#ralf (mentioned)

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #1132: Cuddly Date Night (King of Fighters)

9:45 p.m. at Yabuki's Residence's Living Room........

Leona: Unbelievable~ (Cuddling Under a Blanket With Shingo on the Loving Room's Sofa While Smirking Seductive at Him) Cuddling with the Colonel's daughter at the comforts of your own home?~ (Starts Snuggling Up on Him) How very scandalous of you indeed!~

Shingo: (Chuckles Lightly and Ticklishly by his Girlfriend's Snuggles) Easy for you to say!~ Snuggling up with your cute boyfriend in his own home is a pretty rebellious move on your end, ma'am~

Leona: (Raises an Eyebrow While her Smirk Starts Getting a Little More Wider) You're cute you say?~

Shingo: (Eyes Begins to Widened at the Realization of What He Just Said) Cute? H-Handsome! Handsome. W-What I meant to say that you're snuggling up with handsome, cute- Ah dang it! (Starts Pouting a Little While Twiddling his Fingers) Can we start over? I messed up on a few lines......

Leona: (Giggles Softly) Shingo!~ There's nothing wrong with being labeled as "cute". It's one of many traits I love about you~

Shingo: ('Sigh') I know, but I wanted to sound more cool and rebellious like you did a second ago.

Leona: Well, I'm flattered you think highly of me amd performance~ (Smiles Sheepishly) Though, to be honest, I don't think I have what it takes be an actual rebel.....

Shingo: Same. I'm too chicken to cause trouble on purpose for the life of me....

Leona: (Shrugs) It's seems we're both too pure for this troublesome world I suppose.

Shingo: I don't mind the sound of that. As long as we're in this together.

Leona: (Smiles Softly) Of course~

Shingo: (Gives his Girlfriend a Kiss on The Lips Before Sighing in a Relaxed Manner) I'm so glad I have the day off tomorrow......

Leona: (Frowns a Bit in Worry) I take it your day at work today was stressful this time around.

Shingo: ('Sighs a Bit Heavily') Yeah....Something like that. Rude customers constantly rushing us to get their orders done, I had to break up a fist fight shortly after while having a cup of coffee thrown at my face.

Leona: Oh no. Was it hot and scolding?

Shingo: No, it wasn't fortunately, but it wasn't any less annoying that's for sure. Then after that, some big guy with glasses starts barging into the shop, and rather than order his drink like any sane person here, he instead starts going around demanding us to bring Athena out and give him a Psycho Ball across the face!

Leona: (Genuinely Couldn't Believe What She's Hearing Right Now) Why....couldn't he asked for an autograph instead? That would've clearly been more safer.

Shingo: THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN SAYING!! But when i tried to tell him that and Athena's busy at the moment, he started yelling at me about how I'm just some common slave worker who doesn't deserve to breathe the same air as her, let alone be associated with her establishment to begin with!

Leona: (Forms a Darken Glare on her Face) You don't say......

Shingo: (Quickly Calms Leona Down) N-N-Now hold on, Leona-san! There's no need for you to worry! Really!

Leona: (Slowly Calms Herself Down) Are you sure?

Shingo: Positive! I mean, sure, what he said was upsetting and it almost made me wanna punch the guy, but lucky for him, Malin and Hinako were able to kick him out before another fight happened. 'Thena even went out of her way to make caramel tea to help calm my nerves before it was finally time for me to clock out for the day.

Leona: ('Sighs in Relief') That's good to hear. I'm happy we have to day to ourselves tomorrow.

Shingo: You're off too, Leona-san?

Leona: (Simply Nodded) That's right. Father insisted I take the a day or two off to a change.....(Smiles Softly) And luckily for you, I'm more than willing to spend every moment of with you, darling~ (Starts Snuggling Up on Shingo Some More)

Shingo: (Smiles Back While Blushing) Yeah~ How was your day, Leona-san? I hope it wasn't as bad as mines.

Leona: (Giggles Softly) Don't worry, it wasn't. It went a lot better than I expected it would go actually.

Shingo: Nice! Did anything exciting?

Leona: Not really? I was tasked to train and instruct some of the new recruits in the lower ranks while Ralf and Clark were away to their mission.

Shingo: (Eyes Widened in Genuine Surprise) You did? That's so cool! What did you taught them?

Leona: Only the basics: How to prepare themselves in the battlefield, how to aim and shoot at the target precisely, how to blend in with their surroundings without begin seen by the enemy, and so fourth.

Shingo: Were you nervous?

Leona: A little, but it didn't take too long for me to work up the courage to the take the lead fortunately. It also helps that the recruits were all cooperative throughout the whole ordeal.

Shingo: That's good. Does it feel like something you wanna do again sometime in the near future?

Leona: I suppose, but only when I'm ordered to do so again. I don't think I have the capabilites become a full fledged leader just yet.

Shingo: That's understandable. Leadership takes a lot of work from what I've heard.

Leona: You've heard right. It takes years of building trust and forming a strong connection with your fellow comrades into becoming one. Both qualities I must learn if I were to ever lead again.

Shingo: (Gives Leona a Reassuring Smile on his Face) Don't be afraid to give it your all. I know you'll become a great leader one of these days.

Leona: (Heart Begins to Melt in Genuine Happiness) And I know you'll become even more a stronger fighter than you are now. Which is why we are going to the gym and train first thing tomorrow morning.

Shingo: (Eyes Widened Again) On our day off!?

Leona: (Gives Shingo a Stern, Yet Cute Looking Pout on her Face) Don't act suprise, mister. You know as well as I do that we've been falling behind in our training sessions as of late, thanks to our work schedules.

Shingo: ('Sigh') True. And I have been wanting to try out a few new moves I've came up recently.....Can we go to gym at 10am instead at least?

Leona: I suppose we can do that. But ONLY if you give me more of your loving for the reminder of the night. That's am order

Shingo: (Chuckles Lightly) Yes, ma'am~ (Starts Kissing on Leona's Cheeks)

Leona: (Giggles Ticklishly by her Boyfriend's Kisses) Shingo-Kun, you adorable dummy! Slow down a bit, will ya?~

Shingo: (Stops Kissing Leona For a Second Before Chuckling Some More) What?~ You said it was an order.

Leona: (Starts Calming Herself Down From all the Giggling) I did, I did. But you haven't given me the time to prepare myself yet.

Shingo: Right. Sorry about that. Take as much time as you need, 'hon.

Leona: Thank you. (Takes a Deep Breath Before Smiling Brightly Again) Okay! Now I'm ready~

Shingo: One kissing session coming right up!~

And so Shingo resumes back to kissing Leona on the cheeks, causing her giggle amd smiling even more ticklishly than she did originally under his embrace as the movie they were previously watching, continues to play the whole time.

@tampire

@cyber-wildcat

@albion-93

@theweebmaster31

@thelexhex

[obessedwithfictionalmen]

Co-Stars pt.10

Callum Turner X Actress! Reader

Summary: The journey of Y/n's pregnancy...

Warning: pregnancy/ mentions of throwing up/ mention of birth/ use of Y/n/

Word count: 2.1k

When she found out she was pregnant, Y/n was the happiest she’d ever been, but this happiness quickly faded into worry. She and her baby daddy were celebrities, her pregnancy was going to be all over social medias, her baby too. Callum and she talked about it and decided they wanted to keep it private. They told the cast that she was pregnant, because they should know, and their press tour wasn’t over. Yes, Master of the Air was out already, but the interviews didn’t stop. During the first weeks of her pregnancy, it was easy to hide, her belly was flat, and she didn’t have any symptoms. But as she was in her 7th week, she started to get morning sickness.

-

She tried to listen to all the questions and the answers of her co-stars, but she felt like throwing up. Luckly for her, the microphone wasn’t attached to her, it was a microphone that she held in her hand. She put it far away from her, so the public won’t hear her humming, it was a tip Callum’s mom gave to her to prevent her from throwing up. But it didn’t work. ‘’Nate, I’m sorry to interrupt you, but I must go to the bathroom’’ she tried to hide her sickness in her voice. She got up and walked quickly backstage. ‘’Yeah, we can take a break, after Nate’s answer of course’’ The interviewer said. ‘’Oh, I was done, we can take a five-minute break’’ he said. Y/n was running to the bathroom, but an assistant was running next to her with a trash bin, in case she didn’t make it. She pulled the trash bin as she sat on a chair to empty her stomach in the trash. Callum walked up to her and pressed his hand on her back, to support her. He held her hair as she continued to puke her guts out. ‘’I’m sorry, I tried not to, but – ‘’ she threw up again. Austin and Anthony walked up to the couple; Nate was behind them. ‘’If my answer was that bad, you could’ve told me’’ he joked. Y/n looked at him, rolling her eyes before wiping her mouth with a tissue.

-

For the first few months, she succeeded in hiding her condition, but when her belly started to grow, it became harder. Her outfits became more baggy, which the internet found weird since she was always beautifully dressed. Some fans started to speculate about Y/n being pregnant, but the rumours stayed low. But when she reached mid second trimester, she decided to stop doing interviews, it was too risky. Now, the fans started to speculate, even the actors were asked questions about her not being with them anymore. They dodged the question and protected the secret of their colleague. Callum found it difficult, when she was with him, he could make sure that she was okay, now she was at home, he found it hard.

-

‘’The fans can’t stop asking about you, I think you should come to the next interview’’ Callum said, looking at his girlfriend, who was 8 months pregnant, with twins. It’s been a long time since she was in front of a camera, but he was right, the fans were becoming too much, and she should make a public appearance. ‘’Yeah, where’s the next one?’’ she asked, pushing on her arms to sit on the couch. ‘’It’s tomorrow, and it’s close, not a long drive’’ he said. ‘’Good, because the twins won’t be happy with me, dressing up and moving that much’’ she laughed. Her pregnancy was going well, because her doctor told her that if she wanted to go back to work, she could.

-

She was nervous, but the guys were so sweet. They were backstage, waiting for the interviewer to call them. ‘’It’s nice to see you back!’’ Ralf said, smiling. ‘’Thanks, I missed you guys’’ she breathed out. ‘’So please give it up for Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Anthony Boyle, Nate Mann, Ralf Laur, Barry Keoghan and the wonderful Y/n Y/l/n!’’ when the crowd heard her name, they made so much noise she thought the walls were going to collapse. But when they say her pregnant belly, the sound level exploded. Y/n smiled and waved at the crowd. She sat next to Callum and Austin. After minutes, the crowd finally went silent. ‘’Wow, you guys missed me that much?’’ Barry joked; he missed the last interview. Everyone laughed and waited for Y/n’s replies. ‘’Yes Barry, they were screaming for you’’ she teased, looking at him. She winked at the crowd and smiled. ‘’How are you, Y/n?’’ someone in the crowd yelled. ‘’I’m heavily pregnant with twins, thank you very much, how are you’’ she replied. The public laughed. ‘’Joke’s aside, I’m really great, I’m happy to be back’’ she said. The interview went well, but now, it was time for the public to ask questions. ‘’Before we start with the questions, please respect my private life, I will gladly answer your questions, but don’t push it’’ Y/n said. ‘’Hi everyone, I wanted to ask what’s a character trait or habit that stayed with you after filming?’’ the fan asked. Y/n raised her brows, the question was really good. The cast looked at each other, wondering who was going to go first. ‘’Well, Rose is a complex character. Uh, the thing I learned with her is that everyone is not invincible, it sounds stupid, but we often think that people, especially selfless people, can break sometimes and as a person that puts others first, it made me realise how important talking about it is. It might not be clear, but yeah, we’re all humans and you don’t know what people are going through.’’ She said, trying to be clear. The guys nodded. She smiled as she felt her babies kick, they were agreeing with her. Others answered and the microphone was passed to another fan. ‘’Hi, Y/n, Callum, how do you deal with the attention you’ve been getting since the beginning of the press tour?’’ one of the fans asked. They both looked at each other. ‘’It’s a lot, and we try to contain it, so it doesn’t affect people around us, like when Y/n posted the pictures on her Instagram and people were speculating about it, we had to ask Graham Norton to talk about our show, because that’s why we’re doing interviews, promote Master of the Air. So, we like it, but it can’t take too much in our lives’’ Callum said. ‘’That’s mainly one of the reasons why I came here today, people were only asking questions about me. So, we love it, but like Callum said, we love the attention, as long as it doesn’t become too much’’ she added.

