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#New Mary Prologue
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"Time & the Trickster"   A Loki/Doctor Who crossover
by ijuststareatstuffhereok89
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Prologue: The Stone
The Loom is breaking. The Timelines are in chaos at the TVA. Just as Loki realizes he may have to sacrifice himself, O.B. offers one last Hail Mary that may spare his rueful fate...until it shoots him across time and space instead, to the most Norn-forsaken place imaginable: Syracuse, New York.
CHAPTER WARNING: violence toward our poor Loki
MASTERLIST
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Time Variance Authority Outside of Time and Space No Time and Every Time, AM and PM
It was as if Loki was gazing at a gallows, just waiting for him on the other side of the door. A gallows just for him. 
An abstract gallows, to be sure, one snarled and twisted by the fraying timelines. The Loom wasn’t going to hold them much longer. Victor Timely’s tens of repeated failures had yielded no progress. Loki had just finished spending centuries’ worth of time jumps learning everything he could about time, physics, and metaphysics. It all came to nothing but false hope. 
Zapping his way back to Point A one last time, he knew what was needed. Only a God could survive in the temporal void long enough to reach the branches and save them. That left one of two people in the room with the ability. 
Loki knew now that Sylvie would never see reason. The parts of ‘a Loki’ that were driven by self-preservation were too strong in her. Perhaps one day, after centuries behind that fast food counter, she’d have a moment of clarity. But reality couldn’t wait for that to happen. Even in the repeated attempts to calm her bloodlust in the Citadel there had been in no change in her resolve. Sylvie was lost, but pity would come later, after Loki took the glorious burden upon himself to save the universe. 
I can keep the timelines stable as long as I keep my hands on them…at all times. For all time. 
It was the single worst case of irony that reality had ever known, or at least that Loki in his thousands of years of travels had never known: that only now he would be getting a throne. The Throne of Time awaited him, only instead of eternal glory, it would bring him eternal imprisonment, forced to watch the eons pass by as if each were a vignette on a stage. He would have to watch Mobius die, as well as Sylvie and OB and everyone. Even Thor, for no creature was truly immortal. He would have to stand by as all of consciousness fell back into the void of death and rebirth at the end of it all. 
And indeed, at the End of Time, where would he be? 
After one final look around the room, everyone looking back at him with expectant apprehension, Loki took in one deep breath and began his march to the Loom. He felt a solid hand on his shoulder, and didn’t need to turn to know it was Mobius. 
“What the SHIT are you doing?” he whispered frantically. 
Looking into his worried eyes, Loki felt a stabbing pain in his chest. If only we’d met somewhere else, you brilliant man, I would’ve shown you the world. 
"I know what kind of God I need to be. For you. For all of us,” he said, his voice faltering in spite of his wish that he sounded more sure. 
“Wait!! I have one more idea! Look!” 
Loki looked back beyond Mobius and Sylvie. OB was running back from somewhere he’d slipped away to. No one had even noticed that he’d left the room. He carried two small pebbles in his hand that to the unknowing witness would look like two small pieces of emerald, or perhaps tinted glass. 
He was closer to Sylvie, so he pulled out her hand first, placing one of the dead Time Stones in it. It began to glow softly, a dull gray-ish green. The light was pulsing weakly, but it was clear that something in her skin was activating the time magic within the stone. 
“Loki! Catch!” OB said quickly, tossing the stone at Loki, whose godlike reflexes caught the dangerous relic with ease. It also glowed green upon touch, only a much brighter, indisputable forest green. 
“How is that possible?” asked Mobius. “How did we never think of that?”
The God of Tricks turned the stone over in his palm, as if doing so would give him some kind of clue. “Well, it’s quite lovely, OB, but I don’t understand--”
“Time Stones thrive off of the energy of the timelines and work by being linked to every single one, enabling the one who uses it to hop from time to time! Maybe if you throw one of those at the timelines while it’s active, it’ll act like a pill and regulate the streams again!” OB suggested enthusiastically. “But only if it’s active, and it looks like the only place they work in the TVA is…well, in the hands of a Loki variant.”
“Are you suggesting we give aspirin to the Temporal Loom?” Sylvie scoffed, the weakened stone in her hand blinking with every other syllable. 
“You sure that’ll work?” asked Mobius with skepticism. 
OB shook his head, “Oh no. It’s a long shot. Odds in the trillions, and that’s just a guess,” he admitted bluntly. He looked at Loki and twisted his lip into a hopeful smile. “But it’s worth a try, right?”
Loki looked down at the brilliant stone he held. Something within the stone felt like it was attuning itself to him. Small threads of green light were radiating from the stone and digging into his skin, illuminating it from underneath, as if his very veins were filling with the power of the Time Stone. 
Looking up one more time, Loki shrugged. “Indeed,” he said under his breath. “Well, here I go.”
“Loki!” Mobius shouted one more time. “Let her do it,” he said, pointing back at Sylvie. “She’s the one who caused all of this.”
“I don't know, her stone doesn’t look as strong as yours,” said OB, now at Sylvie’s side and watching the pathetic pebble in her hand barely flicker in tandem with her breath. “If we have one chance to do this, I think it has to be you, Loki.” 
The more Loki stared down his permanent imprisonment within the twisted vines of time, the more he realized that he’d been fooled the entire time…and by none other than himself! He’d assumed that every variant of himself would have every capacity to grow that he had. Perhaps Sylvie did, and Loki was only looking at a portrait of who he had been as a rash, physically-driven youth.
 It didn’t matter anyhow. If this worked, Sylvie would be going back to the counter at McDonald’s. If it didn’t, Sylvie’s mind would always be at that silly little place, unable to see the world past the end of her own nose no matter how many people suffered for her choices. 
“I’m sorry, Mobius, but I think we both know it must be my action,” Loki said softly, gently taking Mobius’ hand in his own. “Have an extra slice of pie for me.”
“Go throw it,” OB suggested. “Quickly! We’re out of time!”
Victor stood clueless behind everyone else. “This has been a remarkable day” he mumbled. 
Finally going beyond the door and into the temporal space, Loki felt the stone begin to burn in his hand, the sensation not only pressed against his flesh, but in his bloodstream. 
One last breath, and Loki reared back, pitching the Time Stone toward the Loom. 
As if the air were too thick, the stone’s speed was almost too slow to make sense, slowly floating toward the fraying, entangled timelines in an arc. It fell in a spiral toward the Loom, increasing speed as if it were being sucked directly into the messes of fibers. 
The God’s breaths slowed to a standstill, his veins still on fire with green energy from the stone. Loki suddenly felt as if he’d turned into a marionette as hundreds of points on his body were suddenly yanked, throwing him off of his feet and into the air behind the stone, flying at incredible speed toward the epicenter of energy.
As if the Time Stone was pulling him by invisible chains, Loki was dragged along until he reached the Loom, after which a strong updraft knocked him unconscious, the last thing to grace his open eye being Mobius’ frightened stare. 
Around his lifeless, floating form, the green clouds, rogue lightning, and whipping winds began to form a time vortex, shooting the helpless god through each and every reality, one by one…
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Syracuse, New York, USA June 9 7:19pm EST
“Get off my shit!” 
Loki awoke with a start, his head roaring, his skin tingling, and his vision blurred. Hungover from the unexpected trip, he felt weakened and confused. The skinny man yelling in his face wasn’t helping him regain his bearings. 
He was splayed rather unflatteringly among a pile of garbage bags filled with clothes and cans. Frommhis view, he could begin to see that he was in some sort of alleyway surrounded on three sides by brick. The sky above was dim and overcast. 
“Oh, Norns, what is…?”
“I said, GET OFF MY--
“--my shit, yes, that much we’ve established…”
The angry skinny man was impatient to the point where he started shoving Loki to his feet, urging him away. “Find your own awning!” he called after him as he finally managed to throw Loki into the street. “And some clothes, too!” 
Loki looked down, realizing for the first time that he was stark naked. His clothes had been torn from his body in transit across the realities. Well, at least it wasn’t my skin. 
The street was full of potholes, the environment claustrophobic as it could be for being outdoors. The air smelled of sewage and tar. A sign hanging on the corner building nearby read S. Salina St.
Looking down into his palm, the stone remained aglow in his grip. 
Now, where in the Norns am I? Loki asked himself, keeping to a nearby shadow in hopes no one was nearby to see his nudity. 
It felt like dusk was at hand, though the thick greasy cloud cover did little to explain the actual position of the sun. The air was warm, humid, and unpleasant. Rain was inbound, as evidenced by a building darkness rolling in from the western horizon. 
“Damn,” Loki whispered. “I…”
He took off down the street and around the corner onto S. Salina, scurrying in such a manner that a mouse could beat him in a footrace. He used his godlike ability to absorb detail in order to learn as much as he could about this place. 
Wait a moment…I can control my time jumping! 
How simple! Loki rolled his eyes and chuckled. He sucked in his breath and clenched, just as he’d taught himself to do in order to control his phasing. 
Seconds went by. Perhaps a minute. Nothing happened when the reaction should have instantly drawn him back to the TVA. 
“Hey Di, look at the naked guy shitting himself across the street!” 
Two women were sitting on a porch across the way, a small white dog at their feet, staring directly at Loki as he squinted and attempted to force himself through space. He was suddenly the most self-conscious he’d ever been in his entire life. 
“Hey Mister, what’re you doing with no clothes?” shrieked the other. “How much’ve you had?”
“Yeah, he’s drunk,” agreed the first lady, trying hard to hold in a laugh.
“It’s gone! My time phasing!” Loki whispered aloud. He snapped his fingers, attempting to bring some cover to his body with seidr, only for the stone in his hand to dim its glow. “Magic…none of it works here.” 
The two gleeful ladies continued to mock Loki from across the street. “I’ll give him this, he’s hot.” 
Di raised an eyebrow. “Kinda looks like that guy from the movies, doesn’t he? Loki! He looks like Loki!”
“Holy shit, you’re right! He’s dead on for Loki!” 
“Of COURSE I look like Loki, blast you!” he swore, beginning to move towards them, not bothering to check and see if any vehicles were bearing down on him. “Because I--” 
“--dude, don't come any closer! Just because I don’t like the cops doesn’t mean I won’t call ‘em if you’re gonna…” the larger of the two women got up to reach for a cell phone perched on the railing. 
“What? No, ladies, I just need to know where I am and how to get to--”
“--dude, get out of here, and stop by the Salvation Army or something on the way because no one wants to see that!”
“Speak for yourself, Di.” 
“Where am I?” Loki asked, slower this time. 
“Yeah, he's drunk,” mumbled Di. “Dude, you’re on the south side! Near the park!”
“Did you say that I need to find an army?” Loki asked, backtrack, unsure about which way was up. 
“Mister,” continued Di, “head that way and you’ll be downtown in ten minutes. Someone’ll either help you or arrest you up there.” She pointed further up the road, which led to a bright district of flashing neon and nightlife about to get underway with the sunset. “Ain’t nothin’ down here for you except fentanyl.” 
The larger of the women quickly ran inside and came back a few seconds later with a small fleece blanket in a nasty shade of hot pink. “My daughter doesn’t use this anymore. Use it to cover your junk. I don’t want it back.” 
She threw it down to Loki, who gratefully wrapped it about his waist, tying it off at the hipbone. It hardly qualified for more than a belt, only covering him from below his navel to a few precious inches below his…other time stones. 
“Thank you, madam,” he mumbled. Without further awkward conversation, he left the two women to their excited giggles and whistles and headed in the direction he’d been given. 
He didn’t even have any shoes, as was quickly made evident by the painful tar gravel that burrowed between his toes and under the balls of his feet as he paced himself, deliberately avoiding eye contact with anyone as he fled from shadow to shadow, hoping to remain unseen despite at least being minimally covered now. 
“Hey buddy, nice skirt!” 
“The gay bar is on the west side!” 
Loki was still exposed to catcalls and insults nearly the entire way up the trashy, unwelcoming city. Even as he approached a larger, brightly-lit square accompanied by live music from several different outdoor patios, he could feel the eyes bearing down on him. 
This place is deplorable, Loki thought. No magic, no help…
“Ew, guy! At least put on a skirt that covers your crack all the way!” a woman called from behind him. 
“Hey, there are kids here, man!” a huge man with a shaved head stepped into Loki’s path, causing him to stop short. The man had about three inches on Loki, and even though his Asgardian density made him about the same weight as the sizable human before him, Loki wasn;t sure he wanted to risk an altercation in his present state. He smelled of beer. “Put your dick away, alright?”
“Let me pass,” Loki mumbled. “Please. I’m on my way to the army.” He tried to throw up a defensive arm, which the man caught with ease. 
The skinhead laughed. “Jesus, what I have to deal with…” 
Without warning, the asshole laid out a direct punch to Loki’s temple, sending him to the sidewalk. He was unconscious before he hit the ground. 
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Regents Park, London, England June 10 12:19am GMT
“Oooh, talk to me! What did they do to you?!”
The Doctor, frustrated, removed the magnifying goggles from his face and squinted as he looked up into the undercarriage of the TARDIS console, trying desperately to find out what had stranded him here and how to fix it. 
Having barely made it out of yet another fray with the Cybermen, The Doctor’s beloved TARDIS had been hit, or perhaps bombed from within somehow (who could tell?). Barely landing safety in a place the TARDIS recognized as a ‘favorite’ location (London, England, early 21st century), The Doctor quickly learned that whatever had attacked him had destroyed what held the Time Vortex in place within the TARDIS’ core. 
The Doctor’s ship was nothing more than a wooden box, sitting in a public park on Earth in 2023. Nothing, not the screwdriver, not The Doctor’s own ingenuity, was yielding any hope. 
“Maybe Jack could…oh no, no, no,” he thought out loud, shaking off the idea. While it was true that Captain Jack Harkness could always be assumed to be waltzing around somewhere at any given place in time, what did he really know about TARDIS mechanics? 
The Doctor sighed. Thinking about Jack always eventually brought his thoughts back to Rose. She may have been as human as anyone else around, but sometimes her intuition would shine through, triggering some epiphany in his head and bringing about the best answers.
That was Rose: brilliant in the most unexpected ways.
“If only it were easier to fall through realities,” he bitterly mused. “Or at least find a good fix-it shop that has equipment to jumpstart an Eye of Harmony…very basic stuff, not sure why it’s so hard to find--”
He was interrupted by a sudden, instantaneous flash of emerald, brighter than the sun, sending The Doctor squinting and crouching to the floor. Though he couldn’t see what had happened, for a brief moment, he heard the TARDIS breathe, as if the Vortex had been restored within it for as long as the luminous green assault filled the interior. 
“What?” he asked nobody. The flash of green ceased, as did the TARDIS’ temporary recovery. 
“WHAT?” he asked himself, running up the stairs to the top of the console, looking at every screen and pulling every lever he could. 
Something had triggered the Time Vortex within the TARDIS, as if it were being given a push by an external force somewhere else out there in the world…something with enough time energy imbibed in its core to do so. 
Perhaps if it was something he could find and bring back to the TARDIS…
Running to the doors and flinging them open, The Doctor was just in time to catch a streak of green flash across the night sky, heading southwest and missing London by a long, long shot. As it left the airspace above England, the TARDIS grew dark and cold again.
The Doctor’s mouth couldn’t close as his brain tried to keep up with his eyes.
“What?? WHAT?!”
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chronically-ghosted · 2 months
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between the earth and sky (lover, share your road - prologue) series masterlist | AO3 Link | part i
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chapter rating: T (series: E)
word count: 1.1K
chapter summary: how Joel Miller's forefathers came to settle the southern plains
chapter warnings/tags: references to genocide (human and animal), racism
a/n: Miller County was a real place!
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Vincente Ramón Morelos with his wife María Guadalupe Rodríguez Saldaña went in search of a better life in 1848.
Exhausted from the bloody revolution against Spain, then the devastating loss at the hands of white “rebels”, the childless couple leave the southern hill country by the San Antonio river to go north, to find peace, in a place that the Anglos have never touched — so promised Señor De La Cruz, a former comandante like Vincente, who shared his dream of wide, open spaces, and a sky that stretches into infinite possibilities.
This land they marched across, with its barren trees and flat golden spreads, is nothing like anything they’ve ever seen before. The wagon chain the Morelos follow whispered in hushed, awed tones. María reached out the side of the wagon, letting her hand brush against brown thistles, watching how the reed springs under her fingers, how it tickles her palm. She never knew the earth could be so soft – teasing her with some great secret it’s eager to share. She looked to her husband and he glowed beneath the rich blue sky and bronze sun. Maybe this was God showing her how to fall in love with a new home.
Towns became few and far between. In a transitory cattle town, Vincente listens to two vaqueros tell stories over a loose game of poker about a briefly-disputed patch of land, five hundred miles east, one that exchanged ownership three times before disappearing into obscurity. But a single name settled permanently, before its township ever could: Miller County. Vincente quietly related to that blurring of identity, a loss of a permanent place to be known and loved, so when going through towns of white Texan Anglos that distrusted his olive skin and aquiline nose, he told them his name was Vincent Miller and he was, like all others, looking for a place to call home. He found it north of what would become Amarillo, and south of what would be Dalhart, between the Canadian and Red River, rivers that never seemed as endless and deep as the Gulf from his childhood. 
By the spring of 1852, Mary (formerly María) and Vincent, established on their acre of land, had welcomed two girls and were expecting a third child, who ended up being a boy. This boy was given the name John (though his mother called him Juan at home) Tomás Miller, after Mary’s grandfather. As a boy, John learned from his father Vincent to listen and trust the Kiowa, the Comanche, the Gods of the Grass Sea, who were said to have been born with a heart of a buffalo. Who walked with prairie chickens and raced the pronghorn antelopes. Recognizing a kinship with nomadic blood of the Millers – once Morelos – the Comanche taught them what it meant to use the land as one uses a brother for support. Use in kind, but treat just as kindly. Avoiding what the Anglos referred to as “dry farming” because it was only the Anglos who believed, by sheer force of will, they could make rain come down from the sky. The Comanche were shocked by their arrogance. As he grew older and stronger beneath that heavy sunshine that had endeared his mother to these foreign lands, John maintained his father’s relationship with The First People, even aiding them in keeping the encroaching Anglo homesteaders off the lands of the buffalo and the blue grama grass. 
When John married in the summer of 1885 a woman whose skin burnt easy in the sun, but had hands rougher than a sailor’s, Vincent was surprisingly happy for his son, because Jennie Sarah Hansen was quick-witted, brave, and possessed a rare quality when it came to the regards of the Tejanos and The First People – compassion. Disowned by her own family for such a trait, Jennie came to live with John, his father Vincent, his mother Mary, with letters from John’s two sisters and their families coming from down south every month. 
Joel Ramón Miller was born in the late fall of 1891, followed shortly there by his brother, Tom – Tommy, because Tom was too serious for a boy with a smile like that – and the lineage of working under blue skies in endless dunes of buffalo grass was passed down, third generation of Vincent, who lived to see his oldest grandson turn five before quietly, with dignity, leaving this world in his sleep. 
Tommy Miller continued to look towards the sun and, as a young man, followed it west. But Joel, like his father, like his grandfather, like the land itself, kept watch over the ones he loved from the porch of that a-frame house, the one his father built for his mother. For a time that included a woman with dark skin and darker eyes out of Alabama. And then it was just the baby who came from her, who came from him. Sarah, named after his mother who was as fierce and resilient as the buffalo grass and as beautiful as the endless sky. 
As far as Joel Miller was concerned that was enough. The two of them – him and his babygirl, with the plums and the maize, and the secrets of this wide wilderness handed down in partnership from the Comanche and the Kiowa, because the Millers knew what to keep and what wasn’t theirs, or anyone’s, to own.
Until the day came when the buffalo were slaughtered by the thousands, and the once great Gods of the Grass Sea were felled, both driven to extinction by a force that held no compassion or concern for the lands it swallowed. 
The cowboys over in the XIT, runners of cattle in the land that used to tremble beneath the hooves of thousands of buffalo, started to complain first. Rumbled that no good was to come of any of it; the American government gave too freely; real estate agents and land developers promised too much. Those arriving in the prairie came only for the green that the wheat boom offered, and had misjudged the quietness of the plains for emptiness.
