#do you think he knew/suspected earlier in season 8 and that why he had this arc?

[thankstothe]

Rating: Not Cute

Messing with twink to dilf pipeline is very damaging and can lead to a lasting trauma in an aspiring dilf

[satansjit]

Reflections on the Color of My Skin

By Neil DeGrasse Tyson

Wednesday, June 3, 2020

My colleague had other encounters with the law that he shared later that night, but his first story started a chain reaction among us. One by one we each recalled multiple incidents of being stopped by the police. None of the accounts were particularly violent or life-threatening, although it was easy to extrapolate to highly publicized cases that were. One of my colleagues had been stopped for driving too slowly. He was admiring the local flora as he drove through a New England town in the autumn. Another had been stopped because he was speeding, but only by five miles per hour. He was questioned and then released without getting a ticket. Still another colleague had been stopped and questioned for jogging down the street late at night.

As for me, I had a dozen different encounters to draw from. There was the time I was stopped late at night at an underpass on an empty road in New Jersey for having changed lanes without signaling. The officer told me to get out of my car and questioned me for ten minutes around back with the headlights of his squad car brightly illuminating my face. Is this your car? Yes. Who is the woman in the passenger seat? My wife. Where are you coming from? My parent’s house. Where are you going? Home. What do you do for a living? I am an astrophysicist at Princeton University. What’s in your trunk? A spare tire, and a lot of other greasy junk. He went on to say that the “real reason” why he stopped me was because my car’s license plates were much newer and shinier than the 17-year-old Ford that I was driving. The officer was just making sure that neither the car nor the plates were stolen.

Among my other stories, I had been stopped by campus police while transporting my home supply of physics textbooks into my newly assigned office in graduate school. They had stopped me at the entrance to the physics building where they asked accusatory questions about what I was doing. It was 11:30 p.m. Open-topped boxes of graduate math and physics textbooks filled the trunk. And I was transporting them into the building, which left me wondering how often that scenario shows up in police training videos.

We went on for two more hours. But before we retired for the night we searched for common denominators among the stories. We had all driven different cars—some were old, others were new, some were undistinguished, others were high performance imports. Some police stops were in the daytime, others were at night. Taken one-by-one, each encounter with the law could be explained as an isolated incident where, in modern times, we all must forfeit some freedoms to ensure a safer society for us all. Taken collectively, however, you would think the cops had a vendetta against physicists because that was the only profile we all had in common. In this parade of automotive stop-and-frisks, one thing was for sure, the stories were not singular, novel moments playfully recounted. They were common, recurring episodes. How could this assembly of highly educated scientists, each in possession of the PhD—the highest academic degree in the land—be so vulnerable to police inquiry in their lives? Maybe the police cued on something else. Maybe it was the color of our skin. The conference I had been attending was the 23rd meeting of the National Society of Black Physicists. We were guilty not of DWI (Driving While Intoxicated), but of other violations none of us knew were on the books: DWB (Driving While Black), WWB (Walking While Black), and of course, JBB (Just Being Black).

None of us were beaten senseless. None of us were shot. But what does it take for a police encounter to turn lethal? On average, police in America kill more than 100 unarmed black people per year. Who never made it to our circle? I suspect our multi-hour conversation would be rare among most groups of law-abiding people.

As I compose this, about 10,000 chanting protestors are filing past my window in Manhattan. And because of the intermittent looting and related violence, the curfew for this evening has been pushed earlier, to 8 p.m., from 11 p.m. in the preceding days. The most common placard was “Black Lives Matter.” Many others simply displayed the name George Floyd, who was handcuffed face-down on the street with a police officer’s knee on the back of his neck, applied with a force of at least half the officer’s body weight, resulting in his death. Curious irony that NFL star Colin Kaepernick offered a simple demonstration of care and concern for the fate of black people in the custody of police officers, by taking a knee during the Star Spangled Banner before football games. (One media outlet mangled the moment by describing him as protesting the national anthem.) The outrage against his silent act of concern for a national problem persisted through the 2017 season when, as a free agent, he went unsigned by any team to continue his livelihood.

So, we went from a peaceful knee to the ground to a fatal knee to the neck.

The way peaceful protesters and the press are being shoved, maced, tear-gassed, pepper-sprayed, and tackled in the streets of our cities (when the police should have focused on arresting the looters) you would think the protestors were doing something illegal or un-American. But, of course, the U.S. Constitution has something to say about it:

Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom … of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Which amendment was that? The First Amendment. So, the founders of this nation felt quite strongly about it, empowering one to declare that protesting for redress of grievances is one of the most American things you can do. If you are the police, pause and reflect how great is the country whose Constitution endorses peaceful protests.

What do we actually expect from our police officers? To protect the peace and arrest the bad guys, I presume. But also, to be armed with lethal force that they can use when necessary. That part clearly requires training on how and when to use (and not use) the power of your weapons. The rigorous Minneapolis Police Academy training lasts 4 months. The slightly more rigorous NYC Police Academy lasts 6 months.

Yet to become a certified pastry chef at a prestigious culinary academy requires 8 months. The perfect croissant demands it. So maybe, just maybe, police recruits could benefit from a bit more training before becoming officers.

In 1991, Rodney King (age 25) was struck dozens of times, while on the ground, by four LAPD officers, with their batons, after being tased. The grainy 1990s video of that went media-viral, inducing shock and dismay to any viewer.

But I wasn’t shocked at all.

Based on what I already knew of the world, my first thought was, “We finally got one of those on tape.” Followed by, “Maybe justice will be served this time.” Yes, that’s precisely my first thought. Why? Since childhood my parents instilled in me and my siblings, via monthly, sometimes weekly lessons, rules of conduct to avoid getting shot by the police. “Make sure that when you get stopped, the officer can always see both of your hands.” “No sudden movements.” “Don’t reach into your pockets for anything without announcing this in advance.” “When you move at all, tell the officer what you are about to do.” At the time, I am a budding scientist in middle school, just trying to learn all I can about the universe. I hardly ever think about the color of my skin—it never comes up when contemplating the universe. Yet when I exit my front door, I’m a crime suspect. Add to this the recently coined “White Caller Crime,” where scared white people call the police because they think an innocent black person is doing something non-innocent, and it’s a marvel that any of us achieve at all.

The rate of abuse? Between one and five skin-color-instigated incidents per week, for every week of my life. White people must have known explicitly if not implicitly of this struggle. Why else would the infamous phrase, “I’m free, white, and 21” even exist? Here is a compilation of that line used in films across the decades. Yes, it’s offensive. But in America, it’s also truthful. Today’s often-denied “white privilege” accusation was, back then, openly declared.

The deadly LA riots associated with the Rodney King incident are often remembered as a response to the beating. But no. Los Angeles was quiet for 13 months afterward. Everyone had confidence, as did I, that the video was just the kind of evidence needed to finally bring about a conviction in the abuse of power. But that’s not what came to pass. The riots were a response to the acquittal of the four officers in the incident, and not to the incident itself. And what is a riot if not the last act of helpless desperation.

The 1989 film by Spike Lee “Do the Right Thing,” which explored 1980s black-white-police tensions in Brooklyn, New York, ends with a dedication to the families of six people. Eleanor Bumpers (age 66), Michael Griffith (age 23), Arthur Miller (age 30), Edmund Perry (age 17), Yvonne Smallwood (age 28), and Michael Stewart (age 25). All are black. One was killed by a white mob. The rest were unarmed and shot by police or otherwise died while in police custody. All deaths occurred within the 10 years preceding film, and all occurred in New York City. None of the police-induced deaths resulted in convictions, as continues to be true for 99% of all police killings.

We know of these events because they each ended in death. But even so, back then, it was just local news. Was this just NYC’s problem? I asked myself. But for every police-related death anywhere, how many unarmed victims are shot by police and don’t die, or are wrongfully maimed or injured? Most of those cases didn’t even make the local news. But if you lived there, you knew. We all knew. For what it’s worth, NYC now has the lowest police-caused death rate per capita among the sixty largest cities in the US. Is it that extra two months training in the Police Academy?

The corrosion and ultimate erosion of our confidence in the legal system in cases such as these, even in the face of video evidence, has spawned a tsunami of protests. With sympathetic demonstrations across the United States and around the world. If the threat of prison time for this behavior does not exist—acting as a possible deterrent—then the behavior must somehow stop on its own.

Some studies show that the risk of death for an unarmed person at the hands of the police is approximately the same no matter the demographics of who gets arrested. Okay. But if your demographic gets stopped ten times more than others, then your demographic will die at ten times the rate. I suppose we first have to get the bias factor down to zero, but then there’s still the matter of police killing unarmed suspects, white people included.

I talk a lot. But I don’t talk much about any of this, or the events along this path-of-most-resistance that have shaped me. Why? Because throughout my life I’ve used these occasions as launch-points to succeed even more. Yes, I parlayed the persistent rejections of society, which today might be called micro-aggressions, into reservoirs of energy to achieve. I learned that from my father, himself active in the Civil Rights Movement during the 1950s and 1960s.

In a way, I am who I am precisely because countless people, by their actions or inactions, said I could never be what I am. But what if you don’t have this deep supply of fuel? What becomes of you? Who from historically disenfranchised communities, including women, LGBTQ+, and anybody of color, are missing—falling shy of their full potential because they ran out of energy and gave up trying.

Are things better today than yesterday? Yes. But one measure of this truth is a bit perverse. Decades ago, unarmed black people getting beaten or killed by the police barely merited the local news. But now it’s national news—even breaking news—no matter where in the country it occurs.

So how to change all this? Organizations have surely assembled demands for police departments. Here, I offer a list of my own, for policy experts to consider:

Extend police academies to include months of cultural awareness and sensitivity training that also includes how not to use lethal force.

Police officers should all be tested for any implicit bias they carry, with established thresholds of acceptance and rejection from the police academy. We all carry bias. But most of us do not hold the breathing lives of others in our hands when influenced by it.

During protests, protect property and lives. If you attack nonviolent protesters you are being un-American. And you wouldn’t need curfews if police arrested looters and not protesters.

If fellow officers are behaving in a way that is clearly unethical or excessively violent, and you witness this, please stop them. Someone will get that on video, and it will give the rest of us confidence that you can police yourselves. In these cases, our trust in you matters more to a civil society than how much you stick up for each other.

And here’s a radical idea for the Minneapolis Police Department—why not give George Floyd the kind of full-dress funeral you give each other for dying in the line of duty? And vow that such a death will never happen again.

Lastly, when you see black kids, think of what they can be rather than what you think they are.

Respectfully Submitted

Neil deGrasse Tyson — trying hard to Keep Looking Up.

Copyright © 2018 Neil deGrasse Tyson

[procrastinatorimagines]

Okay Part 5

Fandom: One Chicago

Series: Okay

Part 1 // Part 2 // Part 3 // Part 4 // Part 5 // Part 6 // Part 7 // Part 8 (Final)

Pairing: Casey x Halstead!Reader

Warning/s: mentions of kidnapping, fire, PTSD ish?

Word Count: 2,304

Summary: After narrowly escaping certain death you decided to turn your life around and become a firefighter, and although it wasn’t easy, you survived your first week at 51. Now, the strange circumstances of your very first fire lead you to a second, deadlier act. As you dig deeper, aided by your brothers and your new firehouse, you begin to realise just how in over your head you might be.

Tags: @alievans007​ // @louiselikeswriting // @killjoys-make-some-noise-na-na​

Working your way back from the second crime scene to the first had been the plan for the day, keeping your radios on in case you got a call. The rest of truck had no problem with it; although you and Casey were the most invested, you knew the others wanted the same thing as you. To catch whoever was responsible and protect Lily.

Jay was waiting when you arrived, Hailey too. Voight had thankfully spared them, Jay had told you over the phone that they may have to leave at a moments notice depending on how the case they were working with Intelligence went. They’d leave a few unis there though.

Pulling up in the truck you saw just how much damage the fire had done, whatever accelerant this guy was using spread quicker. Kerosene Kelly reckoned, more combustable than flammable, meaning more likely to explode rather than just ignite.

You and Casey took up the front, Jay smiling slightly despite the circumstances at the sight of you in uniform. “Hey, what is it they call you? Candidate?” Jay gave you a slight hug in greeting as you rolled your eyes at his teasing. 

“Yeah, yeah, what we got?” You asked, following him inside with Casey to survey the damage. There was police tape everywhere, but it had been cleared by CSI already.

“This is where we found the mom and friend,” Jay told you both, the rest of truck waiting outside. He was pointing in the dining room, three places set up around the table where most of the damage had been done.

“Ignition point?” Casey asked, lingo you knew but would still have to get used to saying. Surveying the scene, all you saw was carnage, fire blasted walls and the charred remains of a nice home. But Casey was seeing something different, as was Jay. 

“We had OFI here earlier, you just missed them attending that collision this morning, but they said it was somewhere... here,” Jay gestured near the patio doors, the wall nearest the entrance black, the carpet practically gone as it had spread and you could definitely see why they suspected a combustable accelerant. “Lock was broken on the door, but there are no prints besides those you’d expect.”

“Three places,” you noted, glancing to the table, “Lily was supposed to be in here, you said she was found upstairs?” You didn’t look at Jay as you asked, too busy inspecting the room. Both the men in there with you may have been seasoned at what they did, but you hoped that your fresh eyes and new perspective might spot something the others missed. ‘Hoped’ being the key word.

“Yeah, don’t know why, she’s barely spoken as you know,” Jay answered, “but there was food on the plates.”

“Timer?” You and Casey spoke up at the same time, glancing at each other as Casey grinned your way. Guess you were picking this up quicker than you thought.

Jay looked between you with an unreadable expression before nodding. “Destroyed in the blast, but it was near the patio doors, automatic.”

Casey nodded thoughtfully, looking to you even though you could see the ideas forming behind his eyes. He wanted to see what you thought.

“It was supposed to kill them all,” you said, “for some reason Lily wasn’t at the table, maybe she went to grab something, go to the toilet... maybe her mom saw that she hadn’t washed her hands yet and made her go back upstairs to clean them like our mom always did with you,” you told Jay, who glared at you slightly as Casey chuckled under his breath.

“She’s escaped death twice now,” Casey said, following your eyes to her place at the table, “but why? We already know she must be the target, but how many enemies does a 7 year old have?”

Jay clenched his jaw, clearly wishing he had some kind of answer for you. “We’ve tried every angle we can think of,” Jay said somewhat helplessly.

“What about the charger?” You asked, remembering the car Intelligence had been looking into when you’d arrived at the hospital last night.

“Got a BOLO out, but our best guess is that either the cars been ditched or the plates have been swapped,” he replied, tone laced with frustration.

Casey ran a hand through his hair as he looked around the room, but it was clear to everyone that there was nothing solid here, or even some smoke to follow. So with a sigh Jay signaled for you guys to leave, the next stop was the first fire, where you and Casey had found Lily.

You sat next to Casey on the drive, the rest of truck discussing the case. Even though you tried to listen, you kept zoning out, the dread in your stomach getting worse with every passing second. You had nothing to offer this girl, no idea what was going on, and you hated feeling this useless.

Casey noticed your quite and nudged you with his leg. “You good?” He checked, trying to meet your eyes.

You shrugged and put on your best fake smile, “sure,” you said unconvincingly. But there was no time to challenge you, the truck was pulling up behind Jay’s car at the scene of the first fire.

The door was still taped up, Lily’s mom hadn’t had a chance to properly come back to the house to salvage much before she died. It felt strange being back here, seeing the remains in daylight when last time you’d seen it it had been burning in the night. With a breath you climbed out the truck, Jay saying something to an officer in a squad car on the otherside of the road, positioned there in case anyone tried to enter the house.

“Does Lily have any family?” Casey asked Jay as he joined you both on the front lawn. You were listening, but you found yourself unable to look away from the building, the peeling paint, the burn marks, the destruction...

“Grandparents in New York,” Jay replied, “and an estranged dad in Colorado, they split up a few years back but he’s on his way now, should be here soon.” 

You realised that the other two had made it to the front door and strambled to catch up, carefully stepping over the threshold and into the house with them. Memories of smoke and fire came flooding back as you walked, the smell of the ashes making you feel nauseous. You couldn’t explain, you’d been fire at the other fires since this one... mostly. There was something about this one that sent you back to that basement, maybe it was because you’d had a panic attack here, or maybe it was Lily and how you related to her. 

Whatever it was, you tried to push it down as Jay walked you around the house. There had been no broken locks in this house, compared to the broken patio lock in the friend’s, and the fire had started up stairs. Sort of.

“It looks like it was poured down,” you realised, staring at the wall below the banister. The others agreed with you, eyes following the burn pattern as it then spread across the floor once it reached the bottom. “So someone came in while the mom was next door, some how managed to get Lily behind the desk, and then poured the kerosene down the wall?”

“Leaving enough time for them to head down the stairs after they lit the match,” Casey added, but you shook your head a little.

“If they’d lit the match from the top, they would have had enough time, but they would have had to leave through the front door then, and most of the fire damage was down stairs,” you said half distantly as you followed the trail. 

Casey looked proud, “you’re right, looks like this goes to the back door,” he pointed. This was all well and good, but it wasn’t helpful. Jay suggested you try upstairs next, leading the way.

