#and that lead to this message as well as the caption he wanted in quotes under it and ^ for tumblr

[c0zmo-writes]

Notes and stuff for chapter four of Birds of a Feather.

Chapter 4- If You Give a Bird a Cellphone

“Today, he sat criss cross applesauce on the living room floor, a chewed pencil in one hand and some loose leaf paper in the other.”

Beetlejuice loves to chew on things. He mostly bites his nails, which can lead to bloody fingers, due to his sharp teeth.

“What’s this called again?” Beetlejuice asked after some time. “Gravity Falls.”

Shilo’s a fan of Gravity Falls! She watched it as a teen, and I’d like to think that the show is one of the things that sparked her love for cryptids and middle of nowhere houses in the woods.

“It took a while, but after an hour of giving him directions, then giving them again, then giving them a third time, just to realize he wasn’t even listening, Beetlejuice now knew how to call Shilo if he needed to.”

The sensory processing disorder and short attention span combo is absolutely brutal when someone’s trying to explain something completely new. I would know.

“What kinda pink? ‘Cause it shouldn’t be turnin’ hot pink yet,” Beetlejuice said.”

In the springtime, his feathers and the roots of his hair are bright magenta. I drew out what it looks like, but I’m not sure if I’ll share it or not. It’s a little bit suggestive. 

“She opened the message up and it was a photo of her a few minutes ago, accompanied by the caption: “  hieyi. tvhesyu” . She chuckled and typed back: “ hieyi. tvhesyu to you too beej” .”

This is based off of my sibling, who types shit like “prom@t”, “TALL YALKIJG ABOT”, or “rip foege”. I love em, they just type oh so quickly. Also all three of those quotes are things that they’ve actually typed out to me. He was trying to write “hey shilo”.

“My flock has a kinda dominance hierarchy thing goin’ on, and since my mom was the oldest and the strongest, she was pretty much the leader. She was a no nonsense kinda gal, which didn’t really pair that well with me. She got angry at me a lot, yelled at me, shit like that,”

His description is putting it pretty lightly. Also side note, but I’d absolutely love to go into detail about how his flock works. I don’t think anyone but me would really care about fictional harpy hierarchy. Someone please tell me if you want to hear about that, I’d love to rant about it. 

“He pulled out some ruffled feathers on his wrist with his teeth.”

He plucks his feathers when stressed. 

“Shilo accepted defeat and let Beetlejuice lie on her. After all, he did just spill his guts to her. He deserved to be held.”

I love the idea of putting him through horrible situations but at the same time I need him to be held and loved and comforted. 

“They were sweet to look at, especially to the beady eyes that were watching them sleep. Shilo shouldn’t have forgotten to close her curtains that night.”

I wonder who that could be…! :)

[orange-waterfalls]

...Happy New Year?

Darkiplier x gn!reader x Wilford

A/N: I am so disappointed and surprised that I haven’t written anything poly yet are you KIDDING ME. Does it take me 5 months to write a single fic? No. Might take me that long to find motivation and SINCE I don’t wanna be an ASSHOLE who takes requests and then DOESN’T WRITE THEM I’m probably gonna take a bit to think and figure out what I wanna do here with the blog. Uhhh reader is a retail worker who’s just. Tired and stressed. Dark and Wil decide to comfort them because good boyfriends are good! TW: mention of weed. And suggestive phrases? Also cursing. That’s it. Rated T. Enjoy and have a happy New Year everybody!

Word Count: 2.7k

--

“Do you have to?” Wilford all but whined when you got ready for work. Except he did not whine because he does not whine because he is Wilford Warfstache, thank you. “It’s New Year’s Eve!”

“I’m fully aware what day it is, hon,” You said in a very soft voice because you knew Wilford had to be let down gently or he’d be grouchy for the next few months. “That’s why I’m not working overtime. Hopefully. Maybe I can get Sara to take over my shift, she’s not doing anything tonight. I wish I could’ve taken the morning shift, I do.” Darkiplier appeared next to Wilford, looking just as desperate.

“Can you not just… not… go?” Dark suggested, trying not to sound too needy. He knew that he failed by the look you gave him.

“I have to work, boys.”

“Do you though?”

“Wilford...”

“I can get you money.”

“Are you suggesting illegal activities, Mr. Warfstache?”

“We are not… besides stealing.”

“Wil.”

“We could pawn off Mark’s stuff, it’s probably worth a lot!”

“Both of you, stop it!” You said in a stern voice. They both looked like kicked puppies and you felt a little bad about it. “I’ll get home when I get home. You know I love you. If I never had to leave you, I wouldn’t. But I gotta, ok?”

“Kissies?” Wilford asked, tapping the tips of his fingers together. Darkiplier looked at the motion and back at his own fingers, seemingly trying to replicate it. You stared at his hands for a moment, watching the struggle with a resigned sort of curiosity. Wilford also stared at them until he couldn’t take it anymore and just put his hands over Dark’s.

“Just-Just… stop.” He said gently. Dark lowered his hands and they both looked back to you. You shook your head.

“I’ll be back before midnight. Order some takeout, please.”

“Sure thing, boss!” Wilford saluted.

“Goodbye, darling.” Darkiplier gave a little bow. You smiled warmly, walking over to the two. Darkiplier turned his head and you kissed his cheek. You tried to do the same for Wilford, but he turned his head back at the last second to catch your lips in a kiss. Additionally, he grabbed your face to keep you there. You pulled away and gently smacked his cheek before heading back to the door. Darkiplier glared at him a little. He stuck his tongue out in response.

“Bye! Love you!”

“We love you too, babes!” Wil called, wrapping his arms around Dark’s neck and leaning against him. Dark waved a goodbye to you. You shut and locked the door behind you. 

“Wil?” Dark said after they stood like that for a while.

“Yep?” Wil responded with his cheek squished to Dark’s shoulder.

“If you’re gonna cling to me we could at least lay down.”

“Cuddle time?”

“Sure. Cuddle time. Come on.” Dark tried to walk to the three’s shared bedroom, but Wilford wouldn’t let go. He quirked an eyebrow at the reporter. “Wil?”

“Yes?”

“May you… let go?”

“No.”

“Wil.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Wil…”

“No.”

“We can’t cuddle if you don’t let go.”

“Lies. Deception.”

“Wil, please, work with me here.” They looked at each other. Wilford slowly removed his arms from around the other man’s neck. Dark caught one of his hands, bringing his palm to his lips and gently kissing his hand.

“Someone’s feeling affectionate!” Wil exclaimed. Dark intertwined their fingers and gave his hand a squeeze before finally walking to the room.

The bedroom had mostly shades of black, white, and blue decor, apart from the fluffy red pillows you just had to have, along with a few stuffed animals. Darkiplier had his office with his red and black velvet and Wilford had his own… wherever he hung out, so they didn’t mind you choosing the colors. Anything to stop Wilford from painting the walls yellow of all colors. 

Wilford turned around and pulled Dark in by his waist, swaying in a little dance. 

“What are you doing?” Dark tried and failed to conceal his smile and laugh.

“Dancing with my lover, what does it look like?” Wilford nuzzled their noses together.

“I thought you wanted to cuddle.”

“I do.”

“Then why are we dancing?”

“Can’t we just dance for a bit?” Darkiplier pulled back and looked at Wil, who was currently avoiding eye contact. He sighed.

“Feels a little weird without Y/N?” He asked. Wilford hummed, still not looking him in the eye. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“I do want to.”

“We can wait until they get home, it’s really not--”

“I do want to…”

“But?”

“Mm…”

“Want to prove you aren’t absolutely whipped?”

“Excuse you?!”

“It’s not a bad thing.”

“I am-- You-- Wilford Warfstache simps for NOBODY!”

“Says Mr. Hundred Dollar Pillows.”

“Listen here you son of a bitch--” Wilford backed away and held up a finger to explain exactly why he was no simp. Dark took the opportunity to push him onto the bed. “Ooh! Frisky!”

“Shut it.” He climbed into the bed next to him. Wilford draped himself across Dark’s chest, nuzzling into him. They sighed contentedly. 

“Dark?”

“Mm?”

“What did I do to deserve you two?”

“Me? You were nice and accepting. I still don’t believe either of us deserve Y/N.”

“Oh, come on, there has to be something.”

“Wil, both of us have killed multiple people. I think whatever good we’ve done will get canceled out.”

“...right.”

They lay like that for a bit, enjoying just being there. Suddenly, Wilford picked his head up.

“What’s happening? You have a look? What is that look?” Dark furrowed his eyebrows.

“I have the best idea!” Wilford jumped up and ran to the closet.

“What?” Dark sat up.

“We are surprising our lover with romance!” He threw Dark’s suit at him, picking out his own at the same time.

“...and suits?”

“Yes! Well, your suit. It makes you look sexy.”

“Wil.”

“Their words, not mine!”

“Why are we--”

“It’s New Year’s, Dark! They’re stressed! They’re tired! They deserve a surprise! Where the Devil are my suspenders?”

“Wil, I don’t think--”

“That’s right, Dark. You don’t think. You can just sit there and look pretty while Wilford Lovemaster Warfstache plans it out!”

“Lovemaster?”

“I was due for a new middle name anyways. Chop chop!”

Dark hesitantly put on his suit while Wilford looked for his suspenders. He looked in the mirror, deciding whether he looked… “sexier” with or without a tie. He eventually decided without, even popping a few buttons of his dress shirt. Wilford walked back in, wearing a hot pink button up, yellow suspenders, and a blue bowtie.

“...hot!” He said before walking up next to Dark and taking a selfie of the two. Dark looked over his shoulder and watched him send it to you with the caption ‘your two special boys!’. He caught a look at some previous messages.

“Wil, what’s poggers?”

“New-fangled lingo, don’t worry about it. Do we have roses? Ask Illinois to bring us roses.”

“Wil, what is happening.”

“ROMANCE!” He yelled, exasperated. “Romance is happening, Dark.”

“Romance… right.”

“And suits, precisely. Come on, order Chinese from that place they like.”

“...is this a good idea? Suits and chinese?”

“It’s a fantastic idea, now order the goddamn food.”

--

Darkiplier and Wilford sat on the couch in your apartment, reading a book they’d found. Wil was leaning on Dark’s shoulder with one leg draped over his. There was a little time until New Year’s, and they really wanted to spend it with you. Dark would never admit it, but he missed you. Quite a lot, actually. You’ve weaseled your way into his heart and now he’s a little dependent. Wil would proudly scream it to the world if he could. Dark would never let him.

Dark glanced up at the clock, seeing the 11:00 time. He scowled, closing the book and tossing it to the other side of the couch. He leaned his head back and sighed. He debated calling you with Wilford beforehand, maybe even just to hear your voice on the voicemail, but he was sure that would be too needy of him. He has a reputation to uphold, thank you very much.

“Miss your other lover, Darkipoo?” Wilfor teased.

“Obviously. I’m used to two heat sources, not one.”

“Oh, am I not good enough for Mr. Darkiplier?”

“I never said that.”

“You were thinkin’ it.”

“You can’t read minds, Wil, stick to your interviews.” He said in a faux-mocking manner. They smiled at each other.

Dark shot up from the couch the moment he heard your key in the lock. He adjusted his suit, squared his shoulders, and cleared his throat. He couldn’t help a smile as he held a white rose, Wilford doing the same as he held a pink one.

So, of course, they jumped a little when you slammed the door behind you.

“Uh. Darling? Are you--”

“I fucking hate EVERYTHING!” You yelled. Dark blinked. He glanced at WIlford, who looked just as surprised. You paced around the living room, looking like you were about to commit murder. He shuffled closer to Wilford, and leaned in.

“Wil, what are we supposed to do?” He whispered.

“Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.” Wilford said in a voice that told Dark he was quoting something.

“Wil, I don’t know what the fuck that is.”

“It-It’s a meme-Do you just not go on the internet? Ever? Nevermind, just follow my lead.” He grabbed the roses, putting them in a nearby cup of water. He walked over to where you were and gently grabbed your shoulders. “Here, darling, sit, tell us about it.” 

He led you to the couch and sat you down, sitting next to you. He snapped his fingers at Dark, pointing to your shoulders. Dark hesitantly walked over and started to massage your shoulders. You sighed a little, relaxing. Wil nodded and gave him a thumbs up.

“There were so many assholes today, man.”

“Mm-hm. Tell Wilford about it.”

“There was this guy who kept asking where this one thing that we didn’t have was, this lady kept insisting her coupons were not expired, don’t even get me started on Jared and Melissa.” 

“Who are Jared and Melissa?” Dark asked.

“Oh, FUCK Jared and Melissa!” You suddenly got to your feet again and started pacing again.

“Y-Yeah, fuck Jared and Melissa!” Wil agreed. “Who are Jared and Melissa?”

