#oh and kate/her wife lol

[wispscribbles]

Out of curiosity

What is your opinion on poly 141

(also absolutely love your Soap Ghost art❤️

Thank you! And I have no strong opinions on most cod ships tbh (except for the obvious one) - poly 141 is cute! I just love all four of them and love to see them happy. They’re more ‘found family’+ghoap to me personally, but different strokes for different folks. I’ve read some good poly 141 fics when stumbling upon them

[sunfortune]

hiiii i recently watched kanthony (the so called bridgerton show or whatever) and was wondering if u have any fic recs... 👉👈🤭

okay i litchrally have never compiled a list even tho ive been asked before bc i have read too many to keep them organized. but ill do it. Finally. for YOU.

first. my fav period setting fics <33:

tete a tete by caciopepebowl (14k~) this is REQUIRED reading to ME. its a quick read that explores kate and anthonys roles in their family. with an emphasis on KATE specifically bc of the additional hurdles of being a woman with limited funds. and anthony losing his mind on her behalf while shes breaking his heart by being like "the way i was treated was normal?? you dont know anything" and hes like "what? kate you deserved everything. you deserve ALL the love in the world!!" and shes all ">:( well if i do. you do too." . and hes like "oh. well...no. you see.. bc i suck" and shes like -_-. its really sweeeeeet and lovely <3) and really finally gave me the exploring of kates family issues that THE SHOW DID NOT!!!

the longest betrothal by caciopepebowl. (90k~) my FAVVVVV regency setting fic. its sooo good. its basically a continuation that fills in the gap AFTER they get engaged but BEFORE theyre married. and them trying SO hard to be normal about how in love they are lol. SO funny and sweet. and with IMMACULATE characterization

in vino veritas by wagamiller. (~10k) a one shot about kate going to a ladies society event and coming home drunk to anthony and him being soooo smitten with her. sauuuur cute. ive read this like 4 times <3

for reasons wretched and divine by penny_loaf. (~18k. locked fic. need an account.) basically kate and anthony get stuck in a time loop on that first day edwina is receiving suiters. they both think theyre alone in the loop and its depressing until they realize the other is stuck with them too. they try to break the loop and fail repeatedly. after a while they just give up and start fucking bc theres no consequences so who cares LOL. surprisingly tender and sweet

the harsh light of day by burnerraccount. (~22k. locked) explicit one shot. kate has the idea that they should fuck before they get married so theres less pressure on the wedding night. she decides all this without mentioning it to anthony (LOL). so she shows up at his house the night before their wedding. and his footman is like "theres a woman outside to see you" and he in all his goofy almost-married bliss is like "i dont want to see Any woman but my gorgeous, beautiful, amazing WIFE" and his footman is like "well. you see.. it is your wife. uh fiance" and anthonys like "[voice crack] huh ?". very FUNNY

green in its many hues by burnerraccount. kate and anthony decide they are going to be chaste and proper leading up to their wedding. they suck at it SO bad lol

next. modern AUS my best friends <33:

la semi dolce vita by caciopepebowl (~170k) my FAVVVV modern au of ALL time. kate is a private chef. anthonys family hires her when they go on vacation. hes being so normal about it. i promise. this is one of the best characterizations of kate AND anthony in a modern setting. with an extra emphasis on focusing on kate issues. and not JUST anthonys. which is what makes the dynamic sooo good. 10/10. hot. and i love LOVE <3

close encounters of the acutest kind by caciopepebowl (WIP ~74k. only incomplete fic ill put on this list i PROMMY. bc its by the prev author. and i Looove their writing and its sooo good so far <3) kate and anthony meet for the first time the DAY her dad died which is also the SAME DAY hyacinth is born. theyre both having a panic attack and end up running into the same empty hospital room to have it. are then intrinsically linked forever. as one is. run into each other multiple times over the years. with different feelings each time. and they are so normal (lying) <3. i love them

chosen & cherished by trash4ficsaboutlurv. (~42k) this is so underrated. kate runs a charity organization. anthony is CEO of whatever the fuck. she goes to his company when theyre holding some audition for what charity theyre going to invest in and kate is the last speaker and when its finally her turn he doesnt even pay attention. and shes exhausted and overworked and just oveeeer it All. so she just ends the meeting and tells him to go fuck himself. LOL. genuinely really good. and hot <3

sidelines by ramarro. (~60k) this was THE quintessential kanthony modern AU in 2022. took a far fetched premise and somehow made it soooo good. and hot. and cute. kates an artist who sees a picture of anthony on tinder and thinks he looks obnoxious (lol) but screenshots the photo so she can use it for sketching practice. and then she see him and his grown ass on a date with her BABY sister. and shes like well i was right about him. and lets him know to his face how she feels (LOL). its wild. it slays. read it. theres an explicit follow up to it which also slays

three cities and we never lived here by ramarro. (~25k, ~40k) very different modern au where kate and anthony meet on vacation and are very casual with them both not looking for anything (genuinely for once lol) and then seeing each other multiple times over 2-3 years in different cities and still keeping it casual. but slowly slowly slowlyyyy it doesnt feel as casual as it used to. theres 2 fics in this. the first is kates pov. the second is anthony. both very good.

just go with it by suitsusboth. (~18k) kate when booking a flight sees the potential titles like ms, mrs, dr, and "viscountess" listed as a legit option and has a laugh like whos picking this goofy shit and accidentally clicks it. and then on her flight gets upgraded to first class next to anthony bc they assumed she was his wife. and he tries to be mad about it. but well. hes stupid for her in every universe so lol. funny and sweet

the air i breathe and the bane of my existance by the_loosest_moose. (image fic) these are textfics told through instagram, twitter, article and text message screenshots. with some regular text. would just check them out to gauge how you feel about the storytelling method. very fun reads once you get the hang of it

heirlooms by waterlilyrose. (~12k) modern au where kate gets anthonys ring stuck on her finger for days and has to wait to get it off. he is of course very normal about it

a devils love by irony_rocks. (~57k) this may not be for everyone but kanthony season came out around the same time as the batman (2022) and as someone who was crazy insane about both. this was the MOMENT for me in spring 2022. its a crime mafia type au where kates character is inspired by selina kyle and the pebble lounge where she worked in the batman movie. and well. if youre about that specific combo check it out. if you arent i wouldnt recommend this lmao. its not a batman au

break point (series) by penny_loaf. (multiple. ~25k) like prev this entire series gets kind of dark bc it really delves into the pressure of the world its set in. on TOP of the issues kate and anthony already have. i LOVED it. BUT also i am an ANGST and crazy, complicated characters STAN. which may not be the case for everyone.. but again very GORGEOUS to ME <3 and hot. LOL

take me home by kendal_lynne. (~12k) romcom type explicit one shot where kate makes the mistake of telling anthony her ex couldnt make her come. and hes all like i volunteer as tribute PLEASE PKLEASE PLEASE PICK ME CHOOSE ME PLWASEE etc

we never made a sound by writergirl8. (~4k) spy au that was soooooo good and sexy. i wish it was longer

with elaichi by serendipityinwords (~6k) the two biggest bitches at a dinner party find out they're soulmates. LOL. hilarious dialogue

theres probably more i loved that im not remembering rn and maybe ill update this but for now have fun! yippee <3

[newtonsheffield]

while I know all the Bridgersibs are ultimately happy for Anthony (esp now that he’s less of a hardass because he’s distracted by his beautiful wife LOL) I can’t wait to see the look of exasperation on their faces the 1000th time they’ve seen Kanthony giggle and kiss like lovesick teens on a random Tuesday afternoon. I know Eloise is the snarkiest about it at least 😆

Oh they’re super happy for Anthony. There’s such a difference in him after he tried to burn down the entire ton to be with Kate. He’s calmer, he’s more relaxed and they all love Kate. They loved her before it was certain that they’d be married. They love how she rolls her eyes and ignores Anthony. They love how she has no shame in taking a sly little dig at someone who expresses their concern and delight to find her still in England.

“Well, Lord Bridgerton and I have decided that our marriage might work best if I were to stay in England. A distant marriage isn’t suited for us I fear.”

Eloise and Francesca found themselves hiding their laughter behind their hands very poorly as the other woman gaped at Kate who seemed entirely unbothered as she sighed.

“Girls, your mother is expecting us for tea, we’d better be getting along.”

“I think you’re who I’d like to be when I grow up.” Eloise said still laughing as they made their way down the street. “You always seem to be able to get things exactly the way you want them. Anthony told me many times I couldn’t have a dog as he wouldn’t allow one in the house. I found Newton on the sofa the other day.”

Kate scoffed. “I find the trick to dealing with your brother is ignoring him and doing exactly as you mean to any way.”

They love Kate. They love that she gets so involved in their family games, they love her.

But the thing about Kate and Anthony is… they’re also Kate and Anthony.

They’re always tossing one another smiles and looks across the room and they sit after dinner with their heads bowed together giggling at something or other. Some private joke between the two of them.

It gets to be a bit much some time.

“Oh please!” Benedict groaned one night at the dinner table as Anthony grinned at his wife beside him. “No more I beg of you!”

“Yes!” Eloise hissed, “Some of us, are eating.”

“Some of us,” Anthony said easing his eyebrows, “Should be thankful that their brother hasn’t mentioned the articles I found tucked into a book calling for revolution.”

Eloise fell silent but Benedict only tutted, appealing to Kate. “Kate, I love you. You know I do. I would… fight a duel over you with Anthony if I thought you’d have me.”

Kate rolled her eyes. “I doubt that.”

Anthony looked affronted, “Don’t tempt me.”

“If you’ve ever cared for me,” Benedict carried on, “Please, please go and sit at the opposite end of the table.”

Anthony scoffed, “I don’t think that’s necessary.”

“Who are you?!” Benedict hissed, “You used to care about propriety!”

Kate gave Benedict a slow smile, winking at Anthony. “No, darling. Benedict’s right, this isn’t proper.” She turned down the table still smirking. “Violet would you swap with me?”

Violet looked a little wary but stood and took Kate’s seat so Kate was sat at the opposite end of the table from her husband, the entire family between them. She cleared her throat, talking loudly enough that they all had to hear.

“As I was saying, Darling: You look very handsome tonight.”

Anthony grinned as his siblings groaned, “You’re right Benedict. I do prefer this.”

“Yes!” Kate called out, “This is much more proper!”

“Thank you, Benedict.” Eloise sighed, “Thank you for this.”

“This isn’t exactly what I meant, obviously.”

[aduck8myshoes]

I know the writers won't give us an endgame wlw sibling, but think about the bridgerton family comedy they could milk out of that! Imagine:

In either a cold open cut-off or a cliffhanger, Cressida impulsively kisses Eloise and runs away, leaving Eloise completely blue screened. Eloise has no idea that lesbibabs exist, bc regency, and she is having lots of feelings she doesn't understand. She needs knowledge which to her means books, but where would one even find such a publication?

Cue Eloise trying to casually ask her two most worldly brothers where to find books about girl kissing. B and C spend a good 20 seconds looking back and forth from her to each other and going on just incredible face journeys. She's like, I just overheard some stuff and was curious this is not about me at all ahahaha, and they all suddenly have very important things to attend to that are not this conversation.

(Read more because this got long lol)

Colin has seen women have sex with each other in brothels, but he is an oblivious mfer that just discovered complex emotions last season, and probably had no idea there could be romantic feelings involved. So of course he goes to his wife about it.

Penelope is like, wtf, where is this coming from?, and Colin manages to not blurt out that it's about Eloise for a whole 10 seconds. Pen, who actually has a modicum of emotional intelligence, has heard her recently reconciled best friend complain for years that she doesn't understand why women want husbands, and is like, oh, some things suddenly make sense. She tells Colin to not worry about it and go to sleep.

Bi-nedict, who does know what a lesbian is, has heard his darling sister complain for years that she doesn't understand why women want husbands, and is like, oh, some things suddenly make sense.

Being the selfless brother he is, he heads over to the nearest artist orgy and asks around for some literature. They're like, oh yeah for sure, we have a zine club! (And then gets dicked down/pegged like he deserves.)

A few days later he gets a discreet delivery of underground pamphlets with names like "A Treatise on Human Sexuality" and "Like Yearns for Like: Observations on Attraction" as well as some he will NOT be giving to Eloise. (Zine club is very educational)

The less salacious pamphlets get awkwardly passed off to Eloise before bed and she spends all night in a montage of reading, recalling memories of Cressida (or possibly just women in general) being attractive, and working her way though her mini identity crisis.

At breakfast Violet sees her be like "Thank you for your... help. It was very... helpful" while not making eye contact with B, and mentally steels herself for whatever nonsense her kids are up to now.

For the next several episodes we watch them stumble upon Eloise as she attempts to get Cressida alone to talk (and then "talk") and have to try to keep anyone from finding out about the gal pals.

(Benedict going to duck around a corner only to see his sister sucking face and ducking right back out: Hey Colin and Penelope why don't we spend this entire ball standing right here blocking the entrance to this side hallway for no reason.

Penelope, who hasn't seen E in like an hour, putting 2 and 2 together: Ah yes, what an excellent idea brother-in-law! The view of everything in the opposite direction of that hallway is most splendid from this exact spot.

Colin, looking around, probably still oblivious: did Eloise go home?)

Anthony and Kate could be dragged into the effort as well at some point when they see something they shouldn't while looking for their own make-out spot.

And then when the drama hits and the relationship is revealed, they all put on their best shocked Pikachu faces while Colin finally gets it and is like, "oh wait is that why she was asking about-" before Pen stomps on his foot.

Violet lets herself give up for a full minute and just bang her head on a table.

