#this actually applies to daniel's career

[phantom-0-writer]

prompt 01: gotham academy's mentorship program

“Mr. Wayne, thank you so much for finding the time to meet with me.” Principal Carson, someone Bruce, became more and more familiar with as the years passed, welcomed him into his office. 

“I hope my children aren’t causing you too much trouble, Mr. Carson.” Bruce chuckled lightly, sitting in the guest seat. 

“After your generous donations to the school, I would find that difficult to believe.” Mr. Carson laughed conversationally, before getting right to business. “Actually, the reason I wanted to meet with you in person rather than over the phone despite, I’m sure, your busy schedule was to discuss Damian.” 

Damian had come to the Manor about a year and a half ago, and had been attending Gotham Academy for almost 9 months. Bruce had hoped that going to school with other kids his age would help Damian become more sociable and learn about larger society outside of the Bat, Birds, and League, but that was proving to be difficult considering the almost regular calls Alfred received from the school about Damian’s behavior or actions. 

Bruce couldn’t help the weary sigh that escaped him, “I assure you Principal Carson, we-” 

“I think you're misunderstanding, Mr. Wayne. Damian is not in any kind of trouble.” Mr. Carson reassured, “Well, for now that is.” He chuckled dryly. 

“Ah.” Bruce nodded, letting his airhead persona take the lead, while still showing that he was paying careful attention. 

“In the last few years, Gotham Academy started a mentorship program, where the younger kids usually between the grades of 5-8 can get mentored by their seniors. Damian is a brilliant child, concerningly so I believe. His peers often can’t keep up with him in terms of academics, but he lags far behind them in social skills. I think Damian would benefit from the mentorship program, where he can have someone who can truly keep up with him intellectually as well as guide him socially.” Mr. Carson explained. 

Bruce considered this, letting the idea turn over in his mind. Perhaps this is what Damian would need. “You sound like you have someone in mind.” 

“I believe the best candidate for the job would be Daniel Fenton.” Mr. Carson handed him the student profile. “He’s here on a Wayne Scholarship, which he’s held for the past year. Mr. Fenton is currently in the 11th grade, his chosen career path is astrophysics, which he plans to pursue into college. His grades are outstanding despite his difficult classes, and his professors all share the same sentiment that Mr. Fenton holds one of the greatest minds in the Academy. He shares many of the same classes with Tim as well. He has a friendly personality and gets along well with most people, pretty athletically inclined as well. All around Mr. Fenton is what Gotham Academy hopes our student to be.” 

Bruce looked over the profile in his hand. Daniel James Fenton seemed like an outstanding student. Perhaps it was time to put him to the test with Damian Wayne. 

---

When Danny had been called to the office, because apparently they had assigned him a mentee, he had been expecting the worst. All the scholarship students had to sign up for the mentorship program to be on standby if a mentee ever applied. All the other scholarship kids had said it was just a formality and that none of them ever got called for it. But classic Fenton Luck. 

When Danny walked into Principal Carson’s office he was prepared to be faces with some snot-nosed brat who wouldn’t know how to take no for an answer and didn’t care about classes because they would just inherit their parents big shot company was what he was expecting. 

So imagine his surprise when he walks into a room to a liminal kid, probably around 12, who looks like he wants to be there as much as Danny does. Danny takes one look at the kid who’s trying to project himself as angry and menacing, but Danny could easily read the kid's true emotions of nervous-scared-anxious thanks to their shared less-alive-than-one-would-expect status. 

“Daniel, welcome. This is Damian Wayne. He’ll be your new mentee from now on.” Mr. Carson smiled kindly, gesturing for Danny to sit down. The liminal kid - Damian - scowled at him, projecting irritation. But all Danny could feel off of him was nervousness.

Danny was screwed, wasn’t he?

--------

table of contents

[vax-merstappen]

f1 boys as sour songs 💜

listened to sour for the first time in a while and remembered how good olivia rodrigo’s lyrics are. had to pair my favorite group of boys with the songs on a great album. this def got a little angsty because this album is pretty much pure angst so readers beware :)

if you like this, send me more albums to do pls!

Lando Norris

enough for you-

I’m sorry to say it but he would definitely move on for someone who he thought was better than you. I could see his girlfriend trying to live up to his expectations and needs. Lando seems like he would look for “someone more exciting” and the next second he would be gone. Also he seems like he would be oblivious to you trying “so hard to be everything you liked.” He has high standards that would be hard to live up to for anyone. I’m not sure that many people could be enough for Lando and this song is so much about that.

Oscar Piastri

driver’s license-

No because Oscar angst based on this song would go so hard. Him teaching you to drive but then you breaking up before you get your license? Sobbing… anyways. I feel like if one of the drivers were to teach you to drive, it would be Oscar. Also I can imagine driving through the suburbs with Oscar. Like maybe this is just my imagination so feel free to disagree with me, but like Oscar and driver’s license makes so much sense to me. Breaking up with him would hurt so bad omg

Max Verstappen

1 step forward, 3 steps back-

He screams an unpredictable lover. Like I could see him getting mad at you over something small but then being literally the sweetest person ever next time you see him. Like the passion and anger he has when on the race track could become a problem in his relationships. I feel like a relationship with him could involve a bit of “do you love me, want me, hate me?” Especially Max when first started f1 fits this, I think he’s matured a lot since then and Max today doesn’t apply as much, but early Red Bull Max 100% gives the energy of this song imo.

Charles Leclerc

deja vu-

The first driver that came to mind listening to this song was Charles. Like I hate to say it, but I see him reusing all of the romantic things he did with his exes with a new girlfriend. He would not be creative enough to come up with new ideas lol, like “everything is all reused.” Also I can see him doing “car rides in Malibu” like in his latest YouTube video and also telling “her you love her in between the chorus and the verse” since he likes music so much. I definitely see Charles angst based on this song.

Carlos Sainz

good 4 u-

Imagining an angry breakup with Carlos right now. He would definitely make you angry when he left and I can see him just moving on as if you never existed and you trying desperately to get him to realize how he actually hurt you. Also his life seems to be going great right now like “you’re getting everything you want” and “your career’s really taking off.” He is the type of guy to get everything he wants while you loathe it from afar. This would make such a great angst fic omg, I need someone to write Carlos with good 4 u right now

Lewis Hamilton

favorite crime-

I hate to say it, but I see him leaving to focus solely on his career. Which would lead to lines like “I watched as you fled the scene.” He would be the one to leave and would be blunt about it, leaving you feeling like a crime scene. Also come on, the line “I crossed my heart as you crossed the line,” is honestly so formula 1 coded and I can see Lewis crossing the line both physically while racing but also crossing the line in a relationship. This man would be so hard to leave and you would have been trying so hard to hold on while he was pulling away from you, like “all the things I did just to call you mine.” Ugh it hurts to say it but that’s what I’m imagining for this song :(

Daniel Ricciardo

brutal-

It’s giving Danny Ric being dropped by McLaren. “All I did was try my best, this the kind of thanks I get?” Like Danny definitely suffered at McLaren and this song screams the angst that must have come from that. Just imagine him blasting this in the car leaving his last day there. He’s “got a broken ego, broken heart” after all that. Could also relate to his hand injury, like with “ego crush is so severe, god it’s brutal out here.” Had to have been brutal for him to get his dream back just to have it kind of crushed again when he hurt his hand. Danny Ric and brutal just fits so well imo

Yuki Tsunoda

happier-

Ok because if Yuki ever moved on, he would be the ex I would want to be happy. But like look at that man, I would be hella jealous but want the best for him in life. It would hurt to be left by Yuki because he seems like such a genuine guy. Simultaneously wanting him to do too well but to not move on just seems like how a breakup with Yuki would go. I know I’m purely going off vibes here, but like come on! I would hope he’s happy but not like how he was with me. Would not be able to let this man go.

Alex Albon

jealousy, jealousy-

Out of the 2019 rookies, Alex has got the worst deal. I can imagine that he would constantly be comparing himself to Lando and George who have both have a lot more podiums than he has. Also having a teammate like Max at Red Bull also must have led to a lot of thoughts about him not measuring up. The line “comparison is killing me” just screams Alex Albon. Out of all of these drivers, he gets the most compared to teammates and the other drivers who joined the grid when he did. If anyone here is jealous, it has to be Alex.

Logan Sargeant

hope ur ok-

Logan absolutely embodies this song and I will die on that hill. He fits the physical description for “blond with eyes of salt.” I feel like Logan has had to “unlearn all of their hatred” more than a lot of other drivers, as he did have a not so great season and received a lot of negativity. I actively hope Logan is ok and that he is able to be happy despite his bad start in f1. He deserves so much better and that is exactly what this song is about.

[dr3smile]

You know what annoys me the most about the whole "junior team" bullshit is that it only applies to Daniel even though there are other drivers like him.

Do we want to talk about Val? And I don't mean this to insult him I actually like the guy but what has he done since joining Alfa Romeo? He's been at the back of the grid , sometimes fighting in the middles, that's it. Didn't he "had his chance already"? Isn't he "taking the seat of younger drivers"?

