#paul if youre reading this i love you

[carmen-dioxide]

just wanted to come on here and gush about my partner

my partner who peppers little kisses across my whole face early in the morning, and again when its time for bed

my partner who helps me take off my shoes and clothes at the end of a long day,pajamas waiting on the bed beside me

my partner who always checks in to see if i need to sit down or leave an event because i may be overstimulated

my partner who talks to our cat and holds him like a baby

my partner who would do anything for me if it meant i was happy

my partner who even after nearly 4 years together still has me check my mac n cheese noodles to make sure they are the correct texture for me even though at this point he cooks them perfect every time

my partner who will help me wash my hair during depressive episodes and makes sure im eating and sleeping enough

my partner who drives whenever we go somewhere because he understands my PTSD

my partner who lets me gush about my special interests for hours

my partner who makes me feel safe

my partner who admires me and tells me he still gets butterflies when he is around me

my partner who loves my body no matter what size I am

my partner who holds me through my panic attacks, helping me regulate my breathing and giving me water so i don't make myself sick

my partner who reminds me to take my meds

my partner who combs his fingers through my hair and rubs my back to help me fall asleep

my partner who accepts and supports my sexuality and gender identity

my partner who willingly has listened to criminal minds, law and order and homicide hunter every single night at bedtime for 4 years

my partner who i cannot wait to marry one day.

[quinnsteria]

If anyone is looking to see all the KISS comics that have ever been published, I’d recommend checking out League of Comic Geeks! You can search for for Kiss related comics and even look up specific “characters” :) There’s a lot more than you probably thought existed!

Seriously… who knew KISS Zombies existed 👹

Note: You cannot read the comics here. It’s just to list them all. To actually get them, you need to either buy or … uh… 🏴‍☠️

[ampleappleamble]

so does anybody else ever get big feelings thinking about how Valbrendhür and Vatnir's voices sound almost exactly alike? yeah because they have the same voice actor but also because Valbrendhür found and raised Vatnir from infancy, so he must have picked up Valbrendhür's accent and speech patterns and vocal quirks growing up? or is it just me

[klirk-hammurton]

I haven't posted KISS in a hot minute.

In case you need some Star Daddy in your life today

@you-were-just-a-dream @doodoostinky @cosmicrealmofkissteria @kissmaidens-blog @your-local-rockstar-simp @ohblackdiamond @rosemary-rabbit @to-the-stars-and-forward @daughter-of-aphrodite @thayerslayer

[jacko-holic]

paintings i enjoyed at the MoMA today

[introuble-now]

ride or die | seth (looper) x f!reader

summary : You weren't the kind of girl to stick around. But Kansas City had its ways of getting under your skin. Or maybe it was just Seth. Seth made you want to stay.

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four

note : a touch of angst, a touch of pining, reader is in some serious denial, someone get her some help, seth is about to trip over his feelings, he's literally so obvious

P.S everyone reading this, i'm in love with you, take this gift, i hope you like it. let me know. *hair twirl* sorry if there are any mistakes, i'm just having a little fun 😘

P.P.S. if you saw me retconning sections in part one, no you didn't

“This is the last time,” You say many times over, Seth leading you by the hand. “I mean it.”

He hums, familiar with the sound of your voice, the waver in your smile that wins every time. 

“I know, I know. Don’t get attached.” He says the last part slowly, mimicking you, a soft expression on his face. “It’s just a dance, Indie. I want to hold you.”

God, you are down bad. 

Your resistance melts away, and he spins you gently once you’ve reached the dance floor of the La Belle Aurore. His boys, the other Loopers, are just off at the bar, whooping from their seats at the two of you. Seth’s hand is on your waist, a couple fingers against bare skin peeking through the cut in your dress.

It’s not the kind of music you like, a bit too futuristic and metal for your taste, but Seth is so close, pressing kisses into your hair, and none of it matters. 

Since you two met, on that Monday a few months ago, Seth hasn’t left you alone. Showing up again and again in your bookshop. He would prop himself on the counter, claiming to needing somewhere quiet to think, to read, to eat his overcooked ramen. 

“It’s not about you. Promise.” He’d tease before settling in for the rest of the day.

It started to feel like every free moment he had, he would come to find you. Should he have wandered in on an off-day, finding a grumpy Kaden at the counter instead, you could expect the most overdramatic complaining once he’d found you again.

Because how could you abandon him like that, he’d whine.

He was good at filling up the silence, either with insistent chatter or just with his company. You thought you’d hate it when it started, you’d always preferred being alone, and you didn’t think it’d be different with him. But you were wrong.

He was easy to talk to, his conversation encouraging details about your life and thoughts, in a way you’d never shared. When you weren’t talking, sometimes you would take turns reading to each other. The days he didn’t show up, you missed him. You’d never connected so effortlessly with someone before.

You confessed to him the way small towns made you feel, like living in them too long had a swallowing effect. Maybe because you grew up in a small town, or maybe because your father died having never left said small town. You told him how cities felt simpler, easy to disappear into. No one knew who you were, and they would never have to. No strings attached that way.

He’d asked which category you put Kansas City in. It was a run down place, not quite tipping either scale. You weren’t sure. He nodded, looking over your face for a few moments too long.

He asked if you had a lot of friends nearby, and you said, tons, obviously. He rolled his eyes. He told you about his best friend Joe, who was good at everything he tried and was so smart, smarter than Seth apparently.

He was really important to Seth, it was obvious. But then he cut the description short, mumbling about how he couldn’t imagine why Joe still kept him around. It’d surprised you how casually he said it, laughing at himself, but not good-naturedly. He was serious.

You had been sorting though clutter of building debris, your conversation with Seth not too long ago about how the place was a moment away from collapsing on the two of you. You tried to keep to busy work, especially in front of Seth, in case he teasingly questioned whether you lived here or worked here.

And once the subject of debris entered the conversation you couldn’t stop yourself from going through it, even though you knew it didn’t matter.

But you stopped to look at him while he laughed, quiet and watching, until the silence made him look up. You stepped forward, taking his hand. His palms were soft, even as he boasted about being some kind of stone cold killer. His eyes were wide as he stared at you, his hand gripping back at yours. There was a tension between you as your breath mingled.

Your expression eased, a playful smile reaching the apples of your cheeks.

“Oh please,” You tease. “If I like you, this guy Joe must love you. Unfortunately for my peace and quiet, what’s not to like about Seth Pryce, hm?”

Maybe that was your mistake. But it was hard see it that way when you remembered the look on his face. Dumbfounded, and unbelievably fond, his eyes slightly wet.

“Come with me to the club tonight?” He’d blurted suddenly.

You could’t say no. And here you were, swaying to clunky music, in the dark of a stip club, your face pressed into the crook of his neck. He smelled like smoke and vanilla hand lotion.

This was bad.

You didn’t know what was happening between you exactly. You were friends, of course. 

Nothing else. Anything else was too much. You weren’t good at friends. If not bad at it entirely, then horribly out of practice. You’d forgotten how nice it was to have someone to talk to, to laugh with. More than friends was too risky, there were too many ways you could let him down, you knew.

What if you assumed, and it wasn’t what he wanted at all? Or even worse, it was. It was, and you’d give in, and he’d realize what your last boyfriend figured out. That you weren’t worth it.

The idea of losing him, felt like a gut punch. He’d only been in your life a few months, but you couldn’t imagine a world where he knew that about you. Couldn’t imagine enduring it.

He was getting too close, you knew. It was hard to feel bad about yourself when he was holding you, whispering into your ear reverently, like you were the most important person in the room. 

“Thank you for coming.”

Your laugh came out more like a sigh. “Of course.”

“You saw Joe? I don’t see him anymore, he may have gone to the back. He has a thing with one of the dancers I think.” He was looking over your head, at the boys, supposedly looking for his friend.

“You introduced me. He’s cool. Is the girl nice?”

“Never met her really, but I’m sure. Best spot in the city for some skirt, all the dancers are so beautiful here.” His tone is light, slightly joking, but you can’t help the way your heart clenches. For every sweet thing he says, or soft touch he extends, there’s another moment like this.

 A moment of cold in your chest, doubt sinking into your shoes when you watch him say something stupid to his friends, or cause problems with someone twice his size who’d catcalled you.

It didn’t feel fair. Didn’t feel like either of you knew what you wanted. It was better for both of you, you already decided, that everything between the two of you was temporary. 

Friendship or otherwise. 

You told him, you’d leave Kansas City soon. You meant it this time. You wouldn’t give yourself the time to ruin things.

