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open-hearth-rpg · 7 months ago

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Open Hearth Video Roundup - December 2, 2024

Welcome to the monthly Open Hearth Gaming video roundup!

These recorded sessions represent only a portion of the games we play every month, and anyone is welcome to join the fun! If you'd like to play in games like these, join our Playabl community and click on the "Calendar" tab to sign up for upcoming games. To browse our entire library of session videos, please visit our YouTube Playlists page. To hear our recorded sessions in audio-only form, please check out our Playing at the Hearth podcast.

Discussions, Panels, and Seminars

Talking Game Facilitation Lowell Francis A talk on running games in our community and generally. Chapters marked to make it easier to find material.

Open Hearth Gaming Calendar

Eclipse Phase - DECAY: Season One (Episode 2) Paul Rivers runs for Horst Wurst, Lowell Francis, Puckett, and Will H The team finally escape the Titan Quarantine Zone (TQZ) heading for the city of Noctis. A worrying pattern emerges within the group when many of them recognise that they are all missing roughly six months worth of memories. This gets confirmed as the enter the city when they learn they are only beta forks of themselves. With clock now ticking on their legal status and the status of Dr Mobius unconfirmed they rush to locate the only person that my know where their true selves are. They arrive at the doctors residence to find that chaos software has been released onto the house AGI and the doctors faithful friend Habeas Corpus down for the count. Can the team discover what has happened to Mobius, and can they find their original selves before they are outlawed and sentenced to erasure?

Eclipse Phase - DECAY: Season One (Episode 3) Paul Rivers runs for Horst Wurst, Lowell Francis, and Will H The group navigated through a chaotic situation at Dr. Morbius's residence in the city of Noctis. They discussed various scenarios involving a synth, a skinned body, and a telepresence robot, as well as making decisions about the game's progression and exploring the situation. The team also discussed strategies for dealing with a robot attack, the identity of Dr. Klatu, and the connection between the killer robot and the warehouse. They finally discover what is behind the Titan Quarantine Zone (TQZ) disturbance, but are still left without the knowledge of their true selves or what has happened in the missing six months they cannot remember.

Girl by Moonlight: Lumina Danny Rutherford runs for Clarisse, David S., Fumi, and Will S. A group of magical girls use the powers of friendship, expression, and starlight to contend with the strict social hierarchies of the mundane world and the nefarious plots of an abyssal court of nobles. With each of their victories, a long-absent star returns to the night sky.

Heart: The City Beneath (Session 1 of 4) Marc Majcher runs for Eliot, Nic, and Sabine V. Our new Deadwalker, Junk Mage, and Deep Apiarist set out from Grip Station to acquire some totally safe fungus for a Legitimate Doctor from Redcap Grove. Surely the Druid syndicate there will be no trouble at all.

Star Wars Saturday

Swoop Gangs: Niamos (Session 5) Rich Rogers runs for Anders, Cody Eastlick, and Steven Watkins The Gundarks run roughshod over the Gilded Fangs, party, and meet with the Three Hooks.

Swoop Gangs: Niamos (Session 6) Rich Rogers runs for Anders, Greg, Marc Majcher, and Steven Watkins The big Limmie game happens! The gang drives out their rivals! Party party.

Swoop Gangs: Niamos (Session 7) Rich Rogers runs for Anders, Cody Eastlick, Greg, Marc Majcher, and Steven Watkins Sen dies and Slise rises!

Outblastered (Session 1) Anders runs for Greg G., Rich Rogers, and Steven Watkins Escape from Corellia - The first session in a monthly run of Outgunned set in Star Wars. Iceman, Leblanc, and Azer get run out of Corellia by the Pyke Syndicate. Surely nothing worse will happen in this series.

Outblastered (Session 2) Anders runs for Greg G., Marc Majcher, Rich Rogers, and Steven Watkins Betrayal of the Crimson Dawn

Outblastered (Session 3) Anders runs for Greg G., Marc Majcher, Rich Rogers, and Steven Watkins Showdown on Mustafar! - Our intrepid heroes face the many dangers of Mustafar in their desperate attempt to find the ancient Sith artifact. Will they succeed? Will they survive? Will the dice roller be more annoying than usual?

Off-Calendar Highlights

Hearts of Wulin: Numberless Secrets: Gaze into Silken Night, Season Two (Episode 3) Madelancholy runs for Jonn, Michael D., and Rod Santos Jade Starlight lets his friend Pan Haoran know what he really thinks of Soup. Mu gets some good advice from an elder then causes some misunderstanding when he tries to help out an acquaintance. Pan starts to become suspicious of Soup, especially after talking with Mu. Jade has lunch with one of the competitors. Mu enters the tournament only to find a very familiar face lined up as his first match.

Hearts of Wulin: Numberless Secrets: Gaze into Silken Night, Season Two (Episode 4) Madelancholy runs for Jonn, Michael D., and Rod Santos An accidental dinner date, stalked, is ambushed. Well-meaning advice becomes a calculated way to get information. And a practice match is filled with amusement and bemusement. Another competitor is dead by the end of the night...

Hearts of Wulin: Numberless Secrets: Gaze into Silken Night, Season Two (Session 5) Madelancholy runs for Agatha, Jonn, Michael D., Rod Santos, and Thomas Manuel Soup blames Pan for Radish getting hurt in the ambush at the tea and dumpling shop. Jade applies a temporary balm to Jintong's rapidly advancing condition. So much unsaid between Jintong and Soup. A Puzzle Sword could be a motive for murder... During a sabotaged match where Mu and River Glass compete honestly, yet another ambush awaits Pan where he found the coded message.

Hearts of Wulin: Numberless Secrets: Gaze into Silken Night, Season Two (Episode 6) Madelancholy runs for Agatha, Jonn, and Rod Santos Pan Haoran survives the ambush, but in his delirium reveals more than he should. Jintong thinks to take care of this threat once and for all but River Glass intervenes. Mu checks on the King of Pearls, concerned about his success. Jintong has a drink or two with Skycast Red to find out more about last year's competition. The players take some time to go through the Revelation Move.

#ttrpg #rpg #open hearth gaming #rpg actual play

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whileiamdying · 3 years ago

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Human, All Too Human

In praise of Ingrid Bergman. By Sarah Kerr "The Billy Rose Tribute to Ingrid Bergman" Museum of Modern Art, New York City Dec. 22, 1997-Jan. 11, 1998 Ingrid Bergman had the greatest downcast eyes in history. That's what I concluded, anyway, when I first fell under the spell of old Hollywood movies and started making up trivia questions about actors and actresses as if they were the Brooklyn Dodgers. I'm not the only one who feels this way, either. Mention Bergman to a female cinephile and she'll let out a sad, admiring sigh. Barbara Stanwyck and Bette Davis had more zing, Carole Lombard and Katharine Hepburn were wittier, Joan Crawford had a certain compelling insanity, but Ingrid Bergman felt. She got her greatest effects in Casablanca and Gaslight and Spellbound and Notorious by swooping her eyes down to the floor and darting them back and forth, as if watching a mouse scurry across the room. She was the classic example of an intelligent, dignified woman turned by love into a big fluttering nerve.

O n the basis of triumphs like A Woman's Face, David O. Selznick brought her over in 1939. When she refused to pluck her eyebrows and had trouble slimming down (with a rather charming lack of vanity, she binged on ice cream and cookies to calm anxiety), Selznick introduced his new Swedish export as a wholesome Greta Garbo--what Garbo might had been like if she'd grown up on a jolly farm. There followed striking performances in a string of heavy-handed movies (Intermezzo, 1939; For Whom the Bell Tolls, 1943; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1941) and then Casablanca (1942), which went so badly during the filming that everyone involved was sure it would be the bomb of the year. During the entire shoot, no one ever told Bergman whether her character, Ilsa, was supposed to be in love with her brave, freedom-fighting French husband (Paul Henreid) or with Rick (Humphrey Bogart), the American she used to love, who had turned into a bitter cynic. Bergman was naturally frustrated and confused--she considered leaving the picture--but her uncertainty translated on-screen into a gorgeously accurate portrait of the way lovers swing back and forth between longing and the fear of too much pain.

The story behind Casablanca is so often told that it wouldn't be worth retelling if frustration and uncertainty did not become the hallmarks of Bergman's high-Hollywood style. Sadly, perhaps, she was at her best playing a woman in love with a man who won't let her know where she stands. In Gaslight (1944), she was a loyal wife to suave Charles Boyer, who slowly poisoned her and led her to believe she was going mad. In two collaborations with Alfred Hitchcock, she helped nudge the filmmaker toward his darker, late style, which pivots around a self-possessed heroine whose resistance to love needs to be broken down--often brutally. Like a piece of fancy candy, Bergman had a tough and shiny outside and an inside of bubbling goo. In Spellbound (1945), she was an overly intellectual psychiatrist who loses her cool when she falls for a colleague (Gregory Peck) who may be an insane killer. But her greatest role was in Notorious (1946), as Alicia Huberman, a self-loathing, hard-drinking daughter of a German spy who gets coerced into espionage herself by a U.S. agent (Cary Grant). He's too proud to admit that he loves her, so he encourages her to prostitute herself and risk her life by marrying the head of a Nazi conspiracy. The ending, in which he realizes she's in danger, breaks into the Nazi's mansion, and finds her rotting with poison (but beautiful as ever in the haunting chiaroscuro), may be the most romantic scene ever committed to film. It's typical Hitchcock and typical Bergman: The heroine must be tortured before she can get her reward.

Were the movies she made with Rossellini worth this nightmare? Sort of. Rossellini didn't believe in such hidebound concepts as "plot" or "dialogue" or "acting." For their first film together, Stromboli (1950), he asked Bergman to play a sophisticated war refugee who marries a poor Italian fisherman and feels trapped by his backwardness. He sent the actress to a tiny, parched island; surrounded her with amateurs; and told her to make the whole thing up. The result was simultaneously poetic and dull, natural and pretentious. The sound quality was terrible, the dialogue flat and awkward. But Stromboli was a little like an early personal computer: It was clumsy and painfully slow, but in its scriptless wanderings, it hinted at a powerful new freedom. A generation later it was cited as an inspiration by pioneers of the French New Wave.

Bergman made four more films with Rossellini; the two I have seen are intriguing and dull. Then they split, and she survived by performing on the European stage until the United States finally allowed her back in in 1956. She made a number of Hollywood films, a few of which MOMA showed, most of which are charming but disappointingly lightweight. Because she was so unfairly punished for the Rossellini affair, there's a temptation to elevate the reputation of her less celebrated films, to point out the bounty of interesting work that Americans have missed out on or ignored in favor of chestnuts like Casablanca. But I think she did her best and most unique work in 1940s Hollywood. When Bergman arrived, leading actresses were superwomen, admirable but hyperstylized, like Garbo or Hepburn. After 1949, the year she left, they tended to split into two equally fantastical categories: big-breasted bimbos (Lana Turner, Marilyn Monroe) and anorexic princesses (Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn). In the middle was the supremely human Ingrid Bergman, sane but soulful, vulnerable but always able to attract and hold the love of men and audiences, for the simple reason that she deserved it.

Photographs of: Bogart and Bergman in Casablanca from Corbis-Bettmann; Bergman and Grant in Notorious, Bergman and Rossellini from UPI/Corbis-Bettmann.

#Casablanca #Ingrid Bergman #Humphrey Bogart

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baubuttercup · 4 years ago

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Mini Garcia pt1/ Spencer Reid

Summery: Y/N is the new Tech Analyst intern under her mentor Penelope Garcia and has just started her first day at the BAU. During a case Y/N get a few calls from a not so familiar boy genius who seeks her help...or does he seek more?

Spencer Reid x Reader

Warning: Fluff/none

A/N: This is the first of many stories i will be writing and i look forwarding to writing more. I haven’t fully edited it but hope you enjoy it :)

Please Interact for more Spencer Reid/ MGG fics!!

“you will be fine trust me, you are already a natural and thats coming from yours truly” you were so nervous because today was your first day working at the BAU as a Tech Analyst Intern. Penelope was the one who got you the job working along side her. She was your teacher, mentor, and even your close friend and you knew working with her would be nothing less than entertaining. “P what if they don’t like me or I don’t fit into their group, you told me that they were like family” you followed the women wearing a floral dress with glittery high heel through the halls of the FBI coming to a stop next to two glass doors. “Y/N before we go in you are going to take three deep breathes and snap the hell out of it, cause you my little prized protege, will fit in just fine, so stop over thinking and pull yourself together”. I inhale three breathes before she pulled the glass door opened guiding me into a large room which from memory i think she had called it the “Bullpen”. As we walked in i noticed in the corner of my eyes a man and a women eyeing me up and down. The man was large and muscled, he was appealing to the eye, just not preferably my type “Babygirl who is this fine little thin-” Penelope put her hand out barricading me from the man “cool it hot cakes, she is pure” I chuckled under my breath at her immediate response “This Derek chocolate thunder Morgan is the new Intern, working beside me as i mentor her into become the next best Garcia, Y/n meet Derek Morgan” we both extend our hands to go in for a friendly handshake “Oh and this fine ass piece of women is Jennifer Jareau” I smile shaking the pretty blondes hand “JJ for short its lovely to meet you” she hesitated for a moment before continuing “You seem so young, if you don’t mind me asking how old you are” I nervously try not to stutter upon my words “Oh um-m yeah i’m 20, but I got into the early acceptance program for computer programming and coding at Georgetown and now i’m here” Derek and JJ both exchange stairs before Derek opens his mouth “you, princess should meet our resident genius, i’m sure you two would get along quite well” JJ chuckles before giving Derek a smirk “OH YES how could I have forgotten about boy genius, where is he by the way” A tall dark haired man and a slightly shorter Italian looking man appeared from behind us “Reid and Prentiss are at a conference they will be meeting us in San Francisco” He looked intently at the group surrounding me then turned to look at me “You must be Y/N L/N, i’m Aaron Hotchner but please call me Hotch, and this is David Rossi, we are happy to have you on board, Garcia has spoken very highly of you” both men shake my hand firmly “I’m glad to be on board sir and thank you for this amazing opportunity” Hotch goes to say something before he was cut off by a text message appearing on his phone. “Wheels us now, they need us down their asap, Garcia brief us on the plane” and with that they were all making their way to the elevator. “Come on little Einstein we have work to do”