[gnpwdrnwhiskey]

something in the orange - two

a Dieter Bravo x ofc!Ava in another life AU

pairing - Dieter & Ava

word count - 1500ish

warnings - this was supposed to be more angsty, but Dieter wasn't really having it, so besides a mention of Ava's grandfather being a controlling ass, I can't really think of much? brief mention of a 3rd party buying drugs, implied past drug use, Dieter gets a dumb tattoo, lol let me know if I missed anything....oh, not a warning really but this chapter does feature Benjamin Miller as a very special guest star lol

authors note - I don't know what I'm doing, I never know what I'm doing, I don't know what the actual point of this story is from day to day, I just like to take my characters out and play with them, lol, so thanks as always to @wildemaven & @trulybetty for listening to me ramble on about all this silly stuff 💕

“There's an idiot next door getting a hippo tattooed on his ankle,” Liza announces as she breezes into the store exactly at three.

“Oh, shit!” Ava exclaims, gathering her things and slinging her bag over her shoulder as she heads for the door.

Dieter. She forgot about Dieter.

“That's my idiot. Probably. I'll explain later,” she calls over her shoulder as she leaves and crashes directly into six foot two inches of lean muscle and boyish charm.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

Benny. She forgot about Benny too. Benny is….she doesn't really know what Benny is. A friend. Sometimes a lover. Right now, possibly another potential headache.

“Hey beautiful, where's the fire?” He laughs down at her, hands going to her waist to steady her.

“Apparently, the fire is next door at your shop.”

“What? Hollywood? Yeah, he's with Will. Came in and asked if he could sketch his own design and have it inked.”

“Jesus frickin Christ,” Ava mutters, letting Benny pull her closer and hiding her face against his chest. “And you let him? How is this my life?”

“So that's your guy, huh? He doesn't seem that bad.”

“He's not my guy, he's a pain in my ass. And he really can be that bad.”

“Does he know that? Because he hasn't shut up about you,” Benny laughs, looking over towards the shop. “And he's watching us right now. Wanna make him jealous?”

“Is this an excuse to get me to kiss you, Benjamin Miller?” Ava asks, raising her head and narrowing her eyes at him.

“Depends,” He shrugs, a mischievous grin stealing across his face and his blue eyes twinkling. “Is it working?”

She grins back at him and loops her arms around his neck. “Fine. One kiss.”

“I better make it a good one then.”

“So that guy, huh?” Dieter asks as he and Ava walk to her place.

“Don't start, Dee.”

“What? I didn't say anything. He's hot. If, ya know, that whole blonde Adonis thing is what you're into.”

“He's a friend.”

“You kiss all your friends like that?” Dieter scoffs.

“Can we not with the jealousy?”

“I come to visit my wife–”

“That was annulled,” Ava laughs, playfully shoving his shoulder.

“I come to visit my wife,” he says again, louder this time. “And she's having a literal rom-com moment in a semi tropical paradise, what with the kissing and the twirling and everything. I think I'm entitled to a little bit of jealousy.”

“Okay, fine, if you want to be like that, husband, how are things with Anika?”

“Low blow, Ava. Low blow. Didn't Drew tell you? She left me for Kate.”

“What? No! Aww, she was cute. I liked her. Completely wrong for you, but I liked her.”

“What?” Dieter gasps, mock offended. “Why would you say that?”

She's not me.

That's Ava's immediate thought and one she's not about to voice so she just shrugs.

“She's too serious, too focused. And you're….not really. You're chaos and impulse. Like wandering off to get a hippo tattoo,” she laughs, gesturing at his still rolled up pant leg.

“But look,” he says, stopping to prop his foot up on a nearby bench. “It says ‘I hippopotamiss you’. Ya know, in case you ever wonder. It's right there. Permanently.”

Ava stares down at the little hippo on the inside of his ankle and has to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. It's cute and ridiculous and exactly the kind of dumb stunt she should expect from him.

“Touching, Dee, really. Because I spend so much time with you. And your ankles.”

That earns her another grin and what she knows is supposed to be a suggestive eyebrow wiggle.

“Aww, babycakes, you could spend as much time with any part of me as you want.”

She grabs his hand to get him moving again and gives it a squeeze before lacing her fingers with his and continuing their walk.

“I'll keep that in mind.”

“Jesus, Ava, you live here?” Dieter asks, looking at the tiny camper she's led him to. “You couldn't have rented a nicer one? Maybe one built in this century? We had trailers bigger than this on set when we were kids….”

“Shut up, we did not,” she laughs, bouncing up the stairs and unlocking the door. “It's cozy. I have everything I need.”

“This can't even be safe in hurricane season. It's like a million year old camper in a questionable RV park.”

“Okay one, it's not a questionable park, it's very safe. And two, I usually pack up Lucy and head north.”

“Another relic,” Dieter snorts, referring to Ava's twenty year old Honda Element parked outside. “This is comfy though. I could sleep,” he adds, sprawling out on the sofa while Ava putters around the tiny kitchen.

“No, get up. Come to the table. Eat something and then you can take a nap if you want to.”

“You can cook?” He asks, sitting up and moving to the table as requested, eyeing Ava skeptically.

“No,” she grins. “But I can make you a sandwich.”

Dieter wakes up a couple hours later with a post-it note stuck to his forehead, Ava's familiar scribble stating if she's not there, he'll know where to find her.

He doesn't really, but he knows all he has to do is go outside, look around and then head towards the sunset. She'll be wherever she can find the best view.

He makes use of her pitiful excuse for a bathroom and then ventures outside, wandering around until he finds a little picnic area and Ava sitting on top of a table, arms behind her supporting her weight as she watches the sun starting its descent into the ocean.

“Where do you go?” He asks as he joins her. “When you pack up and go North, where do you go?”

“Wherever I want. Sometimes I make a vacation of it and go on a road trip. Sometimes I just hunker down somewhere until it's safe to come back. Why?”

“I dunno, just curious. There's so much I don't know about you now. So much I guessed wrong.”

“What do you mean?” Ava asks, bringing one leg up onto the table and turning to face him. “Guessed wrong about what?”

“I guess I didn't realize you had, like, a whole life here. When Drew told me where you were, I just assumed you were drinking margaritas and laying around, doing the beach bum thing or whatever,” he shrugs. “And then he said you were working at a gas station….”

“The gas station gig is temporary,” Ava laughs. “The owners are friends and they just had a baby. I was between things, so I'm helping out.”

“See- you've never stayed anywhere long enough to have friends before, to be part of the community or whatever, it's different. Not what I expected. So what do you do when you're not working at a gas station?”

“I've done a little bit of everything - tour guide, hostess, waitress, movie concessions, bartender, barista.”

Dieter shakes his head in disbelief. “You’re so fucking smart, Ava. You could've done anything…"

“I just wanted a normal life.”

“Babycakes, this isn't exactly normal,” Dieter laughs softly.

“Maybe not,” she agrees. “But it's not in the spotlight either and I don't have to answer to anyone but myself.”

“Don't you ever miss it?” He leaves the underlying ‘don't you ever miss me, ever miss us’ unspoken. “I understand why you felt like you had to leave, I do. I know you felt like Conrad was controlling your whole life….”

“Because he was controlling my whole life, Dee. He had it all scripted out. When we'd get married again, for real and very publicly. When I’d ideally start popping out your babies. The types of roles I'd take. The most important one, of course, being your arm candy while you talked about whatever your next big thing was going to be.”

“That’s not fair, Ava. You know I never would've gone along with that shit- not if you were uncomfortable with it. Besides, you had a solid career. Steady work. You were America's sweetheart.”

“No, I was America's quirky best friend. Bailey was America's sweetheart.”

“I don't want to talk about Bailey.”

“You never want to talk about Bailey.”

“She stole my Oscar! She literally broke into my house and stole my Oscar and sold it to buy coke!”

*You got it back,” Ava laughs.

“Whatever,” he grumbles. “I hope she's freezing her ass off up there in Canada shooting all those damn Hallmark Christmas movies.”

“So I shouldn't tell her you said hi the next time I talk to her?”

“You can tell her to kiss my flat ass.”

“Okay, okay, no more talk about Bailey,” Ava says, turning to scoot closer to him so she can rest her head on his shoulder. “Just be quiet and watch the sunset. And then I'll let you treat me to dinner somewhere.”

“You stole all my money earlier,” Dieter reminds her and Ava shrugs.

“Just the cash. You still have your credit cards.”

[theblogtini]

The only reason I’m slightly “poor Harry” is because he may not have liked his role in the familial institution but you can’t tell me he didn’t love his family. Didn’t he even say at the end of the NF doc he misses his family and friends? 

I sure can, anon. In fact, I don't think he gives a damn about his family at all -- only what they can do for him. And that's the biggest tragedy in this whole thing. It isn't what's happening to "poor Harry" as some people like to lament cos he's actually getting far less than his just dessert. It's the realization for his family of how little he actually cares about them and how far he's willing to go to hurt them.

Let's see: He trashed and blackmailed his family as his grandfather was dying and then threw him along with his grandmother and father under the bus for bad parenting right after he died. He was doing the "documentary" and the book knowing that his grandmother was terminally ill AND all the while STILL had the gall to harass her for $$. He then spent the period leading up to her funeral making demands to his grieving family and was looking positively murderous at the service just because he didn't get to sit at the front row. He hara$$ed his father too in private while publicly slagging and erasing him since he isn't as useful as his iconic dead mother whom he relentlessly exploits for $$ and clout. He tried to character assassinate his brother and cast aspersions upon his marriage with a callous disregard as to how it'd affect his nephews and niece, which, given the history with his own parents, is especially vile and cruel. He slandered them all to incite attacks against them and the family business and get them cancelled. If that's love then no, thanks, anon lol

Oh but he loved his family cos he said he missed them? PLS. More like he missed the perks and their clout that he'd taken for granted. It was a meaningless and manipulative lip service to take the edge off of his treachery and mask his malevolence. Just like when he sang the late Queen's praises while also reducing her to a puppet and a senile old lady. Or when he said he loved his brother to bits before throwing him under the bus on Oprah. The same m.o. as when his wife said that Kate was a nice person after humiliating her with the waity Katie dig.

He's hurt and abused a lot of people. But because his mummy died his apologists keep infantilizing and feeling sorry for him instead of for those he's hurt. Or they keep making excuses for him and downplaying his malice because they bought into his PR and don't like to admit that they'd been totally wrong/fooled. And ofc there's also the good ole misogyny where it's always the woman's fault. As the other anon said, you don't see people say "poor Meghan". I wonder tho if they'd still say "poor Harry" if he'd done any of those things to THEM?

Sorry for the rant but I'm also so damn sick of this "poor Harry" business lol

Daaaaamnn🔥🔥🔥

[cariadlovescodwomen]

cariad’s obsession with the female call of duty characters is starting to get unhealthy (it has been for quite a while)

valeria, kate, farah 💞

-

valeria garza might have committed many heinous crimes, but who hasn’t? :). don’t act like you’re innocent. let’s be partners in crime, val, forget about everyone else. (i’m losing it)

(i would do anything for that woman, oh my GOD. i’d let her shoot me)

i just wanna be kate’s wife. that’s all i want out of this life. maybe i have a thing for older women, maybe i have a thing for american women.

(that sounds odd, lmfao, idk what it is. y’know when a character has a non-american accent, and in every fanfic it’s always pointed out? “their deep british accent rung through your ears”? i’m like that with american accents, for some reason?? american accents are deemed the norm, so no one pays attention when a character has a standard northern american accent, but i love them 😭 and southern american accents)

i want farah to teach me how to ride a motorcycle. please, ma’am. i just wanna spend any amount of time with farah, tbh. she’s so beautiful, and smart, and strong, atkajsksksk.

(side note - i feel so weird calling a woman “ma’am” because i call my actual mother “mam” and the pronunciation (the pronunciation i use for “ma’am” anyway) is literally the same)

-

operators you probably don’t care about 💞 (calisto, stiletto, roze, kleo, nova, luna)

-

fuck the royals 🤬, fuck the royals 😏. look, she seems pretentious af, but i love her for it. what was that one voice line? “can i play with you? mhm.” what does that mean, calisto???

(my hearing is shit so if that’s not what she said, don’t tell me :). i’d rather pretend, LOL)

most of the content i see for stiletto is shipping her with könig. she is literally dating me, how dare you disrespect our relationship like that. i could treat a woman better than him, anyway 🙄.

(sorry, könig, you’ve become my punching bag, i promise i don’t actually hate you. i’m just jealous of your fans, that’s all)

rozlin goddamn helms. she was once a shadow, right? no wonder she left that company. i could treat my employees better than graves could. back to actually talking about roze herself, mw19 roze had a chokehold on me, man. she’s so AH. (you figure out what that means)

(fuck you, graves, i may have stated that i liked southern american accents, but this excludes you (and most men, southern accents on women, i should’ve clarified))

kleopatros gavras. that woman. now, where the hell is the hype for her? i feel she’s very smart, and obviously very strong. i love smart women. i love strong women. i love women. doesn’t seem very friendly, but i can work with that. (that sounds weird)

(when it comes to characters that don’t have official heights, i like to headcanon them some, for nearly all of the female operators, they’re tall because i said so, i love tall women)

i think nova’s actress is very pretty. i, too, love flying. it was meant to be, no? please, nova, i’m on my knees. i literally have no words to describe the way i feel about this woman 😶.

(a lot of people don’t like her voice, but i don’t have anything negative to say, really. maybe i’m too blinded by love 🤷‍♀️) (that was embarrassing to say)

luna just seems like a really friendly person. she makes me feel safe?? even though she isn’t real?? the voice line, “alright then, i see you!” did it for me. she’s a soldier, she’s tough, but she’s also so amicable it kills me. idk i just love her, man.

