#celia will just enjoy the show

[lalasknives]

This is how I imagine Bose's birthday episode is gonna go

[theajaheira]

"xander. find a new theme."

[kidd-video]

Been really enjoying how the Magnus Protocol has been playing with the idea of ✨️nostalgia✨️. Sam obsessing over the Magnus Institute, Alice wanting to rekindle her relationship with Sam, Celia looking into familiar names from TMA.  Even the monsters are a bit of a throwback - a mascot from a 90s TV show, a member of British aristocracy, [ERROR] with her cassette tapes.

And on a meta level - the listeners are playing into this nostalgia, too. The theories that Jon/Martin/Jonah are stuck in the computer. Our excitement at hearing familiar voices again. Trying to  assign the Smirke 14 to the O.I.A.R. cases...

The thing is - nostalgia is actually just  corrupting everyone. Sam's obsession is putting the O.I.A.R. crew in danger. Alice's attempts at reshaping their relationship to how it used to be is harming her current friendship with Sam. Celia's investigations just keep leading to dead ends.

And us, the listeners, our inclinations to apply the old lore from TMA to this new series...it might be causing us to miss some big clues in Protocol...

so yeah, I just think it's really cool how Magnus Protocol is playing with the dangers of nostalgia, especially considering it's a sequel!

[weyounpussyindulgence]

Some highlights from my week at STLV

- Meeting Garrett Wang first, giving him a special Voyager limerick I wrote for him, and him loving it

- Getting my picture with John Billingsley and his wife Bonnie and getting some great advice about starting out in the acting industry from them

- Telling Tawny Newsome she looked beautiful and her complimenting my TOS inspired blue eyeshadow (and then her recognizing me the day after when I got her autograph)

- Jess Bush also complimenting me on my eyeshadow

- Walking past Anthony Montgomery and telling him “Hi! I think you’re really cool!” and him replying “Thank you, I appreciate that! I think you’re cool too!”

- Getting a duo picture with Jonathan Frakes and Brent Spiner, and Frakes telling me that I looked pretty

- Talking to Marina Sirtis, telling her I was there for my birthday, and her wishing me happy birthday and gifting me a free signed photo of Deanna

- Talking about Out to Sea with Brent and listening to him regale the fun he had making that movie

- Talking with Cirroc Lofton about his experience working with Avery Brooks and mutually agreeing that Star Trek needs more wholesome parent/child relationships

- Listening to John de Lancie talk about his experience sailing from California to French Polynesia (I could listen to him talk for hours, his voice is so soothing)

- Going to a memorial panel for Nichelle Nichols that featured her sister as a surprise guest (holy moly, she looked and sounded exactly like Nichelle 🥹)

- Going to another memorial for Aron Eisenberg and getting to make a toast to him with Cirroc and other fans (they used root beer for the drinks and had gummy worms “tube grubs” as table snacks)

- The moderator for the TNG panel not showing up, allowing Frakes to take over and him, Brent and Gates going absolutely batshit feral on stage

- Walter Koenig speaking out against the genocide in Palestine (and just getting to hear him talk in general)

- Seeing Armin Shimerman again and getting to tell him how much I enjoyed Betrayal of Angels (and his face lighting up when I told him how great an author he is)

- Sara Mitich and Ronnie Rowe both wishing me happy birthday and just being all around so kind and patient

- Telling Nana Visitor that she had the voice of an angel when she sings, and seeing how big and beautiful a smile she got

- Telling Kate Mulgrew she looked beautiful and her replying “Thank you! So do you.”

- JG Hertzler telling an absolutely hilarious story about how Avery Brooks and Rene Auberjonois got into a fight about one of Rene’s line deliveries while filming Far Beyond the Stars

- Richard McGee, Jay Chattaway and Jeff Russo conducting an absolutely phenomenal orchestral concert of Trek songs

- Seeing a really fun dinner show with some of the actors singing Broadway songs (my personal favorites being Nana, Robert Picardo, Bonnie Gordon, Jon Jon Briones and Celia Rose Gooding)

- Seeing Jeffrey Combs again and getting to ask him during his panel what would happen if all of his Trek characters were in the same room together (his answer: they would probably start either a baseball team or a rock band)

- Getting a picture taken with myself and both Carol Kane and Christopher Lloyd together

- Getting Mary Chieffo’s autograph and her writing happy birthday in Klingonese on it

- The entirety of the Rat Pack performance

- Getting to meet and interact with Trekkies of different ages, race, gender and sexuality and all of them incredibly nice

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 30 Thoughts: Concrete Evidence

Our finale is upon us. Albeit more of a slightly extended episode than it is double-length. It's more like 10 minutes longer than a standard episode and while I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing I do think it sort of sucks to set expectations and then not deliver on it. Especially when it was a Kickstarter stretch goal. I worry the epilogue is going to feel like the last 10 minutes sliced off of this one too. Either way it was a great episode all in all.

Spoilers for episode 30 below the cut.

This episode follows the classic late in a season episode formula. By which I mean lots of it is really explicit about what it means but some bits are the sort of thing I like to pull out and analyse. So a lot of the plot beats aren't things I need to cover but there are lots of quotes I do want to dig into. Starting with Sam and Celia on the train, which is a real culmination of Celia's general game plan so far. While it's made abundantly clear by the end of this episode her manipulation of the characters has been a fairly constant part of her characterisation so far.

CELIA It sounded like you’d have gone anyway. At least this way I can make sure it all goes to plan. SAM (small laugh) There’s a plan? CELIA Besides, you’re not the only one who’s curious.

That quote really sums up her whole deal this season IMO. She's always been pushing characters to do one thing or another. As soon as her intentions are brought up she'll avoid the question and move the conversation on to something else. It's been happening basically since she was introduced and I'm really glad to see it built up into something satisfying.

Man, poor Colin. I was hoping we'd get some sort of escalation of his storyline this episode but it looks like that'll be more of a season 2 affair. Similarly that looks to be where Gwen is headed too. She's finally got the job she's after but as Lena warns, and as we're all well aware, she's woefully unprepared for it. Mr. Bonzo, Ink5oul, Lady Mowbray, and Needles will all likely play larger roles in season 2 because of it.

I'm not going to get into the details much but I did really enjoy the Custodian's statement. Lots of fun vibes and little details with his character all around. I would've liked to see him stick around in all honestly and crop up again. His fate is quite interesting though because it's showing a lot more from [Error]'s abilities than has previously been showcased. She made Drowning Victim drown but her statement was all about drowning so that's not too crazy, this is much more tangentially related and a far more extreme effect on the victim. Hard to know how much that means but it might be worth pointing out.

The Hilltop Centre is a lot different to what I was expecting. It seems much more like a supernatural hub than the prior incidents concerning it let on. I'm wondering if this is unique to this universe or a constant throughout them. Without getting too much into the details it could be fallout from TMA's ending but this wound that Celia talks about strikes me as a little odd in that context. There was seemingly only one of them at Hilltop. Unless the world Celia came from is also where Darrien 3 came from, as he arrived from that point, then that wound is drawing in everyone from other realities. However if that's the case then there are some fairly major questions about the metaphysical underpinnings of it. It got "better" when Sam was thrown in but there are also clearly a lot of other people coming through as the Custodian mentions.

It wasn’t all death though. Sometimes people… arrived. Not often, but every now and then you’d find some thin, emaciated soul wandering around, lost and confused.

It wasn't just Darrien 3 that came through, multiple people arrived in the same manner. A manner we know isn't how Celia got here because her reaction to that incident was that it wasn't the same. So is this wound just an amalgamation of all the imbalances from all the various universes? We know why Celia wants to "balance" this because it's trying to pull her back, hence the "sleepwalking", and it would eventually win out. How it works on a larger scale is sort of hard to say. It seems like it will just be there forever until everyone who's not meant to be in this universe has left. That seems like a very tall order based on what we've seen. Speaking of balance.

The institute, alchemy, all of it. It’s all about balance. Dua prima, four elements, seven planets, it’s all the same. You’ve got to keep things balanced.

This is a very interesting quote. There are two possible interpretations for this and I'm not sure it's intended to be seen that way. Each of the things Celia lists here is either correctly numbered or off by one. So she might be saying that these are things for which balance is important, or she's saying these are unbalanced things and need correcting. Either works well with her point here.