It was time for the last question, fans were respectful with Y/n’s pregnancy, and she was grateful for it. ‘’Hi, Y/n I love you so much! Can I ask about what changed since you’re pregnant?’’ the fan was so sweet. ‘’Hi, uh, other than my body, my mentality changed a lot. I’m slowly realizing all the responsibilities that’s going to come with having twins. I also started to understand what parents mean when they say that it goes too fast. So, I’m understanding that I’m going to be a mother and it’s going to change me forever. But my body is the main change’’ she laughed. ‘’Do you know what you’re having, yet?’’ Anthony asked. ‘’Yes’’ she looked at Callum. ‘’We’re having two little girls’’ he said. The crowd cheered on the couple. ‘’Awn, do you have names yet?’’ Austin asked. They both nodded. ‘’We’re going to keep it secret until they come out, but yeah, we got it all figured out, the only thing that we don’t know is who the godfather is going to be’’ Y/n said. Barry and Anthony lifted their hand at the same time, making everyone laugh. ‘’You’re the godmother of my son, me!’’ Barry exclaimed, making Y/n laugh even more. ‘’We’ll come back to that later’’ Callum said, since his girlfriend was laughing too much, and wasn’t able to speak.

-

Austin sat at the end of the table; they were going to tell him that they wanted him to be the godfather. ‘’Why does this feel like an interrogation’’ he laughed. ‘’Sorry, we have something to ask you’’ Callum starts. ‘’Um, we want you to be the godfather of our girls’’ Y/n says, smiling. ‘’Are you joking?’’ he asks, smiling. ‘’No, we’re serious. You’ve always been there for us, and we want you to be there for our girls.’’ Callum explains. Austin’s eyes fill with tears as he nods. ‘’I would love to be the godfather of the babies you’re carrying’’ he says, looking at Y/n. When Austin stops talking, Y/n feels the babies kick, and they kick hard because she can see her belly move. ‘’I think they approved our choice’’ she laughs as she shows the two men the fight that’s taking place in her stomach.

-

The closer they were from the due date; the more Callum was freaking out and the more calm Y/n was. Frankly, Callum couldn’t understand how she was calm, she was about to push two babies out of her and looked like she came back from a Spa in Bali. ‘’Callum, honey, you’re giving me a headache, calm down. Everything is fine, I’m only 2 centimeters dilated, they can put me in the hospital when I’m at 3, we live 8 minutes away. It’s going to be fine’’ she giggled, seeing her boyfriend pacing around the living room. ‘’You are being too calm and it’s stressing me!’’ he said, looking at her. Y/n smiled and tried not to laugh. When she felt another contraction, she gave him a look, telling him to come sit down next to her so he could support her. But since he was stressing her, she asked him to go in their room and get her a new shirt, she was sweating. She breathed her way through it and timed it. She got up to walk around the house, in hope of making the contractions painless, but when she stood up, her water broke. ‘’Honey, don’t panic, but my water just broke’’ she shouted to Callum, he was in the other room. ‘’WHAT? IT’S HAPPENING?!’’ he yelled from their bedroom. ‘’Yes, it is’’ she replied.

-

Daisy Rose Turner and Ophelia Mary Turner, that was the name of the two newborns. Callum was holding Daisy, and Austin, who Y/n called to help Callum calm down, held Ophelia. Y/n was sleeping, the labour and delivery went on for 11 hours, she was a trooper. She did get the epidural, but her body was tired. Callum was so happy, he called his mom, telling her that his girls had her names as a middle name was something he was looking forward to ever since they decided on their names. When he broke the news, his mom immediately started to cry. Telling her son how proud of him she was and how excited she was to be a grandmother. ‘’Kaia was right, your children are so beautiful’’ Austin whispered. Callum smiled and looked at his daughters. ‘’Like their mother’’ he whispered back. Minutes later, Y/n woke up, she was still tired. ‘’Hey, how did you sleep?’’ Callum asked. ‘’Good, where are the girls?’’ she asked. ‘’The nurse took them to do their tests, Austin followed them.’’ He reassured her. She was traumatized by the baby kidnapping in Jane the Virgin, that was something she said to Callum very early in her pregnancy: You always follow our baby. In this case, babies. ‘’Thank you for making me a father, that’s something I’ve always dreamed about and I’m so grateful that you’re the mother of my girls.’’ Callum said, kissing her hand. Y/n was smiling, tears of joy immediately fell on her cheeks. ‘’And I’m ecstatic that you’re the father of my babies. I love you, Callum’’ she said, with a gentle voice. ‘’I love you too, Y/n’’

[bad268]

Best to Worst to Best (Ralf Aron X Reader)

Fandom: RPF/WEC

Requested: Nope, this was supposed to be an Inktober blurb but I liked the plot too much lol (Also, this is my 100th full-length fic, so yay!)

Warnings: Weddings, toxic cousin mentioned

POV: Second POV (You/your)

W.C. 1567

Summary: Sometimes, things need to be improvised.

As always, my requests are OPEN

MASTERLIST // HITLIST

~~(^Pinterest)

It was supposed to be the best day of your life. Your wedding day. Everyone always told you that it would be the best day of your life. However, it didn’t feel that way. Anything and everything that could have gone wrong, did.

First, your photographer was late. That was fine. They were extremely apologetic, and you forgave them because traffic was out of their control. Then, your bridal party lost your shoes. That was almost not fine. Thankfully, you had the same shoe size as one of your friends, so they let you borrow theirs. It's not a big deal yet, but you were starting to get suspicious. Next, your toxic cousin, whom you only invited because your aunt and uncle pressured you, spilled red wine on your ceremony outfit. That was not fine. You almost called it off then and there. You did not consider yourself crazed when it came to your wedding, but red wine on white did not mix. Finally, and the cherry on top, you found out that the press had found your location, shared it online, and now, the place was swarmed with fans. That was it.

“Just call it off,” you cried as you stormed out of the en suite and into the adjacent room where most of your party was sitting. “It’s all gone to shit.”

“Just take a breath, no need to do anything rash,” your right-hand person consoled as you sat on the bed. “It’s the best day of your life-”

“Some funny way of showing it huh?” You snapped, shooting up as you felt everything pile on top of you. “Everything is ruined and if this is supposed to be the best day of my life, what does that say about the rest of my life?”

“Calm down,” your parental figure tried to put their hand on your shoulder, but you stepped back. Even though you wanted comfort, no one in this room could have provided what you wanted. You wanted your fiance.

Blissfully unaware, Ralf was having a blast with his friends and family in their suite. Funny enough, it wasn’t your fiance who felt something was off first. It was his brother of all people. Paul was super close to you. Not only were you the perfect match for his brother, but you were the best race engineer he could ask for. He was also the one who set you up with Ralf in the first place. He liked to joke that he chose his favorite sibling. At that moment, however, he knew something was wrong, so he went to investigate.

He left the suite, not that anyone noticed; they thought he was getting something given that he was the best man after all. He ended up running into your right hand person who was frantically running around. They briefly ran through everything that had happened, and when you asked for a minute to yourself, no one could find you. 

“Such idiots,” he muttered to himself as he walked out of the building, and immediately spotted you sitting on the steps. He noticed that you were still wearing one of those silk robes that your friends bought you as a joke because they would make great pictures, and he wondered what all happened. He quickly sent a text to Ralf before moving to take his jacket off, placing it over your legs as he sat next to you. “Penny for your thoughts.”

“It’s supposed to be the best day of my life, Paul,” you cried and you leaned into his side and he pulled you into a hug. “Not to sound superficial or anything, but everything’s ruined.”

“What do you mean? Everyone is still here for you,” Paul tried to help, but it did not make much of a difference.

“Everyone’s here, but that’s making it worse!” You almost shouted. “If I had picked the right wedding party, someone would have remembered my shoes. If I had a backbone, I wouldn’t have invited my stupid cousin, and my outfit would not have been ruined. And if I had kept everything better hidden, the press wouldn’t be swarming the ceremony location. It’s all ruined, and there is nothing we can do about it.”

“Maybe I’m not the right person you need,” Paul insinuated as he heard the door opening before he started to pull away.

“No, Paul, he can’t see me right now. It’s still our wedding day, and it’s superstition,” you tried to pull him back down.

“Oh, so you are still open to getting married today?” Ralf chuckled as his friend led him carefully down the stairs. You turn around, wiping the tears from your eyes, and you see him walking blindly with a tie around his eyes. His friend and Paul helped Ralf sit down beside you as you laughed half-heartedly.

“Wasn’t this the tie you wore on our first date?” You pointed out as you played with the loose ends of it and held Ralf’s hand with your unoccupied hand.

“That was supposed to be a surprise, but yes,” Ralf replied as his friend and Paul went back into the suite. He held your one hand in both of yours as the hand that was twirling the tie moved down to rest against his shoulder. He took a deep breath as he ran his thumbs over your knuckles and said, “I know this isn’t the wedding you wanted or even planned, but we can still make it work.”

“How?” You responded fast as tears filled your eyes once again. You wanted to wipe them away, but it just felt like there was no point. “How would we ever make this work? The press swarmed my dream venue, and my outfit was completely ruined. It may be superficial, but it was what I wanted.”

“We improvise. Remember our first date?” He said. As if it were that easy, you thought, but replied that you remembered it. Of course, you did. “The original plan was dinner at the fancy restaurant you had been dying to try. However, I made the reservation for the wrong day, so we went mini golfing. That was all improvised.”

“I always wondered why you were overly dressed up for mini golf,” you chuckled absentmindedly.

“Yeah, I found out when I was driving to pick you up. I called to confirm and they said it was for the next week,” He chuckled with you. “We did end up going there for our second date, but if you think about it, our relationship started on improvisation. We can start our married life the same way.”

“Okay, Mr. Improv, how do you suggest we move forward?” You said, finally coming around to the idea. You also moved to pull the tie off his eyes only to see his eyes squeezed shut. “What are you doing? I want to see your eyes.”

“I’m not supposed to see you,” He replied seriously, but after being met with nothing in response from you, he peeked one eye open to see you staring back at him with a smirk. He opened both of his eyes after that, placed a small kiss on your nose, and said, “Did you still want to wear white?”

Two hours later, you found yourself in the backyard of your soon-to-be-in-law's house in an outfit that was definitely not wedding attire. Ralf ruined the surprise that he was taking you to Greece for your honeymoon, and he found an all-white, linen outfit that he thought you would like for the trip. That’s what you were wearing. 

He sent his groomsmen to the house to set up chairs for those closest to you while he helped you get ready. There was a tree in the backyard that acted as the perfect arch, and his parents had flowers growing in the yard. Sure, this was not what you originally hoped for, but it was as close to the original plan as you could get. 

You walked down the makeshift aisle with your parent, and when you reached the end, your parent placed your hands in Ralf’s. You stood there for a second, lost in each other’s eyes before you both realized something at the same time.

“Who is marrying us?” It was funny, really. Neither of you thought of the officiant throughout the chaos, but it seemed to be the most crucial part of the day.

“I cannot believe that’s what we forgot about,” You laughed. This time, you weren’t stressing. Maybe it was because you would look back at this day and think it was funny. Or maybe you thought Ralf had something else up his sleeve. “Did you think about this?”

“I thought through everything else,” he laughed with you along with most of your family. 

“You are lucky I think of these things,” Paul said as he stood up from beside his parents to stand between you and Ralf. “Guess who got their officiant license while you were both running around.”

“I knew I made the right choice choosing you as my best man,” Ralf chuckled as he gave Paul a pat on the back and pulled him into a hug.