(another smart woman, i fucking love smart women. i just wanna be her friend, lmao)

-

all in all, i’m a raging lesbian, and the women in this game make me feel things :). also, apologising if there are any grammatical or linguistic errors. <3

[laylajeffany]

Can men do any form of divination work in your interpretation of outcasts? There have been plenty of male psychics, but none doing Wednesday's sort of magic. Though very few men were accused during the most well-known witch trials (though there were still some), there were many men accused in other countries like Russia Many authors intentionally choose to exclude male witches from their work simply because there's plenty of male representation already, but it varies whether not that means no men at all or if simply none are presented to the audience. So I'm curious to know your view on it in the context of outcasts and the Network (I will say I'm only on chapter 21 so there may be a character I'm not aware of yet)

I just snorted; there is a character you are loosely aware of and haven’t met in-person yet as of chapter twenty-one and oh boy, can he perform psychic/magic-adjecent feats.  For the magic “rules” I have in place in CftF, anyone is capable of tapping into the energy of the universe and perform feats of divination, though obviously Psychics, particularly Seers, would be more naturally inclined to be open to these channels due to their Outcast abilities. Wednesday’s lineage on the Frump side and the whole “homespun magic” piece is intentionally matriarchal. Indeed, all the way up to the end, you will notice that only women (outside of QBB in the ether) have been seen doing divination in the story regardless of the Frump family, though. Is this a coded message that women are stronger than men in this area within the CftF world? Or does the author just think about men so infrequently that she didn’t even consider to include any males in the scenes that involved these practices, lmfao?

In general - my writings are by The Girls™ for The Girls™ All other genders and expressions of gender are welcome to read of course, but might not find themselves connecting as deeply as I specifically call to some of the female and lesbian struggle, written by a lesbian who really writes for herself, and edited only by lesbian eyes as well lol (even before Wednesday and Enid are together in chapter 13 - the subtext of her struggle prior to is related to that experience). I used to write a lot of stories that featured men more, including het ships. Now I’m like, “Why would I write something that I don’t really like?” And I don’t really like men lol. (To be fair I also do not have great men in my real life who inspire me in any capacity, I am constantly having to teach them very basic things, do their jobs for them and/or remind them that I am not just here to be used - I do know there are good men out there, T. Martel’s father being one of them a la Gomez). (I think Kate McKinnon’s team has scrubbed lot of her pre-SNL content from the internet…she used to have an interview from when she worked on LogoTV that explained this so well that I can’t find anymore.) Regardless, the entire world centers men, and my 1.4 million word story was a place where that simply would not happen. As an author I absolutely try to center women and write from a lesbian lens as often as it is appropriate and makes sense for the story. We will be seeing more Gomez and Pugs in the sequel though as the first 300k will probably be taking place prior to arriving at Nevermore for the fall semester and be far more Addams family (which includes Enid now) centric. I recently finished an extremely heartwarming father-daughter part of chapter one and it tugged on my own heartstrings, lol. I would love to play with more Gomez and Morticia pre-children visions or memories if I can find a way to meaningfully incorporate them into the story. I think that Gomez’s love for his wife is a conduit for her to tap into more powerful divination practices - she is a light seeker, and her husband is part of where she draws inspiration (even if it grosses Wednesday and I out lol). This was very briefly mentioned when Wednesday asked if she had a difficult time conceiving when she realized that it was nearly seventeen years into Gomez and Morticia's relationship before she was born. Love power is real lmfao.

[fratboykate]

Just a desperate anon, politely asking if this was ever posted 👀👀👀 or if it could be added to the potential writer-strike queue if it wasn’t. I am crossing my fingers it wasn’t eaten by tumblr or notes…

https://www.tumblr.com/fratboykate/711128923636908032/papi-we-need-the-stepmom-angst-its-a-matter-of

You must've crossed those fingers really hard because you sent this two weeks ago and are now getting it three whole days before the strike lol. Here's almost 10k of...them. Mom!AU is officially back from the war too.

///

"Do NOT bring those boots into the apartment, Ri. Off by the door. I mean it. You're cleaning it if you track all that dirty slush around."

Kate abruptly halts her twelve-year-old daughter’s hasty rush toward the entrance with a firm yank on the hood of her brightly colored parka and deftly transfers the stroller she’s pushing to Ereka. In the same single, graceful, and fluid motion, Kate skillfully juggles the diaper bag, empty coffee tumbler, and cell phone freeing her dominant hand to dig through her purse for her keys. A palpable imperativeness hangs in the air as they make their way down the hallway because Russell, who currently tries to squirm his way out of the stroller straps, is on the brink of a meltdown. With each passing second, his patience wears thinner, and Kate endeavors to avoid him going nuclear in public.

"And take your brother's boots off too, please. You know where the stroller goes. Don't just leave it blocking the door. Did momma text you back about dinner?"

"No...Any day now would be great, mom."

Kate's eyes narrow with stony intensity as she shoots Ereka a dirty look.

"I’ll leave you out here. Don’t try me."

"Top-notch parenting. I'll be sure to add that to the CPS file I'm compiling."

"Mommy, druck!"

Two-and-a-half-year-old Russell unleashes a series of frustrated hollers from within his rolling prison. His annoyance is palpable.

The boy is an undeniable carbon copy of his mother, a living reflection of Yelena. Kate has never once laid eyes on her son and seen anything other than an unmistakable resemblance to her wife. This moment isn’t an exception. Kate can't help but notice the striking parallels between them. Every feature screams Yelena, from how his nose scrunches when he smiles to his green eyes to his vibrant blonde hair to his Short King status. Even his breathing issues, which lend a raspy voice and a crackling laugh, serve as a constant reminder of the deep link that those two share. Kate could complain about the fact that he also inherited her rotten temper, but instead, she finds herself captivated by this portable embodiment of her darling wife.

"Yes, baby. Riri will get you another truck as soon as we're inside."

"I WANT RED DRUCK NOW! RED DRUCK!"

"Okay, woh. Tone, sir. You're the one who threw it out the car window. You're gonna wait until we get inside and give zero attitude because this is a problem of your own doing."

Russell furrows his brow, a visible display of his discontent, followed by an exasperated huff. The air between them hangs momentarily. This could be the moment when he finally loses his cool. Then…after a beat…

"A druck is a wectangle, mommy."

"It is. What shape is this?"

Kate holds up the face powder she's holding.

"Circle! Cuz it wound. Like this..."

The little boy traces a circle in the air with his plump toddler fingers.

"Good job!"

"Oh my god. Do we live in the hallway now? Open the door."

Kate continues digging through her purse while simultaneously turning to Ereka and contorting her face into a humorous expression. Ereka quickly mirrors her mother's mischievous look, sparking a shared moment of amusement between the two. Laughter escapes their lips, affording them a moment of levity amid the chaotic scene. As their chuckles subside, a triumphant glimmer sails through Kate's eyes — she’s finally found the keys!

"There's no reason this thing should be able to swallow my keys into another dimension. It's not that big."

Kate swings the door wide open with a determined push. Without missing a beat, she dumps the bags that dangle from her shoulders onto the table by the entrance while slipping her waterproof boots off. Once her hands, arms, and feet are free, she heads to the jacket closet to begin taking layers off.

"Ri! Come on! You're smarter than that. Take your boots off first, THEN his. Moving around and look at the mess you're making."

Kate is too busy chastising her daughter to notice Yelena's coat is already hanging in the closet.

"You said to take his off too. I'm doing that and you get mad."

"I didn't think I needed to give you a detailed step-by-step on how to do it right, but I'll be sure to next time."

"Next time, I just won't do it if you're going to scream at me either way."

"There was no screaming. Just pointing out the obvious."

"...while you screamed."

Kate offers a vexed eye roll then strides into the apartment, leaving Ereka to wrestle with the challenge of removing Russell's stubborn boots in the foyer. Kate moves with purpose, her footsteps echoing as she navigates through the familiar space. Once Ereka successfully frees her brother’s tiny feet from the damp shoes, she proceeds to unstrap him from the stroller.

"Riri, druck!"

"I will get you your dumb truck, but I need to take this off you so mom doesn't flip a lid." Ereka tells her brother while deftly unzipping the small, purple coat.

"DRUCK NOW, RIRI!"

The little boy squirms as Ereka wrestles with his jacket.

"I will hide all your trucks if you scream at me again."

A deep frown creases Russell’s face, his features contorting into an expression of displeasure and frustration.

"No! Druck Wuss!"

"Yeah, they're your trucks, but I can also put them on the top shelf where you can't reach them if you don't stop being a brat." Ereka slides his gloves off, stands, and heads for the door a few feet away. Ereka opens the closet and immediately catches Yelena's coat. She hastily hangs her brother's tiny parka, throws the gloves into the corresponding cubby, and stares at Yelena's jacket once more before turning to Russell. "Don't move." Ereka darts to the back of the apartment, disappearing momentarily from Russell’s sight. She returns to the hallway that connects the foyer to the rest of the apartment a few seconds later. "Mama's home."

From her position by the kitchen island, Kate gazes at her daughter with confusion etched across her face.

"What?"

"Her coat's in here, so I went and checked and she's in the room. I think she's sleeping though, because all the lights are off."

Kate turns to glance at the clock on the microwave. 5:28 PM. Yelena is never home before them, let alone before 5:00 PM. At least not unless she's feeling unwell. Kate closes the cookbook she perused for dinner ideas and heads for the bedroom.

"Please keep an eye on him and get him one of the trucks from his chest. Thank you."

Kate tells Ereka as she kisses the top of her head in passing.

"Come on, Russellsprout. Let's get you a truck."

Kate suppresses a smile and instinctively rolls her eyes, a reflexive response to Ereka’s talent for assigning people terrible (and often food-related) nicknames. This might be one of the most annoying traits Ereka inherited from her father and Kate can’t help but find it both amusing and exasperating.

---

Kate enters the pitch-black room, stepping closer to the bed as her eyes gradually adjust to the darkness. The air is nice and toasty, meaning the older woman must be running the small space heater she’s permanently moved to her nightstand. As Kate approaches, she can see Yelena is, in fact, in bed. Her back is turned to the door and her shoulders rise and fall in a slow, steady rhythm. A wave of concern washes over the brunette as she realizes that her wife must be feeling truly awful to be in bed this early.

"Baby...Yel..."

Kate whispers but gets no answer. She debates letting Yelena sleep but can't resist the urge to be close to her wife, even if it's just for a moment. Kate crawls into bed and nestles herself against Yelena’s warm form. Yelena instinctively responds, her body pushing back into Kate’s.

Kate's lips find Yelena's neck, leaving a trail of soft, affectionate kisses. Her arm delicately snakes around Yelena's overgrown midriff, cradling the ever-growing twenty-two-week pregnant belly.

"You okay?"

Kate whispers into Yelena's ear and places a gentle kiss on her earlobe. Yelena softly shakes her head, indicating her disinterest in engaging in conversation at the moment.

The most accurate way to describe Yelena's pregnancy thus far is: miserable. The first trimester was a nightmare, marked by persistent malaise and bouts of morning sickness that had her bent over a toilet for hours on end, leaving her feeling drained and weak. And those were the good days. But that was only the tip of the iceberg. Yelena’s body is rebelling at every turn. Run down any list of pregnancy symptoms (and add a few more most people had never even heard of), and Yelena went through all of them. Her body seems determined to manifest every ailment imaginable and magnify its intensity. The dizziness has become a constant companion. Exhaustion has settled in her bones, claiming all of her energy. Frequent nosebleeds interrupt her daily routine, keeping her perpetually on edge. There’s also the hormonal mood swings that leave Yelena feeling like a stranger in her own body. Crippling headaches punctuate her days with throbbing pangs, constantly forcing her to seek solace in the darkness…like now.

Throughout the madness of this pregnancy, Kate has risen to the occasion, stepping up as a pillar of emotional support and embracing the role of caregiving, devoted partner with unwavering dedication. Day in and day out, Kate has done everything she can to make Yelena's life easier, including taking on the lion’s share of household chores and errands. Additionally, Kate has done everything in her power to anticipate Yelena's needs. She cooks meals to soothe Yelena's queasy stomach, researches remedies and alternative therapies to alleviate symptoms, offers calming teas and massages to ease aches, ensures Yelena stays hydrated and gets enough rest, or is simply around to provide a comforting touch along with words of consolation when Yelena is feeling down about the toll that pregnancy is taking on her body. Kate has become a constant presence by her wife’s side, ensuring Yelena feels loved and cherished throughout this challenging period. Overall, Kate has made it her mission to turn Yelena's difficult pregnancy into a somewhat manageable experience.

With tender affection, Kate runs her palm over Yelena's growing belly.

"I thought we had a deal that you were going to be nice to momma, baby girl. What's going on in there, huh?"

"Your stupid genes...trying to kill me." Kate chuckles, a jovial response to their now recurring conversation. Since Yelena is carrying a baby conceived with Kate's egg and the donor's sperm, Yelena has started to (halfway?) joke that Kate’s genes must be “toxic” to her and that they’re the root cause of Yelena's endless pregnancy woes. "You drive me crazy every day. Why did I think putting a literal piece of you inside me would go any better?"

"I'm sorry. So evil of me. Bad, BAD genes. I'll have a talk with them later." Kate's lips graze Yelena's shoulder, leaving behind a trail of soft kisses. In an instant, Yelena's body surrenders to her touch and loosens up as a result. "What are you feeling for dinner?"

"The last thing I want near me right now is food."

"You need to eat, Yel."

"I need this baby out of me. That's what I need."

