#and i get the impression nicola does the same

[silverfoxstole]

Hattie, Paul and Nicola, from the Big Finish Instagram.

[darcytaylor]

I have finished watching Bridgerton Season 3, I do have some thoughts on the whole season but this post is not going to be about that. This post is about the Queen, Nicola Coughlan!

I am so impressed with how Nicola has conducted herself throughout the whole press tour. How she continues to conduct herself.

You can see how good of a person she is and how much she deserves all of the praise she gets.

(it make me sad knowing that she gets a lot of hate, hate that is unjustified)

Nicola gives a voice to all of the people who have felt like they have never fit in. She gives a voice to the people who aren't the typical celebrity. She gives a voice to the people that were always on the sidelines, the people who nobody paid attention too, the people who are 'normal'. She validates them. Makes them be seen and makes them want to be seen and not be ashamed for who they are.

She does all of this and still continues to be so kind and so loving.

I'm so glad I have gotten to witness all of her hard work and also be born the same time as her so I can see her shine. What a time to be alive!

Everybody who has been with her or worked with her the last few months have nothing but praise for her. That alone speaks for itself.

I am excited to see where she ends up and what she ends up doing.

I will be supporting everything she does and will do! Fan for life!

[nothingelsematterswrites]

Because I'm feeling petty, and it is the anniversary of The Tweet That Rocked The Grid, I decided to compile the most important piece of Oscar Lore.

I present to you: the most complete timeline of how alpine fucked up their handling of oscar piastri, aka, the piasco, to the best of my knowledge

(information compiled from multiple sources)

March 2021: Oscar Piastri makes his F2 debut in Bahrain, at the first round of the season. He immediately makes a splash by finishing fifth in the first sprint race and winning the second.

May 2021: Monaco. Oscar again impresses, collecting an 8th and two 2nds (including one in the feature race). Meanwhile, in Formula One land, Laurent Rossi offers a four year deal to Esteban Ocon, which he signs.

Rossi did not consult with any of the Alpine board about this offer, which is unprecedented for a driver who had not yet even won a race and unusual even for a race-winner who was not a champion.

What this does do, however, is effectively block one of the Alpine seats until 2025.

June-July 2021: Oscar continues to collect consistent points finishes at Baku and Silverstone, including podiums, keeping him in the championship hunt.

August 2021: Esteban Ocon wins the Hungarian Grand Prix.

September 2021: Oscar and Daniel win in Monza on the same day, with Oscar taking out the F2 feature race on the same day Daniel wins the Italian Grand Prix. Oscar follows this with another feature race victory in Russia, solidifying his points lead.

It is about this time that Alpine sit Oscar and Mark Webber down and explain that no matter what Oscar does now, he will not be in F1 next year. Alpine will have him as a reserve driver only and will not make the effort to put him in a race seat, despite Williams publicly saying they no longer require the money Nicolas Latifi brings in and are open to other drivers for 2022.

November 2021: Alfa Romeo announce that Zhou Guanyu, third place in the F2 championship, will be replacing Antonio Giovinazzi for 2022. This causes quite the uproar, as many despise the idea of Zhou getting a seat before Oscar, the talented rookie champion-elect.

The Piastris (Oscar and his father Chris) and Mark sit down with Alpine and agree to terms for 2022 and beyond, outlined in a terms sheet. This terms sheet is not a contract, but an agreement to sign a contract. The terms sheet outlines that Oscar will be the Alpine reserve driver for 2022; that he will be given practice sessions, certain private tests, and two FP1 sessions; and that Alpine guarantee him a seat on the 2023 grid, presumably with Williams. The terms sheet specifies that the actual contract will follow in 10 business days.

December 2021: Oscar wins the F2 championship in Jeddah after winning the second sprint race and the feature race. He then follows this up with a podium in sprint race one and a win in the feature race at Abu Dhabi, only serving to make Alpine look even more stupid. He is announced as the reserve for Alpine for 2022 and participates in the end of season test for Alpine.

No contract has appeared.

January 2022: Mark follows up with Alpine about the reserve driver contract, and is told, "it's coming".

No contract has appeared.

February 2022: Mark begins to hassle the legal team at Alpine about the contract. At some point, he has an exchange as follows: "I can't keep telling them that the contract is coming." The lawyer replies that she is the only one in the entire legal department, and that she has to do everything before the season starts.

No contract has appeared.

March 2022: During pre-season testing, Daniel Ricciardo tests positive to COVID-19. Alpine make arrangements with McLaren that if Daniel is not fit for Bahrain, Oscar will drive for him. Oscar still does not have a contract at this point. Alpine realise that without a contract, he does not have a superlicence (thereby making him ineligible to drive even if Daniel isn't fit.)

Panicking, the lawyer in Alpine's legal department writes "legally binding" across Alpine's copy of the terms sheet and submits that to the FIA in order to grant him his superlicence.

Five days before the Bahrain Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri finally sits down and signs a contract with Alpine to be their test and reserve driver for the 2022 season. This contract very explicitly only covers 2022, and does not contain any provisions for 2023.

Daniel finishes 17th in Bahrain, ahead of Lando Norris, and is running ahead of Norris and in the points when his gearbox fails in Jeddah.

April 2022: Oscar fulfils his duties as test and reserve driver, including being paraded around in Australia. Daniel finishes 5th in Australia after a nasty team order keeps him behind Norris' ailing car. At Imola, he is sixth in the sprint, only just behind Norris, but finishes 18th in the race after an uncharacteristically clumsy T1 move.

May 2022: Oscar conducts a private test with Alpine at Paul Ricard, using the 2021 car. No times are published, but there is a whisper on social media from the spectators who were there that Oscar was faster than Esteban Ocon had been the previous year. Daniel finishes 13th at the race in Miami after mechanical issues in qualifying and strategy issues in the race, which Andreas Seidl publicly apologises for. He finishes 12th at Spain, due to a broken rear end (which McLaren do not acknowledge until several days after the race).

After the Spanish Grand Prix, Zak Brown conducts an interview where he calls Daniel "disappointing" and lays the blame for their substandard results squarely at Daniel's feet. Daniel is then harassed by the media all through the Monaco weekend, where he finishes 13th.

It is also about this time that Alpine begin to publicly state that they are courting Fernando Alonso for a contract extension for 2023, meaning no seat will be available for next year at Alpine.

June 2022: It is about this time that Zak Brown begins shopping Daniel's seat behind his back. There are several interested parties involved, including Alex Palou and Pato O'Ward of Indycar.

Alpine continue to insist to Mark and Oscar that the 2023 deal is in progress. However, at about this time, rumours start to fly that Oscar is going to replace Nicolas Latifi at Williams after Silverstone. Williams angrily deny this, stand by Latifi, and publicly state that they are done being used as a dumping ground for other teams' juniors when they have their own - a seemingly firm statement that Oscar will not be welcome while he is attached to Alpine.

Mark makes contact with McLaren, and negotiations begin.

5 July 2022: On this date Oscar Piastri signs his contract with McLaren. The contract is initially as a reserve driver with mechanisms to make him the race driver if McLaren can negotiate an exit with Daniel. Oscar informs Otmar Szafnauer and Laurent Rossi shortly afterwards, and does so a second time at some point in the next three weeks.

11 July 2022: Zak Brown states to the media that Daniel Ricciardo will be driving for McLaren in 2023. About this time, Daniel visits the factory, and makes a tearful, impassioned promise to the team members that he is working incredibly hard and will be driving for them next year.

28 July 2022: Sebastian Vettel shocks everyone by announcing his retirement from Formula One at the end of the season, throwing the grid into disarray.

30 July 2022: Lawrence Stroll contacts Fernando Alonso and offers him the drive for next year. Unlike Alpine, Lawrence does not hesitate to put a paper contract in front of Fernando, and offers him a 2+1 deal where Alpine had been pondering a 1+1. Fernando, tired of the games of Alpine, signs immediately.

1 August 2022: Aston Martin announce that Fernando Alonso will join the team from 2023.

Either 1 August 2022 or 2 August 2022: Otmar Szafnauer corners Oscar in the simulator, in front of several other Alpine staff, and informs him he has the Alpine drive in 2023. Oscar is aware that if he challenges Szafnauer he will make a scene and does not say anything.

2 August 2022: Alpine announce that their 2023 driver lineup will consist of Esteban Ocon and Oscar Piastri. Eagle-eyed fans note that there are no quotes from Oscar in the press release, which has a very strange vibe. They are right, because...

A few hours later, Oscar sends The Tweet. There is immediate uproar.

August 2022: Otmar Szafnauer and Laurent Rossi proceed to go on a smear campaign against Oscar, calling him disloyal and questioning his integrity. Even other team principals (unwisely) get involved, despite not knowing the full story. Alpine is threatening court action, and the matter is scheduled for a Contract Recognition Board hearing. Oscar and Mark do not say a word, and nor do McLaren, who everyone assumes is the team that got him.

24 August 2022: McLaren announce that they have agreed with Daniel to part ways for the 2023 season. They do not announce his replacement and Daniel does not have a drive for 2023 arranged.

2 September 2022: The Contracts Recognition Board hearing takes place. Alpine are savagely humiliated as the full extent of their incompetence is laid bare. The mediators express their clear disdain for Alpine's actions, including their incredulousness that a lawyer possibly thought it acceptable to write "legally binding" on a terms sheet, the fact that the lawyer had pleaded with Laurent Rossi for more help several times and Alpine's "shilly-shallying" over even getting Oscar his reserve contract, let alone a race one. They find that the only valid contract Oscar had for 2023 was the one with McLaren, and Alpine are ordered to pay Oscar's, Mark's, and McLaren's costs.

After all of their bluster and slander, it turns out that Otmar Szafnauer and Laurent Rossi genuinely believed the terms sheet was a contract that entitled them to Oscar's services for 2023.

