#I’m on a study abroad trip in London

[scuffedcd]

Fuckin helllll

[janeyre]

i’m going to london for the very first time this weekend so i’m currently planning my trip and can i just say….. i recognize so many of these names from @loupettes fics 😩😩😩

[pensat-i-fet]

The (only) one I love (Martin Ødegaard x Reader, ft Rúben Dias)

**After posting this Rúben imagine, I got a request to do something similar but with Ødegaard. And this is what I came up with. There is a little Rúben cameo and...he might not be that great in this story but oh well 😅 enjoy!! ❤️**

Word count: 2887

Masterlist

Wattpad

Jealousy was a very bad companion. It was an irrational feeling that made people say and do very stupid things. No one wanted to feel jealous. And yet…

“You’re going to Manchester?”

“Yes. Just for the weekend”, you said, not noticing the way Martin looked at you. “It’d be fun to see everyone”.

“Sure”.

“You ok? Worried you’ll miss me too much?”, you teased.

“Yeah, that’s it”.

Even if Martin’s smile didn’t convince you fully that it was only that, you let it slide. It was true that you hadn’t spent that much time together lately but you really needed some time away to catch up with your friends and that work trip was a great option to do just that.

Your year studying abroad in Lisbon turned into a job at Benfica, which then led you to your job at City. There, your good relationship with Mikel Arteta made you take his offer of working with him at Arsenal. You were extremely happy in London but you missed Manchester. And especially, the Portuguese boys. You had already worked with Rúben when he still played for Benfica. And once at City, you became friends with Bernardo almost as easily.

The season had been a strange one for you. Arsenal were doing so well but City was always behind, ready to take any opportunity to go back to the top of the table. It was sort of ideal in a way. If Arsenal won, your team won. But if they didn’t, your former team would win. Your friends would win.

Someone who didn’t see it that way was Martin. Even if you had an unspoken rule of not dating players, once you met Martin, that rule banished. You were charmed by his personality the second you talked to him and you already thought he was really cute before meeting him in person, so…

“Let’s go to the match!”

Once you got to the stadium, it was time to separate from Martin. He had been pretty quiet on the ride to the stadium but you didn’t worry much about it. It wasn’t that unusual for him to be like that.

“Good luck, my love”, you said, kissing him and hugging him tightly. You knew how nervous he got before matches and how much your good wishes meant to him.

Despite all the silly thoughts in his mind, your hug made him relax. You were there with him. And he trusted you. There was no reason to be jealous. And yet…

**

Another bad result for Arsenal, while City kept winning all of their matches, meant Martin was pretty upset after the match. He loved being a captain, even if he was still so young. But bad results were harder to digest because of that extra responsibility.

He was waiting for you to be done with work, sitting inside the car, lost in thoughts of what could have been done better.

"Hey!"

Hearing your voice made him turn his body completely to hug you. You barely had time to sit down but didn't mind. Martin needed you.

"Please don't go to Manchester", he muttered against your neck.

"Why?"

He looked up realising he had said that out loud. He couldn't tell you about his jealousy. You wouldn't understand. And it wouldn't be fair to you, because you had done nothing wrong.

"I just…I need you here with me".

"I can come back a day earlier but I need to go. There's work stuff that I need to do there".

"Of course. I'm just being stupid and needy. Stay there as long as you want to".

He shook his head and got ready to drive but you took his hand to stop him.

"Is there anything else you want to say?"

"No", he smiled. "Let's go home".

                                     **

"This is ridiculous", whispered Martin, putting his phone down and his hands on his face.

"What's wrong, bro?", asked Bukayo when he saw his captain's actions.

"I'm stupid. That's what's wrong".

"You're not. Did you see something on your phone that upset you? Is your family ok?"

"Yeah, they are good, don't worry. It's just…", he didn't know how to say it without sounding silly so he took the phone and showed Bukayo.

"I don't get…oh. Don't be jealous, mate. She'd never do that".

"I know", he sighed. "That's why I feel stupid. But look at the comments".

Bukayo did and understood his teammate a bit better. So many people talking about what a great couple you and Rúben Dias made. On a previous post with photos of you two, even one of Rúben's friends commented about it…and Rúben liked the post. Martin couldn't stand it anymore. But he couldn't ask you to stop being friends with him. It wasn't fair.

By the time you got back from Manchester, Martin had convinced himself that not looking at any of your posts was the best idea. He was the type of boyfriend who always liked your posts and left some sort of comment. Even if it was just a heart emoji. So people noticed the change but he didn't care.

"Honey, I'm home!"

You didn't even have time to fully close the door before Martin got there and lifted you to hug you.

"Missed me?"

"Barely", he joked before kissing you. "I thought we could go out for dinner. But if you're tired, I can cook or order something".

"Let's order. I'm shattered. I just want to shower, put on my pajamas and cuddle with my favourite boy".

"That's a good plan", he said, smiling and pecking your lips again.

Martin's smile didn't leave his face while he walked with you to your room. But then you took your hoodie off and he saw it wasn't one he had seen before.

"Did you go shopping while in Manchester?"

"No. Why? Did you expect a souvenir?"

He laughed at your joke, still looking at the hoodie. "Where did this come from then?"

"Rúben", you said, casually. "I was clumsy enough to get sauce on my jacket so he gave me his hoodie to wear".

"That's nice of him".

You smiled at your boyfriend before getting inside the shower, not seeing his face. Not guessing all the thoughts that were going through his mind at that moment.

                                     **

The weeks passed and it was time for Martin's most dreaded match. City at the Etihad.

"Hello traitor", he heard someone say when he was on his way to the dressing room. And he knew that voice.

When he turned to look at Rúben, he saw you hugging him and laughing. He would have stared for hours but a slap on his back woke him up from his daydreaming of how he could murder a Portuguese defender.

"Hey, good to see you", said Erling.

"Yeah, same".

But Martin kept looking in your direction and Erling noticed.

"Who's that?"

"My girlfriend".

"Right…I heard about her. She used to work here".

Martin nodded, hearing your laugh he loved so much but that he couldn't enjoy now because of who was the reason you were laughing.

"I better go. Good luck".

"Good luck to you too".

Martin started to walk faster and you noticed him leaving without getting his good luck hug.

"I need to go. See you later", you told Rúben before sprinting after your boyfriend.

The door to the dressing room closed behind him and you knew you couldn't get inside. The players knew you and probably wouldn't mind but you wanted to respect their privacy. So when you saw another player walking towards the door, you knew it was your best chance.

"Aaron, can you tell Martin to come out for a second?"

"It's time for the coach's talk but then we'll go out again to warm up".

"Yes, but I need to go to work myself and I have to tell him something important…".

"Ok".

Checking your phone you noticed you couldn't wait there longer than 5 minutes. But luckily, the door opened again and it was Martin who got out.

"Hey, I didn't get to wish you good luck".

"No, you were too busy".

"What does that even mean?"

"I have to go back inside. The captain can't miss the team talk".

"Are you mad at me?"

No, he was mad at himself.

"Martin…".

"We'll talk later".

None of you could concentrate well on your jobs after that. And every city goal only made the situation worse.

After the match, a lot of City players surrounded their former teammate Zinchenko. But you were surrounded only by two City players, Rúben and Bernardo.

"Who's going to win the league, then?", laughed Bernardo. You had been joking about it all season.

"I don't care", you said and they were surprised by the way you reacted.

"Don't be a sore loser", said Rúben, putting his arm around your shoulders. And when you looked up, you saw Martin looking at you two. And finally, finally, you understood why he behaved the way he did sometimes. Why he had behaved the way he did before the match.

Focusing on work was the best option for you and that's what you did. By the time you got to the plane, you hadn't talked to Martin and you planned on doing that when you got home. The last thing you needed was to make a scene in front of your bosses.

"Are you going to talk to me or just acting like a child is enough for you today?"

"You don't get it".

"I do, Martin. I do now. You're jealous of Rúben, which is the stupidest thing…".

"Is it stupid? Ask him if it’s stupid! I trust you but I don't trust him at all".

"So I can't be friends with men then?", he was being so ridiculous…you couldn't believe it. He wasn't like that normally.

"You're friends with my Arsenal teammates and it's fine. You're friends with Silva too and it's fine. But Dias…he likes you. Don't deny it".

"If you trusted me as much as you say you do, that wouldn't matter".

Martin noticed you didn't deny his claim. And he really hoped you would.

"I do, but it's hard. Put yourself in my shoes for a second".

Seeing his defeated look took some of your anger away. So you took his hand and walked with him to the sofa so you could sit and talk.

"Why is it hard? Explain it to me".

And so he started to name all the things that had made him jealous in the past, worried you'd laugh at him.

"And then they have to play against Madrid and you want them to win too, writing about it on social media".

"So? Why can't I support City in the Champions League? I won't next year when you play it".

"I played for Madrid. People talked about how my girlfriend was talking about wanting them to lose".

"They treated you like shit. People can't expect me to like them…".

"I guess", he sighed.

"What else?"

"Do you read the comments on your posts?"

That surprised you. Did he? You never did because being a woman in a male centric industry meant you got a lot of abuse on social media. So the best thing you could do was ignore all comments.

"No, why?"

"So you don't see how people ship you and Rúben every time you post about the other or when you interact in the comments"

"That's so stupid. I post a lot with Bernardo too. Why don't they ship me with him then?"

"He's in a relationship".

"So am I".

"Yeah…they don't care about that, apparently".

"Do you get comments about it?"

He nodded, picking up his phone and going to the last photo of you he posted. You read the comments and couldn't believe it. All the cheating accusations under your comment were bad enough. But all those comments about you and Rúben being a better couple…

"You should have told me earlier".

"And look like the idiot I am? I told you, I trust you. But it can be too much. He's taking my league title but he can't take you too".

"He won't".

You understood. And most importantly, you believed him when he said he trusted you.

After your talk, you two cuddled on the sofa. He needed you to be there for him and you needed to reassure him.

Between the match, the travelling and your argument, he was exhausted and fell asleep quickly. You moved him gently so his head could be on your lap and took your phone out and took a photo of him. He looked adorable.

Because of the argument, you hadn't had time to go through Instagram after the match. And you didn't know why, but you felt the need to go to your tagged photos.

One of the first you saw was of you and Rúben hugging. A City fan page had posted it and Rúben liked it. You were about to move to the next when the caption caught your attention.

"Please City, bring her back to the team so these two can be together. Dream couple! 😍"

Rúben like that? You definitely needed to talk to him but you couldn't tell Martin. He didn't need to see more comments like that. He was right when he said it was too much. You could only imagine how painful it would be to see those types of posts about him and another woman.

Looking down at him, you felt the need to do something. And so you opened the Instagram app again and posted the photo you took of Martin sleeping with his head on your lap on your stories.

