#honorary book edit for today :')

[yrsonpurpose]

It’s been one long, long year of learning Henry inside and out, learning himself, learning how much he still had to learn.

[olympic-paris]

THIS DAY IN GAY HISTORY

based on: The White Crane Institute's 'Gay Wisdom', Gay Birthdays, Gay For Today, Famous GLBT, glbt-Gay Encylopedia, Today in Gay History, Wikipedia, and more …

September 18

53 AD – Trajan, Roman emperor, born (d.117 AD); The first non-Italian Roman emperor. His accomplishments were both martial and civic, including construction of the aqueducts, the restoration of the Appian Way and the building of the massive Forum of Trajan. According to Spartianus, he was a proud possessor of a paedogogium, a harem of boys he took along with him on campaign, apparently for his and his officers' pleasure.

Dio Cassius, sometimes known as Cassius Dio, reports that Trajan drank heavily and loved boys. "I know, of course, that he was devoted to boys and to wine, but if he had ever committed or endured any base or wicked deed as the result of this, he would have incurred censure; as it was, however, he drank all the wine he wanted, yet remained sober, and in his relation with boys he harmed no one."

This sensibility was one that influenced even his governing, leading him to favor the king of Edessa out of appreciation for his handsome son: "On this occasion, however, Abgarus, induced partly by the persuasions of his son Arbandes, who was handsome and in the pride of youth and therefore in favor with Trajan, and partly by his fear of the latter's presence, he met him on the road, made his apologies and obtained pardon, for he had a powerful intercessor in the boy."

His sexuality was never in question, only the stories used to illustrate his preferences. The monumental erection, the Column of Trajan, was Rome's highly appropriate tribute to this emperor, considered to have been one of the "good emperors."

1883 – Gerald Tyrwhitt-Wilson, 14th Baron Berners born (d.1950), also known as Gerald Tyrwhitt, a British composer of classical music, novelist, painter, & aesthete. Berners was notorious for his "eccentricity," e.g. dyeing pigeons at his house in Faringdon in vibrant colors and at one point having a giraffe as a pet and tea companion.

Berners' musical works included Trois morceaux, Fantasie espagnole (1919), Fugue in C minor (1924), and several ballets, including The Triumph of Neptune (1926) (based on a story by Sacheverell Sitwell) and Luna Park (1930). In later years he composed several songs and film scores, notably for the 1946 film of Nicholas Nickleby.

His friends included the composers Constant Lambert and William Walton and he worked with Frederick Ashton; Walton dedicated Belshazzar's Feast to Berners.

He bequeathed his estate to his companion Robert ('Boy') Heber Percy, who lived at Faringdon until his own death in 1987.

Berners obtained some notoriety for his roman-à-clef The Girls of Radcliff Hall, (punning on the name of the famous lesbian writer), in which he depicts himself and his circle of friends, such as Cecil Beaton and Oliver Messel, as members of a girls school. This frivolous satire, which was published and distributed privately, had a modish success in the 1930s. The original edition is rare; rumor has it that Beaton was responsible for gathering most of the already scarce copies of the book and destroying them. However, the book was reprinted in 2000.

1905 – Greta Garbo (d.1990) was regarded as one of the greatest and most inscrutable movie stars ever produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the Hollywood studio system. Garbo received a 1955 Honorary Oscar "for her unforgettable screen performances" and was ranked as the fifth greatest female star of all time by the American Film Institute. Garbo's biographer Barry Paris notes that she was "technically bisexual, predominantly lesbian, and increasingly asexual as the years went by."

Garbo began life in poverty as Greta Lovisa Gustafsson, the daughter of a janitor in Stockholm, Sweden. When her father died in 1919 of tuberculosis, Greta had to quit school at the age of fourteen and go to work. Her good looks helped her get jobs in a couple of advertising films before she was discovered in 1922 by unabashedly homosexual Swedish filmmaker Mauritz Stiller. He cast her as the female lead in Gosta Berling's Saga (1924) and got her a role in a German film, The Joyless Street (1925). Stiller took control of the actress's career, changing her last name to Garbo. When he went to the United States to work for Louis Mayer at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Stiller took his protégée along. Mauritz Stiller did not succeed in Hollywood, but Greta Garbo was destined to become a star. She made fourteen silent films, among them The Torment (1926) and Flesh and the Devil (1927), where she tended to play the beautiful femme fatale, luring men into passion. Garbo made the rocky transition from silent films to talkies flawlessly. Her husky, accented voice fitted intriguingly with her ethereal beauty, enabling her to create more complex characters than she ever had in silents.

In Anna Christie (1930), Anna Karenina (1935), Camille (1936), and others, she played a tragic heroine, passionate, but doomed. In the delightful 1939 comedy Ninotchka, she mocks this gloomy sensuality with charming self-deprecation, causing MGM to tout the film with the single headline, "Garbo Laughs!" In 1941, prompted perhaps by the failure of Two-Faced Woman, her comedy follow-up to Ninotchka, Garbo took a break from filmmaking. Although she reportedly considered several projects for a comeback, the title roles in Hamlet and The Portrait of Dorian Gray, among them, her break turned into permanent retirement.

It has been suggested that Garbo struggled greatly with her sexuality, only becoming involved with other women in affairs that she could control. Some also suggest that Garbo remained single in the United States because of an unrequited love for her drama school sweetheart, the Swedish actress Mimi Pollak. Garbo's personal letters recently released to the public indicate that she remained in love with Pollak for the rest of her life. When Pollak announced she was pregnant, Garbo wrote: "We cannot help our nature, as God has created it. But I have always thought you and I belonged together."

Famously connected to Mercedes de Acosta, one of the more Sapphic companions of the day, de Acosta wrote of their affair in her book Here Lies the Heart. Upon her death in 1990, Garbo left her entire, substantial estate to her niece, Gray Reisfeld, and nothing to Claire, the elderly female companion with whom she lived for many years.

Rose (C), son "Luis" (L) and Sam Steward

1909 – Francis Cyril Rose (d.1979), also Sir Francis, 4th Baronet of the Montreal Roses, was an English painter vigorously championed by Gertrude Stein. His wife Frederica, Lady Rose (1910-2002) became a well known travel writer, notably on Corsica, under the name of Dorothy Carrington.

Rose was born at Moor Park (Hertfordshire), England. He took up residence as an expatriate in Paris between 1929 and 1936, where he trained under Francis Picabia and José Maria Sert. Francis Rose got his beginning as a set painter for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. He occasionally collaborated in his work with another English painter, and his sometime lover, Christopher Wood. In the 1930s he traveled with his future wife, Dorothy Carrington, in France, Italy, and North Africa.

In France, Rose became an intimate acquaintance of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, the former helping to launch his painting career by commissioning several of his works (most notably a portrait of herself) for her own notable art collection. Her memorable utterance, "Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose" dates from 1913, however, long before her acquaintance with the artist. Rose would go on to have exhibits in Paris, London, and New York. He also worked as an illustrator for a cookbook by Toklas, The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook.

The English artist was the last, and probably the most infamous, though least known, of Gertrude Stein's many protégés. Several of Francis Rose's drunken escapades are wonderfully recollected in Samuel M. Steward's Dear Sammy. One story, peculiarly or not-so-peculiarly omitted from the artist's autobiography, Saving Life. (1961), is about Luis, his valet de chambre. In 1952 Alice B. Toklas wrote Sam Steward to tell him that Francis Rose "was in a good deal of trouble with Luis his 'valet de chambre" boyfriend."A casual encounter between the artist and a Spanish gypsy boy in front of a bistro in Paris had resulted in not only an evening pickup, but in the young man being hired for the entire summer, as both valet and bedmate. As Sam Steward tells it, "It was only after Luis got into some trouble with the gendarmérie over a stolen bicycle that Francis — after he called to help him out of his difficulty — examined his papers and discovered that the boy was his illegitimate son. This episode titillated both France and England for some time. It certainly titillated Alice B. 'Francis,' she wrote, 'is saying that he is going to recognize Luis so he will inherit his title!! As yet this tale has not been confided to any English friends — who would put him straight about bastards inheriting titles…' "

Rose married the writer Dorothy Carrington in 1942. Alice Toklas for one was greatly enthusiastic about Rose's marriage to "Frederica" (Carrington), noting that the marriage had done Rose "a world of good." But Rose was a noted homosexual and the marriage eventually foundered. They divorced in 1966. Rose spent his final years in penury, helped along by certain friends, among them Cecil Beaton. Some of his paintings today form part of the Yale University Art Gallery (Stein-Toklas collection) and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

In 1961 Rose published a memoir, Saving Life.

He made a brief appearance as "Lord Chaos" in Kenneth Anger's film Lucifer Rising (1972).

1928 – Jack Robinson (d.1997) was an American photographer famous for 1960s celebrity and fashion photography and documenting the New Orleans of the 1950s. Jack Uther Robinson, Jr. was born in Meridian, Mississippi. He grew up in Clarksdale, Mississippi, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, an area famous for racial injustice, the Blues, and social and religious conservatism. His father was a mechanic and auto parts dealer.

Robinson attended Clarksdale High School, from which he graduated in 1945. He then enrolled at Tulane University in New Orleans, where he completed five semesters before dropping out in 1948. In 1951, he began his professional career in photography, working as a graphic artist for an advertising agency in New Orleans. He took numerous photographs of the city and his friends, many of them artists and photographers. His early work captured the charm of the French Quarter and documented New Orleans night life. It also preserved valuable glimpses into the New Orleans gay subculture of the 1950s.

Among Robinson's most fascinating images are photographs of the Mardi Gras festivities in the years between 1952 and 1955. Some of these document the celebrations in the gay area of Bourbon Street, especially around Dixie's Bar of Music, then one of the most prominent gay bars in the country.

In addition to architectural photographs, society portraits, and Mardi Gras pictures, Robinson also took a number of photographs of young gay couples, romantically posed. These photographs are striking because of their rarity, and touching because of their sincerity. At a time when there were few precedents for posing gay couples, Robinson conveyed homoerotic attraction in a number of ways, including having the young men stare deeply into each other's eyes and touch tentatively. The very awkwardness of these embraces conveys a profound sense of commitment.

During the New Orleans period, Robinson fell in love with a young man named Gabriel, whom he photographed incessantly, often in the nude. The Gabriel photographs are especially distinguished by their play of light and shadow and by their sensuality.

In 1954, Robinson and Gabriel travelled to Mexico. There the artist captured Mexican scenes in large and medium format photographs.

In 1955 Robinson and Gabriel moved to New York where he quickly became noted for his fashion photography. He was sought out by many of the top designers and others in the fashion industry. By 1959, one of his photographs graced the cover of Life magazine, signalling his arrival as a top commercial photographer.

Vogue's legendary editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland recognised Robinson's particular gift for portraiture. In addition to commissioning fashion photography from him, she also commissioned portraits of celebrities, especially the rising stars of music, film, television, and literature. Robinson's work appeared in Vogue over 500 times between 1965 and 1972.

By 1970, Robinson had established himself as one of the leading commercial photographers in the world. He travelled to Europe to record the fashion innovations of the great design houses. His work was regularly featured in the most prestigious fashion and celebrity magazines of the day.

But even as Robinson succeeded professionally, his personal life became increasingly problematic. His relationship with Gabriel failed. He suffered from the stigma associated with homosexuality. He increasingly turned to drugs and alcohol for solace. Frequently in the company of Andy Warhol and his entourage, he became part of New York's frenetic club scene.

Such fast living soon affected Robinson's work. His daybooks and list of commissions reflect the deterioration of his life. As jobs dwindled, he was forced to move from his fashionable studio at 11 East 10th Street. Finally, in December of 1972, he retreated to Memphis, where his parents and older brother lived.

Broken and addicted to alcohol, Robinson sought help from a long-time friend, who sponsored his membership in Alcoholics Anonymous and helped him recover his emotional health.

In Memphis, Robinson abandoned his career as a commercial photographer. He began painting and soon took a job as assistant to noted artist Dorothy Sturm, who designed stained glass windows for churches at Laukauff Studio, one of the largest stained glass studios in the country. Although he was undoubtedly lonely, and in the words of a friend 'full of anger and angst,' he seemed to enjoy his anonymity and seldom revealed that he had once been a leading photographer in New York City. In 1976, Robinson left Laukauff Studio to work at another glass studio, Rainbow Studio, where he was to remain for the rest of his career.

Robinson fell ill in November 1997 and was soon diagnosed with cancer. He died on December 15, 1997.

Robinson left his estate to his employer, Dan Oppenheimer, owner of Rainbow Studio. Oppenheimer was surprised to discover in Robinson's small and spartan apartment over 140,000 negatives. In 2002, Oppenheimer opened the Jack Robinson Gallery and Archive in Memphis. It is dedicated to preserving and promoting Robinson's legacy.

Although Robinson soon slipped into obscurity, his work has recently been rediscovered, thanks to the efforts of the Robinson Gallery and Archive and to several recent exhibitions in Memphis, London, and New Orleans.

1961 – Dag Hammarskjöld (b.1905), U.N. Secretary-General, dies in a plane crash while attempting to negotiate peace in the war-torn Katanga region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Despite holding a position of public prominence as Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1953 until his death in 1961, he managed to withhold even the most minor details of his personal life from the world. Even his posthumously published journal, Markings, shies away from any mention of his private life. Possibly asexual, probably homosexual, Hammarskjöld was unable to accept his sexuality and lived an unhappy, frustrated life of sexual abstinence, suffering slurs from political figures and the international media. But though he couldn't resolve his own internal conflicts, he was masterful at settling external conflicts as he worked to solve disputes in Palestine, Vietnam, Egypt, and the Congo, demonstrating one of the classic, same-sex archetypes of the mediator.