Joel Miller watched as towns bloomed overnight, model E’s rumbled off the new railway lines, and nesters and sodbusters burrowed into their dugouts like wolf-spiders — at the cost of the beautiful, bellowing sea of grass. The bison were long dead, the Kiowa and Comanche now ghosts between the stalks of blue grama, and a wind was coming in from the north. 
It whispered to those who could still listen and would heed its warnings. 
And Joel Miller, with his only daughter, listened and waited and didn’t like what he heard. First, the drought came. Lasted ten years. Then the economic freefall that blew out entire financial systems on a global scale. 
And then, like a ghoulish nightmare, a specter of death that came from the ill-resting spirits of the bison, came the dust storms. 
The air crackled with electricity, car radios clicked off, overwhelmed by the static. Ignitions shorted out. Waves of sand swept over the roads. Children were lost and found thirty feet from their back doors, dead, suffocated on dust. Five thousand feet tall, wider than entire cities, this was blind vengeance, a reckoning well-deserved.
And for the first time in his life, Joel Miller was afraid.
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series masterlist | part i
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two-white-butterflies · 5 months
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parallel lines | d. targaryen | prologue
Description: An ordinary middle school teacher moves to a desolate town with her fiancee. After suffering episodes of vivid nightmares, she realizes that his uncle looks exactly like the man in her dreams.
Pairings: daemon targaryen/reader, aemond targaryen/reader
Trope: Reincarnation
(A rewrite of 'Waiting for a Bus')
series masterlist |
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"Story of a romance torn apart by fate Hundreds of years ago, they fell in love, like we did And I'd die for you in the same way." - Timeless, Taylor Swift.
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(New York City, USA. August 23, 2008)
It was a hail mary from the beginning - only few people were reincarnated into a human form and only a small percentage of that was able to remember their past life. It was typically provoked by a traumatic event - and you were unfortunate to experience it so early in your second life. "Where are you going?" a small voice escapes your mouth, there was something dangerous about tonight.
There was a hurricane going on outside - water crashing upon the littered streets of Downtown NYC. "Calm down, I have to check something over there, baby. Can you be a good girl and stay here?" Mother inquired, while patting your head comfortingly.
"Can't I come with you?" your eyebrows merged into each other, she tilted her head. "No, it will be quick." she promised, pressing a kiss to your forehead. "I'm scared," you slumped into your seat, seeing lightning bounce off your 18th floor apartment window. "It will be over soon, it's just rain." she mumbled, letting go of your body.
You reached for the headphones that were inside your pocket. There were only two things that comforted you; mother and music. Both things so pleasant that it immediately calmed you down.
"So, you're leaving in the morning. In the early train." you carefully hummed along the song, hiding your face under the enormous pile of blankets on your bed. "Well, I could say everything's alright. And I could pretend and say goodbye." your humming drowned out the noise of the storm.
You breathe a silent sight of relief. Yep! You could take care of yourself. There was no need for mother's help. "Where is she?" you found yourself mumbling out loud. You lift the blanket off your body, feeling your feet touch the cold floor.
"Ma?" your tiny voice bounced off the empty apartment. You were supposed to move out tomorrow - something about not being able to pay taxes after the market crashed. "Ma?" your voice bounced off the apartment again, with no reply. "Can't stop loving you. No, I can't stop loving you." you could hear the music play in your head.
Just as your feet touched the floor of the living room. You see her. Body sprawled on the floor - blood everywhere, and the door wide open. "Ma!" this time your voice is louder than before. Loud enough for your next-door neighbor to hear.
The last thing you could remember was Mrs. Dantes' apartment door opening, before your vision shifts to black once more.
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You opened your eyes again - this time you were in a different place. The entire world smelled like grass and ash. "We need to go home," you gritted your teeth - a mere spectator in your own body. The man beside you was of a different beauty - piercing purple eyes and silver locks. He was a thing of the gods. His eyes were round - almost prey-like. You'd almost assume that his smile could enchant any passerby, but his expression was one of anger.
"We are not going anywhere, you know of the reason we are here. I intend to follow through our plans," he responded with gritted teeth. It pained him to speak to you in this manner - but the anger he felt. It could almost burn armies. "I would rather die," you frowned - and only then did his gaze softened.
It was your thirteenth fortnight camped outside of Harrenhall. There was a deep fog that loomed over God's Eye. It was an auspicious day, the shamans tell you that it is perfect for war. The gods will be on the side of the good, but when have the Targaryens been good?
"We will die if my sister's lover ever has the mind to descend upon us." you warned him, in fear of Vhagar. "I will die," he corrected - turning his body in your direction - cupping your chin and moving your face closer to his. "- you will be safe, wife." he pressed a gentle kiss on your lips.
His hands were calloused - eyes filled with so much fury, but he treated you with such tenderness - you couldn't help but love him more. "I will be safer with the thought that you are alive. I beg of you, please do not fight in a war in which your family is destined to lose. Let Aegon take his crown - let Aegon die with it." you begged him.
"The crown is not his. It is Rhaenyra's." he defended, playing with the rivet of his dagger. "It will not benefit us." you whisper and his eyes narrowed. "It does not matter now," he placed you behind him - seeing the figure of his much awaited nephew.
Aemond stands a few hundred feet away from you, beside him was your sister, Alys. "I see that you've finally found the time to honor your dear uncle," Daemon begins with his exposition. He glares at Aemond with his two healthy eyes.
"How could I not? I've heard stories about a knight - how his Dark Sister has defeated armies and armadas. I've heard stories about his beautiful wife too, with vixen eyes that are hooks for the soul. I see his wife - but I do not see him." Aemond antagonized.
"It might have something to do with your missing eye, nephew." your husband responded, and Caraxes prowls behind you. "I see very well, uncle." Aemond corrected and Daemon tilts his head. "And who is the judge of that?" he jested, and there was a moment of silence.
Aemond moves towards Vhagar, boarding his dragon without any other words. You look above - seeing the Prince circle the lake with his noble stead. Daemon places a hand on your cheek. "I will return, and I will honor my promises. This is the last battle, wife. Thank you for your patience," he bridges your lips together.
Sealing his fate with a single kiss.
He walks past you - to the direction of Caraxes, and he boards his dragon too. "Daemon!" you yell after him, but he reluctantly ignores you - following after his nephew to the heavens.
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(Dragonview, Canada. January 2, 2023)
"Are you alright?" Aemond places a gentle hand on your shoulder. Your eyelids flutter gently, beads of sweat formed atop your forehead. "Yeah - yeah." you answer much to quickly. "It was just another nightmare." you affirmed, while staring at the digital clock on your bedside table. 3:41 AM.
"Did I wake you?" you scratch the back of your head. "No, I was about to start sleeping." he chuckled nervously. "- I'm really worried about you, angel." he whispers, while laying down beside you. He wraps his strong arms around your body - domineering over your small frame. "The nightmares have been going on since we met." he buried his face in the crook of your neck.
A scoff exits your mouth.
"It's been gone bebè. It only came back because we moved to a new city." you hypothesized, kissing his cheek - smelling the faint scent of aftershave. "It would be better if it was gone ... forever." he retorted, rubbing circles on your thighs. "If it continues, you promise to get it fixed?" he inquired and you laugh.
"You make me sound like a robot." you bit your lower lip. "Elementary teacher goes crazy and needs to get spare parts." he joked. "You make me crazy, you know that?" you giggle. The light of the lampshade illuminated his features perfectly. "I'm glad that you have a new job, there's someone else to blame about your madness." he kissed your jawline.
The digital alarm clock rings. 4:00am.
"Get your hands off me, Mr. Targaryen. I have to get ready for school." you whispered, while lifting his fingers off your waist. "No time for a little quickie?" he winked and you rolled your eyes. "There's time for that when I get home." you answered while lifting the blanket off your body. Strategically walking towards the bathroom before he gets another word in.
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The school was a few minutes away from your apartment. The town was small - one of the few islands in the southern part of Canada. "According to the book that you gave me about this place, Dragonview used to be a volcano. Which is weird since we aren't in the Pacific Ring of Fire side of Canada." you opened the conversation.
"You are cruel for having me drive you to school - and listen to you speak about volcanology." he humored, placing his free hand on your thighs. "But is the book really accurate? I mean - I can see the mountain from our apartment window. I'd like to check it out if it used to be a volcano." you turned to look at him.
He nodded his head.
"My family's been living in this island for thousands of years. I think they used to call it Dragonmont - there's no magma left. No traces of the fact that it used to be a Volcano. Lots of people went to study it when I was a child. Not a volcano, they say." he relayed the information. "You know, my father used to tell me that dragons lived in this island." he chuckled in an amused tone.
You flinch. The word 'dragon' made your head spin.
"We should hike it in the weekends. If you're free?" your eyebrows merged into each other and he nods. "I'm always free for you, love." he confirmed, halting in front of the school building. To your surprise, the school was a generous size. Small enough that it couldn't rival the schools in the state, but bigger than the typical schools found in Canadian Provinces.
You lean closer to his body, giving him a soft peck on the cheek. "I'll pick you up at six, you're welcome to be late." he placed a hand on your shoulder.
"I love you," you smiled while opening the door. "I love you too." he answered - and you slam the door shut.
Watching as his Honda Civic rolls away from view.
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St. Maria Goretti, the patron saint of purity, young women and sexual assault. She was also the namesake of the section that you were going to teach. 'First year of teaching and I already have an advisory class, god. I'm jealous of myself.' you shook your head while placing your bag on the desk. Teaching grade-school was easy. Especially in a country like Canada - where they had a reputation of being kind.
A woman clears her throat, knocking on the door three times. "Good morning, you must be the new teacher. I'm Rhaenyra, the Senior High School Subject Coordinator for English. My advisory is just across the hall, Grade 4 - Saint Agnes of Rome." she introduced herself, holding out her hand for you to shake.
Silver locks and a familiar pair of purple eyes. "(Your Name), I teach Mathematics - as you can see, I'm the advisor of Grade 6 - Saint Maria Goretti." you smiled at her, shaking her hand. "Oh, you're very lucky to have this section. There's a saying that goes around here, all the advisors of Saint Maria Goretti turn out to be very successful." she winked, a smile is etched upon your features.
She takes another step forward.
"What happened to the last teacher for everyone to think that?" your eyes narrowed and she leaned on the desk. "She ended up marrying a hot-shot lawyer, I heard that she lives in Monaco now. There's a lot of other teachers before you - this position hasn't been held for more than a year. I mean I think there was a teacher that lasted longer but it's been decades. 10-15 years ago? But she moved to New York." Rhaenyra tried to remember the past.
You place a binder on the table.
"It's nice that you remember the school's history. There aren't a lot of teachers who bother to learn all of that." you compliment, sensing that she was staring deep into your face. "I was born and raised here. She was my advisor - she spent her last year in school with us. I hope that you last longer than the others though," she breathed and you could only hum in agreement.
"I'll do my best - plus, my boyfriend was also born and raised here. He wants to make amends with his family. If all goes well, I see myself settling here." you explained, smiling at the thought of Aemond. Her watch beeps, 7:25am.
"Well, I will see you in the cafeteria during lunch. I'm afraid that I'll have to say goodbye for now," she waved - retreating back into the hallway. "See ya," you bid goodbye - the room fills with more students.
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RHAENYRA STRONG She's here.
DAEMON TARGARYEN Who?
Rhaenyra's phone rings - the caller ID flashes for a moment. "What's up? Is everything alright?" he inquires. She could hear the classical music play in the background. "(Your Name) is here, and she doesn't remember anything." she breathed out in a panicked tone.
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INSTAGRAM
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yourname_: with the advanced class ✨
liked by aemond.targaryen and 238 others
>comments
tatianaVANILLA: The way that idk what those letters are 🤣
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DaemonTargaryen.phd: My lovely and beautiful Caraxes... 👍🏻
liked by 1,293 others
>comments
VexanaNailss: Prof Daemon has the dawg in him
jacejacejacevelaryon: 2 dogs 1 frame 😨 - LucerysGaming: You literally live in his house 💀 - - jacejacejacevelaryon: You also eat his ice cream. Your point is?
LaenorVelaryonLaw08: Sea wants a playdate
DaemonTargaryen.phd: @LaenorVelaryonLaw08 fine since you beg 🤣
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next chapter>>
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boatmediatourney · 6 months
Text
🚢Boat Song Lineup & Links🚢
*links are on the boat emojis. most of the artists listed are specific to the linked versions, and many are folk songs with no single or known author. all the links are youtube links.*
🚢 32 Down on the Robert MacKenzie (Due South), Paul Gross
🚢 A Pirate Looks at 40, Jimmy Buffett
🚢 A Sailboat in the Moonlight, Billie Holliday
🚢 The Ballad of Gilligan's Isle (theme song)
🚢 The Ballad of Harbo and Samuelson, Shanghaied on the Willamette
🚢 The Bonnie Ship the Diamond, The Corries
🚢 Bluenose, Stan Rogers
🚢 Boat on the River, Styx
🚢 Canadee-i-o, Nic Jones
🚢 Come Sail Away, Styx
🚢 Day-O (Banana Boat Song), Harry Belafonte
🚢 Friggin in the Riggin, The Sex Pistols
🚢 Ghosts of Cape Horn, Gordon Lightfoot
🚢 Go to Sea No More, The Dubliners
🚢 The Good Ship Kangaroo, Planxty
🚢 Hard on the Beach Oar, Johnny Collins
🚢 Haul Away Joe, The Eskies
🚢 Highwayman, The Highwaymen
🚢 I'm on a Boat, The Lonely Island
🚢 I'm Shipping up to Boston, The Dropkick Murphys
🚢 James Craig, The Maritime Crew
🚢 The Last Bristolian Pirate, The Longest Johns
🚢 Leave Her, Johnny, Leave Her, Coda
🚢 The Leaving of Liverpool, The Dubliners
🚢 The Little Boat, The Wiggles
🚢 Lord Franklin, Pentangle
🚢 Lowlands Away, The Corries
🚢 Lukey, Great Big Sea
🚢 The Mariner's Revenge, The Decemberists
🚢 Marie Christine, Gordon Lightfoot
🚢 The Mary Ellen Carter, Stan Rogers
🚢 Mingulay Boat Song, The Corries
🚢 Mr. Andrews' Vision ("Titanic: A New Musical"), Maury Yeston
🚢 The Mistress, Dramtreeo
🚢 My Sails Are Set (One Piece live action)
🚢 Orinoco Flow, Enya
🚢 Overture/Prologue/The Launching ("Titanic: A New Musical"), Maury Yeston
🚢 The Pacific, Dave Malloy
🚢 The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything (Veggie Tales)
🚢 Proud Mary, Ike and Tina Turner
🚢 Race to be King, Seth Lakeman
🚢 Rolling Down to Old Maui, Stan Rogers
🚢 Roll the Old Chariot (sea shanty)
🚢 Round the Cape, The Longest Johns
🚢 Row, Row, Row your Boat (nursery rhyme)
🚢 Running Down to Cuba, Colm McGuinness
🚢 Sailing, Christopher Cross
🚢 Sailor's Farewell (sea shanty)
🚢 Santiana, The Longest Johns
🚢 Santiano, Hugues Aufray
🚢 Saturday, Jonathan Eng and Stephanie Hladowski
🚢 Save the Whales!, Country Joe McDonald
🚢 Ship in a Bottle, Fin Argus
🚢 Ship of Fools, The Grateful Dead
🚢 Song for the Bowdoin, Larry Kaplan
🚢 Song of the Volga Boatmen, Soviet Army Chorus & Band
🚢 Son of a Son of a Sailor, Jimmy Buffett
🚢 South Australia, Johnny Collins
🚢 Tow Rope Girls, Daniel Kelly
🚢 The Wellerman (sea shanty), Nathan Evans
🚢 The Wild Cape Horn, Friends Of The Shipyard and Fisherman's Fayre
🚢 The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Gordon Lightfoot
🚢 Warlike Seamen, Jerry Bryant and Starboard Mess
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unicreamuwu · 8 months
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The Little Batgirl (Yandere Platonic Batfam x Child Reader)
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Prologue - Adoption Day
Warning: Yandere Themes (mentioned)
*New yandere platonic series, yay*
Bruce got out of his car and went into the orphanage he had planned to visit.
Today, he was actually planning to adopt a child who could be his next sidekick since the others sort of "retired".
When he goes in, he is met by the orphanage owner.
They greeted each other before they looked for the perfect child for Bruce to adopt.
Each child Bruce passed by, and they were not the kind to have the position to be his sidekick.
That's when the owner takes him into a room that shows a young girl with (h/c) colored hair and a pair of (e/c) colored eyes with (s/c) colored skin.
She was wearing a plain white dress as she was holding onto her lavender colored bat stuffed animal plush.
She was staring at both Bruce and the orphanage owner.
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(This is how I kinda imagined of reader to be in this story, but you can come up with her appearance since she's basically you. Also, please DO NOT steal my art, thank you.)
"Who is this young lady?" Bruce asks with his eyebrow lifted as he stares at her.
"This young lady is Y/N. She came here alone with nobody by her side other than that bat doll about a few years ago. She was in terrible state at that time, so I decided to take her in," the owner tells him.
"For what I remembered, she read the dictionary in her bedroom over fifty times. So, when I quizzed her, she didn't hesitate to answer all the questions and got them all corrected."
That information caught Bruce's attention as he continues to stare at the young girl who is now in front of him.
"How exactly?" He asks.
The owner took out a piece of newspaper and hands it to the girl.
The piece shows a crossword puzzle that a grown adult would have struggled solving it.
Y/N sat on her chair before she takes out a pencil and begins to do the crossword puzzle.
After thirty seconds, the girl shows both the owner and Bruce the now completed puzzle that every word was written down correctly.
Bruce seemed impressed by the girl's talent and turns to the owner who stares at him back.
"Well, what do you think of her?" The owner asks him who was in thought.
Then, Bruce takes out his pen and turns to the owner.
"Bring in the paperworks."
~~~~~
After the paperwork was filled in, Y/N is now going to have a new life.
She comes out of the building with her suitcase that has all of belongings as she carries her bat plush.
Y/N also changed her outfit as well into a pink turtleneck shirt and a red skirt along with some white tights and a pair of red Mary Jane shoes.
She was walking up to Bruce and stares up at him.
Bruce was in thought as he stares down at Y/N.
She is a very smart girl, but was she really capable of fighting?
It's not that she looks or is very weak, it's just that she looks like she could get hurt very easily.
He should have a discussion with the others about this once he comes back to the manor.
They were staring at one another before Bruce kneels down to her level and pats her head.
"You don't have to worry. You're going to be safe living with me and your new family," he tells her with a soft smile on his face which is pretty rare to see.
Bruce brings Y/N into his car and shuts the passenger doors once she was in.
Y/N looks through the car window to see some kids from the orphanage, waving to her goodbye with encouraging smiles.
He then takes out his phone and dials a number before the other line picked up.
"Alfred, get the room ready for our new member of the batfamily. Make sure nobody goes in it until the member comes in."
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mercurytojupiter · 2 months
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the labyrinth - prologue
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a/n: i'm going through an archie madekwe phase no one look at me
warnings: farleigh being farleigh, which includes underage drugs, drinking, cigarettes and sex 18+
fic summary: ariadne gavin and her childhood best friend turned enemy return to saltburn for the last time
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Ariadne Gavin wishes she could say the first Catton she met was Felix or even Venetia. She would have loved to explain to people how she had tripped into Venetia at the airport when she first landed in England, or how she had been greeted by Felix's already tall, grinning face.
Instead, the truth was, the only reason the Cattons held their arms open to her as they did was because of Farleigh fucking Start.
Ariadne had met Farleigh when she was seven. Her father, Laurence Gavin, was a new money tech mogul who was making a name for himself selling computers. He had dragged her along to a fundraising gala, and it was there that Ariadne found herself forever enamoured with the Cattons.
Ariadne had never met another child before. Her upbringing was limited to her Nanny, Lilian, the house staff, Douglas, Marcus, and Tyrone, and her mother, Vienna. Ariadne had only even known that white people existed because of her storybooks.