Alpine fire the lawyer. (So I guess nobody is in their legal department, now?)

[darkdevasofdestruction]

hello! if you’re still taking requests for gangsta could i get some hcs of nic with a hard of hearing s/o? kinda like how they would’ve met, how they interact, that kind stuff. 🥺👉👈 thank you so much!

 Oh yes, I get you with the hard of hearing thing, my senses are so poor it’s become a joke now xD

Though you’re not deaf, your hearing is literal shit, to the point that it’s become a thing you joke about a lot with your friends.

Whenever you’re not fully paying attention to someone speaking, you have to ask them to repeat what they were saying since you barely picked up a thing or two about what they were trying to say.

Still, you’re very easy going and chill about the whole situation, and though you hope it doesn’t bother your friends much, you’re not bothered by it either way.

Whether you know what caused your hearing to diminish from the normal parameters, it didn’t even matter anymore.

You first met Nicolas when him and Worick were chasing after a criminal, and the blond called out to you to get out of the way, but you were listening to music on your earbuds so of course you had no idea what was going on behind you - Until the Japanese man bumped into your side roughly, making you fall to the ground with a great thud.

Not only that, but he got off balance and thumbled too, leaving only the Gigolo chasing after that guy while Nic was recovering from the fall.

 The man, now on top of you, got up quickly and extended his hand to you - Which you took - And he started mumbling something.

And you just looked up at him and blinked in confusion.

Which made him look at you weirdly, as to why weren’t you sketching any reaction at all.

“Can you say that again, please?”

And the man repeated the small word - But you didn’t pick it up this time, but in your defense, it sounded like gibberish altogether and you had no idea why he was speaking so unclearly.

Still, you tried to decipher in your head what he tried to say, and then, with a Eureka expression on your face, you let out an ‘Ohhh!’ sound.

“Oh, you apologised! Don’t worry about it, it happens!” your chill, innocent smile surprised him, but at the same time, he thought it was absolutely beautiful.

And what a coincidence, you though he was very attractive too, and seeing how he was just standing there, smiling awkwardly, you asked if he wanted to go for a coffee, to which he immediately agreed, forgetting all about his mission or his partner.

That was your first date.

Sure, he got a lot of shit from Worick after outright deserting him in the middle of a mission, but at the end of the day, he finally got such a nice date!

A date that’s tragic at the basic function of hearing, just like him.

Worick would tease the both of you a LOT. Just because he can.

But he’s very supportive of the two of you, especially since Nic is finally happy.

Speaking of Nic-...

Though he’s not outright speaking about you, he’s always thinking about you, and whenever he does, he has that dreamy smile on his face like he’s drunk in love.

He’s literally the sweetest man in the world, and though a bit clumsy, he’s such a gentleman.

Always brings you flowers or little trinkets, always finds new stories to gossip about with you, and has the best hungs in the world.

This man is so touch starved that if you start petting his hair, he’ll have a kitten grin and outright melt in your touch, even going as far as to cuddle in your arms.

He always wants to impress you, and the best way to do that is with his strength - So as often as he can, even as a surprise, he’ll pick you up bridal style, or as a piggy back ride and walk with you around as much as you like.

And don’t even get me started on how he jumps around with you from the roof of the buildings and laugh merrily with you because you’re having so much fun and he loves making you happy.

He’s absolutely the best boyfriend in the world, bless his soul, and if anyone dares even look at you the wrong way, they will become sashimi.

Overall, the best thing about your relationship is that you don’t have to worry about not hearing what Nic is saying, because you speak in sign language -

But there are some things that he’s forcing himself to speak out loud, and those are his short love confessions.

Whether he says ‘I love you’, ‘You’re beautiful’ or ‘You make me happy’, he will always, without fail, speak it out, and make sure he has your face cupped in  his hands and share a tender eye contact so he knows his feelings are properly shared.

[lestappenforever]

I have this lestappen prompt in my head that I can’t stop thinking about, but I can’t write so I’m going to leave the premise here and if any other anons want to add on their thoughts it would be welcome :)

Basically, Charles doesn’t met Nicolas Todt and therefore cannot continue climbing the racing ladder up to Formula 1. Meanwhile Max continues as in real life. Charles decides if he can’t be a driver, he still wants to be involved in F1 somehow. He ends up working in Ferrari as the youngest race engineer on the grid (he’s Seb’s race engineer <3).

When Max hears that Ferrari replaced Seb’s old race engineer in the middle of the season with immediate effect, he couldn’t care less, after all what does that have to do with him?, although he’s happy for Seb because his old race engineer so was incompetent. But then he hears chatter in his side of the RBR garage about how Seb’s new race engineer beat a lot of current drivers in karting like George, Alex, Pierre, and Esteban, so maybe Ferrari will be more of a competitor this year. Max is intrigued by this, so he asks who Ferrari hired, and when the mechanics say the name Charles Leclerc, Max CANNOT believe his ears. That annoying French (“I’M NOT FRENCH!”) kid that always pushed him off the track during karting races is Ferrari’s new race engineer? The one kid who could handle him, his one true equal, is working for Ferrari, for SEB?? And not for HIM??

And then the rest of the fic is Max doing everything he can to get Charles to join RBR and be his race engineer instead (don’t worry, GP is doing his thing as a different high ranking role, I could never get rid of him completely!). Max goes out of his way to be in the Ferrari’s way and make Charles’ life more difficult during races to get his attention (Max already has the championship on lock anyways, so if he slows down a bit.. or a lot… to be in Seb’s way, who cares?). Max begs Christian and he begs Helmut to give Charles an offer, to make sure to pay him better than Ferrari. He even makes sure to include free spa trips (to erase the stress Ferrari caused him) on the proposal he gives to Christian and Helmut. Just a lot of shenanigans lol.

Part 2:

Oh and I forgot to mention this! If Seb wins a race, you know how teams send an employee as a representative on the podium? So it’s the 3 podium sitters and the winning team’s representative? If Seb wins, Ferrari sends Charles up as their representative and Max literally SPRINTS across the podium to stand next to Charles so he can hold his waist for the photo <3 He’s been having withdraws, he hasn’t been able to touch Charles waist in this universe since like 2013, okay?

And while I’m adding on to this, I can imagine Max peacocking SOO HARD in front of Charles whenever he wins (which is often lol). He just wants to impress the same boy he wanted to impress a decade ago. Max is nothing if not dedicated!

---

Anon, words cannot express how much I love this idea. Race engineer Charles and Max doing his damnedest to court him to leave Ferrari in favor of Red Bull. Max turning into an absolute menace to get what he wants, and stopping at nothing to get it.

Honestly, the mental image of Max peacocking after a race win is giving me secondhand embarrassment and I am so here for it.

[romancomicsnews]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem amplifies the fun of the franchise - REVIEW

*Slight Spoilers for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Mutant Mayhem*

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has been a franchise that has consistently been rebooted and I have never minded.

While the 2003 series was my initial Turtles introduction, the 2012 series really made me a fan. It had the right balance for me of brotherly affection, drama, stakes, and weird obscure villains.

While Rise of the TMNT wasn't exactly my taste, I can appreciate the animation, comedy, and going for a different new take. Plus my god is the Rise of TMNT movie good. I'm all for making really cool characters into animes now.

Going into this movie I had extremely high hopes. Not only has this franchise rarely disappointed, but it was produced by Seth Rogen, who has worked on shows like The Boys and Invincible, and directed by Jeff Rowe, who is not getting NEARLY enough credit for this movie. He was a writer on Gravity Falls and the co-director of one of my favorite animated movies: The Mitchells vs The Machines.

And I got to say, this movie does not disappoint.

The animation style is both impressive and at times disgusting in the best possible way. This is the first time I've felt New York feel grubby and grimy. Every shot looks wonderful, and that cannot be understated.

The hardest part of the Turtles is usually the brother dynamics. I feel like if not written or performed correctly, the Turtles can come off as buddies or even acquaintances. But this was not a problem here. The idea of having all four actors in the same room clearly paid off, as the four of them riffing and mocking each other were some of the highlights of the movie.

I do think coming out of this, some of these turtles will be the definitive versions of the characters. While Mikey and Raph have their charms, Micah Abbey as Donnie and Nicolas Cantu as Leo were stands out for me.

The idea of taking Donnie from the tech guy to more of a calculating nerdy weeb was genius. Donnie often is the guy who is most made fun of because he is nerd, and I think pivoting to him being a smart-ass and respected for his brain was a nice touch.

Leonardo as the goody two shoes dork who wants to lead so bad also worked for me. Leonardo can sometimes come off a sorta bully or arrogant for even trying to be the leader. Making him unsure but wanting to be a good leader makes him charming and more likeable.

Also among our heroes are Ayo Edebiri as April O'Neil and Jackie Chan as Master Splinter.

While April does not have as much to do as I would've liked, I think Edebiri is a nice addition and I'd be happy to see more of her. She has good chemistry with the brothers, although it did take me out of the movie to think of the age gap between Edebiri and Cantu.

Jackie Chan's Splinter may be my biggest problem with the film. While he is a passable Splinter and has plenty of laughs, he does not seem as fierce of a warrior as he has seemed in the past, nor as wise. I do not mind a flawed, anxiety ridden Splinter, but he should feel like he can take on the Turtles easily, and I don't think he can.

(Also, Jackie Chan is a bad father in real life and shouldn't disown his estranged daughter for being gay. Read all about it here!)

I'm not going to go to into the details of all the villains in the movie, as there are quite a few, but I really loved the inclusion of the vast TMNT universe, and their own fun takes on them. One of the benefits of having Seth Rogen as a creative is access to all his very talented friends. A highlight for me was Mondo Gecko, voiced by the great Paul Rudd.

