#Marianna (Female Reader)

[ryuzakemo128]

The Boys Headcanons Part 1

Masterlist // Other Stuff I have written

Dividers Used: Link

Trigger Warning: NSFW Headcanons included. Read at own risk. Slight angst.

Author's Note: If you want more of these headcanons for either the female reader or female reader with a character let me know.

Lineage Headcanons~

Her parents, Katarina and Ivan were also known as "The Russian Titans" known for their superhuman strength, superhuman durability, and their ability to manipulate and control the elements. Katarina had the power to summon and control lightning, while Ivan possessed the ability to manipulate and shape earth and stone.

Her older brother, Mikhail was born in 1950, born with Superhuman strength, superhuman durability and agility. Mikhail was the golden child who couldn't do wrong.

Much like their second eldest, Aleksandr which was born in 1955, much like his predecessors had Superhuman strength, superhuman durability and agility. He also had the ability to manipulate and control water.

Katarina and Ivan had twin daughters, Yelena and Octavia, born in 1958. Yelena inherited her mother's ability to manipulate and control electricity. She had precise control over lightning, which she could use to devastating effect. Yelena could disable electronics, create electrical barriers, and even use lightning as a weapon.

Octavia inherited her father Ivan's power to manipulate and shape earth and stone. This allowed her to move mountains, create seismic tremors, and shape the ground at will. Her abilities allowed her to create powerful barriers, control the terrain during battles, and unleash destructive earthquakes when needed.

Back Story Based Headcanons

Marianna was born in 1966, youngest member of the Volkova family, she got the Superhuman Strength, agility, speed and durability due to a unique combination of her bloodline being carefully selective and enhanced through advanced genetic engineering techniques. However her aging is so slow, appearing to be frozen in time when Vought Corporation discovered her when she was in an exchange student program in 1981 in New York, she was in high school still at the time and she said she'd consider it further once she graduated.

She trained in Sambo, Systema and Krav Maga even after her teen years passed by.

She got into cage fighting because her brothers introduced her to it to hope it would be enough to direct her hyperactivity somewhere else or in their words. "To ensure she would not burn the house down."

Despite her formidable physical abilities, Marianna had always felt like an outsider within her own family. While her siblings possessed unique elemental powers, she only had her enhanced physicality to rely on. This led her to develop a relentless drive to prove herself and find her place in the world.

Up until a fight with her brother, she only knew she had superhuman strength, agility, speed, and durability. But during that fight, something unexpected happened. She mimicked her older brother's Mikhail's powers. Which left her afraid, even after her older brother tried to comfort her. She was terrified when it happened the first time which led to her hiding for three days in her bedroom, refusing to come out.

During those three days, her older brother Mikhail told their parents what happened, and they decided to seek the help of Dr. Jonah Vogelbaum, a renowned scientist and expert in superhuman abilities. Dr. Vogelbaum conducted extensive tests on Marianna and discovered that she possessed the unique ability to mimic and absorb the powers of other superhumans. This ability had never been seen before and was a result of the advanced genetic engineering techniques used on her bloodline.

Driven by curiosity and the desire to understand her newfound abilities, Marianna agreed to undergo further experimentation under Dr. Vogelbaum's guidance. Over the next few years, she trained rigorously to control and harness her mimicry powers. She learned to selectively absorb the powers of other superhumans, allowing her to access their abilities temporarily.

Homelander and Marianna met the first time in 1991, when she was 25 and he was 10, they met the first time during a Vought-sponsored event where Marianna was demonstrating her powers to a select audience.

Between those events she got into wrestling, UFC, and other combat sports, using her enhanced physical abilities and newly acquired mimicry powers to dominate her opponents. She quickly gained fame and became a celebrated figure in the world of competitive fighting.

She became known as "The Silver Devil" in 1994, she was also given another title by butcher as "The Chameleon Warrior.", Frenchie called her "The Shapeshifter Queen,", Kimiko referred to her as "Sister."

Homelander's second encounter with her was in 2005, he was 24 years old and she was 39 years old. During an event which showed off her progress in terms of her mimicry, which was far more advanced than the last time she showed it off. Marianna's mimicry powers had evolved to a level where she could seamlessly absorb and utilize the powers of multiple superhumans at once. This impressive demonstration caught Homelander's attention, and he couldn't help but be intrigued by her abilities.

Marianna agreed to more testing and she was working on a Forensics Pathologist PhD at the same time, which allowed her to contribute to the scientific understanding of superhuman abilities. She became a valuable asset to Vought Corporation, assisting in the analysis of superhuman DNA and helping to develop new methods for enhancing and controlling powers.

Soldier Boy and Marianna met after he woke up in 2022, her statement of, "Welcome back to the land of the living old man." was a playful greeting as she approached Soldier Boy, who had just woken up from a long slumber. Marianna, still in her prime at 56 years old, had become a respected and influential figure within Vought Corporation. Her extensive knowledge of superhuman abilities, combined with her own unique mimicry powers, made her an invaluable asset in their pursuit of enhancing and controlling powers. She also stated, "A lot of things changed since you went to sleep in 84',"

NSFW Headcanons

Marianna plays heavy metal whenever she fucks, she specifically plays songs from either Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Metallica or Pantera.

She's a switch when it comes to being a dom or sub.

She has no problem using the safe word "red" if things get too intense.

She watches porn and she isn't ashamed to admit it either.

She has no problem with dirty talk. As long as she is not called a slut.

She is very open minded sexually.

Marianna is rather open with her bisexuality.

She had at least three previous partner's in her life time.

She's not ashamed of what she likes or how she likes it.

She doesn't have any problems with age differences.

She does not have any hangups about size differences.

She knows her limits and she will tell you about them.

She loves to tease men and women.

She loves to be blindfolded during sex.

She is also into hentai just much as porn.

She has a praise kink.

Homelander x Marianna Headcanons

Met again during Vought Sponsor event which featured Marianna as "The Silver Devil." For a Vought sponsored event, Marianna and Homelander are on the same team. They must work together to complete a series of challenges during the event. As they work together, they begin to respect and appreciate each other's abilities.

Likes to call him "Blondie" in reference to his blonde hair. Not to make fun of him, it was just the nickname that she felt was appropriate given the lack of information she had about him.

Marianna is the only person who can truly see Homelander as he is, good and bad. She's not judgmental and doesn't tolerate his nonsense.

Homelander and Marianna have a complicated relationship. They are both incredibly powerful Supes. However, they have very different approaches to using their powers. While Marianna is more playful and mischievous, Homelander is often ruthless and power-hungry.

Marianna has a great deal of fun teasing Homelander and poking fun at his ego. She knows that he is sensitive about his public image, yet she also understands that he secretly enjoys the attention she draws to him.

Homelander likes the way she expresses her disappointment in others, the way she raises an eyebrow and looks the human or supe up and down. She would also cross her arms if it was a supe or facepalm if it was a human. The sarcastic comments of "Sure, Let's go with that one, what's the harm in that?" or "I know you're making a mistake, but I'm not going to stop you." or "No, here I thought it would be good idea for your 'brilliant' plan. Go on lets hear it then."

If it happened to be a supe who had drawn her ire, Marianna would also cross her arms, a gesture that exuded authority and dominance. It was a physical manifestation of her disapproval, a non-verbal message that said, "You're not impressing anyone with that display."

7. However there have been moments were she was also rather dark, intimidating and relentless. These moments were rare like the moon's eclipse or a supermoon. In these moments she was well and truly angry. As its more of silent and brooding type of anger that simmers inside of her. Compared to his overt displays of aggression. The louder 'angry' parts were not her actually angry. It was just her pretending to be angry.

An Example of this was the aftermath of a rather bloody fight, Homelander walked in on the aftermath of it rather than the other way around with her seeing it. Her suit was covered in blood, despite the fact that it was black and the blood wasn't obvious due the two shades being rather dark. She wasn't wearing her mask, so her face was covered by it. She would just stand there for a solid fifteen minutes, staring at the bodies around her. "It's a shame it came to this, but at least it is done." she stated after fifteen minutes taking her glaive from one of them.

8. At a party at the home of a Vought executive, Homelander and Marianna are both invited. At the party, they meet a group of Supes who are all in the process of making an impression on each other. Homelander dislikes their superficiality and arrogance, but Marianna enjoys their antics.

Marianna's Behaviour Headcanons

To a human who is being cruel to another human, she might raise an eyebrow and give them a once-over, as if to say:

"Really? You're going to pick on someone weaker than you? That's pathetic."

"You're so insecure that you have to put others down to make yourself feel better?"

"You're so pathetic, I'm not even going to waste my time on you."

"You're so brave, picking on someone who can't defend themselves. Why don't you go find someone your own size?"

"You're so pathetic, I'm actually starting to pity you."

"Is everything alright at home? Maybe you should take a step back and look at your own life before you judge someone else's."

"Congratulations! You've just won the award for the biggest jerk on the planet."

"Go home, both of you, before you hurt yourselves."

To a Supe who is using their powers for evil, she might give them a cold stare and say:

"You're supposed to be a hero. What the hell are you doing?"

"Please, don't hurt yourself with that ego of yours."

"Oh, you're so powerful and invincible. I'm sure nothing could ever go wrong."

"Oh, look at you, Mr. High and Mighty Supe. You think you're so much better than humans, but you're nothing more than a bully."

"I hope you enjoy being a monster, because that's what you're becoming."

"You're supposed to be a protector, not a bully. How pathetic."

 "Why don't you go find someone your own size? Oh, wait, you can't, because you're all cowards."

"Oh, that's perfectly normal. After all, you're a superhero. You can do whatever you want, right?"

"You're abusing your power. You should be ashamed of yourself."

"You're making all of us look bad. Stop it."

"You're a disgrace to all Supes."

"Maybe you should go back to where you came from."

To a supe picking on another Supe:

"What's the matter, kitten? Did someone steal your boyfriend?"

"Are you trying to prove something?"

"Is this your idea of a good time?"

"You're not very good at this, are you?"

"Why don't you just give up now?"

"I'm not sure what's more pathetic: the fact that you're picking on someone your own size, or the fact that you're doing it in front of an audience."

"Are you trying to impress your mommy and daddy?"

"Are you trying to make yourself feel better by putting someone else down?"

"Maybe you should stop wasting everyone's time and go back to whatever hole you crawled out of."

"Act your age not your damn shoe size."

To a Supe who is using their powers for evil and is about to kill Marianna:

"Do you really think you're getting away with this? There are people who care about me. They'll find you and make you pay."

"You're going to hell for this."

"I'm not afraid of you."

"You're not going to win."

"I forgive you."

"You're a disgrace to the Vought name."

"You're not a hero. You're a villain."

"You're no better than the criminals you're supposed to be fighting."

Bedroom Headcanons

Marianna has rubber ducks of different colours in a row on a display shelf. She owns at least 13 small rubber ducks so far.

She also has a poster of a giant duck with the word pathetic on it. On the door outside of her bedroom. [Reference]

She has a three monitor computer set-up office across from her bedroom. Which was consider an extension of her bedroom as there was only a curtain separating the two.

She has a draw full of precious gemstones that she likes the most.

The following were inside of the draw: Black Opal, Fire Opal, Crystal Opal, White Opal, Opalite, Sodalite, Azurite, Larimar, Malachite, Bloodstone, Moss Agate and a few others that are quite rare.

5. She has at least four polar bear faux blankets for winter stuffed into the drawers underneath her king sized bed. Just in case the thinner blankets she usually has on her bed wasn't enough.

6. She has a walk in wardrobe of mostly black clothes, the only clothes that are of other colours used to belong to her older brother Mikhail or Aleksandr.

7. She loves getting men's shirts with graphic prints on them to wear to bed and she has a large collection of them inside her wardrobe.

8. The two lamps on either side of her bed on the end tables are in the shape of one of her favourite flowers called, "Lily of the Valley." [Reference Picture].

9. She prefers to have either silk or satin bed sheets in either the colour burgundy red or black.

10. Most of the paintings in her bedroom are painted by her mother.

[kairolee2004]

Can you please do the tmnt bayverse boys with a female goth friend (bonus points if she’s a lesbian) and she’s trying to ask out her crush so the boys and April try to help reader on asking her crush out? If not that’s totally fine 😚🫶

Yes!!! Finally a TMNT ask <333

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Bayverse TMNT and April O’neil + Female Gothic Lesbian reader!

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Relationship: Reader x Female crush

Pronouns: She/Her

Type of Writing: Fluff

Warnings: Cussing

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。. .・。

🐢 How could the boys NOT help you? You’ve been talking about this girl for MONTHS!

🐢 But of course ya’ll have to understand that they don’t really know how to ask people out or even talk to strangers. Before you and April, they were always in the sewers.

🐢 Mikey thinks he’s some sort of “love guru” and gives you tips on asking this girl out.

🐢 Leo is definitely trying to help you relax when you overthink about “if she likes you back or not.”

🐢 He also is the main man you talk about this girl with like- he loves you but, chill the hell out!

🐢 Raph is constantly teasing you about this crush you got. But is also asking what she looks likes.

🐢 “Damn Goblin, she’s pretty cute. I might try an save her one day and be her knight in shining… armor?”

🐢 I feel like Donnie would stalk her for you… NOT IN A WEIRD WAY! If thats even possible?

🐢 He tells you about all her socials and lets you know when she posts on platforms.

🐢 Definitely protects her from any hate comments or content made about her. Thinks she kinda cute but definitely doesn’t try anything.

🐢 April has mixed feelings… She’s really happy that you like her and wanna try and get to know her more but then- SHE GETS REALLY SAD WHEN THINKING THAT YOUR NOT GONNA BE HER ROOMMATE ANYMORE!

(For the sake of well- everything, lets name your crush Marianna and her code name is ‘Taki’ because she loves spicy food)

🐢When you first met Marianna she was… different. Always wanting to be by your side, always hugging or holding your hands. Marianna constantly “flirted” with you and says how much “ultimate rizz” she had.

🐢 Of course you felt off about it for a few months. Up to this point you were always made fun of because of your style in everything. But when this short girly ran into your life. Everything changed. Opposites attract right?

🐢 At some point in time, y’all started calling up to half an hour or even 2. Then it became FaceTime calls that were 6 to 7 hours long and ended with one or both of you falling asleep. It just felt right.

🐢 The day finally happened when you asked Marianna out- well actually… she did. You and her were out at the mall getting stuff and just walking around. This was a normal activity for you guys weekly. As you guys were walking done a hall with certain shops, Marianna dragged you into a family owned shop and said, “Wait here love bug, I gotta pick up a order if mine!”

You didn’t think much of it so you waited. When Marianna got back she basically pushed you out the shop and into the middle of the ‘hall of the mall.’

“(Reader)… I have a question I wanna ask.” Marianna said holding both of her hands behind her back. This kinda felt familiar… but how?