You got half way up before feeling a little faint, images of your panic attack flashing through your mind as you forced yourself to continue on upstairs. Casey was a head of you too, so he didn’t notice at first, but as soon as you both reached the top he looked back, pausing as he saw the way you gripped the banister at the top.

Thankfully, he didn’t say anything when Jay was there, but you could see the concern on his face, and the seriousness.  It hadn’t exactly been at the top of your to do list recently, but you’d known it was coming. He was still your Captain.

“So this was where you found her, behind the desk?” Jay asked, gesturing towards the open office, where you could clearly see the moved desk inside, the little room behind it visible. 

You nodded, still taking a minute to breath and steady yourself while trying to act normal. Jay didn’t notice, but you didn’t blame him, he didn’t know what Casey did. 

“Was there anything else in there, anything you might have not thought relevant at the time but might mean something now?” He asked.

“We’ve already been over this,” you said a little too harshly, giving Jay pause, “sorry, just, a little stressed, haven’t been sleeping much recently,” you tried to shrug it off. Jay was about to reply when he phone went off, excusing himself as he headed outside. He’d think you meant because of this case, and while that was true, you didn’t tell him exactly what ‘recently’ meant.

“We haven’t talked about it,” Casey pointed out after Jay was out of earshot, knowing that you knew what he meant. What was there to say? You trusted Casey, and you’d been getting closer since you’d started at the firehouse, you’d probably spent more time with him in the last week than anyone else, but he was still your Captain, and you didn’t want him to think you were unfit for duty.

“Been a little busy,” you shrugged, eyes flicking from his face to the office behind him. 

“Y/N...” he struggled to find what to say, “has this happened before? Or, since even?”

You nodded a little, “before yeah, a few times after the fire, but I was fine in the academy I swear, I haven’t been hiding something that would endanger the rest of the house, if it had happened since I promise you I would have told you Matt,” you poured out. It was the truth, and thankfully he believed. 

He relaxed a little, clearly afraid of something worse. “Okay, but you need to talk to me Y/N, or... someone, I don’t want you to go through this alone, I’ve been worried about you,” he admitted, the way he said it causing your breath to hitch a little bit. 

“Don’t worry, it’s not going to get in the way of the job,” you assured him but he shook his head at that.

“That’s not the way I meant it Y/N-” he began, an expression on his face you didn’t have time to figure out before you were interrupted by your phone. 

It was Will. “Hey what’s up?” You answered as Casey cleared his throat, backing up and getting professional again. What had he wanted to say? You’d think about that later, you told yourself, putting the phone on speaker so Casey could hear. It was a fair assumption that it was about Lily.

“Hey Y/N, just thought I should let you know that Lily’s dad has just checked her out the hospital, it was against Nat’s medical advice but she’s technically fit to leave and he said something about her recovering better with family,” he informed you both, you and Casey casting each other confused and slightly concerned looks. 

If it seemed off to you both, that’s because it was. Jay came running up the stairs as if on queue. “What’s going on?” Casey asked, taking in the alarm on Jay’s face.

“Lily’s dad Paul arrived on a flight from Colorado about half an hour ago,” Jay said.

“Yeah we know Will has just been telling us-” you started, holding your phone up with Will still on the line to show Jay.

“No, you don’t understand, we didn’t pick it up until he came through, but Adam found a passport under a different name that came from Colorado to Chicago last week and left back last night,” Jay tried to explain, “the ID photo matches Paul’s, and a credit card under the same name bought over half a dozen products containing kerosene from a handful of different stores near both fires.”

Your jaw went slack, shocked as you tried to process the information. “So he went back to Colorado under his fake ID last night, and got a flight out with his real one this morning, so it’d look like he’d been there the entire time?” Casey read your mind, fists tight at his sides.

“An iron clad alibi...” you muttered, “Will, stop them from leaving!” You called over the phone, knowing he’d heard everything Jay had just said. You heard Will run, breathing heavier as he tried to catch up with Paul and Lily, none of the three of you breathing at all as you waited.

He seemed to reach an exit, having a conversation with someone you couldn’t quite make out before running again. The atmosphere changed, it sounded like he was outside. Then he stopped.

“They’ve gone,” he said angrily and Jay swore, “only just though, I ran out to see if I could stop them but they were already driving away, and Jay - I just saw their car, it was a black dodge charger.” 

You paled, what were you going to do now?

[jazillia007]

Thoughts on GG 4x3 Fall Guy

Things I did not enjoy:

Phoebe...

I’m sorry but we really said goodbye to Turner for... Phoebe? I know some would root for her to turn on her shitty FBI co-worker but that wouldn’t make her interesting. It would look desperate. xD I don’t know. I wouldn’t mind her being on track when it comes to Beth. But the reasons why she suspects Beth fall flat to me.

But now things might turn and I’m also weirdly looking forward to what’s gonna happen since she found that letter Beth left. *sigh* Why didn’t Beth think of that?

Beth’s new bed

The only good thing it. got character but dang it it’s so ugly and I will never not notice. LMAO

Fitzpatrick Part 1

Being the creepy dude he is. Like... ewww... The fact he is like “oh but WHY do you not want to go with me to the Fijis?”. I mean it’s not like Beth’s husband is in prison right now and she got 4 kids to take care of but whatever. And she said “NO”. But hey... creepers gonna be creepy.

So but then, Beth tells him exactly that... and... continue in the what I liked section here...

Thing I would’ve enjoyed if done differently:

Did I need those flashbacks with Dean to understand why Beth is staying with him?

No, I don’t think I needed it to know why she is staying with Dean because Beth herself verbally said why she stays with him in many episodes. But I also think we need to remember the majority of the viewers are casual viewers who don’t watch the episodes like fandoms do and casual viewers sometimes need everything to get spelled out for them. But I also think casual viewers aren’t dumb and sometimes writers should just trust them to know and understand things and circumstances.

I also think I would’ve liked it more if the flashbacks had included Beth’s relationship with her father or the non-existence of the very same. I think the reason why women tend to stay with men who are not good for them is because: they have a dysfunctional family (problematic mother, problematic father or both combined), they’re dependent on men, those men resemble the father or the women want to fix something that was broken in their own family (e.g. not having a father but wanting a family and a father for their own children).

But we didn’t get that. And I think it’s a shame the writers focus a great deal on showing Dean was the only good guy Beth knew at that time hence why she chose him when it would’ve been more interesting to explore the reason WHY Beth thought Dean was the only seemingly decent person.

Also, just because Dean was a nice guy back then doesn’t make his cheating and lying okay. And it doesn’t mean Beth needs to stay with him. If anything it worries me that the writers apparently think “look because he was nice back and he basically “saved” Beth and gave her stability, she needs to stay with him forever”. That’s not the case. As I said before if the writers adore Matthew Lillard so much, they can keep him, even as the ex-husband. Just a thought.

However, I think the flashbacks were filmed nicely as some already mentioned. And I liked the casting.

Things I enjoyed:

Kenny

I know some people missed it but Kenny is away for a tournament which explains why it seems Beth and Dean only got 3 children. The show explained it right away, so thankfully Kenny won’t disappear like Buddy did. xD

Dean not buying Beth’s “I love you”

You know I don’t like Dean but I kind of enjoy he isn’t buying Beth’s “I love you” anymore. I mean he is the last person to call her out because he cheated on her and told her he loves her after she found out to manipulate her as well but I just like we see Dean not buying it. Because WHO is actually still buying it when Beth is telling Dean “I love you”.

Ruby and Annie having priorities

I love how they’re like “Hey, you got 4 kids!” like even to them Dean isn’t a father who deserves to be out of prison.

On a sidenote: Ruby aka Retta is looking extra gorgeous this season. Oh MY!

Whatever is going on with Stan

Look I always wanted for Stan and Rio to team up. So please let it happen. But also whatever happens in the club, “the little bitch” and the “big bitch” this could have potential.

But I hope he doesn’t develope a drinking problem and I don’t need the tension between him and Ruby. But also kind of enjoy he got now secrets of his own.

Found the whole mom situation in the flashbacks more interesting than Dean

I think you deleted the post @medievalraven but I think there might be something going on with Beth’s and Annie’s mom which is more related to (TRIGGER WARNING) depression and suicidal thoughts. Which is actually a whole lot more interesting to explore than what a nice guy Dean was back then.

And it would play into what I said earlier. That whatever is going on in Beth’s family made her the person she is now and would explain why she acts in certain ways and why she is unable to leave Dean (except the writers apparently don’t WANT her to leave Dean as of now).

And whatever has been going on at home explains why Annie turned out the way she was back then and still is - especially when it comes to Dean.

Annie and Ben

As you know, I barely relate with Annie but I always enjoyed the most her relationship with her son and if the writers are doing anything right it’s writing this arc properly. It’s normal for Ben to want to stay with his father but at the same time it breaks my heart for Annie.

Fitzpatrick Part 2

Beth going off was everything I needed right now. Thank you, Beth, for telling him where your limits are!

And what a douchebag is Fitzpatrick to be like “oh but I thought you wanted more from your life”. We love guilt-tripping men - NOT. Just look at Dean. I mean... c’mon! Also for him to be like “but you hired me”... Yeah, she did hire you but not sending the message “I also want sex with you.” What is this guy!?

However, I would buy Beth’s speech a little more if she would pair it up with actions. Like divorcing Dean and you know the drill. It would be so much more consistent than having her say one thing but not living up to it. I mean on the other hand now she is somewhat tied to him because Dean plead guilty but still... We’re going in circles a little bit.

Rio/Brio

You know I know the pool table scene is splitting the fandom as always. And I’m just grateful I can watch the scene and enjoy it as a shipper but also enjoy it as a viewer.

I liked the whole “negotiation” between Beth and Rio. Rio did a really low blow when he told Beth if Dean is released from prison 3 years later he might be in better shape and even wanting to “hit it again”. I think we all know why Dean and Beth aren’t working out anymore on a sexual basis and so does Rio, so while Rio might be correct it was a low blow.

But I also enjoy how Rio doesn’t care one bit about Dean. He never did - since season 1. And Dean being a shitty husband and a even shittier businessman is playing a huge part in it. And I like Rio doesn’t even pretend to care.

But he still gives into her pleading. I know some people think he is already over Beth shooting him and maybe that’s the case but in Rio’s case that doesn’t mean he can’t be petty by pulling away the stick. It’s like him saying “I gave you the gun once and I won’t do it again and this is me retaining control. You play this game and we see where it goes with the money.” He is challenging Beth and he knows she would take the challenge.

At the same time, and some of my mutuals noticed it as well, I got 2x9 bedroom vibes which is weird. Especially since there are many mutuals who didn’t feel it or read the scene differently or didn’t like it at all.

The way he looked at her after pulling away the stick. There is a lack of music which I don’t think was a conscious choice unlike it was in the bedroom scene in 2x9 but it still heightened the tension of the scene. And then there suddenly is music and it’s melancholic almost.

Then of course Rio “teaching” Beth how to play pool, handson. And this is where it gets interesting for me. I know a lot of people read this scene differently or it left a different impression.

For me: I always thought that both Beth and Rio are having very mixed feelings right now for eachother. Mostly confused anger. Anger for obvious reasons and confusion because that despite the anger they can’t stop whatever their relationship is and whatever their feelings might be.

And I think in season 3, Rio never really touched Beth. Except for when he showed up alive and did the hair thing and then when he put his hand over hers when she wanted a drink and he thought she was pregnant.

I think this... Rio leaning over Beth and then smelling her. A smell he knows too well and once probably loved. This is the first time he is this close to her again. And same for her, I think that little headshake was mostly her being a little startled but also becoming very aware of his closeness.

And it’s so interesting to see how Rio steps back and does this shoulder roll. It’s like he was suddenly aware of what he was doing and somewhat wanted to shake it off.

And just a little note: the ball had the number 8 on it which can be read as “forever” or “eternity”. Me reading too much into it. :P

Then the moment is over but I just love the moment of joy after Beth winning the challenge and for Rio as well. And then it quickly goes back to business. I think if they’re doing anything well it’s that Brio right now is very much split into two halfs. And for me of course I know the hitman plan is still going which is baffling to me. So of course this dampens any excitement I might have during Brio scenes.

Even though, we can safely say they won’t go through with the hitman plan, and especially now when Beth has hurt Fitzpatrick’s ego. He was pretty calm but I feel like he will mess up on purpose. I don’t think FItzpatrick takes rejection well. Just my thoughts on that. He was way too calm for someone who would hurt a person over raw salmon.

[dany-is-my-queen]

Born To Be Yours | Part II

Sansa Stark x Fem! Baratheon! Reader (Daenerys Targaryen x Fem! Baratheon! Reader eventually)

Season 1-8

Word Count: 1,795

Note: I’m back!!!

Part 1 here Pt.3 Pt.4 Pt.5 Pt.6 Pt.7 Pt.8 Pt.9

“You shouldn’t interfere when it’s none of your business.” Joffrey was still angry with you.

“Don’t mess with the ladies and we’ll be in peace.” You calmly said.

“Always so honorable... the hero saving the day.” Your mother mocked.

“Why you say it like that, mother? I would do it over again, you are so heartless and extreme about little matters.” You rolled your eyes.

“You don’t care about your brother's honor. That’s the real reason you defended those pathetic girls.” She spat.

“I do care about him. It’s the other way around. You are a pampered kid. You should start acting more like a man, Joffrey.” And with that you left his room.

“May I come in, princess?” The sweet voice of the oldest Stark daughter rang. You were on just a pair of trousers, definitely not wearing proper clothes to be talking to her.

“Of course, my lady. Just give me a second, please.” You put on a dress. “Let her in.”

“I wanted to apologize for my earlier behavior. You saved my wolf’s life, I’ll be forever thankful, my princess.”

“It was the right thing to do. I would have preferred her to stay by your side, though.”

“She’ll find a new home. I hope she returns to the north, where she belongs.” You gave her a soothing smile. “Does prince Joffrey hates me?” She asked sadly.

“No no, he is just a bit... irritating and gets easily offended. But it’s not personal, my lady. You are promised to him so with time your relationship will evolve.”

“I hope so. I’ll leave you to enjoy your evening, my princess.”

“Lady Sansa, if you need someone to talk to you can always come to me. You and your sister. I pray for your little brother to wake up. She nodded.

“You are very kind.”

~~~~~~

“Did you found a suitable candidate up in the North, niece?” Uncle Renly asked with a droll voice.

“I met a boy... very good looking and a gentleman but he wasn’t my type. He’s the eldest son of Lord Eddard.”

“Sounds quite the man.”

“We didn’t have the chance to get closer so I’ll forget about him.” You might never see him again after all.

“Princess Y/N, what can I do for you?” The tall man greeted.

“I haven’t had the chance to thank you, my lord, for accepting to be the new hand. I know it was a difficult choice to make, leaving your home. My father really needs you. He lacks of loyal friends and I believe you’ll be very helpful around here.”

“Oh, I will do my best not to let Robert down.” He smiled.

“A raven came this morning. I- I forgot to deliver it earlier, my lord hand.” Maester Pycelle said with his usual stutter and left.

“Good news?”

“My Princess! I didn’t expect to see you.” A voice that didn’t please you stated.

“Lord Baelish.” You faked a perfect smile.

“Lord Stark, perhaps you’ll like to share the news with your wife.”

“She’s on Winterfell.”

“Is she?”

“I won’t tell my mother. Lord Baelish knows I can keep a secret. Can I join you?” The relation you had with Petyr was not the best. He informed you of things your parents won’t share with you. Despite that you never liked him nor his personality.

“Better not keep her waiting.” You reached his brothel unnoticed.

“I’ll talk to her when you’re done. I’m not a spy. I can be trusted but I prefer to stay out of your business, Lord Eddard.” And it was true. You had no interest in gossiping.

“Thank you.” They entered. Not before he took Baelish and throttle him suspecting this was a trick.

“Lady Catelyn.” You bowed your head.

“Princess Y/N, what a surprise...” She looked at you with dismay.

“It’s fine. I won’t tell a soul. I am glad to hear that little Bran is finally awake. And also, I wanted to let you know that I’ll keep your daughters safe. Now that you both are here I give you my word. My family is complicated and tends to have a reputation. I will look after Lady Sansa and Lady Arya, as long as I can, I promise.” Since the incident with the direwolves you had this enormous feeling of responsibility, deep down you knew their stay in King’s Landing won’t be as enjoyable as they thought. You hoped you were wrong. Prevention was a good idea.

“I will be in your debt, my princess. Knowing this gives me relief. It’s hard to find good people here in the capital.”

“It certainly is. Say hello to Lord Robb from me.” You wished her good travel home but sensed trouble in her.

~~~~~~

“Y/N! Want to spar? I’m so bored and Myrcella is doing lady stuff.” Tommen asked you, holding his little sword.

“That’s not proper for a princess to do and mother doesn’t approve.” Joffrey hissed.

“But father does. We are not useless like yourself, big brother.” You rumpled your brother’s hair. “Let’s go Tommen.” You found Arya in the courtyard with his dancing teacher. “Mind if we join the class?”

“This is Syrio Forel, he is from Braavos.”

“My Princess, my Prince.” He did a small reverence.

“I want to learn how to be a knight!” Tommen said excitedly. After a long time practicing you got tired. Syrio was surprised when he saw the way you wield the wooden blade.

“Natural talent, Princess Y/N.”