"Hello," She whispers politely. "My name is Ariadne Marie Gavin."
"I'm Farleigh." The little boy shrugs.
Ariadne tilts her head. "How old are you?"
Farleigh looks at her strangely. "Seven and a half."
Ariadne pouts. "Oh. I'm just seven."
Farleigh's eyes widen in panic. "That's okay! Don't be upset! It's okay to be smaller than me! Normally I'm the smallest person."
"Youngest." Ariadne corrects.
"M'kay," Farleigh says, but makes no move to say the sentence correctly. He jumps down from his chair and squishes her cheeks. "Do you want to play hide and seek?"
"Won't the grown-ups be mad we're gone?"
"They never notice." Farleigh smiles.
That smile got Ariadne in more trouble than she could count over the next thirteen years.
At some point between seven and a half and fourteen, Farleigh stopped being her only friend. Or, more accurately, Farleigh began to make friends and it meant that Ariadne was going to be alone unless she made some of hers.
Or, that was, until Saltburn.
Ariadne didn't like the person Farleigh was becoming ever since they'd become teenagers. He'd been mean, and flaky, and worst of all, he kept hitting on her friends.
And yes, perhaps she was a little jealous, but she had always been territorial, and Farleigh was hers, not Ashley's or Jessica's. Besides, Farleigh grew like a beanstalk, and all her friends only liked him because he was tall. They didn't spend Sunday evenings conditioning his hair or laugh at his terrible -and slightly mean- jokes.
Overall, they had begun to drift a tad, but a crack was not a canyon, as her father liked to say.
But that didn't mean Farleigh wasn't still the only person her age she truly trusted, so he still came over to her house every Sunday to do homework and complain.
"Did I tell you my mom's family wants me to come to England over the summer?" He sighs, stretched out on her floor.
Ariadne has her nose tucked into her copy of Pride and Prejudice for her book report and looks up suddenly. "Excuse me?"
"I know, right? Like, why would I waste my summer-" Farleigh starts.
Ariadne shushes him. "Shut up, Far. Doesn't your mom's family pay for all your mom's shit? And yours, for that matter?"
"I mean, yeah, but they always said I'm out after eighteen." He shrugs.
Ariadne grins. "Because they don't know you. But if, say, you went to England in the summers, made connections with them, flashed some puppy dog eyes," she trails off.
Farleigh raises a brow. "You want me to go to them like some kind of homeless kid asking for spare change on Alameda Street?"
Ariadne kicks him. "No, I want you to use your brain. You're going to be my business partner once I inherit, obviously, but it's going to be obvious that we're only working together because we're friends if you don't at least have a college degree. Now, imagine, we get into some fancy British university, we network with like a billion people, and suddenly we have investors lining up at graduation."
"All it'll cost me is my pride." Farleigh grumbles.
Ariadne purses her lips. "Not if I come with. Then, it's just going to be us, two rich kids, going and being rich on a different continent over the summers."
Farleigh sits up. "I'm going to hate this, aren't I?"
"Not in the long run." Ariadne grins.
Ariadne wishes she'd never suggested going to Saltburn. She and Farleigh were one change in conversation away from escaping the Cattons and she'd never forgive herself for it.
Maybe it's the new money, manifest destiny, red-blooded American in her, but she never liked the look of Saltburn. She missed her modern, sleek home in Bel-Air, and from a single look, she knew Farleigh did too.
Saltburn was cold and ancient. There was no carpet, only million-year-old Persian rugs. No many-buttoned showers, only antiquated tubs. They didn't even have a bidet, which Ariadne thought was borderline uncivilized.
But they adjusted, slowly but surely, to the famous, trademark brand of Catton Madness that had sent his mother running for the hills all those years before.
Farleigh hadn't known that Felix and Venetia were their age, but they certainly were, and they were wilder and more English than anyone Ariadne had ever met.
She also found that they took to calling her demeaning, patronizing pet names like "Pet" or "Girlie." Farleigh got about the same treatment, only, in her opinion, worse, because there was no way to spin "Boy" or "Dog" as respectful.
Vee liked to call her "Newmo", short for "New Money" and Ariadne knew this was an insult, but bit her tongue.
She did that a lot, after Saltburn.
She starts at St. Mary Magdelene's Secondary Academy for Girls with Venetia that year, and Farleigh attends St. John's Secondary Academy for Boys with Felix. Twice a year, the adjoined schools have huge dances and dinners where they exercise their best manners.
The Gala is poorly chaperoned, as it is also the only time the faculty gets to mix and mingle. The dinner is mostly manner-based, but by the time the dance begins, most adults turn their heads away from the teenage drama and illegal activity.
When their first Fall Gala comes around, Ariadne looks around excitedly for Farleigh, peering through the crowd of white faces. She wants to tell him everything that's happened since they separated at the start of the school year.
Unfortunately, all she gets is Felix's stupid face. "Where's Farleigh?"
Felix rolls his eyes grinningly. "Smoking outside. Again."
Ariadne blinks, takes a step back, and laughs disbelievingly. Farleigh had gotten more rebellious since they'd become teenagers, sure, and maybe England was rubbing off on him, but he never smoked. "Are you kidding?"
Felix snickers. "He said you'd be pissed off."
That was another thing Ariadne hated about the Cattons. Everything was a fucking joke to them.
"No fucking shit!" She whisper-shouts. "He can't- He's going to ruin his lungs! This is my fault, I knew it was a bad idea for us to go to different schools!" She bites her lip, flicking her wrists in and out.
It was a terrible nervous tick. Lilian had always said it was unbecoming. Ariadne couldn't shake it.
Felix steadies her by the arms, charming doe eyes staring right into hers. "Farleigh will be fine, everyone smokes once in a while. Besides, he's finally letting loose, isn't that worth something?"
Ariadne wants to spit that it is not something, because Farleigh doesn't need to let loose, he needs more structure. He'd already been let loose his whole life and Ariadne had spent most of hers cleaning up the debris.
She doesn't yell at Felix, just shakes her head mutely.
"Well, maybe you need to let loose too. Vee's got weed or shrooms or something in the bathroom, go try that."
And, shockingly, Ariadne lets Felix lead her to the door of the Girl's bathroom, where a small puff of fogged-up air escapes.
"Have fun, Pet!"
He shoves her inside and lets the door swing closed.
Vee offers her a joint, grinning, and for the first time, Ariadne's thoughts cease.
After Ariadne is introduced to weed for the first time, she no longer worries about Farleigh. Still, the worst does not come until the Spring Gala, when she walks in on him losing his virginity to Arabella Vaillancourt.
All the jealousy she had felt in middle school hit a breaking point then. This wasn't flirting or even a kiss on the cheek. Arabella had claimed Farleigh in a way Ariadne would never be able to compensate for.
Ariadne turns her head away from the sight of them, sweating and naked and wholly consumed by each other and goes back to her dorm.
Vee sees her tears and offers her a line of coke, and from that point on, Ariadne and Farleigh are no longer friends or even allies.
When the summer break retrieves them again, she hardly looks at him in favour of making jokes with Venetia and walking Felix through the process of getting girls to like him. While Felix was pretty, most of the girls their age couldn't stand him because he was so boring to talk to. She pierces his eyebrow so he has something interesting to talk about. Felix is horrible at flirting, too. Not like Farleigh, she thinks, recalling the many girls he had wooed bitterly.
Soon, everyone at Saltburn forgets that Ariadne and Farleigh were ever even a pair. Or, in their respective cases, at least pretend to forget.
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Week of November 12-18
What I Read
I’m using the summaries provided by the author’s unless otherwise stated
Up In Your Arms (Prologue)- by @cherubispunk - 1940sgangster!Joel Miller x AFAB!Reader. Summary: The beginning of it all asked like whiskey and cigarettes. But smelled of the interrogation room.
Y’all I do not think that I can overstate how EXCITED I am for this series! The way Lu writes has me on my knees, just waiting to gobble up every little word she drops!
My Brother’s Keeper Chapter 3- by @diversemediums.
This story lives in my mind rent free! And Tess makes an appearance in this chapter!
Seeking What Is Desirable Chapter 1- by @chloeangelic - Joel Miller x f!reader. Series Summary: Albert Camus said that “A man is always a prey to his truths; Once he has admitted them, he cannot free himself from them,” and it made me wonder hoe we justify romantic affairs- if we are free when we enter them in secrecy or only truly free when we have burned the bridges we ran over to reach the arms of each other.
I don’t know what it is about Joel Miller cheating on his wife that makes me absolutely FERAL. This story is going to be a long one so a lot of this chapter is building the story but we also get some absolutely stellar Joel smut.
Cherub Chapter 2- by @cherubispunk - dealer!Joel Miller x AFAB!reader. Summary: you will forever be his fallen angel. his cherub.
Listen: grimy, disgusting ass trailer park Joel is my Roman Empire. I think about him all the time. I wanna be his Trailer Park Princess and just cook and clean for him even though I know damn well he barely showers.
Best Kept Secret Chapters 26 & 27- by @lincolndjarin. Summaries: Ch 26- judgement day, Ch 27- judgement day (din’s version)
This entire series is AMAZING and I urge you to read it if you haven’t. That said, these two chapters have been my absolute favorite so far. I am not ashamed to admit that I cried multiple times during both chapters. Also, Ro put these chapters out 5 days apart which is majorly impressive!
Me and My Husband Chapter 4- by @beskarandblasters. Din fins himself unable to stop thinking about you so he tells his riduur he’s leaving for another bounty, but instead goes to Naboo to look for you.
You and Din get to know each other better and make plans for a getaway. Meanwhile, the guilt of his situation is beginning to weigh on him, but he just can’t help himself.
Hot & Heavy Epilogue- by @tieronecrush. Series summary (paraphrased.) over the course of three summers, Joel Miller becomes woven into your life.
Okay, so, I have SO many thoughts on this series in general, the conclusion to it and my friend Sam. This series is so beautifully done and it is one of my go to comfort fics. This epilogue is quite long at 17.k but was absolutely necessary to wrap up the series. I still found myself wanting more even after reading all 17k.
You and Joel fall in love, break up, get back together, hide your relationship, fight and makeup all over the course of three summers. And then this epilogue takes you through the next three summers. Sam, being the amazingly kind person that she is, put up with me screaming in her ask box for MONTHS about these two. And we became friends because of it. I am insanely proud of her for finishing this series and it remains on my top recs list! If you haven’t read it yet, you are seriously missing out!
I Know It’s for the Better chapters 1 and 2 -by @planet-marz1. Ch 1 summary: Joel returns home with a heartbreaking confession. Ch2 summary: Still reeling from Joel’s confession, you find solace in someone new.
Mari wrote her first fic and dropped two chapters in the same week! If you like Joel angst, this is the fic for you. Mari writes a beautiful, if sad examination of how infidelity can rock a relationship and a a community.
All Three Dogs- by @macfrog. Summary: “dog metaphors are all about devotion, devotion to a person, a concept, a place etc, to be a dog is to be devoted.”
Listen: this might be one of the most beautiful, devastating things I’ve ever read. It is so raw and reading it felt like a punch to the gut, in a good way obviously. I actually cried both times I read this.
Halcyon Prologue- by @justagalwhowrites. Summary: Your best friend, Joel Miller, takes you to the prom.
A modern, no outbreak AU (these are my favorites). Kit has teased that this story will be a long one (which is definitely her jam, and mine) so this is just a little stage setting but I am already screaming, crying, throwing up for it. Everything Kit writes has me up in arms, head over heels, generally clawing at the bars of my enclosure. Let’s all buckle up for this baby, shall we?
Three’s Company- by @wardenparker and @absurdthirst. Summary: Joel Miller and Frankie Morales have both had a things for their daughter’s elementary school teacher, unbeknownst to each other. They have also both been long-standing members of a nearby anonymous sex club that they discover said teacher-you- also belong to.
Don’t let the summary fool you! This first part is surprisingly soft! I love it when Joel Miller has feelings. Like, maybe even more than I love it when he does nasty, depraved stuff to me.
Sticking It to the PTA- by @walkintotheriveranddisappear. Summary: Joel Miller is a good dad and an active member of the school’s PTA. You’re a new mom in the school district, and you just want to make sure your daughter, Ellie, makes lots of friends. When you learn about Joel’s reputation as the “slutty single dad” of the PTA- you can’t help but hate him-especially after Ellie becomes best friends with his daughter.
Okay this is probably one of my favorite “situations” i have found joel miller in. Just like the last entry, this one is softer than you’d think at first. He’s a slut, but a soft slut. You and Joel strike up a friendship, reluctant on your part at first, just as your children do. Soft, sluttiness ensues.
Stuffing- by @toxicanonymity. Summary: Joel leaves for the day and Uncle Tommy keeps you company.
*tongue out sweating emoji* i am a HUGE fan of DVP and this fic tics a LOT of boxes for me! It is HOT HOT HOT
Sticky- by @ezrasbirdie. Summary: You send Joel a new toy to keep him occupied while you’re away.
This was SO hot and SO sweet. As usual, Birdie has once again proven that they have mastered porn with feelings. My favorite part was when he went into his room, pretending to nobody but himself, that he needed a new pair of socks.
Moonshine Chapters 5 & 6- by @pimosworld. Ch 5 summary: Cain makes an appearance while you and Joel reflect on your past and futures. Ch 6 summary: Joel mediates an argument after some patrons causes a stir at the bar.
This series has me in a chokehold! This is the second Joel x Reader x Frankie fic to make an appearance this week. This is a post outbreak version and it is MUST READ!
What I Wrote:
I released part one of my new Joel Miller miniseries, When My Time Comes Around. Part Two will be out tomorrow night at 6:00 pm CST.
I did make a few mod boards this week as well!
This one for @wannab-urs Dieter Bravo series, A Ghost of You. If you stick around here long enough, you’ll hear me shout about it constantly.
And this one for my wife @party-hearses. Not for a fic or anything, just for our general vibe.
Re-read:
Cherub Chapter 1 by @cherubispunk in preparation for the new chapter.
My Brother’s Keeper chapters 1 and 2- by @diversemediums in preparation for the new chapter.
Upcoming:
Part Two of When My Time Comes Around drops tomorrow and the final part next Tuesday! It is kind of bittersweet thinking that it is already almost over because this story lives in my mind rent free right now and has been taking up a large portion of my brain power.
Unfortunately due to said brainrot, i haven’t written anything else, but i have some thots thotting for Solo Sessions and Excuse Me, Mister Officer?
I also have 2 requests in my inbox that I am desperate to write and get out before the end of the year.
See you next week, Besties! 💚
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vivalas-vega · 11 months
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new perspectives / jake ‘hangman’ seresin x reader / part six
hehehe.... it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for !!!!!!! (insert gif of michael scott screaming it’s happening) - as always lmk what you think and if you want to be added to the taglist!
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new perspectives / jake ‘hangman’ seresin x reader / part six
add yourself to my taglist
prologue - one - two - three - four - five 
word count: 4.2k
warnings: language, drinking, slight angst, smut !!!, oral (f-receiving), unprotected p-in-v penetration (wrap it before you tap it), all the feels bc we’ve all waited too long
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The house was absolutely bustling, there were Daggers spread out from the couch to the kitchen to the backyard and while they were making an utter mess of your immaculately decorated home you thought to yourself that this was how it was supposed to be. You saw Amelia and Penny sitting by the pool with their feet hanging over the edge, Rooster and Jake arguing over how best to grill a burger, Fanboy and Payback engaged in a heated discussion about some superhero movie, and Maverick and Bob talking about plane specs while you and Coyote were mixing up the next round of drinks. 
“Have you ever mixed a drink before? Give me that,” you said, grabbing the bottle of tequila from him while he held his hands up in surrender. “You’re on lime duty,” you said, reassigning his tasks and he just chuckled while he got to work.
“You and Hangman seem a lot better,” he commented and you nodded. Mary and John had left for home a few weeks ago and everything seemed to be going great with her recovery. You’d gotten her set up with an oncologist you’d met in med school who would be in charge of her care from now on… Mary would have to get frequent scans for the rest of her life but it was something you would all willingly accept if it meant she had a rest of her life to live. Dr. Lewis had gotten clean margins and successfully removed the entire thing which limited her chance of recurrence but there was always a risk and this was just something you all had to live with from now on. 
“Things have definitely settled, it’s a bitter pill to swallow to know your mom might get another tumor in the future but she’s in the best hands and we’re doing everything we can,” you replied. 
“He told me he was kind of an ass to you during the whole thing,” he said and you just shrugged.
“He wasn’t, I’m sure it feels that way from his perspective but I was kind of an ass too in my own way, we just handled it differently. I went into doctor mode and he went into panicked son mode. Neither was the wrong response, it was just hard to be there for each other but we’re good now.”
“So, do you want to tell me why the two of you are still single then?” he asked and you just gave him a look.
“You’re a worse gossip than Phoenix,” you teased and he chuckled.
“We all want to know, watching the two of you is like having our own romance movie except it’s so much more frustrating,” he groaned.
“Oh yeah? And why is that?” you asked, deciding to indulge him for a moment.
“Because with a movie you get the ending in two hours,” he said and you laughed as you grabbed ice from the freezer to pop in each drink. Between Jake’s mother in the hospital and Coyote now you could feel that a lot of people were awaiting your inevitable reunion and honestly so were you… you just didn’t know how to initiate it, between the longing glances and lingering touches you felt like a high schooler again. You couldn’t tell where Jake’s head was at, every single time you got close to having a moment he suddenly preoccupied himself elsewhere and you thought back to the Hard Deck a few nights ago…
“Rooster, put those shots somewhere else or so help me god… I’m not singing with you,” you said, narrowing your eyes at him as he started to approach you and he looked at you like a deer caught in the headlights.
“But… please?” he said so soft and so small it almost made you feel bad for him. Almost. “Come on, Jupiter, you know you have fun.”
“This is peer pressure. I am actively being peer pressured,” you giggled as he approached you and held the glass up to your lips. You conceded and opened your mouth, allowing him to pour it in and as you wiped the few drops that missed and swallowed you gave him a glare that would have anyone shaking in their boots. “I feel like that was assault.”
“See you at the piano!” he said, walking away triumphantly and you chuckled to yourself. You would see him at the piano later, you always put up a good fight but you couldn’t seem to say no to him… he loved getting the whole bar engaged in song and who were you to deny him his fun?
“I see another duet is in the cards,” Jake said, sidling up beside you having seen the whole thing and while he was doing a great job at hiding it from you jealousy was roaring through his veins. He hated watching Rooster press the glass to your lips, he hated the eye contact you maintained with him while he poured it into your mouth, and more than anything he hated the way you laughed for him. It was silly, yes, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt Rooster would never try anything with you, and he knew you would never try anything with him. The two of you had developed a bond he didn’t thoroughly understand but it seemed to maybe you happy and well, who was he to deny you your fun?
“It appears so, I worry about his song selection,” you said, turning to look up at him and you couldn’t quite decipher the look in his eyes as he took a step forward and you stumbled at the proximity and found yourself pressed against the edge of the pool table. You could feel the warmth radiating off of him and you felt yourself slightly tremble with anticipation… Was this finally the moment? Had Phoenix been right all along? Was a silly moment with Rooster really all it took to get you here? He grazed his fingers along your arm, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake and you subtly tilted your jaw upwards.
“Well, I look forward to the show,” he said with a small smirk before stepping away entirely and leaving you reeling as he clapped Coyote on the back and joined his conversation with Bob. 
You shook yourself out of it and tried to push past the desire that flooded through you at the memory as you loaded the drinks onto a tray and began to make the rounds to distribute them. The squad was having a great time and you had a feeling these barbecue’s were going to become a monthly occurrence but you really didn’t mind, you enjoyed the change in scenery from the bar and you liked that they all felt so at home here. Establishing yourself as the designated host for all group events had been your main goal and it seemed like you had succeeded. 
“Rooster wants to play beer pong, what’s the verdict on that after what happened last time?” Jake asked as you stepped out onto the patio and you chuckled as you recalled the last time everyone had been here. The game had gotten so intense that without even realizing Fanboy had taken a giant step backwards as you were walking behind him and sent you flying into the pool. Jake had gone into overprotective mode, yelling at Fanboy for being so unaware of his surroundings but when you resurfaced you had to cling to the sidewall for support because you were laughing so hard, and you’d pulled the age-old trick of beckoning Fanboy over to help you out only to pull him in with you. 