"The (only) one I love 💕"

[davidtennantgenderenvy]

As i approach the end of finals week, I’m taking a moment to reflect on all of the absolutely CRAZY things that have happened during my roller coaster of a sophomore year of college!

This is of course, going to go down in the history books as The David Tennant year. What started as a silly little reawakened special interest in my favorite actor has somehow opened doors for me that I never could have imagined. Writing a two hour video essay about this man is NOT how I thought I’d be spending last semester, but not only did it become one of the proudest creative projects of my entire life and connected me with so many amazing internet buddies, but it was also invaluable in helping me come to terms with my queerness and come out to my friends and family. Thanks to a silly little short about David’s BAFTA outfit, he KNOWS I EXIST NOW, which is still so wild. And finally, he inspired me to write my most ambitious piece of music to date, my 8 month labor of love Crowley’s Lament, which put to the test basically everything I’ve learned about music and performing and has been received so beautifully by you guys.

This year wasn’t all about him, though! I finally got to make my collegiate stage debut in my first opera, and Iolanthe ended up being the dream role I never knew I needed- an endearing and inspiring character that was such a fulfilling challenge for an actor and singer to play. I learned loads of challenging classical, musical theatre, and pop rock music this year, listened to a ton of new albums (Will Wood might be one of the most incredible musical discoveries of my life?), and learned a ton about music theory and history. One of my favorite classes this year was Film and TV music analysis, and I got to apply my knowledge by composing the score for one of my Discord mutuals’ short films! I turned 20 and on the same day got to perform in an original musical for my friend’s composition recital. I took part in my first ever crew assignment, had two of my pieces performed at Project 21 concerts (one with a full band!), and my original Fullmetal Alchemist song Even Into Hell was choreographed for a collaboration with the school of dance, which brought my piece to such gorgeous emotional life.

I’ve gotten closer to friends old and new, and just when I’d accepted that romance probably wasn’t in the cards for me any time soon, I met (well, started DM-ing), the most amazing person through the most unexpected set of circumstances (that honestly deserves its own video sometime in the future). My brilliant internet friend-turned-parter Merlin @elsinore-and-inverness has brought so much light and joy into my life, and I can honestly say I’m the happiest I’ve been in years.

Next stop, THE UK!!! I’m not only studying abroad on a once in a lifetime Shakespeare trip, seeing loads of West End shows AND performing at the Edinburgh Fringe, but I also get to meet my favorite London boy in person :)))) could NOT be more excited

[coopsgirl]

Modern AU Thranduil One Shot - Studying Abroad

Safe for work, 995 words

The study abroad program you were participating in felt like a dream come true. The University of Kent located in Canterbury had proved to be the right school as the campus was lovely and it was a short train trip to London which made it easy to travel around the rest of England from there. You had been invited to a bonfire by some of your classmates and you happily accepted. The crowd grew fairly large by the time the sun had begun to set which during the Summer, was quite late. One man in particular caught your eye. He was very tall, you guessed around 6’5”, and had shaggy, light blonde hair. You were afraid he was going to notice you staring but it was hard to stop as he was so handsome. “You fancy him, don’t you?” your friend Ruby asked as she sat down on the ground beside you. “He’s really cute” you confessed. “He’s rich too. His father is the Earl of Guilford. He’s the eldest so he’ll inherit the title one day.” “Really?! I’ve never met anybody with a title.” “Come on, I’ll introduce you.” “No! I couldn’t. I’m a nobody” you said in protest. Ruby stood up and then took your hands to pull you to your feet as well. “He’s a real sweetheart. Come on!”

You followed behind her nervously as you walked towards him. “Hello! I’m Ruby and I wanted to introduce you to my friend Y/N. She’s studying abroad from America and has never met any of the nobility.” “Oh well, it’s very nice to meet you both. I’m Thranduil” he said with a big smile as he took turns shaking each woman’s hand. “I’ll see you later” Ruby said and then she walked away leaving them alone. “I hope we didn’t bother you” you said apologetically now feeling quite embarrassed as Ruby hadn’t known him any more than you did. “No bother at all. Are you studying at the university here?” “Yes. It’s just for the Summer but so far, I’m having a wonderful time. I’ve always wanted to come to England.” “I’m glad you’re enjoying your visit and I’m glad you were able to come to my party as well.” “This is your party?” you asked as you realized you hadn’t been given much information about the event. “Yes. I graduated from the University of Kent and every Summer I like to hold a party open to all current students, particularly the ones dedicated enough to continue classes through the Summer term” “That’s really nice of you. Is this your property?” “Yes, the manor house is just on the other side of that rise” he said as he pointed to a small green hill behind him. “Thanks again for the party and for not minding talking with me. I should get back to my friends.” “Do you have to?” he asked with a half-smile. You felt the butterflies in your stomach going crazy as you replied, “No, I guess I don’t have to.”

“Would you like to see the house? There’s a beautiful view from just over there” he said looking to the hill. “I’d love to see it.” You could hardly believe your eyes when the large house came into view. “Wow! I can’t imagine living somewhere like that.” “It was built in the 1700s. It takes a lot of work to maintain but it’s a privilege to be responsible for it and make sure it stands for centuries to come.” Thranduil was so proud as he spoke of the home he had been raised in and that he loved dearly. There was a gazebo not far from them and he took her hand in his as they walked towards it. You sat down beside each other and looked out onto the sky where the first stars were beginning to twinkle in the twilight. “I went to Leeds Castle last weekend and that was really fun. It’s beautiful there too.” You really wanted to tell him that he was the most handsome man you’d ever seen with a voice smoother than silk but instead you rambled about the places you’d been. “It is very lovely there…as are you.” You looked up at him with surprise and he quickly spoke again. “I am sorry. That was much too forward.” You felt courage well up inside you as you said, “I don’t mind. I think you’re really cute too.” You could feel your whole face turn red as you thought you sounded silly but the smile he gave you quickly put you at ease.

“I hope this doesn’t sound rude but I’ve never heard the name Thranduil before, is it a traditional English name.” He chuckled and then answered. “The name was my father’s idea. It is very old and I don’t believe that anyone has used it in centuries. I usually go by Thran.” “It’s a nice name and definitely is unique. Should I ask about your middle name?” you said with a joking tone. “Oh, it’s even worse! It’s Oropherion” he explained and you both laughed. “You’ll have to explain that one to me sometime” you said hinting that you wanted to see him again. “I certainly will” he said and he reached over to hold your hand.   

Thran then smiled as he moved a little closer to you and then took both of your hands in his. He leaned forward and tenderly kissed your forehead. When you did not pull away, he looked into your eyes and then his soft lips kissed yours. He let go of your hands to caress your face and neck and you put your arms around his chest and pulled him closer to you. His kisses were gentle and sweet and you could feel yourself becoming a bit lightheaded. A shooting star streaked across the sky above but you were both oblivious to anything going on around you as you were completely lost in each other’s arms.

[fantastic-nonsense]

If I’m remembering right, you’ve been a Harry Potter fan for a long time. Has JKR’s transphobia affected your relationship with the franchise?

It hurts. A lot.

I don't claim to have ever been a Harry Potter superfan like some people were. But I remember being 10 and wanting to go to the local Deathly Hallows midnight release party...not because I was actually genuinely interested in the books, but because I thought it would be fun to go to a party and stay up until midnight. I remember being 11 when I read the books, about six months after that. I remember Harry Potter being my first true foray into fandom (after Nancy Drew), first through Mugglenet and then through FFN. I remember being 15 at summer camp when the final movie came out and having to wait until I got home to see it. I remember being 16 and considering Harry Potter one of my three "base fandoms" that I always returned to when a new hyperfixation ran its course. I remember being 18 and my family going to Universal Studios as my high school graduation present and buying Ginny's wand at Ollivander's while we were in Harry Potter World. I remember studying abroad in London at 20 and taking a special trip over to King's Cross/St. Pancras station to take pictures at the Platform 9 3/4 exhibit with my friends. I remember being 21 and buying a (book accurate blue and bronze) Ravenclaw-themed scarf on a whim because I thought it looked nice and was a subtle way to wear fandom-inspired clothing.

I'm not a stranger to engaging with creative work I love whose authors have believed, said, and done awful things. I read comics. I was an English major. I spend quite a lot of my free time consuming sci-fi and fantasy, genres which have offered great creative freedom but also contain a lot of unfortunate history to sort through when it comes to opportunities for and treatment of marginalized groups. Every piece of media (no matter how well-intentioned its creators are) has problematic elements that you have to deal with. My attitude towards most types of creative media has long been a sense of "death of the author" paired with a critical understanding of how the author's views might have impacted the work I enjoy.

But Rowling has largely made that impossible. You cannot separate Harry Potter from Joanne Rowling and her awful views and actions. You cannot separate the franchise from the causes she supports with the money we give her. You cannot separate yourself from the knowledge that the woman who gave you great joy as a child is causing you and people you care about great pain as an adult. She has placed herself at the focal point of her work and as a consequence has killed it as a standalone entity.

It's incredibly sad and depressing to think about. It also makes me unspeakably angry, especially as someone who has done LGBTQ+ advocacy work and pursued a career in public policy in pursuit of making the world a better, more equitable place. She could have done anything with her billions. And she chooses to do this. To use her work and her platform and her time to support bigotry and create an easy pathway to fascist ideology for her supporters. To harm others while claiming all she wants to do is "protect" people like me (a cis woman). She could have done anything. And she chooses to betray an entire generation of fans who enjoyed her work for fear, hatred, and cheap ego points. There's so many problematic and/or outright fucking awful authors whose work I enjoy but am able to maintain a critical distance about (Marion Zimmer Bradley for example), but everything about Harry Potter is just tainted for me now, and it sucks.

And it's all well and good to say "just love different books," but the experience of having your childhood memories weaponized against you like it has been with her bullshit is something that just...isn't replaceable by choosing to obsess over another franchise as an adult? Nor does it actually do anything to help the people who are harmed by her words, actions, and money?

I drifted away from the series and fandom naturally as I grew up, found other books I loved and wanted to interact with more, and began to want different things out of the media I enjoyed, of course. By the time that Rowling revealed her true spots and started using her money to hurt people, it felt a lot easier to largely cut it out of my life.

But I still remember being 11 and reading Prisoner of Azkaban by flashlight under the covers after bedtime. But I still remember being 12 as the Mugglenet fan community encouraged my first "true" attempts at writing fanfiction. But I still remember being 14 and roleplaying as a Hogwarts student through that website's fan-created "student experience" function. But I still remember being 16 and playing Quidditch at summer camp. But I still remember being 18 and winning a trivia game at college orientation because I remembered obscure Harry Potter factoids. But I still remember being 20 and talking about our favorite beasts with my friends as we walked out of the first Fantastic Beasts movie. But I still remember being 21 and arming myself with a document of book quotes, Harry Potter among them, as I went through a minor existential crisis trying to figure out who I was outside of school.

