#we love a luuk

[not-poignant]

Torn between wanting Luuk from Eversion, Gary from UtB, Pitch from TGAtNW, and Augus from… any which one 😩 why can’t fictional characters just be real?

I also very much want Temsen, Anton, and Flitmouse as friends.

Honestly yeah like some of these characters would drive me up the wall and then others are like 'actually... it'd be nice to make your literal acquaintance some day.'

Although I almost never want to meet Augus lol, I feel like he'd annoy me dslakfjsda *passes him to others*

[gigglegoobers]

manny sketches!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

coca gato makes us feel so ill, imma frow up.

[visualtaehyun]

Hi! If you don't mind me asking since you've been referred to in terms or maybe being able to explain Jane referring to himself as "phi" in the latest episode of the trainee could you maybe clarify in a detailed way what it meant? I've read different takes and I'm honestly so confused. Someone explained it as him basically speaking casually to Ryan and I thought that Ryan asking him to keep talking to him that way meant he was telling Jane he wanted to be closer to him without crossing the line too much. But then someone else said it was as if Ryan was telling him to speak to him as a lover would and I'm so confused and asking for a friend 😭

Hiya anon ✨️

Sorry for taking a bit to answer, I first needed to actually watch the show djshdhsjs but I'm here now and ready to explain!

Quick disclaimer, as per usual: I'm not a native Thai speaker, just a big nerd who's still learning!

Let's do some groundwork first and then zoom out on the show for a bigger picture!

Thai has a shit ton of pronouns and ways to refer to oneself and others and every choice communicates something about the speaker, the addressee and the relationship between them, and conveys different levels of formality, politeness, familiarity, respect etc. If you or anyone else is interested, here's a good detailed breakdown in English of common pronouns:

Now! As for The Trainee, all the interns call themselves ผม /pom/ and หนู /nuu/ (= polite respectful 1st pers. pronouns used by men and women, respectively, when talking to elders/seniors/superiors/etc.) and their mentors พี่ /phi/ (= 'older sibling', used as a 2nd pers. pronoun, informal but polite) except for Uncle Moo lol

Jane is the only one among the mentors and other staff at Good Pick who speaks formally with the interns and I love that choice because it is so in line with his character! But let's look at the others first for comparison:

Pah and Tae's mentors use กู /guu/ and มึง /meung/ (= impolite familiar 1st and 2nd pers. pronouns, respectively). These are really casual, vulgar even, and used between age mates or by someone older for someone younger, used with strangers or elders these are super rude.

Judy calls herself พี่ /phi/ (= 'older sibling', used as a 1st pers. pronoun, informal) with Bamhee from the get-go and mostly either omits a 2nd pers. pronoun or calls Bamhee by her name (= familiar). It sounds friendly and polite but not too distant or rude.

Jane uses ผม /pom/ (= polite respectful formal male 1st pers. pronoun) and refers to the interns as คุณ /khun/ (= polite formal 2nd pers. pronoun) or omits pronouns where possible. It both makes him sound formal and a bit distant - or at least a lot less familiar than the other mentors - but also elevates the interns in a way!

How to explain? It's like he's respecting the interns in their professional capacity by using these formal pronouns instead of looking at them as kids. In contrast, I've noted down other staff members calling the interns ลูก /luuk/ (= 'son/daughter/child'), น้อง /nong/ (= 'younger sibling', used as a 2nd pers. pronoun, informal) and เด็ก /dek/ (= 'kid'), for example.

All of these are meant to be friendly, of course, and create a casual familiar atmosphere. But with Jane being so dedicated, fair, serious about work, and making sure to include and respect the interns, the choice to have him use polite formal pronouns with them is really quite lovely to me. :)

It's like when he argued with the obnoxious extra in ep. 3:

ก็เด็กมันพูดรู้เรื่องที่ไหนอ่ะ เพิ่งหัดทำงาน ให้มาสั่งพี่ที่เป็นรุ่นแม่ /gaaw dek man phuut ruu reuuang thee nai a? pheerng hat tham ngaan, hai maa sang phi thee bpen roon mae/ อย่างน้อยเด็กมันก็ทำหน้าที่ในสิ่งที่ตัวเองได้รับมอบหมายมา /yaang naawy, 'dek man' gaaw tham naa-thee nai sing thee dtuua ehng dai rap maawp maai maa/

Or when he said he'll always apologize if he's at fault, regardless of age or hierarchy:

ถ้าวันนึงผมทำผิดกับคุณ ผมก็ต้องขอโทษคุณเหมื่อนกัน /thaa wan neung, pom tham phit gap khun, pom dtaawng khaaw thoht khun meuuan gan/ ไม่เกี่ยวว่าจะเป็นเด็กหรือผู้ใหญ่หรอก /mai giiao waa ja bpen dek reuu phuu-yai raawk/ = 'Kid' or 'grownup', that doesn't matter.

Sidenote for my fellow nerds: Jane has also called Ryan เรา /rao/ (= 2nd pers. pronoun, used by someone older for someone younger) at least once, when he was gently scolding him at the end of ep. 2. Jane emphasized that he's an intern (เราเป็นเด็กฝึกงานนะ /rao bpen dek feuk ngaan na/) and thus can't know everything, he needs to communicate with his mentor.