“Ummm sure, what’s going on?” You asked getting a little closer. Marianna at this time was blushing a little. Hard to see with her light chocolate skin color but still noticeable. She took a deep breath and took her hands from behind her back. You gasped!

She was holding a large bouquet of glitter (Favorite Color) flowers and a teddy bear that looked like a character from your favorite (Tv show, movie, series, anime). The bear was actually holding a stuffed heart that read “Do you wanna be my girlfriend?”

It felt kinda hard to breathe… you were smiling like a damned idiot but you didn’t care. You walked over to Marianna and held her waist with one hand and her chin with the other. “Why in the hell would I ever want to pass up a opportunity of a lifetime?” Both of you smiled.

Marianna then leaned forward and kissed you. You then followed her lead and kissed back. <3

The End

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Thx for reading!!!! Hope whoever requested this likes it and btw- please don’t try and send multiple requests as if I didn’t see the first one <3 ;^;

Requests are: Open

[as-nodt-ghostwriter]

Rules

This blog is dedicated to RWBY and occasionally anime like Naruto or Fairy Tail.

-

Open to writing all kinds sfw related request. nsfw or taboo works can be written only when characters are adults or young adults (college age/at least 18 etc.)

So here’s a list

Accepted ✅

Male or gender neutral reader only

M/F, M/M, GN/F, GN/M

Character x Reader Only. Polyships w/reader are ok

sfw (fluff head canons, oneshots or drabble) — awkward situations, cute crushes, hijinks, cuddling and hugging, cute dating, kisses, flirting, marriage and domestication

nsfw (headcannons, oneshots, or drabble) — missionary, doggy style, oral sex, boobjobs, creampie, one night stands, bedroom eyes, dirty talk, sexting, wet dreams, porn without plot

dark fantasies — daddy/mommy kink, praise kink, cam girl au, dirty roleplaying

drinking/smoking/drug use

yandere trope™️ (obsessive love, stalking and kidnapping)

Denied ❌

Not familiar with alpha/omega

No character x character shipping requests

No female reader requests.

No gun play

No fetish play (feet, body fluids, blood, bdsm)

No dubcon or rape

No incest or stepcest

Characters I can write —

RWBY:

Team RWBY, Team JNPR, Team CYVF, Penny, Ciel Soleli, Cinder Falls, Emerald Sustrai, Neopolitan, Sienna Khan, Winter Schnee, Glynda Goodwitch

Team SSSN, Mercury Black, Roman Torchwick, Adam Taurus, James Ironwood, Qrow Braunwen

FAIRY TAIL:

Grey Fullbuster, Laxus Dreyar, Sting Eucliffe, Rouge Cheney, Leo, Totomaru, MacBeth

Lucy Heartfila, Erza Scarlet, Juvia Lockster, Lisanna Strauss, Marianna Strauss, Cana Alberona, Yukino Agria, Minerva, Kagura Mikazuchi, Virgo, Aquarius, Capricorn, Libra, Sorano Agria, Meredy, Flare Corona

NARUTO/BORUTO:

Rock Lee, Kakashi Hatake, Gaara, Kankuro, Hidan, Utakata

Tenten, Konan, Hanabi Hyuga, Fuu, Mei Terumi, Anko

[coweye]

Commitment Issues - Part 3

Pairing: Benny Miller x Reader

Words: 2.2k

Summary: When you try and take your friends with benefits relationship to the next level, Benny's response isn't quite what you were expecting.

Warning: Depression, an unhealthy relationship - fuck bois being fuck bois, alcohol abuse, v brief talk of drunk driving, discussion of; unplanned pregnancy and abortion. Please don't read if you find any of this troubling. Benny's ✨still ✨being an asshole.

I am making a slight change to the schedule - My gift to you guys is going to be two updates next week on the 24th & 26th as they will be set around the festive season! See you @ 10pm bbys 💕

➢ Fic Masterpost

⇠ Previous Part

Benny’s baby.

A baby.

A real life crying, vomiting, crapping baby that was half you and half Benjamin Miller.

As you sat on the floor of the bathroom in the Morales family home waiting for the four pregnancy tests on the counter to declare your fate you couldn’t help the sense of irony that had descended over you.

When you’d told him you wanted stability you had meant a few dates, sleepovers, maybe to move in together after a few months and get the dog he’d always wanted. Not a fullblown fucking kid from the get go.

You scraped your hair back from your face and put your head between your knees, Val spared you a concerned look from where she stood with the timer on her phone counting down five minutes. Your heart was beating in your ears and a funny realization descended over you; you’d never felt this level of stress in Afghanistan under heavy fire all whilst trying to medevac a brother in arms.

Everything was easier in the field, you sometimes wish you’d joined Santiago after the Columbia debacle that had claimed Redfly’s life, however third wheeling Santi, your persistent tremor in your dominant hand and the time you spent with Benny had all combined forces to keep you firmly planted in Colorado.

What a great decision that had been.

Leaning back you looked up at Valerie, your eyes catching her own before you spoke “How long?”

“It’s only been one minute, thirty six seconds, hon.”

“Fuck.” You grunt and resume your staring at the black and white tiled linoleum flooring.

“Would it be so bad if you are?”

“Val - I’m a school fucking nurse; I barely scrape by as it is and Ben - well, Ben gets the shit beat out of him for a living, how are we gonna afford a kid? That’s even if he’s gonna be around for the baby- who am I kidding it’s Ben of course he’ll accept the kid. He’ll ask me to marry him out of a sense of duty and we’ll all live miserably because if he’s honest with himself he doesn’t want to be with me, then we’ll end up resenting each other and divorcing the second the kid turns eighteen-”

“-Holy Shit. Y/N. Y/N. You’ve skipped like a million steps there. You need to stop spiraling, there’s every chance it’ll be negative and even if it's not, there are a million different solutions to your problem. Don’t let your brain run off before you have all the facts.” Valerie, the beautiful Valerie, your singular female friend and always a voice of reason, had managed to stop your anxiety attack in its tracks. You took her hand in your own and the two of you sat on the cold bathroom floor, side by side for what felt like hours as you watched the timer move painstakingly slowly.

There was a knock at the door.

“Amor, are you still in there?” You hear Catfish’s muffled voice through the door.

“Yeah Frank, use the downstairs one.”

“The hallway bathroom is-”

“Use the downstairs bathroom, Francisco.” Valerie’s voice was harsh and left no room for argument; clearly Francisco had not yet been forgiven for the encouragement he’d given Benny and his lady friend.

The guys were confused initially at your insistence to leave the bar though the rush to the bathroom where Valerie had stockpiled pregnancy tests since her beautiful surprise Marianna hadn’t left time for questions, though you could only imagine their assumptions at the state of your mental health after this breakup.

“You know, if you are, it won’t be the worst thing in the world.” Valerie mumbles bringing you back into the moment despite she herself sounding somewhat distracted, you turn to look at her in disbelief. “Your cheekbones, his nose - ooh! his eyes but definitely your Jawline.”

“I like his jawline” You huff defensively “...and please stop sexualising my baby before I even know if he or she exists.”

“All I’m saying is-”

The shrill ringing of the alarm cuts your friend off.

The two of you stare at each other almost uncomprehending, whilst you’d wanted nothing but that noise moments ago, now it was all too real.

Valerie placed her phone on the floor and turned to you, taking both of your hands in hers. “No matter what happens. I’m here now and I'll be here every step of the way.”

You nod, squeezing her hand in thanks, the words can't get through the clench in your throat as you once again fight tears. You release her hands and reach behind you pulling them from the counter in one swipe.

You place them in your lap and breathe deeply before you look down.

PREGNANT

||

Pregnant 3+

+

The definitive results knock the air out of you.

Positive, all of them.

Every single one.

You fall back against the counter, eyes wide and mind racing a mile per minute.

Valerie is talking to you but you don’t hear the words.

A baby.

Benny’s baby.

Your breathing is heavy now, your heartbeat is back in your ears and you can’t quite catch your breath. Valerie is stroking your shoulders with what you assume is kind, calming words but it does little to help as your ears ring; realizing this, she swipes the tests from your lap to preserve your privacy and calls for the guys in the lounge.

This isn’t your first panic attack by far but this time you can’t get a handle on it, you’d had many since arriving back home soil and little by little they had gotten easier to manage, though the catalyst had never been an unwelcome squatter in your uterus, so your usual mantra wasn’t working.

Will rounded the corner and instantly kneeled before you.

“Breathe,” You hear him but it's like you’re underwater. You look up into his eyes, as he takes your face in his hands.

Blue eyes, Benny’s eyes stare back calming you. Pools of emotion; both brothers are open books with their eyes. Worry not quite verging on panic is in Will’s as he brings you down.

Slowly you begin copying his breathing, all whilst staring into the circular oceans so similar to the man whose baby is inhabiting your womb and that alone almost starts the panic all over again.

That was about three hours ago now and you were now in your own bed; completely and utterly exhausted. After much reassurance and many promises to call them all tomorrow you had been reluctantly dropped at your apartment.

Despite your exhaustion it was about three in the morning and you couldn't sleep.

Benny’s baby.

You repeated for the tenth time this evening.

You weren’t stupid, there was alot to iron out and the thought of a termination had been on the table.

You didn’t have the money for a child and you weren’t with its father, you’d be lying to say the thought hadn’t crossed your mind.

Though ultimately you had dismissed the thought after much careful consideration, you were Pro-choice; a woman’s right to choose was important but at some point in the hours staring up at the dark ceiling you’d admitted to yourself you wanted this baby.

This time the thought didn’t cause you to panic or bring you to tears.

Instead, you imagined a blonde little boy with big kind blue eyes, your nose, his jawline and a huge irreverent grin that was entirely Ben as he played with his Father and Uncles in the garden at a barbeque.

You were cut out of your day dreams or rather just dream dreams, by a pounding knock at the door.

Sitting up with a gasp you hurried through the apartment, treading lightly so as to not make a sound to look through the peephole not before a quick glance to the safe where your firearm lived. There stood in all his not-so glory; the haggard looking father of your child.

The weapon wasn’t completely ruled out as you whipped the door open, furious at his presence.

“What the fuck, Ben? It's 3am. What are you doing here?” You figured you had a pretty good idea of why he was on your doorstep, if the alcohol he reeked of was any giveaway.

“I miss you, Y/N/N.” He cupped your cheek in his hand, his eyes were glassy and not quite focused. “I keep going to message you and every time I remember you hate me.”

“Ben, I don’t hate you… I just needed time to get over you.” You feel those tortured baby blues dousing the fire raging inside of you and lighting a completely separate one.

“I don’t want you to get over me,” With the grip he has on your face he surges forward and joins your lips, it's sloppy and erratic in his drunkenness. It's like a bourbon distillery has opened up shop on his tongue as he breaks away for only a moment to groan. “I want you under me, baby.”

That alone is enough to snap you out of this, despite how much you wanted him, you wanted this to be real. Not whatever, casual sex Benny was offering, you owed the walnut growing inside of you more.

“Ben. Ben - BEN! Stop. You’re drunk.”

“I know, but it's sooo good.” He’s kissing down your neck in the way he used to do when you were mad with him, Goddamn it felt good.

Only in the past you didn’t have a fetus depending on you for good decisions.

So, with a heavy heart you pushed him away.

“You need to go home, how did you get here? Christ, Ben you better not have driven.” He shrugs as he stumbles away and begins pouring himself a glass of water.

He was a dick and you were furious with him - you considered sending him on his way. He wasn’t your problem anymore, especially after what he’d pulled tonight but you knew you didn’t want him or anyone else at risk and despite knowing it would most definitely end badly for you, you couldn’t help your offer “You can stay here… to sleep, Miller. Nothing else.”

He grabbed at you; prematurely you brought your knee up ready to rupture his family jewels if it was another poor attempt at seduction, but instead he just held you. His huge frame dwarfed your own as he wrapped his body around yours in an all encompassing embrace.

You felt him breathe in the fabric of the hoodie (which used to be his) as he buried his head in your neck. Finally after what felt like an hour of forcing your arms to remain at your sides and reminding yourself on an almost constant basis that you were beyond furious with this man, he relinquished his hold on you.

The two of you stood there for a moment or three.

Awkwardly unmoving, unspeaking; as you refused to look him in the eyes.

Neither one of you quite sure how to break the silence - In Ben’s defense he’d most likely drank an entire liquor store on his way over here, if the sway in his knees was any give away, so polite topics of conversation probably weren’t on the forefront of his mind.

Deciding to take pity, you gave him a “Let's get you into bed.” with an enthusiastic pat on the back.

It was only as he turned towards your bedroom that you realize your mistake in phrasing.

By ‘bed' you meant ‘sofa' and by ‘Let’s’ you meant 'get your drunk ass onto the sofa before you vomit on my rug’, though Benjamin was currently making himself comfy on your pillows as if time hadn't passed and he was still your bit on the side.

Now, it was entirely self-indulgent and so incredibly stupid of you, but after a milisecond of consideration you vetoed the sofa for yourself.

It wasn’t the warmth of his arms you craved, no, you were driven by the feminist refusal to give up your bed for the man who had turned you down.

How dare he demand such, for you to sleep on the uncomfortable sofa whilst you carried the child you had yet to tell him of.

Or at least that's what you told yourself.

So whilst feeling very incredibly guilty, you got into bed next to him, you didn’t cuddle up or make a move to touch him, you just basked in the bliss of being with him, trying not to think about how grasping and desperate this was of you.

The sacrifices would be sure to come, but this didn’t have to be one of them.

You could allow yourself this your good decisions could begin tomorrow. With one last bad decision in the chamber you whispered into the darkness.

“Ben?” only silence answered, “I’m having our baby.”

Your heart dropped to your stomach as he wrapped an arm around you, pulling you to his chest and tiredly mumbled “I missed you too, baby.”

Silence made way to the rumbles of snores, you lay there waiting for your heart to slow back to its regular rhythm staring into the darkness with your stomach in your throat.

You don’t know what time you fell asleep, though when it finally claimed you it was with the singular promise to the life growing inside you; Good decisions begin tomorrow.

⇢ Next Part ✨

[whywasdumbbitchjuicealreadytaken]

The Ballad Of [Y/N] Berry

(Bad guy sanses x female!reader)

Ooooohhh~

Down on your knees before the queen~

You walk down the halls, clinging onto your boyfriend's- G sans's- arm as your "friends" followed not to far from you

Ooooohhh~

Down on your knees before the queen~

The bad guys had gone to [Universe] to check out a shape-able glitch. Since she hadn't been in any other universes, all she needed was a little shove to set her on the right path...