“Hell if I know, just go with it, I’ll get the takeout.” Dark patted him on the back.

“Angel wasn’t even there to talk to today, God, I miss them so much already.”

“Angel is the coworker who…”

“Oh, they have the cats, Socks and Mittens.”

“Oh, so Angie--”

“Angie is Angelo, and he smokes weed in the back. He’s cool too. He was too high to fucking function today, though.”

“So, uh, where was Angel?” Wil looked back into the kitchen and saw Dark loading up their plates with the food. Wil suddenly remembered that he was wearing a pink shirt. He didn’t know whether the stains would be prominent and he did not intend to find out. He snuck away into the bedroom to change. Suits were a bad idea, he should’ve listened to Dark. 

He changed into a T-shirt with the design of a suit and some grey sweatpants and somehow made his way back to the living room before you’d finished your first sentence. You noticed this, because you stared at his change of clothes.

“...weren’t you wearing a suit? Like an actual one?”

“No.”

“But-”

“I wasn’t.”

“You sent me a picture.”

“The, uh… suits were… part of a different… situation…” He said, not knowing what the fuck he was actually saying to you. You seemed to get something from it because you said:

“Ah. I see.” Before going back to your rant. Wil looked at Dark as he walked into the living room. He wasn’t wearing the suit jacket, only the black dress shirt. He also had black pants instead of the white ones.

Wilford nodded and whispered “Good choice.” Dark nodded and whispered “I told you so.”, so Wilford flipped him off. Dark sat the plates down while Wil pushed you down by your shoulders. You buried your face in your hands and groaned. Wil rubbed a hand up and down your back while Darkiplier poured drinks. You rubbed your face before leaning back and letting them drop. You looked down at the food. Then at Wilford. Then at Dark.

“Am I… missing something?” You said in a small voice.

“Hm?” Wil tilted his head at you.

“I feel like something was supposed to happen. Did I ruin your plans?” You frowned, starting to feel guilty. 

“No, no, darling, you couldn’t ruin anything.” Wilford shifted closer to you and put his arm around your shoulders, rubbing up and down your arm.

“You sure? It feels like something I could do…”

“You could never because anything involving you is perfect.” Dark whispered after he gently took your chin in his hand and turned you towards him.

“Booooooo.” Wil called.

“Wha?”

“That was so cheesy, Dark.” You smiled.

“So sappy. Disgusting.” Wil agreed.

“Shameful.” You both shook your heads.

“Both of you can fuck off.” Dark huffed and crossed his arms. You kissed him, gently holding his face in your hands, making him smirk.

“Hey! How come the edgy one gets a kiss kiss!”

“You tricked me this morning, no kiss kiss for you!”

“Dark! Tell them!”

“You heard them, no kiss kiss.”

“Wh-”

“Hey, I have an idea! Why don’t we eat and watch shitty rom coms!”

“Don’t you wanna watch the clock?” Dark asked.

“Not particularly…” You looked down and the smile left your face. Wilford and Dark gave each other a look before they each took one of your hands and squeezed them.

“Ok. We can do that.”

--

The three of you laid in bed, you and Wilford cuddling into either side of Dark. Countdown forgotten, already passed a while ago. Dark still had his dress shirt and you were still wearing your work clothes. Dark stared at the ceiling, focusing on the sounds around his. 

The fireworks outside.

The clock ticking rhythmically.

The soft and constant breathing from his two favorite people.

He took a deep breath and tried his best to push down all the bad and intrusive thoughts.

What if I hurt them? What if they decide I’m not good enough? What if I’m not good enough?

No. No ‘what if’s. That doesn’t matter. What matters is they love him and he loves them. 

He looked down at you, your soft face squished into his arm, and he smiled at the warmth that bloomed throughout his chest. He looked over at Wilford and sucked in a breath when he found him staring at Dark.

“...can’t sleep?” Wilford said in an uncharacteristically quiet voice.

“No, I just…” He took a deep breath. “I just…”

“Wha happened?” You slurred, waking up. Dark flinched.

“Both of you should go back to sleep.”

“Why’re you awake then?” Wilford challenged.

“I was just… thinking.”

“About?” You yawned.

“About… how much I… love you two.” Both you and Wilford froze and Dark’s breathing sped up, scared he’d done something wrong.

“Awww, he wuvs us!” Wil giggled.

“How much do you wuv us, Dark?” You crossed your arms on his chest, resting your cheek against them and looking at Dark.

“...a lot.” He monotoned, staring at the ceiling.

“Do you wuv us soooo much?” Wilford batted his eyelashes.

“I’m starting to love you less and less.” Dark growled.

“Awwww he does!” You laughed

“Go. Back. To. Sleep. Please.” Darkiplier begged because Darkiplier does apparently beg, who would’ve thought.

“Yessir…” you said, another yawn taking over the word. You got back into your previous position, your arms gripping his and pressed into his side. Wilford took a similar one, just a little further up. You fell back asleep after a little bit, but the other two stayed awake.

“Happy you have both of your heatsources back?” Wilford whispered, a smile evident in his voice. Dark sighed, closing his eyes and focusing on the feeling of both his loves holding onto him like a lifeline. A ghost of a smile crossed his face.

“Yes. I am.”

[lettingmydreamsspeak]

The Heart Knows Best: Part III

Summary: They still can’t get each other off their minds. Little do they know that even though distance plays a huge factor in ever knowing one another, something is bringing them together.

Pairing: Chris Evans x Female Reader

Warnings: None

Word count: approx. 2300

Author’s Note: If this is your first time reading this series, catch up with Part I and Part II here. Thanks to those who have read the series so far and have sent messages. It is great to hear from those who are reading it. It is my hope to have Part IV up shortly. 

************************************************************************

You couldn’t be happier to be home. You already felt like you needed a vacation from your vacation, but the demands of work would quickly occupy your mind. As you turned on your phone upon arriving at the airport terminal, the number on your email app grew. It was your boss inquiring about the timelines for various projects. She must have tracked your flight and knew that once you arrived it would be hard for you to avoid all the emails that she would be sending. Since taking an entry level position as a junior illustrator for an international publishing firm, you had worked your way up the ranks to work directly with the lead art director, as the senior illustrator. Because of your talent and determination, this position allowed for you to gain some of the highest profile accounts that came through the firm, working with some of the most well-known authors. Who knew that all those years of drawing since you were a little girl, would lead to this dream job. Even though the demands of the job could be overwhelming at times, no amount of pressure would take away the love you had for it.

Your brother Ben offered to pick you up from the airport, knowing that you would like to see a familiar face at the other end of customs when you arrived. He wasn’t wrong. The two of you were only two years apart. He was older than you, and as a stereo typical older brother to a sister, he protected you. As you passed through the doors to find what seemed to be a sea of thousands of people, Ben’s smiling face greeted you.

“Welcome home sis!” 

Ben gave you the biggest hug, as if he hadn’t seen you for months on end.

“Thank you for coming to get me. I would much rather sit in the front passenger seat and control the music for once!”

You both had a good laugh, because you both knew all too well that you were the one that would control the playlists while on road trips with your family and friends.

As you slowly made your way to Ben’s car, you were a lot more quiet than usual. Ben was used to you talking his ear off, telling him all the stories of your adventures you had while you were away.

“Is everything ok, Y/n?”

You knew that he would ask you that very question and debated on whether you would tell him the truth, or tell him the smallest of lies. You felt compelled to tell him the truth, but it would take some time to get there.

“I’m definitely tired. Do you think that maybe we can go for ice cream? I’m not quite ready to go home and just want to hang out with you Ben.”

“I’ll never say no to ice cream! You must want to talk about something though; we never just go for ice cream. Wait a sec……what is his name and do I need to beat him up?”

Not sure how to respond yet again, you stop and look at him before crawling into the car. Looking at Ben’s stature, with was tall and skinny, you weren’t sure that he had the muscles to withstand a fight with anyone.

“You might not want to pick a fight with him, Ben. And if you really want to know, you already know him. His name is Chris…...”

************************************************************************

Chris laid down on the grass, staring up at the clouds through a clearing the in the trees that towered above him. Dodger ran circles around him, stopping every once in a while to lick his face or nudge him in the arm so that he would play with him. He was grateful for the energy of this dog, keeping him on toes and distracting him from what was really going on in his life. He was avoiding his phone and emails for the rest of the day, knowing that he had some work to do.

“Dodge, what am I supposed to do?”

He stopped making circles around Chris and proceeded to lick his face again. It’s like he knew that Chris needed a little extra love and support that day.

“Alright, that wasn’t really the answer I was looking for, but I appreciate all the love you are giving me today, bud. I need it.” 

Chris sat up and pulled Dodger in to give him a hug before getting up to make his way back into the house, where Scott just finished making supper for the two of them.

“Hey Dopey, are you ready to eat something?”

“Yeah.”

Chris quietly took a seat at the kitchen table as Scott dished out some food for him, one scoop at a time, seeing if he would tell him when to stop. Chris sat there just staring at the food piling up, as Scott captured it all on video, figuring that one day Chris will need a good laugh at his own expense.

“Do you know if the kids left any books around here last time they came to visit?”

“I’m pretty sure they did.”

“I need to pick out a children’s book to recommend and I would love it to be one that they like.”

“Why don’t you make it a little more personable and it be one that you always read to them. I’m pretty sure they left the books in your office on the bookshelf, thinking that Uncle Chris might need some easy reading material when they aren’t around. Also, you better eat entire pile of pasta…”

Chris looked down as he dropped his fork on the table, laughing at the sight before him, causing him to shake his head. He picked the fork back up, took a few bites and pushed his plate away.

“Thank you for supper Scott. Just leave the dishes and I will clean them up later.”

“You didn’t even really eat! I’m telling mom!”

“Go ahead!”

Chris left the table on a mission to let his mind escape. He entered his office and b-lined it to the bookshelf that lined the walls across the room from his desk. Starting at the middle of the bookcase, he scoured the shelves for the kids books. He stopped for a moment and realized he was looking in the wrong spot. He turned his eyes downward to the bottom shelf, where the kids could safely reach the shelves. There they were. Nicely placed, looking at if they were meant to be a part of the collection, standing upright thanks to the bookend. Chris sat on the floor against the shelf, looking through the books. There was something about those books that made Chris feel sentimental for a moment. He loved those kids and he loved those books. There was one in particular that stood out to him. It had a picture of a dog on the front that always reminded him of Dodger. The kids loved that book so much because of the dog in the story. You could see the love for that book with the bent corner and chocolate pudding stained pages. This had to be the book that he was going to use for his project.

Scott and Dodger snuck into the office and sat beside Chris, looking through the books with him, noticing the book that was in his hands.

“The kids really do love that book. I should record you reading this book and we should send it to them!”

“You know, that’s not a bad idea. They would love it. Funny voices and all.”

Scott pulled out his phone and started to record the video. Sounding very stately as he started reading; he introduced the author of the book, then the illustrator.

“This book is illustrated by Y/N  Y/L/N………I love how the dog in this book looks like Dodger!!! Here we go. Once Upon a Time…”

Without even noticing, he had said her name aloud. If only he knew…

************************************************************************

It was time for you to show your face at the office. You figured you could just sneak in without anyone noticing, as you were determined to have a productive day, without any distractions. You felt inspired and ready to create some images for the books that were coming across your desk prior to your vacation. Knowing that it would take a few hours to really get the ideas down on paper, you put your head phones on to help you focus. The hours passed without even taking a break. Your boss scared you out of focus as she reviewed your progress and was pleased with the results so far. She was always amazed with your work and your overall work ethic. As she left you to you continue with your work, you noticed that your phone screen was lighting up. It was best that you took a break for a late lunch and to catch up with the messages that were left for you. For the most part, it was your clients wanting to touch base and see how the illustrations were coming along. There were also a few messages from Haley. She usually sent you random jokes or quotes to help you get through your day, but it seemed as if there was something a little more urgent. 5 missed calls and one text stating that you should call her when you get the chance.

You were feeling a little selfish at that moment, but now was not the time for you to get into a serious conversation with her. You ignored her messages, placed the phone out of sight, and got back to work, knowing that all the drawings wouldn’t finish themselves.

************************************************************************

It was a new day, and it was certainly feeling like it for the first time in a few days. With an early start to the day, Chris was productive on answering a series of emails from producers and his agent. Taking a break from this work, he found a spot in the sun filled living room to do some recreational reading. His brother sat across the room from him, staring at his phone, as if he were in a deep text conversation with who knows who. With a lack of desire to spend his time catching up on social media, little did Chris know that Scott had made a little post that morning, captioning it: “Story Time with Uncle Chris”. 