Dua prima is not really actually a thing as such and is both the biggest indicator she's talking in terms of them being off by one, but also the biggest indicator she's not. Paracelsus' tria prima is a fairly important concept in alchemy as a whole and if you've read more than a few of my posts you'll have seen me mention it. In short sulphur, salt, and mercury are representative of three fundamental properties. Combustibility, permanence, and fluidity respectively and in addition represent the body, the soul, and the spirit. Paracelsus didn't arrive at this idea on his own however and it's largely an addition to Jābir ibn Ḥayyān's work. Jābir, or Geber as he's sometimes known, had this theory of metals that stated all metals were a mix of sulphur and mercury. Additionally sulphur is associated with masculine qualities and the sun, while mercury is associated with feminine ones and the moon. It's not ever called dua prima so far as I'm aware but you could reasonably make that argument.

This same logic can be applied to her mention of the four elements in which fire, air, earth, and water would make up a classical set of four but can also be considered off by one as aether is a later yet—still classical—addition. Alchemy has seven "planets" each with a corresponding metal but our modern definition puts seven off by one as we would say there are eight. However with all that being said I'm more inclined to believe she meant these things were balanced as they are. I said that the dua prima was also the best indicator of that and for the reason why we've got to go back to episode 19.

Doing mummy and daddy Stasi proud, I’m sure. Not that anyone cares as long as it all balances, right? Not too much mercury or the world ends, not too much sulfur or we all go mad…

At the time I said this was two of the three primes of tria prima, which it is, but in this context it doesn't appear that the lack of salt was an omission. Salt just might not be a part of it at all. It's fairly hard to say exactly how important this will be though. It certainly seems quite relevant but it's also something they might be making up rather than anything more firmly rooted in existing alchemic lore.

I don’t- when I first awoke I knew nothing, nothing but the dream of things that sliced my who from me with claws like scalpels… They would hunt me and toy with what it meant to be me peeling away my layers first my name, then my memory and then… …and then the fearless one reached in and grasped me, tore me out, leaving my story to fall away like autumn leaves…

I think Celia's statement has very little to get into really, I just wanted to mention that it was a nice detail. Another if you know you know and not a topic I get into here. [Error] also has a line here I think is interesting but it requires getting more into TMA than I care for so I'm going to leave it. I'm not 100% sure what to make of it either as of yet.

And there we have it. Season 1 is wrapped. Well other than the epilogue, What If?, fluff episode, and trailer. I don't have much of a bow to tie on this really other than to say I've really enjoyed this season and I'm excited for where it's going to go next.

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Prediction Follow Up

Celia is going to get [Error]ed and exposition dump about her whole deal. - That happened but the exposition relevant to the show's plot didn't occur via that.

Alice gets got and she's got some secret twisty trauma. - Didn't happen.

Teddy can give her a lift and we'll hear what was on his mind. - Also didn't happen.

Speaking of [Error] it seems likely that Celia is going to reveal at least what she knows about Archivists. - This didn't not happen but also didn't really happen exactly.

With [Error] being this season's antagonist it's likely that she's going to get defeated in the finale. - Kinda sorta maybe.

It could be a gaping maw in realities that sucks our cast off to someplace new. - Got some of our cast at least, so lets say 3.

Hilltop is likely to play some role in defeating [Error] and if I had to hazard a guess I think it's likely we'll see some of the great cosmology at play here - Kinda sorta.

I think we're also going to see a good bit of Gwen going behind Lena's back too... I don't think we'll necessarily see anything major happen but I do think it's a pretty likely hook for season 2. - Yeah, that all basically happened.

Final Score 10/10 - Being incorrect does not impact my self-worth.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Season 2 Predictions

Honestly, I don't have much to say for this. It's probably going to be still follow the same characters, Sam will deal with whatever new universe he's in, Celia will play dumb but Alice won't buy it, Gwen will fail to deal with her new responsibilities, Teddy will reveal some awful secret, Colin will go further into the deep end, and there will probably be some sort of Magnus-based twist.

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Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet and Terminology Sheet

DPHW Theory: 3366 is a very pleasing set of numbers. This one matches episode 8's Architecture (Liminal) -/- Hunger too which I mention for the thematic symmetry. They're quite different incidents but has some similar elements. Which I think is a good indication of my theory's strength. You'd expect some sort of parallels to be able to be drawn if these numbers were ratings in categories as I've laid out. It's not definitive proof but it's more than I've had to talk about here for a while.

CAT# Theory: CAT2 is another obviously "wrong" one for the Person/Place/Object theory IMO. Hilltop is a place but Hilltop didn't cause it and it didn't happen to Hilltop. [Error] made a dude turn into concrete. Fairly useless to pin that one on the location. I think there are more than enough of these obviously faulty ones that I can stop mentioning it come season 2. Hopefully I'll have my own theory to talk about by then too.

R# Theory: We've finally got our first S. It's been long awaited if only by myself. Generally, I'm very pleased with this. An S on this case is some of the best evidence I've had that I'm correct about the general purpose of Ranks. A still living concrete man is undeniable evidence of the supernatural. No amount of explaining it away changes the fact a man turned into concrete and lived to tell the tale. It's still not 100% certain if Rank is purely about evidence or more about urgency in general but I do think now it's fairly clear that if I'm not entirely correct it's the right path.

Header talk: Transmutation (Human) -/- Isolation (Urban). Very little to talk about on that one but it's interesting to see the continued difference between transformation and transmutation.

[loves0phelia]

Can you do a Matt Murdock metting reader and they hit it off instantly.

( Btw this is my first requesting something )

Promise

Summery: the request

Words: 1.6k

Warnings: alcohol, grammar mistakes (always)

A/N: thank you for requesting I love matt so much and writing for him makes me so happy, also this is far from perfect so i hope you will like it anyway xxx

After a long day at work all you wanted to do was crash, and curl in bed with cheap ramen from a cup, while watching one of your recent favorite shows. Unfortunately, that idea was forgotten when your best friend Celia invited you to a local bar called Josies claiming to need a girls night out.

At first you almost faked being sick or having a late night appointment but you realized it wouldn't be possible to deny your friend.

She knew you were not a going out kind of person, so any excuses would not convince her.

“Come on Y/n, just one drink and I swear if you don't like it we're leaving” she tried reassuring you, and you made a face of disagreement but still followed her in anyways after the breeze made a shiver travel your entire body. That made you realize you should've brought a jacket.

When you entered you immediately noticed the strong smell of beer and whiskey. It was almost overwhelming but the scent kinda matched the looks of the bar which made it feel homey.

“What are you two girls taking?” A lady behind the bar, who was previously wiping a dirty glass asked us.

“I think we'll both take a beer” Celia turned to confirm with you and you nodded.

“Good cause beer and whiskey’s all we got” she grumbled and picked up two bottled beers from underneath the counter where you assumed a fridge was.

Soft jazz music was playing in the background and you could hear the people chit chatting and clinking their bottles. Celia took a sip of her drink and after analyzing around the place she gasped loudly.

“Oh my God y/n It's Matt and Foggy!” she clapped her hands happily.

“Who?” you asked and looked behind you trying to map where her friends were.

“You know,  the guys from the law firm! I worked with them on a case with Marci” Realization became clear on your face after she reminded you.

A couple months ago her colleague Marci had needed help finding information about Wilson Fisk to help her boyfriend’s firm, Nelson and Murdock, and Celia had volunteered. Obviously she had told you all about the sexy blind lawyer who would be “perfect” for you.

”Come on! i'll present them to you” she jumped down her stool and began dragging you to them.

“Celia please no, they are probably trying to enjoy a night together let's not bother them” you tried tugging yourself back but she wouldn't allow it.

“You're too nice, you know that?” Celia replied and before you could beg again one of the two guys, who you assumed was foggy, raised from his chair by the pool table and screamed her name, inviting you over.

“Foggy, Matt, heyy” she said happily, hugging them while you stood awkwardly behind her.

You were always the more introverted one in the duo, but she always tried to bring you out of your comfort zone.

“This is y/n, you know my best friend I told you about” you lifted your hand giving them a small wave and immediately regretted it when you remembered one of them could not see it.

”Hi” your voice was barely above a whisper but you were ignorant to the fact that Matt could hear you loud and clear.

“You guys want a round of shots? Matt and I were just about to get some” the long haired friend suggested and Celia immediately agreed. The two of them left to go back by the bar leaving you and the handsome lawyer alone.

“Y/n right?” his voice surprised you. It was deep but angelic.

“Y-yes” your words caught in your throat now feeling more shy than ever.

“It’s a beautiful name, im Matt but i'm pretty sure you already knew that” he laughed and it was like you had never heard a prettier sound. You nodded your head, unable to utter any words.

“You just nodded didn't you?” your cheeks flushed instantly embarrassed, your eyes grow triple their size.

“I did, I am so sorry, I dont know whats wrong with me” you shake your head and slapped your forehead with your palm the sound echoing loudly in your ears.