Moving on! Remember how both Pie and Baimon have commented on how it's starting to look like Ryan is Jane's favorite junior now? And that's just from what they've seen! We know more still-- like Jane personally taping down Ryan's shoelaces and also removing it again, inviting him to his place for food because he's hangry, giving Ryan his clothes, etc. etc. Most recently inviting him to dinner because he's hangry (again lol) on top of being mad! And that's another factor in this scene:

งอน /ngaawn/ = sulky, pouting, huffy, mad and ง้อ /ngaaw/ = try to make up, reconcile

You'll likely find this situation in most Thai romance media, be it series, lakorns, novels, songs, ... งอน-ง้อ /ngaawn-ngaaw/ is not limited to romantic relationships but it's definitely a trope in romance! For anyone who's like Huh???, I'll link this article in English:

So! Ryan is sulking (งอน /ngaawn/), jealous, and clearly wants Jane to care about him while Jane can tell that he's mad at him for some reason (and also hangry) and he wants to reconcile (ง้อ /ngaaw/). Note that Jane's tone is soft, he smiles a lot because he can tell that Ryan isn't seriously pissed, and he coaxes Ryan with a meal, gentle questioning, and then comes in with the steel chair as I saw someone put it lmao (🫵 if you're that someone, dear reader, I love you mwah):

ตกลงโ���รธอะไรพี่ /dtohk lohng groht a rai phi/ = So why are you mad at me?

If you've read this far, you can hopefully tell by now that Jane changing to พี่ /phi/, 1) makes him sound more familiar, relaxed, closer, and 2) is a sweet way to coax (ง้อ /ngaaw/) Ryan by showing him he does care about his feelings and wants to be closer to him. And the fact he so easily agrees when Ryan poutily insists and then nicely asks if Jane can keep calling himself พี่ /phi/ with him? 🥺 Who wouldn't indulge this baby boy!!

We're halfway through the show so a shift in their dynamic was overdue anyway! But to have it happen via a change in pronouns is very much my jam hehe Thank you @babyangelsky for the shoutout btw ☺️ It's gonna be interesting if Jane's gonna call himself พี่ /phi/ only outside of work/when it's just the two of them or really all the time, in which case I cannot wait for everyone's reactions to that shift 👀

Anyway! Hope this lengthy explanation and analysis helped, anon, but absolutely do feel free to ask more questions. I'm always up for yapping about Thai lol

[honey-dont]

stex month day 13: flat top!

favorite actors: SO many. ross dawes is my forever fave but i also love delano williamsen, dennis courtney, luuk hartog, todd lester, mark davis, richard mylan, marcel brauneis, and paul treacy! plus whoever played him in tuacahn, i've never been able to find a cast list </3

i think a lot of actors tend to play him pretty one-note so i love when people balance his jerk asshole side with his softer caring side! plus he's always fun comedic relief, shoutout to ross for smacking himself in the face with his own brick. and how can we forget dennistop's goofy helium laugh. love him

favorite songs/scenes: watching him mess around in freight and the blues is SO fun he's so funny <33 the lil spin and suspender snap paul does is adorable, also love him bothering this poor random woman in the audience with his brick. i mentioned ross above but him climbing around on the set like a jungle gym is so so cute!! also tuachan flats getting super excited to see rusty and waving at him!!

love literally all of his and dustin's interactions too, esp when he waves off the rockies for teasing him ough. their little goofy solo in freight!! <3

AND ofc all of his and rusty's interactions! him being a little shit to poppa and rusty jerking him back by his couplers....peak sibling behavior. love him giving rusty his helmet back after he gets beat up, esp how ross does it bc he doesn't tell him to give up!! he still believes in him!! brb exploding

him and poppa/momma are rly fun too, flat top is definitely their least favorite child but they still care about each other <3

honorable mentions to dinah giving him a cheek kiss too it's so cute

OH wait one last thing. when he hears about cb's plan and he looks SO disappointed in greaseball bc that's him finding out that his hero isn't who he thought he was and UGH. it's so good

wait i lied one more. him and rocky messing around during the megamix and throwing the brick to each other <3

favorite costumes: london!! oh my god all the little details are so good like he's quintessentially 80s london punk and it shows. his little socks! the steel toes on the skates!! the bigass frankenstein bolt collar <3 i'm especially fond of his earlier fluffy black & silver wig, it's adorable

i also loooveee the 3d glasses makeup but the bit where he just had graffiti scribbled all over his face is so funny like "hey what should we put on him to show that he's rebellious?" "just write SEX + DRUGS" "ok got it"

also brick on a chain my beloved <3 AND in late london where his belt was made of wood planks to show that he's a flatcar!! so good

i also have a fondness for on ice flats. his stupid nail boots. and tuacahn bc i respect the decision to put him in a crop top and chaps

favorite ships/friendships: flatdust is my train otp i love them i love them i love them <333 they have it all....friends to lovers....sunshine/grumpy....introvert/extrovert....good stuff. their friendship is so sweet to me bc they're total opposites and yet! special shoutout to that one boot where it genuinely looks like they're about to start making out onstage

i love him and rusty too, they're absolutely siblings to me and wind each other up all the time but they still care for each other! also him and cb in a frenemy situation bc cb thinks it's funny to push his buttons

his hero worship on greaseball is also really interesting bc it ties into his whole self-discovery arc imo

headcanons: he's physically the weakest of the freight and he absolutely has a chip on his shoulder about it </3 i hc him as a bulkhead so engines tend to dislike him too due to him being prone to derailing at speed, so he's desperate to prove that is he is cool and strong actually!! he's also like 5'4" without the boots lmao little guy

he's scared of thunderstorms but won't admit to it so dustin will hold his hand and pretend that he's the one who's scared ;-; he also helps dustin out in his garden sometimes but he sucks at it so he just gets to stand there and be moral support. guy who doesn't get the concept of seeds and will just rip up whole flowers for dustin to plant

also very rarely smiles bc he doesn't like his tooth gap :( dustin thinks it's cute tho

unpopular opinion: flat top is such an interesting character bc like. he does NOTHING and yet he has one of the strongest character arcs in the whole show! it's all about him figuring out who he is and where he belongs and it's so fascinating to watch unfold in the background. him racing with rusty in the final would've been such a good culmination of that

also i don't think this is unpopular but on my knees begging him to be punk again like that's his whole point

anyway sorry for writing an entire essay i'm normal about him.

