#i love the order of the phoenix movie i have fond memories of watching it for the first time

[americannslytherinn]

i feel like the only reason we didn't get sirius and severus' argument about harry's occlumency lessons in the order of the phoenix film is because in the book it describes snape as being shorter than sirius, and alan rickman would've been at least half a head taller than gary oldman, so the height = intimidation is kind of lost in that front. still i would've liked to have seen it

[sovereign-aphrodite]

୭ ॱ˖ Prelude

For a heart that unfolds unceasing tenderness as light as a dove’s feather lithely floating through an abode of freedom, even if it lost glides and drifts into unsparing shadow, a stance like an eternal embers inside of phoenix made a soul remain steadfast.

˖ ࣪ ،̲،̲ Chapter I : Heart of Ode

Aletheia Jane, or Aletha, the name one commonly remembers in getting to know her. To be addressed by other nicknames that one desires would delight her as well, even an old alias to those who perhaps have been living with her from the past. For an extra fact, the name Aletheia is derived from the Greek which means truth that she as well values.

Bornt in the flashing bars of July, late of the month, in which her astrology placements are Leo sun, Scorpio moon, and Pisces rising. Has reached her legal age (around 20s). Moving on to personality, several platform where she has taken the test consistently resulted her as an INTP. Her strong determination and pragmatic self are one of that sorted her to be in Slytherin as her hogwarts house in wizzarding test.

˖ ࣪ ،̲،̲ Chapter II : Symphony of Joy

Life is not always sheltered with clear azure daylight, the rage of wild ocean tides can sometimes startle the sunshine within a bundle of one’s emotions. However, any treasured things shall be suffice to preserve solace inside, despite the downpour flooded.

Same to many hurdles that she has to jump through in life, yet stores enough things where she devotes her heart to which as well always hearten her.

✿ Books

To define her life is quoted from the French expression, “without literature, life is hell.” Suffice to conclude that she devotes her heart to books. Some of her favourite reads are historical-fiction, non-fiction, self-improvement, law & politic, fantasy, greek mythology, any kind of fictions (exclude horror since I’m not a fan of).

Specific titles : Dune, Isolation, Circe, Notasi, Harry Potter all series, Filosofi Teras, Babel, Almond, Laut Bercerita, Catatan Seorang Demonstran and other So Hok Gie series, Jingga Jenaka, Love For Imperfect Things, Dear Tomorrow, Nicola Yoon’s books, and the list go on as I probably discover more that would fit to my liking.

✿ Feminism

She places high belief in social, economic, education, and political equality of both sexes. To achieve the same rights shall not be limited by any sort of indicator, including gender. For her, it’s crucial to recognize for equal rights, opportunities, and treatment for all genders, quiting the archaic stereotypes that affect woman’s self esteem and vice versa.

✿ Law and politics

Though it’s beyond her capacity nor even her field to speak about it, she always fonds of every possible discussion studying the system that governs human behavior, ensuring order, justice, and protection of individual rights and analyzing the activities, actions, and policies related to governance and decision-making within a society. Simply such as watching Mata Najwa or another debate and brainstorm.

✿ Movies & Series

Frank to tell, she barely keeps herself updated either with movies or series considered to lack of spare time. Hence, to exchange your knowing about great movies or series will be highly anticipated by her.

However, she some specifics that delight her, such as : Dune, Mamma Mia, Grease, Harry Potter all movies, Maze Runner The Series, Hunger Games The Series, Don’t Worry Darling, F4 Thailand, Ada Apa Dengan Cinta, Tenet, Soe Hok Gie, Shadow and Bone, Little Women.

✿ Music

Discussing about taste in music, she doesn’t have specific preference like the prior ones. Her likings are based on her emotional state in a day, which is tentative.

Howevers, there are some of her personal favourites : ABBA, The Weeknd, Chase Atlantic, Artic Monkeys, EDM like Yellow Claw, 5 Seconds of Summer, One Direction, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo, Maliq & D'essentials.

˖ ࣪ ،̲،̲ Chapter III : Serenading Memory

If you mayhaps get stray in the memory of how we once happened to bound in the same page of story, here is a little map to lead you and fleet from the blurry remembrance. I was also a writer of Gen-RP, with Yeji and Jennie as my muse. If anything tickles your curiosity, her Retrospring is always friendly welcomed.

Love and softness are two essence to maintain tranquility in one’s sphere as she honors her space with an attempt of preserving it, while staying true still to her honest judgment and behaviour. Any form that’s showing disrespect, causing drama, and cyberbullying strictly can’t be tolerated here.

୭ ॱ˖ Epilogue

Lovely but deadly, soothe though undefeated, delicate yet unbending, inconceived and also determined, adjustable however still remains authentic. To either savour her thoughtful love or unsparing venom, one’s faithful heart or deceitful hand will subsequently tell.

Written wholeheartedly,

𝒜 ❤︎

[danpuff-ao3]

7 and 11 please, for snape asks!!

Hello there! Thanks for the asks!

7.) Which staff member do you think gets along well with Snape?

Not gonna lie, I always dig Minerva and Severus as a BrOTP. Strict, no-nonsense professors. Heads of House. Intelligent, skilled people. I can see theirs being a friendly rivalry, and grudging respect.

I also like the idea of him being on good terms with Septima Vector (Arithmancy) and Bathsheba Babbling (Ancient Runes) due to scholarly interest in their specialties.

ALSOOO...Charity Burbage. For no reasons other than giving that scene in the Deathly Hallows an extra tinge of tragedy. Imagine he's reading a Muggle novel in the staff room and Charity decides to start a conversation about it. Over time they move onto Muggle music, films, etc.

I can see him having little interest in Muggle things outside of what he grew up attached to. Bad memories of his old Muggle home and his Muggle father and having his magic hated, on top of his own love for magic and wanting to be fully Wizard. Maybe Charity sparks his interest in Muggle media again. Having someone to talk to, whose passionate about things, makes him curious and go back to his roots.

Then: her death. (Cuz I'm a terrible angst lover, oops.)

11.) Your favourite scenes with book/movie!Snape?

I'll be honest, I've not watched the films half as often as I've read the books, but the movie scene that sticks out to me most is in Prisoner of Azkaban when he throws himself bodily between the Trio and werewolf Lupin.

As for the books, oh so many! I'm especially fond of his introduction speeches for Potions in Philosopher's Stone, and Defense in Half-Blood Prince. The knowledge, the passion, the poetry! And the Occlumency lessons in Order of the Phoenix (for all of my Snarry feels, of course.)

Snape asks

answered: 22, 25, 27; 43, 45, 49; 6, 14, 26; 7, 11

[bamfdaddio]

X-Men Abridged: 1981

The X-Men, those back-to-the-future mutants that have sworn to protect a world that hates and fears them, are a cultural juggernaut with a long, tangled history. Want to unravel this tapestry? Then read the Abridged X-Men!

(Uncanny X-Men 141 - 152) - by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, Brent Anderson, Dave Cockrum, Jim Sherman, Bob McLeod and Josef Rubinstein

While I also committed various fashion atrocities at the age of 14 (tye-die and fauxhawks, oh my), even Liberace would find Kitty’s outfits too much. (Uncanny X-Men 149; Uncanny X-Men Annual ‘81)

We dial back from the v. epic scope of the last few arcs. Instead, 1981 is just a lot of fun! We get:

Storm and Emma doing a Freaky Friday!

the X-Men vs. Magneto (again!)

A surprisingly effective Alien rip-off

An dystopian future! (OoOoOoOo)

Last year was the year of the Dark Phoenix, this is the year of Kitty Pryde. That’s not to say Jean’s death is swept under the rug: all throughout, we see her friends mourning her loss or remembering her fondly. (Scott even gets to have a demonic adventure about it.) But in general, Claremont puts Kitty in the forefront, fleshing out his YA-addition to the team. And what would a YA heroine be without a grim dystopia? Roll out the iconic Days of Future Past!

To be fair, 2013 was a dark time for all of us: What Does the Fox Say somehow got to the top of the charts and I was still watching Glee. (Uncanny X-Men 141)

How cool would it have been to see a name like Jonothon Starsmore or Eva Bell on those tombstones?

Anyway, that’s Kate. Kate’s had it rough. Mutants are at the bottom of the foodchain, most X-Men are dead and only a small cadre of resistance fighters remain, Sentinels dominate, and while she is married to Piotr, her children have been murdered. Bleak. Luckily, the rebellion has concocted the plan to shunt Kate’s spirit back in time to prevent this awful future from happening. (You’ve seen Days of Future Past, the last passably good X-Men film, you know what’s up.)

Let’s do the time warp again! 1981!Kitty’s mind gets taken over by 2013!Kitty, who promptly tries to convince the X-Men that a new Brotherhood of v. Evil Mutants will try to kill Senator Kelly, a presidential candidate who tries to put the mutant menace on the agenda. (Mutants tend to blow stuff up when he’s around.) Since the X-Men recently took a literal trip to Dante’s Infero and also befriended a cosmic world-ending entity, they basically shrug and go: “Yeah, this checks out.”

Off to Washington they go (zoommm) and there, they happen upon the Baddest Bitches in Herstory:

“How dare you hate mutants, senator Kelly! We’ll fix that by killing you!” (Uncanny X-Men 141)

This All-New, All-Different Brotherhood consists out of:

Destiny, a blind woman who can see the future. Definitely the eeriest member of this group. Badass lesbian, though that won´t be canon for years.

Avalanche. Greek who makes things shake. Is a long-standing member of the X-Men Rogue’s gallery, but rarely features in the spotlight. I think he got more characterization in four years of X-Men Evolution than he ever did in the comics.

Mystique. Shapeshifter. Ruthless and unhinged, the Cersei Lannister of the X-Men universe. Absolute legend, secretly the wife of Destiny, currently not as unhinged as she’ll be later. Immediately implied to be related to Nightcrawler: it’s the yellow-eyes-blue-skin-combo.

Pyro. Can manipulate fire, not create it. Absolute pillock, in all the best ways of the word. Originally intended as gay, but they decided to make him Australian instead. (?!)

Blob. Big, strong, immovable. We’ve seen him before.

One of the details in this fight I enjoy is that Storm is still struggling with her leadership, although she has a better grip on things than Cyclops:

Wolverine then proceeds to use those iconic but deadly claws about twice per issue for the next, oh, forty years. (Uncanny X-Men 142)

While the X-Men fight the Brotherhood in the present, we cut back and forth to the future. There, the X-Men consist out of some familiar faces - Storm, Colossus, Wolverine - and some surprises: Magneto (in a wheelchair), Franklin Richards (son of) and an unfamiliar ginger girl called Rachel. (She’ll be important later.) We even learn (one of) Magneto’s names: this is the first time he’s canonically called Magnus.

One of the strengths of Days of Future Past lies in its brevity, the way it tantalizingly taunts us with a brutal but familiar future without giving away too much. It’s single-handedly responsible for all those dark future timelines the X-lines are so fond of which will eventually culminate in time-displaced grandsons from alternative dimensions and the impossibility of a succinct answer to the question: “Who’s Cable?” Too much of a good thing and all that.