And the biggest difference between Val and Danny is that Val was at Mercedes during their dominance, he drove the W11 just like Lewis, unlike Daniel who had a car with engine problems almost every season. So where's the logic here?

Or let's talk about Fernando. The dude had 2 championships, drove for McLaren and barely made it out of there to the point he chose to retire. Then he came back to Alpine and was still mediocre at best. Yet he suddenly deserve a third chance? But not Daniel? Alonso has won titles already doesn't that make him greedy? Shouldn't he retire and let the younger generation driver? Isn't he interfering with Drugo's career and future?

And Nico H? Who stole the seat of an actual young driver? Who never won once in his +10 year career? But suddenly everybody is cheering for him because?

I wouldn't be as pissed as I'm about people's attacks toward Daniel and the fact that HE decided that his career wasn't over even if it meant that someone was going to lose his seat, if they were consistent with their hatred. You either point out to ALL the older drivers who aren't doing shit or you shut up.

Completely agree. The fact is it’s Daniel. They hate Daniel for god knows what reason. Maybe it’s because of Netflix or it’s because he’s one of the happiest drivers in the grid, or because he’s a PR teams wet dream. I have no idea.

The fact is that we don’t know everything that Redbull knows and they clearly believe in the partnership of Daniel and Yuki for next year.

To say Daniel doesn’t deserve the seat is bat shit crazy to me. He earned that seat in the first place. If he hadn’t delivered in the RB sim or in the Silverstone test he wouldn’t have been given that seat to begin with.

[yae-energy]

…jotaro with an rnb singer! fiancé? also best part by her and daniel caesar would go with this 🤭

“you’re the best part”

synopsis: jotaro finally ready to give love a second chance

cast: bodyguard! jotaro x rnb singer! black fem reader (jolyne is mentioned briefly)

universe: modern au?

wc: 1.1k wrds , 5.8k char

cw: angst to comfort (?) happy ending, established relationship, very cheesy (and shitty) writing , mostly proofread (i tried my best y’all but looking at my own work makes me cringe bad)

a/n: bro im so so so mega sorry if this is so trash/not what you asked for 😭 i am not good at actually writing so pls forgive me. i hope you like it tho <3 , also thank you v much for requesting 🫶🏽 mwah.

"utterly breathtaking."

those were the words that you used to describe the blazing hues of orange, yellow, and red that painted the horizon, as the sun ultimately began its descent. causing the sweltering summer heat to finally come to a halt as a result, and instead be replaced with a gentle breeze that danced through the air. wisps of your curls being disturbed in the process whilst your eyes remained glued to the sunset.

upon looking at you, he can't help but wonder why he didn't see it back then, why he didn't pay closer attention to the way the sun beautifully kissed your skin. or how you glowed underneath the moonlight, or even the gentle tone of voice you used whenever you spoke to him.

he felt stupid- foolish, one could say.

why did he wait so long? why did he wait so long to fully relish in the prickly feeling that arose whenever your hand just so happened to glide against his own? or admire how your lips looked whenever you applied your favorite gloss.

sometimes he just can't help but wonder, why?

then the answer clicks.

he simply wasn't allowed to. falling in love with you wasn't in his job description, he was your bodyguard. his job was to protect you, to shield you from the harsh realities of your successful career, and to barricade you from the rush of paparazzi attempting to make their way to you any chance they could. he was excellent at his job, so much so that even he knew to never cross that boundary with you.

he was far too afraid to, far too afraid to hurt you like he had done others in the past. like he had done to his former wife, his daughter even. he wasn't there as much as he should have been and he knew that, no matter how understanding they were about his career and the long, long, hours that came with it. the feeling haunted him.

and for the many, many, years after the fact, he couldn't shake the feeling of guilt that he harbored deep in his soul. he just couldn't allow that again. he couldn't allow himself to hurt someone else because of his own mistakes. mistakes no one held against him anymore, mistakes jolyne managed to forgive him for long ago.

so why couldn't he do the same for himself? why did he use it as a reminder to keep himself in check? as motivation to keep you as far away from him as possible- not that, that was an easy job in itself. he did work for you after all.

24/7 he was at your beck and call. walking you to all your favorite shops whenever you felt the urge to go, escorting you out of blacked-out vehicles and being your personal buffer between you, and the obnoxiously bright flashes of light being emitted from those large, ugly, cameras.

24/7 he was with you.

and a very large part of himself is livid for waiting so long to appreciate that.

to appreciate how you'd gift him small trinkets to show gratitude for all his hard work. to appreciate how you always made a conscious effort to bring him hearty meals if you noticed he wasn't eating as well as he should've been.

to appreciate how you'd call his name so prettily whenever you needed him for something. and how it sent a kaleidoscope of butterflies to his stomach each and every time.

god, he was foolish, unequivocally so.

and it hurt too much to think about, even for him. you were so kind to him, so sweet and understanding of his past, of all the mistakes he made. you didn't judge him like he judged himself for all those years. and that's when he realized it was time to put that shame and guilt to rest.

to allow himself to feel loved and cared for despite his mistakes- that seemingly everyone forgave him for, but himself.

to allow himself to relish in the way your hands glided against his own.

to allow himself to admire the way you applied your favorite gloss.

to allow himself to be loved by you. and to be loved by you till death did you apart.

utterly breathtaking. those are the words he'd use to describe you.

you were the best part of his morning, evening and night. the best part of his career, and the best part of himself.

which brings him back to the present. all those cherished memories between the two of you acting as his sole motivation for why he was doing this. why he was so nervous as he clutched the comically tiny, black, suede box that held your ring, in his hand.

it was beautiful, just like you.

"a pretty girl needs a pretty ring, dad" were jolyne's wise words that echoed in the back of his mind while ring shopping for you. his heart full of so many emotions that he could barely contain the tears that pricked the corner of his eyes while he stood in the middle of a "tiffany & co."

and even now, as he stood beside you on your shared balcony. watching you as you watched the sunset, slow jazz playing from the vinyl record he got you got Christmas, (doubling as a 2 year anniversary gift.) leaking through the crack in the sliding door.

what was he supposed to say?

not enough words in the dictionary could describe how he felt about you. none of them could describe how utterly beautiful he thought you were. or how you made him feel every time you looked at him, or called out his name for yet another favor he pretended to be annoyed about.

nothing could describe you.

"…wonderful weather we're having…" he began. to which you replied with a short hum, your eyes sparkling like the millions upon millions of stars in the sky.

what was there to say that he hasn't clumsily said already? why did he have to say anything at all? you knew him like the back of your hand. all his good traits- his bad traits, you knew him inside and out and that's what he loved about you.

you knew what he was thinking, what he was feeling, what he wanted to say but just couldn't due to lack of words.

you knew him.

so with that in mind, he decided that words were too much. the way his legs wobbled as he got down on one knee, and the way his sweaty palms opened up the comically tiny, black, suede box should say all it needed to.

that he loved you,

unequivocally so.

[merv606]

Puritianverse but darker…

Alpha Terry is married to Beta Cheyenne. He doesn’t love her; this was all arranged, less a marriage, more a transaction to merge their mighty business empires together. After several bitter years of marriage, there are still no children, and tongues are wagging. But Terry does not care, and he takes his pleasure in “night Omegas”, much to Cheyenne’s anger and dismay. He spends many nights at those establishments…that is, until his interests change when he meets Daniel.

Now his interests lie with him; an Omega hired as one of the help in the Silver mansion. Omegas usually don’t have careers, and are rarely hired in paying, respectable jobs, and least of all in the house of an Alpha—but Daniel is a young widow with a baby who desperately needs money, and he had been refused from all the other places he’d applied to. Terry hired him on a whim, those big brown tear filled eyes pleading for help, the pretty, pouting mouth, and the sweet scent of milk on his tempting little body stirring something protective and possessive in Terry that he thought he’d never feel.

But Terry has needs of his own, so when he tells the Omega that he will pay him more if he will let Terry “take liberties” (…and if he refuses he will blacken Daniel’s name and ruin any chances of him keeping his beloved baby girl…) well…it starts a whole new slew of problems.

Especially when Daniel gets with Terry’s child.

Ah yes - many prompts in my inbox choosing ultra violence lately.

This makes me think of an AU where he is currently pregnant and in need of a job 🤔

Terry hiring him because he wants to get this hands on the pregnant little omega - he’s absolutely stunning, and Terry has always wanted to try pregnant omega pussy.

But for this one.

I imagine that Terry’s plan is to bed the omega and get him heavy with child - he needs an heir after all.

He has no plans to tell the little omega this - the idea is to ingratiate himself to Daniel and let it happen naturally without the little omega realizing or being able to protest.

The little omega grateful for Terry hiring him and being such a generous employer all the while not bit wise to what Terry actually wants (and will get).

Long NSFW and only read through once.

Daniel, being a pious omega, must adhere to the church’s ideals for mourning his late alpha for at least a year, and maybe then, giving himself to the church.

And Terry won’t let the omega waste himself on that.

Cheyenne hates him of course. Although it’s a pride thing it’s also a power thing - she can’t get the alpha to look at her like that - with such hunger and want and the little twit is oblivious to it.

Oh the power she could have if Terry would look at her like that - she can’t even get him to touch her.