Garcia had just finished briefing the team on the case they were assigned to. From what i could catch it was about a Zodiac killer who had been killing over a decade ago and has recently just started up again. I tried to listen in and take note on everything Garcia was doing because god knows this job is fast past and i don’t want to fall behind on my first day. I found myself continuously zoning out thinking back to what that Morgan guy said about a “resident genius”. Who was he and why was Morgan so sure we would get along. So many questions were crossing my mind, before i heard Garcia’s voice continuously saying “Earth to my little oracle, hello, Y/N come back down to earth little one” i snap back to reality seeing Garcia waving her hand in front of of me “oh sorry- P who was that resident genius Morgan spoke about earlier” she spun in her chair making eye contact with me smirking “Oh my god yes Reid, how could i forget again. So you didn’t meet Emily Prentiss she is a total kick ass babe who is super cool and Spencer Reid who is a total genius with an eidetic memory and a whopping I.Q of 187″ i began to open my mouth to say something when Garcia interrupted “you guys would totally be so cute together, i need to set you two up, it would be a match made in heaven” I blush, a little taken back by the abrupt comments made by Garcia who is now really cheery “P calm down i haven’t event met the guy and i think you are a little in over your head” she looks at me still smirking “you are already intrigued by him aren’t you” just as i was about to stop her, the computer phone began to ring and the caller I.D was most clearly someone i didn’t even know yet but for some reason already was under affect by “ANSWER IT” Garcia motioned to the headset on my head “no i don’t even know what to say” she pointed at me with her fluffy unicorn pen “answer the phone i trained you for this” I reluctantly answered and within seconds i was met with a masculine yet soft voice on the other line “Hey Garcia I need you to track the ISP of the user who entered the spam comment to an internet cafe” I immediately got butterflies in my stomach, no stop Y/N you have never met this person and Garcia is just getting in your head, you continue to remind yourself. “U-mm i’m sorry I-I’m not Garcia i’m Y/N L/N the new Tech Analyst intern” I began to fidget with my figures staring between the plasma computer screens and Garcia “Oh Hi, I’m Reid, I mean I’m Spencer, let me start over I’m Dr Spencer Reid but you can call me Spencer or Reid, nice to meet you” my nerves begin to calm at the sound of his voice and the fact that he sounded just as nervous as me. I look to Garcia as she was smiling and motioning her hands to continue the conversation “Oh um-m sorry, you needed me to track the ISP of the user who entered the spam comment to an internet cafe...right?”I patiently await his response, which seemed like forever “Yeah, if you can do that, that would be great, thanks” I look to Garcia once again as she gives me a reassuring smile of encouragement before i turn to the monitors and type away, I remember everything Garcia taught me about the bureau system and was surprising easier to manoeuvre once actually assigned to a task “Hey um Reid, you still there?” thinking maybe he hung up “still here buttercup...um i mean Y/N” Garcia nudged me overhearing what Reid had just said and was cheering in the air, I quickly regained focus “so yeah unfortunately the unsub used a prepaid credit card, so I don’t have an I.D, i’m sorry” i felt my nerves regain their position in my stomach as i thought i didn’t do a good job “Thats okay, thanks for your help L/N and am excited to meet you in person, hopefully soon” I blush quickly at his comment, this going unnoticed by Garcia who is in her own world of happiness at the moment. “Yeah same goes for you, take care and if you need anything else you know where to find us” I end the call not wanting to make anymore of a fool of myself than i already have “BUTTERCUP, HE CALLED YOU BUTTERCUP” I groan at Garcia’s response already embarrassed by the ordeal “Y/N i know Reid and i have know him for many years, never in my time of being in boy geniuses presence have i ever heard him call someone BUTTERCUP” a million things swoop through my mind in that moment, why did he call me that, was it a fluke, was he just trying to be friendly, what am i saying i have literally never met this guys before its for sure nothing. I turn my head to Garcia giving her a please stop looking at me face, before she puts her hands up in defence” Okay okay i’ll stop, but you guys would make cute babies” she whispered the last part just loud enough for me to catch it.

As time goes on I observe everything Garcia continues to do in order to find the details of the unsub. This job although seeming like fun is very high pressure and i made sure i noted down everything that Garcia done so i didn’t seem like the biggest failure in front of the team, or one team member in particular. The phone rang once again causing Garcia to answer it “He who seeks the queen of all knowledge, speak and be recognised” I chuckle under my breath at the witty response before i felt a tap on my shoulder “Pretty boy wants to speak with you” I give her a confused look “Boy genius, girly” I straighten up and answer my headset “Hello L/N speaking” i try to analyse why on earth he would want to speak with me and before he got a chance to answer a million conclusions were rushing through my mind “Hey L/N, long time no speak” there was a pause in the background before i heard a male chuckle and whisper “thats one way to get the girl Reid” he cleared his throat before continuing on “So i just thought i’d give you more training so can you run something for me” I physically prepare myself for what he is about to ask, ensuring i don’t screw this up “I need you to compile a list of people with I.Qs of 160 and above in the region” I type away trying to speed up so i don’t slow the team down “I’m checking with the bay area mensa society which is kind of slumming cause folks can get in with a measly I.Q of 130″ Reid chuckled at my statement making me feel more comfortable about what i was doing “try and check old school records, we’re looking for someone who is in his 20′s or 30′s” as I am intensely try my best to recover these names it appears in front of me “BINGO, Caleb Rossmore and Harvey Morell, they both have I.Qs over 160 and get this they both use to write about the Zodiac in their junior high school newspaper” I smile at myself, kinda proud at what i just accomplished on my own “thats amazing, thanks Y/N and tell Garcia she has the best intern” I smile to myself satisfied that i done something right and that Reid thought so too. “Yes that’s my little Einstein, ah you are moulding into a beautiful little Garcia, how proud i am right now

The team had just got back from catching both Caleb Rossmore and Harvey Morell and Garcia had gone to greet Morgan at the elevators. I had stayed behind packing my belonging as i was ready to head home to my fluffy dog Milo and sleep for hours. A knock on the door startled me. I abruptly turn around and was met with a tall figure who had beautiful brown eyes and shaggy hair. “Hi, I’m so sorry to have startled you, I’m Spencer Reid the one that kept annoying you on the phone” I feel my cheeks heat up from the sight of how pretty this boy was “um yes, i mean no you weren't annoying at all if anything you gave me the training i need, so i should be thanking you, and I’m Y/N L/N” Reid stuck out his hand which took me by surprise because according to Garcia he was not a handshaker and refused to shake hands with anyone, stating that even kissing was more sanitary “Well, in that case i’m glad to be of assistance and its nice to officially meet you Y/N” we stared in each others eyes for a few moments before we were met by Penelope and Morgan “Hey guys you have met, yay, okay now can we go this princess is getting bags under her eyes and those aren’t the kind of bags i want” we all laugh at Garcia’s remark as we start to head towards the elevator. “So I heard you went to Georgetown” i look up at the brunette boy who was gazing down at me “yeah, I actually graduated this year, which i’m kind of sad” “oh why’s that” I look straight into his eyes “I like educating myself, and expanding my field of study is something that i genuinely enjoy, so i’m kind of sad its over, but i’m looking at going for my PHD in Computer engineering” Reid looked me deeper in my eyes without saying anything, just then i heard a murmur “they will make such cute babies and i’m going to be the best godmother” and with that the elevator doors open and we all began to file in.

I may have just met Spencer Reid but i have a feeling we are definitely going to be getting along.

#matthewgraygubler #criminal minds #criminal minds fanfic #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid smut #spencer x you #spencer x reader #spencer reid x y/n #criminal minds smut #mgg x y/n #mgg fanfiction #mgg pics #criminal minds x reader #mgg x reader #penelope garcia #derek morgan

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themurphyzone · 4 years ago

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Pinky the Snowmouse Ch 4

AN: Happy November everybody!

AO3 Link

Ch 4: O’er the Hills and Snow

Brain’s teeth couldn’t break through thick mittens, so he was forced to bear the indignity of being trapped in Hinkle’s tight hold.

He told himself that it was silly to fear an incompetent and mediocre magician, but he hadn’t forgotten the humiliation Hinkle had put him through earlier that day.

“You little thief!” Hinkle cried, shaking Brain back and forth. “Stealing my magic hat for your own amusement!”

“You forfeited ownership of the hat when you threw it away!” Brain snapped once his head stopped spinning. “It’s Pinky’s hat now!”

Pinky tilted his head. “Oh, this was Santa’s hat before? I didn’t know you wore top hats! And here I thought your hats were always red and fluffy and jingly! I didn’t know you were mixing and matching styles, Santa!”

If Hinkle wasn’t pinning Brain’s arms to his sides, he would’ve slapped his face so hard it would’ve left a permanent hand-shaped mark.

“This isn’t Santa, Pinky. He’s Dr. Hinkle, merely a hack scientist and an incompetent birthday party magician masquerading as one, for reasons I can’t begin to fathom,” Brain said, finally freeing himself from Hinkle’s grip.

The snow beneath him cushioned his fall, so it wasn’t as painful as it could’ve been.

“Well, you try paying rent sometime on ACME’s salary and the meager amount of money I get from my gigs!” Dr. Hinkle shouted, rubbing his hands gleefully. “Just imagine what I could do with a magic hat and a talking mouse! Commercials, endorsements, billboard advertisements! Popularity on social media! We’ll go to Vegas, and my name will be honored among the greatest magicians in history! I shall join the ranks of Harry Houdini, David Copperfield, Penn and Teller!”

Brain seized Pinky by the arm and slowly dragged him towards the exit, the snow muffling the sound of their footsteps. It wasn’t worth getting entangled in a crazy human’s schemes for greatness. Brain would achieve fame on his own terms, not because he was forced to be a prop in an embarrassing display of magic.

“Where are we going now, Brain?” Pinky asked, dropping the piece of coal into the snow. Brain slapped his hand over Pinky’s mouth, urging him to be as quiet as...well, a mouse, but Hinkle turned to face them, snapped out of his fantastical daydreams.

Drat. Brain hoped they’d lose the man, but it appeared they wouldn’t be able to shake him off that easily.

“Give me that hat!” Hinkle yelled, and one long, lanky arm swooped down to reclaim it. His hand seized the top portion of the silk hat before Brain could drag Pinky out of the way, but no matter how much Hinkle tried to pull the hat off, it wouldn’t budge.

Well, if the hat didn’t want to come off Pinky’s head right now, then Brain wasn’t going to protest. He’d already seen how unnatural it was for the bundle of energy to be so still, and he had no wish to see it repeat.

He and Pinky hurried out of the Santa’s Workshop area, once again dodging heavy boots and other obstacles with Hinkle in pursuit. Brain ignored the magician’s demands to cease and surrender.

But where would they go? Back to the lab?

Bad idea.

Hinkle had access to the lab, and it would be too warm for Pinky.

Hiding in any building was out of the question. Nobody in their right mind would keep any building at freezing point, unless they were a truly despicable landlord.

There weren’t many options available that accounted for a snowmouse’s physiology.

And Pinky suddenly veered off in another direction, pulling Brain along with him. Brain tried to get his feet to touch the ground, just to regain some control, but that was impossible at the speed Pinky was going.

For a lump of snow, Pinky moved surprisingly fast.

Brain only heard the rushing wind and shouts of surprise from Hinkle and anyone unlucky enough to stand between him and his hat.

After a few minutes of running, Pinky finally stopped underneath a bright red mailbox. He didn’t have lungs, so he wasn’t even winded. Though Brain didn’t do much of the legwork, it took him several minutes to catch his breath in the frosty air.

“What are we stopping for? We need to lose him, Pinky!” Brain asked, once his respiratory system stopped screaming for precious oxygen.

“Shhhh, Brain!” Pinky whispered, slapping a hand over Brain’s mouth. “We don’t wanna scare ‘em off!”

Brain shoved Pinky’s hand off his mouth. “Yes, Pinky. We wouldn’t want to frighten the poor mailbox,” he muttered.

Pinky gasped. “Oh, I hope we don’t! How else are those elves gonna find all the last-minute letters to Santa if we scare off the mailbox?”

“Pinky, elves aren’t-”

Before he could say ‘real’, a small plane materialized right in front of his eyes. It was bright red with white highlights, a green Christmas wreath was painted on its tail.

Yuletide Air was painted in a fancy font along its side.

Were they the only ones who noticed the plane, or was everyone else too busy hustling and bustling to notice? Surely a plane that conspicuous wouldn’t go unnoticed.

But somehow, it slipped under the radar anyway.

A door swung open, and two short women stepped out. They were both decked out in festive colors, one wearing a short green dress with bells attached to every hem while the other was clad in gold and white, with a navy pilot’s hat and aviation glasses perched on her head.

Their ears were pointed, and their noses just slightly longer than an average human’s.

Perhaps he should’ve been more open-minded, considering that there was a living, breathing snowmouse next to him, but he was still astounded.

Elves were real after all.

“Holly, this is the last time I ever let you come along to pick up last minute Christmas letters,” the elf in the pilot’s hat muttered. Her cheeks were tinged a slight shade of green as she braced herself against the door, doubled over and trying not to vomit.

“Awww, but you’re being such a true friend by helping me skip elf practice and letting me drive the plane!” Holly chirped, the excessive number of bells on her outfit jingling as she danced over to the mailbox. Brain hid behind one of the mailbox’s legs, making sure he and Pinky were obscured from her view. “Hey Ivy, so what kinda letters do we got? Hurry and open the mailbox! I wanna see!”

Ivy took out a key that she wore on a reindeer-themed lanyard around her neck. She inserted the key into a slot on the side of the mailbox, unlocking it and removing a burlap sack that was nearly as big as she was.

“Contents of Christmas letters are strictly confidential,” Ivy replied brusquely. “We’re just the postal service.”

“Just one teensy-weensy peek?”

“No.”

“Pretty please with marshmallows and candy canes on top?” Holly batted her eyelashes and twisted her body from side to side cutely.

Ivy paled and averted her gaze, fumbling with the ties on the burlap sack.

“H-hey! Q-quit breaking out the doe eyes! It’s not gonna work this time!” Ivy stammered, though she was breaking out into a nervous sweat.

As the elves argued over how illegal it was to open the letters, Pinky insistently tugged on Brain’s arm.

Hinkle stumbled into view from behind a building, furiously tugging at a Christmas wreath that had somehow gotten caught around his head. Finally, it popped off with a painful sounding pop, and Hinkle let out a furious bellow as he laid eyes on the two mice huddled underneath the mailbox.

“C’mon, Brain!” Pinky exclaimed, and before Brain could process anything else besides needing a new hiding place, Pinky had dragged him up the ramp of the airplane the elves had left unprotected and open. “North Pole, here we come!”

“North Pole? Pinky, quit blabbering and assure me that there’s something other than fluff in your non-existent mind!” Brain protested, slipping his arm out of Pinky’s surprisingly strong grasp before it was dislocated from its socket.