"[Y/N] Berry was a popular bitch. Hot bod, hot boy, cheer captain, plus she was rich~" Nightmare was reading what he knew about the glitch off to the bad sanses

That girl had everything, till hiccup and hitched; Julie Jenkins lost a leg in a crash (Am-pu-ta-ted)

Horror, raspberry, and dust were the first to observe you. Killer was supposed to be here but he was was still healing up after the initial crash that he had caused. Raspberry's eyes examined your body, he elbowed dust and pointed you out to him. He didn't bother with horror, seeing as he was already staring..

The nominations for prom royalty came,

You smirked to yourself, you knew you were going to win just like every other year

Our [Y/N]'s senior year, and queen was her claim...

You felt someone tap your shoulders. You spun around to see, it was fell and cross from your biology class. "don't worry sweetheart we'll vote for ya." Fell wink, cross energetically nadded as an agreement and the two walked away. "Uh.. thanks i guess?" You muttered.

Till gossip stirred, the student body would name Julie Jenkins, queen of prom. (Pi-ty-Vote)

You blinked in shock as you saw the votes and what people were saying. An arm around your waist pulled you into a taller figure

"[Y/N]," G sans said "Life is like a prom, i know you wont disappoint me and mom..?".

With that, he walked away. Your mother died in an accident when you were 6 and whenever you fail, you always felt as if you were disappointing her..

"You taste the silver [Y/N]? You taste the crown?" Your desk neighbor, Bill, asked you. You simply ignored him. You heard someone tap you desk and you look up to see Alisans(alistor sans..?)

"You thirst for blood from the roses in hand." He told you. You stood up. "May i be excused??". The teacher nodded and you left the class.

You spoil for stash and scepter, music to dance, as they crown you queen of highschool land~

CHECK [Y/N]

CHOOSE [Y/N]

VOTE, FOR [Y/N] BERRY

Your eyes widened to see red X's on your vote for [Y/N] posters

CHECK [Y/N]

CHOOSE [Y/N]

VOTE FOR [Y/N] BERRY

You reported it to the principal then went about your day. Everything was normal until..

So obsessed our [Y/N] near lost her mind. To life Un-prom related, [Y/N] was blind.

Prom was getting to you. The pressure you were getting from G sans, your friends, and the constant feeling of someone watching you was driving you insane. Was worse, is it seems G was paying more attention to Julie then you..

She shoved her squad, her clique and boyfriend behind, Still one-leg Julie held to the lead. (Poor, poor Julie)

You sighed and ran your hand through your hair.

Soon [Y/N]'s sanity was hung by a thread, Her B.F.F.'s proclaimed her socially dead.

Your eyes narrowed 'fine. I don't need them!' You huffed and sat in your seat next to cross in chemistry. Atleast you still had G. You saw your boyfriend looking at you. You smile at G, but it quickly faltered when he turned away and began talking to Julie. You felt your phone buzz

Till then, at last, her boyfriend texted and said: "I'm taking Julie to the senior Prom." (Love, love Julie)

Your heart dropped and you decided to confront him after class. "G," you said calmly "what the hell? Why are you taking julie??".

"[Y/N]" G said "why be so calm, theres just no future for a Princess of prom."

You sat at home, on the evening of prom, shakily putting on your eyeliner and black lipstick/ lip gloss. You tried to hold your smiled but you couldn't keep a smiled and hold back tears at the same time..

You taste the Silver [Y/N]! You taste the crown.

You watch as your tears, accompanied by long black tears slowly fell down your face

You thirst for blood from the roses in handYou spoil for sash and scepter, music to dance, As they crown you Queen of High School Land.

You're smile faltered and you realize what must be done in order to be queen. You put on your blue flowy dress, it was off shoulder and had a slit in the left side.

Ooooh~

You walked downstairs and opened the front door to see Alisans, he handed you a hammer and kissed your hand then caressed your cheek. He handed you a rose and took you to G'S house.

Down on your knees before the queen~

You arrived at G's house found him walking towards his car, her ran up behind him and smashed a hole in the back if his skull.

Ooooooh~

You mercilessly stomped his head in and watched him turn to dust. But you weren't done.

Get on your knees before the queen~

You walked in front of the school and felt a hand grab your own. You looked up to see Bill, he winked and you smiled. He handed you a white rose and led you inside.

"$0m£ g!r|$ @r€ r@t!0^@| bUt [Y/N] ₩@$ ^0t"[translation: some gurks are rational, but [Y/N] was not]

Error told Nightmare with a smirk as the two watched. You had gone inside the bathroom.

She stared in mirrors thinking one single thought: There's seven reasons this crown's not good as got. And so the night of Prom, mercy! Thus went her plot;

Bill had gave you rat poisoning, you dumped it in one of your "friend's" punch, her blood had gotten on your rose.

"P" is for Patricia, drinking poisoned punch

Fell had came up next to you and snaked an arm around your waist. He took you outside and gave you a rock, while you were scanning the area you spotted Raquel.

"R" is for Raquel, dashed on a rock (crunch)

Fell handed you a blood cover rose. Cross grabbed your hand and brought you out back. Anne was busy getting high. You picked up a nearby brick and bashed her brains in.

"O" is what Anne said when Sara bludgeoned her brains

Cross kissed your cheek and handed you a blood rose like fell did. You went back inside where horror greeted you. You both went to a classroom, where you found Marianna. Horror showed you how to chop her up just right

And "M" is Marianna's marinated remains.

Horror pulled you into himself. He wrapped one arm around your waist and the other rested on your lower back. He swayed side to side in a sort of dancing motion. You smiled and rested your head on his shoulder with your hands on his chest.

But!But!

Dust cleared his throat. Horror scoffed and stopped swaying, he handed you a blood covered rose and winked at you. You went over to dust and held his arm. He led you to the school pool you spotted another friend and you made you work quick.

"Q" is for Quiara, quiet, drowned in the pool.

Dust gave you a bloody rose and took you to the kitched. In there, you helped raspberry chop up the body of Eunice.

"U" is for Eunice's pieces spread round the school

Raspberry gave you a rose and you left to find Julie..

But "E's" are for the easy way in five minutes tops. A one-legg'd girl can bring an "N" for end by calling the cops.(what a bitch)

You got your silver [Y/N], you got your crown

Nightmare placed a crown on your head

You got their blood on your roses in hand

Error gave you the roses using his strings

You donned the sash and scepter, doing a dance,

The bad sanses all took turns dancing with you on stage

As you crowned you Queen of High School Land!

You watched them leave with a smile on your face, this is all you've ever wanted. This is all you could of ever hoped.

Woah-oh-oh-oh, Oh, Oh!

God save the Queen...

Down on your knees before the Queen.

God save the Queen.

After about 30 minutes, you see flashing blue and red lights outside. You walk out, ready to accept your fate.

Woah-oh-oh-oh, Oh, Oh!

The Queen of High School Land.

Down on your knees before the Queen.

The Queen of High School Land.

They wrapped your wrists in silver, they took your crown

Your eyes widened as you watched them put the crown into an evidence bag "WAIT NO! STOP!" You cried as your dreams began to be taken away from you.

As they washed your bloody fingers and hands.

You weren't ready to go, you bit and scratched to the people who tried to wash you. They ended sedating you.

Into a tight straitjacket, small padded cell, As you screamed, 

"I'm the queen of highschool land!!" You screeched and ran into the door repeatedly. The doctors came back in and sedated you again. The next thing you knew, you were in the arms of nightmare

At least in your head, you're Queen of High School Land.....

It had been several years, but you found julie. The boys[and Sunny] have been very affectionate and protective of you, Even error! Yeah I'll let that soak in.

Pity the dead! You're Queen of High School Land.

You began walking through the halls every sans you'd pass would sinister-ly grin.

CHECK [Y/N]

CHOOSE [Y/N]

VOTE FOR [Y/N] BERRY

Everyone gathered in the throne room as you approached it, you were dragging a crying,screaming,pleading, and begging Julie behind you by her hair.

CHECK [Y/N]

CHOOSE [Y/N]

VOTE FOR [Y/N] BERRY

You walked in and error shut the doors. A series of screams,applause,and laughter were heard from the throne room not long after.

[mymind--themess]

Sugarbean -- Chapter One

It had been a week since your meeting with Ashe, and you still couldn’t get her out of your head. Work for you had been rather slow this past week due to two of your usual clients being either incarcerated or dead, and you were back up north, residing in New York state once more. You lived in a fairly large city; It wasn’t New York City, but it was second in size -- Buffalo, New York. It might as well have been NYC considering the hustle and bustle of the two cities were quite alike, as were the crime rates. Currently, you were nestled by the fireplace in your small apartment, lounging casually. Sure, you could definitely afford a mansion with all the cash you made in weapons dealing, but you preferred this adorable apartment and staying low. You were on the phone with a dear childhood friend who you had met at the best orphanage you had resided in, Marianna. (A/N: If you’ve ever read my reaper x reader, you will know exactly who she is)

“How was that trip down south to Deadlock Gorge?” Marianna asked knowingly.

“Hot,” You mumbled with a scoff as you unconsciously began to rub the beautiful necklace she had gotten you and B.O.B had been the one to give to you. “How’s Italy? Beautiful like always?”

“You know it; Although, it has definitely been a weird trip. So much has happened; I really cannot wait to see you and tell you everything at the annual reunion! You’re coming in this year, right?”

“Of course! That orphanage has been my home since I was 13; I wouldn’t miss reunion week for the world.” You replied as you smiled.

“Great! Anyways, how did the cowgirl casanova look?” Marianna said slyly.

You moved your hand to your chest in a mock dramatic gesture. “Finer than a bottle of wine!” You declared, causing Marianna to giggle.

“I don’t get why you two aren’t a thing yet; Just make a move!” She chided you through laughs, totally serious even though her tone was full of laughter.

You sighed in embarrassment. “You know I can’t! You remember our rule?”

“(Y/N)! That rule doesn’t apply if you like a cowgirl! There are no rules when it comes to cowgirls — She’s a modern day outlaw.”

You sighed, biting your lip. Maybe you should make a small mov-, no! What if she totally disregarded how you felt? You would be so damn embarressed! What if she wasn’t even in to females? “I don’t even think she’s into females.”

Marianna could be hear scoffing over the phone. “Oh no, she definitely swings the female way. Back when her and my brother Jesse were close, she told him all she fancied was girls.”

“Elizabeth Caledonia Ashe did not say fancy.” You replied in disbelief.

“You don’t know her backstory at all, do you?”

“Do... do you?”

“Jesse simply told me she was rich; Like — My grandmother’s level rich. Filthy rich.”

You thought on that for a moment. Well, it would certainly explain how she’s able to afford the weapons you sell. You were one of the most expensive dealers around because you dealt with high end clients. You never really thought of where they money came from; It dawned on you, she must’ve been pretty wealthy for the amount she could buy at a time. Which made her even more powerful in your head. You had always focused on just Ashe, never about where her money was from. “I hadn’t thought about that.”

“Because you were too busy thinking about her ass.”

You scoffed, “No... well once, but no! I was thinking about her eyes to be honest.”

“... You sound as sappy as my sister gets over her girlfriend; It makes me want to chug vodka until it drowns out you two.”

You smiled, “Hey, Marisol got her girl; Knowing Marisol she’s probably as sweet as pie. She’s ahead of me by a few steps.”

Marianna sighed, “Yeah, actually her girl is a hacker for Talon. So sweet as pie my ass. You two have always had this thing for someone screaming the word Badass.”

You couldn’t help but snigger. “Can’t wait til someone bad comes your way.”

“I’d like to see them try.” Marianna sighed. “Well, I gotta go. See you at the reunion?”

“Unless I’m wherever you are before then.”

“Pretty sure you won’t be wherever Talon Headquarters are, heh. But hey, I will be back and forth between there and my lab on the Lunar Colony! Come take a trip to the moon, maybe? I have some new gadgets of mine for you to inspect and sell,”

You nodded, sitting up from the couch as your other phone gave off a sound to notify you of a text message. That was your “business” phone. “Sounds like a plan; Just text me when you’re about to leave a few hours in advance and come scoop me up!”

“Okay! Ciao!”

“See ya!”

The two of you hung up as you picked up your other phone to see “ASHE DG” pop up. You practically almost dropped your phone from momentarily jumping for joy.

Oh!

OH!

It was her, and so soon!

“She must’ve really went through those new bombs quick.” You mumbled aloud as your heart rate calmed somewhat.

With a quick sigh, you unlocked your phone and read the text message.

Ashe 5:08 p.m. : Hey Sugarbean~

You 5:09 p.m. : I didn’t expect to hear from you so soon, Ashe. How can I help you?

You sent the text with a deep breath. You really had to stop acting like this with Ashe, you just had to! It was making you so vulnerable with your emotions, and heaven forbid she died or something! You’d be such a mess!

Soon, the notification went off again, and you quickly read the message.

Ashe 5:11 p.m. : Maybe I missed ya, darlin’. Just texting because I have a special proposition for you.

Typing a response, you raised an eyebrow as you mumbled the response aloud.

You 5:13 p.m. : Ha ha, very funny Ashe. What’s the proposition?

Ashe 5:16 p.m. : The boys and I are having a little New Year’s Eve bash. B.O.B wants you to come and I wanted to talk to you about looking into some more of those modified weapons; I’ve got the first stick-up of the year planned as somethin’ special.

A New Year’s Eve party, eh? Well, honestly, you didn’t see a reason to refuse. Go to the party, find out what Ashe wants specifically, go to the Lunar Colony to ask Marianna to build it, and then go for reunion week. It actually worked out perfectly — it was a win-win in your mind.

You 5:20 p.m.: Sounds good to me! Where’s the party going to be?

You held your breath for the response, impatient at best as you waited for the details to arrive to your phone.

Ashe 5:25 p.m.: At my ranch, which I just remembered you haven’t been to yet, Sugarbean. It’s in South Carolina, and one of the many spots I own. It’s very big and pretty hard to miss; the Desert Rose Manor. I’ll have B.O.B send you the location.

You sucked in a breath. “Wow, she really is that rich.” You said softly, biting your lip. Oh, man! You figured you had no shot in hell with Ashe.

You 5:27 p.m.: Alright, see you then!

Meanwhile, in one of the various places Ashe owned somewhere near Route 66, Ashe grinned wildly at her phone as her men stared to her in anticipation. “Did ya ask her boss?!” Charlie whispered anxiously. They all just had to know, y’know? Even B.O.B had sat down for this: everyone was trying to anticipate how the situation would turn out. This could either be very good, or very bad. If you said no, Ashe would be sad as all hell and hide it under anger she would lash at everyone else. If you said yes, you’d be practically answering the guys’ prayers for Ashe to be in a good mood before going back to the fierce leader she was in the morning.

Ashe looked up as she recieved your last text, placing her phone down and looking to her gang. “Bring on the liquor boys; Suagrbean said yes.”

Cheers errupted as B.O.B clapped for his master before walking up to her and tilting his head as if he had something to show Ashe. Ashe knew that look and gave a small pout. “Is it bad?”