“It's okay, it happens all the time” his smile never left his lips.

“That doesn't help” your face was red like a tomato.

“Dont worry about it” his hand laid itself on top of your naked thigh only the tip of his fingers came in contact with your silk dress, his soft touch warmed your skin.

“Silk?” he asked curiously, still running his digits over the fabric.

“Yea when Celia said we were going to the bar i didn't really know what to wear” you snorted now realizing silk was definitely too formal for a bar.

“It's very soft, i like it” once again a charming smile came onto his lips.

“thank you” you smiled back unaware he could feel the heat coming off your body at this very moment.

“We're back! sorry it took so long josie wouldn't let us have our best customer discount again” Foggy pout but put the tray of 6 shots down on the sticky table.

“Drink up guys!” Celia clinked her glass with Foggy’s and then yours and then Matt’s (which cause a small splash of the whiskey to escape down to the floor)

the second the strong liquid came in contact with your tongue, your eyes clenched in pain because of the burn. 

“How can people drink that? it's disgusting” you said and everyone at the table laughed at your sudden outburst.

“It takes a lot of getting used to and a best friend who forces you to drink it” Matt’s hand squeezed your knee while the other two were already getting ready for the second one.

“I guess…” you hesitantly picked up your last shot and on the count of three you repeated the suffering progress.

After hours of chatting and laughing it was already 3 am which meant the bar was closing.

“I'm going to take a cab home, anyone wants to share one?” Celia said while gathering her belongings.

“I think I'm going to walk, my apartment is not too far,” you replied forgetting about the freezing wind outside.

“Are you sure? you know it's supposed to rain also there are some weird people in the street at this hour” she said almost in a motherly way.

“Yes I'm sure, anyway daredevil might save me if I get attacked” you joked and hugged her tightly while she rolled her eyes at you.

“I wouldn't mind taking a cab actually, I need to go back to Marci’s” a drunk Foggy wiggled his eyebrows.

“What about you Matt? need a ride?” he added to his previous statement.

“No, I think I'll walk y/n home. if that's alright?” he gently grabbed your elbow as he unfolded his white cane.

“Of course,” you smiled.

The two drunks said their goodbyes and walked out the door to the yellow cab waiting for them outside as you and Matt started walking back to your house in a comfortable silence.

A shiver traveled your body for the second time during the night and Matt felt your goosebumps raise on your arm as he held it.

He stopped abruptly making you look at him confused as he started removing his suit jacket.

“Here put this on” he draped it over your shoulder and you accepted it wordlessly admiring his beauty and generosity.

He grabbed your elbow again and you both continued the path to your apartment.

After about 10 minutes you spoke up, now seeing your apartment building

“This is me”

“Am i the only one who's disappointed the walk was so short?” he asked while rubbing his thumb on your arm.

You giggled before replying that you were also sad it was cut so shortly.

“You could come upstairs if you want?” Hopefully, you wished he accepted the offer.

“I think it's better if i don't” he sighed and your heart dropped slightly.

“I want to, but tomorrow I have this case I need to work on, and I think that if I came upstairs I wouldn't be able to leave in the morning” his hands were now holding your waist as if he was having his own inner battle whether he should come up or not.

“It's okay I understand” you whispered and he leaned his forehead against yours as if he was wishing you would have asked him to come up anyway.

thunder roared above you.

“You should go before it starts raining” you said and he shaked his head in disagreement.

“Can I kiss you before I go?” His tone was so low.

“please” you pleaded before his plumped lips connected with yours.

His head tilted to the side to deepen the kiss and his hand went up to the back of your head.

Your lips parted allowing his tongue to make its way inside your mouth. Your hands traveled to his hair as well, earning a small growl from him, while you started to feel the cold rain drip down your back and hair.

you broke apart and smiled seeing his red tinted glasses crooked. Slowly you lifted them off his face to see his beautiful amber eyes that had a twinkle in them.

“I should probably give you this, back” you started removing the now drenched jacket but he stopped you.

“Keep it, I'll come get it tomorrow” he smiled and eagerly pressed another kiss to your lips.

“That's a promise?” you whispered against his mouth.

“It's a promise”

[awkardly-yours]

Regarding tmagp 22

First, to get it out of the way: WHAT THE FUCK???? JONATHAN SIMS AND MARTIN BLACKWOOD?????

Secondly, i feel really bad for sam! His two romantic interests are clearly manipulating him, one wants him to drop his obsession "for his own good" while the other encourages it to get what she wants.

Alice got him this job either to get help solving the mysteries (unlikely imo, as from the start she doesn't care at all and knows that not caring is what kept her alive) or to rekindle what they had. My favourite theory is the latter, being stuck in a basement during the night with your ex might help to redevelop romantic interests. She got to be in a position of power over Sam (which she enjoys) by showing him how the oiar works and by being the source of confort or guidance when things get bad (plus they work at night, thus making him tired as his circadian rythm is completely screwed and on very horrifying topics, making him more likely to search for comfort and to make irrational decisions like going back to his ex).

Alice likes being in that position, as we saw with colin, her brother and teddy. She funds her brothers band, she goes to colin's flat to make sure he's alright and she pesters teddy until he accepts to go grab a drink, which (imo) he was reluctant to do. This way of functioning is not healthy, as she seems to think the only way she can get affection is by being a "paternalist / motherly" figure in her friends life. "If i do all of that for them theyll have no choice but to like me and to do what i say"

Its toxic, even if she probably genuinely wants to help, because her "help" is tool to mold her friends in what she wants them to be. For example: she goes to the magnus institute with sam (help) and when he doesnt find what hes looking for she tries really hard to get him to drop his obsession (control).

And his second romantic interest is celia, who is not from his universe and who has a plan that needs Sam's obsession. I stopped liking her when she started to explicitely compete with Alice. I dont remember which episode it was, but Sam invites Celia to go to the theater with him. She starts the interaction clearly not interested (saying "no i dont think i dropped tickets, theyre not mine", trying to gently reject him), then Alice, having overheard the conversation, invites them to go to her brothers concert the same night. After that, Celia seems to completely change her tune and accepts Sam's offer. That way, he doesnt go to the concert (distancing him from alice) and she has the audacity to ghost him.

Let's be cristal clear: both of them were trying to manipulated the poor guy and none were in the right. Alice tries to manipulate him to drop his obsession to get him out of harm's way (and into her her arms WINK WINK). But Celia is manipulating Sam through his feelings, which imo she doesn't reciprocate, to get him to do something that will probably hurt him and help her quest (whatever it might be). She's always pretty distant towards him, except when they start talking about the institute, then her attitude changes and shes pationate and almost flirty. The fond memory Sam has of their first date is due to them talking about work for gods sake! Other than in those occasions, she seems to me pretty cold and sarcastic when Sam is being goofy to make her like him.

So yeah, the poor beholder is stuck between two spiders.

Finally, poor Gwen! The second blorbo of the show after sam. However, i dont think Lena and the oiar are the equivalent of the institute. Sure, they both have a departement reading statements, but the oiar is proactive, sorting them and deploying externals or protocols to clean what groups seem to be too close to a ritual. The institute just reads them for the Beholder and (until gertrude) never did anything to prevent the rituals. I dont think Lena is trying to make Gwen into an "archivist", she just wants her to do her job and manage externals. She doesn't encourage any curiosity, just the processing and administrative work. And Gwen doesnt seem that aligned to the Beholder anyway, she wants to be the best at her job, and her job doesnt want her to be curious.

(Also i love augustus but i miss the voice of Elias :(((( )

[siribaes]

IN OUR PAST LIVES ( Part 1 )

Dario Sepúlveda x blackfem!reader (OC — Nina Fuentes)

“During his quest to find Griselda, Dario reunites with an old friend in Miami—”

PARING: Friend/ “Former Client” to Lovers

SUGGESTED TUNES💿: Mack the Knife (cover) by Tito Puente, La Plena Bomba Me Llama by Celia Cruz & Tito Puente, Yerbero Moderno by Celia Cruz, Abayarde by Tego Calderon, Una Noche Mas by Yasmin Levy

CONTENT: 18+ MDNI, SMUT, Cursing, Some racist language/ideologies (reference to La Perra Negra & the story takes place in late 1970s so you know, not the most foward-thinking of times), the main character is a sex worker, use of the Spanish language, star-crossed lovers-esque elements, references to death, drugs, trafficking, Cartel activities, or*l (fem & alluded to male receiving), f*ngering, praise k*nk, Fluff, Dario being lowkey a soft boy, *Unedited/Not Proofread

AUTHORS NOTE: uhmmm who else has seen alberto guerra in griselda??? 👀 it’s a great show highly recommend everyone go watch! alberto being shirtless is just an added bonus, so basically this is slightly AU-ish in this fic dario travels back to miami twice (i think i can’t remember lol) before “finding” griselda—full stop bc spoilers but yeah. the OC is a former sex worker, and Afro-Colombian/Latina (faceclaim is Yaya DaCosta <3), but yeah i hope y’all enjoy :) 💖

Medellín, Colombia - Spring 1976 (The Past)

The weather was in a particularly odd flux. For most of the day, heat raged on like an unrelenting wave, the weatherman reported scorching temperatures, a whopping, almost record breaking 101 degrees. Medellin quickly became a ghost-town, people sought refuge from the unbearable temperatures. The heat trickled its way into the evening, until around 9 or so, storm clouds suddenly swirled the sky, then, boom, a torrential downpour. The rain came down in violent pelts, hitting everything and anything insight. However, as quickly as the storm came, it went. The temperatures went down, the rain aided in crispness in the air. The wind swept through the streets and neighborhoods of Medellin, with coolness and airiness that was necessary, relieving.

