close. Go read it here!

"A Fine Bromance" stemmed from the participation of @punk-is-notdead and @ncdover1285. A piece exploring the dynamic between demon!Dean and Crowley, and whatever consequence their fallout had on Crowley? Yes, please. The story can be found here, and the art is both here and here.

The lovely @additionaladdams then wrote "Shoot For The Moon" and delighted us with a canon-divergent piece that see Crowley and Cas teaming up for the greater good. Go read it here!

Week 3

There was a little mishap with bodies and whatnot, which produced "And There Was Only One... Meatsuit". Think buddy comedy wrapped in one body and splashed with torture and blood. And rubber chickens (it's a whole thing). The story from @ncdover1285 can be read here, and it came with amazing art from @hobbitual-psychick-art-stuff which you can find here!

Speaking of standards, Zalil isn't on Tumblr either, but this didn't keep her from writing "A Hell Of A Guy", in which Crowley becomes a very cheeky master of torture, for a pleasant price. Go read it here!

In case you were wondering "Where do I even start to look for lovers in league against Satan?", well, wonder no more. The two prompts were snatched by @sinister--potato who created art to answer that question!

Week 4

This whole thing was amazing enough that @risingphoenix761 defeated her writer's block and gifted us a piece to add to this amazing collection! Go and see what happens when Crowley and Cas chat about... well, you'll see. "Heir Of Nothing IN Particular" is here!

"This Gentle Concord" was SilasBaran's main piece. A multi-chapter story which sets amnesiac Crowley and Cas in the middle of a haunted carnival. I mean... what are you waiting for? And, in case this wasn't enough, @hobbitual-psychick-art-stuff provided lots of lovely art for the story!

And, to close a frankly spectacular event, we had @panthera-dei who wrote the piece "The Unnatural Order", in which Crowley helps the reapers with a thing... and we find out what really happened between the King of Hell and Naomi, back in Mesopotamia. Go read it here!

And so... this is it.

I can only hope you enjoyed this cursed event, and will enjoy all these amazing creation as much as I did.

Reblog and comments are very much appreciated, and they keep both the Hellsite alive and the creators happy an motivated.

Thank you to everyone who created the piece, and to anyone who let us know how much you enjoyed the hard work of these amazingly talented people.

Stay safe out there, and keep following us for more demonic delights!

[racefortheironthrone]

Did you see a lot of American Revolution reenactments back in Massachusetts? Also do Massachusites? Massachusettsans? care about if State of Massachusetts is used instead of Commonwealth of Massachusetts?

I definitely did a school trip at least once to see the re-enactment of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, which takes place on Patriots' Day every April. I also did a school trip to the Bunker Hill Monument, but I don't remember if we were there for the re-enactment (which I think happens a bit too late in the calendar for the school year) or just for the museum.

While it's not a Revolutionary War battle, I did go to Old Sturbridge Village a bunch with my family, partly for the living museum and partly because the food there is really good.

In my experience, Massachusettsans (or "Massholes") use the term "Commonwealth" and "State" interchangeably and don't really care which one you use. Commonwealth tends to be used in more formal settings, but one of the official state songs is titled "the Great State of Massachusetts," so it's not really a big deal.

[todaysdocument]

Proof of origin of disability for Franklin Thompson, 2nd MI Infantry Regiment, 9/13/1897. 

“She (or he as then known) was my Bunk mate considerate of the time but I never knew that she was a woman. . . . She said her mule fell once and hurt her . . . .”

Series: Case Files of Approved Pension Applications of Veterans Who Served in the Army and Navy Mainly in the Civil War and The War With Spain ("Civil War and Later Survivors' Certificates"): Nos. SC 9,487 - 999,999, 1861 - 1934

Record Group 15: Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, 1773 - 2007

Transcription: 

PROOF OF ORIGIN OF DISABILITY

NOTE -- This affidavit must be executed by a Commissioned Officer, if possible; but if not possible to secure such evidence, then two of the soldier's comrades should testify.