They did their duty but she failed to become pregnant so the visits to her chambers became less and less.

She knows Terry is planning something.

She knows there is something special about this omega - he normally never beds the same one twice and all this effort for an omega of such lowly standings whom he hasn’t even fucked yet.

Gifts and his attention he bestows on the omega - he barely lifts a finger to do actual work - and he has started to work later and later into the night, often dining with them.

Terry dotes on the little brat too - a dark haired beauty with her father but with blue eyes.

It almost looks like she could pass for Terry and the omega’s child, and it sets her teeth on edge. There was a few weeks back

Terry actually had a nursery done up for the babe - so that Daniel could “work” more hours.

One night she goes past the nursery, looking for her husband - she is determined to have him visit her chambers tonight.

He is in there, of course, as it is the babe’s bedtime and where Daniel is, so usually is Terry.

Her husband is watching Daniel nurse her, something she knows he lives to witness.

The look he is giving the omega, giving them both, as Daniel tends to Sam, trying to get her to latch on as she seems fussy tonight.

She can’t stand it. Can’t stand him or it any longer.

When he hears Terry ask the little whore, “how long did it take long for you to fall with child when your alpha took his liberties?” she walks away, in a cold fury.

“Where is Daniel?” Terry asks, coming into the dining room for breakfast, which for him normally consists of black coffee and eggs.

He carries in his hand a small pink dress, obviously for the baby and she grits her teeth.

“Today is market day,” she reminds her husband, the edge to her voice that he hears but doesn’t really care about.

“I know. It’s why I have her a new dress for spring to wear with us today.”

Terry would never have been caught dead doing such menial chores before - the mundane day to day life chores that he hired staff to do - that he hired Daniel to do.

“He has already left.”

Terry frowns. The little omega knows they do mid morning, after breakfast.

He regards Cheyenne until she sighs,

“I sent him. We need to talk.”

“So talk,” he says, taking his coffee but waving away any attempt at food. He will wait for the little omega to return and dine with him. Sam shall be hungry as well, around that time, and he can watch The little omega tend to her. He had been so shy at the beginning, the alpha insist at that it was only natural and that the babe should be fed when hungry. Much to Terry’s delight he now had no such reservations around him, feeding her as necessary. It will serve them well - Terry is close to bedding the little omega, having endeared himself to Daniel, and he will get him with pup when he does. Of that there is no doubt. The boy will be bred thoroughly and often.

“He needs to go,” she says. “Everyone is talking.”

“Let them,” he shrugs. Their tongues will really be wagging when Daniel starts to show anyway.

“He is with child? Your child?” She had expected Terry to fuck him, that was a given, and she’s surprised he hadn’t although, I guess she had. How had she not know this? She didn’t think he would be stupid enough to get the boy pregnant with his seed.

“Not yet,” Terry says. “He is almost ready though.”

“If you do not get rid of him I will. I am your wife and I have put up with your whores long enough …”

But it’s not even out of her mouth Terry has her by the throat. “You will do no such thing - he is off limits. It’s time you learn that and what is truly good for you.”

He sits then, as if nothing happened and she makes her way quickly out of the room, but not before Terry’s voice calls out, falling her out of the room.

“Besides, they will be living here soon enough.”

When Daniel returns from the market Terry asks him just that.

“Your pay is very generous, sir.” He can easily afford his rent and more. “I have taken too much of your generosity now, sir.”

“Nonsense - your services are invaluable and in time, what you give me will be irreplaceable.”

“We would be an imposition, and the mistress …”

“Is not important. You both are here most hours of the day no — it would help the travel time.”

This is true - he has already stayed the night, in a guys bedroom next to the alpha’s after being convinced not to wake Sam just to head home.

Still, it is the Lady of the house he worries about. Something about how she looks at him, at his daughter - at them both.

“Could I think about it?” Of course, Terry says. “Now, did you both have a good day?” He asks, changing the subject.

Turns out there is no time to think about it. Within days of making the request, Daniel finds his building has been bought and while everyone else seems to not be affected, they find something wrong with his after a mandatory evaluation. What it is they never say but he can’t returns.

Teemrry finds out - Daniel isn’t sure how, but he does and before he knows it his things and his daughters are moved into the silver mansion within hours of finding out.

“I shall find a place soon, sir.”

“You know that is not necessary. This is happenstance - meant to be.”

“I do not wish to impose …”

“There is then enough space for you both.”

“Besides, if you stay here, you could save the money for her, an education fund perhaps. This district has the best schools.”

Terry will of course be sending all their pups to school, and Sam will take his last name as will Daniel, but Daniel doesn’t know this yet.

Daniel finds his room is next to the alpha’s, the guest room having been done up now, with a bassinet for Sam next to his bed.

“If there is something not to your liking, we can easily change it.”

“Anything I would change,” he says, turning wide eyes to the alpha, an incredulous tone to his voice. “It is perfect, sir. Thank you.”

“You like it then?”

“I love it.”

“Then that is all that matters.”

Tears well in his eyes, and Terry steps forward, brushing them away.

“You have been so kind to us, I cannot …”

“I am not without my reasons.”

Daniel looks at him, Terry’s hand still on his face, stroking under his eye.

“You both bring me much joy, and soon you will bring me much more than that.”

Before Daniel can ask, Sam’s wails cut through the quiet of the moment and if on cue, Daniel feels his chest leak, the small patches appearing , the alpha’s eyes drawn to them.

“I’ll get her, you get ready,” he says, gesturing to a rocking chair in the corner.

Terry lays Sam in Daniel’s arms as he guides her to fed, and Terry’s alpha preens when he remembers how shy the omega had been when he would have to feed Sam, Terry insisting on watching.

Terry is beyond thankful, for the day the desperate little omega had appeared, practically begging for a job.

How he got so lucky, he does not know but he will make sure he never takes that for granted.

————-

They develop a rhythm, and to be told, it doesn’t seem like much changes. Everything is heaven, until Daniel comes home one day, upset.

Daniel tries to say there is nothing wrong but Terry can tell. Gathering the little omega in his arms, gently rubbing his back, until he finally gets it out of him.”

There are rumors he is ruining their marriage - that he is a homewrecker.

Terry knows it is Cheyenne who has started the rumour and he will deal with that.

He will not have her upsetting his mate. Not now, and especially not when he is finally carrying.

“Cheyenne may be my wife, but it is in name only, our marriage.”

Terry tips his chin up, pressing his lips to the omega.

The little omega gasps, the alpha pressing their bodies together and he can feel the alpha’s need pressed against him, the hard outline.

He doesn’t even have time to protest although they would be token at best.

Before he knows he’s picked up, carried through the door that connects their rooms, laid on the alpha’s large bed, his body quickly covering him.

His head is swimming and he doesn’t think he has ever been this wet, and when a large hand sneaks up his shirt, cupping his heavy chest, he breaks the kiss, head tipping back, moaning loudly as the alpha teases his sensitive nipple.

“You have we tormenting me with these, little one. Now it is my turn.”

A warm mouth, Daniel arching up, as Terry’s mouth latches onto him, sucking.

He doesn’t even know when it happens but he finds himself without pants or underwear, large hands questing up his inner thigh; his legs spread as the alpha’s thumb open up slick folds, his most intimate place now on display for the alpha’s hungry gaze.

A thumb on his sensitive rosebud, and he can feel the pleasure mounting, spilling over when the alpha presses his mouth there, his tongue replacing his finger.

Lying there boneless, the alpha himself naked, his manhood stiff against him.

Daniel feels his cunt clench at the sight.

“Wait I … I have not … it’s been awhile and you are … quite endowed.”

“It will be fine. Trust me,” the head of his cock pressing against Daniel’s spit and slick wet hole. “Just relax for me.”

“Alpha, sir … there is also,” he breaks off in whimper, the head of the alpha’s cock breeching him, his body opening to accept it. He dings his nails into the alphas back, the stretch of his entrance around the alpha to accommodate him is delicious, and he’s almost panting as he continues. “I cannot be on anything, not whilst nursing anyway.”

While this is also frowned upon, birth control, as a widowed omega, it would be allowed if only to prevent alphas from coming around during heats.

“Alpha sir … I … do you have protection?”

Although the church frowns on these things - Condoms - he has to ask.

It would not be right - no, it would be an even bigger sin - to carry an alpha’s child to whom he is not wed.

Although he is shamed to admit his omega wants to - very very badly.

Bad enough Daniel is allowing this to happen, spreading his legs for an alpha he is not married to - an alpha who is married - he knows he cannot give himself to the church - not after allowing this.

Although he has a feeling the alpha will take him regardless - even if he were to protest - he has shown considerable patience already tonight. Daniel should already be on his hands and knees being pounded into as the alpha spends himself inside.

“Whatever for?” Terry asks, pushing some hair back, regretfully pulling free from the omega’s sinful body.

“If I were to fall full with your child … sir, I ….”

The omega still does not realize this is the point - he will carry Terry’s child, one way or another.

Although Terry plans on the little omega wearing his ring and name, a child will most definitely happen first.

It just so happens he does have some, as he would never risk an accidental pregnancy with the nightly omegas he would indulge himself with- although this pregnancy will be anything but accidental.

Planned all along.