1978 – Openly gay Billy Eichner is an American comedian, actor, writer, and television personality. He is the star, executive producer and creator of Funny Or Die's Billy on the Street, a comedy game show that airs on Fuse TV. Eichner was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Game Show Host" in 2013. He is also known for playing Craig Middlebrooks on the sitcom Parks and Recreation.Eichner gained attention as the host and writer of Creation Nation: A Live Talk Show, a critically acclaimed stage show in New York. He also appeared on Conan as a special correspondent in original video shorts and as himself on Bravo's Watch What Happens: Live with Andy Cohen, Last Call with Carson Daly, The Wendy Williams Show, and Fashion Police with Joan Rivers, among others.

On August 5, 2013, it was revealed that Eichner would guest star in the sixth season of Parks and Recreation. Eichner's first episode aired on October 10, 2013. He stars as Donna's Eagleton counterpart, Craig Middlebrooks, who joins the Pawnee Parks and Recreation Department when Pawnee absorbs Eagleton. He became a series regular in episode four of the seventh season of the show.

Eichner starred in a Hulu original series titled Difficult People with Julie Klausner, and executive produced by Amy Poehler.

In July 2020, Eichner announced that he and Tom McNulty were developing a film biography of fellow Northwestern University alum Paul Lynde called Man in the Box, with Eichner portraying Lynde.In March 2021, Eichner announced that he is currently writing and starring in the film Bros, which tells the story of two gay men with commitment issues who decide to settle down with each other. Being produced by Universal Pictures, it is set to be the first adult-oriented LGBT movie ever produced by a mainstream film studio. In August of that same year, Amazon Studios announced that they had bought the rights to develop the film Ex-Husbands, starring Eichner and co-written by him and Paul Rudnick.

2011 – Died: Jamey Rodemeyer (March 21, 1997 - September 18, 2011) was an openly bisexual teenager, known for his activism against homophobia and his videos on YouTube to help victims of homophobic bullying. He committed suicide as a result of constant bullying.[

Jamey T. Rodemeyer lived with his parents and his sister in their home near Buffalo, New York. He was open about his sexuality, and faced severe bullying as a result of it. Rodemeyer's inspiration to help others came from Lady Gaga, whom he admired most. He often referred to her in his videos, and quoted her lyrics to provide guidance to others. He also made a video for the "It Gets Better" project, a website dedicated to preventing teen suicide.

Rodemeyer was found dead by his sister on the morning of September 18, 2011, in an apparent suicide by hanging. Before his death, he posted a final update on Twitter directed to Lady Gaga. The tweet read, "¡ladygaga bye mother monster, thank you for all you have done, paws up forever".

In an interview with Ann Curry on The Today Show Jamey's parents said that their son was still being bullied, even after his suicide. When his sister attended a school homecoming dance, Jamey's friends began chanting his name in support when a Lady Gaga song began playing. As a result, bullies at the dance began chanting that they were glad he was dead.

Lady Gaga later met with President Barack Obama to discuss what his administration would do to prevent bullying in schools. Also in response to his death, reigning Miss New York Kaitlin Monte founded an online petition to bring the issue of cyberbullying (known as "Jamey's Law") to New York legislators. Shortly after, State Senator Jeffrey Klein proposed new cyberbullying legislation. The two joined to launch the New York Cyberbully Census.

In October 2011 actor Zachary Quinto noted Rodemeyer's death as the genesis of his decision to come out publicly as gay, saying on his website "...but in light of Jamey's death - it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it - is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality". In response to Quinto's coming out (and in reaction to gay suicides caused by bullying), Dan Kloeffler of ABC News Now also came out.

2012 – Berkeley, California becomes what is thought to be the first city in the U.S. to officially proclaim a day recognizing bisexuals. The Berkeley City Council unanimously and without discussion declared Sept. 23 as Bisexual Pride and Bi Visibility Day.

[thenightling]

DO NOT BUY THIS EDITION OF FRANKENSTEIN! This is a sexist and ignorant dog whistle and as a fan of the actual Frankenstein novel, I am furious.

1. First there is the false implication that Percy Shelley co-wrote Frankenstein. He did not. In fact Mary Shelley revised the 1818 text in 1831. That's AFTER Percy's Death.

This sexism was brought to you by such "reliable" books as "The Man who wrote Frankenstein" which was written by a very sexist conspiracy theorist who once claimed that AIDS was spread through pills. That conspiracy theorist used dummy accounts to positively review his self-published books on Amazon (seriously, go check if you want) and his main reason for believing Mary Shelley didn't really write Frankenstein is his claim that she was "uneducated."

Percy wasn't a novelist. He was a poet. Mary Shelley actually wrote many novels after Frankenstein, it's just that none were as successful as Frankenstein. Just because she wrote her greatest novel while her husband was alive doesn't mean her husband secretly wrote it.

He also claimed a woman cannot have written a man's perspective so well and she wrote from the perspective of three men. Victor Frankenstein, The Creature, and Captain Walton.

By that same reasoning Stan Rice must have written Interview with The Vampire, not Anne. It's a sexist and classist equivalent of the classist conspiracy theories that Shakespeare couldn't have written Shakespeare because he was "Too poor and ill-educated" to have been that creative.

2. One big problem with novels like Frankenstein and Dracula being in the public domain is anyone can re-publish them any way they want, even with this sleezy and misleading presentation.

3. Frankenstein wasn't really a science fiction novel even though Google and this blurb claim it is. Frankenstein, the novel, never warned about the advancement of technology.

There's no hard science in the book. Victor wasn't studying biology. He was studying metaphysics and he never graduated.

(Metaphysics degrees aren't even currently recognized in the US. You can only get an honorary one from institutions like ULC).

Victor found the secret of life while reading the works of Agrippa and Paracelsus. A self-proclaimed sorcerer and alchemist.

The Creature is more like a Dungeons and Dragons Flesh Golem with a soul than what you see in most of the movies.

Its main morals and themes had nothing to do with "Playing God" or "the advancement of science." No. That overly exonerates Victor Frankenstein and those The Creature interacted with. Victor's main crime was rejecting his creation as soon as he came to life, which may have been a metaphor for what we today call Postpartum depression.

The themes were about parental responsibility, the futility of revenge, and the need to forgive.

If you have a shred of integrity or respect for women do NOT buy this edition of Frankenstein that falsely credits Percy Shelley and feels like it was being described by someone who only watched the 1931 movie. (The more accurate to the book film adaptation is the 2004 Hallmark mini-series version starring Luke Goss as The Creature.) If you want a good edition of Frankenstein, I strongly recommend the 1831 version republished with Bernie Wrightson's gorgeous illustrations accompanying it. That one is exceptional and respectful to Mary Shelley without falsely crediting Percy Shelley.

Here's the blurb that was attached to the awful edition:

"That’s right, the very first science fiction novel is also a work of transhumanism, though I’m not sure Mary Shelley would have used the term. After all, the monster wouldn’t even exist without technology. So even the earliest sci-fi novel was trying to warn us about the dangers technology poses to our humanity."

[letmetellyouaboutmyfeels]

Tag Game: Fandom Edition

I was tagged by both @mistmarauder and @princessfbi, presumably to expose me.

Current Hyperfixation: 911 (it's appalling how fast that came back) and my original blorbos

Previous Hyperfixation: Uh... probably Timeless? That show held me strong in its grip for two solid years but I don't think there was anything super strong before or - OH YEAH. REDDIE. HOW COULD I HAVE FORGOTTEN FALL OF 2019. A DIFFERENT TIME.

Top 5 Ships of All Time: Buddie (911), Phrack (Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries), Spirk (Star Trek), Garcy/Garcyatt (Timeless), and Kastle (The Punisher - look I'm still mad, okay? I'm always gonna be mad. the scars run deep!!!)

Top 5 Ships at the Moment: Buddie (911), Xedgin (DND:HAT), House/Wilson/Cuddy (House M.D.), Dom/Brian (DO NOT JUDGE ME. LET HE WHO IS WITHOUT SIN CAST THE FIRST STONE, BITCHES), and Jisbon from The Mentalist

Top 5 Fandoms of All Time: I'm terrible at being "in" fandoms so this is a mix of fandoms I was active in and fandoms whose fic I devoured the most - 911, The Man From UNCLE, Star Trek, Timeless, IT

(Honorary mention to Castle - since I really was SO into that show - but it hasn't stood the test of time with me the way other fandoms such as Star Trek have.)

Favorite Female Character of All Time: Phryne Fisher

Favorite Minor Character of All Time: Xenk Yendar (he is, sadly, only in the film for about 15 minutes)

A Rarepair that you love: As the official captain of both Garcyatt and Jamy, I have to go with them

An OT3+ that you love: LOOK AT ALL OF US LOVING THE MAN FROM UNCLE THROUPLE WE'RE SO SEXY FOR THIS

Favorite Movie: The Man from UNCLE (the people who joined me post-Timeless and 911 have NO idea the insanity that movie inspired in me. NONE WHATSOEVER. @captainofthefallen KNOWS!!! SHE WAS THERE, GANDALF!!!)

Favorite TV Series: 9-1-1 and Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries

Favorite Book: Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

First Site you Ever Read Fanfiction on: I don't even remember the name. Um. Uh. It was a LotR site.

Where You Find Most of your Fanfiction Today: Ao3

Favorite Social Media Site for Fandom: Tumblr

Tagging: @captainofthefallen @givemeunicorns @lisbonsteresa @devilsbrokerank

[theladyyavilee]

Tag Game: Fandom Edition

Tagged By: @mistmarauder my beloved <3333 thank you jess, this was sooo fun to fill out actually!!!

Current Hyperfixation: LOTR/The Hobbit/Sansukh - for like, the 37th time or so, it always comes back and also is kind of a christmas/new year's tradition at this point

Previous Hyperfixation: Love between Fairy and Devil (and other cdramas, honestly they still kinda have me in a chokehold and I'll probs return in a day or two) and BG3 (always always always, this one's gonna stick with me I think <3)

honorary mention to 9-1-1, the never-ending hyperfixation that sometimes quiets down a bit, but never vanishes - you'll get to watch me act like a sleeper agent being reactivated in the coming weeks once bts stuff starts to really get going 😌

Top 5 Ships of All Time: Buddie (9-1-1), Wangxian (The Untamed/MDZS), Eowyn/Faramir (LOTR), Spirk (Star Trek), Everlark (The Hunger Games)

honorary mention to Catradora (She-ra) and Viktuuri (Yuri on Ice) whom I very much love just for themselves, but whom I also wish I could send back in time so early teen me could have them as well <3

Top 5 Ships at the Moment: Wyllach (BG3), Legolas/Gimli (LOTR), Xiao Lanhua/Dongfang Qingcang (Love between Fairy and Devil), Varaday (The Magnificent Seven, thank you jess ://///), Jiang Xuening/Xie Wei/Zhang Zhe (Story of Kunning Palace)

Top 5 Fandoms of All Time: Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, 9-1-1, The Untamed/MDZS, Critical Role

Favorite Female Character of All Time: Eowyn of Rohan (Lord of the Rings)

Favorite Minor Character of All Time: Lan Jingyi (The Untamed/MDZS; I don't really know what exactly constitutes a minor character, but the loudest little Lan should count <3)

A Rarepair that you love: Wyllach my beloved (BG3; people are sleeping on them so bad it makes me want to tear my hair out!)

honorary mention to Jiang Xuening/Xie Wei/Zhang Zhe (Story of Kunning Palace) because I am a firm believer of OT3 solves the love triangle, especially if all three involved have insane chemistry <3 it's so sad this ship has like only 3 fics ._.

An OT3+ that you love: Hardison/Parker/Eliot (Leverage) and Elizabeth Burke/Peter Burke/Neal Caffrey (White Collar), because you literally could not make me choose between those two ships <3

Favorite Movie: Star Trek (2009), very closely followed by Three Wishes for Cinderella and The Martian <3

Favorite TV Series: 9-1-1 (nobody is surprised xD tho The Mentalist sure is a close second)

Favorite Book: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

First Site you Ever Read Fanfiction on: [redacted] because teeny tiny fansite in my first language that existed only for one single fandom and has long since vanished off the internet

Where You Find Most of your Fanfiction Today: Ao3 my love <333

Favorite Social Media Site for Fandom: Tumblr (don't think any other social media site is suited for fandom actually 😌)

Tagging: @like-the-rest-of-la, @oneawkwardcookie, @stagefoureddiediaz, @captain-hen, @kitkatpancakestack and any of my followers that want to do it, I genuinely really really love reading through people's summarized fandom histories like this 👀👀👀👀

[orlissa]

The perk of working in publishing? Free books because you are a buddy.

I went to a book fair today and came hom with a literal satchel of books: two of my translations came out, so I got my honorary copies of those (5 copies altogether), I bought one book, and got two as a gift, one from each of the publishing houses I’ve been working for. A massive collected edition of the War of the Realms (Thor-led crossover event from 2019) comic (they just pulled one out when I said I wanted to get that, and when I asked how much, they just waved me away), and Love & Gelato (I just noticed it on the shelf as we were talking, told them I love Florence, and one of the ladies in the booth just handed me a copy and told me to put it in my bag). I wanted to get The Love Hypothesis too (just came out in Hungarian at this publisher), just out of pure curiosity, but they were sold out. The ladies said they might get more copies tomorrow, but I don’t think I’m going out there again. I just said send me one with the honorary copies the next time something I translated for them comes out.

Oh, yeah, and I also got A lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting, but *gasp* I had to pay for that (no inside man at the publishing house)

[cypresstrees]

5, 13, 19 for the book meme

Thank you! I had fun with these!