It's a hard thing, to have a creator systematically destroy the personal enjoyment you derive from her work through her loud and proud hypocrisy and hatred of other people. It's a hard thing, to have something that was formative to your childhood and adolesence and have to come to terms with a creator whose beliefs and work undermine the themes you saw in her work. It's a hard thing, to have a piece of your childhood weaponized against you in a way that makes it impossible to simply enjoy and look back fondly on. It's a hard thing, to love something and have that well poisoned irreparably because you can't escape seeing what you wish you'd never been able to see. It's a hard thing, to love something for the joy it gave you but to be unable to love it in peace because you can't escape the spectre of a creator who uses your joy to promote and fund bigotry.

It's a hard thing, being 26 and remembering what it felt like to be a lonely 11 year old who just wanted people to accept me for who I am and wondering why Joanne can't seem to remember the same.

So yes: Rowling's transphobia has impacted my relationship with the franchise. It's impossible for it not to have impacted it. Do I still read HP fanfiction? Occasionally. Will I still sort characters into Hogwarts houses if specifically asked? Yes. Am I going to get rid of my copies of the books or the few pieces of HP memorabilia I still have? Probably not. But will I ever buy or financially support anything related to the franchise again? No, because as long as people keep promoting the series and giving her money, she'll use it to hurt people. I can't in good conscience support that woman in any way knowing what she'll do with the money that gets back to her. And will I ever be able to look at, participate in, or enjoy anything related to Harry Potter again without feeling a vague sense of sadness, betrayal, and disgust? Probably not. It sucks, but that's life I guess.

[101flavoursofweird]

Hi! For the angsty writing prompts, would you be willing to try "Tell me the truth" featuring Janice and Melina? No worries if not ^^ Thanks!

((I’m sorry this took a while and I’m sorry I made this fic a part of an already existing AU series — Infinity — but thank you for the prompt and for giving me the push I needed to write this. The fic is written in a way that can be read be standalone as Janice summarises the first part of said-AU in which Melina survives.))

-

Prompt: “Tell me the truth”

Title: How Wonderful Life is Now You’re in the World

Summary: Having survived her illness, Melina returns to London with her father and Janice.

Spoilers: For Eternal Diva

Set: About a month after Melina originally would have died… and a couple of months before PL4 takes place. I’m not sure if Descole would be quite so driven to find the Golden Garden if Melina had survived but… we’ll see. I wasn’t planning on rewriting PL4 with Janice and Melina in the picture, but it could be referenced in a future fic.

Warnings: Referenced character death, hospitals, terminal illness, recovery from illness, slight internalised homophobia, coming out to uncertain but accepting parents, the joys of the paparazzi… Uh that’s a lot for this Happily Ever After AU, sorry!

Inspiration: Your Song by Elton John

Mere weeks ago, Melina Whistler had been on the verge of death, and Janice Quatlane had almost lost the love of her life.

In that terrible moment, when Melina had seemingly breathed her last and closed her once-bright eyes, Janice would have traded her entire being for Melina.

Janice had crushed Melina’s limp hand— bawling, balking, begging Melina to stay, despite the excruciating pain she was in— because how could Janice live without her?

It wasn’t fair! Melina wasn’t meant to die young like her mother. Melina was meant to survive. Dr. Foster was meant to heal her. Melina was meant to sing and dance. She was meant to laugh and smile and sigh over everything she found romantic.

She was meant to study music and travel the world, with Janice. They were meant to be together—

Janice would have put all of her dreams aside if it meant Melina could take her place.

Behind Janice, Mr. Whistler had been waiting, ready to offer her that chance—

But then, Melina held on. To Janice and to life and to that future that belonged to her…

-

One day ago, Janice had confronted an enraged Dr. Foster and informed him that his findings for reviving the (formerly) lost city of Ambrosia were incorrect.

Fortunately, Janice’s gamble had been correct— a triumph she attributed to Professor Layton’s teachings— and after claiming Ambrosia for himself, Foster had finally let Janice, Melina and Mr. Whistler leave the island… on the condition that they kept their mouths shut.

Their journey home in the lifeboat had been fraught, until Melina had kissed Janice and set off fireworks inside Janice’s head.

Melina loved her too.

When the lifeboat had reached shore, Janice had awoken to Melina stroking her hair. 

Melina was still with her.

It hadn’t all been a dream. Melina was alive and she loved Janice and they were going to spend their lives together…

And Mr. Whistler was there too.

The three of them stumbled across a sandy beach, starving and smelling of the sea.

Melina caught her father’s arm when he tripped over a rock.

Janice spotted a bearded sailor, who rubbed his eyes as they barrelled towards him. He directed them (In an English accent— thankfully, Foster hadn’t sent them abroad!) to the closest coastal town.

There, they reported to the local police station and recounted how the Whistlers’ yacht had capsized, forcing them to abscond in a life boat.

The constable who took their statement seemed more inclined to believe they had escaped the Titanic… though, seeing the sorry state they were in, she didn’t pry. She called someone from Scotland Yard to come pick them up, along with their belongings from the lifeboat.

“I don’t know, Monica,” Janice heard the constable mutter into the phone. “A bunch of rich tourists from London… Your lot can deal with them!”

-

Previously, Mr. Whistler had sold off his family’s mansion to pay for Melina’s ‘treatment’ on the island. (Did it really cost that much to stay in a gothic castle, or had Foster charged him for something extra…?)

Ultimately, the price was worth it for Melina’s recovery— Janice couldn’t dispute that— but now, the Whistlers didn’t have a residence to return to.

Upon arriving in London, Mr. Whistler wanted to be dropped off at a bank— to check if he had enough savings for a hotel— but Melina insisted they should take Janice home first.

The last time Janice had seen her parents was over a month ago… before they had learned Melina’s health was ‘rapidly declining’ (Mr. Whistler’s words) and Janice had jetted off to the island.

Though Janice had written letters to her parents, she now wondered whether they had even been sent…

Maybe some of them had, because Janice’s parents hadn’t reported her missing to Scotland Yard— at least, the officer who chauffeured Janice and the Whistlers didn’t mention it.

Still, Janice was a jumble of nerves as they approached her parents’ two bedroom house in West London. (Melina would politely describe it as ‘humble’…)

Janice had maintained the Whistlers’ sunken yacht story when the police questioned her, but could she lie to her family?

Well… she had kept a few secrets from them already. What was one more to add to the pile?

Janice’s parents had been under the impression that Melina Whistler was at death’s door…

So to have Melina turn up on their doorstep with Janice must have been quite a shock.

Her mum’s green eyes widened. Her dad’s hairline seemed to recede even more.

“Hi—“ Janice barely managed a whisper, before the two of them embraced her and Melina.

“Sorry!” Mum gasped after a moment. She pulled back as if Melina was made of porcelain. (Even though Melina was a head taller than her…) Dad followed suit, but he kept a hand on Janice’s shoulder.

Smoothing down her short red hair, Mum stammered, “W-we just weren’t… expecting you— both of you— here!”

“I’m sorry it— it’s been a while,” Janice began, working around the bump in her throat.

“How… are you?” Dad asked, his brown eyes brimming with concern. The question was aimed at Janice and Melina, but the way he squeezed Janice’s shoulder was a comfort solely for her.

Janice’s lips trembled. Before she could burst into tears and blurt out everything, Melina breathed, “I’m getting better.”

“Th… that’s brilliant!” Mum cried, and she hugged Melina once more. “I’m so happy for you, darling…!”

A choked noise emerged from Melina as she held on. “M-me too!”

Dad smiled at the pair of them, and then at Janice.

“There’s something else,” Janice mumbled.

Melina and Mum stopped hugging as they turned to her. Dad’s bushy eyebrows furrowed.

Janice exhaled.

After everything she had been through lately, coming out to her parents should not have felt this daunting.

And yet, Janice quivered.

Melina offered her hand. Janice took it, intertwining their fingers.

Together, the couple (because that was what they were now) gazed at Janice’s parents.

For Janice, this was more terrifying than any performance or exam she had ever faced.

After an eternity of silence, Dad let out a loud sigh. “That’s a relief! I was worried you’d run off with a rock singer—!”

“Dad!” Janice yelped, at the same time Mum huffed, “Joel!”

“Like those… those Beatles!” Dad clicked his fingers, grinning. “Or the Rolling Stones!”

Melina laughed. Janice’s face warmed— more out of embarrassment than anxiety now. (Dad was way off— her favourite band was actually The Ronettes!)

“Really…” Hopelessly, Mum shook her head. “Don’t listen to him, Melina! Janice would never run off with anyone, because she… she has you now, I suppose…” Mum coughed. “I’m sorry— this is all just quite a shock!”

Did she mean Melina’s incredible recovery or her relationship with Janice?

“It’s okay, Mum,” Janice murmured.

Mum gave her a tentative smile.

Eager to move the attention away from her, Mum wondered, “W-What does your father think about this, Melina?”

“Oh, he’s fine with it,” Melina chimed, swinging her hand in Janice’s. “He knows I’m a true romantic at heart, hehe!”

Melina had told her father the news back in the lifeboat. Mr. Whistler had simply hummed, before changing the subject. 

Did that mean he was ‘fine’ with them? Had he suspected about their feelings all along…?

Turning her head, Janice peered back at the road, where Mr. Whistler was still waiting in the police car.

…Could he be indifferent? Or— surely he didn’t disapprove?

On their drive to London, he hadn’t spoken to Janice directly— unless Melina was involved in the discussion as well.

He had barely even looked at Janice… or, if he had, it was like he was looking past her. 

Like Janice was invisible when she wasn’t interacting with Melina.

Janice’s mind flashed back to the blueprints she had seen in Dr. Foster’s workshop below the castle.

Foster had planned to build some sort of machine that would preserve Melina’s memories in the event of her passing. 

At first, Janice had reasoned that maybe the device was like a film reel, or an electronic photo album, to remember the good times they had shared with Melina…

But when Janice had studied the blueprints more closely, she had felt sick. 

Because it appeared Foster had intended to transfer Melina’s memories into another person…

Who, exactly, would that person have been?

Janice swallowed. Wrenching her gaze away from the police car, she refocused on her parents and Melina.

Melina was chatting about all the things she planned to do now that she was back in London. (“—I’m going to catch up with everyone, finish my composition, join a choir and a ballet club, visit the market, volunteer at a dog rescue centre, maybe see if I can reapply for the Academy, find somewhere to live with Janice..”)

Janice smiled, even though she could sense Mr. Whistler’s stare behind them.

-

Back in high school, Melina had often rhapsodised about how she and Janice would be roommateswhen they were older.