Pinky nodded eagerly. “Of course! We’ll just ask the real Santa Claus to give you something that’ll make you happy!”

“For the last time, Santa’s not real! He’s nothing but a fairy tale for children!” Brain snapped. “Nobody could possibly travel around the world in a single night!”

How could something that wasn’t even real possibly give him happiness in the form of ruling the world?

“Santa can,” Pinky replied. “He’s magic.”

Brain raised an eyebrow. “And the flying reindeer?”

“They fly when they’re absolutely loved! And also with magical corn feed!” Pinky exclaimed as he hugged himself.

“And how would you explain how he fits enough presents in his sleigh for millions of children around the world?” Brain asked.

Pinky grinned. “Cause Christmas magic, of course!”

Brain slapped a hand over his face. This holiday made absolutely no sense! Why was everything based on magic and love and good feelings around this time of year, concepts that were foreign and forever out of his reach?

They did absolutely nothing for him. The only thing that mattered was taking over the world so he’d never be helpless again.

But at the same time, he’d attended that Christmas tree lighting just an hour ago.

Pinky holding his hand. The beautiful lights mixed with colors he’d never seen before. Voices and spirits lifted in harmony and song. A community gathering in celebration, regardless of background.

In that moment, there was hope for the world. For himself.

That maybe...things could be better, or fairer, or peaceful.

Somehow.

Brain turned away from Pinky, taking in the contents of the plane instead. Mapping out what he could see instead of what he couldn’t...it was less taxing on his neurological pathways this way.

A spacious interior with labeled boxes of various Christmas decorations and food surrounded them. Bags filled to the brim with Christmas letters were tightly bound with red and gold strings.

Before he could explore the contents of the boxes further, mostly for the sake of his grumbling stomach, a set of harsh footsteps clashed against the metal.

“Come out, come out, little mice!” Hinkle yelled, his voice echoing off the walls. “I’m only reclaiming what rightfully belongs to me!”

He was still dressed in the red Santa suit, sans the red hat and fake beard. Pinky and Brain quickly hid behind a box full of gold and silver tinsel, and the bristles that stuck out of the box further shielded them from the mad magician.

There were only two exits, one towards the outside of the plane and another leading into the back area. The cockpit door was tightly shut and they couldn’t waste time in trying to open and lock it so Hinkle couldn’t get to them.

Hinkle was closest to the door that led to the back of the plane. If they could just get him to wander into the back and shut the door on him, then that would be one problem solved.

Brain motioned for Pinky to stay where he was. Slowly, Brain crept around the boxes and bags, careful to keep out of Hinkle’s sight. As he backed around a box, his foot collided with a piece of metal. Brain nearly lost his balance, and he clapped his hand over his mouth to keep himself from making noise to alert Hinkle to his position.

When Brain looked behind him to see what he’d nearly tripped over, he found himself nose-to-nose with a small Santa ornament that had fallen out of its box. Annoyed, he grabbed the offending object by its beard, nearly hurling it away before he remembered that he was supposed to be stealthy.

The back door was just several feet away. And Brain had an easy decoy in his hands.

Once Hinkle was looking in the opposite direction, Brain hurled the Santa ornament through the open door, and it bounced off the floor with a loud metallic clang.

“Aha!” Hinkle cried, and he triumphantly ran into the open room, believing his prey was caught.

“Now, Pinky!” Brain shouted, and Pinky ran out from his hiding place to help Brain slam the door and block it with a box so Hinkle couldn’t escape.

Hinkle screeched when he realized he was trapped, banging on the door and screaming for someone to let him out.

It would keep him out of the way for now.

“Excellent work, Pinky,” Brain said, and Pinky beamed.

“Sure, Brain! Now he won’t be able to stop us from asking Santa for your happiness!” Pinky exclaimed. He tugged on a piece of tinsel and draped it over himself, admiring his reflection on a shiny piece of metal on the wall.

Could he really just ask Santa for the world? Gaining control over the world was the only way he’d ever feel some sense of worth or accomplishment.

It seemed so farfetched, but not so outlandish that it was completely outside the realm of possibility.

Before Brain could ponder too long on that dilemma, a loud jingling cacophony distracted him. He and Pinky hid themselves among the tinsel again, and Holly bounced up the ramp just as Pinky pulled his tail in.

Somehow, Holly was bogged down with even more bells than before. How she fit them all on her dress or didn’t go deaf from all the noise, Brain didn’t know.

“-and that’s why I will never play eggnog pong at one of Donner’s parties ever again!” Holly finished.

“Ooh, sounds like fun!” Pinky exclaimed.

“I’ll pass on attending,” Brain said, deciding that he didn’t want to know what would happen when Donner, eggnog, and parties mixed together.

Ivy trudged up the ramp with the burlap sack full of Christmas letters slung across her back. She dropped her burden next to the other sacks, then went over to the cockpit door and unlocked it.

“Take those bells off,” Ivy said. “I need to concentrate on getting this plane off the ground.”

Holly rolled her eyes. “Party pooper.”

But she complied and took off the excess number of bells, neatly piling them into a corner with the promise of coming back to them as soon as the flight was over.

“LET ME OUT OF HERE!” Hinkle roared, slamming his fists against the door.

“Did you hear something?” Holly asked, looking around in confusion. “You think we picked up some stowaways again?”

Ivy shrugged. “Making it back before Santa leaves for his annual run is always the priority. Don’t worry. The maintenance crew can deal with the stowaway when we get back.”

They disappeared into the cockpit. Moments later, the Yuletide Air roared to life.

“Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, and Frohe Weihnachten to all ye merry gentlemen!” Holly’s voice came over the intercom as the Yuletide Air slowly shifted into position for takeoff. “This is your co-captain Holly speaking, and right next to me is the lovely elven pilot Ivy! Don’t mind her if she doesn’t talk as much as me, she’s just shy and-ahhh! Hey!”

There was a smacking sound over the intercom system, a high-pitched sound of protest, before a calmer female voice seized control over the microphone.

“Preparing for takeoff. Departing from some city in the US, destination is the North Pole. All systems in order,” Ivy reported curtly.

The intercom system clicked off.

The Yuletide Air picked up speed, nearly throwing the mice to the back of the plane. Brain quickly latched onto Pinky’s hand as the Yuletide Air gained enough velocity to leave the ground, its nose tilting upward just as Brain’s stomach plummeted to the earth below.

In that moment, he was very jealous of Pinky, who was barely fazed by the takeoff. Snowmice didn’t have internal organs that flung all over the place during takeoff. They were lucky.

“You okay?” Pinky asked. “Your face is all funny.”

Thankfully, the plane leveled out after a few minutes, though they hadn’t reached cruising altitude yet.

“I’m fine,” Brain finally said, once he felt his abdomen to make absolutely sure everything was in place.

But a new problem quickly arose. Not one for Pinky, whose physiology required temperatures to remain at freezing point or below.

For Brain though, cold seeped into his entire being, bypassing his coat, fur, and flesh. The chill pierced him straight through his bone. His teeth chattered, and he curled into a tight ball in an attempt to preserve whatever heat he had left.

He’d done this many times before.

Cold was nothing new for him, and he already had strategies in place to mitigate it.

Curl up, preserve energy, protect the most vulnerable parts of the body.

He was about to lay down on the cold metallic floor, hardly different material from his cage, when Pinky suddenly moved away to inspect a box full of blankets. Then he tipped it over, and several fluffy, warm Christmas-themed blankets spilled over.

Pinky chose one that depicted a cozy little cottage and spread it out on the floor.

Brain shivered, huddling into himself more. His hands were stiff, and his fingers and tail felt like they could fall off at any moment.

“Here, you gotta keep warm and not get bit by Jack Frost, right?” Pinky asked, gently leading Brain over to the blanket and folding the thick fleece over Brain’s body. “And if he does show up, I’ll make sure he doesn’t get your nose! Troz!”

He nearly sunk into the fleece, soft and squishy under his toes.

Shame he couldn’t use this as sleeping material every night. It would do wonders for his insomnia.

“This feels wonderful, Pinky,” Brain quietly said.

It was against all logic, but Pinky’s kind action warmed him up. Just a little bit. Brain’s stomach growled, and too late he’d realized he’d barely eaten anything since creating Pinky.

He didn’t have much of an appetite though. It had depleted in this frigid air alongside his energy.

Pinky came to the rescue once again. He placed another blanket on top of Brain and went to dig through another box, finally bringing over a holiday platter of cheese, crackers, and sausage.

It was party food, simply meant to be an appetizer while everyone waited for the roasted ham, but it would have to do.

Brain felt eyes on him as he chewed on a slice of cheddar, and once he swallowed, he nearly scolded Pinky for watching him while he ate. It was making him rather self-conscious.

But Pinky’s blue eyes were more curious than anything, and it made Brain think twice.

“Try one,” Brain said. With some difficulty, he turned the platter so that the cheese faced Pinky.

“Narf! Can’t wait to see what this tastes like!” Pinky exclaimed as he picked up a slice flecked with particles of red and green. “Is this peppermint cheese?”

Brain shook his head. “Pepperjack cheese, Pinky. Peppermint and cheese don’t exactly mesh together. But it does have some spice to it.”

“Okey-dokey then, I’m sure this must be very tasty!” Pinky said, and he chomped down on the pepperjack slice. He tried biting it several more times, then took it out of his mouth, confused that the cheese wasn’t disappearing. “Hey, Brain? Am I doing this right? I don’t taste anything.”

At least he knew where his mouth was, even if he wasn’t the most intelligent creature in the world.

But...he couldn’t eat? Couldn’t enjoy the simple delights of holiday food, like ham and gingerbread and caramel popcorn?

It was a sobering thought.

“You can’t eat at all,” Brain whispered, and what remained of his meager appetite evaporated. It felt...wrong. To feast when Pinky couldn’t. “You...you don’t have the ability to.”

Pinky’s tail drooped. “How come?” he asked pitifully, fingers curling into the cheese. It dropped uselessly to the ground.

Brain didn’t have an answer for that.

And Pinky looked at Brain, ice crystals forming at the corners of his eyes. Unable to bear that sad look, Brain retreated into the fleece blanket.

“I wish I could taste food,” Pinky murmured.

But wishes didn’t come true, no matter how much one desired with all their heart and soul for a miracle. And Brain knew that better than anyone.

o-o-o-o-o

He was in the lab again.

Twinkling, colorful lights clung to the walls. A medium sized tree with glistening ornaments and a multitude of presents underneath stood by the entrance. White Christmas played on an old, beaten-up radio.

The cage was empty, the open door creaking back and forth on its hinges.

A gust of wind chilled Brain’s fur through the open window. Brain growled and seized the latch to lock the window, but a flash of movement on the edge of the windowsill caught his eye.

A young mouse, no longer an infant but not fully-grown either, swung his legs in the open air.

He turned around, and Brain’s eyes widened.

This was...him.

Back when his eyes were still round and shining with innocence, when his tail was not yet scarred from human callousness.

The young mouse looked up at the night sky, his gaze fixed on a twinkling star that outshone its countless counterparts.

In his hands, there was a pencil. One that had been worn down to half its original size, decorated with silly cartoon hamsters. A little red ribbon was tied around the eraser end, its tassels swaying in the chilly breeze.

But this dream version of him was so young, so inexperienced, so naive to the cruel ways of an unforgiving world.

Slowly, Brain sat down next to his younger self. His chest was tight, his throat dry.

“You fool. That won’t work,” Brain whispered.

But the young mouse didn’t react to his words. Didn’t refute or deny or get upset at them. He only gazed up at the star, squeaked his wish, and waited.

Alas, this was only a memory. A shadow of the past that could never be changed.

The young mouse would simply have to learn that life was not a Disney film, where someone could just wish upon a star and have all their heart’s desires come true.

And if it took a harsh lesson to drill that into his innocent, naive mind, so be it.

But even so…

Was there no way to cushion the blow? No way to just...have a little comfort even though his wish would never come true?

Brain reached towards the young mouse, but his trembling fingers wouldn’t let him touch his counterpart. What was the point? He was no good at comfort even if he had the ability to influence the memory.

The only thing he could do was keep a silent vigil alongside the young mouse, with the burden of knowing that the individual they waited for would never come back.

Whenever someone passed them by on the sidewalk, the young mouse leapt with joy and waved the tiny pencil above his head, in a futile attempt to catch their attention. But all of them were strangers, and nobody paid him a second glance.

Between attempts, he looked towards the star and repeated his wish.

Yet stars weren’t magical. They were only masses of unfeeling hydrogen and other elements, whose lifespan far outweighed that out of a tiny, insignificant mouse.

The young mouse’s ears drooped, but they perked back up within minutes.

He asked again.

A man and his two huskies strolled by, the dogs joyfully splashing through the snow.

And again.

A woman playfully held up a sprig of mistletoe. Her husband grinned and immediately went in for the kiss.

And again.

This time, the young mouse’s squeak was hoarse, desperate, barely audible. His ears drooped, hanging loose against his back.

The star coldly shone above them with an aloof beauty, caring nothing for the once hopeful plea.

And the young mouse stood up, stumbling over his own tail as he wiped away a tear. His mouth wobbled, his fingers clenching around the pencil.

He looked up at the star and screamed in raw fury, and the youthful spark in his eyes faded away, never to return again.

Then he stumbled into the lab, his steps forceful and wild as he stalked his way across the counter, slamming his fist over the stop button on the radio.

Without the usual Christmas carols, there was only the drone of outdated technology in the lab.

The pencil slipped from his hands, rolling off the counter and into a trash can below.

The young mouse trudged into his cage, dropping into his bed of straw and curling into a tight ball, without the luxury of pillows or blankets.

Somewhere in the lab, the clock struck twelve. It was now Christmas morning, but there was no joy to be found.

Brain followed his younger self into the cage, falling to his knees beside the meager bed. The young mouse buried his head into the straw in a desperate attempt for solace, his fur soaked with tears.

Taking a deep breath, Brain reached out once again. But his hand only hovered over empty air. He couldn’t feel the fur on the young mouse’s head, nor could the young mouse feel his presence.

There would be no comfort or peace tonight.

Just a ghost of what had been, and there was nothing that could be done to change it.

o-o-o-o-o

He was covered in several heavy blankets, though the cold seeped in if he dared uncurl from his position.

“...are you still cold?” Pinky asked. Twig fingers gently scratched against Brain’s cheek, careful not to press too hard. “Do you need another blanket?”

They weren’t flesh and blood fingers, but Pinky still had the gentlest touch he’d ever known.

Part of the blanket pressed against Brain’s cheek, leaving a damp spot behind on the fabric.

Oh.

He was crying.