Relief was exactly what Nina needed.

With the scorching temperatures, it brought a particular irritation with her clientele. It was like the hotter it became, the meaner they were. One of her regulars, Mr. Moneybags (an older gentleman, who happened to be very, very, generous with his wealth.), who was severely punctual and only wanted oral. He was never rude, impatient or rough with her. Until today. He was late, storming into her room, barking orders for her get on her knees, and when Nina finally did give him what he wanted, all Mr. Moneybags could ramble on about was high rough day at the office and he needed to tame "La Perra Negra". To make matters worse, when Mr. Moneybags orgasmed, he cummed on her shirt (a brand-new halter top, made of fine silk and in the prettiest shade of coral, it wasn't cheap, it cost her 78 pesos.) and in her hair (pillowy-soft coils as someone told her once). That was a complete, no, no.

Mr. Moneybags was the first of her clients to receive a verbal lashing, but he wasn't the last. As the hours rolled by, each man arriving acting more brutish and egregious than the last. Nina handed out her lashings with ease, all for her to be met with the same insult, fuck you, Perra Negra. The heat only fueled her rage, so much that the one customer, who had some semblance of decorum, went soft in her mouth. He quickly scurried out, offering a sympathetic smile, and promised that he'll come back next week, when she felt better.

So, when the storm came, Nina was more than relieved. She got some reprieve from her finnicky clients, even though her room was tucked away on the further corner of the brothel, the rain seemed to drown out the noise from the other end of the compound. She was able to soak her stresses away in her tub, light a candle or two, slip on her favorite mini-silk robe, and actually rest. The raindrops served as a lullaby from Nina as she drifted off to sleep.

Now, at 2 AM, Nina sat in a chair on her small balcony. She people-watched from her small corner, relishing in the cool breeze the generously fanned over her skin. She more than deserved this peace and stillness after the shit she had to deal with. After a while, Nina became engrossed in this older couple blocks away, were dancing in the middle of the street. She was so enraptured with the couple she didn't even hear the door creep open.

A familiar scent drifted through the air, a blend of cinnamon, tobacco, cardamom, and strangely mint. Nina couldn't help the smile the curled onto to her lips, as heavy footsteps inched closer and closer.

"You left the door open,"

Nina smirked. "What if I left it open for you,"

"Hm. That's unlike you,"

Nina turned around meeting those soft, russet-colored eyes, she cared to enjoy so much. She playfully batted her eye lashes.

"Oh, Dario, you mustn't forget, you are my favorite customer," Nina purred. She rose from her seated position, and unabashedly took in Dario's appearance.

He was meticulously dressed, he wore neatly ironed, black slacks with a coordinating black dress shirt. A few buttons were undone, revealing a sliver of warm-tawny skin, and the ink-colored edges of a tattoo. Nina wondered sometimes what the fully tattoo would look like, or better, would she ever get to see it.

From the first night they met, Nina gathered that Dario was someone who took pride in their appearance. He was never sloppy, not a flick of dirt or dust sullied his clothes or shoes. Thick, brown tresses were combed and quaffed with care, while he maintained neatly trimmed facial hair. Even the way Dario carried himself was equally irresistible, he possessed a poise and calmness that was developed, cultivated, even. He was careful with his words, never speaking out of turn or without thought. He charmed his way into people's hearts, both old and young alike.

Dario was a true debonair. It was the perfect distraction from what he truly was, a hit man. El Sicario.

"You look thirsty," Nina strutted past Dario to the small bar along the wall inside, "Would you like a drink?"

''Not tonight,"

Nina tsked, "Where's the fun in that? You can't just humor me, I've had a terrible day and--"

"Enough Nina," She paused to looked over her shoulder at him. His brows were furrowed, as looked intensely at Nina. After a beat, Nina turned a back around, pouring some tequila in a glass. She turned back around, gesturing for Dario to speak. "I'm looking for someone," Dario pulled a photo out of his front pocket.

"Aren't you always," Nina sassed. She couldn't help it, she was enjoying seeing Dario a bit peeved, it was so refreshing to see, even Dario, el sicario himself, could be annoyed.

He shows her the photo, "Vincent Fernandez, you know him?"

Nina scans the picture, taking in the face of the man.

"Yes and no," Dario's eyebrow quirks, "His real name is Vincent, but nobody calls him that. He goes by Chuy,"

"Okay...Chuy, have you seen him?"

"Yeah, a few weeks ago. He was coming out of Carmen's room...now that I think about it, she was leaving with him. She carried a suitcase too. Haven't seen her since,"

Immediately, Dario balled up the picture, flinging at the wall. He began to pace and back forth, his left handed raked through his hair, messing up that of that beautiful handiwork.

Something thrummed inside of Nina as she watched Dario slowly lose composure. Dario’s beautiful features were twisted with frustration, his jaw was clenched, and eyes were blazed. He stopped pacing and stood next to a small coffee table with vase that sat on top. With hesitation, Dario snatched the vase and launched it at the wall. Ceramic shards exploded on impact, pieces flew everywhere in the process.

"FUCK!"

"What the hell is your problem!?" Nina rushed over, she brushed past him, and picked up a broken piece of the vase, "Fuckin' pendejo, this was a gift from a friend," She was seething, gearing up to cuss him out to fullest extent but she paused. On one of the broken pieces with a red speck. Nina's eyes drifted towards the floor, seeing a trail of red spots, the spots grew larger and larger, until there was a small pool of blood underneath Dario's hand. "...You're bleeding,"

"What?" Dario one step but Nina quickly stopped him.

"Stop! Stop, it's getting all on the floor. Go to the bathroom and rinse the cut. When your done there's a first aid kit and a bottle of peroxide in cabinet, grab it, and sit on the couch," Dario just stood there a bit lost in his eyes, "Vete! Go, now!"

Dario disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Nina in the mess he created.

---

"This is going to sting so keep still," The two sat next to each other on the couch. In one hand, Nina gently cradled Dario's hand, his wounded palm facing up. The other hand held a cotton ball soaked in Hydrogen peroxide. She slowly inched the ball towards the cut, when it the skin, Dario instantly hissed, moving his hand slightly. Nina pressed again, trying to be a bit softer than before, but Dario jerked his hand away again. Nina swatted at his stomach. "Ay! Stop moving,"

Dario finally complied, relaxing against her touch, letting her clean the cut. A quietness fell over them as Nina worked in a comfortable rhythm of wiping and dabbing.

"I'll make sure to pay for the vase," Nina stopped, looking up at Dario. There was a sincerity in his eyes, and something else...embarrassment maybe? "The least I could do, since you put up with shit all the time..."

Nina bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from smiling, at Dario's gesture. She said nothing in return, but instead sat the used cotton balls to the side and reached for the roll of bandages. Nina couldn't make heads or tails of how she felt about Dario right. One part of her was agitated with him with how he broke her vase and how edgy he was being towards her all of the sudden. The other part of her was attracted to Dario, something about him losing control like that revved her engine. For once he wasn't so controlled and calculated, he was human, flaws and all.

"I know I'm not supposed to ask, but, why are you looking for Chuy?" Nina asked, slowly wrapped the bandages around Dario's hand.

To Nina's surprise, he answered. "He took something that didn't belong to him,"

"...Oh. Oh," Nina nodded realizing what Dario what he meant. Chuy had to have stolen a kilo or two of coke from them. Everyone in Medellin knew stealing from the Bravo family was a guaranteed death sentence. "Shit, I should've known..."