5. What is your favorite book outside of your normal genre?

We Both Laughed in Pleasure: The Selected Diaries of Lou Sullivan 1961-1991 ed. Zach Ozma, Ellis Martin - Lou Sullivan was a gay trans man who was really active in FTM communities and peer support in the late 70s-80s and whose activism played a large part in getting medical policy that erased the existence of gay trans people and and prevented them from medically transitioning (the goal being to make people "heterosexual" via transition) overturned. He kept a diary all his life and it was a goal of his before he died of AIDS-related complications in 1991 to edit and publish them. He didn't manage it, but in 2019 Ozma and Martin released a selection of them in this book.

I don't read a lot of nonfiction or personal writing, but Sullivan had such a clear, distinct voice, and it was so interesting for me to read his diaries and see his understanding of himself develop, as well as what was important to him -- it's such a different experience than reading his biography would be, because you don't have nearly as much of the filter of the current era and its interests. You just get Lou Sullivan, and reading all his ups and downs, his sex life, his community work, and everything straight from his mouth, how he wanted to tell it as it was happening.

It was also deeply moving to read him struggle with and try to define his experience of gender. Some things are very different today, and some things are extremely similar, and there were some lines that absolutely punched me in how relatable they felt. Sullivan even complains about the "trapped in the wrong body narrative" -- in the 1980s! Some things never change! Anyway, I just finished this book a few days ago and it is really haunting me, but in a good way, and I don't remember what prompted me to pick it up but I'm really glad I did.

(Honorary mention to Shubeik Lubeik by Deena Mohamed, which I would have answered this question with if I'd been asked it up until about a week ago)

13. What very popular book do you dislike/refuse to read?

already answered!

19. Top 5 favorite books?

Oh, god, this is hard. Here's a list based on my mood right now, ask me again tomorrow for totally different selection. In no particular order:

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin (and rest of series)

Fire by Kristin Cashore

His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik (and rest of series)

book asks!

[theultimatefan]

Michael J. Fox, Vincent D’Onofrio, Henry Winkler Big Additions To FAN EXPO Philadelphia, June 2-4

FAN EXPO Philadelphia today announced several huge additions to its celebrity lineup across numerous fandoms, including icon Michael J Fox, his Back to the Future costar Tom Wilson, Vincent D’Onofrio (“Daredevil,” “Law & Order: Criminal Intent”), Henry Winkler (“Happy Days,” “Barry”), Peter Weller (Robocop, Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension), Katee Sackhoff (“The Mandalorian,” “Battlestar Galactica), Bonnie Wright (Harry Potter) and Emily Bett Rickards (“Arrow,” “The Flash”). They are part of a growing, standout roster appearing June 2-4 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Advanced Tickets for FAN EXPO Philadelphia are on sale through May 18 at www.fanexpophiladelphia.com, with discounts on individual day, 3-day and Ultimate Fan Packages available for adults, youths and families. VIP packages are also available now, with dozens of special benefits including priority entry, limited edition collectibles, exclusive items and much more.

The announcement of the eight new guests follows last month’s initial wave of Joseph Quinn (“Stranger Things”), Christina Ricci (“The Addams Family,” “Wednesday”), Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead, Spider-Man), Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings, Rudy) and Christopher Lloyd (Back to the Future, “Taxi”), already committed to the event. Additional celebrities, voice actors, creators, cosplayers exhibitors and programming for this major comics, sci-fi, horror, literary, anime and gaming convention will be announced closer to the event.

From the Back to the Future franchise to TV hits like “Family Ties” and “Spin City,” Michael J. Fox has thrilled and moved millions with his performances as well as his work on behalf of Parkinson’s disease research. He won his first significant role as the lovable conservative Alex P. Keaton on NBC’s enormously popular “Family Ties” (1982-89). The five-time Emmy winner (three for “Family Ties,” one for “Spin City” and one for a guest role on “Rescue Me”) recently received an honorary Oscar for his commitment to Parkinson’s research.

Tom Wilson is a character actor, writer and comedian with more than 100 film and TV credits. Wilson burst into the BTTF movies as the now iconic bully “Biff,” his grandson “Griff,” and even his own great grandfather, gunslinger Buford “Mad Dog” Tannen, for which he won the Saturn Award for best supporting actor. He’s also known for iconic roles in “Freaks and Geeks,” "Wing Commander,” April Fool’s Day, “Zach Stone is Gonna Be Famous” and “SpongeBob SquarePants.”

In addition to starring as “Wilson Fisk” opposite Charlie Cox in the Netflix series “Daredevil,” Vincent D’Onofrio has a resume of more than 100 roles, most popularly as the lead detective “Bobby Goren” in the long-running NBC drama “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.” His notable film credits include Full Metal Jacket, Dying Young, Men in Black, Mystic Pizza, Jurassic World and The Break Up.

Henry Winkler first captured the nation’s attention as the leather-jacket-wearing, motorcycle-riding “Arthur Fonzarelli,” a.k.a. the “Fonz” in the iconic series “Happy Days.” He has gone on to produce TV shows like “MacGyver,” direct several movies, act in plays and feature films, and write the popular Hank Zipzer children’s book series, with co-author Lin Oliver, about the adventures and misadventures of the ever resourceful, but struggling student named Hank.

Accomplished actor, director, voice over artist and occasional professor Peter Weller’s amazing career has taken him from the mean streets of old Detroit to the final frontier of space. He has appeared in more than 50 films and television series, notably in the title role in 1987’s RoboCop and its sequel RoboCop 2 and as the title character in the quirky 1984 sci-fi cult film The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. Katee Sackhoff is a favorite at FAN EXPO events for her portrayal of “Kara ‘Starbuck’ Thrace” on “Battlestar Galactica” as well as “Bo-Katan Kryze” on “The Mandalorian” and “Niko Breckenridge” on “Another Life” among more than 60 film and TV credits. Her extensive voice acting work includes “Robot Chicken” and “Star Wars: Rebels.”

Bonnie Wright first appeared as “Ginny Weasley” in a small part in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in 2001 and has gone on to play the character in a much larger role in the franchise for the next decade. She also portrayed young “Agatha Christie” in Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures and co-starred alongside David Warner and Tom Sizemore as “Phoebe” in the drama Before I Sleep.

Best known as “Felicity Smoak” in the long-running CW series “Arrow,” “The Flash” and “DC’s Legends of Tomorrow” and animated series “Vixen,” Emily Bett Rickards also gained notice for roles in the family drama Dakota’s Summer and hit romance film Brooklyn. She starred as the lead character “Alice” in last year’s comedy feature We Need to Talk.

Philadelphia is the eighth event on the 2023 FAN EXPO HQ calendar; the full schedule is available at fanexpohq.com/home/events/.

ABOUT FAN EXPO HQ FAN EXPO HQ is the largest comic con producer in the world. Collectively it hosts nearly 1 million fans annually at FAN EXPO New Orleans, FAN EXPO Portland, FAN EXPO Vancouver™, Toronto Comicon, FAN EXPO Cleveland, MEGACON Orlando, Calgary Comics & Entertainment Expo, FAN EXPO Philadelphia, FAN EXPO Dallas™, FAN EXPO Denver, FAN EXPO Boston™, FAN EXPO Chicago, FAN EXPO Canada™, Edmonton Comics & Entertainment Expo, Dallas FAN FESTIVAL, and FAN EXPO San Francisco. The latest schedule of events is available here, along with up-to-date ticket information. Discover. Celebrate. Belong.

[personalblogs-akhil]

ROLE OF AI IN FUTURE SPACE MISSIONS AND FUTURE OF HUMANS

In the coming era, we are going to witness the vision of machines with artificial intelligence controlling our world. We are already witnessing the beginnings of this all around us. Having previously worked in the Machine Learning field, I have a special interest in the field. And today's blog I am intending to write about an discussion (https://soundcloud.com/bridging-the-gaps/the-end-of-astronauts-robotic-space-exploration-and-our-future-on-earth-beyond-with-martin-rees?si=f48c88e811c8428dae1a15a9a97e0b07&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing) I heard on the net which is related to the field of artificial intelligence and robotics.

This discussion is based on the book "The End of Astronauts: Why Robots Are the Future of Exploration" which is written by the guest in this discussion Prof Martin Rees. In the view of the guest speaker, in the future artificially more intelligent machines will be part of space missions rather than humans.The speaker clearly talks about its benefits. The first thing he mentions is that risk is reduced. We have seen that many people have lost their lives as part of the space missions that have taken place in the past. But we can reduce such deaths by using robots instead of humans. Another area covered in this discussion was the advanced researches going on in the field of genetics and what are the advancements we are going to achieve in this field in future. In this area the speaker discusses about the gene editing technique and explains how this technique helps to remove the risk of genetic diseases. Also the speaker mentioned that in future genetics may advance to a higher level where we can make babies with desired characters using gene editing techniques. Another key term I found in the discussion was post human era, the speaker describing this as an era where human intelligence which is stored in brains and artificial intelligence which is stored in electronic chips will be fused and it will create an advanced human society.This discussion ended up with talking about the limitations of science and the future problems which may happen due to global warming and increasing in the population

Some new things I could able to understand from these discussion are

In genetics we have tools called crisper which helps us to do gene editing

Ten years ago NASA send an prob called curiosity to mars which helped to study lot about mars.

About the Guest Martin John Rees is a English cosmologist and astrophysicist who was a main expositor of the big-bang theory of the origins of the universe. Rees was raised in Shropshire, in the English Midlands. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in mathematics (1963) and master’s and doctorate degrees in theoretical astronomy (1967) at Trinity College, Cambridge, he pursued an academic career in cosmology, mainly at Cambridge but with interludes in the United States at Princeton (1969–70, 1982, 1996, and 1997) and Harvard (1972 and 1988–89) universities and at the California Institute of Technology (1968 and 1971). He also taught briefly at Sussex University (1972–73). Rees became one of the world’s leading authorities on the big-bang theory and on the related topics of black holes, quasars, pulsars, galaxy formation, and gamma-ray bursts. His early prediction that a black hole would be found at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy was borne out by subsequent observations.In 1973 Rees was appointed Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy at Cambridge, a position he held until 1991. He also directed the Institute of Astronomy at Cambridge (1977–82 and 1987–91). Rees later became Royal Society Research Professor at Cambridge (1992–2003) and then professor of cosmology and astrophysics in 2002. He was named to the highly prestigious but essentially honorary position of astronomer royal in 1995. In 2004–12 he served as master of Trinity College.

Reference: 1. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Rees 2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Rees

[scotianostra]

Alexander Bain, The Weaver Philosopher, was born on June 11th 1818 in Aberdeen.

His parents were George Bain,  a weaver and veteran soldier, and Margaret Paul. At age eleven he left school to work as a weaver hence the description of him as “Weevir, rex philosophorum”. 

Young Alexander managed to continue his education by attending lectures at the Mechanics' Institutes of Aberdeen and the Aberdeen Public Library and by 1836, he was able to enrol in Marischal College to begin studying mathematics. He won a number of awards and recognitions while a student there.

After serving over the course of a few years as both a professor and a contributor to major academic journals, Bain moved to London to work as a social reformer and writer, becoming included in the inner circles of many renowned academics of his day.

In 1860, he was appointed as the first-ever Regis Chair of Logic and the Regis Chair of English at the newly formed University of Aberdeen, which was established from the merger of three different area universities.

While serving in this capacity, he established the first School of Philosophy at the university, as well as brought greater focus and importance on English and literature at the Scottish school. These measures improved the curricula of the university as a whole and increased the importance of the university as an academic centre.

Having already written and published one book, as well as edited a peer's work in the past, Bain turned his attention to creating textbooks for the English department that would meet the educational needs of students at the University of Aberdeen.

These books gained wider acceptance than just the northern Scotland area, and he then began drafting textbooks on philosophy and logic. He became even more widely known for his work in psychology, and his theory of psychophysical parallelism is still widely regarded by psychologists today. Thanks to his study and influence in philosophy and psychology, Bain became a highly respected social reformer, especially taking an active role in supporting a greater scope of science education and the need to incorporate more modern languages into the curricula.

His work in social reform, specifically in education, led to his being awarded an honorary doctorate in Law from the University of Edinburgh. Despite retiring from his university positions, he continued working and writing, with more published works following his previous titles.

More info on this self taught Scot here https://victorianweb.org/science/psych/bain.htm

[tinyhistory]

Hello! I wanted to know if you make something like director's cut for your fanfics? If yes, would love to hear about the rock of Gibraltar scene and its conception + the meaning it holds to James (because I am absolutely devastated by the beauty of those scenes in particular) & thank you so much for astra inclinant. Will cherish that book in my heart always !

Thank you so much! I have a tendency to leave bits of my fic all over the floor of the editing room, so to speak. They just get deleted. I don’t save the scenes I end up cutting.

That being said, I don’t think I edited much of the Rock of Gibraltar scenes. I knew as soon as I began the fic that Teddy was going to die, because he was the one person preventing James’s growth (in a loving way — he adored James and could never bring himself to criticise him. And because James idolised Teddy, he was always able to ignore the fact so many other people disliked his personality, since the one person who really mattered — Teddy — said he was fantastic and the best little brother in the world. So Teddy really had to die for James to finally sit down and look at himself and go, “Oh. I’m an awful person.”).

Anyway. So I knew I had to have something to anchor James to Teddy long after he was gone. Something for James to cling to during his grief. Like a shipwrecked sailor desperately holding onto a rock by a treacherous shoreline. But the grief of losing his best friend and honorary sibling — well, it better be a really big rock. So I picked the Rock of Gibraltar.

I think the meaning it holds for James is summarised in the Chapter 15: “He will go there one day, James thinks suddenly. He'll go there, and stand where Teddy stood. Where countless thousands have stood before them. Where wars have been waged, and bombs dropped, and castles besieged. Where countless photographs have been taken, and memories forged, and lifetime experiences made. And somewhere, in this great timeline of history, in this vast ocean of wars and battles and celebrations, a boy sent another boy a postcard. I was standing atop this rock today, James.”