“Sorry…” Pinky whispered, gently rubbing the blanket against Brain’s face, so careful not to poke his eye. “I just wish I could keep you warm.”

He was trying. There were limitations, but he was trying so hard to get around them.

A different sort of ache sprung forth in Brain’s chest, overwhelming him with a fresh wave of tears.

This snowmouse had the kindest spirit in the world.

And yet…

The snowmouse’s wishes were so simple, just as he was. So then...why couldn’t his wishes come true? Or Brain’s own for that matter?

It just wasn’t fair.

End AN: I’ve been waiting to do this flashback! Haha yes!

In this story, nobody except for Pinky can remove his hat.

Ivy’s name was originally gonna be Noelle, but I figured I might as well pair the elf names like Holly and the Ivy. Also I wanted to reference the elf practice meme somewhere in this fic.

#pinky and the brain #pinky the snowmouse #patb fanfiction

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thealmightyemprex · 3 years ago

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Superman Orgin Evolution:Pilot of Lois and Clark The New Adventures of Superman

Welcome to my look at the various depictions of Supermans first adventures on the big and small screen .

Today we are looking at Lois and Clark ,which basically takes the Superman story and makes it a romantic comedy .....I missed the boat on this show .Part of that is I was born the year before it ended ,but I actually didnt know there was a 90's live action Superman show till I was in my teens ,when hearing discussions of previous Supermen I hear either about George Reeves or Christopher Reeve , and when I was a kid the big TV Superman was Tom Welling ,while the Superman I grew up with was the one voiced by Tim Daly/ George Newbern .Dean Cain kind of flew past me .Now I have seen a few episodes,so I am not a total newbie but I have yet to watch a full season .For now we are just gonna discuss the pilot

Plot : Newcomer to Metropolis , Clark Kent , is paired with investigative reporter Lois Lane to check out the possible sabotaging of a space colonization project ,while Clark must find a way to hide his great powers

The Beats :

Krypton:No Krypton in this pilot ,though I know in a later episode we do get Jor El played by David Warner

Smallville:Another Ma and Pa heavy show ,both alive and played very well by Eddie Jones and K Callan.Jones take on Pa,is a bit cautious,not wanting Clark to be descovered ,but still a loving father (Unlike a certain Pa I could compare him too.....We have two more of these before we get to Man of Steel ) ,while Callan might be my favorite Ma Kent,very energetic and supportive of Clarks crime fighting .I also love a montage of potential costumes made by Ma Kent ,to the song Holding Out for A Hero ,its very cute

Superman:Well this is very Clark centric ,and the Clark presented here is less of a bumbler and more confident,still bit of a dork ,and very sincere and earnest . I think Dean Cain makes for a good Clark Kent .....I am not impressed with his Superman ,and I cant put my finger on why . Theres something off with him ,like when he is talking with Luthor at the end ,I dont buy it .He isnt bad ,just not a favorite .Also ifanyone else has seen Dean Caines Superman ,what do you think of him ?I honestly dont know what the consensus on him is .Oh though one addition to Superman lore I like is cause Superman doesnt HAVE to eat ,he basically mainly eats junkfood

Lois Lane :So one of the few things I know about the fanbase of the show is that Terrie Hatcher is very beloved for her take on Lois and I think she is good. This take on Lois is very business first at the expense of everything else but slowly opens up to Clark .I also like that this show really emphasizes her ,cause I have always felt she is a key part of the Superman mythos

Perry White:Lane Smith is an EXCELLENT Perry White ,right mix of tough guy with a good heart,hes very funny,hes perfect

Jimmy Olsen:First Jimmy I just dont like.Nothing against Michael Landes ....He just doesnt feel like Jimmy ,he lacks the goofy charm .I know he is replaced in later seasons by Justin Whalen ,who from what little Ive seen is a better fit

Lex Luthor/Villain : While there is a villain of the week here, Dr Baines there is not much to say about her as she is a glorified henchman and dies before the climax,so my focus is gonna be on Lex Luthor who is the true main villain.This Lex is played by John Shea who delivers a phenomenal performance ,being suave and enigmatic ,while having an intensity .He's a thrill seeking narcissitc control freak.A very intimidating villain while also being a belivable romantic rival for Lois's affections ,I think this is a marvelous Lex

The Threat:A sabotaged space launch so Lex can swoop in and fund his own space station be hailed as a hero . Honestly I thought this plot was a little too ambitious for a first episode

As an Orgin:Solid .The focus is the love story ,so the romance of Clark and Lois is key ,while characters like the Kents, Lex and Perry are set up well

General thoughts :Its OK ,its a good pilot .I will confess I am not a rom com guy ,but think this is an interesting take on Superman since the Clark and Lois romance is pivotol to the mythos .It's cute ,I am tempted to watch a whole season of this at least .Will confess Lex is my favorite part (Not a surprise to those who know me )

@ariel-seagull-wings @metropolitan-mutant-of-ark

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drdavidswoopejr · 1 year ago

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Symphony of Motivation: Dr. David Swoope Jr.'s Transformative Journey

Introduction: Nestled in the heart of Alabama, Dr. David Swoope Jr. emerges as a beacon of inspiration, captivating audiences with his unique and passionate approach to motivation. As a charismatic Motivational and Inspirational Speaker, Dr. Swoope's journey is not just a testament to his achievements but a narrative of transforming lives through a tailor-made approach to motivation.

1. The Passionate Educator: Crafting Motivation as an Art

Dr. Swoope's commitment to education radiates in every word he speaks. Going beyond conventional boundaries, he approaches motivation as an art, customizing his messages for diverse audiences. Explore how his passion extends to professionals, exceptional students, and those in disability service departments, creating a tailor-made approach that resonates with each individual's unique needs.

2. A Symphony of Words: The Oratory Magic of Dr. Swoope

Gifted as an orator, Dr. Swoope weaves a symphony of words that captivates audiences of all ages. His speeches transcend mere lectures, becoming transformative experiences that empower, inspire, and energize. Uncover how, through his charismatic delivery, Dr. Swoope unlocks the potential within individuals, encouraging them to develop and enhance their natural, internal creativity.

3. Bridging Profound Messages: The Distinctive Approach to Motivation

In the world of motivation, Dr. Swoope's approach is distinct. He bridges profound messages with relatable anecdotes, making education an engaging and transformative journey. Explore his commitment to tailoring speeches, ensuring that each listener feels a personal connection, leaving a lasting impact that extends far beyond the lecture hall.

4. Impact Beyond Borders: Dr. Swoope's Global Reach

Dr. Swoope's influence extends beyond the borders of Alabama, gaining global attention. His tailor-made approach to motivation reaches individuals from various walks of life, creating a ripple effect that results in positive transformations in communities, workplaces, and educational institutions.

5. Unveiling Creativity: A Catalyst for Self-Discovery

At the core of Dr. Swoope's approach lies a belief in unlocking creativity. His speeches serve as catalysts, encouraging individuals to explore and embrace their innate creative potential. Through a blend of motivation and inspiration, he guides others on a journey of self-discovery, fostering an environment where creativity flourishes.

Conclusion: Dr. Swoope's Beacon of Passionate Education

In the realm of motivational speakers, Dr. David Swoope Jr. stands out for his unique and passionate approach to education. Through tailor-made speeches that resonate with the essence of each listener, he brings about positive change, inspiring individuals to embark on a journey of self-improvement and creative exploration. Dr. Swoope's commitment to educating with passion is a beacon that lights the way for all those seeking inspiration and motivation in their lives.

#dr. david swoope #dr. david swoope jr

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popculturebuffet · 4 years ago

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Lilo and Stitch Crossovers: “Morpholomew” (American Dragon Long): Stop Trying to Make Am Drag a Thing (Commisson Done For WeirdKev27)

Hello all you happy people! And welcome to a brand new retrospective/story arc/thing from yours truly, comissoned directly by WeirdKev27. If you’d like to comission your own review or set of reviews like this one, it’s 5 bucks. Just contact me via my ask box or direct messages on this very blog or my discord technicolormuk#6550.

With Shadow Into Light in the books, Kev decided he wanted to comission something not duck related and a bit smaller as a buffer before the next big arc, ALL of three arcs from season 2 of Ducktales, and decided to go with something he suggested to be a while back as a possible future retrospective: The Lilo and Stitch Crossover episodes!

That’s right for the next three weeks, with TWO reviews this week since I had a spot open up and Kev paid for this one in full and way in advance, we’ll be taking a trip to Hawaii to visit everyone’s faviorte little girl, her best friend/pet/killing machine as they try to find homes for his 625 cousins.

I loved Lilo and Stitch when I was a kid: Disney admitely got their hooks in me on that one with their cool prequel comics in disney adventures. These comics set up the movie, showing Jumba creating Stitch and the events leading up to both getting captured. The movie did not disapoint with cool character designs, a drop dead gorgeous recreation of Hawaii, and a really heartfelt, heartbreaking and heartpumping story of loss, family, and ving rahmes voicing one of the few heroic child services workers i’ve seen in a medium, a refreshing change of pace. The film is a masterpiece and I really do need to watch it again sometime.

Given the series was a huge hit and that thsi was before the big lull in the late 2000′s and early 2010′s where Disney refused to make any tv shows based on their movies, a series followed, given a lead in by the direct to video movie Stitch.

The movie set up the basic premise; 624 capsules containing Jumba’s previous experiments, cousins as Stitch calls them, ended up raining over Kauai, awakening when dropped into water or any other liquid. Lilo and Stitch, with help from Jumba, his live in boyfriend Pleakley, her tought but fair sister Nani, and her boyfriend David, who dosen’t show up as much as i’d like but is my boy so he gets a mention here. But anyways our heroes try to reform the various engines of distructoin who all have unique powers and find them their one place they truly belong.

So yes the show was a Mons-type show clearly captalizing off pokemon.. but the slice of life setting as opposed to the shonen style of most shows following in pokemon’s wake, gave it it’s own unique feel: while our heroes did fight, it was more about shenanigans, adventures and what not with these unique creatures and the purpose is very heartflet: Lilo simply wants to give these guys the same kind of love and support she’s given Stitch and a chance to do good.

Opposing them is Gantu, the shark bounty hunter from the first film who, now out of a job, is working for Dr. Hamstervile, an imprisoned sceintest and a character I really don’t like that much as he’s not funny or a genuine threat or both and feels like a waste of time. Thankfully he’s not the focus and Gantu is instead partnered with 625, my faviorite Lilo and Stitch character. 625, as the name suggests, is stitch’s immediate prototype.. but unlike Stitch is too lazy and peaceful to be a real threat and isn’t even really a villian despite being on Gantu’s side. He’s busy making samwitches, his calling to the point when he gets a name in the finale movie it’s naturally Ruben, and snarking at gantu. He’s sadly not in this one but hopefully it’s JUST this one.

As you can tell I liked this show a LOT at the time. I haven’t watched it since, mostly because disney scarely replayed it after it’s run, but it was vibrant, fun and intresting and a nicely laidback and creative take. The fact I came into the franchise with the comics and thus 625, who was introduced there in fact, and had a hunger to know more about the other experiments certainly helped. It was great fun.

But while I grew up with the show and the four shows it teamed up with, i’ve never seen these episodes before these reviews. I wondered why for years as I caught the tail end of the kim possible one and saw images ocasionally, but never saw them.

Turns out it’s because in general Season 2 got screwed over. While Season 1 was pushed out the door fast and aired at a rapid pace Season 2.. was portioned out over several years, and the Recess crossover one, the last one aired and the last one i’ll be covering never even got to Disney channel, only airing on ABC kids, DIsney’s saturday morning block at the time I rarely watched. I did watch it’s predecessor one saturday morning though. Good stuff.

Since I couldn’t find any making of stuff for why these episodes happened, my best guess is DIsney wanted some cross promotion, and the shows used were chosen because they were the most popular at the time and honestly all 4 represent some of disney’s best, with Recess being in heavy reruns at the time, hence i’ts conclusion despite the show being finished before Lilo And Stitch the movie came out, let alone the series.

So yeah i’m taking this ride for the first time.. but I was happy to. While Kev pays for a lot of my work, I still have to accept the idea.. and this was a great one. It allows me to cover 5 amazing series and gage how much people would want to see reviews of said series on this blog in one fell swoop.

So to kick us off we have American Dragon: Jake Long, a series I waited forever to come to Disney + as I loved it at the time, badly need to rewatch it (Been busy ), and find it genuinely great: It’s a great teen superhero story about the magical protector of new york, with a charming lead, a great setting and horrifcally great villians in the violently racist magic creature hunting huntsclan.. and their top agent who happens to be jake’s love intrest Rose. It’s really excellent and i’m glad it’s now widely avaliable for all to see. I will say ahead that all four shows in this crossover arc are excellent, and were fine choices for this.

So what happens when an action comedy about a hip hop teenage dragon meets a slice of life show about aliens? Find out under the cut.

So we open at a fancy hotel where Lilo’s bringing lunch to her sister Nani when she runs into.. Keoni Jameson.

The second I remembered this kid all the hate just came flooding back, coursing through my veigns. Just pure liquid hatred for this little perosnalitiless little punk. Keoni is Lilo’s crush and local “stupid white audience stand in”. He has no real personality other than “generic cool kid” and “likes skating”, and just sucks the air out of the room anytime he’s in an episode. Keoni is part of a recurring problem in cartoons across the ages, one that’s slowly going away: the bland love intrest. Intorducing a character whose only traits are being cool for the lead to fawn over with usually no intent of either getting the two togehter or just ending it. IT’s annoying, it was in a good chunk of my childhood, I wish it’d stop. I cannot tell you how many shows used this trope. There were exceptions, American Dragon Jake Long actually used it well by not only making Rose a fleshed out character.. but making her jake’s nemisis in their other lives, and thus making things increidbly difficult on both once the truth comes out, with Jake grappling with if he can trust her or not and Rose grappling with the slow relization eveyrthing she was taught her whole life was wrong.

And again I have seen GOOD storylines using this as a tool: Dipper and Wendy ended with her having been aware teh whole time, but simply not knowing how to let him down given the age gap, and Regular Show rebounded the best from it: it turned the stop and start relatoinshpi of Mordecai and Margret’s relationship into a character flaw for him, openly explored it.. and ended up having him work past it and actually date her for a bit. Before she moved away, he got an even better love interest, then they destoryed the relationship in the worst way posisble and I wil lbe getting to that at some point. Some point.

So yeah even at the time it was done better, hindsight haas only made it worse and it made watching the first few minutes tough because I had to keep pasuing because I hate him so damn much. He just adds NOTHING to the show and is a blank yanwing void from which no good came out of and I was terrified he’d be in the rest of the episode. Thankfully while he drives the plot he’s only in this scene.. but it’s still one more scene than both 625 and Pleakly got. yeah both are missing, as is nani.