Just as Chris had suspected, Scott was reading through text from friends and a multitude of messages in response to the post. There was so much love for this video, but who wouldn’t fall in love with Chris reading yet another children’s book. Sorting through his direct messages, he saw one titled “I Need Your Help…”. Typically these kinds of messages were from people asking for some kind of hand out to help with their cause and would easily be passed by, but for some reason Scott felt compelled to read this message.

Hey Scott, I know we don’t know each other, but we might have an unexpected connection that I need your help with. My friend Y/n happened to be in Manhattan recently, and was helped out by your brother Chris on a rainy morning in Central Park a couple of days ago. I know she is forever grateful for what your brother did to help out. If you can pass on her thanks to him, I know she would appreciate it. 

Thanks so much, Haley.

Ps. You know that book Chris is reading in your most recent post…Y/n illustrated it!

“Shut up.”

“I’m being quiet, why are you telling me to shut up?” 

“Sorry! I was just reading texts from friends. I thought I said that in my head.”

In complete shock of the message he just read, Scott started to formulate a reply to Haley. With zero confidence in what to say back to her, his response was short and to the point.

Hi Haley, we should chat…

************************************************************************

“You have reached Haley! Sorry I can’t answer your call right now. Either I’m ignoring you, or I’m actually busy. Either way, just text me and I promise to get back to you!”

Her message always made you laugh, as her phone went right to voice mail. She was actually busy on the other line. You felt a little anxious about what she needed to tell you. It was a long day and it felt like you needed a glass of wine to calm your nerves. A nice spot on your balcony looking over the waterfront was the solution. The perks of your job found you living close to the office, in a condo looking over Coal Harbour. It was the dream and you were living it. As you sat down and put your feet up, taking a deep breath, you saw that Haley was now returning your call.

“Hales, I’m sorry that I didn’t return your call earlier. It was a busy first day back at the office.”

“Hi to you too, can you please look at the text I just sent you. But make sure you have me on speaker…please!”

A little puzzled by her request, you put her on speaker and loaded her message.

“What the heck are you sending me? Is this just another gif of a cat dressed up at an old lady?”

“Just watch it.”

The video came up. It was Chris. A smile came to your face. You see him sitting on the floor of what seemed to be a home library or office, with Dodger snuggled in against his leg. He was holding what appeared to be a book. Not really paying attention to what he is saying at the start of the video, you finally focus in on it.

“This book is illustrated by Y/N Y/L/N………I love how the dog in this book looks like Dodger!!! Here we go. Once Upon a Time…”

Your heart stopped. He said your name without even realizing it. You sat in shock as you closed the video, not needing to watch any more of it.

“So…..?”

“He said my name.” 

Staring blankly at the phone, you aren’t too sure what to make of all of this. What were the chances that this would happen?

“Should I bring you more wine?”

“Yes please.”

To be continued in Part IV

[copychatnoir]

WIP Wednesday

I really need to convince myself to write more of this, so I’m going to use external encouragement to get it going. It’s a snippit from what is currently the first chapter of my AU, The Miraculous Tales of Bug Chanceux and Kuro Neko.

The day was already long and hot. It wasn't even noon yet. Luka sat in the shadow of the Liberty’s deck, gently strumming his guitar. The cords were smooth and lazy, just like a sunbathing cat in the summer. Every few beats, he stopped and jotted down a few more notes on a music sheet. Then, he repeated the same rhythm with a few new notes added on. The cycle repeated. Luka was in his own rhythm where only the sound of his music could reach.

This was one of the few moments he had to himself and he was happily strumming a melody that was the essence of his superhero partner, Kuro Neko.

Once he reached what felt like the end to the song, he paused. He set his guitar to the side and read the entire song over, listening to the cords ring out in his head.

This was a good first draft.

A quiet, but still squeaky voice spoke up from Luka’s hoodie, “Wow, Luka! That sounded wonderful! It really sounds like you were thinking about summer.”

Luka smiled and picked up his guitar, taking a moment to strum a couple nondescript notes before speaking up. “Thanks, Tikki. It’s about lazy cats on hot summer days.”

“Oh! It’s about Kuro Neko! That’s so sweet! I bet she’ll love it.”

“I don't think it's done yet. There’s something I missed...” Luka frowned, reading over the sheet music again.

“I know you’ll figure it out! You always do!” the small, ladybug kwami chirped.

Luka nodded absently while reading over the draft again. 

He folded up the sheet music and tucked it into one of his creation folders. He would come back to this later. Hopefully sooner than later.

At that moment a notification pinged on his phone. Inessa shared a picture that was just taken by the Ladyblogger. Kuro Neko was lying on a rooftop, taking a cat nap. The caption read “Kuro Neko might secretly be a real cat. (=^w^=) I wonder if she’s lactose intolerant too? lol”

Tikki giggled, looking at the photo from Luka’s shoulder. “Just like you said: lazy cat on a summer’s day. You two are really in sync.”

Luka didn’t comment, staring intently at the photo. He knew she wasn’t able to get out much. It was hard enough for her to get out for akuma attacks. Looking at photos made it so much harder for him to figure out what people were actually feeling.

“Luka?” Tikki asked.

He blinked, coming back to himself. “I want to check on her.”

Tikki nodded, slipping back into the hood of the hoodie.

Looking to his side, his sister and her girlfriend sat under the mast of the ship, sharing an iPod and sipping their iced lemonades.

“Juleka, Rose? I’m heading to the store. Need anything?” he asked, while shouldering his guitar and putting away the folder.

The two shared a look. Rose was about to answer when his mom poked her head out of the captain's quarters (her bedroom). "You're going to the store? Can you pick up some more pretzels and licorice?"

Luka felt a small pang of frustration that Juleka was the first to read. She pointedly asked their mom, "Out already?"

"I know, I know. If you could just grab another bag, Luka." With that, their mom went back to whatever she'd been doing.

Luka held in the sigh of either exasperation or frustration. Maybe it was going to be both. 

This was why he picked up extra shifts.

Rose spoke up, "We're good, Luka! The fridge has all the lemonade and water we could need." Her voice was a bit more forced with chipper than she actually was. He knew it was for his sake. Rose was pretty much his sister by now and she could get extremely protective of him.

He smiled and nodded at them both. "Thanks. Make sure you stay in the shade. You both burn easily." His smile was a little forced too.

~~~

Luka’s first stop was the market. First was the pretzels, then some licorice, a small pack of raspberry cookies for Tikki (he got a gentle headbutt of thanks for that), [something for Rose], and [something for Juleka].

Last, he went to get shakes for both Kuro Neko and himself. Looking over the options, he remembered the caption that was attached to Kuro Neko’s picture. Was Neko lactose intolerant? She did have a subtle, weird reaction whenever he gave her a milkshake. He grabbed a strawberry-chocolate milkshake for himself, then a lactose-free strawberry-kiwi shake for Neko.

~~~

Luka walked by a coffee shop as he was headed to a secluded alleyway.

“This is impossible!” a frustrated customer exclaimed. “It’s too hot to do any of my work out here!” The well-dressed man slammed his laptop shut, steaming with anger.

“Just go inside already.” The woman across from him said, bored and exasperated with his nonsense. She sipped from her iced coffee. “You’ve been complaining for the last 15 minutes straight.”

The man huffed and grumbled loudly about how this whole thing was ridiculous, but still packed up his things. With that done, he stomped inside the shop.

Luka got out one of his cold bottles of water and set his bike’s kickstand out. He walked up to the woman who he assumed was the frustrated man’s friend. 

He held out the water bottle to her saying, “This might help.”

The woman took a moment to respond. She was surprised and confused, but took the bottle after a moment. “Huh,” she mumbled, then looked back to Luka with a smile on her face. “Well, aren’t you a sweetie.”