“Having a child like this would not be proper.”

If it puts his omega at ease, and relaxes him, Terry can pretend.

Terry makes a show of rolling it on, then he’s leaning forward taking the omega’s mouth in a kiss, legs coming up to press tightly to his sides, as he guides himself into the omega’s body.

He makes sure to slip the condom off first.

A long moan, the omega baring his neck as the alpha’s length doesn’t stop once inside this time.

“Such a tight little pussy baby. Just like I knew it would.”

His face burns at the normal eloquent alpha’s crude words.

“No one since your alpha?”

“No sir, it’s not proper - only your husband normally has these rights.”

“Such a cute little pearl you have - begging to be played with.”

His back arches as Terry begins to rub his omegan clit, hard and peaking out from under its protective hood, in time with his thrusts.

The tank top he had been wearing is pulled down, exposing him to the alpha completely, his chest moving in time with the alpha’s deep thrusts.

“Made for this … and you thought I would let the church have this.”

The omega comes in a loud cry, bearing down on the alpha’s manhood, Terry groaning at the feel of the orgasm being squeezed out of him, filling the unwitting omega with his seed.

He keeps the ousting, making sure every last drop is out of him and deep inside Daniel where is belongs, rubbing his belly tenderly.

When he pulls out, Daniel’s face wrinkles as he feels the alpha’s seed come out of him.

“Alpha…” he starts.

“The condom broke,” Terry lies.

Maybe if he cleans himself up, but when he tries to sit up, the alpha presses a firm hand to his chest.

“We aren’t done yet, little one. I shall be having you again.”

He quickly finds himself on his hands and knees and before he can voice his concerns, the alpha is already back inside him, harder and bigger it seems than before.

“Alpha, sir …. Should we…” Daniel noticed that Terry had gone in bare this time, not putting a condom on, and he’s in the proper breeding position now.

“I’ve already filled you.”

“Maybe it has not taken,” he whimpers, although he is pushing back onto the cock.

“I’ll pull out,” Terry lies. No self respecting alpha would pull out of a fertile omega that they were trying to impregnate. Never mind that he gathered whatever seed had dropped out, fucking it back in as he bottomed out.

“If you insist on being so tempting you must deal with the repercussions.”

“Those cute little tits, how good your cunt smells to me …. God you must be a vision pregnant, I can’t wait to see it soon.”

So far gone Daniel doesn’t realize what is being said.

“You make me hard so I must find my pleasure in you …. I must spend myself deep inside you.”

He had planned on more money for this extra duties but he cannot disrespect his mate like that - especially as he is soon to be unknowingly carrying Terry’s child.

The alpha does not pull out, rather, fills him even deeper this time.

Sam cries shortly after Terry finishes, pumping another load into him, and his chest aches, his body responding to her cries as the milk starts to leak.

Putting some clothes on, Terry not bothering, she is brought to him and feeds her, Terry behind him, holding them both.

When she is settled though, she is taken back to her nursery.

Danielle can feel the alpha is hard again, and he’s lifted into his lap.

He doesn’t bother asking about a condom as he’s already in the alphas lap, his underwear pushed to the side so the alpha can guide himself back inside.

But when the telltale signs of the alpha being close come, Daniel tries to lift up enough so that Terry can slip free but the alpha growls. Instantly he freezes, the alpha grabbing his hips in grip that came only convey ownership, forcing him down as fucks up - he buries himself to the hilt as he comes deep inside.

Terry regrets that he won’t be able to experience a heat with his little omega, as there is no way he won’t be without child.

For now, it’s a small price to pay as Terry wants Daniel with child, and tied to him sooner rather than later.

Next time though, he will wait for a heat.

Will get to experience knotting him.

———————

“You knocked him up, didn’t you?”

“Of course. How could I not. I guess the problem isn’t with me like you have always claimed.”

“You’ll be sorry.”

A hand on her arm.

“I know you did not just threaten my mate, nor the child - my child - growing safely inside him.”

He tucks a piece of hair behind her ear, in a gentle gesture, grotesquely at odds with his tone and how tight he holds her arm.

“You have left me no choice,” she says.

Later that night, Daniel asks where Cheyenne is. She never misses dinner with them, even if she ignores Daniel throughout it.

Terry notices that the alpha is no longer wearing his ring.

He gets a vague explanation, of her wanting to see the world, try new things, and she is never mentioned again.

That night, all his things, including Sam’s bassinet are moved into the bedroom.

They make love, Terry behind him, loving inside him, a hand resting proprietarily on the slight curve to his stomach.

———————

A few weeks after that, Daniel starts to throw up.

Terry is behind him, gently rubbing his back as he heaves, unable to do much more to help his little omega feel better.

Terry stays seated as Daniel stands up, flashing the toilet, going to rinse his mouth out.

“I think … I think I may be with child.”

Truth is, he could smell it on him - plus the slight curve to his tummy now when they make love. His breast, full from nursing have gotten bigger, his nipples darkening.

Terry stands and Daniel steps back, a hand across his belly and Terry frowns. He knows the little omega’s hormones must be all over the place. Sam isn’t even 6 months yet and already bred again.

He stops, kneeling down to be more level with his skittish mate.

“This is what I had hoped for,” he assures, unashamed. “It is the best possible outcome, I promise you,” hoping to put the little omega at ease. “It will be the first of many as well.”

And it does, the little omega unwrapping the arm he has curled around himself, walking to the alpha into his open arms, sighing when they close around him, holding him tight.

“What will people say….” His voice is muffled, his face pressed against the broad chest.

“You shall wear my name and ring before the babe is born.”

Although he’s going to be really showing when they wed.

Terry stands, picking his little treasure off, and Daniel wraps his legs around the alpha’s waist as he’s carried through their house, to their bedroom to be ravished, coming alive under his alpha’s love.

[jeannereames]

Come and Study with Me!

Periodically in the spring, I post an invite here, as I know a lot of Tumblr denizens are college-age or going-on college age.

Have you thought about coming to the University of Nebraska-Omaha to study with me (and others) in our Ancient Mediterranean Studies (AMS) Program?

If you're a high-school or transfer student interested in the undergraduate program: Undergrad Application Information. There are a variety of scholarships available, as well as cheaper tuition for at least some states if you're outside Nebraska (as I expect most are). Look at what we offer, in opportunities and funding. If you're interested, email Dr. Danielle Battisti, department chair. Tell her I sent you.

If you're already a college student thinking about a Masters in history, we also offer an AMS minor to go with it. You can email Dr. Martina Saltamacchia directly for information. We've recently introduced an innovative new "portfolio" option to help professionalize our MA students for a variety of careers in an environment where getting a PhD and becoming a tenured college professor is increasingly a pipe dream. (The portfolio option is cutting edge, folks.) Dr. Saltamacchia is also good at finding money for international students (as she was one herself).

Hit up Dr. Saltamacchia, and tell her I sent you. ;-)

ALSO! This coming fall, the 9th International Alexander the Great Symposium is coming to UNO! This would be YOUR CHANCE to actually meet and talk to some of those "names" you've read in Alexander studies--the "Who's Who" of Macedonian academia.

If you apply now, you could be part of that experience!

And in case you're wondering, Omaha is actually a pretty big city with lots of museums, an amazing indie music scene (especially blues and jazz, and the Maha Music Festival), a World-Class Zoo (not joking), and a remarkable Foodie scene. Not what most people expect....

[irregularincidents]

Amusingly for a man who actually played a villain in a James Bond movie once (the titular Man with the Golden Gun, Francisco Scaramanga), Christoper Lee was not only a secret agent in real life during the Second World War (first assigned to assist the Finns fight the Soviets until they joined the Allies, before being moved to North Africa with the precursor of the SAS to fight the Germans, later hunting Nazis after the war) but he was actually related to Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond (and fellow ex-British secret service person).

Indeed, Lee was actually Fleming’s step-cousin, as after his parents got divorced, Christopher’s mum Estelle Marie Carandini di Sarzano married the incredibly English named Harcourt George St-Croix Rose, who was Fleming’s uncle.

Incidentally, Fleming allegedly based Bond on Lee’s adventures during the Second World War (alongside some wish fulfillment on the part of the more office-bound Fleming), and Lee was supposedly Fleming’s first choice to play the secret agent when the novels were adapted into films, but eventually was convinced to go with the producers’ choice: Sean Connery.

Amusingly, despite Lee’s aforementioned career as a spy, at six foot 4 and a half inch tall he would actually exceed the maximum height requirement for a modern day members of Britain’s counter-intelligence agency MI5 (5ft 11in for men, 5ft 8in for women) if he were to apply for a similar job in the present. The idea being that folk of average height draw less attention than really tall people.

And if you’re curious, the only screen Bond who would actually meet that requirement (even though Bond works for MI6, not MI5) would be Daniel Craig’s version of the character.

[heliza24]

Ok I’m gonna let you pick:

Question A. Assign a character from Interview with the Vampire (no repeats!) for each of the main five YR characters to hang out with one-on-one. What activity does each duo get up to, and what do they talk about while they hang out?

Or

Question B. Tell me a NSFW headcanon you have for each of the main five.