Dario shook his head. "It's not on you. The sneaky bastard managed to fool all of us, especially me,"

Nina chuckled nervously as she tucked the last strip of the bandage underneath a bottom layer.

"All finished," She slowly let go of Dario's hand to gather and put back her supplies, "I would give it a day before checking the cut to see if its healing. Just try to keep it your hands clean the best you can,"

Dario nodded. "Thank you,"

Nina smiled gently at him. She could feel his eyes on her as she bounced around and out of the room disposing of the trash and putting her supplies back. When she came back into the room, she found Dario relaxed against the couch looking outside. She followed his gaze up to the night sky. The normal starry, ink-colored sky was now filled with stormy clouds.

"It's going to rain again," Nina murmured, she returned to her spot next to Dario.

"How'd you figure?"

Nina pointed to the sky. "The clouds. Plus, the air is getting thick...y'know humidity,"

Dario laughed, flashing those gorgeous pearly whites, making Nina's heart skip a beat. He quickly quieted as a look of curiosity filled his expression.

"Where'd you learn to do that kind of stuff...like patch people up?"

"I guess I got tired of getting rug burns and bruises on my knees from giving head so much. It's bad for business,"

"That's fucked up,"

Nina shrugged. "It's a part of the job. I have to be perfect and presentable at all times. It's what sells the fantasy. So, I had to become my own doctor, learn how to patch myself up. I also learned, that if I was on my knees for too long, all the time, I wasn't doing my job correctly.

Dario tipped his head, scratching at his goatee, "Where the guys always that rough with you?"

"Someone is mighty curious tonight," Nina teased. She twirled a coil round her pointer finger, "but, to answer your question, no. Some tried to, but I was always on guard. I had to be, I'm the only black girl here...La Perra Negra. Before my regulars, most of the guys thought because I’m black, a morenita, that's I wanted. It took some threats and me pulling out my switch blade a couple of times, but they got the picture. Sometimes I feel bad for them...they’re so caught up in fucking me as a conquest, and not for their own pleasure. Typical men,"

Dario's brow quirked. "Typical?"

"You know what I mean. Most men when they have sex are either caught up in some ego thing, or only focus on pleasuring themselves they don't bother in pleasuring their partners, especially if the partner is a woman,"

"I suppose you're right,"

"You suppose? Do you feel the opposite?”

"Not entirely. You do have a point…I guess I’m not most men. I like pleasuring my woman,” Dario rasped. His pink tongue swiped at his bottom lip before continuing, “It turns me on to see her lose..composure ‘cause I’m fuckin’ her so good. I dunno it just gets me there. I could never get hard or cum without doing so,”

From the tops of Nina's ears all the way to the bottoms of her manicured toes, she ran hot. Her mind raced with flashes of images of her and Dario in the nastiest of scenarios. If she wasn't sure about being attracted to Dario, this solidified it. Despite her growing need to literally lunge herself at him, she pulled back. She needed to make him sweat.

"I guess there's some room for exceptions," Nina hummed, she readjusted herself, re-crossing her legs, make sure to give him a quick flash of her lacy panties. She secretly thanked her Orishas, when she saw Dario's eyes wander to her thighs.

"I had customer the other day," Nina continued, "Sweet guy, couldn't fuck to save his life, so I suggested get on top. I thought riding him would be better, but it wasn't. So, in a last-ditch effort, I closed my eyes and imagined it someone else..."

"Who did you imagine?"

"...You. I imagined you underneath me, fucking me. I fantasized about those beautiful brown eyes staring up at me. How it would feel to have your hands on me...all the things those hands could do. Like would you pull my hair, or grip my hips so hard that I would have bruises? Or, would you smack my ass while you stroked, deep inside me...even better would you hold my hands behind my back, while you played with my clit? Then, like magic, I came...I don't think I've cum so hard in my life—”

He cut her off with kiss. It was gentle and sweet. As Dario moved his lips, he gingerly swept his tongue against Nina’s lips savoring her taste. He snaked his arms around Nina’s waist, drawing her closer to him. A small whimper escaped Nina as Dario’s hands roamed her body. She felt her body hum with need as he rubbed and squeezed at her flesh. A smarting slap from Dario caused Nina to mewl breaking the kiss.

“Fuck! Dario,” Nina whined. She leaned her forehead against Dario’s. She pulled back to see Dario’s face fully, her heart rattled against her chest as she ran her fingers through his hair.

“Mi hermosa mariposa," Dario murmured, hands drifted up and down the sides of Nina's torso. She felt a wetness begin to pool beneath her, the more Dario caressed her.

“I want you,”

Dario smiled softly. “Yeah?”

“Mhm,” Nina nodded her hands reaching for Dario’s belt buckle, but he stopped her.

“It’s not about me tonight,” he hoisted her up, wrapping her legs around him as he carried Nina to bed. Dario dropped her softly down the plush sheets. “It’s all about you,”

Nina could tell from the serious yet lustful glint in his eyes that Dario meant every word he said. She sat up on her elbows watching as Dario’s nimble fingers undid the belt of her robe. He pushed the fabric, revealing nothing but soft curves, rich brown skin and lacy fabric. With his pointer finger, Dario traced Nina's collar bone, dragging it down her navel, leaving a trail of goosebumps the further down he went. Nina's breath hitched in her throat as Dario's thumbs rubbed soft circles on the skin above the waistband of her panties.

"I like the way your eyes light up when I touch you, solecita,"

"Please, Dario. Enough games,"

Dario chuckled. He held her hips in place, sinking down to his knees.

"Patience," Dario held his gaze as he inched his head closer to Nina's clothed pussy. The two moaned in unison when Dario licked a stripe at Nina's clothed entrance. He continued on licking, probing, and mouthing her pussy. Moans fell helplessly from Nina's lips as she felt the lacy fabric rub against her clit. Dario relentlessly moved his tongue, spurring Nina on, she felt slick dripping downwards on her thighs.

"More. I need more, baby, please,"

It was like switch went off in Dario. He stopped all movement, as he just stared at Nina. Long eyelashes fluttered as he slowly blinked.

"Baby...say that again," he murmured.

"Baby," Nina cooed. She sat up, reaching for Dario, she cupped his cheek. He nuzzled her cheek, placing a kiss on her palm.

Then like a flash, Dario ripped Nina's panties a part. He skillfully gathered the torn shreds and flung them away. He dove straight for Nina's pussy. Despite his meticulous nature, when it came to pleasure Dario was sloppy. There was no spot or area left unattended. His tongue alternating between swirling and lapping Nina's clit. Dario's pace was so unrelenting, it sent Nina's body into throws of pleasure. Just when she felt the familiar coil in her belly, Dario pulled back, only to blow cooly onto her drenched pussy.

"B-baby, fuck!" Nina yelped aloud, her hands found themselves back into Dario's hair, as he returned back to her core.

He placed a wet kiss, creating a lewd smacking noise that echoed into the air. Dario dove back in, plunging his expertly skilled tongue into her entrance, fucking her. Nina felt like her entire body was on fire, completely blazed with pleasure as Dario relentlessly fucked her pussy. Her mind swirled feeling the familiar coil in her stomach become tighter and tighter.

"I-I'm gonna cum. Oooh shit," Nina panted. She pulled tighter at Dario's hair. "I'm c-cuming, fuckkkk!"

The coil snapped. Nina shakily thrusted her hips towards Dario's mouth, riding out her orgasm. Dario stayed still softly lapping up her cum, he did keep gentle hand on Nina's waist to steady her.

"Mhmmm, so good to me, baby, s'good," Nina loosen her grip on Dario's tresses, letting her arms fall back onto the bed.

Dario hummed appreciatively before pressing soft kisses on Nina's inner thighs. Her fluttered when she saw the slick sheen of her nectar glistening in Dario's mustache and goatee.

"You like when I'm good to you?" Nina could feel his grip on her thighs get tighter as he spoke. When Nina nodded instead replying, Dario slapped her thigh. "Words, Nina, I wanna hear you,"

"Yes!"

"Good. You gonna be good for me this time?" Nina hissed when two of Dario's fingers found her clit, rubbing taut circles.

"Yessss, I'll be good for you, baby!"

He quickly switched his technique, he plunged his fingers into her wetness. Nina whined at the squelching and lewd noises that her pussy made as Dario stroked in and out of her. Dario bent down and gave Nina searing hot kiss, he wedged his tongue inside of Nina's mouth, allowing her to taste herself.

"Please don't stop,"

"I won't mi amor, I can feel you...you close?"