[blue circular stamp reading "THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF THE UNITED STATES"]

State of Michigan, County of Jackson, SS:

ON THIS 13 day of September, A.D. 1897, personally appeared before me, a Notary Public  in and for the aforesaid County, duly authorized to administer oaths, R H Halsted, aged 59 years, a resident of Concord, in the County of Jackson and State of Mich who, being duly sworn according to law, state that he is acquainted with S Emma E. Seeley, applicant for Invalid Pension; and know the said S Emma E Seeley  to be the identical person of that name who enlisted or volunteered as a Private in Company F 2 Regiment of Mich Infy Vols., and who ______ at ______ on or about the _____ day or _____, 186 by reason of ___________ . [Here insert the reason of the soldier's discharge, if known; if not known, so state, or, if he died, so state.] 

That the said Seeley known as Frank Thompson while in the line of his duty, at or near Centerville Va in the State of Virginia, did, on or about the 2d Battle of Bull Run, 186_, become disabled in the following manner: viz: 

[Here state the time and place and manner in which the wound or other injury was received. Describe the wound or injury, the part of the body wounded or injured, and all the circumstances attending it. If sickness, state time and place when contracted, what caused it, the name of the sickness, and how it affected him. ]

She was mail carrier + came on one of her trips with the mail badly hurt + was not able to get around much for several days She (or he as then known) was my Bunk mate considerate of the time but I never knew that she was a woman. She was so badly hurt that I had to assist her in distributing the mail while she lay on the ground on a blanket + she had her rations cooked and brought to him [corrected to "her"] She carried the mail on a mule I helped her care for her mule while she was so badly laid [illegible: "out"?] until she got able to take care of it herself She said her mule fell once and hurt her coming to the regiment with the mail from Washington D.C. 

That the facts stated are personally known to the affiant by reason of [here state whether affiant was with the command at the time the claimant contracted his disability, or whether his knowledge was otherwise obtained. All the facts known to affiant relative to the soldier's medical treatment for his disability while in the service should be stated, giving time and place, if possible.] 

[atotaltaitaitale]

.

It wouldn’t be a complete trip if we didn’t take the metro.

Plus I wanted to see the metro stop Parque (which conveniently was one stop on our journey to the airport) because it has ceramics designed by Francoise Schein with the Declaration of the rights of Men and Citizens similar to Metro Concorde in Paris.

[cable-knit-sweater]

This is…longer than I intended but couldn't not write it. Probably should’ve taken a little more time to finish it/make it a little better but here we are. Thanks to Chris’ Instagram post & Seb in that soft, too big white sweater, a soft road-trip Evanstan fic 🥰🥰 , also inspired by @fandomfluffandfuck headcanon that Sebastian’s camera roll is full of photos/videos of Chris & Dodger. If anyone else has written a road-trip fic I’d loveee to read it so pls let me know. 😘

Already Home

It had been a long week for both of them. Chris was still adjusting to the change in timezones, the trip to London and back with all the long days on the Ghosted set over the past couple of months taking their toll. He still had promo work for Lightyear to do in New York, but that wasn’t the only reason to hang around a little longer.

Instead of going straight up to Concord after he was done with his press engagements - to finally rest up a bit before the busy weeks of doing press still to come - he’d decided to wait to drive there until Friday so they could spend as much of the weekend together as possible. Sebastian had a late show taping on Thursday and they’d just leave the morning after. He’d been fine with it, but he’d had to convince Sebastian. The reason why was a little endearing, he thought, and so exactly like him.

Sebastian had been a little concerned - he thought Chris was looking a little worn and in desperate need of some of the comforts of home. After trying to see each other as much as possible over the past few months with their hectic schedules, meeting in LA, NY and Atlanta whenever possible, he was pretty sure Chris was looking forward to some peace and quiet. Looking at him, clearly exhausted, he’d suggested Chris go up a couple of days early and he’d follow later.

He knew Chris needed that to find his balance again, especially after a couple of months of hard work, travel and being away from home. So, he’d not been immediately convinced of Chris’ plan to wait until Friday. He’d expressed his concern, had waved off Chris’ argument that Seb didn’t like to travel alone, that he didn’t even need to go home that badly.