The main antagonist of the film being Superfly was a rather interesting choice. While I was sure we were going to have a Jekyll and Hyde situation with Superfly and Stockman going in, the idea that it was his mutant son was a weird but fun choice. Clearly Ice Cube was having a lot of fun playing a villain. He gave me quite a few laughs and felt like a proper first villain for these turtles. I'm glad they didn't just jump into Shredder or Kraang.

While all the characters are fun and interesting, what I really love about this story is the central theme of acceptance. Having them all have the goal of being accepted by society felt natural, important, and very teen drama, which is fresh to the TMNT. They are often outsiders who don't really care about that, just protecting the city. Making that at the heart of the movie made me feel for them in a way I haven't before.

Leaving the movie where it does excites me for more movies and the upcoming show they have planned. I think this version of the turtles can last us a good 5-7 years, and will end up being as iconic as the ones that came before.

Not that there is a super high bar for TMNT films, but this is definitely my favorite. I think kids are going to love, TMNT fans are going to love it, and non TMNT fans are going to be pleasantly surprised.

I highly recommend you go see this movie, I know I am definitely going again soon.

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to support me, you can:

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[tree-ss]

Bridgerton Costum Rant: Penelope

 I feel one thing Bridgerton does best are the costumes. Not only by making their take on the regency period but incorporating with the storylines. And since Polin is next in the show I should start with Penelope. 

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Season 1 & 2 Outfit Analysis

Color Meaning: It is a well known fact that Penelope's “tasteless and tackless” mama dresses all her daughters in bright citrus colors, believing that bright color will draw attention for suitors. Which is ironic in a way since the Featherington sisters, especially Penelope, are the wallflowers of the show. But in truth it helps Penelope with gathering gossip for the Lady Whistledown because yellow can be the color of deceit. Yellow is often associated with happiness and positivity so you wouldn’t think a person wearing yellow would have a secret. (It can also be a color of intellect and creativity which goes into Lady Whistledown again.)

Cowardness is also another interpretation of the color yellow, which in turn can be how Penelope doesn’t share her feelings to Colin. But if you notice during two seasons as Portia is less focused on Penelope (in season 1 during the Marina drama and season 2 during the cousin Jack drama), Penelope wears different colors a little bit more. Especially in season 2. And the color that she wears the most is pink. Which pink is obviously associated with love. Something that Penelope longs for. We also see for the first time in full green dress in season 2. Which is foreshadowing to Polin because yellow and the Bridgerton blue makes green.

Design Details: I also found it interesting that the two things Penelope wears the most on her dresses are butterflies and flowers. Butterflies are symbols of transformation which we now know in season 3 Penelope is going to have. I hope we see a lot more butterflies in season 3 since no longer Penelope is going to be the wallflower. I am not an expert on flowers or their meaning but I believe the flowers she wears the most are roses and daisies. Rose symbolizes love and passion and daisies represent happiness and a new beginning.

—--------------------------------------------------------------------------

What I hope for in season 3

More flowing dress: If you notice in season 1 & 2 Daphne and Kate's dresses are very flowy and silky where Penlope’s dress is not. Some of her dresses look very stiff and bulky and give off a younger impression (especially since Hyacinth and even Eloise dresses look like they're made with the same matureal). Now in the upcoming season where Penelope is embracing her sexuality we should get more of those flowy dresses.

More Cooler Colors: Like I said before we really only have seen Penelope in those citrus colors which are very warm colors. Which I don’t think are the best on Nicola. Some of the dresses wash her out instead of complimenting her; which is the costume designer's intention. From some of the leaked photos of season 3 we see Penelope in more cooler colors, which look incredible on Nicola. Since the greens and blues are in the color palettes it should complement  Nicola astoundingly.

Simpler Design: Just like the color some of Penelope's best outfits are ones that are so loud. When some of the gowns are heavily detailed your eyes are drawn to the design and it almost looks too extravagant on Nicola. Some of Penelope's best dresses are more simpler.

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Anyway I hope this interests you! I really want to do Kate and Daphne/Bridgerton style vs other families of the ton.  If you have any suggestion or question for me let me know. 

[totentnz]

18 I MEANT 18

Soft OTP prompts

18. Write about how each member of your ship smells. 

essentially they smell the same since even before their souls were fused they were so much alike.

the smell of fresh and old cigarette smoke somehow mixing, sweat (also old and fresh), cheap body wash/ deodorant (think old spice), whatever smell of the previous night partying lingers on them and that mildew-y smell when you leave your clothes in the washer for too long because you couldn't be arsed to put it in the dryer.

that might sound a bit boring at first but since they are mirrors for each other they eventually realise how bad they smell. whether they care about that revelation or not is a different question entirely.

additionally v has that sweet smell on her breath from drinking too much nicola/ spunky monkey/ energy drinks though i think most of it gets covered up by the smell of menthol cigarettes. she also uses gel/mousse/ hairspray to style her hair which would make for a prominent scent. there is a slight hint of wax on her since she uses it to make her clothes repel water. punks often use floss for their stitching so if she just got done customising some clothes i think there is that mint-y smell as well.

to add to the nastiness: you can def smell if she's on her period. not by walking past her but if somehow the other smells didn't bother you enough and you get close and personal with her, there is that metallic-y blood smell.

note: she DOES try to cover up all that with deodorant but as we all know it only makes it worse somehow.

johnny on the other hand doesn't smoke menthols, he's also got that leather-y smell from his pants (is it real leather? i doubt it but it's not impossible) he probably also wears some cologne some groupie got him to impress him. though i doubt he does a lot of maintenance on his arm i think there is the smell of grease/ oil wafting off it, as well as any other liquid/ (bodily) fluid that is stuck within it's creases.

overall MY silverv is s4s (stinky 4 stinky)

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Long-Running Panel Show Friday: February 17, 2023

The News Quiz: This felt like a very old school episode; Hugo Rifkind, Angela Barnes, Zoe Lyons, Nish Kumar, and Andy Zaltzman were all people you’d expect to see in any given episode of the Miles Jupp era. They even threw in a Sandi Toksvig reference at one point. Aside from old school News Quiz, the Nish-Andy dynamic made it feel a little Bugle-like at times. And Angela Barnes throwing out whatever topical one-liners she’s come up with about the last few days, and then defending them when other panelists are surprised by her take, felt like Mock the Week.

As much as I liked this lineup, it did seem like a shame that they had their all-Scottish lineup last well, leaving an all-English one this week to discuss Nicola Sturgeon. It was nice, though. The Corbyn discussion was a bit contentious, and reminded me that that’s the one subject on which I don’t always love Hugo Rifkind’s perspective, but I see his points. There were a couple of particularly nuanced issues on the agenda this week, and I think the people they had were good ones for that.

QI: This is the second time in a couple of months that Ahir Shah has been the highlight of a panel show episode for me, the first being Catsdown. And that is impressive, because Rosie Jones is always great on panel shows and was on top form this episode. I’d really say Ahir Shah and Rosie Jones were competing to be the highlight of this episode, and being on the same side of the table made them both better. They paired really well, 40 minutes was not nearly enough for me to get tired of the way Rosie Jones would say something vaguely shocking, usually for a combination of being filthy and non-sensical, and he’d look at her incredulously.

Honestly thought, I’ve liked Ahir Shah for a while but I think this episode cumulates with a few other things to make him one of my favourite current panel show people. I think he’s one who got especially fucked over by the cancelation of Mock the Week; he’d just started to establish his status as a regular on there, and should have had more seasons to keep that up. But he’s been really good when I’ve seen him on other things. He has this sort of self-loathing cynicism about him that I really like (this is the sort of thing that highlights the clear distinction between self-loathing in comedy and self-deprecation, as Ahir Shah’s style is clearly the former), that feels like an undertone even when he’s on QI just talking about teaspoons. QI’s a good format for him, as it gives him some opportunities to show off his extensive knowledge, after running it through a lens of cynicism. Throw in a penchant for getting annoyed about things around him, and a competitive streak when it comes to points, and he is also working his way quickly onto my list of dream Taskmaster contestants. Incidentally, his stand-up special Dots is very good and everyone should watch it.

Would I Lie to You: Anything with Desiree Burch and Lucy Beamont is a strong lineup, and they were both great on this, but I felt like this episode was another one where Lee and David really carried it. They can set each other up so well, but also surprise each other, and have so many years of history to reference and draw on, that has comedy chemistry down to perfection. I think it’s been really strong all season, even more than the previous couple of seasons.

Having said that, Desiree Burch and Lucy Beaumont did not disappoint. I’ve always thought Jon Richardson pairs very well with Lee Mack on panel shows, and it turns out his wife does that almost as well. Lucy’s ability to crack Lee up was a delight to watch every time. Also, she is really good at playing her ditzy persona. Really good. That persona was perfect for WILTY, where all she had to do to get away with stuff was make people believe she’s really like that. Which worked on me repeatedly, even though I’ve seen enough of her to know how her persona works, and that would be why I finished with a terrible 2-3 record in the guessing. In my defence, I thought her story about the neighbour and the chicken couldn’t be true, because why would they have not used it on Meet the Richardsons?

I guessed correctly on Desiree for the opposite reason, actually. Desiree told her lie really, really well, but I also know she’s ridiculously intelligent, and was pretty sure she’d be able to come up with a lie that good, that fast.

It was the only one I got right aside from the last one, which was just a free point because obviously David was lying. That was a clear case of something that often gets overlooked on this show, which is the fact that the people on it are famous. A lot of these fake scenarios would not happen this way to a famous person. I remember one David story from an early-ish season, that involved him getting stuck on a diving board like Mr. Bean for a long time. They argued about it for so long, until finally a guest pointed out that if David Mitchell were stuck on a board in a pool full of witnesses, someone would have filmed that shit and put it on YouTube. So of course it was a lie. Similarly, if a restaurant had David Mitchell as a regular and he agreed to let them name a meal after him, they wouldn’t leave out the name “Mitchell”, missing out on the obvious marketing opportunity.