So the rock, in a way, becomes a lasting connection James can make with Teddy. Teddy isn’t truly gone, because he stood upon the rock, and the rock is still there, and it will always be there. In a later chapter, James imagines travelling to the rock, and imagines that he’s standing in the same spot, right where Teddy stood, and they’re standing there together. They’re just separated by time, that’s all. It’s just time. And time is nothing. A human lifetime is just a drop in the ocean.

This is also partly why he ends up proposing to Scorpius when they visit the Rock of Gibraltar, ten years later. So Teddy can be there, to celebrate, but also because James perceives the rock as being timeless. Which is how he sees his relationship with Scorpius: timeless.

[tcm]

Oscars of the Past: A Look at Discontinued Categories By Raquel Stecher

The Academy Awards have evolved greatly since that first ceremony was held on May 16th, 1929 in the Blossom Ballroom of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. To quote the late, great Robert Osborne, who himself was the foremost expert on Oscar history, the early days were “a time of great changes everywhere, a dynamic period of transition.” And after the first decade, “the Academy Awards and the Academy itself had become prestigious parts of the film community.” Much of that first decade and beyond saw the Board of Governors and the Academy experimenting with new and shifting categories, establishing a variety of honorary awards and altering the selection process.

There was a time when winners were announced months before the actual ceremonies without nominees, just a sole winner and honorable mentions and when write-in nominations were allowed and the Board of Governors hand-selected winners without input from the Academy. The awards have changed over time and the process has been fine-tuned. While some categories have lasted to this day, many have been discontinued, relegated to the history books as anomalies of Oscar’s past. Let’s take a look at some of the most notable discontinued categories.

BEST UNIQUE AND ARTISTIC PICTURE: 

There were 12 award categories presented at the very first Academy Awards ceremony. A few of these were one-shot deals never to appear again. Best Picture, as it is known today, was split into two categories: Outstanding Picture and Unique and Artistic Picture. While WINGS (’27) is generally considered to be the first Best Picture winner, SUNRISE (’27) won Best Unique and Artistic Picture, a recognition no other film has earned since.

BEST DIRECTING, COMEDY PICTURE & DRAMATIC PICTURE: 

That same year, the Best Director category was split into two: Comedy Picture and Dramatic Picture. There were no nominees, just one winner and one or two honorees. Frank Borzage won the only Best Directing, Dramatic Picture Oscar for 7TH HEAVEN (’27) and Lewis Milestone won Best Directing, Comedy Picture for TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS (’27). Charlie Chaplin was to be nominated for directing THE CIRCUS (’28), but according to Robert Osborne, the Academy decided to give him a special award instead in recognition for directing, writing, producing and acting in the film. The Academy Board of Judges, as it was known at the time, sang Chaplin’s praises and in a letter wrote to him saying, “the collective accomplishments thus displayed place you in a class by yourself.”

BEST ENGINEERING EFFECTS: 

Special effects artist Roy Pomeroy won the first and only Academy Award for Best Engineering Effects for his work on WINGS (’27). Ralph Hammeras and Nugent Slaughter, the latter of whom was being recognized for his work on THE JAZZ SINGER (’27), received honorable mentions. This award disappeared until 1938 when it was given new life as the Best Special Effects Oscar. It split into two sub-categories: Photographic and Sound. In the mid-1940s, it was changed again to Visual and Audible. By 1963, the Academy decided to present the awards as Best Visual Effects and Best Sound Editing. While Visual Effects is still an active category, Best Sound Editing was merged with Best Sound Mixing to become simply Best Sound.

JUVENILE OSCAR: 

From 1935 to 1961, the Academy presented miniature Oscar statuettes to juvenile actors in recognition for their outstanding contributions to film. There were 12 total recipients at 10 different award ceremonies. The first was Shirley Temple who at 6 years old was presented the statuette by Irvin S. Cobb. He declared “When Santa Claus brought you down Creation’s chimney, he brought the loveliest Christmas present that has ever been given to the world.” Other recipients included Deanna Durbin, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Peggy Ann Garner, Claude Jarman Jr., Bobby Driscoll and others. Both Garland and O’Brien’s Juvenile Oscars were stolen and the Academy replaced them with new statuettes. There were only 14 miniature statuettes ever made, making this one of the rarest Oscars in history not only because of its size but how few were made. The award wasn’t presented every year and was fairly inconsistent. The last to win was POLLYANNA (’60) star Hayley Mills. Shirley Temple presented the final award and Annette Funicello accepted it on Mills’ behalf. The award was retired and actors under the age of 18 were eventually recognized in the other acting categories.

BEST ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: 

This is by far the strangest and least consistent of the discontinued categories. At the 6th Academy Awards in 1934, a whopping 18 assistant directors were nominated for this new category. Out of the 18 nominees, there were 7 winners each representing one of the major studios. The nominations were not tied to a specific movie, but rather served as recognition for work completed in 1932 and 1933. The first winners included: Charles Barton (Paramount), Scott Beal (Universal), Charles Dorian (MGM), Fred Fox (United Artists), Gordon Hollingshead (Warner Bros.), Dewey Starkey (RKO) and William Tummel (Fox). The category was presented at the next four Academy Awards but with only a few nominees and just one winner. After 1938, the Academy retired the category, choosing to focus on Best Director.

BEST DANCE DIRECTION:

Choreographers enjoyed some recognition during the hey-day of 1930s musical with the Best Dance Direction Oscar. This category was presented from 1936 to 1938. At the 8th Academy Awards, seven choreographers were nominated, each for two different musical numbers, not necessarily in the same film. Dave Gould won for his dance numbers in BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936 (’35) and FOLIES BERGERES DE PARIS (’35). The following two years, seven choreographers were nominated, each for just one dance number. This category was short-lived and did not make a comeback in 1939.

[lovelivingmydreams]

A story by heroes and villains

Book 2: secrets revealed Virgil Anker: trust and caution

Masterlist book 1

It's not easy to know who to trust and who to be wary off. But Virgil better learn soon.