Yelena lets out a discontented grumble and Kate's smile blossoms against her skin.

"Three more months. You just have to cook the nugget for three more months and you're done."

"That sounds like forever. Don't like it."

"How about some Mac and Cheese? Would that make it somewhat better?"

"Kate Bishop...are you trying to bribe me out of bed?"

"Maybe. I think there's lobster in the fridge. I think I got some when I went on Monday. If not, I can have some delivered. Lobster Mac. Super ooey and gooey and cheesy and yum."

"Why are you trying to sell it to me like I'm two?"

"It's how I convince your son to eat. Figured it might work on you since you're both grumpy little gremlins." Restless and dissatisfied, Yelena grunts in discomfort and shifts in bed, struggling to find an agreeable position to no avail. Eventually, she ends up half-facing Kate, seeking some semblance of relief in the brunette’s proximity. Kate offers her a warm smile. "That's the face of someone who could do with some ooey gooey cheesy yum in their life."

Yelena's lips curl into a merry smile and she indulges in a slight eye roll.

"I hate that it's actually working."

"My job is to sell things for a living and..." Kate plants a delicate kiss on Yelena's lips. "...I'm good at what I do."

"You..."

The door bursts open, unleashing a flood of light that fills the room. The little blonde toddler charges inside with a whirlwind of energy while proudly showcasing the truck his sister procured for him.

"MOMMA, LOOK! RIRI GOT RED DRUCK!"

Russell hops onto the bed, forcefully wedging himself with determined enthusiasm into the nonexistent space between his mothers.

"Your son...he had the genius idea to hurl his truck out the moving car window on our way here. Blue truck no more."

"Russ...that's dangerous. We don't do that."

"Blue druck went...FRUMMMMMMM"

The little boy offers Yelena an animated demonstration of the flight his toy truck embarked on with uncontainable excitement.

"RUSSPBERRY!"

"He's in here!"

Kate shouts at her daughter, who promptly appears at the door seconds later.

"Sorry. I went to the bathroom and I told him to stay."

"It's okay."

"Did he wake momma up?"

"Your mom woke me up."

"WITH KISSES. It was the most gentle wake-up ever."

"Still woke me up."

Kate shakes her head, purporting to be piqued.

"Come here. There's room."

Ereka's face lights up with a broad smile as she dashes to the bed and jumps onto it, somehow also forcing herself between Kate and Yelena.

"Easy. Momma's not feeling great."

"Sorry. Hi."

Ereka settles herself snugly, resting her chin on Yelena's hip and tenderly placing her hand on the gentle curve of her mother’s stomach.

"Hi. How was school?" Yelena asks with genuine curiosity.

Ereka shrugs nonchalantly, a hint of facetious defiance in her expression.

"Same as every other time you ask."

Kate and Yelena exchange amused glances before bursting into laughter. Yelena leans closer to Ereka, a warm grin on her face.

"Humor me."

Ereka huffs dramatically, her eyes rolling with jocose petulance. A small, roguish grin tugs at the corners of her lips, giving away her underlying amusement.

"Classes are boring. Everyone is stupid. The rules don't make sense. It's always going to be the same thing. So…fine, I guess. Tolerable.”

"Oh, you're going to be a FUN teenager." Yelena responds, her tone lighthearted and teasing.

"If I'm as precocious as everyone says I am, then technically, you could assume I've been a teenager for a while now."

"Yeah, that's it. The moment you hit thirteen, I'm packing your bags and finding you a new place to live, or I'll start graying early.” Kate playfully warns while simulating seriousness.

"Wow. Threatening to rescind my housing for exercising my right to free speech? I'm sure some case worker out there is salivating at the thought of it."

Kate rolls her eyes.

"Mommy, hungwy. I has milk?"

"Have, baby. Can I have milk?"

"Yeah. Can I haves it?” The little boy insists eagerly and with a hint of distress.

Kate chuckles.

"Close enough. But we're having dinner in a little bit, so no milk right now." Kate places a final peck on Yelena's lips and starts to stand. "Mac and cheese for dinner."  

"Yesssss. Can you put bacon in it?" Ereka inquires excitedly.

"If you guys haven't gone through it already, then sure. Last I checked, there were like two pieces left, so not making any promises."

"Tell Lila to make less bacon for breakfast then."

"OR...you could do what I ask and write it on the list when you see we're running low. She already has enough on her plate with you two. You could help out more."

A few times a week, a dedicated housekeeper arrives early in the morning to help with the kids and the upkeep of the house. She quickly becomes a lifeline for the family, offering an extra pair of capable hands and a much-needed boost of organization and support. This arrangement means Kate and Yelena have less to juggle and can focus more of their time on the children.

"You also saw we were running low and didn't put it on the list, so..."

"I did put it on the list when I realized I just haven't gone shopping again. But it wasn't on my last list because YOU, the bacon fiend in this house, didn't put it there."

"Whatever." Ereka grumbles, feigning annoyance.

"Keep her busy...but don't drive her crazy. It's a delicate balance. I'll scream when it's ready. And...I might need you at some point, so don't pretend like you don't hear me calling you when I do."

Kate punctuates her words by tapping Ereka on the shoulder as she stands and walks away.

"I have bad ears." Ereka tries to play it off, but Kate doesn't let her off the hook.

"Not according to the doctor, you don't."

Ereka has gotten so proficient at selective hearing that Kate took her to the otolaryngologist to get her checked, only to prove a point.

Ereka repositions herself to lie on Kate's pillow, her face ending next to Yelena’s. She lovingly presses her head against the blonde’s.

"I like it when you're home early."

Yelena offers a faint smile while keeping her eyes closed.

"Me too."

"WUSS LIKES, MOMMA." Russell exclaims. He has an adorable habit of referring to himself in the third person, which always makes the outlandish things he says objectively funnier.

The little boy clambers up Yelena's body, unknowingly jabbing her sides with the hard plastic of his toy truck. Yelena winces and hisses in pain, prompting her to extend her arms and lift him off.

"Why are all your toys deadly weapons?" Yelena gripes, readjusting Russell so he's lying against her chest and carefully removing the toy from his hand. He immediately snuggles his cheek against hers and allows his entire body weight rest on her. Yelena lets out a groan, a mixture of mischief and genuine fatigue. "You guys are so clingy. Where are we even going to fit a third?"

Yelena fake complains, although deep down, she loves every second of it.

"She can go right here."

Ereke facetiously places her open hand over Yelena's face, covering most of it. Yelena chuckles.

"Yeah. Perfect place to sit a dirty diaper on."

Ereka's chuckles echo around the room as Yelena tries to shake her palm off her face. With a bit of effort, Yelena succeeds in removing Ereka's hand and turns to face her, offering a weak but earnest smile.

"I'm sorry you're not feeling good."

"It's okay. I'll suck it up...but I'm going to complain the entire time."

Ereka snickers and slides impossibly closer to Yelena, their bond evident in their proximity.

"Thank you for a little sister."

Yelena presses a loving kiss to Ereka's temple.

"Are you happy about it?"

"SO MUCH!" Ereka’s genuine excitement and gratitude shine through her words. "...Unless you're lying to me again and it's actually another one of these..." Ereka pokes her fingers all around Russell's body and the toddler giggles uncontrollably. "...in there."

Yelena guffaws.

"Promise it's a girl. For real this time. And she's a very lucky girl to have you as a big sister."

"I think so too."

"We have to work on your modesty." Yelena teases her daughter with a smile.

"I'm the right amount of confident. I know I'm a good big sister. Right, Russpaghetti?"

Ereka looks at her little brother for validation. The boy eagerly nods his head as he pats his tiny hands all over Yelena's face.

"Mama, milk pwease."

"Mommy is working on dinner. No milk right now. Milk later."

"Milk pwease." Russell persists, his fussiness escalating.

"No milk right now, Russ."

The boy begins to fuss and instantly works himself up to the brink of a tantrum.

"MILK, MAMA!” Russell insists, his volume rising.

"No no. Shhhhh...let's all just...Shhh...quiet time until dinner is ready. How about that? That sounds so much more fun and better for my head."

"NO!"

Ereka rolls her eyes at his protest and rises from the bed.

"Where are you going?"

"To get him milk. He's not going to stop until someone does and it'll make your headache worse if he doesn't. Just a little and he'll chill."

"Thank you."

"Yeah, yeah."

Ereka disappears out the door.

"Milk."

"Ri, went to get you some."

“Milk. Okay." Russell acknowledges, reassured that his request is being taken care of.

"So stubborn. Definitely get that from your other mom, not me. Definitely not me."

Yelena pulls the boy close and covers his body in kisses. His sour mood instantly shifts and he devolves into a fit of giggles.

---

An hour later, the foursome sits around the table, settled into their usual seats. Russell is perched in his high chair next to Kate, who patiently feeds him his meal. Ereka is to the other side of Kate, absentmindedly moving the food around her plate, seemingly lost in her thoughts. Yelena, determined to fend off her nausea, takes slow, deliberate bites, willing herself to keep the food down.

"Can I ask you something? And you'll promise you'll at least think about it before you say no?"

"Uh oh," Kate utters.

"I'm serious, mom."

"Me too. I can't possibly see how this is good, so I was bracing."

"Momma, promise you'll at least think about it."

Ereka turns towards Yelena, her expression brimming with seriousness and sincerity. Yelena meets her daughter's gaze, responding with a warm smile that conveys her openness to listen and engage wholeheartedly in anything Ereka is about to share.

"Whatever it is, mom and I will think about it and have a fair discussion before we get back to you.”

Following Yelena’s reassurance, a brief silence fills the room as Ereka gathers her thoughts. Kate and Yelena maintain their focus on her.

"I don't want to go stay at dad's anymore...ever."

Ereka declares confidently. Kate and Yelena instantly exchange worried glances.

"Did something happen?"

"No. Yes. No. I just...it's not that I don't want to see him. I just don't want to sleep over. Or be gone for days. Whenever I'm there, I'm missing here and Russtachio and you guys. And baby sister is coming soon and I'll miss her too. You always end up doing something fun without me and I hate it. Nothing I'm doing there is better than being here."

"Ri, we can't take days away from your dad."

"Why not?"

"It would...be a problem."

"What problem?! Just tell him I can…I don’t know…come hang out during the day for a few hours and then he has to bring me back."

"It doesn't work that way."

"Why not?!"

"Because we have a court-ordered agreement that we need to stick by. He gets you 30% of the time. That's how it works."

"Fuck court."

"Ereka!" Kate and Yelena exclaim simultaneously.

Ereka responds with a nonchalant shrug, seemingly unfazed by their reaction.

"See? That's what happens when you send me over to dad's house. I learn curse words. Bad influence."

"Honey, your dad loves you. You're the light of his life and he loves spending time with you." Kate tells Ereka matter-of-factly, her tone filled with unwavering certainty.

"All they do over there is be angry, argue with each other, and drink until they make up more reasons to keep arguing. Then it usually goes to fighting and breaking things. I hate it."

"How long has this been going on?" Yelena inquires, her voice laced with worry.

"Since I was little. That's what grandma's house has always been like."

"Who argues and breaks things?"

"Everyone. Everyone is always over for dinner and definitely on weekends. Dad and Uncle Billy get into it every time they start drinking. Aunt Viv drinks even more now that she's getting divorced. Her and dad argue all the time too. And then Aunt...it's a lot of people and I don't want to sleep over anymore."

"Ereka, did something else happen that you're not telling us? Something bad?" Yelena doubles down on her line of questions.

"No. I just want to come back home every night. I want to sleep here. Always."

"You can tell us anything. You know that, right?"

"I'm telling you right now!"

"Okay...hey...let's take a breather." Kate interjects, attempting to calm her.

"Ri, look at me," Yelena asks firmly. "Did anything inappropriate happen over there and you're scared to go back? Because if something did, we will..."

"Oh my god! No one like...touched me or did anything weird! Ew. Don't go there. I just don't like them. That's it. Nothing illegal. I mean, I have seen illegal things, but...nothing illegal involving me. I swear. Truly...that's not it."

"Promise?"

"Promise. It's not that. Really."

Yelena nods, her gaze shifting between Kate and Ereka, silently acknowledging the weight of the situation.

"We'll talk about it and get back to you.“

"There's nothing to talk about. We can't do that."

"We'll talk." Yelena insists, her voice firm yet gentle. "Give us some time, okay?"

Ereka nods and Yelena reaches across the table, placing a heartening hand on Ereka's.

"Thank you."

The girl whispers and finally takes her first bite of food, her appetite slowly returning. The table falls into a solemn silence as they continue their meal, each of them deep in their minds.

---

Yelena lies in bed, her hands absentmindedly caressing her stomach. Her eyes remain fixed on Kate, who moves around the bathroom finishing the last few steps of her nightly routine.

"Yel, we can't take this on,” Kate asserts firmly.

"Why not?"

Kate walks to the doorway, rests her shoulder against the jamb, and crosses her arms over her chest.

"Because we went to court for almost TWO YEARS to get the agreement we have now. How do you think it's gonna go over if I call him tomorrow and tell him we're breaking it? Do you really wanna go through whatever that brings up? Now? In the middle of this?"

Kate's hand gestures to Yelena's stomach, emphasizing their current situation.

"My feelings aren't more important than hers. If she doesn't want to go back, we shouldn't force her."

"Yes. You're correct. Absolutely. We should always take her feelings into consideration. But think about it like this, what she's asking is for us to get full custody and he gets SOME visitation rights. Under nebulous circumstances. What is she actually asking for? She gets to see him for two hours every other weekend and then comes home? We don't know what she wants, but whatever it is, I know that we don't have legal grounds to take her away from him. He's gonna fight it."

"And we can fight him."

