#And then her boss (who is also my bosses boss) either feeds into that or exacerbates it
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So anyways my plan for the next two months is to kickass at work while I get another job and then leave their asses.
#I'm so mad about this#I've been at this company for 6 years and for the most part everyone I've worked with has been great#Easy to get along with. Smart. Caring.#I've had some not so great bosses and every once in a while I've encountered problem people#But repeatedly one person (not in my vertical but a key person in my org)#Has repeatedly made me feel like shit. Even if she claims to mean well or whatever#I absolutely never feel like we're ok the same team. It always feels like it's her team or death#Which is not an environment I thrive in#And then her boss (who is also my bosses boss) either feeds into that or exacerbates it#I wish I had had the words during our engagement survey because I'm not the only one who feels this way#So many people go into a meeting with her expecting to talk about one thing and instead she asks for something else entirely#It consistently feels like she has no trust in her team and she does not want to foster a culture of 'we're in the same team'#She is fostering a culture of 'im the boss so I'll dictate exactly what I want and I am free to change it at any time'#So. Anyways. If you know of companies hiring in their product or portfolio space hit me up.#I spent 10 hours trying not to cry at work today and then had three separate little cries#Going to going with my boss a little about taking a week off soon#He's going to be alarmed and concerned but like. He should be.#(my boss is generally great my only complaint is that he hasn't figure out how to work with his boss yet so that's compounding my issues.#But that is not all on him. And he has never once made me feel like we're not on the same team)#Blah blah ok. Tomorrow I work and then do the life shit I didn't do today#The day after that I do a second pass at my resume#And use a working block at work to figure out what I want (and sketch out my teams pain points and potential solutions)
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"You know, Zhongli, before we got married, I used to fantasize about you quite a bit!"
"Is that so?" Zhongli kisses your forehead, a small smile on his face. "Tell me about these fantasies, my love, and then I shall tell you mine as well."
You grin. "I used to dream of being sold to Rex Lapis by my mother so she could pay off her debts!" Zhongli pales; you continue cheekily, "Sometimes I'd swap the selling part for being kidnapped by Rex Lapis, hehe. In either scenario I'd resist you at first, but your alluring and mysterious charms would pull me in, and you'd reveal to me in a heated moment that you were not just a god but also an alpha mafia boss who'd fallen in love with me the moment you had seen me put my hair in a messy bun!"
The god is too stunned to speak.
"And while you're marking me at night as dragons do, you'd also reveal that you're a vampire and an incubus who needs to breed me whilst drinking my blood! And also you'd growl huskily at all your rivals if they tried to touch me, immediately killing them all so we live happily ever after!" You wiggle proudly. "So what about yours?"
Zhongli gulps. "Ah...mine involved holding you close and feeding you sweets in a field of flowers and singing birds."
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Say It Again (Charles Leclerc x Reader)
Hey y’all, so I wanted to indulge myself into this and hopefully you like it as much as I did.
Charles Leclerc, the man, the myth, the prince of Formula One, and the one that has the spotlight on him not only for his excellent driving skills but also for his baby blue eyes that sparkled like precious jewels, men wish to be him and women would kill to be with him, to grow up with such pressure of having to succeed but also the sweet taste of privilege in your mouth was a combination destined for chaos.
Until she came, his (y/n), a young lady who was on the marketing team for Ferrari, he could still recall the day they met, it was at the Grand Prix in Indonesia, and it was her first time at an event like this as a guest of the company, she was wearing a sundress and her hair was down, the smile of excitement reminded him of his first race in formula one, how her eyes sparkled with curiosity at anything she gazed, how the tattoos decorated her skin and the golden evil eye necklace along with golden earring complimented her.
“Charles this is (y/n), our newest employee”
“Pleasure to meet you”
“Likewise, you have an accent”
A subtle shade of red appeared on her cheeks as her focus shifted from him to the ground and then back up, her lips went into a thin line before the smile came back again, he didn’t mean to insult her, he was just curious.
“English is not my native language”
“It is not mine either, where are you from?”
“Well my father is Italian but my mother is Greek, I was born in Italy, I grew up in France though, my father was in the military so you know, speaking a bunch of different languages was the normal-“
“let’s move on, shall we? I'm sure Charles would like a moment of peace before the race, make Ferrari proud”
The conversation was rudely interrupted by (y/n) 's manager who ushered her away from the driver, Charles was not bothered by her rambling in the slightest, actually, he was fascinated by it, he did not meet a lot of people who could speak to him so casually, yes he could see that most of her talking was from how excited she was but still, it was what made her stand out.
Soon her laughter was heard around the box and her colorful Instagram stories were the reason he would refresh his Instagram feed, he loved observing her, how she always asked her colleague if she wanted coffee and then refused to take money for it.
“I asked you if you wanted it”
Was what (y/n) would always say, (y/n) also had this cute thing of kissing the top of her colleague's head since she was taller, how her two front teeth would semi-appear when she smiled, and how she cracked her knuckles every time she pitched an idea to her boss or how her eyes welled with tears when someone raised their voice at her, yet she kept her voice turn and spoke up for herself.
“I will not allow you to talk to me like this”
She was just, (y/n), she was honest and raw to herself, a rare thing for someone her age.
That is why when they were in Monaco for the weekend race and (y/n) sat next to him on the yacht he wasn’t surprised that she leaned and laid her head on his shoulder.
“Nervous?”
“A bit, I have to make my homeland proud”
“You don’t have to make your homeland proud, you have to make yourself proud, right?”
“I suppose”
“Prince Leclerc, always so… so… sterile”
“Pardon?”
Charles asked as his eyebrows raised from what she had just said, (y/n) 's infectious laugh erupted and her hand went up to cover her mouth as usual.
“je veux dire, tu es toujours aussi tendu, je ne pense pas t'avoir déjà vu te détendre” (I mean, you're always so tense, I don't think I've ever seen you relax)
Her voice was so different in France, Charles guessed because she didn’t have to translate the whole thing in her head or perhaps the champagne was making her a tad bit drowsy.
Charles smirked at her and nodded his head, she was right, Charles sometimes could not even sleep before a race, melatonin had become his best friend when he started driving for Formula One, he had sneaked a bottle of it in his bedroom so his parents wouldn’t see it.
“pouvez-vous me blâmer?” (Can you blame me?)
“No”
It was a simple answer, barely above a whisper, yet when she raised her eyes at him, something in him sparked, in a snap everything went quiet and all he could hear was her shallow breathing, instinctively his hand went up to caress her cheek, her flesh hot against his index finger and (y/n) felt like electricity drew through her body, she could only guess this was the sensation of a deer caught in headlights, needing to pull away but frozen on her spot.
“Belle” (beautiful)
After that word (y/n) lost all composure, leaning in to just let her lips rest on his, waiting to see his reaction which was to of course deepen the contact, and what was once a hesitant and soft kiss went to passionate open-mouthed make out in a blink of an eye, his hand found the back of (y/n)s neck to keep her in place whilst (y/n) gripped on his shirt firmly.
It was only when Charles went down to her neck to leave a trace of butterfly kisses that (y/n) could finally breathe.
“Oh my”
When Charles heard her voice it felt like he was pulled out of a spell, though incredibly aroused suddenly he was pulled out of his dreamland and back to the yacht, a yacht filled with people, her coworkers, other drivers, anyone and everyone could feast upon them with their hues.
(Y/n) felt like she was pushed into a bath filled with ice at the immediate stop of his lips, stripped away from all the endearments her eyebrows furrowed with confusion, her immediate response was to think that he was just teasing so one could imagine her surprise when she leaned in to kiss him and his hand went up to her chest to keep her from coming any closer.
“I don’t understand”
“I must go”
“Charles-“
“I must go, now”
After that incident Charles's demeanor did a complete 180, he could barely look her in the eye, avoiding (y/n) 's presence at all costs by pretending he was busy or there was somewhere he must go, her laugh was now at a distance and he was usually way too far to see the wrinkles on her eyes when she smiled.
They were pretty distant colleagues so their paths didn’t cross all the time, however, they were still under the same label and that meant that they were both invited to the New Year dinner and after-party that Ferrari held, to celebrate the upcoming year.