“Thank you. My father was the first person that taught me how to properly do it so I can defend myself when there are no guards around. Ser Jaime also instructed me of some techniques.”

“That’s my intent too. Not wearing dresses and attending to councils. I was born for this.” Arya said sure.

“No one will be able to stop you when you are old enough, perhaps not even now.” She grinned.

You could see yourself in this girl, you have a lot in common. She was fearless and didn’t seem to want to marry a lord and live in a castle. You could also see the similarities between Lady Sansa and you. You love to fight and go hunting, use a bow, but you knew how to weave as well, how to properly greet the lords and ladies, and you wished to get married someday. You were a proper daughter, with dignity and manners, your father was always more fond of you, your mother on the other hand... she loved you in her own way, you were the perfect child in everyone’s eyes.

“Lady Sansa, I am happy to know your brother is fine.” You put a hand on her shoulder.

“He won’t be able to walk ever again. But it was a miracle. Thanks for your prayers.” She answered.

“Would you like to visit the Throne Room? Your septa can join us.” She nodded.

“Someday your husband will sit there and you by his side, then you’re going to present your son to the court. All the important people of the Seven Kingdoms will gather here to see the prince.” Septa Mordane stated.

“What if I have a girl?” The Stark inquired.

“If the gods are good you’ll have girls and boys, plenty of them.”

“They all going to be beautiful children. Just like her mother.” You complemented.

“But if I only had girls...”

“The throne will pass to Tommen, my little brother.”

“And everyone will hate me.” She harried said.

“No one could ever hate you, Sansa.” Her septa affirmed.

“Your Septa is right, my lady. I already told you. As your friend, I won’t let anybody speak ill of you. Besides, you are lovely.” You squeezed her hand.

“Thank you, my princess.”

“Sansa, do you remember your lessons? Who built the Iron Throne?”

“Aegon the conqueror.”

“And who built the Red Keep?”

“Maegor the cruel. My grandfather and uncle were murdered here, by orders of the Mad King. Why?”

“You should speak to your father about these matters.”

“You are dismissed.” The old woman left. You walked towards the throne indicating her to follow you.

“Would you like to seat on the throne, my lady? It’s not a comfortable chair but it was forged from the one thousand swords that had been surrendered to Aegon in the War of Conquest by the lords who had offered their fealty, though the actual number of the swords is less than two hundred. These were melted down by the fiery breath of Balerion the Black Dread.” You conclude telling her.

“You seem to like these type of stories, Princess. Your knowledge for the topic is quite vast.” She was surprised yet amused.

“Yes, I enjoy to read and uncle Tyrion told me a lot about this when I was just a little girl. What kind of stories enthralled you, sweet lady?”

“The ones with honorable knights, chivalry and love.” A dreamt sigh left her mouth.

“I like those too. Especially this tale about Ser Florian called Florian the Fool, he was a legendary hero of the Riverlands from the Age of Heroes. He felt in love with a maiden named Jonquil. Singers compared the sudden marriage of King Jaehaerys I Targaryen and Queen Alysanne Targaryen to their great romance.

“I know that one! Is my favorite tale of all time. But I didn’t know they compared them with the Targaryens of that period. It’s very romantic.” She blushed a little.

“And one of the songs... I think this is how it goes, Six maids there were in a spring-fed pool... oh my gods! I sound terrible.”

“No! You have an adorable voice, princess Y/N.” You grinned.

“You are lying! I found that song a bit creepy. He was watching Jonquil and her sisters bathed. The face of the girl turned just like her hair. I didn’t mean to ruin it.” Both of you laughed.

“It’s alright. I still love it.” The throne room was never your favorite place to be, it was hollow and boring. You imagine all the horrible things that happened here. But now with the presence of such a pretty lass it felt different, not gloomy at all.

The next day it was the tournament in the name of Eddard Stark. Though the man didn’t attend. You sat next to the oldest Baratheon boy. Tommen was inpatient so as your father. Lady Sansa smiled at your brother but he looked away, avoiding her completely.

“Is it so hard to be nice at your lady?”

“Shut up.” You return the smile to her. She was half disappointed it wasn’t Joffrey and half happy you did notice her.

“Start the damn joust before I pissed myself!” And the opponents made their appearance. Ready to begin.

[realmadridfamily]

“I want everyone to know how brave a woman she is”

“It's true, we feel privileged - we have a good financial situation and I play for the most famous football club in the world and everyone knows me - but this doesn't change the most important thing: we are ordinary people. Like everyone else, we have better and worse days, difficult and beautiful moments, cares and joys. We are strong but also vulnerable. The fact that today we have three wonderful children is largely due to my wife Vanja. I want everyone to know how brave a woman she is. When I think about the situations she had to face, my field worries are meaningless.”

Ivano

"... before my second season in Tottenham Hotspur Vanja and I started talking about getting married. We've been together for almost five years - over four years of which we've lived together. We both wanted to get married and legalize our relationship. During such discussions, we also established one important thing - we both wanted to have a child, or at least three children! One day Vanja was waiting for me at our favorite Italian restaurant in London. I didn't even wonder why she wanted so badly to go there. When I got inside, I noticed that she was nervous, which was unusual for her. I took my seat and Vanja said why she invited me here: "You're going to be a daddy!" It's hard to describe this moment with words. It was one of the best messages I have ever received! My beloved Vanja wanted to convey this to me in a special way. Even though she was tired of morning sickness, she tried to make this moment special. At home, I didn't even notice what was happening to her! She hid everything from me to make sure she was really pregnant. We really wanted our children to be born in Croatia ..." "... we returned to Zagreb on May 9, right after the Premier League ended. Vanja was resting, and I still had to fulfill two obligations with the Croatia NT. From May 24, I was free again and was able to be with my wife. These days were very warm, so I had the idea to go to Zadar and visit my family. Unfortunately, the doctor didn't want her to travel before the birth, so after the conversation we decided that I would go to my parents and sister alone. On the second night in Zadar, I heard my father. It was after five in the morning. Vanja called me but I didn't hear the phone! "Son, wake up! Vanja is going to the hospital!" In one second I woke up and was on my way to Zagreb! I felt bad about not accompanying her that night. Fortunately, her mother lived nearby ..." "... when I spoke to her on the phone I was very close to the hospital. "Vanja, I'll be right there! Please, wait if you can!" But she couldn't. Our first baby was born at 8:10 am and changed our lives forever. The moment when I saw my son for the first time and took him in my arms was one of the happiest in my life. I hugged Vanja and we promised each other that when she got pregnant again, we would definitely be together during the birth - and we kept our word! But then it was our first time, and we had no idea what was waiting for us - besides, Vanja was going to have a caesarean section. We couldn't have anticipated that it would all start three weeks earlier. Vanja and the baby had to stay a few more days at the clinic. I wanted to be part of everything that happened from then on, so I spent a couple of nights with them. For the first four days, the nurses would come to me every morning and ask : "Do we already have a name?" We couldn't make up our minds. Vanja was most concerned with the name Ivano. So I agreed. "Ivano! My little boy and great love ..." "... after two weeks, we were able to go home. Our families were very happy and I was enjoying the days when everything in my life was beautiful and had its place. One day Vanja said that something was wrong, she didn't feel well. At first I thought it was nothing serious and advised her to rest in the bedroom. After a while we heard the sound of a fall. I quickly ran to the second floor. I was shocked to realize that my wife couldn't breathe! We quickly took her to the hospital. Vanja felt a pain in her chest. The doctor admitted that he suspected a blood clot in the lungs and took care of it immediately. I calmed down a bit, but none of us could sleep that night. The blood clot was caused by the body's reaction to pregnancy. The situation was serious, but luckily everything ended well. How badly Vanja was, was evidenced by the fact that the next morning she forgot that she had a son! For the next month, I took her to the hospital every day, and she continued to take anticoagulants for another year and a half. Unfortunately, it wasn't over ..." "... a year has passed since the birth of Ivano. Vanja had migraines, and sometimes she had the feeling that the left side of her face was going numb. But she thought it would pass. One day in 2011, she told me concerned that she had stopped hearing in her left ear. She went for an MRI and there she was diagnosed with a tumor in her ear. At first, we were terrified, but the doctors explained that this was a problem to be solved. In the end, it was decided that gamma knife treatment would be the best option - but it turned out to wait ..."

Ema

"... we packed our own things that had to be taken to Madrid. Vanja took care of this in her second pregnancy. All the problems during the transfer negotiations, moving, adapting to work at Real Madrid and living in Madrid - all of these things we faced during her second pregnancy. I'm not sure Vanja wanted me to carry all these things myself. She didn't feel comfortable with being felt for her health problems ..." "... as you know, after Ivano was born, Vanja suffered a pulmonary embolism, so we were all very worried about her when she was in her second pregnancy. We moved to Madrid, where she was under constant medical supervision and took regular anticoagulant medicine ..." "... the day before the due date of delivery, we played in Dortmund. Coach Mourinho gave me a day off so I flew to Zagreb right after the match. The birth of our daughter was the second of our most beautiful experiences. Everything was fine and we dealt with the name quickly. We both liked short names, so Vanja made her decision - Ema! After a wonderful son, a beautiful daughter was born. The next day I had to go back to Madrid. I had my phone with me all the time! I was able to look at Ema every day until they joined me in the Spanish capital ..." "... in early 2014, my wife decided to fly to London for surgery. She was accompanied by her mother and cousin, because unfortunately I couldn't. It was terribly hard for me to concentrate on football, but I didn't want to talk about my problems. Our fight was our private fight. I didn't want to tell my wife anything because I knew that it’s difficult for her and she tries to hide her fear from me. I had to be strong for her and the kids. We faced everything with a positive attitude ..." "... after returning from London, Vanja had to stick to a special order of the day. I helped her in everything I could. The symptoms went away, which was a good sign. After six months of waiting, she went for her first checkup. The study showed that the tumor began to shrink - today it is four times smaller than it was when it was discovered. Vanja visits the doctor regularly and she feels very well ..."

Sofia

"... after several years of full stabilization, we enjoyed our happiness with Ivano and Ema and the successful stage of my career. And then Vanja, in a moment of weakness, told me something that I believe had been on her mind for a long time: "Luka, I wish we had a third child!" She was fine and after Ema was born she had no complaints, but I didn't even want to hear about it at first. She always said she wanted three children. I had a similar dream: three or four children in a big and happy family. This, however, was before the new circumstances emerged. Vanja had risked her life twice already, and I didn't want this to happen again. She consulted doctors in London about the possible awakening of the tumor as a reaction to the pregnancy. They told her the chances were half and half. She also spoke to doctors in Zagreb, asked them how high the risk of a new blood clot was, but they only told her that despite the appropriate treatment, the risk was always there and only she could make the right decision. So in the end we heard what we already knew - that it could be okay, but it could also end very badly ..." "... but Vanja was determined, and I realized it when she confessed : "You know what, you give it the best in football and I'll give it the maximum for the family!" And so on October 2, 2017 Sofia was born! I came to the hospital in Zagreb from Rijeka, I was present at her birth and everything went well - both Vanja and our second princess felt great ..." "... but a year later, a new nerve arose in Madrid. Vanja was at home and at one point she noticed that her hand went numb and turned a dark blue color. She already knew it was a clot effect because she had learned to recognize the symptoms. She kept a cool head and called the doctor who lived in the neighborhood with whom she had a very good relations. The doctor confirmed her suspicions and immediately took her to the hospital. After all possible tests and studies, they concluded that Vanja should take adequate injections throughout her life ...” "... my wife's resolve in fighting for dreams of three children, despite the risks involved, showed her strength. She recently told me that her gynecologist, after Sofia was born, said: "Vanja, such courage is rare today. If I were you, I would not have decided to have a third child. You are really amazing!" The mother's gust of heart was stronger than anything else. I faced all these crisis situations and nerves, but I was not allowed to show weakness when she was so strong and brave. Thanks to her, today we feel happy and blessed with a wonderful family ..."

(source of quotes - Book “Luka Modric - My Game”)

[someguynamedstevewrites]

My Roommate is an Apparition: WHAT A HORRIBLE NIGHT TO HAVE A DAD - Part 1

Based on characters created by @reddpenn

————————————-

It was Saturday afternoon and Lily was dancing around in a baggy shirt, baggy sweatpants, socks, and jamming out to Michael Jackson’s Thriller; blasting it out from her computer’s speakers.  She had been vacuuming the floor, washing dishes, gathering trash, and doing other reasonable adult chores with a spring in her step.  Lily was feeling fantastic and even if someone told her that her car had been towed and had a $300 fine, she wouldn’t have cared and continue to dance.

She was, to put it bluntly: hyped.  

Something she had been looking forward to for a very long time was coming and Lily could not contain her glee.  On the wall, her calendar had a big red circle around March 7th: the upcoming Thursday.  In the pantry were a wide variety of snacks, munchies, treats, and goodies (some of them were leftover from the Pink Panther marathon a few weeks back, but were never opened, so they were still good).  Visions of possible ways to decorate the apartment to celebrate floated through her head as her heart beat with excitement.  To most others, this Thursday wasn’t anything particularly special, but In about six days...

...Castlevania Season Three was going to premiere on Netflix.

————————————-

As Lily danced while she worked, a pair of eyes were watching from the walls.  Lily knew they were there, but didn’t mind, since she knew those eyes belonged to her apparition roommate.  Their name was “Tulpa” (since that’s what they said it was when Lily asked) and recently, Lily had begun addressing them by name as opposed to simply “Roommate” or “Roomie”.

“Hey Tulpa!” Lily called out to the pair of eyeballs embedded into the wall, “Hope you don’t mind the music!”

Materializing from the wall, the nose-less, ear-less, long haired, spiky-toothed being moved closer and stared at their roommate doing the “Boogie of Unreachable Back Itch” with a puzzled look on their face.  The apparition couldn’t remember the last time they ever saw Lily look this happy.  Usually, she wasn’t nearly this energetic on her days off when doing chores, so something good must have happened.

“Why... are you... dancing?” Tulpa asked quietly in their trademark raspy voice.  Unfortunately, they were too quiet since Lily didn’t hear a word they said over the music coming from the computer.

“Lily...”  her roommate called out slightly louder, “Why... are you... dancing!?”

Once again, Lily couldn’t hear a thing and her ghostly roommate was starting to get annoyed.  They needed to do something to get her attention, and in a way that didn’t disturb the neighbors, frighten Lily, or result in something breaking.  (The two of them had a very long chat about it after “The Pink-ening” back in February.)  Eyeing Lily’s computer, Tulpa got an idea and hovered over to it.

One quick YouTube search was all it took to change the music to something Tulpa was more... familiar with.

“IN THE HEART OF TRANSYLVANIA!

IN THE VAMPIRE HALL OF FAME, YEAH!

THERE’S NOT A VAMPIRE ZANIER THAN

DUCKULAAAAAAA!!!”

*click*

————————————-

Lily stopped the music and looked at Tulpa with a half-smile on her face.  “You rang?” she said jokingly.

“Why... are you... dancing?” asked Tulpa.

Lily chuckled to herself, “I’m glad you asked!” she said joyfully, “One of my favorite shows has a new season premiering this Thursday!  Castlevania!”

“Castle... vania?” Tulpa asked inquisitively.  Despite being an apparition with no physical organs or body parts, they did have a memory, and something about that name seemed familiar.  Almost reflexively, Tulpa said, “Simon... Belmont?”

Lily raised an eyebrow and looked at her surprisingly knowledgeable roommate.  “You know about Simon Belmont!?”

“Mega... Man...” Tulpa continued, “Kid... Icarus...”

Lily was going to ask what Tulpa was talking about when her phone began to ring.  Walking over, she picked up her smartphone and answered knowing exactly who it was on the other end.  From the phone came a baritone voice that could best be described as “Overly Hammy”.

“YOOOOUUUUU HAVE MET WITH A TERRIBLE FAAAATE!  A GREAT CUUUUUUURSE HAS BEEN PUT UPON YOOOOOUUUUU!  OOOOOooooooooooo!”

“Hi Dad,” Lily answered with a smile.

“Hey sweetie!” came a cheerful voice over the phone, “Looking forward to this Thursday!?”

“You bet I am!” beamed Lily, “Did you hear they cast Bill Nighy to play Saint Germain!?”

“I did!” her father beamed back.  

————————————-

As father and daughter chit-chatted on the phone, Tulpa looked over Lily’s shoulder with a slight look of envy.  They could see how happy Lily was on the phone talking with her family.  Tulpa, however, hadn’t used a phone in a very long time, and they were kind of amazed at how far phones had come.  Any phone that let someone watch cartoons on it was the best phone ever in their book.  Deep down, they wished they had one of their own.  The apparition gave a breathless, wistful sigh as it watched Lily talk, but then Lily’s face was suddenly no longer smiling.

————————————-

“What do you mean THIS weekend?” she asked over the phone.

“Well I did say I was coming over the first weekend of March, didn’t I?”

“Yeah!  March 7th and 8th, right!?” Lily asked starting to feel a little panicked now.

“Noooo...” her Dad trailed off, “I was talking about this weekend.”

“Dad!  This is not the first weekend of March!  It’s the last weekend of February!” Lily said with exasperation,

“Tomorrow’s March 1st, and a Sunday, right?” her Dad pleaded his case.

“Yeah!  But the first weekend of any month usually means the first FULL weekend of any month!  It doesn’t count if it’s half-and-half!” Lily stated as a sinking feeling began to form in her gut.