“I am in favor of beer pong, I’ll go grab the table,” you said, handing the boys their drinks before walking around the side of the house to enter the garage. You pulled the folded table from the shelf it resided on and nearly dropped it on your feet when you turned and saw Jake, “Jesus fuck, announce yourself,” you said, catching your breath. 
“Sorry,” he chuckled, but you could tell he really wasn’t. “Just thought I’d help you.” he said, pulling it from your grasp. You kept your hand on it for a moment too long, trapping him in place as your eyes raked over him, taking in his beautifully snug swim shorts and lack of shirt as you finally looked up at him through your lashes. His green eyes were holding onto yours intensely and you took a step closer, almost challenging him to do something as tension weighed heavy in the air. You could smell the spearmint and tequila on his breath and you so desperately wanted a taste as you started to lean up on your tiptoes and moments before your lips brushed the garage door swung open with a bang and the two of you jolted apart and looked over to Phoenix as she entered from the house. Her eyes widened as she took in the scene before her and you turned back to Jake.
“I’ll meet you guys out there,” you said, and he nodded as he left through the other entrance and when you turned back to Phoenix she had regret written all over her face.
“I am so sorry,” she started and you just groaned, watching as she walked down the steps and opened the fridge door, “I came out to grab more beer.” 
“That is the closest we’ve ever gotten,” you said, shooting her a glare as you leaned your head against the side of the fridge and pouted, and she gave you a sad look as she closed the door and placed a hand on her hip.
“Seriously? What the hell is his problem? This is Hangman we’re talking about, I thought for sure he would have made a move by now.”
“You’re telling me…” you grumbled, “whose benefit does he think I wore this for, yours?” you asked, gesturing down to your outfit. You were wearing a simple black string bikini top that did wonders for the girls along with high waisted cut off shorts that were just a little cheeky and she chuckled.
“I like to think you did,” she said and you swatted her arm as you followed her back into the house. “If you got that close in the garage it’s only a matter of time, let the outfit do its work,” she said, giving you a nudge as you walked back onto the patio with a stack of red cups that you started to arrange on the table.
“I call Jupiter on my team,” Rooster said and Jake shot him a glare, “what, she’s got wicked aim,” he said and you chuckled.
“Fine, then I get Phoenix,” Jake countered and your chuckle turned into a sigh. Getting the four most competitive people all on the first round did not bode well for what would follow. The rest of the squad had filtered outside, the sun had lowered just slightly in the sky giving your backyard a break from the heat and it was now the perfect temperature for poolside lounging and spectating. You listened as people immediately started betting, deciding which team to put money on and you looked at Rooster.
“Okay, if you’re going to call me then you need to pull your weight, we’re not losing to those two.” you said and he nodded, holding his hands up for you to high five.
“One step ahead of you, they are going down.” he said as he reached into the cooler and grabbed two seltzers for you, cheersing when you cracked them open. The game got off to a hot start and the two teams were tied, going shot for shot until you decided to up the ante and use the fact that you weren’t with your usual teammate to your advantage. You took a sip of your seltzer just as Jake was starting to line up for his shot and accidentally let a little dribble down your chest and you could feel his gaze on you as he tracked it sliding down the curve of your breasts where you swiped it up and licked it from your fingertip. His focus was wavering and you watched with a smirk as the ball plinked off the side of the cup and rolled into the grass. 
“Bummer,” you said, voice laced with sarcasm as you held your hand out to Rooster who dropped the ping pong balls in your hand. You could see him position himself directly behind his cups, you knew he wasn’t stupid enough to think your stunt was entirely innocent but you had an advantage he wasn’t considering… sure, he had to be laser focused at work but his concentration didn’t hold a candle to yours. You completely disregarded him and watched in satisfaction as both of your throws landed perfectly in the cups and smiled sweetly at him. You had sparked a new type of competitiveness in him and he landed his next two shots, and you decided to take it a step further, starting to fiddle with the straps of your swimsuit for dramatic effect for a few moments before you turned to Rooster and pulled your hair over your shoulder.
“Roo, can you retie this for me? It keeps slipping,” you said, and poor Rooster was none the wiser as he set his drink down to simply help out a friend. You held onto the front of your top, and though you were refusing to make eye contact Jake was burning holes in your skull as he quickly secured the swimsuit and you smiled brightly at Rooster when he finished before he lined up to take his shots. Phoenix was watching the whole thing with a smirk, as much as she hated the fact that your tricks were going to cost her the game she was rather enjoying how easily you were working Jake up, and that was almost worth losing. 
“And that’s game,” you said as your ball landed in their last cup, “better luck next time.” Rooster pulled you in for a celebratory hug before releasing you and you said something about grabbing a glass of water as you slipped back into the house, leaving the rest of the squad to squabble over who was going next. You braced yourself on the edge of the counter as you gulped the water down, your body rejoicing as you plied it with something other than hard seltzer or tequila. You waited for another moment, letting your nails tap erratically against the smooth surface before growing frustrated and rejoining the group, watching as Bob and Fanboy took on Maverick and Coyote… a matchup you wouldn’t have foreseen but you watched anyways in amusement. 
“He didn’t follow you in after that little show?” Phoenix asked quietly as you sat down at the edge of the pool next to her.
“Nope,” you replied, popping the p and she shook her head.
“Silly boy,” she chuckled. You let your eyes drift over to him to find his already on you and you briefly wondered to yourself why nothing was happening. In all the months you’d been here there had been plenty of opportunity and you started to get into your own head, wondering if maybe things had changed, if he no longer felt the same way. You didn’t know what you would do if that was the case but you did know you didn’t like the way it felt like a knife to the heart. As the sun set in the sky the rest of the pilots began to filter out, thanking you for hosting and already asking about the next group hangout until one by one you and Jake were left alone. 
You were collecting towels from around the pool when you looked up to see him leaning against the sliding glass door giving you a soft smile, “come with me?” he asked and you nodded, discarding the towels on a lounge chair and taking his outstretched hand as he led you through your house.
“Where are we going?” you asked with a soft laugh, but he didn’t answer as he opened your bedroom door and you let out a small gasp when he gestured for you to go in first. The room was illuminated by dozens of small tea lights that were casting an ethereal warm glow over the space and you turned to face Jake as he rested his hands on your waist.
“Ever since you got here I’ve been wracking my brain trying to figure out the perfect moment…” he said, and you smiled as you looked up at him, “I wanted it to be special, and Phoenix let me know I was losing the thread,” he said with a chuckle and you laughed as well. “And the more time that passed I realized there isn’t any one perfect moment, but that I was missing out on a lot of moments with you and I don’t want to do that anymore.” he said, brushing a strand of hair behind your ear. “I want every moment with you, if you’ll have me.”
“It’s about time,” you said, leaning up to crash your lips against his and it felt like coming home. You moved in tandem the way you always did, working together seamlessly as you melted against him and he slid his hands down your sides to cup under your ass where you jumped to wrap your legs around him. He carried you to the bed, laying you down gently and slotting himself against you as he slid his tongue past your lips and you moaned into him. 
“Wear this just for me?” he asked as he reached around your neck to untie your bikini top and you nodded as you arched into his touch when he trailed his hand across your chest to pull it off. “My beautiful girl,” he mumbled, mostly to himself as his lips connected to your neck and you let out a breathy sigh, so unbelievably content to have his hands roaming over your body as desire thrummed in your veins. He kissed his way back to your lips before pulling away to gaze into your eyes and your hand instinctively came to rest on his cheek. “I love you so much,” he said as you stroked across his cheekbone.
“I love you,” you replied, pulling his lips back to yours where you kissed with fire and passion. His fingers worked the button of your shorts and he kissed down your body, making sure to leave nothing untouched in his wake as he settled between your legs and pulled them off, quickly pausing to pull his own shirt off. He paid special attention to the soft skin of your thighs, kissing and nipping as his big hands gripped and massaged. He pressed his lips to your clothed heat and you involuntarily bucked against him, desperate for friction. He hooked his fingers around the fabric and slowly pulled them off, eyes flitting up to meet yours that were looking down at him with such love it made his heart stop. You were writhing beneath him, anticipation threatening to rattle you apart from the inside and he placed more delicate kisses around your core.
“Don’t worry, honey… gonna take care of you,” he said before licking a stripe through your folds. Your body jerked at the contact and he looped one of his arms through your leg, pressing a hand to your hips to keep you still. Moans fell from your lips as he carefully licked and sucked your clit and your hands threaded in his hair as you tried to pull him closer. He switched between teasing your entrance and circling your sensitive bundle of nerves with ease, quickly working you up until you were all but begging for more.
“Jake, please…” you sighed, and he could never deny you anything when you sounded like that. He eased one finger into your entrance before quickly adding a second, thrusting slowly and massaging that spot inside you that had you crying out his name. 
“Come on, sweetheart… Cum for me,” he groaned against you, eyes straining upwards as he sucked your clit into his mouth and his cock throbbed as he watched your back arch off the bed. He swore he had never seen anything quite so beautiful as your walls clenched around his fingers. You felt that familiar build within you and a particularly rough thrust of his fingers had you tumbling off the edge. White hot pleasure shot through you as you shook beneath him, chanting his name like a prayer and Jake changed his mind… that was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. You jolted again as he kitten-licked you and gently tugged on his hair to pull him up where you captured his lips and tasted yourself on him. 
“Please, need to feel you…” you said breathlessly, and reached down to swipe his length between your folds, collecting wetness and you moaned at the sensation. He began to press into you and your hands gripped his bicep as he bottomed out, letting out a breath at how full you felt. He took a moment to let you adjust, brushing hair from your face and placing gentle kisses along your cheekbones. You moaned when he began to move and the slight sting gave way to pure pleasure as he rocked against you slowly. 
“I missed you so much, sweetheart… you feel so good around me,” he whispered into your ear as he kissed along your neck and you pushed your body against his, desperately trying to get closer. You let out a loud moan when he picked up the pace, you could feel every inch of him brushing against every spot inside of you and you never wanted this to end. If you could stay wrapped up in this moment of pure bliss forever you would. He snaked a hand between you to rub circles against your clit and you tugged gently at the hair at the base of his neck, involuntarily grinding against him as he groaned in your ear. 
“Fuck, Jake…” you breathed out as you felt the tension begin to grow again. He pressed his forehead against yours and your moans came out strangled as he threw one of your legs over his shoulder, filling you so deeply you swore you could feel him everywhere. “I love you so much,” you said, cupping his face with your hands and he pressed a kiss to your lips, trying to convey everything to you he couldn’t quite find the words for. Your thighs began to tremble and soon the only word you knew was his name, repeating it over and over…
“Gonna cum for me again, angel?” he asked and you nodded against him, “come on sweetheart,” he applied more pressure to your clit. “You always did look so beautiful cumming on my cock,” he said and it was as if that was all you needed for your climax to wash over you. Your body shook beneath him as the pleasure rolled over you and you felt a hot tear slide down your temple as you cried his name. Your walls tightening around him triggered his own release and as you rode out your high you felt his warmth fill you while he groaned praise into your ear. He stilled within you while your chest heaved, your lungs fighting for oxygen while you returned back to your body and you smiled softly as you felt Jake littering your face with kisses. He slowly pulled out of you and you both hissed at the loss, and he quickly grabbed a wet cloth from the bathroom to gently clean you up before sliding into bed and wrapping his arms around you, pulling you in and holding you close.
“I missed you so much,” he said, kissing the top of your head as you snuggled into him.
“I missed you, too,” you replied, still fully blissed out. “Can’t believe you waited so long,” you teased and he chuckled beneath you.
“Wanted it to be perfect,” he said. “I knew I was going to do it tonight though… your little stunts all day long were making it very difficult to hold out.”
“That was the goal,” you said and he laughed again. “I’m going to say something that might seem a little crazy,” you said as you propped yourself up on his chest to look up at him. 
“I’m intrigued,” he replied, carding his fingers through your hair.
“Move in with me.” He looked at you curiously for a moment before a wide grin spread across his features.
“You sure?” he asked and he nodded.
“You are the only thing I have ever been so completely sure of,” you responded and he leaned down to meet your lips.  
“I’ll start packing tomorrow,” he said and you laid your head back down, listening to the steady beat of his heart and tracing patterns along his chest. Laying here wrapped up in Jake’s arms the only word you could come up with to describe how you were feeling was complete… it was like the final piece of the puzzle had finally clicked into place. You weren’t sure why you had doubted him at all today, if there was one thing in this life that you knew to be undeniably true it was that it was you and Jake against the world… it always had been and always would be.
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adiosmemeguy23 · 16 days
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BACKSTORY/TRAUMA YIPPEE
@onyxonline Space Riders AU
Prologue: On the moon of Europa underneath the surface, underneath the oceans, there lives colonies, colonies of humanoid scorpions. These scorpions have lived in Europa for millions of years, have adapted to the dark, and they've never been found. Not until the humans got curious on what was underneath. The humans found the scorpions and the scorpions treated them like gods. Gods from the Surface or Ether. The scientists were then offered to take the prince of the Lord of Lords, Traej, to go to The Ether and become a god. When the scientists arrived back to the ship, they found it mangled by Ether Dwellers. Huge worms that were considered divine and were regularly given tribute, the worms believed the ship was a tribute. The scientist team spent years fixing the ship and teaching the prince of human culture, life, and history. They would name him Damien, but they would keep his original name, Tgru, but translated to English, as his last name, Shanks. He grew to learn to be strong, fast, and lethal. He learned of the anatomy of humans; he was fascinated by it all. But what he loved more than anything were the "hippies". Their ideals, way of live, and wanting everyone to be happy was inspiring, he wanted to invoke that in others. That is when he discovered the violin, he built his own out of spare materials and he played it every night slowly realizing his power to manipulate sound to a physical level. He was happy and the work on the ship was almost finished, he would be able to see Earth, but that is when everything went wrong. 8 years later in the dead of night two cultist scout ships arrived on Europa, having intel that suggests that lifeforms were spotted on Europa. They hoped to capture the people and indoctrinate them, that is when they spotted the human ship. Good thing one of the scientists, Randall, spotted them while on watch and quickly alerted the others, Mary and Keith. The cultists would fire upon them while they used the crystal weapons used by Damiens people, combined with their tech, making a primitive laser pistol. The battle was fierce, but the humans lost and were killed. Damien, in a primitive fury, would use his abilities to kill the cultists. A piece of him died and it would rot away for years. He learned that day that the world is unfair and harsh, and that he would do anything to keep the peace. Inside one of the crafts he found out several things about the universe and the cult the two men belonged too, but one thing he found particularly interesting were the Space Riders from several logs made by the cultist. A group that's entire job was to keep the peace. After MUCH trial and error (9 Earth years' worth due to his blindness) he was able to get one of the ships working. In his spare time, he was able to bury his family, practice his abilities, brood, and read more info on the cult and Space Riders. He would then grab one of the cultist hoods and masks he grabbed and went off to make a quick detour. He would activate the anti-radar and cloaking sequence and land in New York. Luckily it was Halloween, and no one batted an eye when he was walking the streets. (So, I know I haven't explained how he can see without bumping into everything well, so basically, he has Toph vision, by feeling vibrations in the air through his hairs, he can detect movement, objects, and even people’s heart rates and breathing patterns. He was then able to amplify this ability to detect the subtlest of movements. If he listens close enough, he can hear a person's blood running through their system) He would then, eventually, be able to "find" a violin and some clothing he found comfortable, which was hippie like clothing. (He accidentally killed the store clerk when he screamed because he took off his mask and saw a scorpion face.) He would then still blend in, and people would even take photos with him. After, visiting his dream world he set off to protect the galaxy from harm. He's been thinking ever since he killed the store clerk, why didn't he react?
PT. 2 COMING SOON (jesus)
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yuzukahibiscus · 10 months
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Jewels of Takarazuka – Yuzuka Rei-san [Flower Troupe] (from Fujingaho May Issue)
This series documents the words of Takarazuka Top Stars, and their strength of living in the current age and Yuzuka Rei of Flower Troupe appears on this month’s issue.  Like a king that shines ever brightly on stage, Yuzuka-san appears on the photoshoot scene and we compliment her for having a flawless beauty like a deer in the wild. Then when she’s standing in front of the camera now, it seems like some kind of story is about to begin… Yuzuka-san speaks with carefully woven words and with a soft voice, talks about what she is thinking now.
Even if the acting is decided already every day, I just love presenting a new vibe to it
The one we admire in Shoujo Manga, the piano magician with fervent fans, the Broadway Star Dancer. With her gorgeous visual and delicate acting, Yuzuka-san brings such beautiful characters you couldn’t see in reality to life. If you watch her stage performances, you’d see that the world of dreams is here now……That’s what I firmly believe. When we interviewed Yuzuka-san, she was challenging to perform the famous work in Takarazuka Revue, the renowned musical of “MAYERLING”. It is about the tragic love story between Austria Crown Prince Rudolf and his lover Mary Vetsera. Yuzuka-san used to express it uniquely, “I don’t want [my performance] to look like it was cultivated artificially but to deliver one that is naturally moving”, so how did she feel when she was working on this famous musical?
“I’ve said that, haven’t I (LOL). I really like fresh air. So in the world that I’m portraying, even though we’d be doing the same things every day… That’s quite the opposite of what I said [about natural acting] (LOL). But even if we’re doing the same things every day, those first encounters and experiences are different every time. In contrast, even though it may be the first time I’m seeing some audience, I can feel that they’re the important people who’ve always known me… Performers and the audience can create some feelings and reactions together that not even we can imagine, and that’s something that I always find enjoyable. The premiere of this performance was 40 years ago. Even though there’s a little change in direction, the prologue song and the choreography was similar to how it was back then. I’d act according to what I understand from the whole setup of the musical. I won’t think about what I think is correct, instead I’ll continue to question my interpretation and delve into it more to act while thinking about it.”
In this musical with such intensity, you’d have to build up so much strength for the ending…
“Amidst the intensity and while continuing to maintain focused, there’s a unique kind of energy in musicals, surprisingly I’m not too overwhelmed by that. But while that builds up and accumulates densely, I think it’s difficult to overcome the “gap” or that “space” when [the tension] couldn’t build up well. Or maybe I should say, that it feels like those Jenga building blocks…… But the concentration the audience have for this musical is higher than before, so I felt that they also helped us create this ambience for us together.”
I want to walk a path that won’t feel like I’m betraying myself
This is perhaps the charm that’s only unique in live performances.
But in these 3 years, the previous situation was still unstable and as a leader she led the troupe to overcome very tough circumstances.
“I really thought that while I’ve been learning, I’ve already walked this far. Even in the same scenarios, I’ve come to learn that depending on people’s circumstances, there would be different feelings and the way we approach things also change. I know that it’s not good to just evaluate things while thinking only of ourselves. If everything was successful, I think it might be difficult to have the experience where everyone aims at “facing wholeheartedly towards stage performances” together…… so I thought I acquired a lot [during this time.] Whatever something happens, I want to be the person that people can trust in. Even if I covered it up, only I would know how I have dealt with that problem. Sometimes I may not know if I’ve made a wrong decision, and I won’t even know if that would be the best decision for that time, yet there must be something that I could learn from in failure. That’s why, I’ve decided not to do things that would make me lose confidence in myself. I often say be confident in yourself, but it’s difficult to believe in yourself without evidence. “Trust” might be a slightly different word, but I don’t try to deceive myself, instead I worked hard for it desperately… I wish I could feel that way without any hesitation,  and I would want to say that my underclassmen self when I was still trying to find that confidence.”
That delicate and soft feeling may be different from what she said a few years ago about “wanting to face my weaknesses earnestly”. 
“When we act, we think about humans, but it’s difficult to comment on whether they’re strong and weak. If they’re “weak”, they may seem negative at first glance, but they also may be someone that has great observation, a profound imagination,  and that they sincerely care only for a particular something. So “strengths” and “weaknesses” are two sides of a coin. If one believes too much that “I am strong”, that may instead lead to this pushing force that overwhelms oneself. So I’d say, it’s fine to be weak. Because humans are not born to be perfect. Rest a little, recover yourself, find your strategy to face your next task. When you find that strategy, if someone else has troubles, you could then help them. When I was playing as Rudolf, I really felt how greatly people impact others. That’s probably why I have such thought.”