When Virgil got back to the new house, he took a shower and sat himself on the couch in his pj’s. He was listening to his ‘winding down’ playlist. He was grinning to himself. Someone else was wearing his design. Sure he’d made Janus a shirt way back in freshmen year, but he barely wore it outside the house. This would be seen by tons of people. And it looked so good! He couldn’t wait till Monday. He could imagine Roman’s reaction. Would there be pictures in the papers? On the news? He just might buy a paper so he could keep a clipping to look back on later. Thinking about gushing over the costume with Roman at school made him think about seeing Janus again. J had skipped school after what happened in the hallway, leading to him having detention all of last week. He hadn’t even so much as looked at Virgil since. Not in a, “I am mad and ignoring you way,”. He looked ashamed. Scared. That was what made it so hard for Virgil to stick to his plan. Janus looked so hurt and lost and ashamed. And during lunch, he was nowhere to be found. Virgil needed to talk to Picani about this tomorrow. It would be a busy session. He contemplated where things had gone wrong for the millionth time for a while until he heard the door and looked up to see his fathers enter the room. “You’re back!” he greeted as he sat up. “So I gotta know, who’s your fourth guy?” he wondered casually. His dad just looked at him confused. “What do you mean?” “For your poker nights,” he clarified with a chuckle. Imagining Patton or uncle Thomas playing poker was kind of funny. It seemed so out of character for them. Still he couldn’t imagine what else would take all three of them getting together like this. Thomas had taught musical theatre classes, back when he was still a professor, and now he was the dean. Then again, Virgil wasn’t certain his uncle was always present. Tonight might just have been one time he happened to be there. But Patton definitely had been part of this project as much as Logan was. The past six months at the very least, but most likely from the start. “No cardgames I’m afraid kiddo. We’ll tell you about the project once it’s finished. It’s all confidential for now I’m afraid,” Patton told him gently. Virgil looked long and hard at Patton. He wasn’t lying. And confidential stuff made a lot of sense. He shrugged, letting it go. Even if his first guess was right after all and his dad was doing some kind of superhero stuff as BrainStorm, if Patton was there to help him Virgil felt assured that they’d be safe. Though he wouldn’t know how Patton, or Thomas, got wrapped up with anything involving a former super villain. “Okay, keep your secrets,” he sighed as he stretched. “Night Pat, night Lo,” he bid before heading upstairs. “Goodnight Virgil, I love you.” Virgil looked back at his dad when he heard that. “Love you to dad,” he replied with a smile. “Love you three kiddo!” Patton added, making Virgil laugh. “Love ya Pat.” And with that he went upstairs to his room. His new room was bigger than the one in his old house. But he didn’t care much about that. His old room had memories. He missed it honestly. He started to worry that he’d been too quick to say that he wanted to move out. No matter how nice the new house was, and how conveniently it was positioned, it would never quite be like the one he’d known most of his life. He let himself drop on his bed. It was pointless to think about that now. At this point, another family had probably moved into their old home. They’d brought their own furniture. Probably painted over the walls. Erasing the little doodles he’d made when he was little and bored. Before his mind could go any farther down that path, he heard a buzzing. Roman sent him a text. “Greetings! I just got back. Sorry for not checking in earlier. Could not be helped. Did you get home alright?” Virgil chuckled and texted back. “LOL. You worry too much. Hope you had a fun night.” Virgil certainly did. Just thinking about it made him impatient. Oh why not? Before he could second guess himself, he pressed call. “Virgil?” Roman sounded surprised, but Virgil was already way to giddy about his news. “I had to tell you now. I saw him!” he whispered. “Who? And why are we whispering?” Roman asked, mimicking his volume. “I’m supposed to be asleep,” he admitted, earning himself a chuckle. “Ok… Who did you see?” Roman asked. “Dream Prince!” expecting the logical next question he edited his story a little. “I went for a walk and I guess he was doing patrol in my neighborhood, I caught a glimpse of him,” well, that was an understatement. But he couldn’t tell Roman everything. Not yet. He’d lectured Prince about being cautious just today. He trusted Roman. But anyone could overhear them at any time. “He was wearing my costume! You were right! I can’t wait to get a good look at it in action!” Again. “You think someone got a picture? I didn’t have a chance. God I should’ve taken a picture so I could show you!” Though he wasn’t sure if he could’ve managed to get a believable citizens picture of him. He doubted Prince could be photographed if he didn’t want to be. “I’m sure I’ll see your work plastered around the front pages Monday. Pretty sure you missed out on the Saturday edition. But the news stations might talk about it.” Virgil’s cheeks hurt from smiling. “You sure you don’t want your name attached to it?” Virgil considered that for a moment. It would be kind of cool, he supposed. But he was trying not to draw any attention to his civilian self so long as he did the vigilante gig. Asides from that, he didn’t want anyone to be able to claim any of his future successes were due to his connection to a superhero, or have expectations based on this one work. “Yeah… I just… I know I should want the credit. But, just in case he becomes like this big time hero,” which seemed very likely to Virgil. His powers were pretty amazing and he had the personality to make it big. “I don’t want my possible career to be defined before it starts, you know what I mean?” He hoped he did, because he was starting to get confused by his own phrasing. “Maybe I’ll come forth with the original sketch when I’m like, 30, to prove it was me if it still matters by then,” he concluded. “Sounds like a smart plan. I’m going to let you go. I do need my beauty sleep after all.” Oh, he made it too easy. “You said it, not me,” he chuckled. “Night Princey.” “Buenas noches. Mi querido amigo,” Roman replied dramatically. Virgil rolled his eyes. Though he smiled as he realized Roman just called him ‘dear friend’. Trying to hide the way that warmed his chest he let out a groan. “Bon nuit,” he huffed in retaliation before hanging up. Janus had taught him a bit of French over the years. And just like that his thoughts returned to his old friend. Janus had been well behaved the past week. He hadn’t gotten in a single fight. Maybe he should try and show that he noticed. Just saying ‘hi’ wouldn’t be that bad right? Show that he meant it when he said he wanted to get back to being friends, real friends, at some point. With thoughts of a happy ending for everyone, Virgil fell asleep. The next morning he woke up early. He made sure to be quiet as he got ready for the day. Once downstairs he turned on the tv. And sure enough, the local station was talking about Dream Prince. A professional picture of him leaping across the street from one rooftop to another serving as background. The anchors were talking about his heroic deeds of last night, ranging from walking a girl home to taking down those criminals ‘single handedly’. “No one can deny it. This young hero finds no feat too great or too small, and he does it with style. Looks like he’s settled on a look.” They thought his costume had style! Virgil was vibrating with excitement. He couldn’t sit still. He had to do something with all this energy. He started on breakfast. Bacon, eggs… It had been a while since he’d felt up to making a big breakfast and been the first to wake up. Patton was as much of an early riser as he and Logan. Which meant he hadn’t had Virgil’s secret omelet recipe yet. He was bouncing on his feet as the two anchors were analyzing the costume in as much detail as they could. They found the heels a bold choice and the mask an elegant way to incorporate a crown. When Virgil heard his dads move about upstairs he turned the news off and set the table. Patton really liked the eggs. That or he really wanted Virgil to think so. Three servings made him think that it wasn’t pretend though. After breakfast, uncle Thomas picked him up for their trip to the zoo. Virgil had been looking forward to it. It felt forever ago since he last spent some one on one time with his honorary uncle. “That’s a nice one. You really got the eyes down well,” he complemented as Virgil finished a sketch of a koala. “Thanks,” Virgil said, pretty happy with the result as well. “You are really talented. Guess it runs in the family. I remember your dad scribbling away in his poetry notebook all the time.” Virgil looked at his uncle with wide eyes. “You knew my father?” he asked perplexed. Thomas frowned down at him for a moment before his eyes widened in understanding. “Oh, no. I never personally met your birthfather. I meant Logan,” he clarified. Virgil was a little disappointed. For a second he’d hoped to learn a little more about his birthparents. But if Thomas had been talking about Logan… “My dad wrote poetry?” Thomas chuckled. “Yeah. He was pretty good. Though he’d disagree. He felt more comfortable using his sharp tongue on the debate team. He won us some prizes,” he recalled. Virgil took this in. He had wondered what his dad was like at his age before. Now was a good time to ask more. “So poetry and debate team… Guess that is why you two became friends, huh?” he asked. Thomas shook his head a little awkwardly. “Not exactly. With my social anxiety I probably wouldn’t have approached him if my mom hadn’t told me about his mom losing custody…” “What!?” Virgil gasped. He never knew that. Thomas cringed realizing he had maybe said to much. He looked down at Virgil. “Your grandparents weren’t parents of the year. Not abusive, but… neglectful I suppose. Logan never talked about it, so I don’t know the details. Just what little ” “He was in the system?” Virgil asked with a shiver. He’d heard about the system. He was glad he never had to experience it. “No, like for you there was someone ready to take him in right away,” Thomas told him. Virgil wanted to ask who had adopted his dad. But he had an idea… And he kind of didn’t want to hear he was wrong. He wanted it to be his parents. It would explain why Logan had such a hard time talking about them, but had so much love and respect for them when he did. “What was it like rooming with him? Was he secretly a slob in college?” he asked hopefully. Thomas relaxed and started talking about a few college stories, though he quickly veered into high school and early parenthood stories. At the end of the day Virgil had a good handful of animal sketches, an idea for his art project for the semester and Thomas dropped him off at Picani’s office. “Hello Virgil. How are you today? I heard you had a good scare earlier this week.” Virgil let out a deep sigh, sat down and started his story. Leaving Picani’s office a little bit later than planned, he felt a lot better. Or, well ‘better’ never had been the right word. He’d realized that sometime during the camp. After talking about Picani about what bothered him, he was still bothered by it. But he understood things more clearly. He felt less confused and had an idea of what to do about it. Picani never told him everything would be okay. He helped him understand what was wrong and how to either steer it in a better direction, or learn to live with it. He now felt less uncertain about wanting to give Janus a sign that there was still hope for them, even after what happened last week. He felt less guilty over indulging the people asking him out even though Roman was still very much on his mind. He even felt better about getting more information than he should’ve from uncle Thomas. It had been a relief talking about his theory that his dad had been in his parent’s custody for at least four years and that that was, maybe, the reason why he took him in when they passed. And the fact that he had at least one set of grandparents that might be still alive. He wasn’t going to ask about them though. If they held bad memories for his dad, he didn’t think he wanted to know them. It was very low on his list of priorities. The fact that his dad never mentioned them told him enough. The whole scare with the ceiling lamp was discussed and Picani left it alone when Virgil said that he didn’t want to waste too much time on it. “I’m home!” he announced as he came through the door. He heard Patton call a greeting from the kitchen and saw his dad come from the living room to meet him in the doorway. “Dad!” he called out eagerly as he gave his father a hug. “Virgil? Not that I do not appreciate you seem excited to see me. But is there a particular reason?” There were a few honestly. Knowing a bit more about how he ended up being raised by the smartest, most patient man he’d ever met had him excited. On top of that knowing what his dad was like at his age made him feel closer to him. He decided to focus on the latter. He’d turn sixteen soon. If Logan hadn’t initiated the conversation by then, he would. He could be patient for another month. “Uncle Thomas told me about your teen years. I didn’t know you were on the debate team!” he told him. He could imagine his dad thriving in that environment though. Maybe they should check out the debate team this year in between Roman’s play and Virgil’s art exhibit. Logan gave Virgil a small smile, a bit of pride in his eyes. It was rare for Virgil to see his dad proud of himself. He liked it. “Well, yes. It was a bit of a hobby of mine, as well as an attempt to get better at socializing,” Logan said modestly. Virgil picked up on the operative word in that sentence. ‘Attempt’. “You were a socially awkward nerd,” he concluded with a chuckle. He was so used to being nothing like his dad. Finding flaws and similarities to himself in the man he’d idolized as long as he could remember, it was strangely exhilarating. Logan, however seemed to misunderstand what had Virgil so thrilled. “Hey, that’s a complement! I’m a socially awkward artsy kid. Sounds like I’m your son after all!” he clarified. That reminded him though. “Speaking off. Uncle Thomas told me you wrote poetry back in the day.” “Really!?” Patton exclaimed from the kitchen. Logan was blushing. Scrambling for a way out of the conversation it seemed. “I… Experimenting with different forms of self-expression is a natural part of discovering one’s identity as a teenager. It was a phase. I would like to forget about it.” Virgil was about to argue against it, but Patton beat him to it. “Aw, but poetry is so romantic,” he pouted. And Virgil could see the way that affected his dad. Well, their date nights were about to get ten times more sappy. Hopefully going for the heart, and his ego, would work out just as well for Virgil. “That’s too bad. I thought I could make a project around your old work for art class,” he sighed disappointedly. And just like that his dad’s firm posture melted away. “I’ll see if I can find some of my old notebooks. Just ask my consent before you pick one.” Virgil couldn’t resist hugging him again. “Thanks dad. You won’t regret it. I promise.” He felt his father put his arms around him gently. A wordless “you’re welcome”. Virgil was feeling very chatty during dinner and so told his parents all about his day. They had to go to the university again tonight. Since Virgil was planning on meeting up with Prince and not sure if he’d be out all night or just long enough to talk to the guy, he bid them both a good night now. Just in case he’d be too tired to wait for them to get home once he got back. As soon as they were out the door Virgil dug in his closet for his face mask, something he wore when he was feeling sick and didn’t want to infect others. And his shades. He was going to take a chance on Prince today. He made sure he had his evidence at the ready. He’d updated it earlier that week and last night he hadn’t learned anything new. He decided to go with the same look as yesterday so Prince would recognize him more easily. He made his way to the street and vanished in the alleys. After a few minutes he found the rooftop they’d used as their rendezvous point last night. Hopefully Prince wouldn’t make him wait too long. He lowered the intensity of his cloak to be more easily spotted should someone be looking for him. Suddenly he heard a sound behind him. “Good evening my shadowy friend,” the grand voice of Dream Prince drifted through the air. Virgil turned around, his coat flaring out with the movement. “Hey there highness,” he greeted as he tossed him the evidence bag. Clear of any fingerprints or DNA as far as he could manage it, as usual. Prince studied it for a moment. “Is this…?” he sounded surprised. “A show of good will. I thought about it…” not enough. Maybe he was biased because he reminded him of Roman. Or because he’d seen him during his training wheel days. Maybe he didn’t want to be alone anymore. “You seem alright. I’ll… I’ll have your back. If you have mine.” They could help each other. Grow stronger together. Weren’t heroes always at their strongest once they learned to work together? “You do know that if I hand this in, they’ll know I made contact?” This guy. Virgil chuckled, finding this strangely endearing. “You mean you haven’t told them yet?” Prince’s posture straightened almost defiantly. “You didn’t say you were alright with that!” Was he actually insulted by the idea of reporting back to his people without Virgil’s permission? Guess he’d read him right. Good to know. “Okay. Well, consider this my permission. If I don’t want to be found, I’ll disappear Prince.” He’d find a way to avoid Prince if it was necessary. “Tell the chief all communication with me goes through you. If you don’t mind.” Because Virgil didn’t trust the chief enough to go anywhere near her. Prince nodded as he reached for his ear. “I am currently debriefing Phantom. I’ll let you know when I’m done here. Tell chief I’ll stop by with a package. Radio silence until further notice.” Virgil couldn’t stop himself from letting out a chuckle. This guy. He really needed to be more careful. “You ever thought I might be a bad guy? You shouldn’t cut off your back up like that in front of me.” Had they taught him nothing at the GTH? “You’ve had plenty chances to take me out,” Prince pointed out, much to Virgil’s surprise. “You could have let those goons get me the first time you saw me. You could have attacked me while I was busy with those guys yesterday. And who knows how many times over the summer. And on top of that. Who says my communicator is my only way of contacting back up?” Okay, so maybe Prince knew what he was doing after all. “Fair enough. So what now?” He had no idea what would come after this. He just knew that Prince reached out, and he’d accepted. The ball was back in Prince’s court. “Now… I warn you about the collector.” That sounded very serious. He almost wanted to get out before he could get involved, but a gut feeling told him that this was important. He eyed the edge of the roof. Well might as well get comfortable. “I feel like this is a sitting down kind of conversation.” Once they both sat down, Virgil put on his sunglasses and dropped his cloak completely. It was symbolic or whatever. Letting his guard down in a visible way. He turned to the prince expectantly, a little annoyed at how the dark glasses limited his vision. Prince took in a deep breath and started his story. “The collector is an old enemy of Manifestor. He recruits Gifted, and those he thinks deserve to be gifted for some kind of revolution. You and I are probably his kind of people. Young, full of potential. All that stuff creeps like that love to go on about.” Virgil’s eyes widened. That did sound bad. He was suddenly very glad he had not confided in anyone about his powers so far. Who knew if the Chief was on the Collector’s payroll? Or maybe Picani was being spied on. “So we should be careful, you and I. I want to help you out,” Prince told him as he offered him two small objects. A stone and lip balm? “These can help you hide your identity without having to use your… Do you have a name for it?” Prince wondered. Virgil wasn’t sure if he could disguise his voice. But if he did, he was not going to risk Prince being someone from school who might recognize his voice. “Cloak,” he replied before dropping his guard again. “Cloak… Cool,” Prince nodded as he showed the black stone. “So this, is a voice modulator. I adjusted it to fit your tempest voice as best as I could.” Virgil couldn’t help laughing. Tempest voice? That sounded so cool honestly. But man was it dramatic. “You clearly have not heard it,” Prince pointed out and he had a point. He sounded normal to himself. “What’s with the lipstick?” he asked. “This will paint your hair black faster than any hair dye. It’s also a very good hair gel and it washes out right away,” Virgil bit his lip as Prince offered him the items. He was not used to being helped. Not as ‘Phantom’ at least. He still struggled with it as Virgil. Letting Roman help him with his English assignment yesterday had been hard. But he had to let people help him. He had to take a leap of faith here. So he took the items and got up to try them out. “No peeking!” he warned, though he would keep his cloak up. It was more to test if Prince would be tempted to go against his wishes. He didn’t. Virgil placed the modulator on his throat where Prince had his red stone and applied the balm to his hair. He spread it out and took a moment to decide on the style he wanted to go with. He tried for windblown, though he wasn’t sure if he did it right without a mirror. “Okay, let’s try this,” he said testing out his new voice. Wow, if that was what he really sounded like then Tempest voice might just have been the most accurate description. He looked back at Prince who was getting up and waling over to him. “Okay. So… what’s the plan?” he asked, curious what Prince was expecting out of this collaboration. “Well… We could try and meet up here regularly. We might not always patrol at the same time, and you might be busy. But I could… If you are okay with it… I could help you coordinate with the cops. Like you kinda suggested earlier. Or we could like, do some patrolling together? Keep each other company…” Oh, that was cute. Prince could be insecure. Virgil was starting to think he was unshakable. “It might be nice talking someone who gets it you know? You’re my age right?” he wondered. Nice try. Very subtle. “I mean… I guess, but I’m not sure how old you are exactly,” he shrugged casually. He wasn’t going to give anything away that easily. “Fair point.” Or maybe there hadn’t been an ulterior motive. He was getting paranoid. “Anyway… What do you want?” Virgil thought about that for a moment. He hadn’t expected to be asked for his opinion. “I mean… Debriefings sound cool,” he said casually. “I’d like to patrol with you, but my parkour is no match to that walking on air trick you got…” He was kind of jealous of that one if he was honest. “I was thinking of hanging around the clubbing district at the end of the night and making sure some party goers get home safe. I’ll see you around there when you’re done?” This talk was fun and all, but Prince should probably check in with his team soon. And Virgil needed to think about things for a minute. “That sounds like a good idea,” Prince agreed as he gave him a bow. “Until then. Know that the GTA’s resources are now at your disposal through me. So if you want to get a proper suit or other fun toys, you need only ask.” And with that Virgil’s new ally sprinted of into the night. A real suit huh? Virgil shook his head. He’d have to think on that some more. For now, he had work to do.

Hero au

@cirishere @hestianerd1 @moonlightshow00​ @naturallyunstablegamer @alias290 @meowthefluffy @frida0043​ @angelic-cali​ @selenechris​ @theblackveilinreverse

[vampiresuns]

Portrait Of The Lawyer As A Young Man

3k words. All of Julianus’ life has been about fulfilling social expectations. Not any more.

Note: This fic contains some time changes. They’re all separated but they’re not linear. This pieces art is the cover of the centennial edition of James Joyce’s ‘Portrait of the Artist As A Young Man’.

CW: Superficial discussions of unhealthy family dynamics.

The song for this piece is Expectations by Belle & Sebastian. Saoirse, Meredith and the Crew of The Jagged Ruby belongs to @apprenticealec​.

Part 4 of Secrets Of An Ancient Moon series; you can read the rest of it here.

Dusk fell in the sky making the colours of the water change. Meredith whistled at Jules to get their attention, calling them aside. When they reached port again in four days, they’d reach Jules’ original destination, marking the end of their voyages in The Jagged Ruby. Julianus didn’t need Meredith to tell them this, they already knew: they had been counting the days obsessively, watching them slip by as they found a chance to speak to the Captain.

Meredith had found them first. It was now or never.

“Hopefully this,” Meredith said, raising the legal study Julianus had made for her a couple of months ago, “will help us with our Syd problem. I’m not going to pat you in the back, Sanlaurento, so just let me say this: you’ve got it in you, you’re a pain in my ass, I hope whoever opposes you in a court shit themselves. Now, leave.”