Luka smiled at the compliment and gave a short nod, before heading on his way.

~~~

Bug Chanceux vaulted up to the rooftops, groceries safely stored in his yo-yo and bike locked up in an alleyway. 

The air was quiet around him and he swung over to the rooftop that Kuro Neko had claimed as hers for the day. The wind must’ve gotten the message that today was a laid back day.

Seeing Neko on her rooftop, he landed lightly on the roof across from her. One of the tips of her faux ears twitched. He was already found out.

Bug took a running leap to Neko’s rooftop. Swift as lightning, she whipped out her baton to trip the spotted superhero.

He should have known she was up to something.

His foot caught and he rolled into a somersault to keep balance. He landed harder than he wanted to, but he did land on his feet. 

He gave the superheroine a flat stare. She didn’t even open her eyes to rumble out, “You’ve got to be better than that,” and punctuated it with a smirk.

Bug Chanceux rolled his eyes and sat himself next to her, careful not to get in the way of her sun rays. The yo-yo opened to the glow of the void holding his groceries and pulled out the milkshakes.

He let the cold air around and the shadow of Kuro Neko’s milkshake call her attention enough to open her eyes. Right as a drop of condensation landed right on her nose.

With a hiss, she nearly bats the milkshake away, but Bug saw that coming. He hoisted the drink away from her, snickering. She turned a not-actually-mad glare to her partner in crime-stopping. He smirked at her and quoted her back, “You’ve gotta be better than that.”

Neko scoffed in indignation. Before she could retaliate, Bug Chanceux offered the strawberry-kiwi shake to her.

That stopped her in her tracks. She blinked twice at the offered drink, then took it quietly. She took a sip of the drink to hide the small flush of her cheeks.

Quiet lingered for the first drinks of the shakes. Neko paused, then looked at Bug with her head tilted. She noticed that it tasted different from the previous ones he'd gotten her.

“My friend says that cats are lactose intolerant,” Bug leads off, answering her unspoken question.

“Really?” Neko asked quizzically.

“Is it true for cat heroes too?” Bug prompts.

Kuro Neko snorts before she could stop herself. “Yes, but it’s a coincidence. Not a cat thing. I’ve always been lactose intolerant.”

Bug nudged Neko’s shoulder, playfully scolding, “You should’ve told me sooner. I wouldn’t have gotten you things with milk in them.”

“You never asked,” she simply states. “And it’s rude to refuse offerings.” Another sip of the shake.

Their peace was interrupted by a loud crash. The two share a look.

Neko pouts, turning back to her smoothie and staring longingly at it.

Bug sighs, but goes ahead with putting his milkshake away into the yo-yo storage void.

Kuro Neko looks back at her partner, then back to her shake. Then, back at Bug, this time locking eyes with him.

Suddenly, Bug Chanceux realized what Neko was going to do. “Neko-!”

His objection was no use. The moment she saw him even start to dissuade her, she downed the entire rest of the shake.

She smirks smugly at him for just a moment. Bug knows what’s happening before it even starts.

The black cat hero hisses and holds her head with one hand, squeezing her eyes shut.

Bug sighed. He should’ve known she would have done something. She’d do it even if he tried to object. “Hold your tongue to the top of your mouth. I’ll meet you there.”

With that, he flicked the yo-yo out and swung toward the commotion.

Behind him, Kuro Neko forced herself up, in spite of the brain freeze, then vaulted after him.

[irarelypostanything]

Unnecessary Arguments - Politics

Person #1: To be clear, the reason this was originally called “unnecessary arguments” is that it was supposed to be for discussing dumb topics. Like whether the Prius is a good car

Person #2: It’s an overpriced cheese wedge that gets 76 horsepower and decent mileage, if and only if you drive in the left lane at 40 miles an hour

Person #1: I’ll counter that later, but it seems there have been some really interesting political topics coming up. “Cancel culture.” Wokeism. The question of whether, or rather to what extent we should have the government censor big tech, and a newly emerging delta variant that is far more contagious but is only really gaining adequate media attention now

Person #2: Yeah, so should we stop masking now, or until the end of time? Also, aren’t you the one who posted on Instagram that, and I quote, “The pandemic is fking over”? Wow, I wonder what the word fking means

Person #1: I made the wrong call at the wrong time. What’s important now is that we resume the vigilance we had previously. But something has come to my attention. We have a certain candidate for a certain organization, and he has said some tremendously racist things on social media

Person #2: What did he say? “I voted for Trump last year”? Wow, we should probably make him lose all of his friends and job and then delete his accounts

Person #1: Well, in response to the NFL players who kneeled for the flag, he publicly posted that “if they don’t like our flag, maybe look at this one.” He then followed that up with a picture of the Confederate flag

Person #2: Oh

Person #1: He has made a number of other racist statements as well, including but not limited to telling them to “go back” to where they came from

Person #2: It says here he also deleted the social media posts, so what’s the problem? It’s a non-issue

Person #1: The problem is that he represents an organization that serves the youth all over the world. The problem is that he is running for office in a position that encompasses three states. The social media posts, then, are fair game for scrutiny. Do you really want to elect a leader who is full of hatred and racism?

Person #2: Don’t say it…

Person #1: Especially considering the entire country just got rid of the guy who represented extreme hatred and racism?

Person #2: That’s it. I’m so tired of this. We’re adults, right?

Person #1: Sometimes you surprise me

Person #2: We have the freedom to make political posts on social media. I acknowledge that we also have the freedom to use social media to call out other people. You think a bunch of political statements you disagree with are adequate grounds to then claim this man is unqualified for a leadership role in your organization? Fine. Don’t vote for him. But don’t proceed to act like he carried out some sort of violent racist act because of some caption he put in some picture

Person #1: Okay, so you have a nonprofit that exists for the purpose of helping young people, right?

Person #2: Sure

Person #1: You can’t break free of the politics, then. You need to demonstrate that you’re fit to rule. And if all I see when I search through your Facebook feed is hatred, what kind of message does this send?

Person #2: Those social media posts were stupid, I agree, and so he deleted them. Where does this end? What if we decided one day that we wanted to ban Christians from our group, because we disliked their common stance on gay marraige? What if we decided republicans were the problem? This organization is supposed to be a non-political one. That we still make it a point in our meetings to recite the National Anthem is one of many traditions that has persisted, but any tradition is open to the possibility of being overwritten. It used to be an all-male nonprofit...that was changed as we changed. But we have free speech

Person #1: As the saying goes, this is not what our founding fathers had in mind in the 1700s when they drafted the Facebook Terms of Service

Person #2: There was a bar in Sacramento. Someone tweeted that the bartender attempted to drug her. Tons of people on Yelp, Facebook, and Reddit rushed to her defense and tried to get the bar shut down. The police investigated. The entire thing was completely fabricated, and then she deleted the Tweets. Do you think the bar ever recovered from that?

Person #1: Are you comparing an allegedly baseless accusation to the accounts of someone with actual screenshots and timestamps to corroborate her claims?

Person #2: No, because this is even less relevant. If you’re going to assassinate someone, why keep it to Facebook? Get on the SEO game, guys. Do it on Medium. Do it on Twitter. Tarnish a name until you reach the point that googling a full name immediately makes Google suggest the word “racist.”

Person #1: Okay, so this is what upsets me most about your argument

Person #2: Here we go…

Person #1: You use your fear-mongering tactics. I’ll hear words like “cancel culture,” “woke,” what have you. You’ll claim that we’re far too oversensitive

Person #2: You are

Person #1: ...because we take a stand, and then I’ll see such blatant disregard for common decency. People in high positions who, and this is textbook racism, attempt to persecute and villainize others on the basis of their race. All with the common message that we’re not allowed to be American because of the color of our skin, and no matter how hard we try we will never belong

Person #2: Actually, the people we are “targeting” are not grouped by race at all, but by a common disrespect for the country we should be proud citizens of. What do you and I have in common? The flag

Person #1: So what you’re saying is that if someone doesn’t share your level of respect for the flag, and for what it represents, then we should go back to the countries we came from. But not the United States, because even if we were born here it isn’t truly our home

Person #2: No, what I’m saying is that the posts you keep referencing didn’t actually target people on the basis of their race. It targeted them on disrespect for the flag

Person #1: Kneeling was originally intended as a sign of respect

Person #2: Don’t give me that

Person #1: Over time, the narrative shifted. That somehow these actions were directly disrespecting veterans. And now, here we are, discussing how the act of kneeling is fair licence to let all the racism this man was previously holding back bleed through. If someone cuts me off while I drive, I’m not going to yell a racist slur, because I’m not a complete piece of human excrement. And I’m definitely not going to write racist things on social media

Person #2: Yeah, and you’d better not, or else someone is going to dig it up in several years even after you’ve taken it down and use it to prevent you from having a life, or a job, or friends

Person #1: Leadership is responsibility. I never said his life should be ruined. What I am doing is merely suggesting that he is unfit to lead us or our organization

[ambiencespectrum]

dave&rose youtube ghost hunters au let’s go

“we’re technically more gen paranormal hunters,” says the caption at the bottom of the video. it’s in brackets and red comic sans. it disappears as the shaky film pans to a girl with pale hair and darkly colored clothes more suited to a trip to a quaint local bookstore and cafe, rather than standing on a dirt road next to a decrepit fence around an even more decrepit building.

“A bit of a cliche to start the season off with,” says the girl, the video zooming in on her face. she raises an eyebrow, smirking. “But the classics are the classics for a reason.”

“who doesn’t love a creepy old asylum?” says the cameraman, and the video blurs and flips around to be too-close to his face. black shades reflect the lens back onto itself, hair pale as the girl’s blustering in the sudden uptick in wind. “it’s a fucking staple in horror media, has been since the dawn of it. nothing scares the shit out of people like the remnants of their fucked up treatment of the vulnerable and neurodivergent.”

“And ghosts,” says the girl off-screen. “And demons. Though, those could be applied metaphors in this context...”

the camera flips around again to focus on the girl, as the cameraman says, “shit, rose, why not both?”

the girl- rose- smiles in the manner of someone who knows more than anyone else present, is aware of that fact, and is feeling pleasantly surprised that a peer she’s deigned with her presence has grasped even an inkling of her thoughts.

“Both,” rose agrees as a bird call shrieks in the distance and the video cuts it off abruptly. it next shows rose walking in front of the camera and cameraman, leading the way into a semi-dark hall. the walls peeling paint, the floor cracking and lifting. the heels of her chic boots click as she walks, the beam of her flashlight swaying gently.

“A distinct lack of incomprehensible warnings scrawled across the walls,” says rose, shining her light upon an old smear that’s turned brown over the years.

“yeah, kinda kills the total package deal hype of an asylum,” says the cameraman. “like, what’s the point even if you don’t get at least a few death threats or cult phrases thrown your way?”

“Perhaps it will prevail yet, Dave. There is always possibility of poltergeist, or an apparition.”

“been there, done that. maybe some specter will finally have the intangible balls to go corporeal and possess your gothic little heart, raven madison.”

“That reference is vampires, dear heart.”

“tomato potato whatever. but, uh... if they don’t like your hentai octopi buddies...?”

“Then they may attempt to establish a connection with you.”

“haha, yeah, sure. come at me bro.”

the feed cuts again, with static this time as rose turns an amused gaze towards the cameraman. it comes back with a new person standing in the frame; sporting dark sunglasses despite the early evening and shadow filled room. he’s saying, “i swear to god, rose, if you drop my baby i’m making you buy me a whole new rig, sound sampler, mic, lens, custom bitchin’ paint job-”

“Do us all a favor and shut the fuck up, Dave,” rose says sweetly and firmly. he stops rambling, lips tugged down in a frown. rose continues, “Now, let’s get on with the part of the program subscribers click on our video thumbnails for.”

“why am i the god damn ghost nip again.”

“Because the Strider charms are irresistible to the common lingering spirit.”

dave scuffs his shoes on the filthy floor, his sigh echoing off the surrounding room. rusted bed frames litter the sides of it, rotted fabric clinging in places and showing traces of animal habitation. dave’s sunglasses glint in the glare of rose’s flashlight, hair a washed out white. “just ‘cause every ghoul from here to canada wants a piece of strider ass doesn’t mean i have to be bait every time.”

as he says that, a figure flickers into existence behind him, looming with hollow eyes and an overextended jaw. the video cuts as it lunges at him.

it comes back at a weird angle, with more red comic sans appearing on screen. “sorry for the shit footage, SOMEBODY couldn’t bother holding off exorcism foreplay.” purple text is quick to follow it, in comic sans as well. “You’re very fucking welcome for that, you enormously ungrateful asshole.”

the camera is clearly on the floor, giving view of only that and two sets of feet. rose’s boots now have scat stuck to one sole, and a handful of burrs on the back of her tights. dave’s hightops dangle suspended a foot off the ground, laces swaying as he hovers, the rest of him perfectly still in the air.

“Now, I understand it’s been very lonely here, Frederick,” says rose’s voice, “but the body you are currently residing within is already claimed for the remainder of eternity. It won’t be open for new tenants until it is well and gone to dust, I assure you.”

dave’s laces shake as his voice responds, all guttural screams far louder than he has ever spoken before.

“Now there’s no need for name calling,” rose says. “We’re two adults, having a civil conversation. The furthest ring’s heralds and doombringers and mindflayers own our family tree, so even if I wanted to give him to you, I quite literally can’t-”

dave’s voice explodes again in wordless sound, and the video is flipped and rolled. the film only steadies again after the camera has been sent skidding across the floor; now offering rose and dave’s full figures within the frame. from across the room, anyway.

dave hovers in the air, like he’s hanging by the neck and swaying gently on a noose. rose is faced away from the lens, fingers tensed into claws.

“That’s quite enough of that,” rose says snappishly, “he isn’t yours to keep,” and she grabs dave by his shirt collar to haul him downwards. she slaps her palm to his forehead and the video is dragged into darkness, extinguishing everything as its audio devolves into whispers and then speaker bursting howls. the silence that follows immediately after is chilling.

