#White Eyes doesn't believe in any of this herself obviously

[poisonouspastels]

i read through Everything about the au thus far and i gottsa ask.... what is UP with the WITHER CULT!!!!!!!

HI sorry I just woke up. Cracks knuckles. SO the Wither Cult is actually something that's been around throughout generations technically with different intents and different methods, but when I refer to it I do typically mean the most recent iteration with White Eyes, which is a very.. interesting situation. When White Eyes originally got out of the destroyed remains of the kingdom, there were other survivors, and her stoic attitude and mangled appearance made her somewhat of a legend within the small lasting communities. Seeing someone that should have been dead walking (sometimes with a similarly undead horse) among the living with glowing white eyes lead to a lot of theories, one of the most common being that she was a prophet of some sort, touched by the god of death and living to tell the tale. (Also in part with her modern nickname) Due to this, a lot of people ended up following in her footsteps to create a safe haven within the dark oak woods just before the mountains. This is never something she asked of them, she never asked anything, but still somehow everything would fall into place. People will do anything to cling on to a semblance of hope. Survivors and their descendants have come from all over the larger surrounding areas over the years to seek shelter, expanding the hideaway into the woodland mansion with time as we know it today throughout the years. It's entirely self-sufficient, and everyone there is offered equal footing in terms of having free bedding, never having to worry about a meal, and of course the shelter itself. There are few conditions otherwise, but overall your best bet is just not to stray from the name of the beast.

[evilminji]

You know... >.>

My Dad always used to tell me, if I get a Genuine Genie(tm)? Get a lawyer first. Before I make my Wishes(tm), so they can help me word them correctly.

Obviously, a human lawyer would not be foolproof... BUT! What about a Ghost Lawyer?

Like? Obviously Desiree would be PISSED. How DARE you twist HER wish twisting! Her THING is "what you believe is your heart's desire always comes at a terrible cost" which is what she DIED to learn.

So obviously she would NEVER, willingly, bend her Obsession for ANYONE. And you'd have to make a DAMN good case to that Lawyer for why he ISNT breaking the law by helping you. Probably some "you can: save the life of an unconscious person against their will/shove an unobservant person OFF the train tracks, even if they get hurt, to save their life" clause.

Like? Using a ghosts Obsession against them? Bad. Illegal.

Using it against their will, to save OTHER ghosts, who are in immediate danger? Not illegal, but they will be PISSED. Still not great though, you will want to apologize and fast.

So like??? Reality Bending Power. Patrick Star Method of "what if we MOVED the city... somewhere else?" Considered at 1am. Team of Ghost Laywers, acquired.

Amity and all Limnals are REMOVED from the DP-verse.

Wish worded juuuuust so. Any ghost that forms there? Yoink! Instantly removed to the Zone. Natural Portals? Cut off. Let the whole Reality fade out at an accelerated rate, as no NEW energy is fed into the system. Entropy will do, what entropy does. Exactly as they wished it.

They hated Death so much, they speed up the heat death of their ENTIRE universe by Eons. Congratulations, you guys "Won". Enjoy the wildly more fragile flora, fauna, and general ecosystems. Now that none of you have that ambient Ectoplasm strengthening your bodies. Yeah, the things you used to shrug off? Those are gonna maim or kill you now.

Doesn't MATTER if you "learn your lesson" though! Cause this is WAY past that point! This is "cutting off the tumor before it kills us" territory, and buddy? Amity ISNT the tumor. Go forth a grow, just like you wanted.

They won't be here to fix your messes anymore.

Because Danny got himself a dictionary thick "I Wish..." contract. Which was worded, as it needs to be, in one loooooooong run on sentence. Shouted "I Wish what's written on THIS, as it is currently, and without any form of editing or negotiation!" As fast as he could. Yote the document in Desiree's direction. And Flew like an INCANDESCENTLY pissed off Genie was trying to set his everything of fire.

Which she was.

Thankfully, Paulina came in clutch with her History of all things Jewelry, world fashions, and Make-Up knowledge. That, coupled with the Power Of Rich Friends(tm)? (Sam. Her mother was THRILLED to take her Jewelry and clothing shopping for something other then blacks and dark purple. They went on a jet setting whurl-wind tour. Sam actually kinda liked a some of what she found.)

They have Apology Bribes.

They shamelessly HIDE behind the mountain of Apology Bribes, while they explain themselves. Is Desiree HAPPY? No. But those bracelets are magnificent and she DOES deserve nice things. Those silks will really bring out her eyes. And she... DOES... admit...

Maybe...

That things are not... SAFE. Any longer. Danny TRIES. Everyone else can see it. And he's made incredible strides! Even convinced his lunatic parents. Though they're still not quite POPULAR. (WAY too pushy and invasive with their questions, for most people.) But the fanatics in white?

They nearly killed Box Lunch. If her father hadn't BEEN there...

And the poor man will have that scar on his back for the rest of his afterlife. Desiree can see why Danny is pushing. Does she LIKE it? No. But...

She supposes she will content herself with the suffering of the Fanatics in White and all who support them. THEIR wishes, twisted. Their ugly heart's desires.

Fine.

"SO YOU WISH IT. SO IT SHALL BE!"

And? The ghost town of what WOULD of one day grown into Amity, had the witch's there not been found by those they had fled from, which sits in long rotted ruins, amongst the trees in nowhere Illinois? Poof! Two "Towns" are switched.

The roads out of town coming to a clean line stop, meeting not even goat paths. Just trees. Old growth.

But it's not ALL of Town, is it? Faces missing. New, confused, faces from every corner of the map, taking their place. No Limnal left behind. No supporter of the GIWs genocide, brought along. Family's kept together where they could be. But by the few, scared and upset, green flashing eyes of children in the crowd?

It seemed for some, it was easier to fear and hate, then love their children.

Already they were being gathered up by school teachers and PTA parents. As everyone tried to figure out what had happened. Concerned, quite muttering a dull roar as everyone tries to coordinate.

Red Huntress joins Danny and Dani in the Sky. She doesn't get a word in. Wanted to know what the HELL was going on. She was with her dad in Chicago! Dani was in Taiwan! Literally! As in, sitting in a SUBWAY station one second, the next? Outside!

But they don't get to demand those answers. Because there is a sonic boom on the horizon. And then? Floating... weird... not ghosts?

Uuuuuuhhhh?

Hi?

That much blue... sure is a Statement. Like the cape and... bloooomers? Shorts. Bikini bottoms? It.. it's a Cool Look, dude! No, really. They are being VERY supportive here! If YOU like it? That's the only thing that matters!

Red Huntress smacks the Danny/i's Repeated upside their heads and demans to know what the Not-Ghosts are doing in their airspace.

Oh YEAH. Good point! What she said! And can it WAIT? They're kinda going through A Thing right now...

Kon? Wants it on record he loves these guys. They're hilarious. The LOOK on Clark's FACE?? He wishes he could frame it. Preserve it for future generations. Thing is? There was NOT a town here a second ago.

Well, bout 30 minutes or so, but you get the idea. One moment? Tree noises. Bam! Thousands of people! Obviously the checked it out. Only to be met with two... three maybe? Heros who have NO IDEA who they are.

Clear Reality warping shenanigans. Might be time travel or multiverse. Question is... are they STAYING? And if SO? What now...

@hdgnj @ailithnight @the-witchhunter @nerdpoe @dcxdpdabbles @mutable-manifestation @hypewinter

[bountycancelled]

something more than friends

(lucy gray baird x reader)

tip me on kofi if you feel so inclined

requested: yep, I hope you like it anon♡

content: a little bit of angst but mainly fluff, men (derogatory), kinda lovesick!lucy gray, jealous lucy gray (we love to see it), pretty intense description of kissing but no smut.

warnings: a very brief mention of drinking, internalised homophobia but it doesn't last long, gay stuff (duh), lowercase intended I know boo I'm annoying.

a/n: I haven't read the book yet so idk much about the covey so their appearance may ooc but that's solely due to my lack of knowledge on them

lucy gray baird never faltered when she sang.

there were very few things that could get under her skin when she was on that stage, strumming her guitar and twirling in her skirt as the district folk stomped along to the beat.

sure, sometimes drunkards and the occasional hung up ex would try to cause a scene, attempting to gain her attention from below, but she would simply roll her eyes, waiting for someone to take care of them so that she could go back to doing what she did best. performing.

so what exactly had happened to make the lucy gray baird, forget a line in a song?

she was quick to remedy her mistake, carrying the tune in such a way that most patrons didn't even notice her mess up. but ironically enough, the very cause of her brain fog noticed. you.

you gave her a worried look, but she brushed it off, willing herself to continue playing as if nothing was wrong. and technically, nothing was wrong. you were there, in the far back of the crowd, wearing a white dress with a drink in your hand. and Lucy Gray didn't mean to be cliché, but you really did look like an angel, something divine that she had the honour of setting her eyes on.

but obviously, she wasn't the only one who thought that.

you were speaking to some man. which was fine, you were always the most gorgeous girl in the room in her eyes and she knew that she wasn't the only one who appreciated your beauty, you were always needing to awkwardly laugh at men's advances and brush them off as best as you could, but you weren't doing that tonight.

you were laughing, a genuine laugh, leaning in to hear his voice over the music, over her singing. she wanted to jump off of the stage and break her guitar over that assholes face, and she couldn't explain why.