Embracing her internal weaknesses with that resilient strength bestows her with the persuasion capacity on stage. Perhaps the Flower Troupe stage performances she lead will continue to shine radiantly.
MY JEWEL ~The jewel of the heart~
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This is a photo of my nephew and my dog. “Even though they don’t always meet, but when they do, they’d always take a walk. My dog loves my nephew and is always smiling. My nephew leads the dog carefully like an adult when they walk together and I can slowly feel his growth. Now as I’m playing as Rudolf, I’d have to say, “Because of everyone’s great love, I have also progressed and grown.”
ON STAGE...
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“ENCHANTEMENT –A Luxurious Perfume–” is a stylish  revue with perfume as the theme. This is a Takarazuka-styled revue wound in the gorgeous world of black tailcoats, silk hat and cane. Apart from singing and dancing, you could see her sometimes chic and sometimes sexy, that you couldn’t miss her out in any instant.
Next stage: Musical Romance “A Battlefield for the Two of Us” (Author/Director: Masatsuka Haruhiko)
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In a stage of a fictitious federation formed by numerous autonomous states, this is about a young military officer with burning passions and how he struggles between the gap of the country and the individual, portraying his story of an “unacceptable” love and great friendship. Yuzuka-san says, “It’s very interesting learning from the rehearsal of Masatsuka (Hirohiko)-sensei’s musical. “War” is still sometimes that is relevant to us in this age, so I will cherish the importance of performing this production and do my best to create this production.”
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sailor-aviator · 6 months
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Outrun the Devil: Prologue
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Outrun the Devil: Prologue
Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Reader
Summary: Bob Floyd had always been a good kid. So how did he manage to let his childhood friends rope him into living a life of crime? A member of the famous outlaw group, the Dagger posse, Bob longs for a future where he can settle down and earn a respectable living. When he meets the new barmaid at the local tavern, that future doesn't seem so farfetched, but will her past catch up to her?
Warnings: Talk of prostitution, swearing, use of y/n, talk of abuse (sexual and physical), talk of abandonment, self degradation, etc.
Word Count: 1.95k
A/N: Starting off a lot darker than the other two, but I hope you stick around! Also, I'm going to ask that y'all please ignore the historical inaccuracies of traveling westward in this one. I did actual research for this one, and finally decided that I was thinking to deep. As always, reblogs, comments, and likes are appreciated! You can find my works on AO3 under sailor_aviator. 18+ ONLY!!!
Series Masterlist || DPU Masterlist || Robert "Bob" Floyd Tag List
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The Streets of New Orleans smelled like shit. No, worse than shit. It smelled like shit warmed over. The rain had died down, at least. It had been a slow night because of it, and you knew that the madame wouldn’t be pleased with your lack of earnings for the evening.
Like it was your fault.
Heaving a sigh, you pushed off the building whose awning had given you some respite from the downpour that ended only moments ago. Glancing along the usually busy street, you saw no one in sight. Turning on your heel, you moved briskly down the cobblestone street back to the brothel you called home.
You didn’t know anything else besides the four walls of the “house of pleasure” as your madame, Lady Marie Dubois, called it. You doubted she was an actual lady, but had rather gifted herself the title. You were fairly certain your mother had been one of the many women that resided there, but no one would ever give you the whole story.
“If you needed to know,” Marie had sniffed, “you would know.”
That’s what she had said the last time you had asked. You guessed you had probably been around eight years old at the time. Never having gotten an answer other than that one, you resigned yourself to living the life of an orphan girl taken in by a high end brothel. When you had been old enough, Lady Dubois had put you straight to work in the business.
“No one stays here for free,” she had tutted. “And your worth more to me this way than as a maid.”
You earned your keep.
You came up to the grand doorways of the brothel and nodded at the man who stood guard as he opened the door for you. The entryway was decorated lavishly in fine silks and smooth velvets. Expensive furniture lined the walls and the scent of smoke and cheap perfume wafted in the air. You made your way down the hall to the back room where you knew Marie would be.
Sure enough, she sat behind a large, wooden desk counting, what you assumed, were the meager earnings of your colleagues. You almost laughed at the word. You stopped just past the door as Marie glanced up at you. She gestured to the seat opposite her, and you plopped down, throwing the small bag of coins you had earned earlier in the evening on to her desk. She frowned.
“Not even you could get more customers tonight, hm?”
You shrugged. “No one likes getting caught in the rain.”
Marie dumped the coins onto her desk, nodding in approval as your meager earnings for the evening still outperformed what the rest had earned.
“You’re not as angry as I expected,” you mused, raising a brow at her. Marie snorted and began counting your coins.
“We had a good week,” she began, “one bad night won’t hurt us.”
You almost laughed. “You’re being awfully cavalier this evening.”
She stopped her counting to look at you, studying you for a couple of moments. She sighed and leaned back in her chair, folding her hands in her lap.
“You’re young y/n,” she stated. “Men like young. You have a few more years before those looks of yours start to fade. You’ll make up for tonight without a problem.”
You didn’t reply, mulling over her words.
“Did you need me for anything else?” you asked softly. She shook her head.
“No, you’re free to retire for the evening.”
Nodding, you stood up and silently made your way out of the room. Walking up the wooden steps past the second floor, you heard the telltale sounds of some of the women still working. Not stopping, you rounded the bannister and made your way up to the private quarters.
Once safely in your room, you locked the door behind you and began to strip out of your working dress. Draping it over the chair in the corner, you opted to take care of it properly in the morning. Quickly draping your nightdress on, you sat on the edge of your bed and thought about Marie’s words.
You had never known a life outside of this one. The only reason you knew life could be easier was thanks, in part, to the church women who would corner you to tell you that you could be saved. You found that highly unlikely. But maybe they were right about one thing. Maybe you could have a different life. Staring at your reflection in the mirror of your vanity, you allowed yourself to ponder. Is this what you wanted your life to be - stuck in this never-ending hell. And that’s what it was, when you allowed yourself to think about it. Giving away your body like the daily paper in order to earn your living. You didn’t want this. You never wanted this. You didn’t even realize the tears had started rolling down your cheek until you were already sobbing.
You couldn’t live like this. Not anymore.
Scrubbing the tears from your face, you laid down in your bed. You fell asleep rather quickly, and the next morning when you woke up, you had made up your mind.
You dressed quickly and silently in your civilian attire and made your way downstairs to the first floor. Just as you reached the door, a voice called out to you.
“Where are you going?” Marie asked, eyebrow raised.
Your heart skipped a beat. Willing your nerves to settle, you turned to her with what you hoped was a nonchalant look.
“I thought I would go out and look for some new accessories,” you state simply. Marie hums.
“It has been a while since you’ve gotten anything new,” she mused. “Wait right there.”
Before you could respond, she turned on her heel and made her way down the hallway. Moments later, she was placing a small purse of coins in your hand.
“Don’t be out too late. It’s already past noon.”
You smiled at her softly and made your way out the door. You walked quickly down the road, gunning for the docks by the river. You quickly spotted what you were looking for. You made your way up to the attendant who was selling and giving out tickets to other travelers.
“Good day to you, miss,” he smiled warmly. You returned the smile politely.
“Where is this ship going?”
“We’re headed up towards St. Louis and then down the Missouri to Independence. It’ll be about a week before we get there.”
You nodded, reaching into your coin purse. You offered the money to him. “Is this enough to cover my fare?”
“That should be more than enough, miss,” he replied, taking the money and handing you a ticket. You made your way onto the deck of the steamboat, taking one last look at the city you had called home. Disappearing into the ship, you made your way to the room number that was printed neatly on your ticket. Room 24. Stumbling inside, you locked the door behind you and laid down on the plush bed. Only minutes later did the ship begin to make its way down the Mississippi River. You let out a nervous, shaky breath. There was no turning back now.
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The week passed quickly with you mostly keeping to yourself in your cabin, only coming out for the occasional meal. When the boat docked in Independence, Missouri, you made your way to the market. You didn’t have a plan really, you just knew you needed to get further away.
“It’s not much yet, but it’s gettin’ there. I’m tellin’ ya! The west is the land of opportunity!”
You swung your head to see where the voice was coming from. A man stood on the porch of a general store talking with, who you assumed, was the owner.
“Anybody lookin’ to make a fresh start better make their way there before there’s nothin’ left to take,” he continued. Your body moved before your mind could even think about what you were doing.
“Excuse me,” you heard yourself say. The two men turned to look at you, eyebrows furrowed. “How does one get to the west?”
“Well, darlin’, it just so happens that I’m ‘bout to make my way thataway now,” he smiles warmly. You shifted your feet.
“If I could impose upon you, sir, I would be grateful if you would allow me to accompany you to wherever it is your going,” you implored. The man takes you in for a moment before nodding slowly. “I promise I won’t be a bother.”
“Alright, miss,” he starts, “that’d be just fine. We’re headed to a town called Maverick out in the New Mexico Territory. It’s ‘bout a week's ride from here. You think you can manage it?”
You nodded vehemently. “Yes, sir.”
“Well then,” he grins, gesturing towards his cart. “Let’s get a move on.”
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The second week passed by more quickly than the first, and you found your companion to be pleasant company. His name was Joel, as you came to find out. He had been happily married to his wife, Helen, for thirty-two years that April and they had three daughters and one son, all somewhere around your age.
“Reckon we’ve only got a couple o’ hours left fore we get there,” he said one morning. And he had been right. The two of you rolled into town only a few hours after you had packed up your camp that morning. You took a moment to admire the small, desert town that was so unlike your New Orleans. Joel stopped the cart outside a building with the word “Saloon” stamped across a sign at the top.
“You’ll want to speak with Penny,” he says, looking at you with a serious expression. “She’s been lookin’ for help running the saloon, and with any luck she’s still lookin’. Ask’er for a job and a place to stay.”
You nodded and offered the old man a smile. Hopping out of your seat and onto the ground, you made to make your way up the steps.
“Oh, and y/n?”
You turned.
“Don’t be a stranger now, ya hear?” Joel grinned. Your smile grew wider as you waved the old man off. Trudging your way up the steps and through the swing doors, you were greeted with the sight of scattered tables and a small piano pushed off to the side by the far wall. Your eyes quickly shifted to the women standing behind the bar. She was beautiful with dark hair and age lines running across her pretty face. She offered you a small smile.
“Can I help you?” she asked. You walked up to the bar so that you were only a few feet away.
“My name is y/n,” you started, feeling unexpected nerves starting to rise in your gut. “I’m looking for a job and a place to stay.”
The woman regarded you for a moment before responding. “Well, you’re in luck. I’ve been looking to hire someone to help me run this place now that more people are moving to town. The name is Penny. You just get in to town?”
“Yes,” you nodded. “Just a couple of minutes ago, actually.”
Penny raised an eyebrow at you. “You don’t say? Well, I’ve got a room you can stay in just upstairs. You got any belongings with you?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Well, not to worry. I’m sure I’ve got a couple of things at home I can bring in for you. I’ll show you the ropes tomorrow. Come on,” she gestured for you to follow her up the stairs. For the first time in your life, you felt what you could only describe as ease.
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leclerqueensainz · 1 year
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A Family of Three (C.L 16) - Part.I- Discoveries, Reunions, and Surprises
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Paring: Charles Leclerc X OC!Marie Anderson
Synopsis: Charles and Marie ended any chance of a relationship years ago. They just didn't expect to have to share custody of a child after the death of their best friend.
⚠️ Warnings: Mention of death and murder, swearing, Charles being a little aggressive in his reactions, mention of sex and drug use. (This chapter may contain triggers!) (+16)
**In this story, Jules Bianchi died in 2019, not 2015, which changes some facts in the careers of the drivers.
A.N: Hello! How are you doing? After a long time, I finally brought Part 1 translated into English! Remembering that English is not my first language, so there may be some mistakes! I tried my best!
Feedback is always welcome. Let me know if you liked it!
Word Count: 7.882
Read the prologue here!
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January 15th, 2023 - Milan, Italy
"Good morning, Marcella!" I greet my secretary as I enter the office. "Any news for me?" I ask the blonde girl who is sitting with her eyes fixed on the computer in front of her.
"Good morning, Marie! And...HA! I did it!" Marcella suddenly jumps, startling me. "I'm sorry! It's just that I managed to schedule the meeting with Fred Lacroix for next week." She says, trying to compose herself, and I smile."
"That's great! You're amazing," I say, leaning over next to her at the table and taking a peek at her computer. "Do you think he'll be in a good mood? He's not exactly known for being pleasant when it comes to selling and buying his art," I ask and Marcella just shrugs.
"I don't know, and honestly, I don't worry about it," she says, and I can see a smug smile spread across her face. "Either way, we're awesome! We always get what we want," she finishes, and I laugh at her enthusiasm. 
I agree with Marcella. We are awesome and always get what we want when it comes to work.
After Jules died, I moved from Monaco to Italy. I felt like I needed to leave it all behind, even if it meant burying a part of who I was with my past. I needed a fresh start, and I closed my eyes to my old life. I had nothing left in Monaco. Nothing held me back or was even worth staying for.
I needed time and a new life, and that's exactly what I found when I came to Italy, where I was able to enroll in arts just in time to continue the school year. And a year and a half later, I graduated and started interning at one of the best galleries in Milan. Shortly after that, I realized I had a lot of potential for curating and dedicated myself to the field, of which today I am still a part, with the highest success rate in recruiting and selling new artists.
Today, I can say that my life is more than comfortable, and I spend so much of my day occupied with work that I hardly have time to think about everything I left behind a few years ago.
"Ah!" Marcella screams and catches me off guard, making me take a few steps back.
"Oh my god, Marcella! You're going to kill me, girl!" I say and put my hand on my chest, feeling my heart skipping like crazy.
"Sorry! I just remembered you got a letter this morning," she says, and I swear my confusion is written all over my face. "I mean, you didn't really get it, it's more like 'they passed the envelope under the door while we were closed, and I stepped on it when I got here'," she says and pulls out a crumpled white envelope with a half footprint on it. "I tried to clean it up, but as you can see, it didn't go very well. Seriously, someone should clean the streets of Milan more," she says and hands me the envelope.
I examine the envelope to find the sender, but I only find "Marie Anderson" written in delicate handwriting.
"There's no sender. That's strange." I say and Marcella nods.
"I thought it was kind of creepy too. I mean, who still sends letters In 2023? Isn't it easier to send a message on Insta? Or like, an email?" I nod my head and shrug.
"Well, let it be," I say and start walking towards my office. "Please let anyone who wants to speak to me know to leave a message. And that includes my mom, okay?" I say and Marcella nods. "Great, thanks," I say, entering my office and closing the door behind me.
I throw my bag on the desk and sit in my chair. I analyze the envelope in my hand again and for a moment, I feel a strange sensation as I stare at it.
"Okay, let's end the suspense, Marie," I say to myself and I grab a staple remover from the pencil holder, passing it over the glued part of the envelope.
Opening the envelope, I take out a sheet of paper with the same handwriting as the envelope, and two photos of a little boy with dark hair and eyes who I swear I've never seen before, but who somehow seems very familiar to me. I turn over the photos to see if there's anything written on the back.
"Vincenzo. 24/12/2021" 
Was written in one of the photos. The little boy was sitting next to what looked like a Christmas tree. I took a look at the next photograph, where the same boy, who seemed a bit older, was sitting on a mat surrounded by toys. "Vincenzo. 19/12/2022."
Feeling even more confused and with a strange sensation spreading through my chest, I picked up the letter I had left aside on the table and began to read it.
France, January 2nd, 2023.
Marie,
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've thought about how I would write to you. You don't know me, and to be honest, I don't think anyone in his circle of friends and family has even heard of me.
My name is Cecilia, and that's all you need to know about me right now, aside from what I'm about to write to you next: I was engaged to Jules Bianchi.
I know this is strange and perhaps even unbelievable, but it's true. Jules and I had a brief but passionate love story. I loved Jules, and I can say that he loved me too.
Two days before his death, I found out that I was pregnant. I gave birth to Vincenzo on December 24th, 2019. He was a healthy and strong little boy, very similar to Jules.
I loved him from the moment I found out he was growing inside me. The result of something so pure and beautiful, from my relationship with Jules.
I know it's a lot for you to process right now, but so that you can know that I'm telling you the truth, there are two photos of Vincenzo. I want you to look at them and see Jules, just as I do every time I look at my son.
"I've been wanting to write to you for a long time. Jules saw you as a sister. I'm sorry I hid this from you and his family too, but I was so afraid. Afraid of rejection, of being seen as a liar. I couldn't go through any of that. I only had Jules, and after he left me, there was no one else I could trust, so I've been raising Vincenzo alone until now, but I don't think I can do it anymore. Vincenzo has a family besides me. And I need him to grow up knowing that he is loved.
I promise I to explain everything you need to know. Please meet me at the café where you used to meet every time you came together to Nice. January 18th at 4 pm.
- Cecilia.
My hands tremble as I put the letter back on the table.
What the hell is this? Is this some kind of sick joke?
I take the two photos back in my hands and stare at them, now realizing why I found that boy so familiar. It was Jules. That boy is the spitting image of Jules.
But how is this even possible? Why didn't Jules tell us he had someone? That's not like him. Jules was always an open book to us. He told us everything, just as we did with him. He wouldn't hide this from us...would he?
With my head swimming with questions and my heart heavy as lead, I found myself shouting Marcella's name, and less than a minute later, her short locks appeared through the door.
My hands tremble as I put the letter back on the table.
What the hell is this? Is this some kind of sick joke?
I take the two photos back in my hands and stare at them, now realizing why I found that boy so familiar. It was Jules. That boy is the spitting image of Jules.
But how is this even possible? Why didn't Jules tell us he had someone? That's not like him. Jules was always an open book to us. He told us everything, just as we did with him. He wouldn't hide this from us...would he?
With my head swimming with questions and my heart heavy as lead, I found myself shouting Marcella's name, and less than a minute later, her short locks appeared through the door.
"Yes?" She asks before looking at me for a moment and entering my office complete with a worried expression. "Are you okay, Marie?" She says kneeling by my side.
"Book a flight for tomorrow morning. I need to go to France."
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January 18th, 2023. - Nice, France.
I stare again at the clock hanging on the wall above the counter of the small café. 3:45 PM.
15 minutes. Just 15 minutes until I could find out who Cecilia was and why she decided to contact me now, after all this time. And why me? Yes, Jules, Charles, and I were always very close despite the age difference. But why reach out to me? If she intended to introduce the boy to Jules' family, why didn't she contact Christine or Philippe?
I hadn't seen Jules' family in a long time, we didn't even exchange messages. I left them behind when I decided to move on to Italy. They were buried with my past in Monaco.
The bell on the entrance door rings, indicating that someone has entered the premises. My head quickly snaps toward the sound.
And it's like in one minute, everything I struggled so hard to forget and leave behind comes back with force and without control like waves of a tsunami.
Standing just a few meters away from where I'm sitting, my gaze meets Charles'.
Charles. My ex-boyfriend whom I haven't seen in almost four years. The part that hurts the most from my past, besides the death of Jules.
He looks different. So different from the last time I saw him at Jules' funeral. This time he's not dressed in mourning black, no. He's wearing casual clothes, dark jeans, and a moss green sweater with the word "FERRARI" stamped in black. There's a scruffy beard on his face and his eyes...damn. The eyes that last time reflected so much hopelessness were now more alive, but still with certain traces of concern.
Charles walks up to where I'm sitting, his steps quick and wide as if he wanted to corner me before I could escape again. He stops half a meter away, and his gaze curiously roams over me. His expression is stern but also covered in doubt. I bet that, like me, he wants to understand why I'm here.
"Charles..." I'm the first to say, my voice low and uncertain. He nods slowly, his gaze still fixed on me, as if he wants to uncover all the secrets I gained during the years we were apart.
“What are you doing here, Marie?" he asks, direct and determined, without any hesitation. It's a tone I would have never expected to hear from the Charles I left four years ago. Yes, he really has changed.