Still, what Days of Future Past does so successfully is:

Put the idea of the mutant menace back at the forefront, hammering home the metaphor of mutants being a minority. Mutants being put in camps and being forbidden to breed should - regretfully - make us think of all too many real life equivalents. (Specifically, all of the imagery harkens back to the Holocaust.)

It starkly shows what happens should the X-Men lose, reminding everyone of the stakes. The X-Men are here for a reason: bridging the gap between mutants and humankind. If they fuck up, we end up with mutant concentration camps.

It helps that the X-Men in the future almost all die horribly: Franklin is incinerated, Storm is impaled… It's brutal stuff. The only one to survive is Rachel, who wonders if their plan actually changed the future or if they created an alternative timeline. (It did the latter, sorry ‘bout it, Rachel.)

In the present, Kate chases after Destiny, who trains a gun on senator Kelly. I always wondered how this works: if Destiny saw the future, she knew that killing Kelly would trigger a terrifying future. What in the current Marvel timeline made her decide that the Days of Future Past was better? Did she see her own death? Did she see the Onslaught-crossover coming? The Chuck Austen run? What was it?

In any case, time-anomalous Kate stops Destiny from killing Kelly and the future is safe! For now. Kate disappears, Kitty returns to her body and some of the Brotherhood are apprehended. All is well, for now.

After being a key figure in DoFP, Kitty is also the main character in the Christmas special, which is basically a straight up horror and a pastiche of the Alien-movie.

Seriously, John Byrne still isn’t sure why he wasn’t sued by Ridley Scott for this. (Uncanny X-Men 143)

If you love Kitty Pryde? Read this issue. If you’re not convinced you like 80’s Kitty? Read this issue. It’s not continuity relevant and it’s basically Kitty playing the part of a Final Girl in a horror where she’s being chased by a demon, but it’s so good. It showcases all her strengths and her foibles. Kitty’s intelligent, cute (sometimes preciously so) and brave, but she’s also young, self-conscious and hot-headed. And it's not as if the other X-Men automatically adore her: Storm berates her all the time, she’s afraid of Kurt because of the way he looks (though she grows out of that) and she fights with Professor Xavier a lot. Moreover, she has a clever power-set for a young superhero who faces menaces on a daily basis: a thirteen year old who can go intangible is far less likely to have reality ensue on her and be dramatically offed because she's better at protecting herself.

I’m sure there are people who thought Sprite was hogging the spotlight, but I, for one, say she brings more to the table than, say, Angel. She’s not the Dawn Summers of this franchise.

Scott also gets a side quest. Poor guy can’t catch a break: first the love of his life dies, so he quits the X-Men, then he realizes he can’t do much else than be a superhero. He becomes a sailor on the ship of spunky captain Lee Forrester, is drawn into the sadistic plans of a demon unironically named D’Spayre and then shipwrecks in Bermuda with Lee.

The X-Men, meanwhile, are tormented by a team-up of Doom (who’s currently Latverialess and working on a comeback) and Arcade, that annoying crony. Locke, Arcade’s dom, has kidnapped the loved ones of the X-Men (Moira MacTaggart, Jean Grey’s parents, Illyana Rasputin and Amanda Sefton) in order to blackmail them into getting Doom to free Arcade. Apparently, Arcade accidentally insulted Doom and DOOM DOES NOT FORGIVE THAT FOLLY.

While the B-Squad (Polaris, Havok, Banshee and Iceman) goes to save Arcade’s hostages, the X-Men sneak into Doom’s castle. Well, except for Storm, who doesn’t give a single fuck and simply flies up to Doom, demanding an audience. Doom likes the cut of her jib and invites her to have dinner. (This is pre-Tinder, so this is a legit way of scoring a date.)

If Storm has a flaw (I said if!), it’s got to be her atrocious taste in men. (Uncanny X-Men 145)

The X-Men find Arcade’s cell empty, while Arcade casually saunters up to Storm and says hi. Storm realizes too late that this is a trap: while the X-Men are all trapped in Saw-like traps, Storm is encased in ‘living chrome’.

If you remember she’s claustrophobic, you know why this is a bad move.

While the X-Men free themselves from their traps - Polaris hilariously has to deal with a murderous merry-go-round - Storm is slowly driven mad in her prison, triggering a worldwide tempest. (She causes Lee and Scott to shipwreck.) Under the threat of Wolverine’s claws, Doom releases Storm - or rather, unleashes her.

“Instead of a Dark Lord, you would have a queen, not dark but beautiful and terrible as the dawn! Tempestuous as the sea, and stronger than the foundations of the earth! All shall love me and despair!” (Uncanny X-Men 147)

The memory of Jean brings Ororo back to herself and she starts undoing the superstorm she created. (If only climate change were reversed that easily.) Their confrontation ends by Storm easily forgiving Doom, because she apparently trespassed on his grounds without adequate cause.

Mkay.

All of Arcade’s hostages return to their homesteads, except for Illyana Rasputin, Piotr’s sister: she’s staying at the mansion for a while. Angel, who’s sort of been a part of the team since the Phoenix thing, has had it with Wolverine and his ‘tude, and decides to quit the X-Men : he doesn’t want to be a part of an outfit that has a killer like Wolverine on it. (Or maybe he’s just mad Claremont didn’t give him any storylines: his presence has been mostly pointless.) It’s too bad he left before Kitty started experimenting with her outfits: I bet he would have loved her ugly-ass costumes.

Equally inconsequential is the introduction of a brand new character, who then proceeds to disappear from the narrative for the rest of the year:

Black Tom has tried to kill you at least twice, but him sending you a long-lost daughter doesn’t give you pause? Ugh, Sean, you deserve Moira. (Uncanny X-Men 148)

Intrigued by Theresa? TOO BAD, WON’T SEE HER AGAIN ANYTIME SOON.

Another new character is the lonely, decidedly mutant looking Caliban, who can sense “people like him” and is on the lookout for companions. Like many lonely people who try and grasp at friendship, he decides to overshoot his shot and ruin the night of Storm, Kitty and Jessica Drew at a Dazzler concert. Because he tries to kidnap Kitty, the girls react a trifle aggressively. When they realize their mistake - the eerily pale Caliban is a simpleton rather than a menace - he’s already fled. No mention is made of the Morlocks yet!

There’s also another dull annual where the X-Men team up with the Fantastic Four to save Arkon’s dimension from the Badoon and yaaaaawn. Far more interesting is the landmark issue #150. Slowly, through the adventures of Scott and Lee Forrester, Claremont has been setting things up for the return of a favorite villain. While the X-Men investigate Magneto’s old base in Antarctica on a hunch of Professor X and tangle with Garruk, Scott and Lee survive Storm’s tempest, only to wake up next to a strange island that seems to have been raised from the ocean.

It’s apparently some ancient citadel from a long forgotten civilization with a fondness for squid statues. (I don’t know man, I’ve never been to the Bermuda Triangle, maybe this is just super-accurate.)The tentacles make Lee Forrester feel very amorous, but before Scott can tell her he is way too repressed to just have sex with an attractive someone he’s known intimately for a month or two, Magneto saves his ass by revealing he, in fact, raised this island from the seafloor.

Oh, Magneto. So extra.

My ambitious little mutant demagogue then proceeds to take the entire world hostage, showing how much he’s grown from the pompous, raving madman from the sixties. (Sure, Magneto is still a bit of a madman, but increasingly, he starts being on the right side of history.)

“I’m trying to make Magneto more sympathetic.”

“Just put him on a page with some bigger villains who are less noble, like the Vanisher, Count Nefaria, or…”

“Reagan, Thatcher and Brezhnov?”

“Er.” (Uncanny X-Men 150)

It’s obvious Magneto is being pivoted as a more noble villain, codified into the well-intentioned extremist we know and love today. Not only do we get the first hints at his past, fleshing out his motivations, he’s also not wrong. Humans are historically not great at taking care of the planet or each other.

When the Russians call his bluff and launch nukes at Magneto’s new island, he quickly disarms them. His retribution is swift and ferocious: the entire citadel is a machine that massively amplifies his powers. He sinks the submarine that launched the missiles, condemning the entire crew to death, and he casually erects a vulcano in a Russian city in Siberia.

Damn. Not messing around this time.

Despite his good intentions, Magneto is still definitely in the wrong: not only because of his methods, but as Scott points out: if Magneto unifies the world under his kind of benevolent dictatorship, all of that will simply fall apart as soon as Magnus dies.

In a way, Magneto is just as big a dreamer as Charles is: Charles believes in peace and integration, whereas Magneto believes his iron fist will be enough to make a perfect world happen. Both of them ignore the reality that acceptance is difficult and messy, because you’re trying to change essential human nature: the fear of the other. Magneto believes in big, sweeping gestures that will fix the world in move, while changing the world is also boring, hard work. One step forward, two steps back. Magneto just wants to leapfrog to his ultimate goal.

The X-Men fly over the citadel, returning from Antarctica, and their plane crashes into the ocean. (Magneto does not brook planes over his territory, humans!) The Professor is also nearby, looking for Scott with Moira, Peter Corbeau and Carol Danvers. The X-Men sneak onto the island, but to their horror, their powers are nullified by some machine of Magneto. They reunite with Scott, who formulates a plan to thwart the would-be ruler of the world.

While the rest of the X-Men go to trash the machine, Storm, Kitty and Lee infiltrate the control chamber where Storm finds a sleeping, shirtless Magneto. Once again showing her terrible taste in men, she is not weak in the knees at the sight of a sleeping Magnus: instead, she contemplates killing him.

Storm knows how dangerous he is, but she also knows that he’s a great man who’s fighting for ideals, no matter how misguided. She hesitates too long: Magneto stirs, suspects an attack and tosses her out of the window, to her death.

Magneto quickly undoes the sabotage the other X-Men have wrought to his machine. A fight erupts. Storm, meanwhile, has managed to grab hold of a ledge. She crawls back up and smashes an important-looking computer, restoring everyone’s powers.

The battle turns grim, but Scott sends Kitty away to wreck Magneto’s machinery. She sneaks off, following Scott’s orders and destroying both Magneto's power-up device and all of his plans by phasing though the computer circuitry. Magneto senses this and furiously gives chase. Overcome by rage, he attacks Kitty and disrupts her phasing power with a magnetic bolt, seemingly killing her?

Everything about this story beat is great: mama bear!Ororo, mournful Magnus and even the fact that Kitty’s godawful outfit serves a narrative function: highlighting to us (and Magneto) just how young she is. The fact that Kitty’s Jewish is just icing on the cake. (Uncanny X-Men 150)

And thus, the softening of Magneto commences. 1981 might be a year with wildly varying narratives, but it has given us at least three enduring legacies to the X-Mythos: a new kind of Magneto, a fondness for dystopian futures and the character of Kitty Pryde, who's really come into her own this year.

Ugliest Costume: Kitty! Purposefully, but still. Best costume, by the way, goes to Destiny, with her creepy, creepy golden mask. Just imagine this lady casually strolling across a battlefield, eerily calm and collected, dodging everything you throw at her. Awesome design.