Never mind that Janice might end up at a different university to Melina, studying a different course…

Never mind that Janice most likely wouldn’t be able to afford the same types of accommodation as Melina…

Never mind that the thought of living with Melina had sent Janice’s heart into overdrive, and escalated her fears that she would be found out.

If her parents had made the discovery, that would have been disastrous enough. 

But for Melina? It could spell the end of their friendship, because she had seen Melina as much more than just a friend.

So, Janice had gone to Gressenheller, while Melina had started attending the Royal Academy of Music and Drama— though, they had kept in close contact and regularly met up.

Melina’s visits had dwindled, however, after she had passed out during a rehearsal…

Then came the endless hospital appointments, the diagnosis, and the driven desperation of Mr. Whistler.

All of the doctors had Melina deemed a lost cause… except for one.

After a tearful farewell to Janice, Melina and her father had moved to the island. 

Melina had frequently written to Janice with updates on her treatments and her trips to the beach and her attempts to complete her composition, but Mr. Whistler had only written once.

‘Dear Miss Quatlane,

Despite our efforts, Melina’s health has rapidly declined. As always, Melina is determined to carry on, but the doctor has informed us there is nothing to be done. We’re devastated—

I understand how much pain and grief it must cause you to hear this…

Melina has been asking to see you. She isn’t strong enough to make the journey back to London, but please would you consider joining us on the island? I would be happy to cover the costs…

If you could fulfil my daughter’s request,  I would be in your debt, Janice.

With all my love,

Oswald Whistler’

Obviously, Janice had agreed— abandoning  her archaeology course and her family and everything in London— for Melina.

What else mattered, when Melina was dying…?

Except, Melina didn’t die, and now the two of them were back in London.

They had only been home a week, before Melina suggested they should get an apartment together.

Unsurprisingly, Mr. Whistler had squirrelled away some money— part of which he gifted to Melina.

If he was displeased with Melina’s decision to move in with Janice, he didn’t voice any complaints.

Janice’s mum did voice some… concerns, however. She fretted about whether they were taking things too fast, but Janice pointed out that she and Melina had lived together on the island (and shared a bed, though Janice left that part out) for several weeks, so why shouldn’t they now?

Janice was long past the point of waiting and worrying about what people might think. She had nearly lost Melina— why should she care about anyone else’s opinion?

Still… Janice experienced a small thrill the first time Melina grabbed her hand in public.

They were at the Chess Department Store, hunting for furniture on the third floor.

“Jan, look!” Melina dragged her over to a pair of pink tub chairs. “They’re perfect…”

Pleasantly surprised, Janice didn’t even check the price tag.

She smiled down at their joined hands— at the strength in Melina’s grip, at the healthy glow to her previously pallid skin, at how excitedly she clung to Janice.

“Do you like them?” Melina gasped, turning to Janice with a gleam in her dark eyes.

Janice nodded, though she did ask (for the third time), “You’re sure your father won’t mind…?”

They were currently depending on Mr. Whistler’s funding— just until Janice found a job!

“Of course he won’t!” Melina dismissed. She released Janice’s hand and relaxed into one of the chairs. “Father wants us to live comfortably… and these chairs are very comfy—“

“I told you to LEAVE ME ALONE!” a shrill voice shouted across the shop floor.

“What’s going on…?” Melina leapt to her feet, wobbling slightly. 

Janice caught her by the arm and they went to investigate the commotion… over by the store’s lift.

There was a woman wearing a slim black dress, her brown hair curled into the most complicated updo Janice had ever seen. She looked like the kind of celebrity Melina used to read about in her gossip magazines.  (And, secretly, the kind Janice would find attractive.)

The lady’s white gloves curled into fists as she faced a group of men— some wielding cameras, notepads and pens— who were blocking her path to the lift.

“Paparazzi?” Melina whispered. Janice frowned, but slowed their approach as Dr. Foster’s threats entered her mind.

The last thing she and Melina needed was to draw attention to themselves…

Weren’t celebrities used to dealing with the press? Wasn’t that part of their jobs— to give interviews and extend their fame?

“GET OUT OF MY WAY!” the woman snapped.

“Be reasonable, Mrs. Raidley,” one of the men drawled. He pointed a pencil in her direction. “We just need a few moments of your time—“

“How are you dealing with the death of your husband?” another man exclaimed.

The woman— Mrs. Raidley— shuddered with what Janice hoped was rage, rather than fear or grief.

Melina hissed, “We should help!” She took a step towards Mrs. Raidley, but Janice held her back.

“Hang on, Mel…” Janice glanced around. Was there a security guard or a shop assistant nearby…?

When she found neither, Janice looked back at Mrs. Raidley.

A cameraman snapped a photo of her. Gasping, Mrs. Raidley shielded her face from the flash.

Surely if she had suffered a loss, she should be allowed space and privacy to mourn, just like any other person.

“Alright,” Janice sighed. “What should we do?”

“Cause a distraction,” Melina said. “And give her time to escape…” She squeezed Janice’s arm before she detached herself.

Then, Melina took a deep breath and began to sing. The lyrics she chose, from a Rock and Roll legend, could be considered rather… scandalous for a public store.

However, the men didn’t take any notice, for they were still busy harassing Mrs. Raidley.

Maybe they couldn’t hear Melina? 

As much as she had improved, Melina’s voice still wasn’t as powerful as it had once been… 

So, Janice joined her, belting out the song like they were in a stage musical.

That got the paparazzi’s attention. The whole lot of them turned to leer at Janice and Melina. One man lifted what might have been a tape recorder.

Janice’s face grew hot, but she didn’t hesitate. Not even when Mrs. Raidley met her gaze and smiled in thanks. (She was quite beautiful…)

Mrs. Raidley blew them a kiss, before dashing out an exit and down some stairs.

The cameraman noticed and protested, “Hey! Forget those birds— Celia Raidley’s on the run!”

Howling in agreement, the paparazzi chased after Mrs. Raidley like a pack of wolves.

Janice stopped singing with a huff. “I hope she gets away…”

“She probably has a l-limousine waiting out in the s-street,” Melina chuckled, though she ended up coughing.

“Are you okay?” Janice asked as Melina covered her mouth with her hand.

Nodding, Melina waved off Janice’s concern. “Let’s go buy those chairs… and everything else…”

They took the lift down to the ground floor— which was, thankfully, free of paparazzi— and they went to the till.

Janice ordered all of the furniture they had selected to be delivered to Melina’s new apartment…

No— Janice reminded herself— it was their apartment. Janice’s and Melina’s! They were going to be living together— without Dr. Foster or Mr. Whistler or anyone else telling them what to do.

So elated was Janice that she didn’t realise how heavily Melina was leaning against her as they left the store.

They had barely made it ten steps outside before Melina fell.

-

Mr. Whistler burst into the hospital room, barged past several nurses and the doctor, until finally, he reached Melina’s bedside.

“Melina— thank heavens!”

Melina was conscious, stable and propped up in bed. She offered him a wan smile. “Father, I’m—“

“I was so scared that you… that you had…” Mr. Whistler enveloped her in a hug, clutching the back of her head.

When he let go, Mr. Whistler locked eyes with Janice— who was sat on a stool on the other side of Melina’s bed.

“What happened?” Mr. Whistler demanded. This time, he was definitely addressing Janice directly.

Janice gulped. (Maybe she did prefer being invisible after all…) She wet her lips to speak, but Melina suddenly launched into a description of their ‘exciting’ day at the department store.

Then Dr. Orta— who was, in fact, a real doctor with decades of experience at the hospital— intervened and explained that Melina had fainted due to over-exertion, but she should improve after a few days of rest and the medication he had prescribed.

“Frankly, we’re amazed Melina is doing so well,” Dr. Orta coughed, “considering her history—“

“Who told you that?” Mr. Whistler said sharply. His frown shifted to Janice.

Janice tensed her shoulders, resisting the urge to shrug. She’d had to give Melina’s name when the ambulance arrived…

With flinty grey eyes, Dr. Orta informed Mr. Whistler, “It’s vital that we access the medical history of all our patients…”

The doctor cleared their throat and the nurses flocked out of Melina’s room. Janice sent them all a sympathetic look.

Lowering their voice, Dr. Orta continued, “I won’t pry into Melina’s remarkable recovery, but you must seek medical aid if you feel unwell again, Melina.” Dr. Orta regarded her sternly. “You can contact me directly, if you wish… But for now, rest and keep taking your medicine.”

“Okay,” Melina sighed with resignation, as if she had heard this all before.

Mr. Whistler put his arm around Melina’s shoulder. Melina rested her head against him.

Janice remained seated with her hands folded in her lap.

-

Dr. Orta wanted to keep Melina in hospital for a few more days to monitor her health.

Only one visitor was permitted to stay with a patient overnight. Of course, this ended up being Mr. Whistler; he was Melina’s parent and, until recently, he had been her primary carer.

Janice had taken care of Melina too, but she had been summoned to the island for another reason… 

Now that they were back in London, Mr. Whistler seemed to think Janice’s presence was no longer required.

Or maybe Janice was just being paranoid. She hoped that was the case!

Melina tried to argue in Janice’s favour— to split the overnight visits between Janice and her father— but Janice convinced her not to worry.

Since they had returned from the island, Janice and Melina had shared nearly every moment together. Melina could spend some time catching up with her father, while Janice stayed with her own parents and pinned down a job.

Besides, Janice could still drop by to see Melina in the day!

During one visit, while Mr. Whistler had gone to see a house he was hoping to rent, the couple ventured down to the hospital’s garden. Even the sunshine couldn’t lift Melina’s dour mood.

“I thought… I was… getting better,” Melina grunted as they traversed the golden gravel path.

“You are,” Janice soothed her softly as they passed another patient. “This is just a… setback. You’re so much better compared to before—“

“Maybe, but right now, I feel breathless just from walking. Singing put me in the hospital...” Melina raised her arms above her head, stiff as a wooden ballerina, but dropped them with a huff. “Goodness knows what would happen if I tried to dance—!”

The other patient, who seemed to have overheard Melina, scoffed loudly. “Poor you!”

Both Janice and Melina stopped short next to a flower trough. Spinning around, they saw that the speaker was a man with unruly purple hair and a matching beard.

“Excuse me?” Melina said, in the same tone she had once used to challenge Janice’s school bullies.

“Excuse you’, indeed!” the man groused, grasping at his beard. “I could hear your whining a mile away!”

“I was not ‘whining’!”

“She’s not very well,” Janice informed the man flatly. (Not that it was any of his business!)

“But you’re ‘better’—“ He threw Melina’s words back in her face. “Better off than some... Is that correct?”

Melina bit her lip.

“With all due respect, Sir…” Stepping in front of Melina, Janice aimed a frown at the man. “That doesn’t give you the right to—“

“I’ve got less than a year left to live.”

Janice’s mouth went dry.