I did uncover one fun fact that made things a bit easier though: The crew ALSO hated Keoni. No really. Disney forced the character on them as they wanted an audience surrogate, and this abomination is what popped out. They DID NOT want him here and likely only used him as mcuh as they did because Disney forced it on them. And Disney would NOT learn from this as Star Vs got saddled with Alphonso and Ferguson soley because of network mandate. The two aren’t TERRIBLE characters but they aren’t great and feel as tacked on as they were. And part of this does fall on the crew: you CAN twist a stupid mandate like this to work well: Joe Murray was asked to add “A female character with a hook”, as in some sort of dumb gimmick to Rocko. He used those words, meant to create a superfical girl power cardboard cutout.. and created the wonderful Dr. Hutchenson, a bright cheery doctor, the series best sidecharacter.. and someone with a hook hand. But I won’t go too hard on them: they probably didn’t have as much room to manuver and the fact Keoni was sitll being shoved into episodes in season 2 tells me they likely had a set number of episodes he had to show up. I’m suprised they didn’t demand they have characters ask “Where’s Keonie?” any time he wasn’t in an episode. He was unecessary and it comes across with a massive chunk of unforutnate implications: that they didn’t think a series with a mostly hawaiann cast would work, that they wanted at least one other “nice” white character to offset myrtle instead of having the only major white character be a bully and antagonist, and that they thought tehir mostly white audience coudln’t enjoy a series without a white character, which as someone who was in the target demo at the time, I call bullshit on. As I said I hated him then, I hate him now and his involvement is the worst aspect of this episode.

So after Lilo fawns over him for a bit we find out this chonk of wood’s purpose in the episode: to set up the plot. There’s a massive Skate Competition coming to town with the prize being a really cool skateboard. This plot point itself.. I don’t mind. Jake is a skater, it’s part of his character and one of the things he loves doing in what minsicule spare time he has. And while it was a common trope at the time having a character skateboard really dosen’t harm most works. We’ve gotten great characters like Jake, Jackie Lynn Thomas, Branwen and Ronnie Anne Santiago out of it, and it feels like natural parts of the character, and frankly An Extremley Goofy Movie wouldn’t be NEARLY as awesome without having skateboarding bizzarley attached to the plot via the college x-games. Granted somtimes you get Rocket Power out of the deal but that’s the price you pay for the good stuff. I only regret it’s involved because Keoni has to be there and I had to pause multiple times to get through his scene. He’s just a sampler platter of terrible decisions made in 2000′s cartoons and he irritates me more than this guy.

And anyone whose read my Loud House reviews can tell you that is a high bar to clear.

So naturally Lilo wants to enter the Hawiann X-Games to get the board for Keoni. Though I will give the writers credit for having Stitch voice their thoughts and the audiences thoughts by having him take Keoni’s picture and throw it in the garbage. Where he belongs.

Lilo’s not great at it as they practice.. and said practice naturally ends up waking up a new experiment, 316.. who i’m just going to go ahead and call Morpholomew. Stitch eventually catches him though like many of the experiments he’s not actively malevelolent and is easy enough to get home.

Jumba gets to his schitck of breaking down what the experiment of the week does: In this case Morpholomew is a shapeshifter though he has a VERY intresting twist on those powers: while he can naturally morph himself into anything he’s seen or has a picture of, he can do the same to anyone he touches. It dosen’t effect their voices, but otherwise it’s a perfect recreation.

So Lilo instead of finding him a home right away.. decides to wait until after the compettition because we need him for the plot.

So at the Skateboard Competittion Lilo tries to enter, but finds she’s too young.. but since she has a picture of Keoni, which is a nice way to use her photo hobby from the movie for plot reasons and thus dosen’t feel like an ass pull. Why Keoni’s not in town to skate is as his dad left because it’d be too crowded.. even though the event is at the resort he owns.

So while Lilo commits identtity theft, our guest star appears. He’s cool, he’s hot like a frozen son, he’s young and fast he’s the chosen one, people i’m not braggin, i’ts the American Dragon. Jake is here for two reasons: the first is that Grandpa Long got reports of magical creatures out in the open, so naturally they need to look into that. It’s a clever way to get him, along with Grandpa, Fu, Trixie and Spud, over to Hawaii. The Dragon Council would defintely be suspcious hearing about this, and my guess to why they hadn’t sent another dragon over is they simply dont’ have one on the islands. As for why the Huntsclan didn’t get involved in any way, it’s simply too public for them. With the magical community in new york, they don’t have to worry about exposure because neither side wants it, so neither side can out the other. Here with a bunch of creatures out in the open it runs the risk of the Hunstclan being dragged into the light.. and given the populace dosne’t care about the “magical creatures” alongside them, it would make them look like the monsters they are.

Spud and Trixie tagging along also makes sense besides “they needed them for the plot”: While they’d obviously want to come to Hawaii, the skate competition is likely Jake’s cover for why he’s there, as well as one for why it’s just him and grandpa going with a couple of his friends so they don’t have to deal with manuvering around jake’s dad. That sad them never TELLING jake’s Dad is it’s own can of worms as it feels cruel, made things harder for jake and there was no real reason not to. At worst he’d want Jake to stop for his own saftey but given ther’es an active threat in the huntsclan for the first season and a half, NOT helping people would be the right thing and I feel he’s a sensible enough man to understand eventually.

And it’s stuff like this that already makes this crossover really work for me: they don’t really have to strain to get Jake over there or tell the audience heavily, the blanks fill in themslves. Or I am but that’s because it’s my job and I love doin it.

So everyone goes off to their corners; Jake to do a few practice runs, Foo Dog to bet on his friend because of course, Trixie and Spud to go to the beach (even though Spud’s terrified of sharks so I question why Trixie needs him for this), and in a delightfully adorable subplot, finds a lady to woo: local fruit stand vendoer and crankly old lady Mrs. Hasagawa.

I am here for this subplot: While Grandpa not focusing on the mission is weird for him that’s the entire point.. and their just really cute together. He’s smitten with her entirely because he sees her chewing out one of the people running the contest for making her sign too small. And he performs one hell of a romantic gesture by, while everyone’s back is turned, using his dragon fire to make an add for her on the skate ramp itself, and they have a lovely montage of their time together.. which also weirdly includes grandpa using his dragon fire on stage inf ront of everyone which makes no sense for his charcter but is so cute and does feature david I really don’t care. The writers of Lilo and Stitch probably weren’t deeply familiar with the show and likely just wanted a fun gag. Could be wrong there but it’s cute. He continues to act grossly out of character by trying to avoid going home at the end.. but again I find it simply because he’s in love, they have genuine chemstiry and I like to think they stayed in touch and he retired out there at some point once Jake was old enough to handle things himself. This may not be a ship I expected to support going in but I will die for it going out.

So back to the main plot, Lilo uses Keoni’s body to imitate him which... she’s only loosely called out on and realizes is bad by the end only because she gets stuck in another body. And that’s not even getting into the fact she BREAKS UP WITH KEONI’S GIRLFRIEND. Yes really.. she just does that to get her out of the way. She comes around and realizes she was wrong and tries to fix it which would be fine.. if hte episode didn’t try to cop it out by revealing “Oh she’s not his girlfriend, she’s just someone who keeps telling people that”. It just feels lazy and dumb and a way to keep Lilo’s crush on Keoni for reasons I DO. NOT. GET. But the identity theft is just brushed aside by everyone: Keoni never finds out, and Jake just brushes it off. The real issue is more her trying to bribe keoni into likng her which while something kids need to learn is not the only thing she did wrong here. It feels like they didn’t think all the implications out here and it hampers the episode

Speaking of which as Gantu captures Jake, he sees him transform into dragon mode and assumes he’s the experiment, Jake’s charactization is pretty shallow. And why yes it DOES feel weird writing sentences about a character with the same name thank you for asking. I wasn’t expecting a deep character piece or anything: This is a guest spot, the writers here are not the same normal ones for American Dragon. That’s fine. The problem.. is that they clearly did not get Jake. Grandpa being partly out of character is half the joke, Trixie actually gets a really nice moment towards the end, and Spud.. is eh. But out of them Jake just feels like a basic character description: He likes hip hop, he likes skateboards, he calls himself Am Drag despite that sounding like a good name for a drag act but a terrible name to shorten your title, he fights.. that’s it.

While jake is all of that in the main series, he’s also a kind young man who while sometimes irresponsible does the right thing when the chips are down. He’s someone weighed down by a responsiblity he didn’t ask for, often makes his life more difficult and often finds himself in trouble because his mother and grandfather won’t bother to tell his dad he’s a dragon. Yes that part still bothers me, and I don’t see why we couldn’t just have a superhero show where both parents know. But regardless this just dosen’t feel like Jake , like they just watched the intro and that was it. Jake feels more like a plot device in his own crossover.

That being said there is some good stuff: The minute Jake realizes some Sci Fi stuff is going on instead of hte normal magic stuff he tells him “The am drag’s show isn’t about sci fi” a nice meta bit and then breaks out. Meanwhile Lilo takes on his form.. and ends up stuck after badly botching her run again, as Gantu finds the real shapeshifter.

We get the best stretch of the episode from here though: Lilo awkardly tries to play jake and like jake we get a nice meta nod to how diffrent their show is as she’s worried about his belief in magical creatures.. and is startled out of her charade when Foo Dog talks, a really nice bit especially since it’s tame compared to the weirdness he deals with. Spud and Trixie have questions... only for Jake to show up and his agressive behavior leads to the best bit of the episode: Jake Vs Stitch. The catlyst is understandable: jake has no idea why Lilo’s taken his identity and Sttich is just protecting his best friend from harm. The animation is fluid, the fight is fun and quick and uses both’s powers stellarl. Whle “two heroes get into a misunderstanding and then fight” is a well worn cliche at this point, it’s moments like this that show why: you get to see two heroes who in this case never have interacted before or sense, duke it out, why each is special and it’s fun to watch.

Lilo breaks it up, and admits to the whole thing.. including the whole give Keani the board stuff. While Jake and Spud, being awkard with girls and a loveable moron don’t see the problem with that Trixie gets a moment to shine. As far as I can remember she really didn’t get much on the show proper so it was a nice suprise to see her mentor lilo her, telling her trying to give someone gifts to love you is not okay, she should just be herself all that good stuff. It’s a nice character stuff and tha’ts the kind of character interaction this episode needed more of.

With the misunderstandings washed away our heroes team up and storm gantu’s ship leading to another great sequence as Stitch rides on Jake’s back while the two keep him busy and Lilo gets turned back, Trixie complimenting her dress “Thanks I have 10 just like it at home”. It’s such a sweet and genuine moment” They head back out and gantu semeingly grabs morpholmew from where they hide.. only to find out when he gets back it’s spud, our adorable little blob monster transforming Gantu into a bunny and our heroes leaving. How does Gantu get out of being a bunny?

But it’s a nice enough gag. So we end the episode. We get another nice gag as grandpa had himself and his lady transformed to try and avoid going home, and Jake is fine with having lost out on the board what matters is he made a friend. Sadly we did not get a followup in ADJL., but spud does name our experiment, Morpholomew.

We end on Morph getting his home: a costume shop where he gets paid in fried chicken, he was shown to enjoy it throughtout the episode and changes people into things. It’s a nice little button to the episode and one of the funnest parts of the show was figuring out where the experiment would end up at the end.

Final Thoughts:

This episode is a really mixed bag. There is some good character interactions, two tremendous fight scens and Trixie gets a chance to shine for once if only for a scene or two, and the clashing genres end up making for some great jokes> The shows do go well together as while Lilo and Stitch is more laid back both have slice of life elements. And hasgawa X Grandpa is just oto cute for words.

The episode is held back by Jake and Lilo’s lackluster characterizatons: Jake is simply the theme song as a character, which in theory is awesome because that theme song slaps but in practice is pretty lame, and Lilo is selfish and irresponsible even for her in a way that dosen’t feel at all convincing. It drags down what’s otherwise a fun crossover and Morpholomew is truly a unique and wonderful experiment. Still if you like either show it’s worth a watch even if you have to suffer through Keoni for it. It’s worth it.. I just wish it was better and hopefully the next 3 will keep the good parts but take out the bad. Granted this was produced last so I could be wrong, but here’s hoping. Oh this episode also featured Miranda Cosgrove as the girl who claims to be Keoni’s girlfriend. This is also Keoni’s last episode meaning I do NOT have to worry about accidently running into him. Thank fucking christ.

Next Time On American Dragon Jake Long: Jake’s dad drags him and his friends on a camping trip and Jake ends up encountering the Jersey Devil. Now all they need is a sexy lady devil cake to lure it out... what it worked for the Cake Boss. And yes that happened, Allison Pregler did an episode on that episode. Check it out.

Next Time On Lilo and Stitch Crossovers: It’s the family, the family, proud familllyyy as the Prouds take a vacation at Peakly and Jumbas bed but not breakfast and we get some kind of squirrel demon for our experiment of the week. We also get Wizard Kelly appearing...

See you at the next rainbow.

#lilo and stitch #american dragon jake long #Lilo Pelekai #Stitch #experment 626 #jake long #luong lao shi #fu dog #trixie carter #arthur p spudinkski #gantu #crossovers #reviews #disney channel #morpholomew

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jiminthestreets-bonesinthesheets · 4 years ago

Text

I Loved Him... Once - CH 1

Title: I Loved Him... Once

Author: jiminthestreets-bonesinthesheets

Fandom: Criminal Minds

Pairing: Heid (Aaron Hotchner x Spencer Reid)

Rating: This ones General but eventually as the series goes it will be Explicit

Tags: canon typical violence and gore, eventual smut as the series goes, angst, fluff, pining., its gunna be a slow burn guys.

Summary: A series following the team as they solve crimes and take down the bad guys.

In Part one of this series, we follow the team as they take down a serial killer that has taken a piece of one of their own. And through it all, Spencer and Hotch come to a few conclusions and realizations of their own.

AO3 Link

Masterlist

*** My works are not to be posted on any sites without my permission! But comments and reblogs are love! <3 Please and thanks!!