Anyway. I might be getting a bit too caught up in my own game with this show, and that isn’t supposed to be the point. It was a bad episode for my guessing, but a really good actual episode of television. Great back-and-forth among the regulars, great guests, great chemistry between guests and regulars. I’d happily watch many more episodes with this lineup.

And that’s it. No Last Leg this week, due to the Channel 4 comedy awards. Where, on the subject of what I just described, they agreed with me about Lee Mack still being excellent on Would I Lie to You, even after all this time. A bunch of those results were interesting. I mean, some were obvious. I recently made a Tumblr poll to find out people’s favourite panel shows, and I left Taskmaster off it because if you include Taskmaster, there’s basically no contest. Taskmaster just wins every time (seriously though, good for Alex Horne and everyone else). Though actually, they had Taskmaster in the entertainment category, meaning their panel show category did excluse Taskmaster, and Catsdown won. Though actually, according to the much more scientific poll on my Tumblr blog, that should have gone to WILTY.

My main takeaway from reading the list of winners is I was pleased to see Joe Lycett’s latest stand-up show got an award, given that it’s absolutely excellent and everyone should watch it.

[thewomanwhowatchedchristmas]

I Hate Christmas (2022)

My first impression is that it’s just the Italian version of the Norwegian series “Home for Christmas” that I’ve previously reviewed. The first episode even has the same title. Either way, I’ll still watch it. I’m gonna be lazy and not color code any names though because it’s hard to include everyone all the time without spoiling things.

1:1 The Big Christmas Lie

Gianna (Pilar Fogliati) is a nurse who has been single for 3 years and, at 30, her family is starting to get worried about her not having a family. Ridiculous, but also so relatable. She lies and tells her family she has a boyfriend and she’ll bring him to Christmas. So now she’s working overtime to find a boyfriend.

1:2 Bicycles

We follow Gianna on several bad dates that don’t work out because mostly these guys suck, but also Gianna does not pull any punches. Which good for her. The music keeps tripping me up a little because it’s American, but it’s also not Christmas music, it’s more like dance club songs but over a landscape of Venice. I know American music is popular around the world, but I don’t really expect EDM as a transition song, ya know? Anyway, so Gianna gives up on meeting guys on the street and tries Tinder (shout out- that’s how my husband and I met!) and goes out with a high school aged dude named Davide (Nicolas Maupas) who, based on the montage that occurred, fucks really well. Might go look up the age of consent in Italy real quick.

1:3 I’m Special

Gianna goes on a date with a local politician (who acts like he hates being famous when he’s not even famous) and runs into her parents and finds out that the politician used to date her mom back in college. Gross. Clearly he has a type. So she ditches him with her parents and goes to the high schooler again. There are some jokes at the top of the episode about making sure he’s legal, so that’s either less or more gross, I can’t decide.

1:4 Perspectives

Gianna fucks things up with the high school boy by making a joke that makes him think she’s trying to get serious. I hate this plot line. It grosses me out so much. Anyway. After pedophilia didn’t work out, Titti (Beatrice Arnera) (her roommate) convinces her to dress nice (slutty) and go to the nurse Christmas party and drink. At the party, she runs into some familiar faces who promptly overstay their welcome in her life. But Umberto (Glen Blackhall) (a doctor from the hospital she works at) is still into her and she still hasn’t realized that. If by the end of this episode, you don’t kinda hate her mother, congratulations for your healthy relationship with your family because that’s the only way her mother could seem like a joke.

1:5 The Party’s Over

So I watched the last two episodes back to back, there might be some bleeding between the two. I’ll do my best. So Gianna had an eventful evening. She baked a cake for Davide only to discover him (with the cake in her hands) swapping spit with a girl his own age. Woof. So then she meets up with her besties (minus Titti who is with a man🍆) Margherita (Fiorenza Pieri), her older sister, and Caterina (Cecilia Bertozzi), the chick who owns the cafe they are drinking in. They get drunk with the guy who works for Caterina (who she has a thing for) named Thomas (Marcos Piacentini). Gianna is super drunk, so Margherita and Thomas walk her home. Gianna also makes an interesting discovery.

1:6 Like a Nativity Scene

This episode does end on a cliff hanger, but season 2 is out in a couple weeks. This episode ends up being a really great family love and acceptance of each other style. Umberto finally shoots his shot, but gets called into the ER before Gianna can respond. Gianna gets really upset she got kicked out (her patient coming off of a lot of drugs had complications) and gets cheered up by Diego (Alan Cappelli Goetz), the deaf custodian, who has secretly been pining after Caterina this whole time. But who comes to dinner at the parents’ house?

I’m gonna take a minute here to compare this to the Norwegian version because I have to get it out somewhere, but then I’ll talk about the season on it’s own. I think the main character in this version is more likable because of her zany fourth wall breaks, but I also think there was tonal change. In Home for Christmas, Johanne felt truly alone when she was lonely. In I Hate Christmas, it felt more like Gianna felt like she was missing out, but her family and friends were all still very close. And that might be to make it more similar to Italian culture, I’m not sure. But I know when shifting something from British to American, the asshole character is often shifted to the idiot character because we Americans don’t think assholes are funny. We do think idiots are funny. I also think this version, I Hate Christmas, did a better job of representing certain audiences that may not get as much screen time, like the suitor who used a wheelchair, Carlo (Marco Rossetti), and Diego being deaf was much better subplot than the clown dude from Home for Christmas that just didn’t speak Norwegian. I think I still related to Home for Christmas more because I’m quiet like Johanne and also I’m way more used to snow than boating and biking everywhere. Although that was really cool to watch.

Okay, now just talking about this season of I Hate Christmas. Christmas felt very commercial in this show. Like, idk why the nativity scene sounded like a show of wealth, but it did. This also felt like Gianna was maturing a lot. Imagine being 30 when you realize other people have problems you might not know about. I also think it’s interesting to have Gianna not stick things out with the rich suitor. Yes, he was intense and pushy, but he was also sweet and thoughtful. I also liked him better than the doctor, but I don’t relate to Gianna much anyway. I also enjoyed the bit about private vs public healthcare in Italy, which isn’t exactly the same as the US because our health system is weird, but a lot of people in the US do have to travel to bigger cities to get better quality care. Like where I live is very medium-small sized city that doesn’t have any major attractions for tourism or shopping or family activities, so it’s hard to attract good medical professionals because there’s not much for them to do besides work, so a lot of people travel 2-3 hours for better medical care. Sometimes they have to for specialized care, but also sometimes they choose to because they’ve had medical procedures botched by local doctors.

I’ve gotten off topic. Anyway, this show isn’t bad even though I feel like I’ve been kinda hard on it. It was weird that the song “edamame” by bbno$ was in every single episode though. I’ll still watch season 2 when it comes out because I want to compare it to Home for Christmas season 2. But maybe I Hate Christmas will last more than 2 seasons! Overall, 3 stars.

[pine-st-radio]

Recorded February 4, Hallowell, on the coldest day of the winter.

I went for a walk around the neighborhood this morning because I wanted to see the effect on the Kennebec. We are getting an influx of air from the arctic, dropping temperatures to 10 below zero with wind chills bringing us down to -40 as a real-feel temperature.

I have been working on this set for some time and figured today would be the day to get it together. Lots of tracks in various styles here - I tried to go outside of my comfort zone and mix together straight house, garage, and some jungle/dnb at the end, ending with a jazz piece from a trio from norway.

The first track is "Woods in Winter" by a group called Leaving Laurel, that I discovered on Anjunadeep. I loved the title obviously and the track does give you an impression of those complicated feelings I think you can have the winter time. You admire the beauty of bare bones of trees and layers upon layers of perfect snow and ice below you, but still feel like you're longing for warmth. This is mixed with the track "Tommie" by Mr. Twin Sister, giving us some saxophone and swung chords that contrast from the starkness of the A track.

Following this section I threw in few tracks that I picked up from UK label Cloudcore. I have been obsessed with their hyperpop x minimal house tracks that are only available for a week at a time. To me this whole model just makes me very aware of the time and place that I find myself in, as I know that I couldn't have gotten these tracks at any other time.

Next is a few tracks that I picked up during my first few weeks of digging through bandcamp; Legacy from Leyton by producer Keito Sano, and Labryanna by GEO Corp. They share a key and have similar BPM, but I didn't know that at the time I picked them up. They are also from completely different parts of the world, Keito Sano being a producer from Okayama, Japan, and Labryanna coming out of Berlin. I think I could transition these guys better than I did here - but man are they incredible and I think play off of each other in great and interesting ways. Recently, I have been obsessed with UK Garage. This and Jungle have been maybe my two biggest obsessions since I started learning Traktor. I knew that the big challenge for this set would be mixing these different genres together into the same set. Next in the line up are a few garage bits that I've been loving; a remix of Jamie XX's "Gosh" from Left-Right, a collab between O' Flynn and Frazer Ray called "Satyr," the intensely fun "2You" by Nicolas Duque, and finally Barry Can't Swim's "Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore". This brought the BPM up a bit and I think I really locked in the energy here. Skrillex has been releasing new music recently and I have also acquired a new obsession with his music and whole vibe. I threw in a Floating Points track ("Someone Close") to continue to build up the energy before landing up a few Skrillex pieces. I threw in a G Jones track as well next to Rumble to really bring the energy up. Maybe the funnest part of the whole set as it was happening. The energy here allowed me to bring the BPM up to 170.