Charles looked dapper in his suit, the man is a walking doll so no one was surprised, on the contrary, they expected him to show up looking sharp, on the other side (y/n) had knocked it out of the park, she had splurged on the wonderful dress that did wonders for her figure and not only that but the perfume she had on was like you dived head first to a blooming garden, it was hard for Charles to keep his eyes off from her and for the most part he had succeeded, until her manager rose from his seat, lighting tapping his glass and gave an utterly dull speech.
“And on that note, I would like to raise a toast to our wonderful (y/n) and announce that she has decided to not renew her contract with us, we wish her the best at her new company Mercedes, and we gave her solid growth to learn and now I am certain she will make us proud”
Charles's eyes shot up at (y/n) who kept a subtle smirk and nodded in gratitude for the great wishes for her future, it seemed as if she was leaving on mutual and respectful ground which was wonderful for her career though not for Charles.
(Y/n) felt uncomfortable for the whole dinner, a pair of eyes that spewed fire towards her compelled her to shift on her seat, that was until everyone moved to the terrace with the slightest of a breeze and the jazz music along with the breathtaking view.
Charles had been drinking more than he should have as he still looked over (y/n) like a hawk, he was ready to talk to her when once again Carlos beat him to it and approached something Charles wanted first.
“So it is true, you are leaving us”
“You make it sound so dramatic Carlos, it was a good opportunity”
“I bet it is, anyone would do anything to have you on their team”
“I am not so sure about that”
She mumbled, it had been months since the Monaco incident yet it still stung like hell, it was partially the reason she even considered moving to Mercedes, being in another company meant she could avoid her torture that listened to the name of Charles much easier and maybe she could even forget anything ever happened.
“Don’t undermine yourself, it doesn’t suit you”
“And what does mister Sainz?”
“Are you asking for the appropriate answers or are you feeling risky?”
“tu me déçois ma chérie, je n'aurais jamais pensé que tu abandonnerais si facilement, je suppose que tout le monde n'est pas fait pour ça” (you disappoint me my darling, I never thought you would give up so easily, I guess not everyone is cut out for this)
Charles rudely interrupted the pair, (y/n) turned to look at him with an expression that made her annoyance clear as day, her one eyebrow raised and her jaw tightened, how dare he say something like that? Mercedes was one of the most respectable brands out there and he spat on it like he wasn’t racing for Haas not too long ago.
“c'est drôle, je pourrais dire la même chose de toi et je ne me souviens pas t'avoir demandé ton avis, and in English please, it is such bad manner to speak in a language that someone you interrupted can’t understand” (it's funny, I could say the same thing about you and I don't remember asking your opinion)
“It is alright (y/n), Charles is young, he will learn to have some respect one day”
“And you think you deserve that?”
“Charles, you are making a scene”
“I didn’t do anything, I was speaking to you, not to him”
“You once again tried to butt in somewhere you don’t belong”
“And you do?”
“Hey, this is enough, I’m sorry Carlos I’m going to take Charles away from here”
“I’m not going anywhere”
“I didn’t ask you”
(Y/n) grabbed Charles by the wrist and dragged him away from all the prudes and eyes, if they raised their voices just a little bit more they would have ended up on every tabloid there is and that would have been a catastrophe for everyone that was involved.
Charles only smirked in triumph as he was being dragged away by a frustrated (y/n) and shoved into a bathroom before she closed the door behind her, her hand went up to her temple so she could rub circles in hopes that it would soothe the massive headache due to the annoyance this whole incident had caused.
“How stupid can you be? Why are you acting like this?”
“Like what?”
“Like an arrogant piece of shit, what was the meaning of this?”
“I wanted to talk to you”
“So you resided to insulting me?”
“I did not”
“Cut the shit Leclerc”
“I did not! I just… why were you talking to him?”
He sounded more like a spoiled little kid who saw his favorite toy being in the arms of another kid than an actual adult which caused (y/n) to pause as she took one small step back from Charles who had leaned on the sink with his arms on his side supporting him.
“You are so… you left me there that night, ran off like somebody was chasing you and now you dare to act like this? No”
“(Y/n) you don’t-“
“I don’t what? Understand? You are the one that fucking left me there, I looked like a fucking fool in front of everyone, you know how humiliating that was? To walk into my job the next day when everyone looked at me with pity or judgment? No, cause nobody would dare to do that to Prince Charles Leclerc, he can do whatever he wants”
That was when he could finally see past his nose, the veil of ignorance was lifted from his eyes and he could finally stare at the cold truth, he had done it to protect her, shield her reputation from the harm of sleeping with a coworker, he thought he was acting selflessly by refusing to do what he wanted to do the most, touch her.
In the meantime he had managed to make her the butt of the joke, poor little girl got dumped by Charles, he bit his lip wishing that if he bit enough the would turn back time and take it all back.
“Say something”
“I’m sorry”
He responded on impulse, his words were enough to bring tears to her eyes, from the exhaustion of pretending to be fine and not listening to the whispers, from the tough act of not caring about Charles, from the cathartic emotion of the apology, all these mashed together made her little marbles full of water.
“Ma belle dame” (my beautiful lady)
He whispered to her as he reached with his arms to pull her in a hug, (y/n) 's forehead collided with his chest when his hand went up to caress her hair, tears streamed from her eyes and stained his button up in the process, a few small whimpers escaped her lips and her body trampled.
The sensation of guilt was the worst of all for Charles, it overtook his entire body like venom, spreading through his veins rapidly yet he had to be there for her, it was the least he could do after the mess he had created.
“I’m so stupid, I did it to help, to- I didn’t want you to be labeled as anything”
“The minute your lips touched mine all of that was thrown out the window, and honestly I think you made it worse”
“I know, I didn’t mean to do any harm”
“You never do, that’s the problem”
Her hands found his cheeks as she stared into his blue eyes that had captivated her and half of the female population, time froze for them at that moment, his hands gripped her waist tighter as he swallowed the lump in his throat, she was so beautiful even under the harsh fluorescent light of the bathroom.
“You changed your perfume”
“I did”
“I Haven’t been able to smell your perfume since-“
“Which one was I wearing?”
“It was floral, this one is like you are dripping with caramel”
“I’ll take that as a compliment”
“They are probably looking for us”
“Do you want me to leave?”
She whispered, her voice low and erotic, she knew that the answer would be negative, the way his eyes focused on her lips told her everything, her aura was sucking him in forcing him to remain in his spot.
“I missed you”
“Say it again”
“I missed you, mon beau” (it translates to my beautiful but I’ve been told it’s used as a nickname)
“You sound sexier in French”
“I will sound even sexier when I have you naked”
“Is that a promise?”
“More like a statement”
“Cocky aren’t we?”
“embrasse-moi” (kiss me)
“What?”
“You heard me”
“I did, I just want you to say it again”
“embrasse moi, s'il te plait” (kiss me, please)
Charles pleaded, (y/n)s lips curved into a devilish smile before she brushed her lips against his, she was hoping to tease him though she had seemed to forgotten Charles was a formula one driver, his reflexes were too fast for her and swiftly he bit her bottom lip to suck her in.
(y/n) wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him as close as humanly possible, the kiss followed the path of the last one, passionate like two people that desperately wished to quench their thirst for one another, his lips traveled down to her neck, his breath was enough to earn moans and grunts as her sensitivity peeked through the roof, Charles had lost track of everything, time and place did not matter and naturally he wanted more, so he lifted her off the ground and on to the bathroom sink, positioning himself between her legs as his hands roamed all over her body.
“Look at you, so eager”
He teased her once her hand went over his aroused manhood over his pants, a little giggle escaped her but she didn’t seem to shy away or stop, her fingers finding the button quite easily and pulling his pants down as fast as possible.
(Y/n) had seemed to make it quite easy for him since the dress was easily pulled up to her waist and her panties ripped apart without even having Charles put all of his strength into it.
His tip grazed over her making (y/n)s head go back and hiss from anticipation.
“(Y/n)?”
A voice called for her after an abrupt knock, her eyes shot open from the shock and so did Charles, time had flown by and naturally people started to look for them.
“Y-yeah?”