(last two pics are commissions from arachnidal and sparemayonnaise!)

[starplusfourletters]

I finally finished the last command

and it was a romp (spoilers)

Chewie spends the whole book on the edge of a nervous breakdown but buddy you very much did that to yourself. Sure, you swear a life debt to a guy who turns out to be One of the People in the Galaxy That Things Just Keep Happening To. Bad luck, bound to happen sometimes. But then you decide that life debt extends to his wife knowing FULL WELL that Even More Things Just Keep Happening to HER, and then they go and have TWINS? That’s on you, bud.

Mara “I still do want revenge on Luke Skywalker yes definitely now hold that thought I need to go risk my life to save Leia and the twins” Jade. Mara you’re embarrassing yourself.

Actual conversation:

Leia: Thanks again for saving my life. Mara: Don’t thank me until after I’ve killed Luke which I still absolutely want to do. Leia: So uhhh why’d you do it? Mara: I’m just opposed to kidnapping. Leia: Were you kidnapped? Mara: I dOn’T wAnT tO tAlK aBoUt iT yes. Leia: ... Mara: YOU THINK THIS IS ABOUT MY TROUBLED PAST?? Leia: … Mara: BECAUSE IT’S NOT Leia: … Mara: Anyway here’s the information only I can provide that will turn the tide of the war. It’s free. Friends and family discount. Leia: Thanks. Mara: I’M STILL GOING TO KILL YOUR BROTHER Leia: That’s nice, dear.

MY KINGDOM FOR GHENT. His dad boss forgets to pick him up from AV Club so he spends two months wandering unrestricted through the capital building and then cracks Enigma because he’s bored

A TWELVE-DAY Character Bonding Hiking Trip??!? Zahn’s really outdone himself this time

WAIT THIS WHOLE TIME MARA DIDN’T KNOW LUKE AND VADER ARE RELATED?? Omigod that’s HILARIOUS. I mean, yeah, I guess it just never came up? And she didn’t watch the OT movies? That’s very funny to me for some reason. I definitely assumed she’d gotten that memo

Oh man it really feels like I should have seen that reveal coming and I absolutely did not. Gawd I love the 90s. Wowowowowowow. Chef’s kiss. I have so many questions about the Bespin janitorial system

“LUUKE” I’m dying

Admiral “It appears to be a trap.” Akbar

We interrupt your regularly scheduled Good vs. Evil Star Wars content to bring you “the two Evil factions getting in each other’s way vs the two Good factions getting in each other’s way until they all realize we’ve hit the end of the book and just start attacking everything indiscriminately”

The Climactic Battle Scene:

Luke: Fighting his clone! Han: Pew pew pew pew! Mara: Psychic defense! Psychic attack! Leia: Dual wielding blaster and lightsaber! Karrde: In the back, petting his doggos and talking on his phone I was legit worried about his safety in this book. But he's not dumb; he knows he doesn't have enough plot armor to take on the Big Bad. He is simply the best there is

Wedge / Aves is the rarepair I didn’t know I needed

RUKH!!

Oh thank God the doggos are okay

So as far as I can tell Thrawn made one mistake that wasn’t just bad luck and it was doing a shit job of getting Mara out of the way. The dude really should have had MORE of his enemies killed

Thesis statement: Aww Themb! <3

Now I just need to watch someone explain this series to Ep9-era Palpatine. Preferably in the style of Worthikids.

[casp1an-sea]

RANDOM THOUGHTS ON STAR WARS LEGENDS

These are just my opinions your welcome to have different ones

Han and Leia waiting to get married makes total sense! At the end of return of the Jedi the only time they’ve spent as a couple is when their relationship started in ESB and its continuation in ROJ most of which they were in battle. Yes Leia has been thinking about him for about a year now but she hasn’t been able to get closer to him in that time, and for Han it’s like not time has passed at all. Plus there’s still a fucking War going on that they very much are invoked in. Marriage is not on their minds, especially Leia’s. (Plus all the traumatic shit they have to process)

This is a message to both legends and canon LUKE IS GAY come on now 🥲

Mara was cool until she married Luke then the writers kind of screwed up her character

Han’s backstory WTF (it’s so sad but so good)

Can we get more Han and Lando buddy cop adventures?

I FUCKING LOVE CORAN HORN

Okay but those stormtroopers from Choices of One feel like The Bad Batch’s emo cousins

THRAWN IS SUCH A NEAT VILLIAN

I THINK NUSO ESVA IS NONBINARY. WHY? fanart

I think it’s rly funny that C-3PO gets given to Han

I love Anakin so much why did he have to die???? Also please Leia why did you insist on that name. Don’t get me wrong I love it but the pressure you put on this poor child. Han why’d you give in you idiot?

HAN IS SUCH A DAD

WHY ARE THEY LEAVING A DEPRESSED ALCOHOLIC HOME ALONE WITH C3PO AND A LIST OF BARS?????

I feel so bad for Han in courtship of Princess Leia. Should I?

Okay but let’s be clear Leia definitely cheated on Han with Isolder. Idc what she thinks that was, it was cheating.

I see a common theme of Leia being rly untrustworthy of Han until they get married. To like an unhealthy degree. What is this guys? I promise he’s not a bad dude.

remember that time where Luke made a submarine out of a dead creatures stomach skin? Yep I do.

lando’s mining facilities getting destroyed is such a funny gag

Did you notice Isolder’s daughter marries Han and Leia’s son? It’s like poetry it rhymes.

WHY IS BOBA FETT STILL HERE????