“And I knew I made the right choice becoming your race engineer,” You pulled Paul into a hug as well before going back to where you were standing, ready to be married. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

~~~~~

© BAD268 2024. DO NOT REPOST WITHOUT PERMISSION.

[flyingcakeee]

Part 2 of cunty Williams Racing, a tired and shitty analysis by yours truly, Cake.

Today, we dive into our former Williams drivers.

And who better to start off with than Jenson Button himself? He's technically in the team as a Heritage Driver, and senior advisor regarding both the F1 race and Williams academy drivers, but we'll ignore that for the sake of this tumblr post ☺️

Jenson Button is just a cunty British man and this is not foreign knowledge. He coined the name Britney for Nico Rosberg due to his hyper sexual fixation on Britney Spears (or so I'm told 😀) and, let's be honest, there's not a lot of explanation needed here (I say after a whole paragraph).

Next, of course, Nico Rosberg himself.

My guy beat his teammate, albeit not in Williams, in equal machinery for the world championship and then dipped to be a girl dad. A Girl Dad. And he became a reporter. A F1 reporter. Cunty af in every picture too. Just can't deny this man.

You know who the other Nico to drive for Williams is? Nico Hülkenberg!

Also a girl dad, dyed his already blond hair to be platinum blond, HulKENberg, got one of the last pole positions for Williams after they hadn't had one in 5 years and then was dropped at the end of the year and he came back after a year. Sure, he is allergic to podiums but may I remind you that this man is a 24 Hours of Le Mans winner?

Next, everyone's favorite, George Russell. Should not be a surprise, really.

It's George Russell! What am I supposed to say? His doe eyes and now ungelled hair should be enough of a reason. And he's an absolute diva 🤍.

Now, what's more cunty than getting all the older men around your finger, Lance Stroll?

Lance Stroll has the hips to be the cunty princess he is, let's admit it. His first season he scores his first points in Canada and then gets third place in the race right after? And, as previously mentioned, he has all the middle aged men of the paddock in love with him. Fernando Alonso, Checo Pérez, Sebastian Vettel, the list goes on.

Ignoring team orders and getting a race win? That's some cunt level activities from Mark Webber!

Mark Webber will have a pilots license and manage to get 2 different cars to fly into the air 4 times. Yes 4 as twice was in a RedBull and twice in the Mercedes during the 1999 Le Mans. And then he looks absolutely hypnotized by his teammates and fellow drivers. It's the Australian in him.

A little break here to say, oh my fucking god there's so many drivers I can do. I can have Valtteri Bottas or Pastor Maldonaldo or Felipe Massa or Ralf Schumacher or Nicholas Latifi or like, anyone really. Anyways, let's continue ☺️

The man who sighed a picture of him after his team dropped him, Nyck de Vries.

Points your debut race and then getting pulled out the car like the princess you deserve to be, it's beautiful. And oh yeah, his name is Hendrik Johannes Nicasuis "Nyck" de Vries and I think that's very fitting. I hope he's enjoying Formula E because I'm going to buy into temptations and go to a race just to see my short princess 🤭.

Oh, you think I forgot the Queen herself, Susie Wolff? YOU ARE WRONG!!! 🥳🥳

I love Susie Wolff. Former Williams development driver and definitely could've been a great driver today if she was on the grid. And, she's president of the F1 Academy and defeated the FIA's little investigation probe which is funny because a lot of FIA executives have been quitting now soooo go Susie!!! Everyday I wonder how Toto Wolff got lucky to be her husband, the queen's husband ☺️

And let's end us off today with a picture of Lance's hips and one of the older men staring at it as if it's his property (probably is)

Beautiful.

At the end of the day, Williams fosters cunty drivers and team principal and it is my favorite thing ever. This isn't saying other teams don't possess any cunt energy, but Williams has a lot of it rooted in history and I am also sleep deprived and sick 🥳🥳🥳

[shirohige-pirates]

Hey Doll

CisFem Reader x Thatch

CW: toxic parents, manipulation, The Plan™, smut, mdni, I'll add as we go I'm kind of fly by the seat of my pants on this one.

tag list: @mfreedomstuff

Chapter 2: Match Book

“It seems you did a very good job, Doll.” Ralf says, flipping through the Matchbook with Mellanny while you sat across from them quietly. “He owns his own business, and even more than that, it seems it is tied in closely with other businesses owned by other members of his family.”

“Quite the network.” Mellanny hums, a satisfied smile on her lips. “We’ll be able to proceed with everything just as we planned.”

You don’t flinch at the word, but there’s a knot in your stomach you hadn’t expected. You hadn’t even seen any part of the Matchbook yet, knowing better than to even ask until someone decided to hand it over. You had no idea what your partner looked like, or even his name at this point.

Such details that were irrelevant to The Plan after all, so it wasn’t surprising that either one of your parents had made mention of either detail. As curious as you were, you managed to set it aside completely. If it wasn’t important enough for them to share it, it wasn’t important enough for you to worry about.

Besides, they didn’t control their expressions at all compared to you, so they were actually both easy to read. Neither had even flinched in disgust, so at the very least you knew that your match was conventionally attractive. Not that it truly mattered, all you really hoped for in this was someone who wouldn’t beat you, or discard you, if The Plan went awry.

If everything worked as expected, you would get to live your life quietly with someone who could recover from what would happen to them, and you’d be able to raise children just as the government wanted you to. Never to see either of your parents ever again.

Ralf finally hands over a single photo.

The man in the photo had apparently noticed his picture was being taken and had posed a little. The big toothy smile was warm, and his eyes were bright and clear. He was wearing a uniform, a crisp white uniform with a bright yellow scarf tied loosely around his neck. The impressive pompadour was a little jarring, as you’d only seen that hair style in magazines and TV shows. His goatee was neat and the crescent shaped scar around his eye was one of the last things you noticed.

He looked kind in the photo.

You wondered what you looked like in the pictures he’d receive of you. Would he see all the things your parents wanted you to show to people? Would the camera have caught a moment of some other emotion on your face? Would he consider your features pleasant, or would he resign himself to having to accept them?

He was as wealthy as your parents wanted for you, maybe he would force you to undergo surgery and change to suit his desires.

The thought didn’t bother you, and you smile warmly as you hand the picture back. It didn’t matter, you were just a doll, as long as he didn’t discard you, you wouldn’t complain.

“His name is Edward Thatch,” Mellanny explains. “His father Edward Newgate is the CEO of the shipping conglomerate. Thatch, Marco, or Izou are expected to take over the company, and all three are currently running their own businesses.”

“There’s a lot in here about being patient with the hours he keeps,” Ralf continues, as he and your mother trade and review the information in the packet. “It looks like most of the men in that family get their own place once they come of age, so you’ll be moving into his apartment during the grace period.”

“Apartment?” Mellanny bites the word off in disdain.

“Just temporary,” Ralf assures her. “With this kind of money I’m sure they’ll have a house built as part of the wedding process.”

“That will give us more opportunities, won’t it? If we incorporate the house into The Plan?”

He shakes his head. “Too risky at this stage, we could compromise everything else.”

“Eh, you’re right. The return might be too small anyway.” She mutters dismissively, shuffling another paper away. “We need to call them in the next hour.”

“Mm, we’ll give it another twenty minutes, it won’t do to seem desperate. They could call us first, and that would work out well.”

Everything always had to be just so. Considered from all angles, and all outcomes. You and your family weren’t particularly wealthy. Enough that they could dress you as they wanted, and provide the education they felt would be best, but they always wanted more. Always wanted you and The Plan to provide more.

The “more” they felt entitled to.

The “more” you deprived them of.

The “more” that would set you free of any further obligation to them. Once The Plan was done you would be clear of any debt, left to live whatever life you could make from whatever they left you with.

Which would be more than they had now, so you should be grateful. Would be grateful.

Your phone rang, and your parents’ faces lit up. Your mother let it ring a couple times, motioning you closer to it before putting it on speaker.

“H-hello?” You say, letting nervousness into your voice as was expected.

There’s a short pause on the other end. “Yes, this is Edward Thatch, is this…?” His voice is pleasant, and you can hear a shift of papers before he says your name, mispronouncing it slightly. He might be truly nervous, or simply busy and unconcerned.

“It is,” you answer, keeping your voice steady. Your mother would chide you if you were truly nervous. “I received your book earlier, I was… a little nervous about calling first.”

“Ah, haha, yeah, me too.” There’s mirth in his voice that sounds genuine, and you feel something brush against your chest, but it’s fleeting and you pay it no mind. “A proper gentleman wouldn’t keep a lovely lady waiting, so I’m glad I was able to call you, ahem, first.”

“Me too, thank you Mr. Edward.” You smile, knowing the action will change the tone of your voice and carry it through the phone for him. “I believe we need to set up our first meeting, right?”

“Yes, within forty-eight hours, I believe, and please, call me Thatch.” He agrees, and you can hear more shuffling. “I shouldn’t be at work too late tonight, is seven this evening too soon?”

You look up at your parents and they’re both giving you thumbs up.

“Not at all, it’s perfect.”

“Good, good,” you can hear the relief in his voice. He’s either very practiced at coming across exactly how he wants, or he simply isn’t hiding anything. You won’t know until you’re in the same room with him. “I can coordinate with my father and come to your house if you’re more comfortable with that, or we’re welcome to meet at my father’s house if you prefer.”

Both of your parents are pointing to the phone, and you know what they’re implying. You also didn’t need their response, there’s no way they would miss a chance to see Edward Newgate’s home in person.

“If you can provide the address, it would be easier for my parents and I to come to you and your father.” The practiced answer falls easily from your lips.

The conversation moves into something a little more logistical after that. You get the address from Thatch, and he apologizes for needing to cut the conversation short, things are busy and he wants to be sure he won’t leave you and your folks waiting for him. When you hang up the phone your parents hug one another, cheering at the success of things so far before turning to you.

“There’s plenty of time before we need to leave, get cleaned up and change into what we picked out before.” Mellanny instructs. “I’ll take care of your hair once you get dressed and we’ll go light on the makeup, just something to soften the edges. We’ll hold off on a proper seduction until we have more concrete information.”

“Yes mother.”

“It’s not wrong to wait until your wedding night,” Ralf asserts. “Don’t let him pressure you. That night will likely be our best chance, it would be preferable that he is completely distracted.”

“Yes father,” you answer, getting up and going to get ready as instructed.

You follow the steps you’ve always followed, hardly even thinking about the process consciously at this point. There were special soaps for different parts of your body. Scents here, gentle cleansing there, no risk of a blemish, no wrinkles, rashes or irritations. It was nice to at least be using the same things at this point. For a few years your mother had you switching soaps, brands, frequencies, and everything else until she was satisfied that what you were using would leave your face as flawless as possible.

Puberty had been a nightmare, and it was also when you’d really started to fall into your doll-like behavior. It had taken almost a dozen trips to the doctor’s before she was convinced there was little more to do but wait out the acne. You’d had a few prescription creams, and she consulted with the doctor over nearly three dozen over the counter options. She wanted it gone, but she was just controlled enough to not risk chemically burning your skin in the process.

You were grateful for that much, but if she had done so you wouldn’t have been part of a plan at all, never mind The Plan.

You didn’t rush, but you didn’t dawdle. If you were too fast you’d be chastised for not getting ready properly, being too slow would be much the same. Though, so close to your first meeting your parents would probably avoid risking things that could upset you.

Dressed how you were instructed, your father dried your hair carefully while your mother applied some make up. You sat still, eyes closed until instructed differently, and let them do as they pleased.

Once they were both satisfied with your appearance, it was time to go over how you were supposed to act. Your parents would do most of the talking for you, which wasn’t unheard of. First meetings were supposed to include supportive family, who were there to ease the awkwardness and tension of meeting someone for the first time.

The preference was that the Matchs’ parents would be a part of it, but sometimes a person’s family situation could create a different scenario. The only thing the law was clear about was that matches had to have their first physical meeting within 48 hours of receiving their book. Just like with you, most people did see to it within the same day.