she had always known that one day, you'd settle down with a kind man who cared for you (not nearly as much as she did, but that was okay) and then she would see you less and less. but knowing didn't make the taste in her mouth any more bitter.

the first time you told her about a crush that you had, on a boy named Tom, she spent the whole night convincing you that he just wasn't right for you. you believed her of course, rejecting him swiftly the next week when he asked you to go on a walk with him, walking instead with lucy gray, hand in hand.

but then, she did it every time you spoke about a boy, and you started to believe her less and less. 'I think you're just jealous lucy gray, and you don't anybody taking my attention away from you.'

you were right, she was jealous, and the thought of you, with a man, it disgusted her to her core. which is why she took off as soon as her set ended, not even staying for the applause as she searched for you outside.

there you were, and thankfully, you were alone, no undeserving man in sight.

she ran up to you, her brown eyes seemingly sparkling even in the darkened night. "how'd you enjoy the show, darlin'?"

her heart jumped when you smiled at her, your eyes crinkling in joy as you took both of her hand in yours, squeezing them affectionately. "you have the voice of an angel, lucy gray. and I envy the lucky fella who's gonna marry you, and have to serenade them whenever they want."

lucy gray rolled her eyes in a good natured fashion, trying to ignore the knot in her stomach when you mentioned her getting married. "I already serenade you, sweet thing. and im not gonna let some wedding band stop me."

you laughed airily, leading her by the hand towards the lake, where you spent most nights together. you sat down at the edge, laying your head in her lap when she sat beside you. her hand went to your hair, and she fought the urge to by giddy at the sight of your head in her lap, you were just... perfect.

"who was that guy that you were talking to back then? when I was singing, I mean." she asked, her voice uncharacteristically quiet.

you thought back to about an hour prior, picturing every person that you had been with throughout the evening as you tried to recall who she was asking about in particular. "oh! that was matthew, his dad and my dad go way back, but the two of us never really shared their closeness for whatever reason. but after speaking to him tonight I'm a bit upset that I never tried to grow a friendship with him earlier."

she nodded, her cherry glossed lips pressing into a thin line. "he doesn't just wanna be friends with you though, I could see it." you scoffed playfully, raising a brow at her curiously. "you were all the way up on stage, in the middle of your favourite song to perform, and somehow, you could tell that much from so far away?"

she opened her mouth to defend herself, but after realising just how insane the notion sounded when you phrased it in that way, she quickly closed it again. "I'm not gonna let any man take me away from you, lucy gray, believe me when I say that I can't live without you."

your words sent a fury of butterflies in her stomach, and she swore that felt dizzy as you picked your head up, moving your face so close to hers that your noses were almost touching. she wanted to kiss you. god, what the hell was wrong with her? how could she be thinking of you in this way?

despite her inner conflict, she made no moves to create some distance between your faces, selfishly wanting to stay like this for as long as you'd let her. "I wish we could get married." she sighed, her eyes widening at her own words. "I meant- not like, I didn't mean- not in, like, a husband and wife typa way-"

you cut her off with trying to, with a tilt of your head making her suck in a sharp breath. "you don't wanna do husband and wife things with me?" you asked, and she could swear that your voice had a certain tone about it, one that made her cheeks feel blazing and her breaths shallow.

she shook her head, her usually fierce tone reduced to a meek almost whisper. "we can't do those stuff together."

you were too close for comfort. she could feel the tip of your nose against hers and if you leaned in any further, she was sure that she would combust. "who cares if we can't? the more important question is, do you want to?"

inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale. she had forgotten how to breath. this wasn't right, she knew that, so why were her lips on yours in a flash, her hands in your hair, around your waist, holding your hands, touching any part of you that she could reach as the two of you kissed? in public, no less?

she couldn't find it in her mind to stop, not when your soft, sweet lips moved in tandem with hers as if you were molded to fit each other. when you pulled away, with lucy gray chasing your lips with an involuntary whine, you held her by the shoulders, a look of concern on your face.

that was when she felt it. the guilt knawing at her stomach, and the tears that flowed down her face. was she crying because of how overwhelming her feelings were for you? maybe it was because she knew that you would have to hide... whatever had just happened between the two of you.

you leaned your forehead against hers, you sweet voice easing her fear. "I love you." she nodded, not being able to say it back just yet, but she could only hope that you knew. she moved to kiss you again, being startled out of her mind by a girlish scream in the distance.

it was maude ivory, eyes wide and hand slapped over her mouth in shock, with an equally suprised tam amber standing next to her. lucy gray felt sick to her stomach.

"I knew it." tam Amber said with a shrug, moving to sit next to the two fo you as she stared out at the moonlit lake. "no one looks at their friend like how lucy gray looks at you."

"can I be the flower girl? and the maid of honour? and the priest?" maude ivory rambled, laying half in lucy grays lap and half in yours. you simply laughed, explaining that her dream wasn't exactly possible but flower girl was certainly doable as lucy gray watched, tears threatening to fall from her eyes once again. only this time, they were of relief.

the joy she felt in her chest, at the thought that you could be... together in front of the covey was the best gift she could possibly be given. you and her, together. not just as best friends. although it was hard to wrap her head around it, she knew that it was exactly what she wanted and she had it on good authority that you wanted it too.

[venoyale]

AO3 MASTERLIST - Jujutsu Kaisen

will be updating :)

Gojo Satoru/Reader

Neighbourhood Watch (ongoing) - Rated E: AKA: THE Satoru Gojo being down bad for one (1) single mom. ★ fluff, SMUT, angst/comfort

Anteros (oneshot) - Rated E: "In Greek mythology, Anteros (/ˈæntərɒs/; Ancient Greek: Ἀντέρως Antérōs) was the god of requited love (literally "love returned" or "counter-love") and also the punisher of those who scorn love and the advances of others, or the avenger of unrequited love." ★ fluff, SMUT, angst/comfort

Kiss Me Better (oneshot) - Rated E: You've always understood the importance of words, especially ones that are said to someone who won't come back. However, you were foolish enough to believe this concept doesn't apply to your boyfriend, AKA The Strongest. Arguments break out, Shibuya happens, and you're left haunted by the last words you both uttered to each other. But what happens when he's quite literally sitting on your bed twenty days later, obviously missing you? And why aren't you kissing him?? ★ fluff, SMUT, angst/comfort

All I Need (oneshot) - Rated E: A friend of Shoko's is a friend of yours, right? So why does it seem like Satoru Gojo wants a lot more from you than expected? ★ SMUT, slightly obsessive but NOT yandere Gojo

Satosugu

Heartbeat (hiatus) - Rated E: When they reach the peak of ecstasy, Satoru wraps his arms around Suguru, eyes boring into the man on top of him. He wants to convey his feelings through words, but it gets stuck at the base of his larynx, so he only hopes that his saccharine moans and the unadulterated emotion pouring from his gaze sends the right message. Suguru burrows his face in Satoru’s neck so that he doesn’t see him falter under pressure. ★ SMUT, angst/comfort, misunderstandings

Venus Fly Trap (ongoing/semi-hiatus) - Rated E: What's the easiest way to capture (the heart of) the only daughter and heiress of the Gojo Conglomerate? Seems like only a certain woman has the answer to that, despite her shady and mysterious presence. ★ SMUT, sexual tension despite having marathon sex

Occult TV (ongoing/semi-hiatus) - Rated T: When Itadori, Iguchi, and Sasaki's Occult club expands into something big, like a paranormal investigation YouTube Channel, they're tasked to investigate the former home of a friend's guardians. Will they, a trio of amateur ghost-hunters, be able to find any solid evidence? Stay tuned to find out, only on Occult TV! ★ fluff, crack, slight angst/comfort

Valentine's Day 2018 (oneshot + platonic satoshoko) - Rated T: It’s not that she doesn’t care, but if she’s being honest to anyone including herself, she does not have the mental capacity to even try to be there for her white-haired friend. It’s futile, because the last person who truly understood Satoru left, and now he’s gone forever….Forever. That’s why Shoko’s here today, though. This Valentine’s Day marks the first of infinity where Suguru is gone forever. ★ angst/no comfort

Slow Mornings (oneshot) - Rated E: "Suguru now realizes just how scarce domesticity truly is, and how he almost threw it away when he wakes up on a chilly December morning with a sleeping Satoru in his arms. The expensive silk sheets that his husband had handpicked are wrapped around them tightly, bundling them up like a baby’s swaddle, or a hubby burrito as Satoru lovingly dubs it." ★ comfort, fix-it, fluff, a pinch of angst in the beginning

Character Studies

It's My Birthday, Did You Remember? (ongoing) - Rated M - Gojo Satoru: As a friend, teacher, and colleague, Satoru Gojo will always be the first person there when it comes to celebrating someone’s birthday. He thinks it’s important to celebrate the existence of a person, even if it’s for one day, and let it be known that they’re greatly appreciated. But what’s only known to a few, is that, his own birthdays weren’t like this when he was growing up…. ★ angst

[autumnslance]

Gridania vs the Elementals

Had a bit of a grouse on Twitter after seeing a decent take with a buncha of real not decent replies. Transcript of the tweets:

ARR inherited the mess in Gridania from the 1.0 team, no idea how to fix it, so ignore it.

It's also clear it's mostly a People problem, not the utterly alien blue-orange morality Elementals the folks who live in the Shroud adapt to living with (& corrupt folks use as excuses).

The Elementals are obviously not policing every detail of folks' lives & barely comprehend mortals as seen several times. When they lash out it's cuz they sense a threat they don't understand. Hence the need for Padjal & Hearers. Who are people & make mistakes or are corruptible.