picture is then restored. it comes back inside a van, filled with travel bags, pillows, polaroid photographs tacked to the walls, precarious stacks of books and dead things in jars on top, and two disheveled individuals sitting shoulder to shoulder.

“so,” dave starts, voice gravelly, “turns out ghostly possession makes your mouth taste like death’s ass.”

“I told you so,” rose says primly. she has a bruised cheek, hair like a bird’s nest, and her black lipstick is smeared in the rightmost corner. she holds herself like a dignitary for it.

“fuck off, lalonde,” dave replies, running a hand through his even messier hair. his neck has a blooming bruise around it in the pattern of a rope, his shirt collar is torn at a shoulder seam, and black viscous stains the front downwards. “that was demonic conjuring, totally different field of freaky mindbody highjacking fuckery.”

“You’ll have to forgive him,” rose says to the camera, patting dave’s knee patronizingly, “it’s his first body-sharing experience.”

“i shared my body plenty, shared it in ten different states, i just pre-fucking-ferred sharing it consensually.”

“You, and I quote, said ‘come at me, bro’. In the presence of aggressive, tortured spirits, you might as well have writ permission in neon.”

“wow, wow. some feminist you are, victim blaming me for this. new low for you, rose.”

rose rolls her eyes. “Moving on with our review. The trip over had a decent number of well-meaning townsfolk warning us away from here, notably one who started crying halfway through. Unfortunately, I’ll have to dock points for the lackluster atmosphere of the asylum itself. It wasn’t as overtly foreboding as we’d been promised, and, again, the graffiti from its former residents failed to strike even an iota of fear into our hearts.”

“i got possessed though, which is sexy in theory but shitty in practice,” dave adds in a drawl. “kinda like communism and capitalism. got some sick air while i was at it, but i didn’t crawl on the ceiling even once. i did however get to hear the screams of the lost souls bound to the building and i think my new choker will last a few weeks at least. that’s worth a few points.”

“Agreed,” rose says amiably. “A solid 7.5 out of 10?”

dave shrugs. “about there, yeah.”

the video transitions to blank blackness, displaying with purple text “We are not professionals in any manner of speaking, but our death’s are more difficult to ensure than yours. Do not attempt this at home, do not attempt this with friends, do not attempt this if you value your mortal soul and fragile human psyche.” the message below that is in red text and reads “like subscribe and comment”

[taiblogcomics]

Earth, But Worse

Hey there, a plane for bats. Got more Red Hood this week, and surprisingly it's something we've been waiting for a while. Which is surprising that we want anything from Red Hood, but here we are~

And here's the cover:

This cover actually reminds me a lot of the cover to Red Hood and the Outlaws #1. Except a bit more boring, since they're not doing anything on this one. Bizarro--or Beardzarro, as I prefer to call him now--can't even be bothered to pose. Yeah, this cover is terrible, but surprisingly it still manages to sell itself with its text. Because, to be perfectly honest, the actual fate of Bizarro and Artemis is something I was honestly invested in. I don't like Jason, but I do want to know what happened to his friends~

Well, if you remember two issues ago, there was a minor plot thing where Jason discovered a hole that he figured could only be made by his missing friend Artemis. He hasn't seen them in a long while and believes them to be dead. We know better, but the specifics of their disappearance hasn't been revealed. Anyway, at the end of last issue, Jason intended to go back to Gotham with his new compatriots, but he had something to take care of first. And here it is! Jasen enters a park and talks to a creepy kid on the swingset. Yeah, you know it's concerning when the kid is creepier than the strange adult coming over to talk to the kid. This kid's name is Caden, and he has the powers to sync up with and copy the powers of the dead. Jason asks him to borrow Artemis and Bizarro's powers, and when he can't, it confirms for him that they're still alive.

And indeed they are! We rejoin them back on the last time we saw them. Which means we can also segue over here with this classic phrase: "Meanwhile, at the Hall of Justice...!" Except not quite. Being an alternate Earth, this building is named the Hall of Punishment, and has a bunch of spiky red rocks jutting from it. Naturally, they decide to explore it. And as they enter, we find them being watched. The first is a creepy-looking dude in a classic milkman uniform, whose art seems to be really awkward about him being able to hold things. Like an old video game model that can't close its hands. He is the Dairy King. The other is a teen girl named "Air Quote". Her "quirk" is that she uses a lot of "unnecessary quotation marks". She can also use her "hand" as a "phone" to "contact people" "long distance". I hope that's not "confusing" or anything~

Inside the Hall of Punishment, Bizarro and Artemis discover a big set of statues of the whole Justice League, all of which have been desecrated or partially destroyed in some way. Artemis figures it's a message. A museum guard happens by them, and quickly figures out they're legitimate superheroes. And since they don't know about Hero Day, they must not be from around here. He leads them into another room, where they find Superman. Or rather, Superman's corpse, his head crushed beneath the famous Daily Planet globe. The guard explains that just one day something happened, nobody knows what or why. But suddenly, everyone with powers just lost them--and everybody without powers gained some. This is punctuated by the guard suddenly turning red and spiky like the spires bursting out of the Hall of Punishment.

Artemis tries to call her axe to her, but instead it just sort of rends her soul. Wherever they are, whatever Earth this is, her axe is not here, and the effort of trying to call it exhausts her, leaving Bizarro to deal with Spiky Guard Man. The guy also confesses that basically everyone on this Earth is a dickbag. Apparently everyone felt opressed by superheroes, so when they lost their powers, they all rose up against them and killed them, flashbacks showing the defeats of Green Lantern John Stewart and Wonder Woman. Which, oh boy, has some problems not unlike the infamously bad "JLA: Act of God". I'll get into that at the end, but in short, Bizarro tells the guy that power doesn't make you a somebody--but it helps. And then he literally throws the guy into the sun. Damn.

Artemis wakes up, and she's pretty okay with Bizarro taking out that guy. The pair retreat, and catch sight of Dairy King, Air Quote, and some other goons looking to kill them. Of this group (including the ones already named), the only one of consequence is Flutterby, a woman with giant flaming butterfly wings. Like, what was even the point of setting up Dairy King earlier? No joke, he's not in the rest of the comic. Anyway, the pair begin to make a plan of what to do next, but are interrupted by a man in a purple waistcoat with a wide grin. He introduces himself as Jack Knife, and he'd like them to join his Resistance.

So we cut to six months later. This is right at the middle of the comic, so you could actually think of this as designed as being two separate issues they compiled into an annual to not interrupt Jason's ongoing story. This is especially evident by Jack Knife's appearance being followed with some "Will Artemis and Bizarro join the resistance!?" caption boxes that make little sense when you can just turn the page and find out that yes, they do. Anyways, six months later, and that Flutterby woman is being attacked by a man wearing an Iron Man suit made of cars. His name is Kennel, which is a pretty weird name for a guy who doesn't have dog powers.

Bizarro appears and destroys Kennel's suit with one punch. Flutterby begs Bizarro to finish the job, but Bizarro promised Artemis no killing. He takes a jewel from her, and walks away, deliberately pretending like he's not noticing her lingering behind to roast Kennel alive. After all, he promised he won't kill anybody. Bizarro is clever enough to figure out loopholes, I'm impressed. We cut over to the Pentagon, where Artemis is trying to get through a cell. Jack Knife is rambling to himself, and two guards show up. Artemis and Jack beat them up, but Artemis has to pull Jack away from getting more vicious.

Flutterby and Bizarro return to their own friends, which appears to be inside the fallen top of the Washington Monument. But enough of that scene! All we needed to see was them reuniting with their friends, I guess, because we then cut back to Artemis and Jack fighting their way deeper into the Pentagon. They've found the guy they're looking for: General Samuel Lane, Lois Lane's father. See, he's tired of imposing his will on this Earth. All the superheroes are dead, and the world is orderly now. So he's going to turn his attention elsewhere--or should I say elseworlds. He's planning to tunnel into Bizarro and Artemis' home Earth and kill all the superheroes there too.

But he can't do this alone. Enter the Lex Luthor of this planet, who has been turned into a giant mangled brain with a face, fused to an ATV. Lex reveals he was the one behind Hero Day, which also accounts for his current... condition. Like, I mean, at least MODOK or Hector Hammond still had arms. I'd also say they at least still had hair, too, but Lex was never particularly blessed in that department. Anyway, that's the past. What's important is the future, given Lex's plans and all. So how is he planning to get to Earth-Prime and kill the mainstream universe? Simple. Remember the Quantum Doorway that Bizarro and Artemis used to get here? Remember how it exploded? Lex has spent all this time putting it back together. Only took him six months, too! Guy must be a whiz at jigsaw puzzles. Or not--again, no arms~

He does, however, have psychic powers--because when you're a giant brain, you gotta have something--and zaps Artemis. While his guard is down during the zapping, though, the Resistance suddenly jumps in and attacks. They have a teleporter on their team, they just need someone to link between the two places. So it was all about getting Artemis in there, and having them follow. They also brought a big ol' sword for Artemis, who plunges it into Lex's brain--which is all of him--and kills him. They then slot that gemstone Flutterby retrieved into a device, hoping it'll undo the whole Hero Day event. The original heroes may be dead, but it beats having everyone else have powers, if they're all such psychos about it.

And... That's the end! Artemis and Bizarro say their farewells, and they go leaping into the Quantum Doorway, hoping that this leap will be the one that takes them home. We won't find out, however, because the ending tagline then promises to see if they return in Red Hood #37. Considering the last one I reviewed was issue 31, maybe I did this one a little early. But it's where it was in my stack, so why shouldn't it be correct~? Seemed like a great place for a break in the arc to me. Well, whatever. Come back in... mid-April, I guess, and we'll see if they made it back~

So, yeah. Let’s start with the Act of God problem first: not all superheroes have superpowers. They specifically show John Stewart getting killed here, and John is just a regular guy. The ring gives him abilities, but he is not himself a superhuman. A magic gene bomb--as it’s revealed to be the eventual cause of the mass depowering/empowering--should not have turned off his ability to use the ring. This also doesn’t account for other superheroes who don’t have powers--DC being pretty famous for this. There’s a desecrated statue of Batman in the Hall of Punishment, but shouldn’t Batman have gained powers from this event?

There’s one other question I would like to address. Jack Knife. His name, his appearance, his creepy grin, insane ramblings, violent demeanor... His entire physique (save for not having the white skin or green hair) and mannerisms call to mind the Joker. But there’s never any reveal of him being, like, a Joker who lost his superpower of being insane. I mean, that’d be bullshit, but at least it’d be an explanation for why he’s so... Jokery. That’s my big gripe here. The comic sets up this whole world for Artemis and Bizarro to struggle in, and then doesn’t want to explain any of the details of this world. This goes as far as Flutterby being one of the people hunting them down on one page, and then six months later, being part of the Resistance at the turn of a page.

We wanted to know what happened to Bizarro and Artemis, but I gotta say... the answer was extremely unsatisfying. And as a minor note, for a thing that only names Jason in the series title anymore (notice the switch to Red Hood: Outlaw), this issue sure barely had him factor into it in any significant way~

[k-knightt-blog]

I barely knew I had skin before I met you

Title: I barely knew I had skin before I met you

Relationship: Tom Hiddleston/Reader

Chapters: 1/?

Wordcount: 1,231

Summary: You are Susanne Bier’s, the director of Night Manager, on-set assistant who falls in love with her boss’ leading man. Now, why would you do something so stupid?

Part 2  Part 3

You had been told to stay in bed for at least half the day, that’s what the director of The Night Manager Susanne Bier had told you. “At least until dinner, you’re not doing yourself any favours”, that's what she said before you left set yesterday, three times she said it, making sure you would get it into your head. It wasn’t that you were poorly, but the lack of sleep had been a concern for everyone on set, well, everyone who had the time to notice. You were sure Tom didn’t mind your absence this morning, as much as your mind wanted that to be false it probably wasn’t.

Maybe, just maybe he’d miss you slumping into the sofa next to him, your limbs tired, and as a reflex, he would steal one of your headphones and secure it in his own ear. Sometimes he liked the music, sometimes he didn’t. Rolling around in bed you let out a frustrated groan, the duvet flipped off you and so did your phone that had been hiding somewhere in between the sheets. With a restless hand you grabbed it and checked for notifications, but sadly there was nothing to be excited about. Someone from back home had gone on a rampage, liking nearly every post you’ve ever posted on Instagram. It wasn’t uncommon when your mum always keeps posting about the quote-unquote famous people you worked with.

When you come to think about it’s also Tom's fault. A few weeks ago he had posted a photo on his Instagram he snapped of you munching down crisps at a rapid speed, you glaring into the camera giving him your best grin. The caption read “Charming girl!” He didn’t tag you since you asked him not to, knowing the field day people would have if they did find your account. Not that a lot of people wondered who you were anyway, you weren’t an actress people recognised, you weren’t an actress at all for the matter, so it wasn’t as interesting for his fans. However some people who knew you from home recognised you, and of course, chucked a message in your direction.

Throwing your phone on the bed again, the heaviness of it in your hand made you feel blue, it was rather the heaviness of not having the person you cared about caring about you. Shaking your head, your short hair covers your eyes. From your lips, a small ”Fucking hell” came out, and a ”You’re being ridiculous” also followed soon after. It wasn’t like you were walking around falling in love with people often, actually never, but here you were falling for one of the greatest actors of his generation. Not to mention that he was also an enormous heartthrob and sex symbol for men and women alike.

Then and there you decided that nothing would ever happen between you two, he’d probably fall in love with some gorgeous, talented actress any minute now anyway. It wasn’t a part of your five-year plan to suffer, you’d tried suffering but didn’t like it. No time for heartbreak, you haven’t got the time, simple. Trying to convince yourself of those facts your phone chimed, tapping the screen you see that’s it's Tom.