Of course, this is where we bring in a few jungle/breakcore tracks that I've been loving. Starting this section off is the Skrillex x Trippie Redd x PinkPantheress track "Way Back," a Frou Frou remix of Let Go by o0o, and finally two pieces by Tim Reaper, probably my favorite jungle artist that I have been digging into. The vocal sample on "Give Me More" is just incredible, and the track has so much power. The beautiful production on his remix of "Last Jungle" by Sub Focus would lay the foundation for the end of the set. I think this bit was also a bit rough, but here we transition into "All I Can Feel" by DJ Sabrina the Teenage age Dj, a super fun track that I have been loving, bringing us back into warmth and familiarity I think. Contrasting with the previous section, it's a much more gentle and less aggressive track, like how it might feel to come in from the cold to a warm house.

In my recent practice in putting together this set, I wanted so badly to find a way to open with the final track, "1974" by the Espen Erikson Trio. I ended up ending with this guy which I think actually is the right move. I had a solid week a few weeks ago where I dug deeply into Scandinavian music, and the melody and chords on this piece I think are just so beautiful. They mirror "Winter in the Woods" in the empty yet emotive sound that it conveys.

Hope you enjoy.

----------

Tracklist

Winter in The Woods - Leaving Laurel

Tommie - Mr. Big Sister

personal growth - zoneroute

Bend Back - Cassy's Ghost

Bing - Soft Yes (Parallels Shiny Version)

Legacy From Leyton - Keito Sano

Labryanna - G.E.O Corp

Gosh (Left-Right Remix) - Jamie XX

Satyr - O'Flynn x Frazer Ray

2You - Nicolas Duque

Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore - Barry Can't Swim

Someone Close - Floating Points

Butterflies - Skrillex

Rumble - Skrillex

Say What - G Jones

Way Back - Skrillex, Trippie Redd, PinkPantheress

Wedbecutetoget-Her - o0o

Give Me More - Tim Reaper

Last Jungle (Tim Reaper Remix) - Sub Focus

All I Can Feel - Dj Sabrina the Teenage Dj

1974 - Erik Epsen Trio

[youwontlikethisblog]

Jenny, Efrain, and Sofia and My Thoughts On Them

I find myself thinking a lot about Efrain, Sofia, and Jenny since it was brought to my attention that I should write a post about them. This isn't an analysis post but rather just some thoughts on the characters.

I had never really paid them much mind except for the constant of rolling my eyes every time Sofia graced the screen but also feeling bad for and understanding her dislike for Jenny.

Jenny is that type of character who doesn't really matter for the plot of the story but it's there because she kind of is a bridging character between different character arcs and plots but the show could do without her. That being said I suppose, I owe y'all a post or two after my long vow of silence. I've yet to continue past the letter episode, but here's a post :)

We don't really get much of a background regarding Sofia, Efrain or their relationship but I think one can assume that Sofia has always been this way: Insufferable. She's very demeaning, demanding, selfish, arrogant, and the list goes on. I find it hard to find any redeemable qualities to her, except you know, that she has a right to be so upset but as I say with Marcela: Emotions are always valid, actions aren't.

Jenny's character is very...como se dice? Gold digger. She's with Efrain based only in interest, do I think they have different expenses and that neither one shares their check? Yes and no. I believe Jenny doesn't share her check but Efrain for sure does. Does Jenny ask him to do this? I don't think so but lets be clear and honest about this if a man like Efrain had a girl that was as attractive as Jenny interested in him, what would said man do? Let's consider Nicolas. Nicolas pretended to be a millionaire and be a tops hit businessman to impress Patsy Pats. Why wouldn't Efrain be the same? To trick a man into believing that a woman such as Jenny isn't with him due to money she'd have to use her own money to buy herself some things, at times buy him things to show they are equals but a man like Efrain would be fully aware that if it weren't for the money, a woman such as Jenny wouldn't stay for long(She'd have to manipulate him into thinking that what he spends on her isn't because she wants him to spend money on her but rather because he wants to). Maybe for a bit, enjoy her time with an older man but move onto the next one. Jenny is a poor mans gold digger, unlike Patsy Pats.

I think in a sense, Jenny, at the start, didn't have any real...rivalry with Sofia so to speak, I mean besides sleeping with her husband. However that night at the bar when Sofia insulted Jenny that's when she took it personal. She wanted to become a torment in her life. A constant reminder of what Efrain did to her, of what and who he "changed" her for, and all the while acting like she did so out of love, rather than interest to rub it in her face but also showing just how much control she held over Efrain. It's quite a vindictive plan, don't you think?

Do I think Efrain was aware of this but settled for it? Maybe, possibly, but let us not forget the episode in which he was arrested for not paying his child support and the way he spoke to his secretary. It's easy to assume that Efrain wasn't only unfaithful to Sofia but also Jenny, or at least was attempting to(no wonder he didn't have money for child support).

Both Efrain and Jenny made a match because they were both selfish in their relationship and scumbags. It's one thing that Sofia was unbearable as a partner...and a person but She was the mother of his children and for that she deserved at least a bit of respect from Efrain and that alone should have been a reason for Efrain to stand up to Jenny but Efrain cared more about getting his socks rocked than he did for the mother of his children as the mother of his children and let alone his children. He was a stupid, selfish, and terrible father. Jenny was a vindictive and poor man's gold digger and Sofia was just...insufferable.

All in all, Sofia did deserve better. I would have liked to have seen the change and her ending up with someone who truly brought out the best in her. Jenny sucked and Efrain was just a loser.

Did Jenny love Efrain? No. Did Efrain love Jenny? No. Did Sofia love Efrain? Sadly yes. She had hopes that he'd return to her, that they could restart their lives. Efrain was in lust with Jenny while Jenny was just looking out for herself. She wanted to cheat on him with Freddy, she'd try to make moves on both Armando and Mario and always failed because for one Mario learned his lesson with Aura and two Armando did not have affairs with Eco Moda regular degular employees and was cheating on his fiancé with his girlfriend Betty but had they I'm pretty sure she would have dropped Efrain and Freddy real quick.

Hope y'all like this post!

(also if there's any typos, misspellings, and errors I did not fool prove read this lol)

Til' next time! :)

[im-gay-and-mentally-unstable]

Video game AU

-The School is an online game that had existed for years and is now long after its times of glory, only the most determined players remain and not many newbies show up

-they still host competitions with small sums of money as the first prize

-there's plenty of smaller guilds, but they are slowly getting absorbed by the two largest- Forever and Never

-Forever, its members simply Evers, was the first gathering of some of the strongest players in the game, most of them already connected by friendships, and they slowly took over a lot of resources, earning a huge in-game advantage

-however, a lot of strong players didn't get past the member limit and felt disgusted by the advantage guild players received and in reaction, they made a guild of their own, even the title solely to spite the Forever- they named it Never

-the two guilds are in never-ending competition with each other for years, no one ever being able to grow significantly stronger, stuck in a cycle, almost no one joining in or leaving until Agatha and Sophie come along

-they have both grown up in the same household with Stefan and Vanessa, except Vanessa is dead and Sophie hadn't quite recovered before Stefan remarried again, straining their relationship permanently

-in attempts to earn her affection again, he buys her various gifts, this time, he bought the game to try and give her a new hobby

-she'd normally just abandon it, it's so out of fashion and she isn't interested in things like that in the slightest, but the most popular guy of their school, Tedros Pendragon, who also happens to be the interest of Sophie's undying love, or climbing for popularity, however you want to call it, is the head of Forever

-she makes a master plan, where she intends to join the game, become a legendary player and help him on his journey, making him fall in love with her in the process

-the thing is, she doesn't want to do it on her own (and absolutely doesn't want to go through pages of guidebooks and class descriptions), so she begs Agatha until she agrees to go through with it with her

-they start going through the early stages of the game and level up quickly

-Sophie spends most of her time trying to search for Tedros and save him while Agatha builds their collective inventory

-she very much hates to admit it but she got really into the game

-they become really good fast, mainly because of how much time they spend there (for very different reasons) and the talent for the game they both have

-while Sophie is off hunting for Tedros, Agatha joins a new guest that has just appeared and manages to complete it before the members of Forever, who just walk into the scene and are impressed

-Tedros invites her to fill the last available place in their guild and she tries to refuse and recommends Sophie instead, but they insist and she caves in

-Sophie finds out and is furious, in her frustration, she joins the Never guild in an upcoming tournament, motivated even more to prove herself

Character classes:

Tedros -> fighter

-> honestly the obvious choice

-> strong attack power, almost no health

-> fights in the first line of attack all the time

-> pretty dependent on other players' support

-> at his best as a team player, but incredible on his own too

-> thought the armour looked cool

Agatha -> paladin

-> she just liked the idea of protecting everyone but also doing damage and not being codependent

-> she made the smart choice for balanced gameplay

-> her saviour complex also came into play

-> never plays the first line unless forced to, but if she does she absolutely destroys everyone

Sophie -> sorceress

-> didn't read any of the guides, but liked the idea of throwing fireballs and destroying shit

-> somehow gets all the overpowered spells

-> again, she has huge attack power and very poor defense

-> she doesn't even need defense though, just kills everything and everyone before it gets to her

-> spent an ungodly amount of game money to buy pretty outfits

Hester -> sorceress

-> spent hours trying to figure out the best character for her playing style

->somehow has mastered all the spells involving explosions

-> always in the first line of attack

-> extremely powerful but very prone to getting killed in the first seconds of the match

-> doesn't like to say she depends on backup but the rest of the coven somehow needs to save her often

Anadil -> assassin

-> mostly plays from the shadows without getting discovered

-> usually prefers playing in team as support but also really powerful on her own

-> spends a lot of time making her skills as balanced as possible

-> somehow always plans the strategy

-> the person that spends hours on choosing the best possible armour and weapons

Dot -> cleric

-> just wanted to spend some time with her friends at first, ends up enjoying the game a lot