Best new character: I usually pick one character - what good is having a shared award when declaring the best of anything? - but this year, it’s going to one of my favorite couples: Mystique and Destiny. Can’t wait to see more of them.

Most audacious retcon: Blob somehow retroactively becomes a member of the original Brotherhood, which is not what happened. Ever weirder is Xavier pondering that he never met Magneto before his attack in X-Men #1, while their cordially adversarial relationship rooted in a youthful friendship would soon become a cornerstone of the X-Men.

What to read: Uncanny X-Men 141 - 143 and 150 - 152

[edgcworth]

Home (Part 1/2)

Summary: Miles wanted to feel at home again, so he figured the right thing to do was that he provided a home for a dog that had lost theirs as well. He reached into his pocket for his phone, opened his browser and typed in “dog shelters near me”

Home. Much to his distaste, the concept that his mind gave to the word was uncharacteristically corny coming from someone as realistic as him. He had always envisioned a home as a place in which you simply feel like you belong. Which is definitely not something he felt in his quiet apartment. Silence was the norm here except for when Phoenix and Trucy would come over for dinner, then the apartment came to life for a little while, but they eventually went home and silence returned. Slowly settling down on his living room sofa, tea cup in hand, he couldn’t help but sigh and roll his eyes at himself for having such a romanticized concept for the word home. Having a rare day off to relax in his apartment was a double edged sword; for one his body could enjoy some rest from his merciless workaholic habits, but his brain just...didn’t quite get the memo to relax as well.

Come to think of it, it had been years since he really called a place home. The memories he had of those years kept becoming more and more distant as the years flew by. As strict and methodical as Miles could be, every now and then he allowed himself to indulge in reminiscing of home. He wished he could do it more often but he needed his absolute concentration for his job, so playing his memories on his mind to escape reality became a rare little treat he gave himself on a rough day. After setting down the now empty cup of tea in the coffee table in front of him, Miles slumped against the couch behind him and let his mind drift away to memories of his home.

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

It was the first week of July and he was walking home after his last day of third grade. The blazing sun was having no mercy on him so his normally multi-layered outfit had to be dismantled to just his dress shirt and shorts. As much as he prided himself on his careful selection for his school clothes he also didn’t want to have a heat stroke in the middle of the street, so he had stored his jacket and bowtie in his backpack to avoid sweating any more than he already had.

Due to his father’s job as defense attorney, Miles was no stranger to having to walk home from time to time. Whether it was a trial, a meeting or unfinished paperwork, there were times in which his dad simply couldn’t pick him up from school. He never complained about it since he liked having some alone time to think and the walk wasn’t more than 10 minutes, but now as the asphalt radiated back the heat from the sun onto him he wasn’t too thrilled about the walk.Thankfully, he was just a block a way from home so his suffering would end soon.

As he took out his key to the house from his backpack, he heard the unmistakable sound of his small Pomeranian’s paws clicking against the floor, quickly approaching the door and starting to whine for Miles to open it. As soon as he did, the small dog tried to pounce  on his legs while jumping up and down, barking and wagging his tail to greet him. “Hey Missile, I missed you too” Miles said smiling as he kneeled down to softly scratch his pup’s head. Once his shoes were off, he entered the house and headed for the kitchen with Missile following behind him, he was dying to get a glass of cold cold water. 

What he didn’t expect to find however, was his dad sitting down waiting for him. Gregory beamed when he saw his son enter the kitchen and stood up from the small dining table he was sat at. “Hey Miles, sorry I couldn’t pick you up today,  I wanted to do something to celebrate your last day of school so I didn’t take any breaks and got all my work done” Gregory explained, he then gestured towards the plate that was before him. As his eyes set on the plate, a surprised gasp escaped Miles lips, his dad had prepared him a small chocolate brownie with two vanilla ice cream scoops on top. Before he could say anything Gregory continued; “I am taking the rest of the day off for us to celebrate together” He finished his explanation with a fond smile. Miles couldn’t hold back his happiness any longer and sprinted to hug his dad. “Thank you so much father!”- He exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around him and squeezed tight. “You have no idea how happy his makes me!” Becoming jealous of the attention not being on him, Missile jumped at them, making Gregory laugh. “Yes, Missile you can be part of our celebration day as well” His dad jokingly reassured the tiny dog.

After having enjoyed his special brownie and ice cream treat, the evening went on with them going to the park together with Missile. As they walked together hand in tiny hand, Miles asked his dad to talk about any interesting cases he was working on and Gregory indulged him, feeling touched at how much his son admired his profession. When the sun started to set, they went back home, just in time for Miles’ favorite show, The Signal Samurai to start. After having sat down in the living room couch which Missile jumped onto as well, Miles hurriedly turned on the tv and got to the channel the show was on. As Gregory started walking towards the kitchen to make dinner, the sound of Miles’ voice stopped him.  “F-father I know you have to make dinner...but..would you mind watching the episode with me?” Gregory turned around to see his son blushing a little, he always found it so endearing that Miles was so shy that he occasionally blushed when asking things from him. Gregory evaluated the situation on his mind, he wanted to make Miles happy so he could probably just order them a pizza and join him but a small pang of guilt in him knew he already had given him a not so healthy meal earlier. Eventually Miles’ expression had him give in. “Sure, Miles, what toppings do you want for the pizza?”

After the episode had ended and the pizza was eaten, they had decided to watch a movie. Halfway through, sleep started to take over Miles and he rested his head on his father’s arm, slowly drifting off. Through his tiredness escaped a last feeling: a feeling of feeling loved, feeling happy and safe, a feeling of being at home.

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

Slowly coming back to reality, Miles scrunched his eyes shut and buried his face in his hands. There was nothing that could be done about the tears that slipped down his cheeks, just as there was nothing that could be done about his father, he was gone. His home had been ripped away from him in the cruelest way possible and decades after he still hadn’t found one again. But he was tired of marinating in nostalgia, he wanted to feel at home again, in the present and in reality.

He tried to study what aspects of his life before DL-6 could be salvaged and replicated onto his life now. Something that he could get learn to enjoy without Gregory now. What could he bring back to make his cold apartment more like a home?

Walking home from the courthouse? Hell. No. He had paid good money for his sports car and refused to ruin his suit. Pizza and ice cream brownies? Not a very good idea for a grown man in his thirties. Walks in the park? Mmm...walks in the park was doable, but doing so alone would be boring. After all, the fun of going to the park was being there with Missile. Oh Missile, the poor boy was also gone now. He had lived almost 15 years with Miles but had passed away due to health complications right after the Gant trial.

Maybe...he could get another dog? The idea wasn’t too crazy, after all, pets were allowed in the apartments he lived and as chief prosecutor he was busy, but mostly doing office work instead of trials. He also had his private office and could bring the dog with him on long work days if needed. For some reason, the thought of buying a dog didn’t sit well with him. Missile had been adopted after his owner abandoned him. Miles wanted to feel at home again so he figured the right thing to do was that he provided a home for a dog that had lost theirs as well. He reached into his pocket for his phone, opened his browser and typed in “dog shelters near me” He was set on being happy again. 

[sebastbu]

My Top 40 Movies of the Decade

***just my opinion***this list is not set in stone either***

1. 12 Years A Slave (2013)

What Steve McQueen has managed to do with this movie in nothing short of the best thing art is capable of. He takes the horror of humanity and turns it into a heart shattering tale of the best of humanity. A film that could have sunk easily among the brutality it contains, instead soars with Solomon’s survival. It is one of the most life-affirming, uplifting works of art I’ve ever seen. It makes you cry, it makes you shout, it makes you cheer, it makes you breathless. In short, all the things movies are best at. Not just a definitive movie, but a definitive work of art.

2. The Act of Killing (2012)

This has my vote for the best documentary film of all time. What begins as a transfixing profile of the mass murders responsible for the 1965 Indonesian genocide quickly transforms into a Brechtian nightmare as director Joshua Oppenheimer somehow convinces these men to stage scenes for a fake movie reenacting their crimes. As the film progresses you can hardly believe what you’re witnessing. Horrifying, yet you can’t look away. Oppenheimer holds your attention for every second. What’s captured for film here is truly unique, ground-breaking, soul shaking. A statement about the banality of evil as profound as Ardent’s essays. 

3. The Tree of Life (2011)

Malick has reached his final form here. An organic art form, pure cinema, visual poetry, whatever you want to call it. Nothing but a movie could be this. The images he crafts here are as close to a religious experience as I’ve ever had watching a movie, and probably ever will. In exploring childhood memories, Malick’s style perfectly matches his subject manner. He use of ellipsis and fluidity mirrors the way memories flash through our heads. It is as if we are witnessing memory directly, unfiltered. This movie will move you in ways you didn’t know a movie could. 

4. The Social Network (2010)

That Facebook movie? Hell yeah that facebook movie. What Fincher and Sorkin have managed to do is take what could be a standard biopic, or dull tech movie, and made it into an epic tale of betrayal, greed, friendship, coming of age, and identity. Ross and Reznor’s score pulses, as does the dialogue. This movie starts the instant you press play and it doesn’t let you catch your breath for one second until the very end. Endlessly quotable, perfected acted. A masterclass.

5. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

What can I say about this movie? Every shot is perfect. Every joke, beat, pan, zoom. Well, I guess I’ll say this. This movie disarms with its charm, its facade. But at its heart is a wrenching tale of loss, nostalgia, and the fleeting nature of everything, especially those we love. A jewel of a film. Anderson makes sure you’re cozy and then pulls the rug out from under you, and suddenly you’re crying. 

6. The Master (2012)

Career best performances from Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Lushly shot. Greenwood delivers another ground breaking score. PTA has made an aimless film about aimless characters that nevertheless is riveting. At the end, you may not know exactly how far you’ve progressed, but you’re sure glad you went on the journey. 

7. Drive (2011)

This is not an action movie. It’s a love story. The now famous dream pop soundtrack. Ryan Gosling doing so much with so little. Refn’s breathtaking cinematography. Diluted dreams. Crushed hopes. Silent gazes, filled with more emotion than dialogue could ever render.

8. The Revenant (2015)

An achievement of pure cinematic insanity. I still have no idea how they got some of these shots. A brutal, thrilling story of survival among nature’s cruelty. Inarritu’s camera is like magic in this film, uncovering the previously thought not possible. 

9. La La Land (2016)

A reinvention of a genre that somehow manages to have its cake and eat it too: a nostalgia trip that also subverts expectations. Right up there next to Singin’ in the Rain, in my book at least. How on earth was that only Chazelle’s second ever movie? 

10. The Lighthouse (2019)

TELL ME YE FOND O ME LOBSTER! WHYD YA SPILL YOUR BEANS? IF I HAD A STEAK ID FUCK IT. That about sums it up.

11. Parasite (2019)

Bong Joon Ho has made a beautifully twisted psychological thriller that is also hilarious, touching, and a lasting commentary on class and social mobility. 

12. The Florida Project (2017)

Baker’s approach of setting this story from the viewpoint of children makes it a glorious romp through a world of innocence as well as tragedy, and also makes it all the more emotionally impactful.

13. Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

It’s all about the cat. Alongside the Coen’s mastery of dialogue and the side character, as well as the beautiful folk music, this film acts as a deeply moving portrayal of depression, and how sometimes we are our own worst enemy. 