The aching heart in your chest begun to beat heavily, just like in every romantic film ever, what a cliche you were. Clicking and flicking every surface on the phone rapidly you got it unlocked and his messages popped up. ”I’m dearly hoping that you are sleeping right now, having those being the only orders you have today,” You stopped to bring the phone closer to your face, the bright light illuminating off it making your eyes hurt. How did he have the energy to always sound so formal? More importantly, why did he care how he was perceived when it was just you – he was sending a text message to. You shake your head and continued reading, “Anyway, when you awake please report back to me and tell me you are finally feeling better. It is not quite as fun without you running around on set. Come by for dinner in the cafeteria/ Tom”

Despite your blue state of mind you let out a chuckle, he always finished his messages with a dash and then Tom, like you didn’t already have his number in your phone. He was there yesterday when you broke down crying for no apparent reason, of course, he would be concerned? Right? Why where you giving yourself mixed signals. You considered him a friend, but sadly that’s all he’ll probably ever be, but that had to be enough. It’s that or nothing.

Yesterday had been a particularly hard day, two-thirds of the shoot had relocated to Cairo. Relocating meant unpacking craters of things, things get lost and needed to be found, also new crew members and new actors. There’s a recurrence, if circumstances are stressful and hard for Susanne, the director, things would also be stressful and hard for you, her on-set assistant. The trouble with your sleep had been going on for two months or so, just at the beginning of shooting. Around noon yesterday Tom walked into the designated coffee-room of the hotel we were filming in.

You stood in front of the coffee station, looking at the selection of teas for far too long. Trying to remember how to actually function like a normal human. However, a smile spread across his face as he walked up to you, but as he came closer to you his smile faded into a thin line. Your appearance took him by surprise, a hand appeared on your shoulder before he spoke.“You don’t look too good, Y/N. You haven’t been sleeping.” It wasn’t a question, he knew because you had told him a few weeks before that you had been sleepless. "Like Edward Norton in Fight Club". You remember him saying that it’ll be alright, stress can do that to you.

”Wow thank you tom, not everyone has a makeup team by their side...” You were quick to add, ”Not that you need it of course.” He didn’t let your joking dismiss what he was actually concerned about, the bags under your eyes where deep purple, you looked sick. He just looked at you, both his hands now on your shoulders, gently squeezing and that’s when you started to crumble. A sob escaped your throat and tears started to run down your cheeks, in shock your hands flew up to your mouth knocking his hands off your shoulders. “I'm s-sorry.” You tried to leave the space but Tom didn’t let you.

Quick as lighting your head was situated under his chin, his arms wrapped around your smaller frame. ”Don’t be sorry, Y/N, you just need some rest. Let me ascot you to your room.” His voice soft, he almost whispered it. You began crying, even more, it must have shocked him and he suddenly didn’t know how to console you, he thought his calming-tactic would help. Before you realised someone else’s hands were on you, ”What’s wrong? What happened?” It was Susanne and she wasn’t asking me, she was asking Tom. She rose her hand to my forehead, perhaps to see if you had a temperature. ”She hasn’t been sleeping,” Tom said and you could see Susanna nodding.

[ysbadvisor]

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[cazimie]

For the people who chose pile 1, this is the title I have for your overall reading:

THE JOURNEY OF A HEALING HEART

Let’s start with the first card of the pile, King Of Cups. This to me, represents who you are bound to become or who you are developing into. This emotional King is quite wise, mature and in control of his emotions— but in a good way. He easily gains insight as he goes through many experiences that causes him to feel so many emotions, it triggers growth and maturity in his emotional nature. He is not as innocent as the Page of Cups, not a dreamer or naive as the Knight of Cups, and has an equal partner to his emotional intelligence which is the Queen of Cups. This king is extremely kind, generous, empathetic, considerate, and is someone you can trust your heart with. This represents you: who is going through many experiences in life whether they are bad or good, but is shaping you to your best... emotionally. Through your experiences, you become wiser, stronger, more kind and compassionate to others and to yourself.

Astrologically, you may have an important water influence or placement with Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces. You may also have planets in the water houses (4th, 8th,12th).

You are here to live and learn. This is probably why you are blessed with a heart to love so genuinely and deeply. You care a lot. With the lovers card, you may be a lover instead of a fighter. But you can also be a passionate lover who fights for everything that matters to them. You are protective of what you cherish as well. You are very generous once you decide you give your heart to someone or to a group of people. Meaning, you can give all your time, effort, affection and patience to the people who reside in your heart. But it could be in another way, if you may. With a heart like yours, and with this life that works in mysterious ways, pain and happiness should exist in your life to create a balance and to trigger your growth.

You may have been heartbroken too many times before, has been brokenhearted recently, or has never forgotten an experience that broke your heart so deeply. You may have faced disappointments, disillusions, delays, attachment-detachment issues, betrayals, and other things that lead you to nursing your own wounds. These experiences may have discouraged you a lot, made you skeptical of the world, or made you indifferent to love and life in general. These experiences birthed all those voices inside your head, the ones that bring you confusion, frustration, disbelief, and distorted views of the outside world and of yourself. Your heart may be jagged and bruised, but there is still a loving and caring quality to you that never really goes away. Your soul is filled with so much love and light, and it is only natural that in your human experience, it won’t always be in that state of vibration. You can only keep denying yourself of this, but one day you’ll realize that all that love is enough for this whole world, and you’ll see the capability of your soul to love.

With the image of the swords piercing the heart, this could also mean that your own thoughts and words could actually hurt you instead. Are you aware of how you speak to yourself inside your mind? Are you perhaps too harsh? Too mean? Too insensitive to yourself? Are you perhaps... one of those people who are kinder to others but not themselves? This is a self-destructive trait that needs to be released. You know you have a lot to give, but if you don’t fill your own cup, how can you keep up? You’ll drain yourself. And you have to realise that you are also responsible of taking care of yourself. Value yourself more, is what I would keep saying to you.

Fortunately, despite all of that, you still have the strength and the courage to continue and walk on your path. You may or may have not realized it yet, but with every step you take, your grow even further in a profound way. You may also be a free-spirit that loves to learn a lot, you may want to travel or journey a lot so you can re-charge yourself, revitalize your soul and get more in touch with your spirituality. You may have realized that you grow even more with spirituality. Whatever it is that you are doing to be in tune with yourself, it is doing wonderful things for you. It is leading further to the road of healing and maturity. With the card named Six Of Thought and its imagery of a boat and the beautiful water scenery, it tells me that you should keep holding on and hoping for more better and kinder days. Pain may be a part of life, but it won’t be permanent throughout your whole lifetime.

Your struggles and challenges may now calm down and lessen as you reach another stage of maturity and insight. When another painful experience comes your way, you will know what to do and how to handle it better. Throughout this healing process, your intuition will get stronger and you’ll be even more in touch with your higher self as well. These will help you and guide you to making decisions and taking different paths and actions in your life. I think the universe wants you to know that yes, you may have grown up and become more laid back and wise, but they encourage you to remember the loving heart you always had within you. The energy of love is hidden within you and only you can bring it out and shine for the whole world to see. It’s another reason why I think you probably also have healing qualities that other people could benefit from.

How do you handle another challenge or painful experience? LISTEN TO LOVE. Only Love. Listen to your heart. With the green card above that says “LISTEN ONLY TO LOVE”, It has a caption that says “Do Not Let Fear Distract You” and that is something you should always remember.

Someone broke your heart because they didn’t choose you? Listen to love. You have yourself, your friends and your family and so there is no need to dwell on negative emotion. All you can do now is accept and love unconditionally. The Universe loves you too. You will heal and you will get the love you deserve.

Someone told you you couldn’t make your dreams a reality? Listen to love. Understand that this calling is in your heart for a reason and not everyone can understand that. Don’t let discouragement break you and weaken your determination to go after what makes you feel alive and energized. Forgive the people who couldn’t see your vision and your capabilities. You don’t need to prove them wrong, instead, prove it to yourself that you can do it.

Someone made you unworthy and low? Listen to love. Forgive the person, for they do not merely know how to handle their own insecurities and resorts to attacking other people instead. Understand that there must be a reason for this treatment to you. But listen to your heart as it cries for help and for love, so always remove yourself from toxic situations because it is no longer good for you.

You feel lonely and is battling with depression? Listen to love. Do your best care for yourself. Do the things that make you feel better even just a little, like watching a funny movie, taking a good long bath in the tub, eat the food that makes you feel happy (but in moderation). Reach out, don’t be afraid. You are not meant to go through this pain alone. You are surrounded with love, allow yourself to receive it.

With the There Is No Place Like Home card, the quote that comes to my mind is “Home is where the heart is”.

Perhaps you feel a certain profound loneliness and you have been seeking for a place or for people who feel like home? Do you perhaps long to belong somewhere? Remember that where your heart is, that is where your home is. Feel comfortable in your skin and affirm yourself as you go through the life in many places, that you are where you are meant to be. You will find your own figure of home and belonging, but you have to embody that to yourself first, so you can easily attract it as well.

Or perhaps, you’ve been in your comfort zone for too long and you need to break away? This may cause you some stagnancy and will make you feel the tension from being in a constant state of inertia. Open your heart and wear it on your sleeve once again, and be brave. You will find that you will always be safe and sound even though you have ventured outside of your comfort zone. Remember, home is where the heart is :)

“THE PRESENCE OF LOVE WILL ALWAYS CAST OUT FEAR”

One message I’m getting from this is this: You need to live your life by listening to your heart’s desire. Have you ever looked back in your own life and wonder if you have been living your life fear-based? or love-based?

Because in this lifetime that you have been blessed with, you only go through a moment once and can never go back again. To live in fear, you will always restrict yourself, create a blockage, or hold yourself back from moving forward to progress in life. All those opportunities, moments, and events that were supposed to be fulfilling and making you happy never happened because you feared happiness itself? Your anxiety is gritting your mind thinking that you can never be too happy because everything will go down again. That happiness is too temporary and rare. That trust is like a fragile object within you that will always broken over and over again so you prefer to hide it to protect it. Thinking that you will always mess it up one way or another, so you fear everything else that could happen including yourself. One of your biggest fears is making a mistake. Well guess what? That’s all coming from you, and so that is happening to you.

And yet you clearly feel and hear your soul calling out for you. To listen to your heart for once. To take a step and receive the happiness you’ve been dreaming and wishing for. To claim the love that you always needed and is long overdue. But FEAR isn’t going to make you do anything.

So what can you do?

Be like the King of Cups. Use all of that wisdom, courage and knowledge within you to find the solutions to all of your problems. You have gone through a lot, and have been healing a lot of those deep, deep wounds. You now have the ability to see the bigger picture and look at a different perspective. Sometimes, it’s as simple as feeling love and your value. It’s as simple as making your heart receive all the blessings. It’s as simple as asking for that love, because the universe will always give it to you. It’s also the combination of emotion and logic, emotional intelligence. You’ve always had a dignified and brave heart. Honour yourself.

Love could also be a healing superpower. Why don’t you try it more often?

[douxreviews]

Manifest - ‘Crosswinds’ Review

By Baby M 

 "This is gonna sound crazy." "I think our operational baseline is ten points up from crazy." "Yeah, well this is gonna turn it up to eleven."

It's ten days after the events of the previous episode. Marko and the other people rescued from the secret underground laboratory are still in a catatonic state from the effects of the electroshock experiments.  They're being tended to by Fiona, Saanvi, and Autumn in an architecturally stunning seaside mansion (which I shall hereafter refer to as the Impossibly Cool Beach House, or ICBH for short).  Meanwhile, Ben and Michaela are living in an apartment, and Jared is out of the hospital and returning to work.

Oh, one more thing – nobody has had a calling in ten days, either.

No one has had a calling, that is, until Michaela, on a visit to the ICBH, has a super-lucid first-person hallucination of stumbling through a snowstorm while a voice whispers "Find her."  At that precise moment, one of the experimental subjects, an attorney named Paul, wakes up.

Paul doesn't remember who he is, or how he got on Flight 828, or much of anything about himself.  He'd ended up in the experiment because he was one of the ones who had no one come to the hangar to pick him up.  His wife Helen not only didn't come to the hangar, she seems to have dropped off the grid completely.  (He doesn't remember her, either.)  From this, Michaela interprets the snowstorm vision as a direction to find Helen.

Fiona and Saanvi convene a meeting at the ICBH of passengers who returned to the plane to watch it blow up.  All of them are having a hard time adjusting.  Flight attendant Bethany complains that the "Believers," the 828 groupies who first appeared a few episodes ago – officially "Believers" with a capital B according to the closed captions – were waiting for her outside the courthouse when she was released.  (She's not the only one having Believer issues, either.)  Another passenger, Andre, complains that he was an "entrepreneur wunderkind" before the plane disappeared, and wants his life back.

When Fiona suggests that maybe it was her destiny to be on 828 to act as "as an interpreter" of the "shared consciousness" experience, the pilot, Captain Deal, stalks off.  He suggests to Ben that Flight 828 might have been Fiona's "twisted science experiment."  One might say he's a bit on the paranoid side.  Of course, as the saying goes, just because you're paranoid....

Michaela and Jared go to Helen's house, where they find piles of unopened mail and a milk carton left out on the counter which has an early November expiration date.  They eventually trace her to a motel, where she is hiding from her abusive husband.  "Paul coming back was like this wrecking ball smashing into everything I built."