I love paradise snare but to me the hutt gambit was a dumbstruck fire

HUGE PET PEVE I HAVE WITH TATOINE GHOST! (Still love the book though) Forgiving and forgetting is not always the answer. Han does not need to forgive the republic. LEIA DOES NOT NEED TO FORGIVE VADER. Nor would Han push her to do so and he certainly would not condone the slaughter of tuskins because “he was a boy with a dead mother”. Well wouldn’t you know Han you’re a boy with a dead mother and you didn’t commit genocide. You have even less reason to forgive Vader than the twins. I block this out it was a bad writing choice.

HAN HAD A CHILD WITH BRIA???? I know when, but WHERE ARE THEY?! google was no help

“Must be nice to have a grandmother” LMAO HAN YOU OKAY BUDDY?

Is it bad of me to say I prefer the og force witches/dathomirians/dathomir/nightsisters to the canon ones?

WHY DOES FORCE LIGHTNIHNG NEVER ACTUALLY DO ANYTHING

LUUKE SKYWALKER? They’re so goated for that. OKAY BUT DID DAVE FILLONI READ THE REBEL FORCE SERIES? BRAINWASHED abducted children with no memory of their lives and family, solely devoted ASSASSINS to an ECCENTRIC IMPERIAL WITH A SUPERIORITY COMPLEX who wants favor with the emperor. And these assassins are called X-1, X-2, X-3, X-4, X-5, X-6, and X-7. This is why it should have been tech.

I thought Chewie’s death was impactful and I didn’t hate it

I like it better that Han and Leia didn’t divorce

I like that Han is a male wife and I love how close his children are to him. It makes sense that Leia would be the working one.

not them have a floor to ceiling length tapestry of Leia in a their house. That would scare the shit out of me at night.

I like that Leia is a senator and not a general. Okay hear me out. Leia is trained in diplomacy as much as she is in combat. She was a senator before she was a rebel. And she has always been very much involved in matters of state and would want to feel like she was actively doing something to keep the republic in check. The rebellion was not just a war to her it was making the Galaxy a better place that doesn’t end when the war for her so the natural next step would be a government position. Granted she still acts as a general if need be and goes far beyond her job description countless times.

THE NEW JEDI ORDER SERIES IS FUCKING CRAZY MAN

Can someone fo a demo of the song C-3Po wrote about Han?

[lajulie24]

5, 19, 27?

5. What’s a fic idea you’ve had that you will never write?

This is always a tough question to answer, because for most things I definitely like to think that if I like the idea enough I will probably write it…someday. So I guess I will answer with things I am unlikely to write?

I sometimes joke about the idea of a Sequel Trilogy fix in which we learn that the Han, Leia, and Luke from the new movies are not the real versions, they’re clones a la Luuke from the Thrawn Trilogy, while the real ones were never apart and are off having drinks with Lando or something. I probably won’t write that because it’s a little unlikely that they wouldn’t at least try to help fix the galaxy that their clones messed up, especially if the child of two of their clones is wrecking such havoc on everything. So it’s the kind of idea that works better as a joke than an actual story.

I’ve had a few ideas for modern AUs that I likely will never write, mostly because modern AUs are really tough to pull off! And I rather enjoy keeping Han and Leia and their friends in the GFFA.

19. Give us a small teaser from one of your WIPs.

Here, have a little bit of Han with a baby from the next chapter of A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing):

He suddenly missed his own mother terribly, and that wasn’t something he normally allowed to happen, outside of those times where he’d been sicker than a dog and praying for her or for death, whichever one arrived first. And he wasn’t sure why he wanted Ma here now– to witness this, or to help him figure out how to make something of this mess he’d managed to get Leia and this baby into.

He brought the baby closer, and kissed her gently on her forehead. She made another little eh noise, and he smiled.

“You need a name, Kid,” he said, grasping for nicknames. “Sweetheart. Baby. You see, ‘cause the kid is ‘Kid,’ and your mom is ‘Sweetheart,’ and I guess–” he chuckled at himself, recalling Luke’s joke from hours ago– “the Falcon is ‘Baby,’ so you need your own. Somethin’ good. Somethin’ strong.”

The baby’s eyes opened and seemed to focus on him again. That really didn’t seem like it should be possible yet, but Leia and Luke seemed to specialize in “things you shouldn’t be able to do but do anyway,” so maybe this was just part of the package with babies who had the Force.

Yeah, Leia’s eyes, for sure. No matter what color they ended up being.

27. Is there a fic you were nervous to post/share? Why?

I will admit to being nervous about posting almost every fic I write — excited, eager, can’t wait to share it too, but always a little nervous. It never goes away! And especially for fics where I’ve tried something a little different from what I often write. I was nervous about Epic Love because I was so excited to try to fix TFA the way I wanted it and it felt like a huge responsibility; I was nervous about The Book of the Lovers because it was a really different format from my usual; I was nervous about posting the first chapter of A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing) because it was a WILD premise; I’m always nervous about posting smut because I’m always worried about how well it actually worked.

Thank you so much for the ask!

Fanfic asks — “I’m bored and anxious so I slapped together a list of fanfic asks”

[juddygirl]

Baby just tease me, Got no family plan - Bella growing up - part 2

Bella asks about Demi one day after school. Out of nowhere, to Dan who picked her up while Max is at university. She’s five now, knows how to write her own name, her fathers and  has been planning her own birthday party for three months. She’s a young girl now, not the baby Daniel once met in the staircases of their old apartment building. She wants to become a veterinarian, specialising in Kangaroos. She’s more independent, living her own little life. 