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

Chapter 1

Spencer:

“What we have done for ourselves alone, dies with us. What we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.” - Albert Pike

~~~~~~~~~~~

“Fourteen days, fourteen days, fourteen glorious days!”

Spencer barely looked up from the book he was reading, sat at his desk, leaning back in his desk chair as Derek Morgan sashayed across the bullpen and perched himself on the corner smiling down at him.

He opted to ignore the over the top, ray of sunshine, mood Derek was in, and flipped the page of his book. Derek was not giving in, he was not going to be ignored when he was in such a good mood, so he swiftly swooped his hand and stole Spencer's book, eliciting a whine of protest as he sat forward and reached for it. Though he didn't make any more effort than that, he knew very well there was no way he would be able to get the book back from Derek through force.

“Come on, Morgan, give it back.”

Derek laughed, his eyes shining with mirth as he kept playing keep away with Spencer, “You really want it back that bad?”

“Yes, actually, it was just starting to get good!” He made another jolt forward to reach for the book but it was in vain. Spencer’s brain might be fast, but Derek Morgan's reflexes were always faster.

“Really, kid, you're reading…” He turned the book over and eyed the title with a raised brow, “‘The Art of War’. You planning on taking someone down, Reid?” Spencer just eyed him as he closed the book and tucked it under his crossed arms, knowing full well that the genius would remember not only the page number he had been on before Derek closed the book, but the exact word he had read last. “Now, like I said before, we have fourteen, I repeat, fourteen glorious days of vacation starting right now. And you're telling me that your only plans are to sit here at your desk, at work, and continue reading ‘The Art of War’ instead of going out and doing something, anything, other than that?”

“It never hurts to educate yourself, Morgan, and yes, that's exactly what I'm telling you,” he replied, a little short, then tried once more to swipe unsuccessfully for his book, “now give me back my book.”

“Good god, man, live a little, you're killing me.” Derek stood and moved the book even further out of Spencer's reach, so he just huffed and sat back in his chair again. “You don't have any plans? No dates? No trips to exotic lands to meet fine exotic ladies?”

“When have you ever known me to ever have plans? Or dates for that matter. It's not like girls are exactly lining up to date the lanky, boy genius.”

“Oh you're much more than that, pretty boy, you know that.” Morgan perched himself on the side of his desk again.

“Not to mention the fact that seeing this in a bathing suit on a beach full of, more than likely, gorgeous people, is not something that is on anyone's bucket list, I'm positive of that. I'm so white I'd probably end up blinding half the beach with my legs alone.”

Derek was laughing, near tears at this point, “Oh, come on kid, it can't be that bad.”

“Oh, it is,” Spencer was slightly laughing at this point too, “I went to a pool party once in university and I was asked to put my shirt back on because the light was reflecting off my skin and ‘hurting people's eyes’... Derek, it was ten at night. My skin was reflecting the pool lights so severely it was hurting people.”

Derek barked out a laugh so hard he nearly fell off the table and Spencer couldn't help but join him. “So you just need a little bit of sun, cancel out some of the white. Why not come with me to Barbados? Little sand, little sun, and a whole lotta’ fun.” He shot a quick wink at Spencer who just scoffed and looked away. “Give me two days with you on the beach and I guarantee I could get you a couple shades darker, at least.”

“Oh, yes,” he nodded, smirking, “as well as skin cancer.”

“I promise I won't let you get skin cancer, but that being said, once we get you all sunkissed and confident, I can't promise I'll be able to keep all those fine ladies off of you.”

“You're not making this sound any better. Skin cancer, STD’s, and multitudes of random women hanging off of me, no thank you.”

“Well, if you don't want to be swarmed by the fine exotic women,” he paused, smirking down at a waiting Spencer, “I'm sure I can help you land some handsome exotic men, then. I'm not here to judge. More women for me.”

Spencer reached to the side and grabbed the small pile of papers that were sitting there, and swiftly smacked Derek on the arm with them, “Get off my desk.”

“That doesn't sound like a denial,” he ducked as he was swatted at again, “come with me and I promise you'll have a good time.”

“Go!”

Derek chuckled once more, before ducking under his own desk to grab his bag, then turned back to toss the book back to Spencer who barely caught it, “My flight doesn't leave till tomorrow night, think about it!”

“I don't need to, I'm not going!”

“Think about it!”

“What's the point anyways!?” He called as Derek was almost out of ear shot, but he continued anyways, “When has vacation ever worked out for us? I'd buy a ticket and pay for a room, and realistically we'll probably end up right back here in two days, four tops!”

Derek was gone by this point, not having heard most of what he had said, more than likely already knowing that this was probably their reality, but not wanting to have to accept it. Though his complaints didn't fall on deaf ears.

“Oh, now you've gone and jinxed it. Just know that if our vacation gets cancelled due to a case, I am definitely coming after you first, Reid.”

He gazed up at Emily over the edge of his book, having indeed remembered the exact word he had left off on when it was stolen from him, and gave her a playful smirk. “I am only stating statistics. If you factor in every vacation we have had since we started here at the BAU, the odds that we will have a full, uninterrupted ‘fourteen glorious days’ as Morgan put it, are less than ten percent. Eight point five-six-three-two percent to be exact.”

“God I hate you sometimes,” though she laughed as she said it, “so you really don't have any plans?”

“I never said I didn't have any plans,” he sighed and closed his book on his desk, resigned to not getting any reading done until everyone was gone, “just because I don't have plans involving a hot beach or women, doesn't mean I don't have plans.”

“Oh!” She perked up and moved closer, intrigued. “So what kinds of fun are you up to then?”

“Oh, loads!” He shifted in his chair, moving to lean towards her with his elbows on his desk. “I'm signed up for a lecture series that starts tomorrow, but the one I'm most excited for is a lecture called ‘Synthetic Metals: A Novel Role For Organic Polymers’ presented by Dr. Alan G. MacDiarmid. It's a Nobel lecture all about possible engineering applications for, and the inner workings of, organic and conductive polymers. It sounds completely fascinating! I was also thinking of taking a trip to Colonial Williamsburg. I mean, how amazing would it be to walk the same streets as Thomas Jefferson, or eat in the same place as George Washington! I was also thinking of visiting the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. They have over twenty- two thousand works on display that are largely focused on modern and contemporary art, especially with a focus on European art after the nineteen hundreds. They are also having a workshop there next week focusing on-”

“Woah, woah, take a breath,” she laughed a bit, then asked with a hint of concern, “aren't you doing anything that doesn't involve… learning? Like, no info intake, no lecture series, no workshops, just relaxing? Letting your brain just take a break?”

Spencer pouted his bottom lip in thought then looked back up to Emily, “No? Why would I want to waste two weeks doing nothing when I could spend them increasing my knowledge?”

“Wouldn't you want to sit back and…” She stared confusedly at an equally confused Spencer, then just shook her head with another laugh, “Nevermind, look who I’m talking to. Of course you would think that spending two weeks learning would be an ideal vacation. To each their own I guess, right.”

He just nodded, picking his book up again as she moved away from his desk.

“Well, have fun with your jam packed knowledge filled two weeks, see you in fourteen days.”

“Or in two to four days. Don't forget the eight point five-six-three-two percent chance that I will see you before-”

“Blah, blah, blah!” She covered her ears as she walked away from him, “Can't hear you, already on vacation!”

“Very mature,” though he was smiling, “have fun with your mother.”

She threw a quick wave at him then disappeared. When she was finally gone, he sat back in his chair with a content sigh. Now that Emily was gone, it was just himself, Rossi, and Hotch who were left in the office, and he knew there was a very low chance that either of them would interrupt him to inquire about his vacation plans. He was finally able to finish his book in peace before catching the last train home.

~~~~~~~~~~~

“Knock, knock.”

Aaron looked up from where he had been bent over the front of his desk, the pile of papers he had been sorting through covering every inch of it, and towards the door. “David, come in.”

The man did, eyeing the mess, but merely stood in the middle of the room and tucked his hands into the pockets of his very expensive suit. “Always one of the last to leave, huh?”

“Has everyone gone?” Aaron asked without looking up this time.

“Everyone except the usual suspect.”

“Reid.” Aaron sighed. ‘Not last to leave,’ he thought. Spencer always seemed to still be there, even in the late late hours of the night. After a case, before vacation, even sometimes during vacation. Aaron always felt bad for the man, worried that he was lonely, though nowadays he could relate.

“I overheard him talking with Emily and Derek before they left. His most exciting plans seem to have something to do with a Nobel lecture series,” Rossi moved closer, taking up the chair in front of Aaron’s desk, “that kid needs to learn how to slow down and relax, I'm worried he might burn out someday if he doesn't. He should go out, have some fun from time to time.”

“Well I'm not much better,” Aaron turned, leaning against his desk with his arms crossed, now facing David, “my plans for the next two weeks pretty much consist of staying home, catching up on more paperwork, and if I can swing it with Haley, taking Jack for a few days. If I play my cards right, the park will be the most exciting adventure of my vacation. I'm not exactly going out to paint the town red either.”

“Yeah, you two are wild,” he drawled with a smirk, “you know, maybe a date would do the kid well. Loosen him up a bit.”

Aaron eyed him warily with a tilt of his head, seeing right through his attempted ruse, “What exactly are you suggesting?”

“Perhaps, while you both have the time off, you and Spencer could plan something together.” Aaron closed his eyes with a sigh and shifted, opened his mouth to say something in protest, but David beat him to it, hands up to stop him. “I'm just saying, you're the only two people on the team that aren't out of town for the next two weeks. I’ll be in Italy visiting family, JJ is taking her family camping, Prentis is visiting her mom, Garcia is, quote, ‘on a shopping tour of all the best malls in the northern hemisphere’, and Morgan is hitting the beach in Barbados. That leaves you and Reid. So all I'm saying is that maybe you can stop fantasizing about the kid and actually do something about your infatuation.”

Aaron just gaped at his friend, shocked, speechless for the first time in as long as he can remember. “I… how…” Was the only thing he was able to manage to stutter out.

David just smiled up at him mischievously and stated, “I'm a profiler, Aaron, and a damn good one. I've seen the way you look at Spencer, the way you stick close to him, and it's very obvious you care about him. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out, yet ironically the only one to not have figured it out yet is the only actual certified genius.”

Aaron still didn't know what to say. He had never told anyone about how he felt about Spencer. It was hardly appropriate for him to attempt to pursue the man considering he was his superior, not to mention older than him. Something that had plagued him since the very day he met the cute, quirky doctor on his first day with the BAU.

“I can tell you're over-thinking, Aaron.” Rossi speaking brought him out of his small internal panic and he looked down at him. “What is it? That you're his boss? Strauss?”

He shifted, crossing his arms impossibly closer to his chest. No point in denying it now. “A bit of both, I guess. Not to mention the age difference between us.”

“First off, I wouldn't worry about Strauss. If anything were to happen between you and Spencer, as long as you navigate the correct channels and immediately disclose your relationship, sign the proper papers, then there is nothing Strauss can do against either of you or your jobs. As for you being his superior, I wouldn't even give that a second thought. No one on our team would think anything of it, no one would ever even entertain the thought that you took advantage, and neither would Spencer.” David then leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he spoke. “And the age gap, who cares. Love, is love, is love. Take it while you've got it and don't ever let it go. Age is but a number and love knows no bounds.”

“Very profound of you, David.” He couldn't help but let a small chuckle slip.

“What can I say, I am the embodiment of love.”

“Right, and is that why you've been married three times and are on wife number four?”

They both laughed, hearty and full, and for the first time since they started talking, Aaron found himself feeling a lot lighter. It was nice to finally have someone who knew his secret feelings for the young genius, and be able to actually have someone to talk to and confide in about it.

Rossi's phone ringing broke the moment though, and he reached into his pocket, just looking at the screen and not answering. “Well, my ride to the airport is here. I will see you in two weeks, do not call me.”

Aaron let loose one last light chuckle, moving along with Dave to see him out. With a smile and a pat on the back as they reached the door he said, “I'll try not to, enjoy your time in Italy.”

“Oh I intend to,” he opened the door, then turned back at the last minute, “but do me a favor will ya. Don't call me, but do call Spencer.”

Aaron just smiled, gave Dave a small push out the door, and answered, “Good bye, David.”

Once he was out the door and down the stairs, Aaron closed the door and took a step to the side to watch him cross the bullpen. He gave a quick goodbye to Spencer as he passed, and then he was gone. Then his eyes wandered over to the last person left besides himself, still sitting alone at his desk, leaned back reading his book. He sighed, watching Spencer for a moment longer before thinking to himself, maybe David was right. Why should he worry about all that other nonsense? Besides, he would never know if Spencer felt the same unless he asked.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Aaron finally finished organizing the paperwork explosion on his desk, filing away what was finished and adding the rest to his bag, then was finally able to head out.

It had been a good two hours since Rossi had left his office, leaving Aaron with all kinds of things to think about, and the man that those thoughts were all about was still sitting in the same spot he had been in since vacation officially began. Though now, Spencer was already halfway through his second book.

As he passed him, the younger man not even so much as lifting his eyes from his book, he said a quiet, “Have a good vacation, Reid.”

“You too, Hotch,” he answered back, and Aaron just about kept walking, but stopped himself at the last minute and turned back.

They were currently alone, no one else around but him and Spencer, so now was just as good a time as any. “Reid…”

At the questioning tone to his name, Spencer looked up at Hotch who was now standing right in front of him, “Yeah?”

“I… I was…'' Spencer was still looking up at him with concerned eyes, a furrowed brow, and if Aaron was being honest, a super cute frown. Now, what Aaron wanted to say was ‘Spencer, I know that you and I are the only two who will be remaining in town for the duration of our vacation time, and I was wondering perhaps, if you would like to take advantage of the fact and allow me to take you out to dinner tomorrow night?’ But what he actually managed to come out with instead, was a sad and defeated, “I… I just wanted to wish you well. I hope you have a good fourteen days, and I heard you will be attending a lecture series, I hope it's informative.”

“Right…” Hotch couldn't be certain, but he was sure that Spencer almost looked… disappointed? “An-anything else?”

“... No, I don't believe so.” And before he could stumble his way through any more embarrassing sentences he quickly said, “Good night,” and left before Spencer could even return the sentiment. Leaving him staring, still confused and a little down, after a fast walking Aaron, not having the courage to even look back as he left.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Derek woke for the first time well rested and relaxed. No case to solve, no unsub on his mind, no high speed chase down unfamiliar roads, and no showdown with a psychopath in some dark abandoned warehouse. It was just him, the sun, the sand, and two weeks of relaxing and sleeping late, eating more than he probably should and shoving as much fun into two weeks as was completely possible.

Now, those were Derek's original plans. The plans he made before he left Quantico, Virginia for the beaches in Barbados. For the all night parties, the beautiful ladies, and the all inclusive never ending free drinks. And yet, here he found himself, within arm's reach of all those things, and not doing a single one of them.