Chris had looked at Sebastian then, a little peeved he wasn���t getting his way. “But baby, it’ll be so much nicer to go together? I don’t want to leave you alone and our schedules are just gonna be packed for the next couple of weeks, so this is the perfect way to spend more time together”. He could see Sebastian was getting closer to being convinced and gave him his best puppy dog eyes. And decided to put Dodger to work.

“Dodger thinks it’s a great idea, don’t you bubba? See Seb! Even Dodger agrees. How could you say no to that face?” Sebastian had shaken his head at him, but couldn’t contain his smile. “You’re playing dirty Evans.”

“Come on Seb! It’ll just be the three of us, we can stop along the way for some good food, I’ll even let you be in charge of the music”, he winked. Sebastian closed his eyes. He couldn’t possibly say no now. How anyone could ever deny the full force of Chris Evans he’d never understand. “Okay okay honey, we’ll leave together on Friday”, he’d finally said, moving up from the couch to herd both Chris and Dodger to the bedroom. If he wasn’t gonna go home early, he’d at least make sure Chris got some sleep. When they’d just gotten settled, Chris’ chest pressed to Sebastian’s back, he whispered “I know baby, I know you’re worried. I just want to spend time with you”. Sebastian smiled and snuggled in closer. “I know. Me too.”

Thursday came and went in a flash, Sebastian had enjoyed his time at the Late night show as much as you could enjoy these things, but was more than ready to leave it all behind him for a couple of days. They spent a quiet night in, takeout and movies on the couch - Chris teasing him a little because Sebastian blushed every time the topic of the interview came up - and packing the last of the things they’d need for their little road trip.

They would’ve left early in the morning, if Chris and Dodger had anything to say about it. Sebastian, however, was not a morning person, so Chris had walked the dog, packed the car and picked up some coffee all before his boyfriend made it out of bed. Walking back into Seb’s apartment with the coffees, Chris smiled seeing his boyfriend in his boxers with messy bed hair, ends sticking out on all sides.

He stood there smiling at the endearing sight, until he heard Seb grunt a little. He made his way over with Sebastian’s coffee, handing it to him and pressing a quick kiss to his temple. “Morning sweetheart.” At the response of “Mhhhppff”, he laughed. “Ready to leave baby?”, he teased. Sebastian gave him an unamused look, but he didn’t pay too much attention to it. As soon as he had some coffee in him, he’d be a little more charmed.

As it happens, 5 minutes and a couple of sips of coffee later, Sebastian snuggled up to Chris on the couch. “Thank you for the coffee babe” Sebastian said, voice still a little sleep-rough. He gave Chris a kiss good morning and got up to take a shower and fix the birds nest on his head that was his hair.

Half an hour later, they were both ready and getting in the car. Chris insisted on driving - he’d rested up a little and Sebastian didn’t usually enjoy driving that much. Sebastian let Dodger in the back before getting in the passenger seat himself. Dodger was almost bouncing up and down, full of excitement, like he knew that they were going home.

They spent the first half hour in silence, apart from laughing softly because of Dodger’s antics and music softly playing in the background. Once they got out of the city, Dodger had calmed down a bit and Sebastian had finished his second oat milk latte, Chris put on some 80s classics that they both loved. It didn’t take long for both of them to start to sing along, a little off key but on the top of their lungs.

Chris looked away from the road every so often to look at Seb, who was currently doing a very committed and over the top rendition of Hungry Eyes, putting a warm feeling in his chest and a smile on his face. “Please tell me you’re gonna do an air saxophone for the solo?”, he asked, amused, only to be met with a determined look. “Chris it’s essential, of course I’m gonna try”. “Of course baby, my bad” he responded in a faux-apologetic tone, before they both burst out in laughter. “I’m gonna have to start the song over again now though, just so you know”, Sebastian grinned. Chris grabbed his hand, kissing his palm. “I know” he chuckled softly.

After another hour, Sebastian put on some calmer music and turned the volume down a little. For a while, they both enjoyed a bit of the quiet, taking in the surroundings and just being together. At some point, he looked towards the backseat to check on Dodger, who looked to be happy and calmed down, almost a little sleepy. When Dodger saw the movement up front, however, he got up from where he had been laying down on the floor in front of the backseats, pushing his head in between the driver- and passenger’s seat. Sebastian watched as he slowly moved up to lean his head on Chris’ shoulder.