Assuming the Elementals are evil or cruel for the hell of it is grossly misunderstanding the alien horror aspect of the Shroud & the druidic story of the Padjal. Nature isn't all kind & fluffy. The Elementals aren't even personified nature; they're aspects of it that can react.

The trouble in Gridania always comes from people mistreating each other, & sometimes that includes making claims about the Elementals. It's the same as corrupt priests in Ishgard or Monetarists in Ul'dah. Using authority for personal gain. It's explicit in the StB LTW quest.

I'd love to see Gridania get a glowup the way the other city-states have. I don't expect it to happen. Mostly I wish for it so maybe a fraction of folks would grasp slightly better the concepts of corrupt authorities vs alien nature elements.

I also once wrote a lot more about "why doesn't Kan-E just fix it?" as if it's that easy. https://autumnslance.tumblr.com/post/625180125899669504/the-seedseers-privilege

What happened in the EW Tank quest was cuz the Elementals couldn't tell who was at fault or why. They do not understand mortals or their reasons. They just knew something was happening. Removing padjal aspects instead of killing the boy too likely was their idea of mercy.

Meanwhile I'd side-eye any Hearer who claims "your kid specifically can't be cured cuz the Elementals say so."

If you don't trust an Ishgard priest making such claims of Halone telling him the same Herself, you shouldn't believe that Hearer, either. Why would they care or not?

Anyway. Not everything's a nice neat black & white easily understood & fixed situation. And the Elementals don't actually need fixing. Gridania does, but that's gonna take longer & isn't necessarily the WoL's job, but it's peoples'.

[pruneunfair]

MILAOWM does villainesses right.

My favorite characters in a lot of manhwa tend to be the white lotus villainesses, and as much as I'm glad to call them my favorites this doesn't look good on the author since their protagonists were either too boring or mary sueish to care about or the villainess was just the lesser of the two evils.

So when My in laws are obsessed with me brought in Dodolea and Pereshatis step mom and sister, I was impressed that I couldn't say I even liked them remotely.

I'll Start with Dodolea, the princess who is obsessed with Therdeo to concerning degrees, she isn't much at first and it's easy to brush her off as just another evil woman to rival Pereshati, she's bratty and annoying when we meet her, right away you already see how different she is to Pereshati besides personality, because Dodolea shows up in a Gothic Lolita sort of look wheras Pereshati wore light spring dresses before becoming well integrated with the Lapileons. Which I interept as Dodoleas desperation to be Therdeos wife by wearing very dark and muted clothes which fail since they still stand out so much with all the accessories, revealing how much she tries too hard in her goals to be Therdeos one and only

But after the tantrum that could only be rivaled by Veruca Salt herself, that bratty personality is replaced with something far more sinister, when she shows up multiple times there's something so uncanny about her especially when she's laying on barely veiled passive aggressivenes to Pereshati,

but that all pales in comparison to what went down in chapters 64 and 66

At first glance, you'd think "okay she's laughing at him, that's a dick move but it's not so bad" but it's the fact that she knows Therdeo is uncomfortable by her presence and yet she relished in it, she even receives a cup that is very reminiscent of the one revealed to be used to drug Therdeo.

And in chapter 66, it's revealed she drugged him so she could assault him, which would have happened If Therdeo didn't wake up in time. So rereading chapter 64 is even more disturbing when you realize Dodolea is aware of her actions and how they affected Therdeo and yet she not only doesn't care but she LAUGHS! that's pure psychopath level behavior right there.

Dodolea even succeeds in aranging Pereshatis "death" after passing off Lapileon blood as medicine and if it werent for the whole time enigma, she would have succeeded with no ounce of remorse in those big ass green eyes.

Next are the step family, Reina and her mom Lilian who give a whole new meaning to Cinderellas evil step mom and sisters.

Lilian isn't just any evil step mother who mistreated Pereshati since day 1, she was actually very gentle with Pereshati growing up, to the point where I wonder if there was ever a point where she really did love Pereshati like a daughter

She goes so far in her act it's eerily convincing even her expressions don't look obviously feigned, they look and feel real

She even goes as far as letting her hand get burned by hot tea to really sell the act, let me repeat myself she INJURED herself to gaslight Pereshati and feign the role of the regretful stepmom

With such dedication it's no wonder Pereshati started to self doubt and believe that she must've been crazy, and honestly, I was convinced for a second that they were on their way to redemption.

And Reina, good god Reina! Even though I think she's the weakest out of the three on this list, she still pulls it off so well. Her emotions aren't all acts because some of them are real, the ones after the trial where her mother is being arrested and sent to a convent are so raw and real but even in her grief she's still trying to manipulate Pereshati, guilt tripping her while pleading with her to make everything better again

There isn't much to say on Reina but for the few times she's on screen, she's putting on such a show.

But you know what all these women have in common? I actually hate them, I want to see their downfall. That's how it should be with villains, you want to see them fail, to get their comeuppance, anything to give them Karma! In the past that intention never succeeded because most other authors only want easy to hate villainesses without any effort, just the same cartoony twirly mustache villains with a low IQ stat so they can be easily defeated, but here, not only do I want to see them fail their karma feels so much more satisfying since they actually felt like an obstacle that needed effort to defeat. That is what a villain should be.

[darcytaylor]

I'm newer here so I wasn't around for the live developments, but from looking at it now, it appears that the DM timeline was: Nicola and Luke attend some dinner together and someone submits a blind to DM that L had kissed a Real Housewife who was sitting next to him on the neck. The woman in question and the dinner host respond, debunking it, saying that L was a gentleman and had a gf. Meanwhile, there are articles out stating that L is single, but there are also A's IG posts. Then, L and N slag DM off in an interview, calling her an unreliable source who had posted lies about L. DM gets pissed off and posts that she has proof that L has a gf and people fight her about it in the comments. Then DM sics Backgrid on L and A on premiere night. L is furious and refuses to play into it, so DM keeps A's name in her mouth to continue to piss him off and hopefully go public with her, thus validating DM as a source. Now Backgrid and People have dollar signs in their eyes, so they keep going after him.

Now, if this is what in fact happened, why are people mad at L exactly? He might've not been serious with A when those original articles came out or was determined to protect her, given what happened with J, so he decided to claim he was single in public but be open about her existence in private. I agree that the people around him have been a bit callous with their posting of him, but are they not allowed to live? It doesn't make sense to me for anyone connected to him to have orchestrated any of this, it looks like DM just has a vendetta against him and Nic, given how she's been targeting her as well lately. It appears she has indeed succeeded in turning public opinion against them. I mean, is there anything I'm missing? Or does the fandom feel gaslit first and foremost, hence the backlash? I know about the HBS behavior, I'm just curious about the infamy of the pap walk and how it squares with them being completely caught unawares and how that would change people's opinion, if at all.

I will say that I don’t think this will be an easy question to answer. Or if I am even able to because it all comes down to what people believe and how they perceive certain situations. It is also not a black and white situation. I believe there are multiple things that took place before and after the premiere night that caused hate and outrage. But the tipping point was definitely the paparazzi walk. 

Your summary about the Deuxmoi timeline is pretty good. But I will say that Brynn Whitfield didn’t say that Luke had a girlfriend, but said “Flattered but definitely not true. Very much a gentleman and I’m very happy to call everyone from the dinner a new and dear friend ❤️." (Although, correct me if I am wrong and Brynn went on to say anything else). 

People knew about Antonia and Luke starting back at the end of 2023, but it didn’t get much traction until New Years, where the video of them kissing came out. After the video came out that is when they officially became friends on Instagram. So even though there were many articles that came out that said that Luke was single, a lot of people knew that he did have a situation with Antonia (and her continued stories and posts with his hands, legs and arms confirmed that there was obviously something there). 

At this time people did not like how she presented herself online (her public persona did not get a warm welcome and a lot of people thought she was baiting the fans with the things she did post). So having her be in photo’s with Luke on the night of the premiere seemed disingenuous towards Bridgerton and season 3. There was a build up to the hate Luke and Antonia got and the paparazzi walk was just the breaking point.

To be honest it wasn’t a good look, but I also do not believe that Luke or his team were responsible for the paparazzi (but some people still think it was a hard launch for his relationship and that him and his team had something to do with it. I can understand why those people would be upset if they still believe that). 

People could be angry with Luke if they still believe he's contributing to media manipulation, which would seem deceitful. I think fans are frustration with him because he appears to be playing games with the media and fans.

I will link my post where I have stated why I DON'T believe Luke or his team were involved. 

There are also people who do feel gaslit, just like you said. This has definitely caused some of the outrage towards Luke and the whole situation. 

There is a slight perception of deception that I can see happening. Articles reporting Luke as single while he was "privately" involved with Antonia, could create a perception of dishonesty. Fans and media might feel misled because Luke's public persona didn't match his private life.

I do think that after the night of the premiere it seemed like Luke didn’t quite understand the backlash he was receiving because of the whole situation, and so when Milan came a couple days later and there was the paparazzi 2.0 (I think people thought it was like pouring salt on a wound). It just didn’t seem like the timing for that was the most ideal. I think it fuelled the fire even more.

It was right after Milan photos came out that Nicola posted her Sex In The City TikTok monologue and I believe crisis management became involved. I think this was Nicola’s way of trying to tell him the hate was really becoming something and he needed to regroup. Then the Jimmy Fallon interview happened. Luke’s team said that the Milan fashion week was Luke’s last stop for the promo tour, and if his team thought it was his last stop, why the Jimmy Fallon interview? Crisis management. 