Melina, however, found her voice. “I… I’m very sorry to hear that…”

“Yes, well…” The man shrugged. He looked as though he had won his battle against Melina, but lost a long war. “It is what it is—“

“What if it isn’t?” Melina gasped. She gestured to him desperately. “What if your body recovers— or if the doctors find you a cure— or… or—“

“Perhaps someone will bring me a magical elixir!” the man sang, beaming sardonically. Then he scowled at Melina. “Just because luck shined in your favour, young lady, doesn’t mean it will for all of us.”

“That’s not…” Melina recoiled into the shade of a tree. “I didn’t mean…”

“Leave him,” Janice muttered. Melina blinked at her. The man flounced away with a “Hmph!”

“I… I know how lucky I am,” Melina stuttered as Janice joined her under the tree. “But I don’t… look down on people, do I?”

For a moment, Janice contemplated this. Janice would be lying if she said she hadn’t sometimes felt inferior to Melina in the past— whether it was due to Melina’s wealth, her family connections, her talents… 

Although Janice couldn’t read Melina’s mind, she was confident Melina had never intended to patronise her, stifle her, or make her feel small.

Melina would never…

Janice lifted Melina’s hands in her own.

“You are luckier than some,” Janice agreed (knowing this could apply to herself as well), “but that doesn’t lessen your suffering. Just be… mindful of who you’re… venting to.” (That was a better word than ‘complaining’!) Smiling, Janice assured her, “But I’ll always be here to listen to you.”

“I’ll do the same for you!” Melina wrapped her in a hug. “If anything’s wrong— if I do anything wrong— you will tell me, won’t you, Janice?”

“Of course!”

-

Janice hadn’t lied to Melina— she had told her about the blueprints for Foster’s machine back on the island— but Janice had omitted who she suspected the test subject would have been, along with her suspicions of Mr. Whistler’s involvement. 

Melina would be devastated if she found out— blaming both herself and her father. 

As much as Mr. Whistler had shunned Janice, she didn’t want Melina to cut him out of their lives. Janice wanted to smooth things over with him if she could.

Anyway, how could Janice point the finger at Mr. Whistler when she wasn’t 100% certain of his guilt?

If Janice could quietly clear up the issue with Mr. Whistler, then there would no longer be an issue… and Janice could uphold her promise to Melina.

Janice waited until Melina was discharged from hospital and they had moved in to their new apartment. 

They were expecting a few more furniture deliveries, so Melina would need to stay at home while Janice started her new job.

(This was a good reason to distract Melina while she was ‘resting’ indoors!)

Janice’s mum had worked at a history museum for many years, and she had managed to get Janice a job at the gift shop there.

It wasn’t quite the archaeologist role Mum had originally envisioned for Janice… but still, Mum had given her a big hug after Janice aced the interview.

“I’m so proud of you!” Mum had whispered. “Oh— that reminds me! Your dad mentioned this… ‘pride event’ coming up in the summer… Are you and Melina going? Can Dad and I go with you— o-or if not, is there anything we can do to help you prepare for the event?”

“Y-yeah…!” Janice had laughed and teared up a little.

Maybe Janice had been too quick to dismiss her mother’s input… 

If Mum could defy her pretentious family to be with a ‘poor, portly plumber’, then no doubt she could accept Janice and Melina as a couple.

Now, Janice just needed to get through to Melina’s father…

One evening after work, she went straight to Mr. Whistler’s new house.

It wasn’t too far from their apartment and it was just as, if not more, luxurious, with rose pink bricks, a sloping roof, three floors and a balcony adorned with wind chimes.

From somewhere inside, Janice could hear the soulful tune of a piano.

It heightened in volume as she approached the house— so much that Janice felt like the music was holding her back.

But she pushed through and pounded on the front door. “Mr. Whistler?”

The piano fell silent. So did the wind chimes.

Janice’s heart drummed in her chest. She reminded herself that she had stood up to a deranged scientist— she could handle her girlfriend’s father, no matter how distant or disapproving he might be…

Footsteps echoed through the front of the house. The door opened.

Mr. Whistler peered out at her.

“…Janice,” he eventually said, by way of greeting. “Is Melina alright?”

“She’s fine.” (Other than being ‘bored’!) “Right now, she’s at our apartment...”

Mr. Whistler sighed with relief and something else— impatience, maybe?

He stared at Janice. Janice stared right back.

“Um…” Adjusting her ponytail, Janice added, “I’ve got a job now, so—“

“That’s good news!” he said, his voice lacking the warmth and the praise Janice had received from her parents. “I take it you’ll be quite busy from now on?”

“Well, I—“

“You won’t have much time to worry over Melina anymore.”

This was so abrupt and so ludicrous, that Janice almost laughed. “Of course I’ll still worry about her! She’s my girlfriend—“

“Right,” Mr. Whistler murmured.

“I’ll still have plenty of time for Melina when I’m not working—“

“Surely you’ll want some time to yourself as well?” Mr. Whistler interrupted, with a pointed look. “You do have a life outside of my daughter…” 

Don’t you? He didn’t say this, but his snide, dismissive sentiment hung in the air.

It was true that Janice had prioritised Melina above all else— back when she thought Melina would pass away... 

But now, Janice was striving to re-chart her life, with Melina in it.

Janice took a deep breath.

“…So,” Mr. Whistler was saying, “it may be wise to arrange for someone else to look after Melina for when you’re not present—“

“Melina doesn’t need constant looking after,” Janice corrected him. “She just needs to remember to rest—“

“Yes—“ Mr. Whistler seemed shocked that Janice had interrupted him “—that is what the doctor said… Speaking of which, I’ve been meaning to call the doctor back! If you’ll excuse me…” 

Before Mr. Whistler could close the front door— and close the lid on their conversation— Janice stuck her foot over the threshold.

“Wait! There’s something else I want to discuss with you…” Janice dropped her voice. “Regarding something I saw on the island—“

“Does it involve him?” breathed Mr. Whistler, suddenly giving her the full breath of his attention.

Janice nodded. Mr. Whistler held the door open and ushered her in, as if Dr. Foster might be lurking right outside.

The hallway was still filled with moving boxes. Some contained items Janice recognised from the castle.

Perhaps Mr. Whistler hadn’t found time to unpack yet, or he felt there was no point…

Mr. Whistler led her into his lounge, where a piano was located in the corner.

Above the piano, Janice saw a single photo:

It was one of a younger Mr. Whistler, an infant Melina, and Melina’s mother. The three of them beamed back at Janice…

Mr. Whistler cleared his throat.

Looking at him, Janice explained, “I found these blueprints for a machine that Foster planned to construct… to save Melina’s memories… in case she died.”

“I see…” Mr. Whistler frowned and fiddled with his glasses. “Does Melina know?”

“Yes.” This was partly true… “Did you know?”

Janice watched Mr. Whistler for a reaction, though his eyes were hidden behind the gleam of his glasses.

In that moment, Janice felt like the two of them were trapped in a game of poker— each making a bluff and waiting for the other to fold.

Much to Janice’s surprise, Mr. Whistler admitted, “Yes… Dr. Foster showed me these plans…” He ran his hand along the lid of the piano.

“And?” Janice’s pulse was pumping.

“I told him it was utter madness…!”

Janice pressed, “But would you… would you have gone along with it, if Melina had died?” 

“Let’s not speak of this.” Shaking his head, Whistler smiled widely at Janice. “Melina is still with us—“

“But… but if she had died, would you have done it?” Janice choked out. “Would you have used me?!”

Whistler turned away from her. His fingers traced over the family photo. Then he murmured, “Would you have refused, if you truly love Melina?”

“…No,” Janice realised faintly. Her love for Melina had overshadowed any consideration for her own life.

Whistler had known this…

“You would have manipulated me,” Janice breathed, “while I was— grieving for Melina?”

“I would have given you the choice, to save the person you love,” Whistler amended in a wistful voice. He was so right that he wasn’t even trying to hide it anymore.

With shaking fingers, Janice reached for her pendant— the special one Melina had given her. As Janice lifted the purple jewel, she caught sight of her reflection— distorted, but still shining. A light that didn’t deserve to be locked away.

She gently let go of the pendant, before she glared at Mr. Whistler.

“I love Melina, more than anything,” Janice said. “And Melina loves me.”

Whistler’s eyes widened as she surged towards him.

“I know you don’t care about me,” she growled, her indignation rising like the tide. “To you, I’m nothing but a phase— a distraction— a means for Melina’s happiness…”

If Melina had died— if Mr. Whistler’s plan with Dr. Foster had succeeded— Janice would have become nothing more than a vessel for Melina’s memories. Janice would have become a memory herself.

Never in a million years would Melina have wanted that, but her father had been so determined to sustain her life— even if it meant erasing Janice from existence.

Mr. Whistler was starting to sweat. Still, he scowled at Janice. “That is just not true—“

“Why else would you invite me to the island, when you’ve never shown the slightest bit of interest in me before?” Janice shook her head furiously. “I don’t care what you think of me— I don’t need your money or your influence or your approval!— but if you do anything to come between me and Melina, I will tell her everything.”

“Please— don’t tell Melina!” Whistler deflated. He held on to the piano for support. “I can’t live w-without her…”

Janice’s face softened.

If he had made the tiniest effort to reach out to her— if he had just acknowledged her— she could have offered him sympathy and consolation in their shared grief.

Instead, he had conspired to steal her life.

Janice strode out of the house without a backwards glance.

-

Janice made it home two hours later than expected. On her way to the apartment, she considered a number of excuses she could offer Melina…

But ultimately, Janice didn’t want to lie to someone she loved— not even a little bit. Not like Mr. Whistler.

So, when Janice arrived and Melina revealed that her father had phoned ahead with some unsettling news, Janice gave her the whole truth…

Even the part about how Janice had felt so inadequate compared to Melina.

“Now that’s— that’s not true!” Melina whimpered, framing Janice’s face with her hands. “You’re kind, and noble, and— and selfless… I can’t believe my father nearly took advantage of that! I’m sorry… Sorry I didn’t realise…!”

“I’m sorry too,” Janice said tearfully, “for not telling you sooner!”

Melina thumbed away her tears, before leaning down to kiss Janice. When their lips parted, they rested their heads together.

“Okay?” Melina whispered. Janice nodded against her.

Smiling, Melina said, “While I’ve been stuck inside, I did manage to finish my new composition… Do you want to hear it?”

“I’d love to.”

[cha0ticr0b0tic]

I just watched Manhunter – the 1986 Michael Mann adaptation of Thomas Harris’ infamous novel Red Dragon – and I have some THOUGHTS that I cooked up in the shower because this could not be more different from Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal, and that’s not a bad thing at all!