The robot shook his head no and turned to walk into another room, away from the loud sounds or riled men and bottles popping open. Ashe followed and closed the door behind her. “What is it?”

B.O.B pressed his arm a few times until a voice capture popped up labled (Y/N). Ashe’s eyes widened. “B.O.B, did you... did you put a mic in the necklace?”

B.O.B stared at his human. Was it not clear for his mistress? Perhaps he had overstepped a bit, but he just hated seeing her miserable and longing for you. Especially when he could tell you felt the same. He swore to God, humans were weird.

Ashe smirked, “B.O.B, you absolute sneaky devil! I love ya! What’d she say?”

Lo and behold, B.O.B had set the mic to capture when Ashe’s name was brought up as well as Deadlock Gorge. B.O.B had your whole phone call with Marianna recorded and he played it back for Ashe until she blushed a bit with wide eyes. You hadn’t known she was rich from the jump, and didn’t even care? You weren’t afraid of who she was, just of the heartbreak of her denying you? You were just as afriad to screw this whole thing up as she was? You got lost in her eyes like she found herself getting lost in your own (e/c) orbs?

This changed everything. There was no more playing games now.

Ashe was going to have you.

And nobody else would.

Not ever.

“Thanks B.O.B, really. You always know just what to do to wake me up.”

B.O.B nodded and gestured back to the gang as if to ask Ashe if she’d like to go back in.

Ashe thought about it, before shaking her head as she crossed her arms. “Nah, not really thinking about drinking right now. What if I drunk text? I might send a nude to my Sugarbean and as much as I know now she’d enjoy it...that’d be a dumb move. Come on now, I don’t want her to think it was a drunken decision. I will win her over by being a gentlewoman to my Sugarbean. I might be a lot of things, but you didn’t raise a complete heathen.”

Ashe smirked, fixing her hat as she looked out of the large windows and down upon Route 66. “I am one hell of a winner though, and I know exactly how to play this card you’ve just dealt me.”

[ao3feed-daredevil]

Fully Known

read it on the AO3 at http://bit.ly/2TehdpU

by ceterisparibus

Someone is using a fear-inducing hallucinogenic drug against the criminals of Hell's Kitchen, and Matt is doing his best to deal with various Emotions.

I've stopped trying to anticipate ending the Ella series, so...yeah. Special shoutout to all the incredible readers who've suggested most of these plot points! I can't wait to see what y'all think. <3

Words: 4688, Chapters: 1/27, Language: English

Series: Part 6 of Ella

Fandoms: Daredevil (TV)

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: Major Character Death

Categories: F/M

Characters: Matt Murdock, Original Female Character(s) of Color, Peter Parker, Karen Page, Franklin "Foggy" Nelson, Claire Temple, Sister Maggie, Brett Mahoney, Bullseye, Original Male Character(s), Vanessa Marianna Fisk

Relationships: Matt Murdock/Karen Page, Franklin "Foggy" Nelson/Marci Stahl

Additional Tags: Avocados at Law, Legal Drama, Foggy Nelson Is a Good Bro, Human Disaster Matt Murdock, Karen Page perseveres, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Therapy, Labradoodle!, Catholicism, Pregnancy, (spoiler alert), Drugs

read it on the AO3 at http://bit.ly/2TehdpU

[toongrrl-blog]

Pink Power Rankings (Pt. 2)

This is our next segment of “Pink Power Rankings”, I hope to do a few more in the future, including ones centered on the American Girl dolls and the Disney Princesses. The video above is the famous “Think Pink!” musical number from Funny Girl, so without further ado, time to rank these pink moments!

The Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling

This is a show where wrestlers do their thing on a ring bordered by pink ropes, so of course pink is going to come up....a lot. Even when it comes to donuts and abortion ( “I like pink things” “Well if you liked pink things less, you wouldn’t be in this situation”). The show centers on a team of diverse women wrestlers and their manager (Sam Sylvia, played by a hilarious Marc Maron) and producer (closeted Bash Howard, played by the appropriately 80′s Ken lookalike Chris Lowell): struggling actress Ruth (by a charming Alison Brie),  former soap opera star and housewife turned wrestler and co-producer Debbie (the talented Betty Gilpin), stuntwoman and coach Cherry (a beautiful turn by Sydelle Noel) and her stunt-double husband Keith (utterly likable Bashir Salahuddin), daughter and sister of wrestlers Carmen (a winsome Britney Young), cheerful Brit Rhonda (the multi-faceted Kate Nash), wolfgirl Sheila (a dry Gayle Rankin), the humorous single mom Tammé (former wrestler Kia Stevens showing off brilliant emotional chops), the outrageous religious Jew Melrose (Fran Drescher lookalike Jackie Tohn), hairdressing kayfabe duo Stacy & Dawn (Kimmy Gatewood and Rebekka Johnson), Indian American bisexual med student Arthie (Sunita Mani a.k.a. the Turn Down For What girl), Olympian and taciturn Reggie (an athletic Marianna Palka), Valley Girl seamstress and former refugee Jenny (the eye-catching Ellen Wong), and the extroverted stripper and breakdancer lesbian Yolanda (a triple-threat Shakira Barerra). 

In the Season 2 finale of the show (and as a bid to keep the undocumented Rhonda in the United States) they stage a wedding ceremony for Rhonda where the rest of the wrestlers are wearing pink and gold leotards with ruffled sleeves (how 80s is that), which they integrate into their Vegas show in Season 3. In the first episode of the season, several things go wrong: Debbie and Ruth (in their wrestling roles Liberty Belle and the Soviet Zoya the Destroyer) comment in the local news on the Challenger spaceship launch where the rocket explodes in the air while Ruth is absorbed in her role as the heel, a fire alarm goes off at the casino during dress rehearsal which Jenny blames on her lighting incense to cleanse the atmosphere for the show (turns out to be false to distract from the doldrums of the tragedy), and the girls play on the tables and later have a successful show. A huge up in a show about the ups and downs of show business. 

Power Ranking: 8. 

The Plastics

“On Wednesdays we wear pink.”

One of the many rules to abide by if you are in North Shore High’s exclusive popular clique, The Plastics. Cady has been homeschooled abroad since she was a child and is transplanted to a surburban high school where it looks like dealing with social dynamics is going to be a lot tougher than knowing what to do if you encounter a lion out in the wilderness. Led by the ruthless and manipulative Regina George, the clique is formed up of girls who are the most privileged and prettiest in the high school (and when you look at it Regina is co-opting the power that comes with being the daughter of the founder of Toaster Strudel or being really pretty) and they keep a Burn Book of all their girl classmates (and one gay guy) where they write insulting things about them. They are quick to punish by calling your mom on the phone and telling her you got some urgent results from Planned Parenthood or by laying claim to your ex-boyfriend. But the leader Regina is a unhappy girl whose mother is more interested in pleasing her than nurturing her and she feels she cannot apply herself to intellectual activities because it’s “uncool” and that she has to be underweight to be the pinnacle of beauty, she belittles the self-worth of her most loyal friends for their intelligence or their popularity and views Cady as competition. Also as Regina learns, the student body is actually afraid of her and they are willing to laugh at her when given the chance. 

Power Ranking: 4.

Andie Walsh

I would be remiss not to include the main character of the film titled: Pretty In Pink. Our character is very smart, going places, hard-working, and a fashionista with her signature color (despite the hideous prom dress) and she has been disappointed in love by her richie boyfriend (and being hit on by his sleazebag friend and her childhood friend) and despite the prom look here, she has killer fashion sense. It’s a shame she cut up her maternal figure of a friend’s old 60s (cute) prom dress and another party dress to create this monstrosity. 

But she hits this prom to prove to the rich snobs at her school that they haven’t hurt her. And that is power.

Power Ranking: 9.5 (0.5 taken off for hideous prom dress!)

The Pink Ladies

The ultimate Pink clad clique, their pledge is to act cool and to be cool, til death do them part they think pink! They are the all female counterparts to the male T-Birds (the Burger Palace Boys in the original, edgier, musical) and they are interested in subverting the 1950s script for young women...to an extent, to be fair they don’t have a language for subverting respectability but it’s clear often they are mostly dates for the T-Birds. The girls actually do things that were considered shocking for mature women in 1959: they make out and have sex, it’s implied Rizzo gets an abortion (or it was a false positive), they wear pants and shorts, they indulge in the same vices as the boys, they have (gender-appropriate) ambition, multiple romantic partners, talk back to any boys bugging them or remarking on them, pierce their ears (no really women mostly had clip on earrings back then), and they wear clothes for comfort and even clothes that showcase their sex appeal. 

But one of them gives Sandy the now problematic behavior, it would have been more subversive if Sandy was encouraged to forget about Danny (which I think she did). But it was the late 1950s and it was hard for a female rebel. 

Power Ranking: 8.5. 

Taina Morales

The criminally underrated (and short-lived) sitcom Taina centers on a Nuyorican teenager and her family as she attends a performing arts high school as she works her way to becoming a singer and actress. Fushia, not plain pink, was Taina’s color and the color she picks for her Quincenera dress instead of the garish pastel pink ballgown her mother wants her to wear (as tradition). The episode covers the conflict regarding young Latinas and the pull between what mainstream American culture demands (consumerism and individualism by any means necessary) and the culture of their family’s homeland (which is more collective and built on hierarchy and just as shitty for women as individualist “Me first” culture). I want to say this to my non-Latina and non-Latinix readers: me and my sisters are dealing with a lot, we have demands from relatives who only see our age and youth and not the capable people we already are who have us flipping tortillas at 5 or watching younger siblings after school instead of a after-school job or extracurriculars or even hang out with friends and a mainstream culture that demands we all assimilate and be “real Americans”, try to be understanding and supportive.

It’s difficult but you have to set boundaries and assert your vision....lest you be a horror story from Say Yes to the Dress (Atlanta and Bridesmaids). 

Power Ranking: 10 (some folks have no idea). 

Deb Bradshaw

This is Deb Bradshaw, a resident of Idaho where fashion and tech-wise, everyone is stuck in the 1980s and 1990s and it was the mid-2000s. She sells handicrafts and takes glamour photos to raise funds for college and she hangs out with a couple of teenage boys who are quiet (Rico) or awkward (Napoleon) as she. Right now Napoleon’s sleazy Uncle Rico gives her a ad for breast enhancement supplements on the ruse that Napoleon recommended them for her. What does she do? Cry?

Nope. She calls Napoleon and tells him off for supposedly dissing her appearance, tells him she is content with her figure and he can take those supplements himself. In a time that was pushing girls to be sexy and hot and fun and extroverted to impress guys and where fashion was designed to show off impossibly slim, toned, and busty figures with long legs, it was something special. 

Power Ranking: 9.8

Little Jordan Sanders

Once up on a time (the early 1990s) there was a nerdy little girl who felt she wowed her fickle classmates and then a mean girl pulled a prank on her that landed her in to the hospital, from there she vowed she will do the bullying before anyone else bullies her.

So she becomes a nightmare boss whose employees can’t stand her (to the point where they are listening to relaxation tapes saying “So you want to slap your boss”) and she forbids carbs in her workplace as she doesn’t eat them. She gets confronted by a little girl with a magic wand who puts a spell on her that doesn’t seem to take but then Jordan wakes up in her preteen body again and has to attend middle school all over again where she gets bullied. 

So what does Jordan do? She arms herself with a huge Birkin bag and a pink power suit with a white plaid pattern and makes her way to school and manages to corrupt her new tween friends with her cynical world view. But at some point she embraces her inner geek girl and wakes up an adult woman again.

Power Ranking: 7, it’s a front but a fabulous front. 

Midge Maisel

This is the night that Midge would have been made for life....and the night where she burns a bridge with a friend and puts her’s and her manager Susie’s future in jeopardy. 

So after starting a career in stand up after her husband leaves her for his mediocre secretary, Midge gets to perform stand up at the famous Apollo theater before pop singer Shy Baldwin’s concert (part of his cross-country tour), this is the community he grew up in and where the local middle-aged mothers bake him goodies so he’d be persuaded to date their daughters. But Midge, a privileged Jewish American woman, is a fish out of water amongst the mostly African American audience and performers. 

So she starts to make jokes about Shy’s stage persona and hints at him being a closeted gay man which all bring down the house and impress the audience (and keep the Wop Wop Man at bay)....but then Shy’s manager reveals they have kicked her out from the tour for what she has done. For once the fabulous but thoughtless Midge has faced the consequences of her actions. 

Power Ranking: 10, she made an impact alright.

Meg Griffin

By far more the least empowered woman on this list or the list before (even more than Barb who got killed by a monster), Meg Griffin started Family Guy as a ordinary teenage girl who wasn’t popular at school but was assured of love from her then-loving, but dysfunctional and nutty family. Then after a brief cancellation and protests brought the show back, the show and even her family (along with the whole community) started bashing her and calling her “ugly” or dissing her for her weight to the point where the show was being (rightfully) accused of misogyny. Meg so far has had her father fart in her face, her mother try to seduce her boyfriend and leave her pills to potentially OD on, her obese brother gets popular and doesn’t invite her to his party because she doesn’t fit a narrow “boob to butt ratio” (seems like Family Guy hates body fat on women unless it’s on their boobs), her baby brother loves to feed off her tears and to her face told her to become bulimic, and her family dog tells her that God doesn’t exist because she has a shitty family (complete with a Mom he lusts after) and she has “a flat chest and a fat ass”.

 Also this “pink condom hat” wearing teen is dished crap by the writers because they claim not to have knowledge of writing teenage girls, gee what could be an improvement on that problem?

Is it any wonder that this girl may have violent episodes?

Power Ranking: 1 (most of the time). 

Quinn Morgendorffer

From day one pink has been a color that Quinn wore and while she updated her late 90s baby tee look with deeper colors and modest cuts, pink has remained a primary color. Actually pink has been her preferred color since childhood, her color for school dances, for camping trips, what she wears as a Mommy/Beauty vlogger, the color for the background Jane uses for her abstract portrait of Quinn, 

Quinn’s motivation is to be the most attractive and popular girl around, likely stemming from her father’s trait of needing people to pay attention to him, and coincidentally pink is what helps her fit in with her parents and helps her stand out from the Fashion Club, and it helps her align with the late 1990s standard of beauty and femininity (also somewhat aided by her grandmother) that prizes long, shiny, bouncy hair and a teeny weeny nose with microscopic pores, and a fat free (except for the boobs) body over intelligence and substance. This serves to set her apart from her sister Daria, who decides to go against the role. Which is sad because Quinn is very witty and savvy with a gift for fashion analysis and the sisters show a propensity for getting along much better than their mother did with her sisters. 

Later in the series, she starts maturing and leans more into her intellectual gifts, thus her jeans and shirt get deeper in color and flaunt her slender mid-section less (they still show the outline of her silhouette). She starts pulling away from her shallow clique and deals with a new friend with alcoholism (not much of a resolution at the end), thankfully somewhat like her sister, she can provide kinship over (cheeseless) pizza and diet soda.