Guided into the backseat of the car, when it was time to leave, you did little more than replay the conversation with your parents over in your head. Not so that you wouldn’t forget it, but so that any actions you took would be smooth and natural. So that anything you had to do to adjust to some unforeseeable change in The Plan would still pull back to what was required.

It was going to be a bit of a drive, but time didn’t matter to you. The clock wouldn’t begin until tonight, when The Plan would finally move from it’s preparations stage, to something more active.

After six months, or even sooner if things went well, you and your match would be married. The details didn’t matter to you, what did matter was that divorce was so rare that it was one of the most repeated statistics regarding the program. It wasn’t just a rare occurrence, but it was also very difficult to even initiate it.

So, even if The Plan happened without a hitch, the likelihood that you would be discarded afterward was low. That was your only concern, or more correctly maybe your only goal.

You didn’t want to end up back with your parents, no matter what.

[clemswinecorner]

Future of the team [Ralf Aron]

Summary: You're Paul Aron's trainer/coach whatever at Prema and may have a relationship with his brother (that supposedly no one knows about, but Rene and Angelina obviously notice)

Wordcount: 3.1k

Warnings: a little suggestive but no actual smut, alcohol. also swearing but that's not unusual

*Someone* complained about the lack of Ralf fics and I got inspired. Also in honour of Paul going to F3 hihi

Ok so I could’ve stopped this at some point but decided to keep it going and now its way longer then i intended… Have fun!

Sidenote, Ralf and Paul obviously talk estonian to each other but those parts are written in English for obvious reasons (me not being Estonian and you probably not being Estonian either)

Honourable mention to @louisaamz who helped giving me inspiration, wouldn't have finished this without you :)

Main Masterlist

"Paul! Do you have time for me right now or does race prep have to wait until we’re literally on the grid?" Paul looks behind him as you call his name. He waits until you catch up, leading you towards the Formula One paddock. "I have to pop in at Mercedes, but that won’t take more than five minutes. Don’t worry, I already planned to be back at Prema with you in fifteen," he says as you walk next to him. "Alright, cool. Meet you back at the garage then? I don’t have my F1 pass with me right now," He nods before he goes through the security. "See you in 15!" He says before heading off. "You better!" You walk back to the Prema garage, seeing Ralf walk the other way. He stops you to ask "Hey, have you seen-" before he can finish his sentence you interrupt him. "He’s at mercedes. He’ll be back at the garage in 15 for his race prep," Ralf smiles at you, thanking you silently. "I’ll just talk to him then. Hey, tonight is still good right? 10.30? I’m having dinner with Paul and some drivers," you nod. "Yeah, Angelina and Rene asked me to join the team, but I think 10.30 is good. I’ll text you if it gets any later," he nods and smiles. "Weren’t you going somewhere? I’ll see you in 15," He smiles as you do a casual handshake to say goodbye. "You better," you smirk at his choice of words.

Paul stands in front of you with his face to the wall, catching the tennis balls you’re throwing at random speeds. You liked these exercises, because they weren’t too much physical work but still helped with (both your and Paul’s) reaction time. "Oh fuck," you mumble as the one you’re catching manages to slip from your finger. "I go it," You hear a familiar voice and you turn sideways for a few seconds to smile at Ralf. You communicate in silence about both throwing the balls to throw Paul off (it supposedly is to test his reflexes better, but really it’s an excuse for him to stick around). "Hey, stop just looking at each other, that’s worse than if you’d be constantly flirting. Just throw the damn balls, which clearly neither of you have," he mumbles the last part and you and Ralf look at each other with a knowing smirk- if only he knew. "You had to talk to Paul, no?" You ask, recalling what he said earlier. "Oh, yeah. Ma called, she wants us to get grandma a gift here. We have her birthday the day after we get back, and she thought something from Italy would be nice," You and Paul continue his exercises as they chat about their family birthday gifts and what not in a mix of english and estonian, and you find yourself occasionally looking at the older one of the pair a little too long.

That night you knocked on Ralf’s door at 10.40. "Hey," You smile as he opens the door, already stepping aside for you to come in. "I’m going to be honest, I may have had a few glasses of wine. Not that I'm like, extremely drunk, I'm just definitely not sober. I kind of wanted to go to my room but I don’t trust myself with my key, could you come along so I don’t lock myself out or in?" He laughs at your statement as you try to find the best words, dropping your bag on the desk. "Sure. You could just use some of my stuff, you know? Same team after all," You chuckle, grabbing your key and handing it to Ralf. "Yes, but I need underwear. I’d appreciate a shirt though, so I can drop off my dress as well," He smiles, handing you the shirt he already had hanging over the chair. They came back to the hotel fifteen minutes before you, so he’d already changed into gray sweatpants and a somewhat tight black shirt, perfectly showing his muscles. He handed you a simple white one with the prema logo, a little oversized on you but it fit perfectly. "C’mon, what room are you in?" He grabs your hand as he slips his own keycard in his pocket.

"You look very handsome, by the way," You whisper in Ralf’s ear as he opens your door. At this point you’re fully in his personal space- not that he minded. You would get touchy and clingy when you had a few drinks, with Ralf especially. "Thank you. Now get in the room, then we can get back," he says as he tries to push you away from him a little. You smile, but both freeze as you hear a door open. "What are the two of you doing here?" Ralf immediately turns around at his brother’s voice. "She forgot her key at the track, so I kept it in my room for her. She came to pick it up but had a few wines, so I just wanted to make sure she’d end up in the right bed," you quickly thank god for Ralf still being sober and able to come up with a lie that quickly. "Go change, I’ll get you a glass of water in a minute," he says and you nod, making your way in. Ralf looks back at his younger brother, who raises his eyebrows, as he closes the door. "I’m just making sure she doesn’t do anything stupid," he sighs, and Paul just shrugs. "We both know she could’ve walked herself, she’s not that drunk. Tipsy at most," Ralf decides not to make a big deal out of it- his brother had a point after all. "She asked me to walk her because she didn’t trust herself to not lock herself in or out. I’m going to get her a glass of water, just go to sleep. You have a race tomorrow," Paul hesitates before he opens his door. "I just… If there is more going on, please just… Be careful. I don’t want her heart broken again. I don’t want to see her or you hurt, especially not because of someone I also care about. I’d like to see you guys together, I just hope neither of you mess it up," before Ralf can form a response, his younger brother has closed the door.

“Thank you for taking care of me,” you mumble with your toothbrush still in your mouth. He smiles before spitting out his toothpaste. “Don’t thank me, I’d take care of you even if you were a baby,” he pauses as you look at him with a questioning look. “Ok, wait, no, that sounded wrong just- I’ll always try to take care of you whenever you can’t, because I want you to feel good. Even if it means making sure your drunk ass goes to sleep with brushed teeth and in a sleep shirt instead of the teamwear,��� you glance down at your his shirt you’re wearing and raise your eyebrows. He playfully rolls his eyes. "Well, that’s not your teamwear, is it? It’s an old one and it’s mine. Remind me what you usually sleep in?" You blush at his statement, mumbling "your shirts". He smirks as he moves out of the small bathroom, as you finish your night routine- skipping half of it due to your tired and tipsy state. You walk back to find Ralf sitting on his usual side of the bed already, scrolling through his phone. You smile at the view, him casually sitting there waiting for you, and snap a quick picture. You put your phone on the bedside table, slipping under the covers. You put your head on his lap, and he lays his phone next to him to look down at you. You close your eyes for a second, not seeing Ralf still looking at you as with his arms wrapped around you. "Feeling the alcohol again?" You hum, still not looking at him, just allowing it to hit you again. "You know, I like you a lot," You mumble as you finally look at him. He chuckles, "Well that’s good 'cause I like you a lot too," he makes you smile. You move from his lap, allowing him to slide down as you both lay on your sides. You move towards him, giving you a kiss. Although it’s a bit slow and tired, it’s great as ever. You smile, moving on closer to him. You make your way to his shoulder, pushing his T-shirt away. You kiss his shoulder, sucking lightly when you feel him shiver. Y him a fast but strong kiss, moving down not long after. "Wait, wait, wait," You stop immediately, looking up at him. He looks at you and for a second he almost regrets stopping you, wishing he wouldn’t have to say what he says next. “Sorry, just… Not tonight. You look beautiful, tonight though, really,” he softly grabs your face and you move off him. “Oh, I thought you’d be up for it, since-“ He interrupts you and pulls you closer. “I am, but I don’t want to do anything with you after drinking. I know you’re perfectly fine and not extremely drunk but it’s just that we’ve never talked about this, and that’s fine but I feel like I’m taking advantage if you’re not 100% sober and I am. We can tomorrow, if you want to, and we can kiss a whole lot right now cuz I like that too, alright?” You almost melt at his words, nodding along. “You know I’d always tell you if I didn’t want something, right? Because I know how much you respect me. This just shows how perfect you are,” you say, close to his face with your lips almost touching. "Mhm. Just want you to be comfortable," He rubs your arms and you lazily smile. "And I just want to kiss you."

The next morning you wake up with an arm around your waist, though that hadn’t become unusual on a race weekend. You rub your eyes before tapping your phone to check the time- 7.37, plenty of time until either of you have to be at the track. You close your eyes and lay back down, moving closer to Ralf. He lets out a soft groan, mumbling something you assume is along the lines of 'what time is it' against your shoulder. "Not even 8," you whisper as you pull yourself up a bit, running your hand through his hair. He looks up at you, still half asleep, with a content smile. "Is it cliche to say I could lay here for hours?" You mumble as you look at him laying on your chest. He sits up just enough so his face is in front of yours. "Is it cliche to say I’ve imagined moments like this since I first met you?" You chuckle as you look away. "No you haven’t, it took us 6 months and Paul forgetting his boots to properly meet," He rolls his eyes, still smiling. "Alright, I might have exaggerated," it’s quiet for a second as you hold eye contact, eyes occasionally dropping to the others' lips. Ralf grabs your hand, fingers intertwined, as you put your lips against his (or he puts his against yours, you’re not quite sure). The kiss is what you’re used to from Ralf- passionate, sweet, soft, hot and wanting at the same time. As the kiss gets more heated, Ralf pulls away for a breather. "Thanks for saying no yesterday by the way, not a lot of guys would. However, now i’m completely sober and I still want you the same, so…" Ralf chuckles as he looks at the nearest phone for the time. "We have to be at the track in over 3 hours, I’m 100% in. I guess not being a driver does have perks like arriving at the track later," you look at Ralf, already thinking about what was to follow. You smirk, "We’ll take our time then."

Someone who didn’t have the same privilege of arriving a little later, was Paul. Paul, who was currently knocking on your (Ralf’s) door. "Who’s that?" You ask as you stand in the open bedroom, grabbing two towels as you get ready to hop in the shower. Ralf, currently only wearing underwear, quickly throws on a shirt. "Might be Paul, go in," you quickly go in and lock the door, vaguely hearing a conversation after Ralf opens the door. "Do you have my gloves?" Paul asks in Estonian, Ralf quickly answering he’ll take a look and closing the door before Paul can get in. He gets the gloves and gives them to Paul, who stops the older Aron from getting back in without any talking. "Hold on, hold on. You’re not wearing pants." "Yeah, I’d prefer to put some on but I was gonna shower." "Is that why your shower’s running?" Ralf stares at him trying to form a sentence. "Your hair’s all over the place as well, your bed too I'm guessing?" Ralf doesn’t say anything, avoiding eye contact. "Listen, Ralf, I really don’t care who you’re screwing, just don’t fuck up too much with anyone. And for what it’s worth, don’t ruin things with Y/N.” Ralf nods as Paul lets the silence fall. “Do you know where she is? I knocked on her door but she didn’t open." Paul restarts the conversation. "Yeah, probably sleeping. She mentioned before she’ll sleep more when she had something to drink, but she’ll wake up from her alarm. I still have a pass, so I can check in an hour if that’d make you happy." Paul nods, "Alright, thank you. Well, I’ll see you at the track," Paul says his goodbye. "Don’t fuck up!" He says one last time, before Ralf retreats to the room with Y/N in it.  