14. Moonlight (2016)

Expertly crafted. Expertly acted. Expertly shot. A gorgeously rendered coming of age story. I’m not really the person who should speak of its importance. I’ll just say: it is. Very. A movie that will stun you. 

15. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Practical! Effects! Yeah, that really is Tom Hardy swinging fifty feet off the ground on a pole as explosions go off behind him. A feminist, post-apocalypse, road trip movie brought to you by the director of Happy Feet and Babe 2. What more could you want?

16. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

A wonderful celebration of childhood and of fantasy. Anderson crafts a world you want to return to again and again. Anyone else get jump scared when they realized Lucas Hedges was in this??? 

17. Arrival (2016)

I love Denis Villeneuve’s films for so many reasons. The most important I think is that he balances entertainment and artistic depth so well. Like all great scifi Arrival is not really about aliens, it’s about us. 

18. Inception (2010)

A film that runs on all cyclinders. Smart, funny, jaw dropping, just plain fun. Nolan manages to build some surprisingly moving moments as well. 

19. Gone Girl (2014)

Ah Fincher and his twists. Rosemund Pike at the top of her game. Ross and Reznor return with another gripping score. Around the narrative, Fincher creates a fascinating portrayal of the media and marriage, one with endless twists and turns. You never quite know where it’s headed.

20. Sicario (2015)

A second thing I love about Dennis Villeneuve: he does point of view characters better than anyone else. 

21. Enemy (2014)

A third thing I love about Dennis Villeneuve: he plays with genre and narrative structure unlike anyone else working right now.

22. Incendies (2010)

A fourth thing I love about Denis Villeneuve: he’s given us some of the best female lead characters this decade.

23. Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

A fifth thing I love about Denis Villeneuve: he somehow managed make a Blade Runner sequel work. Here’s hoping for Dune. 

24. The Look of Silence (2014)

The companion film of The Act of Killing. Oppenheimer does it again, this time focusing more on the victims of the genocide. Groundbreaking cinema.

25. Shame (2011)

Slow clap for Michael Fassbender. Slow clap for Carey Mulligan. Slow clap for Steven Mcqueen.

26. Hereditary (2018)

Using horror to examine mental illness and family trauma. Aster has made a new classic of genre, taking it to new heights.

27. Under The Skin (2014)

How to make a movie about an alien descended onto earth in order to capture men and engulf them in her weird black room of goo? Make a very alienation movie. Chilling. Otherworldly. Haunting. 

28. Son of Saul (2015)

In making any holocaust film there’s always the risk of feeling exploitative. Nemes’s radical camera work, focusing almost entirely on the main character’s face in close up leaves this concern in the dust. The horrors enter only at the corners of the frame, while humanity is firmly centered the whole time. An important film everyone should see. 

29. Whiplash (2014)

As visceral and heart pounding as the solos performed, the film as a whole is a perfectly made portrait of a obsession. 

30. Amour (2012)

Haneke takes his unforgiving approach and lays bare a topic with incredible emotional depth. The result is deeply moving without ever being sentimental. I’m hard pressed to find another film about old age that is this poignant. 

31. Birdman (2014)

A whirlwind of a film. A high wire act. The long takes turn it into something more akin to a play. A pretty damn good one at that. 

32. Once Upon A Time In Anatolia (2011)

What’s Chekhov doing in the 21st Century? He’s in Turkey. He name is Nuri Ceylan. 

33. The Favourite (2018)

Lanthimos turns down his style and turns up his humor. The result is the best of both worlds: a dark, twisted tale of power and a hilarious parody of monarchy and British costume drama. 

34. Phantom Thread (2018)

PTA delivers again. What could easily have been another tired tale of the obsessive artist and the woman behind him is instead a fairy tale-ish ensnaring of two people’s ineffable pull towards each other. 

35. A Hidden Life (2019)

Still fresh in my mind. Malick’s late style is given the backbone it needed in the form of a relevant tale of resistance and struggle. A meditative, prayer-like film about the power of belief. 

36. Prisoners (2013)

A sixth thing I love about Denis Villeneuve: his movies have layers, but only if you look. Otherwise, the ride is pretty great as well. 

37. Manchester By The Sea (2016)

A masterclass in doing less with more. 

38. Foxcatcher (2014)

Bennett Miller does biopics unlike anyone else. That is to say, maybe better than anyone else working today. 

39. The Witch (2015)

Eggers’s first foray into historical New England horror. A chilling commentary on the evils of puritanism.

40. The Kid With A Bike (2011)

The Dardenne brothers managed to make a gut-wrenching tale of childhood, masculinity, abandonment, the power of empathy, belonging, and redemption in 84 minutes. Here’s a suggestion. Watch this movie. Then watch it again. A better use of the same amount of time it takes to sit through The Irishman. Oh wait, no you still have 30 minutes left over. 

[mundxngus]

MISTREAT YOUR ALTAR BOYS & THIS IS WHAT YOU GET

𝖖 𝖚 𝖔 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

“A liar, a thief, and utterly without conscience. But he'll keep to any deal you strike with him.” — Six of Crows, Leigh Bardugo. “Courage has never been a chameleon’s best attribute and some days, it’s not mine either.” — Rudy Francisco “It’s my money. I stole it.” — From Dusk til Dawn.  “The thief, as will become apparent, was a special type of thief. This thief was an artist of theft. Other thieves merely stole everything that was not nailed down, but this thief stole the nails as well.” — Sourcery, Terry Pratchett.

𝖇 𝖆 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈

NAME: Mundungus Proinsias Fletcher NICKNAMES: Dung, Fletcher, (many a variation on the truly horrific name he was gifted with.) AGE: 29 BIRTHDAY: August 3, 1950.  GENDER: CisMale PRONOUNS: he/his

𝖋 𝖆 𝖒 𝖎 𝖑 𝖞

MOTHER: Agnes Mary Fletcher nee Duffy (deceased) muggle. FATHER: Proinsias Rafferty Fletcher (54, estranged) wizard.  SIBLINGS: Harriet (Hatty) Duffy (33), Noreen Duffy (32) (estranged). muggles.

𝖕 𝖍 𝖞 𝖘 𝖎 𝖈 𝖆 𝖑 𝖆𝖙𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖇𝖚𝖙𝖊𝖘

FACE CLAIM: DJ Cotrona. BUILD: Short, athletic, surprisingly strong and scrappy.  HAIR:  Kept cropped short, noticeably longer than usual due to a falling out with Knockturn’s resident barber. HAIR COLOR: Black. EYE COLOR: Dark brown. SKIN COLOR: Olive-toned. DOMINANT HAND: Ambidextrous, though he favours his left hand as a rule. ANOMALIES: There is heavy scarring up his right arm which he has made an effort to cover with tattoos. Notably amongst these tattoos is nestled a compass (which will aways find the right direction in a bind), a swallow on the back of either hand to signify an accomplished traveller, a black cat wearing a hat on his bicep, a murder of crows dominate his right forearm and a ship across his ribs.   SCENT: Tobacco, whiskey and something that hits the back of the nose like a kick of pepper.  ACCENT: A strong Belfast accent that has failed to soften no matter how long he stays away. ALLERGIES: Deeply allergic to Mandrake Root and, as a result, a great many potions that are used as antidotes to various ailments. DISORDERS:  A much denied and buried case of PTSD that will emerge in the presence of explosions or fire. FASHION: Estate Sale-chic, as the kids would say. Dung is fond of a good bargain, though how good the bargains he finds amongst dead people’s things is .. often questionable. He dresses nicely, but always slightly oddly, as if the clothes he’s wearing weren’t meant for him or have been heavily modified (usually with a few dozen extra pockets for .. reasons). A permanent fixture of his wardrobe is a silver pendant of Saint Jude on a chain, gifted to him by his mother. It is perhaps the only thing he has ever been sentimental about. NERVOUS TICS: Picking at his nails. He’ll often play with coins or cards when restless - silly sleight of hand and card-tricks that promote dexterity. Playing with the pendant he wears on a chain around his neck. Smoking is usually a fair sign of stress. QUIRKS: Very expressive with his hands while talking, quick on his feet, talks fast and mercilessly, usually as a form of distraction. 

𝖑 𝖎 𝖋 𝖊 𝖘 𝖙 𝖞 𝖑 𝖊

RESIDES: In the flat above The White Wyvern, Knockturn Alley. BORN:  Belfast, Ireland. RAISED: Holyland, Belfast, Ireland.  PETS: None. He is a big hit with the stray cats of Knockturn Alley though.

CAREER: Professional thief, part-time Bartender, fight club Bookie, jack of all crimes. EXPERIENCE: A long and colourful rap sheet, much maligned by the Auror’s Department. EMPLOYER: Officially, Frederick “Fat Freddie” Gamp, owner of the White Wyvern & Billy “Black Cap” Nightshade, owner of the Spiny Serpent. Unofficially? Himself, or whoever requires his services.

POLITICAL AFFILIATION: The Order of the Phoenix, technically.  BELIEFS: A pragmatist at heart, Mundungus aligns himself with the people who are least likely to kill him for the state of his blood. Survival and profit have always been his key motivators. MISDEMEANORS: Look. FELONIES: Don’t @ him.  DRUGS: Recreationally. SMOKES: Fitfully. Usually when stressed. ALCOHOL: Is he permanently just this side of drunk or is it all an act? We just don’t know. DIET: Does he exist solely on cigarettes, alcohol and bacon butties? Scientifically unproven.

LANGUAGES: English, smidgens still of Gaeilge. 

PHOBIAS: Fire, explosions, being trapped or confined. HOBBIES: Stealing from the rich, romantic moonlight graverobbing, banter with the locals at the Wyvern. Mundungus is never not on the grift. TRAITS: { + }: Resourceful, Quick-Witted, Silver-Tongued, Dynamic, Cunning. { - }: Opportunistic, Self-Serving, Callous, Disloyal, Boastful. 

𝖋 𝖆 𝖛 𝖔 𝖗 𝖎 𝖙 𝖊 𝖘

LOCATION: Almost any part of Knockturn Alley, but in particular the rooftop of the White Wyvern is a favourite haunt when he does not wish to be around people. SPORTS TEAM: The Ballycastle Bats, out of some lingering loyalty to his hometown. GAME: Betting. Though he’s always been a fan of boxing. MUSIC: Will listen to almost anything and is a big fan of the enchanted jukebox in the White Wyvern (cursed to only ever play one song), but he is vehemently not a fan of Celestina Warbeck.  MOVIES: He has vivid memories of his sisters watching movies while they were growing up, but he’d never had the patience required to sit down and watch them.  FOOD: Ulster Fry. BEVERAGE: Firewhiskey, on a discerning day. A pint on any other. COLOR: Black. It doesn’t show the stains.

𝖒 𝖆 𝖌 𝖎 𝖈

ALUMNI HOUSE: Slytherin. WAND:  14 1/4″, surprisingly swishy, spruce & dragon heartstring.  AMORTENTIA: Whiskey, the smell of bacon frying, votive candles and incense. PATRONUS:  Ferret — curious, mischievous and high energy, ferrets manifest for people with playful spirits and calculating minds. They represent resourcefulness, self-reliance, and ingenuity. BOGGART: His mother, burning.