Sebastian stared at the two, eyes full of love. He could never get enough of watching Chris and Dodger together. It felt so pure, so sweet, the two of them seemingly sharing a soul, the unbridled happiness whenever they got reunited after a long time away. His camera roll was full of photos of the two, which was something that never failed to make him smile whenever he was apart from either of them for too long.

He took out his phone, needing to add this moment to his collection. With the view of nature outside, Chris’ soft look with the green flannel shirt on, both of them with eyes on the road, it looked too perfect to pass up on. He quickly snapped a couple of photos, smiling down at his phone when he saw the results.

Apparently Chris had taken his eyes off the road for a second. “I feel like I need to know what has you smiling like that”, he asked. Sebastian took another look at his phone, then looked back up to look at the real thing - infinitely better. He smiled softly at them. “You”, he said softly, only for Chris to give him back a smile just as dopey, taking back one of Sebastian’s hands in his. “I’ll show you later, when we’re home.” Chris laughed softly. “Okay you sap, I’ll wait”, he tried to say, only to be interrupted with Dodger’s bark, presumably at the word “home”. “Yes Dodge, almost home.”

Sebastian took one more look at the two best things in his life, before leaning back in his seat, closing his eyes for a little while. The warmth of Chris’ hand in his, the soft touch of his thumb stroking over his palm, the serene quiet, knowing they’d be home soon - he took it all in and let the feeling of love and comfort wash over him. Chris had been right. This was so much better than making the trip by himself. They only had about 45 minutes left on the 3 to 4 hour drive. Almost at Chris’ house in Concord. But already home.

[how-masterful]

31 Fics Of Fright

Day 15- Museum of Memory

Missy X Reader

Prompt: Fear

Notes: Written under the watchful eye of @plethora-of-imagines , i think not only is this the longest fic i’ve written but also my favorite one so far. Writing in the same google doc is so fun!

Warnings: None

When you were seven the biggest concern in your life had been the monster under the bed. The perfect storm of the amalgamation of fears that had swirled and congealed in your ever growing brain. The world around you was changing, not just in the way that you had to keep buying new clothes every growth spurt, but in the outside world too. The universe was evolving, the edges of your reality and science fiction bleeding into something unspeakably confusing. It was like the pictures in your books had come to life, playing upon the news every night.

Your family had tried their hardest, but the world had been changing for years. Alien incursions had been rapidly growing in number, from the terror of shop window dummies coming to life, a giant robot roaming the streets, to the conflicting accounts of what the heck happened to concord.

The news would play the most terrifying reports, giant pictures of these cosmic terrors plastered across every screen you dared to look at. Your dreams were consumed by dark visions of aliens and monsters, robots with eyes on sticks chasing you down the street, dinosaurs biting chunks out of your roof. It frightened you. But you were only small, so young. Who could have blamed you?

Now you were much older, and your view of the dark forces in the universe had shifted rather dramatically.

Not just because you’d seemingly entered into a romantic relationship with one of them.

“Oh, how darling.” Missy preened, approaching the museum with you on her arm.

You had no idea how you’d managed to convince her to join you on your visit. You’d grown rather interested in one of the artifacts they’d had, the rabbit hole of the TARDIS library guiding you onto endless paths of unstoppable research.

Missy found it rather cute how interested you’d become in several elements of history, always ready to amplify your knowledge. Especially if she was able to twist the history into something more exciting- or rather more dangerous.

“They’ve got one of the oldest plates of Vanka here, the entire language can be decoded on it like the Rosetta stone.”

Missy turned to you with an unimpressed expression.

“Dear, you seem to have forgotten about my translation matrix. Can’t we just steal the baby and go?”

“Ah, that's the best part!”

“Oh, is it now-”

“The whole thing’s in code. It’s been hidden under centuries of mistranslations to the point where the original code was lost to time.”