“Are you ok? Where’s Charles”
“I’ll be out in a second”
“We can’t find Charles”
“I don’t know where he is”
Charles snickered in a low note at her smooth lie and the result was a smack on the biceps by (y/n) whose blood had gone cold in her veins from the fear.
“Alright”
They both waited for a minute hoping the person had away before they burst into laughter from the close call.
“How much do you think we have?”
“Maybe 10 minutes tops”
“I need only 5”
“I was hoping you would say that”
Requests are open!
#charles leclerc x female reader#charles leclerc drabble#charles leclerc fic#charles leclerc fluff#charles leclerc imagine#charles leclerc x you#charles leclerc blurb#charles leclerc fanfic#charles leclerc#charles leclerc x reader#charles leclerc one shot#formula one#formula one imagine#f1 one shot#f1 x reader#f1 x female reader#f1 x y/n#f1 x you#f1 fanfic#f1 fic#f1 imagine#Spotify
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The Fine Print
dpxdc universe travel fic part number unknown Who is Danny's mother? Helena Bertinelli - The Huntress of Gotham. Because I thought it was funny that one of Constantine's love interests lives in Gotham. Does this make Danny a Gothamite? Yes. Yes it does.
Danny loved his new mother. She was a complicated woman with hidden depths and a moral code only she could really try explaining. She was a Hero, but also a crime boss, and was friends with a few supervillains, Danny wasn't going to try wrapping his head around how that worked he just knew that it did.
The first time Danny did something magical adjacent, he was a baby. He didn't really remember it, how his new mortal body was adapting to his endless source of magic from the Infinite Realms. Mama got videos though, after the first time she found him floating near the ceiling of his nursery.
Then Danny got older, and the first demon showed up to claim him. Mama had been feeding him when it happen, a very inconvenient situation all things considered. The demon head was displayed in the parlor room, Mama's line in the sand so to speak.
Mama did her best to protect him. She killed anyone, from any realm, that thought to take Danny from her. She brought him along to meetings, criminally inclined and otherwise.
That was how Danny got a hold of Krypotine. He was three when he first stole a glowing rock, and found it was like candy. He'd been sitting on his mother's lap while she and a few hero coworkers discussed a recent metor shower of the dangerous rock, a few scattered on the conference table.
Danny had been overwhelmed with an impulsive need to put the glowing rock in his mouth.
Climbing onto the table. Crawling toward the center, where the rocks were. Picking one up.
It was pretty tasty, like a sour jaw breaker covered in cinnamon pop rocks.
"Did he just-"
"Yep,"
Danny ignored the adults, as he vanished the candy rocks into his personal pocket demsion.
"And he just-"
"Yep."
The other Heroes looked to the baby's mother. Danny kept sucking on the candy rock in his hand, big blue eyes watching them with pure innocence.
"What do you have there Danny?" Mama asked.
"Candy,"
"And is it safe for you to eat?"
Danny nodded, his eyes flashing green
"You can't just let him eat Kryptonite, Huntress, you know that stuff is -"
"My son is a powerful warlock of some sort, with the voice of a space God in his head or some such nonsensical magical bullshit. If the space divinity says Danny is safe eating it then it's fine."
The only 'space divinity' in Danny's head was his own conscious but it wasn't like she knew that, and it didn't make her statement false either.
"That doesn't make sense! It's radioactive!"
"Nothing about my kid makes sense."
Danny watched the very important meeting between Heroes devolve into petty arguments and rising old grudges.
Then Mama pulled out her crossbow.
☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆|☆| Tag list attempt 1
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anthroponymy in the bear
Apologies if someone's done this already, but I've been thinking a lot about the names of the characters in The Bear, and how almost nothing in this show is accidental. It's led me to wonder whether the names chosen are also intentional and if they can tell us anything about the characters and their journeys.
Firstly, we have Michael. The name is derived from a Hebrew phrase meaning ‘who is like god’ (often posed as a question). It’s fitting in my opinion. His character certainly is a godlike presence, his influence and love felt but not seen in The Beef. As the eldest sibling, he’s presented as a leader, and Carmy and Richie worship his vision.
There’s a creation aspect with Mikey. He plays god from beyond the grave, literally breathing life into The Bear through the money he stashed in the tomato cans - we have him to thank for its establishment.
The tomatoes remind me of the bible story of the feeding of the five thousand. In this miracle, Jesus is able to feed five thousand hungry people from just a few loaves of bread and a few fish. In ep 1.08, a humble tin of tomatoes - just as much a symbol of modesty as a loaf of bread - is opened to reveal a wad of cash. From this money comes The Bear, which hopefully will go on to feed just as many hungry mouths, if not more!
Interestingly, 'michelin' is a diminutive of 'Michel', an alternate spelling of Michael. I wonder if there's a connection there? Maybe the key to The Bear earning its Michelin star will lie with Michael? A recipe of his, or a piece of advice he gave Carmy? (Sidetracking, but I just think it’s cool!)
Next, we have Carmy, who’s full name is Carmen. I’ve looked at a few sources, and there seem to be a couple of different meanings for his name. The Latin meaning comes from the word for a song or a poem. The Hebrew meaning is garden or vineyard.
‘Song or poem’ to me reflects Carmy’s creative nature, his love of cooking and drawing. ‘Vineyard’ is interesting, considering that Donna is an alcoholic, and that as far as we know, Carmy is either sober or drinks very little.
Carmen is also a gender neutral name. For me, one of the significant themes of the show is masculinity, and how different ideas of masculinity are warring with each other. To me, Mikey and to an extent Richie represent one particular masculine ideal, one that’s maybe a bit toxic. Carmy meanwhile is not painted as the stereotypical masculine guy. Richie often insults Carmy’s masculinity, jeering at his culinary training, being homophobic, making fun of his lack of experience with women.
There’s so much I could say about this dichotomy, even right down to the dishes that are associated with each character. Richie’s idea of The Beef serving ‘food of the working man’. The sandwiches - their red meat fillings. Mikey’s spaghetti, in its simplicity, its earthiness, its history as a staple food of the working class. To me, it’s a masculine, down to earth dish, very at odds with the fancier, more elegant dishes we come to associate Carmy with.
Then we have characters such as Luca and Marcus - both of whom are associated with baking. You don’t have to be a genius to know that baking is seen as a feminine art. Luca and Marcus arguably don’t fit the macho man ideal either - both of them being depicted as a lot more gentle, calm, and creative types.
Next - Sydney. It’s an Old English name, and there are a few different interpretations of it that I could find. One is ‘wide meadow’ or ‘wide water meadow’.
When Syd breezes into The Beef in ep 1, she’s literally a breath of fresh air. She’s a meadow! Her vision for what the restaurant could be, both in terms of the food served and the way the kitchen could be run (i.e. mutual respect, a smooth chain of command, no psycho bosses) is an idealistic vision, a utopia, a garden of Eden type image.
This brings me to the link with Carmy’s name:
Remember how one of the meanings of Carm’s name was garden? In my opinion, this similarity only reinforces the writer's intentions for us to see Syd and Carmy as kindred spirits. Gardens, meadows… both peaceful, calm, beautiful places. To me, it tells us they’re each other’s peace. It also tells us if they learn how to work together, they can create that ideal vision for the restaurant that they both crave.
Another interpretation of Syd’s name is that it means island or island dweller. This brings to mind the phrase ‘no man is an island’, which to me perfectly summarises her character’s central struggle. The phrase means that humans need each other. We need support, and we can’t do things alone. I think Sydney is shown as someone who can be prone to bottling things up, and maybe finds it difficult to ask for help and to be vulnerable. She’s not shown as having many family and friendship connections, and we see a lot of scenes where she’s alone - eating in restaurants, on the train, cooking at home. In that sense, she is a bit of an island, and I hope we see her become able to rely on others a little more in seasons to come (and hopefully Carmy gets his act together enough for her to trust him to be her support!).