𝖈 𝖍 𝖆 𝖗 𝖆 𝖈 𝖙 𝖊 𝖗

MORAL ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Neutral. MBTI: ESTP-A MBTI ROLE: The Entrepreneur  ENNEAGRAM: 7 ENNEAGRAM ROLE: The Enthusiast TEMPERAMENT: Sanguine WESTERN ZODIAC: Leo CHINESE ZODIAC: Tiger PRIMAL SIGN: Wolverine TAROT CARD: The Magician, The Devil. TV TROPES: The Punch Clock Hero, Magnificent Bastard, Jerkass Has A Point, Loveable Rogue, Opportunistic Bastard, Karma Houdini, Deadpan Snarker, Honour Among Thieves, Not In This For Your Revolution.  SONGS: The Calling by The Killers, From the Ritz to the Rubble by Arctic Monkeys, Lucky Penny by JD McPherson. 

IDEOLOGIES: Would sell his own (dead) mother to satan for a corn-chip. That was a lie, he loved his mother. (Two corn-chips.) Has been banned from The Hog’s Head since 1975 after an unfortunate falling out with Aberforth Dumbledore. Up until the travel restrictions, he still regularly (with varying success) attempted to find his way in, not out of any particular want to be there, but mostly to prove that he could. Goatfucker. The point being that the surest way to get Dung to do something is to tell him that he can’t do it. Is morally opposed to the musical stylings of Celestina Warbeck. Conversely, is not morally opposed to grave-robbery. Believes that cats are both a) the closest thing to demonic activity he has encountered on God’s Green Earth and b) feels spiritually attuned to them.  Survival is the only thing that truly matters, everything else is just pocket-change.

[hufflly-puffs]

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Chapter 26: Seen and Unforeseen

“But the breakout of Bellatrix Lestrange and her fellow Death Eaters had given Harry a burning desire to do something, whether or not it worked …” – Wait a minute. Wasn’t it Hermione who wrote to Rita after she read about the breakout? Harry didn’t even know he would be giving an interview up until 5 minutes before it started.

“‘Well, you see,’ said Hermione, with the patient air of someone explaining that one plus one equals two to an over-emotional toddler, ‘you shouldn’t have told her that you wanted to meet me halfway through your date.’” – Oh Hermione, I feel your pain. I mean I’m a huge fan of people just being honest about their feelings and what they want. I get Harry and his annoyance that he has to interpret and analyse what Cho might have meant with the things she said and did. But it takes a lot of courage as well to honestly tell someone how you feel, so we invent all those little games to find out how much that other person likes us instead of simply asking. And it is interesting that Hermione can read between the lines and translate what Cho meant to Harry, given that Hermione can be a bit tactless as well at times.

“‘You should write a book,’ Ron told Hermione as he cut up his potatoes, ‘translating mad things girls do so boys can understand them.’” – Didn’t Ron later have a book that would help him wooing Hermione? The one he gave Harry as a present for his 17th birthday? It would make sense that Ron would read such a book, when he thinks you have to speak a secret language in order to date someone.

“‘Come on, Ginny’s not bad,’ said George fairly, sitting down next to Fred. ‘Actually, I dunno how she got so good, seeing how we never let her play with us.’ ‘She’s been breaking into your broom shed in the garden since the age of six and taking each of your brooms out in turn when you weren’t looking,’ said Hermione from behind her tottering pile of Ancient Rune books.” – I always love those small snippets into Hermione and Ginny’s friendship, confirming that they have a relationship outside of the boys surrounding them, and obviously there are things Hermione can’t and won’t talk about with Harry and Ron.

“‘Maybe not,’ she said darkly, returning to her translation, ‘but at least my happiness doesn’t depend on Ron’s goalkeeping ability.’” – I used to be a sports fan (I watched a lot of soccer/football) and I can confirm how dependent your mood is on your team winning or losing.

“He dreamed that Neville and Professor Sprout were waltzing around the Room of Requirement while Professor McGonagall played the bagpipes.” – Why wasn’t that in the movie adaption? WHY????

“‘Oh, Harry, don’t you see?’ Hermione breathed. ‘If she could have done one thing to make absolutely sure that every single person in this school will read your interview, it was banning it!’” – If you wanna make sure teenagers do something forbid it. There would be less smoking and drinking and sex if none of those things were considered a taboo.

“The teachers were of course forbidden from mentioning the interview by Educational Decree Number Twenty-six, but they found ways to express their feelings about it all the same. Professor Sprout awarded Gryffindor twenty points when Harry passed her a watering can; a beaming Professor Flitwick pressed a box of squeaking sugar mice on him at the end of Charms, said, ‘Shh!’ and hurried away; and Professor Trelawney broke into hysterical sobs during Divination and announced to the startled class, and a very disapproving Umbridge, that Harry was not going to suffer an early death after all, but would live to a ripe old age, become Minister for Magic and have twelve children.” – I love Flitwick’s reaction: you’ve been through a lot of trauma kiddo, here have some candy. And of course Trelawney is as always not exactly wrong. Harry doesn’t die young (or rather he doesn’t stay dead) and well he gets a job at the ministry and has a bunch of kids, the general drift is right.

“When Bode tried to steal this weapon, something funny happened to him. I think there must be defensive spells on it, or around it, to stop people touching it. That’s why he was in St Mungo’s, his brain had gone all funny and he couldn’t talk.” – We know that the weapon is the prophecy about Harry and Voldemort, and that only those two are able to touch it. I wonder if this specific defensive spell is put on prophecies afterwards or if it is in their nature, that they create a special kind of magic, that makes it impossible for anyone to hear a prophecy that isn’t about them. Then again there are prophecies were it is unclear who they are about. Even the one about Harry didn’t specifically mention his name, it is because Voldemort choose Harry that it became about him. And I wonder if all those people mentioned in prophecies are aware of that? Do they get a letter from the ministry? Do they have a right to know?

“‘That is just as well, Potter,’ said Snape coldly, ‘because you are neither special nor important, and it is not up to you to find out what the Dark Lord is saying to his Death Eaters.’ ‘No – that’s your job, isn’t it?’ Harry shot at him. He had not meant to say it; it had burst out of him in temper. For a long moment they stared at each other, Harry convinced he had gone too far. But there was a curious, almost satisfied expression on Snape’s face when he answered. ‘Yes, Potter,’ he said, his eyes glinting. ‘That is my job. Now, if you are ready, we will start again.’” – Isn’t it funny though? Snape always accuses Harry that he thinks he is special, that the normal rules don’t apply to him, etc. But here Snape basically confirms that he is the one who wants to feel special and important, that he enjoys the special role he plays in the war, as a spy for both Dumbledore and Voldemort. It is about value and it is the only kind of value he can get. And ironically I think Sirius is quite similar in that: he wants to play a special role as well. Whereas Harry is right in the middle of this war, no matter if he wants to or not.

“Harry did not speak; he felt that to say anything might be dangerous. He was sure he had just broken into Snape’s memories, that he had just seen scenes from Snape’s childhood. It was unnerving to think that the little boy who had been crying as he watched his parents shouting was actually standing in front of him with such loathing in his eyes.” – One might say that of course years of abuse would naturally lead to a bitter hateful man the way Snape is. But Harry carries his own package of unhappy childhood memories with him and guess what? He didn’t become a dick. When Harry sees Snape as a child he also sees himself, but they both became very different men.

“‘It was your home,’ said Professor Umbridge, and Harry was revolted to see the enjoyment stretching her toadlike face as she watched Professor Trelawney sink, sobbing uncontrollably, on to one of her trunks, […]” – Umbridge is a sadist. She feeds on power and she feeds on her power to destroy lives. That is why she could fit in in Fudge’s ministry as well as Voldemort’s ministry in book 7: this isn’t about ideology. It is about power and the abuse of power. And every system allows people like Umbridge to come to power. And that is what makes her such a great villain.

 I love how all the teachers stood together to protect and help Trelawney. We know that McGonagall isn’t very fond of Divination or Trelawney, and yet she is the first to defend her.

[katrinaxparkinson-blog]

OUT OF CHARACTER

♔ INTRODUCTION Yo yo, it’s Taylor! 18; female; cst

♔ HOW ARE YOU? I’m watching Shameless and eating Chinese food, I’m great!

♔ TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF: My favorite movie is Ten Things I Hate About You - I know all the words by memory.

♔ ANYTHING ELSE? I’m so very nervous about this. I hope you like her!

IN CHARACTER

♔ DESIRED CHARACTER

Katrina Elizabet Parkinson - the (disowned) sister to the someday father of Pansy Parkinson. Aged 24, Pureblood (obviously), and alum of the infamous Slytherin House.

♔ FACE CLAIM Crystal Reed. Emmy Rossum, or Marie Avgeropolous, in that order.

♔ WHAT SIDE OF THE WAR ARE THEY ON? Order of the Phoenix, and Aversio. The Order was a generous offering by Dumbledore, the night she appeared on his doorstep frightful of what would happen next. And while she remains very grateful for his good faith and kindness towards her, if anything, she tends to agree more with Aversio and the ways in which they act rather than say.

♔ AESTHETIC ♠ Wind rushing in your ears ♠ dark lipstick ♠ moonlight ♠ palettes of paint ♠ broken glass ♠ sharp knives ♠ fresh flowers ♠ steady rain ♠ crisp sheets ♠ clear lakes ♠ 

♔ POSITIVE TRAITS Give four- ✓ Headstrong ✓ Benevolent ✓ Outspoken ✓ Driven by morals

♔ NEGATIVE TRAITS Give four- ✕ Idealistic ✕ Unsure of self ✕ Abrasive ✕ Tends to be hard on herself

♔ CHARACTER DESCRIPTION In a society bred by ideologies and perfection, Katrina was always the odd one out. A woman raised as if a queen, prepared for a lifetime of tradition, she always felt something was missing. While peers were bred to believe purity meant better, Katrina Parkinson found herself asking a dangerous question: who cares? A true snake, hiding in plain sight was a second nature…until it wasn’t. With a war raging and familial tensions rising Katrina was made to choose. Now all that stands in her way is her own mind.

♔ REASON FOR CHOSEN CHARACTER I wanted to explore a character of true moral conflict - not somebody swayed by love, as Andromeda was, nor by duty like Bellatrix. A Pureblood of such respectable stature and with such high expectations that it would be nearly suffocating to do anything but agree with the ideals thrown into the faces of the Sacred from the moment they are born.

Katrina was born one year, month, week, and day (to the exact second), after her elder brother. From the moment she was born, there was a silver spoon in her mouth, praise given at every success and brutal punishment at every failure. From the mere moment she was capable of understanding speech and the implications that came with such, Madam Parkinson - because certainly, her father would have no say in such things when there were more important causes to attend to - began teaching her the ways of being a proper Pureblooded lady.

It all began on one of their first lessons involving blood purity. Her mother, Aurelia, was in the middle of her lecture on how lucky and better they were for simply being in a bloodline that expanded in magic for generation upon generation, all the way to the beginning. In that moment, a very dangerous question was posed, something which changed the course of Katrina’s life: “What does it matter? It’s only blood.”