Every school day when he picks her up, Daniel laughs at her little face, she always seems to have been on the battlefield, the two little piggy tails are long gone, her backpack barely hanging on her shoulders. She lost a hairband, and her jacket, even though Max had labelled all of her belongings. She always runs to him, arms already wild open for a hug. Except that day, she’s dragging her white tennis shoes on the gravel, shoulders slumps and arms at her side. Bella can’t ever hide what mood she’s in. Her big blue eyes land on Daniel, they are telling him she’s distressed, lost even. He picks her up swiftly, but she’s still not looking at him.  Daniel hates seeing her like that, it always breaks his heart. He doesn’t have time to ask what’s wrong.  

“Do I have a mommy?” Her eyes finally locking with his, she’s looking for answers in his eyes. He’d be surprised if she found any. 

“You do, princess,” He holds her tighter, not knowing what else to say, Max never talked much about his ex. 

He also doesn’t think it’s his place to let her know who her mother is, and why she isn’t here. 

They expected it, that inevitable question, they aren’t prepared for. They foolishly expected it when she’d be older, maybe six or seven. She never questioned the fact that she had two dads and most of her friends didn’t. Her understanding the concept of reproduction and that two men can’t physically have children should have happened much later on. Not now, not after school pick up, and not with Daniel.

“Luuk said we all have a mother. He said I was lying when I told him I have two dads.” She gets tears in her eyes, and holds back a sob that makes her jolt. Daniel kisses her cheek. 

Daniel knows how much she hates to be called a liar. He knows she got this from Max, their forehead creasing the same way when they are accused of it. 

She’s more upset about that than the whole mother thing. 

“Oh princess, sometimes it’s complicated.” She looks unimpressed. “How about that, we don’t let Luuk get to us. We go get waffles before going to the restaurant as a treat?”

She agrees. Once her stomach is filled with nutella waffles, she’s in a much better mood, and seems to have forgotten about Luuk and her mother. 

Daniel hasn’t, He texts Max about this, trying to soften the blow as much as possible. He doesn’t get a reply. 

They meet at the restaurant. It’s a tradition now. Every Friday, when classes end before seven, they have dinner with the Perez, Carlos and Mick. Bella’s order is already in, along with the other kids. She doesn’t go to play with them right away, she stays with Max, clinging to him. He usually asks her to go play, to give him some time to breathe, because she wants to smother him with love, but not today. They sat at another table, just the two of them, silent until she asked the burning question. 

“Who is my mummy?” She asks.

He had hoped to do this somewhere a little more private, maybe wait until they were home but he always said he’d tell her if she’d asked. He’s a man of his word. He pulls her little hair away from her face and pulls his phone from his pocket. He looks for the only picture he kept of her. A selfie of them three taken hours after Bella was born. Demi looks miserable, angry. She’s hunching, staring at the camera and ready to murder it.

Maybe it’s because he hasn’t seen it in years, or maybe he’s convinced himself that what he thinks happened is the truth, but if he zooms in he can see no real emotions on her face. He tries not to stare at it for too long, otherwise the burning feeling of betrayal and anger will come and spoil the story. He’ll let the emotions narrate it and she’ll believe what he says. He shows her the picture, tells her mother’s name is Demi. Bella struggles to believe she was once this tiny, but keeps looking at Demi, and Max wonders what she thinks. Can she understand Demi was just the person who birthed her? 

Bella doesn’t look like her, she’s all Max, same hair slowly turning brown instead of blonde, the ocean blue eyes, her temper is all Max. She has Daniel’s tenderness, his passion for speed. The Ricciardo raised her to care for animals, the Verstappen to be the fiercest person there could ever be. She’s got nothing from her mother, Max is sure of that. It’s only cells, half of her DNA, a name under mother on her birth certificate but it stops at that. 

“Where is she?” 

“I don’t know, baby girl. Last time I heard from her she was in America.” It’s true, he never really tried to find her, doesn’t think he should start now. If she really wanted to see Bella, she would have tried. “You know that you don’t need a mother. You’ve got Dada and me, and it’s more than enough.”

“I know, but Luuk said I was lying.” She argues back. 

“Papa will deal with Luuk Monday morning.” Max answers. 

It doesn’t sit right with him, none of it. He can’t explain it. But Max isn’t stupid. He knows she’ll want to know more, maybe not now, as she slides from his laps to go play with the other kids, but later, and he won’t know what to do. He wasn’t lying when he said he would let her know about her mother, but he hopes that she won’t try to look further than the pictures he has and the facebook page he checks once a year. 

He’s still scared she’ll come and try to take her away. 

“You’re all right?” Daniel asks, running a hand in Max’s hair. He melts into the touch and nods. A bold lie he’ll keep to himself. 

[isaterriblebore]

Stex Appreciation Month Day 25: Nationals (Part 1)

Ohohohoho my beloved Nationals ❤️

Time for some opinions that no one asked for or cares for 😔✌️

Favourite Actor

British Engine: Kevin Kohler, Luuk Hartog, and Anthony Cragg.

Bobo: Jeffrey Socia, John Williford, and Austin Garrett.

Coco: Molly McGuire, Jessie Angell, and Alexandra Regan.

Favourite Song/Scene

British Engine: I love his waddle and I love how he waves excitedly when Rusty comes on during crazy (this only applies to Brexit lol)

Bobo: I love his rivalry towards Espresso hehe

Coco: I love watching her in the race! That part her and Espresso are fighting each other.

Favourite Costume

British Engine: I prefer Brexit’s costume all the way. It just looks so nice with the colours and everything (apart from the gross neck tie)

Bobo: Bochum Bobo is my favourite! I also prefer when he’s just orange because orange is pretty.

Coco: I think she’s only had one costume? I like it though, very pretty.

Favourite Ship

British Engine: Brexit/Rusty and Brexit/Rocky 1.

Bobo: It HAS to be Bobo/Espresso. They’re literally husbands.