She could hear her Dad shrug over the phone, “Oh well, my mistake then.”

“YEAH!” said Lily, “I don’t even have the place cleaned up yet.  I’m not ready to have company over!”  Her roommate noticed that Lily was looking at them when they said that.

“Honey, you know I don’t care if the place is cleaned up or not,” her father said.

“I DO!” Lily almost shouted. 

Despite her protesting, the apartment was actually looking good that Saturday.  The vacuuming was finished, dishes were being washed in the dishwasher, trash had been taken out, the display cases for her rock collection had been dusted off, and the apartment was, for all intents and purposes, presentable.  The real problem was that Lily hadn’t gone over her Dad’s visit with Tulpa yet to  make sure they understood how to behave themselves.

“Look,” Lily began to beg, “Could you just stop by and visit next weekend?  It’d work a lot better for me.”

“Yyyyyyeeeaaahhhh...” her Dad said while trailing off, “...about that...”  As soon as he finished saying the word “about”, Lily began to feel a little nauseous as she whipped around to look at the front door.  Beads of sweat were starting to form on her forehead as the dreaded noise she feared most came from her front door.

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

————————————-

Lily practically dropped the phone as her pupils shrank and panic began to set in.  She turned to her roommate, and tried to grab their hand.  Unfortunately, given Tulpa’s natural state of transparency, Lily’s hand went right through theirs.  Realizing that wasn’t going to work, Lily began to frantically move her arms and make gestures to get Tulpa to hide.

Tulpa, meanwhile, wasn’t entirely sure what was going on, but picked up on Lily’s gestures and went into one of the bedrooms.  Lily then closed the door and walked quickly over to the front door.  She opened it up, and just as she suspected, there was her Dad standing right outside with his phone up to his ear.

“Hey, Hey, Hey!” he said with a smile, “Guess who’s here!”

Lily had to use every muscle she had to contort her face into a forced smile, “D-D-Dad!  Hi!”  There was no mistake that it was him.  There were very few people who would consider a T-shirt that had an 8-bit pixel sprite with the caption “Uncle Vlad’s Wall Chicken” on it as “casual going out” clothes.  It was a Christmas gift she had gotten him a few months earlier, and while she was glad to know it fit him okay, seeing him out and about in it was somehow incredibly embarrassing.

“May I come in?” he asked politely.

“Uhhhhh...”  Lily stammered, “C-Could you give me a second.  I just, ummm...” she trailed off while trying to think of an excuse, “...need to pick up some laundry off the floor.  Yeah.  Don’t want you stepping on any... underwear or socks or anything!”  Lily’s laundry had already been cleaned, folded, and put away, including the towels in the linen closet, but her Dad didn’t know that, and she was banking on it.

“Sure!” her Dad agreed, “I did kind of drop in unannounced.”

“THANKS DAD!” Lily again almost hollered as she had to hold herself back from slamming the door when she closed it.  She immediately ran to the room where Tulpa was and looked her square in the eyes.  “Okay,” she began, “I know this is sudden, but my DAD is here!  I’m going to need you to be on your BEST behavior while he’s here, okay?”

Tulpa blinked and looked at Lily with their usual vacant expression on their face.  “...why?”  

“BECAUSE... Because...” Lily trailed off as she tried to think of a good reason.  Tulpa couldn’t be seen by anyone other than her, and she wasn’t entirely sure if other people could hear Tulpa either.  But her ethereal roommate was somehow able to make the entire apartment pink last month all the way down to the toilet paper, and could hold and carry things in their ghost-like hands.  “...I don’t want to scare him off!” was the best excuse Lily could think of off the top of her head.

Tulpa nodded, “...okay...” she said.  Lily detected a hint of them sounding disappointed, but she’d find a way to make it up to them later.

“I’ll make it up to you later!”

[See? Told yah!]

Tulpa wasn’t entirely sure why Lily was acting so strange all of a sudden.  She was acting as though her Dad would be able to see them even though they both knew that wasn’t possible.  Despite this, Lily still seemed uncomfortable with the whole situation, and not wanting to trouble their friend, Tulpa nodded.

Lily followed up with a quick, “Thank you!” before turning around to dash to the front door.

————————————-

Opening the door again, Lily gestured to her father to come on in, “Make yourself at home!” she said like she knew full well just how cliche it was to say.

“Don’t mind if I do,” her Dad said with a smile as he walked in.  It was then that Lily noticed the backpack he had on.  She recognized it as the “Electronics” backpack her Dad carried whenever he was taking a laptop or any other electronic device with him to places.  He headed straight to the living room, took his backpack off and began fishing around inside of it.

Lily gulped, “Did you bring-?” she began to ask before her Dad pulled out a family treasure from inside the backpack.

“Indeed I did!” he said proudly as he cut her off.  In his hands was one of his most prized possessions:

A Nintendo Entertainment System.

It was the same NES that he got back when he was fourteen years old in 1986.  He had been a video game fan ever since the early days of Atari and took meticulous care of his game systems to make sure they lasted and functioned for decades to come.  Even in his middle-ages at forty-eight years old, he still had the same passion for video games as he did when he was a kid.

Only one question was on Lily’s mind which she had no trouble verbalizing: “Why?!”  

Her Dad grinned a smug grin as he reached into the backpack and pulled out a small, black, plastic sleeve that contained an NES cartridge in it.  It wasn’t just any NES cartridge either; it was Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse.

Seeing that cartridge gave Lily mixed feelings.  She could remember the times growing up with her father when he would insist that she sit down and play video games with him.  But it often wasn’t so much to play them as it was to lecture her about them.  He would regularly go on and on about the history of video games, how significant they were to modern society and culture, nifty bits of trivia, and for Lily, NOTHING took away the fun from video games more so than trying to make them an educational experience.  In the back of her head, she knew they weren’t all like that; she still had many good memories playing games with her father (and playing the same games her father was lecturing about whenever he WASN’T lecturing), but the look in his eyes told her that this was going to be another one of his signature talks.

“Dad,” Lily pleaded, “No.  No, please!  Can’t we just, I dunno, watch Castlevania on Netflix?  Maybe check out the Japanese dub or something?”  She knew exactly what was about to happen.  He was going to connect the NES to her TV, put Castlevania III in, and then play it while talking about how the game eventually became the show she adored with voice acting by Richard Armitage and Graham McTavish.  All this to “prepare” for the season premiere in a few days.

Unfortunately for Lily, her father shook his head and said, “Now I didn’t spend my high school years breaking down blocks for wall meat and whipping away Medusa Heads for nothing.  C’mon!  Don’t you want to see your old man defeat Dracula?”

The answer to that was an emphatic “NO!” from Lily, but she wasn’t about to hurt her Dad’s feelings.  While it wasn’t how she planned to spend her Saturday, she figured that as soon as he got it out of his system, the sooner he could head back home.  Plus, talkative as he was, he was still rather decent at playing difficult video games even at forty-eight years old.  As long as everything went well, he ought to be able to finish the game in about an hour; two hours tops.

————————————-

Meanwhile, a pair of eyes was watching from the bedroom door (as in, within the bedroom door) as Lily’s Dad effortlessly hooked up the NES to the TV.  Tulpa began to remember some of the people that used to live here also had video game systems like the one Lily’s Dad was hooking up.   They were pretty interesting, and Tulpa was somewhat curious about them even if they weren’t cartoons.  Eager to see more of what was going on, they poked their head out more and more from the door.

Lily sighed as her Dad continued to fiddle with the cables behind the TV, and turned around in time to see Tulpa who was now poking their head out in full view.  Before Lily could say or do anything...

“AAUUGGHH!!”

Lily spun back around and looked at her father who looked like he had seen a ghost...

...but he was actually looking at the jumbled mess of pixels on the TV screen.  “Aww man,” he groaned, “I thought I cleaned this already!”  Turning to his daughter, he asked, “Hey can you reach into my backpack and grab the Q-Tips and alcohol?”

Sure enough, there was a bottle of Isopropyl alcohol and Q-Tips in the backpack, and Lily deftly fished them out and gave them to her man-child of a father.  Or was the correct term “Child-Man”?  Lily wasn’t quite sure but pushed that thought to the side as she said to him, “Hey, I’m gonna use the bathroom real quick!  B.R.B.!”

“Okie dokie,” her Dad said as he happily cleaned the game cartridge pins.  He always found something so cathartic about cleaning cartridges and getting them to work.  It was almost zen-like.

Of course, Lily did not go to the bathroom.   Instead, she walked right over to Tulpa’s levitating elongated neck and head, opened the door they were peeking out from (which pulled their head out of the door), and marched in with a mixture of disapproval, frustration, and worry on their face.  “What are you DOING!?” she demanded with her teeth clenched and her voice lowered.

“Want to... see,” Tulpa said bashfully.  Lily noticed that they weren’t looking her in the eyes.

“It’s just my DAD and his games!” pleaded Lily.

“I’d like... to meet... him,” said the curious ghost.

Lily turned to look at the door, then back to Tulpa, and raised her thumb like a hitchhiker to point to the door behind her.  “Him!?” Lily said incredulously, “What for!? He can’t even see or hear you anyway!”

It was true that Tulpa could not be seen by anyone other than Lily, and Tulpa knew that all too well.  Not a single living soul was able to see or truly hear them any time before now.  Lily was the exception and neither of them had any idea why.  But, the apparition thought to itself, the person out in the living room was Lily’s father.  What if...

“AH HA!” Lily practically jumped from her father’s victorious cheer, “I GOT IT!” he crowed from the living room.   Lily did a small face palm as the shout gave her flashbacks to when she was eight-years old and her Dad would practically scream at the top of his lungs every time he died playing Ninja Gaiden after Lily had gone to sleep.  Few things were more terrifying than being woken up out of a deep dream by the shrill shrieks of your own father.

Lily turned to Tulpa and made a shushing gesture, “If you’re gonna watch, just... make sure not to touch anything so he won’t know someone’s there, okay!?”

Tulpa nodded, somewhat solemnly, as Lily stepped out to join her Dad in the living room.  Inside the room Tulpa was in, there was a large mirror attached to a vanity table.  The inquisitive incorporeal individual looked at its reflection in the mirror.  They could see their matted hair and large googly eyes, as well as lack of facial features, and for the first time in its existence, began to think about its appearance.

No one before could see them, so what they looked like never really mattered.  Lily was the first person who could see Tulpa, and she accepted them for just the way they were.  That was something they really liked about Lily.  At the same time though, they never thought about how they wanted others to see them if they could see them.

Tulpa thought about how Lily included them in the things she did, and how much they enjoyed spending time with Lily.  Even if they weren’t watching cartoons, the time they shared was always fun and enjoyable.  They wanted to get to know Lily better, and what better way than by getting to meet her Dad?  Wouldn’t it be better if they were all together?

Sure he probably wouldn’t be able to see them, but...

...maybe he could?

And if he could, what would he think of them?

What would Tulpa want them to think of them?

Continuing to stare at themselves in the mirror, Tulpa made a decision.   It was going to take all of their concentration, but “nothing ventured, nothing gained.”  It began by taking a very, very, very deep breath.  They sucked in as much air as they could, practically inflating themselves like a balloon.

Once they had inhaled as much as they could, they held their mouth shut and tried to squeeze the air out using whatever specters had for muscles.   The human equivalent would have been if someone were to hold their breath, pinch their nose, and try to get their ears to pop.   A small popping noise could be heard in the room, as Tulpa succeeded in popping out some ears.

————————————-

Back in the living room, Lily was resting her arm on the armrest of the couch, with face resting in the palm of her hand, and looking extremely bored.  Her Dad was already sitting on the opposite end of the couch, navigating Trevor Belmont through Stage 1 after showing off how the game’s prologue fit the Netflix show’s narrative.  Lily was, naturally, not paying attention to any of it as her mind was somewhere else completely.

“What am I doing?” she thought to herself, “Why does it matter if Tulpa’s out here or not?   I mean, it’s not like Dad can see them or anything.”  As she thought to herself, deep down she came to realize what her problem was.  It wasn’t about her Dad meeting Tulpa, it was about Tulpa meeting her Dad!

Despite him being good natured and an affable person, he was still her Dad, and Dads by definition tended to be embarrassing as Hell!  He had actually researched Dad jokes and has kept an arsenal of them up his sleeves ever since Lily could remember.  He rarely ever acted like an average 48-year old man in public, and some times, Lily would feel ashamed that between the two of them, she would be considered the adult.

(During the Christmas season, he saw all the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1-Up Arcade Cabinets on display in Wal-Mart and would always turn them on and set the volume to maximum!  According to him, he was trying to recreate the “arcade atmosphere” of his youth.)

But despite the occasional embarrassment, he was still her Dad, and she wouldn’t trade him for any other Dad in the world.  He was always open minded, and whenever he didn’t understand something, he made an effort to try and understand.  Like that time he asked her to show him her rock collection and tell him about all the different kinds she had and what made them so unique.  He was always a cool Dad like that.

He raised her the best that he could and helped her with her homework.  He drove her to places she wanted to go when she was little, and took her to theme parks, the zoo, science centers, museums... he was always actively involved in her upbringing and that meant a lot to Lily.

The sound of a door opening and closing could be heard from the hallway.

“I’m overreacting, aren’t I?” she thought to herself.   “I should have just asked Tulpa to sit down and watch him play. I mean, misery loves company, right?   And plus he-“

It was at that moment that Lily’s eyes began to widen as she realized she had just heard the sound of a door opening and closing come from the hallway.  Her Dad turned around at the noise and Lily whipped herself around at breakneck speed.  She nearly choked on her own spit at what she saw.

It was Tulpa. 

 It was definitely Tulpa...

...But they looked human!

They had a nose, two ears, and opaque, pale skin.  Their hair still looked matted and unwashed, their eyes were still large, and their teeth still looked sharp even though they were a bit more rounded.  They were wearing a turtleneck blouse and a long skirt that went all the way down to their ankles.  On their feet were white socks which were probably there since Tulpa hadn’t really gotten the hang of manifesting realistic feet yet.  And they were definitely female (or going for the feminine look).

They looked kind of like that one really tall girl from that really popular anime everyone kept talking about, “Hands Off My Aerosol Can” or something like that.

There was a brief moment of silence in the room that felt like it stretched on for an eternity (even though it only lasted a fraction of a second).  Lily’s Dad was looking right at them, or at least, in their direction.   Lily could tell Tulpa had “dressed up” to meet her father, but doubted it would have mattered since there was no way he could-

“Hi there! You must be Lily’s roommate!” greeted Lily’s Dad.

...To Be Continued...

[desertfangs]

So I finished Buffy the Vampire Slayer. As someone who’s been a fan of the show for a long time, it’s nice to finally see the last few seasons myself. I’d known about most major character deaths and I knew about the unlocking all the slayers thing, but it was still fun to actually see it all play out (you know, mostly). 

Chosen is a pretty good episode and it makes a good ending. It’s not perfect but it works for the season and the series. The idea of Slayers being awakened world-wide sets up a lot of potential for cool stories that don’t involve the main cast. I love the idea of Sunnydale literally collapsing in on itself to seal off the hellmouth (and I’m super glad all of the residents fled - I wonder what they tell themselves was the reason they all abandoned their homes.) RIP Anya, Spike, and Xander’s left eye. 

Personally, I sort of want to mentally end the series in the middle of Season 6, before Seeing Red, and leave Tara alive and Spike more forgivable. When I started this whole thing, I thought maybe I’d also read the comics that come after, and I still might, but I don’t know. 

Season 7 had a lot of issues writing-wise. It was like the show was more worried about getting characters where they needed to be for the story they wanted to tell than stopping to think about why characters might do things or how they might end up there organically, so a lot of things felt very out-of-character or absurd. Character’s positions on things turned on a dime to suit the story with zero explanation. And everyone was incredibly high-strung and angry all season, which could be due to the First and the infusion of evil in the air or something but I honestly don’t think the writers thought about that. It’s a shame, because I think there were probably better ways to get to the same ending, but for whatever reason they made other choices. 

As for Spike and Buffy, well... before my only reference point to that whole relationship was the Musical, and I thought “hey, that could really work!” Spike had worked with Buffy to stop Angel and Dru before he even had the chip in his head so I could see him really coming to love her, even without a soul. But then I saw how it was written and uh... that is not how I pictured it. I don’t begrudge anyone who ships it (I figure there’s probably tons of great fic trying to fix the mess that is canon and I’m tempted to write some myself!) but the writers really made it a hard sell. 

Seeing Red honestly crossed a line for me that’s hard to forgive, no matter how Soul-Having he became. I do still love Spike in the earlier series--and the version of him I want to exist in the later ones--but the writing did him zero favors. I’d think someone in that writer’s room really hated Spike except that I also suspect a certain show-runner whose name rhymes with Moss did not see or understand or even care why the things Spike did were gross and uncomfortable, nor why Spike shouldn’t be forgiven the second he does some Big Act of Contrition and drops on the floor in front of Buffy begging for forgiveness. 

Anyhow, that’s my long ramble. I might have more posts as I gather my thoughts about the final season. And I might read the Season 8 comics because I never learn. Who knows. 

[wolfwhiteflowers]

TWD ending news; thoughts and speculations

 Caryl 📺  💖  Richonne 📽

TWD is ending soon!  -not quite.