[dragqueenpentheus]

the vibe of waking up at six am to go sit in a leather recliner and watch midnight mass for hours while on an iv drip was something truly immaculate

[septembersghost]

totally unrelated to everything going on in your dash but this is something I have pondered for a while . Who do you think is the muse of WITW? I have seen theories regarding TS and ZM. I don't think it's either of them since harry wasn't okay with either leaving him. His other songs are mostly about how much he wants Taylor back. I know they attended a birthday party together but the rest of the song seems have peaceful resolution somethinghaylor didn't have . Plus I don't know if he would call her 'kid' in a song.

For zayn it makes sense since it is a goodbye song. But there also wasn't a peaceful resolution. Harry was upset about zayn leaving.

So who do you think it's about?

everything is good, don't worry <3

i thought for sure i read that walking in the wind was about his grandmother, did i dream that? this is how i personally absorbed it somehow. i don't read it as a romantic love song at all, or even wistful for a friend (and agreed, at that point i really don't think he was considering z in that way). it feels like it's about someone who's passed - if you're lost, just look for me, you'll find me in the region of the summer stars. (that particular line apparently came from julian's grandma). it's very much about keeping their spirit with you to me.

harry said: "I like "Walking In The Wind" because I'm a big Paul Simon fan, and I think the inspiration behind it was Graceland. And just kind of the way in which the verse is so conversational and informal. It's like spoken-word...I love that album. And when I listen to it, I love hearing the influence from that in this song. And it's cool to be able to — obviously not copy — but it's cool to be able to have influences that you've loved for so long. I really like this song." so that gives us a reference sonically.

it really strikes me most poignantly as being about someone dear that you've lost, i always thought, "we'll be alright, child, just close your eyes and see, i'll be by your side any time you're needing me," was being said TO him, he's the child in need of that comfort, just like the opening, "do you believe i'll never be too far?" and it's this really poignant reminiscence of how someone you love stays with you, tinged with sadness, but not overcome by it. they've had a good long life (the fact that we can sit right here and say goodbye means we've already won), and you believe you'll meet them again someday, and until then their presence is always with you (in places that we've never been, for reasons we don't understand, walking in the wind). goodbye are bittersweet, but it's not the end, i'll see your face again.

[ralexsol]

wanting to play video game or watch youtube video or do really anything vs. i cant listen to favorite song while doing that :(

[fuckyeahisawthat]

So there is this thing that the two Villeneuve Dune movies do together that I cannot stop thinking about, where they will present something (often, a weapon) in a context the first time around where it looks a certain way (often, very sexy and cool). And then they will present it again in a way that doesn't exactly negate your reading of the original context but makes you recoil in horror from the new context.

Paul and Jessica using the Voice to escape from their Harkonnen captors? Very sexy and cool. Look at them working together, mother and son, a couple of space witch badasses.

Jessica using the Voice on Chani to force her to participate in reviving Paul after he drinks the Water of Life? Horrifying. Saying you will be part of this myth that has been created to serve political ends that have nothing to do with your liberation, and if you don't do it voluntarily to save the person you love then I will make you do it.

Chani and Paul working together to take down the ornithopter gunship using those little shoulder-fired rockets? Very sexy and cool, we love guerrilla warfare against an occupying army. (I'm not being facetious here, this sequence is extremely satisfying to watch.)

The much later image of Paul silhouetted against the blast from the missiles from his family's private nuclear arsenal blowing up the shield wall? Nightmarish.

The way the climactic battle to retake the palace at Arrakeen extends into the night so that it begins to look very very much like the initial Harkonnen attack on the same place? I'm sure this is intentional; the whole third act is about taking a giant sledgehammer to the idea that the Atreides are the better or more civilized imperialists.

Perhaps my favorite example of this is the Atreides signet ring. When Paul first puts it on in the first movie, it's a symbol of him accepting that Leto is dead. It's a melancholy moment, but it's also a sign of Paul accepting the responsibility of his birthright as the new Duke.

Early in the second movie, when he is trying to be equal to the Fremen, he takes the ring off. And you just know that when he decides to put it back on again, that will be the sign that everything's about to go to shit. And when it happens it's a very similar moment--it is Paul accepting his birthright, just a different kind. But the accompanying feeling is oh no.

[the-quiet-fire-of-defiance]

The Māori tino rangatiratanga [sovereignty, self-determination] flag flying alongside Palestinian flags. The tino rangatiratanga flag is black at the top and red at the bottom, the two colours separated by white lines forming a koru (spiral). The Palestinian flag has three horizontal stripes (black, white and green) with a red triangle on the left.

"Pro-Palestine protest at Pacific Islands Forum meeting in Rarotonga"

A young child holding an ili (Samoan woven fan) that says Samoa for Palestine

A young boy holds a sign reading Justice the seed, peace the flower / Ko te mana whakaaiko hei kākano, kia puawai mai te maungarongo. Beneath is artwork of a fist breaking free from chains below blooming flowers.

Left: the 1975 Māori Land March. Right: the 2018-2019 Palestinian Great March of Return.

If we want to free Hawai'i... [Hawaiian flag] we must also free Palestine [Palestinian flag]. Credit to @ainamomona

A young Māori boy holding a sign that reads MANA MOTUHAKE [independence/autonomy] 4 PALESTINE

A Fijian woman holding a sign that reads Food is not a weapon of war! Stop starving Palestinians! Behind are two more signs. One says CEASEFIRE NOW and the other says DON'T STOP TALKING ABOUT GAZA

A group of Fijians holding candles and wearing shirts that read STOP THE GENOCIDE

Left: a diagram of Palestinian land loss between 1946 and 2009. Right: a diagram of Māori land loss in the North Island of Aotearoa between 1860 and 2000.

A sign reading TANGATA WHENUA [indigenous people] FOR PALESTINE [tino rangatiratanga symbol, Palestine flag symbol]

Three Pasifika people holding signs. The first says MAI LE VAITAFE AGA'I I LE SAMI! [Samoan: from the river to the sea] FREE PALESTINE! The second sign says FROM OUR PASIFIKA OCEAN TO THE RIVER TO THE SEA FREE PALESTINE. The final sign shows the Palestinian and Tongan flags and says 'OFA KI PALESITAINE [Tongan: Love to Palestine]

A group of Pasifika holding signs and banners. They say "HOW MANY MORE KILLINGS IS ENOUGH FOR YOU?" "KŪ'E! KŪ'E! [Hawaiian: Resist! Resist!] PASIFIKA STANDS WITH PALESTINE" "'OFA KI PALESTINE" "FROM THE PACIFIC TO THE RIVER TO THE SEA, PALESTINE WILL BE FREE" "WHERE IS YOUR HUMANITY?" "SAMOANS FOR PALESTINE" "FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA" "KŪ'E KŪ'E KANAKA WITH PALESTINE" "FREE PALESTINE CEASEFIRE NOW"

A West Papuan man holding two signs. The first says WEST PAPUA STAND WITH MYANMAR. The second says WEST PAPUA STAND WITH PALESTINE

Two signs. The first says PACIFIC ISLANDERS FOR PALESTINE. The second says #FREE PALESTINE #FREE WEST PAPUA #FREE CONGO #FREE SUDAN

A Palestinian flag decorated with Samoan patterns. Words say 'AGA'I MAI LE VAITAFE E O'O ATU I LE SAMI FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA #Sāmoans4Palestine

A tweet from Tamatha Paul (Waikato-Tainui, Ngāti Awa) on 29 June 2023. Another big win this week, courtesy of @Just4Pal and @nikau4poneke, we [Pōneke Wellington] will be Sister Cities with the Palestinian city of Ramallah 😍 Free Palestine!!!

A Pasifika woman holding two signs. The first says FREE PALESTINE FREE PALESTINE END THE APARTHEID! END THE BLOCKADE! END THE ETHNIC CLEANSING! CEASE STATE SANCTIONED VIOLENCE! CEASE COLONIALISM! BOYCOTT ISRAEL! From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free! The second sign has pictures of Palestinian and West Papuan flags. It says pacific islanders stand in solidarity with Palestine! #FREEWESTPAPUA #FREEPALESTINE CEASE COLONIALISM

A sign that has the tino rangatiratanga flag at the top and Palestinian flag at the bottom. It says Mai te awa ki te moana [from the river to the sea] MĀORI LAW STUDENTS For a FREE PALESTINE

A Pasifika woman holding a sign decorated with Pacific symbols. It says LONG LIVE PALESTINE - PASIFIKA 4 PALESTINE - FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA PALESTINE WILL BE FREE

Another Samoan fan. This one says PALESTINE WILL BE FREE

[sansaorgana]

— THROWN TO THE WOLVES (I)

PART TWO || PART THREE || PART FOUR PART FIVE || PART SIX || PART SEVEN PART EIGHT || PART NINE || PART TEN

PAIRING — Na-Baron Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen x fem!Reader // Atreides!OC

SUMMARY — After receiving the news from the Emperor about moving to Arrakis, Duke Leto suspects the upcoming war with the Harkonnens. His daughter's marriage with the Baron's heir is supposed to create an alliance and ensure his family's safety. Previously sheltered and protected Princess Atreides must now face the harsh reality on her own.