"So close, baby, please,"

Dario slowed his pace down, giving Nina slower strokes, but drove deeper, and deeper every time. Her walls fluttered around his fingers when they met her oh so sweet spot. Nina's orgasm came swiftly as a fast-moving freight train. Her mind went blank, as she screamed out in pleasure. Nina's legs jerked and spasmed as her nectar flowed out in endless droves. Dario slowly slipped his fingers out, kissing the side of Nina's face as she reveled in the planes of ecstasy.

The two fell back into the bed. Nina snuggled up close to Dario's side, her fingers still tingly, traced the ink of his half-covered up tattoo. She looked out to the balcony. It was raining.

"I think we knew each other in our past lives..." Dario trailed, he kept his eyes towards the ceiling as spoke.

"As what? Enemies?" Nina teased.

"No," He sighed deeply, turning to meet her eyes. His face was open, vulnerable, Nina felt her heart flutter. "We were...something to each other, I know it..."

For the second time this night a quietness fell over them. They stared wordlessly at one another, as the raindrops lightly pelted outside. Nina didn't know what to make of Dario's sudden confession, or revelation. She did know that the way he looked at her in this moment, made her feel all mushy and gooey inside. Nina leaned in capturing Dario's lips into a passionate kiss.

"You know what I know," Nina purred parting from Dario's lips. She straddled him, reaching for his belt buckle, this time Dario didn't stop her. "Reciprocity...Can I have some more, baby?"

"Yes. Mi amor, in every lifetime."

[annabelle--cane]

How long is the tmagp hiatus going to last, do you know? Also, what did you think of the latest episode?

afaik the hiatus between episodes 20 and 21 will be four weeks and there's meant to be some bonus content during it? that's just based on recollection, though, so I could very well be wrong, and I have no idea how long the hiatus between s1 and s2 will be.

I very much enjoyed the latest episode! I'd been waiting for the alchemy aspects to become directly relevant, and we now seem to have at least 70% of the answer as to what "the magnus protocol" actually is. sam and alice's conversation also interests me, because at this point I think the fact that the computers are listening and responding to them should be quite obvious; celia and gwen both seem to have quietly figured it out a few weeks ago. sam, despite his "investigate first, do self-preservation later" attitude, has been kind of avoiding letting himself realize this since magp 09, and alice has been at this job for a decade and straight up rejects the idea outright. to be fair to her, I think the closest we've seen the computers respond to her was when they showed her a video of someone dying after she watched someone die a few days earlier, and that's not as undeniable as the cases the other three have gotten, but still. hmm.

[autismprotocol]

TMAGP Theory Board (S1 Episode 6)

Hey sorry for the slight delay in posting the weekly theory board because some new characters were added and I ended up drawing character cards for all of them (they will also be included below)

Anyways heres this weeks theory board update

What happened in Episode 6: Introductions?

This week's incident report was wild! I'm guessing we've met our first Protocol Avatar you guys and they are amazing!! I believe that Needles is one of the first emerging avatars in this world and an avatar of the flesh (that could also explain why the flesh has been so prevalent so far in the story maybe because it was able to influence someone into becoming an avatar first and therefore will get a head start in manifesting into the universe.) going off of that I find it super interesting how when Needles calls the emergency operator they don't appear afraid of them this could be just be this specific person is not afraid of needles like he said, but I think it would be cool if that operator is meant to show how this world is new to the powers, so the sense of fear of them has not had a chance to build yet

Ok lets talk about Celia First of all I love her and I really hope nothing terrible happens to her but I'm more interested in the fact she is not new to the TMAG canon. back in The Magnus Archives, Celia was originally a statement giver named Lynne Hammond but she is later introduced back in as one of Georgie and Melanies cult members. after the change Lynne lost her memories and began going by Celia because she couldn't remember her name both Archives Celia and Protocol Celia share the same voice actor (me and my roommate have been checking every new voice to see if they have any connection to the Archives universe after the Chester and Norris having Jon and Martin's voices happened) I started thinking maybe this is just this universe's Celia and not Celia being transported along with Martin and Jon. But if that was the case she would be going by the name Lynne not Celia ( because the change never happened so her memories stayed intact) Nope this is without a doubt Celia from the Archive Universe. This begs the question why is she at the OIAR? she seemed to be a normal citizen not associated with the ceaseless watcher was there something more to Lynne's original statement? I'm guessing she didn't just happen upon the OIAR by accident Her connections to TMA are to strong maybe she's looking for Jon and Martin who she knows would be the most likely to be transported to somewhere else with her. what will be her reaction to hearing Chester and Norris then?! Theres so many questions with this character and I cant wait to find out more about her

Also lastly this was not related to the events of this weeks episode but I updated the Augustus(Jonah) character card and instead of having a silhouette I made a crusty looking Jonah Magnus illustration hope you guy like it as much as I do (even though it is of the crustiest stinkiest man)

Anyway I hope you guys enjoyed this update and thank you for reading all the way through my hyper-fixated rants about these silly lil goobers. Reminder the ask box is open 24/7 if you have any thoughts to share about any tma/tmagp related topics. Hope you guys have a amazing week and I'll see you guys next Thursday.

-Echo

[booksiboo]

CAUGHT UP ON PROTOCOL (Started around a week ago as its summer for me rn-)

First of all. I love all of these characters. They are all so human. Bar Lena. I hate Lena. She scares me. But the Voice Acting? PHENOMENAL. Genuinely brilliant. I love how each of the characters react to stuff-

Now. Onto my questions/comments.

ALICE IS A VIBE I LOVE HER. SHE IS TIM 2.0

Aww Sam I feel so bad for you rn-

WHY IS CELIA HERE? WHEN DID SHE SHOW UP? GO HOME CELIA.

Awww Georgie is now S2 Jon- ALSO YESS GEORGIE YOU ARE OK.

WHY IS JON DEAD? STOP IT. CEASE BEING DEAD.

WHY DOES CELIA KNOW WHO THESE PEOPLE ARE? CELIA. CELIA NO.

Sam being fully ok with the idea that the government killed a bunch of random people yet somehow completely opposed to the idea that, despite working in the 'THIS IS REALLY WEIRD' department, supernatural stuff is real-

Wait.. Jon, Martin and some guy are the computers? Huh? WHY. THEY SOUND SO HUMAN CAN THEY NOT DO THAT. MY THEORIST BRAIN ONLY HAS ENOUGH SPACE FOR CELIA BEING A DIMENSION TRAVELLER.

And now... The game of... is it a family emergency or is Celia a demon?

COLIN WHAT THE HELL? WHY?

WHY IS THE BABY A DEMON HELLO? Also why is Celia so involved in these stories and WHY DOES THE DEMON BABY LIKE HER?

Why are all bosses in the Magnus Universe Evil?

Also good for Basira being a teacher I'M SO HAPPY YOU ARE OK. BUT ALSO WHY DO YOU STILL HATE EVERYONE?

Magnussing- I CANT-

HELEN. HELEN IS OK. Well she is a Tory so she isn't ok but still SHE'S ALIVE. Misstortion (Miss + Distortion.. Get it? Get it? I need sleep dear gods-)

THE BABY IS A TORY-

Trevor Herbert is WHAT? Trevor Herbert, Homeless man who murders people, IS A WHAT?

(I morally refuse to state what he is even though it makes sense-)

Gwen.. Gwen stop.. AM I GOING TO HAVE TO FIND MY METAPHORICAL JON LEASH AGAIN. WHY CAN NO ONE HERE COMMUNICATE UNLESS THEY ARE ACTIVELY DYING?

Great writing though, thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. Sam and Celia are very sweet, very wholesome, very not going to end in tragedy (please. Please I just want some people to LIVE HAPPILY FOR ONCE)

THE VAs ARE BRILLIANT THOUGH. THE EDITING? AMAZING. THE SOUNDSCAPING? *CHEFS KISS* PERFECT. Good job people!