Kate lets out a tired groan as she switches off the bathroom light. She moves to the bed, slipping under the covers, sitting up, and leaning her back against the bed frame. Her eyes are glued on the darkened TV screen across from her, her mind seemingly lost in serious contemplation.

"You two would fight all day if it were up to you, but *me*...I'm over it. This isn't something that's realistic and as much as I hate making her do something she doesn't want to, no judge is going to take his partial custody away. We don't even have any reason to take him back to court. Nothing's changed."

"She said she's seen illegal things...We should ask what that is."

"Yelena..." Kate turns to face her wife, her expression showing both fatigue and vulnerability. "...I don't have another two years of court in me. I don't have even another second of his tantrums and his shit in my body. I can't do it. Especially knowing we're not going to win. He's been...better???"

"That's a stretch."

Yelena reaches out and takes Kate's hand in hers, intertwining their fingers, and grounding her. Grounding each other.

"It has been better. You can't deny it hasn't. Why do we want to poke the bear?"

"For her. I would poke the bear for her."

Kate's shoulders slump as she exhales a heavy sigh, the weight of their situation bearing down on her. Yelena squeezes her wife’s hand gently.

"What happens when we go through a long, miserable custody battle over this, then she's suddenly sixteen and wants to go sleep at her dad's because we did something to piss her off?”

"Nothing. She goes to sleep at her dad's. Because that's her choice. As long as it's her choice, it's fine. But we shouldn't force her into a situation that makes her clearly unhappy." Yelena takes a beat, thinking. "What if we don't have to go to court? What if we all sit down and talk about it?"

Kate lets out a bitter laugh.

"Yel, please."

"It could work."

"When have you two ever been in a room where the situation doesn't end with me stopping you from killing each other?"

"I can't exactly kick his ass right now, so...different circumstances. I mean, I probably still could, but unless I had to, I wouldn't."

"I love her and I love you, but I'm not doing it. I'm not going to detonate a bomb we don't even need to touch."

---

The next morning. Yelena finds herself perched on a booth in a bustling café, the air filled with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and the animated chatter of the early lunchtime crowd. She grimaces and shifts restlessly, her hand instinctively soothing the spot where her daughter just delivered a formidable fighter-style kick.

"You need to cut it with that."

Yelena mutters, chastising the baby before taking a cautious sip of her decaf concoction. Her eyes remain glued on the café entrance as she anxiously awaits the arrival of the person she's meeting.

Thankfully, Yelena's anticipation is short-lived. The jingling bell above the door heralds the arrival of Tom, who enters the busy room and immediately starts scanning the patrons. Spotting Yelena, he makes his way to her booth. Their eyes meet and they exchange perfunctory nods before muffled, forced greetings escape their lips. Tom drapes his coat over the back of his chair and slides into the padded bench. Yelena's gaze remains fixed on the table, trying to conceal her agitation.

This close to him, Yelena can smell the alcohol on his breath. He doesn't appear visibly intoxicated, yet the unmistakable odor of Vodka taints the air around them, lingering like a cloud and a troubling reminder of his choices. It's barely 11:30 AM. This meeting is already off to a bad start.

"Hi. Thank you for meeting me."

"What's this about?"

"Look, I know things haven't always been easy between us." Tom remains silent and stoic, his expression guarded as he waits to see where this will go. Yelena’s attempts to conceal her unease only amplifies it. She's never been good at masking her genuine emotions or engaging in fake pleasantries, especially in situations like this. "All we've both ever wanted is the best thing for our daughter."

"MY daughter. She's nothing of yours. Ereka is MY daughter."

Yelena bites back her tongue and fights the urge to respond to Tom’s provocatory dig. If they start getting into it less than ten sentences into the conversation, this isn't going to go anywhere.

"All we want is the best for Ereka."

"I know that's what *I* want, yeah."

Yelena's phone screen illuminates, signaling an incoming text. She glances at it briefly. It's from Kate. Aware that her wife is oblivious to the current situation she finds herself in, Yelena decides to ignore the message for the time being, already anticipating Kate's displeasure when she eventually finds out.

Tom's eyes fly to the screen. His expression hardens and he locks his jaw as his eyes zero in on the background image. It's a photograph taken during the pregnancy announcement shoot Kate insisted on having. The still captures Kate, Ereka, Russell, and a pregnant Yelena standing in a vibrant field of fall-colored trees, radiating pure joy. It undoubtedly gets under Tom’s skin.

"What do you want? Why did you call me here?" Tom presses.

"We had a conversation with Ereka last night. More like she had a conversation with us where she made a request. We...I....*I* thought maybe you and I could talk like adults about it and deal with the situation. Parent to parent."

"You're not her parent, so...if there's anything going on with my kid, Kate can talk to me about it."

"Whether you like it or not, the judge granted me legal guardianship too."

"That fucking bitch judge fucked me over. I deserved full custody."

"Tom, I don't want to fight about that. That's not why I'm here."

"Then why are we here? Why is Kate not here?"

"I told you. Because I thought you and I could have a grownup chat."

"The fuck is going on with my kid?"

"I need you to listen to me. Before you respond or do anything, I need you to listen to me. That's all I'm asking for."

"If you don't tell me right now, I'm calling Kate. She'll tell me."

"Ereka wants to modify the custody agreement."

"What?"

"Ereka doesn't want to have overnight visits anymore. She doesn't feel comfortable being in your home, witnessing your family's behavior, and also just being away from us and her siblings. She made that very clear."

"My baby's twelve. She can't want or have a say in anything." Tom pounds his fist on the table violently, rocking everything and forcing all eyes in the room to turn to them for a split second. "If I find out you've been filling my kid's head with crap...I swear to fucking god I will end you."

"Ereka's happiness and well-being should be our priority."

"YOU…" Tom’s pointer finger comes within an inch of Yelena’s face. She musters every bit of self-control in order to not grab it and break it clean. "…don't get to tell me what my priority with my daughter is. She's MY kid and she comes home to me."

"That's not going to happen anymore."

“What? What’s not gonna happen?”

"I'm not forcing Ereka to do something she doesn't want to do."

"Try to take my kid away from me...see how that goes. You already stole my wife. You try to take my kid too and that's the last thing you ever do."

Yelena's demeanor takes on a sharper edge, her expression a mix of fury and defiance. Tom sneers, his eyes narrowing as he fiercely locks his eyes with Yelena.

"Are you threatening me?" Yelena asks, her tone challenging.

Tom leans forward, his voice dripping with venomous assurance.

"I'm telling you what's going to happen if Ereka isn't at my house this weekend. ALL weekend. Just a very clear warning."

"If she doesn't want to go, she's not going to go."

Yelena holds firm, unwavering. Tom's face contorts with rage, his entire body giving off menacing energy.

"If you come between me and my kid, I will fucking end you. I'll fucking kill you."

The remark hangs heavy in the air.

"That's a threat.” Yelena retorts, her voice calm and steady.

"Take that however you fucking want, but Ereka better be at my house at 10 AM on Saturday."

Tom abruptly stands, frenziedly ripping his coat off the back of the chair, and storms out of the café.

---

Kate's fingers fly across the keyboard and the rapid clacking of keys punctuate the silence of her office. She’s fully immersed, pouring her focus into crafting this proposal.

A firm knock on the door jolts Kate out of her flow. She recognizes the cadence of the thumping instantly - it’s her assistant. Annoyance flickers across her face, knowing this interruption will disrupt her momentum.

"What's up, Ash?"

Her assistant pops her head in while offering a courteous grin.

"Your wife is here."

Kate looks at her confused, with her brows furrowed in surprise.

"What?"

"Lobby just called. I told them to let her up so she's on her way. Should I let her in?"

"Yeah. Of course. Yeah. Thank you."

---

A few minutes later, a second knock reverberates through the office. Kate also recognizes this rapping without reticence - it unmistakably belongs to Yelena. The corners of Kate’s lips curl and her face lights up as she watches the door swing open, revealing her visibly pregnant wife standing there.

Their eyes meet and the mere sight of Yelena erases any trace of the stress and preoccupation Kate felt moments ago. She promptly pushes her chair back, eager to greet her wife.

"This is a nice surprise." As soon as the door closes behind her, Kate presses her lips against Yelena's in a tender, affectionate kiss while her hands instinctively come to rest on either side of Yelena's stomach. Kate steals a second kiss. "Hi."

"Hey."

"What are you doing here?"

"I did something...and I could've waited until tonight, but I also didn't know if you were going to get a call or text before that, so I figured it might be best to talk in person."

Kate's smile fades as she reads the somber expression on Yelena's face. Concern fills her eyes as she responds.

"What happened?"

"Can we sit? My back is killing me."

"Yeah. Yeah. Of course."

Kate places an allaying hand on the small of Yelena’s back, guiding her towards the two-person couch opposite her desk. They settle on the sofa and Yelena shifts her body slightly, opening herself up to face Kate directly.

"Not going to lie, I'm kind of very nervous right now. You never just show up at my office, especially not being cryptic."

A touch of humor paints Kate’s voice as she tries to ease the tension. She surveys her wife’s face, searching for answers.

"I talked to Tom."

"You did…what?" Kate asks, aghast at the mere idea.

"I called him and asked him to meet me at a coffee shop earlier. We talked about the custody situation because I don't think..."

"Why would you do that?!"

"Because I don't think she should go back if she doesn't want to."

Kate's voice rises with frustration and disbelief.

"No, no. What you want, what you REALLY want is to 'beat' him. That's what you want...You should've stayed out of my kid's custody business."

"YOUR kid?" Yelena scoffs bitterly. "Are you taking talking points from him now?"

"It was NOT your place to do that." Kate's eyes narrow as she retorts, her tone sharp and accusatory.

"He threatened to kill me."

"Yeah, I'd do the same if someone showed up talking about taking my daughter away from me. What would you do?"

"If I were an incompetent, insane drunk, I would want what's best for my children."

Kate's vexation intensifies, and she stands up, putting distance between them. She walks to her desk and starts to pace in front of it. The room feels tense, the air heavy with unspoken indignation from both sides.

"I asked you to leave it. I told you to leave it alone."

"She shouldn't..."

"You can make unilateral decisions about what kind of jelly you pick up at the store. You don't get to make unilateral decisions about custody shit, Yelena. I can't believe I'm having to even say this to you."

"I was doing what's best for her."

"No. NO, this was your chance to have another pissing contest with him and use her as an excuse. She's not a thing you use to get back at him."

"That's not what happened."

"That's EXACTLY what happened. She's my daughter and you are WAY out of line. Neither of you has claim over her."

Yelena's expression becomes steely.

"I only wanted to fill you in before I went to the police."

Kate's eyes shoot up and widen as she stares Yelena down.

"What are you talking about?"

"He made pointed threats against our family, so I'm filing a police report and requesting an emergency restraining order against him. For all of us. I already called the school and let them know he's not allowed to see her until further notice."

"If you don't wanna be signing divorce papers too, you leave this alone. I'll talk to him and this'll be done. We'll pretend it didn't happen."

"I can't do that, Kate.” Yelena’s resolve strengthens and her voice is firm.

"Yelena, I'm being so beyond serious right now. Drop it."

"I'm sorry, Kate, but I can't in good conscience leave it open for him to harm our family."

Kate's frustration boils over, and she strikes her hand down on the desk.

"WE WOULDN'T BE HERE IF YOU HADN'T PULLED THIS SHIT! I told you...I asked you not to touch it. And what did you do? Go behind my back and blow our entire lives up. For what? FOR WHAT?!"

"For Ereka."

"Don't. Do not use her as an excuse. This is all on you."

Kate reaches for her phone, her fingers negligibly trembling as she taps on the screen. She brings the device to her ear, determined to undo whatever Yelena just set in motion.

"What are you doing?"

"Calling him. Controlling the situation before this gets out of hand."

"Kate, that's..."

Kate interrupts her curtly, her words teeming with aggravation.

"Don't talk to me right now."

The call goes to voicemail. Kate's impatience grows, but she tries once more.

"Katherine."

The utterance of her full name makes Kate glare at her wife, her eyes flashing warning signs that Yelena is willingly ignoring.

When the call goes to voicemail once more, Kate jumps into action. She reaches for her purse and heads to the door, her movements swift and purposeful.

"Where are you going?"

"To find him. And Yelena...if you file that report or a restraining order, you might as well also start looking for a divorce attorney because I'm not playing this game with you. I won’t. We are OVER if you do."

Without uttering another word, Kate stomps out of the office, leaving Yelena alone. The weight of their strained relationship hangs heavily in the air, thickening it with unresolved tension.

---

A few hours later. The front door to the apartment swings open with a burst of energy, and Kate ushers her lively children inside. Laughter and the pitter-patter of tiny feet fill the air, infusing the space with a tangible joy and warmth. Like a conductor orchestrating the symphony of their homecoming, Kate deftly navigates the chaos and issues detailed instructions, guiding Ereka and Russell through their tasks for the evening. As the children settle into their respective activities, Kate makes her way to the bedroom to change into more cozy clothes.

Kate turns the doorknob and freezes in her tracks. Not only is her wife already home, but she’s immersed in an intense flurry of activity. Once a sanctuary of peace, the room is now a battlefield of chaos. Clothes and shoes are strewn haphazardly across the floor, like casualties of a tempestuous storm. Before a symbol of order and serenity, the walk-in closet now stands open, its contents spilling out in disarray, mirroring the turmoil that has taken hold of their lives. The atmosphere crackles with an electric tension, as if the very walls hold their breath, knowing they’re about to witness the unfolding drama.