Upon returning to the police station, Michaela tells Jared she doesn't want to work with him any more because she doesn't want to be "a giant wrecking ball smashing into everything in your life."  She then goes back to the ICBH and gives Paul a good hard verbal napalming for abusing his wife.

Ben, meanwhile, has gone down another metaphorical rabbit hole of inquiry, where he meets Aaron Glover, a freelance journalist who runs a podcast called 828-Gate. From Aaron, and Autumn, and Director Vance's right-hand man Powell, Ben learns enough to deduce that that the mysterious "Major" is a woman, and she's running a black-budget investigation into Flight 828 in search of what she calls "the Holy Grail."

Grace is spiraling into depression again, and Olive (who has seen this movie before) decides to do something about it by inviting Danny over for a visit.  This does not go over well with Grace, and it gets even more uncomfortable when Ben, responding to a text from Cal, arrives in mid-argument – and comes to realize that his return was a metaphorical wrecking ball with respect to Grace and Danny.  (That metaphor sure gets a workout this week.)

As this is going on, Jared shows up at Michaela's apartment and declares his love for her, leading to some rather improper physical activity IYKWIMAITTYD.

I should also mention that Autumn, having seen what the experiments did to her fellow passengers, decides to stop spying on Ben.  However, The Major is not the sort of employer who calmly accepts an agent's two-week notice.

At the very end of the episode, Cal has the same first-person snowstorm vision as his aunt did, complete with whispered voice message.  However, Cal's vision goes on for a second or two more, and we see that whoever is stumbling through the snow is carrying a picture of Michaela.

"828" Watch

Lots of "828" sightings this week!

Romans 8:28 is referenced in the inscription on Karen's headstone.

Ben and Michaela's apartment number is 414, which is half of 828.

Helen's house number is 1829½, probably symbolic of her "moving on" after Flight 828 disappeared

Her motel room is room 28 – but it's not at a Super 8 motel.  (That would have been a really clever little gag.)

The Believers have "828" all over their signs.

Also on the manifest...

According to government statistics, domestic violence is (unfortunately) common enough that if the 192 individuals on Flight 828 (191 on the manifest plus Thomas the stowaway) are a representative sample of the general population, there would be at least one abuser among them – and more than one victim of abuse.

If Paul really has permanently lost his memory as a result of the electroshock experiments, is he still morally responsible for his past abuse of Helen?  There was a very powerful episode of Babylon 5 which explored this theme: "Passing Through Gethsemane."

One scene takes place at Director Vance's memorial service, where the speaker makes mention of the Director's wife and kids.  Guess he's really, for-sure, permanently dead.  I'm going to miss that guy.

There's a short scene where one of the Believers asks Andre, the former "entrepreneur wunderkind," to let her touch him.  You can almost see the wheels turning in Andre's head, figuring out how he could perhaps make a living as an object of worship.

While teenager Olive is very good at reading her mother and recognizing that she's spiraling into depression again, she's not mature enough to anticipate just how badly pulling Danny back into the mix could (and did) backfire.  That's very believable.

This week's gold stars for acting go to:

Melissa Roxburgh (Michaela) for the scene in the cemetery where she's talking to her mother.

J.R. Ramirez (Jared) for the wordless scene where he comes home from Michaela's apartment and sees his sleeping wife Lourdes.

Jack Messina (Cal), for perfectly portraying a little boy who can't understand why his parents are separated.

The picture of Michaela we see at the very end in Cal's snowstorm vision looks to be a page out of an article in a celebrity fluff magazine like the ones you see in the grocery store checkout line.  I tried freeze-framing it, but I couldn't make out any of the print.

If I've figured the in-universe timeline correctly, it should be mid- to late December by now.  Yet, we've seen no Christmas trees or decorations, even if only in the background.

With all the repeated use of the phrase "Holy Grail," I kept waiting for someone to reference Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Unless I missed it, there were no Python references, not so much as an unladen swallow's worth, anywhere in the episode.

While that was disappointing, the showrunners are to be commended for resisting any compulsion they may have felt to use "Torn Between Two Lovers" (Mary MacGregor, 1976) or "Wrecking Ball" (Miley Cyrus, 2013) as licensed music in this episode.  Unfortunately, the record company back catalogs are brimming with thousands of other equally dreadful pop songs that could be (mis)used in future episodes.  Stay strong, showrunners!

Quotes

Michaela, to her mother's headstone: "'All good things.'  What I would do to hear you say that one more time.  I wouldn't say I don't believe.  I would say that I want to because there has got to be a reason this is happening to us."

Olive: "Frozen waffles.  This is bad." Cal: "They still taste good." Olive: "She's in a dark place." Cal: "She misses Dad."

Captain Deal: "You weren't in that cockpit.  No one is blaming you for what happened to MA 828."  So who is blaming him?  Or is he blaming himself?

Ben: "Podcast.  That's still a thing?"

Conclusion

This was overall a pretty good episode.  I found it far too neat that everyone came to the immediate conclusion that "Holy Grail" was a codename and not just a metaphor (or a Monty Python reference), and as in previous episodes, Ben's investigation developed at a little too fast a pace.  On the other hand, the "Enoch Arden" scenario involving Ben and Grace and Danny and Olive was realistically developed and very well acted, as was the rapidly-evolving Jared-Michaela-Lourdes triangle.  It will also be interesting to see what develops with Autumn.

Three out of four metaphorical wrecking balls.

Baby M has been in a couple of wrecks, but none of them involved a wrecking ball.

[thisdaynews]

Scottish Cup: Kilmarnock v Aberdeen - team news & build-up

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Scottish Cup: Kilmarnock v Aberdeen - team news & build-up

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Live Reporting

By Clive Lindsay

All times stated are UK

Posted at 21:0721:07

Killie to end Dons hoodoo?

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Kilmarnock have gone 15 homes games without a win against Aberdeen.

Is that about to change?

64mins

YELLOW CARD Burke (Kilmarnock)

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Kilmarnock winger Chris Burke is the first to earn a booking for a trip on Matty Kennedy.

A bit of frustration from the veteran.

Posted at 21:0421:04

Post update

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: It’s a great save. Brophy probably doesn’t want time to think. He’s an instinctive striker and he looked apprehensive going through there

It’s a great save. Brophy probably doesn’t want time to think. He’s an instinctive striker and he looked apprehensive going through there

62mins

GREAT SAVE!

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Eamonn Brophy is through on goal, but the striker’s shot is well saved by goalkeeper Joe Lewis.

It would have been a long way back for the Dons had that gone in.

58mins

Post update

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

The atmosphere is hotting up inside Rugby Park, the Kilmarnock fans enjoying the lead, the visiting contingent pleased by their side’s response since half-time.

Posted at 20:5720:57

Play opening up

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: The tempo has certainly been raised by Aberdeen, but Kilmarnock are getting chances to hit them on the break

The tempo has certainly been raised by Aberdeen, but Kilmarnock are getting chances to hit them on the break

55mins

Post update

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Stuart Findlay’s diving header inside his own penalty box clears the danger as Aberdeen exert some more pressure.

Posted at 20:5320:53

Mohamed pointing way

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Aberdeen have come out strongly after the break, but that goal near the end of the first half still has Kilmarnock ahead.

SNSCopyright: SNS

Mohamed El Makrini’s first-half goal separates the teamsImage caption: Mohamed El Makrini’s first-half goal separates the teams

Posted at 20:5020:50

Fresh Dons impetus

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: Aberdeen have come out with an intensity to their play and they’re on the front foot. I think words have been said at half time

Aberdeen have come out with an intensity to their play and they’re on the front foot. I think words have been said at half time

Posted at 20:4920:49

McInnes knows significance

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Willie Miller

Former Scotland defender on BBC Sportsound

Quote Message: Derek McInnes knows this is a season-defining game for his side and they need to show intent on the pitch

Derek McInnes knows this is a season-defining game for his side and they need to show intent on the pitch

Posted at 20:4820:48

KICK-OFF SECOND HALF

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Kilmarnock get the second half under way against a new-look Aberdeen.

Visiting manager Derek McInnes was obviously not best pleased with what he saw and brings on striker Sam Cosgrove, right-back Shay Logan and midfielder Dean Campbell.

Scotland midfielders Craig Bryson and Dylan McGeouch find themselves hauled off along with forward Connor McLennan.

Posted at 20:4620:46

Three Dons changes!

HT: Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Willie Miller

Former Scotland defender on BBC Sportsound

Quote Message: It’s a big call to make three changes at the break. It didn’t work for Derek McInnes against Hibs

It’s a big call to make three changes at the break. It didn’t work for Derek McInnes against Hibs

Posted at 20:4320:43

Playing into Killie hands?

HT: Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: This is ideal Kilmarnock territory. They score, they sit back and then they hit you on the break. Someone has to do something now for Aberdeen or they are going out with a damp squib

This is ideal Kilmarnock territory. They score, they sit back and then they hit you on the break. Someone has to do something now for Aberdeen or they are going out with a damp squib

Posted at 20:4120:41

Kilmarnock break sequence

HT: Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

That’s Kilmarnock’s first goal in 493 minutes – nearly five and a half games – against Aberdeen.

But now they are on their halfway towards ending a run of six games without a win over Aberdeen – and beating the visitors at Rugby Park for the first time in 16 games since December 2011.

Posted at 20:3220:32

HALF-TIME Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Mohamed El Makini was brought back into the starting line-up by Kilmarnock manager Alex Dyer and the Dutch midfielder has paid him back with the only goal of the game so far.

The two sides had cancelled one another out until El Makrini’s magnificent overhead kick broke the deadlock.

SNSCopyright: SNS

Posted at 20:3220:32

Post update

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: You want your defender to put his body in front of it and win a free kick, but he’s not done it. Fair play to El Makrini, though… it’s not something me or Willie would have tried

You want your defender to put his body in front of it and win a free kick, but he’s not done it. Fair play to El Makrini, though… it’s not something me or Willie would have tried

Posted at 20:3020:30

‘The boot is high’

Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Willie Miller

Former Scotland defender on BBC Sportsound

Quote Message: He’s taken it well, but his boot is up high. It’s a sensational finish out of nothing, albeit not defended particularly well by Aberdeen. If Curtis Main puts his head in there, it’s dangerous and it’s a free-kick

He’s taken it well, but his boot is up high. It’s a sensational finish out of nothing, albeit not defended particularly well by Aberdeen. If Curtis Main puts his head in there, it’s dangerous and it’s a free-kick

42mins

goal

GOAL Kilmarnock 1-0 Aberdeen

Mohamed El Makrini

Just when we were expecting the first-half to end goalless and with a whimper, a clever overhead kick from Mohamed El Makrini puts Kilmarnock into the lead out of the blue.

BBCCopyright: BBC

Posted at 20:2820:28

Tough return for Bryson

Kilmarnock 0-0 Aberdeen

Having sprung to prominence by helping Clyde to a famous win over Celtic, Craig Bryson spent four years with Kilmarnock before heading off for eight acclaimed years with Derby County.

Now the Scotland midfielder’s back in his old stomping ground and finding it tough on the unfamiliar artificial surface.

SNSCopyright: SNS

Gary Dicker strong arms Aberdeen’s Craig BrysonImage caption: Gary Dicker strong arms Aberdeen’s Craig Bryson

Posted at 20:2520:25

We need some pace!

Kilmarnock 0-0 Aberdeen

Gary Holt

Livingston manager on BBC Radio Scotland

Quote Message: It’s very slow build-up by both sides. They have to go with a tempo when they attack and get some more pace into it

It’s very slow build-up by both sides. They have to go with a tempo when they attack and get some more pace into it

Read More

[shanedakotamuir]

She was fatally strangled. The media is making it about her sex life.

A photo of Grace Millane during a vigil at Civic Square on December 12, 2018, in Wellington, New Zealand. | Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

Grace Millane’s story is part of a larger pattern of victim-blaming.

Grace Millane was 21 years old when she was fatally strangled, stuffed into a suitcase, and buried in an area west of Auckland, New Zealand, in December 2018.

Those facts are not in dispute, the Guardian reports. But the man accused of killing her, who has not been publicly named, said in his trial that she died accidentally during “violent sex.” And so media outlets in the US and UK have chosen to focus on the particulars of her sexuality rather than the circumstances of her death.

A headline at the New York Post reads, “Killed backpacker Grace Millane was into choking, BDSM: court evidence.” The London Evening Standard took a similar tone: “Grace Millane was member of BDSM dating sites and asked ex-partner to choke her during sex, court hears.” And the Daily Mail blared, “Grace Millane’s killer told police ‘she ASKED him to choke her during sex because she was a fan of the 50 Shades Of Grey films’, court hears.”

While the particulars of what happened between Millane and her killer are important in his trial, as prosecutor Brian Dickey pointed out, “you can’t consent to your own murder.” So by focusing on Millane’s alleged interest in BDSM, many argue, media outlets are engaging in damaging victim-blaming and salacious clickbait. It’s part of a bigger pattern in which female crime victims are treated as though they’re guilty of something, with the media and the public digging through their past for damaging details, or simply speculating about them based on who they are.

Grace Millane died after being strangled. Defense attorneys are blaming her interest in BDSM.

Millane, a British woman backpacking in New Zealand, was killed on December 1, 2018, according to the Guardian. The accused is a 27-year-old New Zealand man who met her on a Tinder date.

His defense lawyers have said that Millane died accidentally after asking the man to choke her during sex, and that the man then “panicked,” causing him to conceal and bury her body.

But prosecutors say that accidental death by strangulation during sex is rare, and that it would have taken “sustained effort and strength” to kill Millane. Meanwhile, they say, the man did not seem panicked after her death, but instead “was cool, calm, in control” as he bought a suitcase to dispose of her body, and even set up another Tinder date while her corpse was still in his room.

Moreover, the prosecution notes, killing someone with “reckless intent” is grounds for a murder conviction in New Zealand, even if the death is not intentional.