When Meredith looked back up, Jules was still there, looking at them with a frown and an intensity which the Captain had seen in them before, but never directed at them. Jules had been travelling with them for months. When they had manifested on the ship to become Meredith’s personal pest and unlikely legal advisor, the Quinquennial meeting was in the long term future still, they had time for it. Now, the meeting would happen in three months.

In all that time, Meredith had had time to watch them, even if they didn’t want to. She hated to admit it, but the asshole had guts. J.C. was clever, a fast learner, and seemed to know themselves well enough to anticipate their shortcomings. Analytical and strong-willed, in other circumstances they’d make an excellent addition to the crew.

They learnt the basics of sailing faster than Meredith had given them credit for, their basic knowledge of sword-fighting was getting honed by the week. They had never taken a shot against an actual person, but their aim had gotten notoriously better. Julianus got treats for the crew if you left them unsupervised, and somehow, always, found someone to help with legal advice, no matter were they were.

So yes, Meredith had seen that intensity before. She’d seen it when they put themselves between a vendor and a guard, suddenly carrying more presence and even a slight high-society touch to the way they conducted themselves. She’d seen it whenever they tried, again and again, to perfect something, never expecting to be handed anything. She’d seen it whenever they talked about Injustice, or the Sea Palace, or Freedom, or People.

It all shone through, even through the many flaws or annoyances Meredith saw in their character — anxious, irritable, high-horsed, mysterious for no damn reason.

“I said leave, why are you still here.”

“Meredith?”

The Captain raised an eyebrow. Sanlaurento never addressed her without an honorary.

“I didn’t remember us being friends— You smooch my quartermaster and…” Meredith stopped, a grimace overtaking her face. “This is about them, isn’t it. No, I’m not having a heart to heart about fucking Saoirse with you. Sanlaurento, I’m still your fucking Captain.”

“No, it’s not about Saoirse. It’s about me.”

“Right, because that’d make me care.”

J.C. frowned back at Meredith, trying to resist the urge to roll his eyes but failing to do so. “Even if they are a factor in my considerations. I’m well aware that if I talked to them, I could manage to see them anywhere and write to them even, given they write to Jacqui all the time.”

“If you’re going to talk anyway, at least do me the favour of going to the point, Sanlaurento.”

“Captain, I want to stay.”

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

The sky was clear in the island of Sirenia, a cool late winter evening as Sanlaurento walked around a patio in a black, formal attire, with a green jacket with golden buttons. 

“You’ll do great, stop worrying. You already did great in your dissertation.”

“But my dissertation was just me talking about International affairs.”

“One last viva, and you’ll be a lawyer.” 

Julianus exhaled. “You’re right, one last viva. This ends today.”

“Did someone Come with you?”

“No.”

Their friend snorted. “You didn’t tell anyone about today, didn’t you?”

Feigning disinterest so the conversation could end, they looked over some handwritten diagrams.

Julianus sighed. “Actually, this time I did.”

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

“Do I have to apply to the Sea Palace? I know I said I wanted to, but I don’t know any more.”

“Of course, Cleo,” their mother said, “it’s the best academic institution around, you might have a chance. You lose nothing by trying”

“They were weird though, you know? Off. Like, they give me a bad feeling.”

Their mother no longer sounded patient when she spoke: “You’re going to have to let go of turning down opportunities at every chance you don’t like everyone in front of you, or everyone in front of you doesn’t automatically think you’re brilliant. Besides, you insisted, and this is a matter about your education, your safety and your future. You’re applying.”

Julianus tensed, curling their toes inside their shoes, trying to ball them like they would their hands. They couldn’t ball them into fists right now, that’d give them away. If they gave themselves away, their mother’s reaction would be worse. “It’s not— that’s not—”

They exhaled, giving up. “You’re right, Mama.”

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

In their 27 years, Julianus had been called a lot of things.

Weird by their classmates, dense by their parents. Unnecessarily complicated, dramatic, attention seeking, stupid. All of them also by their parents who said things in annoyance and in anger without measuring any reaction, nor waiting for any explanation. Stupid, perhaps, was the funniest.

They never called them Julianus, only ‘Cleo’, too, to the point their mother often said they made a mistake in choosing their first name.

Their Cleo was a lot of things but never what they themself said they were. ‘Intelligence’ was arrogance, ‘mistakes’ stupidity, or worse, something unforgivable; a lack of consideration for everyone around them and the marking of their mother in their failure to raise a child who wanted to do anything with her. 

Too loud, too quiet, too stiff, too needy, too this, too that, too weird, too feminine, too masculine, too much.

Academic settings were different. One of the few places they had some control over themself. Yes, their classmates might’ve thought them closed off, weird and even a bit of a “lunatic” when they were growing up, but their classmates also knew they were passionate about defending what they loved, including their friends. A willing ear to listen, offering food, advice and comfort to whomever asked, without thinking too much about it. Quick to rile up but never one to deny help. Their teachers and professors always knew they tried, that they wanted to learn, that they wanted to go to further, deeper horizons. 

Their own self, learning and what they could do with that education was their constant ongoing project. Their poems and stories, a constant conversation with the world. Not self-centredness, not absent-mindedness.

Only twice they had been told in academic settings that they weren’t enough. One was in the Sea Palace. The scholars called them an histrionic, low-pedigree charming but insubstantial kid, with poorly honed magic and more enthusiasm than capacity. Others worked better, others could sit still for longer, others had more steady grades — not the valleys of those subjects which did not interest them, with good but unremarkable grading, versus the stellar records of those subjects which obsessed them needlessly. A nice attempt, but a definitive rejection. 

The other was in that last Viva Voce in Firent. It hadn’t gone terribly, they had passed, but with meagre first level honours in comparison to their full honours approved dissertation. They were expecting to do worse, that was true. They weren’t expecting to have three examiners who did not let them finish a single explanation, one even laughing at their face for asking for a question to be clarified. 

“If you keep this way, I doubt you will have it in you to be a good jurisconsult,” one of them had said.

Julianus had looked at them with icy, saccharine sweetness, eyes like daggers and making apologies they didn’t mean as they took their diploma. They left the room thinking what did they know? What did any of these people know about Julianus Cleopatra, who wasn’t born with the Surname Sanlaurento, but had chosen it anyway? Nothing. They knew nothing.

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

Julianus had never been in many places they belonged.

The night was clear as The Ruby made its way through the waters in the night.

“What about you?”

“Yeah, Jay, tell us a story. All you do is work, kid. Grab a glass! Cut yourself some slack from those books, lest your vision becomes worse.”

Julianus couldn’t see why not. With a bright smile on their face, they grabbed a glass of beer, before joining the Crew that was lounging around on the deck, enjoying the night. 

“Does it have to be something I’ve heard, or does it have to be an original?”

“Right! Saoirse did say you wrote.”

Julianus blinked. “Saoirse mentioned me?”

An echo of warm laughter rang between the crew. Someone patted their back. “You’ve got it bad for the Quartermaster, don’t you? But tell us your story.”

"My story?” They snorted. “Oh, you don’t want to listen to that.”

After taking a drink, they let their own play on words slide, and chose a story to tell. “You know how they say that those who are the most impertinent have the best chance. Well, this cabin boy risked it all for a venture in a ship from the northern seas, whose flag it was under was at war with an Empire. The cabin boy, well, we’ll call them boy, had been searching for a place to fulfil their ambitions, and saw in this ship the right chance. The kind of person who wished to be remarkable, and do what’s right

“So one day, the ship runs into an enemy ship. Goes the Captain and says: ‘If we fight them, this ship might be sunk and we might not live the night’. So goes the cabin boy, who had developed a fondness for this ship; the fondness one does when one loves a place, but the place does not love one back, and yet one clings to the nostalgia of the good things. The cabin boy did not realise this yet, so the cabin boy goes and says: ‘If I time it right, I could sink it.’

“Though often trifled with silencing commands, the cabin boy was intelligent and daring so the cabin boy repeated: ‘If I time it right I could sink it. Was this not why I trained all these years as a cabin boy?’ 

“The Captain said: ‘No, you are just a cabin boy’, but at the insistence of our protagonist, the Captain said: ‘If you destroy that ship, I will give you silver and likewise gold, here in this very sea, and I will give you my only daughter for you to marry, if you make a renowned Captain out of me—’”

The story was not a happy one. It was a story of betrayal and disappointed hopes. It finished with the cabin boy, who making himself one with the night, went to sink the enemy ship, under the very noses of the unsuspecting crew. Yet, when the cabin boy came back and demanded their acknowledgement, the Captain denied them. Though the cabin boy had no interest in claiming the bounty, the Captain had not expected them to live, but fearing the Cabin Boy would take the credit and disrupt the order of things, the Captain slew them, and the sea took them in. 

Someone gasped with indignation. “And no one aided the cabin boy?”

“No.”

“Did the Captain kill them then?”

“That’s for you to decide.” 

“So the cabin boy didn’t die? Or did they?”

“In a way. It’s less about physical death, though it can be about it.”

“Isn’t this the Raleigh story?”

“Of the Golden Vanity?” Said Sanlaurento with a smirk. “Perhaps, but everyone tells it differently.

“If you don’t make it as a law person, I say you become a writer.”

Julianus laughed. “Why not both?”

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

The last time Julianus Sanlaurento had seen their parents was when they sailed off to an apprenticeship. There had been no grand goodbyes, no heartfelt words. They had all fought around a week before, and J.C. was not yet forgiven. It was, perhaps, one of the biggest fights they had had with them, and the memory of it, along with the cold shoulder they were given would cling to them for some more time.

Nothing was worse than the hypocrisy, though. Or the pity. Too much to everyone around them, a brilliant child when they weren’t in the room.

Before they left, their father had pulled them aside to tell them they were brilliant, and that they were proud. Jules had wanted to say thank you, and just thank you, from the bottom of his heart, but they couldn’t, not after last week. Instead, they said:

“You always say that, until I’m brilliant in a way which neither of you like even if you still let me do it. You’ll hate this, but I don’t exist comfortably anywhere, and perhaps, I’ll never exist comfortably here.”

“That’s not our fault, Cleo.”

“It’s not about whose fault is it— it’s— you know what, Dad? Nevermind.”

Their only comfort was Maricus, whom they clung to at night when they were alone in their quarters, with only their things, their cat and an acceptance letter as they realised they were completely, and utterly alone. They were alone, that was true, but at least, they were themself and they had had enough.

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

Not wanting to try the Captain further after she dismissed them, Julianus retreated to the crew’s quarters. They sat against the wall nearest to their bed — if one could call a hammock a bed — picked up their notebook and began writing. They wanted to be left alone, so they buried their nose in their writing.

They didn’t expect seeing Saoirse when they looked up, leaning against a column as they watched them write. 

“Raleigh again?”

“No, I’m leaving the fictional man rest for a minute or two.”

“Meredith told me you were staying.” At this, Jules stopped writing. “Said you were on permanent crew member probation until you defended your case and your position in Ethari. Then, if she didn’t change her mind, she’ll make you try as a permanent member of the crew, if you also haven’t changed your mind about it.”

Saoirse snorted. “If I was told I’d meet a human like you a year ago, I would’ve thought the person telling me such was drunk.”

Julianus raised an eyebrow at them, wanting to ask what that was supposed to mean, but Saoirse’s eyes were full of tenderness when they met them.

“Meredith also told me you asked. Did you because of me?”

“No,” Jules said as they closed their notebook, standing up to stretch their legs. “I don’t want to part from you, that’s true, I care… a lot about you, and I hope you care about me just the same. I don’t want to stop seeing you everyday, and I don’t want to stop kissing you everyday, and I don’t want to stop learning from and about you. I haven’t mastered the language yet, and there’s more of the Code to study, there’s so many things I haven’t done yet, but it’s not about you, it’s about me.”

Saoirse watched them as silence fell between them, Julianus’ dark eyes looking everywhere but at them. When they did look back at Saoirse's ice-blue ones, their eyes were clouded with tears. “This isn’t quite it, either, but do you know what’s like feeling you’re unwanted everywhere? Because who you are has a big red ‘wrong’ sign attached to it?

“I just don’t want to go. I see, I can see a future here, and I think I’ve been in enough places where I have been unwanted, or wanted wrong, for me to deserve to have a shot at the future I say I want to have. Not the future I was supposed to have by whomever thinks knows me better than I know me.”

Out of all the reactions Saoirse could’ve had, J.C. wasn’t expecting them to stop leaning on their column, and open their arms for them. 

Their smile was just as tender as their eyes. “I know you enough to know that if I ask if you want a hug, you’ll say no, but in about five seconds you’ll change your mind.”

Jules’ half laughed, half sobbed. Unable to fight Saoirse’s logic they closed the distance between them, wrapping their arms around their waist, as they felt Saoirse’s arms sling under their arms to hold them close and safe between their arms. Like they were protecting them — from what? Neither of them knew; neither of them asked.

Instead, Jules was happy to bury their face against Saoirse’s chest, taking in the smell of them mixed with linen of their shirt. Saoirse’s cheek rested against the top of their head, only moving to plant a kiss there.

“Julie?” Saoirse said. “I know more about cages than you’d think.”

“I never said anything of—”

“You don’t have to say it for me to know. Before I was what I am now, I was in one, so to speak. Trapped, perhaps, is a better word. Cages all look different, but they all feel the same. There are no cages here, you deserve better than that.”

“I know, I know that now.”

“Can I kiss you?”

“Only if you keep calling me ‘Julie’.”

“Were you never told not to make deals with strange Gods?” 

As they spoke, Saoirse brushed their lips against theirs, themselves an offering for Julianus to chase. Chase them they did, pressing their lips against Saoirse’s over and over again. 

“You’re not a strange God. Or rather, you’re not a stranger to me… You know? You don’t have to tell me what you were before, but I will say this: whomever decided to trap you, is or was a fucking coward.”