Next up: Jimmy. Short for James, a derivative of the Hebrew Jacob, it means ‘supplanter’. A supplanter means someone who takes the place of something else, like a usurper. Now, in ep 2.06, Jimmy and Donna’s dynamic was a little suspect, and I think a lot of people would agree that we’re supposed to infer something was going on there, with Cicero figuratively and perhaps literally taking the place of Bear senior. My theory is that there was an affair, and that Jimmy is actually Mikey’s father. JAW and Abby Elliott look pretty alike I’d say, while John Bernthal has quite different features. Was this intentional? Who’s to say, but I think there’s definitely a case to be made for there being two different fathers. Equally, Mr Bear could be Mikey’s dad, while Jimmy could be Nat and Carm’s true father - he has their lighter hair and eyes, so who knows!!
In Genesis, Jacob supplants his twin brother by buying his birthright. In the show, Jimmy attempts to buy the restaurant, which of course once belonged to Carmy’s dad. Although the show doesn’t give us the full story of the pair, we gather that Jimmy and Bear Sr. were old friends who were almost more like brothers, until a feud ruined their relationship. Interesting for sure!
Next is Tina. Short for Christina, which means ‘follower of Christ’. Her last name, Marrero, is interesting. Deriving from Spanish, it means stone-breaker or hammer, reflecting her strength of character. She’s a single mother, an immigrant, and has been working in male-dominated kitchens with all these shitty, angry men for years. As far as we know, she was the only woman at The Beef pre-Syd. She dealt with Mikey and Richie’s shit for years. You’d have to be pretty fucking tough.
On the other hand, T is so warm and kind underneath it all and seems able to penetrate through the other character’s exteriors relatively easily - Richie, Carmy, Ebra, Syd. They can all be pretty grumpy, but they all have SUCH a soft spot for Tina and only Tina. She’s the stone breaker to their stony surface! 💖🥰💖🥰
Okay those are the main ones I wanted to talk about, but here’s a few more in brief:
Richie: short for Richard, which means strong or brave ruler/leader. In the final episode, we see Richie leading expo and doing a great job. He’s finally living up to his name - literally finding his purpose.
Donna: means lady in Italian. Madonna, or ‘my lady’ is another name for Mary, Jesus’ mother. The ‘mother of victory’ referenced in the prayer that Carm, Nat and Richie say before the soft open is the same Mary. Whilst Donna definitely doesn’t share many characteristics with Mary, I think the comparison is useful in showing the bear kids’ conflicting view of their mother. They of course still love her and crave her love and her blessing for the restaurant in return.
Natalie: means ‘birth of the lord’, literally, ‘Christmas’. There could be a connection here to the Fishes episode, which takes place on Christmas.
Pete: short for Peter, it means rock. When Jesus made the disciple Peter the first Pope, he said, ‘on this rock I build my church’. Pete is Nat’s rock and I think that’s beautiful!!!!!!
Ebra: short for Ebrahim, an alternate spelling of Abraham, which means 'father of many'. He’s a father figure for The Bear!
I know there are a couple I've left out from the main cast, one being Marcus, whose name means 'follower of Mars', the Roman god. I'm still figuring out whether there's a significance there - I'm sure there could be. Maybe I'll do a part two with the rest of the characters!
Anyways I just think it's neat how fitting a lot of the names are... and I really don't think a lot of them were accidental!
Pls feel free to add on and/or correct me if I got anything wrong!
#yeah i'm riddled with catholic guilt for all eternity but at least i can make the bear meta#the bear#the bear meta#sydcarmy#(tagging sydcarmy cause i know the sydcarmy army love the meta)#sydney adamu#carmy berzatto#the bear hulu#the bear fx#jeremy allen white
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today is webcomics day. i am bea and i make "A Ghost Story" - part 1: pre-gaming
webcomic day is a yearly celebration of the art form concocted by the screentones podcast team as a way for people to see how the sausage gets made. my webcomic "a ghost story" has been running for over 10 years, and yet i still don't think i can say i am good at making a webcomic. regardless, the comic is getting made because otherwise i become very, very sick in the head. today i would like to share with you the process of making a page of "A Ghost Story" from start to finish. either this demystifies the process or will make you think im so cool and strong for doing this 2x a week. instead of reblogging this one post until it gets very long, i will be posting individual updates that i will then compile and post on my personal website. block the tags now if you HATE comics and want them to EXPLODE.
if you have any questions, even things like "what the fuck are you even talking about" feel free to ask. i want to feel confident in what i make again and i think sometimes interrogation from an outside source is really
---
that said, let's get started. wait just kidding i want a cup of coffee first, hold on.
ok now im ready. i have a big glass of water. i have coffee. i have a headset for the parts of work that don't involve typing words. i can't type words and listen to some streamer babble in my ear at the same time, so it has to be instrumental music or nothing. i just took my meds so they should kick in after about 30 mins. i woke up late today, which is weird and annoying. but maybe i can work late instead.
first off, i need to know where i'm going beyond this one page. if i dont know where im going with something, then i usually create something that sucks that i have to deal with later. hold on my internet died, i have to reset the router. ok, anyway.
what's rattling around in my brain is that not only do i have to deal with maxine's current predicament, i am also dealing with multiple plot elements i need to wrap back around to from the previous chapter. luckily, im about to put maxine down for a nap, which means i can get back to those other elements:
i need to finish the exposition from the three ankou characters for this story arc establishing their motivations as the oppositional force in the story. the "villain" is not these three specifically, but their boss. they need to have a loose understanding of what's going on in order to communicate this to the audience. god this started turning into a huge ass paragraph so i'll just keep it short there.
we've jumped back to before jack's horrible day from the first chapter of this storyline so we have to make our way back toward that and then lapping it, which means wrapping up his various open threads like:
feeding victoria and learning something new about her
finding out alice is a very exceptional employee who is getting many awards
watching valdo call lily while interrupting her during something personal to ask her for help with maxine's situation.
jack meeting with valdo and lily the day after they first met so jack can just tell them straight up that lily has 4 sisters she doesnt know about.
help that girl with her poltergeist problem. remember that. i've had jokes for this rattling in my head for like 4 years. im going insane.
and also the fucking tilberi!!! that has a point its going somewhere!!! there's a larger menace here!!!
other things to set up the climax of this storyline. sexual tensions, hints at larger emotional problems not immediately evident to the reader
lots of moving parts. and i feel like im moving in slow motion to get to them. i can see them all weaving together in my head, its the process of putting that onto paper that's proving difficult.
ok that took an hour starting and stopping. -_- let me write the next part as i keep brainstorming on how to approach this page. taking a "rubber duck" approach to this might help. heres an image from the last page i worked on (i have a 5 page buffer rn so the site does not match the finished pages) to get us semi-situated.
also because images will help people understand what skill level we're working with here. i need to be able to communicate an idea to the audience; if the art also looks good on top of that, then that's just an added bonus. but the ability to communicate my ideas is sometimes hampered by my lack of artistic skill or comics language ineptitude. like those speech bubbles kind of fucking suck but at a certain point you have to just hit print on what you're working on in order to keep your already glacial pace.
webcomics is a tightrope act where you're also spinning 4 plates at once. the trick is to keep the audience from realizing how many actually fall or how wobbly they all are. the act sucks but technically its not a failure.
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I'm not done with the Pluto Anime yet (one episode left), but I just have to say—the director seems to have a problem with suspense and pacing.
Take the first episode for example, when Gesicht is running after a criminal. Very early on in the scene, the anime shows his hand turn into a gun, alerting the audience that he's either a cyborg or a robot. When he corners the criminal at the very end of the scene and tells him, "I'm a robot", it's very much a "well yeah, no shit Sherlock" moment of confirmation.
Compare this to the manga, which doesn't show Gesicht's hand turning into a gun. Instead, it plays with angles so that it merely looks like Gesicht is holding a gun.
The manga keeps doing that until the very end, until the moment Gesicht announces he's a robot, at which point his gun-hand is revealed front and center.
A more egregious example, in my opinion, is how the anime reveals Adolf being in an Anti-Robot Organization. Let's first cover how the manga does it:
The chapter begins showing a regular morning in Adolf's home. His son, Hans, gets mad at their robot maid and insults her; Adolf quickly brings that to a halt, admonishing his behavior.
Consequently, our first impression of Adolf is that he seems like a decent person.