"Oh, by the way, thanks for yesterday. Especially for making me drink water, absolute life saver because I know I wouldn’t be bothered to," he chuckles, wrapping an arm around you as you close one of the fridges in the Prema garage. "Just taking care of my girl," he mumbles, giving you a kiss on your forehead. “Must be one lucky girl you have,” you hand him a water as he raises his eyebrows with a smile. “Is it cliche to say i’m the-“ you don’t let him finish as you remove yourself from his grip. “Yup. In the morning I can excuse it but just take the compliment. C’mon, we have to watch your brother win this shit,” You start walking away as he jokingly rolls his eyes, missing the lovesick look he gives you afterwards.

You smile at the screen as Paul approaches the last corner. He led the race lap after lap, quickly catching up again after his pitstop and absolutely dominating the race. You look next to you, where Ralf is sitting, quickly moving his eyes back to the screen. You’re standing a little behind the lined up chairs, following the race closely in between Rene and Ralf. “He’s doing it,” you lean in closer, seeing a wide smile appear on Ralf’s face again. “He is. Who’s going on the podium with him?” He asks out of curiosity, and you look around. “Rene, are you going to the podium with him?” Rene nods as he looks at you, “Of course, it’s a first race win tradition!”

Next thing you know you’re standing behind the barrier, holding Ralf’s hand behind it as Paul parks his car behind the number one board. You both have wide smiles on your face as Paul jumps out of the car running towards the team. You and Ralf let go of each other as he hugs him, and you look at them with a smile. “Good job!” You say as he hugs you. You see the smile in his eyes through his lifted visor as he thanks you. You give Dino, who made his way up to third, a quick congrats when he’s celebrated with the team as well. As the two are rushed to the cooldown room, you make your way over to below the podium with the team. You and Ralf walk closely, arms touching each other as Ralf uses his hands to talk about something that happened during the race. Angelina walks behind you, filming everything for the LAP (as usual)- after it was posted you’d find yourself watching back the small moments from you and Ralf throughout the weekend. The podium ceremony goes by, and you sneak a glance at Ralf looking up at his brother on the top step, with the Estonian anthem playing. You squeeze his hands and he looks at you with a smile. After a lot of proud looks shared between the two of you the podium ceremony is over, and before you know it you’re back at the Prema garage with a soaked Paul and Rene. Despite the many cameras and people, you and Ralf stayed very close to each other. Maybe it was the buzz of the win and the happiness radiating through the garage, but for a while you didn’t worry about anyone noticing what’s going on between you two. You were just happy to be there together, celebrating a win. Paul was still buzzing from the adrenaline (and a little bit of champagne) and didn’t pay any mind to the two of you. Rene, though, was very aware of it- he’d known the both of you for years, he’d obviously noticed how you got around each other. He was gossiping with Angelina, who updated him about how close you were during the podium ceremony, showing him the footage of you looking at each other. He glanced at the two of you, you with an arm around him and his around your waist, as Paul and Dino describe their best laps in detail. "I think they’re going to be like us when they get married, managing a race team together. It fits them," Rene tells Angelina, and Angelina smiles. "You’d give them Prema?" He hesitates for a second before answering. "I didn’t say that, but… Maybe, if they want. We’ll see if it goes that way, but I’m not against it," he quickly changes the subject as you approach the two. "What are you two gossiping about this time?" You tease the married couple, and Angelina laughs. "Just the future of the team," you give him a curious look. "Do tell, what do you have in mind?" Rene looks at Ralf with a slight smile and then back at you. "You’ll find out eventually."

Taglist:

@alexk2002 / @thesatansgirl-blog / @haasterplan / @fortunatelylovingsweets / @charles-and-chelsea / @greedayag / @emmabluesky / @sikeyeehaw / @idontwantablogthanks / @adore-u-ls / @starcandy-y / @louisaamz / @langdonsluxiouslocks / @leclercswhore / @vxlesunflower / @ashf1 / @idkiwantchocolatee / @zira44 / @agirlwithmidnightthoughts / @mariiaamr

@breals02 @shewatchesf1 @wilmasvensson @clearavenuementality

like or comment under this post to be added to my taglist!

[petit-papillion]

the poles are great to help get the podiums tho, so it is important. Who cares if people who knows nothing keeps repating the whole ratio thing

Hi anon!

I know, I know... I know it's important to get pole for positioning, avoid getting involved in lap 1 crashes, and I believe there are bonuses for the team as well. I wouldn't really want Charles to change his approach to quali much - after all, it is my favorite part of the race weekend.

I was just griping because I am so fed up with people bringing it up all the time as a negative, calling him a bottler, and whatnot. Even during testing, the F1 commentators were saying how bad his pole-to-win conversion was, and I was just miffed about it. Especially since those guys really should know better.

By the way, if you ever hear René Arnoux, Ralf Schumacher or David Coulthard mention it, just know (as of right now) they have even worse ptw ratios than Charles.

Anyway, my hope for this year is that Charles will get the chance to prove himself on race days as well (think Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi). That he will make people talk about his race craft, his incredible overtakes, his tyre management, and his clever thinking during races to plan ahead, instead of "Oh, another Max win from a Charles pole."

[bohnsky]

I am not happy at all. No I am but also I'm not. I did not wake up at 6:30 in the morning on a sunday just to watch my favorites dnf and listen to Ralf Schumacher rant about my love Checo (at least he knows that Checo fans dislike him). Only the McLaren double podium makes this race okay (not really but I'm happy for them) and Ferrari didn't fuck up which is good.

So anyway here are my favorite drivers 4,5 months into liking f1:

Because he was in the paddock this weekend, I have to include Seb again. My one and only. I love him, he deserves the world, protect him at all cost. When he said it hurts to watch instead of driving himself because Suzuka is his favorite track. Emotional damage.

But he seemed so happy to be back in the paddock and to teach the grid about bees. He's so passionate, it's beautiful. And we got Sewis content.

1. Alex Albon

This (hopefully) won't change as long as I put Seb in a different category (the Seb category).

Just today I saw a comment saying that you simply can't hate Alex and that he is the least disliked driver and I love that. He deserves all the love.

My heart broke when he retired. I am not okay with how things turned out here. Everyone said they love Suzuka, why is it so mean to me?

2. Sergio Perez

I hate to admit that I almost put him on third this week because I wasn't as obsessed with him as I was during the last few weeks, but omg did I get mad when Ralf Schumacher started ranting about him, which made me rethink that decision. I love Checo my precious. This whole race was a disaster for him (and me) and yes some of it was his fault, I realize that, but I refuse to think about it. Just as I refuse to think about his seat. And I refuse to talk about it with anyone who doesn't agree with me. (I don't mind people who don't agree with me, I just don't want to hear it, not when it comes to Checo my love)

I just hope he is okay mentally and can enjoy the celebrations with the team.

Also I usually drink a red bull for every race but I didn't want one at 7 in the morning, so that race must have been the punishment for me not drinking my racely red bull.

3. Charles Leclerc

My man, again on 4th must suck. So close to the podium. But honestly I'm just happy that Ferrari didn't actively try to fuck up his race again.

4. Lewis Hamilton

Sewis content yay :D

Lewis always seems so happy when he's with Seb and that makes me happy. These two are my f1 comfort ship, they never fail to make me smile.

But also unecessary Merc bitch fight, I hope they are civil about it off track.

5. Lance Stroll

This time I had to put Lance here. I just adore him and it literally breaks my heart that he has such a bad season. To me he seems like he always stays true to himself even with all the bullshit he constantly gets and I love that for him. And even if I want more Lance content I love that he stays away from media as much as he does.

He was doing really well this race and I thought this could be a good one for once, for my little Lancy shaped heart, but no. Everything went wrong today just kill me already.

Honerable mentions:

Lando. I'm so happy about the McLaren double podium and that Lando has so many podiums lately. Also I've been watching a lot of Quadrant lately and I'm totally digging it.

Oscar. Obviously, I'm so happy for him. He is an amazing driver and a precious little baby. Go McLaren!

Valtteri. He's really gone through it today. I like him a lot, he might even be in the top 10 and I just want him to be happy. This race was not it. Also it took me ages to learn how to spell Valtteri. I always wrote Vallteri or Valterri. But now I know.

Max. Congrats my guy. I was thinking, I'm a little sad that I joined f1 during his peak. I wish I could've watched him grow and become the driver he is now. Also his fucking hair. Please I just want to touch it.

Hulknussen. I just want to talk about them because it seems like no one else does. To me they are peak enemies to friends (to lovers). But I don't like Haas the team. The drivers are great.

The Alpha Tauris. Listen, I am not okay with the whole seat situation in Alpha Tauri or even all of Red Bull. I love that Yuki and Danny get to drive next season, but what about Liam? He is literally outperforming Yuki. He should get a permanent seat. Why aren't they giving it to Liam? What are they planning? Please don't scare me and my Checo heart. Why can't everyone get a seat? Why did I get into a sport where there are only 20 fucking seats? Why does everyone have to be so lovable?

George. I was thinking about George getting Alex this his seat and I am thankful. That's why George is here on this list today.

The 2nd William seat. Is not a driver but it stresses me out. I don't think that Logan will get it again. I want Mick to get it. Please give me your opinions. Who will get the 2nd Williams seat next season?

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #1081: A Surprise of the Making (King of Fighters)

8:56 p.m. Outside of Chizuru's Apartment............

Shingo: (Walking Down the Halls While Talking on the Phone) Are you sure that mission of your tonight isn't going to be too dangerous? (Eyes Widened a Bit in Fear) Or life threatening?

Leona: (On the Other Line) We're only making a simple delivery, Shingo-Kun, it's fine. Besides, do you knpw that I've managed to complete and survive throughmany dangerous missions in the past before, right?

Shingo: I do! I just.....(Looks Away While Blushing and Rubbing the Back of his Head Back and Forth) I couldn't help but to worry about you sometimes, you know?

Leona: (Smiles Softly) You have nothing to worry about, Shingo-Kun-H-HEY!

Shingo: (Starts Getting Worried) Leona!?

????: Hey there, champ!

Shingo: WHAT DID YOU DO TO- Wait. Is that you Mr. Jones?

Ralf: (Lets Out a Heartdy Laugh on the Other Side) The one and only! Just wanna chime in to 'Hi' and reassure you that your Leona-san here is already in good hands!

Leona: Major, give me my phone back right now!!

Ralf: In a minute, Leona, I'm just about done here.

Shingo: ('Sighs in Relief') Well, if you really say so, then I guess I have nothing worry about then....

Ralf: (Smiles Brightly) Exactly! Oh and also, this may or may not be super important, but our colonial here says he wants to see ya in the next two months.

Shingo: (Eyes Widened Again As He Hears the Sound of Glass Shattering in his Self Conscious) C-Coloniel?......Two months?......

Ralf: Yep! He said he wanted to meet you a lot sooner than that, but ya know? Duty calls as always, ya know? ('Heh') But uh yeah. Get yourself prepared by then and best of luck to ya, kid. You are gonna need it. (Chuckles Lightly)

Leona: Ralf. Phone. NOW.

'SMACK'

Ralf: AUGH!....(Winces in Pain on the Other Line) Ah god....

Leona: (Resumes her Conversation With Her Boyfriend on the Phone) I am so sorry about that! The Major hasn't told you anything too embarrassing, did he?

Shingo: (Immediately Comes Back to Reality) Oh! N-No, no it's nothing like that at all! He just wanted to say 'Hi' and stuff....On an unrelated note, but.... is it...possibly true that the colonel is expecting to see me in the next two months?

Leona: (Yells at Ralf Some More on the Other Line) You told him that!?

Ralf: Blame your dad, I'm just the messenger here!!

Clark: Would you two keep down? I'm driving here!

Leona: ('Sigh') Sorry, Major Steels. (Resumes Back to her Call) It's true. My father has requested to see you for some time now. But I don't want you to worry about that right now, okay? (Smiles Softly Again) You should relax and enjoying your night with Kyo and Ms. Kagura-san.

Shingo: (Takes a Deep Breath Before Speaking) Yeah, I'll try. (Smiles Softly) I'm gonna miss you all night though.

Leona: I'm missing you already. But I'll be sure call you first thing in the morning. (Puts on a Bit of a Seductive Smirk on her Face) Be sure to expect a lot hugs and kisses when I get back~

Ralf: (Starts Smirking Teasingly) Ahh~ Is that flirting I see?

'SMACK'

Ralf: OW!

Clark: You were asking for that one.

Ralf: SHADDUP!

Shingo: (Chuckles Lightly) I can't wait already! I love you~

Leona: I love you too, Shingo-Kun~ So much~ Have a very good rest of the night, okay?

Shingo: You too. Bye. (Ends his Call Before Looking Up at his Reached Destination and Nodded) ('Hmph') Right on time. (Knocks om the Door Three Times) Shingo Yabuki's here!

Kyo: (Inside in the Room) Door's open!

Shingo: 'Kay! (Happily Opens the Door) Who's ready for Anime Binging Nig-