I wished I could answer him with the same intensity, but honestly, I don't think I could. There's so much going on here and my head is spinning with so many questions and emotions. Why is Charles here? What the hell is going on? Did he set all this up?
"Is this some kind of joke? Because if it is, I swear to God it's not funny," he says, his tone now rough.
I sit there staring at him, completely confused.
Charles runs his hand through his hair, messing up his brown locks even more. He sighs heavily and closes his eyes, his tongue quickly passing over his lower lip. He used to do that all the time when he felt anger or frustration. At least that hasn't changed.
"What are you doing here, Charles?" I ask, and he opens his eyes, once again staring at me.
Charles's hand reaches into his back pocket and pulls out an envelope identical to the one that was left for me in the office in Italy. The difference is that I can see that this one was addressed to Charles, only his name, and also without a sender.
"Please tell me it wasn't you, Marie," he says as his eyes shift from the envelope to my face. I look at him with all the sincerity I can muster and answer, "No, it wasn't me." He nods his head, his expression softening a bit. He moves and sits in the vacant chair in front of me, his hands going up to his face to rub it.
"Jules has a son," he says.
"I know," I reply.
"Charles lowers his hands and stares at me once again, confusion etched on his face. Before he can say anything, I reach into my bag on the table, open it, and take out the white envelope. Charles looks at my hand for a moment before reaching over the table to take the envelope from me."
"You got one too," he says, not looking at me, even though it's not a question,  I nod my head in agreement.
"It seems she arranged to meet with both of us. I think it's easier if we hear the story at the same time, that way there's no risk of getting the wrong versions," I say, and his gaze shifts from the envelopes on the table to me.
"Do you think it's a lie? That the boy isn't Jules's son?" he asks seriously, and I just shrug in response.
"I believe it could be Jules's son. I just don't know why she waited all this time and why she chose us. Obviously, we're not the best people to show Vincenzo that he has a family on his father's side," I say, and I see Charles's jaw tighten.
"We were friends with Jules. He trusted us," he says, once again his voice sounding rough.
"It seems he didn't trust us enough to tell us he fell in love," I say, and immediately regret it.
I look at Charles and if we were part of a cartoon, he would have flames in his eyes.
“You don't know what happened. You don't know his reasons, just like me,” he says through gritted teeth. “Don't doubt his motives. Not when he's not here to defend himself.”
In all the years I've spent by Charles' side, I've never seen him so angry. And if I didn't know him, I'd be scared.
But do you still know him? I silently ask myself.
"That's not what I meant," I defensively reply. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out that way. Of course, Jules had reasons and we'll find out when Cecilia arrives." Charles relaxes his jaw and adjusts in his seat.
I look at the clock on the wall again. 4:10 PM. She's late. I look at Charles, a little anxious.
"Do you think she's coming?" he shrugs, but his hand goes into his hoodie pocket and pulls out a cell phone. 
"She's late," he states what I already know. "But I think so, she's coming." Charles carelessly tosses the phone onto the table, his anxious fingers fidgeting with his rings.
"Congratulations on the runner-up, by the way," I say, trying to ease both of our anxieties, and he looks back at me.
"Did you follow the races?" he asked, a little surprised.
"Yes," I admit, somewhat embarrassed. "My secretary is a huge Formula 1 fan," I add, which is not a lie. 
Like all Italians, Marcella is a devoted Tifosi. And even though I wanted to leave everything I knew behind, I couldn't escape one of the most beloved sports in Europe, especially in Italy, the home of Ferrari.
Charles lets out a low laugh, his look adopting the expression of a mischievous boy. Oh no.
"Your secretary, huh?" he says with a teasing and suggestive tone.
"Ah, shut up, Leclerc!" I say, trying to sound serious but failing when I let out a laugh. "I'm serious! My secretary is a diehard Tifosi. She can't shut up for a minute about Ferrari and makes me watch all the races," I say, shrugging.
"Yeah, yeah... And I bet I'm your 'secretary's' favorite driver, right?" he says, making air quotes with his fingers and having a smug smile on his face.
"Actually, she prefers Sainz," I say, and instantly his smile turns into a serious expression, which makes me laugh.
Soon, Charles' dimples appear on his cheek and my heart skips a beat at the sound of his typically somewhat flawed and exaggerated laugh. Oh, how I enjoyed hearing that horrible but at the same time very cute laugh again.
At that moment, even though I hated to admit it, I realized how much I missed that feeling of familiarity and lightness. And even though just a few minutes ago, I was doubting whether I still knew the person that Charles had become, I could see that regardless of the years and tragedies that life had subjected him to from a young age, that kind and playful boy that I had once fallen in love with was still there. And maybe he would never leave. And I liked that.
Looking at Charles smiling, sitting in front of me, I wonder for just a second if it would have been different if I hadn't left. But as soon as the thought came, I pushed it away. Because even though I was happy to know that Charles still had something familiar to me inside him, we were not meant to be even before Jules' death. And I doubt that we could have maintained a good relationship with all the pain and mourning that surrounded us. I made a good choice. Yes, I did the right thing.
Leaving Monaco was one of the hardest things I had to face. But it made me grow and become a strong woman. I learned to deal with loss, even if it may not be the healthiest way, it still worked for me. I was able to finish college, got the job I wanted, and met new people. I fell in love, and even though I didn't love them like I loved Charles, I still allowed myself to feel and try happiness. Clearly, it didn't work out, but the experience was worth it.
And I can also say that Charles has achieved what he wanted, or almost everything. He is one of the best Formula 1 drivers and drives for Ferrari, which is almost every motorsport athlete's dream. He has a successful career and is known worldwide for it. And even though he didn't get the title he so desperately craved last year, he may get it this year. He is focused, grateful, and kind. The golden boy. Il Predestinato.
Even though Charles is so young, he has given his family and friends everything they ever dreamed of. Pascale must be so proud of him, and if Harvé were still alive, I'm sure he would also be proud of the son he raised. And Jules would also be proud to see Charles' progress.
And then the emptiness appears again. Jules. I try my best not to think about him. The memories are still painful even after all these years.
I think I let my thoughts reflect too much because Charles, who was laughing before, now looks at me with a compassionate expression. He probably thought of Jules too.
"I miss him too," he says and I nod my head. "And I missed you too," his hand meets mine on the table.
There were no ulterior motives. Just a gesture. A gesture to affirm what he was saying. And it hurt. It hurt in my heart and soul.
I quickly withdraw my hand from his and stare at the table. Charles withdraws his hands and keeps them close to his body.
"I know you didn't owe me anything, Marie. No explanations, not loyalty," he starts, his voice a little broken, making my heart tighten. "But Jules died and you left. Why did you leave?" he asks, and I can hear the hurt in his voice.
I wished I had the strength to lift my gaze and tell him while looking him in the eyes that everything I did was out of fear and thinking that there was nothing left for me in Monaco. That I still loved him even after he broke up with me and that losing Jules to death destroyed me, but knowing that I would lose Charles while he was still alive would only ruin me even more. I couldn't see him every day and know that he no longer belonged to me. And that every minute I spent mourning and heartbroken without him reminded me that love was impossible for me. That I didn't deserve to be loved. That there would never be anyone to love me.
"I had to go," I say, still staring at my hands. "I don't expect you to understand or forgive me. Because I'm not asking for any of that, Charles," my voice sounds firm but my eyes burn.
I take a deep breath and hold it for a few seconds before releasing it. I raise my gaze to meet his when I'm sure the tears won't fall.
"I had to make a choice and I did. I chose myself," I say simply, perhaps trying to convince myself.
Charles nods his head and goes back to fiddling with the rings on his fingers. This time it was difficult for him to look at me.
"I'm happy to see who you've become, Marie. And I hope you've achieved what you wanted when..." he pauses for a second, unsure of what to say, "when you left Monaco." A tired laugh escapes his lips. "I'm not going to judge you, especially since when you left, we were no longer a couple. But I was an idiot to think that we were still friends." He looks back at me. "I was foolish until I realized that there would be no possibility for us without Jules being here."
I wanted to scream. I wanted to stand up and throw everything in front of me at him. I wanted to curse at him and tell him that he didn't have that right. But to be fair, I could never do that. Not when I left, when it was me who left what was left of the three of us. Jules had died and I had fled. When I left, I didn't think of Charles or his feelings. I only thought of myself and how I could never live with that.
I don't regret it. I did what I thought was necessary and would do it again. Charles might have needed me, but I needed to leave and heal. And that's what I did. Charles still had friends and family to rely on, and I had no one. No present family, no friends, and no boyfriend. Charles and I both mourned, of course, but we mourned in different ways. He had lost a friend, and I had lost everything.
There was no one to come home to and hug. There was no one there to tell me that they were sorry for my loss and that everything would be okay. So I went after what I thought I needed and I got it. I went in search of myself, a new life, new choices, and opportunities, and I found them. I found myself. Of course, I let go of a lot, and the void left by Jules and Charles was never filled, but I learned to cope and use it to my advantage for other things, and that was enough, at least for now.
Before I could respond to him, I'm interrupted once again by the sound of the damn doorbell.
Charles and I turned our attention to the door at the same time. Both of us were staring at a slim blonde woman, wearing a green coat and leggings. But what caught our attention the most was the little boy in her arms. He was about 3 or 4 years old, with dark hair, lying with his face hidden in the woman's neck, and his small hand clutching onto her collar as if he were afraid she would leave if he let go.
Charles and I stood up in rehearsed gestures, all at the same time. He stopped beside me, his hand resting on my shoulder, covered by my own coat this time. The woman looked at us and came slowly towards us. When she got closer and stopped about a meter away from us, I could analyze her.
Her face was thin and perfectly symmetrical, and even though it seemed like she hadn't slept in days, her tired eyes were a beautiful shade of greenish-brown. She is very beautiful. Her lips opened in a small smile, and there I could see that she easily fit Jules' type.
"I assume you are Charles and Marie, right?" She says, her voice sweet and tired.
My gaze moves from her to the little boy in her arms, and then they cross with Charles'. He tells me through his eyes the same things I am thinking. We return our attention to the blonde in front of us and nod.
"Great!" She clears her throat before continuing, "I'm Cecilia, and this little guy here is Vincenzo." She gently shakes the child, who tightens his grip on her coat collar even more. "Jules' son."
Charles' grip on my shoulder becomes stronger, and I swallow hard. I can't take my eyes off the little boy, and now up close, I can see his profile. His chubby childlike cheek and long eyelashes, just like Jules'.
Cecilia shifts uncomfortably, her feet shifting the weight from one to the other, and she adjusts Vincenzo's position in her lap.
"I know you must have thousands of questions, and I promise I will answer them all. But before that, would you mind if I sit down? Vincenzo is a bit heavy, and I walked here with him in my arms," she says, embarrassed.
"Of course not. Please," Charles approaches her and pulls the chair he was sitting in a few minutes ago. Cecilia sits down, careful not to make any sudden movements and wake Vincenzo.
Charles points to the empty chair, and I sit down. He takes a few steps hto the table next to us and takes an unoccupied chair to sit on. Once the three of us are seated around the table, Charles calls the waitress, whom I only now notice has been staring at us this whole time. The redheaded and smiling girl, who probably can't be more than 19 years old, approaches with her gaze fixed on Charles- she probably recognized him.
Charles is the one who orders. A cappuccino for me- which causes a sensation in my stomach that he still remembers- an iced tea for himself, and he asks Cecilia what she would like to drink, to which she responds that coffee would be enough. The redhead writes down the orders and asks for permission to leave. Her eyes still glued to Charles.
I roll my eyes internally, but I know I can't blame her. After all, it's probably not every day that she serves a public figure. When we used to come here with Jules, the employees were different, and the small café is located on a somewhat isolated street in Nice, so it's unlikely that many famous people come here.
I take my gaze off the waitress and turn back to Cecilia, who was already looking at me attentively with a small smile on her lips.
"Well..." Charles begins. "Why are we here, Cecilia? Why only now have you contacted us?" He leans forward a little more, his arms resting on the wooden table.
Cecilia shifts in her chair carefully and her eyes briefly glance at Vincenzo before turning back to us.
"I wanted you to meet Vincenzo. While he was alive, Jules always mentioned you as part of his family. He loved you both very much," she says, and I feel my chest tightening.
"But why only now?" I speak for the first time. "I know you wrote in the letter that you were afraid, but it still sounds strange that you would come looking for us now, without any reason," I say, trying to keep my voice steady.
Cecilia falls silent for a few seconds as if she wants to formulate the next words carefully.
"There's a reason," she confirms. "Look, I know it's strange, and I assure you that I'm not looking for any money or anything like that." Her gaze shifts from me to Charles, as if she wants to confirm the latter part specifically for him. "Jules and I met about six months before he died, and it was love at first sight."
"He never told us about you," Charles responds cutting her off and she nods. 
"I know he didn't. I asked him not to," she says and Charles and I exchange confused looks before turning our attention back to her.
"What do you mean? Why would you ask him not to?" I ask, finding it all very odd.
"When I met Jules, I was in a complicated time in my life," she answers and I see her face darken. "I was only 19 and had run away from Italy." Her voice trembles as if it's hard for her to mention those times again.
I wish I could tell her that she didn't need to tell us if she wasn't feeling comfortable, but the truth was that it was really necessary. After all, that's what Charles and I are here for.
Charles nodded for her to continue and I could feel his tension.
"I got involved with the wrong people in Italy," she continues. "There was a boy I had been in love with during my teenage years, Paolo was his name. We were very young and stupid, you know?" Cecília laughs and her eyes fill with tears. "Like every teenager, we thought we were invincible, but we weren't. When I was 17, I spent most of my time at parties and clubs with him. We drank and did drugs, and everything was fun and happy until it wasn't anymore. Over time, the drinking and drugs stopped being just for parties and began to become necessary for anything. From being able to concentrate on studies, to being able to get out of bed. My parents assumed that Paolo was to blame for my addiction and banned me from seeing him. I obviously went against them and they made me choose between a life with them or my ruin with Paolo. I, being young and foolish, chose love and abandoned my parents without looking back. I left the life I had to chase adventures with Paolo and he did the same, running away from home. But the thing is, we were two addicted people without a home and money. There was no more money from our parents, so we started doing whatever we could. Small thefts and even..." She stops for a moment, thick tears streaming down her face.
"Here." Charles extends a napkin and she takes it, wiping her face immediately after.
"Thank you," she says and he offers her a half-smile. "Even prostitution," she continues, and I feel my stomach churn. It wasn't disgust, but rather a pity for imagining someone in that situation. Beside me, I could see that Charles was equally uncomfortable. It was hard for him to put himself in her place.
Charles grew up with great parents who did everything for their children, and even though they weren't millionaires at the time, they still managed to have and offer a comfortable life for them. And I bet that if any of the three, Charles, Lorenzo, or Arthur, had gone the wrong way, Pascale would never have abandoned them.
And me, well, I was lucky. I spent my teenage years with Jules and Charles, who had a structured enough family to share with me because my parents were absent.
Obviously, Charles and I had our rebellious phase with occasional drinking and smoking weed. But Jules, being almost ten years older than us, always kept us in line like a good older brother. And if he knew that we had crossed the line at parties or anywhere else, oh God! He would freak out.
- "Cecilia, I know it's difficult for you to say this, but I think it's important for Charles and me to understand," I say and she nods.
Cecília takes two deep breaths before continuing, and that's when I'm sure the story would only get worse. I try to prepare myself to hear what she had to say.
"I prostituted myself a few times without Paolo's knowledge. Some traffickers gave me drugs in exchange for sex and since many times I had no other choice, I accepted. But one day he found out and that ended us. With us." Tears returned to stream down her face. "Paolo went crazy when he found out and went after the trafficker I had slept with. He got a gun and killed the guy. We were on the run for a few weeks, but it was too hard for two homeless addicts to hide in Italy. Soon they found us and..." She closes her eyes and sobs.
I stretch my hand across the table and take Cecilia's hand. There was a lot of pain there and part of me wanted to curl up and stop listening, but I couldn't. I glance at Charles and he meets my gaze, his eyes reflecting distress at hearing everything that came out of her mouth. It was too surreal for him to hear all of that.
"They killed Paolo and thought they had killed me too. But by some miracle, I managed to survive and ask for help at a church. The priest there was friends with my parents and managed to find a family in Nice who were willing to help me. So I came to France, went through rehabilitation, and started attending meetings for drug addicts." Her eyes become distant again, and I continue holding her hand. "It was on the way back from one of those meetings that I met Jules, and that's where I understood the reason why I survived. We fell in love, but he had a public life and I couldn't expose myself because I was afraid that they would come after me. I told Jules what had happened and unlike what I thought he would do, he embraced me. He promised me that he wouldn't tell anyone, not even you two until I was ready and safe. And he did that. He kept us a secret for months. We saw each other every time he came back to Nice, after the races." She finishes.
Charles and I watched as Cecilia tried to calm her breathing, her grip on the sleeping Vincenzo's body tightening as if afraid he might disappear from her arms at any moment.
It breaks my heart to see all her pain and gives me a completely different perspective from when I walked in here today. She loved Vincenzo, and that was clear, just as she had loved Jules. And that's the part that hurts me the most.
Knowing that the reason Jules never mentioned her to us, his friends and family, was sole to protect her, made my heart heavy and warm at the same time. That was so Jules.
I remember months before he died, he started to spend more time in his hometown and whenever we asked him about it, he said he wanted to spend a little more time with his family. We even found it a little strange, but Jules always had a great relationship with his parents and closest relatives, which made us simply let it go and just enjoy the time we spent together before he and Charles had to go back to racing.
"I'm sorry for all of this, really, Cecilia," Charles is the first to say after she seems calmer. "But we still need to know why you're only coming to us now," he says, and I agree.
Cecilia nods and looks at Vincenzo in her arms. The tension emanating from her makes me shiver, and Charles probably noticed it too as his hand finds my thigh under the table.
"About two days before Jules' death, I found out I was pregnant with Vincenzo," she says and I nod in understanding. "Jules was racing in Shanghai and I was scared and alone here." The tears that had ceased returned in stronger waves.
My mind teleports back to 2019, to Jules' last race. He was so happy to finish seventh that day. But, all of a sudden, he just wanted to go home and rest, not even celebrating with the boys on the grid.
"I sent him a message after the race. I said I needed him to come to Nice as soon as possible because something had happened," Cecilia looks at Charles as she speaks. "Then he sent me a message saying he would take the first available flight back to France."
As Cecilia talks, Charles' grip on my thigh gets stronger. I look at him from the corner of my eye and I can see the moment his Adam's apple goes up and down.
"So that's why he left so quickly that day," Charles' voice sounds low. "He left before I could talk to him..." His eyes fill with tears and his breathing becomes a bit unstable. Cecilia just nods and closes her eyes tightly before continuing.
"When Jules arrived in Nice, it was already early morning and it was raining heavily. He tried to get a taxi or Uber, but couldn't get either," this time I feel my breathing falter a bit as she continues. "He managed to rent a car from a nearby 24-hour agency and sent me a message saying he would arrive soon and that I didn't need to worry because no matter what was happening, everything would be okay and that he loved me."
Charles stood up abruptly. His face adopted a look of disbelief.
"It was you..." his voice was weak and accusatory. "It was because of you that he... My God!" He flinches and his hands pass through his face and his hair.
"Charles..." I try to calm him down, even though I am also anxious. "Charles, please sit down and try to calm down." I try to grab his hand, but he recoils in a sudden movement.
"Calm down? It's her, Marie!" he says, pointing to Cecilia who only shrinks into her chair and holds Vincenzo even tighter, as he moves uncomfortably in her lap. "She killed him! IT'S HER FAULT THAT JULES DIED!" he screams.
My breathing becomes difficult and my heart races. In front of me, Cecilia sobs and holds Vincenzo even closer to her body.
All that commotion made some employees start to appear and approach at a safe distance from the table.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Cecilia pleads. "I swear I never wanted this to happen, I was so scared and..." She stops when she hears Vincenzo's low cry.
Charles' attention goes to the little boy as he realizes he is now awake. He shakes his head in a negative motion and leaves the café in a hurry, slamming the door hard behind him. We are startled by the noise and the little boy cries even louder. I quickly get up to go after Charles, but before I do, I turn to Cecilia.