Power Ranking: 10, Family Guy writers take notes. 

Daria Morgendorffer

Pink is the color of mortification for Daria. She is the only member of her family to not have a pinkish or reddish tone in her coloring (unless you count her traditional orange shirt under her green blazer and black skirt, something that calls to her mother’s power suit) and femininity seems forced on her. In fact the only time pink was used as a power move was when she used it to convince her sister to stop being a pseudo-intellectual by dressing up like her. 

In this image from the tie-in book The Daria Diaries, we see that a younger Daria is dressed up in a high-necked and puff-sleeved nightmare of a pin dress that looks so infantile, that likely Helen forced on her (Quinn would never pick that, no matter how mad Quinn is she would never make someone wear something if she didn’t think it was flattering), and while her mother and sister are in yellow-toned frills that closely matched their tastes, Daria stands apart glum and wishing someone would save her from this fashion emergency.

Power Ranking: 4, just loose the collar at least?

Glinda the Good Witch of the North

The Good (but slightly bitchy) Witch of the North is the representative for how powerful pink can be in 1939 (or rather any time because Oz operates outside our world). She is the guardian (was she battling the Wicked Witches of the East and West for supremacy while the Munchkins were terrorized? Gosh a lot of WWII allegories here) of Oz played by the closeted Bisexual and hilarious Billie Burke, she is good but not above encouraging munchkins to sing about how happy they are that the wicked witch is dead. While munchkins run around scared when the Wicket Witch of the West shows up to corner Dorothy and get the ruby slippers back, Glinda cooly plans on snatching the slippers and poofing them on Dorothy’s feet and drops shade on the Witch. 

But Glinda is one to remind the characters (and the audience) that they needed to discover the power within them to achieve their goals and come out the other end stronger, no one can make you believe that. 

Power Ranking: 10, this look is so iconic.

Kim McAfee

Truly an iconic pink look and not bad for a role where Ann-Margret makes her big break. The teenage Kim MacAfee, member of the Conrad Birdie fan club, gets pinned and is chosen to kiss Conrad during his farewell concert before he leaves for the army. Quite the glow up! But she has to deal with a jealous boyfriend who doesn’t want Conrad around (probably because he can’t make her scream and faint) and her feelings of “I don’t need him but I really want him with me”. This outfit was stunning and meant to convey a lot in 1963: it’s pants, it’s Schiaparelli Pink rather than a dainty pastel like she wears here, it shows off her figure, she sings about kissing men from Yale to Purdue while Conrad and her boyfriend Hugo sing about hot chicks and they all sing about having a lot of living to do. Of course Hugo leaves and she is distraught, up to the point where she kisses Conrad Birdie and Hugo sucker punches him in front of a live audience. She happily ends up with Hugo and wishes Birdie well, as opposed to when she is devastated over him heading to the army (is it no accident the sexists from Mad Men like the first version?).

Power Ranking: 9.5, truly iconic and the outfit to wear when you attempt to be a sexually liberated woman who doesn’t need a possessive man.

Caroline Brooks

Speaking of big breaks, this is the film where Esther Williams (the codifier for swimming musicals and synchronized swimming) makes her big break in a iconic career and it was quite an impressive entrance. And then starts a decade-long career of water ballet musicals and swimwear, the film isn’t remarkable for it’s plot (enjoyable rom-com) but for the impressive swimming sequences that show off Esther’s athletic skills (she was eligible for the 1940 Olympics). That is a way to make an impact with pink.

Power Ranking: 20.

Courtney Gripling

Who’s the girl in the pink capris?

It’s Courtney, it’s Courtney!

This song was sung two times in the show and it tells you a lot about the inner workings of a sweet but sheltered and often insensitive Middle School Queen (for measure, she sings this in a sparkly dress at a friend’s 13th birthday party, friend doesn’t mind though). Courtney would definitely be the kind of girl who’d wear white to a (Western) wedding. 

Pink (or peach or lavender or blue or cream) has been a signature color for Courney since the very beginning: it was the color of her pajamas, she told Ginger she looks really good in the color when she borrows sleepwear from the girl, she wore “Popular In Peach” nail polish for her exams the semester before, and she even wore the color of skirt and blouse she wore when she got bullied in high school and learned her family was losing their McMansion and their money (even her port-a-potty was pink with baroque gild). It highlights her delicate and privileged background, like lace or fine china, it will get spoiled.

So this girl, who got by with people being hired to do her homework and sung about herself at another person’s birthday party and had a talent show performance where she and her friends wore blonde wigs and matching costumes (with face masks of herself), the girl who was shocked to find out summer camps don’t have masseuses, the girl who wore platform sandals in the winter, or that Mom losing her platinum card is not the catastrophe she thinks it is.....suddenly finds her family in poverty after her father was caught doing white collar crime.

So sad, she was always better than Ivanka.

Power Ranking: 6.5, glorious look and character but not likely to be invited to anybody’s wedding in the future.

Cher Horowitz

It’s fitting the premier teen fashionista of Beverly Hills undergoes her enlightenment and makes up with her friend in a matching pink preppy ensemble. Cher Horowitz (despite clearly taking some lead from her BFF Dionne’s more sophisticated and colorful take on Bev Hills fashion) has been a trendsetter in-universe and at the time the film came out. 

Before the film came out, fashion was inspired by grunge or still stuck in the late 1980s or dominated by neon colors and power dressing and or mixing and matching, then the costume designer for the film (Mona May) decided on taking a twist on the preppy look, while keeping some sportiness and the colors of the time (even nodding to Beverly Hills 90210). May subtly updated looks that Sally Draper and Nancy Wheeler would have worn and for the rest of the decade teen girls were sporting mary janes, plaid, collars, floaty dresses, pastels, stripes, and knee socks. 

At the start of the film, Cher thinks she knows it all and she is the most popular girl in her school....she doesn’t really know it all (she’s Clueless).  She does aspire to be more and do more (and sometimes plagued by insecurity) and takes new grunge girl Tai under her wing and gives her a makeover that makes her look like a shorter, redhaired, and curvier clone of Cher herself until Tai gets swollen in the head and Cher realizes she loves her ex-stepbrother Josh. After an argument, a humbled Tai (in a style that combines the preppy femininity she learned in Beverly Hills and her skater geek inclinations that manages to hold well into the mid 2000s) makes up with her and they watch Tai’s love interest shred out. 

Here we see Cher in her feminine prep but the casual look and the prints help her empathize with the crowd on the grass. 

Power Ranking: 9.

Miss Piggy

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye.

The ultimate diva in pink, with all her charms, cannot attract Kermit the Frog and the woman who assured at least one generation of girls that they don’t need to be slender princesses to be the leading lady. Before Elle Woods, Miss Piggy came in with blown out wings and curls and in pink outfits assured of her own place in show business and of her own beauty and especially during an era when society was learning (slowly) to accept other forms of female personality and challenging gender roles. She was a revolutionary clad in the style of women of the Golden Age of Hollywood and made a mark for more body inclusivity in entertainment and transcended the girly girl/tomboy dichotomy that had been around to enforce stereo-typically feminine behavior and set up women to compete against one another. 

Power Ranking: 10.

Blossom

Sugar. Spice. Everything Nice. Chemical X. These are the things that created a trio of super-powered kindergartners, the leader wearing a large red bow over her long red locks and has a pink dress (and improbably large pink-colored eyes). These girls had to save their city from monsters and evil villains while attending Kindergarten and making time for their playroom. Blossom was Miss Perfect personified: cute, long pretty hair, perfect grades, ladylike behavior, intellectual, emotionally mature (she acted more 10 years old rather than her actual age of being born in a 5 year old’s body); but being Miss Perfect can make you blind to the resentment of others (she is rather bossy) and being liked and holding that as the standard could let you get run over. It’s fortunate that Blossom is learning how to advocate for herself and break the rules to save the day (like beating up evil senior citizens) now rather than at 14, 17, 24, 32.....

Power Ranking: 11. 

Renee Bennett

Renee Bennett (as played by Amy Schumer) is insecure about living in a world that seems to stop for women fitting a narrow standard of beauty, which doesn’t concern her as far as she’s concerned. Now Renee wears pink a few times in the film, highlighting her femininity and desire to be universally beautiful. She happens to make a wish to be beautiful during a rainstorm and the next day, she goes to Soul Cycle where she falls off a bike, hair gets caught in the bike and she hits her head and wakes up seeing a different person in the mirror. 

Now she walks around the world as if she was confident in being one of the most beautiful women in the room, if not the world. Suddenly her clothes show more skin, they are more twee (the bright colors and pastels), she’s taking huge fashion risks, and participating in bikini contests. Of course every film high hits a low where the protagonist’s ego is swollen, her friends feel alienated and later she bonks her head and believes she is back in her old body and no one has seen how “hideous” she is. Later she finds the confidence to “come out” as she is (as far as others are concerned, she hasn’t changed her looks too much). 

Power Ranking: 7.5

[ryuzakemo128]

Leave a Mark

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Marianna (Female Reader)

Dialogue Prompt(s): "You're sick. Go back to bed and I'll figure it out." + "What do you want in exchange for it?" + "There was nothing you could've done." 

Sentence Prompt(s): Marianna pressing their forehead against Eddie's forehead to check if they have a fever.

Genre: Sci-Fi / Horror / Fantasy

Rating: MA 15+

Prompt List: Part One / Part Two / Part Three

Masterlist

Author's Note: The two linked are in the same universe as this one. Just to make sure they link with one another. Also I set this in an alternative timeline where Eddie didn't die. Just to make it have a happier ending.

Little Known Memories - Marianna's Backstory - Link

One of Our Better Angels - Eddie Munson x Marianna (Female Reader) - Link

"I've been ready to die for a very long time. I don't expect you to understand and part of me doesn't want you to either." Marianna continued to speak into the tape recorder, as she stitched herself back up as she often did in the past. Kolya didn't get hurt nearly as often as she did and she wanted to keep it that way.

"You're sick. Go back to bed and I'll figure it out." Marianna said to Kolya waving as headed back home to get over a cold or possible flu. She had made sure to take extra precautions to keep Kolya safe, determined not to take any chances with his health.

"I thought you two would have stopped talking to each other after everything that happened." Eddie said to her after she hopped in her car.

"He's been there longer than I have, the same mental space and the same mindset. The numb feeling, the void inside yourself after you see death more often than not." Marianna added, "You don't have to be brave all the time. It's not helpful for your health."

Marianna knew that pushing Eddie beyond what he was comfortable with wouldn't do anyone a favor. Not even her. Therefore, she decided to take a step back and gently suggest a different approach.

"Are you sure you're fine with that?" Eddie asked her.

"Why wouldn't I be fine with it?" Marianna answered with another question.

"You know exactly why I think that." Eddie answered.

"I hate to break this to you but I'm fine with risking my life. But I'm not fine with risking your safety or anyone else's. If I can avoid that happening. I most certainly will," Marianna said. She understood the risks associated with her actions, but wanted to do everything she could to ensure that no one else got hurt in the process. She was willing to take risks with her own life but not with anyone else's.

Marianna proceeded to press her forehead against Eddie's to check if he had a fever. Without a moment's hesitation, she took the necessary precautions to ensure his safety. "You're sick, unwell and you also have a fever." Marianna said to him.

Eddie remained silent the whole trip back to her place to recover, the same place she said would keep him from harm. "Concentrate on recovering and I'll do what I can to make a spot in my house to keep you safe in." she said to him.

"Why are you helping me?" Eddie asked her.

"Because I care about you." Marianna answered honestly. "Take this with you. It'll help." She handed him a care package that would help him recover, the one of many he would receive while she worked on her project that would help them in the future.

"I don't give to get Dustin. I don't do that to people I consider to be my friends." Marianna replied confused by his question. By having multiple copies, Marianna would be able to maintain the integrity of her journal, even if one of her friends lost or misplaced it. This way, she could ensure the memories and experiences she had written down would always be accessible, no matter where she or her friends were.

"I told you we should have trusted her sooner." Dustin declared to the rest of them.

"I thought you died." Eddie said.

"I thought I did too. For a brief moment I was sure I was dead." Marianna admitted, confused as to why she didn't die instead. "Although I wouldn't have been surprised if it did happen, I am grateful that it did not," Marianna said with a sigh of relief.

"There was nothing you could've done." Eddie told her, stating that no matter how much she tried she wouldn't have been able to save her friend, Ivan.

"I wish I had known that then, but believe me, I know it now." Marianna had to concentrate on recovering and she felt like it was driving her to insanity. Even though it's only been almost three days since the incident. "Despite the short time since the traumatic event, I can confidently say that I have gained invaluable wisdom and a newfound strength," Marianna thought to herself. "Even though it still hurts to walk with this injury I won't be in bed all the time. Even though they might want me to be."

Marianna had sustained a bear trap injury on her ankle when she had stumbled upon a bear in the forest. She had been walking in the dark, not knowing what lurked in the shadows. She had been so scared, and she felt a sharp pain as the trap clamped down on her ankle. The trap was designed to catch animals by clamping down on their legs or other appendages, and it had done just that to Marianna. The trap had two powerful jaws that closed when it was triggered by the weight of an animal or person stepping on it.

"You get more injuries than he does." Steve pointed out.

"Yeah and he runs just as fast Eddie when he gets spooked. Like a deer getting spooked by a loud sound in the distance." Marianna explained. "Someone had to make sure he didn't do anything stupid or get himself killed."

Marianna had taken a liking to Eddie and she couldn't really explain why. She knew how it happened, but she could never really understand the why of it. She started getting in harm's way so that he wouldn't have to and the promise to keep him safe came from an instinct that she had inside her. She was drawn to him in a way that she couldn't explain and her actions were driven by a strong desire to protect him. It seemed like a natural instinct that was beyond her control, and she felt compelled to keep him safe from any harm.

Kolya explained it as falling in love. Like he fell in love with someone after both Ivan and Masha passed on.

"It was love at first sight," he said, "a feeling that I couldn't describe or ignore."