The chapter continues, showing Adolf drive to work, collect his brother's body, and have dinner with his wife. There's the mystery of what his brother did and what happened to his body, but otherwise there's still no hint of anything untoward about Adolf himself. Even while having dinner with his wife, he warns her that her comments about robots can be considered discrimination.
It isn't until the end of the chapter that we have the reveal:
Meanwhile, the anime starts off in a similar way, showing Adolf eating breakfast with his family, but this time Hans gets angry at his mother instead of their robot maid, because whoops—they don't have one. Hans whines, asking why he's the only one in his class who doesn't have a robot maid. Adolf tells him that his mother's doing his best.
Then, LITERALLY IN THE VERY NEXT SCENE, as Adolf drives to work, they show him CALLING THE BOSS OF THE ANTI-ROBOT ORG, and with basically no suspense or buildup, just casually reveal that he's part of it.
Like??? What a waste. What an absolute waste of the delicious buildup Urasawa literally served to you on a silver platter.
EXAMPLE NUMBER THREE (yes I'm not done yet) — when Dr. Ochanomizu welcomes the Robot Dog's Owner into his house, the manga initially presents the owner as just a regular looking dude. By showing his face and his open expression, he comes across as non-threatening. (Also note the composition of the panel on the bottom-right corner of the page: the owner is positioned lower than Ochanomizu and looks smaller due to the chosen angle. This also makes him seem subservient and less powerful).
It isn't until the next page that the tension starts to build and we realize there's something off about this dude.
But in the anime, they just signal to the audience that this guy is suspicious from the very beginning... by not showing his face.
Like... come on... you don't have to spoon-feed us like this.
#pluto anime#urasawa naoki's pluto#pluto#urasawa naoki#kawaguchi toshio#once i watch the final episode I might write more but tldr I'm kinda disappointed with this adaptation#random blah of letters
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Here’s the wonderland residents! (Most of them, I shift characters around a lot and I forgot the puppy, who’s just a big dog from the original 1939 draft)
Each characters design is based off one or two iterations, some of which are pretty weird (except Ella I’ll explain Ella-) but the entire concept of this series(??) is a bit weird . Info on characters under cut
Before we start, depending on which path Mickey follows, wonderland will either take on the personality and look of David halls 1939 draft (scary, beautiful but scary) or Mary Blair’s concepts. Certain characters will or won’t show up either
We’ll go in order
Anthropomorphic drink me bottle- from the original 1939 David hall draft. Was essentially replaced by the doorknob. Only character in the movie to be original and not come from the book.
Dinah- the scrapped concept of Dinah falling down with Alice and becoming the Cheshire Cat gained life in wasteland, and retains the more helpful guide side of the character from what was Mary Blair’s concept I believe. She plays a lot with the David hall vs Mary Blair aspect.
Mary Ann- also showed up in the David hall draft. Her design and personality I took from wonderland, a comic book series published by Disney and slave labor graphics
Jokerface- HAH OkAy SO THIS IS A BOSS FROM DISNEY MAGICAL WORLD 2- he a ghost that can impersonate others and when I replayed the game in 2019-ish I fell in love with him and he showed up again in the remake I’ll never play but people can’t seem to remember he has a name so he COuNTs. I’ve played with the idea he frames Mickey and plays as a mini boss in the “good” path
Griffon and mockturtle- these two made it into drafts from the 1940s. Some by David hall, one by Mary Blair, but more specifically ones depicting a scene where they dance with Alice and lobsters (can’t find the artist at the time). Their design are a mix of that specific draft, and my favorite, their jello commercial. Where they are fully animated in old Disney style with new designs and talk to Alice about how to entertain and feed guest at the same time with the wonderful power of jello.
Executioner- from the David hall draft. Design is from the Alice in wonderland dark ride in Disneyland because in the Draft he’s just a dude. He would be the boss in the “bad” path, trying to execute Mickey. He’s also the caretaker of the heartcards
Heartcards- from one specific piece of work by Mary Blair. They’re childish and innocent at heart. Only show up in the good path.
Ella- HeH, whoops okay. This is already a long post and Ella needs a lot of explaining because she’s not a wonderland character. That will probably be in a separate post. But just know her design is based of a butterfly and some David Hall drafts of the caterpillar
#disney#epic mickey#mickey and friends#alice in wonderland#mickey mouse#Ella#Gryphon and Mock turtle#Cardguards#Mary Ann#Dinah#cheshire cat#jokerface#drink me#wasteland
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American Royalty. Ch. 3
A Homelander X F! Reader and Dadlander fic.
A/N: Cuz somebody asked 'bout taglist... I'll be including one for those interested, if you want to be in it please leave a comment on the fic and i will include you in the next update as I be working on 'Of the same poisonous ilk' this week thus meaning next ch. of A.R. will come out next week. Plz check My Pin Post for previous chapters!! thxs for reading
Tags: mild gore, angst, slow burn, fluff, oc characther, child neglect, dadlander, romance.
Chapter Three
White.
He followed you for two weeks, in that time he had made up his mind about putting those doubts at rest– he knew Helena wasn’t his. She looked nothing like him. You had to have been lying about the V, some clever ruse that you came up with on the spot, but that doubt now cemented itself, digging and clawing deeper in his brain… that perhaps he had been mistaken.
So he followed you, making notes about your predictably sad routine– you worked six days a week. The hours varied but you were always working (except for saturdays and most sundays you only did half days), you worked at Lucci’s four days, and as a cook and waitress at a local diner five days for really short shifts at a time either mornings or nights, it was frankly a nightmare to follow. Your skills almost wasted as you broke your back making corned beef sandwiches and serving tables. You usually seemed to make it home by 9 pm, and Kaleem (your boss) and his wife took care of your kid, you seemed close to the family of four that or they liked that your daughter tutored their kids for free, even their 17 year old relied on her, your neighbor also babysat in exchange for dog food and groceries, and money on the occasion.
Your daughter attended a local public school, already attending tenth grade at her tender age. Usually making her own way home or heading straight to your boss’s house, it was bizarre and frightening to see such a small child walk alone in dangerous Brooklyn streets but she didn’t seem afraid in the least, Homelander wouldn’t dare Ryan do that in Manhattan, he could see the tabloids headlines and a dozen dangers.
She entered a small park, resting by a bench for an awfully long time just not doing much until she looked up and stared back at the sky, she waved her tiny hand at Homelander, aware of what building he had been watching her from.
Helena scooted over giving him an open invitation, something he nervously accepted.
That day after seeing you for the first time, he had done his homework ordering a crew of interns to canvas all files for information partaning every child that was given compound V around the time of Helena’s birth, to check any discrepancies in old inventory records, and cctv footage that remained of those days to see if they’ve been altered, he worked them past clock off hours, and after a week they’d come empty handed, no child was given V that matched her description, he had found the hospital you’ve given birth and found no record of Vought’s grimy fingers, nor of any rogue scientist feeding kids V that was operating or suspected to operate around that time, His team also found that you never entered Helena on any casting calls, pageants or events. She had no superhero name registration or trademark, Vought manager or caseworker, or appeared on Vought’s records in any capacity, he clung to hope that maybe the information would come to light but the twenty people on the case were having no luck.
He entered the lab where a young recruit who had the least to lose handed him the results. He dared not read them outloud and instead took a step back as Homelander slumped against the wall.
So here he was staring at this little girl.
“You’ve been following my mother. I don’t really understand nor care much, but following me is a tad creepy, sir.”
“Could you hear me from over there?” He asked surprised, trying to look imposing with his stiff shoulders.
“I sensed you… I keep my radar on when heading home, that way I can keep an eye for treats– in the absence of super senses.”
“What sort of treats?” he said with ignorant concern.
“You don’t come down to the projects very often, do you?” She found his stiff posture interesting, wondering how much of it was habit versus the suit– so how may I help you?”
“I had some business with your mother.”
“Then how does it pertain to me?” she scoffed.
“Your mother never registered you with Vought. All super-abled children whether they choose to pursue this career or not– have to be registered at some point. I couldn’t find any records of a Helena L/N or your Superhero persona”
She chuckled lightly.