Missy sighed, taking a sip out of the white and green coffee cup. You’d insisted on a coffee and museum date, and the Timelady had been rather interested to see what the fuss was about when it came to pumpkin spice. Safe to say she hadn’t been as thrilled as you were with the fall beverage, kicking at the sprawling leaves on the floor like a disgruntled child.

“I hope the exhibit is better than this coffee.” She muttered, heels elegantly ascending the steps.

“If you don’t like it, why don’t you get rid of it?”

“Alright, where’s the nearest human sized waste bin?”

“Missy!” You cried, faux scandal etched perfectly into your features. Missy grinned, that wicked smirk you loved so dearly, as she pulled you into the exhibit hall.

“I came here once, when I was thirteen.” You said, taking rapid pictures of the disk on your phone. You’d found it finally, wrongly attributed to the ancient Egyptian section. You knew a few people that would be mortified as such a miscatalogue. Missy stood to the side, arms folded as she stared at one of the perfectly wrapped mummies.

“I think I went for drinks with her once.” She muttered to herself, staring down at the corpse.

“I was on a school trip, it was ages ago. We were supposed to write notes about our favorite exhibit and present when we got back.”

“And did you get an A plus on your presentation on fuzzy wuzzy wittle dead penguins?” She teased, inching closer to stare at the circular disk of text.

“Actually I wrote it on the alien artifacts they had upstairs.” You replied absentmindedly, scribbling down observations and notes into a small purple notebook.

Missy instantly perked up, her proverbial ears standing on end like a puppy invited to play fetch.

Instantly she grabbed hold of your arm, physically yanking you away from the disk. You almost dropped your notebook in her tugging, her definite strides causing her heels to clack against the floor with determination.

“Missy, i’m not finished!”

“You can look at the pictures later, you kids and your darn smartphones!” she called over her shoulder with a Texas twang.

“I want to know if they’ve got any of my old stuff!”

You almost tripped over the bottom step as the Timelady began to yank you up the north stairway, her eyes searching for any signage like a hawk searching for prey.

She pulled you into the corridor, looking wildly in each direction until she found exactly what she was looking for. The entranceway looked no different from all those years ago, the giant letters above the curved archway declaring the items inside to be not of earthly origin. Missy tugged you firmly by the wrist into the exhibit.

The memories flooded back into your mind, your much smaller stature wandering in with a combination of wonder and fear. You were in the middle stages, not as scared as you were, but also easily victim to nostalgia. You hadn’t realized you’d stopped in the middle of the walkway until Missy was inches away from your face, staring at you with strange concern.

“Sorry,” You whispered. “Just remembering.”

“Did it frighten you?” She asked calmly, all merriment and dramatics replaced with sincerity.

“When you were a child, did you write that report because you were frightened?”

“I think… I was trying to prove I wasn’t. Y’know, like exposure therapy. Can’t be scared of something if you know exactly what it is.”

Missy smiled, carefully winding your elbow to intertwine with her arm. You watched the small gesture, staring ahead at the darkened corridors with dwindling apprehension.

“Just think,” She began, taking slow steps, guiding you towards the exhibit with distracting grace.

“You’re much older than you were, you’ve seen enough things to make a grown man cry. How many of those old codgers in there have you met with me?”

You pondered for a moment, not realizing just how close you were getting towards the display cases.

“And how many of their asses you’ve kicked. Maybe you’ll see some old favorites. Maybe you’ll know so much more than you did before.”

The mistress guided you to stand in front of the first exhibit. You turned to stare at the old cyberman head, looking the rusted metal up and down. You smiled, looking athe wrought metal of its handlebars. Maybe this was your doing.

“See?” Missy grinned, watching the smile on your face with a new fondness.

“Oh, I remember this!”

You continued to excitedly revisit the exhibits, the terror of your past being replaced by the newfound whimsy of your present. Old foes were new memories, what had given you nightmares as a child had turned into funny encounters that were destined to become family stories. Traversing the exhibit on that Autumn day with Missy had made everything seem so much better. You peered at the old UNIT beret in a cabinet, your attention suddenly stolen away.

“Oh my god, here it is!” You heard Missy shriek behind you, followed by the aggressive smash of glass.