Coco: I like Coco/Belle the Bar Car ☺️

Headcanon

British Engine: I don’t know about the other engines but for Brexit I think he’s a bit of a germaphobe or a perfectionist. When I saw the show in March, I remember the gang messing with Brexit and he looks so frustrated as he brushed himself and fixed himself up. I’ve also noted that Brexit seems to be the only once who doesn’t really have any ill-will towards Rusty. At least the actor I saw, he always seemed reluctant to join in the taunting of Rusty which leads me to believe that he likes Rusty.

Bobo: One time he serves Espresso dried pasta from the packet instead of fresh and sauce out of a jar. Espresso wants a divorce.

Coco: I think the reason why Coco is so mean to Pearl and the other coaches is because she feels that coaches are inferior to her. Her being an engine makes her better if that makes sense.

Unpopular Opinion

British Engine: I prefer Brexit over the other British Engines. Prince of Wales and Milton Keyes just reminds me of a crusty old man 😔

Bobo: I don’t think I have any other than orange Bobo being superior 

Coco: I don’t mind her at all! It’s nice that we have a female engine now… though I miss Bobo

[moopjay]

ตั้งวง Dtang Wong Translation

Another translation today! This one is probably even worse than the last as I'm not as versed in Thai (and especially not in the bits of Isan this song tosses in!) but I love my cute little going on dates song and no one ever translates luuk thung so I thought might as well. Take with much salt!

ตั้งวง ตั้งวงกินข้าว ชักจะเมา ยอดข้าวอะไร

Let’s get together, let’s get together to get a meal, we're almost drunk, what should we get on top of our rice?

เธอบอกรักฉันมากมาย จะบอกให้รักเธอมากกว่า

You say you love me so much, I’ll just say I love you more

ไม่เชื่อก็ให้มองตา รักจริงนะ นะ I love you

If you don’t believe me, I’ll look you in the eyes, this is true love, I love you

เล่นเกมกันดีไหมเล่า แข่งกันเป่ายิ้งฉุบลองดู

Should we play a game together? See what happens after a round of rock paper scissors

ใครแพ้ชนะให้รู้ สู้ไม่สู้ แพ้เลี้ยงไอติม

We’ll see who wins and who loses, if you lose you have to pay for ice cream

ฉันชอบเวลาเธอยิ้ม กินไอศครีม รสวนิลา

I love it when you smile, eating vanilla ice cream

มาซิมาตั้งวงลั้นลา มาซิมาตั้งวงลั้ลลา

Come on, let’s get together, come on, let’s get together

เป่า 5 เป้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บหอมแก้มเลยจ้า

Playing five rounds (1) of rock paper scissors, the loser has to give a kiss and a sniff kiss

ข่อยฮักเจ้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบ ใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บเลี้ยงเหล้าสักแก้ว

I love you (2) rock paper scissors, whoever loses has to give a kiss and pay for a drink

ตอนกินเหล้า อะชนแก้วชนแก้ว

When we drink, we clink glasses

พอตอนเมาแล้วกะทางใครทางมัน ทางใครทางมัน

Once you’re drunk enough, you decide who won

ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา

Let’s go together, let’s go together

ทำงานรถติดเป็นบ้า หนูไม่ได้มาช้าคุณตรงเวลาเกินไป

After work the traffic is crazy, it’s not me who was late, you were just too on time

ขอโทษนะคะเจ้านาย มาสายนอนหลับโทรศัพท์กลับก่อน

I’m sorry, sir, (3) I came late then fell asleep 

เพราะว่าเป็นคนคออ่อน เพราะว่าเป็นคนคออ่อน

Because I can’t hold my alcohol

ศุกร์เมาเสาร์นอนอาทิตย์ถอนจันทร์ลา

Spent Friday drunk and Saturday asleep, Sunday I left and Monday I took the day off (4)

ลาลั้ลลาตั้งวงลั้นลา ลาลั้ลลาตั้งวงลั้นลา

Lalala, let’s get together, lalala, let’s get together

สวยขนาดนี้ทำไมถึงยังโสด

You’re so pretty, why are you still single?

ผมถามก็อย่าโกรธทำไมไม่มีแฟน

Don’t get mad at me for asking, why don’t you have a boyfriend?

เนื้อคู่ยังไม่เจอ ก็รอเธออยู่ไง

Because I hadn’t found my soulmate, I was waiting for you to show up

เหรอ ใช่แล้ว หวานเจี๊ยบ

Oh, really? That’s right! Too sweet

สอยสอยสอย นกแตดแต้บินข้ามโอ่ง

I pick you, the lapwing flies across the jar??? (5)

เรามาตั้งวงชนแก้ว ชนแก้ว

Let’s get together for a toast, cheers!

ฮึย จังซี่ก็ว่าสอย

Oh, I mean it, I pick you

เป่า 5 เป้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บหอมแก้มเลยจ้า

Playing five rounds (1) of rock paper scissors, the loser has to give a kiss and a sniff kiss

ข่อยฮักเจ้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบ ใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บเลี้ยงเหล้าสักแก้ว

I love you (2) rock paper scissors, whoever loses has to give a kiss and pay for a drink

ตอนกินเหล้า อะชนแก้วชนแก้ว

When we drink we clink glasses

พอตอนเมาแล้วกะทางใครทางมัน ทางใครทางมัน

Once we’re drunk enough we decide who won

ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา

Let’s go together, let’s go together

ทำงานรถติดเป็นบ้า หนูไม่ได้มาช้าคุณตรงเวลาเกินไป

After work the traffic is crazy, it’s not me who was late, you were just too on time

ขอโทษนะคะเจ้านาย มาสายนอนหลับโทรศัพท์กลับก่อน

I’m sorry, sir, (3) I came late then fell asleep 

เพราะว่าเป็นคนคออ่อน เพราะว่าเป็นคนคออ่อน

Because I can’t hold my alcohol

ศุกร์เมาเสาร์นอนอาทิตย์ถอนจันทร์ลา

Spent Friday drunk and Saturday asleep, Sunday I left and Monday I took the day off (4)