[furiousinks]

Hey everyone! Welcome to today's post. So today is my spot for the Spark to Shadow Book Tour hosted by @TBRAndBeyond Tours. MY RATING- 🌟🌟🌟. ⭐ PUBLICATION DATE- February 2021 (Self-published) GENRE- YA Fantasy/ YA Romance ✨MY REVIEW✨ Alright Everyone, this book has officially done the impossible. This book, and one other lovely read, literally pulled me out a Marianna Trench long reading slump, and I'm up and on a reading roll! But moving on from that small life update, let's talk abou this book. 🍁The first thing I'd like to touch on are the characters. Because I am a very character-driven reader, they're always the thing I take notice of first. Our main protagonist, Fang is a great example of a strong female character. She's confident, feisty, brave and very ambitious. I quite liked following her perspective throughout the story. She has a splendid charcter arc that rounds that comes full circle in the last chapter and I loved seeing the character growth. 🍁The other characters as well, Kyuho, Sanha and others were well-developed. At first I was afraid that it was going to turn into a love triangle (NOT a huge fan of that trope...), but fortunately for me, it never steered too far into that direction. 🍁I actually thought the romance was quite enjoyable. It wasn't super intense or over dramatic- just the right amount of angst and fun and entertaining. 🍁I wasn't super interested in the sub plots, and they're not even a considerable part of the plot, but I just didn't care about it that much. 🍁It also has a nice touch is dragons/animal companion theme that was adorable! 🍁Not much to say about the world building, I guess. The setting was very unique. You could see how the author had taken inspiration from the culture of Thailand, and then added her own special touch to it. Just the classic works of witches and clans. The inter-clan relations/politics was a nice touch tho. 🍁If you're looking for a books that you can just fly through, something that's light and fun a and fast-paced, this book is gonna be right up your ally! https://www.instagram.com/p/CPxqrynrnMh/?utm_medium=tumblr

[lindyhunt]

The Ultimate Guide to Marketing and Business Books

My parents, teachers, and coaches all instilled in me the importance of reading. Fiction or non-fiction, self-improvement or fantasy, reading supposedly makes us all smarter ... right?

Reading promotes creativity, gives us refuge from the “real” world, provides us with knowledge about any topic we want to know more about, makes us better writers, and inspires us. 

It just so happens that some of the most powerful business magnates in the world are also avid readers.

Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey, and Bill Gates are all self-proclaimed bookworms who attribute their success to reading.

Even billionaire Warren Buffett is said to read about 500 pages per day.

If some of the most successful people in the world credit their success to something as simple as reading, then why wouldn’t you give it a try?

Whether or not you aspire to become a billionaire, there are thousands of business and marketing books to help propel you towards your career goals. These books may just provide you with the inspiration you need to make your next — big or small — career move.

Business Classics and Fundamentals

These books provide an overview of broad business topics and give context for the way business is done today.

Business Adventures by John Brooks

Businesses need the right people on their team to successfully plan, implement, and carry out short- and long-term goals. The way team members and leaders react in both times of success and hardship will make or break their companies. 

Circling back to the influential billionaires I mentioned above, Bill Gates calls Business Adventures — which was a gift from Warren Buffet — one of the best business books he has ever read. 

The book tells the crisis and triumph of several prominent companies, including Ford Motor Company’s Edsel disaster, the rise of Xerox, and the GE and Texas Gulf Sulphur scandals. Brooks also details the stock market crash in 1962 and the chaos that ensued on Wall Street. 

Business Adventures is a must-read for anyone who is currently running, or aspires to run, a resilient business.

Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott

If you’re looking for a lighter read that provides applicable information on how to be a successful boss and colleague, then this New York Times Bestseller is for you. Scott uses her own experiences at Google, Apple, and other tech companies to provide examples of how to be a respected leader and encourage others to do their best work. 

Radical Candor shows readers how to build strong relationships in a work environment, create a culture of feedback, shape a connected team, and achieve goals everyone can be excited about. Scott is engaging, humorous, and provides readers with entertaining illustrations throughout the book. 

Den of Thieves by James B. Stewart

Ever hear that saying, “Money and power corrupt”? That’s what happened in the 1980’s when a group of elite Wall Street financiers were involved in one of the biggest insider-trading scandals in history. Stewart recounts the damage done and the punishments the criminals received after nearly destroying Wall Street. 

This book is a great option if you’re looking to read something informational but with some added drama and excitement. Den of Thieves is not a typical “how to” business narrative about ways to stay in control of your finances. It’s a real story about the dangers of greed and arrogance in business.

Pivot by Jenny Blake

Today, our careers are longer and a lot less predictable than they once were. Most people realize they won’t be doing the exact same type of work throughout their career. Additionally, many companies strive to help their employees find their career path even if it leads them elsewhere. 

Blake’s book helps readers arrive at the answer to the often complicated question, “What’s next in my career?” She describes her own career “pivot” and explains the importance of being adaptable, flexible, and patient when moving into a new role or company. Whether or not you know exactly what you want to do in the future, Pivot will teach you how to be smart about your next move.

Check out this blog to learn about another classic business read.

Management

CEOs, directors, managers, and even employees just beginning their careers can use these books to learn how to become strong and respected leaders in the workplace. 

The Innovator’s Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail by Clayton M. Christensen

Christensen drives his point home about the importance of strong leadership by citing some of the most successful CEOs and managers in history — such as Jeff Bezos and Steve Jobs. He argues that no matter what resources a company has, chances are it’s going to be hard to achieve business goals without the right people leading.

The Innovator’s Dilemma brings to light the issues that come with ever-changing technology and the impact it has on the leaders who cannot accept or keep up with these developments. 

Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader by Herminia Ibarra

Successful CEOs, directors, managers, and leaders aspire to be respected, liked, and impactful among other things. The issue is finding the balance between being a skillful leader that supports colleagues and employees and being able to complete their day-to-day work.

Ibarra draws on her own experience and explains how managers of all levels can make small changes to become successful, adaptable leaders. Most importantly, she teaches the reader to “think before you act.” This will allow you to create what she calls “outsight,” which is perspective gained from our own experiences. Ibarra will help you become a stronger leader through self-assessment and by creating a plan of action to learn through doing.

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don't by Jim Collins

There are plenty of companies out there that are considered successful. They may have good investors, a solid group of promoters who love their brand and make enough money to sustain their existence. But what about the companies that are really killing it? Raking in the cash and growing exponentially in all forms? How did they get to where they are? How did they go from good to great?

This is the question that kept Jim Collins up at night. So he created an experiment — that lasted five years — to find out the common characteristics of 28 successful companies that made that leap from good to great. 

I won’t tell you his exact findings … that’s for you to find out on your own. But I will share something Collin’s said at the end of his experiment: “The key concepts discerned in the study fly in the face of our modern business culture and will, quite frankly, upset some people.” 

The Myth of the Nice Girl: Achieving a Career You Love Without Becoming a Person You Hate by Fran Hauser

OK, ladies — this one's for you. 

Hauser realized two things prior to writing this book: 1. There are few books available for women in business that detail the badass accomplishments other women are making on a daily basis, especially in positions that are stereotypically male-driven, and 2. There is a lot of misguided information about professional women that says, “if you want to be a female powerhouse in business, you have to be mean.” 

Enter: Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada.

And if you’re not mean, you must be a weak pushover … right? Not anymore!

Hauser teaches women that they don’t need to sacrifice their values, hide their real personalities, or be mean to become an impactful leader. She refers to her own experiences working in high-level leadership positions at major companies — such as Coca-Cola, Time Inc., and Moviefone — to explain these points.

The book gives readers real examples of Hauser and other successful businesswomen using kindness and authenticity to achieve greatness. Intelligent, driven, professional women of all ages will find this book refreshing and uplifting.

Finance and Investing

Managing your money doesn’t have to be scary or difficult. There are thousands of books that can help you learn to make better financial decisions no matter where you are in your career or financial journey. Here are a few to get you started.

The Intelligent Investor: The Definitive Book on Value Investing. A Book of Practical Counsel by Benjamin Graham

The Intelligent Investor, also known as the “stock market bible,” is considered a classic in the finance and investing field. It was published in 1949 and original copies can be found on used book sites for upwards of $1,500 a piece.

If you’ve heard of a technique called “value investing,” then you already know something about Graham’s book. The strategy encourages investors to create long-term plans to shelter them from significant error or damage.

The book has been updated since its original date of publication to keep it relevant for those picking up their first copy in the 21st century. Now, there is plenty of information on today’s markets that readers can mix with Graham’s classic lessons to stay on top of their finances and better understand the market.

Live It, Love It, Earn It: A Woman's Guide to Financial Freedom by Marianna Olszewski

Olszewski makes lessons about personal finance more interesting and fun by describing her own journey to financial security. Although this book is tailored towards the female reader, men and women can both learn something from savvy strategies that she and other powerful women mention — including designer Diane Von Furstenberg and Congressman Marsha Blackburn — used to reach financial success.

There are three main goals mentioned throughout the book for readers to focus on: 1. Say yes to yourself. 2. Fall in love with your money. 3. Act as if. This is a light read that gives readers applicable advice on how to achieve financial independence paired with relatable experiences to help them through the process.

Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

An international bestseller and the winner of more than five notable awards, Thinking Fast and Slow takes a hard look at two ways that humans think, which he calls systems. According to the author, system 1 is “fast, emotional, and intuitive.” System 2 is a bit slower, more deliberate, and logical. By understanding these systems, Kahneman tells readers about the ways we can take information and use it to shape our personal and work-related decisions. 

There are certain aspects of the two systems that should be focused on or avoided based on the environment and situation. Thinking Fast and Slow takes you through practical techniques that will help you uncover best practices in all situations.

Afterall, how are we supposed to successfully lead and help the people around us if we cannot first understand ourselves and the way we think?

Creativity

Everyone has a level of creativity — it’s just a matter of learning how to harness and apply yours. These books will teach you how to unlock and leverage your creativity in all aspects of your life.

Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam Grant

Grant’s book is all about taking the road less traveled. How can you improve the world around you and become the most successful version of yourself by going against the grain and trying something new? He also asks the question: “Can you really create and implement new ideas and policies regularly without risking your career, reputation, and more?”

Grant’s answer is “yes.”

His ideas about how to take a new idea, find people to support you, and implement your plan in a successful way are all backed by studies, experiments, and real stories. He even tells parents and teachers how they can work with children on ways to apply this method.

Originals reminds us all that being “different” can be scary at times, but pushing the status quo can also be what propels us towards our greatest successes. 

Imagine: How Creativity Works by Jonah Lehrer

When I was applying to jobs out of school, I noticed how many descriptions said something along the lines of “creative-thinker required,” or “must be able to think outside of the box.” But these were such arbitrary ideas. And frankly, “think outside of the box” is such a cliché term without real meaning.

Author John Leher helps the reader define creativity. He asks deeper level, thought-provoking questions about how both imagination and epiphanies are measured. The book provides readers with ideas about how to apply creative strategy to any task.

My favorite point the book makes is that everyone possesses creativity. It’s a way of thinking, not a gene we are born with, or even a skill that we acquire. Some of us just need help uncovering and applying our creativity, which is exactly what Imagine will help you accomplish.

The Power of Onlyness: Make Your Wild Ideas Mighty Enough to Dent the World by Nilofer Merchant

Merchant tells readers to stop making excuses about not being able to make a mark on the world. Yes, there is a seat at the table for you.

Thanks to innovation and technology, we all have the ability to mobilize new ideas almost instantly. The issue is that plenty of people push those thoughts to the side, or convince themselves that they are incapable of being successful at them.

The Power of Onlyness explains why this is a false notion and gives readers information on how to get their ideas rolling. Anyone can make a difference. The question is whether or not you’re willing to take that first step toward achieving your goal.

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell

Remember when Kylie Jenner decided she was no longer a fan of Snapchat? This information spread like wildfire, and Snapchat’s stock lost over $1 billion in one day? All because Kylie’s fans care about her opinion oh so much.

 That’s the tipping point — when a trend, idea, or behavior builds to a certain point until it essentially “tips” or causes a big change. 

Businesses need to account for this phenomenon by buffering their sales and marketing tactics to avoid major disruption. Gladwell gives readers tactical ideas on how to buffer their businesses to avoid hitting a detrimental tipping point.

Biographies and Memoirs

Sometimes we just need a little bit of inspiration. These biographies and memoirs recount the lives of some of the most successful businessmen and women and how they reached their greatest achievements.

Success Never Smelled So Sweet: How I Followed My Nose and Found My Passion by Lisa Price

Price’s rags to riches memoir is an inspiring tale of a woman who was nearly bankrupt, took a leap of faith by starting her own business, and began grossing more than $2 million per year. 

As a child, Lisa loved fragrances and beauty products. When she hit her all-time low and only had $100 to her name, she realized that her love for these products could be her way out of debt. She created her own line of all-natural bath and beauty products that ultimately made her successful. But, more importantly, Price was successful because she loved what she was doing and was good at it. 

This is an inspiring and uplifting story about a woman who took action and changed her life forever — all from her home in Brooklyn. In her memoir, Price tells readers how difficult times do not define us, but rather it’s how we handle those times.

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight

Nike is an internationally recognized brand, but would you recognize Nike’s founder, Phil Knight, if he was walking down the street? 

He’s known as a shy man who isn’t necessarily a fan of the spotlight. The level of mystery behind the creator of the brand may be the reason Knight’s memoir became a New York Times Bestseller so quickly. 

The book details Knight’s beginnings as an entrepreneur when he set out with only $50 to try and import inexpensive, high-quality running shoes from Japan. He sold the shoes out of the trunk of his car while trying to kickstart his brand.

The book reminds readers of the ups and downs that come with starting and growing a business. There are people who will doubt you and try to sabotage you, and there are roadblocks that will make you wonder if it’s even worth trying to grow your company. But there are also times of triumph when you overcome your competitors and see the fruits of your labor. Knight’s memoir shows readers why it’s worth pushing through the tough, dark times to reach success.

Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 into a Billion Dollar Business by Barbara Corcoran

If you’re a fan of the show Shark Tank, then you’ll know exactly who this next memoir is about. Corcoran tells her story of how she made it big. And it definitely wasn’t a walk in the park for this investor. She describes failing at 22 different jobs — yes, you read that number right.

When she found herself waitressing, she decided something needed to change. Corcoran borrowed $1,000 from her boyfriend and started a small real estate office in New York. She tells readers about the ways she built this tiny office into a $6 billion business using the lessons her mom taught her while growing up (moms really do know everything don’t they?).

Corcoran built her business from nothing, and now she’s a“shark” on a hit show. She wrote this book to highlight that anyone can have a success story.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Walter Isaacson uncovered the truth behind the man who created one of the biggest brands in history: Apple. In a series of over 40 interviews — which took place over the course of two years — Isaacson wrote the story of what made Jobs such a force for change. 

Jobs had no control over what was written in the book and was not able to read it before it was published, which ensured that the information is accurate and raw. Isaacson also interviewed Jobs’ family members, friends, competitors, adversaries, coworkers, and acquaintances.

Jobs' exceptionally strong personality, often unpleasant leadership style, and intense way of life shines through in Isaacson’s writing. Readers get a microscopic view into his day-to-day and thought processes. The book also has little-known stories about this entrepreneur who transformed computers, laptops, phones, and so many other devices into what we know them as today.

Entrepreneurship

Have you always dreamed of starting your own company? There are countless books available to those who aspire to own their own businesses, as well as some for those who already do.