You span around to see the towering glass of the case come crashing down to the floor, spreading across the display floor into a sea of sharp danger. Missy stood on her tiptoes, desperately yanking something off of a wobbling mannequin with her umbrella hooked on her arm, before resulting to pull the bodyform down to her level. You stared in awe as she pulled the large red robe from the figure, admiring the shining silk and black neck sash embossed with the sigils of the star signs.

“I’ve been looking for this for yonks now! That Sargeant Benton in his stupid red trousers, I told him i’d have the last laugh!”

A loud alarm began to blare over the speakers, the shrill chimes of alert making Missy cackle harder with delight.

“Don’t just stand there, grab that golden chain and run!”

You acted on her orders, yanking the goat head chain from the display and following her as she ran back through the exit and out of the door.

“I’ve been hoping to match our Halloween costumes for MONTHS!” she clamored, grinning as you caught up to her side.

“I’ve got this gorgeous sacrificial white dress for you to wear!”

[courseyoulovemeyoudontknowme]

The Parent Trap (1998, Nancy Meyers)

27/12/2023

The Parent Trap is a 1998 Disney film starring Dennis Quaid, Natasha Richardson, and Lindsay Lohan in her first film appearance.

It is a remake of The Parent Trap (1961) with Hayley Mills and, like the original, is based on the German novel Lisa and Lottie (Das Doppelte Lottchen, 1949) by Erich Kästner.

Hallie Parker is a 12-year-old girl who grew up in Napa Valley, California, with her father, Nick Parker, a wealthy vineyard owner. Annie James, on the other hand, lives in London with her mother Elizabeth James, known as Lizzie, an established wedding dress designer. The two girls are actually twins, separated at birth immediately after the divorce of their parents who decided to each take custody of one of their daughters. Neither of them knows of the other's existence until, by coincidence, 12 years after their birth, they find themselves attending the same summer camp in Maine, both being surprised by their extraordinary physical resemblance.

Their plan, however, seems to collapse when Annie, as Hallie, learns that her father is about to marry a young woman, Meredith Blake, who, however, seems only interested in the man's money and intends to send Hallie to a boarding school immediately after the wedding. The girls, after being discovered about the role swap, mange to get their parents to meet and have dinner on a yacht; the following day they go on a trip to the mountains, where, as planned, Lizzie, Nick, Hallie and Annie were supposed to go. Back home, Nick prepares a candlelit dinner for Lizzie in his villa, but later the two decide to return to their previous lives by dividing the twins, but Annie and Lizzie, arriving home, find a surprise: Hallie and Nick arrived before them thanks to a concord that takes half the time.

Filming for the film took place from July 15, 1997 to December 17, 1997.

[tngrace]

Family Vacation

This lil fic was inspired by a weekend trip we had and the fact that I just love writing for Grace's brother as well as this lil chaos family. I hope you enjoy it.

🏷: @mrsjaderogers @bayisdying @ladylanera @semperhuggs

Caroline was just over a year old when Grace got the idea for a family vacation. The twins were almost nine months and Hadley was four months so she knew everybody would be able to travel. She ran the idea through the wifeys group chat; they could go to the beach for a few days and then there was going to be some racing at Charlotte. While she'd just seen her brother for Caroline's birthday, it never felt like long enough. Plus she hadn't seen him race in ages, and while she knew his girls usually weren't at the track with him and she missed them terribly, she thought it would be a fun time.

She found some rooms in Carolina Beach that weren't too over the top price wise since it wasn't peak summer yet being they were going the first of May, and while she knew all her pilots would complain about flying commercial, they'd just have to get over it. No way were they driving across the country with four kids. She found flights into Wilmington and secured rental cars as well. She also went ahead and booked the flights to Charlotte and got tickets to the dragstrip event. They were only going to be a few miles from her hometown, so she thought it'd be nice to show everybody where she came from. She was so excited for this trip, and she was very excited to surprise her brother.

The beach was a blast with the babies. Caroline loved the water, the sand not so much. Marcus and Nathaniel loved the sand, and even tried eating it much to Alana's dismay. Hadley was still too little to really enjoy it, but she loved laying on any one of her favorite adults and watching the kids. Jake, Bradley, and Mickey had a blast taking Caroline and the boys into the ocean while the girls suntanned and rested. It was so relaxing to just be away and enjoy the time together.