A little bit of context so I can explain where I’m coming from: back in late 2019 I was studying abroad in the UK and our professors took us to a Blake exhibition in London. As a writer, socialist, and avid horror fan, I was floored. I got really overwhelmed in there and spent the next couple days decompressing before I started digging into his work in earnest, as well as works revolving around his art. I bought a copy of Red Dragon not long after that trip and worked my way through it when I had free time. I also started working on a paper for class about Blake’s influence in my favorite movie, Blade Runner, which meant I was deep-diving into noir as well as this trippy artwork – lots of anticapitalist rhetoric, lots of body horror, lots of monsters. Sooooo many monsters. 

The pandemic hit, we all were sent home, and I watched a lot of crime shows – Twin Peaks, Mindhunter, and Hannibal were the main ones. I was really excited to get to the Red Dragon storyline in Season Three and I was not disappointed. By that point in the show, Hannibal had turned from a police procedural with supernatural undertones to a full blown queer Gothic romance. That also includes the Dolarhyde/Reba storyline, even if it didn’t last. 

Dolarhyde got a lot of attention in the show – more than I was expecting, honestly. Richard Armitage did SUCH a wonderful job portraying that character, it’s incredibly nuanced and sympathetic. Our first moments with Dolarhyde are where he’s working out, practicing his speech, and getting his infamous back tattoo of the Dragon. There is a lot of attention paid to his body, and his discomfort in his body. I’m half-joking, but the trans vibes are strong with this one: “Becoming” might as well be referring to transitioning, albeit into a giant monster (whatever floats your boat!). As an out-and-proud director making an out-and-proud show, it makes sense that Fuller is focusing on the queer elements of the Red Dragon – the coding was always there, but now he’s really bringing it front and center via Dolarhyde’s physicality/body language.

I was kind of surprised, then, that Dolarhyde was not as prominent in Manhunter. There was hardly any discussion of the Red Dragon artwork at all, which was also surprising – is it because it was too fantastical for a director who deals with grounded, gritty crime? Compared to the NBC show, this Red Dragon was kind of one-note, which was a shame. He’s the bad guy, after all. He’s the guy Will is supposed to catch. But then I remembered: Dolarhyde is this movie’s Waingro. He’s the destabilizing element. I’m not an expert in Michael Mann, but I know he’s very into the stability of the family unit (shout out to good dad Will Graham!) and Dolarhyde specifically targets stable families – this was already in the Harris novel, he didn’t have to make that up to fit his thematic interests. Dolarhyde only matters because he serves as a threat to our hero and his values.

This version of Will Graham is surprisingly grounded, privately tortured, and full of resolve and dedication. We see that he’s got a history with Hannibal – there are definitely some queer moments here (there are a surprising number of 80s love songs in the soundtrack, hmm wonder what that’s about), and it’s a bummer we don’t get much of Cox’s Lecter because he is delightfully funny. Still, I don’t see this Will succumbing to his inner darkness anytime soon; he’s got a very good relationship with his wife and son (Vincent Hanna, take notes.) He is very much a Michael Mann Protagonist, even if he comes from another writer’s mind. In contrast, Bryan Fuller’s Will comes across as a Gothic hero(ine) in that his sensitivities are always highlighted, he looks like he needs to be taken to the seaside for his health, and he can’t seem to shake his demons (Hannibal is, after all, difficult to avoid.)

In any case, both adaptations are valid and it’s kinda comparing apples to oranges. Manhunter leans way more noir, Fuller’s Hannibal is Gothic all the way. I am definitely going to be rewatching Manhunter to pick apart some of the queer coding & subtext hehe

[umichenginabroad]

Stockholm Week 3: Travel Preps!

Hej! I can’t believe it’s already February. Time flew by as I made more unforgettable memories in Stockholm :)

I am definitely getting more used to school and living like a local (we went through so much recycling in the past three weeks).

But for now, I'll dive right into my third week:

1/29 Mon: Freedom in Gamla Stan

During lunchtime, my friends and I visited Matchaya to get bubble tea and lunch. It was only a 10/15 minute walk from the DIS building! Very convenient. The bubble teas were AMAZING and the ramen was good too :)  

My first bubble tea (Mango passion fruit) in Stockholm was a huge success <3 They put chunks of real mango in the drink too!!

I’ve always wanted to go back to Gamla Stan to go into some specific stores that I passed by when I was with my friends, hence I went to Gamla Stan again. Granted that I have been there multiple times now, I didn’t need Google Maps to use the metro or get to the stores. In a small souvenir shop, I found the perfect key chain for my housing key!

It’s a tiny little fuzzy Viking friend! 

As I walked in the warm sunshine and the occasional breezes, I could feel the definition of peace of mind. It was exactly what I came to study abroad for and I was suddenly on the verge of tears due to pure happiness. It was an inexplicable moment :)

1/30 Tue: Searching for the One 

I had never imagined that finding a cream-colored puffer in XS size would be this hard.

There was this white jacket that I saw in UNIQLO during my arrival shopping, and it had been living in my head rent-free since then. I have visited other stores to look for jackets with similar properties but I never succeeded. Moreover, UNIQLO was out of the size I was looking for both online and offline. When I went to the website and applied the filters it said “VERY LOW STOCK” in the mall. I had no option other than to go to the Mall of Scandinavia to look for the exact jacket. I had to try!  

I took the astonishingly smooth commuter train for the first time, and it only took 25 minutes in total. Much to my joy, I was able to snatch the last one at the mall!

1/31 Wed: Let’s Book Everything 

I didn’t have any field trips today, so I had a great time waking up late in the morning (afternoon to be exact). 

I appreciate the sun so much more than I did back in the States 

My roommate and I had a conversation the day before about going to Austria, Vienna together as a weekend trip. We searched through Ryanair (at 1 am) and found the best flight that perfectly suits our class schedules. It gets better: it was $65 per person for a round trip to Vienna! That’s what I call a deal.

Next, I called my dear college friends back home. They have been talking about going to London ever since my study abroad in Sweden was confirmed. My friend and I scheduled a time on Wednesday with Google Calendar (this is what we need to do when we each have 10 billion events going on in our lives) to finalize the trip. Again, Ryanair did its trick and I got my flights booked in an hour. 

** Ryanair is recommended if you are on a tight budget AND don’t have a lot of stuff! I’m only bringing my backpack since these are all weekend trips :)

My roommate and I also had a fabulous dinner, ramen. 

As you can see from the photo, we had a feast

2/1 Thu: Self-Care Day

My morning film class was canceled today, so I had the pleasure of turning off all the alarms. For once I had plenty of time to make breakfast. 

*･+:*｡･ Golden French toast *｡･:*+*

When I was done with my late afternoon three-hour core course, I really didn’t feel like doing anything. So I didn’t! 

The view from the DIS building 

We just cooked together following an Instagram recipe

(could have used thinner meat)

and watched Memento together. It played with my mind too many times… I highly recommend it + a video essay that unfolds the movie from a different perspective! 

2/2 Fri: Banksy!  

To make up for the work I didn’t do last night, I woke up at 5 am to finish my homework. 

Sunrise view at 7:30 am 

After class, I briefly ate lunch and headed to The Mystery of Banksy.

I had no prior background knowledge about Banksy, which allowed the museum trip to be a fun learning experience. There was a lot more political and social criticism than I imagined in Banksy’s artworks. The pop-up ends on February 4th, so if you are interested check out the Banksy website! 

Here are the pictures we took: 

My roomie even brought her camera!!! I was so jealous

2/3 Sat: Fika with Friends

Of course, I went to Gamla Stan again. I was invited for a fika brunch and there was no reason to say no.

We walked around until there were seats available at Fika and Wine.

The food and the desserts were all flavorful. 

After devouring everything, we strolled around the city to digest. All four of us took pictures of each other at the same time and the conversations we had were too funny.

So much laughter &lt;3

I started turning around and around while my friend was taking pictures of me - it resulted in me getting a new nickname of rotisserie chicken.  

The picture depicts a chicken in the midst of rotating

Your answer better be YES to this question!

Maybe it was the turns that led me to lose my transportation card. That’s right, I lost my 90-day SL card. Thankfully, I registered for the replacement guarantee during the first week because I knew it was bound to happen at some point (but not this early ;-; ). I went to the SL Customer Service Center in Central Station, near the T-Centralen metro station, and got my 90-day plan transferred into a new card for $2. 

Sending love to my roomie who stayed with me until the problem got fixed. Couldn’t have done it without you <3 

2/4 Sun: More Planning (Hopefully the Last)

I finally finalized all the details for my Spain trip during the Exploration Travel Week Break! I got the flight and the hotel in Barcelona, and I am extremely excited for this trip. Going to Spain has been on my bucket list for a while now, and I can’t describe how THRILLED I am. I will write more about it when the time comes :) 

My plans for the rest of today are doing more homework and maybe getting dinner with my friends at a Ghanaian restaurant. 

I hope you enjoyed my relaxing but vibrant third week! The past three weeks in Stockholm have been exactly what I came to study abroad for, and I wouldn’t change this experience with anything. 

I hope to share more of my everlasting memories with you!

 

Vi ses, 

Jiwoo Kim 

Chemical Engineering

DIS Study Abroad in Stockholm, Sweden

[rodricksfilipinagf]

Lust Conquers All: A Holiday Romcom (Jamie Tartt x Reader) Part 1

       “Y/N, I need you to cover the Diwata sports line in London.”

        Never have more shocking and exciting news been uttered by my boss. Ever since my sophomore year of high school, I’ve been dying to study abroad in Europe. Unfortunately it never came into fruition, with living expenses being a thing to consider.

        “I thought Jana was going,” I say in shock.

        “Jana needs to handle the clothing line’s main launch in New York. You’ll be there about a month or so. I hope you don’t mind spending the holidays there if you have to.”

        “Yeah, no, for sure,” I say. I usually spend Christmas alone anyway, in front of a Netflix Christmas romcom. Year by year they were getting worse. More soulless. More going through the motions. But ever since I adopted my son Tristan I haven’t been so lonely. Especially since he has friends over a lot. He’s introduced me to a lot of new things, such as Naruto, “cracked” being a compliment, and hilarious kids’ graphic novels.

        Any normal 24-year-old would probably feel constrained by the responsibilities of having a 10 year old son, but I want to use my newfound wealth to provide for someone that I love, and give him a good life. Our house has a pool in the backyard like I’ve always wanted for myself, and come fall it will have a trampoline. It has not one but TWO cushy basements for playdates. And the kitchen has- get this- an island. I know!!! Only rich people have islands, and whenever he does his homework at it, I know how grateful he is.