The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries

Everywhere you turn, a new startup is popping up on the market. People all over the world are finding investors and starting their dream companies. Unfortunately, not all of them succeed. In fact, plenty of startups simply fail.

Ries takes a look at why so many startups fail and how a lot of these failures are preventable. The Lean Startup offers a new approach to the way startups are built and launched to avoid failure.

The approach gives startups a way to test their vision and business plan continuously throughout the building process, adapt it to the feedback they are getting from real customers, and then adjust it before they reach the point of failure. This is a great book for anyone who has recently started a new business or has plans to start a business. The Lean Startup is a simple yet disruptive approach that will increase any new company’s chances of success.

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth

Have you ever noticed that the most successful people in life are often the ones that work hard, persist, and are also extremely passionate about what they do? Well, that winning combination is what New York Times bestselling author and psychologist Angela Duckworth calls “grit.”

Duckworth is a firm believer that anyone striving to succeed, no matter their age or professional status, needs a blend of long-term persistence and passion — not talent. She adds her own personal story to the book and mentions what it was like growing up with her father, a scientist, who often mentioned her “lack of genius.” Duckworth adds to the intrigue of the book by taking readers into the world of cadets working through their first days at West Point, teachers in some of the toughest schools in the country, and other inspirational anecdotes.

Duckworth gives readers insight on how to be persistent and find what they are most passionate about. And she shows readers that no matter who they are or where they come from, anyone can have grit. 

Act Like a Success, Think Like a Success: Discovering Your Gift and the Way to Life's Riches by Steve Harvey

Thanks to my brother, I have watched a lot of Family Feud. Although the game show is a bit goofy at times, I often find myself laughing at the comments made by the larger-than-life personality of host Steve Harvey. His outgoing, happy, and playful demeanor makes the show. But who is Steve Harvey? TV personality, millionaire, comedian? How did he become a household name? 

  Act Like a Success, Think Like a Success is a book for aspiring entrepreneurs. It gives readers insight into how anyone can achieve financial freedom and happiness. Harvey truly believes everyone has a gift given to them at birth and that we all just need to find ours.

The Power of Broke: How Empty Pockets, a Tight Budget, and a Hunger for Success Can Become Your Greatest Competitive Advantage by Daymond John

And here’s another one for my fellow Shark Tank fans. John is one of the show’s hosts and the CEO of FUBU. He’s another entrepreneur who started with little money and successfully turned his company into a billion-dollar business. 

The Power of Broke takes readers through the story of John selling and promoting home-sewn shirts on the streets in Queens all on a $40 budget.

John draws on his own experience and the experience of other highly successful entrepreneurs who started their businesses with nothing. He explains why the best time to start your next venture may actually be when you have the fewest resources available — you’ll be forced to learn "the power of broke” quickly as success is your only option. 

Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss

Author and podcast producer Tim Ferriss is known for his extremely in-depth, two-to-three hour interviews. During these interviews, he dives deep into the minds of some of the world’s most successful business people, scientists, doctors, athletes, celebrities, and others.

Tools of Titans describes the best tactics, lessons, and tools that Ferriss learned from his interview subjects over the years. Ferriss says he has applied every tactic and method mentioned in the book to his own life to see what works for him — and what doesn’t.

Some of the questions Ferriss asks during his interviews include: What do you do in the first hour you’re awake in the morning? What is your workout routine and why? What books do you share with others? What supplements do you take daily?

Interviewing some of the world’s smartest and most talented people has provided Ferriss with life-changing information that he shares in this book to try and help improve others’ lives as well. 

Marketing

In a time where technology is ever-changing, marketers need to find new ways to target customers. These books provide marketers with a guide to some of the most classic tactics that are still relevant, as well as innovative ways to reach your target audience. 

Selling the Invisible: A Field Guide to Modern Marketing by Harry Beckwith

Selling the Invisible a is straightforward, fluff-free marketing book that covers the specific tactics that help businesses to turn a prospect into a customer. The book describes how service marketing works to retain customers and turn them into promoters of a brand. The key lessons are: How to remain succinct and accessible to customers, how to keep an eye on the prize, and how to stay focused on the final goal of the customer.

Inbound Marketing: Attract, Engage, and Delight Customers Online by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah

*Insert clap for HubSpot’s talented co-founders here.*

As technology has changed over the years, so has the best way to market to customers. People have little tolerance for interruptive ads. Instead, you need to attract your target audience through helpful content that adds value to the relationship and builds trust.

Detailing the core tenets of the inbound marketing methodology, Halligan and Shah show you how to attract, engage, and delight your customers to increase engagement and grow your customer base. The book outlines important tactics, such as lead nurturing, blogging, email marketing, and others, and shows you exactly what you need to do to build a successful marketing strategy that turns strangers into promoters. 

Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne

To succeed as a business, you must eliminate your competitors. You also need a new idea that nobody has — something that really separates you from other brands. In other words, you need clear waters … a blue ocean.

This is exactly what the authors of Blue Ocean Strategy argue. Lasting success for a company means customers aren’t confusing your business with your competitors’ who have similar products and structures to your own. Your goal is to avoid being in the “shark-infested, bloody waters” and instead find your own calm and quiet blue ocean.

Kim and Mauborgne give readers tips on how to find new market space and make competitors insignificant.

Conclusion

Reading about other’s successes and failures will help you follow their example and avoid their mistakes. These books — and so many more — have the potential to help you advance your career, find your passion, and stay motivated. 

Just because you graduated from college, think you landed your dream job, or even retired doesn’t mean you should stop learning. So, log onto Amazon, hit up your local Barnes and Noble, or turn on that Kindle to find a book that peaks your interest and start reading.

[2jswann]

Review 1: The “7 reviews in 7 days” Challenge

You do not have so much to do in your life that you can leave Dacia Maraini’s superb novel The Silent Duchess unread. Yes, I read it in Italian (La Lunga Vita de Marianna Ucrìa) but the English-language Kittis & Spottiswood translation seems to have a lot of fans. The original was published in 1990, the year Maraini lost her companion of 20 years, the anti-fascist writer Alberto Moravia. It won the prestigious Premio Campiello that same year and was made into a film (Marianna Ucrìa) by Roberto Faenza in 1997. Maraini will turn 82 in November.

There’s little to no plot in the novel – the story moves along with the passage of time, starting some time in the mid 1700s. Because Marianna is a deaf-mute, we get a lot of visual, tactile and olfactory information. The scene between Mariana and her quasi-odalisque mother, with its hint of rice powder, its whiff of mint and the smell of urine (orina, I had to look it up) in the bed where her mother’s plump little mouth contorts over her soft chin as she caresses the daughter that she is, finally, too exhausted to deal with, really stuck with me. I could see why they made a movie.

The opening pages are told from the seven-year old’s point of view and they present the execution of a young boy to which her father has had her accompany him. Her father (il signor padre) is a Duke. Like Pierre de Marivaux’s proto-feminist Marianne, Maraini’s Marianna is a writer. As she writes it, Marivaux’s Marianne sews the saga of her travails into her dress so it cannot be read by her tormenters. Maraini’s Marianna communicates with her family and the world at large by means of the handwritten note. She is not just a married 18th century female deaf-mute, but all of silenced Sicilian womanhood.

She dangles a special stationery box with paper, pens and ink from her belt. Married off at 13 to a much older man, Marianna refuses to live out her life as the man’s married concubine. Every episode of this well-crafted story puts the reader into an ever-more-intimate appreciation of its heroine. The descriptions of Marianna’s building projects, her children, her intellectual achievements, and her friendships are so vividly companionable that we can sometimes forget we are reading about impoverished Sicilian nobility in the 1700s.

Marianna’s relationship to her dying child, Signoretto, is especially well done:

The cook had already had small pox, and had come through it alive. Marianna had never had it but was not afraid of it. Had she not stayed alone and unscathed in Bagheria when everyone was feverish and vomiting? She had washed her hands every hour with vinegar, ate salted lemons, and covered her mouth with a kerchief tied behind her neck like a robber.

Since Signoretto was stricken, however, she didn’t bother with any of that. She slept in an upholstered chair next to the wooden crib where her son struggled for breath, gathering it for him. Nights she would wake with a start to stretch her hand towards the child’s mouth, feeling for his breath.

When she saw him strain so to breathe, his lips livid, his thin hands gripping the sides of his crib, she wondered if the best way to help him was to help him die. The surgeon said he was basically already gone. But she kept him alive with the very heat of her presence, kissing him, and giving him – every once in a while – the gift of her own breath.

(my translation)

Cornell has both the English and the Italian. TCPL’s server is down today, so I’m not sure what’s there.

[artistsmovingimageni]

AMINI 17 Programme 29 | 30 September Festival of Artists’ Moving Image The MAC, Belfast Tickets here 2 day pass: £20 (£10 concession)

Friday 29th September 11am - Screening The Future is Another Country, curated by Rana Öztürk

Image: A Numbness in the Mouth (2016) Kevin Gaffney If a future exists, does it still offer a better world than the present one? How are we to imagine the future, if what has been promised in the past has already failed and dissolved into a present full of conflicts, ecological problems, injustice and inequality? This selection of films intends to present how artists respond to these questions through the medium of film. Each film presents a different perspective, hinting at possibilities that do not override, refute, nor necessarily affirm those presented in the others. Hence, the selected group of films suggest a multiplicity of futures that cannot be articulated through a single vision. 

Rana Öztürk is a lecturer, writer and curator from Istanbul, where she moved after completing her PhD in Visual Culture at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin in 2015. She is currently 2017 curator-in-residence at MExIndex.

The programme is curated from the collection of artists’ films that are supported through MExIndex.

Programme Post-Fordlândia (2011) 20 mins - Tom Flanagan & Megs Morley A Numbness in the Mouth (2016) 17 mins - Kevin Gaffney American Dreams #5: Cruise Control  (2016) 7 mins - Moira Tierney In Death & Fiction ( 2013) 6 min. - Louise Manifold Sitting Room (2012) 16 mins - Patrick Jolley Ways to Speculate (2014)  4 mins - Michelle Deignan

12noon - Discussion  The role of archives and collections in artists’ moving image practice The screening will be followed by a discussion around the purpose of National and Regional archives and collections, and their relationship with the artist and their work. Panel: Ben Cook LUX, Fifi Smith MExIndex, Sarah Smith GSA, Michael Hanna & Jacqueline Holt AMINI. Discussion mornings are supported by Visual Arts Ireland.

2.30 pm - Screening She Speaks, curated by Catalyst Arts

Image: Saute Ma Ville (1968) - Chantal Akerman This curated programme will present a selection of film and moving image works produced by women artists, from 1968 to present. In different ways each artist and film-maker explores the transformation and (mis) interpretations of domestic routines, objects, images and narratives, translated whilst simultaneously subverting their symbolic meaning and reconfiguring female representation. Catalyst Arts is an artist-led space based in Belfast, formed in 1993 in response to a deep cultural vacuum. It is Belfast’s primary artist-led organisation, run by volunteer co-directors with the aim of promotion of contemporary art practices by large selection of artists and experimental projects from the widest possible range of disciplines.

Programme: Saute Ma Ville (1968) 13 Mins - Chantal Akerman   Chiara Fumai reads Valerie Solanas (2016) 10 Mins - Chiara Fumai After Picasso, God (2016) 42 Mins, Sophie Cundale

4.00 pm - Screening No Brakes, No Gears, No Fear, curated by Peter Taylor

Image: Konfessions of a Klaboutermann (2017) - Hardeep Pandhal

Peter Taylor is the director of the Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival (BFMAF), a key date in the calendar for artists’ moving image in the UK. Fresh from the 2017 Festival, just the weekend before this year’s AMINI 17, he will present new films from Hardeep Pandhal, Charlotte Prodger and Margaret Salmon, all especially commissioned for Berwick.

"No Breaks, No Gears, No Fear" is the motto of the Berwick Bandits Speedway team. Peter Taylor has borrowed this sentiment to reflect the shared attitude between the BFMAF and the tenacious artists that they work with.

Through the open doors at Sheffield Park, the Berwick Bandits’ home, Margaret Salmon has created Mm a stunning 35mm direct cinema work, with grit, glowing light and the sounds of Sacred Paws. Mm’s feminist investigation into masculinity, language and speedway wasn't the only seat-of-the-pants collaboration at BFMAF 2017.

Artist in Profile Hardeep Pandhal’s Konfessions of a Klabautermann is a blisteringly chaotic new animation, scored by musician Joe Howe (Sunbutler, Ben Butler and Mousepad, Germlin), offering bold provocations on racial profiling, class and means of resistance.

With Charlotte Prodger's residency in Berwick marking the beginning of an open-ended period of research into an idea of ‘queer rurality’ and wilderness, Laura Guy has suggested that her new work LHB, asks ‘what happens to our sense of self when the only eyes upon us are animal ones?’.

Programme: Konfessions of a Klaboutermann (2017) 13 min - Hardeep Pandhal LHB (2017) 20 min - Charlotte Prodger Mm (2017) 23 min - Margaret Salmon

7.00pm - Artist Presentation Duncan Campbell

Image: The Welfare of Tomás Ó Hallissy (2016) - Duncan Campbell Duncan Campbell is an Irish video artist, based in Glasgow. He was the winner of the 2014 Turner Prize. Falls Burns Malone Fiddles ((2004)  - “Campbell produced the enigmatic yet compelling Fall Burns Malone Fiddles by piecing together a series of black and white still images of young working class people and depressed neighbourhoods , sourced from a Belfast archive (Belfast Exposed) The soundtrack to this montage of photographs was the Edinburgh-born actor Ewan Bremner (perhaps best known as Spud in the film Trainspotting ) reading a rhythmic monologue , which combined excerpts of dense sociological theory with looser, stream of consciousness passages.” – Sarah Lowndes

The Welfare of Tomás Ó Hallissy (2016) - Inspired by anthropological studies into the huge incidence of mental illness in rural Ireland in the 1960’s and 70’s (notably Paul Hockings and Mark McCarty’s 1968 production “The Village”), The Welfare of Tomás Ó Hallissy, is a portrait of a society on the brink of irreversible change seen through the eyes of two American anthropologists who arrive to study this dying culture. The film revolves around the protagonist, Tomás, a speechless 10 year -old boy, whose life spans the cusp of the old world and the new. Meanwhile the anthropologists question their own methodology as they struggle to get beyond the opaque and ritualistic social relations that define this place.