"Please wait here, okay? I'll try to calm him down. Don't leave," I say, and she nods, her face stained with tears that continued to fall, and her breathing accelerated as she rocked Vincenzo, trying to calm him down.
A dark-haired waitress approaches with a glass of water in her hands and places it in front of Cecilia. I thank her with a gesture and quickly leave through the door to find Charles.
It doesn't take me long to find him, he was in front of a black car. His body leaned against the driver's side. Even from a distance, I can see his body shaking and hear the sound of his erratic breathing. I approach him slowly, so as not to startle him.
When I get close enough, I think about touching him, but the thought leaves my mind when I realize it's not a good idea.
"Charles..." I call him softly to get his attention. "I'm sorry, but we need to go back there. She-"
"No!" he exclaims. "Please, Marie! Don't ask me to go back there. She killed him! It was her fault!" He stares at me with red and swollen eyes.
My heart tightens at the sight of him like this. I find myself being sent back to the year of Jules' death, specifically to the day of his funeral.
I wanted to hug Charles and tell him that everything would be okay, but in reality, I didn't know if it would. Jules had died almost four years ago, and yet it still hurt every time his name was mentioned. And hearing today from a stranger the reasons that resulted in his death was not easy. But there was a reason why Cecilia wanted to contact us after all this time, and we needed to know.
I take a deep breath and decide to approach Charles more. One of us had to try to be rational at this moment, and if it had to be me, okay. I wasn't going to go back to Italy without an answer.
"Charles, I understand that it's difficult to hear all of this suddenly," my hands go to his face. "I know it hurts, Charles. I'm feeling it too." He closes his eyes and I feel tears rolling down my face. "But we can't blame her entirely, Charles. She was scared and just wanted to talk to him.”
“And it resulted in his death." He says, his eyes opening and meeting mine. "Marie, if she hadn't done what she did, he would be here now. He would be alive and he would have met..." His voice trails off. "He would have met his son." He cries and I pull him into a hug.
Jules died without knowing his son. Jules died without knowing that he would have a son. Jules died in the dark without knowing what was happening to Cecilia. Jules died alone and worried, and nothing we can do will bring him back. He died. It's over. But Charles and I are still here.
"Jules died without knowing his son, but we're still here and we can do this for him," I say and he squeezes me tighter.
 "We're still here, Charles. And we can do this." He breaks the hug and looks at me with a face full of sorrow. I nod. 
"We need to go in there together. Together," he looks down at his feet. "Charles, I need you to go in there with me because I can't do this alone." His eyes come back to me and he understands that I used the same words he did a few years ago. "Please, Charles. I don't want to do this alone. I can't." He nods and I take his hand and slowly lead him back to the cafe.
When we walk through the door, my eyes meet Cecilia's. I nod my head to let her know it's okay, and she nods in understanding. I look at Charles who stares at her expressionlessly. His gaze is icy, totally different from the one I once knew.
Still holding Charles' hand, I walk toward the table where she uncomfortably waits for us. I notice that Vincenzo is no longer in her lap and feel momentary concern that quickly passes when I see him playing with the same red-haired waitress who had served us.
We sit in our chairs and I see that our orders are placed on the table. I feel my stomach churn just looking at the cappuccino in front of me. I take glance around and notice the employees trying to avoid looking at us. I make a mental note to "solve" this problem so it doesn't follow us when we leave.
"Just say what you want," Charles breaks the silence, his eyes still staring at Cecilia who nods and swallows hard.
"I understand your anger, and I know I have no right to ask for what I'm about to ask," she says and my hearing sharpens. "I live with guilt for years. Whether it's for Paolo or Jules, guilt and remorse follow me wherever I go. No matter what I try to do, they're always there." She looks at her hands. "Last year, I relapsed. I used heroin, once, but I used it. After years of resisting and not even going near drugs, I let my messed-up mind fall into the hole and I shot up." She lets out a desperate laugh and her eyes fill with water.
My body freezes and Charles makes a sound of scorn beside me. When he opens his mouth to say something, Cecilia cuts him off.
"Yes, I know I'm a whore, and I deserve the worst shit life has in store for me. But that's the thing. I deserve the bad things, but my son doesn't," she says firmly, looking at us seriously. "I need Vincenzo to have a good and decent life. I need to make sure he grows up loved and that he never lacks anything." She looks away for a moment to the table where Vincenzo was happily playing with the waitress and then back to us.
Cecilia takes a deep breath and leans forward. I could swear she was capable of asking for anything at that moment. Money, a house in a distant place, a period in rehab, anything.
"I can't take care of Vincenzo anymore," she asserts, her tone exuding bitterness. "I promised Jules that I would do everything to make him different from me. And that's why I came to you after all these years."
My head spins. She's asking for...? No, it's not possible.
"What do you mean by that?" Charles asks anxiously.
"Cecilia wipes the tears from her face with her hand, blinks a few times, and adopts a determined look, a look that I knew well. The same look I gave to myself in the mirror when I decided to leave Monaco. Suddenly, I feel afraid because my suspicions are confirmed.
"She wants us to take care of Vincenzo," I say.
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ddwcaph-game · 1 month
Text
Hello everyone! The next update isn't close to being finished yet, since as usual I keep adding in new stuff, but before I respond to the asks for Roselyna's Matchmaking Service, I thought I'd update/recap everyone on all the big changes and new stuff that's coming:
New Nickname Changes/Options
MC's Pet Backstory
More Details about MC's Dad
Revamped Twin Fight Scene
New Secret About Julie & Maggie
JM's Mansion Sleepover Branch
Ancestry and Heritage Passives
Character Class, Trait, and Stat Adjustments
New Locket Stat and Intimidation Stat Rework
Missing Choices
Read below for more details:
New Nickname Changes/Options
You will now be able to change MC & Twin's nicknames anytime once you unlock the diary!
In addition, you will now also be able to choose/change the nickname you use for each F6E member (even if you aren't bestfriends), and change what you call Maggie/MC's Dad/Julie/Robert via the diary.
Speaking of nicknames, Wayne's diary entry will now mention that his middle name (and Mary's maiden name) is Hart! Of course, it's very much on brand for him to say that that's his middle name. 😄
MC's Pet Backstory
MC's pet will now have a prosthetic (I'm thinking one of their hind legs).
Okay, it's not an actual backstory, but this opens up new backstory opportunities (you'll know if you read IAC), about why Julie and Robert adopted them in the first place.
More Details about MC's Dad
In the next update, I will be updating the prologue to mention the job of MC's Dad, along with finally giving the option to choose where MC's Dad is from (if your MC is Half-Filipino).
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Revamped Twin Fight Scene
I haven't actually played through DDWCaPH! since I finished Chapter 2, and when I finally did last month, I noticed a ton of typos, confusing lines, and awkward scenes, which I'll be working to address.
The twin fight scene in Chapter 1 is definitely a big offender, so I'll try to rewrite it so it has a bit more build up.
New Secret About Julie & Maggie
The last conversation you have with Paddy in Chapter 5 will have new details about Julie's laptop. Technically I've already kinda spoiled this secret before in one of the older versions, but here's a related hint featuring a new choice in Chapter 3:
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I've also changed a few details in the conversation about how Tita Josie met Kuya Popoy, but you're not supposed to know that secret until Chapter 6 in the new branch. 😉 Speaking of...
JM's Mansion Sleepover Branch
Since I'll be skipping the Investigation Branch for now, I figured adding this branch is a good middle ground. It also lets me move the unfinished party conversation with Tita Steph/Yaya Connie/Kuya Popoy to that branch instead, since the party scene is overloaded already. Plus, it's also the only chance you'll have to visit his mansion.
Anyway, it looks like the majority want to have the sleepover at JM's instead! (Although I have a hunch that some of you are just more interested in having the chance to talk to B again 😛) I had a bit of trouble adapting some of the Chapter 6 scenes I've planned, but I figured it out eventually.
Ancestry and Heritage Passives
You will now be able to select your MC's Ancestry Trait regardless of your chosen favorite genre! You can check out this post for details about all the new passives.
Character Class, Trait, and Stat Adjustments
Character Class Buffs
Class Bonuses will be increased from 5/10/20% to 10/20/30% to make them more impactful. Class Passives will now also give +25/50/100% EXP from successful stat checks of the same stat as the Class Bonus (since the coding for it is already there).
Vocabulary Trait Changes
Someone pointed out that it's weird that inputting a custom swear word always censors it, so now I'm making it so that only the 🐤[Young at Heart] and 🐣[Child at Heart] Traits will censor your input and most of the swear words.
In addition, the above traits will now grant bonus EXP when increasing your Naive Personality, while the other two vocabulary traits 🦅[Mini-Adult] / 🦆[Childhood Graduate] will grant bonus EXP when increasing your Precocious Personality to make them a bit more immersive.
Gender Traits
As mentioned in the last poll, I was considering including the gender-related options (specifically Trans/Non-binary/Genderfluid/Questioning) to the list of Traits.
The majority seemed in agreement, so I'll go ahead with the change (unless someone has a good argument against it). I think adding it to the list of traits better communicates to the player that it's not just a cosmetic choice that gets forgotten.
Other Trait Adjustments
The 🥇[Top 5] and 🥈[Top 10] Trait Requirements have been lowered significantly (and now takes MC's Knowledge Stat into consideration). To make the EXP Penalty make more sense, it now only applies to EXP gained from Knowledge Stat checks.
This also applies to the 😎[Self-Confident] EXP Penalty (it now only applies to EXP gained from Charm Stat checks).
There are a bunch of other Trait adjustments, but these are the biggest ones.
New Locket Stat and Intimidation Stat Rework
Now that you've discovered one of your locket's powers, I've decided to add a new main stat alongside your HP. This will function like mana or energy in other games, and if you've read IAC, you probably have an idea of what this will be used for in the future. 😉
Your maximum HP will now also be increased to 1,000, and each point of Vigor will now increase it by 10. This was done to make chip damage (like being whacked with a stuffed toy) less threatening.
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The Intimidation Stat will now be based on your Vigor Stat, and is increased by 50% of both of your Cold and Composed Personality Stats. Certain Traits/Passives will still increase/decrease Intimidation, but this makes the stat less dependent on your personality stats.
For example: A Tall MC with 30 Vigor, 70% Cold, and 50% Composed will have an Intimidation Stat of 54.
Missing Choices
This includes:
Valentine's Entry in Roselyna's Diary
Karaoke party scene with Paddy, Wayne, and Roselyna
Pinoy Henyo party scene with Lily, JM, Yaya Connie, Kuya Popoy, and Mayari
Sari-sari Store Trinket
Chapter 3 Bike Choice (This was already coded actually, I just forgot to make it selectable 😅)
The 3rd Phone Game (Honestly I procrastinated doing this one because I wanted to make the name different according to your favorite genre. Yup.)
I'm also aware that the background music isn't playing, so I'll try to fix that as well (no idea how that happened)
That's not everything in the next update, but yup, that's why it's taking so long again.
Feel free to ask me questions about the next update! I'm still currently deep in the coding mines, so apologies if it takes me a while to respond to the asks for Roselyna's Matchmaking Service!
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arcadekitten · 26 days
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Thank you for making such wonderful games!! I’m new here, but i just finished Cemetery Mary and Blackout Hospital the other day! I was just wondering, are these two game going to be apart of a trilogy?
I know BH ended with a “to be continued” in the true ending, so im pretty excited to see whats next! but in the same vein, i was unsure if CM was considered the ‘first’ game in this series, as in BH Mary and Val didnt know eachother (<- this is in reference to that scene in CM where Mary sees Val+Crowven together! also in BH Mary only seemed to know Reggie as her doctor, but maybe i missed something? idk lol).
If these games *will* be in a series together, though, i have to wonder…
Because we’ve already had a game where Mary was our protagonist, and then had a game where Val was a protagonist, will the next game have Tetra as a protagonist? I ask because in my head theyre a trio, but i didnt know because Val wasnt didnt weigh too heavy on CM’s plot, but idk! I figured i might as well give you an ask about it, though i know im probably shooting at you out of left fielda here, lol!! :)
I just wanted to say i love love LOVE your writing and art and characters and games very much! Thank you for making such amazing games.. and for free!! Overall just THANK YOU SO MUCH!
I hope youre having a fantastic day/night! :)
-a shy fan haha (maybe one day ill get the courage to send an ask on my actual blog lol!)
Thank you so very much, you are terrifically sweet and it makes me so happy to hear!! ♡
I consider Cemetery Mary and Blackout Hospital to be games that are "Separate, but Connected" if that helps give any idea !!
Lucky for you though Reginald Tetra IS returning as a protagonist in my next big project, WISHMAKER! I'm working through the prologue now! ♡
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intermet179 · 7 months
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Theory: Splatoon's story modes are inherently inspired by Metal Gear
WALL OF TEXT WARNING:
Point 1: Agent 3 is the equivalent of Solid Snake. -Protagonist of first game, important to the next ones -Hired by some people -Fight and destroy Weapons of Destruction (Octoweapons/Metal Gears) -Fight Final Mecha that big baddie is controlling (Metal Gear REX, Octobot King; Liquid Snake, Octavio) -Said Big Baddie is of the same bloodline (Liquid Snake, also a clone of Big Boss like Solid Snake)/Animal Group (Octavio, a cephalopod) Octavio is hence the equivalent of Liquid Snake, the Octobot King being Metal Gear REX.
Point 2: Captain Cuttlefish is the equivalent of Big Boss/Nαked Snake. -First Captain/First Snake -Presumed deαd by end of ROTM/Metal Gear saga, but: -Cuttlefish is found dehydrated/"dead" but then is revived by Captain 3's tears -Snake goes to Big Boss' grave at the end of MGS4, but then sees the alive Big Boss beside him -Cuttlefish "hires" and trains Agent 3, Big Boss trains Solid Snake in CQC combat -Cuttlefish is same species as 3, Solid Snake is clone of Big Boss
Point 3: Agent 8 is the equivalent of Raiden/Jack the Ripper -Main Game Plot involves Agent 3/Solid Snake -Born a child soldier (Jack)/Octarian Soldier (8), and finding freedom at some point in time. -Captured by someone at some point in time (Commander Tartar/Solidus Snake) who they kill at the end of their game -Had an old name (Jack, 8's pre-amnesia name is unknown), given new one by mentor character (Raiden is named so by Snake, Cuttlefish assigns Agent 8 with that title) -Fight Big Thing With Laser near/by the end of their game (NILS Statue, has Ink Laser, Metal Gear RAY [MGS2], has Hydraulic Cutter) -Will most likely not hesitate to KΙLL Tartar is hence the equivalent of Solidus Snake aka George Sears, the NILS Statue being MGS2's Metal Gear RAY.
Point 4: Return of the Mammalians is the equivalent of Metal Gear Solid 4. -Final game story-wise with their respective character groups -Characters from all around the series -ROTM would have featured Agents 4 and 8, and does feature Callie, Marie, Cuttlefish, and Octavio as major parts of the story… -…just as MGS4 involves many characters from the other Metal Gear Solid games, such as Revolver Ocelot & Liquid Snake (As Liquid Ocelot), Raiden, and Big Boss -With new characters as well (Deep Cut, MGS4's side characters) -Pilot old enemy thing to defeat big enemy -Solid Snake (with Otacon) pilots the Metal Gear REX to defeat Liquid Ocelot's Metal Gear RAY -New Agent 3 (with Octavio) pilots the Octobot King L3.Gs to defeat Mr. Grizz, the final big bad
Therefore, we can assume (as it's not out yet) that Side Order will be the equivalent of Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance -Involves major character(s) from past game, those being Off the Hook, and MGRR being Raiden's post-MGS4 spinoff story -Protagonist is presumably Agent 8, who we've established is the equivalent of Raiden. -Protagonist Octoling (8) is wearing a new outfit, as in MGR after the prologue Raiden has a new cyborg body -Will more than likely touch on some darker themes as Octo Expansion did (while all of Metal Gear is pretty dark) -What's presumed to be a new Octoshot in trailer art, like how Raiden has a new High Frequency Blade with his new cyborg body -Even though Raiden's always wielded an HF Blade, it's just a new version, like how Agent 8 has always had an Octo Shot, this is presumably a new version -Might also have to do with the Octoling themselves as there are flashback-like images in the trailer, and MGR also has Raiden question his own philosophies
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apple-salad · 8 months
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Mary Magdalene’s Faltetto/Farutetto Dress: Remnants of 2017
Mary Magdalene recently made a few sample and leftover stock items available for purchase on their website, and I was very, very lucky to be able to get not one, but both colours that I had been wanting for years. 
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In this post, I’d like to share some pretty pictures of these pieces (especially the “new” colours which we have seen so rarely), but also talk about a little bit of my history (and Mary Magdalene’s history) with these dresses. Because I feel like this little-known knowledge must be documented somewhere....
Companion posts: 2023 Faltetto unboxing+some details (mist and navy), initial worn post, petticoat/bustle post
Note: while this dress is most often known by the name of “Farutetto” due to this translation being used on Lolibrary, I will be calling it “Faltetto” since Mary Magdalene has translated it this way on their website.
Table of Contents
Prologue Rambles: Mary Magdalene (the brand)
Faltetto (2017)
Faltetto (2018/Le Panier event)
Le Panier/Fée d’une Fleur incident
Faltetto (2022)
Faltetto (2023/Samples)
Unboxing
Faltetto comparisons
Epilogue Rambles: Mary Magdalene’s Future
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Faltetto dress. This dress design was first released in 2011, with a rerelease in 2014 that included a new colour, amethyst (a purple). This was basically Mary Magdalene’s last good year, with no more original main piece designs being released since. I don’t think anyone knows for sure why Mary Magdalene dropped off after this, but common theories are factory issues or management issues. The brand has pretty much been on life support since, with demand outpacing a near-nonexistent supply.
Mary Magdalene has always been a small brand, with a very small number of each release being produced. Secondhand prices for many coveted items are incredibly high, making for an overall depressing outlook on the brand, and in similar ways classic lolita in general, which currently appears to have a much smaller number of wearers than the other two main substyles sweet and gothic.
Mary Magdalene is the brand that got me into lolita, and remains my favourite, beloved brand--and I think many others feel the same. It feels both rewarding and disheartening to obtain some items directly from the brand (a first for me). I have always tried to keep an eye on the brand’s activities since releases started dropping off, but as updates started dwindling to once a year, or sometimes once every two years, I don’t always stay on top of it.
Still, Mary Magdalene’s activities around 2017~2018 in China are largely unknown or misunderstood, so I hope writing about what I know may provide some knowledge to the community.
Finally, into the Faltetto content. The Faltetto dress was actually rereleased in 2017 at an event in Guangdong (I believe it was an anime/culture event with some Japanese lolita brand guests, but I can no longer remember the details). As far as I know, it was intended as an early reservation/MTO with a general reservation intended to be made available to the public shortly afterwards. Mary Lou OP was also available to reserve, with a few new colours. The general reservation did actually happen for this dress later in 2017, but Faltetto never did. Which is only the start of difficulties with this release...
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Promotional image of the event. I’m glad I saved this, because it doesn’t seem to be viewable on weibo anymore.
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Two new colours were introduced:「 枣红色」, or what would later become known as “maroon”; and 「雪灰色」”snow gray”, or what would also later be revealed to be “mist”. The maroon colourway was supposed to be an event limited colour, though I don’t know if this meant that it was originally intended to be only available for the event or maybe only available at the event + the online shop (it seemed like historically Mary Magdalene limited colourways were “online shop limited” or “online shop and KERA shop limited”, so it would be rare for a colour to not be available online)
I think a lot more people ordered the maroon colour vs. the mist, as I have seen the maroon a few times on xianyu since, but never the mist. Red is a lucky colour, so it makes sense. But I had always been in love with the mist. I came very close to reserving the mist through two levels of SS (CN SS talking to a event SS via xianyu), but the fees and conversion rate made me balk (I was quoted about $430 USD for everything but international shipping, which in retrospect was probably worth it to not live through the heartache. For reference, the event sell price was 2127 RMB), plus I thought that Mary Magdalene themselves would make the dress available sometime soon, so I never followed through. Terrible regret on that one.