Shingo eyes starts to widened once again as he sees Kyo sitting forward on Chizuru's lap staring at the boy, and ooking as if they were about to kiss at any moment with one or two kiss marks is already imprinted on both sides of Kyo's face.

Shingo: ....................Wrong room. (Closes the Door Before Quickly Sprinting Away) Elevatorelevatorelelevatorelevatorelelevator ElevaTOR-

Shingo abruptly stops moving once he hears the door opens few feets behind him

Chizuru: Shingo-Kun wait! Please don't go!

Shingo: Uh.....(Does a Surfer Like Accent) Like, who is this Shingo dude you're talkin' to? This is uh.....Bud. Bud....Peterson at your service.

Kyo: (Puts on a Deadpinned Look on his Face) Shingo, we know it's you.

Shingo: Again, bruh, I don't know whatcha talkin about! (Let's Out an Awkward Chuckle) I clearly said the name's Pete.

Kyo: Didn't you just say it was Bud?

Shingo: (Immediately Starts Sweating Bullets) Uh....Yeah, but.....but like.....Some people call me Pete sometimes and....(Chuckles Awkwardly) You know how neighborhood gets sometimes when it comes to nicknames-

Chizuru: Shingo, this us getting ridiculous. Let's go back inside and talk about this.

Shingo: (Slightly Turns his Head Around) But-

Chizuru: (Puts on the Old Fashioned Sad Puppy Dog Look) Please?~

Shingo: (Stares at Chizuru's Eyes For a Brief Second Before Finally Sighing in Defeat) Okayyyy......Let's go.

Few Seconds Later Inside of Chizuru's Apartment.....

Shingo: (Sitting on the Middle Side of the Sofa Twiddling his Fingers a Bit) So, you guys are.....a thing now?

Kyo: (Proudly Nodded) Yep.

Chizuru: (Smiles Softly) We've actually been a thing for quite a while now.

Shingo: Oh really? Fir how long?

Kyo: A half a year, give her take.

Shingo: Huh. B-But wait. How did this all started and.....Whatever happened to you and Yuki-san, i-if you don't mind me asking.

Kyo: (Shrugs) We broke up a while after the 15th KOF tournament ended. We wanted a lot different things, so it didn't work out in the end. A few weeks after that trainwreck later, I bumped into Chizuru again, talked and hangout a lot more than we usually did when we were a team until we started catching feelings for one another.

Chizuru: It took us a while to get used to one another, but it wasn't long until we eventually started to let our feelings run it's course thanks to a lot understanding and communication. And it was here and there that we started to truly love each other. (Hugs Kyo's Arm) Just the three of us~

Shingo: Awwwww~ (Raises an Eyebrow in Confusion) Wait. Three of us?

Kyo: Oh yeah, I forgot to tell ya. We're in a three way relationship.

Shingo: With who?

'Door Opens'

????: I'm heading out.

Shingo: (Eyes Widened Yet Again) That voice.....D-Don't tell me......

Shingo slowly turns around to see a man with short red hair walking out of the bedroom wearing red pants, a black leather, and holding a guitar case in his hand. The redhead in question was none other than Kyo's "eternal rival"....

Shingo: IORI YAGAMI!?

Iori: (Turns to Shingo as He Gives him a Simple Nod) Yabuki. (Turns to His Two Lovers Beside Him) I take it you three are getting started on that Anime Binge Watching Night or whatever?

Kyo: Yep. We're just filling the poor kid in our relationship is all.

Iori: (Looks Back at Shingo's Very Surprised Look) I see.

Chizuru Do you have everything you need for your band session tonight?

Iori: Everything's right here in this case.

Chizuru: Good. Now, make sure you call us if you need anything, okay? (Gives Iori a Peck on the Lips) We love you~

Iori: Love the both of you back. Keep Kyo out of trouble.

Kyo: (Smirks at Iori) Only if you stay of one yourself, edge boy.

Iori: Fuck you.

The two rivals share a short kiss together before Iori starts walking towards the door, causing Shingo's jaw to drop even more.

Iori: (Opens the Door) Have a good night or whatever.

Chizuru: (Happily Waves Goodbye to Iori) You too, dear~

Kyo: See ya.

'Door Closed'

Kyo: Annnnnnnnnd cue the loud, surprised yelling in 3. 2. 1.

Shingo: YOU TWO ARE DATING IORI YAGAMI!!?

Kyo: (Snickers a Bit) What? You couldn't tell by the smooch fest a few seconds ago?

Shingo: (Glares at Kyo) I COULD TELL JUST FINE, THANKS! I thought you two hated each other!

Kyo: Yeah, we still do.

Shingo: THEN WHY ARE YOU DATING HIM!?

Kyo: (Shrugs) Because I love him?

Shingo: THAT DOESN'T EVEN MAKE A LICK OF SENSE!

Chizuru: Shingo! Calm down. Remember our breathing exercise.

Shingo: BUT-

Chizuru: Do it now, mister.

Kyo: (Raises an Eyebrow in Confusion) You guys do exercises together?

Chizuru: Only with yoga, meditation, and breathing. It helps calm his nerves.

Kyo: (Snickers a Bit) Damn. Are you his mom or something

Chizuru: Yes, now move aside. (Walks Over to Shingo and Help Him Take Deep Breaths) Now breathe in......

Shingo: (Dies What his Senpai Says and Breathes In)

Chizuru: .....And breathe out.

Shingo: (Exhales)

Chizuru: Okay, one more time. In.....

Shingo: (Takes One More Deep Breath)

Chizuru: ......And out.

Shingo: (Exhales One Final Time)

Chizuru: There you go. Are you feeling calm now?

Shingo: ('Sigh') I am. So you and Kyo are....dating Iori altogether now, huh?

Chizuru: (Simply Nodded) That's right. I know it may seem hard to believe given our.... less than friendly history together.

Kyo: And his track record of being a dick.

Chizuru: (Sighs While Rolling her Eyes) Yes, that too. And I don't condone any of previous actions, especially what he did to you in the past.

Shingo: (Frowns in Silence)

Chizuru: But deep down, we know there's a whole lot more to him than he wants you to believe. (Places her Hands on her Chest) And there is no doubt in my mind that he loves us just as much as we love him.

Kyo: (Smiles Sincerely) He is our mopy jackass after all.

Chizuru: (Pouts at her Boyfriend) He's not a jackass, Kyo. He's more of a mopy kitten if anything.

Kyo: ('Scoffs') Yeah right. He wishes he was cute as a cat.

Shingo watches as two of the Three Sacred Treasures playfully bickers at one another over their significant third half. They seem to really fond of him all things considered. And while the fighter in training may not like or trust Yagami himself, it's....kinda nice to see him found two people he could love and cherish for the rest of his days despite everything. But to make sure the fondness between these three doesn't deceive him completely......

Shingo: H-Hey.

Kyo: (Gives his Attention to Shingo Along With Chizuru) Hm?

Chizuru: Yes, Shingo-Kun?

Shingo: I.....(Rubs The Back of his Head Back and Forth) Don't wanna pry on your relationship too much, but......(Turns Back to the Duo With a Genuine, Serious Look on his Face) Has he been treating you two right? Like, at all?

Kyo: What are you, our dad?

Shingo: (Comicallly Glares at Kyo) Just answer the question already!

Kyo: Alright, alright. If you must, then yes. Iori has been treating us good. Even if he is a emo prick.

Chizuru: He's still a bit rough around the edges. (Smiles Softly) But I can assure you that he's just as much of a sweetheart as you are.

Shingo: (Eyes Widened a Bit) Wait. Really? Compared to me?

Chizuru: (Giggles Softly) Of course~ I can't think of anyone else sweeter than you, dear.

Shingo: Awwwwww- I-I mean! (Clears His Throat) Okay....Okay. If that's the case, then I guess I have nothing to worry about.

Kyo: Finally got your appeal, dad?

Shingo: (Comically Glares at Kyo Again) Stop calling me that! ('Sigh') But yeah. I'm fine with you guys dating him. Sorry for making this a huge deal out of it....

Chizuru: (Smiles Softly) Don't worry about it. You were out of the loop of this topic for a while now that you were bound to find out eventually.

Kyo: True. (Starts Smirking Again) But now that you know about our little secret......(Place his Arm Around Shingo's Shoulder) It's about high time you tell us how you managed to go out with Heidern's little princess.

Shingo Oh God, who told you- (Turns to See Chizuru Excitedly Smiling At Him Before Sigh) Never mind.....

Chizuru: (Happily Joins in on the Shingo Huh) Shingo-Kun!~ You still haven't shared me the details during that time. I wanna know!~

Shingo: Okay, okay, I'll tell you. But can we please get something to eat first? I'm starving here!

Kyo: Me too actually.

Chizuru: ('Sigh') Alright. I'll order us pizza. (Points at Shingo With a Pout on her Face) But you still owe me an explanation, mister.

Kyo: That goes double from me too.

Shingo: (Rolls his Eyes) I'm aware.....

Happy Birthday, Shingo Yabuki !!

@thelexhex

@tamrinthian

@helsic

@keyenuta

@theweebmaster31

@albion-93

@ma-lemons

[russilton]

If you don't mind, what happened to Ben Barnicoat?

So, you’ll have to forgive me if I make any mistakes, because outside of occasional mentions, I’ve never known much about ben because my foray into endurance racing is very new, and most of my knowledge has come from sourcing for this ask. I wasnt watching junior formula series when ben was racing, but the short summary is that his story is near identical to George’s as I discussed here, only unlike George, it did effectively end his career in single seaters.

By all accounts from the articles I read on Autosport, Formula Scout, and racer, Ben was a well regarded up and coming talent in the junior series, with a very impressive karting record and his early single seaters entries following that pattern. PREMA was considered to be the best possible team for him to join for his European F3 run, and after he tested with them early, they seemed really really happy to have him. It seemed from what I read, to be a done deal, and Ben would partner Lance and another driver for the 2016 season. Then, surprise, with a couple weeks or so to go before the season began, Ben was dropped from PREMA out of nowhere and suddenly announced a move to newer team Hitech GP to partner- wouldn’t you know it, George Russell. Here’s freshly 18 year old George and 19 year old Ben in 2016.

Now ill say upfront, unlike George’s case, in my quick search I didnt find explicit proof it was Lawrence, and Ben himself said he wasnt sure and couldn’t presume how he lost his seat— but given that its an identical situation to George, two years after George lost his seat, and the seat Ben was set for WAS to directly partner Lance— its a pretty foregone conclusion that Lawrence likely had a sudden say in his sons teammates. This bbc article also implies Lawrence was putting quite a lot of money into lances appointments, including buying him a seat as a test driver in Williams in 2016. Lance went on to partner Nick Cassidy and Maximilian Günther (yes both of fe fame) and Ralf Aron, who tested alongside Barnicoat and seemed to be considered the weaker driver of the two.

According to this feeder series comment (which yes, is not a strong source, but does go into a lot of detail around lance), both Aron and Cassidy were considered good drivers, but less strong than Russell and Barnicoat. This is also the same year that George went on to publicly criticise Lance for receiving team orders to benefit him at the detriment of Cassidy, and from all the accounts I’m sifting through, Lawrence put obscene amounts into PREMA that year, like buying them a new sim, and moving f2 engineers to f3 instead- to the point many competing teams outright pulled out. This article does a good job covering the issues people had with Lance’s junior career and also has Lance quoted as comparing buying a team to buying a tennis racket.. do with that as you will

I’m guessing based on the fact that George mentions ben in his comment, the pair of them had gone from being competitors to having a sudden common ground at hitech. Either way, George had an okay season at hitech, but ben struggled quite severely, and he credits it to the end of his single seating career. Despite the fact PREMA won almost all of the races that year, 9th is a hard number to have on your record, and in the end Barnicoat Single seater career ended at hitech as he made the move to endurance racing .

This excerpt comes from this article that puts the whole situation more succinctly than I can- Ben had other issues relating to the dissolving of the McLaren young driver program— but that 2016 season is what he thinks put the nail in the coffin.

Ben does seem to be doing pretty well in endurance, hes won a couple titles in IMSA and Asian Lemans, but it’s a shame his single seater career ended the way it did.

[jonniechill]

for all the more comedic posts i've made about könig's lucky luke book (out of love of course), there's something so deeply gratifying and relatable beyond words to have an artist who's experiences are so different from one's own, shaped by a lifetime longer and lived on a continent apart, understand a character in a way that is so in step with your own conception.

it's one thing for ralf könig to describe luke as an erotic symbol in an article (there's one where he specifically mentions him as specifically a gay object of desire, but i can't seem to track it down...):

but it's another for him to go on to pick out one of the very same elements i'm always rotating in my mind and put it in the comic itself just two pages in:

and then to go on to post these panels on his instagram in the very same manner as i might myself, with an eye for the unintended gay subtext...

there's just something very heartwarming about it, i can't seem to put it in any other way. and it's gratifying in the sense that it's nice to know that i'm not the only one turning over these same elements in my brain

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

A novel method for hunting the first stars