There, in the thick of the chaos she created, stands Yelena. Her movements are frenetic, driven by an urgency that cannot be ignored. She hastily stuffs clothes into a suitcase, the rustling fabric punctuating the charged silence that fills the room. As their eyes meet, a kaleidoscope of emotions dance across their faces. Upon seeing Kate, Yelena's hands momentarily freeze before she resumes her frantic packing. With firm resolve, the rhythmic zip of the luggage bag serves as an intransigent punctuation mark, echoing with profound finality that pulsates throughout the living quarters.

"What are you doing?"

"When it actually came down to me and him, you picked him." Yelena utters, cold and distant.

Kate explosively thrusts their bedroom door shut and charges over to Yelena, feeling a wave of anger detonate within her.

"I didn't pick ANYONE. I picked sanity and peace. For them. They will always be my priority." Kate crosses her arms over her chest and stares at the floor, mind racing. A long beat and a million thoughts later, she scoffs. "After everything...'you picked him.' If *this*..." Kate spiritedly points around their room. "If THIS is what 'picking him' looks like Yelena, then I'm curious what you think 'picking you' would entail. Because fuck...WOW."

Yelena crams one last pair of pants into the already overstuffed duffle bag that sits next to the hefty suitcase she just filled. Her tense body struggles to force the zipper halves to meet; its bulging shape evidence of her lack of thoughtfulness while packing. The fabric strains against the zipper, resisting her efforts to contain its contents. After a few firm yanks, the metallic teeth reluctantly interlock, sealing her belongings within. Yelena grabs the handle of the large rolling bag before slinging the strap of her duffle over her shoulder, and a sudden surge of adrenaline propels her forward in the direction of the door.

Before she can make her escape, Kate's hand shoots out as Yelena storms past her. Her fingers find their mark, latching on to Yelena's forearm, their grip like a vice, anchoring her in place. Their eyes lock in a fiery exchange, a tempest of emotions brewing within their depths and threatening to consume them both.

"Where are you going?"

Yelena points to the envelope resting atop the dresser. Kate retrieves it, her jittery fingers slowly tearing it open. Inside lies an emergency restraining order against Tom accompanied by a police report.

"I'm keeping them safe. At any cost." The women glare at each other. Kate takes a step back, willingly putting distance between them. Her heart pounds in her chest as she meets Yelena's gaze. They’re now locked in a battle of wills. "I'm taking him with me."

"You're not taking him anywhere."

"We're just going to the Ritz for a few nights. Until we can figure out what's happening next."

"Yelena, my son's not leaving this apartment."

A clash of emotions thunders through the room, their conflicting desires colliding into a torrent of raw feelings.

"If Ereka is YOUR daughter, then that's MY son. That's how it works, right?"

"You're being petty about this?"

"I'm being logical."

Yelena's words cut through the air, her tone shifting to cold and calculated. Each syllable carries a sharpness that slices through their relationship's already fraying threads, leaving an icy tension behind.

"You're not even in the same universe as logical right now."

"Must be pregnancy brain, I guess." Yelena bites back.

Kate’s patience officially reaches its breaking point. She truculently strides to where Yelena stands, her steps exuding steadfastness. In a display of unyielding and assertive belligerence, Kate snatches the duffle bag from Yelena's shoulder, ripping it away without hesitation. With a single speedy motion, Kate hurls the bag several feet away, the velocity causing the already tenuous hold the zipper had to give way. The contents spill out, scattering haphazardly across the floor.

"Sit." The word hangs in the air, pregnant with authority. What Kate uttered wasn’t a request; it was a command and one that left no room for negotiation. When Yelena doesn’t move, Kate's tone grows more forceful, compelling her to comply. "Sit down." Kate reaches into her pocket and pulls out her phone. She dials a number with exigency. "I'm calling Landers, see if he can squeeze us in as an emergency right now."

"I don't need a therapy session. I need to go lie down."

"Bed's right there. Help yourself." Kate snaps at Yelena with a venomous undertone. "Hi Janey. This is Kate Bishop-Belova. I have a bit of a serious situation and I'm wondering if there's any way Joy can see us tonight? It's an emergency...Uhum...Uhum...Yeah. Please. That would be so helpful...Yeah. This number is fine...You're incredible. Thank you...Okay. Talk soon." Kate hangs up. "She doesn't know if tonight will be possible, but she'll talk to Landers and see if maybe tomorrow morning might work."

Yelena scoffs dismissively, her irritation evident.

"This is stupid."

"Yeah, I agree. Everything you've done today is BEYOND stupid."

"I already made a reservation."

"I couldn't give two shits about your reservation. Sit down. You are not blowing up our lives tonight. I'm not letting it happen."

"You're the one who brought up divorce."

"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S BEING INSANE!" Kate screams, her voice cracking with emotion. "I can't talk to you right now, or I might say some things that I don't actually mean."

"Then let me go to the hotel."

"You're not going anywhere." Kate's words carry the significance of an ultimatum as she makes for the door. "I need to figure out dinner. What do you want?" Kate asks in an attempt to shift the focus away from their escalating argument.

"Nothing." Yelena's response is curt and indifferent.

"Pizza it is."

With that final declaration, Kate exits the room and shuts the door with a bang.

---

The sound of rushing water fills the air. Kate stands at the kitchen sink, dangling Russell in front of the open tap as she diligently works to wash away the splatters of paint that have found their way onto his tiny hands. The colorful streaks mix with the swirling water, creating a mesmerizing spectacle and carrying away the colorful remnants of his artistic escapade. Lost in her task and the words of the babbling boy, Kate momentarily forgets the apprehension that saturates the apartment.

But then she hears adult footsteps approaching from behind, disrupting the tranquil rhythm of the moment. Kate turns, her eyes widening as she sees Yelena purposefully making her way to the entrance, her duffle bag slung over her shoulder and her suitcase clutched tightly in her hand. A surge of panic courses through Kate, pushing her to act without a moment's hesitation. She swiftly shuts off the water and sets Russell down, his little feet pattering on the tiled floor as he toddles away, overjoyed that his paint-streaked hands are forgotten for the moment. Filled with a sense of impending doom, Kate compels her bare feet to glide across the kitchen tiles as she chases after Yelena.

"Hey. Hey. Was I not clear?"

"I'm not your child, Kate."

"You're acting like it." Refusing to let Yelena slip away unchallenged, Kate corners her wife in the foyer and plants herself firmly mere inches away from her. "Go back to the room. Pizza's going to be here in forty minutes."

"I'm going to the hotel."

"No, you're not."

Kate’s voice hardens, drawing a line in the sand. They glare at each other.

"Are you going to back me up on this?"

"No. You're wrong, so I'm not. I'm still not letting you leave because you're being beyond unreasonable. I'm not letting this get worse than it already is."

Yelena tries to push to the door, but Kate stands her ground, blocking her path with her body.

"Katherine..."

"I'm trying to stop you from fucking up this marriage."

"What if I don't want you to?"

They lock eyes, each searching for answers in the depths of the other’s gaze.

"Now you're just trying to piss me off. I know you too well. Go lie down. I'll send one of them to get you when food is here." Yelena doesn't move. "Who do I call to get rid of that stupid restraining order?"

"You can't end a protective order I requested."

"Then do it. Take care of it."

"No."

Yelena is resolute. Kate takes a measured, deep breath, making a concerted effort to keep herself centered.

"Yelena…”

"We've done it your way for years. It's never worked. It's about time we try it my way."

"I'm not backing you up on this. Get rid of it."

"No." Yelena repeats, somehow even more unwavering.

"You know what...fine. You want to destroy our lives this bad...be my guest." Kate finally relents. She steps back, giving Yelena all the space she needs to open the door and leave. After a beat of stillness, Yelena opens the door and walks out. Kate stands by, flummoxed, her heart heavy with incredulity and heartbreak. "I want you to be so very clear that you're the one doing this. You're the one walking away. Again. You're leaving a second time." Kate's voice quivers with a mix of anger and hurt. That stops Yelena in her tracks. "You said you'd never do that again. You promised and I believed you, so what is this? You promised."

With a heavy sigh, Kate steps away from the entrance, retreating back into the apartment but leaving the door wide open.

---

As Kate attends to the remnants of Russell's mess, the faint sound of the front door closing reaches her ears, stirring her from her thoughts. She turns her head, her attention abruptly drawn to the entrance. Her heart withers at the conclusive thud that reverberates through the air. To her amazement, seconds later, Yelena emerges from the foyer. Their eyes briefly connect in a charged moment before Yelena clenches her jaw tightly and strides deeper into the apartment, vanishing down the hallway that leads to their shared bedroom. Not long after, a resounding boom fills the air as the door is violently slammed shut, further emphasizing the growing chasm between them.

Lost in a maelstrom of emotions that threaten to engulf her whole, Kate's eyes linger on that hallway. Russell takes advantage of her distraction, seizing the opportunity to indulge himself. In a sudden burst of movement, the boy leans forward with a rascally grin and his tiny hands break the water's surface. The cold liquid splashes in all directions, showering the immediate area, including a generous dousing directly onto Kate's face. The shock of the gelid liquid snaps Kate back to reality with a gasp, her senses jolted by the sudden and unexpected intrusion. The temperature forces her breath to catch in her throat while droplets cling to her skin and drip down her face. It is a moment of undeniable clarity, a gentle reminder that life persists even in the midst of turmoil.

At least there's still a way back. It's cracked but not shattered. There's still a way to fix it.

[mermaidsirennikita]

What is your favourite Friends to lovers novel? I am looking for one where something Sexual happens and they both thing "what have we done!"

I have a hard time with friends to lovers, tbh. All too often I feel like I'm sitting there all "okay, but what EXACTLY is stopping y'all from just being together", which is annoying.

Ones that I love include:

Historical--

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall. In this one, the hero and heroine were best friends before she transitioned, and she faked her death at the Battle of Waterloo in order to do so. She comes out of semi-hiding to help her friend because he's incredibly depressed due to survivor's guilt and chronic pain, and while he initially doesn't recognize her, the moment he does is BREATHTAKING. This is definitely one of those where they've really been in love for forever and didn't realize it.

Unmasked by the Marquess by Cat Sebastian. In this one, one of the leads is NB and disguised as a man, and they become friends with the hero (who is bisexual). They share a kiss, and then he finds out their birth identity as a woman and assumes that they were trying to blackmail him--and so, the plot unravels. This is one where they kind of become friends with benefits, and the "WHAT HAVE WE DONE" comes when the hero like, proposes marriage while fucking the other lead against a wall and they're like "UMMMMMMMM THAT IS NOT IN FACT WHAT I WANTED YOU TO DOOOOO".

How to Marry a Marquess by Stacy Reid. The hero and heroine have been friends for years and she's very much in love with him, but he's kind of a societal outcast due to his decision to recognize and raise his illegitimate daughter, and he doesn't think the heroine can handle being on the fringes like that. So she basically convinces him to teach her how to attract the attention of a guy who is definitely not him! Lol, this guy has a lot of "..... I really went.... a bit far........ with that...." moments after like, eating her out and stuff.

We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian. 1950s m/m romance between two reporters who end up sort of like, sloooooowly falling in love after they move in together (and they were roommates) while one of them has his bi awakening. I do think they handle their feelings before anything sexual happens, though.

One Season with the Duke by Addy Du Lac. This one definitely doesn't fit your "omg something sexual happened" vibe because they get married in order to keep the heroine from being seized by the villain, BUT I do really like how this one very much has this sense where it's like "oh. Shit. We are friends. But now we have to. Do sex?" And it turns out to be a very fun and sexy time for them.

Contemporary--

Give Me More by Sara Cate. Definitely has the "oh shit what do we do now" vibe lol. It's MMF, one hero and the heroine are a married couple, the other hero is their best friend. The husband basically walks in on his friend and the wife after they've been roped (haha) into this rope play demo, and he's like "..... I am intrigued" while also noticing that they're into it, despite themselves. So he asks them to fuck in front of him, basically, THINKING he's a cuck, when in actually he's really just wanting to have sex with both of them. I think that after the first encounter the friend hero storms out of there literally like "WHAT AM I EVEN DOING".

You, Again by Kate Goldbeck. A When Harry Met Sally retelling, CLASSIC for what you're seeking. The hero and heroine initially get off to a bad start (they're both fucking the same woman) but over the years become best friends. He's very aware of his feelings, she's very in denial about them, and when things get sexual one night it very much RUINS the friendship lol.

Friends Don't Fall in Love by Erin Hahn. The heroine is a country singer, the hero is her friend/her fiance's songwriting partner. Basically, her life blows up and her fiance dumps her, which leads to her and the friend getting drunk and hooking up, and then it's like WE MUST NOT SPEAK OF THIS... Flash forward a few years and he's her landlord and the things of which they must not speak bubble back to the surface.

Reckless by Stella Rhys. Another great example. He's her boss, she's his best friend/Girl Friday, and after her fiance cheats on her they have a very CHARGED moment, which leads to them spontaneously being like "let's get it out of our systems" iN HIS OFFICE. This... doesn't go as planned.

The Friend Zone by Kristen Callihan. He's a newbie NFL player, she's his agent's daughter, and they spark up a friendship over text. While becoming very close very fast, shit gets weird when they're in the same country, and this does lead to an amazing moment that I think is definitely what you're vibing with, and it does involve Accidental Phone Sex.

The Hot Shot by Kristen Callihan. Another one in her football series; in this one, the hero and heroine end up being roommates after her apartment burns down, which does lead to some light fake dating stuff (basically just to reassure his family that He's FINE on a visit) and then things get sexy. During a movie screening. When the whole family is present.

[newtonsheffield]

Molly,

I literally cannot with you... lol

"Anthony likes to pick up Tom’s new manuscript hold it to his head, hum dramatically and say

“It was the wife’s personal trainer.”"