“Sure. That’s something the boss handles instead of some mid-level intern… So you think my mother stole some compound V while she was under your employment? I guess after a bunch of Supervillains began to come out of thin air– it is concerning that there’s unregistered Supe’s wandering around.” She stands up– If my mother had stolen compound V for profit do you think we would be living in this place?” She leaned back trying to control that shit eating grin teasing her lips.
“A cover story.”
“I think I was right about you.” She fixes her backpack, jumping off the bench, he follows her as she begins to walk away– "I always liked A-Train more than you. Out of the whole lot you look the most maladjusted, sir.”
“You have quite the mouth there, little missy.” His irritation was more than visible, he scrunched his hand, and the girl could only raise a corner of her thin lips in disbelief– "Your mother failed to teach you manners didn’t she?”
“I have manners. I reserve them for people who aren’t peeping toms, you clown.”
Homelander eyes glittered red, trying to control his anger, he looked away, squeezing his eyes– she was just a little girl with a mouth afterall, she could afford to be a brat.
As she walked away before he could take a step to pull her– Helena had disappeared. Everything about her was gone, he looked around finding nothing, the air hadn’t been pushed so she hadn’t run at hyper speed, he looked up to see if she had taken flight finding nothing, not even a shadow out of place– she had simply vanished.
He was left perplexed, his senses unable to pick up on anything nearby.
He was back at the tower, looking at the pile of documents they had gathered of you, your finances were a wreck, he hadn’t even remembered asking for any of these things done to you. His chest heavy as he noted just how thorough Vought had been, but that meant nothing, he had money to spare. Helena had a bad mouth but what child wouldn’t be hardened by living in the slums? What child wouldn’t come out damaged if they lived so poorly and without a father? By a mother that had done nothing but neglect them.
He could fix it.
“What are you doing?” Ryan asked, entering his father’s studio as he read– I saw this movie was out and I thought…”
“Just work, tiger.” He pushed his work down– we can go see a movie… let me see if Ashley can reserve the cinema for us.”
That wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but it was something.
Homelander could barely contain his excitement, he was certain Ryan would be happy when he could deliver the news.
Now he was at your workplace once again, just an hour before opening. It was only you, another cook and your boss doing all the prep-work, he was out in the back as you stood out to drop some rubbish, your apron covered in flour and you reeked of san marzano tomatoes and shampoo.
“We need to talk.” He said firmly.
“I don’t want to talk to you.” You said weakly, feeling bile burning at the bottom of your throat– I… I have to go.”
“Helena is my daughter so we need to talk.”
You froze, your eyes so wide they could pop out of their sockets if you opened them any further, you looked at the door and closed it wishing nobody else heard him, not even the rats and roaches.
“There’s nothing to discuss. I told you… I told you back then she was yours! And you ruined my life for it!”
“Don’t be so dramatic, I just dumped you.” he waved his arms to match his scoff– now–
“You… You… You don’t remember what you did? God I really didn’t matter to you…” You couldn’t hold back the flow of tears– You took everything from me!!”
The gap between you two was broken by your own feet, your knees shook but hatred kept you standing.
“You had me blacklisted from every fucking restaurant in the country! Most of my savings were frozen by the fucking FBI over some bullcrap investigation, and I still can’t even touch my own fucking money!! My insurance was canceled somehow! and then your fucking company bought my apartment building and evicted me!!” You growled and shouted, your spat on his face as you pushed him to no avail– I was pregnant living in my fucking car with a few thousand dollars in the most expensive city in the world!!”
Homelander had nothing to say, feeling the spit drip down his cheek.
“I… I lost everything. And just to hurt me you made Helena a Supe… did it make you happy? Did it make you happy when I had to sleep in a shelter with a newborn and 30 thousand dollars in debt!?” You took a step back trying to clean the tears clinging to your eyes– You don’t get to talk about my daughter.”
“The one you barely see.”
“WHOSE FUCKING FAULT IS THAT!!?” you pulled on his suit forcing him to see you straight in the eyes– We got nothing to talk about. Helena is mine, you abandoned her! you don’t get to waltz into her life as if you deserve it after all you did! She doesn’t need you! Not when all the pain you cause wasn’t worth it”
“I didn’t know I could have children.”
Becca had looked at him with fear and disgust more than anger, but your words reminded him of her, he had made a mistake then, now Ryan had to live with the weight of killing his mother. Had he played his cards less impulsively, she would have relented.
“I was told I was infertile. That I had nothing down there, not even wonky swimmers! Why would I believe you…?” He bit his lip grabbing your hands as he had gently done so in the past– my whole life I was told I could never have a family, the one thing they failed to do when they made me… until I discovered Ryan… back then… back then I–
“Don’t touch me.” You pulled your hands but his grip is solid– I don’t want to listen to you.”
“I am sorry!”
His eyes were hurt, he softened his grip as you took your bruised hands back.
You wanted that apology but this wasn’t it. It didn't matter at the end, you wanted him gone but you would regret this later, as you saw those hurt blue eyes, all you saw was his daughter, it was as if she had a copy of his expression tattooed on her dna.
“... Come to my house by midnight tonight…”
You left him there.
Thinking of Helena’s tear filled blues.
You were becoming insane, the whole day at work you stayed silent, quietly building pies and cutting pizza, just another busy day. Calling the diner telling them Helena’s sitter had called in sick, and nobody could watch you kid.
Helena seemed happy to have the extra time with you even if all she did was do her homework and listen to some free college classes that she had somehow managed to enroll in (probably thanks to her teachers) while you watched TV. You looked at the recording discussing thermodynamics which she seemed to be struggling with. By ten she was in bed and you waited, finding yourself baking a Torta della Nonna while waiting for a man you weren’t sure would show up, taking a short nap until something tapped at your foot.
“Helena…?” you said groggily.
“No.”
Looking at him in your home woke you up harder than an earthquake, you jumped on your feet quickly to make distance.
“You could knock on the door! Did… Did you come through the window?”
“Didn’t want to wake up Helena.”
“Please don’t pretend you suddenly care about her. Look… I will listen to you… I need to know why you made her a Supe.” your words are low but fast.
You took to the kitchen, taking a small pot, honey and saffron.
“I want to know what you want so YOU can move on, and leave us alone.”
He stood by the entrance arms tucked behind his back with a look of indignation, as you took the milk out of the fridge.
“I made cake… still like milk?”
You heated the milk, infusing it with a pinch of saffron and a dash of honey, you seemed happy to serve this, this was what you served Helena when she had too many bad days.
“Helena is a very special girl… she’s so smart but I think she’s lonely. Her powers make it hard for her to have friends, being a super genius makes it hard for her to relate to kids… then on top of that there are the other powers– she really lucked out there but I can’t afford to make her into a Supe. You wasted your time there.”
She was your pride, you wanted to bolster to anybody about how special your daughter was, she was all you had after all, the only thing that kept you going. You wanted to shove it in his face just all the good that he had thrown away, and will never experience.
“She can teleport.” He said taking the cup, the taste was sweet and delicious, it would help him sleep soundly tonight– pretty impressive.”
“Teleport?” You look puzzled then your head shakes as you laugh lightly– no, silly. She can’t teleport. I gathered you talked to her– don’t do that again. But… no she can’t teleport… Helena can turn invisible like Translucent but better… She can make her clothes invisible too, and make psionic force fields. What you witnessed was her putting herself in an invisible bubble and making the bubble float away from you.”
You tried to contain the panic inside you with a stiff grin, boasting calmed you down.
“I didn’t hear her heartbeat.” He argued back.
“What happens in the bubble stays in the bubble… including sounds. Trust me I’d sat down and watched her experiment.”
“That’s impressive.” He smiled proudly.
“Until she runs out of oxygen.” you moved past him wishing you had space for a dining table, all you had in your living room was a coffee table, your couch, the TV and two large floor cushions, you and Helena ate on the floor in front of the TV and your seating options felt too intimate but alas is the floor– she has two types of force fields…”
“Can she fly?”
“Technically no but yes if you ask her, the second type of bubble… she can float inside it, but I won’t let her test the limits of the bubble.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want my daughter to end up splattered all over the sidewalk!” you hissed.