Thank you so much for letting me apply my current vampire brain rot to Young Royals. You really do know me so well.

OK so let’s start with the easy pairings. Felice is absolutely hanging out with Claudia. They are taking down corrupt schools and even more corrupt coven together. They are trying on fabulous outfits and bonding over how difficult it is to be young Black women in stories dominated by men. Maybe they are even solving crimes together. Next, Sara and Daniel are autistic hyper focusing together. They are chasing a story and asking brutally honest questions together. (I have never really headcanoned Daniel as autistic until now or thought about journalism as a potential career for Sara in the future but I think both of those things work very well actually.) last you’ve got Simon and Louis working together on a new album. The album is about Louis’s various heartbreaks and he finds it much more cathartic than the interview with Daniel.

Now we’re left with the most deadly interview of the vampire characters left and we run into more of a conundrum. Initially, I thought to put Lestat with Wilhelm just because of the prince connection I think, but then that leaves August with Armand, which is such a bad idea because Armand will spend that time either a. Teaching August how to be the most despotic ruler of Sweden possible or B. Running an extra judicial trial in which he can condemns and then murders August for his crimes. I think ultimately this ends up with Armand drinking August regardless, and that seems like a bit of a waste. So instead, I propose Lestat and August have an aristocracy-who-can-be-brattier competition (also maybe Lestat can introduce August to the joys of bisexuality, I think it would be good for him) and I send Armand with Willhelm simply to avoid a disaster. I think that Wilhelm has enough qualities in common with Lestat that Armand would probably fall in love with him, and therefore not kill him. Maybe Armand can teach Wilhelm how to paint. That boy needs a hobby after all.

OK, now let’s do a quick NSFW round of kinky head canons below the cut just for fun:

Wilhelm and Simon discover that Wilhelm really likes to get tied up (subspace is good for him!) and Simon gets really into learning different knots and rope techniques as like a sexy artistic practice.

Felice comes out as gray/flux ace and aro so sometimes she’s into sex sometimes she’s not. Sometimes she just likes to tell her partners what to do and watch. (does this happen when Felice hooks up with Wilhelm and Simon in the poly triad of my imaginings? I think it does.)

It takes some time and maybe some work with a sex positive therapist but eventually Sara pegs August and it really works for him actually.

(Do I just want the Eriksson siblings to dom their respective nobles? SO WHAT IF I DO 🙈)

[inchidentally]

more tricky asks! again, bl 'wank adjacent' to not see these <3

(gonna lump these all together since it's the same topic)

I had no idea that leap was even made aslfgslajfgajsl yea it's just Lando being Lando! but hopefully if ppl know they're just being silly about rpf then that's fine. only a problem if they're truly thinking it's real.

these posts are also infamously bat signals that pro athletes do to let hookups know where they are

again like, I'm gonna assume that the dando ppl I follow are all fully aware that rpf is just for fun and not real. but yea those people you linked to (from what I remember, you sent this weeks ago I'm sorry!) are actually insane. even ignoring that Lando and Daniel choose to not see each other or interact for months ?? Lando literally went out of his way to say that he and Martin wanted to get out of Bali (do NOT quote me but I saw some ppl say they got robbed again? or their friends did?) and their Finland trip wasn't due to start yet so they decided to spend a day and night in Perth with Daniel. this was very much a Lando and Martin thing and it's funny and slightly tragic for ppl who keep trying to write Martin out of this.

there was also an entire group of Daniel's friends staying with him as well lasfljsagf how is any of this romantic or sexual unless Lando was the party bottom

honestly this is why I was surprised to find out there were dando truthers at all ?? when he does the exact same act with most of the men he meets why randomly decide that him doing that with Lando makes it a legit gay relationship alsfgsjlagflagf. I'm also not heterosexual so I cannot convince myself that Daniel's "gay" stuff is actually gay ! that man couldn't be more typically Aussie straight guy who almost veers homophobic with doing the gay shtick he does for laughs.

it's also where Martin has clearly struck a chord of unwelcome reality with the carlando and dando rpf truthers bc oops here's an example of someone who could in every way actually be a secret gay relationship of Lando's based on what they consider to be "evidence". I do not think they necessarily are in a relationship and will not makeassumptions about sexualities etc. but Lando, Carlos and Daniel literally friendzone each other and see each other as bros who pretend gay shit for a joke. they're also happy to not so much as think about each other for months on end let alone even see each other for anything other than F1 travel or group trips. but Martin? is in Lando's life significantly bc he actively chooses to be! when the season ends, for two years now he and Lando have done the thing all the drivers do with gfs and wives and spend almost every moment with each other on getaways! Lando liked a comment calling Martin his wag and didn't make a joke about it! they don't do anything bromancey or fake gay together! Lando genuinely gets bashful and quiet when asked about Martin! they're not bound together by work responsibilities and most of their time together is created in the small spaces their different careers allow! they're both actually single!

again, I am not wanting anyone to actually push this ship directly onto Lando or Martin or their personal content anymore than they already are. but I do have to laugh when I see two rpf ships fighting it out for who Lando wants more when like. if you apply real life logic and not manufactured bromance, Martin is the only candidate !!

and can I just say again thank fuck landoscar fandom doesn't do any of this shit and loves Martin and norrix and can multiship for fun godddd

I have a totally innocent and casual habit of reading gossip pages and let me tell you the rpf truthers revealing themselves when they push the "PR" and "beards" angle to try and get rid of Heidi and Rebecca lasgflsagfjagfsa. then the wailing when something inevitably destroys their conspiracy theories !! what's even funnier is that on multiple occasions Lando is found to be happily hanging out with Carlos and Rebecca and Daniel and Heidi. almost as if he's just a mate of theirs can you imagine ????

re the submission: I'm leaving those links up bc I know those ppl aren't taking any of this seriously and are just posting cute content - which it is! <3

but yea sadly there's people who see guys like Oscar and Martin as a "threat" to their rpf ship for various reasons (ironically, one of the main reasons being they don't play gay for a joke or do bromance stuff with Lando) and invent entire narratives around it. as you said, believing those narratives would mean believing Lando is the absolute worst of the worst and would paint him in a terrible light ??? even apart from it being wattpad levels of absurd

it's also just funny bc Oscar's Lando fanboying on social media included him liking carlando and dando content as well as Carlos and Daniel content. our boy was chronically online between karting and F1 and he was agreeing and playing along in both the circumstances you listed alhfalfhsafhsa literally why do ppl want this stuff to be so angsty for no good goddamn reason it's intended to be fun by all involved

and the second ask oh fr, even just bringing up maxiel it's like damn that shits all over dando alfhsalhflasfhal. ironically norstappen shits all over dando as well. but even apart from rpf Daniel is so in the public eye that everyone already knows who he considers his true closest friends and that Lando and the F1 drivers are all firmly in his work friends group.

side note you do wanna ask the ppl who are actively hating on Martin how they explain Daniel being tight with him before Lando was ???

I totally get needing to vent babes but my constant reminder will be to use this kind of stuff as a means of pruning your fandom experience. blockity block block anyone being this unhinged. Lando is on Raya, Daniel is in a ltr with Heidi, Carlos' family are welcoming Rebecca in more and more and Martin is... someone extra special to Lando. what that is defined as is known only to them &lt;3

[saltyfilmmajor]

Hi! I just wanted to ask, what’s your opinion in regards to people saying Tom Cruise act the same even though he’s playing different roles?

I don’t know if this has been asked, but I’m genuinely curious on your opinion about this topic because you’re analysis in films blows my mind. 100%!

Thank you!

Hi anon! 
I actually haven’t been asked this before on here, but I’ve spoken at length about it with my friends, thanks for the question <3

I feel like, it’s the easy joke to make, that tom plays the same character. Like making fun of Nick Cage for his acting in movies. It’s just an accepted part of the cultural zeitgeist. So no one tends to challenge that notion, especially in film theory circles. 

With only a handful of exceptions, the professional film theory and criticism world makes the easy choice to claim that every role Tom Cruise takes is just him playing himself, (especially when it comes to Maverick Mitchell and Ethan Hunt)

It’s easy to dismiss his career, especially how Action heavy it’s been for the last 20 years, as just Tom Cruise doing stunts on screen for 2 hours. But really each character he plays they’re all distinct. 
Maverick is not the Same as Jack Harper who is not the same as Daniel Kaffee, who is not the same as Les Grossman, who is not the same as Joseph Donally.

There are aspects of the characters he has played that are shared: themes of grappling with legacy, grappling with father son relationships, Self sacrificing heroes and so. But that doesn’t apply to every character. No one can look me in the eye and tell me that Tom playing Lestat in IWTV is the same as him playing Bill Hartford in Eyes Wide Shut.

The prevalence of this idea means that most people have no reason to challenge the notion, but it’s simply not true. I hope, especially with the big success of TG:M, that people start to see Tom as an actor of high caliber en masse. It’s easy to make fun of him and his career because of what the media and David Miscavige did to him in the 90s and 2000s (and still continue to do so tbh).

It’s easy to dismiss someone as untalented because people think they’re crazy. Which goes deeper into the whole notion that Morality plays into talent and that argument I’ve seen when people are revealed to be shitty: “Well their work wasn’t that good anyway!” People who are shitty can also be talented, but people don’t want to accept that.