Here’s my thoughts on it. the lows and highs. Anyways so yeah 9/9/20 was a crazy TWD news day.(and other tv news too, wtf tv gods. Yeah ..been a crazy tv week.) wtf, why that day? and I guess it’s like an unofficial Caryl day, huh? lol So it’s overwhelming. I wanna write it all out and my feels.    ok I guess I’m not that super excited or invested to it than others..idk I guess the excitement will hit me later or gradual. :P ok...idk I don’t wanna speculate too much. We don’t know much on it still.

So .... they’re/AMC saying TWD show (Rick’s/Grimes show) will end in a super sized s11. TWD finally got an ending plan! lol this show/franchise. I don’t mind that it’s ending or whatever, I mainly want a good story...a good written ending. But it’s all based on how if I still enjoy this show/franchise.. ok. Plus there’s a Caryl spin-off show and anthology spin-off show later on. +movie.

It’s a long post and I kinda mapped it out.

So in a *timeline*, in October it’s the s10 ep 16 “finale” episode. Recently, we’re also getting s10C (coronavirus pandemic bonus episodes) - six episodes I think, in Spring ‘21 (filming in October ‘20). They’re like inbetween episodes to s11. Idk what they’re like. standalone episodes?  And then they’re gonna do the series’s final season, s11, with 24 (12+12)episodes. Idk when it starts.  They film next summer, i guess, and show it in the Fall ’21 and Spring ‘22. Then it’s the spin-off shows, and Caryl..but I wanna focus more on Caryl spin-off show. That will be I guess in ‘23.  ...And a movie(s) :D but everyone’s doubtful and clueless of it but I think it will be filmed next year, ‘21. (and there’s TWD:WB and FTWD soon)

Ok yeah so ldksjfaljdflsj they say it’s sad news that TWD ending but like lol it doesn’t seem like it..from a Caryler I guess, +movie. So, I have theories and I’m like not so sure what’s really gonna happen. I need more info and well we never know what the writers or the future gonna do. Yeah first of all, these plans~~~, and yet we’re in the pandemic and dumb governing on these things. So I’m gonna guess these plans are gonna change or slow down. You never know. Ok.

 I’m also like surprised that there’s gonna be a Caryl spinoff show. (it’s like if they made a Daryl spin-off show. Or any spin-off show..) I mean I didn’t think MMB and NR were still wanting to keep working on TWD/AMC. I thought like any actor..would want to do new things...Ok but they wanna keep working on AMC. NR -I’m not surprised cos he’s like a busy bee..um idk but yeah. Instead of Daryl show it’s now Caryl show from what I suspected-ish. And from the news they sound like it’s a shippy thing. It was also planned since 2018 I think..and “let’s go to New Mexico.” They knew long ago. So, I speculated awhile ago, when we learned that MMB and NR have contracts ending till s12. It’s like we all kinda suspected right that TWD will end in s12 except in episode # count. S10C + s11 (24 episdoes/+8 exra). They combined it earlier. Why earlier Idk...the pandemic? Or Gimple’s plan in franchise timeline? 

So yeah that Caryl spin-off show! Like I hope it means that Caryl are romantic and endgame on this.👀 The more I read on this and thought about it. I don’t want to like get my hopes up too high or whatever. I don’t really trust writers.. eh ...it all depends on the story every time. I also think of the fandom/carylers on how they react to a canon-Caryl or even how the writers will show canon-Caryl. Because writers..like usually writers don’t write canon couples romance well. It’s usually love triangle, reunite a bunch of times, or breakup/makeup a lot. eh. I just hope they make Caryl story good and interesting. Another thing Caryl ship had always been like a subtle ship and angsty. We get bits and bits to keep going ..so a full attention of Caryl or canon-Caryl will be different. I hope it all goes well. :3 It’s all reminds me of Mindy Project show ..there’s always sides in the fandom. Some won’t like it, some will but it’s always about the main couple. Oh, my thoughts of Caryl show is that it will be like Bones, SPN, FTWD, or BeIIarke -_- lol , or something. 

 So from what I read when they already want to keep going with the spin-off show back in ‘18, the Caryl spin-off show will actually cost less than the TWD main show. It’s interesting. It’s all contracts, deals, Netflix, $ stuff. The show might not be international and on netflix, Idk. You know the ratings aren’t that great and most fans left,..but I guess they can still make the Caryl spin-off show. (a season or more idk) I was thinking it might be a Caryl-only show with different cast and set ...or the Caryl spin-off show might actually be just like TWD main show-s10 but different deals $ etc, and they can do whatever. 

Oh, that it’s a spin-off then, and not now in s10 and s11, because the TWD main show will be done adapting the comic book storyline..(instead of thinking of the MMB and NR’s contracts). Yeah one of the theories.. like really Idk why we have Caryl spin-off show when s10 and s11 is pretty much already a Caryl show..with Maggie. But I guess it’s all due with contracts and stuff. And I guess it works timely with the comic storyline. Though the comic storyline parallel/adapting is so different now.  It’s very broad parallels. I guess it all works out in little ways. contracts, comics, and starting fresh. The Caryl spin-off show, they can really get away from the Grimes/Rick storyline which I like that it’s gonna be really separated by being a different show. (I guess also AMC have more control too.) It’s not on the same main show/s10 and on. Like storywise, I like that TWD show is always about the Grimes and it feels like it will be done right and completed to end it in s11 and that is based on comics/and the Grimes (I hope). If that make sense? Rick/Grimes show,is based on comics, will have an ending...TV-wise. Because there’s the movies too supposedly. Yeah maybe I’m not sad..because there’s the Rick movies thing in the works too. I hope s11 will still be about the connection to the Grimes. Like everyone looking after Judith and RJ and figuring out what to do with finding Richonne and stuff. To set up for the movies. (and TWD WB s2?) Because if not, then ugh then AMC should’ve had the main show ended in s10.  Wow.., the show is not based on the comics like it was before and I really can’t speculate s11 and on. Like I hope the writers got juicy stories to tie in with Rick and Michonne, and Maggie/Commonwealth comic stuff. uhh. So yeah Caryl spin-off show it means they can do whatever and writers/me? don’t have to worry that if it’s not connecting with the Grimes storyline. If AMC/Gimple wants to connect everyone.

And one of my theories or hope is that Caryl looks after Grimes kids ...in s11 and search for Rick/Richonne or help him, in part of the bigger plot of Rick movie story, in the spin-off show. Like Caryl will work on plan that later helps out Rick in the movies later on. Yeah and I just think the Rick movies are more like “TWD movies” where all the characters in the franchise will be part of the story. So yeah Rick reunites with everyone. The end, Happy ending! :3 So there’s many ways Caryl show might be like: same cast from TWD show that AMC controls more/Caryl leads/not based on comics(romantic or not), Caryl-only show, or Caryl kinda in part of the Rick movies story-like helping him in some way. etc. Oh, ..I was also thinking it’s like I guess FTWD .. I was also thinking Morgan and his friends might be also be in part of helping Rick’s plans in the Rick movies too.  (.. if Gimple wants to do that.) I hope Caryl will be romantic..I don’t want a “Caryl spin-off show” when it’s just same cast and Caryl still not together. eh. ..Why call it “Carol and Daryl spin-off show”? So I guess it’s gonna be shippy.

So I think the Rick movies (which so far is still happening and three of ‘em.../if) will be after s11 and after TWD WB s2 - ‘21/22.    idk when FTWD comes.

Oct ‘20 - TWD:WB s1

spring ‘21 -TWD  s10C 

summer ‘21? - TWD: WB s2/ends

fall ‘21 and spring/summer ‘22 (or fall ‘22? lol) - TWD s11 

‘22? *rick movie 1? (...with everyone there?)

‘23 Caryl spin-off show s1

‘23 and on? * rick movie 2? movie 3?

....etc.

So...you get it..like it’s like some big overall storyline Gimple is doing. But plans can change and anything could happen. I may be speculating wrong. Who knows. sigh. I just want Team Family reunited with Rick again and a good ending as best as writers can do. :B  If they can’t make a movie(s) then I hope Gimple find a way to end Rick’s story for fans.

sigh yeah tired of the fandom complaining and assuming/speculating wrong. (like hating on the spin-off show when they don’t know what a spin-off show is.) blah. idk. tired of shippers..generalizing. (I ship both Caryl and Richonne so. sigh go away drama) I’m tired of fans being biased and doubting and singling things out. I feel like we all won. But anyway until more news and facts it is what it is. I wanna wait till when things actually happen or news that say something won’t happen.  Keep waiting and hoping on :] *Caryl on*

[magnumdays]

The Episode of Lost Opportunities AKA 2x16

SO I wrote this before watching the promo, then I did and now I know most of us are just FREAKING out about next week (and I’m freaking out the most because ummm they’remakingmyfanficintoanactual EPISODE!!! How does one deal with this????)  but if you want a break from freaking out, here are some thoughts on last night’s episode!

So even though 2x16 was perfectly enjoyable, I’m going to have to officially re-name it “The Episode of Lost Opportunities” because there were so many plots and just tid-bits they could have done great things with.

So yeah not really a review today, instead I’m going to (in true Jenny Nicholson fashion) make a numbered list of things I think they should have added /done something with, in no particular order.

Miss nr. 1. Not having Higgy tease Magnum back with British pet names. I’m honestly devastated by this. Like what would a little sarcastic “come on luv” or a “Dearie, come here” from Juliet have cost them? The closest we got was Babe take our selfie.

Nr. 2. Not having Mr. Dorky Helpful But Cute guy ask Higgy out. I really thought this was where it was going with him being all “it’s just our second date, we met online” and yeah even though he looked about 12, it would have fit the episode. 

Plus they could have had Magnum standing to the side gesturing like “go for it” and her either saying yes or no and later her and Magnum having a little chat about it. The Yes with him being all “I convinced you to do it” proud and also mildly jealous. The No, with her being all “he’s a suspect” or “he went on a love bus tour!” or “I’m not ready, bc of the dead fiance, remember him?”

Nr. 3. Which takes us neatly to - drowned guy should be bringing up some feelings for Juliet as I’m fairly certain back in Day of The Viper they mention something about how Richard washed up on the shores of something-something (I mean obvs he was shot before but I’d still imagine some associations there).

Also her own almost drowning in 1x19 (even if this episode’s dude wasn’t drowned, it did seem so at first and he was still in the water). I just feel maybe there could have been some feelings here that our favorite duo actually talked about. Just a nice little call back to either one of those would have been great. One line! Is that too much to ask for?

Nr. 4 on the list of missed opportunities is for me going to be Theresa (Teresa?). TC’s old flame. And this is a big one! 

I honestly would have loved it if they went with this - as in have him not be so damned noble and let the childhood sweetheart go. Like, why not have them actually try to make a go at it?

Maybe she could have been there with just her boyfriend rather than husband to make it less of a thing and then maybe give it an episode or two and have them talk over the internet before she comes back and they get back together! Because why can’t anyone have a girlfriend? Like why do all of the guys need to be such lone wolves? 

I mean, I get it, because they are a family/brothers, but having even just one more minor female recurring would be interesting and would add dimension to the gang and characters!

Now this is like one of those random side plots that don’t really do much because in the end nothing has changed. Other than us learning a little more about TC, which is nice, but it doesn't seem like it will actually impact future episodes and didn’t really connect a whole lot with the episode. TC is just off getting closure to a relationship we never knew he needed closure for. Which means we’re not super invested.

I feel like this is a bit of a problem with the show in general. We get really nice and moving and character developing stuff for characters we haven’t been shown to need, as with Kumu last week and now TC. Rick and his dying “dad” Ice-Pick and even Shammie with his lying army buddy. Even Gordon and his son. Jin and his sisters and that’s why he steals.

These things could all have had 100 times more impact if they’d established these problems/ relationships earlier. Like if we had learned Kumu's husband had cheated on her and had a child with another woman (or maybe that Kumu is a bit sad she never had kids on her own) sometime before - over the past 30 episodes, wouldn’t last week’s episode, where she finally reaches out to the husband’s kid, would have been so much more emotionally satisfying? 

Same if Theresa had been mentioned as TC’s great love and maybe him being sad some episodes ago (or even back in 1x19 when his dad doesn't come to visit - that could have been about him seeing a post about her getting married and him being upset about it and connecting with Rick about that.) 

Like I get that maybe sometimes they just throw random things in there but at the same time why do they need to do that? Want to do that? Isn’t there someone keeping track of the big picture? Giving characters long running story arcs over a season or even multiple ones should be someone’s job. 

If it’s not, I volunteer! 

Seriously Lenkov I’m currently unemployed and totally up for it, just give me a call! I already know we think the same... (Marriage of Inconvenience). 

Nr. 5 Not having Gordon comment something on the fact that he’s been called to a murder scene on a Island Love tour bus site by his favorite PI duo. Like yeah they’d have told him why they were there but he still should have teased them about it! Like “What were you two doing here anyways? Something going on?” and both of them giving a horrified “NO!”.

Nr. 6 when the guy says “is he crazy?” after Magnum jumped into the waterfall pool thing, not having Higgy be all “Yes, he is”, then jumping in after him, was a huge miss. That would have been so funny and shown how much alike they are (even if Higgy will always be the sane one...)

Nr. 7. Not having Magnum and Higgins try to pretend to be together when the bus driver catches them. I mean come on! At least some more hand holding! Snuggling? I’m not saying to just kiss already okay maybe I am saying that.

Nr. 8. Not one real Miggy moment in this episode? I mean lots of bickering and maybe for a moment with her being all “well done” when he tells the cheating a-hole he’s an idiot for having an affair. And if the camera had stayed on him for a few seconds more when they’re toasting at the end we know we’d have gotten a Mangum looks had Higgy soft heart eyes moment. But we didn’t. But other than that, not really much feel-y moments even if we got plenty of cute stuff.

Nr. 9.  Sandy and how they find out Sandy is the killer! Like what? She cut the bus’s fuel line  which makes no sense, she’d wouldn’t want to trap herself right?  Sandy if you’d just not cut the fuel line and stayed with the group, you’d have been taken back to civilization and no one would have figured you out! Or you should have left right away on car/4-wheeler you must have prepared for escape, not stayed around! You could have left down long before the cops got there or the autopsy revealed anything. Same for why does she give her knife to her date? Why not just throw the knife away? She’s in the jungle, big chance it will be found. Not.

And why kill someone in the middle of nowhere, making yourself one of the, like, 8 suspects? Like come on girl, for a hit woman you’re not that clever. Also if you had a gun, why strangle a guy 2x your size? That’s not a smart plan either. Just get a silencer and shoot the guy when he’s on his morning jog back in the city or something! I feel like the only reason they had her be the baddie was so Magnum/ Higgins could say “Shot through the heart” // “How is that for poetic” all dramatically after Gordon took her down.

Problem nr. 10. Tied in with this I just think Sandy as the killer should have not happened. 

In fact, I think having the sweet loving wife as the killer would have been wonderful. 

It would have been a much better twist! Dead guy could have been poisoned (traditional how wive’s kill their husbands… just saying) and then he fell off the cliff. They could surely have found some weird clue to that, like maybe his throat is all swollen and stuff to make them think foul play and then when they’re moving the body towards the end, Magnum realizes it’s poison.

But Higgy stayed back with the ‘grieving’ asthmatic widow and oh no! Must rush back to save my one true love platonic partner. 

We could have had some sort emotional moment where the Wife got Higgy with a knife at her throat and is all “He was supposed to be my best friend, my partner, my everything and he did X” and Magnum being all “Well that woman you’re holding a knife to is my (best) friend, my partner and she didn’t do anything so please put the knife down!” Or something. 

I mean I know that sounds like I’m off in Miggy fanfiction land but honestly I think they could have made it work (this is hilarious when re-reading after watching next weeks trailer). She could have teased him about the best friend bit but then she could have been all soft, “Thomas. Thank you. I’m glad you're my friend.” And the episode could have ended with how love just never seems to end well for anyone which would have been way more on theme for the vibes in this episode (and frankly whole show because no one gets to have a romantic relationship for more than, like, 3 episodes).

Nr. 11. Higgins hair. Not putting it in the fluffy “Blood In the Water” style was a big miss because that hair made her look so freaking adorable. Just saying. I mean both my babies are always adorable I just love the poofy fluff hair from that ep!

Anyways, those were my 11 missed opportunities for episode sixteen!

My fave bits were Magnum and Higgins fake couple thing at the start. Magnum being all like “While we’re up here we might as well take a selfie!” and then when talking to the old couple his, *I’m just gonna keep my hand here, on your waist! I’m real smooth* move. 

I enjoyed the fast action pack-ed-ness of the whole ep and the pretty Hawaii scenery we got. The more I watch Magnum PI the more I want to visit Hawaii (one day when there is no Corona, I’m much richer and 20h airplane rides are suddenly comfortable, I will!) and just enjoying all the amazing natural beauty and stuff.

The Rick and TC’s interactions were also highlights, I loved the whole “just pretend to walk by”. Like so middle-school yet so relatable because who hasn’t done that when we’re like, is that Lisa from second grade? And just we walked down the cat food aisle perusing cat food (when we most def. don’t have a cat), just to check if it is indeed Lisa.

Also this made me crack up so hard.

Magnum: Muffin? 

Higgy: Could you please not refer to me as a breakfast pastry.