Do I think that Deuxmoi liked the fact that Nicola and Luke both called her out? Nope! And I can see how the timing of everything does make it seem like this is some type of hidden agenda (and I wouldn’t be surprised).

If Deuxmoi is indeed targeting Luke and Nicola out of a personal vendetta, it could make the situation more complicated. The public and fans may be reacting to the drama rather than the facts, leading to misplaced frustration.

I know of two interviews where Nicola did bring up Deuxmoi and how she had to stop reading. The first one being in the Tumblr interview where she says that she had to stop reading when she started to see her friends on it and she would read stuff about herself that wasn’t true.

Then the interview she did in Brazil with Luke where she mentions that the stuff she read about Luke was not true (and she wanted to defend him) and that she has also had some untrue things said about herself. 

The situation involves a mix of media manipulation, public perception, and privacy issues. Like I said earlier it's not a black and white situation. People might be upset with Luke due to perceived dishonesty or frustration with the ongoing drama. The media's role in escalating the situation and targeting individuals also contributes to the overall tension. It’s a multifaceted issue where understanding the full context is challenging and hard to summarize, especially with competing narratives and personal agendas that may be at play. So I hope this somewhat helped? I'm not even sure if I actually answered anything at all?

I also have to say that this is all speculation. I do not know any of the people I have mentioned personally.

[mercurygray]

Hey Merc! I’d love to read about some girl bonding time for your MoTA OCs - how do they spend their down time? Have any of them bonded over other interests besides aviation/their occupations? - @softspeirs

Katie, I'm ashamed to say you gave me this prompt in April and I'm just now getting around to filling it. I'm also combing it with a prompt from @shoshiwrites for 'sunbathing' - they seemed like a natural fit together.

--

If you closed your eyes, it was almost like the beach.

It wasn't really anything like the beach, not really - just a freshly mown infield and a sunny day. But if you changed into a swimsuit, and laid down on a blanket, and closed your eyes, and no planes flew overhead, it was possible - just possible - to believe you were somewhere nice and swanky like Havana, or the south of France, lying on white sand with nothing but warm blue water in front of you.

"I'd kill for a cocktail right now," Tatty said, from underneath her sunglasses. "A daiquiri, with fresh lime juice and a chilled glass."

"And a nice boy to pick up the tab afterwards?" Mary asked, obviously fishing. They were all due leave, in various amounts, but since travel passes seemed to be hard to come by and one never seemed to know what would be waiting at the end of the line once you got there, sunbathing in the middle of an airfield in Norfolk seemed like a more reliable option. So that's what they were doing with their afternoon off - imagining better vacations in more exotic locales.

"It wouldn't hurt," Tatty replied, the shrug implicit in her voice. "We'd better be somewhere with a dance floor, too." She thought about this for a moment. "The Army and Navy Club has good daiquiris. And plenty of nice boys, too."

"I don't think they'd let us into the Army and Navy Club, Tatty." Helen was being more practical about the whole thing. It was one thing to be Katherine Spaatz and quite another to be Helen Owens, whose parents weren't anything special and whose going-out dress, by her own admission, left something to be desired.

"Of course they would."

"Not a lot of beaches in DC, though," Mary pointed out.

"Fair enough. But plenty of boys. And plenty of dancing."

"How about you, Fred?" Mary asked, changing the subject. "Any beach you'd like to be on right now?"

"Not a lot of beaches in Madison," Fred replied, eyes still closed, enjoying the sunshine. She was borrowing one of Mary's summer tops for the day, a halter in a red and yellow print, and trying to make the most of a few hours "I think I'd like to be right where I am. Field of flowers with a lot of sunshine and a book and no one to bother me. No students, no parents, no club room - just me."

Mary looked back towards base and sighed. "Don't hold your breath on not being bothered, Fred. I think we've been spotted."

A male voice came booming across the airfield. "Mary Boyle, are you having a party without us?"

"And what if we are, Everett Blakely? It's gotten to where a girl can't hear herself think if she doesn't go off into a field for a few hours."

"We thought about putting out a sign on the club that said No Boys Allowed," Tatty added, with a catty grin, sitting up and taking off her glasses so she could see just what they were up against. "But we didn't think any of you hooligans could read."

"Now, that's just mean, Miss Spaatz," Blakely replied, sitting down on the blanket with a semi-dramatic huff. Work must have been done for the day - the crowd with him was Douglass, and Hambone Hamilton, John Hoerr, who was carrying a large packing crate, and John Brady, all of them cool and loose in sunglasses and shirtsleeves, soaking up the sunshine.

"We're not going to let you stay unless you brought something to share," Tatty said archly, neither confirming or denying that she was mean, watching as the rest of the group made themselves comfortable on the picnic blankets.

"Does a case of cokes and a pack of cards count?" Blakely asked, pointing to Hoerr's box like he thought it would win him favors. "Jim thought we could play Crazy Eights."

"My ma also sent a box of cookies," Douglass added, looking hopefully in Mary's direction, his hand tight around the tin. "Shortbread - like my grandma used to make."

"Did you all lose Major Chatterbox on your way over?" Tatty asked, reaching straight past for the tin of cookies and helping herself to a piece without being asked twice. "Bucky Egan isn't one to miss a party."

"He said he had some business at the Control Tower," Hoerr reported, setting down the box and passing around the bottles, and an opener on a ratty piece of ribbon.

"Is that what they're calling that now?" Douglass asked with a grin.

"Hush, you," Mary chided companionably, taking the tin and her own piece of shortbread. (Douglass, for his part, looked happy to be so ordered, and did as he was told.) "I think it's sweet. She's good for him. Brady? Fred? Who's in for Crazy Eights? "

"I'll pass," Fred said, closing her eyes again and tucking her hands behind her head.

"I'm good watching," Brady added. His hand was close to her elbow, and after a few minutes, she could just feel his thumb caressing her skin, the tiniest gesture with the biggest meaning. Eyes still closed, her smile grew wider, and she went right on enjoying the sunshine, perfectly content. After all - who needs a beach?

[dreaming-about-seireitei]

But what about shoes??

So last night I couldn't sleep because I kept asking myself about what kind of footwear would the Bleach characters wear, adapted to today's fashion. I came up with this hc for some of them and I just needed to post it. (Be aware, I know almost nothing about fashion or fashion brands, so if you feel like that's not right just know I did my best)

Renji

- I honestly think Renji would definitely be the kind of guy who would wear these Nikes, the W Dunk High, obviously in red.

- I also believe he would be secretely proud of them, and would clean them every time before going out of the house (even if they'd get dirty in a fight immediately).

-He would probably have at least one more pair that looks the same, maybe with just a little detail difference, in case these ones get broken in a fight.

- I think he buys them alone so people don't see how happy he gets when he finally has them in the bag

Ichigo

- Our main boy would probably wear these Pumas (that I can't remember the full name of)

- They kinda go with his bankai, but it's mostly just a coincidence

- He actually bought them because he needed a new pair, and it was the first pair that caught his eye

- I feel like fashion would not be his priority, he would prefer longevity over anything else and feeling comfy

Orihime

- I am 100% sure she would own at least two of these colorful Converse that she embroidered or decorated herself

- She is the cute and unique type that would wear these anywhere and with anything (even if they don't match)

-They are comfy, but also cute and that's mostly what counts for her, as she buys them for the main bold colors and decorates them however she feels like on the spot

Toshiro

- In my mind, I see him wearing these Reeboks he would look so good in them and he wouldn't even try oh god

- I feel like when buying them, he'd probably look at the sole of the footwear first to ensure it can hold his fighting as well as his shunpo before anything else

- They match his hair and eyes and add a plus to his otherwise kind of plain outfits (he doesn't see it, but he likes the look anyway)

- I see the brand itself mostly bought by adults who already have kids and are tired and take walks to free their mind; and we know he has the tastes of an elder person already and is tired from scolding Matsumoto all day and just wants something nice, nothing out of the ordinary

Rukia

- My girl would totally wear the combat boots idc

- She will feel her feet more secure with them on and would like the adherence of the boots

- She also bought them because when she tried them on, she felt like people took her a bit more serious because she looks badass in them

- The black, simple style is what she likes in term of fashion because she can wear them with her dresses, as well as with her fighting gear

Matsumoto

- If you think our fashionista will not wear some great platform sandals any time of the day, I regret to inform you, you are wrong.

- She would most definitely go through a pair every week because they're not very resistant, but that's fine because she has plenty of pairs.

- She buys them from specific stores that she likes in the World of the Living, at least two or three pairs at a time

- She mostly gets them in black, because it goes with everything, obviously, but she might also have a white and a brown pair for special occasions (like going shopping)

Uryu

- These President boots (I think that's what they're called) would be all that's in his closet, multiple pairs, leather, suede, in black and brown, but just this type of shoes

- He would not only buy them because of the very good quality, true materials, but also because they look very serious and grown

- He would be careful with them and always have his laces neatly tied

- Would get mad at Ichigo for accidentally stepping on them

This is mostly what I had in mind, let me know if you share the same opinion, if not, what would you change about it? Also, please someone let me know if this is a normal lenght for a post, I feel like it's too long.

Obviously I took all the photos from the internet and don't own any of them.