The dresses were scheduled for shipment some time near the end of 2017, but production was slightly delayed into spring of 2018. I believe that the dresses didn’t necessarily ship out all at once, so some of the orders that were fulfilled later came with a free headdress.
The picture of the maroon headdress I have saved seems to be the Claudia Headdress with ivory side ribbons instead of red ones. The picture of the mist that I have saved seems to be totally different, with one single strip of lace (similar to Rose Cameo Headdress, except without the ruffles) used for the hairband part.
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This is a picture of my regular release Claudia headdress, which has red side ribbons (I am trying to avoid posting pictures that aren’t mine if I can). The lace matches that used for the free headdresses, although the included hairband was a very thin ribbon-covered wire band, not a plastic one.
A couple weibo users posted pictures of their mist, and knowing that the dress both exists and basically doesn’t gave me terrible heartache....I wouldn’t doubt if it gave you, the reader, terrible heartache too, since the numbers remain few. But I believe some hope out there exists that Mary Magdalene will have a larger reservation intake for these someday...
I later found the maroon secondhand on xianyu in 2018, and purchased it.
The dress has a few differences from my (probably older) other Faltettos. I’ve added a few comparison photos at the end of this post, as well as a few comparison pictures in my unboxing post.
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About halfway through 2018, a new lolita magazine, “Le Panier”, was released. A number of other lolita blogs have posts on the magazine, but the general concept was a more premium, artistic “high fashion” lolita magazine. The magazine was published in a Chinese and Japanese version. Mary Magdalene was featured in the magazine (which was a surprising and very rare thing to see), in just one page:
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Not the best picture of this page, but hopefully it’s readable. The dress is indicated as “Faltetto Dress 2018″. I also forgot that there were a number of coords in the magazine styled to each sister in “Little Women” (I wouldn’t say all of them hit the mark, but lolita works okay for Meg).
Midori Fukasawa wearing Faltetto in mist. The coord uses a brooch and tights from Mary Magdalene’s personal collection seen in a number of their other stock photos. The blouse is Faltetto Blouse, bonnet is Bisque Doll Bonnet and the shoes are Lace-up Ribbon Strap Shoes. While I think Mary Magdalene’s intentions here are genuine, the description just feels like betrayal.
2017年にイベントで先行発売。 人気を呼んだファルテットドレスのミストカラーが、 ついに一般で���発売に。
This page is, I think, proof enough that Mary Magdalene definitely intended to open a general reservation for Faltetto at the time. Along with the publication of the first volume of the magazine, Le Panier announced and held a large tea party in Shanghai, featuring many Japanese brands as guests (including Mary Magdalene, Metamorphose, Victorian Maiden, Juliette et Justine...), as well as touting exclusive items and reservations. And this was the start of the problems...
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It’s hard to not bring up Le Panier without also mentioning the Juliette et Justine Fée d’Une Fleur incident. This is in fact also relevant to me, as I preordered that dress💧
I can’t remember all the information regarding the incident, but to keep things hopefully brief, it boils down to the dress not being what was promised. 
Fée d’une fleur is quite a coveted dress in China (and it is incredibly rare, being from 2008, I believe was made to order by reservations, and also was expensive for the time), and it sounds like lolitas had been requesting JetJ to rerelease it for some time. Soupir d’ange had been released a few years prior with similar design elements, but was not the same (notably, the skirt “petals” are not placed and do not drape in the same lovely way). It seemed unlikely that the original would ever be rereleased because apparently the original pattern had been lost, and manufacture would be incredibly costly.
So when Le Panier announced that JetJ would be taking exclusive reservations for the Fée d’une Fleur, Chinese lolitas were incredibly excited. The original  Fée d’une fleur stock image was used in Le Panier’s announcement post.
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Among this, reservations for Faltetto were presented for two new colourways:
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Navy and a lilac (I do not know the official colour name, but one Chinese poster called it “light purple”. And yes, the provided photo quality was extremely bad).
The price for Fée d’une fleur was significantly higher than previous (original price: 37800 JPY, le panier price: 4600 RMB [converts to about 77400 yen at the time]), which I think bothered people, but the bigger problem appeared at the event...
The sample Fée d’une fleur looked nothing like the original that was promised. 
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The sample dress can be seen in the background of this catwalk picture.
The colours and drape were just off. The response was so bad that Le Panier had the designer of Juliette et Justine come up and promise that it will be exactly like the original. But few seemed to be convinced.
I ended up going ahead with the preorder anyway, because I had already paid my SS. I didn’t mind the differences as long as the colour was corrected on the final product. Juliette et Justine ended up releasing reservations for this “Fée d’une Fleur 2018″ to the general public, with a "lavender pink” colorway as well.
By the way, the price on JetJ’s website for this was ¥68000 without tax (¥73440 with tax, which I think was 8% at the time). Le Panier later did also give those who reserved a discount of I think 300 RMB off the original list price because of the price difference (I can no longer remember exactly how much, it was maybe 300-400 RMB).
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There were two blue colorways released. The one on the right, “sax blue” was the one shipped to Le Panier reservees and was labeled on the site as the colour of the original, while the one of the left, “mint” reminds me more of the sample...I wonder if it was meant to evoke the original 2008 dress better with a more pronounced difference between colorations (it still feels off, though)
Le Panier reservations received a few extra gifts: a matching floral brooch-clip (with small JetJ charm) and some Le Panier gifts (I chose the JetJ rabbit tote, which I believe was a gift available for a small additional fee with the Chinese release of the magazine, and washi tape selection). I also think the Le Panier reservations shipped first, but that’s whatever. I almost would have preferred the lower JPY converted price without SS fees and getting points from JetJ’s site, but the brooch is nice with the dress, I guess, and the dress itself turned out okay as long as you knew what you were signing up for (the stock photos of this 2018 release were accurate to what was shipped).
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To this day I’ve never used the tote. I think it says Le Panier on it.
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Closer look at the washi tape and the back of the brooch with JetJ charm. Le Panier made (I think) 3 types of washi tape with 3 different brands, and I think I was randomly given this JetJ one. No idea why we weren’t able to get all 3, but whatever.
The final dress still has some shortcuts taken like a few tulle/mesh petal panels instead of all chiffon, and the length is also very long (ankle length on me, vs mid calf for the original). Also, the petal placement is still wrong (closer to soupir d’ange), but it looks okay if you don’t think about it too hard.
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My old fairy coord (from 2018) with Fée d’une Fleur 2018.
And now, back to Faltetto again...
Mary Magdalene designer Rieko Tanaka herself attended the event, which was nice to see. A booth was set up with a few stock items (notably Aria Fleur, which went on sale on the Mary Magdalene website in 2022. At that time, a few of the OP variations were sold out, so I can only assume they sold out here. Other pieces for sale were a single Copine Georgette JSK in pink, and a preview of the rerelease of Arabesque Rose).
Price for the navy or lilac Faltetto was 2000 RMB, plus shipping fees from Japan. Depending on the ticket level purchased, 2 or 1 piece per colour could be reserved (I think the might have later been increased to 3?). Apparently, these colours were supposed to be limited to the Le Panier event.
A sample version of the lilac Faltetto was on display, and the navy was shown during the fashion show. 
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The bodice lace on this faltetto is the same as mine! I think the navy sample sold in 2023 is likely be the very same as this one presented in 2018.
I am unsure if I should upload a photo of the lilac here as I think the photos I saved were posted by individual participants of the event, but I’ll consider it if someone would really like to see it (the colour is quite similar to the grainy stock above).
I wonder now why Mary Magdalene didn’t post the sample of the lilac for sale along with all the other faltetto samples, but it may be because the lilac was missing the lace/braid at the front (for the event, the detachable bows were placed there to make the area less lacking).
I am quite fond of navy colourways, so upon hearing that a navy faltetto was something that was going to exist, I searched for an SS for it (I think I used Chinese Lolita Updates because I didn’t want to use two levels of SS), paid the deposit, and waited.
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It looks like this particular attendee/SS reserved the maximum of 3 dresses for VIP ticketholders.
I can’t remember if the dresses had an estimated ship date, but they’ll ship when they’re ready...
...right? 
After much silence, in 2019, about a year exactly since the event, Le Panier announced that Mary Magdalene would not be able to produce the dresses, and everyone would be refunded. Mary Magdalene posted an informational notice on their website, which had an unfortunate translation error:
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This follow up was added later:
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I’m surprised that it doesn’t seem to be common knowledge what the “gift” that Mary Magdalene gave to people who reserved, but it is very minor--a small Mary Magdalene logo mirror.
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I had to ask my SS to ship this to me, actually, as I think they deemed it too minor to bother spending the money to ship (shipping ended up being fairly cheap because the item was so small and light, though). It sounded like they were going to throw it away if I had not asked!
Le Panier also mentioned that they would give an extra gift and 100 RMB voucher, but I can’t remember what that was and/or if I ever used the voucher. Probably not, since all the things Le Panier sold were a bit expensive (imagine brand new Japanese brand retail prices plus SS fees, and then conversion... much easier to just buy directly from Japan)
Anyways, this whole thing just... sucked, really. Le Panier seemed to have dragged multiple brands’ names through the mud (I will not talk about it here, but there is the infamous VM Classical Doll incident as well), had a track record of numerous other hiccups and operational issues at their events/booths/sales, and overall was losing Chinese lolitas’ trust very quickly.
I should note that Mary Magdalene had attended another Chinese event some time in 2018 where they took reservations for a rerelease of Perfume Bottle, but production of that also failed with much silence from the brand (there was even going to be a new dark purple colourway). It’s very strange that the 2017 Faltettos were able to be manufactured, whilst planned pieces from 2018 weren’t, but I think these two incidents mean that the factory problems are real.
Later in 2018 Le Panier also took reservations for the rerelease of Arabesque Rose that was previewed at the event. These were in fact manufactured and shipped successfully around 2019 (+ I believe the Le Panier reservations came with a free headbow), and extra stock was uploaded to the Mary Magdalene website in 2022 as “Arabesque Rose Midi Dress”. The fabric used was identical to the original, with fewer colourways (caramel, iris and navy--no offwhite), no rose lace at the bottom, no shirring/less corset lacing loops, and slightly wider (weirder in my opinion) bows. While I am happy these were in fact produced, the rerelease looks like a sad shadow of the original, and the long bows with skinny, tight middles look like replicas (why is this type of bow so common on replicas? Not cute, in my opinion).
Le Panier continued to (attempt to) sell a few extra Mary Magdalene items on their website, but their bad reputation along with interest in Mary Magdalene being quite scarce at the time meant that selling the stock took a little while.
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Le Panier’s original shop URL no longer functions, but they remain modestly active on Weibo. Le Panier volume 2 was published in late 2019, including a small report of the 2018 event, and there hasn’t been any more publications since. Perhaps Le Panier was started by a well-meaning lolita enthusiast who was a bit too ambitious and wasn’t able to manage their brand and event well. Or, perhaps it was a poorly executed plan to make a profit off of Chinese lolitas involving convincing Japanese brands to overpromise exclusive items and reservations, as well as resell Japanese lolita goods...potentially run by someone who doesn’t fully understand lolita/lolitas. 
After this, Mary Magdalene went silent for a while...and maybe I don’t blame them after all these Chinese events kind of exploded on them. It’s a little disappointing how much attention and exclusivity was turned to China during this time (I was seriously mourning that Mist had turned into a “2017 China event reservation only exclusive”), but most everyone came out empty handed, so was it really that exclusive in the end...?
Mary Magdalene saw a small return to activity in 2020, with a rerelease of the Génoise coat. But, after that...silence...for 2 years.
In 2022, Faltetto in maroon was uploaded, plus a few in stock items which appeared to be leftovers or extras from Le Panier (Aria Fleur and Arabesque Rose as mentioned earlier; plus the Arabesque headbow in offwhite only which I feel like was just extra unsold stock from 2014, and some small number of perle lace bolero which MM stated explicitly that was just old stock from the original 2016 release).
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This release of Faltetto was particularly interesting, as the listing stated:
今回の販売分は、通常の量産とは異なり一人の職人が一貫して製作した特別バージョンとなっております。価格の変更が御座います事を予めご了承の程お願い申し上げます。
Google translate: This sale is a special version that is consistently produced by one craftsman unlike normal mass production.
(the second portion apologizes that the price has been raised due to rising production costs, but the price difference is 30000 yen (excl. tax) vs the original 26800 yen (excl. tax), which is hardly egregious)
So, this release is not mass produced and should be quality controlled very carefully. How nice, I thought.
Although I already owned a maroon faltetto, I put in an order request through Mary Magdalene’s overseas form anyways, in the slim chance that the dress wouldn’t sell out before Mary Magdalene processed my order, and so I could perhaps compare a mass produced vs. non mass produced faltetto.
Unfortunately, the dress sold out shortly afterwards. And I received this response:
この度はご注文頂き有難うございます。 大変申し訳御座いませんが、現在、「ファルテットドレス(マルーン)」の在庫は御座いません。 今後、受注生産にて再販を予定しております。その際は優先的にご案内させて頂きます。 (また、今回キャンセルが発生した場合もご連絡させて頂きます) この度はご希望に添える事が出来ず大変申し訳御座いません。 何かご不明な点等御座いましたら、お気軽にご連絡下さいませ。 それでは、失礼致します。
Disappointing, but at least this reiterates that Mary Magdalene has an intention to have a general release/MTO of faltetto. (But it hasn’t happened...yet...)
I heard that the quality of this faltetto is good and “Mary Magdalene quality”, but I have never seen it in person. I will note that I don’t have any issues with my 2017 faltetto (aside from the fabric choice being a bit thin) and I’m not sure what would be considered “better quality” or more “individual craftman-like” than a normal faltetto.
All other items on the website sold out quickly, as expected.
And then silence again...until now. Almost a year exactly after the last update. Like before, the update came suddenly and without warning, simply mentioning that a few leftover stock/sample/B items were going to be added the next day between noon and evening (what a big help!...though, I think this was intentionally vague so that the website wouldn’t crash with condensed traffic at a scheduled time)
Special thanks to rabbitreverie to letting me know about this update. I had kind of lost hope by this point and was not checking the site regularly. We were both refreshing all night! The site update came suddenly, with some sample items already being sold out by the time I saw the update (and I think I was quite on the ball, too...). What an odd treasure trove of an update, though...I imagine the sample items were only one (and potentially one of a kind).
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(In some ways, I’m just glad with this update that we finally get a better quality stock photo of mist. You don’t want to know what blurry, artifact riddled pictures I’d been gazing at before this.)
A Faltetto “2017″ was available! In maroon and mist. This lines up with the 2017 guangdong event, with likely the same product number (my maroon faltetto did not come with tags to confirm, sadly). Mary Magdalene must have made a few extra pieces of stock that they never got around to selling...maybe? It’s impossible to know how many pieces were available.
Everything on the website sold out in about 5 minutes or less, which is impressive considering there couldn’t have been many people who knew about the update. But there was also very, very little stock.
Sample Faltetto dresses were also available in a separate listing (Mary Magdalene labels the second section, mostly older items, “outlet”, with discounted prices to match the sample or flawed status of the items. But why is it cheap when people would definitely pay more?? I suppose it is the principle of the matter...).
Peacock, Amethyst, Maroon, and Navy (!) are all available as sample versions. From the provided pictures, it looks like Amethyst and Maroon are a bit more saturated than the released versions.
Of course I go for the mist and navy, given my history with the colours...and somehow I manage to check out with both of them whilst fumbling around trying to enter my information.
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A few weeks later, I have them in my hands! It’s a bit of an emotional moment for me since Mist had been on my “dream dress but impossible” list since it was announced.
Given that this post is already getting so long and superfluous, I have the unboxing and detail pictures in another post.
And here is probably the most interesting part, the comparison pictures:
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I have 5 Faltettos now... which is quite a lot...
Overall the dresses I own are quite similar, aside from the navy having some obvious differences due to being a sample, and the >2017 dresses having their skirt tier lace gathered with the main fabric. Note that I obviously have not laid these out in chronological release order, it just looked aesthetically pleasing in this arrangement.
I used to own a different version of the ecru faltetto, which I believe may have been an older release, and that one definitely had some more prominent differences (such as placement of the chest lace being a tiny bit lower, with the first row of embroidered dots clearly visible [like the stock photos], and the bustle loop being sewn on the same edge as opposed to being a strip folded in half [it’s hard to explain]). Thus, my brain wants to tell me that the pink and ecru faltettos I have may be from 2014, a little more on the recent side.
Anyways, I won’t comment much on the following photos since there isn’t much to say anyway (except 5 of the same dress as eye candy!)
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Bodice details--always the same lace, although the colour might vary a bit between dye lots/releases
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The gathered (or not) lace at the skirt.
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The braid used also seems to be quite consistent.
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If you look closely, the second row of stitching securing the braid down can vary a little between releases. Also, the navy has clear buttons instead of same-colour buttons, which is as expected.
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They all look pretty similar from the back.
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I tried to make the bustle loops of each dress visible in this photo. The way they are sewn is pretty consistent across the faltettos here that I currently own. I didn’t have the heart to untie the navy ribbon ties that had come pre-tied! But I imagine they’re about the same as all the others (the ecru is wrinkly because I had it tied up while I stored it)
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While finishing up my photos, I pondered what other areas of difference might be of interest. So here’s a picture of all the linings. The mist and maroon are pretty consistent with each other, which makes sense since they are from the same year. Navy has the least nice lining (also makes sense as a sample), with pink having a satin lining similar to the others, and ecru having a thinner but potentially still satiny lining (It’s hard for me to tell looking at this photo because the dress is so wrinkled from storage)
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The inner tags are also not of much interest, but dresses released in 2017 and onwards have the country of manufacture specified (Japan). It’s pretty unusual for Mary Magdalene to list where their clothes were manufactured, but it can be found on the occasional piece. While I don’t own enough modern pieces to know for sure, I have a feeling that all of their newer pieces from 2017 have the country listed.
The older dresses (in my case, pink and ecru) have a tag like above, with no country of manufacture (qnd no extra button attached). The navy has no washing tag at all--again, likely because it is a sample.
These were all the photos I thought worth taking--the interior of the dresses seemed to be quite similar when I checked them. Although, I did notice that the navy had the skirt seams pressed open, whereas all the rest have the seams pressed to one side. It makes very little to no difference to how the seam looks from the outside, so I’m not sure why it is like that (maybe a minor difference in pressing decision in a mass manufactured factory environment?)
So, now that Mary Magdalene has updated their website, what does this mean for the brand?
One depressing conclusion could be that they were clearing out stock of whatever they had left in the office, and will close soon...
But I am hopeful. Or choosing to remain hopeful, in any case. It has been over 5 years now since a rerelease of Faltetto was planned and promised, which is so long that it’s easy to conclude that those plans are dead. But...why would Mary Magdalene sell the one of a kind navy sample, the colour that was sold to way more than just one person, and cancelled on more than one person? And mist... that colourway was in a magazine, expressing to thousands of readers that they will be able to order it someday. It’s too unfair to only have some 5-10 mist and 1 navy in the world, especially with how constantly apologetic Mary Magdalene’s site messages are (heck, the “add to cart” buttons broke/displayed incorrectly after the update and MM added an apology message about that). So... could Mary Magdalene be clearing out Faltettos in preparation for a larger release of navy, maroon, mist, among others? Everyone who wants these unique colourways deserves to own them if they want, and we need more Mary Magdalene pieces in the world. I hope that a larger release of main pieces from Mary Magdalene is coming...
(note: since initially drafting this, Mary Magdalene opened up reservations for another release of Génoise coat. So, I’m hopeful, but it’s not a dress yet!)
Other notes:
I recommend Tamie’s video about Mary Magdalene for a little bit of further information and a different account. Complaints and problems with LePanier actually are more numerous than just the issues that Tamie brought up (which sounds ridiculous considering how many were mentioned), but I won’t talk about them here, especially because LePanier’s presence seems to have almost disappeared.
I do not know Chinese, so my information is limited. If there are any Chinese lolitas that know more or have read more detailed posts from the Chinese communities, please let me know anytime!
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