AUTHOR’S NOTE — It’s written as an usual x Reader fic without describing anything about the Reader’s looks but I still classified it as an OC as well since she is Paul Atreides' half-sister. I had this idea even before watching the movie... 😂 but I patiently waited to go to the cinema before starting to write. The fic starts around the events of the first movie but I imagine all characters to be a bit older than in canon – I hope it's okay since all the actors are adults. I can't believe I used to write fanfics where the Reader was Duke Leto's wife and now I'm switching sides like that! 🤣 I don’t know much about Dune’s Universe because I’ve only seen the new movies but I tried to do a bit of research. 🙏🏻

WARNINGS — arranged marriage, blood, mentions of death & actual death, violent behaviour, syringes & blood drawing, mentions of planned and scientifical breeding, Reader's behaviour might be interpreted as spoiled / ungrateful / rude (she's not supposed to be a good person)

WORD COUNT — 6,340

ENGLISH IS MY SECOND LANGUAGE.

THROWN TO THE WOLVES (I)

Duke Leto was standing by the window with his hands clasped behind his back as he watched his son training in the courtyard and his daughter reading a book on one of the stone steps. Last week he had received the news about the Emperor’s decision to move his family to an unfriendly world of Arrakis. He was aware of the consequences of such a decision. He knew that the Emperor always had his bigger purpose.

“What is troubling you?” Lady Jessica stood behind him and put her hand on his shoulder.

“The war with the Harkonnens is coming,” Duke Leto sighed. “And I don’t know what to do to protect my family from it.”

Lady Jessica furrowed her brows. She had been waiting for this moment for a long time now but the moment never seemed to be right.

“What if you make an alliance?” She proposed with her lips inches away from his ear as her hands hugged his chest from behind.

“An alliance? With the Harkonnens?” The Duke couldn’t grasp the concept. “How?”

“You have something very precious here that for some reason you are hiding from the world. But we all have to serve our families. Women serve their families in their own ways, Leto,” Lady Jessica smiled softly and pointed her finger at Princess (Y/N).

Innocent and unaware Princess (Y/N), reading a book and watching her half-brother train. She was wearing a pretty dark green dress with long sleeves that were supposed to protect her from the harsh winds of Caladan. Her hair was done up in a beautiful way by one of her maids and her eyes were as sad as usual.

“She will be sent to her mother’s family soon,” Duke Leto reminded Lady Jessica. “That was my agreement with them.”

“Yes, and what will she do there? She can’t hide away from the big world. She is her mother’s daughter but she’s also an Atreides. You raised her. She owes you loyalty,” Lady Jessica explained. “If you ask her to keep your family safe, she shall do it.”

“I would never send my daughter to those monsters,” The Duke shook his head and turned around to face Lady Jessica. “I am her father. I might have not loved her mother like I love you. But I love her as much as I love our son.”

“If our son was a girl, he’d be the one sent to the Harkonnens,” Lady Jessica reminded him. “Of course her bloodline is not as perfect as Paul’s but she will do. I’ve spoken to the sisters about it and…”

“You’ve spoken to the sisters about it?!” The Duke’s eyes widened at that revelation. “You have already discussed my daughter with the Bene Gesserit?”

“I raised her, too!” Lady Jessica raised her voice. “She is not mine and I would never call her my daughter but I care about her, too. I watched her grow, I teached her, I soothed her after her nightmares. I was there for her. But she can’t hide from her destiny on her grandparent’s planet. She is Princess Atreides.”

The Duke remained silent. He took a deep breath in and looked out of the window once more. His son was already hiding the blades after the training and approaching his sister.

You closed the book and squinted your eyes at the sight of Paul approaching you with a smile. He was a little younger than you but he was the future Duke. In a fair world, you would be the Duchess of Caladan. You were older and you were a daughter of your father and his wife. Paul was basically a bastard.

And he was weak. You didn’t want to say it out loud but you had been watching him train for quite a long time now and you didn’t see a future Duke in him. You kept thinking that you’d make a better one. After all, you were supposed to be born a boy and a future Duke. But your mother was no Bene Gesserit witch and she could not manipulate her child’s gender. She died giving birth to you and she didn’t secure your father with an heir. Lady Jessica did. 

So you had to watch Paul struggling with his trainings as you pretended to read books. You had asked your father to let you train as well but he didn’t agree. You were a Princess. If you were to gain an ugly scar on your face, your value would decrease.

“How was it?” Paul pinched you teasingly as you closed the book loudly to show him your annoyance at that gesture.

“The book?” You asked.

“No, my training.”

“I haven’t been paying attention to it,” you lied and shrugged your arms. “It’s starting to rain, let’s go back inside,” you stood up and he followed you to the gates. “I was thinking of giving away most of my dresses to the poor. I won’t need them on Arrakis, the ones with long sleeves and fur,” you told him.

“But you won’t be on Arrakis with us for long,” Paul reminded you.

“My mother’s planet is warm, too. It’s sunny and it almost never rains,” you explained. “I will not need these dresses there either.”

“It is sad that you will have to leave us,” Paul looked down.

You tried to hate him but sometimes you couldn’t. And as much as you hated everything about this family and how you were treated in it… He still remained your younger brother. And it wasn’t his fault that his mother was a witch and that your father loved him more than you.

“I will visit you and you will visit me,” you told him with a shy smile. “I am looking forward to moving to my grandparents and to choose any noble man on their planet I want to marry,” you chuckled.

Of course you’d rather stay and become a Duchess of Caladan. But that was out of option.

“I’ll see you later, I have to look through my dresses. I don’t trust my maid’s choices with them,” you told your brother and you went to your chambers.

You placed the book down on the desk and you caressed your mother’s picture. You had never known her since she died giving birth to you. But you always craved to meet her and you always daydreamed about her still being alive. Lady Jessica was no substitute to you. And she had never tried to be.

There were political marriage unions that were supposed to make alliances but there was also a different type of an union, a more mysterious and weird kind of it – the one that was calculated and planned by the Bene Gesserit. Your mother was supposed to give Duke Leto his heir and Lady Jessica was supposed to give him a daughter that would later be sent away to another great house and continue that malicious and intentional bloodline. To you, it was all witchcraft. You didn’t trust any of that because you didn’t trust Lady Jessica.

You knew that when your mother had been dying and you were being born, your father was not there. He was with her as she was already pregnant with Paul.

You knew about a lot of things from the maids that had come to Caladan with your mother. You knew your father had not been a bad man to her but he couldn’t force himself to love her. And you knew how much she had wanted to go back home. She had missed the sun and the warmth. And now she would remain forever on this grey and rainy planet. As a former Duchess of it, she had to be buried on Caladan.

You were occupied with the dresses in your closet when you felt someone’s presence in the chamber with you. You turned around and sighed at the sight of Lady Jessica.

“I’m thinking about giving away some of them to the poor,” you pointed at one of the dresses laying on your bed. “They will be no use on Arrakis,” you explained.

Lady Jessica remained silent as she leaned on the wall and kept watching you. You didn’t like that.

“What is it?” You asked.

“There’s a change of plans,” she finally cleared her throat as she straightened herself. You furrowed your brows.

“We are not moving?” You asked with hope. You were not a fan of Caladan but Arrakis sounded a hundred times worse.

“No. We are but you will not come with us,” Lady Jessica informed you.

At this point, you were confused.

“Am I moving to my grandparents earlier? Or… Or will I stay here to represent House Atreides?” Your eyes sparkled at the idea.

You already imagined yourself ruling the planet in your father’s name. Wearing regal dresses and being important. Perhaps proving to him that you’d be good at this job and he would let you do it for the rest of your life.

“You will help us to prevent the upcoming war with the Harkonnens,” Lady Jessica smiled softly. “You will be sent to Giedi Prime to marry the Baron’s heir.”

The sparkles in your eyes disappeared in an instant as your hands dropped down the gown you had been holding.

“No…” you whispered. “This cannot be true… My father would never agree to that.”