[trensu]

I doubt there's much overlap between the stranger things fandom and the magnus archives but frankly, i dont think there's enough horror in stranger things. Which is surprising when you consider the source material. So i've been having Thoughts about the Fears and their avatars.

I'm turning everyone into monsters, is what I'm saying.

Steve would be a perfect candidate for avatar of the Corruption. He achingly wants to be loved. He needs to be Loved. He's been so alone for so long and he just wants someone to stay, so of course the Corruption would welcome him to its domain. The insect thing doesn't work for him though. Or at least I couldn't think of any insect that would mesh well with his whole thing.

Then I remembered that Robin is terrified of rabies, and there isn't a Steve without a Robin, who is also someone who desperately wants to be loved for who she is. Obviously their connection to Filth wouldn't lie with insects. They'd be disease. So Corruption avatars Steve&Robin (always always Steve&Robin) would have fever bright eyes, skin damp with sweat, cheeks somehow both flushed and sallow, and lips cracked dry and red. They're always in contact somehow: leaning against one another, standing with arms pressed close, pinkies hooked together. Constant contact. When they're still for long enough, their skin starts to ooze and meld so they could be closerclosertogether.

Things get truly horrifying, however, if they're ever forced apart. They become rabid things, violently agitated and foaming at the mouth. They infect anybody who gets in their way. It's a horrible way to die, burning with fever, fear, and confusion as skin and muscles spasm hard enough slough off bones. Anyone who dares stand between them doesn't live for long.

Steve&Robin have their own collection of statements at the Usher Foundation. In fact, Hawkins, Indiana is of great interest for the Usher Foundation because of the number of avatars present in such a small population. Because you have Steve&Robin collecting fear for the Corruption, but there is also Nancy who is a prolific avatar of the Hunt.

When the Usher Foundation first started studying Hawkins, they had Nancy pegged for Beholding. They had, in fact, been preparing to recruit her after she graduated. But hers was not a need to Know; she was never content to simply Watch. She needed to track down leads, she needed the chase. The Usher Foundation knew they lost her completely when she discovered the use of guns. She Hunted criminals and monsters now to help rid the world of evil. Or so she tells herself, even when the story she finds doesn't always paint her victims as monstrous as she wants others to believe.

Then there's Eddie. Eddie Munson grew up knowing people would hurt him for the crime of existing, given half the chance. Poor terrified Eddie, always running, because deep down he knew he was destined for a cruel and painful death. There was no escaping it no matter how fast he ran or how often he hid, the End was waiting for him.

When his time finally came, he was out of his mind with fear because he didn't want to die oh god please not yet, pleaseplease he doesn't want to die. It was such pure delicious Fear that the End made an offer and Eddie grabbed it with both hands in a white-knuckled grip. He's not a murderer; he doesn't have to be because everyone dies regardless, and the End is patient. But he's always there with the End's victims. He's the last thing they see - eyes black as the emptiness of death and a bone white smile - and the last thing they hear is his summation of their pathetic, meaningless lives and the endless emptiness that will follow. Every narration finishes with the gleeful proclamation of "and so Ends the life of..." And it's always gleeful because though Eddie's's destined for the End as much as anyone else, his is not today.

(We could probably include some steddie here; I'm sure some of Steve&Robin's victims were more afraid of the End than the Corruption so Eddie would show up whenever Steve&Robin were on a rampage. Steve likes to listen Eddie narrate the gruesome deaths. He liked it even more when Eddie was done and he would let Steve reel him close.

Eddie, Steve would rasp, ravenous for him, love me. Eddie, love me, lovemeloveme and Eddie would let him press skin to moist hot skin, dry lips chafing against Eddie's cool wet mouth. Eddie would say, yes Steve, always, love you. Steve would press in harder, trying to fuse them into one, more Eddie please please love me more. Eddie would reply with equally hungry fervor every time, yes yes, love you with all of me, i love you just you. God, but Steve reveled in it; it almost filled the starving, bottomless pit of his sickly pounding heart.

Eddie loved it when Steve got clingy. The sheer physicality of his need tethered Eddie against the constant terror the lingered in the edges of his mind where the shadow of the End haunted him. Eddie poured his adoration out through a whispered soliloquy into Steve's ear, detailing how the Corruption was slowly killing him, how he would die from it but that Robin would die with him, they'd leave the world together, and Eddie would be at his side, hands sinking into his spongy, diseased flesh as he held Steve in his final hours. Steve let out the softest, sated sigh every time Eddie did this.

Eddie hopes that when the End finally claims him, it would be through Steve's rotting kiss; a terrible death, he knew, but what bliss it would be to let the affliction of Steve consume him entirely).

Around the same time Eddie reached his awakening, Chrissy Cunningham heard the siren call of the Flesh. It was fascinating, the way she manifested as avatar. She hated her body, was disgusted by it, and this was reinforced my her mother. No matter how little she ate or how often she purged herself, it was never enough until one day she discovered that her hands burned like stomach acid when she touched her body. And like acid, she could suddenly melt and pull her skin like taffy. It hurt, it burned like nothing else she's ever felt but she could finally make her body as skinny and insubstantial as her mother and the rest of the world always wanted it to be.

Her very first victim was her mother. She dug her hands deep into the belly of the woman her birthed her into an imperfect being, and shifted and molded the flesh until she was just as beautiful as she forced Chrissy to be. She threw the extra unnecessary pounds of organs and fat and splintered bone in a heap to the side. She would find use for it later, as more and more victims were drawn to her and her promises to help them find the body they always wanted.

She took joy in the screams of agony she inspired every time she helped someone through a transformation. And once she started pulling someone apart, she never stopped, no matter how much they begged for mercy, until her masterpiece was complete. Because she knows she can make them more gruesomely beautiful and that's worth all the pain they'll feel for the rest of their existence.

In this world, Jonathan never meets Argyle. He was never going to meet Argyle because the fog of the Lonely seeped into his lungs and mind when he was young and never left. His was a curious case, according to the researchers at the Usher Foundation. There was really no reason for the Lonely to have called to him. Yes, he had a verbally abusive father but his mother's love and protective dedication paired with his love for his little brother should've been enough to ward him against it.

Instead, he actively sought solitude from his peers; he would take pictures of them from afar, relishing their distance. The Usher Foundation got some of his photos and noticed that somehow they always depicted the subject slightly blurred and completely alone no matter if they'd been in the middle of a crowd when the picture was taken. He'd send the photos to their subjects sometimes. It had an intriguing effect. The subjects became hyperaware of how Lonely existence truly was. The photos of them became clearer the longer they stared into them; and the sharper their images became, the more the victims faded from existence until finally only a photo of a nameless forgotten person remained.

Jonathan's love for his brother manifested in teaching him how to be Alone, encouraging a pursuit of solitary entertainments like painting. Will's paintings soon became nothing but empty landscapes. Will would wander quiet and unseen to galleries to put them up where people could see them. A specific type of person would be drawn to them. They'd come back to them over and over until they were trapped in those dreary landscapes, doomed to never see another person; to be utterly Forsaken forevermore.

The Usher Foundation is eager to see if the Byers Brothers would become the American equivalent of the Lukas family. Or perhaps the Sinclair siblings would build a family empire to the Web. The younger one, Erica, had a need for control that surpassed anyone her age. She somehow always managed to get her way no matter what situation she found herself in. Meanwhile her brother seemed happy to let others take the lead. He always complied to his sister's commands eventually, though he chafed against her bossy bratty behavior.

He much more happily complied to the demands of one Max Mayfield. They were an odd combination, and were being closely watched by the Usher Foundation to figure out how they worked. Max spent her whole life afraid of the nonsensical violence posed by her stepfather and stepbrother. She was afraid of how they hurt her mother, of how she specifically was targeted by her stepbrother. But then her stepbrother redirected his violence to Lucas Sinclair and Max snapped. Baying for blood, she had taken her skateboard and beat her stepbrother to death.

The Slaughter was not picky when it came to violent murders, so it was confusing that she didn't immediately turn to make Lucas suffer the same fate. Instead she had taken her stepbrother's car and driven back home, where she then took the tire iron and beat both her stepfather and mother until they were nothing but bloody masses of pulp. The Web-touched Sinclairs were able to shift attention and blame so Max got away with it with none the wiser. The Web and Slaughter were nearly opposite sides of the Fear spectrum, and their avatars were never seen together. Yet the Sinclairs and Mayfield were inseparable from that day forward.

Finally there was Dustin Henderson, but the Foundation wasn't worried about him. His thirst for Knowledge has already put many lives at risk on multiple occasions, and not once has he felt any regret afterwards. He always got the Knowledge he wanted, after all. He was of the Eye, through and through. The Usher Foundation already has a scholarship and internship in reserve for him when he graduates high school.

a full fledged fic (well, a WIP technically) is being posted on ao3 here

[tanya-shiza]

Ember // LMK OC Art & Info

Kinda created for my SIB AU, where the story of the canon characters turned out differently.

Ember still can be in the canon, but, obviously, with a changed backstory. (look at the end of the post).

Ember or «Demonic ember from the Moon».

Birth story:

Moon Goddess - Chang'e - trained to cook many, many years ago, dreaming that one day she could teach everyone how to cook as well as her only friend, the moon rabbit. However, Chang'e was distracted and the rice ball burned. The Goddess threw it onto the sky, like any another star, but the coal couldn't stay in the sky and became fallen sky.