[vwritesaus]

It is no secret to anyone who knows him that Alastair Carstairs is an exceptional cook. Armed with the knowledge passed down from his mother and Risa, he felt it was his duty to keep the Persian traditions alive in their family, and the only way he felt comfortable doing it was through cooking. It was his escape when the piano keys felt slimy and sticky under his fingertips, and when his thumb and index fingers slowly became more and more smudged with ink stains from the mundane newspapers. Cordelia was the taste tester every time, no matter how burnt or salty or under seasoned his food was. He could trust her to give him an honest critique—and she always did, without preamble.       ‘Dadash, did you empty the entire Dead Sea into this? My tongue is burning.’       ‘Oh, this is better than last time! Just needs more chilli, it’s a bit on the mild side.’       ‘Alastair, this is extremely chewy. It’s meant to be softer, no?’       Though he would roll his eyes and pretend to be offended by every one of his sister’s comments, Alastair was glad for it all. It was their little pocket of solidarity in an otherwise distant relationship. Alastair’s own doing, of course, but he felt it necessary at the time.       He was four years old when he first showed an interest, according to Sona. By eleven, Alastair was comfortable enough to cook a couple of simple dishes without any help. By fifteen, he was a self-proclaimed master. Yes, he made mistakes sometimes—as all good cooks do—but he knew his way around a kitchen, just as Cordelia knew her way around Cortana. Naturally it was something he kept to himself: if he had disclosed to any of the boys who bullied him at the Shadowhunter Academy that he, a male, loved and knew how to cook, and was taught how to by the women in his life, it would have given them yet another few reasons to belittle and assault him.       Being his father’s son and a boy with darker skin was already too many reasons. So Alastair kept his passion quiet, known only to his mother, his sister, and Risa. He’s sure Elias never knew, for if he had, Alastair is certain he would have put a stop to it somehow. All it took was one remark to have Alastair give up and push it down. His love for piano and singing, for instance.       But Alastair and Cordelia made it a regular occurrence to take over the kitchen and get under Risa’s feet, in her words. He cherishes those memories, where flour would coat the front of his waistcoat and parts of Cordelia’s hair, and the fragrant aroma of cinnamon, cardamom and clove would fill the entire room alongside their laughter. They were just some of the good things he held onto whilst at the Academy.       But the Academy days are no more, and Elias’s domineering presence has fizzled out through fire and ash. Alastair is free to do whatever he wants to do and be whoever he wants to be, and cooking is only a part of it.

continue reading on ao3

~

well well, it has been a long time, hasn't it??

but here i am, back for good hopefully!! and with a wee fic i wrote for my bestest girl @drunkonimagination for her birthday back in july ✨ it's based on one of our first interactions together before we hit the dms and the hill i will die on that is alastair carstairs is great at cooking but a terrible baker. only just got around it posting it jkahdjasd. hope you all enjoy it, and i'll be back with some more fics soon!!

also pls ignore the title, it's the best thing i could come up with :')

~

tagging people who might be interested: @edwinspaynes @purplebass @angeldaisies @faithfromanewperspective @tessherongraystairs @celias

let me know if you’d like to be added to or removed from the tag list!!

[anthroposeen]

tmagp 22 relisten notes

tmagp 22 spoilers below the cut! proceed with caution! this is a longer one!

scene:

this is a continuation of the night of episode 20 and 21, judged by gwen and lena's conversation and sam's confrontation of alice

celia:

- she repeatedly throws hooks at sam to get him more interested in the magnus institute, the opposite of alice's approach to this. rather than encouraging ignorance, celia pushes sam towards curiosity.

- "i might have come across some important names ... jonathan sims and martin blackwood." girl you literally met them! aside from the obvious implications (that celia is from the TMA universe and is referring to the people she met in that dimension) she could also be referring to the tmagp-verse jon and martin. so far, we dont know anything about them, so they coukd have been involved with the institute (though this may be unlikely, considering their ages would be different to that of tma)

sam:

- he noticed that someone edited his caseload, and confronts alice about it

- "youre trying to control me, again" -> interesting because it gives us insight to their past relationship, and why they might have broken up

- "im done trying to placate a jealous ex" sam seems to be interpreting alice's actions as purely made out of controlling and jealousy. from his perspective, she cant get over him, and has been disrupting his work to regain a place in his life.

- sam is a person whos been heavily controlled in his past, we know that his parents shaped his education and career paths and we can infer that his relationship w alice ended poorly bc of her controlling behaviors. it makes sense that hes not willing to sacrifice freedom once he has it

- "im in. all the way.", this is the first time since the series started that sam has thrown himself fully into this investigation. every other time he was confronted with it, he would claim to be moving on or uninterested. but now, hes accepting that hes involved with it.

alice:

- she admits to sam that she edited his caseload, and that she believes the computer is intentionally giving him cases related to the magnus institute

- she says that shes stuck around the OIAR because its easy money if you can ignore the bad qualities, and she enjoys having the seniority. shes been the only steady employee for a long time, and has the most experience, so she has a place of value in this job and she enjoys that trust and authority. she thought that by training sam, she could teach him how to ignore the creepy stuff like her, and she would be less alone

- she also comes off as upset that sam is choosing to continue his investigation with celia, both ignoring alice's advice and choosing celia over her

lena:

- she appears upset that gwen ran away from both ink5oul and [error]. she refers to [error] as "the watching figure", but thats based on gwen's description of the entity. i dont think lena actually knows about the entity (after all, its very new to the scene), she was just using gwen's description as its title for now

- "you didnt get any contact details from them?" this referring to [error], not ink5oul, further showing that lena isn't familiar with them

- gwen's behavior has convinced lena that she cant be trusted to interact with the externals and keep the situation calm. so far, she's been prone to instigating more conflict with them and has now actually harmed a civilian in the process (the man that ink5oul ripped apart).

- she claims that she doesnt want gwen to die, but her death would be simpler to manage than a dead bystander and 2 "uncontrolled" externals. here, she refers to both ink5oul and [error] as externals, despite them not working for the OIAR. this might be the tmagp-verse equivalent of avatars. she also puts emphasis on them being uncontrolled, implying that under the management of the OIAR, externals exhibit different behaviors, or are less likely to be disruptive. (im betting that externals without management are more likely to tip the balance of things)

- she doesnt seem concerned about gwen's blackmail, so either gwen doesnt have that evidence anymore, or lena doesnt think that gwen will go through with her threat

- she removes gwen from her duties as externals liaison, but allows her to still have the title, but also offere her the opportunity to quit. this is the first time quitting is brought up in this episode, still under the guise that it is possible, yet gwen denies the offer.

- references a "ministerial visit", so we'll finally be meeting lena's boss, potentially the man who colin would mention (the man who wants the OIAR to have a functional app, and colin suspects him of also supervising them)

- lena is married! (to me)

gwen:

- "i see what you're doing. you wont get rid of me that easily." she seems dead set on holding on to this position despite hating it and continuously complaining about it. i dont think she cares about the work that they do, shes moreso focused on climbing the ranks to earn respect, and not having respect from the externals or lena is deeply upsetting her

- instead of fighting harder to keep her role, gwen accepts her demotion (though she seems upset about it) and goes so far as to almost be polite to lena, "of course, mrs. kelley" after this interaction it feels like gwen might be intimidated by lena

incident:

narrated by augustus at sam's terminal

- letter from dr. berger detailing the results and descriptions of his recent experiments with the human mind and consciousness

- he was experimenting on a man with a skull deformity, which allowed him to measure pressure, cognition, and electricity shifts within the brain. he was inserting wires directly into the man's skull to take measurements

- after feedback from a fellow dr, he switched to using silver wires in the subject's skull. he measured the electrical output of the subject and received encouraging results.

- dr. berger read on the concept of the hemispherical bridge and the center of self, a collection of fibres near the middle of the grain, which can separate the left and right sphere and create differing consciousness within one body

- he inserted the silver wires directly into the subject's brain, positioned to find the hemispherical bridge.

- the subject was asked questions about himself, such as who he was and what he wants. this disrupted the normal electrical readings, though the subject seemed undisturbed.

- dr. berger experiences a dream where below him is a deep ocean full of "dark secrets", where above him flew radio signals that were "unknowable". he laments that these two things will never meet, emphasizing a separation and balance in their natures

- the dr created a new device to read the electrical signals from the subject's brain, which resulted in the telegraph mechanism clicking. each time he asked a question, the clicking would increase, though his verbal answers didn't change.

- while he was playing with the telegraph waiting for the rest of the equipment to be set up, he started asking the questions again. this time, there was a pause of silence before the clicking began again. the clicking responses increased in intensity

- his wife and assistant, ursula, dropped equipment and looked scared, asking if he could hear 'the sound'

- after this, the subject began to seize and scream in agony as the telegraph increased in intensity. the moment the subject died, the telegraph stopped

- upon reviewing the tapes and records of his experiment, discovering the ominous answers of the subjects split consciousness

- upon asking what the subject wants, it says "help, need, help out, we out" and as this response continues, augustus's narration rises in intensity.

glitches/lies:

- "its probably the horrendous porn you've been downloading." - alice, lying to sam about why his computer must be messed up

- "i can look after myself." -sam

extra comments:

- the biggest takeaway from this episode for me, is that jmj are likely conscious inside of the computer system, and are experiencing this consciousness in a disjointed and painful way. they seem to be speaking to the OIAR employees and audience with the answers to dr. berger's questions, pleading to be helped and let out.