“He just did.”

“It’s… It’s your mending, you witch,” your fists clenched. “I must speak to my father myself,” you walked past her furiously.

You didn’t know what to think. But as long as you didn’t hear that from your father, it felt like it was a cruel joke on Lady Jessica’s side.

“Father,” you pushed the door leading to his office without knocking. He was sitting behind his desk as if he had already been expecting you. There was a deep wrinkle on his forehead and his eyes looked sad and worried when he laid them on you. “Tell me it is not true,” you demanded.

“You will be sent to the Harkonnens,” the Duke nodded his head.

“You can’t do this to me!” You yelled and banged your fists on his desk. The loud sound echoed through the chamber. “I had my whole life already planned… You cannot just…”

“I can,” he interrupted you and stood up, “and I will. We were not supposed to move to Arrakis. We were not supposed to be involved in this spice conflict. Things changed for all of us. You will go to Giedi Prime and secure the alliance.”

“How can you even speak to me about the alliance with them?” You asked. “How? Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve been taught about the Harkonnens. I’ve been taught everything about them for the simple fact that they are our enemies. How can you send your daughter to them just like that?”

“You’ve said it yourself. You’ve been studying them since you were a little girl. You know their culture and their customs. It will be easy for you,” he tried to convince you.

Convince you to… what exactly? Convince you to agree to this without being forced to? Convince you that it would be indeed easy? Like it had been easy for your mother…? And all the women of all history forced to get married before her?

It was never easy. It was only easy for men to say it.

“I wish it was women ruling over the world,” you gritted through your teeth. “And I wish it was men being sent away from their homes and families to unknown worlds to start their life over, to become someone else’s property, to obey. I really do wish that, father.”

“That remains nothing but a wish,” he commented on that with a sad smile. “It brings me no pleasure to send you there. But you have your duties, too.”

“I have studied their customs and their culture. They are monsters. You are throwing me to the wolves. I will not survive this,” your voice finally broke as the realisation hit you that it was indeed happening.

You would be sent to Giedi Prime.

“Father!” Paul’s voice interrupted you both as he ran inside the chamber. His cheeks were flushed as he was taking deep breaths in after running. “You can’t do that! You can’t send her there!”

Oh, how cute your little brother was sometimes.

“The decision has been made, my son,” the Duke told him.

“Don’t be angry at him,” you turned around to face Paul. “You can thank your mother for that,” you added viciously before leaving the chamber angrily and going back to your own.

Everything was packed and the castle seemed to be as empty as never before. The ships were ready to take off and the Caladan weather was saying goodbye in its own manner – with a never ending rain.

The thing was, your family was going to Arrakis. You were going to Giedi Prime. Alone. 

Well, you had two of your maids with you like your mother had been gifted two from her homeplanet on her way to Caladan. And you had your mother’s wedding dress, too. Beautiful, handmade snow-white lace, layered and folded in all the right places. It was elegant and innocent looking. Your mother’s maids had been telling you stories that for a moment they thought your father would love her. Because he had been so mesmerised by her in that dress.

It hadn’t happened, though.

“I thought you’d go with me. You or Paul at least. Some man from the family to give me away to them. To stay for the ceremony and make sure I am safe,” you told your father as you were walking beside him. It was your last walk together on Caladan.

“I can’t go now, I am needed on Arrakis. Your safety is ensured. They would not dare to hurt you. You’re Princess Atreides, don’t let them make you forget about that,” your father put his hands on your shoulders.

“Sometimes I wish I wasn’t,” you admitted and looked down, defeated. Your father’s hands dropped down to hold yours. He furrowed his brows at how cold and shaky they were.

“Have some courage, my child.”

“Why does it feel like you’re getting rid of the burden?” You asked while biting on your lower lip.

“You have never been a burden to me,” he pulled you closer for a hug. You felt warm tears rolling down your cheeks.

You really wanted to believe his words but you couldn’t. You still felt like an unwanted daughter and a painful reminder of a woman he had been forced to marry once.

“You are my daughter, remember that,” Duke Leto took a step back to wipe the tears off of your cheeks. “You will forever be.”

You didn’t say anything to that. How would you even tell him that you wished you weren’t?

You went back to the hangar silently. Everyone was waiting for you so the ships would take off. Paul ran up to you and gave you a hug.

“I wish you could go with us on Arrakis,” he said with tears in his eyes.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this but I’d also rather go to Arrakis than Giedi Prime,” you confessed. “That planet sounds dreadful.”

“They’re lucky to have you. You’ll make it bloom,” Paul tried to cheer you up.

“Or they will poison me and I will wither,” you smiled sadly and kissed his forehead goodbye.

You only nodded your head at Lady Jessica and she nodded her head back with a smile. 

You had been trying to overthink her plans. She either wanted you on Giedi Prime badly or she didn’t want you on Arrakis for some reason. But there was no point of losing sleep over that. You had other things to worry about now. Because finding out her motives wouldn’t change your situation anyway.

You had been informed in a message from the Harkonnens to your father that your husband would be Baron’s nephew named Feyd-Rautha who was your brother’s age and a future baron. His current title was na-baron and he was known for winning many fights as a gladiator. Really, the whole message from the Harkonnens sounded more like an eulogy praising him and his achievements. But it didn’t include his portrait or anything said about his character.

Your achievements were nonexistent but you were a Princess and no one expected any from you. Still, it felt humiliating when your father had been writing in his message that his daughter was innocent, pure, well-behaved, educated on the matter of the customs of her new house. Tidy, pretty, ready to give heirs. It made you feel nauseous.

You knew that the atmosphere on Giedi Prime was unusual after centuries of pollution. You knew everything about this planet and people. Still, looking outside the ship’s window, at first you thought something was wrong with your eyesight.

“Everything is black and white… I don’t see colour,” you rubbed your eyelids.

“It is normal, Princess. The colours cannot be seen outside,” one of the maids reminded you in a calm tone of voice.

You wondered how they could be so calm, your maids. After all, they were moving away from homes, too. And they would never leave to Arrakis with the ship like its captain and the crew. No, they’d stay on this planet with you forever.

“Time to get dressed, Princess,” the second maid entered your cabin. “The captain says we are landing soon.”

“We will be greeted by the servants. They will lead us inside where you will be officially introduced to the Baron and his family,” your first maid reminded you of the schedule. “What dress would you like to wear now, Princess?”

The wedding would take place tomorrow. Now you had to choose a dress to make your first impression.

“I’ll go with something bright,” you decided. “Modest, humble. I want to present myself to them exactly as they imagine me.”

“How would that be then, Princess?” The maid asked, slightly confused.

“Like a prey,” you explained.

They looked at each other but they said nothing. You stood up and opened your arms to let them undress you from your nightgown and then dress you. They put a creamy white silk dress on your body. It could have been your wedding dress if you hadn't already chosen your mother’s.

The jewellery was modest, too. The biggest and the most outstanding piece was a necklace with your house’s emblem. You asked for delicate makeup, too but your maids still made sure the blush on your cheeks would stand out.

When the ship landed, you left it with your maids and a few crew members. The Harkonnen servants looked both scary and scared – and that was an odd mix, especially in that black-and-white light. Their eyes were huge and dark, their skin pale and their heads bald. Both, men and women. They were also dressed in long white robes and they seemed to be terrified of doing something wrong. The men showed your crew members where to take all of your bags and chests. The women bowed down to you and led you inside the huge black fortress.

You swallowed thickly at the size and architectural style of it. It was black and industrial; reminded you of a jail for very dangerous criminals. You couldn’t imagine spending the rest of your life in a fortress like that. Certainly not after growing up on Caladan, in a castle on a cliff. You’d spend your whole days walking around and admiring nature. But on Giedi Prime there was no nature.

The air made you cough and you were exposed to it for five minutes maximum. Still, your lungs felt as if they were filled with a black, slimy liquid. You tried to cough it out before entering the Baron’s huge throne room.

One of the maids tapped your back lightly and you thanked her with a nod of your head. There were tears in the corners of your eyes now from that air and from trying to stop yourself from coughing when the heavy black doors opened in front of you.

“Princess (Y/N) Atreides,” you were announced.

You tried not to show any emotion on your face as you walked towards the throne. Your maids stayed behind and you had to face Baron Vladimir Harkonnen on your own.

As scary as he looked – especially with all the machinery around him – you tried to remember what your father had once told you. He was just a pathetic man who would be easily killed if someone had enough courage to stand very close to him and cut all these bubbles and tubes off. It was his morbid obesity – not his cruelty or special abilities – that made him look even less human than other people on this planet. He was a cruel man, of course he was. But he was also sick and that was the reason for his unusual looks that were so scary to most. You tried to remember about that but it was difficult because he was clearly the most powerful person in this room as he watched you with a smirk.