As you can imagine, such a question resulted in a slammed door, and…well. Not a very fond disciplinary action. Katrina learned fairly quickly after that, that speaking her mind was a dangerous thing to do and as a child, she couldn’t risk the consequences. So, as a result she fell into the role of the perfectly groomed and behaved pureblood daughter everyone expected her to. And this was easy enough to do, at least, for awhile. While listening to the ridicule and bias that existed within not only the walls of Parkinson manor but Hogwarts castle was enough to cause her severe emotional turmoil, she persevered. Just because she listened, did not mean that she had to agree - and not once did she ever participate in such conversations. Not that she was expected to – a woman in such narrow minded society, silence was the way of things.

It was upon leaving Hogwarts that the reality of it all truly hit. With so many joining the ever growing forces of the Death Eaters, and comments regarding her marriage becoming a large topic of conversation even at home, it became devastatingly clear that something had to be done. In the dead of night, with nothing but her wand in hand and an unpleasantly painful feeling settling deep within her stomach, Katrina ran away.

She appeared at Hogwarts, disheveled night robes wrapped around her, desperately seeking Dumbledore. It was not until he asked what he could assist her with that Katrina realized, she had no idea what she was doing. In an emotionally driven panic, the truth of it all came pouring out of her, after so many years being forced down in the name of remaining a dutiful daughter. Albus waited patiently until her panicked state had lessened, helping her find her footing and a safe place to remain.

In the seven years that have now come to pass since Katrina ran away, she has done everything in her power to avoid run ins with the Parkinson family, or truly - anyone she used to know for that matter. She is her own person, fighting the fight she believes in, but still…often times, she finds herself questioning what may have happened if only she’d been stronger, not realizing how strong she was.

♔ PREFERRED SHIPS/ANTI-SHIPS Anything in which there is chemistry will have me on board pretty quick.

♔ CREATE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING FOR YOUR CHARACTER: Pinterest Board Aesthetic 1 Aesthetic 2

House of Memories - Panic at the Disco We built this house on memories Take my picture now, shake it til you see it And when your fantasies, become your legacy Promise me a place in your house of memories.

Fences - Paramore You’re always on display For everyone to watch You can’t turn back Because this road is all you’ll Ever have

Paralyzed - NF ( primarily about the days leading to/after she ran away ) Where’s the person that I know? They must have left, they must have left With all my faith If life is pain then I buried mine, A long time ago but it’s still alive I don’t feel nothing, I wonder why

… I’m in a box, but I’m the one that locked me in Suffocating and running out of oxygen

I’ll be Good - Jaymes Young I never meant to start a fire I never meant to make you bleed I’ll be a better man today

So Cold - Ben Cocks It’s so quiet here, And I feel so cold This house no longer Feels like home

Franklin - Paramore So we stand here now, And no one knows us at all I won’t get used to this I won’t get used to being gone

IN CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRE

♔ If you were able to invent one spell, potion, or charm, what would it do, what would you use it for or how would you use it? Feel free to name it: “Something that could truly control emotions. Merlin only knows how often such would come in handy for me.”

♔ You have to venture deep into the Forbidden Forest one night. Pick one other character and one object (muggle or magical), besides your wand, that you’d want with you: “Why in the name of Salazar Slytherin himself would I ever wish to venture into the Forbidden Forest at all, let alone at night? Though I suppose if I had to, I would take Andromeda Tonks with me. She’s much braver a woman than I, by any case. As for an object, a broom, maybe? Anything to get off the ground and away from those bloody spiders.”

♔ What kinds of decisions are the most difficult for you to make?“ The sort in which there is something to lose. Then again, I’ve already had to make that decision.”

♔ What is one thing you would never want said about you? “That I stand with the Death Eaters and that bloody forsaken cause for purity, or whatever nonsense it is they’re going with these days. I wasn’t capable of it as a child, I won’t stand to be thought capable now.”

WRITING SAMPLE

Dim candlelight illuminated the vast bedroom, casting shadow upon the deep emerald drapery. What time was it? It was almost impossible to tell, the large grandfather clock ticking ominously in the background, hidden in the shadows of the vast darkness surrounding, encroaching across the walls. 

Anxious footfalls landed quietly against the refurbished floors, chilly skin against frigid wood. Even without knowing the time, she knew that hours had to have come to pass since her mother and father had retired for the night, to their respective bedrooms and studies where they would not be expected to interact with one another - not that they interacted much in the safety of the Parkinson home as it was.Katrina’s mind was racing. It seemed that no matter how desperately she attempted to silence the thoughts rushing so rapidly through her mind. They seemed to circle each other in such a way that they were nearly racing, conflicting thoughts battling in an all-consuming war that left a dreadful throbbing behind her eye.It had been plaguing her mind for weeks - nay, years - now. 

The indescribably painful and conflicting thought of what would come once taking leave of Hogwarts. Family, duty, honor…it was a thing to be coveted and protected, no matter the cost. Such a belief was one which had been forced down her throat as if a horrid vegetable in childhood. A horrid thing, one with no purpose, not true meaning other than to declare superiority.She had tried. Oh Merlin had she tried to grasp hold of the belief, to tether it to her heart and believe in it, without a flicker doubt dampening her mind. Certainly living as she had been would have been a thing of simplicity if it could only happen so painless a way. Childhood would not have been wasted, family life not a thing to crave separation from.Yet her soul refused such. Ten years had been spent playing a part, desperately hoping to miraculously change her views. If only she could truly believe it, then maybe she would no longer flinch like a misbehaving dog every time chocolate hues landed upon either Madam or Master Parkinson. Hells even her brother seemed to see through the facade, moreso than the others, in a more dangerous of ways.Ruby lips encircled her thumb, teeth soon finding a way to wrap around the nail, chewing anxiously. It was a disgusting habit, one which had plagued Katrina Elizabet Parkinson from the moment she could think for herself. She had become better at controlling it, certainly; with more in depth magical training, there were ways to conceal the damage, to hide the bloody, bright nail beds and uprooted skin which should have so elegantly surrounded cuticles.

Emotional turmoil raged like a storm, dark vicious clouds which rose and fell at such a rapid pace inside her brain that it felt as if at any moment, her frame could keel over and nauseate horribly. Dinner was an extravagant celebration of finishing Hogwarts, and yet barely touched. Though in that moment, the idea of pretending forever, it very much seemed as if the entirety of what the elves had prepared would erupt from her stomach if given the chance.`And that was when she decided, on a whim (or perhaps, not a whim at all, but the true reality of self finally decided it would no longer be silenced.) that she was finished. Heart pounding, the rhythmic and terrified beating echoing through her ears, feet bare, wrapped in nothing but thin ivory night robes, Katrina reached for the elegant dresser. Wand perched atop a dark cedar dresser, her fingers wrapped securely around it. Shutting her eyes, she concentrated perfectly well on a destination that she never, not even once, imagined returning to.And then, when her eyes opened, there stood the ebony gates, bright invitingly lit windows of Hogwarts castle glistening.

[coletibbetts0-blog]

Communication Articles From AMAZINES.COM.

Within the large repertoire of church songs the hymns of Charles Wesley (1707-1788) are extensively taken into consideration as several of the best ever before created. Motivation Dormant is the tale of Carmesina, but can be the story of any one of us. Shade is our guide on this pursuit all over the world to recover lost inspiration: a trip of the creativity that will certainly help us to believe in truth again as well as see that our day-to-days live are full of love, happiness and joy; but likewise fear, anger, fond memories as well as unhappiness. A voiceover artist reads Dickens's summaries of night-owl task by Londoners, such as cops, butchers and also train passengers, while docudrama video footage unspools the modern-day equivalents to the Dickensian scenes on the very same street edges 150 years later on - a living background any person can see, day or evening, by themselves walking excursion. Becker as well as his team attracted inspiration from martian landscapes, sci-fi movies, and technical athleisure in order to provide the Ionic its futuristic feeling. While The Disaster Artist never hits the highs of Tim Burton's movie, it nonetheless produces amazing goodwill towards The Space, and also makes the prospect of enjoying it-- even without that online target market-- look like an enjoyable suggestion. Occasionally we even feel like electricity is moving via us as well as we get Goosebumps. - An advancement PDF preview booklet, with an exclusive narrative and also game hint. This will certainly make life upsetting for incumbents that are specified by their proficiency of pricey layout. We likewise spoke with an additional woman who likes wearing her 'Phoenix metro Heart' necklace as a reminder to 'Rise' from her cancer diagnosis. One day a director asked: Guy, just what is this thing with Nat?" I told him and also, to cut a lengthy story short, ended up writing my very first item of music theatre: Nat King" Cole & Me. Informing my tale and also his, it's a 50:50 mix of his own music and my homage songs to him. If you enjoyed this short article and you would like to get additional information pertaining to http://Salixpurpurea.pt/regime-de-dieta-para-emagrecer-5-quilos-em-uma-alimentacao-saudavel-e-equilibrada-metodo/ kindly check out our web-site. In the early aughts, the tech writer Julian Dibbell created the concept of ludocapitalism, a term influenced by watching Wow gamers mine gold in the video game making a living in reality. They walked the walk, as well, by developing their house in the photo of their contemporary concepts about layout. The DOJ maintains that the genuine storage business was just a front, like a Mafia pork store; the actual loan was made out back, where Megaupload was a mega-swapmeet for some $500 million worth of pirated product, consisting of movies, TV programs, songs, publications, videogames, and software. For reference functions, to the very best of my expertise on my last project just 1 out of 183 people had a concern with this; there was the usual return price (10%, sometimes 15% on challenging bras) but every person else located something they enjoyed with. I knew that occasionally people have stories behind why they're influenced that we could not possibly rate. Manga frequently tackles a rewarding 2nd life as anime: The computer animated movie Princess Mononoke is Japan's second-top-grossing motion picture of perpetuity (Titanic is leading). Whether rabies truly gave rise to vampires and also zombies in the past, we definitely understand the condition gives motivation today: director Danny Boyle claimed that the virus that transforms individuals right into zombies in his 2002 horror motion picture 28 Days Later was designed partly on rabies. If you're tired of turning to the same cocktail hr appearance over and over again, as well as want a little party clothing motivation after that fear not, because we have actually put together a design file full to the border with superb suggestions. Oh, and always remember regarding ideas from current room projects like Rocket Store and previous job ideas defined in Beyond Beauty. So, similar to Tumblr fandoms, which emerge frequently around pop culture artefacts, research blog writers have to get right into an usual understanding that things they invest their days speaking about and producing artwork around is important-- that it deserves spending time on and that individuals that think the same are their all-natural allies.

[sudsybear]

Just Drive

We were left to ourselves most of that summer. We both worked, as did our parents. Dad was gone for weeks at a time. He worked in Phoenix, coming home only on weekends. Mom had earned her diploma, but still had to study for her state nursing exam. She was also busy monitoring my grandmother who had health problems and was in and out of the hospital. Mom also started a new job, and was going through orientation – full-time employment for several weeks. Toss in that I was a youngest child and the whole active parenting thing had gone by the wayside.