The coal fell into the cave of a snow-capped mountain, which people unsuccessfully tried to conquer. When it hit the ground, it split into two pieces.

One of it fell into a human campfire: mixed with smoke, cosmic dust and campfire's coal, Ember appeared into this world - with black, wavy hair like his mom's(Chang'e) and dark blue eyes like the night sky.

The second piece fell into a pile of human bones. Ember noticed that the second piece could not decide for a long time what kind of appearance to choose for itself. It wanted something special. Something perfect. Ember intervened to help, and a female demon with white skin, white hair and crimson eyes was born, completely unlike Ember or Chang'e. The demon wasn't happy at all that she was interrupted, but Ember interrupted the perfectionist demon again, calling her little sister. The Bone Demon pouts and pushes Ember away, accidentally using magic that causes one of Ember's locks to turn white and stiffer. It curls up and now looks like a false halo.

The Bone Demon feels guilty, because now Ember's hair is not perfectly black and soft. But Ember suddenly for the demon enjoys her new white ahoge(?). She tells the perfectionist demon that she made her perfect and there is nothing to feel guilt about.

Short Facts:

SIB AU:

Ember & Lady Bone Demon are sisters. (Let me be honest this is the reason why I created Ember in the first place. It's so funny to me to observe that the cold Lady Bone Demon is actually a younger sister, and her older one behaves incredibly infantile. 🤭)

Ember wants to explore the whole world which expresses Chang'e's desire to show her cooking to the whole world. (Lady Bone Demon expresses desire to help everyone in need.)

Ember had a strong influence on the young Lady, which subsequently made her so stubborn and confident in her rightness. However, Ember still retained her authority and the Lady may sometimes reckon with Ember, perceiving her as the voice of morality and subsequently of conscience, which the Lady does not have. (Please note that the Lady in SIB AU is slightly different from the canon. For example, she did not ice the entire empire, but actually arranged the overthrow of the Emperor. She also has no plans to use samadi fire to destroy the whole universe—)

Neither Ember nor the Lady Bone Demon know that they were born because of Chang'e. Even Chang'e herself doesn't know.

Ember believes that she is a demon born from a falling star, but since she woke up in a campfire, she named herself an «ember». (Lady Bone Demon guesses that they weren't born from a falling star, but it's useless to convince Ember.)

In Canon:

Outside of the SIB AU, it is obvious that Ember and Lady are not sisters. And even more: Lady is much older than Ember. However, there was a period when Ember followed Lady Bone Demon purely out of curiosity. Ember perceives Lady as a best friend with whom she can talk about anything and who will help, but Lady Bone Demon perceives Ember simply as a fool who cannot think longer than 3 seconds.

[tkblythofficial]

Ok bitches, here's some zeglyth. 😊

--

"Sorry -" they say at the same time when their hands touch,  having reached for the only flamingo print mug on the shelf. 

His lips parting, he takes her in. She does the same. There's more white in his hair, she observes, but his face has retained the boyish charm, the deceptive innocence.

Despite everything, she can't help the wide grin splitting her face. 

"No way!"  

He barks out a laugh. "It really is you!" 

There's a second of awkwardness, uncertainty as his arms give a tiny jerk towards her, as if he's about to hug her. He doesn't. 

It's okay, she tells herself - she wasn't going to either. It has, after all, been years and years since they last talked properly.  They're not, by any means, on hugging terms. 

His eyes give her a quick once-over. "So, what are you doing here?" 

The question quickly sobers her. Her mouth opens and closes twice without making a sound. He watches, patient, sensing her discomfort. 

She remembers this, his almost annoying, scrutinizing perceptiveness, his sensitivity and attunement to her every little mood swing. 

Finally, she shrugs. "I just need new stuff," she says quietly. 

He waits,  giving her time to say more, and when she doesn't, hedges. "More stuff?" 

She nods firmly. "I've moved out -" she clears her throat to keep her voice steady,  "of the previous apartment." 

His eyes narrow. "You have? You mean, you and- " 

"I've a new lease!" She says quickly to prevent him from finishing the sentence. She isn't ready to talk about the breakup yet. "And it's really nice. But the flat is empty, obviously - so, here I am." 

There's a long pause before he nods in understanding, peering down at her. "Here you are," he repeats. 

She gives him a quick smile before her eyes scan around their surroundings. They're lucky IKEA in Brooklyn is practically empty on Monday morning. She doesn't know if she'd be able to handle any unwanted attention now, especially with him here. 

"What about you?" She asks to change the subject. "What brings you here?" 

His pensive eyes haven't strayed from her, but he plays along, mimicking her conversational tone. 

"Just needed a new mug," he says, glancing  down at the item in her hands.

He doesn't say why. She doesn't probe, because he didn't. 

She stretches out her arm at him. "Take it, you should have it," she says. 

"Oh no, it's all ri -" 

"No, really. You should have it," she insists, firmly pressing the pink flamingo mug into the middle of his chest, so that he has no choice but to cradle it in his palm.  

The pitch of her voice rises in jest as she speaks. "Perhaps it will remind you of the good times! You know, when you'd have your roots bleached at 5 AM." 

She's fully prepared for him to not get it, not remember, but then he laughs - a deep, melodious sound from his belly. 

"Nothing like sniffing wig glue at dawn," he deadpans, the corners of his eyes crinkling with mirth. 

She can feel her cheeks turning hot at the unexpected, devastating, open fondness of his expression as looks down at her. "I can't believe you remember my flamingo mug from that trailer in Poland." 

She shrugs in a way that she hopes looks casual. "Well, you once scalded me with hot coffee from that mug when we were dancing. Hard to forget." 

He laughs again, shaking his head, one palm sliding down his face. She notices the absence of the ring on the finger. 

"Shit, I remember," he says, and then - in what seems like a split second - his face is composed again. How does he do it? She had always wondered how his micro expressions could  shift so quickly, so expertly. 

"I'm sorry," he suddenly says. 

They study each other silently. 

She almost asks if he's apologizing for scalding her with coffee ten years ago or for his part in the cooling off of their friendship, for the overly-formal, generic correspondence on birthdays, movie release days and Christmases; the increasingly icy politeness of his tone as the years passed. 

"You know, I actually brought it with me to New York, but then one day, I knocked it off the table and broke it." 

She nods at the mug in his hand (and tries to ignore how tiny it looks in his palm). 

"Another chance, then," she says. "New beginnings." 

The grip of his fingers around the mug grows firmer. His thumb lazily brushes over the pink flamingo's neck on the ceramic. 

He nods. "New beginnings." 

--

Now, Anon…….I immediately know you’ve been on this blog a while because this is out of pocket

1. Flamingo print mug? JAIL FOR YOU

2. Not him having white hair omg? That gagged me because that could be 2 years from now 🤭 JK JK!

3. R being in her 30s and still in denial? Did my girl dirty 😭

This is so sad and cute! I need more!

[mariana-oconnor]

The Golden Pince-Nez pt 3

Last time I came to the decision - entirely logically and data-driven and not at all because he made an incredibly rude comment about one of his servants - that The Professor was a hack, his life's work is founded on a lie and he either commited or is complicit in the murder of Willoughby Smith.

I also came to the conclusion that he smokes too many cigarettes. (1000 a fortnight, you know over a year that's 26,000? And he's getting them imported from Alexandria? Guy has a problem.)

Stanley Hopkins had gone down to the village to look into some rumours of a strange woman who had been seen by some children on the Chatham Road the previous morning.

Was she stumbling around blindly, because I feel like with the prescription Holmes described, she's going to find it very difficult to get around on her own without her glasses.

I had never known him handle a case in such a half-hearted fashion.

Let's play: Is Sherlock bored, or does he dislike the conclusion to this story?

Even the news brought back by Hopkins that he had found the children and that they had undoubtedly seen a woman exactly corresponding with Holmes's description, and wearing either spectacles or eye-glasses, failed to rouse any sign of keen interest.

So she definitely exists and has been in the area. But Holmes doesn't seem to care about that, possibly because he already knows it must be the case and therefore this is of little concern.

He was more attentive when Susan, who waited upon us at lunch, volunteered the information that she believed Mr. Smith had been out for a walk yesterday morning, and that he had only returned half an hour before the tragedy occurred.

Man goes for walk. Vitally important information. It means that things may have occurred in the house without his knowledge, or that he might have been involved in something on his walk without anyone else's knowledge, such as meeting up with our lady with bad eyesight.

He was, indeed, a weird figure as he turned his white mane and his glowing eyes towards us.

Why are his eyes glowing? Eyes are not supposed to glow, Watson. Does he have tapetum lucidum? Is he a werewolf? Is he a demon? Has he finally smoked enough cigarettes that he has merged with the cigarette and now he is literally smoking?

Holmes stretched out his hand at the same moment, and between them they tipped the box over the edge.

Second recorded incident of Holmes knocking things off tables like a cat.

I don't know what the cigarettes have to do with all this. I feel like it's going to be obvious. The only idea I can have is that he's part of some sort of artefact smuggling ring and every two weeks he gets a massive batch of 1000 cigarettes but hidden in the package are antiques. But why would that affect his appetite? And clearly he is getting all 1000 cigarettes because he's smoking all day and night. And why would that require Holmes to smoke like fifty in a go before?

So there must be something in the cigarettes? Are the rolling papers money? Are the rolling papers ancient documents? But then he smokes them, so that makes no sense either.