That’s just so on point for Higgy I can’t even!

You guys agree with my missed opportunities? Or have any of your own for this or any other episodes?

______

(And who is desperately searching for a time machine to steal so it can be next week - right this minute!! LIKE!!! I’m still freaking out from the trailer.)

[sellyoursoulforagoodfic]

The Outsider Chapter 8

Good Ganondorf x reader

Word Count: 1016

Summary: Timeskip, and all is not alright in the palace …

A few months after the wedding, it was all you could do to get out of bed in the morning. Bed had the promise of safety from the scathing remarks that came from the mouths of your own people to which you’d done nothing but serve to improve their lives. Once you got up, that safety blanket was essentially set ablaze by the ravenous mob that had been camping outside the castle, protesting you since the moment the headpiece that marked you as queen touched your hair. And with Ganondorf’s advisors questioning your every move … It was a lot to deal with, but you were doing it with as much poise as you could muster. Of course, that didn’t mean you enjoyed leaving your bedroom by any stretch of the imagination.

Which led you to where you were presently, trying to burrow into the pillow in order to escape your husband’s gentle shakes as he tried to wake you. “Noooo …” you whined quietly.

His responding chuckle was quiet. “I’ve already stalled them as much as I can, my love; they need you.”

That, you didn’t doubt. You’d woken up some questionable amount of time earlier when your body registered the feeling of your pillow becoming sentient and sneaking out of bed. You pushed back the sheet enough for you to shoot him a one-eyed glare. “Somehow, I doubt that.”

Large hands were raised in surrender. “Don’t look at me. They want you to delegate between some shops about rations; apparently I didn’t handle it well last time.”

Your eyes narrowed. “Why do I feel like you just told them to shove it?”

Now, Ganondorf had the decency to look sheepish while he scratched the back of his head. “Because you know me so well, my darling wife?” When your gaze didn’t waver, he sighed and dropped the uncomfortable smile that’d grown on his face when he spoke. “Alright fine; I did. But they were being unreasonable! Two different restaurants wanted to double their supplies when we weren’t in the harvest season. I told them we’d increase them slightly, but they’d have to figure out how to divide it.”

You rolled your eyes. “And now I get to be the bad guy and tell them that’s all they're getting,” you muttered. “Because people need more reasons to hate me.”

“You’re great at handling people!” he tried, taking your hand in one of his. “I’m sure everyone will be pleased by the end.”

Your body was completely limp as he gently pulled you up, limbs and head flopping around like a child’s favorite doll. “Have I mentioned that I only ever wanted to be a warrior?”

A small smile tugged at his lips right before he hauled you over his shoulder like a rug, causing you to yelp in surprise. “Ah, but then you’d be off having grand adventures while I’m stuck here with some woman that only wants me for my body, dealing with the bureaucrats alone.”

A hand placed on his shoulder was all the extra help you needed to sit a little more upright and see his face, the side of it anyway, as he carried you to the royal bathhouse. “Who says I want you for more than your body?” You made sure to put on a face of pure confusion to add to the charade.

To that, he just scoffed. “Please. You loved me even when I had arms like a moblin.”

That made you laugh heartily. It’d been hilarious, back in those days, when his arms were too long and skinny to fit his growing body with any kind of proportions that made sense. “Fair enough,” you snickered. “You grew into them pretty well, though,” your voice dropped to something more fit for private conversations. “Now everything matches in size.”

Whatever he would have said in response was cut off by the sounds of feet pounding on the hard palace floors. In an instant, Ganondorf had placed you back on your feet so you could fight back without difficulty if necessary. His alarm was slightly soothed when it was the palace guard that rounded the corner into his view. 

“What is it?” he demanded, all trace of teasing gone from his tone.

“The baths have been compromised, sir,” one replied stiffly, discomfort clear in her body. You recognized her face, but didn’t know her name, so she must have been one of the new recruits Nixa had been training not too long ago.

“What happened?” came your sharp question, your eyes focused on your personal guard, Emati, knowing she would give you a real answer.

“Someone broke in about ten minutes ago. We think they were looking for you, and you weren’t there, so they trashed the face. Left a pretty nasty message on the mirror.”

Your heart stuttered in what could only be pure terror. If Ganondorf hadn’t stalled the advisors to buy you more time in peace, you would have been in the baths ten minutes ago. Whoever broke in knew your schedule. Which was something that couldn’t be said of the people protesting outside the palace walls. That could only mean that the faction of the Gerudo that wanted you dead had someone inside the palace.

“Oh, no.”

“All meetings have been cancelled today on my authority,” Emati announced, level-headed as always. “For both of you. We can’t continue the normal routine until we find out who the traitor is.”

Ganondorf shook his head. “We can’t continue that routine at all anymore. We have no way of knowing who else knows of the day-to-day activities.”

“Have my mother start combing through suspects,” you ordered, voice thankfully much calmer than you felt. “Ganondorf and I will make ourselves unpredictably scarce for the day so you two have the freedom to work and not worry about us.”

“As you wish,” Emati bowed respectfully. The other guards present quickly followed her example and saluted the two of you before leaving to report to Nixa.

You, on the other hand, quickly found yourself being dragged away by your worried-looking husband to destinations unknown.

[dickwheelie]

@ciguierre​ suggested on the Discord server that I write a ficlet about Aziraphale trying coffee, which turned into a discussion about the boys going to Starbucks, which turned into this. Thank you for the inspo Cig!

Disclaimer: I love Starbucks, and I went there basically every day while I was in college, but because of that I also know that Starbucks absolutely belongs to Hell.

____________

Contrary to popular belief, Starbucks was not a human invention. (Nor were any two-tailed mermaids involved.) While the original locally-run coffee shop founded in the charming and often damp American city of Seattle, Washington in the early seventies was a quite human family business, the Starbucks Company that grew from such humble (read: marketable) beginnings was a result of the demonic forces of Down Below, as one would say in polite company.

Specifically, it was a result of the demonic forces of Crowley.

Crowley had always liked coffee, ever since the strange effects of the coffee bean had first been discovered by a young Ethiopian woman during a primitive version of a game of truth or dare. While he wasn’t necessarily after the effects of the drink, he did enjoy the taste, and although he preferred tea he wouldn’t say no to a nice, hot, strong brew of black coffee.

Crowley hadn’t turned Starbucks into an international brand because he liked coffee, however. He’d done it because he’d envisioned, prophetically, as it turned out: the long lines, impatient customers, frazzled employees, too-expensive drinks, confusing cup sizes, terrible brewing methods, tasteless pastries, and above all, below-average coffee that would soon cloud the early-morning skies with evil all over the globe. Crowley had only ever had one drink at a Starbucks in his lifetime, to test the results of his meddling in action. He’d ordered an Americano with almond milk and a shot of espresso, and it had been as horrible as he’d hoped it would be.

(The Frappuccinos were not one of his. Only humans could come up with something so ridiculous and yet so popular.)

Despite all of this, Crowley was currently standing in a Starbucks. He was very upset to discover this, because even though he’d deliberately made the trip there, parked the Bentley out front, walked into the store, and had been standing in line for about five minutes now, he still couldn’t quite believe he had been talked into this.

He shot a glare at Aziraphale, who was staring up at the corporate-mandated seasonal fall menu in blissful ignorance. Aziraphale, out of all the beings in the Universe, was probably the only one who could have talked Crowley into this, and even then he had only just barely managed it. He’d promised to pick one (1) item, place his order quickly, and get them out of that place as soon as possible.

Aziraphale was not sticking to that promise.

“I’ll have the Pumpkin Spice Latte,” he was saying to the barista, who looked as though he would have rather been feeding his own limbs to an alligator than taking orders at a Starbucks. “No--no, wait, the White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino. Or, no, the Dragonfruit Refresher. What is a Refresher? Is it like lemonade?”

“Angel . . .” Crowley muttered into his ear.

“Right, right, sorry.” Aziraphale smiled his most angelic smile at the barista, who, despite the fact that Aziraphale was objectively the worst customer to have in line on a busy day, actually managed to smile back. (He didn’t understand why, of course, but since it was the first time he’d had a reason to smile since his shift had started at 8 AM, he wasn’t going to question it.) “I will have the Pumpkin Spice Latte.”

Wonderful, Crowley thought. Something simple, quick to make, and then they could flee.

“. . . And the Dragonfruit lemonade. And the White Chocolate thingy I said earlier, that sounded delightful.”

Crowley massaged his temples. He loved Aziraphale with all of his heart, but sweet Someone, that angel was going to kill him one of these days.

“Oh, and one of those delicious-looking almond scones as well, there’s a dear.”

Crowley was going to drive home without him. He was. His feet weren’t moving, but he was absolutely going to do it, just you wait.

“What sizes would you like for your drinks, sir?” said the barista. Crowley fought the urge to curse him right then and there; it wasn’t his fault the sizes were confusing. In fact, it occurred to him, it was technically Crowley’s fault, but he quickly shoved the thought aside.

“Ah, medium, I think,” said Aziraphale. “All things in moderation, yes?” This was a phrase Crowley had never heard Aziraphale use or implement in his everyday life, and he suspected he was quoting something Gabriel had said at a meeting once.

The barista pointed up at the menu board. “We have tall, grande, venti, and trenta.”

“Ah. I . . . see,” said Aziraphale, visibly confused. “Which one is medium, then?”

“I guess grande would be medium, sir.”

Aziraphale’s eyebrows knitted together. “But grande means large in Italian, yes? And venti is twenty. Twenty what?”

Crowley had mostly tuned out of the conversation, but something had caught his attention, and his mind was slowly catching back up. “Wait. Trenta? What on Earth is trenta?”

The barista looked at him in surprise; he hadn’t said a word since he’d come grumpily slinking into the store behind Aziraphale. “It’s our largest size, sir. Thirty-one ounces.”

Crowley had never wanted so badly to take Christ’s name in vain before. He felt certain he hadn’t come up with that one. Once again, the humans had one-upped him in terms of acts of pure evil.

“I’ll just take them in grande,” Aziraphale said hastily, sensing that Crowley’s patience was wearing thinner by the second.

“Name?”

“Aziraphale.”

The barista Looked at him. It was the kind of Look that really earned the capital L. He scribbled something on each of the cups. Aziraphale paid without another word.

As they waited at a too-small and slightly dirty table for Aziraphale’s order to be called, Crowley asked, “Why’d you want to come here, anyway?”

“Newt told me about it,” said Aziraphale excitedly. “I was telling him about how I so enjoyed the coffee you made for me, and he said I should come here. He goes all the time, apparently, although Anathema won’t set foot in the place.”

“Smart woman.”

“He recommended the pumpkin spice thing to me, and told me with my sweet tooth, I’d be sure to love anything on the menu.”

“Huh.” That was probably true, at any rate. “You do realize this is one of mine, right?”

Aziraphale looked up at him, eyes wide with alarm. “Is it?”

Behind his sunglasses, Crowley’s own eyes widened. “Angel, I thought you knew. I mean, it should be alright now, Heaven isn’t exactly breathing down your neck anymore, and--”

Aziraphale was giggling. Crowley’s mouth snapped shut.

“You’re having me on.”

“Oh, my dear. I’m sorry, I didn’t think you’d be so upset. Of course I knew, it’s my job to keep track of your wily schemes, so I can thwart them.”

“You’re doing an excellent job of thwarting them now,” Crowley deadpanned. “You only bought twenty pounds’ worth of merchandise.”

“Well, it’s like you said,” Aziraphale said wryly, in that slightly devilish way that Crowley adored, “Heaven isn’t exactly breathing down my neck anymore.”

They were interrupted by a shout from the counter. “A falafel?” a second barista called out confusedly.

Aziraphale sighed and rose from the table. “I suppose that must be me.” He returned a moment later with a tray of three drinks and the bagged scone.

One by one, Aziraphale tried each item, and to Crowley’s disappointment (but not necessarily his surprise), he seemed to love every single one.

“The scone isn’t terribly good,” said Aziraphale through a mouthful of scone, which he was almost finished with, “but the rest of it is just delightful. I don’t think I’ve ever had lemonade with dragonfruit in it, but it’s a lovely combination.”

“Isn’t lemonade,” said Crowley, “but I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.” He meant it; if his angel was happy, he was happy. He just hoped that, if this was going to become a thing, Aziraphale would be willing to get Starbucks to go from now on. Or just miracle up a passable imitation at home.

They sat there for an hour while Aziraphale worked through his three drinks. Now that they weren’t waiting in line or dealing with confusing menu items, Crowley had to admit it wasn’t so bad to just sit in a Starbucks and chat with one’s companion. (Granted, that companion was Aziraphale, whom he’d be happy to sit and chat with inside of an active volcano, but the sentiment still applied.)

Aziraphale, for his part, was practically glowing with joy, and every frustrated writer and college student in that building felt a bit of weight lift off their shoulders.

Despite Crowley’s protests (“This is a Starbucks, Angel, not the Ritz,”), Aziraphale insisted on going back up to the counter when he was done and thanking each barista individually, by name, even if they’d forgotten their nametags. Though he’d tipped generously when he’d paid, Aziraphale dropped another twenty-pound note into the tip jar before he left. By the time Crowley managed to pull him away, the baristas were all smiling at him and waving goodbye. “Come again soon!” said the barista at the register, and found with surprise that he actually meant it.

“Leave it to you,” said Crowley as they climbed into the Bentley, “to leave a place of demonic influence looking like that.”

“Just doing my job,” Aziraphale said with a pleased little smile that made him look like an absolute bastard.

“Thwarting all my wiles.”

“Left and right, my dear.”

“. . . Aziraphale.”

“Yes?”

“What are you eating.”

“I . . . hadn’t quite finished the scone, darling.”

“ . . . Just . . . please don’t get any crumbs in the Bentley.”

“I won’t, dear.”

Crowley sighed, and floored it.

[whoareyouandwhyshouldicare]

To all my fellow LoVe shippers who are feeling down I have one thing to say.

I can’t make the last 8 minute of season 4 disappear but I can recommend some really great LoVe fanfiction that will make you feel at least a little bit better. So without further ado here are a few of my favorite LoVe fics!

A Hard Habit to Break  by  mskatej   Nothing gets Veronica over her failed relationships better than Logan Echolls.    

...And Long For You  by  AbsolutelyIris It was moments like those Veronica wished she could be like Lilly- storm into his house and curse and yell and damn him to hell before demanding he fuck her...and like with Lilly, he would gladly, if reluctantly, do so.      

 “Any Love Is Good Love, Baby”  by wily_one24   Apparently, Hollywood was wrong, the devil did not wear Prada, the devil wore butch black boots and tiny little skirts.                                

The Best (and Only) Kept Secret in Neptune  by  vixleonard Even when they hated each other, Logan and Veronica just couldn't stay away from each other.                     

The Burdened Vessel  by  vixleonard   Veronica needs a favor only Logan can help her with.              

Every Belt That Ever Hit Someone (Is Still Made to Hold Something Up)  by igrockspock   Logan doesn't get any votes for Most Changed at the ten-year reunion, which is bullshit when you think about it.  In the past ten  years, everything in his life has changed.  He's joined the Navy, dated a pop star, and figured out that Dick Casablancas can occasionally behave like a real human being.  Only one thing hasn't changed: he's still in love with Veronica Mars.  Oh, and he's suspected of murdering his girlfriend.

"Fear and Loathing in Neptune"   by wily_one24 Veronica Mars was going to get herself laid. Series  Part 1 of Any Love  

A Fine and Endless Cycle  by kartography A freshman year at Hearst and the cyclical nature of love                                         

Fireworks by AliLamba Veronica is technically not a virgin, and awkward results ensue. An AU version of LoVe's first time.                

For the Sake of a Friend by jacedesbff   What if Logan and Veronica were involved in a secret relationship throughout the events of Season 1?     

The Game of Trust  by Kantayra of Yore (Kantayra)   This time Veronica really did trust him, and she knew how to prove it...    

Getcha, Getcha, Getcha, Getcha  by  Kantayra of Yore (Kantayra) Veronica and Logan prank each other. Really, it's shameless the way they flirt...  

Give Me The Ocean  by scandalpants   Post Season 3 AU.  Veronica decides what she really wants.  Spoiler: it's not Piz.                                              

Home Is Where The Heart Is by: lv63   AU preseries and forward, begins in season 1. this story is all about veronica and her friends. angst, mystery, humor and romance, LoVe and MaDi. summary in prologue. 

I Hate You Because by: SilverLining2k6   Mid 1X3 - Meet John Smith.    Logan, Veronica, a pool, snark, and a made up drinking game.

i knew you were trouble when you walked in  by youcallitwinter   And, it's just—  Logan had always been her intense high-school romance, sure. But she had, somewhere along the way, in some secret corner of her mind, convinced herself that was all he was; a high-school romance. Explosive, powerful, passionate, and bound to burn itself out eventually

(Im)Perfection  by  AbsolutelyIris The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.                

In a World by: my shangri-la   A/U! Exploring the 'what ifs' that could have happened if Lilly Kane hadn't been murdered, and her secrets – and others – had come out anyway. Pairings: Lilly/Logan, past Duncan/Veronica, eventual Logan/Veronica. (Story begins with Lilly as a senior, the rest are juniors.)