The power of that gaze was so strong that you stumbled a little on your way. And then someone else’s chuckle made you finally remember that Baron Vladimir Harkonnen wasn’t there alone.

You laid your embarrassed eyes on the young man standing next to the baron. His eyes were watching you closely and they were squinted as if he was a snake. The other man, standing on the other side of the Baron, was much older. So you assumed that the laughing one was your husband-to-be.

Your heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. He looked better than the other men you had seen so far on Giedi Prime. But it didn’t mean he was handsome or that he looked kind. On the contrary, he looked terrifying. And the way he laughed at your clumsiness was nothing but cruel. You felt blood in your veins turn cold.

You would die on this planet. Sooner than later. You would die, you thought. You wouldn’t survive it. You weren’t able to. At this very moment you felt like laying down on the floor and crying already. How were you supposed to keep being brave? It was impossible.

You were not raised for this. You were not prepared.

You suddenly felt angry at your father. At Lady Jessica. At Paul, even, for not stopping them. It no longer felt like you had been sent here to be ridden of. It felt like you had been sent here to die.

“Princess Atreides,” Baron’s voice caught you by surprise. You didn’t expect it to be so rough. But on the other hand, what else would you expect from a man like him?

He was visibly mocking you as you stood in front of him and bowed down a little. None of the men bowed down to you, though. You were a Princess, they were supposed to do that. But they did not care and you had no courage to remind them of the courtesy.

“Baron Harkonnen,” you greeted him.

“Welcome to my world,” he opened his arms. “I do hope you find it pleasant.”

You swallowed thickly. Another mockery.

“I do find it interesting,” you answered diplomatically.

“Let me introduce my nephews to you,” he pointed at the older man. “Count Glossu Rabban.”

“My Lord,” you bowed down a little again but he did not move. In fact, he looked quite bored to be there.

“Princess,” he only said and nodded his head very slightly. He was not a pleasant man and he was big and intimidating.

“And my favourite,” Baron pointed at the younger one, the one you had been trying to avoid looking at for a while now. You feared to lay your eyes on him because seeing him would make him real. As long as you weren’t looking, you thought, he wasn't existing. But the world didn’t work this way.

You were also surprised that the Baron didn’t hesitate to so openly admit which one was his favourite. As Paul’s sister, for a short while, you almost felt sorry for Count Rabban. You had this one thing in common with him – being second favourite.

It was weird to realise how similar some things might be between people so different.

“Na-baron Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen,” Baron introduced the younger man. “Your husband-to-be.”

“My Lord,” you bowed down at him.

“Princess,” he greeted you with a hiss. Tone of his voice was identical to his uncle’s and it made shivers run down your spine.

This was the voice of the man you’d spend the rest of your life with…? You found it difficult to imagine how you’d ever get used to it.

He didn’t bow down nor nod his head even a little. He had a menacing smirk on his lips as he watched you so intensely that you had to look away for a while. From the corner of your eye, you noticed him licking his lips in a vulgar manner.

“You will be taken to your chambers now to rest after your journey. The wedding will take place tomorrow,” was all the Baron announced and both of his nephews left the room just like that.

Not that you actually wanted to spend time with Feyd-Rautha but you were surprised that they didn’t care at all for you to get to know him a bit better before the wedding.

“One more thing,” Baron said when you were about to leave the room as well. You turned around to look at him. “A medic will visit you. You will obey his orders. Don’t get shy when he tells you to take your clothes off. He will not hurt you.”

“Y-yes, my Lord,” you nodded your head. You were in no position to tell him you disagreed. You might have been a Princess but you quickly realised it meant nothing to them and your father wasn't here to remind them.

You were surprised to see the room you had been taken to. It was not princess-worthy. In fact, it was not even guest-worthy. It looked more like a prison cell. You had the privacy of your own bathroom but there was nothing more except for the bed and your bags and chests scattered all over the floor. The room had no balcony and no windows either.

“Is it my room?” You asked the servant girl. She looked terrified when you spoke to her.

“Yes, Princess.”

“Is this a joke?” You asked her and she took a step back, probably used to the Harkonnens being violent towards her.

“It’s temporary… For now…” She stuttered out.

“Alright,” you nodded, feeling sorry for her. “I do not blame you. What is your name?” You tried to ask but her eyes widened even further and she ran away out of your room.

When she left it, the doors closed heavily and you could hear that the guards locked them.

“Marvellous,” you whispered to yourself with a sigh.

You took a shower and went to bed. You were exhausted after the journey but you were also too anxious to actually fall asleep. Under your pillow, though, you found a small black box. You opened it and it contained two white pills and a note.

It will help you sleep – Baron H.

You didn’t trust any pill given to you by the Baron Harkonnen but you were desperate to fall asleep and forget about your troubles for a while. And if it had killed you, well… You would be grateful, to be honest.

You put one of the pills on your tongue and it dissolved quickly, leaving a bittersweet taste. Two minutes later you were already asleep.

In the morning you were awakened by your maids and the Harkonnen medic. He ordered them to undress you and he inspected your body all over. It felt humiliating but you were aware that some families had this custom of checking the brides thoroughly before the wedding.

What surprised you more, though, was the fact he was drawing your blood, too. And he tried to make an injection of a weird substance, but you stopped him.

“What is this?” You asked, terrified.

Sleeping pills was one thing but getting injected with an odd liquid to your veins was another.

“It’s for health, Princess,” he tried to explain but it was obvious that you didn’t believe him. You moved away from the syringe as far as you could.

“What is this?” You asked once again.

“It will help to control your cycle,” he admitted.

“My cycle?” You furrowed your brow.

“What do you think is your purpose here?” He asked, without even addressing you properly. That was no way for a medic to speak to a Princess. But you assumed that if you told Baron Harkonnen about it, he’d only laugh. No one was taking you seriously here.

Your father’s voice echoed through your mind… That no one would harm you because you were Princess Atreides… Oh, how surprised he would be now. If he had been here. But he was not. You kept thinking about his absence all the time. How could he leave you like that…?

“My purpose here is to ensure an alliance between my house and The Harkonnen Dynasty,” you straightened yourself.

“No, your purpose is to give na-baron an heir and secure the Harkonnen bloodline. You will be given many injections like this and many tests will be run on your body. None of this will harm you but it will ensure that you will give na-baron a healthy son who would inherit only the best genetic material from both sides,” the medic told you.

“This is insane,” you shook your head. It reminded you of the Bene Gesserit ways… only it was even worse.

“Insane or not, Princess, you will obey,” the medic approached you with the syringe and injected the liquid into your thigh. You hissed at that and he chuckled. “Why would we hurt you before you give our na-baron an heir? Until that moment you are the most precious and protected cargo in this fortress.”

Until that time. You didn’t want to think what would happen after.

“Your bloodline is not as perfect as your brother’s but it will do. Especially with my help,” he patted your thigh and walked away to hide your blood samples into his bag. “Your son might rule the whole Empire one day.”

You pursed your lips, trying not to say anything because you were sure that the medic was also Baron's spy. You wanted to tell him, though, that they were all insane.

“Oh, also,” he said before leaving your room, “na-baron wants to see you before the wedding. Tell the guards when you’re ready and they will take you to his chamber,” he bowed down to you and left.

“Is it customary here to consummate the marriage before the ceremony?” One of your maids asked you.

“No,” you shook your head. “But this man doesn’t look like he cares about any customs. None of them do,” you shook your head, trying not to burst into tears.

Shakingly, you allowed your maids to put your mother’s wedding dress on you. It had been adjusted to fit you perfectly but now you almost regretted choosing it for the wedding. The Harkonnens didn’t deserve to see it nor to see you wearing it. It was sacred and this planet was the opposite of that.

Your bridal make up was a bit bolder than the day before. Still humble but more visible. Your hair was done really pretty and there were small white pearls here and there that complimented your beautiful dress and the pearl earrings.

You smiled sadly at your maids and knocked upon the door of your room for the guards to open it. You heard them unlock it and you walked out carefully, holding your dress up to make sure it wouldn’t get dirty on the floor.

“I am ready to see na-baron,” you told them and they nodded.

You followed them through the fortress, thinking of how much in fact you were not ready to see him. A few times you gained the courage to face him but it would quickly disappear. And you still were walking through the never ending mazes of corridors and halls.