Like Alfred Hitchcock was a menace to women, but he still made very good films and I unfortunately have to make my peace with that. So Tom’s perceived status as a “crazy” person has ultimately lead to where we are now: “He’s a crazy guy with a big ego, so all his roles are the same, therefor he’s not talented.”

It’s a shame really and I wish people would look past their misconceptions about tom because he really does have a great body of work, and he puts so much effort into the movies he makes, because he has a genuine love and passion for film making.

[redwineconversation]

Danielle van de Donk Le Progrès Article (December 9, 2022)

Blah blah standard disclaimers apply. You've heard this speech before.

Some interesting stuff, some stuff we already knew. The cool thing about Le Progres is they always respect lines in the sand.

Van de Donk: "There is an atmosphere of only winning at Lyon"

Back on the field six months after her severe leg injury, Danielle van de Donk is looking forward to playing the biggest games at the end of 2022, between the Champions League and this duel in the league against PSG. Her early days in football, her closeness to her family, her positivity, her mentality on all levels which works well with Olympique Lyonnais ... The 31-year-old Dutch midfield confides herself [in us].

How long have you been playing football?

Actually, it's quite funny because my mother was bringing me to swimming lessons on her bike when I was young. I was sitting behind her in the child's seat, and I could see everyone playing football when we went in front of the local club, that made me want to do it. I remember asking her: can I also play football? I was 3 years old. So she went to find out, and they told her that she could sign me up as soon as I was four. I started playing at that age. What we were doing didn't exactly look like football but I liked it. I was also playing tennis, equestrian ... but it was always football for me. I was always in the street, playing football with the boys.

When did you know you could make this a career?

It's really weird but in the Netherlands, there's a tradition. When you are really young and you're celebrating your birthday, everyone is singing for you and then you hold yourself straight [up] on a chair and answer the question "what do you want to do later?" As soon as I was 5, I said that I wanted to a professional football player. It made everyone laugh because it didn't seem realistic, but for me, I always believed. When I was 16, when I stopped playing with the boys and shifted to the girls and the national team showed interest in me, I said to myself: "this is it, football is taking me somewhere, this is what will determine my life." When we won the Euros with the Netherlands in 2017, that, it became something huge.

Antonin de Fonseca, who followed you during your rehab last season, said that you were calm and confident, that nothing phased you. Can you confirm?

My parents always told me: "if you don't believe in yourself, no one will do it for you," that's how I was brought up and how I grew up. But I'm not as confident as Antonin thinks. Certain things can get to me like not being a starter in a game. It's hard to digest but at the same time, it motives me to train even harder and not start on the bench in the next game. I try to transform my frustration into something positive. I don't go see the coach and ask them: "why didn't you start me?", I'm not going to blame anyone but myself. You always have to work [hard]. If you only have talent, that's not enough.

You seem full of life, do those close to you see you the same way?

Yeah, I think they would say I am smiley and spontaneous. I'm a happy person. I can't complain, I have a really nice life and I am doing what I love: play football. I'm very aware of that. I have my family at home, my other family at the club. We have the same objectives, we laugh a lot, it's nice.

How did you handle your serious leg injury last year?

It's weird because no one had gotten that kind of injury at the elite level before me. At the start, the surgeon said I would be out for four months, maybe six. At the end, it was seven months. It was nice being at the club during the rehab. The girls came to see me, were supporting me, "come on, Da[a]n, let's go." It wasn't anything huge, an encouraging word here and there, but it motivated me to give everything and be back with them on the field as fast as possible. I try to do the same thing with the current injured players. The hardest thing was to live through was the last month, because there were big clashes like the final of the Champions League. I wanted to be a part of it and play but it was too soon. And I needed to be ready for the Euros.

You were seriously injured in the knee when you were 16 (ACL), this injury to that leg wasn't the first.

Yeah, the fact of having already experienced that helped me. The knee injury made me appreciate football even more. You have to work hard to get back to your level: it's long, it's complicated, but at the end, you come back even better.

It's been six months since you've been back on the field. How do you feel? Is there any fear?

No, I don't have any fear or apprehension, which is a good thing. After a long injury, you usually go through a long period where your performances are up and down. I have to accept there will some really good games as well as less good from me. Sometimes, I overthink. I need to gain some more confidence so everything becomes natural, automatic again. I am someone who likes to attack, dribble ... When I look at my last games, I realize I don't do it as much. I need to find that again because I'm good in that area and I know I could bring something special to the team because of it. I have to give myself a bit of time, but I think that in January I will be back to my previous level.

What do you think about the team's beginning of the season? And yours, on a personal level?

I think I started the season pretty well, I was scoring [3 goals in 3 league games], I was implicated in the game, I felt good. Then players got injuries, we didn't have a lot of capable players [I appreciate Jaurena getting dragged so consistently] so it was a little complicated, there were a lot of changes in the team from one game to the next so it was hard to have any cohesion in our style of play. It's a question of feeling, of intuition that you develop: when I was playing as a 10, I know what each forward will do if I go here or there. There it was complicated because the connections weren't there anymore. But we're getting things back on track, good players are back, we're finding some consistency again.

Is the confidence back in the group after the last games?

Lyon is a team with an enormous amount of confidence. Even if there were games where we weren't at our best, we know that it will pass and we will be back to winning. It's a [core] principle, I felt it as soon as I started here. There's pressure but it is a good pressure. There is a winning atmosphere here, it's really something special and specific to Lyon, I have never known that in another club.

There wasn't any panic then after that heavy defeat against Arsenal in the Champions League (5-1)?

No, we are in the group phase so we knew we would play them again and that there would be other games to catch up. You need to be able to look in the mirror, ask questions of yourself, but nothing [good] comes from panicking.

Do you find it more complicated to win this year?

Each match is difficult because the gap is becoming more narrow. In the league, Paris [Saint-Germain] is like us in terms of results and has difficulty scoring that many goals. In the Champions League, Arsenal, Wolfsburg are better and better. [I think she's wrong in the entirety of her assessment: Arsenal is not better but simply played a good game against an extremely weakened Lyon; Wolfsburg's history speaks for itself] It's good for women's football. But beyond that, we play a lot of games. The calendar is packed, if you play for the National Team on top of your league, the Champions League, the Cup with your club ... It's a lot and it explains why it is so complicated. [Note: I think this is a super important point that some fans think affects their club but actually only affects top teams. But that's it's own blog post for another day]

What do you think about PSG?

I'm always excited to play the big games. Just like the matches in the Champions League, the clashes against PSG are part of those. They're matches full of passion for the supporters, [there's] the competition for top place... We want to show off, to play and to win.

It's a good memory for you, [playing against] PSG?

Yeah, I scored the second [goal] in the home game last season [6-1 win on November 14, 2021). We played really well that day. It was the first time I played against PSG. Two weeks earlier, the players said to me: "Da[a]n, are you ready? Because it's PSG, you're going to have to fight!"

You also scored against Paris during the Trophée des Championnes this summer (1-0 on August 28)

Yeah, that's true. Maybe they're a team that works out for me, I hope so in any case (laughter).

What makes the difference in those sorts of clashes?

If everything is clear, if everyone knows exactly what they have to do and we make those efforts together, there will be the right energy. No one player can allow themselves to let themselves go. The team which will be the most together and the best technically will win.

Do you think Lyon is stronger or weaker this year?

Mentally, we're very strong. The standards are so high here, and there's such a winning culture... For these types of games, I know that the leaders will elevate their level of play so I'm really confident.

Is it easier to play against a team like Paris, rather than a team with a low block?

It's always complicated to play against teams who park the bus, especially when we don't score quickly. Our opponents gain confidence, and us, we become nervous because it isn't working. Against PSG, it's easier to play because they also want to play and show what they are capable of. They're not going to spend their time defending, but adapt to their style of play. Which will create more space, and will allow to make more runs.

How would you analyze the attacking difficulties of the team?

There are always high expectations from Lyon, especially taking into account their standing [in history]. It's expected that we score lots of goals. When that doesn't happen, there is immediately more pressure put on the players, and the fear of missing can set in. We work a lot on it in training. But during the course of the past few weeks, I've noticed a real improvement.

Was it a turning point against Zurich, in the away game (3-0 on November 24?)

I think so. Up until then, we were aware that we weren't up to our level. We hit rock bottom against Arsenal, it was so beneath our standards.. No one wanted to live through a game like that again. From that point on, everyone tried to rebuild as a team.

Is it uncomfortable to play Paris before two big Champions League games?

No because they have the same problem as we do. Our calendar is packed, but I prefer those types of games to [our] practices (laughter).

Three things to know about "Da[a]n"

Favorite Aunt: I grew up in Valkenswaard, a town south of Eindhoven, next to the Belgian border. It's like a village, everyone knows each other. My whole family lives there. I have an older sister who has two children, they mean everything to me. I pretend they are mine (laughter). I shower them with gifts, I miss them a lot. My father had a ton of jobs, he worked in distribution, as a car salesman... My mother for a long time worked two jobs. Currently, she works in a hospital, she helps patients with their diet according to their food allergies.