In the kind of world where we belong  by  Anonymous  There was always something missing.  A Lilly Kane sized hole in both their hearts.  Instead of going to see Aaron Echolls on October 3rd Lilly decides to comfort a friend and their lives change forever.A very smutty OT3 take on what might have happened if Lilly had lived.

Kid Things  by sowell   5 years after graduation, Logan comes back to Neptune to ask Veronica for help.                      

King of Mars  by: HGRising   AU. In which everyone has a story to tell but not everyone gets the chance. And, things make more sense from a different perspective. Ever wonder why Veronica Mars was Lilly Kane's best friend? There's redemption for some and condemnation for others when the secrets come out. And everyone's got a good one.

Landmine  by  AbsolutelyIris It needed to be forgotten, and quick.             

The Long Way Home  by  AbsolutelyIris   "We should take the long way home." 

Matching Pink Bikinis  by  Anonymous Veronica and Lilly wear matching pink bikinis to Logan's for a pool day.  This is pure threesome smut, folks.                

Pink Lemonade (Logan/Veronica/Lilly)  On a trip to Honolulu, Lilly manages to bring Veronica out of her pink, frosty shell. Spoilers/Warnings: This is a threesome fic and therefore includes some femslash.        

Playing Hide and Seek With the Truth by: jenwin23   Continuation of the Truth series. The kids go back to school. Old issues remain while more secrets will be revealed, relationships will change and lives will crumble.

The Real Thing by: Josielynn   AU. Logan and Lilly are off again/on again. Duncan is dating Meg. Veronica was never friends with Lilly. Logan sees Veronica in her soccer uniform and wants to date her.

Scotch on the Rocks (A FanFic Tribute)  by kmd0107   A long time ago...there was an incredibly hot LoVeLy trilogy fic (Pink Lemonade & Sex on the Beach) started over on Live Journal that never got its third part.  This is a tribute to what that might have been.   Logan POV of the evolving sexual and emotional relationship between himself, Veronica, and Lilly.              

Scourging Fire, Blazing Soul  by Nerdyesque   What if Veronica didn't grow up with the 09ers, but came into their lives prior to Lilly's death? How would her presence affect Duncan, Lilly, Logan, the Kanes, and the Echolls? Also, who is Veronica without Keith Mars' loving protection?      

Sex on the Beach (Logan/Veronica/Lilly) NC-17 Lilly's chapter in my Drinks Series. Nobody wants to talk about what happened in Hawaii, and it's driving Lilly crazy. How could she possibly make what happened less awkward? By making it happen again, of course!        

Some Truths Hurt by: jenwin23 Jumping off point: V gets Duncan's journal in Echolls' Family Xmas. AU from there but many canon events happen too. All characters in the VM-verse make an appearance, but it is a LoVe story. In script format-but give it a try, it's well written.

The Third Kane by: Mac-alicious   Lilly, Duncan and Veronica Kane rule the social scene in Neptune. The three are loyal and inseparable. They once believed there was nothing that could come between them. They didn't count on Logan Echolls.

Time, Make It Go Faster Or Just Rewind  by  kmd0107  Logan being ‘the real-Logan’ is so familiar that she almost can’t help but give in to it, even if it’s just a one night pass.   She’ll embrace this moment out of time and the walls and armor can go back up tomorrow.AU from 1x4 Wrath of Con              

Truths Too Big to be Told  by: jenwin23 Sequel to Some Truths Hurt. It's summer time and more than the weather is hot. Neptune is embroiled in class warfare, Veronica is looking into the mystery of another dead girl, the fallout from Lilly's case continues, and more secrets will be revealed.

I’m also throwing in some of my favorite MaDi (Mac and Dick) fics because Dick needs a hug too.

The ABCs of Mac and Dick by: jenwin23   The ABC challenge with Mac and Dick. Created for Madi lover at VM Santa 2010 at livejournal. Cross-posted. In letter order, not in chronological order.

Bodycount by: BIFF1   Cassidy and Mac meet a little earlier and a little blood-lust gives him an entirely different problem when it comes to forming a real relationship with Mac. AU with MAJOR season two SPOILERS! Mac/Cass, Mac/Dick, Mac/Cass/Dick

Casablancas Kryptonite By: BIFF1   "You just don't get it. She's like kryptonite or something." Dick looked at his brother and thought about those blue eyes that cut and the way her mouth twisted around insults. Yeah maybe she was kyptonite. Casablancas kyptonite because isn't he just as weak.

Casual? By: BIFF1   It's just sex. Casual sex. no attachments, just good hot sex. But that was the summer and now school is about to start up again and Veronica's back from Virginia and can tell that something is up. They can stop, no problem...

The Charm Bracelet by: DalWriter   Future Fic. Who Knew Prince Charming Would be Dick Casablancas? Mac reminisces as she looks at a charm bracelet Dick gave her.

Commitment Buffers by: BIFF1   Dick and Mac live with Logan and Veronica in their attempt to have some sort of commitment buffer between them. Only problem with the arrangement is that Mac and Dick tolerate each other at best which is a big improvement as far as their concerned. However living in such close quarters may prove difficult when it becomes obvious that they may actually sort of like each other.

Dark Day by: BIFF1   It's Cassidy Casablancas' birthday and the two people closest to him are falling apart. She just wants to hide away from the world for the rest of the week, just drink and cry and be with someone who gets it and no one gets it more than Dick. Not as angsty as it sounds, promise. Now complete with happy ending!

Electrify by: BIFF1   A guilt trip from Logan has landed Dick in a crowded tent with Mac. With a lightening storm raging outside he can't sleep and it appears neither can she.

Rendezvous by: BIFF1   A collection of one-shots. In which Dick and Mac are forced together by fate or friends and hook up. Because I apparently really like writing them hooking up.

Secret Santa By: BIFF1   Saw this homemade sweater from hell prompt from VMficRec. It's a November challenge but I couldn't help myself. Just some fun when Mac pulls Dick's name for Secret Santa. She figures a six pack and porn until he makes a big deal about not wanting anything handmade. She can't really help herself, she spends the month knitting Dick a sweater.

[fortunatelylori]

Coming into Season 8 Jonsa will have old tension we saw in 6 and 7 (the subtext), new tension from being separated and reunited, tension from wtv is going on with Jon and Dany and then sibling turned to cousin tension (which I believe will find out pretty early). How do you see Jonsa acting with all of this going on and at what pt is this tension no longer subtext?

Hey, nonnie!

That sounds like quite the romantic bomb waiting to explode, doesn’t it? Those two crazy kids are just swimming in all kinds of tension. :))))

My short answer to your question is … fairly quickly. In fact, let me go even further and put a timer on it: in the 1st or 2nd episode this multi-layered tension should become text instead of subtext. If Jonsa doesn’t get revealed in episode 1 or at the latest episode 2, I would be very surprised if it happens at all. Or if it does, it just won’t be as satisfying. 

The main reasons why I say this are: 

1. We know from interviews and press coverage that episode 3 will most likely be the big battle with the army of the dead. 

This means that the bulk of the personal and political drama that will unfold at Winterfell must occur in episode 1 and 2. In order for Jonsa to have the full impact they’re looking for after building up the tension for 2 seasons and for them to explore the love triangle fully, Jonsa needs to get revealed during those episodes. 

Now I know a lot of people are afraid that the Sansa/D*ny conflict will be centered solely around Jon and their feelings for him and that it will feel like a cat fight. I don’t think that’s the case since the first two episodes have a lot of other pay offs that they need to reveal, namely the antagonism of the Northern Lords, Sansa’s own personal issues with D*ny coming over and wanting to take control of the North and potentially Winterfell, Jon contending with bending the knee in front of the Northern Lords and his family, Sam finding out about his father and brother, Jon finding out about his parentage and the Starks being forced to keep this a secret. In short, there will be opportunities for Sansa and D*ny to get into a lot more conflicts, than just their jealousy. 

However, since a love triangle is very much in play, they will bring it to the table. There’s no point in having it unless we’re going to get some pining, some sighing, some anger, some misunderstandings, some insecurities. And the easiest way of doing this is by revealing Jonsa in some capacity. If they don’t confess their love for each other or at least we see that Sansa loves Jon, then there is no love triangle to play with and what would be the point then? They would miss an opportunity for drama and I don’t know any writers who would do that. And what would be the purpose? Stretching the mystery even longer? You keep something secret in a narrative for a long time so you can reveal it at the most dramatic moment possible. And for Jonsa that’s episode 1 or 2. 

2. The potential kidnapping of Sansa

If this is to come into play it would have to be at around episode 3 or 4, at the latest so you can milk the Cersei/Sansa interaction for all its worth. Have enough narrative time for Jon to come over to King’s Landing. Deal with the Cersei issue. And then finish off with Dance of Dragons 2.0. 

And from a narrative perspective, Jonsa having been revealed, the audience knowing that Jon loves Sansa or perhaps them even being married at the time (in a secret ceremony I’ll delve into a little bit further down) just adds more stakes to the whole thing. Particularly if none of the characters, or very few, are aware of it. This is also the most opportune moment for Political Jon to be revealed to D*ny and her finding out that Jon never loved her and was in fact in love with Sansa all the time he pretended to be with her. Talk about DRAMA! :)))

So in terms of how I see the Jonsa vs. D*ny plot playing out, I’d say that: 

Episode 1 - Parentage and Jonsa reveal

Episode 2 -  full on love triangle ending with secret wedding

Episode 3 - Sansa kidnapping, Jonsa reveal to D*ny, Jon off to the rescue

Episode 4 - Sansa/Cersei showdown; Jon arriving to bend the knee

Episode 5 - Cersei taken out; Jon and Sansa together; start of Dance of Dragons

Episode 6 - Full on Dance of Dragons 2.0; Jonsa resolution/rebuilding Westeros epilogue

As for how the Jonsa reveal happens, one scenario I seem to come back to again and again is this: 

As you well pointed out, in addition to the romantic tension that has been building up for 2 seasons, Jonsa will also experience the tension of being separated. Jon looks like a love starved man when he rushes into Sansa’s arms. He’s weak as hell and he’ll probably be less able to control his emotions around her than he was before he left (and let’s be real, he was never that good at it to begin with, ). Add to that the fact that Sansa is most likely very angry with him for having bent the knee and Jon will try to look for any opportunity to explain himself. 

Also, while he was away, Sansa couldn’t help herself from mentioning him again and again. And LF has already planted the seed of him falling in love and marrying D*ny so emotionally she’s very vulnerable as well and perhaps with a lower guard than usual. 

So instead of the tension slowly unraveling, I see it just exploding in one scene. This most likely will occur after the parentage reveal. And in order to play with the season 1, episode 1 parallel, it will happen in the Broken Tower. 

So the way I see it is that all through the first episode for one reason or another Jon and Sansa aren’t able to speak privately. And at the end of the episode, after Jon finds out the truth about his parentage, they finally manage to talk alone. And that’s when things come to a head. Because Jon will try to explain pol!Jon to Sansa (good luck with that, Jon! it took me the better part of an afternoon to even scratch the surface). Sansa will be angry and go on the attack. And all that tension we saw in the tent scene will only exacerbate and they will end up giving into their feelings for each other.  And to end the episode on a cliff hanger, you’ll have someone seeing them. 

I think the best candidate for the “intruder” is Tyrion, mirroring him watching Jon enter D*ny’s cabin at the end of season 7. This would also play into him proposing a marriage between himself and Sansa after he discovers Jonsa.

By season 8, Tyrion would be aware of the power Sansa holds in the North and he already knows that Jon and D*ny have had sex. If he discovers Jonsa as well it might push him to propose a marriage for several reasons. 

For one, he’d want to break up Jonsa to ensure that D*ny doesn’t find out and abandon the fight with the NK. Since the show has portrayed Tyrion as a hero, it seems likely to me that he’d be pretty invested in not wanting the dead to kill the whole of Westeros and just like everyone else he’d be under the mistaken assumption that D*ny, her dragons and her armies are the key to defeating him (newsflash: IT’S BRAN!!!!). 

Then there’s the matter of him figuring out how much power Sansa holds and wanting to get that for himself and his queen and try to neutralize Jon in the process. 

Now as for the secret wedding I was referring to earlier … I keep coming back to this because of: 

The Sansa/Lyanna parallels: 

They keep pushing for this parallel with Sansa having her hair braided in a similar fashion to what we see Lyanna wear in the wedding ceremony flash-back as well as the play on the feather motif. That feather has come to represent the secret of Jon’s parentage but it’s significant that they chose Sansa to rediscover it in season 5. They could have gone with Jon in season 7 finding it to signal the secret parentage but they didn’t. They had Sansa dust it off and place it back in statue Lyanna’s hand and followed that up with the dialogue of LF intimating that he knew the truth behind Lyanna’s “abduction”. 

So since they took so much care to link Sansa to Lyanna visually, it makes sense to me that she would end up involved in a secret marriage of her own to Jon. 

The reason for this, I suspect at this point, is two fold: for one if the theory that D*ny’s camp will try to push a Tyrion marriage on Sansa is correct, the simplest way for her to get out of it is if she is already married. And you can have another parallel here to Rhaegar/Lyanna/Robert where Lyanna fell for Rhaegar as a way of getting out of her marriage to Robert. 

The other aspect is the reveal of Jon being a Targareyen. The easiest way to neutralize the threat he poses to D*ny from their perspective as well as ensure that the Northern Lords continue to support him is for Sansa to marry him and make him a Stark. 

Of course, this would also lead to complications because D*ny is bound to take Jon marrying another woman very badly, particularly coupled with her finding out that Jon is her rival for the Iron Throne. But that’s the beauty of this secret wedding theory and the parallel to Rhaegar/Lyanna because a certain amount of hubris needs to be involved in it as well. And just like the Rhaegar/Lyanna elopement and marriage led to Robert’s rebellion, the Jonsa secret wedding can lead to the Dance of Dragons 2.0. There are other reasons for the DoD 2.0, of course, but then again there were several reasons why Robert’s rebellion started as well. Jonsa/Rhaegar&Lyanna both serve as inciting incidents in a way. 

And also it would be a cool way of ending the episode as well because Jon and Sansa get married and are happy (hopefully with a wedding night to end all wedding nights) but they never manage to reveal what they have done because the NK and his army attack Winterfell. 

And the marriage ends up becoming public knowledge only after Sansa is kidnapped which would just exacerbate the Jon/D*ny conflict even further. 

So there it is, nonnie! My best estimation of how the Jonsa reveal and romantic tension will pay off in season 8. I feel like I just went to whatever version of heaven shippers go to. :))))

Thanks for the ask!

[zrtranscripts]

Season 8, Mission 21: I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

Hanged Man

~

SAM YAO: Five, Jody, you've reached the town. We don't know who was working with Jones, or who has the Edda, or who drew all those super creepy pictures of people they wanted to kill, or if they're all the same person. It's dark, but try and stay out of sight. I've got some cams on the island, but yeah, [sighs] a lot of them don't seem to work well in the dark, so I might not see anyone following you. Have you got the map?

[paper rustles]

JODY MARSH: This is from Jones' papers, right? It marks out a route in symbols and says "Follow in the footsteps of the father of the slain," which isn't at all sinister.

SAM YAO: Yeah. Amelia and her people have been going through everything we found in Jones' stash. They've correlated what they've got with Ellie's notes, and the only thing they're sure comes directly from the Edda is that map.

AMELIA SPENS: Which is why you and Five are going to follow the route for me.

SAM YAO: Amelia! Sam, why didn't you say she was with you?

AMELIA SPENS: I'm not. I'm in my stateroom aboard the Undaunted. Since Team Janine has proven a complete liability, I'm overseeing this mission.

JODY MARSH: Hey, Janine's not well. Paula says she's permanently lost vision in one eye. And we still managed to make a successful alliance with Dearg labs, and we discovered that the red fungus comes from Mor Island like the Edda.

AMELIA SPENS: You also discovered several caves bursting with red fungus, which might have been useful to know about earlier. I've sent marines to scour them with flame throwers. All traces of silver mud will be delivered to Dearg for analysis.

SAM YAO: The laird is doing a good impression of an irritated landowner rather than a sinister skincoat. He complained to Janine about damage to a historic sight.

AMELIA SPENS: And the UK is losing more land to the red fungus. Everything we've learned about the Edda suggests that it contains an account of a way to stop it. That's why my marines are searching house to house for the Edda, but so far, they've turned up nothing. All we have is that map. Jones scrawled something on it about the source of the red fungus, and he wrote "skincoats" next to it.

SAM YAO: Right. So following this map might help us understand what's in the Edda. Or guess at it, anyway.

AMELIA SPENS: It's a faint hope that ancient history might save us, but we must follow every lead. Chop chop! Run!

~

SAM YAO: Okay, you're at the first location marked on Jones' map. It's the street in town we, um, destroyed.

JODY MARSH: The houses are burned-out shells.

AMELIA SPENS: Honestly, I send one envoy out as Prime Minister and you set fire to a town! It's just as well no one has the vote.

[paper rustles]

SAM YAO: The route runs between the uh, the squiggle we think is the church and the um, blob we're pretty sure is the pub.

[paper rustles]

AMELIA SPENS: Isn't the smiley face the pub?

[paper rustles]

JODY MARSH: That's a Celtic symbol. It represents the graveyard.

AMELIA SPENS: [sighs] Are you sure this map is to scale?