Homelander followed you, taking his place on the floor too excited to talk about this to care about being asked to sit like a dog
“So she’s out there with the best… When she was three she told me her superhero name was ‘Ghost Girl’ but that died quickly. So it's your turn to talk, Homelander.”
Homelander was unsure where to begin, taking a long sip of his drink, you had stopped calling him by his name, you had taken John and made it your own, but he had taken it back as he ended it all.
So he told you quite a story, about how he learned about Ryan, about all the secrets Vought had kept from him, how they had kept Ryan trapped in a cage, about the lies he told you about his parents, and his actual upbringing. You sat in silence unable to respond as he told you the horrific things he endured with a straight face, as if you were speaking to somebody else, about how much he had wanted a family and about how he felt when he believed you’d betray him.
Homelander had been happy, he thought he had finally found somebody to have a life with, he was angry, he wanted to hurt you, and after it was all done he pushed your memory aside.
But above all how he now regretted it all.
“I was awful to you, but now that Vought belongs to me that means they will never hurt Helena.”
You stared at him coldly.
“So Ryan was born with powers… So no matter what– Helena would have always had powers?”
“I don’t know. Her powers are nothing like mine, and she’s still young so she might…”
“God I certainly hope not. Look I’m sorry all of those things happened to your son, and you. I’m glad Helena is safer now, and I thank you for that— but cut to the chase. What is it that you want? You want me to tell her about you? She never wanted a father, heck I don’t think she needs me!” You snapped, trying to force the empathy out of your system.
“Why would you say that?”
“Helena is… different… I dunno what is happening in her mind ever.”
It stung to say those things, your love for her didn’t change things, but it was a pervasive thought you endured… awful thoughts about your daughter.
“Helena was a quiet baby… hardly ever cried. I took her to several doctors and nobody could figure out why my baby didn’t cry, why she seemed to live inside her mind, why she always stared at nothing… When she started to talk, the more she absorbed, the more she learned, the less of a baby she became– my daughter is an adult trapped in a baby’s body.” You took a quick bite but it was hard to swallow– the first time she showed her powers… the force fields… we were walking home when some drive-by took place. We had only gone for a stroll, I wanted to save on gas so we walked to the grocery… we… when the bullets stopped in front of my own eyes.”
You could see that sunny afternoon so vividly, the random kids doing their thing until some gray car drove by, the thunderous sound of bullets, and a wounded boy staring at the bullet that would’ve taken his life had your daughter’s forcefield hadn’t enveloped the whole sidewalk.
With a slight flick of her wrist the bullets were returned, two men lost their lives and one was wounded, the group of kids on your sidewalk survived and the boy who almost bled out, your boss’s nephew helped you get your job.
“Helena didn’t care.”
Those two lifeless bodies rotting slowly before you, hadn’t mattered to her, she simply scoffed and asked if the police were going to arrest her before the ice cream melted.
Homelander now had something to work with in terms of records but he didn’t need them anymore.
“I love her… but I worry she’s…”
“She just needs to be with more of her kind. Y/N I want to offer you a job… your job back…”
“No.” You jumped back on your heels– I don’t want anything to do with you, Homelander.”
“I don’t want to repeat the same mistakes I did with Ryan and her mother! I want to be in her life and you need me to be in her life…” He bore his fangs– with her powers you cannot provide her with the future she deserves. You would never clean enough tables and scrape enough tips to get her what she deserves–
“So you’re just going to wave money at me and act like that fixes everything?” There was so much disgust in your face, even he grew silent– I… I don’t want your money and I’ll make sure Helena has all she needs, if you want to give me money why don’t you start by unfreezing MY bank accounts so I can move the fuck out of this place! If you are so concerned about your daughter’s wellbeing all of a sudden… then let me take care of her.” You growled at him.
“Would that be enough for you to let me be in her life?” He looked so vulnerable right now trying not to anger you further– If you take… if you take the job at Vought you’ve making four times what you make at your two jobs”
“I don’t want to owe you anything.”
You hated yourself, your ego and your honor had been bruised and never healed, you clung to those broken limbs hoping you had it in you to deny him but that look in his eyes and his crazy story told you he wasn’t ever going to stop until he got you to agree.
You knew what man he truly was, you could still see the red, hear his screams and the smell of blood. For once you had to be a hypocrite.
“... You… You can’t tell her… until… until I think it is okay… I won’t work for you… not the job that you’re offering me… I can quit my second job and take yours part-time. I’ll choose my days! Only three days tops, same pay! and Helena can have access to Vought training resources and daycare.” You sank on your shoulders– her powers are only going to get stronger and if she ever loses control… it’ll be my fault if somebody gets hurt again.”
The request was absurd but Homelander was on his feet taking your hand, a beam in his eyes and a shaky smile.
“Your son… he might take it badly if you suddenly bring another kid saying is his sister, you have to be gentle or he’ll get hurt. We can try figure this out… just don’t hurt my kid or yours.”
Your concern was genuine, and his heart began to melt as he saw the worry in your eyes for a child that wasn’t yours.
“Thank you… can… can I come tomorrow to discuss the details?”
You nodded, unable to look at him in the eyes any further, shocked when you received a strange short lived hug, as he parted and headed to the door where your daughter slept soundly, he peered through the crack for quite some time.
You hated him but you couldn’t deny you needed the help, he owed you seven years of child support, he had made you sleep in your car, he had made you fearful of sleep as you slept in shelters and filled you with shame as you jumped from couch to couch with the world's quietest baby.
So he had his usefulness, money wouldn’t fix anything but it would make Helena's life easier.
Taglist: Hi 'cuz you asked here you go @fromforeigntofamiliarity
#personal#homelander#homelander x reader#homelander x you#the boys oc#homelander fanfiction#american royalty#my fic tag#homelander x f! reader#will add to pin post later
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How do you think Riza and Roy would handle the parenthood? Clearly, they didn’t have a lot of positive role models when they were kids.
Very mixed, I think, but still trying everything they can. Well, I want to focus on Riza, because in my delusions she has the baby alone while Roy is insane in the mountains (03 verse). Riza did not tell Roy about her pregnancy.
It is very difficult, depressing and lonely for her. She does not feel love for her baby, only stress and fear. Riza may not get much support either. She is a single mother in the 1910s and she got pregnant from her boss who abandoned her. I think the core team will stick up for her, for the most part, but she gets a lot of judgement. I like the idea or Gracia babysitting, which is a relieve for Riza, but she does not understand her. Gracia wanted to be a mother, and she goes on about the wonders of motherhood and how sweet and easy Riza’s baby is, making Riza feel more alone and misunderstood and ungrateful for struggling this much. Everything about it just sucks and hurts emotionally and physically.
Riza also has to go back to work barely recovered from birth to pay the bills and leave her tiny baby behind. I imagine she is afraid she has turned out like her father, being a single parent who does not love her own child and spends too much time on work. She has killed innocent people, so I imagine she was baffled she was allowed to take the baby home, and is terrified she will kill him too. She is a war criminal and her baby is innocent. What if she taints him, and has doomed him before his life even started?
But every time her son laughs at her she feels bad for thinking only negative things. She wants him to have a good life. She still tries the best she can and will do anything for him. She feeds, clothes, hugs, plays, reads, holds, talks to him etc whenever she can, but she’s too unwell to realise that she does all that because she loves him. I do want her to get better eventually and realise that her child loves her no matter what. He loves her because she is his mother. Once she loves him back, he is her priority now, and for the first time she develops a fear of dying because she doesn’t want to leave her child behind like her own mother did. She loves him!!!!! But yeah,,parenting is hard for well adjusted people who want children, so for Riza for it is always going to be harder I suppose.
I do imagine Riza is forever marked by everything she went through and is not always the best parent. She has no idea what she is doing and never had a good example. Even if Roy gets a redemption arc and she has his support later. Love can help, but it’s not a cure that takes Riza’s flaws and traumas away.
Like when the kid grows up and looks back at his childhood, his experience overall was fine and he will think Riza did the best she could, he loves her, but he knows it would have been better for Riza if she had therapy instead of children.