ลาลั้ลลาตั้งวงลั้นลา ลาลั้ลลาตั้งวงลั้นลา

Lalala, let’s get together, lalala, let’s get together

เป่า 5 เป้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บหอมแก้มเลยจ้า

Playing five rounds (1) of rock paper scissors, the loser has to give a kiss and a sniff kiss

ข่อยฮักเจ้าปักกะเป่ายิ้งฉุบ ใครแพ้ให้จุ๊บเลี้ยงเหล้าสักแก้ว

I love you (2) rock paper scissors, whoever loses has to give a kiss and pay for a drink

ตอนกินเหล้า อะชนแก้วชนแก้ว

When we drink we clink glasses

พอตอนเมาแล้วกะทางใครทางมัน ทางใครทางมัน

Once we’re drunk enough we decide who won

ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา ไปด้วยกันตั้งวงลั้ลลา

Let’s go together, let’s go together

I’m not certain what this means but five rounds makes sense.

I believe this part is in Isan and I don’t speak Isan at all so take it with a grain of salt. 

“Sir” is kind of a weird translation but it’s the best I’ve got. The line is pretty formal. In Thai (and presumably Isan) speaking formally with your partner is considered romantic.

I’m confident about the Friday/Saturday part, but not Monday/Sunday. 

I feel like this must be some sort of metaphor but it’s completely lost on me.

[ceolforthesoul]

The Soy Boys swap classic covers for their very own anthems for lovers

Helloooo lovely people and fáilte go dtí Ceol for the Soul -  The podcast that puts the warm and fuzzy feelings received from live music into words. For those of you who are new here, my name is Aisling — a singer-songwriter from the West of Ireland currently living in Groningen, a city in the north of the Netherlands. I am constantly in awe of artists succesfully managing to pierce my heart and bring me with them into their whimsical inner worlds while performing live. Ceol for the Soul is a space where I attempt to transfer the essence of the musical experiences I encounter to you through reviews, interviews and opinion pieces.

As usual, before I begin the episode - I invite you to pause this here for now and rejoin me after you have listened to a song from this week’s spotlight artist… The Soy Boys! This is the first time I get to introduce one of Groningen’s local gems to the podcast — and what a gezellig group to guide you into the city’s vibrant music scene. 

A new side to the once-cover band was unveiled at a sunkissed Noorderzon performance last August. With a Spotify release of two original songs a few months later, The Soy Boys revealed the unexplored musical destinations they wanted to reach. So go ahead and follow the path they have begun to pave by listening to one or both of their released tracks --- which I hope stop you in your tracks to dance your heart out.....

What struck you most about The Soy Boy’s sound? Did your mind wander to any unexpected places while listening? Can you imagine the electricity produced by these songs while being played live? 

This liveness and the band's continued discovery of sounds can be envisioned while I reflect on The Soy Boy’s most recent concert...

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

A band’s name that matched countless stickers painted on my student house walls appeared on the Instagram story of Simplon, a popular music venue in the city. Every Thursday Simplon UP gives its stage to UP and-coming artists in Groningen — the 14th of March was The Soy Boy’s turn. There was no doubt that I wanted to go and support Wout, the band’s lead singer who I’ve gotten to sing alongside myself several times over the years. His bandmates whose friendship outside that label is evident are guitarist Tom Horowtiz, drummer David Hübner and bassist Luuk van Keeken. This was the first time I got to experience a Soy Boy set full of originals and the band's evolved identity was quite literally written all over the performance. 

The Soy Boys swapped classic covers for their very own anthems for lovers. For forty-five attentive minutes, we were transported into the minds and lives of the band like never before with no emotions being spared. Arriving to an already captivated crowd at the end of their first song reflected the soulful and sentimental atmosphere that lasted the entire night. The second song 'Lucky" was a charming and warm welcome --- I felt exactly like its title for being able to catch it. Tom’s rising guitar riffs amplified the meaning of Wout’s words as he sang “Tomorrow’s gonna be a bit better, it doesn’t have to be this hard” — the first glimpse into the playful call-and-answer conversations that Tom and Wout would have between voice and guitar throughout the show.

This joyful chatter thrived in ‘New Shoes’, one of the grooviest numbers of the night - letting loose and surrendering to the move and flow of the absorbed audience was the only option. Then David abandoned his drumsticks for a guitar and brought the band (Tom especially) to an incredible bluegrass-inspired melody. The Soy Boys' commitment to experimentation and having fun with the endless musical capabilities that can reveal their hearts was bleeding through every note.

Aiste, The Soy Boy's manager blessed us with the lyrics of ‘Bright & Blue’, “We used to think dreaming too big was too small” and many more of her heartfelt lines floated longingly beside Wout’s soothing synth. The words of someone close to The Soy Boys radiating through the band captured a deeply personal feeling that the lyrics of a stranger could not.

'Everything a Little Bit’ was a well-chosen way to wind down the evening while simultaneously winding it up with the heightened energy this song created. A very impressive extended ‘looooooveeeeeee’ from 'Only a Weekend Though' closed the set and encapsulated the overarching theme of the night. The Soy Boys' breakthrough into original material has put all of their hearts on the sleeves of their colourful shirts.

[asteroids-and-tractorbeams]

I am well aware this is an unpopular opinion and no one but me actually wants it, but I desperately desperately want an evil Ezra clone to be revealed in a shocking twist in the Ahsoka show or the Mandalorian s3

[softieskywalker]

Can I just say how much I love that all those incidents of Luke throwing shade revolve around Han? 😂 Also, don't be giving me Heir to the Empire feels in this Chili's tonight! Skywalker-Solo children I would have actually ENJOYED seeing on the big screen. Maybe it'll be revealed that Uncanny Valley Luke is actually Luuke, and Din has to go rescue real Luke, and they fall in love along the way. 😂 We can pretend, right? Maybe they'll snag Ezra along the way.