-> likes playing support even though it's extremely underrated

-> doesn't really do attack stuff unless forced to, usually just healing and defense

-> usually a team player

Nicola -> paladin

-> unlike most others, she prefers playing alone to playing in team

-> her whole character was built around the fact she planned to play on her own

-> and she's way too good

-> she switches between guilds as an exchange player to help out and is very widely respected

Kiko -> druid

-> usually just wanders around with cute animals and smiles

-> then she absolutely destroys you in combat

-> she always says she does it for the joy of playing with her friends

-> she very much just wants to win

Hort -> assassin

-> just chose the character that sounded the coolest and edgiest

-> soon regretted it since his playing style is to rush towards the enemy and try to not die in the process, which is not very compatible with the low defense his class has

-> Dot feels bad for him so she keeps him alive during matches

-> Hester and Anadil often use him as the necessary sacrifice in battles

Beatrix -> fighter

-> she shocked everyone with her character choice but her whole team supports her

-> usually rushes into combat side-by-side with Tedros

-> would be first one to sacrifice herself heroically if Reena wasn't obviously biased in her favour and didn't let her

Reena -> cleric

-> never really plays in the front line

-> supports her friends from behind

-> doesn't mind playing the underrated role, it makes it even more fun to her

-> really powerful even though she barely shows it

Millicent -> druid

-> not really a lot of reasoning for this one, I just have her associated with nature

Chaddick -> archer

-> he prefers bow in the series too so that's it, that's all my reasoning

Ravan -> fighter

[pascalina]

The brothers' movie

11/07/2015

They don't use the same last name, but they are siblings. Pedro Pascal (40) the Chilean actor who starred in Game of Thrones and now has a starring role in the Netflix series Narcos, uses his mother's surname because it is easier to pronounce in English. 17 years younger, Lucas Balmaceda Pascal (23), also an actor, debuted in Los 80 and today stars in the TVN series Juana Brava. Here, both talk for the first time about their relationship, their love for cinema and their mutual admiration.

José Pedro Balmaceda Pascal was born in Chile, but a few months later he had to go into exile with his parents and his older sister, Javiera, to Denmark. It was the end of 1975. Thanks to the Rockefeller scholarship granted for his father, the doctor José Balmaceda Riera, a year later they moved to the United States: first they lived in San Antonio, Texas. Life there was just beginning and it was not easy.

Seventeen years later, in 1992, Lucas Balmaceda was born in Orange County, California, into the comfort of a family that was financially in its prime. His dad was at the peak of his career: as a fertility specialist and director of one of the University of California's reproductive health centers. But suddenly they moved back to Chile when Lucas was three years old and his brother Nicolas was eight. The two older ones stayed there. Pedro was already studying drama at Orange County High School of the Arts. Then he went to New York to study theater at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.

After a couple of small appearances in TV series, in 2014 he took the big leap in his career: he played Prince Oberyn in Game of Thrones, which made him world famous. Today, he has a starring role in the series Narcos. He is also filming a movie with Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe.

Fame came early for Lucas. After leaving Saint George High School in 2010, he studied theater at the Universidad Católica, and he began to shine: in year fourth, he starred in the theater play "La noche obstinada", by choreographer Pablo Rotemberg, and got a role in the successful television series Los 80 and today, in his last year, he is the co-star of Juana Brava, the new TVN nighttime series.

Scene one:

Lucas appears in Pedro's life

P: "I was 17 when Lucas was born. He was a baby when I left to go to university. I remember my first visit back and Lucas, who was not even two years old, was already the owner of the house. I remember those looks, wanting to tell me: 'I don't know who you are, but this is my house, mate.

To this day I have never seen that personality in another child. It was fascinating to see that wit in someone so small. Since he was a kid he had that fierce intelligence... The four siblings, Javiera, the eldest and the queen of the family; Nicolas, the doctor; Lucas and I are like a compact and consistent unit. I can't imagine life without them".

L: "Pedro was studying at the university in New York when I was born. When he went home for vacations to see the family, as I didn't know him, I thought: 'who is this guest, who is this weirdo who kisses my mother? She's mine!'. Back in Chile, every year Pedro came to visit us. It was the most entertaining thing in the world for me. He was much older and he would come with all the coolness, with all the culture of cinema, with horror movies that were not available here. Then we would watch them and play them out, we would do sketches. We would play that Pedro was a murderous monster and we would escape from him. We were each a character. He was very funny, he did voices, he impersonated people. He gets mad when I tell him, but I've always found that he has a Jim Carrey thing about him, he manages to make some impressive faces. When he came on, I couldn't stop watching him, he was too entertaining. We are all big movie buffs thanks to my dad. When I was three years old, he took my brothers and me to see Batman. I remember crying hysterically. I was very young, sensitive, and being in the cinema was like entering to another reality: loud noises, giant screen. I didn't understand anything.

Scene two

Transplanted

P: "What's Chilean about me and what's gringo about me is a very interesting question, because I don't think even at 40 years old I've been able to figure it out. I was raised and educated in the United States and socialized a lot with American pop culture, but Chilean pride has always been unwavering. My parents were exiled for eight years. So our visits to Chile were regular. My whole life I have lived in the United States and my whole life I have visited my relatives in Chile. However, since my siblings were raised in Chile, my connection to the country is much stronger today and it is something I am grateful for. Something that happens to me a lot is that when I say I've been in the U.S. my whole life, they say, "Well, you're a gringo then! And after a conversation in my fluent Spanish with a clear Chilean accent that same person turns around and says: I've been listening to you, you're Chilean!

L: "I am Chilean because I lived and grew up here since I was three years old, but at the same time I have a cultural disconnection: my parents lived 25 years in the United States, my brothers are gringos. My visual culture is super gringo, the TV shows I watched when I was a kid or the movies I watch to this day I understand them from that place: as an American. More than being born in the United States, I feel it's because of my family's background".

SCENE THREE:

The performance

P: "There were good years and bad years (when I started my acting career in the United States). Many years I was a waiter to supplement my income. But from a very young age I was auditioning for professional jobs. In my late twenties my career in the theater was relatively consistent. Then, when opportunities in television arose, I was consolidating and it became much easier to pay my expenses. I think that struggle, going through those situations, empowers you a lot and it's one of the things I'm enormously grateful for. And Game of Thrones was an incredible gift. It's the best role I've ever played and they're the best people I've ever worked with."

L: "It's Pedro's fault that I wanted to be an actor. But when I told him I wanted to study theater it was hard for him, more than anything, because he cares about me and studying theater is hard. You have to be very wise and have a super high self-esteem to take care of yourself. Pedro went through many things. If there is an actor who doesn't have contacts in the United States, it's him. Everything he has achieved is because of his work. That's why when people ask me why I don't go to the U.S., it's a resounding no. Being Pedro Pascal's little brother is not going to get me around the corner; I would have to be Tom Cruise's twin to achieve anything. Even so, Pedro had many failed career starts. In 2011, for example, he was offered a starring role in a series called Wonder Woman and it was eventually canceled. That's why, when Games of Thrones came up, I was like, wow! We were all freaking out, because Games of Thrones is like a worldwide trending topic. All the episodes he was in, we were all watching them together at my house, eating pizza or sushi."

SCENE FOUR:

Mutual lessons

P: "I try not to get too involved in anything Lucas does or how he does it. He has single-handedly created each of his experiences and is one of the most inspiring things I've ever seen. He loves his work and is continually developing his skills for television and theater, and eventually film. He executes like a real artist and, to be honest, it is more common for me to learn something from him than for him to learn something from me. I mean that very sincerely. Lucas reminds me to work hard and keeps me inspired. When I saw him in Los 80 I was incredibly proud, but not surprised. I was seeing something I had always known. The only advice I've given him is to not be such a workaholic, to take care of himself and to be proud of what he's accomplished and what he still has yet to accomplish. Deep down, I'm always going to be the protective big brother."

L: "Pedro is an object of admiration for me. What he says is law for me. Sometimes I ask him: 'Pedro, did you see that movie?' and he says: 'Yes, I didn't like it'. I tell him: 'Oh, I didn't like it either'. The nice thing about our relationship is that it happens so sporadically, once or twice a year, that the moments when we see each other are very intense. We either fight a lot or we love each other too much, but it's always like a story, like a movie. While he's there and I'm here, we talk a lot on WhatsApp and Facebook".

P: "With Lucas we always keep each other up to date on what movies to watch, what TV shows are good. I bug him all the time asking him about what's going on in his life and I'm always asking him about his perspective on things. Despite being away from each other for a long time, Lucas and I are very close and always have been. I see Lucas at the beginning of an amazing career, with an unwavering curiosity and passion. I love it when he confides in me about things he is enjoying or situations he is dealing with."

L: "I've never seen Pedro in theater, but I've been told he's tremendous. On camera, I find that he has a very intense look. He also has, and in that we are very similar, a very strong visual culture, the fact that we have always liked horror movies. He plays characters that hide something, dark characters. A great strength is that he is very sensual, he knows how to handle himself well from seduction".

P: "Lucas is brave, he's fearless. There's nothing he's not willing to try, he's never going to give up on a challenge, he's never going to leave something halfway, no matter what that means to him. Lucas is unstoppable.

Link interview

[kaysutcliff-michaelis]

Bright We Burn ending rant (SPOILERS)

Under the cut you will find my opinion with lots of spoilers, capitals and cursing about Bright We Burn (and the Conqueror’s saga in general) written by Kiersten White.

Quoting from https://booksandreaderssite.wordpress.com/2018/10/13/bright-we-burn/ “This book was ruined by the author falling in love with her own character: Perfect Beloved Radu“ 

I finished reading the book like an hour ago and I’ve been complaining, crying, and looking for reviews since then. I hate it, hate it so much, as much as I loved the first two books and the beginning of this one.