“Yes,” said he, “I have solved it.” Stanley Hopkins and I stared in amazement. Something like a sneer quivered over the gaunt features of the old Professor. “Indeed! In the garden?” “No, here.” “Here! When?” “This instant.”

You solved it by knocking some cigarettes off the table?

^Holmes and the Professor, probably

I mean, obviously he has connected the dots, he's Sherlock Holmes and he is controlled by the almighty god-writer of his universe who's feeding him all the lines. But still. What can you work out from knocking cigarettes off a table? Did they fall wrong? Or was there something on the bottom of the box?

“A lady yesterday entered your study. She came with the intention of possessing herself of certain documents which were in your bureau. She had a key of her own."

So far, so not what I thought... this is not in keeping with my thoughts that the Professor dunnit.

UNLESS she was looking for evidence that he was a fraud and had previously talked to Willoughby about it, then when he refused to help her - loyal to his employer as he was - she took matters into her own hands.

Her possession of the key intimates that she has at one time had access to this desk. She's one of the previous secretaries that was let go for creative differences. Creative differences that were The Professor being a fraud, obviously (I refuse to believe this man has any academic ethics).

SO using the key that she kept after the termination of her old employment, she snuck in using her knowledge of the household and its schedule. The Professor came upon her and killed her, but knocked her pince-nez off and under the desk as he did so. No clue what he did with the body... put it in a crate of cigarettes?

THEN Willoughby comes back and asks if she came to see the professor, enquires about the allegations she made. The Professor says 'Oh no, dear boy. She hasn't been to see me, and she was a vary fanciful girl. You know what women are like.' Because he's a terrible person.

Then Willoughby finds the pince-nez, recognises them from his previous meeting with the lady and just as he's putting it all together STAB in the neck from the professor, but this time there isn't time to hide the body, the maid, Susan, is already there. the Professor hotfoots it away and leaves Willoughby there, forgetting all about the pince-nez still clutched in his rapidly cooling hand.

There are still some holes, and the cigarettes still make no sense and we have no body, so habeas corpus isn't exactly satisfied. We habeas pince-nez instead.

I could just read the story and find out, I guess.

I really want the professor to be a fraud. I want him to be totally discredited and disgraced. I want it so bad, you guys.

The Professor blew a cloud from his lips. “This is most interesting and instructive,” said he. “Have you no more to add? Surely, having traced this lady so far, you can also say what has become of her.”

This might seem like he genuinely doesn't know what's going on, because he doesn't seem worried. Or, per my hypothesis, he's just an arrogant bastard who's convinced he's smarter than anyone else in the room.

“I will endeavour to do so. In the first place she was seized by your secretary, and stabbed him in order to escape. This catastrophe I am inclined to regard as an unhappy accident, for I am convinced that the lady had no intention of inflicting so grievous an injury."

Really? Random lady we don't know did it? That would be very unsatisfying. 'Guy dies in room holding glasses belonging to the person who killed him' isn't a very intriguing murder mystery.

"She ran down a corridor, which she imagined to be that by which she had come—both were lined with cocoanut matting—and it was only when it was too late that she understood that she had taken the wrong passage and that her retreat was cut off behind her. What was she to do? She could not go back. She could not remain where she was. She must go on. She went on. She mounted a stair, pushed open a door, and found herself in your room.”

Ah, that's why the shortsightedness is relevant. Should have guessed that was connected.

This is where the Professor kills her and stuffs her under his bed right, then smokes a million cigarettes to cover up the smell of her rotting corpse?

(I'm grasping at straws, let me be)

“And you mean to say that I could lie upon that bed and not be aware that a woman had entered my room?” “I never said so. You were aware of it. You spoke with her. You recognised her. You aided her to escape.”

OK, that was like my... second theory last time? He's complicit in aiding the murderer.

Again the Professor burst into high-keyed laughter. He had risen to his feet and his eyes glowed like embers.

Demon professor

Y'know, if he went into higher education and got tenure.

God that show freaked me out as a kid. Could not watch it.

“She is there,” said Holmes, and he pointed to a high bookcase in the corner of the room.

OK, I know I suggested he was feeding her and that was why he was eating so much last time, but she's really been hiding in his room this whole time? Behind the bookcase? I guess she can come out when no one else is there, but she's just been living behind the bookcase this entire time?

...at the best she could never have been handsome, for she had the exact physical characteristics which Holmes had divined, with, in addition, a long and obstinate chin. [...] And yet, in spite of all these disadvantages, there was a certain nobility in the woman's bearing, a gallantry in the defiant chin and in the upraised head, which compelled something of respect and admiration.

Watson: She was ugly, but for some reason I still respected her. It was a very confusing situation for me. This has never happened before.

It's okay, Watson. We all know you're a shallow bitch sometimes and we love you for it.

“Madam,” said Holmes, “I am sure that it is the truth. I fear that you are far from well.”

Yeah, because she's been stuck in this room with the chain-smoker for over twenty four hours and he hasn't cracked a window. Honestly impressed she hasn't suffocated.

“I have only a little time here,” she said, “but I would have you to know the whole truth. I am this man's wife. He is not an Englishman. He is a Russian. His name I will not tell.”

Secret Russian! Did not see that coming. I'd ask if that's why the imported cigarettes, but he was getting them from Alexandria, wasn't he? Although there's probably an Alexandria in Russia, there were like fifty gazillion Alexandrias. Every time Alexander the Great stopped somewhere for the night, he called it Alexandria. Now there was a guy who like the sound of his own name too much.

For the first time the old man stirred. “God bless you, Anna!” he cried. “God bless you!” She cast a look of the deepest disdain in his direction. “Why should you cling so hard to that wretched life of yours, Sergius?”

You just said you weren't going to tell them his name? I get that's not his full name, but still...

Also, this does not seem like a happy marriage. Not least because no one seemed to know he had a wife and he was hiding her behind the bookcase. Not traditionally a good place to keep one's spouse. Although I suppose it is more original than the attic. Professor Coram/Sergius beats Mr Rochester on that point, I suppose.

“I have said, gentlemen, that I am this man's wife. He was fifty and I a foolish girl of twenty when we married. It was in a city of Russia, a University—I will not name the place.”

Thirty years is quite a big age gap... I feel like even at the time it would have been larger than average. Also, is she trying to hide things or could ACD just not be bothered to come up with a Russian sounding name?

“We were reformers—revolutionists—Nihilists, you understand. He and I and many more. Then there came a time of trouble, a police officer was killed, many were arrested, evidence was wanted, and in order to save his own life and to earn a great reward my husband betrayed his own wife and his companions."

Firstly, I have now decided that this story is the sequel to Oscar Wilde's play Vera; or The Nihilists. Also, he's a Snitch. I knew I didn't like him. We all know what snitches get...

“Among our comrades of the Order there was one who was the friend of my heart. He was noble, unselfish, loving—all that my husband was not. He hated violence. We were all guilty—if that is guilt—but he was not. He wrote for ever dissuading us from such a course. These letters would have saved him. So would my diary, in which from day to day I had entered both my feelings towards him and the view which each of us had taken."

So, she was maybe kind of cheating on him? Honestly, they both seem a little terrible. although they might have just been good friends. It's a little ambiguous.

Also, the name of the love interest in Vera; or The Nihilists is Alexis, so... like... Is this deliberate? Admittedly that's not his real name... sort of... but still.

“I must finish,” she said. “When my term was over I set myself to get the diary and letters which, if sent to the Russian Government, would procure my friend's release."

But would they though? Would they? Maybe I'm cynical, but are they really going to let one guy go from the gulag just because you sent some letters purporting to be from him saying 'no, we have to be nice little nihilists and not kill people'? You're placing a lot of trust in a government you literally were attempting to undermine and overthrow because you believed it was corrupt.

I'm just saying.

"With this object I engaged an agent from a private detective firm, who entered my husband's house as secretary—it was your second secretary, Sergius, the one who left you so hurriedly. He found that papers were kept in the cupboard, and he got an impression of the key."

So, I was right, one of the secretaries was involved!

Winning!

Also losing, but if you cut up all my theories and put them together you can sort of Frankenstein the right answer.

Still no explanation for the cigarettes, though.

She tore from the bosom of her dress a small packet.

I assume that this did not involve tearing her actual dress and she's not just standing there, tits out, from here onwards. I have to assume that, although the wording is very dramatic, I feel like that would be mentioned.

“Too late!” she said, sinking back on the bed. “Too late! I took the poison before I left my hiding-place. My head swims! I am going! I charge you, sir, to remember the packet.”

...

Anna, what have you done?

I have saved Alexis.

(There may possibly be 1 person who understands this... if that's you, hi! Thanks for existing.)

AND THEN, after she dramatically dies right in front of them from self-inflicted poisoning, there's a hardcut to them chatting on the way home.

"When you asked me to believe that she walked along a narrow strip of grass without once making a false step I remarked, as you may remember, that it was a noteworthy performance."

That does explain the grass, but not the cigarettes. Did you use the smoke to find the hidden room by looking where it blew?

"I therefore smoked a great number of those excellent cigarettes, and I dropped the ash all over the space in front of the suspected bookcase."

I feel like you didn't need quite that many cigarettes to do this. But also, dropping ash all over someone else's carpet is really rude. I know the Professor's a dick, but it's not like he's the one cleaning up after you. You just gave that poor housekeeper a horrible job and I bet she doesn't have a vacuum cleaner, and even if she does it's a manual one that requires pumping or something like that.

"...by upsetting the cigarette-box, I obtained a very excellent view of the floor..."