Artist during her down time: When I'm not playing football, I like to go shopping (laughter). On a more serious note, I love drawing. I could do it for hours and not notice time pass. My friends often ask me to draw something for them for a tattoo. Most of them actually get my drawing as a tattoo so they can't be that ugly (laughter).

Dedicated in French. I have lessons twice a week, with a club and with a special instructor on the side. I like studying French, learning the words. I know a lot now. I can understand French, but reading is more difficult ... with all the accents, it's hard. (laughter) It's a big challenge, because I never studied French at school so I had to start from zero.

[iguessricciardo]

when daniel said "next year i'll be around, you will still see me im looking for opportunities, im talking to all teams" i thought he was talking about being a reserve driver. but i guess he is preparing a photograpy portfolio to apply for photographer positions of teams lmao. and the funny thing is i actually think he'd kill it. a grid hoe with 8 career wins walking around the paddock saying things like f1 is a hobby, photography is my passion and click some buttons. and just wait he posts the ones he has taken this week bc be has every man on grid on a chokehold. have u seen ferrari boys? they look like kicking their feet and blushing when he turns the camera on them. what a whore he is

ofc he’d be good when he’s literally around any man they look at him with heart eyes and a big smile :’)

[btssavedmylifeblr]

Hi Bee, I hope you’ve been doing well and been taking care of yourself! 🥰💜

So, I have a question and because you’re always so good at sharing your wisdom, I thought I might ask you. Since graduating from university, my path has been really up and down so I spent time focusing on applying for jobs and then reconnecting with my family after not seeing them properly for a few years, as they live in a different country. Then the pandemic hit and I basically saw no one apart from my family for two years. Then I came back to the city where I studied and now work. I’m a lawyer, so my job is really all-consuming. I’ve been in this job for just over a year and I feel like all I’ve been doing is working. I feel like I’ve lost myself. I don’t even know where to start because it feels like I can’t even make commitment to hobbies or people in case I’ll have to change things around for work. I really want a romantic partner and I’d love to fill my life with more things I enjoy. But I’m just so tired by the time it comes to the weekend and I usually have to work during it too. I live alone and barely see anyone outside of work anymore. I don’t even know what to do because my job is so high pressure and all-consuming but I’m also so devoid of joy in my life. I need to make changes but I don’t even know where to start when I’m so exhausted. Sorry that was a roundabout ramble. Anyway, thank you for giving me this space and I hope you have a wonderful weekend. 💜💜💜

As someone who just quit their own job because it wasn’t working with the life I want to live, I have many thoughts! Feel free to take whatever is useful to you and leave the rest.

1. The first few years after graduating from school were the hardest years of my life. And I hear that sentiment echoed from many people going through it now as well, especially with the pandemic and everything that has been happening in the last two years. So it is totally normal that it has been hard and it doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong. Establishing a career and figuring out how to live your life on your own as an adult is very challenging! It makes sense that you are exhausted!!

2. When I was first starting out in my career, I thought that I had to take everything on myself. That I had to do everything perfectly and respond to every email and take on every additional responsibility I was offered. I didn’t want to ask for any help because I didnt want them to think I couldn’t do the job. But then I started to forget things and miss deadlines because I was just doing too much and my boss actually pulled me aside and was like “you have to ask for help if you need it” and I had never realized that was option!

3. Related to point #2, when I was starting out, I thought that if I drew boundaries around what work I would do or what time I would spend at work, that people would value me more for being such a hard worker. But as I’ve advanced in my career, I discovered that setting clear boundaries with people, like “i’m not going to answer emails on the weekend” or “if it’s urgent you need to come talk to me instead of email me” actually then made me respect me more. Like they would be a bit bothered about it at first but they would live with it and work around it and I would do my job better, which is what really made more valuable. So don’t be afraid to say no sometimes or draw some boundaries around the less valuable parts of your job.

4. In contemplating my own career goals, I recently read Daniel Pink’s book Drive and found it super useful. He talks about how people need three things from their jobs to feel energized and motivated: 1. Autonomy over their task, time, technique, and team 2. Mastery - the feeling of being good at what you do/able to improve over time 3. Purpose - connection to why your work is meaningful. In my own job, the thing that was really missing was autonomy over my time and task. In the book, he actually specifically calls out lawyers as having a poor relationships with their work because the construct of the billable hour prevents them from having autonomy over their time. But one could have all of these things at work and still be burnt out if the workload is just too much.

5. It may be good idea to ask directly if there is any way to reduce your workload. Most employers would rather retain the employees they have than try to find and hire new people and may be more willing to negotiate than you think.

6. Try to find something that brings you joy and is entirely yours. For me, this is writing about BTS, but anything joyous and creative would work. It doesn’t matter if you only have a couple of hours a month for it, because there’s no expectations. Dont fall into the trap of thinking that hobbies are only valuable if you do them consistently or perfectly. If it makes you happy and gives you a break, it’s worth it.

I hope you find some peace and rest soon! 💜

[myimaginarywonderland]

Seb, Daniel, Mick and Nicky leaving all represents different stages of grief for me.

Denial is the one that I think applies most the Seb. It just seems so surreal to see him go. After everything he has done for the sport, after everything he has achieved, every challenge he has overcome, everything that was thrown in his way it just doesn't seem real that it's all coming to an end. And the chapter isn't quiet closed yet (for many people it seems like that) so we just are blissfully unaware.

Anger is nothing short of what I feel when I look at Mick's story. Anger at the treatment he has received since he came into the sport from so many people claiming that he didn't deserve a seat, that he only got it only because of his dad. Anger at the way he had to literally sit through that teammate. Anger at the way Haas has treated him. Anger at the way he was denied even looking at another seat. Anger at the way that his dreams have been handed to him and then ripped right back off when he was finally seeing them come to life slowly.

Bargaining is what best applies to Daniel I think. Starting with the potential future he was promised, the the deals he refused to make with some teams, to the futures he saw but refused to be a part of. Bargaining for something bigger, hoping to catch the right time to get it. Discussing coming back, making plans ,...

Depression is a hard word and inaccurate but there's nothing else that could describe Nicky's career. Sadness would fit more but really I wouldn't be suprised if depressive thoughts were something Nicky battled with. From the moment he came, nothing was ever going to work out. There was never any hope, never any future because the motorsport community would never have given him one regardless of his performance. Nicky was written off before he even delivered his first result and from there on it just unravelled , spiralled so far out of control that F1 actually had to remind people he is human.

Acceptance is what we have to do now. It doesn't what we feel or think, what we believe to be right or not, it is not going to change any of this guys future. We can just accept it and move on, try to not forget and remember.

So, I am accepting that while I entirely disagree with some of the circumstances, these 4 incredible people are leaving and the sport might just get a little dimmer. We might just have lost one of the greats. We might just have ended a guy's career before it even began. We might have just given someone the opportunity to prove himself in another series. And we might just have got another driver back to the his team.

[jcmarchi]

Daniel Ciolek, Head of Research and Development at InvGate – Interview Series

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/daniel-ciolek-head-of-research-and-development-at-invgate-interview-series/

Daniel Ciolek, Head of Research and Development at InvGate – Interview Series

Daniel is a passionate IT professional with more than 15 years of experience in the industry. He has a PhD. in Computer Science and a long career in technology research. His interests fall in multiple areas, such as Artificial Intelligence, Software Engineering, and High Performance Computing.

Daniel is the Head of Research and Development at InvGate, where he leads the R&D initiatives. He works along with the Product and Business Development teams to design, implement, and monitor the company’s R&D strategy. When he’s not researching, he’s teaching.

InvGate empowers organizations by providing the tools to deliver seamless service across departments, from IT to Facilities.

When and how did you initially become interested in computer science?

My interest in computer science dates back to my early childhood. I was always fascinated by electronic devices, often finding myself exploring and trying to understand how they worked. As I grew older, this curiosity led me to coding. I still remember the fun I had writing my first programs. From that moment on, there was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to pursue a career in computer science.

You are currently leading R&D initiatives and implementing novel generative AI applications. Can you discuss some of your work?

Absolutely. In our R&D department, we tackle complex problems that can be challenging to represent and solve efficiently. Our work isn’t confined to generative AI applications, but the recent advancements in this field have created a wealth of opportunities we’re keen to exploit.

One of our main objectives at InvGate has always been to optimize the usability of our software. We do this by monitoring how it’s used, identifying bottlenecks, and diligently working towards removing them. One such bottleneck we’ve encountered often is related to the understanding and utilization of natural language. This was a particularly difficult issue to address without the use of Large Language Models (LLMs).

However, with the recent emergence of cost-effective LLMs, we’ve been able to streamline these use cases. Our capabilities now include providing writing recommendations, automatically drafting knowledge base articles, and summarizing extensive pieces of text, among many other language-based features.

At InvGate, your team applies a strategy that is called “agnostic AI”. Could you define what this means and why it is important?

Agnostic AI is fundamentally about flexibility and adaptability. Essentially, it’s about not committing to a single AI model or provider. Instead, we aim to keep our options open, leveraging the best each AI provider offers, while avoiding the risk of being locked into one system.