Saoirse laughed, the sound ringing around the room on its own accord. Soon enough, Jules found themself laughing too.

No, of course they didn’t want to go. 

[justforbooks]

Jacqueline Worms de Romilly was born on March 26, 1913. He was a Franco-Greek philologist, classical scholar and fiction writer. She was the first woman nominated to the Collège de France, and in 1988, the second woman to enter the Académie française.

She is primarily known for her work on the culture and language of ancient Greece, and in particular on Thucydides.

Born in Chartres, Eure-et-Loir, she studied at the Lycée Molière. As a schoolgirl, she became the first female to qualify for a prize in the Concours général, taking the first prize in Latin to French translation and second prize in Ancient Greek in 1930. She then prepared for the École Normale Supérieure at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand. She entered the class of 1933 of the ENS Ulm. She passed the agrégation in Classics in 1936; however, because she was of Jewish ancestry, the Vichy government suspended her from her teaching duties during the Occupation of France. She became a doctor of letters at the University of Paris in 1947. Her doctoral thesis, a "masterful" treatment of Athenian imperialism in Thucydides, was published as Thucydide et l'impérialisme athénien, and subsequently translated into English as Thucydides and Athenian Imperialism.

After being a schoolteacher, she became a professor at Lille University and subsequently at the Sorbonne, between 1957 and 1973. She later was promoted to the chair of Greek and the development of moral and political thought at the Collège de France — the first woman nominated to this prestigious institution. In 1988, she was the second woman (after Marguerite Yourcenar) to enter the Académie française, being elected to Chair #7, which was previously occupied by André Roussin.

She published dozens of works on Greek philosophy, language and literature but her lifelong passion was Thucydides, the historian of the Peloponnesian War.

Outside academia she was best known to the French public for touring French schools and giving talks about the culture of ancient Greeks. She was a staunch defender of teaching of humanities in French schools, believing that an understanding of the classics was essential to understanding democracy, the liberty of the individual and the virtue of tolerance. In 1984 she published L’Enseignement en détresse, a book about declining standards in French schools. Her position in the Académie française enabled her to mount a defence of classical languages and literary culture, which she stated “may well be as endangered as the fauna of the oceans or the water of our rivers”.

She was horrified by the 1988 vote to simplify aspects of the French language in primary schools and in 1992 she founded an Association for the Defence of Literary Studies.

In 1995, she obtained Greek nationality and in 2000 was named as an Ambassador of Hellenism by the Greek government. A one-time president of the Association Guillaume Budé, she remained an honorary president until her death at a hospital in Boulogne-Billancourt at the age of 97.

After having only received baptism in 1940, she fully converted to Maronite Catholicism in 2008, aged 95.

De Romilly's two monographs on the ancient Greek historian Thucydides have been credited with "alter[ing] the landscape of Thucydidean scholarship" and "the beginning of a new era". In 2002, Danish classical scholar Anders Holm Rasmussen described her views on Thucydides' ideology of empire as still "one of the most important viewpoints" with which modern scholars can engage. Published first in 1956, her work Histoire et raison chez Thucydide is still in print in the original French today, and was translated into English as The Mind of Thucydides after her death. De Romilly believed that Thucydides's intelligent, reflective approach held lessons relevant to the Europe of today.

De Romilly also published outside the field of Greek historiography. In recent years, the value of her work Time in Greek Tragedy has been recognized by scholars working not only on Greek drama but also on Aristotle's metaphysics of time.

In 2016, Rosie Wyles and Edith Hall edited a volume called Women Classical Scholars: Unsealing the Fountain from the Renaissance to Jacqueline de Romilly, a history of pioneering women born between the Renaissance and 1913 who played significant roles in the history of classical scholarship.

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at http://justforbooks.tumblr.com

[argylemnwrites]

Why Are We Still Waiting? - Chapter 2

Pairing: Drake Walker x MC (Riley Liu)

Book: The Royal Romance (It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment universe)

Word Count: ~4900

Rating: PG-13 (language)

Summary: A trip back to Cordonia, meeting someone new... just not the new person they thought they would be meeting.

Author’s Note: Well, I’ve utterly failed at posting this with any semblance of regularity, but... it’s back. And I’m trying to get back in the habit of more consistent editing/writing (so things don’t take me five times as long because I am rusty). We left Drake and Riley engaged, but with a postponed wedding due to Savannah and Bertrand’s unplanned pregnancy. They just recently had their second child, a little girl, and Drake and Riley are off to Cordonia to meet their niece. To catch up on this series, you can check out the It Couldn’t Wait Another Moment masterlist (link in bio).

Drake twisted slightly, stretching out his back as he waited for the rows ahead of them to exit the plane so he could stand up and finally move his legs. He’d gotten more used to flying coach in the past couple of years, but that still didn’t exactly make it a comfortable or enjoyable experience. But there was obviously no way that they could make the trip to Cordonia a few times a year if they didn’t keep the flights as cheap as humanly possible.

As soon as he could, he shifted into the aisle, handing Riley her coat from the overhead bin before grabbing his own jacket and their duffle bags. And then they were off, shuffling through the airport, over to immigration, then off to baggage claim and customs.

Drake pulled out his phone as soon as he and Riley and their luggage were cleared. It was odd that Bastien hadn’t responded. He had texted him when they landed. It had become their habit over the past couple of years. Since Drake had sold his car, having Bastien take it to a dealership for him a few months after he permanently vacated his old quarters at the palace and putting the money towards some furniture for their new apartment, Liam had let him just borrow a car from the palace garage to use during his trips. With expedited immigration and customs, giving Bastien a head’s up when they landed in Cordonia usually worked out pretty perfectly with time, with Bastien waiting for them in short term parking by the time they got out, keys in hand.

But today, he hadn’t confirmed that he’d even seen the text. It was strange. Drake was just about to give him a call, when Riley nudged him with her elbow. 

“Look,” she said, pointing across the concourse. There was a tall man ahead of them, wearing a navy sweater, a pair of jeans, and a bright blue baseball hat pulled very low, almost entirely hiding his dark hair. He was holding a sheet of paper that said “Walker/Liu,” but he wasn’t looking for them. In fact, he was clearly avoiding eye contact with everyone.

Drake just shook his head as he smiled. He should have known.

“Real subtle, Your Majesty,” Drake said as soon as they were close enough that he could drop his voice and still be heard by Liam.

Liam’s head jerked back and forth. “Not so loud!” he hissed out.

“You look so suspicious right now. You know that, right?”

“I’m trying to keep a low profile,” Liam said, shaking his head as he welcomed Drake’s loose hug.

“By doing what, dressing vaguely casual and then acting like someone who is terrified of being picked up by security?” Drake stepped back, shaking his head yet again.

“It’s not that bad.”

“No, Drake’s right. At JFK, you would have been carted off for an interview in some secret back room already,” Riley added before giving Liam a hug herself.

“I used to think your snark was rubbing off on her, but now I’m pretty sure I had that reversed,” Liam said over Riley’s shoulder towards Drake, earning himself a little shove and an eye roll as Riley stepped back. “Come on, let’s get out of here before I get recognized.

The three of them strolled out of the airport into the crisp winter air, the sun bright and blinding even as Riley shivered and handed Drake her duffle bag so that she could put on her coat.

“So what did we do to earn a ride in the royal motorcade?” Drake asked once they were clear of the crowds and vehicles in the drop off zone.

“I thought it might be a fun surprise.”

There was something in Liam’s tone that gave Drake pause. It was just a little too falsely cheery and rapid. There was something he wasn’t telling them. “And?”

He let out a little sigh, “And your mother and aunt decided to stay two extra nights, so they aren’t leaving until tomorrow.”

“Oh,” said Riley, “and who made the call that Leona and I shouldn’t be under the same roof?”

“That’s not the case, Riley,” Liam said with a shake of his head. “Bertrand wanted me to relay a message that you will always be an honorary Beaumont, and that therefore you are always welcome at Ramsford.”

Drake glanced over at Riley to find her already gazing his way. She raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes, and all Drake could do was shrug. Riley and his aunt had clashed pretty intensely during her first trip down to Texas, and things had only gotten worse the next two visits. It was clear someone decided that Riley and Leona shouldn’t be allowed to run into each other if it could be avoided, and Drake didn’t exactly disagree with that thought process. 

"Right," said Riley, “because I'm sure me snapping at her judgemental ass would be much appreciated."

Liam glanced back at Drake, clearly looking to him to see if it was fine to speak candidly. He still was getting used to the fact that Riley didn't need things tied up in a pretty diplomatic bow and honestly preferred blunt assessments. Drake got the sense that Liam still almost felt like it was a trap at times, so used to courtly politics being the norm with everyone but Drake himself. But Drake just gave him a little nod. Riley was self-aware enough of the nature of her relationship with Aunt Leona that she didn’t need Liam to dance around it.

“Well, Maxwell did mention that he thought that… that Caroline might be making enough noise for the estate and there wasn’t a need to add to it.”

Drake let out a chuckle at that, watching as Riley rolled her eyes but otherwise had no reaction. He was pretty sure she vented to Maxwell about his family on occasion, so it wasn't exactly surprising that he was the one who had decided any meetings between Riley and Leona should be avoided if possible. Liam's shoulders relaxed slightly once a few seconds passed and it was clear that Riley wasn't offended by his statement.

"So, I hope you both can forgive the last minute change of plans, but I thought you might find a night at the palace more enjoyable. I know I would like the chance to spend some time with both of you. Plus, there is… well, there is someone I would very much like you both to meet."

"What?"

"Yes. She is waiting over there, by the car."

Drake followed Liam’s gesture and saw a woman standing by a non-descript silver sedan, one of the cars kept in the palace garage for trips where a member of the royal family might need to keep a low profile. They were still far enough away that he couldn’t tell much about what she looked like. This had to be a girlfriend, right? Again, Drake looked over at Riley, wanting to see if she had the same thought. Her eyes were wide and her eyebrows almost comically raised as she mouthed, “What?” at him. Alright, so she agreed. Well, this was definitely going to be interesting.

In all their years of friendship, Drake had never met someone Liam considered to be a girlfriend. In fact, it was rare for Liam to have a girlfriend. The politics, the diplomatic implications, all that shit just made it tough. Or at least that’s what Drake had assumed. It was kind of the whole point of the social season - a safe way for members of the royal family to date.  

As they approached the car, Drake got a better look at the woman in question. She was definitely pretty, with warm brown skin, deep brown eyes, and a wide and gentle smile, even if that smile did look a little strained at the moment. That was likely due to some nerves, as she was twisting her hands in front of her waist. She was also wearing jeans and a sweater, although her sweater was yellow, and her tight curls were pushed back with some sort of sparkly headband. 

“Drake, Riley,” Liam started, standing next to her, his hand sliding along her back, "This is Iris Dertrain. Iris, these are my friends, Drake Walker and Riley Liu."

"It's nice to meet you both," Iris said, reaching out her right hand. "Liam has told me so much about you."

"Oh… uhhh, nice to meet you, too," Drake said, grasping her hand and giving it a shake. He didn't want to throw Liam under the apple truck, but he had told him nothing about this woman.

Liam stepped forward, his hands raised in front of his chest, smiling rather sheepishly. "Iris, I am afraid I haven't mentioned you to either of them."

"Why not?" She pivoted at that, yanking her hands back to her waist, her eyes wide.

Liam reached out, wrapping his hands around hers and stepping up close to her. Instinctively, Drake looked off to the side and slid backwards, giving them as much space and privacy as possible. Liam’s voice dropped off, but he still picked up a few scattered words and phrases, including “too important” and “phone calls.” After a few moments, he chanced a glance back towards them. Iris was nodding as Liam slid his hand off her cheek, so he cleared his throat. 

Iris smiled, then spun around to face Riley, reaching out to shake her hand as well, but Riley wasn’t having any of that, instead wrapping her arms around her in a loose hug.

“Sorry, not gonna do a handshake,” she said, “even if Liam decided it was best to drop you on us without any warning.”

“Riley, I-” Liam started, but she shook her head as she stepped back from Iris.

“First, you change our travel plans by barring us from Ramsford for the night, then you spring a girlfriend on us. Are you trying to make my life hell? You know how he is with the unexpected,” she said, cocking her head towards Drake.

“Hey! I can handle surprises!”

Both Riley and Liam laughed openly at that, which annoyed Drake. Not so much because he thought Riley’s assessment of him was inaccurate, but more because of how much pure glee she and Liam seemed to take in teaming up against him these days. He kind of understood that it was natural, given that they were the two people who knew him best… but still. Oh well, if anything it proved that over the years, Riley and Liam had settled into a comfortable friendship that was their own. And that was something Drake would gladly pay the price of some light ribbing for when it came down to it.

After loading the luggage into the trunk and climbing into the car, they headed off towards the palace. Even though the drive wasn’t that long, Drake was infinitely grateful that Riley was steering the conversation. If it had just been him with Liam and Iris, it would have undoubtedly been stilted, awkward, and formal, no matter how hard Liam would have tried to make things feel natural. But Riley knew how to put people at ease, to keep things flowing.

“So, did Liam have a secret social season he hid from us and the media? Or did you guys meet in a more normal way?”

Iris let out a little laugh at that. “I was one of the teacher representatives on the educational council.”

“So you’re a teacher?”

“Used to be. Now, I work mostly as an administrator, deciding on curriculum changes, making sure schools in different regions are reaching their goals, that sort of thing. That’s why I was on the council - I was lobbying for increased funding so that we could work on reducing classroom sizes in Portavira.”

“Do you miss teaching?”

“Sometimes. I was a science teacher, and there are points when I miss getting to guide my students through experiments, to get to see minds literally learning concepts first hand. But… I taught 12 to 14 year olds, and I do not miss the interpersonal drama that was always brewing between them.”