Does Anthony ever get you know "Anthony Bridgerton" when he sees Kate and Tom at the Publisher gatherings or parties? I know he almost loses it at a holiday party when Kate is caught with TF Dorest under a mistletoe or something. 😈

Oh absolutely, before and after they’re together he sulks in the corner at Tom’s Book launch parties. Before they were together he had no retaliation for Tom’s taking up Kate’s attention. None.

After they are together Anthony always makes sure there’s a photo of him and Kate together, his arm around her waist as she leans into his chest. He loves it.

And at Christmas parties he likes to walk around with a little headband on that has a sprig of mistletoe on.

“What the hell are you wearing?” Kate scoffed when he picked her up from her flat, leaning against the doorframe seductively.

“Would you look at that! Mistletoe! We have to kiss!”

“You look like a demented angler fish.”

[gerri-godmother]

20 author questions

tagged by the lovely @badcatholichusband

1. How many works do you have on AO3? 11

2. What’s your total AO3 word count? 153,683

3. What fandoms do you write for? Succession

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

This is not therapy — Roman chooses to go see Dr. Kellman on his own, which she identifies as one of his “strengths.”

Once upon a poolside — She knows by the knock that it’s him. That, and she was half expecting him to come crawling to her, a glutton for punishment. What she’s not expecting is to see him already punished: the blood on his shirt, the tear in his suit, the bruise already forming around his left eye. Not again, Logan, she thinks, only to remember that they’d entombed him that afternoon. Just another hurt-comfort fix-it fic immediately following S4E9.

Soft like silk — roman/gerri with twice the silk blouses (my magnum opus)

I know a place — season three of succession but it's Shiv who's weird about Gerri

Something unholy —something about “in costume” put the image of Roman in a priest’s collar in my head and I can’t get it out. A silly, sick, sexy, and heartwarming romp. In response to: Roman/Gerri autumn date. Takes place in a simpler time (season 2). I am going straight to hell.

5. Do you respond to comments? Not really but I would like to start because I love comments and am so grateful to everyone who reads my fic!!

6. What’s the fic you wrote with the angistest ending? Honestly I’m not sure how White Ferrari will end, but I’m thinking it will probably be that one. As for existing fics, probably Once upon a poolside, but it’s not even that angsty. I’m all about hurt/comfort on a micro and macro level.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Soft like silk or maybe This is not therapy.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Only one time and it wasn’t even really hate but someone was like “Gerri’s too mean” and I was just like “uh-huh.” because that’s how I like her.

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind? I pretty much ONLY write smut lol. The kinky kind??

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? Yes I love them. Honestly my Hacks one I think is the craziest. One day I’ll finish that. And my Veep.

11. Gave you ever had a fiction stolen? No! But Soft like silk has inspired some stuff and honestly that counts for like a billion kudos

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? no

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? no but I would! hmu!!

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship? oh god this is so hard — I really am just absolutely obsessed with bisexual icon Gerri Kellman and will pair her with anybody (even her husband Baird!) but Shiv/Gerri I think

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Meditations in an emergency. I am going to finish I know a place one day but there’s just a lot of pressure (from myself) to make it good (plus I have to rewatch the end of S3 to put myself back in that place/time.

16. What are your writing strengths? kink/smut, dialogue, accuracy to the source material, character complexity (according to my wife who betas everything)

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Self indulgent background on the Kellman family, commas

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic? my French isn’t good enough

19. First Fandom you write for? Sherlock (I used to write Irene Adler/Kate the maid, so that’s telling of a number of things)

20. Favorite fic you’ve ver written? probably This is not therapy because I’m a therapist in real life and it was fun to just disregard literally every single element of what that’s actually like and have fun with the idea of Gerri being Roman’s therapist

tagging anybody who wants to do this including my IRL wife @thegables and romangerri folks like @catherineflowers29

[toomuchracket]

a while back I sent an ask that turned into Matty’s gf going viral for singing Foundations by Kate Nash. I have another similar idea. This time it’s soft and cute.

Matty and gf being in the background of a video of dancing at a wedding. It’s a duet song (maybe you’re the one that I want from grease) and they’re just in their own little world, performing their respective roles with flourish and vigour. I can see her pulling him in by his tie and then pushing him back, and him just smiling the whole time. And this video goes viral and everyone is devastated by how cute they are.

OR it could be a bad bitch anthem and she is giving him a show (half joking, they’re both laughing and having fun).

OR it could be a proper love song (like a classic Stand By Me) and they’re just swaying, holding each other, unaware they are in the background of a video.

my god i love all of these... so let's discuss them all. i think it's literally accidental, them being filmed - very keith urban trying to record him and his too hot for him wife nicole kidman having fun at the eras tour and inadvertently catching bo and phoebe making out in the background (it sends me every time i see it loooooooool)

rather than it being grease, i think it would be funnier if it was lay all your love on me by abba, like in mamma mia lmao. you drag matty up to the dancefloor - he's like "oh for fuck's sake" but you're hyped like "come on! duet time!", so he goes up and dances with you, and he gets quite into it when you are literally dancing on him during the chorus and pulling him close as possible to you by the tie/lapels. and you're both tipsy and so unserious, giggling while you sing along and dancing wildly by the end of the song; it's very sweet, and when the fans find the video they go nuts like "mum and dad are so fucking adorable look at them!! cutest thing i've ever seen. they are so in love. obsessed" lol.

the bad bitch anthem... no scrubs by tlc oh my GOD. last time i was in london this song played in a restaurant and every woman in the place was singing along (there was a girl eating dessert literally waving her spoon in her boyfriend's face singing to him as if he personally was a scrub. amazing), so thinking every girl flocks to the dancefloor and you start the song all singing to each other and dancing around all crazy sexy and cool (i beg someone understands that). but when left eye's rap comes on, you sing that bit directly at matty, dancing and gesturing like proper into it (but still grinning and winking at him); he's laughing and cheering you on, clapping for you when the song ends, to which you curtsy dramatically before giving him a kiss and continuing the night.

for the slow dance section, i see it being my girl by the temptations. as soon as that bassline starts, matty pulls you onto the dancefloor and cups your face in his hands as he sings to you (the way i would melt goodbye). when the chorus starts, he trails his hands down your arms to take your own, and swishes you about in time to the "what can make me feel this way", before pulling you in on the "my girl" and giving you a sweet kiss; he has his arms around your waist (your hands are clasped at the back of his neck) to keep you close to him for the majority of the rest of the song, swaying and stepping from side to side as he serenades you with nothing but total adoration in his eyes, and twirling you around and dipping you cutely on the instrumental break. it's a perfect moment, one of those ones where the rest of the world just fades out and it's just the two of you, culminating in a kiss and an exchange of "i love you"s - so adorable. again, everyone goes nuts when they see it lol; the love between you and matty is just so palpable and sweet <3

[houseofpendragons]

Thoughts on Teen Wolf the Movie while watching it pt.5

PeTeR wAiT" why she say it like that😭

Peter's line would've made way more sense if the Nogitsune was actually giving him illusions (maybe one's about the fire, or being trapped in a coma again, or hell maybe stuff about the desert wolf bc I mega curious about their relationship)

He's playing lacrosse 🥍

Sir should've just dove out the way, he basically told u it had wolfbane on it

"Wolfsbane" reminds me of gerards "Mountain ashhhh!" Lmao I make myself laugh

How'd she knock him out so quick with just an elbow to the face, he's a werewolf

New plot idea, nogi could've made him hallucinate the fire and make him see Kate everywhere so when he sees Allison (as Kate) he's fed up with the illusions bc it's fucking him up. I'm a genius, Jeff Davis hire me 😎

um just cause it looks like her doesn't meanit us her...doppelganger's anyone? (Yes I know different show bit still) or she could be possessed

ur a zombie chica 🧟‍♀️ 😁👍

Not Peter being big baby and having Melissa take care of him in the back😭

Chris what's ur gun gonna do against black smoke, u know it ain't the oni bc the sun's still out

"I've killed oni before" yeah and then they killed you ma'am

Malia "I don't do speeches" Tate, proceeds to give a speech 😂

🎶If we go down then we go down together🎶

Lydia:🔊🔊🔊🔊🔊 Allison:👏📸💏☺😍🥰😂🧍‍♀️👭👫😭💋🏃‍♀️🤣😊🏹😘

Don't think I didn't notice you left out Stiles and Isaac in them flashbacks😑

Oop it's night night time now 🌃

um they belong to themselves, you know free will and all, c'mon it's 2026 in ur universe so get eith the program honestly so canceled 🥱

Also if you were gonna have him say they belong to me know you could've had them possessed by the flies again like in 3b and made him fight his own friends. It'd be good emotionally and for the plot bc we wouldn't know if he'd be forced to kill them or not

oooo and if Stiles was here Nogi takes over his body again and let's Allison go bc he's sacrificing himself for them, there rising another issue but Stiles has full faith that Scott will bring him back

"I'm still standing, I'm still the Alpha!" Sounded a whole lot better in the trailer

also would've been cool if Derek was forced to be on Nogi's side bc he has Eli hostage

"Please don't make me watch my friends and my family die - I can't do that again" is what should've been the line💔

Um that was 3 arrows not 1, thought you were supposed to be a perfect shot, you letting out some pent up rage on my boy Scott? 😶

When did Eli get tied back up? Would've been cool to see it happen telekinetically

I love hikari but it just would've made more sense for Kira to save him. She would've been more powerful by now, she'd have complete control bc of the skinwalkers, and there's the emotional connection that's established between them

Or at the very least if it had to be Hikari they could've done my earlier suggestion and made that little girl and her dog a flashback of Scott saving Hikari bc then it would've been like you saved me once and now I've saved you 👍

Looked cool af thou 🔥

Damn, headshot 🎯

Hold up, now wait a minute, you're suddenly a perfect shot again?😂

Hold up Parrish where your clothes at and what underwear you buying bc all ur other clothes burn up but ur undies are fireproof?!😭

Heyyy, I love whoever idea it was to give mama McCall a crossbow 😎👌

Not Peter now using the wolfsbane ring dagger that just poisoned him🤦‍♀️is he good by the way lol did Melissa have a lighter on her or something

Yeah, you motherfucker *copies Peter's dramatic hair flip*💅

Stab stab flip flip

Yeah Jackson and Lydia takedown we deserve

Stiles taught her how to use a gun and he'd be so proud of his wife right now😁

Would've been cool if it was, like I said earlier, Stiles being the one at gunpoint and Jackson comes to save them (Stiles would be so annoyed😂)

oh he wasn't tied up, he was just hiding again

Eli you little liar you already done the glowing eyes and the fangs

Awwww yes! Eli and Derek are my favorite part of this movie, I could watch a whole series about them🥺

Love how they roared together, like Derek was giving him strength and encouragement in that roar

Love the wolfie faces, though I do think the shows looked a little bit scarier, the eyes are really good in this one thou🐺

Baby Eli and Daddy Derek to the rescue

Now we all got our guns back that ig Parrish was hiding in his underpants 🙈😭

pow pow mf

I thought it was impossible to be both a fox and a wolf🤔

This supports my theory that this is just another illusion and none of it's real. It looks real and feels real but it's not

Ugh you was ugly ass mf wolf-fox🤢

Why his eyes glowing green? shouldn't it be a more yellowish green for a firefly 🤨

He looks like a mole deadass💀

🎶we're all in this together🎶

Why aren't Peter, Malia, Liam, Hikari, and Parrish going with them...

Eli honey, I love you but...why you running like that, you look like ur about to fall🤭

I like how the lighting in each room reflects their eyes

Well obviously its not real

You know my dumbass would just be in their yelling "echo" bc it'd be funny to me😭

Well that was very rude of you Nogi

What was Harris's goal, I'm still confused 😕

Should called him a pup instead of a child, it just would've been more pleasing to me bc it's a funny tease to say to a werewolf idk why

"Start with me" Nogi said okay say less 👍

Now you see me, now you don't

Scott this is kind of embarrassing for you bc Duke taught you how to fight using all your other senses when your sight won't help you...

you can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man 🤪

So what did everyone else see? Did they just see them all on the nemeton looking ridiculous or did they do a disappearing act snd magically appear out of nowhere

Also why didn't nogi mess with them at the same time, seems a waste if you ask me to just leave them to come up with a plan, then ur just asking you get defeated but oh well🤷‍♀️

Oop well Eli's out the game again but Parrish is putting himslef back in, there's a good man (there's a nice demon😂)

Nogi's laugh made me laugh 🤣

Hell no, don't you dare. I know that look Derek Hale, don't you fucking do it. Bad werewolf, very bad werewolf! not infront of ur son! NO, HE IS NOT APART OF SCOTT'S PACK NOW IDGAF THAT HE'S THE ALPHA

PARRISH DON'T LIGHT THAT FUCKER UP

DEREKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!

So much for only a true alpha only every few hundred years, BUT IT WAS FUCKING EARNED DAMN IT😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

The way Eli said dad😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Okay let me be serious, I don't think Derek's dead. This was was all on layer of the illusion, it looks real, it feels real, but it's not real!