JODY MARSH: It was drawn by an unstable murderer and is based on a book that's a thousand years old. Of course it's not to scale! I've done the best I could, but -

[cough]

SAM YAO: Someone's coming.

AMELIA SPENS: Probably a displaced islander coming to recover the remains of their treasured possessions from the ruins of their family home.

JODY MARSH: Aw, shut up.

SAM YAO: Right, time for you to get out of there. The next mark on the map is up that hill to the north. Run!

~

JODY MARSH: We got away from that person, Sam. Did they see us?

SAM YAO: Don't think so. It's Hamish McDougall, the grocer. Amelia was right about recovering possessions. He came out of a burned-out house with a charred box labeled "king of the rocks - costumes."

AMELIA SPENS: This is the same king of the rocks ceremony that Jones kept raving about? The one in the rhyme Chief Macallan told us? Moons and pools and stones and fruit? Isn't it a bit of a coincidence that he should pop up on the map's exact route?

SAM YAO: Nah. No, not really. The full moon isn't far off, so everyone's preparing for the ceremony.

JODY MARSH: Besides, the king of the rocks parade doesn't go anywhere near the route on Jones' map.

AMELIA SPENS: All right, then. The next location's marked by a crown?

SAM YAO: That's the laird's manor.

AMELIA SPENS: Ah, yes. The man who not only shot Jones, but had a secret tunnel filled with red fungus in his back garden.

SAM YAO: Yeah, just have a quick look and then get out as fast as you can. It's at the top of the hill. Run!

~

JODY MARSH: Five and I have scaled the back wall. We're in the laird's garden. It feels a bit cheeky, being here on the sly. He's always been dead nice to us.

SAM YAO: I know, but well, the truth is we have to suspect everyone, don't we?

JODY MARSH: So what are we looking for, exactly?

SAM YAO: Anything that looks like it might be connected to the red fungus.

AMELIA SPENS: Other than the tunnel full of red fungus beneath the place, you mean? You could sneak through a window and see if the laird has the Edda. He's been... resistant to the idea of my marines searching his home.

JODY MARSH: We can't just break in!

SAM YAO: Jody, shhh! Keep your voice down!

[door opens]

LAIRD REID: Who's there? If that's another lackey from that blasted Prime Minister – [cocks gun]

JODY MARSH: [whispers] It's the laird! He's got a shotgun!

LAIRD REID: Who is that? Oh, Five, Jody! What on earth are you doing?

JODY MARSH: Um - !

AMELIA SPENS: Oh, for goodness sake, lie!

JODY MARSH: Actually, we're following the route of this map. It's from Jones' notes on the Edda.

LAIRD REID: Interesting. May I have a look?

AMELIA SPENS: I despair.

[paper rustles]

JODY MARSH: See? Your manor's marked with a crown.

LAIRD REID: Hmm. I think you might have made a mistake. Why don't you and Five come with me, and I'll offer an alternative theory.

SAM YAO: Uh... I don't think that's a good idea.

LAIRD REID: Come along. It's not far.

SAM YAO: Five, don't – [sighs] Okay. Do follow him, but be careful, guys. There's lots of reasons not to trust him.

~

LAIRD REID: We'll have a good view from up here. Do you have a spare headset?

JODY MARSH: Yeah. Here you go.

LAIRD REID: Sam, hello.

SAM YAO: Hi.

AMELIA SPENS: Laird Reid.

LAIRD REID: Oh! And Prime Minister. A delight, as always.

AMELIA SPENS: I should very much like to know why you've kidnapped my people in the middle of a crucial mission.

LAIRD REID: [laughs] I'd hardly call it kidnapping. I wanted to show them something. Look, up on that hill there.

JODY MARSH: It's an ancient stone circle. I've been up there. There's a carving of the sun in the middle.

LAIRD REID: Aye. During the king of the rocks, there's a parade over it waving yellow streamers. Does the shape of it remind you of anything?

SAM YAO: Uh, well, stone circles sort of, um... It looks like a crown?

JODY MARSH: Oh, you're right! Wait. Have we been reading the map upside down?

AMELIA SPENS: So this exercise has been a complete waste of time?

LAIRD REID: [laughs] It's not their fault. There's a clue on the map, but you'd have to know a lot of Norse mythology to spot it.

JODY MARSH: Ellie would have known.

LAIRD REID: Aye. Your Ellie, or my wife. Those words on the map there, follow the footsteps of the father of the slain? That's another name for Odin. In his quest for knowledge, Odin hung himself upside down.

AMELIA SPENS: Ah, that does make sense. An ancient code for those in the know. 

JODY MARSH: Just a sec. Jones drew this map from the Edda, we're sure of that?

AMELIA SPENS: That's what the Norse history boffins tell me. We're as sure as we can be that that map is in the Edda.

JODY MARSH: But look, Five. Turned upside down, it does follow the king of the rocks parade. The ceremony isn't just some folk tradition, it's from the Edda! Laird Reid, we'd never have figured it out without you.

SAM YAO: You've got the follow the rest of the route.

LAIRD REID: Tell me what you find.

JODY MARSH: We will.

SAM YAO: Hey, wait. What - what's over to your left?

JODY MARSH: I don't see anything.

SAM YAO: No, I thought... [sighs] No, you're right. There's nothing there now.

JODY MARSH: What was it?

SAM YAO: Well, it looked like a person in one of those gray coats. You know, the skincoats. I'm sure they were there!

JODY MARSH: Probably just shadows playing tricks with your eyes.

SAM YAO: Yeah, maybe. Look, just finish following the map and get home safe as soon as you can. Uh, the next marker's by the shore. Go, run!

~

JODY MARSH: There's a snake marked on the map here. Looks like the footpath leading into that cave. The parade starts outside it. Let's see if there's anything hidden in there, Five.

SAM YAO: Um, now if Jones had the missing pages of the Edda, do you think he knew the ceremony came from it?

JODY MARSH: Hard to say. His notes weren't exactly coherent. Mostly ramblings about what he'd do when he was made king of the rocks.

[zombie moans]

SAM YAO: Zombie!

JODY MARSH: Worse, a creepy child zombie! It's walked in through the cave entrance. It's blocking our exit.

AMELIA SPENS: Shoot it!

JODY MARSH: We didn't bring weapons!

AMELIA SPENS: Oh, for pity's sake!

SAM YAO: Uh, doesn't the king of the rocks cave have another opening?

JODY MARSH: Yeah. The parade used to start there, lighting bonfires deep into the cave. I heard the laird say the town council stopped it because of health and safety.

SAM YAO: Then you need to get to that entrance. Go!

~

[zombie moans]

JODY MARSH: There's a breeze up ahead.

SAM YAO: The cave opens out over the sea. If you let the zombie follow you out, then knock it off the ledge -

JODY MARSH: Way ahead of you. I'll lead it towards the opening. Five, grab some rocks. Aim for its knees.

[rocks clatter]

SAM YAO: It's slipping. Just one more!

[zombie croaks, water splashes]

JODY MARSH: Amazing shot, Five!

SAM YAO: Uh, guys, have a look at the cave ceiling.

JODY MARSH: Oh God. Amelia? The ceiling in this place, it's covered in those big bulging alien egg-looking things. Like the ones we found in Jones' camp, the things that coconut pomegranate-y seedpods hatch from.

AMELIA SPENS: The pods that brought red fungus to the mainland.

JODY MARSH: Yeah. And there's hundreds of the egg things in here, over our heads. 

SAM YAO: Hold on. So the king of the rocks used to start with the islanders lighting fires in this cave?

AMELIA SPENS: And we think Jones lighting a campfire is what caused seedpods in his cave to hatch out.

JODY MARSH: So we're saying the king of the rocks is from the Edda, and part of the ceremony is causing fungus seedpods to hatch? And they used to do it on purpose for some reason?

SAM YAO: Um, but shouldn't Mor Island be overrun with V-types, in that case?

AMELIA SPENS: And certainly hatching more pods won't help us fight the red fungus. [sighs] The ceiling. It's not what I'm used to. In general, I've found when I want something, there's someone I can bargain with, some deal to be struck. But this... we're looking for knowledge no one has anymore about the meaning of a ritual whose origins are forgotten.

JODY MARSH: Jones' notes kept mentioning Edda verses 321 to 327. If we could read them, they might explain it all.

AMELIA SPENS: Yes, but we can't. I've just heard from my marines. Their house to house searches have yielded nothing. [sighs] I won't allow those seedpods to further devastate the mainland. The Edda is the key! We must get that book back! [sighs] So I'm going to need to find someone to negotiate with, aren't I?

~

[thorne93]

Curious Conundrum (Part 37)

Prompt: You’re John Watson’s sister. One day you decide to visit your brother for lunch, only to meet the infamous Mr. Holmes…

Word Count: 1718

Warnings: language, flirtation, sexual innuendos (maybe? idfk), murder/crime/case related stuff, angst, jealousy…

Notes: Beta’d by @carryonmyswansong Not only did she beta, but I literally couldn’t have written half these scenes without her help. She contributed majorly, even wrote some parts of scenes. I am forever in her debt.

Also, this starts AFTER Season 2, episode 1. I don’t follow all the episodes, but it does follow the timeline and hit some major events : )

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 |  Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 |

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sherlock awoke in another room, much like the ones he’d been on. He was lying on the table in the room, only to be woken by the little girl speaking. He was stumbling about, trying to figure out where exactly he was.

As he was trying to instruct the little girl, he asked, “Are you there yet?”

Suddenly, you heard his voice. You woke up leaning against a brick wall. You took in a large gasp of air, feeling all over your body for a bullet wound, stunned and relieved when you found none.

“I’m here!” you answered, wondering where you were. You started to feel around in the darkness, feeling...stone? Something rough. You were outside, you could hear nature - trees, wind, water…

“Y/N! Oh thank God you’re alive,” he said with heavy relief. “Where are you?”

“I don’t know. I just woke up. Where are you?”

“I think I’m in another cell. I just spoke to the little girl on the plane. We've been out for hours.”

“Hours? Jesus… Wait, she’s still in the air?” you questioned. Something didn’t make sense. The ground was getting closer to her earlier, and now she was suddenly somehow in the air?

“Yes, the plane will keep flying until it runs out of fuel,” he informed.

“Yes, Sherlock I deduced that much on my own…” You rolled your eyes. Honestly sometimes he thought you were some ordinary person.

“Is Mycroft or John with you?” he asked.

“No, I don’t think so. John? John! Mycroft? Mycroft?” you called continuously but heard nothing but your own voice back. “No. They aren’t here.”

After a second of quiet, Sherlock finally asked, “Are you alright?”

“I’m as alright as I can be. I’m alive, you’re alive, that’s what matters,” you answered wryly.

“Okay, keep exploring. Tell me anything you can about where you are,” he demanded.

“Alright. The walls are rough, like stone, not brick. I’m standing on--”

But you stopped, realization finally hitting you.

“Y/N? Y/N!” Sherlock called in panic. “What is it? What do you see?”

“Water, Sherlock. I’m in about two feet of water. I can’t see beneath it but--” You tried to walk, but as soon as you did, your ankle caught. “My ankle is chained. It’s not flat. Hang on.” You reached down and picked up the odd thing you’d been stepping on. When your hands came out of the water and your eyes adjusted to the dim light, you gasped. “There are bones in here with me, Sherlock.”

“Bones? What kind of bones?”

“Small.”

After a second, he whispered, “Redbeard,” in your ear, then after that it was radio silence.

You wanted to panic, it felt like you should be panicking, but this once, your rational mind overcame fear. You took a deep breath, just hoping you would hear from Sherlock, and hoping your brother and Mycroft were okay. You tried pulling on the chain once more to see if it would come loose, but it was futile. All the tugging did was cut into your flesh.

“Man, I really hate his sister,” you quietly said to no one in particular. “She’s definitely not invited to the wedding.”

“Nearly home,” you suddenly heard.

“Sherlock? Hey, I’m in a well. I should’ve figured that out with the water and stone but it’s so damned dark.”

“Why would there be a well in Sherrinford?” he wondered.

“I don’t know… fresh water?” you tried.

“Shut up,” he ordered and you rolled your eyes. However infuriating, you knew he must need to concentrate to find you, the boys, and the plane.

Several minutes went by while Sherlock spoke to someone you couldn’t hear, so you waited and waited until suddenly water started to pour in on top of you in the well. It wasn’t rain either.

“Sherlock?”

He didn’t respond.

“Sherlock?” you tried again, keeping the urgency out of your voice.

Nothing.

“Sherlock, please, I know you’re trying to focus but the well is filling up.”

“Try hard not to drown, as long as you can,” he ordered.

“Oh, thanks for the tip,” you shouted back. God, what an ass. But your frustration quickly dissipated when you realized just how fast the water was rising. What was at tops of your legs was now at your waist. “Sherlock, hurry!”

Sherlock tried talking again, he wasn’t talking to you but you tried to focus on his voice to keep you calm. Eventually, the bones were floating all around you and you eyed them curiously. These bones weren’t an animals as you had suspected. They were longer than that and then --

“Uh, Sherlock. The bones in here with me--”

“Yes, they’re dog’s bones. Redbeard,” he said with an agitated voice.

“They’re not dog’s bones, Sherlock,” you stated with horror lacing your voice as you saw the skull floating by.

More chatting in your ear, but the water continued to fill up the well around you, You tried to keep your head up and back away from the rising water.

“Need your help. I’m trying to solve a puzzle,” he said and you weren’t sure if he was talking to you or his other company.

“The wrong dates. She used the wrong dates on the gravestones as the key to the cipher.and the cipher was the song,” he muttered.

At first you weren’t sure what the hell he was talking about, but this was Sherlock. He’d never let anything happen to you,  so you left him be. Shouting at him, begging for him to work faster, or wondering what he was doing wouldn’t have helped.

But soon the water was nearly too high, at your neck and rising quickly. You braced yourself for having to possibly wade against the chains or hold your breath however long you could.

The water started to get on the earpiece and you could barely make out what Sherlock was saying. Accepting your fate seemed imminent, so you began saying your quiet goodbyes again. They were out loud at first, but then the water came up past your mouth and nose, so you held your breath, praying this would at least be painless.

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

You weren’t entirely sure what happened next. You knew you felt a hand, a body, gripping yours and then you were warmer. Eventually, your full senses came back and you realized you were sitting in an ambulance, a warm blanket over you.

“Hey, there you are,” John said as he walked up, noticing you were more aware of your surroundings.

“Where are we?” you asked uneasily as you looked into the darkness. It appeared to be a country cottage that had burned.

“Musgrave. Sherlock grew up here. “

“But… why are we here?”

John waited a moment, then said, “I’m going to let him explain that to you.” With that, he glanced up and Sherlock was making his way towards you.

John patted your leg and stood, giving you two privacy. Sherlock sat next to you then.

“Are you okay?”

“No,” you answered.

“That's fair.”

Your eyes searched the area of emergency vehicles and you saw that Eurus was loaded up in a van.

“There’ taking her back to Sherrinford, aren’t they?”

“I’m afraid so. I told her I’d take her home.”

“That’s not possible for someone like her.”

“I know but I… feel so bad.”

You shook your head. “What happened here?”

Sherlock looked up, gazing at the charred home as he sighed and answered. “Long ago, when I was a child, we played here. Lived here. I had a friend, Victor who… well… we played pirates. I called him Redbeard, and I was YYellowbeard. Eurus… her mind was already so complicated, so complex that she felt as though she wasn’t included. I suppose the adolescent psychopathy drove her to a jealous fit of rage and she… killed my best friend, because she felt she was alone.”

“That’s...the most awful thing I’ve ever heard,” you confessed.

“Yes…It is.”

Lestrade approached then and said that Mycroft was found alive and safe in Eurus old cell. Sherlock asked that he look after Mycroft.

“So… where do we go from here?” Sherlock asked.

“Where do you want to go?”

“For starters, I think my parents should know Eurus is alive,” he stated.

“Are you sure?”

“No matter what she’s done, or what she is, she is their daughter. They have a right to know.”

“I suppose you’re right,” you agreed.

“So I suppose this is it, then.”

“This is what?” you inquired.

“Well...  you said you didn’t want me to say those words to you again, and after everything that’s happened I would assume you--”

You shook your head and closed your eyes. “I wasn't breaking up with you, you idiot. You just can’t say that to me anymore.”

After a moment he nodded. “Even after what I said to Molly? Can you ever forgive me for what I did? What I said? I should've listened to you. Eurus is dangerous, but my huge ego got in the way.”

You smiled. “At least you’re a big enough man to admit that. You’ve come a long way.”

“I’ve still got a very long way to go… a journey that I hope… you’ll accompany me on?” he asked hesitantly, scared for your answer.

You let out a sigh. “Sherlock, I’m not… mad about what you said to Molly. I was only hurt. No matter what happens between you and I, the fact that you chose Molly to confide in when you staged your suicide and not me will always be a thorn in my side. Irene too. Women that matter a lot to you, I worry that one day you won’t think I measure up.”

He turned to you and placed his fingers under your chin and lifted your face so that you were looking into his eyes. He was never this tender or sweet in public.

“Y/N Watson, how many times must I tell you that you are, always have been, and always will be enough?” he questioned with soft wonder and concern.

A tiny smile touched the corners of your mouth.

“And how many times do I have to tell you, that I’ll always say yes to you?”

“I guess we’ll just have to keep doing it,” he noted before he kissed you gently.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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