Riley laughed at that. Even though she was seated behind him, Drake could just picture the way her head was tossed back, her eyes narrowed. It was her genuine laugh, not her fake, customer service laugh. It seemed like with each trip back to Cordonia, the real laugh came out more and more.

“So was it their shitty adolescent angst that pushed you into the admin side of things?”

Riley’s question drew another chuckle from Iris. “No, I’m tougher than that. I just felt like I could do more, make a difference for more students by working for systemic changes. Luckily, we live in a country where our political leaders listen to teachers about how best to educate our children.”

Drake glanced over to Liam, who was smiling broadly at Iris’s comment. “Only a fool would think that he knows everything just because he holds a position of political power.”

“See, I’m lucky.” said Iris.

Somehow, Liam smiled even wider at that. Drake suspected that if asked, Liam would say he was the lucky one.

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

Riley spun on the couch in the private lounge, swinging her legs up onto the cushions as she took the glass of whiskey Drake offered her and leaned up against his side as he sat back down. Liam and Iris were on the couch across from them, although Riley could tell that Iris wasn’t as relaxed as the rest of them. Sure, she had loosened up a lot over the evening, but there was still this edge of fearing that she didn’t belong in a palace, that she was going to mess this up. It was a feeling Riley knew well.

Of course, Riley could tell that Iris’s fear was not quite the same as the anxiety she had carried during that fateful social season. At first, it had been this belief that she was going to fuck up so badly, let her brash, judgemental, potty-mouthed self shine through, and get kicked out, a joke who was sent packing back to nothing, not even her shitty job since she’d quit that on a whim to fly to a country she’d never heard of before. As time went on, her fears had grown to losing the closest people she had to genuine friends by falling for the wrong guy. She had been a ball of mad nerves by the night of Liam’s coronation.

But Iris’s fears seemed to be centered more on Liam himself. She kept glancing towards him, almost as if she was afraid she was going to let him down or make things difficult for him. It was so much kinder and more selfless than Riley had ever behaved with Liam. It was very sweet to see. 

Liam was equally sweet in response, which wasn’t surprising at all. He could definitely sense her remaining traces of nervousness, as he frequently reached over to hold her hand or to run his hand along her back. It was part of the reason Riley was going for a little more PDA than she would normally be comfortable with  - she wanted them to feel comfortable with their level of PDA.

Iris took a sip of her wine before noticing what Riley was drinking. “Wait, I’m the only one here not drinking whiskey?”

Riley cocked an eyebrow at her. “I’ve always been a hard liquor sort of girl.”

Iris shook her head before drinking a little more of her wine. “I’ve never really had the stomach for it. I can do those fruity cocktails, but straight liquor?” She let out a shudder at that.

“Better get used to it; it’ll be the only way to get through endless balls and galas and fundraisers for rare pigeon species or whatever is the cause du jour,” Drake quipped. Riley nudged her elbow back into his side, causing him to chuckle.

“He’s exaggerating. It’s not that horrible.”

He let out a scoff, so Riley twisted to glare at him.

“Liu, you bitched to me endlessly about how much you hated all the pomp and pretentiousness and-”

“-and she’s not me! Quit scaring her off!” Riley rolled her eyes at him before spinning back around to Iris. “You seem much less bitchy than me, so I’m sure you’ll be fine. After all, you’ve taught preteens, so that proves you are way more patient and tolerant,” she said, waving her hand in what she hoped was a reassuring way. “Who have you met so far?”

“Only Olivia Nevrakis.”

“Yikes, you really led with her?” Drake called out to Liam, causing Riley to elbow him yet again.

Liam just chuckled. “You know, she can be rather pleasant if she isn’t being antagonized endlessly.”

“Are you kidding me? She always starts it.”

Iris just gave a little shrug. “I don’t know. I only met her for one dinner, but she didn’t seem cruel or unwelcoming. And her boyfriend was quiet, but seemed nice.”

Riley felt Drake moving beside her as she leaned forward, her eyes jumping to Liam. His eyes were pinched shut as he winced, bracing for the inevitable questions.

"What the hell?"

"Olivia has a boyfriend?"

"Oh crap, was that a secret?" Iris looked horrified at her slip up, twisting around to glance at Liam.

He let out a short sigh. "Well, she hasn't gone public with him yet."

"I just thought that was only because Christopher’s divorce wasn't finalized."

Riley could practically feel the joy rolling off Drake in waves as Liam's slight wince turned into a full on grimace. 

"Olivia's dating a married man?"

Liam shook his head. "He has been separated from his wife for over a year now. And I would appreciate you two keeping this to yourselves for the moment. You know how Olivia values her privacy."

"We won't tell a soul," Riley said, nudging Drake with the side of her foot to keep him quiet.

"Sure, but Iris, what other of Olivia's dark secrets do you want to spill?" he teased, ignoring Riley's gesture, instead grinning at her when she shot him a glare. All she could do was roll her eyes.

"I had no idea that it was a secret! Oh Liam, how mad is she going to be?"

"It'll be fine; I promise you. Drake and Riley aren't going to tell anyone, right?" he asked, staring at both of them pointedly.

"Of course. We live in New York; no one cares about Cordonian gossip there," Riley said, trying to lighten the mood and calm Iris's worries.

"Besides, we like you enough to spare you from the she-devil's wrath."

Liam just shook his head. "Drake… Olivia's not that bad. She can just be… intense."

Riley nodded at that. "She’s honestly probably one of the harder ones to impress, so if you feel like she was fine with you, I don’t think you have much to worry about. Except Neville. And Madeleine if she’s still around.”

Liam shook his head. “She’s still in London. No one here has seen her for a year or so.”

“So then just Neville. Otherwise, they’re largely harmless. Just varying degrees of out of touch. Nothing a few cocktails won't help you tolerate.” Liam shook his head gently at Riley’s assessment. She still sometimes felt a little weird being completely honest about her perceptions of things in front of him. He was so kind, and she… well, she knew she judged everyone. But Liam claimed he appreciated honesty from her, and he’d never made her feel bad for sharing her thoughts, so she always made an effort not to censor herself in front of Liam. Well, not too much. He was still a king, after all.

“Well, I guess I’ll find out in a couple weeks,” Iris said, dropping her eyes to her lap and tracing her fingers along the stem of her wine glass.

Liam nodded. “You’ll do fine, love. I know you will,” he said, running his hand along her arm. “Iris will be attending the Twilight Ball at the end of the month as her first official appearance,” he clarified to Drake and Riley.

“So you’ll be going public then?” Drake asked.

“Yes, that’s the plan,” said Iris. “My letter of resignation is being reviewed by the palace PR department currently, and once I submit that, things should be clear for us."

Riley frowned at that. Iris had seemed to really love her job when she talked about it. "You're resigning?"

Iris tilted her head off to the side as she gave a little shrug. "It could be perceived as a conflict of interest. The teachers aren't going to believe I am advocating for their best interests if I am in a relationship with him. And his critics are going to accuse him of being unobjective in his policy decisions due to our relationship."

Riley felt Drake shift against her. "That's… that's a big step," he said.

Iris opened her mouth to respond, but Liam placed a hand on her knee, essentially stopping her. "Yes, it is. Iris and I have had several frank discussions about how complicated my life is, and she asked me if this would be beneficial. Neither one of us has taken this decision lightly.”

Considering how little thought Drake had put into dropping his whole life to move to New York, Riley didn’t really feel like he had a leg to stand on here, questioning Iris’s decision to leave her job for a relatively young relationship. But she also knew that Drake sometimes liked to play devil’s advocate with Liam, even if he didn’t personally disagree with Liam’s decisions. So she didn’t say anything, but instead just glanced over to Iris to see how she was handling it all.

She didn’t look too fazed, but she was squinting at Drake slightly, almost as if she was trying to read him. “Are you worried for him or for me?” she finally asked after a couple of seconds. “Because it would make sense for you to worry about him, but I don’t understand how me quitting my job would be at all harmful to Liam.”

Riley twisted around slightly to look at Drake. He gave a little shrug and took a sip of his whiskey. “Don’t want to see either of you get trapped.”

“This isn’t locking us into anything. I can go back to teaching at any time; I’m just stepping down from my more activist-like role.”

"Sure, but you're going to get a lot of media attention regardless here. Are you ready for that?"

This time it was Liam who started to speak, but Iris jumped right back in. “I can’t know for sure, of course, but I think so. I’ve given speeches and interviews before as part of my work, and while that was obviously on a much smaller scale, I never had a problem with the media.”

“And I wouldn't make this public if I wasn’t sure, Drake. You know that.”

 Drake gave a nod. “Okay then. Don’t fully trust anyone besides Liam, though.”

And that was it. Drake leaned back, relaxing fully into the couch, as Liam took a drink from his glass. Sometimes, Riley felt like they had their own little language, their private way of communicating, but she supposed that was only natural after decades of friendship. She caught eyes with Iris, looking almost bewildered at the shift of the energy in the room and gave her a little shrug. Iris smiled and raised her eyebrows. It was nice, having someone else who got to observe the weirdness that was the friendship between those two.

“Alright, so cautious and careful with the members of court. Any other tips for me on how to handle my first ball?” Iris asked.

Everyone else in the room burst out laughing at her question, erasing any last traces of tension.

“What?”

“You could not have picked two worse people to ask,” Riley said, shaking her head. “He’s just going to tell you to get drunk and avoid everyone.”

“Oh, like that wasn’t your strategy by the end as well! How many times did you just straight up steal my flask off of me because they were only offering wine and champagne?”

“I was just making sure you didn’t have to drink alone. It was simply out of concern for you that-”

“-Uh huh. Yeah.”

“Fine. To answer your question, Iris, do the exact opposite of what I did. And as long as you don’t show up in denim to the ball, you’ll be a step ahead of this one.”

“Wait, you wore denim to a formal ball?”

“Oh, not just one!” added Liam, a huge grin spreading across his face, his eyes lighting up as he stared Drake down. “Years and years of formal events saw Drake decide that denim was the most appropriate attire.”

Iris’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head. She glanced around the room, almost as if she expected someone to pop out and tell this was some massive prank.

“We aren’t kidding,” Riley said, “He and I just set the bar insanely low for you to clear. Wear a nice ballgown, don’t openly refer to other members of the nobility as ‘little bitches,’ and you should be all set.”

Iris glanced between her and Drake, the shock evident in her wide eyes.

“Yeah, so not exactly surprising we left court,” Drake said, downing the rest of his whiskey.

Iris just shook her head. “Liam told me many things about both of you, but I feel like he left out that you were so…”

“Irreverent?”

“Mad stubborn?”

“Damn foolish?”

She smiled and took a sip of her wine. “I’ll defer to your descriptions. So, I take it your wedding won’t be very formal?”

Riley felt Drake shift slightly next to her, his knee starting to fidget. “Uh no, not at all. To put things in perspective, we invited less than 25 people the first time, and we might do even less now.”

“The first time?”

“Drake and Riley ended up postponing,” Liam said, his eyes flickering over to Drake before glancing back at Iris, “They were originally set to get married this past June.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I had no idea! I never would have brought it up if-”

“-It’s fine,” Drake said, cutting off Iris’s apology. “Something came up with my family last minute.”

Iris looked conflicted as to how to best move on from the topic of conversation she’d innocently stumbled into. “Well, I’m sorry to hear that you had to make that choice. Have you set a new date?”

Drake tensed up at that and Riley had to hold back a sigh. If only Iris could have decided to change the subject instead of talk through it. “No, we haven’t yet.”

"Soon, though," Drake added before standing up, walking over to the side of the room to refill his glass.

Iris looked worried that she had said something horribly offensive, so Riley just gave her what she hoped came across as a reassuring smile as she shook her head lightly. “Yeah, it’s no big deal. Just something that had to happen.”

She could hear ice clinking into a glass, but she resisted the urge to spin around and see just how tense and uptight Drake was. She knew that as the months had passed by, the postponement had become more and more of a sore spot for him, that Drake was frustrated that they couldn’t just plan their wedding over again right away, that they had to save up again after losing all their deposits for a late cancellation. She just didn’t understand why he had gotten so stuck on this one thing. They still lived together, they still had a future together, and they were still getting married. Nothing had changed. Yet as the months had rolled by, the topic of their wedding seemed to just make him more and more antsy each time it got brought up. 

Part of her wondered how much of this was due to the fact that everyone else around them was making these big life changes, and much like being back at court, he felt like he was just being left off to the side. Hana and Catherine were married. Savannah and Bertrand had another baby. Back home, Luke and Nicole had just announced they were pregnant. And now Liam was in a relationship that seemed mad serious. It probably was creating this weird sense of being an outsider for him again. She was sure that had to be a factor.

Deep down, she knew it was very sweet that Drake’s frustrations largely stemmed from that fact that he just wanted to be married to her. But part of her wished he could just relax about it all. They would get married when they got married, and until then, they should just enjoy their lives together. Instead, it all seemed to just stress him out.

But until they saved up enough for new deposits and got things planned and organized again, Riley knew that she was just going to have to deal with his… moodiness around this whole topic. As he rejoined her on the couch, she placed her hand on his knee and gave it a gentle squeeze, just hoping that was enough to provide some reassurance and to calm him down. She didn’t want their entire trip to have those worries hanging over their heads. This was supposed to be a fun and happy visit, after all.

Perma: @walkerswhiskeygirl @octobereighth @kimmiedoo5 @mom2000aggie

TRR/TRH: @iaminlovewithtrr @mskaneko @axwalker @jovialyouthmusic @marshmallowsandfire @kingliam2019 @sirbeepsalot @texaskitten30 @princessleac1 @ladyangel70 @debramcg1106 @masterofbluff @sarahx206

Drake x MC: @no-one-u-know @iplaydrake

ICWAM: @thequeenchoices @sunnyxdazed​