 Shortly after the Universe began with the Big Bang, the first stars, composed mainly of hydrogen and helium, began to form. The properties of these first-generation stars, Pop III, are very different from stars like our own Sun or even the ones that are forming today. They were tremendously hot, gigantic in size and mass, but very short-lived. Pop III stars are the first factories to synthesise most elements heavier than hydrogen and helium around us today. They are also very important for forming later generations of stars and galaxies. However, there have not been convincing direct detections of Pop III stars up to now, as these stars formed in the early universe are very far away and way too faint for any of our telescopes on the ground or in space. For the first time, HKU scientists discovered a novel method for detecting these first stars in the early Universe. A recent study led by the research group of Professor Jane Lixin DAI of the Department of Physics at HKU proposed that a Pop III star can be torn apart into pieces by tidal force if it wanders into the vicinity of a massive black hole. In such a tidal disruption event (TDE), the black hole feasts on the stellar debris and produces very luminous flares. The researchers investigated the complex physical process involved and demonstrated that these flares can shine across billions of light years to reach us today. Most importantly, they have found that the unique signatures of these TDE flares can be used to identify the existence of Pop III stars and gain insights into their properties. “As the energetic photons travel from a very faraway distance, the timescale of the flare will be stretched due to the expansion of the Universe. These TDE flares will rise and decay over a very long period of time, which sets them apart from the TDEs of solar-type stars in the nearby Universe,” said Professor Jane Dai, principal investigator and the corresponding author of the project. “Interestingly, not only are the timescales of the flares are stretched, so is their wavelength. The optical and ultraviolet light emitted by the TDE will be transferred to infrared emissions when reaching the Earth.” Dr Rudrani KAR CHOWDHURY, Postdoctoral Fellow of the Department of Physics at HKU and the first author of the paper, further added. What makes the discovery more exciting is that two NASA flagship missions, the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (Roman), have the capability to observe such infrared emissions from great distances. Professor Priya NATARAJAN of the Department of Astronomy and Physics at Yale University and a co-author of the paper mentioned, “Roman’s unique capabilities of simultaneously being able to observe a large area of the sky and peeking deep into early Universe makes it a promising probe for detecting these Pop III TDE flares, which would in turn serve as an indirect discovery of Pop III stars.” Ms Janet CHANG, a PhD student at the Department of Physics at HKU and co-author of the paper, added, “We expect that a few dozens of these events will be detected by Roman every year if the right observation strategy is pursued.” With these findings in mind, the next decade presents significant potential for identifying these distinct sources, leading to exciting revelations about Pop III stars and unraveling the mysteries of the universe’s inception.

IMAGE....HKU Astrophysicists Discover a Novel Method for Hunting the First Stars. (photo credit: Space Telescope Science Institute/Ralf Crawford) Credit The University of Hong Kong

[shirohige-pirates]

Hey Doll

CisFem Reader x Thatch

CW: toxic parents, manipulation, The Plan™, smut, mdni, I'll add as we go I'm kind of fly by the seat of my pants on this one.

tag list: @mfreedomstuff @harahettania

Chapter 3: No Plan Survives

The Edward estate was far larger than you had expected. Larger than you think even your parents had expected. Your father had been grumbling about the driveway being so long and twisty, but once the tree line was cleared and you all saw the house he nearly drove off the path.

House wasn’t even the right word for it. It was a mansion, an estate, a manor, some kind of castle made modern and attempting to look less intimidating. You were all dressed well, but you might as well have been in potato sacks and rags for all the distance between your family’s income and his.

Income wasn’t always a factor when matches were being made. According to statistics it was one of the least impactful metrics in the entire process. Stipends were provided to couples who had an income below a certain threshold to assist with ceremony costs and natal care, and sometimes temporary income was provided if a match caused one person in the pairing to need to move any great distance.

You were not going to be in need of any such assistance.

The vast difference in wealth made you feel a little more at ease, however. No matter whatever the The Plan was, there was no way your parents could ruin this family. They could probably make some sort of useless social fuss about any number of things and Edward Newgate would write them a check for his pocket change and they’d be satisfied.

If they pushed things too far you were certain that would be the outcome before anything got out of hand.

“We’re going to have to reconsider a few things.” Ralf says, recovering from the shock and continuing down the drive.

“The backup plan might be the better choice.” Mellanny agrees. “But don’t think about any of that right now, just focus on the meeting.

“Yeah. You okay, Doll?”

You nod a little even if neither of them are looking at you. “I’m good, father.”

“Good. Don’t mention their wealth in any capacity.” He reiterates.

“Unless directly questioned, I will not.” You answer.

“I doubt these rich fucks are going to boast.” Mellanny’s voice slides through the car like oil, thick and greasy. “And I’ll watch my damn tongue once we’re out of the car, but, fuck.”

Ralf grunts, and you don’t react.

When you pull up to the gates just before the house proper, someone’s already outside. A young man who looks to be about the same age as you and Thatch is already opening the gate for you. He’s tall, with blonde hair and blue eyes, and waves to your father to come in. Given that he’s in shorts, sandals, and a t-shirt, you’re pretty sure he’s not going to be at the first meeting. Regardless of the size of a family, they’re often kept as small as possible.

Ralf rolls the window down and the man smiles brightly at all of you.

“Welcome, I’m glad you found the place without any trouble, yoi. I’m Marco, you can park right over there.” He says, pointing to an area not far from the front door, just off to the side of a large fountain that’s easily the center piece of the main entrance. “Don’t wait for me, yoi, Izou’s just inside to escort you to where Thatch and Pops are.”

“Certainly, thank you young man.” Ralf responds, following where Marco had pointed and parking the car.

Getting out of the car your father took the lead, and you stayed a step behind your mother. When you approached the front door it opened ahead of you, and a well-dressed man with long black hair that was done up quite elegantly greeted you.

“Welcome,” He says in a voice that reminds you a little of your own. Reserved, practiced, controlled - he’s not giving away anything, not even an abundance of joy, in his tone. It’s almost professional, as though he’s extending basic courtesy and nothing else. “Thatch and Pops are waiting in the tea room. I’ll escort you there.”

“Thank you, you must be Izou,” Ralf says, stepping inside.

“Indeed,” he replies with a soft smile. “This way please.”

Your father did his best to keep his eyes forward as he was right next to Izou, but your mother’s gaze was wandering all over the place. You mostly watched her. The manor was lovely, clean, neat and spacious without feeling empty. It was certainly lived in, there were pictures and art and signs of life everywhere, but it was also well-maintained and organized.

Izou knocked on the door to the tea room, announcing your arrival before opening the door and letting you inside. The soft shuffle of heavy chairs against wooden floors caught your attention before you entered the room and you stepped in to see two men at a table.

One was massive in his presence alone. Only a little taller than Thatch in terms of objective height, Edward Newgate was almost unnerving in how big he seemed. His presence had nothing to do with his wealth, and you were momentarily struck with the notion that he would kill your parents before he would write them a check for anything he didn’t want to.

Marco had been tall, and kind of willowy. Izou seemed to be the shortest, and slender as well, but of those you had met so far Thatch seemed to take after his father the most. He had to be over seven feet tall, if not right on the line. Broad shouldered, barrel-chested. Both men wore suits, but even the well-tailored suits couldn’t hide their sheer size.

Thatch had the same pompadour now that he had in most of his pictures. Unusual as the hair style was, it did suit him.

Your parents took a step back as you stepped toward the table, smiling softly up at Thatch.

“Edward Thatch,” he says. There’s tinges of pink on his face that make it easier for you to smile.

“Kakusho (Y/N),” you say in return, bowing just a little.

“It’s nice to meet you.” Thatch says, nearly sighing the words. His father clears his throat and he starts. “Oh, right, excuse me. Let me get that for you.” He says coming over to your side of the table and pulling out your chair for you. “If you would.”

You nod, seating yourself in the offered chair. “Thank you.”

Thatch pushes your seat in before returning to the other side of the table. After he seats himself, his father and your parents also sit, your father across from Newgate and your mother beside him. They handled introductions amongst themselves and Mr. Edward started things off.

“Eighty-five percent is the minimum threshold for compatibility between two matches.” His voice deep and clear, but not loud and overwhelming. “In such cases it is usually wise for the parents, or close friends of each match, to help smooth over their first meeting. However,” he looks away from your parents and catches your gaze for a brief second before looking to Thatch. His gaze returns to your parents and frankly you’re impressed the two have kept their composure in his presence.

“These two have a compatibility of 97%. It’s not unheard of, but it is uniquely high.” A wide smile split the old man’s face, genuine enough that it put a twinkle in his eyes. “I would like to suggest that I give the two of you a tour of the manor, and we let these two talk in private for a while.”

Shock widens your eyes for a split second, but you’re back in control when your father turns to you. You can almost feel him practically vibrating with excitement at the idea of getting a guided tour of the manor.

“Will you be okay, Doll?” He speaks in the form of a question, but you know the words for what they are. You can’t see your mother’s face, but you’re certain they’re of the same mind at this point.

“Yes, father. I’m certain Thatch will be a proper gentleman.”

“Of course!” Thatch says, maybe a little more loudly than he meant to. There’s no anger or indignation on his face or his tone, but he looks happy that you would get to speak more privately.

“If he is anything less, Izou will be just outside.” Newgate assures you, standing up and prompting your parents to stand as well, and the three of them leave without further ado.

The soft click of the door pulls your gaze back to Thatch.

“I, heh, I don’t know where to start,” he admits after a moment of silence.  Years of acting, and you know well the signs of genuine emotion, and he’s truly flustered. It’s cute.

“Tell me about yourself.” You prompt, and you can see a brief quizzical look cross his face. “I let my parents read the book,” you clear your throat lightly and look away. “I saw a picture of you, but I didn’t look at anything else.”

“Oh? May I ask why?” He questions, putting an elbow on the table and resting his chin against his knuckles. Relaxed and curious, it makes you pause a little before you can answer.

“It just happened so suddenly.” It’s hard to meet his gaze, and you keep looking away. You can’t remember the last time someone was honestly interested in you. Usually you received just enough regard in order to allow someone to speak about themselves. “I think I’m still trying to process it all.”

Concern furrows his brows. “We, I mean, I would’ve been fine waiting until tomorrow to meet.”

“Oh no, no I don’t mean it like that.” You insist, shaking your head. “I’m glad, um, glad we’re meeting now. I just mean that I,” you put your hand over your face a little, before peeking at him. “Those books are embarrassing, and I couldn’t stop wondering what you were seeing.”

He makes a strange sound, trying to hold back a laugh, and bites his lower lip to keep himself composed. “Sorry,” he manages, looking away for a second before turning back toward you. “Sorry, that was just … really cute.”

You’re both silent for a moment, and while there’s some awkwardness in the air between you both, it’s not all that uncomfortable. There’s something comforting about it.

“Your pictures,” he begins, eyes shifting to yours as he smiles. “Were good. Ah, you’re prettier in person, but, I mean, they didn’t use a picture of you sneezing or something like that.”

“That’s… good.”

“I’m glad though.” He starts and you tilt your head a little. “All your pictures were so perfect, like you’d inadvertently posed for all of them. I was worried you were going to be too good to be real.”

But I’m not real. I’m no more real than a doll, it’s just that they taught me how to move and speak.

“Mother and I considered pageants and modeling when I was younger,” you answer evenly, trying not to sound as hollow as the words are. “I think some of the lessons just stuck with me.”

“Is that why your dad calls you doll?”

You nod. “Yeah. Well, no, I think it was just an endearing term that stuck.”

“Would it be wrong for me to call you that?”

The sound of his question is almost timid, the tone kind, the sentiment pure. Still, the words themselves sink into your back like daggers. You let them fall away, ignoring the pain, especially since you know it was completely unintended on his part.

“Not at all, it’s very fitting.” You answer, smiling sweetly. “Do you have any nicknames?”

“Ah, none I think anyone else should be using. My brothers call me Thatchy-boy sometimes, and Pops calls me Elvis, but please, please don’t call me those names.” He begs, hand over his face.

“Then, for now, just Thatch.” You say, and see him smile from behind his hand.

“That works.” He agrees, clearing his throat lightly before straightening up.

The conversation slips along more comfortable lines. Thatch tells you about his business, how he went from cooking for his brothers and his father - almost all of them are adopted you discover, something you don’t think your parents are aware of - and how those skills had carried him through culinary school.