They spent four days in total there, with plans to come back or explore one of the other Carolina beaches for a longer trip. The fifth day they flew into Charlotte, and drove down to Grace's hometown. It was a small town on the outskirts of Charlotte, but it was close to the dragstrip and speedway. She showed them around, showing them her grandparents' house where she grew up even though they'd sold it. They even swing by the cemetery so Grace can leave some flowers and introduce Bradley and Caroline to her grandparents. In all, they only spend a couple hours in the town before heading north into Concord to their room for the weekend.

Friday they explore Concord, and everybody grabs some more souvenirs and mementos to remember their trip by. They don't stay out too long during the day because of the race that night. They want to give the kids enough time to rest and nap before a late night. Grace ends up napping with Caroline because she knows these events can go late into the night, especially if Kevin is winning.

They get to the dragstrip a couple of hours before the actual racing starts so they have time to walk through the pits and explore all the cars. She's hoping it will give her plenty of time to see Kevin too. She doesn't know for certain he'll be there as they hadn't talked about it last time they talked, but Grace is almost positive he will show up to race. She knows Charlotte's dragstrip will always be one of his favorite places to race since that's where he started.

The later it gets, the more nervous she gets that she drug everybody here for nothing. It was getting close to the end of tech and test and tune and her brother still wasn't there, despite her having seen a few of his Florida friends when they walked around. She left Caroline with Bradley and promised everybody she'd be right back; she had to see if they knew if he was coming or not. She just hoped they would remember her since she'd only met them a couple of times.

They were working on their cars, a crowd of people surrounding them. She knew their YouTube channels really brought in the crowds. She edged over to the side and called out to the one closest to her. "James!"

His head jerked up and looked in her direction. She gave a little wave and pointed at the shirt she had on which was one of Kevin's. "Grace?"

"Yea," she smiles when he recognized her. He let her under the rope and over into their circle. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to surprise Kev. I've got my husband and daughter with me and some friends and their kids. We'd been at the beach and I figured he'd be here when I heard about the race so we thought we'd surprise him. Except.... he's not here yet."

James looks around because Kevin had told them about the event. "Hey Ty! Yall heard from Kev?"

That gained everybody else's attention and they all noticed her. She was swarmed with hugs and welcoming greetings. "He called a few hours ago said he was still a couple out. Should be here soon."

"Thanks guys. I'll keep an eye out."

"Wait wait wait I think that's him," James smiled turning you towards where Kevin's truck was pulling in.

"Let me go get my girl."

"Bring her back here. We'll film it. His face is gonna be priceless."

"Thanks guys," she smiles. After collecting Bradley and Caroline, everybody else is gonna trail after once the video surprise is over, she returns to their tent. They had their cameras and go pros ready for different angles. Bradley tucked behind the tallest guy, which surprisingly had a couple of inches on him, while Grace carried Caroline behind James.

Kevin was unloading the car, so it ended up being the perfect setup. "Kev we have a surprise for you!" James called out once the car was beside the trailer.

"Oh yea? What now?" He chuckled as he slid out of the window. He noticed them all filming and his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Surprise!" Grace squealed stepping out from behind James. Caroline was giggling and clapping even though she really didn't know why until she saw her uncle. Kevin's face was priceless and he easily took Caroline and pulled Grace into his arms for a hug.

"What are you doing here?" He asks her as they pull back from the hug.

"Figured you'd be here. Wanted to surprise you. We took a mini family vacation out to the coast and then came back this way to watch you race."

"Well you got me but....." he knocked on the side of the trailer and the side door opened revealing his three girls. "Surprise back!"

"Auntie Grace!" Grace had an armful of two girls while Sam jumped straight into Bradley's arms.

"You've got the girls?!"

"Sure do. My week so we're gonna have some fun at the track."

"Well this is a nice surprise," Grace smiles as Cara reaches for Caroline. She had a feeling there was some drama there, but she'd get it out of him later.