“The defendant was causing harm that was likely to cause death,” Dickey told the jury, which is slated to begin deliberating on Friday. “You kill somebody by conscious risk-taking, in this country, that is murder.”

Despite all this, media coverage of the trial has often focused on Millane’s sexual interests. “British backpacker Grace Millane was a ‘naive’ member of multiple BDSM dating sites — and encouraged partners to choke her during sex, according to evidence introduced at the trial of her accused killer in New Zealand,” the New York Post reports, adding that “police found records of chats the 21-year-old had sharing her fetishes on explicit bondage, domination and sadomasochism sites such as FetLife and Whiplr.”

An earlier Post story is headlined, “Tinder date admits to strangling Grace Millane, says she begged for ‘50 Shades of Grey’ sex.” The Independent, meanwhile, began a recent story with the line, “British backpacker Grace Millane was ‘naive and trusting’ and gave a list of fetishes to a man through a BDSM website, her murder trial has heard.”

To some degree, it’s no surprise that defense lawyers would bring up Millane’s sexual history at the trial. Though some laws in the US limit the practice, it remains common for defense attorneys to discuss victims’ pasts in sex crimes trials as a way of discrediting their accounts. In this case, the crime alleged is murder, but attorneys for the accused clearly want to argue that what happened on December 1 was part of a pattern for the victim, not an act of cold-blooded killing.

Defense attorneys routinely employ myths about rape to get juries on their side, politics professor Caroline Heldman wrote at Vox in 2017. These myths include “the idea that people provoke rape through their actions, that you can tell if someone has been raped by the way they act afterward, that women commonly make false rape reports to seek revenge, and that waiting to report a rape means it didn’t happen.”

These myths are not supported by evidence, and when defense attorneys and others endorse them, it can discourage survivors from coming forward, Heldman writes.

Still, it’s reasonable for media outlets to cover the defense’s strategy in the case of Millane’s death. But the way they cover it matters. As Jenn Selby writes at Refinery29, some publications’ headlines and framing suggested that the narrative of Millane’s death as “sex act gone wrong” was fact, rather than an argument the defense was trying to make. Meanwhile, journalist Ione Wells noted on Twitter that many media outlets were leading with the defense’s argument without giving equal prominence to the prosecution.

And even if their headlines included a nod to the fact that the “sex act gone wrong” angle was just something the defense was claiming, that message may not have been clear to ordinary readers, Wells said. “A lot of the public don’t know that ‘a court hears’ here means *from the defence* — and could easily read these lines as if they were objective fact. None of these headlines have attribution,” she wrote.

A lot of reports on Grace Millane have decided to report the defence today without referencing the prosecution. Here's a reminder of how to report cases like this: https://t.co/1oxwBpfOjo Here's a reminder of what the prosecution said - inc the photos he took of her dead body: pic.twitter.com/qyCD7HnjJM

— Ione Wells (@ionewells) November 19, 2019

While the attention to Millane’s sexual past may reflect a cultural tendency toward victim-blaming, it’s also a strategy by media outlets to drive clicks by focusing on sex. Similar forces were likely at work in coverage last month of allegations that Rep. Katie Hill had inappropriate relationships with staffers. In that case, many headlines focused less on the potential for professional misconduct and more on the allegation that Hill and her husband were in a “throuple” with another woman.

The focus on the defense’s arguments is doubly questionable given that the accused’s past may actually be more relevant to the case than Millane’s. One previous partner of the accused told the court that she was “terrified” when he sat on her face and smothered her, according to the Guardian. And several women he met through Tinder said they cut off contact with him because he made them uncomfortable. Yet it’s Millane whose alleged sexuality has been the subject of countless headlines, often paired with photographs of her smiling face.

Her story is part of a bigger pattern

The coverage of Millane’s death is reminiscent of the treatment of many female crime victims before her. Survivors of sexual assault, for instance, are often blamed and smeared by defense teams and the media. At Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial last year, defense attorneys said that Andrea Constand, who said that the comedian drugged and assaulted her, was a “so-called victim” who wanted his money. Later in 2018, when Christine Blasey Ford came forward to say that Brett Kavanaugh, then a nominee to the Supreme Court, had sexually assaulted her, right-wing media outlets dug (or attempted to dig) into her past.

One, Real Clear Investigations, reported that according to an anonymous source, yearbooks from Ford’s high school “feature a photo of an underage Ford attending at least one party, alongside a caption boasting of girls passing out from binge drinking.” The yearbooks “also openly reference sexually promiscuous behavior by the girls,” the site reported.

Meanwhile, the right-wing site Gateway Pundit published a story titled “Kavanaugh Accuser Is Unhinged Liberal Professor who Former Students Describe as Dark, Mad, Scary and Troubled.” The story was based on online reviews left by students of a different Christine Ford.

Nor are female murder victims safe from this kind of digging. The effect is even more pronounced when the victims — unlike Millane, who was white — are trans women of color. After 18-year-old Jaquarrius Holland was fatally shot in 2017, Chagmion Antoine wrote at the Women’s Media Center that to many Americans, women like Holland “are seen not as innocent victims but as predators.” She quotes a commenter on the blog New Now Next, who says, “it sounds like these trannies were prostitutes who deceived straight male clients into thinking they were women.” And, Antoine notes, comedian Dave Chappelle has also echoed damaging narratives about trans women “tricking” men.

Since Millane was white, her story was bound to get more attention than the stories of many missing or murdered girls and women of color. But her family is still confronted with media coverage that treats her private sexual history as though it somehow justifies her death. It’s a reminder that when girls and women are victims of crimes, they’re often victimized yet again by the justice system that’s meant to protect them, and by the people tasked with telling their stories.

from Vox - All https://ift.tt/2QFmx7m

[timalexanderdollery]

She was fatally strangled. The media is making it about her sex life.

A photo of Grace Millane during a vigil at Civic Square on December 12, 2018, in Wellington, New Zealand. | Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

Grace Millane’s story is part of a larger pattern of victim-blaming.

Grace Millane was 21 years old when she was fatally strangled, stuffed into a suitcase, and buried in an area west of Auckland, New Zealand, in December 2018.

Those facts are not in dispute, the Guardian reports. But the man accused of killing her, who has not been publicly named, said in his trial that she died accidentally during “violent sex.” And so media outlets in the US and UK have chosen to focus on the particulars of her sexuality rather than the circumstances of her death.

A headline at the New York Post reads, “Killed backpacker Grace Millane was into choking, BDSM: court evidence.” The London Evening Standard took a similar tone: “Grace Millane was member of BDSM dating sites and asked ex-partner to choke her during sex, court hears.” And the Daily Mail blared, “Grace Millane’s killer told police ‘she ASKED him to choke her during sex because she was a fan of the 50 Shades Of Grey films’, court hears.”

While the particulars of what happened between Millane and her killer are important in his trial, as prosecutor Brian Dickey pointed out, “you can’t consent to your own murder.” So by focusing on Millane’s alleged interest in BDSM, many argue, media outlets are engaging in damaging victim-blaming and salacious clickbait. It’s part of a bigger pattern in which female crime victims are treated as though they’re guilty of something, with the media and the public digging through their past for damaging details, or simply speculating about them based on who they are.

Grace Millane died after being strangled. Defense attorneys are blaming her interest in BDSM.

Millane, a British woman backpacking in New Zealand, was killed on December 1, 2018, according to the Guardian. The accused is a 27-year-old New Zealand man who met her on a Tinder date.

His defense lawyers have said that Millane died accidentally after asking the man to choke her during sex, and that the man then “panicked,” causing him to conceal and bury her body.

But prosecutors say that accidental death by strangulation during sex is rare, and that it would have taken “sustained effort and strength” to kill Millane. Meanwhile, they say, the man did not seem panicked after her death, but instead “was cool, calm, in control” as he bought a suitcase to dispose of her body, and even set up another Tinder date while her corpse was still in his room.

Moreover, the prosecution notes, killing someone with “reckless intent” is grounds for a murder conviction in New Zealand, even if the death is not intentional.

“The defendant was causing harm that was likely to cause death,” Dickey told the jury, which is slated to begin deliberating on Friday. “You kill somebody by conscious risk-taking, in this country, that is murder.”

Despite all this, media coverage of the trial has often focused on Millane’s sexual interests. “British backpacker Grace Millane was a ‘naive’ member of multiple BDSM dating sites — and encouraged partners to choke her during sex, according to evidence introduced at the trial of her accused killer in New Zealand,” the New York Post reports, adding that “police found records of chats the 21-year-old had sharing her fetishes on explicit bondage, domination and sadomasochism sites such as FetLife and Whiplr.”

An earlier Post story is headlined, “Tinder date admits to strangling Grace Millane, says she begged for ‘50 Shades of Grey’ sex.” The Independent, meanwhile, began a recent story with the line, “British backpacker Grace Millane was ‘naive and trusting’ and gave a list of fetishes to a man through a BDSM website, her murder trial has heard.”

To some degree, it’s no surprise that defense lawyers would bring up Millane’s sexual history at the trial. Though some laws in the US limit the practice, it remains common for defense attorneys to discuss victims’ pasts in sex crimes trials as a way of discrediting their accounts. In this case, the crime alleged is murder, but attorneys for the accused clearly want to argue that what happened on December 1 was part of a pattern for the victim, not an act of cold-blooded killing.

Defense attorneys routinely employ myths about rape to get juries on their side, politics professor Caroline Heldman wrote at Vox in 2017. These myths include “the idea that people provoke rape through their actions, that you can tell if someone has been raped by the way they act afterward, that women commonly make false rape reports to seek revenge, and that waiting to report a rape means it didn’t happen.”

These myths are not supported by evidence, and when defense attorneys and others endorse them, it can discourage survivors from coming forward, Heldman writes.

Still, it’s reasonable for media outlets to cover the defense’s strategy in the case of Millane’s death. But the way they cover it matters. As Jenn Selby writes at Refinery29, some publications’ headlines and framing suggested that the narrative of Millane’s death as “sex act gone wrong” was fact, rather than an argument the defense was trying to make. Meanwhile, journalist Ione Wells noted on Twitter that many media outlets were leading with the defense’s argument without giving equal prominence to the prosecution.

And even if their headlines included a nod to the fact that the “sex act gone wrong” angle was just something the defense was claiming, that message may not have been clear to ordinary readers, Wells said. “A lot of the public don’t know that ‘a court hears’ here means *from the defence* — and could easily read these lines as if they were objective fact. None of these headlines have attribution,” she wrote.

A lot of reports on Grace Millane have decided to report the defence today without referencing the prosecution. Here's a reminder of how to report cases like this: https://t.co/1oxwBpfOjo Here's a reminder of what the prosecution said - inc the photos he took of her dead body: pic.twitter.com/qyCD7HnjJM

— Ione Wells (@ionewells) November 19, 2019

While the attention to Millane’s sexual past may reflect a cultural tendency toward victim-blaming, it’s also a strategy by media outlets to drive clicks by focusing on sex. Similar forces were likely at work in coverage last month of allegations that Rep. Katie Hill had inappropriate relationships with staffers. In that case, many headlines focused less on the potential for professional misconduct and more on the allegation that Hill and her husband were in a “throuple” with another woman.

The focus on the defense’s arguments is doubly questionable given that the accused’s past may actually be more relevant to the case than Millane’s. One previous partner of the accused told the court that she was “terrified” when he sat on her face and smothered her, according to the Guardian. And several women he met through Tinder said they cut off contact with him because he made them uncomfortable. Yet it’s Millane whose alleged sexuality has been the subject of countless headlines, often paired with photographs of her smiling face.

Her story is part of a bigger pattern

The coverage of Millane’s death is reminiscent of the treatment of many female crime victims before her. Survivors of sexual assault, for instance, are often blamed and smeared by defense teams and the media. At Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial last year, defense attorneys said that Andrea Constand, who said that the comedian drugged and assaulted her, was a “so-called victim” who wanted his money. Later in 2018, when Christine Blasey Ford came forward to say that Brett Kavanaugh, then a nominee to the Supreme Court, had sexually assaulted her, right-wing media outlets dug (or attempted to dig) into her past.

One, Real Clear Investigations, reported that according to an anonymous source, yearbooks from Ford’s high school “feature a photo of an underage Ford attending at least one party, alongside a caption boasting of girls passing out from binge drinking.” The yearbooks “also openly reference sexually promiscuous behavior by the girls,” the site reported.

Meanwhile, the right-wing site Gateway Pundit published a story titled “Kavanaugh Accuser Is Unhinged Liberal Professor who Former Students Describe as Dark, Mad, Scary and Troubled.” The story was based on online reviews left by students of a different Christine Ford.

Nor are female murder victims safe from this kind of digging. The effect is even more pronounced when the victims — unlike Millane, who was white — are trans women of color. After 18-year-old Jaquarrius Holland was fatally shot in 2017, Chagmion Antoine wrote at the Women’s Media Center that to many Americans, women like Holland “are seen not as innocent victims but as predators.” She quotes a commenter on the blog New Now Next, who says, “it sounds like these trannies were prostitutes who deceived straight male clients into thinking they were women.” And, Antoine notes, comedian Dave Chappelle has also echoed damaging narratives about trans women “tricking” men.

Since Millane was white, her story was bound to get more attention than the stories of many missing or murdered girls and women of color. But her family is still confronted with media coverage that treats her private sexual history as though it somehow justifies her death. It’s a reminder that when girls and women are victims of crimes, they’re often victimized yet again by the justice system that’s meant to protect them, and by the people tasked with telling their stories.

from Vox - All https://ift.tt/2QFmx7m