While he enjoyed cooking foods of all kinds, he really enjoyed making pastries and the artistic freedom that came with decorating.

“So do you really have all those hobbies?” Thatch prompts.

“Pardon?”

“The book said you enjoyed cooking, organizing, sewing, knitting, drawing, reading, hiking, and swimming.” He explains. “I think two more things as well.”

You nod. “Embroidery, and flower arranging.”

“Right, yeah. Flower arranging, huh?”

You shake your head a little. “I was lucky to have the chance to learn and experiment with a lot of different things, but I don’t know if I’d call them hobbies. They’re just things I learned how to do.”

“Do you enjoy them?”

You barely muster a shrug. “I’m good at them.”

Thatch hums and you tilt your head questioningly.

“Will you forgive me if I say something that could be rude?” His tone is playful, so you smile and nod.

“Perhaps.”

“I’m good at washing my dad’s car, it doesn’t mean I enjoy it.” He points out, and your smile widens before you concede his point. “You don’t enjoy cooking though?”

You let slip a small, and slightly nervous laugh. “Seems rude to answer that when you’re a chef by trade.”

“Nah,” he grins, his cheeks turning red. “I… would love to try your cooking, but if you don’t enjoy it, I don’t want you to think you have to.”

“I assumed I would be handling cooking when we moved in together.” You admit flatly. Thatch looks up at you and you continue. “I… could look for a job if you’d prefer, but, perhaps incorrectly, I assumed I would look after our home.”

“Oh, I, that’s.” He clears his throat. “I’ve got a service, to keep the apartment clean since my work hours can be so long, I was going to keep it. If you want to take over stuff like that you can, but only if you’ll enjoy it. Otherwise, just take some time to adjust. You’ve been living with your parents this whole time, right?”

You nod.

“You haven’t lived on your own at all. Moving in with me is a big change, and I just want you to be able to adjust without worryin’… that’s all.” He clarifies, scratching the back of his head idly. “I can’t push back the deadline for getting hitched, but I don’t want you to feel forced into anything else.”

“I don’t feel forced into - into anything.” You insist, voice cracking a little. You can’t look at him, you can’t get your heart to settle. You’re almost angry, but you don’t understand why you’d feel angry right now, and more than that you know you cannot appear angry no matter what. “I mean, I’ve known, we’ve known, about the program since we were kids, and… that is…”

Wear this, Doll.I’ve set up your class schedule, these electives will serve us best.The recipe for dinner is laid out, get to cooking.Clean the bathroom again, you missed the corners. I swear you’re more of a rag doll.

“I’ve never felt forced…”

Don’t cry, it’ll ruin the makeup.You’ll do as you’re told, you’ve already ruined enough!It didn’t hurt that bad, stop sniveling.You get that vacant look and it’s creepy, like one of those old porcelain dolls.You owe us! You’ll see this plan goes smoothly or I’ll make your life hell.

“I’ve -.”

What the hell is that? You’re not wearing that!What do you mean you want to learn karate? Are you kidding me?They let you shoot a bow?! Absolutely not! You’re not going to get matched properly with a horrid hobby like that!Don’t read that, no man’s going to appreciate someone over educated. Read this.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay.” You look over and see Thatch is knelt by your chair. One hand on the arm rest, one on the table, he’s gotten down low enough that you have to look down to meet his eyes. You got so lost in your own memories that you hadn’t seen him move.

“It’s okay.” He repeats softly. “I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t-.” He puts a hand up and you stop talking.

“It doesn’t matter if I meant to or not. It’s okay, yeah?” The expression on his face calms your heart, but something about it still makes you angry and you still don’t know why.

But you shove that aside, more forcefully this time and give him a soft smile, nodding.

“Maybe it was a little more sudden than I thought.” You say, trying to smooth things over.

Thatch’s smile still has concern in it, and he tilts his head, looking up at you. “Marco says I jump in like a hyperactive Leonberger when I like someone. Not very gentlemanly of me.”

“It’s okay.” You say giving him a warm smile.

You can’t tell him that he doesn’t like you. That he doesn’t know you, because whoever it was that was neatly packed into that Match Book wasn’t you. There’s not even a ghost of you in the pages, or if there is, you wouldn’t know where she was.

“Alright.” He stands up, taking a few steps back. “You want something to drink? There might be some left over dessert in the kitchen I can put together if you’re hungry? It’s dark out, so I don’t think you’d want to walk in the garden.”

“… You have a garden?”

Thatch smiles. “Yeah.”

“I… would love to see it, but it is late.” You press your lips together for second. “Tea would be wonderful, if it’s not too much to ask.”

“Hm… How’s ginger chamomile sound?”

“Delicious.”

Thatch leads you out of the room, letting Izou know that he’s going to make some tea. Izou offers to join you, looking forward to Thatch’s tea himself. He fills the short walk from the tea room to the kitchen with small talk, talking about his own job, and mentioning how Marco mostly worked nights, so you wouldn’t be meeting him yet.

“Pops and your parents went out into the garden earlier,” Izou explains as you and he sit at the breakfast bar while Thatch makes tea. “They’ll come through here on the way back in, so don’t worry.”

“May I ask, why do you call him pops?” You question and both of them shrug.

“We just do.” Izou answers. “Why do you call your parents what you do?”

“They -.”

There was a loud bang and clash of voices all yelling at one another. You couldn’t make out what was being said, but you could hear your parents voices, and Edward Newgate’s as well. His voice was booming over everything, enough that your parents stopped yelling back.

“OUT!” He bellows clearly, practically herding your parents through the manor. “LEAVE IMMEDIATELY, AND DO NOT RETURN!” His tone, presence, and expression are all furious. You’re actually surprised to see your parents almost falling over themselves to leave. You’re so scared you don’t think you could move if you wanted to.

Newgate points in your direction, probably at you, but his gaze is still watching your parents as they continue to scramble out the front door.

“Thatch, Izou, Miss Kakusho stays.”

Neither of your parents so much as looked at you on their way out.

[changlingfamilies]

I know it’s been a while but I think it’s high time I show off my take on the next gen. This was a lot more kids than I had originally planned but I love them all. I’m going to be doing some chapters with them all at some point. And I’m going to do a bit more with Antonia and the Morgangor baby later as well.

First came Shauna Giladrigal, the daughter of Mary and Seamus. At 10-years-old, she’s a mermaid werewolf and was a preeme. I know you’re not supposed to have a favorite child but Shauna’s my favorite. She may appear more quiet and reserved but she’s actually the ring leader of the next gen. If these kids get into trouble, you can grantee that it was Shauna’s idea.

Then, only a month later came Petunia Strickler, the daughter of Jim and Claire. She’s a wizards and a polymorph changeling. She’s the most high energy of all the kids and is my precious chaos gremlin. She loves all of her family, particularly her Tio Enrique, but she’s closest with her cousin Shauna since she and Jim lived with Mary and Seamus for a while after her Mami, Claire, died.

Less than a month after Pet was born came Isaac Scaarbach. The son of Toby and Darcy, he’s an Akoridian like his father before him. However, he only has two arms in his Akoridan form. His family often travels between Earth and Akoridain V so he gets a good blend off both sides of the family. He, Petunia, and Shauna are kind of the new “Dream Team”. In their escapades, he’s the brains of the operation.

Another favorite of mine is Fialkov “Flip” Terron-Pepperjack. At 10-years old, he’s a fairy-Akoridian hybrid. Headcannon time! Like the trolls, Akoridans have multiple ways of making biological children. One such way is with a sort of incubator. More information on that in the upcoming chapter. I love his design so much and I had a lot of fun working with him. He’s the only on of the next gen to not have a natural human form so he uses a disguise similar to Aja and Krel in the show sometimes but not often. He can retract his wings though, like Eli can.

Not long after Flip, Lawrence “Larry” Terron was born, the nine-year-old (Nine and a half!) son of Aja and Steve. Steve never wanted to change his name but he also didn’t want to pass it down so he and Aja agreed that their son would only have her family’s name. He is a human and Akoridian but, much like Toby’s biological father, he can’t transform into an Akoridian. However, with access to Akoridian V that Ralf didn’t have, the family is able to see other Akoridian traits that he does have. He has Aja’s eyes, he can breath in atmospheres most humans can’t, and he will have the Akoridian lifespan.

The oldest of the lot came a bit later in Eudora Scaarbach. The adopted daughter of Toby and Darcy, she’s a 15-year-old selkie. Other than Shauna, she’s probably my favorite and I have so many plans for her. Toby mentioned as far back as book 1 that he wanted to adopt when he grew up and he and Darcy adopted Eudora when she was six and Isaac was only a year. Her biological family may be gone but there are plenty of other selkies in Arcadia/Avalon by this time that she, Toby, and Darcy have plenty of resources if they ever have any questions or need any help. However, being a lot older than the rest of the kids, she actually spends more time with Douxie’s apprentice, Enrique Nunes. (Also, I got to experiment with more pens again when working on her pelt!)

Not long after Eudora joined the family Otto “Ottie” Arthur Giladrigal came along. The adopted son off Seamus and Mary, he’s a werewolf-vampire hybrid and yes, that is the name his birth parents gave him. They found him while doing work abroad with a werewolf pack. He was among the pups but they struggled to feed him after his parents died and his father’s vampire clan refused to take him. Now, he has free reign of Heartstone Trollmarket and has regular contact with the Avalon Vampire clan. He runs with Seamus, Shauna, and the rest of the Avalon Werewolf pack on the full moon. Vampires age more slowly, like the trolls. So, though he only looks about six, he’s actually closer to 18. Which is fine since Mary doesn’t really age anymore as The Lady of the Lake.

Then, as seen in my Ajim week story “Heirs”, came Karl Strickler, the son of Jim and Aja. He really is five. Claire died when Petunia was just a baby and Aja and Steve split amicably when Lary was just over a year old. Aja and Jim started dating when the kids were three and they got married a year later. A year after that saw the birth of Karl. A polymorph changeling, his troll form actually resembles a stone Akoridian. He’s a bit more shy then most of the other kids, and prefers to spend time with his parents and his troll family in Heartsone or wandering the halls of the Avalon Castle.

Finally, the baby of the family, Lenora “Lenny” Giladrigal. The two-year-old daughter of Mary and Seamus, she’s a werewolf and mermaid like her sister and was also a preeme. It was then determined that a non-werewolf likely could not carry a pup to term. Mary and Seamus had decided to wait a long time before trying again to have another baby so Lenny’s a lot younger than the rest of the next gen.

[darklordiiid]

Falling Into the Deep Blue

And we close out the month of September with some of the gorgeous Liara. :)

The soft lighting combined with the higher resolution nude models and skin textures never stops impressing me. It's definitely more work to both pose and render, but man. The results speak for themselves I feel.

Also, made this one primarily because a patron of mine had mentioned an older work of mine being one of his favorites, a fella who sadly had to unsub due to life being a cunt after this month. I hope he really enjoys this one too. :)

---

I'd like to offer a huge thanks to my V.I.P. patrons for their extra contribution to this work:

inunotaisho

Fleurdelis

Taki23

Simaron

MPYami

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Karuto

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Ralf F

If you'd like to join them and help me make cool stuff, Support me on Patreon! For your $3 contributon you'll get early access to NSFW content throughout the month, and for $6, you get your name up here on this list, access to W.I.P. renders, and my deep and eternal gratitude. (And probably a request at some point when I'm running low on ideas. That happens a lot...)

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© Liara - Bioware

[f0point5]

Why are these people forgetting she is PAID!!!! to have these opinions. Nobodies talking shit about the other podcasts out here. I'm 100% on her side because I just don't understand how people are just turning on her. The criticism isn't even about if she's a credible source, it's about who she's "fucking". In everybody's minds she can't have an opinion if it isn't about a dick in her mouth. Mick is 100% wrong cause he forgot the say "closed mouths,don't get fed." In other words that grown ass man should have opened his grown ass mouth and said "Hey, I know it's your job to analyze but I didn't appreciate how you word things."

This.

I said this on another ask but Ralf and Esteban aren’t out here saying they disagree with her opinions, they’re saying hers shouldn’t be listened to because of her background and her personal relationships. How that is not below the belt idek.

But also, while Mick totally has a right to be upset, knowing that that’s her job, she can’t be expected to never mention him. Imagine the outcry if she just ignored the mistakes of every driver she’s friends with (half the paddock).