The impression I get from the ending is not one I expected to get from a book that had a strong female protagonist as its main selling point. Mainly because said protagonist gets the worst possible ending. I didn’t expect a happy go lucky ending, I didn’t even expect her not to die or the author to stray too far from historical facts. Just because of the title I expected her to be like a shooting star, briefly burning bright. But she didn’t burn bright, she just burn. What I didn’t expect was the ending feeling completely alien to the rest of the saga.

Lada is ruthless, strong, smart, a great tactician and has her sights focused on her goal, being the prince of Wallachia. And fuck Mehmed, Radu, her father, and whoever tries to prevent her from ruling her country. She gets the respect of her men and the people of her country, she’s a good and fair ruler even if she got there with rather bloody methods. But haven’t they all? The Ottoman Empire Mehmed and Radu are so fond of is built on the blood of the janissaries they have taken from vassal states and the blood of the Christians from Constantinople. Yet the moment Lada kills the boyars (who have been leeching off Wallachia for decades) and Mehmed’s envoys (who burnt a village first), she must be stopped. How dare a woman make life easier for the people of the country?

And for some reason, the author allows two men to ruin what Lada has built with blood, sweat and tears. And to add insult to injury, the men who should have helped her (Mehmed even claims “he gave her the throne” as the selfish and self-centered asshole he is).

And she loses everything and everyone who is important to her. Petru, Nicolae, Oana, Stefan, Daciana, and Bogdan. Oh, Bogdan. How I wished Radu lost an eye to compensate for his murder.

And in case that was not enough, the dragon that was so strong and fierce suddenly turns into a girl that is lonely and hurt and needs her brother to survive and give her back her country. The country that never recognised Radu as prince. The country that loved Lada.

HE FUCKING HAD TO GIVE HER WHAT WAS ALREADY HERS. A MAN. AGAIN. HE FUCKING TOOK THE THRONE FROM HER AND FUCKING GAVE IT BACK AS IF HE WAS A DAMN SAINT. ALL SHE DID AND IN THE END SHE WAS PRINCE BECAUSE A FUCKING MAN ALLOWED IT. HOW IS THAT FEMINIST???????????  WHAT IS THE USE IN HAVING SUCH A POWERFUL FEMALE CHARACTER IF THE FULFILLMENT OF HER DREAM DEPENDS ON THE WHIM OF A MALE EVEN AT THE VERY END?

AND HE EVEN GETS AN “I TOLD YOU” MOMENT!!! THE AUDACITY!!!

And her death... such a warrior, killed by a nameless assassin with a knife to the back. A nameless grave. So disrespectful to what Lada was. I don��t care if all the things I didn’t like were for historical accuracy’s sake. Lada was her character and deserved way better than that.

Moving on to the treacherous rat that Radu has become, I liked him so much and in this book I could only pray for someone to smack him as hard as possible. He goes from the poor and traumatised soul that is being manipulated by Mehmed and has lost his best friend and potential partner to enabling Mehmed’s actions while being fully conscious of how he’s being used, instantly healing himself from a trauma that is not relevant ever again, not giving a damn about killing people, sending Kumal to his death without sparing it too many thoughts, and having a cute little happy family while wanting to imprison his sister for the rest of her life and thinking he’s doing her a favor. He actually thought it was good and fair to plan a happy life for himself while destroying everything his sister had fought for. The sister he never ever chose.

Am I the only one who loved that the Danesti brothers started being problematic as soon as Radu gave them the throne?? Boyars will be boyars, and I don’t understand how he thought those two would be better rulers than Lada, they wouldn’t enter the castle and still wanted the money, the lands and the fancy stuff.

I honestly cannot believe how much this character has changed (for the worse), and how he acts like he’s so good and only looking for the best for those he loves when he’s a traitor, a liar, a killer and the reason why Constantinople fell. He cannot forgive Lada for protecting Wallachia, but apparently everyone and their mother have forgiven and forgotten all the blood staining his hands. Also I find it unbelievable how he sells the way the Ottoman Empire is run to Cyprian but then when Lada tried to use some of the things she had learnt there to run Wallachia it was suddenly the worse thing ever. Radu is definitely not the good Dracul sibling, he’s the toxic one.

Speaking about Cyprian, I honestly couldn’t feel happy for them. When he came back to Radu I was already too angry and wanting to send him packing back to Edirne. Amazing how Cyprian can give counsel about how to deal with Lada when all he knows about her is second-hand but he can forgive Radu for lying to him, making the siege worse for everyone, being the reason why his uncle is dead and his city was lost (and even if he doesn’t know about it, the reason why Giustiniani may have died).

And Fatima?? How she “took care” of Lada at the end? I can’t tell if she’s too broken or what, but it was creepy how she could take care of Lada when Nazira wouldn’t even stand being in the same room. Even if she was going to give them her baby, it makes me wonder how messed up she can be to be able to behave that way with the person who killed her brother-in-law and they were so adamant to condemn.

I won’t even talk about the baby thing because that was just so unnecessary for the plot and for Lada herself as a character.

Going back to Radu and before talking about Mehmed, I hate how he is 100% sure that Mehmed knows about his feelings and is using him and said feelings and he??? just??? allows??? it???? Still does whatever he wants, still appears at his doorstep no matter his trauma with Constantinople, still makes Nazira and Fatima leave their house though they had just been reunited and Mehmed didn’t care that much about finding Nazira and STILL at the end, 20 years later is in good terms with him. He didn’t confront Mehmed about using him, never called him out. Radu is the friend who will listen to you when you’re explaining how a common friend has abused you and then will keep being friends with the other person and abandoning you :D

I am not Mehmed’s biggest fan, but it’s like he isn’t even a character anymore in this book. Even if we never have his pov it always felt like this story was a triangle, but at the end it was like he wasn’t there anymore, he isn’t even the source of conflict because Radu isn’t in love with him anymore. Even for all their alleged worries about Theodora being Mehmed’s biological daughter, that issue was glossed over in a matter of three lines. I do wish he had stayed more relevant (and that he had never left Constantinople).

Surely I’m forgetting something but I think my point is clear XD Radu is a hypocrite who didn’t deserve his happy ending, Mehmed became so irrelevant that the plot was missing something, and Lada, our dragon, deserved way better. Oh, and don’t write a “feminist” YA book if the female character is the one who’s going to have the worst ending. It just feels like you’re telling women they will end up alone and dead if they are as strong and determined as Lada, and to suck it up because men will always be forgiven for the crimes.

[happy-whumper]

Sold

This chapter literally cost me my last nerve and while I am still not happy with it, I have decided that I also cannot deal with it any longer so I'm posting it now anyways xD it is still not super whumpy, but I promise that'll change in the next chapter!!!!! CW: dehumanisation, swearing, some more auction whump; if i forgot anything please let me know!!

The first few minutes were rather uneventful, the bids weren’t too high yet, some people were still unsure how interested they actually were and wanted to just keep their options open. Nicolas went with that for a while, but he was sure he wanted to have them. So after the offer of 650.000$ for Rain, he spoke up. “1.4 Million for all three.”. The room fell silent and he could feel peoples gazes turning to him. He didn’t mind it, he was used to being the center of attention. The auctioneer seemed pleased with that. “1.4 Million, anyone bidding more?”. There was a moment of silence and just as Nicolas thought that was it, another person spoke up. “1.5 Million.”. It seemed to have come from a table not too far from his, but he didn’t bother to turn his head to see who the other bidder was. Whoever they were, he would beat them. Once he had his mind set to something, he could be quite determined. The auctioneer's eyes lit up and Nick noticed that the pets on the stage started to look uneasy. Which was somewhat reasonable, given that someone was offering over a million dollars to buy them. “1.7”, his voice was calm, knowing full well he could keep going like that for a while. There was a whispering discussion breaking out at the other bidders table, agitated voices seemingly discussing something. They seemed to have come to a conclusion, because another offer was put out. “1.9 Millions dollars.”. A murmur went through the crowd. That was a lot of money to pay for three pets. But Nicolas didn’t let that stop him. He simply smiled, raising his glass to his lips before saying, “2 Million.”. He took a sip, watching the reaction of the people. The auctioneer paused for a moment, giving the other bidder a chance to up their offer. “ 2 Million dollars for the three pets…”, when there still weren’t any further offers, he hit the hammer on the podest. “Sold to Mr. Bennet!”. Some people clapped, some confused, some impressed. Most a mix of both. The curtain closed again and Ethan patted him on the shoulder. “Not bad man!”. “What can I say, you were right. Those are some interesting candidates.”. “Sure are!”. He leaned to the side, looking over his shoulder, trying to catch a glance at the other table who had been bidding on the three pets as well. He frowned, leaning back and looking towards Nick. “I didn’t know your sister was back in the business?”. Now it was his turn to frown, “What?”. He turned his head and there was, standing at the table with some other people he didn’t recognise. She had dyed her hair light pink and was wearing a simple and yet elegant black dress to fit into the scene. “Excuse me for a moment.” Ethan nodded. “Of course, hey I’ll go make sure they get your pets ready, while you take care of that!”. “Thank you.”, he gave him a last, genuine smile, before turning around, making his way over to his sisters table. “Hello Clarissa. Didn’t expect to see you here.”