Programme: Falls Burns Malone Fiddles (2004) 33 mins - Duncan Campbell The Welfare of Tomás Ó Hallissy (2016) 31mins - Duncan Campbell

Screening followed by Duncan Campbell in conversation with Ben Cook LUX and Jacqueline Holt AMINI

Saturday 30th September

11am - Artist Presentation Kate Davis

Image: Charity (2017) - Kate Davis Kate Davis, winner of the 16|17 Margaret Tait award will present a screening programme of her work. Working across a range of media, including film and video, drawing, printmaking, installation and bookworks, Davis questions how historical narratives are produced and perpetuated. This has often involved probing the aesthetic and political ambiguities of particular artworks and specific historical moments from a contemporary feminist perspective. Programme: Weight (2014) 11min - Kate Davis Disgrace (2009) 9 min - Kate Davis Charity (2017) 16 min - Kate Davis

12noon - Discussion How artists moving image differs to short film in terms of funding and production The screening will be followed by a discussion around the funding and production of artists’ moving image. Panel: Ben Cook LUX, Kate Davis, Marta Michalowska Film London, Christine Morrow NI Screen, Michael Hanna & Jacqueline Holt AMINI. Discussion mornings are supported by Visual Arts Ireland.

2.30 pm - Screening Defensible Space, curated by AMINI

Image: Birth of a Nation (2017) - Jem Cohen The term Defensible space refers to "a residential environment whose physical characteristics - building layout and site plan - function to allow inhabitants themselves to become key agents in ensuring their security." Architect Oscar Newman proposes that a housing development is only defensible if residents intend to adopt this role, which is defined by good design: "Defensible space therefore is a sociophysical phenomenon". Both society and physical elements are parts of a successful defensible space. Programme:

Assumed Position (2005) 5min - Michelle Deignan A Visitor (2017) 14min - Jamie Buckley Intro-Bee-ing Sequential Spectrum [cold open] (2014) 1min - Seamus Harahan Electrical Gaza (2015) 18min - Rosalind Nashashibi Birth of a Nation (2017) 9min - Jem Cohen

4 pm - Talk Slurs, Stutters and Screams: Articulations of Hollywood’s Unconscious in Artists’ Found Footage Films - Presented by Sarah Smith

Image: Him and Her (2008) - Candice Breitz This talk briefly explores three examples of artists’ films from the past twenty-five years that use various methods of sampling to uncover latent meanings or values in the original texts they cite: Douglas Gordon’s 24-Hour Psycho (1993), Martin Arnold’s Alone: Life Wastes Andy Hardy (1998) and Candice Breitz’s Him and Her (2008).   Dr Sarah Smith is a Reader in Visual Culture and Head of Fine Art Critical Studies at the Glasgow School of Art, where she has taught since 2001.

7 pm - Screening Jarman Award Screening + in conversation with Marianna Simnett

Image: The Needle and the Larynx (2016) - Marianna Simnett

The 10th anniversary edition of the Jarman Award celebrates an eclectic group of artists who resist being placed in a singular, defining box. Their practices are as diverse as the field of moving image itself. Each speaks with their own voice from their own place with their own visual style. These artists’ works are the result of sharp observation, complex intellectual and aesthetic inquiry, and depth of thought, but this does not make them devoid of humour and playfulness. They do not shy away from ‘big’ subjects, and they do so without beautifying, simplifying or turning to clichés. They touch on human fragility, the limitations and boundaries of the body, mental health, death in the digital age and the legacy we leave behind, gender stereotypes and sexuality. PART 1 The Needle and the Larynx (2016) 15min - Marianna Simnett Revisiting Genesis – Episode 2 (2016) 8min - Oreet Ashery Rubber Coated Steel (2016) 22min - Lawrence Abu Hamdan Out of Bounds (A) (2016) 5min - Melanie Manchot During the interval there will be a conversation between Jarman Award nominee Marianna Simnett and researcher and writer Maeve Connolly. PART 2 Out of Bounds (B) (2016) 12min - Melanie Manchot BRIDGIT (2016) 32min - Charlotte Prodger Janus Collapse (2016) 10min - Adham Faramawy

[universeinform-blog]

THIS LA BLOGGER HOME IS AN AIRY INSPIRATION

New Post has been published on https://universeinform.com/2017/03/14/this-la-blogger-home-is-an-airy-inspiration/

THIS LA BLOGGER HOME IS AN AIRY INSPIRATION

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Getting Worried: Is this Your Year To Step Up?

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Blogging and Its Kinds

A blog is a kind of website in which objects are published on an ordinary foundation that is normally arranged in chronological order from the maximum current put up on the top of the web page to the older posts towards the bottom. The time period weblog is genuinely a shortened form of weblog. Including an editorial to a current weblog is known as ‘Running a blog’. Man or woman article on a blog is referred to as ‘blog posts’ and the person that writes and posts those weblog posts is known as a ‘blogger’.

Blogs are frequently written on a selected topic about which the bloggers might be interested. It may be something from recipes to photography, books, adventure, fashion, splendor, lifestyle, or any of the blogger’s hobbies. It may be anything that someone can consider and might be inquisitive about sharing his / her perspectives on that subject matter with the people that share similar pastimes and views. This manner people can analyze, percentage thoughts, make buddies or even do enterprise with human beings with comparable pursuits.

A blog generally includes text, hypertext, pics, and links. There are numerous kinds of blogs. Let’s examine some of them.

• Non-public Blogs- Personal blog is a diary or a statement written and maintained with the aid of an Man or woman. these commonly entice very few readers. But now Personal bloggers have grown to a large quantity and their content is study by using a huge variety of people. those Personal bloggers have turn out to be well-known, both within the digital world in addition to inside the real international.

• Organization Blogs or Collaborative Blogs- It is a type of blog wherein the posts are written, maintained, and published through multiple author. It’s miles often set with the aid of already hooked up bloggers who share the same view that allows you to lessen the strain of keeping a popular website and also to attract a bigger quantity of readers.

• Company and Organizational blogs- those blogs are in general personal and are used for business, non-income agencies or for government purposes. Blogs that can only be used internally through personnel are known as Company blogs. those are typically used to speak information approximately business enterprise policies or strategies. The business enterprise may also use publicly accessible blogs for advertising and marketing purposes.

Blogs these days are the easiest medium to explicit one’s perspectives. In case you are obsessed on something and need to share your views with a bigger audience, blogs are the best way to accomplish that.

Domestic Improvement Suggestions For This Iciness

The Wintry weather is approaching, and you want to be prepared for it. You want to get your home ready for the cold season, which is critical if you want to make your private home power green and relaxed. Take a look at out the subsequent Home Improvement Suggestions so that it will make a difference this Winter.

Move For a power Audit

You could rent a licensed professional to get your property rated. The electricity rater will performed an “audit” and test your residence for possible power losses and other protection problems. Based totally on the precise record he’s going to provide you with, You can make important repairs and make your own home more power green.

The professional can even give you some Guidelines to deal with the not unusual troubles with your property. You could then take essential steps to resolve the troubles.

Seal The Partitions

The seals in the Partitions allow the air in, which reasons fluctuations within the temperature interior your private home. You can make a plan and use a tube of caulk to cope with the problem areas. Other than this, you have to seal the areas where You may discover electric powered containers at the drywall. Make sure all of the tiny holes on the bottom of the boxes are sealed.

Seal The Can Lights

Air leaks can arise inside the ceiling as well, especially the vicinity on the ceiling where the recessed Lighting fixtures are located. some can Lighting fixtures are vented so they don’t get overheated due to the light bulb. What you want to do is dispose of the can and then seal the perimeter of the can with nice caulk. inside the identical way, the internal region of the can must be sealed with aluminum tapeto or caulk.

Fill The Insulation Gaps

To find insulation gaps, you need to Take a look at the out of doors taps and air vents for massive gaps. Those gaps will permit the air to break out from the room in Iciness. You may use expanding foam to seal Those holes.

Your Heating System

Before the arrival of Iciness, You can get your furnace tuned up. In step with experts, the strength expenses of a median residence are stricken by the heating. If your boiler System or furnace is inefficient, your heating bills may additionally upward thrust. Make sure you purchase a pleasant filter.

You can replace the clear out to make the boiler greater green. Whilst this will seem an unnecessary expenditure, it’ll pay backtrack the street.

[ryuzakemo128]

Masterlist Part 2

Masterlist Part one: Link

Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 [2022]

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Headcanons:

Part one - Link

Hannibal [NBC Series]

Prompts

Hannibal Prompts:

Part one - Link

Hannibal Headcanons:

Part one - Link

Part Two - Link

Coming Soon, I Promise!

THE BOYS [Series] [Tv Show]

General/ Mixed Headcanons:

Part one: Link

OC headcanons:

Oksana "Gorgon" - Link

Original Writing

The Raven's Ode - Link

Original Character Headcanons:

Part One - Link

[ryuzakemo128]

Hannibal Headcanons

Author's Note: I got bored, so I decided to come up with some headcanons. I hope you like them. If you do, I'll write up some more in the future.

This is only part one. There will be more coming soon.

Masterlist

Other Stuff I have written: Link

General

1. Marianna [The female reader] grew up in a rather wealthy family, the second eldest of four children. Often left in the care of nannies or staff due to her parents busy, social and political lifestyle.

2. She grew up in a rather opulent mansion, surrounded by art, history, and a collection of rare and macabre artifacts. The mansion, passed down through generations, housed a vast library that became Marianna's sanctuary and escape from the stifling social expectations of her family.

3. As a child, Marianna displayed an early fascination with the macabre and the mysterious. She was drawn to stories of mythical creatures, ancient folklore, and tales of darkness and death. This fascination led her to immerse herself in literature, studying the works of authors like H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe, and Bram Stoker, which further fueled her interest in the unknown and the supernatural.

4. Marianna has a son, Luka Volkov, born when she was in her early twenties when she was dating Mikhail Ivanov, a renowned Russian artist. Despite their passionate relationship, they ultimately grew apart due to their conflicting personalities and ambitions. Marianna was dedicated to her studies and art, while Mikhail was often preoccupied with his own career. After their separation, Marianna took full custody of Luka, and though she adores her son, she is also fiercely protective of her independence and personal space.

5. Luka is deeply important to Marianna, and she does her best to balance her responsibilities as a mother with her own pursuits. She instills in him a love for art, literature, and critical thinking, nurturing his intellectual curiosity. Despite being emotionally reserved, Marianna cherishes the moments she spends with her son, and their bond is one of mutual understanding and respect.

6. Her second born is a girl, name Masha Volkova born in 2003, while she was in a rather brief relationship with Arthur Smith. Which made Masha is a Russian-American, born in the United States. Marianna's relationship with Arthur was passionate but short-lived, and they eventually went their separate ways. However, Marianna maintains a cordial relationship with Arthur and is actively involved in Masha's life, despite the distance between them.

7. She bought her home in Baltimore, Maryland and relocated there with her children, Luka and Masha, after accepting a position as a professor at a prestigious university. Baltimore's rich history and dark allure appealed to Marianna, making it the perfect place for her to delve into her academic pursuits while still indulging in her fascination with the mysterious and macabre.

8. Luka was initially resistant to the move, he quickly adapted to his new surroundings. He is 17 and Masha is 10 years old when the move occurred. Despite the busy schedule, she made sure to enroll Luka in a reputable school and support his interests and aspirations. Masha was still in primary school so she took on the responsibility of homeschooling her for a brief period until she found the right school for her.

9. Whenever Luka wants to have his nails painted, Marianna gladly does it for him and often stating, "Which colour did you want to go with this time?" Which is usually met with excitement from Luka, as he enjoys the bonding time with his mother. Marianna takes pride in breaking traditional gender norms and encourages her children to express themselves authentically.

10. If Luka wanted to wear a dress, she would often make sure they were custom made to fit his tastes, and would support his decision without hesitation. Marianna firmly believes that individuals should be free to express themselves and embrace their true selves, regardless of societal expectations or gender norms. No expense was ever left to ensure her children felt loved, accepted, and supported in their individuality.

Likes - Food

American hot sauce: Mainly because of the fiery and intense flavour it has.

Spicy Food: She loves spicy food, the spicier the better and the spicier the food. The more likely she is to enjoy it.

Cravings: She gets cravings for spicy chicken wings, Pepsi and Sweet Potato chips when she gets stressed or overwhelmed.

Coffee: Prefers to have her coffee with cream and sugar rather than black. Warmth and richness of coffee is two of the things she loves about it.

Dining Alone: Enjoys dining alone in cafes, quiet restaurants where she can indulge without having another person watch her eat.

Trying New Things: She loves trying new dishes from other cultures

Likes - Dresses

Dark, Gothic-Style: A penchant for wearing dark, gothic-inspired dresses with intricate lace, velvet and corsetry. Often choosing dresses evoking mystery and allure. Embracing a dark aesthetic.

Rich Colours: Deep, Rich colours like burgundy, purple, emerald green, midnight blue and black.

High Collars: Dresses with high collars usually catch her eye more often when they look like came out of the Victorian or Gothic era. Finding them to be a combination of elegance and sophistication.

Prefers floral dresses in Pink and Red: Enjoys wearing pink floral dresses with long tulle sleeves and a 3d floral embroidery. These often have deep v-cut neckline and pearl beads or intricate beadwork, creating a delicate and enchanting look.

Custom Made Dresses: These allow her dream dresses come to life in ways she wouldn't have thought possible.

Dislikes - Food

Fast Food: She dislikes fast food and prefers to indulge in carefully prepared and flavorful dishes.

Bland Food: Marianna dislikes bland or tasteless food, as she enjoys bold and intense flavors.

Excessively Sweet American Desserts: Marianna Volkova finds American desserts that are excessively sweet unappealing, as she prefers flavors with depth and complexity rather than overwhelming sweetness.

Processed Foods: She avoids processed foods and opts for fresh, natural ingredients in her meals.

Overly Salty Dishes: She dislikes dishes that are overly salty, as it masks the natural flavors of the ingredients.

Cultural Dishes made less spicy: Marianna Volkova enjoys trying dishes from various cultures and appreciates their authentic flavors. However, one thing she dislikes is when cultural dishes are made less spicy to cater to a broader audience. She appreciates the originality and intensity of flavors in traditional dishes and prefers them to be served as they were intended to be. Marianna believes that the true essence of a dish lies in its authentic preparation and is not a fan of adaptations that compromise its original taste.

Dislikes - Dresses

Neon Colors: Marianna stays away from dresses in neon colors, as they clash with her preference for deep, rich hues.

Dresses with Uncomfortable Fabrics: She avoids dresses made from uncomfortable fabrics that may hinder her movement or cause discomfort throughout the day.

Mass-Produced Dresses: Marianna dislikes wearing mass-produced dresses commonly found in chain stores. She values uniqueness and prefers custom-made or one-of-a-kind pieces reflecting her individuality.

Overly Revealing Dresses: As she prefers to maintain more to the imagination rather than exposing too much, as a result she steers clear of dresses which reveal too much.

Heavy Embellishments: While she appreciates intricate details, Marianna dislikes dresses with excessively heavy embellishments, as they can feel cumbersome and distract from the overall aesthetic.

Extremely Tight Dresses: She avoids dresses that are extremely tight or constricting, preferring ones that allow for comfortable movement and freedom.