Everybody with cameras peeled off promising to send the footage over. Kevin gave Caroline to Cara but stayed close. Her baby ear muffs made her look adorable, coupled with her baby Kevin racing shirt and Kevin loved it. The rest of the gang joined yall by Kevin's car, which the boys absolutely admired. Kevin easily took Hadley who smiled at him and gurgled happily, as he walked around the car with Bradley, Jake and Mickey. Jake was pushing the twins in a stroller and they just wide-eyed looked at the car.

The girls talked a mile a minute to their aunt, Baylie and Alana, since they hadn't seen her since Christmas, their mom not letting them come with Kev for Caroline's party. "We actually have one more surprise," Grace smiles catching Kevin's attention once they're done inspecting the car. They'd not told him at Caroline's party wanting to wait until they knew what they were having to tell him since he couldn't be at their gender reveal.

That catches Kevin's attention. Mickey takes Hadley back as Baylie and Alana covertly grab their phones to film and take pictures. Kev easily takes Caroline from Cara when she reaches for him once more as he gives his sister his full attention. "And?" He asks when she drags out the silence to drive him crazy.

She turns sideways and tugs her shirt a little tighter around her. "Read Caroline's shirt." On the back of her shirt it says "Uncle Kev’s fav until my little brother arrives."

His eyes snap back to hers and then to her belly. "Seriously?!"

"Yea. It was a surprise to us too," she laughs. Kevin pulls her in for another hug as they explain to the girls their getting another cousin. The girls are all excited, but Kevin finally breaks them up. "As much fun as this has been, I've gotta go make a pass before the tune session is over."

"Be careful," Grace says as Bradley takes Caroline and the girls go with them back to their seats. Kev's first pass isn't the greatest; the track prep wasn't the best and he spun as soon as he took off.

"Ouch," Sam sighed seeing her dad's time. At eight she understood more about racing than most adults. The perks of being her daddy's little mini me.

"Daddy won't like that," Ava sighed after Sam explained it to her.

Grace couldn't help but giggle. "No he probably won't sweetheart, but it'll be ok."

"Uncle Bradley can we go back to Daddy?"

Bradley hides his smile at Sam's request and nods. "Yep come on racing princess. Let's go see what he's going to do to fix it."

Grace slipped Caroline into her carrier and they headed back to the pits. Racing would start in the next fifteen minutes, so they decided to let the twins run off some energy by Kev's trailer while he worked on his tune. Hadley had already snuggled into Mickey's chest in her carrier and fallen asleep. Ava ran around with the twins, making sure they didn't fall or get hurt; Cara stayed glued to her aunt's side, while Sam watched over Kevin's shoulder everything he was doing.

Once the racing actually began, they went back to their seats. Sam wasn't happy about not going to the staging lanes with Kev, but she ended up with Bradley's attention so she was happy. Grace smiled just watching them. It had already been the best night, no matter what happened with Kev's racing. She managed to ask someone near them to snap a picture of all of them.

After Kevin barely wins the first one, the girls walk back over to the pits, leaving the boys to watch some more racing. The twins are fussy, so Alana pushes them around getting them to sleep while the girls congratulate their dad. He takes Caroline once more, while he works on the tune a little more. Grace can't help but snap a pic of the cute scene. Caroline is almost asleep, her little head laying on Kev's shoulder as he just works away.

All four of the babies end up falling asleep before Kev's next pass. Mickey and Bradley take Hadley and Caroline in their carriers so Baylie and Grace can have a break. The twins are sound asleep, laid back in their stroller. They decide to stand on the fence to watch the next few passes, and once again Kev gets the victory, putting him into the final. There wasn't as many cars there that night, so they had shorter rounds. Kev easily sails to victory in his class, and the girls are so happy for their dad. Since the babies are asleep, they decide to stay for the winner's circle so Grace can grab some pics for Kev and with his girls.

They make plans to meet up with Kev and the girls in the morning for breakfast and to spend the day together. They have a late flight that night, in the hopes the kids will sleep through it, so they have all day to spend. Since Kev won Friday night, he decided to skip the Saturday passes and spend the day with his family. Overall, it was one of the best vacations any of them had been on in a really long time, and they were all looking forward to the next one, maybe even to Florida that time.