The part of the fortress where they took you was much prettier than the one you had spent your night in. You could see that it was a palace where the nobility lived. And you became quite sure that your last night’s room had indeed been a cell.

The guards finally stopped in front of one of the heavy, black doors and knocked upon them. You swallowed thickly, realising that you still had no strategy on how to deal with Feyd-Rautha.

You hoped that you’d get an idea once you’d get to know him more.

“Come in,” his deep voice ordered and the guards opened the door. They showed you with their hands to walk inside, so you did, and they closed the door loudly behind you.

Feyd-Rautha was standing in the middle of the room, surrounded by two servant girls and three women that looked nothing like the servants but they also did not look like any ladies. They were dressed in black leather and eyeing you up and down as if you were a dessert. They were clearly making fun of you and your wedding outfit. They were making you feel uncomfortable and you’d rather be alone with him than have their company.

Feyd himself did not mind their rude behaviour. He was shirtless and wearing nothing but black pants.

“Come, come,” he encouraged you to walk closer, “I am getting ready for our ceremony,” he informed you and nodded at one of the servant girls. She was working on putting the clothes on his pale and incredibly muscular body.

You realised that he’d be able to break you in half if he wanted to. And you did not like that idea.

You walked up to him, slowly and nervously. You were scared to disobey his order.

“Well, well, well,” he teased and three women giggled viciously.

“Who are they?” You asked, having a feeling that they were his lovers. 

Your pride and honour won with your fear. After all, you were a Princess. They were no equal to you.

“Oh, they’re my pets,” he explained to you with a smirk. “Don’t worry, you’ll be my pet, too. Just of a different kind.”

The women hissed at you jealously and you straightened yourself to present yourself more dignified.

“Why did you want to see me?” You asked.

He froze for a second as his eyes scanned you.

“You have a big mouth, Princess,” he noticed.

“Do I? What makes you think so? Because I speak to you like you are my equal? We are equal,” you reminded him.

Yes, he was scary. But he was pissing you off. Everything was pissing you off about this whole situation. And your fear would often turn into anger. You had problems with that ever since you were a little girl. Spoiled little Princess, your father would call you. And when you were getting angry, you weren’t thinking of the consequences.

“That is where you are mistaken,” Feyd moved swiftly and before you noticed, you had him standing right in front of you with a sharp blade pointed at your face. “We are not equal, woman.”

That was when you realised your mistake. The medic had told you that you were the most protected cargo. But not for Feyd. For his uncle.

“My Lord, the Baron said to treat Princess gently,” one of the servant girls gasped and you laid your eyes on her. It was the same girl who had shown you to your room the previous night. She had to like you if she risked so much.

She quickly regretted that outburst of courage. Feyd moved his arm without even looking at her and slit her throat.

Your eyes widened as you had never seen death like this. And the blood from her neck splashed all over your face and your beautiful wedding gown.

You burst into tears, not being able to control it anymore.

“Aw,” Feyd raised your chin up with his blooded blade as his three pets laughed at you, “my delicate Princess is crying over dead slaves?”

You did cry about her. And about yourself. But that was not the answer he wanted.

“You’ve ruined my dress,” you sobbed and he smirked.

“Don’t cry, my pet, my servants will wash it,” he took the blade away.

“I don’t have any other for the wedding,” you sniffed and tried to dry your cheeks with the palms of your hands. They soon became bloody since your face had not been wet only with the tears.

“I think you look good for the wedding,” Feyd walked away from you to let the remaining servant girl continue dressing him up. “In fact, I think you look better now,” he added and you looked at him like he was crazy.

Well, he was crazy.

“You might leave now. We’ll see each other at the ceremony,” he told you and you nodded your head before turning around to leave his chamber as soon as possible. You wanted to be out of this room.

“You may feast on your breakfast, my pets,” was the last thing you heard before walking out and from the corner of your eye you saw the three women jumping on the dead servant girl’s body.

You felt sick and dizzy. You wanted to scream and run away but the guards took you by your arms to guide you to the throne room that had been decorated for the ceremony of your wedding to na-baron Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen.

MASTERLIST

[multific]

In Sickness and In Health

Paul Atreides x Reader

Summary: Paul fears leaving you while you are sick.

Paul hated to leave you alone, especially since you haven't been feeling so well lately.

Paul knew he needed to go with his father, but he didn't want to.

"I will take care of her." his mother tried her best to reassure him, but Paul was worried.

The love of his life, his beautiful wife has been forced to bedrest for the last few days.

The doctors examined you and determined that you had a simple illness.

A simple one, yet you suffered greatly because of it.

You had a high fever, you could barely eat and sleep was a difficult task.

You were separated from Paul the second day of your illness, now, he was only allowed to visit you.

He was kind enough to bring you books or read you some of his own.

"You must go, Paul, your father expects you to."

"I do not care. I don't wish to leave you alone."

"I understand, but I will be fine, I do feel better already, so please, don't worry too much."

"My mother said she will visit you often," he said as his grip tightened around the book he was reading to you. "I still don't want to leave you." he promised to be by your side, in sickness and in health.

"I will be fine." you said with a smile. Your smile made him believe that it might be all fine after all.

Yet, his worry never left him.

The next day, he left with his father.

Lady Jessica kept her promise and visited as often as she could.

You even started conversations with her. And she did enjoy talking about Paul when he was young.

Then, she even mentioned her marriage, and how she wished you and Paul wouldn't have to face the same or similar difficulties.

The week soon passed, and you were much better as you awaited Paul's return.

And soon enough, you were told that he was landing.

You rushed over, by the time you got there Paul was already off the ship, making his way to you.

"Paul!" you smiled as you slowly jogged over to him, he fully started running.

You opened your arms and wrapped them around him as he lifted you off the ground. You giggled into his ear.

"I'm so happy to see you." he said. "You look so much better."

"Your mother gave me a special tea, it truly helped," you said as he finally put you down on the ground and kissed you.

"I missed you so much." he said and you laughed a little.

"I missed you, Paul."

Paul never felt so relieved in his entire life. He was worried about coming back, so when he saw you, full of life and smiles, running over to him, the weight from his shoulders just disappeared.

All his worries left his body in a matter of seconds.

He held onto you tight and strong, afraid to let you leave his sight as he watched your face, full of life, your eyes, filled with love as you looked at him.

Not even in his best dreams did he ever imagine coming back home and finding you like this.

He was forever grateful for his mother for healing you.

He made a vow to never leave your side ever again, and it is a promise Paul intends to keep for the rest of his life.

Taglist: @castellandiangelo @imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl @manduse @jacalineiscomingforyou @mandoloriancookie @brascaris @il0vebeingdelulu @deliciousfestsalad @groovyqueer

~Masterlist~

ˇAO3ˇ

/YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO TRANSLATE OR REUPLOAD ANY OF MY WORKS TO THIS OR OTHER PLATFORMS/

[ghostgirl101]

I just wanna say that I am SO excited for the part 2 to your Paul Destiny fic. I have so many questions and Im excited to see if they get answered. Like if Paul is pledging his love to the reader then is the romance plot with Chani still relevant? Is the reader still the princess here? Very interesting

Imagine if Paul Atreides claimed you as his destiny: PART Ⅱ of Ⅱ

|| Word Count: 1.7K || Fluff ||

A/N: Honestly, I didn't think this would blow up so much- 1k+ likes??! Thank you all, it's sick 🙃 in answer to your questions, I didn't really specify if the reader (you) are part of a Great House or the Emperor's daughter, or maybe someone else, that's kind of up to your imagination. And yeah, sorry Chani fans, I kind of kicked her to the curb lmao; This is all about you, and so enjoy the second and final part of this destiny trope before I work on some relationship headcanons for Paul and Feyd-Rautha... Requests are open for Dune 2, so don't be shy 📩

You can't escape fate.

It's as real as the Spice that threads through the grains of sand blanketing Arrakis in heavy, warm golden waves. It twists and turns in the air, in the tides of change, something beyond understanding roping together reality and its lives to bond, whether in love or hate.

At least, with the newly ascended young Emperor, you know which side you're on. Since the day of his declaration and claiming of you as his Empress, you've never once left his sight, unknowingly or not. The boy is almost ridiculously close and observant, as if testing the depths of the events unfolding around him, testing to see whether you'll try to run from them, from him. But you can't run from fate, either.

"You aren't resting."

Paul's soft, low voice slices through the silence of the dusk, the only words you hear before you feel his warm, firm arms slipping under your arms and around your middle, pulling you into his front in a smooth, protective motion. His chocolate brown locks tickle your neck and cheek as he gazes up at you from your shoulder; wandering, curious eyes study yours knowingly, his natural hues tainted blue with the Spice.