 Ross’ parents both worked – his mom had taken a position at a greeting card company and was busy with a stuffed animal project. His dad was a devoted P&Ger. (All hail the soap works.) Ross was nineteen and had already been away from home for over a year. He hardly needed supervision.

 We mostly abandoned the few friends who were around. Many of Ross’ contemporaries stayed away for summer internships, jobs, or traveled abroad. Over the school year, I’d fallen out with many of my friends. David was busy with a new round of people. Christopher’s and my friendship disintegrated the previous fall. Julie worked two jobs, desperately trying to save enough money for tuition. Erin was doing the same. Valli was madly in love with Jerry, a guy she met through her Young Life activities, and she worked full-time as a lifeguard, so she wasn’t around much. Shari left for her last summer of camp – this time as a counselor. Anna spent her summer abroad, Victor was required to attend summer Reserve training and broke his leg. He’ll deny it to the end of his days, but he spent his summer smoking pot on a neighbor’s back deck.

 I literally lived at the J’s' for days at a time. I stopped by their house between baby-sitting jobs, entered through the unlocked garage/basement, left messages on the white-board in the breakfast nook and went on with my business. We slept in Ross' long twin bed and I fought with those damn high countertops in the kitchen. (Side note:  Ross’ family is very tall – his mother is 5’11” if she isn’t 6’ tall. His dad is at least 6’2.” “Little” brother Scott topped out at 6’5 at least.) At some point in the late 70s or early 80s, they remodeled their kitchen and chose to have the countertops installed a few inches higher than is the industry standard. I am 5’4” tall. I could not reach the cabinets, and working at the counter was awkward. Ross found a step stool for me to use while I was there. Had we been ten years older, you could describe us as having moved in together. But we weren’t ten years older. We were teenagers, just seventeen and nineteen. We lacked experience to draw upon, and the confidence that comes with it.

 Ross’ bedroom in his parents’ house was our haven. The stereo and speakers (all four of them), the albums and computers - all were strewn with laundry - clean shirts and dirty socks. Soldering tools, wires, pliers, and desk lamps were scattered over the “desk.” I never saw an actual work surface - it was littered with computer pieces; motherboards, hard drives, video boards. This masculine clutter was familiar. My father’s workshop at home, and my brother’s room before he left. To me, it was a very comfortable place…full of warmth. The door to Scott's room was open often enough to hear Scott playing guitar and to talk and chat and visit. We spent hours together there. Chaka Khan, Pat Metheny, Phil Collins, Joe Jackson, and Neil Diamond (his mom never seemed to mind when he cranked Neil Diamond or Phil Collins) were just some of the musical favorites that summer. I can still see him playing air guitar with a particularly fun riff from some album or the other. (These were vinyl albums – Ross was saving his money to buy a CD-player and a replacement for the guitar he’d destroyed in the Corral Show some two years previous. CDs were still new and the packaging was controversial – sold in the long cardboard boxes with plastic overwrap. In the mid-90s I got irritated with the lack of space in our basement, and convinced my husband to finally dispose of his collection of long-boxes from his own mid-80s CD purchases.)

 We spent evenings in the TV room watching his dad flick through the thirty or so TV channels that were available when cable was new. We had been away from adult supervision for too long, so we settled into the couch in front of the television to make nice with the ‘rents. My head snuggled up under Ross' arm. Ross tried to make idle small talk with his dad - attempting to smooth the relationship. It used to drive me nuts the way his dad would flip, flip, flip through umpteen channels and seemingly watch four shows at the same time. What's sad is I do that today. Give me the remote control, and I flip, flip, flip and watch 3-4 shows at the same time. Damn commercials.

 The TV room was just that – a TV room. Not a “family room” like so many homes have today, but a TV room. In years past the room had probably been a sunroom, a sitting room, perhaps an office. It was on the west side of the house, so in the late afternoon, you’d have to close the blinds against the glare of the sun in order to see the TV. The opening to the room was off the living room. A formal living room with couches, a curio cabinet and the grand piano. No doorway, no formal archway, just a large open space in the wall between the living room and TV room. The room was long and narrow and ran the length of the house. At one end was the couch, placed under the windows facing the television. And at the other end was a table and built-in shelves that held the fish tanks, the hermit crab and the encyclopedia set. There was no room to do much of anything else.

 Late one night, after the eleven o’clock news, we watched C.H.U.D. (Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers) on cable. While the rest of the family slept upstairs, we curled up on the couch and stared at the blue flickering screen. The TV set provided the only light on in the house. I covered my eyes and squealed at the gruesome parts. I was fascinated and terrified at the same time. I’m not good with horror flicks – even bad ones. After the movie, Ross walked me out to my car, I got in, and to avoid waking his parents, he pushed it out of the driveway. I coasted down the street, popped the clutch and drove home. Ross taught me that particular bit of street knowledge, how to start a car by popping the clutch. Useful only if you’re driving an old-fashioned standard transmission.

 Some nights we just drove. We put hundreds of miles on various vehicles - the VW Rabbit (1981 gray, two-door, hatchback - diesel, cloth seats) has especially pungent memories. We knew of only two or three gas stations in the county that supplied diesel, so invariably we drove to one of them to fill up the tank. The VW Vanagon and the Oldsmobile Station Wagon (with maroon vinyl seats and the compass on the front dash) were also driven more than once. We talked about our dreams, our insecurities, our parents, gossiped about what so and so was doing, and played the game of “identify the vehicle by the headlights”; Hondas versus Datsuns versus Fords, versus Chryslers – throw in an exotic Volvo or Saab. I never quite got the knack of that one. He was so disappointed when I mis-identified a vehicle. To this day, I can drive in reverse pretty well. For whatever reason, I had lots of practice. On a whim, Ross might decide to drive home from somewhere in reverse, just for the hell of it. He backed around parking lots, he backed down long driveways, he backed down the street. And believe it or not, I really think we always wore our seatbelts.

 We spent the Fourth of July holiday together. In the morning I stood by the side of the road and watched the parade (Dad was involved because of council, mom was with the ambulance crew) then stopped at Moreno’s for lunch and volleyball. Finally, Ross and I spent the late afternoon in his bedroom. His parents were out with their own friends, Scott was gone, so Ross and I were contentedly alone. We spent the hours spooned on his bed, listening to music, enjoying uninterrupted togetherness. We were supposed to go to the town fireworks display at the high school athletic field, but never made it. We watched a few fireworks from the window, then fell back to bed and fell asleep. I got home to my own bed in my parents house sometime in the early morning hours of the fifth. And we both had to work the next morning.

 *          *          *

 Ross was very close with his brother. Though only 2 ½ years apart in age, due to the quirks of the school system they were three years apart in school. Even so, they shared everything. They read the same books, swapped albums, music, they played in the same band together. Ross passed on snippets of wisdom for dealing with teachers and peers. In one of his letters from Wooster, Ross had encouraged me to introduce myself to Scott, concerned for his younger brother’s well-being. A few weeks into the summer, Ross realized his little brother Scott had a crush on me. It stands to reason - I had first fooled around with his best buddy Mark and then was a constant presence not just in his home, but in his brother's bedroom, an open door away. He must have caught us more than once in various states of undress. (I never did understand that floor plan, why was there a door between Scott's and Ross' bedrooms?)  

 I felt a fondness toward Scott myself. He was my friend as well as Ross’ brother and we had enjoyed our own friendship and escapades before Ross came home. Aside from Scrabble games at Corral, Mark, Scott, Igor and their buddy Jon had the brilliant idea to make their very own episode of Star Trek. Jon had a ton of video equipment. Igor put together a set in his basement, and Scott, Mark, and Igor’s little brother Alex were recruited as actors. Mark starred as the Captain, Scott played Spock, Alex and Igor posed as the science officers, and they needed a girl to play “Lieutenant U-whor-a.” Whether I was doing a favor for Igor or Mark, or both, they managed to get me to agree in a weak moment. Jon was the director/cameraman, and we made up dialogue as we went along.

 My character, as you might surmise from the character’s name, was the spaceship harlot. My scenes involved sitting in the captain’s lap (Mark), attempting sexual distraction; sitting in my chair at the communications center, showing off my legs whilst making obscene gestures; and rattling off one-liners like, “Why jack-off when you can have me for free?” Some “sweet’n’innocent” stuff, eh?

 It took several days of filming in Moreno’s basement, and I couldn’t be there for all the filming days. I filmed the first day, and then was busy with other activities. My absence led to some creative explanations as to why U-Whor-A was absent from the bridge, including AIDS, Toxic Shock Syndrome, and other female ails resulting from monthly cycles. Igor and Alex’s dad got fed up with the “set” in the basement. He declared a deadline by which the crap had to be cleaned up. The guys begged me to return so they could finish the film.

 Over the summer Jon and Scott edited the thing and roped Ross into designing credits for them. I didn’t see the finished product until years later. It is a rare masterpiece that someday I’ll have to explain to my children. I don’t look forward to the discussion with my children; explaining it to my husband was embarrassing enough.

 And yet with all of that, I was Ross’ girl. So in deference to Scott’s feelings, Ross and I made a conscious effort to monitor our behavior. It just so happened those were the same weeks our parents had been coming down hard on us to behave ourselves. I suppose we had gotten a bit out of control, and needed to pull back and exercise proper decorum.

ot��

[meizworld]

I got tagged by @rezeren, thank you! 

Marvel or DC? Marvel. I actually don’t really follow DC much, I just saw some series like Gotham and Supergirl and a movie like Wonder Woman, but I don’t follow stuff in chronological order like with Marvel. 

Favourite of the silver trio (Neville, Luna, Ginny)? Luna, she was the first character who I felt was just so awesome and able to accept herself and all her weirdness and didn’t give a damn about what anyone thinks of her. 

Favourite of the fantastic quartet? Newt Scamander, he’s the preciousest. 

OTP?  This is a difficult one, I’m gonna go for FitzSimmons, others may pop up along the rest of this list xD

NOTP? I’m gonna stick to Harry Potter here, because otherwise it would be too broad xD I usually kind of go with canon, unless I really don’t like it. But for example I don’t like HarryXHermione, I think they are wonderful as they are as friends, and one of the reasons I love HermioneXRon is because I am a fan of pairings consisting of people who are the complete opposite of each other and, to quote a classic boxing movie, ‘fill each other’s gaps’. 