- this statement also goes to support a small theory im working on, that most of the incidents we've heard pertain to balance and separation of self. excepting the incidents that resemble tma statements or provide character information, many of the cases we've heard revolve around forces finding balance or there being a separation of forces at play. i think this will tie in to the grand ritual that the magnus institute attempted, and how the ties to alchemy will be expressed, since finding balance seems to be the center of many operations within the tmagp universe.

- i fear that im biased, since ive kinda disliked celia from the beginning (and i do mean the very beginning, i never liked lynne hammond) but i feel like she's intentionally dragging sam into the investigation without considering if thats beneficial for him. and i dont trust her motives. i dont think this makes her evil or an unsympathetic character- shes been put into a very complicated situation where there likely isnt a simple good solution. but i dont trust her to be involving sam for any 'good' reasons, especially since we know shes hiding information from both him and the audience (im not referring to her being from a differebt universe, i mean that she knows more about the institute and alchemy than shes letting on).

- i think that the ministerial visit that lena references will be the major event in the season finale. it would make sense for there to be an incident during the visit that results in some sort of conflict (im betting that it will involve either colin interfering with the computers, an external that has poor relations with the OIAR (ink5oul, [error]), or gwen's blackmail coming to fruition)

- i also think that we may see/meet tmagp-verse jon and martin before the season ends (assuming they're alive), this would normally feel rushed, but this series has been decently fast paced in terms of revealing leads, so we may be getting a tease for that

[tindove]

Okay I have thoughts about our lovely (kinda) new addition of Lady Mowbray.

I actually quite like Lady Mowbray and how, though clearly some variation of The Hunt, she deviates from what we know about it. Which of course has been what is generally happening with most of these aligned cases. Or how we align then automatically, anyway. I think there are some fun differences in her function in causing a chase instead of being apart of it.

She is less about instinct and survival, like what we have come to commonly associate with The Hunt, and more about exerting control and compelling people to fulfill her own will. One way or another. Her wants just happen to be power over others—more so than she already has as an aristocratic of some kind. It does sort of make me wonder if the sense of control came first, and the ability to “compel” people, or the desire to contribute to a hunt. And you know, eat people, I guess.

I think it is notable that she has dogs. A whole pack of them. She commands them. A pack of predators. And does not count herself among them. Holding them on a tight leash without disobedience, as she does with people. That itself is just another show of her influence and I would say her domestication of The Hunt.

At least to me that is what this feels like, domestication.

Also another one. I know this is from the caterers point of view, but I think it is notable that she is described as seeing people as “assets” or “resistance” so there is still that sense of dehumanization but on a more technical…calculated level. It’s not predator and prey. Either people elevate her or they don’t. She turns other people into predators and prey. Again, this is entertainment, like the chase is meant to be—but less involved because she has literally seems to have but a leash on The Hunt, more or less.

She is control incarnate I suppose? This blooming authority. Also like that we called this “her domain” always fun to have that terminology return :)

I also think the framing of her being akin to a Roman statue is basically just calling her god like? Something larger than life anyway, superior, and perhaps not of this time…not of this world maybe? Her and Celia seemed…weirdly knowing. Celia especially. Though that might be Celia being able to identify that she is an avatar of something and knowing what that means for people. And just having listened to a case about her. But I don’t know, it seemed more personal. And Lady Mowbray certainly seemed to take a liking so???

But yeah she has tangible (wealth) and physical (beauty and a viable weapon) influence. Therefore she commands people to listen. To silence. To kill. And then she ends the cycle because she can. And again. It is something simple, a gun, clean and cold.

I mean our caterer literally calls her a matriarch so. Again. Matriarch of the hunt I would say, or what is left of it. In this new world lol.

I also just like “Most Dangerous Game” type archetypes so. I just think she is neat. It isn’t exactly the same, because again she isn’t really doing the chase herself, I think she enjoys watching it happen to others more. She just has to kill the survivors to keep the game going. Wouldn’t be any fun if people knew what to expect after all?

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 24 Thoughts: Teething Problems

Back to back guest writers. This time it's Alex C. Telander from both Ostium, and Circé. Which are, again, shows I have not yet listened to and so can't comment upon. A Norris episode too, sort of, been a very long time since we've had one of those. A really good episode though, if one thin on the ground for the sort of content I write about.

Spoilers for episode 24 below the cut.

Gwen and Lena's interaction wasn't exactly how I was imagining Gwen getting back in the good books going. I do wonder if this is going to be a marked shift in Gwen's characterisation going forward or if it's more of a one-off thing. Another mention of the minister does make me hope we'll meet them soon. I've seen a lot of people expecting this to be Elias but I'd rather it be a new character. Well, that Elias would be new but you understand my point. If it's anyone we've previously "met" I'm expecting it to be Peter Lukas more than Elias.

For the incident proper this is another that doesn't have an awful lot to dig into. I did really enjoy it but when its so explicit and straight forward I don't think there is a lot of value in me just stating what happened in it. The only interesting element of the incident to discuss would've been whether any of this was in her head but the heading does give that away. Other than that it's just the mention of Celia. That's only really interesting for two reasons. Firstly that no one mentioned it after the fact which you'd expect to happen but we also don't get an indication of who listened to this one. Secondly is that Rupert really seemed to like her. With a lot of this incident seemingly being a delusion I'm not actually sure there is much to talk about there either. There really might not be a whole lot wrong with Rupert here and so there isn't any reason to think that this is some sort of sign of anything. So, yeah, not much to say on that one but it was a well written and well performed episode. I really enjoyed it.

The post-incident stuff doesn't have a load to dig into either. The interaction with Sam, Celia, and Alice feels pretty explicit without a lot of subtext or ground for theory crafting. Celia continues to manipulate the whole staff, and Sam and Alice continue to butt heads about the sort of stuff that likely made them break up. Very little to say on Basira showing up either. I'm not really sure why she was in this episode. This one just felt like fan service to me in its current context. Which isn't bad exactly but it's not something that personally excites me.

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Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet and Terminology Sheet

DPHW Theory: 1375 seems about right here.

CAT# Theory: Yeah, 1s are 1s. I'll do something with this once I'm not dying so much.

R# Theory: BC seems about inline with this. It seems a lot more in her head than it is in reality but there is also video evidence of it.

Header talk: Baby (demonic) -/- Delusion (Exhaustion) having this in "Delusion" is interesting in that it's fairly explicitly a statement that not everything she's experiencing is the truth. Given the reactions others in this episode it does sort of seem like very very little of it was.

[martington0x0]

ok WAIT TMAGP THEORY TIME

:0)

Ok so I know that the universe that tmagp takes place in is generally considered to not be the same universe that tma takes place in, but have we considered that there’s a possibility that all the characters from the tma universe that were unaffected/saved from the eyepocalypse are the same?

what if after martin stabs jon and all the fears are sucked through hilltop road all the surviving characters are brought there witj them? this would follow the current pattern:

-Jon, Martin and Jonah are (presumably due to beholding shenadigans) stuck inside the computer

- Celia who is 100% from the tma universe is working with

- Georgie (who, for lack of information, I am unsure if she IS the same Georgie but i am assuming so) to find out THINGS ABOUT TIME TRAVEL AND DIMENSION HOPPING??

Gertrude and Gerry arent the same because they weren't around for the eyepocalypse, so it makes you wonder about the alternate universe versions of the previously mentioned characters…

anyway, if this theory is true, then it means that we may see:

-Jon, Martin and Jonah (i mean obviously)

-The WhatTheGirlfriends cult members (Georgie, Melanie, Celia, Arun, Danielle, Song, Christopher and the other unnamed members)

-Basira maybe?????

- (and the person who I’m CONVINCED will show up and some point:) Annabelle Cain.

Also extra mini theory: Another thing to note is that at the VERY end of mag 200 when we hear Basira, Melanie and Georgie hunt down the last tape recorders, this could have been after they were all dumped into the new world cause if the web had disappeared out of tma then the tape recorders should have stopped BUT THEY DIDNT, so maybe it was because they were still manifesting as an aspect of the web before the web changes in the new world?? Idk if that’s anything but that’s just a thought I have had

ALSO to add to the Annabelle Cain thing there has to be a reason why Jon lets her live at the end of tma. Something something Checkoffs gun (similarly this COULD mean the return of Simon Fairchild but I doubt it cause he has no relation to the eye or to hilltop road.)

Yeah I know that it was said that you don’t have to have knowledge of tma to enjoy tmagp and that it was said that tma listeners shouldn’t be biased about tmagp but Cmon…

I hope that u enjoyed my yap fest I don’t know if any of this is actually anything of if I’m just slowly going insane but I would love to hear your thoughts!!!