"What troubles you?"

You hesitate in your response, unsure of the right thing to say. There's no point in lying, not to him, to a boy who could easily use the power of his Voice to make you tell him everything and anything with just a few words. He's done it to the Bene Gesserit, to those who speak out of turn and challenge him cluelessly, but never to you. And something tells you that he never will.

"I'm sorry," is how you answer instead, in a small whisper, trying to read his expression before his reaction.

But all Paul does is give you one of his soft, amused smirks, a brow raising slightly, unconvinced.

"Don't apologise to anyone for anything," he murmurs, his fingers drifting to lock with yours, his hand hot and strong in yours. "We are to be wed, you and I, soon. So what troubles you?"

"It's not you," you tell him as earnestly as you can, his eyes capturing yours and holding them as you blink up at him. "I'm just... nervous."

"Nervous?" Paul repeats gently, his hands squeezing yours for a moment, his face an inch away from yours. "What have you to be nervous about?" He grins slightly, not attempting to hide his teasing amusement. "A wedding?"

You can't help but smile at his tone, savouring the unguarded moments of the new, young Emperor, his boyish traits lingering beneath the newfound power and promises passed down to him.

You were nervous, because you weren't so familiar with destiny and its quirks, and yet, Paul Atreides seemed to be its master. Nervous, because although there was a strange pull between you and him, a deeper part of you somehow knowing him, at an instinctive ease with him, you had never met him before these past few days, and now, you were going to be joined together for time indefinite by marriage. Nervous, because he didn't just want you to rule with him, but alongside him, as a partner, a second part of him. His second half who's with him in soul, not just spirit, physically, not just mentally. And he's relishing in it.

"I've never had one before," you shake your head with a light smile, "I don't know what to expect. Or what's expected of me."

Paul hums to himself at your reply, pausing for a while as he thinks over his words.

"It isn't just a wedding," he tells you quietly, "it's so much more. This... this a beginning. A new dawn."

"Beginning?" You echo in bemusement, looking up at him in wonder. "Of what?"

"Of a new era," Paul says thoughtfully, his hands moving from yours to run over and down your sides, tracing over your figure absentmindedly, a gesture that makes you hold your breath for a beat as you watch him, "the first of many. You are more than a mere future. You're the future. My future. And the future of my people."

The sincerity and conviction in his voice makes you stare back at him in slight awe, taken by his certainty of what he's seen in the deepest stretches of his mind, the flickering images of you, adorned in all your natural beauty and grace that he could find nothing short of perfect. You were a fantasy and a hope materialised. Someone he'd wished and dreamed for so much, that you came true, just as you should have.

"Anything that happens to you," Paul continues, looking you straight in the eye as he speaks, "happens to me. You have always been mine, and I was yours before then. Absolutely and completely."

And his words make a home in your head, everything he says so poetic and beautifully surreal, but so honest and unwaveringly confident. He didn't need to practise what he said before he whispered the sweet words in your ear, in a voice only you could catch, in the long, warm nights on Arrakis. There was no need for practice. He had been made for this, and he wouldn't have it any other way.

You let yourself relax slightly in his grips, giving him an earnest smile. "That sounds nice."

Paul smiles back at you, a bright, sweet smile that makes him seem so soft and normal, almost forgetting for a moment of his utter strength and glory over the planets, his dangerous darkness that he occasionally allowed to rule over his actions at the tensest of times, until those who stood up against him retreated in bewilderment and fascination and fear.

"It does," he agrees, his gaze dropping to look out at the dunes beyond you, "you can't imagine..."

You couldn't. But every part of you wanted to. And those parts won.

"Won't you tell me?"

Paul's attention shifts back to you after you speak, before you can stop yourself.

"Would it be kind to tell you?" He asks aloud, speaking half to himself as his eyes go to search yours again, studying every inch of you, almost unsettlingly intently.

"Do you dream?" Paul questions you softly, and you dither before shaking your head.

"Not like you do," you answer steadily.

"Like I do. Seeing your face amidst the streaks of sunbeams and every kind of ethereal power that could create wonders, planets, worlds. Waking up, and you're not here, though it felt so real," he goes on, his voice laced with longing, as if it pained him to remember the feeling. "Realer than I've ever felt anything before. Every sense in me was awakened, because with destiny, I saw hope. And I did not know that hope could be so.... beautifully... angelic."

Paul draws closer and closer with each word, pulled by invisible strings to rest his forehead against yours, closing his eyes for a long moment to breathe, breathe you in. The sight of it is almost dizzyingly hypnotic, staring at the little scattered freckles over his fair, lightly tanned skin, cheeks flushed golden. He moves his face to rub his cheek against yours, seeking out affection in an irresistible rare, vulnerable move. Your hand reaches up to brush your fingers against it, and he takes it in his immediately, pressing his lips against your fingertips as he speaks.

"I need you," Paul insists, his voice firm and pressing again as he stares at you with a spark of desperation. "I need only you. More than you can comprehend. By my side, always, where you belong."

"I'm right here," you reply a little giddily, looking away from his eyes slightly bashfully from the intensity and unbridled longing of his gaze. "I suppose I'm just not used to this."

"To what?" Paul questions, his fingers tilting your chin up softly to force your eyes back up to his, his face a little closer than before. "To being an Empress?"

Before you can respond, he's pushed himself closer over you, his warm, damp lips sliding and pressing against yours and parting to encourage you to deepen his affections. It sends hot shockwaves rushing straight through your blood, as Paul crouches over you, all patience and purpose forgotten in the moment where it's just the two of you in the calm, lingering desert night.

You fit together perfectly, too perfectly for his words to be untrue, and his head tilts keenly where your fingers skim his neck, his lips parting from yours as they tangle in his hair with a short gasp. He loses none of his confidence and persistence, his azure blue eyes a shade darker as he watches you with an open trace of adoration.

"A queen?"

"Paul," you start shakily, as he smirks at you fondly, his head ducking to trace his tongue briefly up the skin of your neck, with a faint chuckle.

"To being desired?"

You glare at him weakly, hanging onto his hands tight to find some sense of grounding. "You're just playing with me."

"I intend to do so much more than that," Paul grins at you, kissing your cheek before burying his face against your shoulder. "And so should you. Test the depths of our connection. Push it to its limits. Push me. Please."

You find yourself speechless again at his way with words, simple and truthful, but full of passion and unthought romance, a sensation he's been craving since the first shadows of your being in his hazy dreams and visions.

"Give into your destiny, sweet girl," he croons to you in a whisper, his lips brushing against yours and pressing down against your skin needily, hungrily. It takes almost inhumane strength not to crumble and shiver under his touch and desire radiating off him and his dark glare, the wanting over years of dreams and prophecies building up to its peak. "Give into me."

"I think I will," you whisper back in awe and giddiness, your arms having to hold tightly around his neck to stay upright. "I think I want to."

"That's good," he praises you with a soft smile, as his voice lowers. "And besides," Paul mutters in your ear, nuzzling against your cheek breathlessly, with that subtle, teasing look in his eyes, "I plan on taking you as mine well before the wedding."

══════════════⊹⊱≼ fin ≽⊰⊹══════════════

Taglist (lmk if you want to be added to this for my future Dune fanfics): @minaxcarter @milaeth @ennycutie @weird0o0 @aoi-targaryen @jindongdongie

[foone]

Look if there's one thing, just one thing, that I wish everyone understood about archiving, it's this:

We can always decide later that we don't need something we archived.

Like, if we archive a website that's full of THE WORST STUFF, like it turns out it's borderline illegal bot-made spam art, we can delete it. Gone.

We can also chose not to curate. You can make a list of the 100 Best Fanfic and just quietly not link to or mention the 20,000 RPFs of bigoted youtubers eating each other. No problem!

We can also make things not publicly available. This happens surprisingly often: like, sometimes there'll be a YouTube channel of alt-right bigotry that gets taken down by YouTube, but someone gives a copy to the internet archive, and they don't make it publicly available. Because it might be useful for researchers, and eventually historians, it's kept. But putting it online for everyone to see? That's just be propaganda for their bigotry. So it's hidden, for now. You can ask to see it, but you need a reason.

And we can say all these things, we can chose to delete it later, we can not curate it, we can hide it from public view... But we only have these options BECAUSE we archived it.

If we didn't archive it, we have no options. It is gone. I'm focusing on the negative here, but think about the positive side:

What if it turns out something we thought was junk turns out to be amazing new art?

What if something we thought of as pointless and not worth curating turns out to be influential?