You definitely did not need to knock the cigarettes off the table to get a good look at the floor, Holmes. You have on several occasions in the past literally just fallen face first onto the floor to examine it without bothering to say a word. You knocked those cigarettes onto the floor because you wanted to.

"Well, Hopkins, here we are at Charing Cross, and I congratulate you on having brought your case to a successful conclusion."

Not sure how successful it is to turn up with an extra body rather than a prisoner, but I guess the killer found justice??

Not exactly what I'd class as success. But ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I guess.

Good for you, Hopkins!

"I think, Watson, you and I will drive together to the Russian Embassy.”

And Alexis was freed from the gulag, Professor Coram/Sergius died from complications due to smoking and his work was never complete, and everyone else lived happily ever after. Apart from the dead people, who were still dead.

Never would have guessed betrayed Russian nihilist wife trying to free her lover from the salt mines. But really, in hindsight it's so obvious 🤣

And the next one takes place in a famous university town. Is it Oxford or is it Cambridge, that's the question.

[purplebass]

For Shades of Magic, what do you think of all the various villains/antagonists? Obviously, the Dane Twins and Osaron, but I'm also interested in your thoughts on George IV, Maxim and Emira, Berras, Ezril, and anyone else you consider to be in that category.

I will also make some theories about Threads so there will be spoilers!

Well, if we have to talk about who was better as a villain, it's a match between Osaron and the Dane twins. I would call this first group "the villains that were so hard to beat and we're not sure are really dead".

Osaron was the typical evil that was around you but you couldn't see and it was difficult to destroy - in fact we see how that went. It needed to be contained but it wasn't truly destroyed.

The Dane twins also scared the shit out of me because they weren't just cruel, they were plain crazy and unpredictable. It would be interesting if they were to come back, because sometimes I'm not sure they really left. What if they went to Black London? What if, when someone dies because of Antari magic, they are sent there? Because killing them looked so easy.

I'm still convinced that Kosika might've brought something to White London and it might be a mix of evil forces who have taken the shape of Holland. Perhaps they never even left White London.

Then there's a second group that I would define as "the villains who tried so hard and who are likely going to fail" and I would put Berras and maybe Ezril. Berras never posed a threat until he used the bracelet to steal Lila's power. I never took him too seriously to be honest, because he was covering for Ezril. Ezril is still a mystery. Since she's a priest, she might have skills we don't know about, like some kind of borrowed magic too. I think she will lay low because she needs Rhy and the others not to suspect her, so she can spy from the inside. We see that Kell doesn't seem to like her, and I hope he keeps an eye on her because it's clear Rhy trusts her too easily. She will also probably use her intel and her being a trusted person in the castle to steal any of Nadiya's trinkets (she probably gave Berras the ring and the bracelet). She might be outed in Threads #2, because I believe there is someone even bigger than her behind the Hand, even though we know her motive for treason is that her family is third in line after Nadiya's family. She would kill two birds with one stone if she got rid of the king and queen, but we all know that Rhy will only die if Kell dies, so... I expect things like a murder attempt at Kell or LIla both.

I am afraid because I also remember about the knife Lila nicks in the tavern that can kill someone using their power against them... even so, do you know what makes me feel like even Ezril will not win? It's because of the bond that now exists between Lila and Kell. I believe that by giving him a thread of her magic, Lila might've bound herself to Kell the same way he bound himself to Rhy. But for them, this may work differently: this connection could amplify their magic unbeknownst to them. The ring/bracelet might've been a foreshadowhing of that.

The last group is about "the ones who I wanted to slap so hard because they watched everyone from their high horse but were scum". I would put king George IV and Maxim and Emira, obviously. George was just plain annoying and I was glad when Kell literally said fuck you and stopped visiting him. I'm curious to know how he's doing, though, because I don't think Lila updates us on the king in Grey London? I hope they will go again in Threads #2, but so far he isn't a threat even though the fact that the box containing Osaron's power is in Grey makes it possible for the king to attempt to steal the power. We know he went to the Five Points to look for Kell, and he might do it again. I wonder what could happen if such a great power were to be used in Grey London. Would the magic tip from one London to another? Is that the reason why magic in Red London seems to have changed?

Last but not least, Maxim and Emira. I hated them with a passion. They weren't good parents not even to their biological son, but I mostly hated how they treated Kell like an object they owned and not as a human being. They are one of the root causes of Kell's abandonment issues too. The poor guy just wanted to be loved and being treated like an equal, but they only gave him a mere title to make people believe he was part of the family but he was their watchdog, basically. I was so glad when they died, because it served them right.

I think I said enough haha! I might add more in future posts because I plan a Threads reread and there is still a lot to say :) Thanks for the question!

[okaybooner]

[Leigh is thrilled about this little camping trip. The weather is perfect—the only wind is a pleasant little breeze from the river that ruffles the sparse dry vegetation around them from time to time, not strong enough to mess with the fire and not carrying with it any unpleasant puffs of dust.]

[Sure, many find the Mojave at night terrifying, and not without reason. Some of the most dangerous creatures of the region are nocturnal. But there's nowhere Leigh feels safer than by Boone's side, and the time they've spent together traveling will always be among the fondest of her memories, even with all the trouble they've gotten themselves into along the way. This, to her, is perfect.]

[She's brought with her the supplies and ingredients to make a nice mild curry. She's always enjoyed cooking, but getting to cook for someone is a unique kind of satisfying, especially if it's for someone she loves. They'll enjoy their meal together under a lovely night sky unpolluted by the lights of New Vegas, they'll indulge in physical closeness and playful affection without a care in the world or prying eyes around them…]

[She needed this so badly. Just her and her—...

…boyfriend?]

[All of a sudden, this nags at her. Not just because they haven't exactly put their label on their relationship, although it's obviously romantic in nature.]

[She doesn't think of Boone as a man. She hasn't for a long time. It's not something she was initially cognizant of, and there wasn't anything in particular that caused it, either. Just a hunch. A hunch that has progressed into near certainty the more time Leigh has spent around Boone, to the point where she doesn't feel comfortable speaking about her to others with masculine pronouns, usually finding some way around it. Still, Boone hasn't said anything outright. Leigh wants to believe that with how open she is about being trans herself, Boone would be comfortable opening up to her—but personal feelings aren't something Boone is particularly forthcoming with. Maybe she's not quite ready yet. Maybe Leigh is misinterpreting things altogether and falling for a bit of confirmation bias.]

[When she glances up at Boone, she notices she seems a bit tense, though it might once again just be Leigh overthinking things.]

Hey. Is everything alright, honey?

[It takes a concerted effort to relax her shoulders at least a little bit, coming closer to the camp. But thankfully, she doesn't need to force a smile. Seeing Leigh doing something as simple as setting the fire up for dinner is worth a genuine smile. How many times in the past weeks has she walked in on her dealing with something a hundred times more pressing and complicated? No lives are on the line tonight. Just dinner.]

More than all right.

[It's a little white lie, but then again, maybe it's not. Because whatever inner turmoil she's experiencing, being around Leigh makes it bearable. It was the same with Carla - simply being in her presence made Boone forget Bitter Springs, for instance, even though Carla never knew what happened there.]

[With a little huff, she sits on the sand near the fire, taking off her boots and replacing them with sandals. They probably won't have to do much running. They've already set up a wide perimeter of barbed wire and other anti-wildlife measures.]

[Peers into Leigh's cooler. Coconut milk and ginger. Has to be curry.]

Yum.

[disneyswiftpolls]

Vote for Snow White's song here (closes Sunday 10/15)

Submit suggestions for Aurora or any other Disney heroines

Reasonings for each song option beneath the cut:

Bejeweled from Midnights

Well the music video is a Cinderella story, so obviously Taylor herself sees some connections between this song and the character.

Baby love, I think I've been a little too kind Didn't notice you walking all over my peace of mind In the shoes I gave you as a present Puttin' someone first only works when you're in their top five And by the way, I'm going out tonight Best believe I'm still bejeweled When I walk in the room I can still make the whole place shimmer

Enchanted from Speak Now (Taylor's Version)

Maybe too obvious, but this entire song tells Cinderella's journey all too well. Starting with the unhappiness of her life at the beginning with her stepmother and stepsisters, then it describes her meeting the prince at the ball and everything changes.

There I was again tonight Forcing laughter, faking smiles Same old tired, lonely place Walls of insincerity, shifting eyes and vacancy Vanished when I saw your face All I can say is, it was enchanting to meet you

Mean from Speak Now (Taylor's Version)

This could be a take on Cinderella's relationship with her stepmother and stepsisters. How they constantly put her down and make her question her self worth, but she holds onto the hope that one day she will be able to move on to better things without them.

You, with your words like knives And swords and weapons that you use against me You have knocked me off my feet again Got me feeling like I'm nothing ... Someday, I'll be livin' in a big, ole city And all you're ever gonna be is mean Someday, I'll be big enough so you can't hit me And all you're ever gonna be is mean Why you gotta be so mean?

The Very First Night from Red (Taylor's Version)

This could the period between the ball and Cinderella reuniting with the prince. At first, her stepmother doesn't know about her night with the prince, but then there is heartbreak when she finds out and it seems that she will be successful in keeping Cinderella away from the prince. Cinderella wishes she could back to that very first night.

I wish I could fly I'd pick you up and we'd go back in time I'd write this in the sky I miss you like it was the very first night Take me away, take me away Take me away to you, to you