She hadn’t seen him coming so when he spoke, she flinched, spinning around. “Nick, hey...Yeah I uhm…”, she looked to her friends, but they looked just as confused as her. “I’m just here for research purposes.”. He smiled, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’m sure. Though i have to ask, since when does research include bidding almost 2 Million dollars on pets?”. Her hands started fidgeting and her eyes kept darting around the room, avoiding eye contact. “Yeah uh...Listen it was really nice to catch up and all, but we really need to go now.”. “That’s a real shame, we should really meet again sometime!”, his voice sounded honest and for most people around it would have sounded genuine. But his sister knew better than that. “Oh one more thing…”, he leaned forward, lowering his voice to not risk being overheard, “I know about your little...rescue group. I know that that’s why you’re really here. Trying to save those pets, it’s pathetic, really. I would have expected more from you.” Clarissa took a step back, straightening her back and finally looking him in the eyes now. “Just good that I have stopped caring about your opinion a long time ago.”

As soon as the curtains closed, the guards appeared again. “Damn, I can’t believe someone would pay this much money for some stupid pets”, the guard looked at them with a sceptical expression. “I can’t believe that you think anyone cares about what you have to say to that…”, the girl, Olivia, mumbled more to herself but still loud enough for Rain to hear her. Unfortunately, the guard had heard it too, stepping over to her and grabbing her by the hair, pulling her head back. That caused a pained hiss from her and she glared at the man. “What did you just say?”, his voice wasn’t particularly loud, but his anger was still coming through. She was clearly not impressed though, looking him directly in the eyes, “I said that no one cares about your opinion, dickhead.”. His face turned into an angry grimace. “Listen here you little-”, before he could finish his sentence, she interrupted him, a way too confident grin on her face, “What, you’re going to threaten me? Oh please, do tell me all the awful things you want to do, we both know that you won’t do it anyway. So please, save both of us the time.” He shot her a last angry glance, before letting go of her hair again. Rain let out a breath, he had been watching the whole situation anxiously, scared of what might happen. Talking like that to a guard in the Academy would have gotten him punished easily....

Just as it seemed that the guard was just going to let it be, taking a step back, he seemed to change his mind, kicking Olivia hard in the stomach. She leaned over, groaning in pain and making a pained grimace. “Fucking asshole!”. Her tone was still angry but her breathing was ragged and the slight shaking in her voice did not help either. The man seemed satisfied though, removing the cuffs around her ankles and pulling her up by her arm. The other two guards, who had only been watching so far, now did the same with the other two. They were more or less dragged out of the room, causing Rain to stumble and almost fall, which brought him a harsh pull on his already bruised arm, causing him to let out a small cry. “Can’t you be a bit more careful? Geez he’s already terrified, no need to be such a dick.”, Rain turned his head in surprise,this was the first time the other boy, who had been introduced as Theodor, had said anything. His voice was calm but had a slight annoyance to it. The guard just rolled his eyes and pushed the blue haired boy forward again. A few minutes later, they got to a new room, again it was completely different from the ones he had seen before. It was mostly empty, there were some beds standing against the wall, separated by curtains. Each of them got brought to one of the beds and immediately a cuff was closed around his ankle, securing him to the bed to make sure there was no escape. With that, the guards left, locking the door behind them. For a moment they just sat there in complete silence. And as they sat there, the reality of their situation came crashing down on Rain. Someone had just bought him, like he was nothing more than an object. A complete stranger just...owned him now. His breathing started to get faster again, his heart felt like it was going to explode in his chest and his body started shaking. What was he going to do with him? Where would he go? Why were they in this room? The room started to spin again, the tears in his eyes blurring his vision. Before he could stop it, a ragged sob escaped his lips and he could feel his face getting wet with hot tears. Once it started, he felt like he just couldn’t stop crying, helpless sobs and gasps the only sounds coming from him. He was scared, hurt and just wanted to go home. He wanted to be safe again, not at this strange place, no idea what was about to happen. Suddenly he felt a warm hand on his shoulder, causing him to flinch and rapidly turning his head. The hand had belonged to Theodor, who was looking at him with a worried expression. “Hey, look at me. You need to calm down, can you take a deep breath for me?”, Rain stared at him with big eyes before slowly nodding and doing as he was told. “Very good!”, he gave him a reassuring smile, that immediately made him feel a bit calmer, “Now just keep doing that okay? Nice deep breaths.” Rain nodded again and continued to focus on his breathing, eventually calming down enough to return to his normal breathing. Theodor took his hand away and for a moment he felt sad, the skin where his hand had been felt cold and sad now. His cheeks turned red and he looked at the floor, embarrassed about the outbreak. “Th-thank you…”. “No problem.”, his voice was warm and calm, something about it made Rain feel a bit saver. He was still absolutely terrified of course but...something about Theo made him feel like it would all be okay eventually. For the next few minutes none of them said anything, everyone lost in their own thoughts. Rain shivered slightly, although he wasn’t sure if it was from the low temperature in the room or something else. But before he could question that more, a man in a white coat entered the room. He was holding a clipboard and was wearing a pair of thick black glasses. His hair was dark brown, although there were streaks of grey visible. Immediately Rain's hands began to twitch again. “Well, hello there!”, he smiled at them, it was friendly and he immediately wanted to smile back. The other two looked at him with a mixture of suspicion and annoyance. “Now, I’m just here to

make sure you’re all healthy and ready to go, I promise it won’t hurt!”. Olivia just scoffed, rolling her eyes. The man just pretended as if he hadn’t seen that, still smiling. “So, who wants to start?”. No one answered. After about a minute of uncomfortable silence, he sighed and turned towards Theo. “Okay, then I’ll just start with you.” He called someone and one of the men from before stepped in. The man in the white coat nodded towards Theo, who was then led through a door in another room. Rain looked after them for a moment, worried what they were going to do. Olivia seemed to have noticed his worry and confusion, “Don’t worry, the Doctor’s probably just going to do some tests and sign some paper saying that everything is okay. It’s no big deal.” She groaned and put one leg, the one that wasn’t secured to the bed, up resting her chin on it. “How...How do you know all that?”, Rain tilted his head in curiosity. She smiled slightly, though it wasn’t a happy one. There was something bitter about it. “I’m not doing this for the first time. It’s always the same procedure, you get used to it. Well. If you get sent back as often as I do at least.”, she let out a short laugh, but again there was no humour in it. Rain nodded slowly, not fully understanding what she meant but he also didn’t want to bother her any more. So instead he just stared at the ground, trying to stay calm. About ten minutes later Theo and the guard returned to the room. He didn’t bother to close the cuffs around his hands again, instead he just went over to the girl who seemed already annoyed even though he hadn’t said anything. She sighed, letting her leg fall to the ground again. “I hate doctors…”. With that she was brought through the door, leaving the two boys alone in the room.

After the brief conversation with his sister Nick didn’t quite know what to think. Her being at this event wasn’t necessarily something to be concerned but most definitely unusual. For the most part she preferred to say more behind the scenes and her appearance on this evening made him wonder if there was something special about this one. But that was something he could think about later, for now there were other things that needed his attention. Namely the three new pets he had just bought. He still wasn’t quite sure if getting three at once had been such a good idea but well...It was a challenge. And he loved a good challenge.

He made his way through the crowded room until he reached a discrete door at the back. It wasn’t locked, so he went right through, entering a hallway. Compared to the luxurious hall before, this one felt cold. Sad almost. The floor was made out of a light wood, the walls had a bland beige wallpaper on them. There were a few people walking around, but no one paid much attention to him since they were busy with the still ongoing auction. He didn’t mind that one bit. Since he already knew the place a bit, he had been here before, after all one of his oldest friends worked there. As if on command, Ethan rounded the corner, just finishing up a conversation. When he saw Nick he grinned. “Perfect timing, I was just about to go look for you anyways!”. He made a gesture, telling the other man to follow him. “So, they’re just in for the doctor checkup, you know the drill, but I figured I’d get you their files while you wait.”. Nicolas just nodded, his thoughts starting to drift off again. They passed a few windows and he saw that it had started to rain (haha...Rain...Why am i like this), in fact it seemed like there was a whole thunderstorm going on. The lightning caused sudden flashes of light and was shortly followed by the crashing thunder. He frowned, driving his car home in this weather was not going to be fun.

There was a loud crashing sound, causing Rain to flinch. His eyes darted towards the door, half expecting someone to storm in. When nothing happened he relaxed a bit more, perhaps it was just the weather. When they had brought him to the car earlier the sky had already been grey, thick dark clouds blocking out the sun. He had been nervous, it wasn’t like they never took trainees away from the academy but he had never been one of them before. The knowledge that a lot of those people never came back hadn’t done much to calm his nerves either. It had been about 3 years since he had gotten to the Academy and it still terrified him. No one ever explained anything, they only were told the bare minimum of information. Anything that hadn’t to do with the training wasn’t important.

Once again he felt like he was left in the dark, completely unaware of his faith.

All the time he had been in the room there had been steps in front of the door, passing and never stopping. Now he heard them again, but this time they didn’t leave. Instead he heard a click of a lock from the door and a moment later it swung open, revealing to men standing in the door. The first, the one that held the key to open the door, seemed vaguely familiar, Rain had seen him earlier. He had short blonde hair and his smile reminded him of a salesman, someone who was always trying to convince you to spend your money on something new you didn’t really need. His suit seemed expensive, but also as if the man hadn’t spent a lot of time picking it out. But he wasn’t the one Rain was paying attention to. Instead he fixated on the other man who had entered. He was taller, had dark hair and grey-blue eyes. Something about him immediately made him seem important, in an intimidating way. As if not watching out for him could have fatal consequences. Rain immediately felt his heart starting to beat faster again, unsure whether he wanted to look away from the man or not let him out of his sight to make sure nothing happened. From the corner of his eye he could see that the other two had gotten tense as well, all of them feeling the weighing presence of the stranger. Like a promise for dark times looming over them.

Taglist: @starnight-whump , @froggywhumpy , @whumpasaurus101, @as-a-matter-of-whump, @jordanstrophe, @myst-in-the-mirror, @jojothepanwithoutaplan (Let me know if you want to be added or removed!)