Idk where Derek or the Nogitsune are but neither are dead, bc you can't even kill a Nogitsune so where is the fly like at the end of S3 hmmm🤨

He's not dead no, nope, i refuse

Poor Peter, Derek and him were really close, even though they had their differences they were still all they had left 😢

Eli😔

Ew Scott shouldn't be giving the speech it should be Peter or Eli

Where's Isaac (his first beta), Cora (his sister), and Stiles? You can't tell me they wouldn't be there for his funeral

Actually the first the first thing he said to you was "What are you doing here? This is private property"

AWWW Papa Stilinski coming in clutch🥺

DEREKKKK😭😭😭

This is where Lydia answers Stiles would renew their vows

NO UR NOT ALLOWED TO ADOPT ELI YOU ARGENT AND FAILWOLF (no offense)

Um isn't she still technically 17🤨

[thekatebridgerton]

omg hi <3 I just read your post about Penelope being surrounded by Bridgerton's and people thinking she had been engaged to Colin all this time as a reason for not having suitors and I agree 100% with you! also, I wanted to add a little something too! I think this is not only the Bridgerton's doing, but also Penelope's! like, Penelope grew up in a house in which she wasn't given much affection nor the chance to believe in herself, and I think it would comfort her to be surrounded by Bridgerton's who take care of her. Like, maybe one day she's just standing in a corner drinking lemonade and suddenly one possible suitor asks her for a dance and Penelope's mind goes "is he for real? does he actually want to dance with me or does he pity me? does he like me? is this going to be a good idea? is my mum right about me?" and then one of the Bridgerton brothers practically sweeps in to ask her for the same dance and I think she would prefer to go with them because she at least knows that their intentions are good and that they respect her. but yeah, Eloise glaring at any man that comes near them and the whole family consciously (and unconsciously for Colin himself) shooing away suitors for Penelope is actually very likely in my mind dhsakjhsak great blog btw, loving it <3

You know your idea really has merit, because, with the way Penelope is treated at home. her self esteem isn't really high during her years as a debutante. Add that to the fact that she's heard enough snide comments about her wardrobe to make it plausible for Lady Whistledown to comment on it, and the Bridgertons being so overprotective they send "back off Colin's girl signals" to any gentleman who even dares to sniff in her direction. And you have a Penelope who 100% thinks that any guy who does dance with her is doing it out of "pity" and isn't actually interested in her as a romantic prospect.

even if a man does get close enough to court her, she wouldn't take him seriously for the first 3 dates. She thinks everyone who dances with her does it out of pity or friendly charity.

Meanwhile the gentlemen who really do like her, can't even get close because Benedict, Anthony (and Kate), Eloise, plus the younger Brigertons just look too intimidating. And then there's that dude, the Bridgerton who always travels and smiles so innocently that you almost forget that he could kill a man and get away with it in international waters. Always hovering around Penelope, honestly.

It's really a pity that a kind, intelligent young lady like Penelope Featherington is so unofficially engaged to a cad like that. If the ton had more brave men she would have already been seduced away.

But oh dear reader. *fakes Julie Andrews voice*

There is not a soul in the ton willing to go up against all 9 Bridgertons for the sake of stealing away the heart of a gem like Miss Penelope Featherington even if she did believe in the honesty of a non Bridgerton courtship anyway. At this point it's not that her would be suitors are cowards, they all just value their lives.

....But what if Colin announced that he really wasn't interested in Penelope?. And what if the terrifying anti-marriage best friend was suddenly nowhere to be found.

That darling, kind, innocent little readhead could very well be seduced into being a wife by someone determined enough to get married to the right woman.

I know Miss Penelope isn't a diamond of the first water. But it does come to mind that if naïve Edwina hadn't had a suitor as intimidating as Anthony and a sister as terrifying as Kate to keep the wolves at bay she probably would have been so easily led astray... oh dear, maybe I said too much

(Lol meanwhile Penelope is laughing her butt off with Lady Whistledown's editor somewhere in downtown London at the thought of her being naive, or not knowing when a gentleman is up to no good) The problem is that Penelope really does have no idea when a gentleman is up to something actually honest and good because she's so naturally distrustful of second motives.

and that's the very hilarous tea

[fat-fem-and-asian]

Dagmara Dominczyk Filmography Review w/ Links Dag has had a great career! I think you can see her shift towards more interesting and prestige projects as she gets older, especially in the past 5-ish years, which is really interesting. Movies w/ her Polish accent have a ★ in the title, ♡ denote my favorites. If a movie isn't included, then I didn't want to watch it or couldn't find it lol. Additionally, I watched most of these projects on soap2day or flixxer!

Keeping the Faith - I could not find her in this? I think she might be improperly labeled on IMDb. Please send reinforcements and watch this Ben Stiller/Edward Norton/Jenna Elfman religious romcom.

Third Watch - Accessible on Tubi Procedural about first responders - Dag plays a morally dubious counselor that one of the EMTs gets the hots for. I actually beg everyone to watch this for a gorgeous shot of Dag over a voiceover "this chick is hot. if liz hurley and that other european chick who was in that one bond movie had a love child, this chick would be it" fair description! Rock Star ★ - Musical drama where Dag plays Tania, PR for a rock band and their resident hot girl. She's not in it a ton, but she's got a great scene where she gets to make out with Jennifer Aniston. Spoilers + transphobia CW - it's revealed midway that Tania is a trans woman, and while not really played for laughs, Mark Wahlberg's character is uncomfortable around her afterwards and she's effectively removed from the plot. The Count of Monte Cristo ♡ - Free on Youtube hell yeah! Dag plays Mercedes, the primarily love interest. She appears in the beginning scenes and after the 2/3 mark, but is pivotal to the plot. she's in some really gorgeous dresses and i assume the crew loved her because she looks fantastic the entire time. also, super great deleted scene here @ the 7 minute mark. They - On youtube! Unfortunately dull horror movie. Dag plays Terry, one of the adults experiencing night terrors based on childhood events. She only appears in a handful of scenes, but has a solo scene around the halfway point. It's alright? SVU ★ - On Hulu and Peacock. TW for CSA and graphic depictions of murder (its SVU). we all know SVU. if you don't im sorry you've missed out on the epic highs and lows of watching people get the shit knocked out of them and for a detective to connect it back to some random man they knew in high school. Dag has a prominent guest episode role as Kate, appearing at the halfway mark as a Europol agent who helps one of the characters track down a child trafficker. A lot of her walking around gorgeously and what's frankly, a great performance! She plays sensitive but firm detective very well. On Hulu and Peacock. CSA tw- suggestive images are shown of an actress who was 19 at the time, but portrayed at 14.

Tough Luck ★ - On Tubi. Please watch it. Honestly, I think worth the watch just for how weird it is. Dag plays Divana, the female lead and wife of a circus. owner. you read that right! there's a plot twist and i won't tell you what it is, but just know. i did not see it coming. On Tubi. Please watch it.

Bad Apple - I'm not even sure what to say about this movie? Dag plays Gina in a crime (?) thriller. She's sprinkled throughout the movie and is the main love interest for some guy. I genuinely enjoyed this movie but I'd suggest watching it under the influence of something to maximize the viewing experience. The Five People You Meet in Heaven - on vimeo Religious made for TV movie set in the 1940s/50s. Dag plays Marguerite, the main character's wife and oh my god she is so pretty. she's so gorgeous and talented. what was i saying? its set in a boardwalk? okay. i'll even ignore the weird racist subplot with like. a genie. sometimes we have to pay the fucking bills okay. 24 - on Hulu. Who the hell made this show up? 24 is a drama series where every season takes place in 24 hours and every episode is one hour of the day. Insane concept. Dag appears briefly as an evil lady - she's got a gun and looks great and wears some gorgeous earrings. Trust the Man - 2000s romcom! Dag has a brief role as Pamela and goes on a date with one of the male leads, there's a follow up scene where they talk briefly. Not a lot of screen time, but you know. If you're in a bad romcom mood. Mentor - on youtube Dag has the lead female role as Julia, a graduate assistant who's romantically involved with an older writing professor. She is great in this, injecting a bunch of charisma into a fairly bland film. Lonely Hearts - Warning for Jared Leto and moderate violence. Drama based on the real life murderers Martha Beck and Ray Fernandez - Dag plays Delphine, one of their victims. Dag is once again, a real talent and can truly transform what's on the page. She's got a brutal scene where she confesses her pregnancy to Salma Hayek that she executes perfectly. Also, she looks absolutely stellar in the 1940s styling. She appears around the 2/3 mark, which I recommend skipping to to minimize your Leto exposure. Helena from the Wedding - On Pluto Tangent time! My friends on discord and I made this horrific little fake movie universe called Going Down with all of our favorite middle aged actresses (including Dag and Melanie Lynskey). and who is in this? Melanie and Dag! They're paired together and have nice chemistry in this indie drama. It's pretty slow and they're scattered throughout the film, but I still recommend watching for Dag's microbangs.

Higher Ground ★ ♡ - on Roku. Do not. ask me about this film. don't even bring it in my vicinity. Dag plays Annika, the best friend to Vera Farmiga's religious main character. Dag is fantastic, she's witty and charming to Vera's more demure character and they are super homoerotic. Like Tough Luck, I actually beg you to watch this. The Good Wife ♡- On Amazon for free. Lawyer procedural - Dag has a prominent guest role as a lawyer(?) for a South American company. Honestly she's not given much, but I love her suit. I mean, its the good wife, it's like pretty good. Suits - On Netflix and Peacock Dude this is the show Megan Markle is in? Huh? Anyways - Dag has a brief role as a woman who faced sexual discrimination in her workplace. She's only got 2 scenes, but she's like...there! Felix the Painter -On Vimeo A short film about a struggling artist, but more importantly, Dagmara looking stunning and speaking french. Go girls! On Vimeo Person of Interest - Free on Amazon - TW for domestic violence Dag plays a woman helped by the main characters in escaping her abusive husband. Not the most creative role ever, but Dag does well with the stuff she's given, especially in a really short timeframe. The Immigrant ★ - On Pluto - TW for domestic violence and nudity. Dag has a minor role as Belva, one of the burlesque performers working for Joaquin Pheonix's character. She's only got three scenes, two in the beginning and one closer to the 2/3 mark, so not much to say, but a good film overall. Jack Strong - On Tubi A Polish drama featuring her husband Patrick Wilson, Dag plays a FBI agent going undercover in Poland during the Cold War. While Dag's role is fairly minor, her real life history as a Polish immigrant who fled to the US due to her father's political ties makes it worth the watch. It is, however, NUTS that she didn't actually get to play a pole. what the hell guys.

Boardwalk Empire - On HBO Dag has a guest role as a drunk bar patron. She's engaging to watch and I mean, it's Boardwalk Empire. Worth the watch. Let's Kill Ward's Wife - On Youtube A dark comedy film made with some of her friends and husband, Dag plays Ward's wife and does. guess what. get murdered! She's insufferable (but ngl I was on her character's side), which means she did her job well, but jesus. I could not stand this film.

The Deuce - On HBO Dag's got a brief role as a. adult film consultant? and wears a pretty turtleneck and has curly hair in this 70s drama. This is where she met Maggie Gyllenhaal, who would go on to cast her in The Lost Daughter! Also, apparently Dag's scenes were heavily cut down in this episode :(

Abe - On Youtube Dag plays ARIAN MOAYED's wife. It's a drama about a half Israeli, half Palestinian family. Unfortunatley, in light of Noah Schnapp's actions surrounding the genocide occuring in Palestine, I would suggest you not watch.

Prodigal Son ★- Free on the CW Drama series! Dag has a small guest spot as an assassin called the Nightingale. She looks great and gets a fun fight sequence! The Assistant - On HBO Maybe this film was good? I don't know. I was hunting for Dag and she got ONE LINE at the VERY END. Mattmac jumpscare halfway in and his big sad horse eyes.

The Lost Daughter ♡ - On Netflix Drama featuring the Olivia Colman! Dag plays Callie, pregnant sister in law to Dakota Johnson's character. I watched this movie when it came out and did not recognize Dag at all! She's scattered throughout and I barely understood this film, but, oh Dag. Her Jersey(?) accent was a beacon of light to my confusion.

We Own this City ♡ - On HBO- Warning for graphic violence and police brutality. Biopic about the Baltimore Police Department's Gun Trace Task Force and the horrific corruption that took place. Dag has a supporting role as Erika, a FBI agent investigating the Task Force. Not a super prominent role since the show balances between flash backs and the investigation, but a well made show that's very worth the watch. She gets to play a flute. The Accidental Wolf ★- I did not see this but Arian Moayed wrote and directed this? Succ supporting cast I love you! You can find Dag presenting Arian an AAM award here. My Love Affair with Marriage ♡ ★ Dag plays the lead in this funky animated film about womanhood and marriage. Honestly on first watch it wasn't my favorite, but I've really come to love it's weird musical numbers and plot. Dag has a great vocal performance as Zelma, she really has some magnetic quality to her voice. Succession ♡ ★- On HBO Dag plays Karolina Novotney, head of Communications in this drama series. The show is a little slow and honestly not for me-- can you imagine. No, Succession is the series of all time and she plays THE Karolina Novotney, hot lesbian and resident man hater. Give me a scene where she isn't glaring Tom down. Go shivlina, go girls, I'm a fan. She delivers a fantastic and subtle performance, particularly in the fourth season. I love you Karolina Novotney. Bottoms ♡♡♡♡♡- BEST MOVIE EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dag plays a milf Priscilla ♡ - On HBO. Dag plays Ann Beaulieu, Priscilla's mom. She's pretty wonderful in this as well and gets to show off such a wide range of emotions. I love anything period piecey and Priscilla is a greattt film that actually engages with the crazy power dynamic between Elvis and Priscilla. Love Miller's Girl - On Netflix This movie was nottt for me, BUT. I loveee Dag's character in this. She's a mean horny lady named Beatrice and I swear to god my mind was REWIRED hearing Dag say "Or are some cunts....remarkable?" Honestly blows everyone else out of the water since they're doing these godawful Tennessee accents.

Congrats if you made it to the end of this review! Feel free to message me or send an ask if you watch any of these.