What if something turns out to be of vital historical importance, the key that is used to solve a great mystery, the Rosetta stone for an era?

All of those things are great... If we archived it when we could.

Because this is an asymmetric problem:

If we archived it and it turns out it's not useful, we can delete.

If we didn't archive it and it turns out it is useful, OOPS!

You can't unlose something that's been lost. It's gone. This is a one way trip, it's already fallen off the cliff. Your only hope is that you're wrong about it being lost, and there is actually still a copy somewhere. If it's truly lost, your only option is to build a time machine.

And this has happened! There are things lost, so many of them that we know of, and many more we don't know of. There are BOOKS OF THE BIBLE referenced in the canon that simply do not exist anymore. Like, Paul says to go read his letter to the Laodiceans, and what did that letter say? We don't know. It's gone.

The most celebrated playwright in the English tradition has plays that are just gone. You want to perform or watch Love's Labours Won? TOO FUCKING BAD.

Want to watch Lon Cheyney's London After Midnight, a mystery-horror silent film from 1927? TOO BAD. The MGM vault burnt down in 1965 and the last known copy went up in smoke.

If something still exists, if it still is kept somewhere, there is always an opportunity to decide if it's worthy of being remembered. It can still be recognized for its merits, for its impact, for its importance, or just what it says about the time and culture and people who made it, and what they believed and thought and did. It can still be a useful part of history, even if we decide it's a horrible thing, a bigoted mess, a terrible piece of art. We have the opportunity to do all that.

If it's lost... We are out of options. All we can do is research it from how it affected other things. There's a lot of great books and plays and films and shows that we only know of because other contemporary sources talked about them so much. We're trying to figure out what it was and what it did, from tracing the shadow it cast on the rest of culture.

This is why archivists get anxious whenever people say "this thing is bad and should not be preserved". Because, yeah, maybe they're right. Maybe we'll look back and decide "yeah, that is worthless and we shouldn't waste the hard drive or warehouse space on it".

But if they're wrong, and we listen to them, and don't archive... We don't get a second chance at this. And archivists have been bitten too many times by talk of "we don't need copies, the original studio has the masters!" (it burnt down), or "this isn't worth preserving, it's just some damn silly fad" (the fad turned out to be the first steps of a cultural revolution), or "this media is degenerate/illegal/immoral" (it turns out those saying that were bigots and history doesn't agree with their assessment).

So we archive what we can. We can always decide later if it doesn't need preserving. And being a responsible archivist often means preserving things but not making them publicly available, or being selective in what you archive (I back up a lot of old computer hard drives. Often they have personal photos and emails and banking information! That doesn't get saved).

But it's not really a good idea to be making quality or moral judgements of what you archive. Because maybe you're right, maybe a decade or two later you'll decide this didn't need to be saved. And you'll have the freedom to make that choice. But if you didn't archive it, and decide a decade later you were wrong... It's just gone now. You failed.

Because at the end of the day I'd rather look at an archive and see it includes 10,000 things I think are worthless trash, than look at an archive of on the "best things" and know that there are some things that simply cannot be included. Maybe they were better, but can't be considered as one of the best... Because they're just gone. No one has read them, no one has been able to read them.

We have a long history of losing things. The least we can do going forward is to try and avoid losing more. And leave it up to history to decide if what we saved was worth it.

My dream is for a future where critics can look at stuff made in the present and go "all of this was shit. Useless, badly made, bigoted, horrible. Don't waste your time on it!"

Because that's infinitely better than the future where all they can do is go "we don't know of this was any good... It was probably important? We just don't know. It's gone. And it's never coming back"

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

The Good Omens Musical Masterpost🎵❤

How it started :)

Some time before 2013: Vicki Larnach, the australian composer and lyricist, read the Good Omens book, imagined figures dancing on stage with brilliant music and thought, ‘Ah, I’m gonna ask Terry Pratchet and Neil Gaiman if I can turn it into a musical.’ and sent an email to the publishers. The next day she got an email saying, ‘We don’t want a musical but Terry’s coming to Australia, so come and say hello and tell us what you got.’

Rob Wilkins came down to meet Vicki and Jim Hare - Vicki's husband and writer - and took them to meet Terry. They spent an hour and a half with them where Terry asked ‘piercing questions’, had tea with them and they showed Terry a song that Vicki wrote (about the Chattering Nuns). Terry said to Rob, ‘Rob, write and email to Neil, “Dear Neil, this is Terry. I’m sitting in front of two hippies from Sydney and they want to make a musical out of Good Omens and I’m tempted to let them do it.”’ which was the best email they ever heard and then Terry said, ‘Okay, you have me curious.’ - it was because of the Nuns song which sounded like the book. ‘I’m gonna give you six months, come back with a first draft libretto and five songs.’

They then sent it to Terry who sent it to Neil. Terry said, ‘I really like it, you’re moving story, you’re doing all the right things, but where’s showstopper, where’s the toe-tapper, you know I need people to go to intermission just snapping their fingers with the song they just can’t get out of their head, and I haven’t heard that.’ - and they realized that they were so busy serving the story they forgot to do the wow-factor, but found it very encouraging from Terry that he wanted to make it better.

They went through the whole book again to find a centrepiece - and they found it  when Warlock is growing up and Aziraphale and Crowley are with him, and spent months working just on that one thing and called ‘All Living Things’ [the song at the start of this post :)] which is a line from the book.*’ Terry gave that song to a person he knew and asked him to play it to his wife with no context and when the next day the person said that his wife woke up still singing the song Terry said to Vicki and Jim: ‘Well, that’s what I asked you to do.’ 

* [“This here’s Brother Slug,” the gardener would tell him, “and this tiny little critter is Sister Potato Weevil. Remember, Warlock, as you walk your way through the highways and byways of life’s rich and fulsome path, to have love and reverence for all living things.” “Nanny says that wivving fings is fit onwy to be gwound under my heels, Mr. Fwancis,” said little Warlock, stroking Brother Slug, and then wiping his hand conscientiously on his Kermit the Frog overall.]

Vicki and Jim got the permission to being adapting it as a musical in 2013.

Vicki and Jim on it a couple of years ‘fumbling about’, took it as far as they could and decided to bring another person into it: Jay-James Moody

In 2015, Jay James-Moody joined the collaboration initially as a dramaturge and directorial eye, eventually evolving into co-book writer. Vicki, James and Jay have continued to evolve through countless more revisions and a number of private development readings with the support, time and talent of numerous wonderful Australian performers testing the material.

In November 2017, the musical was presented in its then-current form and entirety for the first time before an audience of over 500 eager attendees. The cast included Luke Joslin, Lachlan O’Brien, Nancye Hayes, Barry Quin, Brett O’Neill, Lauren McKenna, Nicholas Craddock, Paul Capsis, Rob Johnson, Amy Lehpamer, Debora Krizak, Blake Erickson, Nat Jobe, Ana Maria Belo, Jordan Hare, Bella Thomas, Anthony Abrakmanov and Samson Hyland.

Following a rapturous response to this reading it continued to be refined and developed.

In 2019, ten days before the show came out they did their last presentation, since then they’ve been to London and shown a videotape of that workshop to Neil and Rob which was ‘a pretty heartstopping experience’ but both Neil and Rob were ‘so lovely and very generous with their time’ and they were showing it to them and in the intermission Neil said ‘I wish Terry could have seen this.’ (see here :))

Differences between the musical and the book

The ending of the musical is a bit different, they were worried about it but Neil said, ‘I totally understand, the ending of the TV series is different, because I had something that was book-shaped and I needed to make it TV-shaped. And you had something that was book-shaped and you needed to make it stage-shaped.’

It opens with the burning of Agnes Nutter and Aziraphale and Crowley are introduced there. 

Act One ends with them ‘essentially breaking up’ because of a huge argument and they dissolve their friendship, Act Two starts with the first time they meet.

The Future?

What is the future for the musical: in 2021 they said that they need to work on some things and then they hope to do another run, initially in Australia.

There will be a CD of the soundtrack available when the show is produced in it’s full version.

Videos

Vicki, Jim and Jay talking 46min about the musical (this video was shown at the Ineffable Con 3 in 2021 :))

Sizzle Reel 6min

Anathema singing The Perfect Place

Crowley calling Dagon to check on the hellhound

Shadwell and Newt

Aziraphale vanishing Hastur 👀

Links

Webpage

Instagram - a lot of more bts videos and pics :)

How to support?

Subsribe to the instagram page and like and comment that you want the musical on posts :)❤. If you want to be a sponsor or donor, there is contact on their webpage.