Instead, Derek walked down the beach and found an empty lounge chair tucked under a very colourful umbrella. A sprite and lime with ice in hand, he stood and looked out at the calming ebb and flow of the ocean, letting the soft crashing of the waves take over and clear his mind completely. It was nice, the best he'd felt in a long, long time.

A volleyball skid to a halt at his feet, covering his toes in warm sand, caught his attention and he turned to face the small group of women off to his side. He kicked the ball back over to them, each one of them very obviously interested in getting to know Derek, even if it were just for one night. But to his own surprise, he found himself flashing a smile and a wave in decline of their invitation to come play, and instead took up his seat in the covered lounge chair.

He took a second to breathe in the fresh air, took a sip of his drink, then reached down to the small bag he had tucked under the chair, rifling through until he found what he was looking for. He settled back in the chair, not able to help the smile that spread across his face as he read the title of the book in his hands, 'The Art of War', and settled back to read it with a quietly muttered, "Damn you, Spencer Reid."

~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: So there is chapter 1, chapter 2 to come soon! I’m super excited about this guys XD

And if anyone wants to be tagged for future updates please let me know <3

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catswithemobangs · 4 years ago

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I started thinking about headcannon voices and I thought I’d put down the characters that I have set headcannon voices for!

Bluestar: Charlize Theron (got the idea from @cathedralwc YouTube vid!)

Millie: Pearl from SU

Cinderpelt: Twilight Sparkle from MLP

Leafpool: Rebecca Sugar

Bramblestar: Markiplier

Ashfur: JD from Heathers

Brightheart: Sadie from SU

Cloudtail: Lars from SU

Jayfeather: Dr. House from House

Lionblaze: Leo Decaprio when he was young, no set voice for older Lionblaze

Tigerstar: the og Sweeney Todd lol

Brokenstar: Set It Off

Tawnypelt: Ellen Degeneres (we don’t support her actions against staff tho)

Hawkfrost: Brendon Urie (no support for him either)

Ravenpaw: Clement from Pokémon

Talon of Swooping Eagle: Johnny Depp as Sweeney Todd

Stoneteller: Alan Rickman

Leafstar: Princess Celestia from MLP

Scourge: that one high-pitched dog from Up

Spottedleaf: Rose Quartz from SU

Ivypool: Barrett Wilbert Weed

Russetfur: Peridot from SU

Mapleshade: Amber Gray

Crag Where Eagles Nest: DanTDM (I’m sorry that’s cursed I came up with that in middle school)

Shadowstar: Garnet from SU

Half Moon: Helena Bonham Carter

Rock: David Attenborough

Alderheart: Steven from SU

#Warriors #warrior cats voice hcs #voice hcs

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motiveandthemeans · 5 years ago

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When Dan met Abbey

He’d met her at a random lunch meeting on the Affordable Care Act he’d been forced to attend. She was the arguably the youngest (his junior by at least five years), and the most beautiful woman in the room. Probably the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Abigail Holland, RN, MSN, CEN. Blonde hair, blue eyes, long legs, the strangest accent he’d ever heard. Not quite southern, not quite west coast Cali girl. She’d been brought in as an expert on primary care deficiencies and for some reason the Senator Feinstein insisted Dan go in her stead, despite health policy being 100% not his area of expertise or interest.

Everyone noticed her pillowy lips but Dan had noticed her smile, the way she tried not to appear intimidated, surrounded by politicians and political players alike. She was clearly out of her comfort zone as well. He didn’t miss the once over McDonough had given her, how it disgusted him a married man could be so blatantly attracted to someone else.

They’d been inadvertently sent to the background of the meeting, clearly not the key note speakers at this particular luncheon.

“Is it always like this?” She asked quietly.

He chuckled. “Yeah, pretty much. I’m usually sitting against the wall though so this is new for me too.”

She smiled, grateful for companionship. “I’m Abbey. You’re Dan Jones. You work for Senator Feinstein, don’t you?”

He gave her a quizzical look. “How did you know? Is it that obvious?”

She laughed and he felt his heart skip a beat. “No, no. I just...I saw you in her office a couple of months ago. Just in passing.”

“Really?” He couldn’t think of a scenario how he could not have noticed her. “Do you know the Senator?”

“Her granddaughter and I were college roommates. We spent many spring breaks at their house in San Fransisco.” Abbey said. “She and my father were on a couple of committees together when she was in the house.”

“You’re Dad is Dr. Benjamin Holland?” He sputtered. “The director of the NIH?”

“Yep.” She said awkwardly.

“I didn’t know he had a daughter.”

She shrugged. “Four boys ahead of me so, it’s not like it’s all that important. Also I’m a nurse, not an MD, so it’s a stain upon the family name to be sure.”

Dan smirked. “Because you’re the ones actually bedside and know what’s going on with the patient?”

She looked at him, shocked.

“My mom was a nurse.” He clarified.

Her powder blue eyes lit up when grinned. “She must be awful proud of you, making it big in D.C.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m making it big, but yes. She’s your typical Jewish mother. Anytime the Senator makes a big move, she’ll say ‘My son did so and so...’”

“Don’t be too humble now, D.C. is cut throat. People might think you have morals.” Abbey said with faux disgust on her face.

“Not a fan of politicians, are you?”

“I have a healthy enough tolerance.” She countered with a wry smirk.

Dan couldn’t help the smile Abigail brought to his face and was going to tell her so when he was interrupted by McDonough calling an end to the luncheon. He lost her through the crowd, heart sinking at the idea he’d have to find some asinine way of contacting her when he felt something slip into his hands. It was a napkin and it had Abbey’s number on it.

She grinned over her shoulder as she walked away, he smiled back.

He’d agonized over how long to wait to call her, it’d been years since he’d dated, well out of the convoluted dating scene of D.C. it was early, almost six thirty in the evening when he finally dialed her number.

“I was beginning to wonder if you’d call me.” She teased. “Hello, Dan.”

“I’d give you some bullshit excuse about being busy with work and not worrying about seeming too interested, but I get the impression lying to you wouldn’t go down so well.” He grinned. “Hey, Abby”

“Am I that easy to read?” She asked with a laugh. “What are you up to?”

“Working, to be honest.” He said dryly. “You?”

“About to leave for work, actually. They’re short tonight and it’s my turn to pull call.” She answered.

“Sorry, do you need to-“

“No, I have a while till I need to clock in. I live around the corner from GW.” She said. “Is it getting late for you?”

“No, technically I’m supposed to be off work and enjoying the weekend but well...”

“Duty calls?” She mused.

“Yeah.” He chuckled breathlessly. “Something like that. Do you work tomorrow night?”

“No. I’m off till Tuesday after tonight, thank the gods.”

“Let’s have a drink.” Dan wondered if he sounded as casual as he hoped he did.

“Alright, when and where?”

“Old Ebbits, eight o’ clock?”

“Sure.” He could hear the smile in her voice and he wonder if she could hear his too.

—

She wore black slacks that accentuated her slim waist and a black lace top he could make a tell tale sight of her bra through, such as was the style for women these days. Christ she made his mouth water.

“Dan.” She greeted, her make up was light, natural. Her blonde hair fell in waves to her back. He wore his nicest jeans and button down. Naturally, people gave them strange looks. He knew she was out of his league, but she didn’t seem to care.

“Hendricks and Tonic, please.” She said to the bartender when asked what she wanted.

“Hungry?” Dan asked.

“Nah, I already ate.” She shrugged. “You?”

“No, I actually remembered to eat today.”

Abby grinned. “It’s a rare day I get to eat lunch, too. Much to my mother’s dismay. All five children grown and out of the house and she can’t seem to kick the habit of ensuring we’re all fed.”

“My mom still sends me care packages like I’m a college freshman.” He joked.

“That’s sweet.” Abby took a sip of her drink. “What kind of nurse is she?”

“Labor and delivery.” He answered.

Abby made a face. “That was my least favorite in school. I passed out in my first delivery. And naturally the OBGYN was buddies with my father so, that was a fun congressional Christmas party.”

Dan winced. “I can only imagine.”

“You never told me what it is you do for the senator.” She said.

“I’m basically a liaison for her intelligence committee.”

“And that’s about all you can tell me, isn’t it?” She ventured.

“You do know your D.C., don’t you?”

She smiled. “So what do you do for fun? Since work is clearly a subject we must steer clear of.”

“It doesn’t bother you I can’t talk about it?” He asked.

“Why should it? Anybody who asks you to jeopardize your position is no friend, Dan. I’d hoped you know that by now.” Abby replied. “Also, we are more than our job designations. For instance, I love to bake, but I’m terrible at making cakes.”

Dan laughed. “Really? Is that a thing?”

“Hey, don’t mock till you’ve had my key lime pie. It’ll make you forget cake is even a thing.”

She grinned.

Dan sipped his whiskey. “I run five miles every morning.”

“I swim.” She replied. “I love the ocean. I was born in Hawaii and lived there till I was 12 while my Dad was in the navy.”

“Never been.”

“You should go sometime.” She joked.

“Yeah, it’s on the bucket list.” Dan smirked. “I grew up outside of Pittsburgh.”

“Steeler Nation?” She rose her brows.

“Of course.”

“My father is a die hard Steelers fan.” She said.

They carried on back and forth, laughing and lightly teasing. Regalling childhood stories of growing up with four older brothers and a single mom in Pittsburgh. Abbey wasn’t what he initially expected, she’d had a job all through public high school, bought her own car, worked during the summers in college. Her father paid for her BSN from Chapel Hill, but she went on for her masters of nursing directly after graduating. She was 27 and head charge nurse of one the most prestigious hospitals in the nation. Dan made a perfect score on his SAT and took a full ride to Elizabethtown, earning his masters from John’s Hopkins and his post doc from Harvard. He grew up Jewish, but only attended temple on high holy days and definitely did not keep kosher. His father had died in a car accident when he was three and his mom remarried a nice guy when he was in college. David owned a landscaping company and treated his mom like she was gold so Dan couldn’t complain.

“Walk me home?” She asked. “But just so you know I won’t be inviting you up for coffee. I do have my standards, Dr. Jones.”

“I expect no less, Miss Holland.”

She lived four blocks from the bar in a nice neighborhood, clearly her salary out ranged his, not that it bothered him. They laughed and joked more, especially when he made a pop culture reference she didn’t understand.

“Hey! You’ve got like five years on me!” Abbey joked defensively.

“Almost seven, actually.” He looked down into her smiling eyes when she came to a halt in front of her townhome. “Nice place.”

“My brother, Anders, owns it, he rents it to me cheap.” She shrugged. “Well, cheap for D.C. anyway. And he lets me keep Frog.”

Dan gave her an incredulous expression. “Frog?”

She grinned. “My cat.”

“You have a cat named Frog?”

“Are you gonna kiss me or what-“

Before she could finish the sentence, he swooped in and kissed her. Gently at first, then as Abby leaned into it Dan wound his arms around her deepened the kiss. She tasted like tonic and cherries and he thought he’d died and gone to heaven at how soft her lips actually were. They were both a bit breathless when they broke apart.

“What are you doing Sunday?” She asked.

“Working, though I could be persuaded otherwise.” He chided.

“Come over for dinner.” She said. “I’ll make you something, however there will not be sex for you in lieu of dessert.”

“How can a man refuse such an offer.” He laughed. “Should I bring anything?”

“Frog is kind of mean. A cat toy would not go amiss.”

“Ever think it’s because you named him Frog?” Dan joked, brushing her cheek with his thumb.

Abby rolled her eyes benignly. “Everyone says that!”

Dan kisses her gently once more. “Goodnight, Abby.”

“Good night, Dan.” She smiled, unlocking her door and disappearing from sight.

As he hailed a cab, Dan couldn’t get rid of the grin stuck on his face.

#thereport #adamdriver #danjones #adamdriverthirsty #dan x reader #dan jones x reader #adam driver x reader

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xhxhxhx · 6 years ago

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I removed some books today.

I think of myself as a minimalist, but that doesn’t happen to be true. I have acquired more books than I will ever read. They still sit, stacked and unreachable, in piles by the walls, two dozen books tall and sometimes two books deep.

I don’t think I know where they all came from. I think more came from online than from any physical store. I bought them from Abebooks, the sales search platform that Amazon owns now. Abebooks tell you the names of the sellers, but they seem unconnected to any real place.

From Better World Books. From Thrift Books and Bookbarn. From Silver Arch Books, Motor City Books, Free State Books, Sierra Nevada Books, Yankee Clipper Books, and the Atlanta Book Company. From Green Earth Books and Housing Works Books. From Goldstone Books and Powell’s Books and Kennys Bookshop and Art Galleries. From Satellite Books and the Orchard Bookshop. From Blue Cloud Books and Hippo Books and Wonder Book.

They’re from all over, from places you’ve never been, places you’ll never be. They’re names on a box. But then there are the books from more intimate places, intimately connected

From library’s old bookstore, which sold paperbacks for fifty cents, hardcovers for a dollar. From the basement of the old independent bookstore down on Front Street, where they sold remaindered and overstocked books marked down with red-orange tape. From the thrift store across the street, which charged too much.

From the Chapters at the mall in your hometown, or the Chapters and Indigo in the places you’ve been to, from the shelves of marked-down items where you looked for bargains, for the books you knew you should read, and all the books you never would. Places where you could drink sweet cream and coffee and pretend to read.

From the Borders in Syracuse, where you idled while the family went to the fair, where they always said they were going to build the largest mall in America, but never did. There was another Borders in South Florida, where they were stripping fixtures from the walls because the books had not sold, and so the Borders had to be. They still have bookstores. I’m not sure what they sell now. Postcards, I think.

The books still in my room had postcards from people I will never know, dedications to people I will never see, business cards from people who have moved on to other work. But their spines are unbroken, their pages unmarked. I guess I wanted them that way. I bought them like that.

I sometimes worried they would break through the floor. I would wake up to the collapse of everything I have ever owned as I plummeted a few short feet to my death. I guess it would probably take longer than that. I would have to wait for them to crush me. That mass of books would fall on me, blotting out the light. Crushed beneath nearly everything I have ever owned.

That’s what happened to the clerk Toshiko Sasaki in John Hershey’s Hiroshima, who was seated at her desk on August 6, 1945, in front of a couple of bookcases from the factor library:

Everything fell, and Miss Sasaki lost consciousness. The ceiling dropped suddenly and the wooden floor above collapsed in splinters and the people up there came down and the roof above them gave way; but principally and first of all, the bookcases right behind her swooped forward and the contents threw her down, with her left leg horribly twisted and breaking underneath her. There, in the tin factory, in the first moment of the atomic age, a human being was crushed by books.