        My wonderful son has jet black hair with a constantly shifting top layer, color-wise- right now it’s platinum but he’s been wanting purple since Halloween. He has a heart-shaped face, perceptive brown eyes, and the sweetest angel smile. I only had to experience his energy and zest for life, as well as the taste of a picky book critic with good taste, to know that I would be a great parent for him. We’re very attuned to each other’s feelings, so I let him delay homework for fifteen minutes to think by himself after an upsetting day because he needs it, and he tries his best not to use sarcasm with me unless I can tell. And even though he has beautiful tanned Mediterranean skin from being half- Italian, he has not one drop of Filipino blood.

        Is it awkward when people don’t immediately think we’re related? Kinda. I always wear my Hermes Birkin, my Cartier jewelry, my pink lace Burberry trench when I take him to the Asian grocery store or to the trampoline park with his friends. It keeps people guessing. It might not scream, “this kid that looks nothing like me is my son!!!” but it does scream, “I’m not this kid’s nanny cause I can afford all these! At the same time!!!”

                                                       ~

        “It’s okay,” Tristan says after I break the London news to him. He helps chop vegetables I hope he’ll eat for dinner.

        “Really?” I ask. “But you’ve been practicing for your band concert for months…”

        “Yeah, but this is ENGLAND,” he points out. “Can we see a Manchester United game?” He slides the cutting board over to me, and I slide them into the soup.

        “Maybe during the weekend,” I say. “People go to France during weekends too. So it’s definitely possible.”

        “Jeremy’s going to miss me,” he declares. “I’m his best friend and he’s never hung out with the guys without me.”

        “You should make sure they bond more before you go,” I suggest. “Invite them over for We Were Never Really Strangers: Kids Edition.”

        “We do like card games,” he muses thoughtfully. “We were playing mini Uno the other day and half the window side joined until we had to go to lunch.”

        “There you go,” I say. “I’ll be working with a soccer team for the campaign- maybe you know them…UFC Richmond?”

        He shrugs. “I guess. Man U’s still my favorite, though.”

                                                                ~

        Plane rides always gave me this feeling of purpose- of life moving ahead, because you were going somewhere. After this trip, I would be one step closer to being promoted to CMO. Then my son and I can live even more lavishly, and I can take him and one friend (he’ll probably pick Jeremy) to Bora Bora, possibly with an au pair, so I can also have relaxing spa days, sun worship in ray warmed water, and go to karaoke, and I know they’ll be safe.

        As Tristan snoozes comfortably in his cushy first class seat next to mine, I flip through one of the London travel magazines to rest my eyes from Sense and Sensibility with Dakota Johnson- I love the blonde and people should have more respect for her feelings- her sister????) There’s a photo of Big Ben towering in the evening sky, surrounded by twinkling city lights. I wonder if you can see London from up in the sky like you could see New York.

        On the next page, there’s an ad featuring a manspreading guy against a white background that I’m pretty sure is fully naked, except for a gigantic champagne bottle covering his crotch area. The liquid from the bottle fizzes out, covering the surrounding areas too, so I can only see from very well-cut abs up and toned thighs down.

        Damn. I knew France was mega-horny about ads sometimes- a lot of the time- but England? I’d always thought they were more on the conservative side. Mostly from teen romcoms in which the wild, free-spirited, quirky American girl sticks out in…government functions and/or a strict boarding school. Maybe I should update my references. Sex Education literally had a vagina musical. I watched it after my son went to sleep, along with every other steamy show I like.

        And speaking of steam...I can’t remember the last time I flirted with a hot guy. Maybe this month I’ll meet someone and have a holiday fling…I shake off the thought. I’ll be too busy running a marketing campaign, not to mention getting my kid adjusted to a whole new country. Speaking of which, if London has a Filipinotown or Little Manila, I’m so taking him. Wouldn’t it be so cool to have these castle-like structures have our flag or our words or Baybain on the awnings?

        I study the picture again. Or it could be a good place for a date. I probably won’t meet a guy like this. He’s probably a male model or something. My agency really wants the players themselves to model for authenticity and…ethos. This guy has a slit in his right eyebrow that I could take or leave, and eyes that look not traditionally seductive. Though he’s splayed naked, the look in his eyes is brash, challenging, aggressive. As if he dares you to come for him (in more ways than one.)

        Yeah, I could really use some hot, no strings attached sex. I don’t think my personality will morph into one where I’m comfortable chatting up strangers in clubs (surrounded by people they already know) but maybe I’ll have one of those meet cutes I always see in romcoms. Maybe I’ll ask people at the London office about cool, non-touristy places to go. But I can’t tear my eyes away from the ad. I take a pic of it on my phone. Maybe my coworkers used him in their ads too and can do so again this month, and I can “randomly” stop by.

[amesstm]

trips to Europe

A/N: this is inspired by my own study abroad to Berlin :) Then I got stuck in Amsterdam on the way back to the states so that’s why I was gone for so long haha

part 1 | part 2

A trip to Berlin with Gojo involves black clothes on the daily. He has the whole week planned out for his outfits and for you two to match. The two of you soon realize how bad of a decision it is to act like you’re on a runway when it starts raining all of a sudden… yeah, the weather app didn’t catch that part. Once night falls, you both go clubbing, in the typical all-black outfits - at least once to know what it’s like before feeling drained after 20 minutes and walking out. You both spend the night at a cozy bar with good beer, just talking about the beautiful city and what you’ll do the next day.

A trip to Amsterdam with Nanami involves you two going on boat rides down the canals and taking aesthetically pleasing pictures everywhere. The tulip fields have never looked so gorgeous. He’s too quiet to say it, but he loves the pictures where you’re not smiling directly at the camera. It’s a candid shot of the most beautiful person he’s ever seen simply enjoying the flowers. When it’s nighttime, you bite your lip and look towards your boyfriend. He looks towards you worriedly, “what is it?” “Do you want to go to the red district?” He sighs and puts his nose between his fingers in disappointment. “Hey! Gojo would want to go!”

A trip to Prague with Toji involves enjoying the scenic beauty of the old architecture - whilst chastising him for drinking too much Czech beer. He gets swept up in the drinking scene because of how different it is from Japan. Of course, he finally gets it under control but “the beer is cheaper than the water!” However, you do enjoy the city with him. He makes for an amazing model; but he is also a horrible photographer. “Toji! This photo of me on the Charles Bridge is so blurry!” You pout as you look through all of the pictures you took on your very nice, very elaborate camera. “It was foggy anyways!” “But the pictures of you are fine!”

A trip to Belgrade with Yuji involves enjoying the nightlife in Skadarlija. You two love listening to the Serbian musicians, even though you don’t know what they’re saying at all. The traditional food and street performers livened up the night. Yuji smiled brightly at you before taking your hand and dancing with you in the middle of the street. Before the trip, you really thought that it was a bad idea to take a dart and throw it at a map to determine your trip. But Yuji never disappointed.

A trip to Budapest with Megumi involves relaxed strolls throughout the cities. He loved seeing the Gothic style architecture, especially at the Parliament Building. The best part of this city for him and you, though, was the spa culture. Since it was considered the ‘spa central’ of Europe, you both had to go to Szechenyi Baths. Megumi sighed in relief as he felt his body relax in the thermal bathhouse with a strong arm around your waist, “finally, it’s so peaceful.” You chuckled, “Just don’t fall asleep otherwise you’ll wake up wrinkly.”

A trip to Paris with Nobara involves a lot of shopping. After all, Paris was well known for the fashion - and what better time to do it than Paris Fashion Week? You and Nobara attend fashion shows sporting your best outfits. Miraculously, you two were able to fake your way into coming off as top and up-coming models. somehow you two sit next to literal celebrities and outrageously rich people. “ah, this piece comes from Foyles and Hatchards. it’s very niche and they’re becoming very popular.” You watched Nobara flawlessly lie; in reality, she was listing off bookstores in London.

A trip to London with Getou involves high tea at a shop close to Buckingham Palace. “Darling, if you try to kiss the cheek of one of those guards, I’m leaving you here.” You cheekily didn’t answer but smiled like it didn’t bother you. “Never mind, I don’t like that look. you cannot stay here without me.” You did end up getting a picture with one of the guards, from a respectable distance. Getou gets the grand idea to look at the Royal Jewels. Honestly, you wondered what it’d look like if he wore some of those earring pieces. Frankly, your boyfriend might as well have been royalty himself.

A trip to Rome with Inumaki involves all of the famous tourist attractions. Somehow, you two managed to find the Trevi Fountain empty - at 6:00 am in the morning because you both needed gorgeous photos. You two take amazing photos before tossing coins into the fountain. Once it’s a proper time in the day, the Colosseum was a must-see. Around lunchtime, you eat at La Taverna dei Fori Imperiali. Then, it was getting gelato by the canals. “Babe, will you love me no matter how much pasta and gelato I eat?” Inumaki doesn’t answer your question.

extra note for Gojo! The clubbing scene in Berlin can be very casual compared to clubbing in the states. The Berliners love their neutral colors, usually opting for all-black outfits. I felt so out of place with my bolder colors haha.

extra note for Toji! I do not know if it’s true for the Czech Republic but if it’s anything like the other European countries I went to, the water given at restaurants is not free and is sometimes more expensive than other beverages.

there’s other information I can give about my experience that inspired a lot of what I wrote, but I’ll try to keep this short. Cheers!

©amesstm on tumblr // pls do not plagiarize, steal, or repost my content w/o permission!! BUT likes & reblogs are highly appreciated :)

[ladiesoftheages]

Y’all it’s finally happening!!!

So if you’ve been following me for a while then you know that I’m American and I’ve never been to the UK

Well my school is planning a study abroad trip to London and I just found out today that I got chosen to go!

Technically, it’s a theatre trip so we’ll be doing a lot of theatre stuff, but we’ll also have a lot of free time to do whatever we want so I’m gonna try to see as much Tudor stuff as I can (unfortunately, we have to actually stay in London so I won’t be able to go to Hever Castle or any other places outside the city, but I’m definitely going to Westminster Abbey and [hopefully] the Tower and Hampton Court as well)

[mihrsuri]

irish breakfast, turkish tea, and pu-erh! 🫖☕️♥️

what country do you want to visit? So Many. My dream trip for myself that is my savings goal is to go back to England (see below) and go to Vancouver for the first time and I would love to go back to the US and see New York City again. And Seattle. And Boston. I want to visit Israel and Iran and for heritage and faith reasons (though I don’t think I can do both). Greece and Italy. New Zealand because I’m a Tolkien Tragic. Paris specifically.

where have you travelled? I did a one semester student exchange in the US as a just turned nineteen year old that did turn me into a study abroad cliche but slightly in my defence it was a huge life changing thing for the positive - I realised so many good things about myself! I got to see some lovely things! I’ve also been to England (London and Oxford) and I very much want to go back and see more Anne Boleyn and Tolkien things and friends. I’ve travelled to some places regularly in my country but those are the big trips.