Already on my way to write Din's sidequest that takes him to Coruscant where he tracks a mysterious bounty to this strange gay club where people seem to party all day all night without ever stopping to even go to the bathroom and is that Skywalker, Grogu's teacher? what is he doing here??? maybe he should talk to him but the music is nice and the drinks are all free and the guy is actually really hot and fun to talk to and wow what it's been three days???? what do you mean you don't know who Grogu is? your student!!! your jedi foundling or whatever!! what do you MEAN you don't have students!!! i was JUST in your school with ahsoka!! WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW WHO AHSOKA IS. ok we're getting out of here. are you ok? yes? what year? oh. i guess it's been two years for you, huh. what a blasted place. yeah maybe you should call your sister... fuck this is awkward. uhm. ok this is a long story but someone is pretending to be you? i think? but they're a lot less chatty than you. i don't care if that's rude it's true, he's just... kinda robotic? doesn't smile much? yeah he talks like a droid. mmmh. maybe he is a clone. fuck. we should go rescue grogu. yes he's my son. this is so weird. wait what if this clone is evil. I DON'T KNOW IF HE'S A CLONE OF A DROID. MAYBE HE'S BOTH. I DON'T KNOW BUT HE HAS MY SON. we should contact ahsoka she can help, she doesn't know!!! yes call your sister i don't know how she can help but... she's also a wizard? jedi, whatever. ok, ok.... this is a mess. boba was right, this jedi shit is a lot. huh? yeah boba fett. no, no, he's my friend!! huh? well if he captured him it was probably because he was a criminal, that's what bounty hunting is about. that's his problem! uh, i don't know who vader is, i dont' care. what? you know what? how about we sit down for a while, you seem confused... yes. this is a lot.

[not-poignant]

Masterlist of playlists for the writing of Pia Foxhall / Not_Poignant / thespectaclesofthor

So here’s the currently complete list of Fae Tales, SAL and other fic playlists that are publicly available (casual reminder that you need to be a member of Spotify to hear these I’m pretty sure? I’m sorry Spotify sucks that way):

Underline Series:

Underline the Black

Underline the Blue

Underline the Gold

Underline the Red

Underline the Silver

Fae Tales Stories

Game Theory (based on the first half only, afterwards I transitioned to listening to character playlists because Augus’ perspective was hard to ‘feel out’ at first.) The Court of Five Thrones The Ice Plague The Ice Plague (instrumental) The Ice Plague #2 The Ice Plague #3 Strange Sights Hard Edges (never written) The Spoils of the Spoiled Falling Falling Stars

Constellations Tradewinds (unpublished) Sealstorm (unwritten)

Fae Tales Characters

Gwyn ap Nudd Augus Each Uisge Augus & Gwyn (mostly angst or love songs) Ash Glashtyn Gulvi Dubna Vajat Mosk Manytrees Eran Iliakambar The Raven Prince Julvia Dubna Vajat The Nightingale Terho the Mouse Lad Mikkel the Reader (this playlist never failed to make me cry, because I always shaped it with his whole arc in mind).

Mallory & Mount

Mallory & Mount - Woodsinger Mallory & Mount - Lewis Mount Mallory & Mount - Mallory

Other Original Fiction: (unwritten)

The Lucent Vexteria

Daemonos

Glamour Gods

The Zoo of Last Wonders

Rise of the Guardians

The Golden Age that Never Was From the Darkness We Rise Into Shadows We Fall SAL Jack Frost SAL Pitch Black / Kozmotis Pitchiner

Other fanfiction A Stain that Won't Dissolve Palmarosa

Stuck on the Puzzle

A Game We Can Try Cold Red Light (unwritten, but playlist is fleshed out for when I’m ready to start) The Beast that Chose Its Own Bridle Eversion

Perth Shifters

Blackwood (Coll/Braden) Gentle Wolf (Aodhan/Thomas) Hunter’s Luck (Hunter/Luuk) Seamus and ??? Hardy and Dazza

Jesse and Mal

You can also search me by username: Pia Ravenari. I have other playlists public too. I’m a huge playlist/music person basically.

I honestly thought way more of these were public, so I suspect that Spotify glitched at some point and made over half of my playlists private. *sighs heavily* Oh well, links are up! I also have playlists for other original stories that I’m working on, like The Zoo of Last Wonders.

[communistkenobi-archive]

Oh man I remember like the earliest Star Wars fandom stuff I got into online was just before AotC released and the OB1 abbreviation for Obi Wan was a big part of this whole “the Ben Kenobi from the OT is a clone of the original and OB1 is his serial number” fan theory that actually dated to the late 80s/early 90s but still had a vocal following even after TPM solidly established Obi Wan was in fact his actual name and they were so certain that the scene with him captured by Dooku was going to be AotC’s equivalent moment to the Vader reveal from ESB. Think it all originated from Timothy Zahn’s original plan that Joruus C’baoth in the Thrawn trilogy was going to be a Kenobi clone but anyway yeah nostalgia from a really dumb era

yoooo that rules actually I really love hearing old fan theories!!! and honestly it’s not at all a stretch given that we have shit like luuke skywalker

[luukeskywalker]

at the very least, luuke skywalker was loved today, not just by me but by everyone (at least 250 whole people!!) who voted for him. even if you didn't really know him, you showed him that love anyways. we gave him a fighting chance! thanks for indulging me everyone, it's been a crazy and fun 24 hours 🥰