BROTP? Oh I feel like I should have one here, but I can’t think of anything xD Recently in Game of Thrones I’ve gotten fond of the bromance between Bronn and Jaime xD I’m usually not okay with incest stuff, in anime for example I really can’t stand siscon (brother who fancies his little sister or the other way around)  Hinny or Linny? Oh god I’m bad with these xD I don’t ship Ginny and Luna romantically, just as really good friends xD and I don’t really ship Harry and Ginny either, but I guess more in the books than in the movies... xD

Patil or Weasley twins? Weasley twins all the way, you can’t really compare these twins man xD

Favourite HP book? The Order of the Phoenix, I loved how suddenly everything became more serious and darker, also emotionally. And there are so many thrilling scenes in the book which they cut out completely in the movie... I was kind of disappointed with the movie ><

Favourite HP movie? The Chamber of Secrets. Unlike a lot of people, I enjoyed the two first movies and kind of didn’t like it when from movie 3 suddenly everything changed and they didn’t wear their robes anymore and the whole Hogwarts grounds suddenly changed xD and Richard Harris will always be my favorite Dumbledore, he was exactly what I’d imagined Dumbledore to be like, Michael Gambon never really did it for me D:

Favourite musicals? Into the Woods, Funny Girl, recently got into Hamilton (as did everyone I suppose xD)

Favourite band/artist? Mizuki Nana, a Japanese singer and voice actress, she my queen

Favourite book series?  The A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin, Harry Potter series by JK Rowling, the Inkheart series by Cornelia Funke (she was my favorite childhood fantasy author)

Favourite stand alone book? Aaah so difficult xD I really liked Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Favourite YouTuber? I’m really not familiar with YouTubers, but I guess Thomas Sanders? 

Celebrity Crush? A certain Korean rapper

Fictional death you’re not over? So many, ohmygosh xD Neal from Once Upon a Time, Tripp from AoS, Fred, Dobby, Hedwig, too many to count and to think of right now xD

Favourite TV show? I’m watching a lot at the moment, but I really love Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Book you loved as a child? ‘Thomas en de Laatste Draken’ (’Thomas and the Last Dragons’) by Cornelia Funke

Cats or dogs? Not a big fan of this question, to be honest xD But I’m gonna go for cats. I love dogs too, but I still have bad memories because when I was little I was scared of dogs, especially when they would jump up at me and start barking loudly and I also was bitten by a dog once as a child, so yeah, cats for me :P

[voyage-in-the-dark]

2016 in books

(Going through my Goodreads to pick the books that made a big impact on me this year; these books are the formative influences that really shaped me each month. If I had to redo the year, I must reread these books.)

January -- Lois McMaster Bujold’s Miles in Love & The Curse of Chalion, Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn trilogy. January rereads -- Andrea K Host’s Hunting, Sharon Shinn’s Jovah’s Angel.

So, January seems to be the month I first discovered Lois McMaster Bujold. It’s so weird because it feels like I’ve known her works for forever. I have a huge soft spot for The Curse of Chalion and Miles in Love; Chalion is the first time I was introduced to the trope of the powerful and assured woman with a scandalous and uneasy reputation, causing others to fear her or feel uneasy around her because they don’t know what to do with her. I love this trope. Miles in Love was the first time I was introduced to Miles (the character, not the series), and he was so different from what I’ve usually known. Surprisingly endearing. I finally read the Mistborn trilogy and I devoured it -- it was so creative and good and that ending still guts me.

I reread Hunting and Jovah’s Angel and loved them waaay more than when I first read them.

February -- Lois McMaster Bujold’s Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen, Andrea K Host’s The Sleeping Life, Sophocles’ Oedipus the King, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Richard II, and Twelfth Night. February rereads -- Andrea K Host’s Stained Glass Monsters.

February was the month when I read a lot more Shakespeare than I’d ever had, for one of my modules. To this day, Twelfth Night remains one of my favorite plays -- there’s a liveliness, quickness, and sweetness that none of the other plays have. I am so heart-eyes over Viola. Macbeth is my favorite tragedy. The Sleeping Life also came out and it was great -- I’d read and reread Stained Glass Monsters obsessively while waiting for the sequel; SGM is one of my favorite novels by Host, mostly because Rennyn Claire is the trope of the powerful, enigmatic, and supremely self-assured and capable woman. I only wished TSL was longer. 

February was also my first venture into classical plays -- Oedipus the King is one of my favorite Greek tragedies. Admittedly, I’ve literally only read 2. I’m amazed at the power and force of it. Gentleman Jole was so good. I love Cordelia. I love love love Cordelia so much and I was so happy to have a novel with her; Jole was a wonderful protagonist. Very sweet, very sincere, very moral.

March -- none.

I read very little this month; spent most of my time watching films. Got into Marvel, watched a lot of superhero films this month.

April -- Shakespeare’s The Tempest, Jane Austen’s Emma, Nicole Kornher-Stace’s Archivist Wasp. April rereads -- Ilona Andrews’ Silver Shark.

Lol obviously I have to reread a romance each month. Stop me. Anyway, Archivist Wasp is one of the best books of the year for me. It was beautifully written, and I love Wasp so much. I love her wayward kindness, I love the compassion that she struggles to hide, I love her relationship with the soldier.

May -- Homer’s The Odyssey, CS Pacat’s Captive Prince trilogy, Ada Limon’s Bright Dead Things, NK Jemisin’s The Shadowed Sun & The Awakened Kingdom. May rereads -- Erin Bow’s Sorrow’s Knot, Lynn Flewelling’s Tamir Triad, Robin McKinley’s Deerskin, Juliet Marillier’s Daughter of the Forest.

So, this was an eventful month. I reread a lot of fantasy/fairytale retellings. I loved all the things that I reread way more than the first time I read them: Sorrow’s Knot was beautiful and hopeful and aching; Tamir Triad was a very solid fantasy while also giving me food for thought when it comes to gender; Deerskin is just one of my favorite books despite the brutality and the awfulness, because of the bond between the princess and her dog, and the gradual healing and catharsis that happens -- it’s gentle and good and is just really healing to read; Daughter of the Forest was the first of multiple Marillier books that I made my way through. I enjoyed Daughter the most, made my way through Heart’s Blood and Heir to Sevenwaters as well, whereupon I noticed the pseudofeminism and subtle misogyny, which was very, um. Not fun.

I also first read the Captive Prince trilogy -- I have some reservations about the trilogy, but it was good; and I had a lot of fun talking to my sister about it (which was the main reason why I read this). The Odyssey remains one of my favorite plays of Greek tragedy because of Penelope and Circe. Who cares about Odysseus lol. I love subtle and cunning women who slide under the narrative. Bright Dead Things was one of the first few poetry collections I read all the way through and I am very fond of it. I also made my way through NK Jemisin’s works (Shadowed Sun, Shades of Inheritance, Awakened Kingdom, etc). They prove my growing suspicion that NK Jemisin is talented as hell and writes fantastic stories.

It’s not on the list up there, but this is the month I spent some time rereading Linda Howard’s romance/romantic suspense novels and came to the realization that I honestly detest the adult het romance genre. It’s a lot of ‘alpha’ males who are honestly just threatening and gross, but are seen as hot, and the novels just perpetuate the whole rape culture thing and sexism and misogyny and it just goes on. Ugh.

June -- none. June reread -- LJ Smith’s Nightworld,

Didn’t read much again apparently. Oh yeah, I went overseas twice and watched a lot of movies. This is the month I watched Hellboy II, Snowpiercer, Under the Skin, Now You See Me 2, and got into Hamilton.

I reread most of my LJ Smith books (they were such favorites of mine when they were younger) and I found that I still love the story with Keller, and the one with Jez and Morgead. Still some of my favorite romances.

July -- Nora Sakavic’s The Foxhole Court, Nnedi Okorafor’s Akata Witch. July rereads -- CLAMP’s Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles.

TFC is up here mainly because it made me realize I really love team-stuff where everyone works together (this is honestly what I remember from the book -- the moments where everyone played together). Oh, and also it’s another bonding thing between me and my sis. Akata Witch was just so different from the usual stories, it was so good. 

But the highlight of this month is definitely Tsubasa. It was a formative influence, and rereading it now, I am still so heart-eyes over it. Okay, I LOVE IT!!!!!

August -- George Orwell’s 1984, Joan Wolf’s The Road to Avalon & The Edge of Light, Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights, Kate Elliott’s Jaran. August rereads -- JK Rowling’s Order of the Phoenix to Deathly Hallows.

1984 is a huge formative influence. It changed the way I think about dystopia and oppression and propaganda. Jaran is one of my favorite love stories of all time; I was heartbroken by and also loved Avalon and Edge of Light -- and they made me pick up The Once and Future King. I love this kind of male protagonists. And of course, the bulk of the month was taken up by Harry Potter. I love this series with all my heart. It shaped so much of my life when I first read it; rereading it again, it made me refine my mental perception of Harry (he’s a lot angrier than I remember lol, also a lot more wonderful), and understand/judge/perceive the characters, events, and their stories in a new light. Ginny is still super hot.

September -- Intisar Khanani’s Memories of Ash, Rabindranath Tagore’s The Home and the World, Jasper Fforde’s Shades of Grey. September rereads -- none.

Memories of Ash made me realize I love Intisar Khanani’s works, and it also made me realize I love these stories with strong bonds of friendship, loyalty, kindnesses, and camaraderie, and are romance-free. The Home and the World is beautiful and also heartwrenching, and it... I can’t explain why it has such a special place in my heart, but it does. 

October -- Kate Elliot’s Spiritwalker trilogy, Rachel Aaron’s No Good Dragon Goes Unpunished, Emily Martin’s Woodwalker, Bliss Carman’s Sappho: One Hundred Lyrics. October rereads -- Rachel Aaron’s Nice Dragons Finish Last & One Good Dragon Deserves Another.

Cold Fire is one of my favorite romances ever; I love the Heartstrikers series -- they’re so good. I realize I really love those stories where there are lots of likeable characters who are all kind and supportive and friends with each other; I honestly could’t care less about romance in these stories, but they’re so hard to find. And so I end up looking endlessly for good love stories, because good love stories have the same effect as those. Woodwalker because I realized I really like stories where there is a HUGE plot-twist at the end that changes everything, that frames/reframes the way you look at things. I love these stories. Carman’s book of poetry is here because it introduced me to Sappho and also I love her writing, it’s beautiful.

November -- Yoon Ha Lee’s Ninefox Gambit. November rereads -- Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice.

These two books are the highlights of my year, without a doubt. I love both to bits. I already wrote a huge and long post about Ninefox Gambit that is probably suffused with my love for it. And I have so little experience with dystopia and apocalyptical stories that it gives a new framework with which to think of things. P&P made me realize no other love story will ever match up to it, ever, probably. My favorite love story of all time. It made me realize that there can be so much UST or URT between two characters even though the book is SO clean there isn’t even a hug. Or a touch.

December -- Suzanne Collins’ Gregor series, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Martha Wells’ The Fall of Ile-Rien trilogy. December rereads -- Tamora Pierce’s Mastiff, Eliza Crewe’s Soul Eaters trilogy.

Some of my favorite books of the whole year are all here -- the Gregor series is <33333 Hunger Games pale in comparison because the Gregor series feels so much more... heartfelt. I felt so much for all of them; I still remember the events as clearly as if I’d read them a couple of days ago; I still grieve for some of the characters, and I still miss some of them. My main takeaway was, again, a framework for dystopia and apocalyptical stories. The third book -- that thought experiment with the baby Bane is still so... raw. 

Martha Wells is the best thing to happen to me in the end of 2016/start of 2017. I’ve already worked my way through her entire backlog and I. love. all. her. worlds.

-----

So, the best books of the year for me are definitely: 

Archivist Wasp

Jane Eyre

The Fall of Ile-Rien

Gregor

Ninefox Gambit

Pride & Prejudice

1984

Memories of Ash.