Miss Sasaki made out alright, although not so well as to not ask the question “If your God is so good and kind, how can he let people suffer like this?” But then, I have more books than she did.

I removed some books today. I still have more I want to remove. I just don’t have the boxes for them. I took the boxes I did have in the back of my car to a mass-market thrift store, where they will end up on the shelves by the leather jackets.

Perhaps they will end on some other shelf, like a postcard from somewhere unknown, in someone else’s memory. But I don’t think they will. I don’t think they’ll sell. There aren’t enough people here who spend money pretending to read.

I don’t know what will happen to them. I suppose they will pulp them. Or perhaps they will end in a landfill, crushed beneath their own weight, suffocating beneath the earth we have made for them until life reclaims them.

I wrote out a partial list of the books I threw out. I don’t know what it says about me. There’s a double significance here: These are books I bought, for some amount of money, but these are also books I am throwing away, because I asked the question the woman told me to ask, which was whether they sparked joy, and I answered no.

Those books in the photo are the books that have not yet been thrown away. Here, below the fold, are the books that have:

Judith Fitzgerald’s Sarah McLachlan: Building a Mystery

Mordecai Richler’s Oh Canada! Oh Quebec!

Jonathan Coe’s The Rotter’s Club

Misha Glenny’s McMafia

Joinville and Villehardouin’s Chronicles of the Crusades

Michael Ignatieff’s The Lesser Evil

Russell Dalton’s Citizen Politics in Western Democracies: Public Opinion and Political Parties in the United States, Great Britain, West Germany, and France

Richard Finn’s Winners in Peace: MacArthur, Yoshida, and Postwar Japan

Ramachandra Guha’s India After Gandhi

Fox Butterfield’s China: Alive in the Bitter Sea

Anthony Sampson’s The Changing Anatomy of Britain

Masanori Hashimoto’s The Japanese Labor Market in a Comparative Perspective with the United States

Donald Keene’s Dawn to the West: Japanese Literature of the Modern Era: Poetry, Drama, Criticism

Andrei Shleifer’s Without a Map: Political Tactics and Economic Reform in Russia

Peter Newman’s The Secret Mulroney Tapes

Nicholas Negroponte’s Being Digital

Lesley Downer’s The Brothers: The Hidden World of Japan’s Richest Family

Harold Vogel’s Entertainment Industry Economics

Stephen Goldsmith and William D. Eggers’s Governing by Network: The New Shape of the Public Sector

Donald Harman Akenson, Saint Saul: A Skeleton Key to the Historical Jesus

Philip Ziegler’s King Edward VIII

David Wessel’s In FED We Trust

Robert Dallek’s Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1961--1973

David Halberstam’s The Reckoning

David Bell’s The First Total War: Napoleon’s Europe and the Birth of Warfare as We Know It

Kevin Phillips’s The Cousins’ Wars

Yirmiyahu Yovel, Spinoza and Other Heretics: The Adventures of Immanence

Michael Oren’s Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East

Lawrence McDonald’s A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers

Richard Posner’s The Crisis of Capitalist Democracy

William Chester Jordan’s Europe in the High Middle Ages

William Cohan’s House of Cards: A Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess on Wall Street

Bryan Burrough and John Helyar’s Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco

Linda Lear’s Beatrix Potter: A Life in Nature

Jane Mayer’s The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals

Allan Brandt’s The Cigarette Century: The Rise, Fall, and Deadly Persistence of the Product That Defined America

Garry Wills’s Head and Heart: American Christianities

Sarah Bradford’s Elizabeth: A Biography of Britain’s Queen

Andrew Gordon’s The Evolution of Labor Relations in Japan: Heavy Industry, 1853--1955

John Ardagh’s France in the New Century: Portrait of a Changing Society

Bob Woodward’s The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House

John Julius Norwich’s Byzantium: The Early Centuries

Taylor Branch’s Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years, 1963--65

Michael Lewis’s Liar’s Poker

Tim Blanning’s The Pursuit of Glory: Europe, 1648--1815

Robert Fagles’s translation of Virgil’s The Aeneid

Karl Popper’s The Poverty of Historicism

P. D. Smith’s Doomsday Men: The Real Dr. Strangelove and the Dream of the Superweapon

Richard Rhodes’s Arsenals of Folly: The Making of the Nuclear Arms Race

Margaret Thatcher’s Downing Street Years

Alistair Horne’s Harold Macmillan, 1957--1986

Taylor Branch’s The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President

Ian Kershaw’s Hitler, 1936--1945: Nemesis

David Grossman’s To the End of the Land

Sean Wilentz’s The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln

Philipp Blom’s The Vertigo Years: Europe, 1900--1914

Jacob M. Schlesinger’s Shadow Shoguns: The Rise and Fall of Japan’s Postwar Political Machine

Peter Jenkins’s Mrs. Thatcher’s Revolution: The Ending of the Socialist Era

Martin Lawrence’s Iron Man: The Defiant Reign of Jean Chrétien

Marin Lawrence’s Chrétien: The Will to Win

Alastair Campbell’s The Blair Years

Tony Blair’s A Journey

David Kennedy’s Don’t Shoot: One Man, a Street Fellowship, and the End of Violence in Inner-City America

Joshua Ferris’s Then We Came to the End

Kate McCafferty’s Testimony of an Irish Slave Girl

Martin Wolf’s Why Globalization Works

Charles Fishman’s The Wal-Mart Effect: How the World’s Most Powerful Company Really Works -- and How It’s Transforming the American Economy

William Easterly’s The White Man's Burden: Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good

Karel van Wolferen’s The Enigma of Japanese Power: People and Politics in a Stateless Nation

Jeffrey Sachs’s The End of Poverty: How We Can Make It Happen in Our Lifetime

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adamwatchesmovies · 6 years ago

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Shazam! (2019)

While I think we can all agree it's been cool to see R-Rated comic book adaptations and to contemplate the losses our heroes have experienced after Universe-shaking events, we shouldn't forget what initially made the superhero genre endure. Shazam! is pure wish fulfillment and escapism; a real pleaser.

After running away from yet another foster home to search for his mother, 14-year-old Billy Batson (Asher Angel) is placed in a group home with a family he doesn’t expect to stay with for long. That’s until he's transported to the Rock of Eternity by the wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou). Given the ability to transform into a super-powered adult (played by Zachary Levi) but with no idea what to do next, Billy turns to his foster brother, Freddy (Jack Dylan Grazer) for help.

This is a jovial picture in which a kid is so excited when he realizes he's become bulletproof, he asks to be shot for fun. It’s hysterical as Billy and Freddy take advantage of the wizard’s gift to buy beer, make some fast money, get revenge on bullies, become YouTube sensations and go to town. They're irresponsible but it’s not like there’s a supervillain right around the corner that needs to be dealt with, right?

The movie's at it’s best when it focusses on Billy and Freddy. Zachary Levi, Jack Dylan Grazer and Asher Angel feel like real-life buddies. You’re enjoying seeing them try to come up with a good superhero name (it’s harder than it looks since they couldn't pick "Captain Marvel"). It’s almost a shame magic-obsessed Dr. Sivanna (Mark Strong) comes swooping in with the power of the enemies of man - the Seven Deadly sings - ready to force Billy to give up his magic. The character is well-established with a surprising amount of backstory but he isn’t nearly as interesting as the heroic characters. To compensate, there are points where writers Henry Gayden and Darren Lemke turn this into a bit of a superhero spoof. It’s mostly effective but still makes you wish Strong was given more. Hopefully, that's what the sequel will deliver.

The movie picks up again when Billy imbues his foster siblings - Mary, Darla, Freddy, Eugene, and Pedro - with the same abilities he’s been given to defeat Sivanna. It’s a conclusion that lasts a bit too long but it opens a world of possibilities. You’re excited to see what's next even before the end credit-stinger. Shazam! has a number of villains which would make for good sequels.

Keep your eyes peeled during the beginning of the film in the pawn shop. Keen eyes will spot the Annabelle Doll - a nod to director David F. Sandberg’s previous film, Annabelle: Creation. Since it also made an appearance in Aquaman (courtesy of Conjuring director James Wan), that now makes TWO cameos… hmm...

Shazam! could’ve used a trim and its main antagonist lacks a couple of good moments to make himself really memorable. Everything else works. It’s a solid first chapter and an adventure that’s sure to please. (3D Theatrical version on the big screen, May 2, 2019)

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marauders70s · 7 years ago

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which audiobooks do you prefer?? the stephen fry ones or the jim dale ones?? personally ill always love stephen frys voices and intensity better. jim dales voices just seem more cartoony to me. hp audiobooks are my fave method of consumption honestly

Hello! Thank you for your question!

I HARD STAN JIM DALE.

And here’s why (long, personal version):

I really love Stephen Fry. I just listened to his Audible audiobook “Victorian Secrets;” I loved his shows touring the country; I even loved him on Bones as a guest star. He’s such a strong LGBTQ ally and supporter, and great speaker and advocate for so many important things. He makes me feel like even though he’s cynical and annoyed generally, his love of learning, interest, being snarky, and being rad and cool friends with awesome people (both here and ones gone before, like Douglas Adams), makes me wish we were personal friends. One day, I really hope to meet him, and the news of his prostate cancer makes my stomach clench with unfairness and sadness.

However, my family purchased the Harry Potter audiobooks on CD. They came in big chunky boxes and had fun little segments saying things like “This ends disc four, please insert disc five to continue the story.” My dad had a flexible work schedule and drove me and my sisters to school every single day. During our morning commutes, we used to listen to The Beatles, and Peter, Paul, and Mary. But then came Harry Potter when I was about 12. (I actually saw “Chamber of Secrets” the film before ever seeing the first film or reading any of the books because my dad wanted to see what all the hype was about and dragged me to see it in theaters! The basilisk fight scene was so scary I had to close my eyes and felt just like Harry).

Now back in the day, CD players just held one CD at a time, and sometimes if that CD got stuck, you had to use a pen to nudge/unjam the felt lip of the CD player to let the CD get out. And the day we started Order of the Phoenix on CD it plays little intro music and Jim Dale says happily: “Chapter 1: Dudley....Demented” with a very long dramatic pause. Well the CD got stuck or skipped or sucked up a crumb or something and I swear to fucking god we listed to “Chapter 1: Dudley....Demented” about 48 times in a row in fifteen minutes while my dad is trying to unjam it and I’m in the backseat trying to lean up/climb up and he’s like “get back get back sit down” and I’m like “let me do it! You drive! Let me do it!” And then of course once I get in the front seat I can’t do anything and my two younger sisters (the youngest about six) were shrieking with laughter and have started joining in on the unending chorus of “CHAPTER 1: DUDLEY.....DEMENTED” with the same sort of zeal and insanity of “none pizza left beef.” We finally pull up in the carpool line of school and my dad can put it in park and unwiggle the CD and unjam it and reinsert it and we can finally start listening but at that point we’re all so giggly and ridiculous there’s absolutely no point in trying to start a new book.

The cool thing about getting into Harry Potter at 12 was that Order of the Phoenix was the first ever “release” of the book I had to wait for. Of course I had swallowed it up immediately after my parents had finished with our SINGLE hardback copy. And my Dad turned to me to warn me “Now...someone dies at the end of this book.” And I was so upset that he was spoiling for me, but he was like “I know you love Sirius.” (Guys I did love/was in love/am still in love/love Sirius Black the best). And I just got so angry at my dad for spoiling it, yet my voice still squeaked: “does he die?” And my dad is backing the car up in the driveway and he’s doing the thing where his hand is on the passenger seat and he’s twisting around and there was this heart stopping stomach drop where he stops looking out the back window and the car is still rolling and he looks directly at me. And to me, that’s the swooping, horrible feeling I still associate with Sirius dying. And even though when I read it and I cried, I never felt as much dread and as much sadness and as much grief as that moment when my dad looked straight at me and said nothing at all.

Jim Dale is also an incredibly talented amazing guy. I think that listening to Stephen Fry read Harry Potter is a bit like having your uncle or grandfather reading to you. Very a la Princess Bride. But when Jim Dale reads it, at least to me, when I was 12 and all my life since then, it felt like the characters were real. That his voices were real. When Hermione squeals “Oh HARRY!” but says it “har-eeeeee” in her anxiety; if Mrs. Weasley is scowling furiously and vocalizing her annoyance with huffs and gasps; how gentle Remus Lupin sounds, how raspy Sirius Black does; how very old, and very kind, and very wise Albus Dumbledore comes across. And how through his own inflections, Minerva McGonagall became more Scottish than you could have believed possible, and her voice the most instantly recognizable in the whole series. Jim Dale even commits to Peeves, and uses the inflections of David Bradley and Alan Rickman from the first film to help weave into Filch and Snape’s characters for continuity.

Jim Dale became the first person to win a Grammy for an audiobook, prompting a new category to be added in 2000 (post his nomination into a non-existent category for Sorcerer’s Stone). He created 134 distinct voices specifically for OOTP. He carefully recorded each individual one into a sound file so before he spoke that person’s lines he could re-listen to the voice he had made for them if he hadn’t spoken for them more than once or twice a book (or series - like Dedalus Diggle). His level of dedication and perfectionism is something I GREATLY admire and greatly adore.

Although I do like hearing Harry Potter as a bedtime story read to me by a man I wish I could befriend, in my heart of hearts, I want Harry Potter to be as magical, as intangible, as silly as “Chapter 1: Dudley...Demented” for my whole life long. And maybe it’s because I have deep connections of listening to it with my dad, who has since passed on in a way that made me understand that feeling when he looked back at me in the car. The sick stomach Harry felt when Sirius was gone. Or maybe it’s because my mom listens to Jim Dale’s Harry Potter every. single. night on her old fashioned iPod before bed, carefully copied from the original CDs, skips and all, even though we own all of it on Audible. She says she’s missing several 5 minute segments throughout the series, but she fills them in from memory anyways. My mom knows more about the canon of Harry Potter than anyone I know, and can recite most of the first book by heart, because its her favorite.

Obviously I run a Harry Potter blog because Harry Potter is important to me for many sentimental and personal reasons. And the audiobooks are part of that. Sometimes when I’m down or blue, I want Fred & George to tease me in their own voices, to tell me: “We thought we heard your dulcet tones!” “Yeah, it’s not good to bottle that up!” I still really admire and like Stephen Fry as a person, but in my heart, my books and my experience will always be narrated by the wonderful Jim Dale, a man whose voice I adore so much that I watched Pushing Daisies, and searched by narrator on Audible to fall in love all over again with Peter Pan. Harry is a personal experience for all of us, and this is mine. Thanks for listening.

tl;dr - Jim Dale. He does a really great opening line in Chapter 1 of OOTP.

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