3 random facts about myself

-The last thing I baked was packet mix cinnamon rolls and they were delicious

-Jasmine and lavender are my very favourite flowers

-Swimming is my absolute favourite thing but I hate swimming when I can’t see the bottom or there are things brushing my legs.

tea asks

[lindevi]

Media Favorites of 2023

Who can't believe that 2023 is nearly over? *raises hand* As the year winds down, this seems like the time to reflect on the things that helped us or brought us joy. The following is a list (not exhaustive) of my favorite apps, books, music, TV, and video games from the last year, including many that I would recommend to others. You can find my list from 2021 here. (I missed compiling this list in 2022, in no small part because I was sampling eastern Germany’s best Christmas Markets all through December.)

Apps

Airalo. My new go-to for international data, but you’ll need an unlocked phone. I was able to save a ton of money by setting up a second e-SIM to access Japanese mobile data networks. (It cost $10 for 10GB of data across 30 days, which was plenty for the week I spent there, and much cheaper compared to my phone plan’s offerings.) I wish I’d heard of this before my trips to England and Europe this year, but I was able to try it out in Japan successfully. I’ll definitely be making use of this app when traveling in the future. The only downside is that I can’t have both e-sims active, so I had to restart my phone in order to check my text messages. Luckily, most communication is done over apps these days instead of SMS, so I wasn’t missing much.

​Reverso. This app pulled more than its weight for me while I was traveling abroad this summer. The thing I liked most about it is how it pulls up example sentences so you can help see the context and usage of a given word. It also saves your searches for you, so if you were a more disciplined language student than me, you could write down any new vocabulary in a notebook to study later. Also, it’s free and works fairly well offline, and it’s able to handle multiple languages in the same app.

Vivino. When in France, drink as the French do, I suppose. But when you’re at the supermarket trying to decide between the many, many wines available for less than 10€, this app helps to narrow down the field. Scanning the label gives you the user score for that vintage, plus a personalized rating for how it compares to previous wines you’ve enjoyed. By rating the wines I tried, I was able to get a better sense of my preferred styles and remember which labels to avoid in the future. It was also excellent to have on hand when we went to Bordeaux and sampled various Grand Crus. The app helped me to get a sense for how much those bottles would fetch back home, and whether it was worth it to buy it in France to bring home or to seek it out at my local liquor store.

Books

​Dracula by Bram Stoker. The vampire book that started it all (well, not quite), this one really does live up to its reputation as a classic. A few years ago, I read Stoker’s The Jewel of Seven Stars and enjoyed it tremendously (it even served as the inspiration for a Dark Sun one-shot scenario I wrote based around Queen Tara), so I’m not sure what took me so long to get to Dracula. The epistolary style is really well done and should serve as a reference point for any game masters who long to add handouts to their campaigns. It’s inspired me to try running Night’s Black Agents in the new year.

Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch. Apparently this book is the first in an urban fantasy series I’ve been sleeping on for some time. The easy comparison is Storm Front, the first book in the Dresden Files, but I have to say that this one comes out on top re: modern wizard investigator stories, mostly because of the protagonist’s sense of humor and the audiobook narrator’s brilliant delivery. I think fans of British TV will find themselves very much at home with this book. I had the happy accident of being in London while reading this, and I had been exploring Covent Garden and the alleys surrounding the Royal Opera House immediately before reading the finale, which helped tremendously when picturing the final scenes.

Slaying the Dragon by Ben Riggs. With the news of the recent Hasbro layoffs affecting the D&D team at Wizards of the Coast, this book feels like required reading to understand some of the boom and bust cycles of D&D (although, sadly, D&D seems to be doing better than ever, and the layoffs appear to be mandated to help cover losses elsewhere in the company). It’s hard to fact-check/cross-reference this book because so much of it is original research and interviews done by the author, but that’s precisely why it’s a must-read for fans of the franchise.

Music

All Quiet on the Western Front (Soundtrack from the Netflix Film). One word: haunting. The main “melody” is extremely simplistic, but it fits the subject matter so well. I also recommend the movie if you play any 20th century-based wargames or read any history. I found it interesting that this was only the first time a German production company adapted it from the book.

Seelie by CLANN. I’m not sure how to categorize this album, except it’s incredibly ambient and dark and pagan (especially Celtic). The tracks all kind of blend together in a good way, making it excellent for writing or focus work.

Gris (Original Game Soundtrack). Another great soundtrack I put on repeat this year, mostly while reading. It’s melancholic, sweeping, hopeful. I’ve never played the video game, but if it’s half as good as the score, it’ll be quite good.

Movies/TV

​Barbie. I went for a “Barbenheimer” double-feature this summer, and I did not expect Barbie to hit way harder than Oppenheimer did. Ryan Gosling might have stolen the show, but the story and the feels really made this movie stay with us. Coming from a franchise development/IP approval perspective (and this is where I have to do the disclaimer that my opinions are my own, I’m not speaking on behalf of my employer Asmodee), I’m shocked that Mattel let this get made, but I’m so glad they did.

Blue Eye Samurai. (Netflix) I had little idea this was coming until a few weeks before the release, but this show blew me away and shattered any expectations I had for it. The character development, the animation, the voice acting, the themes… it’s hard to find faults with the show (although, perhaps Mizu’s ending was unexpected). If you enjoy samurai cinema or anime, if you’re at all interested in the history of Japan, or if you’re simply an appreciator of animation, this is a must-watch.

​Vienna Blood. (PBS) I like to joke that I have a grandmother’s taste in TV, because BBC/ITV period dramas make up so much of my streaming diet, but this is a mystery/detective show first and foremost. Instead of Sherlock and Watson, you’ve got Detective Rheinhardt and Max Liebermann. Max is a Jew in 1900s Vienna and a student of Freud’s work, with the psychoanalysis lending the show an interesting frame, but I’ve also really appreciated how important his family is to the show. I’ve found it really fascinating how they explore the many peoples of the Austro-Hungarian empire before its collapse, and it’s made me want to run a Cthulhu by Gaslight campaign in Vienna (elements of which I might pull forward into the NBA game).

Video Games

​Baldur’s Gate 3. (PC) It shouldn’t come as a surprise that someone whose hobbies center on Dungeons & Dragons and other roleplaying games should thoroughly enjoy this game, but I’m certain that even folks who have never rolled a d20 will be delighted by this CRPG from Larian Studios. The writing and voice performances are phenomenal, and the sheer amount of content (and thus, replayability) is staggering. I’ve logged over 60 hours playing and can easily see myself playing for 60 more. I’ve only just started Act II, so no spoilers, please!

Horizon: Forbidden West. (PS5) I was a bit of a latecomer to this game after it released in 2023, but once I started, I could barely put it down. Amazing characters? Check. Phenomenal gameplay? Check. Open-world exploration that actually evokes the feeling of discovery? Check. My only quibble is that the story isn’t quite as brilliant as the first game, but given that the first game was a masterpiece and easily in my top 5 games of all time, that’s a high bar to clear. I admit I bought a PlayStation 5 just so I could play the Burning Shores expansion when it came out in April, and while personally I had been shipping Aloy with Kotallo, I appreciate the romantic subplot being included.

What were some of your favorites from 2023? Did your list have any of the same titles as mine?

Featured image by Alisa Anton on Unsplash

[euro-trip]

What is Traveling to You?

I’ve dreamed of traveling the world since elementary school, and by the time I was finishing middle school I made it a goal to join a study abroad program so I could experience living in another part of the world, but it wasn’t until this year that I finally got the opportunity to live in another country. London called out to me for a couple reasons, but its biggest appeal was that it gave me better access to the rest of Europe. I think I’ve always had a romanticized idea of traveling, like I always imagined myself walking through the cobblestone streets of Italy, having breakfast in a local-favorite French bakery, or sitting on a train and watching Swiss Alps pass by. I had expected London to bring out that feeling of wonder, to fulfill parts of those dreams I had been having since childhood, but it didn’t quite work out like that. 

As soon as I got to London, everything left like it was go-go-go. Barely adjusted to the time difference, I spent almost the entire first week out from 8am to 8pm attending classes, orientations, figuring out commutes, and going out to meet other people from the program. Instead of feeling inspired to explore this major city, I felt completely overwhelmed by it and I craved routine; my new focus became settling in. When I attended the orientation for the Scotland trip I had signed up for months ago, my initial emotion wasn’t excitement, but panic. How was I supposed to settle into living in London if I’m leaving not even a full two weeks in? Little did I know, Scotland would be the breath of fresh air, the spark that I needed to reground myself.

If I were to recount my entire experience in Scotland, this would go from a blog post to a doctoral dissertation, but to sum it up in a few words, it turned out to be exactly what I needed. The air in the highlands was in complete contrast to the muggy warmth and smog of London. With small spurts of rain falling, the air constantly smelled of freshness and life. The wind was strong and cold and invigorating, and the views of the highlands more than lived up to my expectations. We traveled to the Isle of Skye, and completely by chance, on our last afternoon there I decided to take a walk by myself and ran into Danny and Jake, who were on their way to see some castle ruins nearby. What started as a small walk became a trek through thick brush, deceptive earth that turned to mush beneath our feet, and wind so strong that at times I felt like I might be knocked right over into the water next to us. With the sun just beginning to set, I was able to watch as the clouds changed colors, the water slowly becoming darker and darker as the sun inched closer to the horizon. Hiking to the ruins and back left me breathing hard, my jeans speckled with drying mud, and my legs slightly tired from the exertion. As we walked back to the hostel, I couldn’t stop thinking about all that I had seen and done since coming to Scotland, and I knew that this is what I had been waiting for. 

Traveling for me isn’t just living in a different place, it's about being surrounded by nature, taking risks, going for the adventure, and slowing down to appreciate the wind on my face. Living in a city is exciting, but those moments where we watched landscapes change out the window of a bus or a train, when we took an impromptu hike to see castle ruins, or when we decided to end our last night with a drink at the pub, full of stories and music and laughs, those small, shared moments with others, that's what I travel for.

[enbyinlondon]

Welcome to American in London!

Welcome to my brand new travel blog, American in London! I'm Rin (they/them), and I'll be staying in London for two months as part of a study abroad program. I'm a sophomore at Foothill College in the San Francisco Bay Area, California. I'm non-binary, sarcastic, and also have health issues so you may catch me complaining about that impacting my mobility and general ability to live life.

This blog will follow me through the next two months in England, as I explore the city and adjust to living abroad. If things go well, I'll likely return next fall to complete my degree here. I'm based in Lambeth, near the River Thames. During this trip, I'll also be visiting Scotland, and hopefully Ireland and France. I also intend to do a Jack the Ripper walking tour, a tour of the catacombs, and also visit many different parks and gardens. I’m honestly not much of a museum person, but I’m hoping to check out some of the more historical exhibits in various facilities around the city. To get started, here’s a view of the River Thames from my dorm window!

I look forward to sharing my experiences with you!