You can think of it like this: should we use OpenAI’s GPT, Google’s Gemini, or Meta’s Llama-2 for our generative AI features? Should we opt for a pay-as-you-go cloud deployment, a managed instance, or a self-hosted deployment? These aren’t trivial decisions, and they may even change over time as new models are released and new providers enter the market.

The Agnostic AI approach ensures that our system is always ready to adapt. Our implementation has three key components: an interface, a router, and the AI models themselves. The interface abstracts away the implementation details of the AI system, making it easier for other parts of our software to interact with it. The router decides where to send each request based on various factors such as the type of request and the capabilities of the available AI models. Finally, the models perform the actual AI tasks, which may require custom data pre-processing and result formatting processes. Can you describe the methodological aspects that guide your decision-making process when selecting the most suitable AI models and providers for specific tasks?

For each new feature we develop, we begin by creating an evaluation benchmark. This benchmark is designed to assess the efficiency of different AI models in solving the task at hand. But we don’t just focus on performance, we also consider the speed and cost of each model. This gives us a holistic view of each model’s value, allowing us to choose the most cost-effective option for routing requests.

However, our process doesn’t end there. In the fast-evolving field of AI, new models are constantly being released and existing ones are regularly updated. So, whenever a new or updated model becomes available, we rerun our evaluation benchmark. This lets us compare the performance of the new or updated model with that of our current selection. If a new model outperforms the current one, we then update our router module to reflect this change.

What are some of the challenges of seamlessly switching between various AI models and providers?

Seamlessly switching between various AI models and providers indeed presents a set of unique challenges.

Firstly, each AI provider requires inputs formatted in specific ways, and the AI models can react differently to the same requests. This means we need to optimize individually for each model, which can be quite complex given the variety of options.

Secondly, AI models have different capabilities. For example, some models can generate output in JSON format, a feature that proves useful in many of our implementations. Others can process large amounts of text, enabling us to use a more comprehensive context for some tasks. Managing these capabilities to maximize the potential of each model is an essential part of our work.

Finally, we need to ensure that AI-generated responses are safe to use. Generative AI models can sometimes produce “hallucinations”, or generate responses that are false, out of context, or even potentially harmful. To mitigate this, we implement rigorous post-processing sanitization filters to detect and filter out inappropriate responses.

How is the interface designed within your agnostic AI system to ensure it effectively abstracts the complexities of the underlying AI technologies for user-friendly interactions?

The design of our interface is a collaborative effort between R&D and the engineering teams. We work on a feature-by-feature basis, defining the requirements and available data for each feature. Then, we design an API that seamlessly integrates with the product, implementing it in our internal AI-Service. This allows the engineering teams to focus on the business logic, while our AI-Service handles the complexities of dealing with different AI providers.

This process doesn’t rely on cutting-edge research, but instead on the application of proven software engineering practices.

Considering global operations, how does InvGate handle the challenge of regional availability and compliance with local data regulations?

Ensuring regional availability and compliance with local data regulations is a crucial part of our operations at InvGate. We carefully select AI providers that can not only operate at scale, but also uphold top security standards and comply with regional regulations.

For instance, we only consider providers that adhere to regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU. This ensures that we can safely deploy our services in different regions, with the confidence that we are operating within the local legal framework.

Major cloud providers such as AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud satisfy these requirements and offer a broad range of AI functionalities, making them suitable partners for our global operations. Furthermore, we continuously monitor changes in local data regulations to ensure ongoing compliance, adjusting our practices as needed.

How has InvGate’s approach to developing IT solutions evolved over the last decade, particularly with the integration of Generative AI?

Over the last decade, InvGate’s approach to developing IT solutions has evolved significantly. We’ve expanded our feature base with advanced capabilities like automated workflows, device discovery, and Configuration Management Database (CMDB). These features have greatly simplified IT operations for our users.

Recently, we’ve started integrating GenAI into our products. This has been made possible thanks to the recent advancements in LLM providers, who have started offering cost-effective solutions. The integration of GenAI has allowed us to enhance our products with AI-powered support, making our solutions more efficient and user-friendly.

While it’s still early days, we predict that AI will become a ubiquitous tool in IT operations. As such, we plan to continue evolving our products by further integrating AI technologies.

Can you explain how the generative AI within the AI Hub enhances the speed and quality of responses to common IT incidents?

The generative AI within our AI Hub significantly enhances both the speed and quality of responses to common IT incidents. It does this through a multi-step process:

Initial Contact: When a user encounters a problem, he or she can open a chat with our AI-powered Virtual Agent (VA) and describe the issue. The VA autonomously searches through the company’s Knowledge Base (KB) and a public database of IT troubleshooting guides, providing guidance in a conversational manner. This often resolves the problem quickly and efficiently.

Ticket Creation: If the issue is more complex, the VA can create a ticket, automatically extracting relevant information from the conversation.

Ticket Assignment: The system assigns the ticket to a support agent based on the ticket’s category, priority, and the agent’s experience with similar issues.

Agent Interaction: The agent can contact the user for additional information or to notify them that the issue has been resolved. The interaction is enhanced with AI, providing writing recommendations to improve communication.

Escalation: If the issue requires escalation, automatic summarization features help managers quickly understand the problem.

Postmortem Analysis: After the ticket is closed, the AI performs a root cause analysis, aiding in postmortem analysis and reports. The agent can also use the AI to draft a knowledge base article, facilitating the resolution of similar issues in the future.

While we’ve already implemented most of these features, we’re continually working on further enhancements and improvements.

With upcoming features like the smarter MS Teams Virtual Agent, what are the expected enhancements in conversational support experiences?

One promising path forward is to extend the conversational experience into a “copilot”, not only capable of replying to questions and taking simple actions, but also taking more complex actions on behalf of the users. This could be useful to improve users’ self-service capabilities, as well as to provide additional powerful tools to agents. Eventually, these powerful conversational interfaces will make AI an ubiquitous companion.

Thank you for the great interview, readers who wish to learn more should visit InvGate. 

[coursesfreedownload]

Daniel Throssell – Upwork in One Hour Course

What You Get: - A trick (which ONLY works on Upwork) for winning copywriting work even if you have literally never achieved a single thing as a copywriter (it’s how I got started …) - My full four-stage Upwork ‘career map’ for freelance copywriters (this is the first lesson in the course, and in many ways it’s all you need to know) - A back-door way to ‘spy’ on the proposals OTHER freelancers are sending in to try and win jobs (this can get unethical REAL fast, so I include a strong recommendation on where to draw the line) - How to instantly eliminate EVERY single other copywriter as ‘competition’ and become your client’s ONLY choice. (This strategy works off of Upwork, too!) - How to stand out even if you’re not the best at anything by using ‘niche stacking’ - A 12-point template for writing one of the best profiles on Upwork in under 15 minutes. (This is one of the few times I will ever encourage you to use a template. But here, I’ve done all the thinking for you … simply fill it out with your own details and you’re good to go!) - My exact $$$ recommendations for what hourly rate to set! - A 7-point checklist for writing proposals that win work even if you have NEVER been paid to write a word of copy before - How to create a portfolio “on demand” in less than an hour if you have no samples - The exact “fake beard oil” proposal that won me my first-ever Upwork job within days of joining Upwork! - Why you should NEVER send your portfolio to a client (no exaggeration … and again, this is just as true OFF Upwork) - 10 actual proposals I used to win Upwork jobs, with my commentary on each - My four-part pricing strategy for “magically” bidding almost the exact maximum amount the client is willing to pay — even if it’s well above the budget they actually posted!!! (Actual feedback on this one from a student: “It’s like I have a powerful chess move for every scenario a potential client would throw at me. Very cool.“) - How to make your proposal look dirt-cheap, even if it’s the most expensive one on the job - The four things you MUST tell your client after they reply to your proposal if you want to get hired. (Two are the cost and when you can get it done by. The other two are far less intuitive but even more important) - A simple line to include at the end of a message to a client that makes it almost neurologically impossible for them to feel ‘in charge’ of the interview. (Best of all, you can ‘reuse’ this line in multiple messages, and you’ll have even the most ‘alpha’ client acting like they are applying to work with YOU!) - My 9-step outline for running job interview calls with clients — even if you’re a shy introvert - Why you should NOT accept a client’s first job offer when they send it, EVER!!! - A condensed version of the actual market research questionnaire I used with clients (stolen from my expensive Market Detective course) - How to use a free online tool to ‘flip’ job interview calls so YOU become the one interviewing the CLIENT! (This is an Upwork strategy I invented, and every single student I have taught it to has said it is pure genius … yet it’s almost so ‘obvious’, you will slap yourself for not having thought of it) - An 8-point checklist of what you must know before opening a contract - Sneaky techniques for delivering your copy so the client simply likes it more. (And no, it doesn’t involve FedExing the copy, or sending them wine … those things are awesome, but these techniques are all FREE.) - How to almost guarantee a gushing review after every project … and possibly even repeat work! - A trick for using Upwork to win copywriting work OFF Upwork — without getting banned! (Upwork has strict rules prohibiting taking your Upwork jobs off the platform … and they enforce them hard. But do what I tell you, and you will be fine.) - And way more (you’d be surprised at what I managed to fit into one hour)! Download Now Read the full article