#ask#sorry i wrote a novel. I dont actually know anything about parenting just talking out my ass here
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Oh i have a modern sihtric idea! Animal carer Sihtric where he's not the biggest fan of animals but all animals enjoy his company. He can handle grumpy cats and bratty birds while Finan only gets along with happy cheerful excited dogs. Uhtred gets hissed at all the time😂
Warnings: mention of an evil parrot.
pairing: Modern!Sihtric x you (f)
Summary: see request and: You work in an animal shelter and, against your will, you're suddenly working with three new men.
Word count: 3,1k
Note: the ending is rather open. I felt this story would either have a rushed ending if I tried to wrap it up or it would become waaaay too long. And I guess I also left the option open to possibly return to this if anyone seems to enjoy it. This was just a little fun thing to write!
taglist: @clairacassidy @finanmoghra @uunotheangel @hb8301 @bathedinheat @neonhairspray @anaeve @bubblyabs @travelingmypassion @sylas-the-grim
@heimtathurs @bubbles-for-all-of-us
'The parrot is right.'
********************
'You want me to deal with that bunch?' you grimaced at the sight of two strange men on the other side of the room, 'why me?'
'You've been here the longest, apart from me, but I don't have the time to teach them. Nor the patience,' your boss, Thyra, admitted.
'Oh, and I have?'
'I hope so.'
'Who are they and why are they even here?'
You watched Thyra flip some papers on her clipboard.
'That guy on the left, his name is Uhtred. What a strange name. Anyway, the Irish man is called Finan and… there should be another guy named Sihtric, but he hasn't shown up yet. Big surprise,' she sighed, 'but they'll be here only a few days… for community service.'
'What?!'
'I know, I know! I didn't want them at first either, but it's nothing bad. I mean, nothing to be scared of.'
'What on earth did they do?'
'Apparently,' Thyra giggled, 'they stole a holy relic from a church and they got caught.'
'You're kidding?' you started to laugh.
'I knew you'd be amused at that,' she grinned.
'But how did they end up here? This is an animal shelter, shouldn't they volunteer at that church?'
'That was the plan, but the church doesn't want them. And since we need the help, I accepted the request. So,' Thyra patted you on the back, 'good luck!'
'Well, thanks,' you scoffed.
'Oh,' Thyra stopped at the door, 'they always show you a picture of the people who come to work, so they can't send someone else in their place, and,' she paused to give you a smile, 'I hope that other guy shows up. I think he's your type,' she winked, 'he has tattoos.'
'What? What is that supposed to mean?!' you called after her, but she only gave you another wink and left.
********************
'Okay, so, now that you know who I am and what we do here, are you two ready?' you smiled.
Finan nodded and Uhtred gave you a hesitant smile.
'Okay, let's go. Uhtred, you can clean the enclosures. Finan, I think you'll do good helping my colleague, feeding the animals.'
You sent both men on their way and quickly noticed that Finan was good with overly excited dogs, and you chuckled when you figured that Finan actually had the same energy. As for Uhtred… well, let's just say Uhtred tried. Uhtred did his job well, it was just that the animals didn't seem to like him. You told Uhtred that animals can sense fear, to which Uhtred quickly said he wasn't scared. But you saw the terror in his eyes when he faced that one vile parrot that had been in the shelter for years already, and you expected Uhtred to gain a few more scars the next couple of days.
You let them do their job and went back to your own duty, walking a few dogs. But before you could leave, you were stopped as a handsome man entered the shelter, looking sleepy and a little lost. You saw his face had a couple of scars and soon your eyes spotted a tattoo in his neck, and you figured this was probably the guy Thyra told you about.
'H-hi,' you stammered when he looked at you, 'can I… can I help you?'
'Eh,' the man smiled and a rosy colour appeared on his cheeks, 'I- I'm here for my community service.'
'Oh!' you blushed too, 'yeah, I was told we, eh, were missing one guy.'
You held out your hand and introduced yourself, albeit with a lot of tripping over your words, and the blushing man seemed to have the same issue.
'Nice to - to meet y-you. I- I'm Sihtric, lady.'
'Sihtric,' you smiled, still holding his hand, which he didn't seem to realise either, and your eyes darted over his toned arms, 'you're like an animal, I mean, I mean… you, d-do you like animals?'
'I actually do not, lady, not really,' he chuckled lightly, still holding your hand, 'I apologise.'
'Well… maybe, maybe you'll learn to l-like them… or something,' you felt yourself get lost in his eyes once you noticed they were two different colours. You only snapped out of your trance when you heard Finan mimic the bark of a very happy golden retriever, and you finally let go of Sihtric's hand. You both looked away and cleared your throat while looking red in the face.
'S-so I was about to walk the dogs. M-maybe you could help with that? We have a-a great Dane, a lovely dog, but huge and doesn't really listen. He dragged me over the street once already, so maybe you,' you looked at Sihtric's muscular arms again and sighed when you thought about how he would have to flex those while walking the dog, 'y-you could…maybe, flex- I mean help! H-help with that dog.'
'I, eh, I suppose,' Sihtric chuckled.
********************
When you just started your walk with the dogs, the great Dane was overly excited and Sihtric really had to showcase his strength to not let the dog escape, but he did it with grace. And it made you weak to your knees. Luckily, soon all dogs seemed to calm down, especially the great Dane, and the dog didn't seem to stray far from Sihtric, and if he did, Sihtric would whistle and the dog obeyed immediately. You didn't even know the dog could do that.
'I can't believe he's actually calm,' you smiled in disbelief, 'who are you, the dog whisperer? He really seems to like you.'
Sihtric chuckled and patted the great Dane on his head, 'I don't know,' he smiled, 'maybe it's because we're both Danes,' he joked.
'You're a Dane?'
'I am, lady. Maybe the dog knows,' he winked, 'and… I guess I might be a little fond of him as well.'
'Really?' you raised an eyebrow, 'and a few hours ago you told me you didn't like animals.'
Sihtric shrugged with a sly smile and continued to pet the dog. You looked at them and thought how Sihtric would be the perfect person to adopt this dog. They say dogs tend to resemble their owners, and that's exactly what you saw. The dog's fur was smooth and dark, he was well built, friendly but clumsy, shy at first but curious and simply won over your heart in no time. And Sihtric, with his dark, long hair tied together, his muscular body and his dazzling smile gave you the same energy.
'What's his name?' Sihtric asked, crouched down next to the dog.
'Oh, sorry, I never told you. It's Thor.'
'It is?' Sihtric's eyes grew big and looked up at you. Then he looked back at the dog and reached into his shirt. He pulled out his necklace and clutched it in his hand. You weren't sure why, it was only moments later when Sihtric got back up that you saw his pendant. Thor's hammer. And you couldn't help but smile.
*******************
When you and Sihtric got back to the shelter it was almost time for the men to leave already. You placed the dogs back in their enclosures and took out one of the recently brought in kittens. You had grown fond of the little thing and simply couldn't leave her alone. You held the cat in your arms while you thanked the men for doing their jobs today and looked forward to seeing them tomorrow, and unless they wished to stay longer today, they could go home now. Finan, with his thick accent, told you how he had loved the dogs and was excited to come back again. Uhtred, who was hissed and scratched at, gave you a polite but fake smile and mumbled that he'd see you again tomorrow. The two men left while Sihtric seemed to linger around a little longer before he awkwardly walked over to you.
'I, eh, I- I was wondering if, if maybe I could, eh,' he stammered, 'I- I just wonder how it would work if I were to, you know, want to look into … adopting a pet.'
'Really?' you smiled widely, 'eh, it requires some paperwork and rules, but, I-I can tell you some stuff about it tomorrow, if you like?
'Yeah, yeah,' Sihtric blushed, 'I-I'd like that.'
'Me too,' you felt your own cheeks reddened too, and you both quickly focused your attention on the kitten in your arms, 'would you like to hold her?' you blurted out.
'I-I don't think I'm good with animals,' Sihtric said.
'Are you sure?' you chuckled, 'you seemed great today. Here,' you said and handed him the young cat, 'try.'
Sihtric tensed up and awkwardly took the cat in his arms. The cat, however, seemed completely at ease rather fast and nestled against his chest as he held her. You almost squealed at the sight of Sihtric, the muscular "thief", with Freya, the white fluffy kitten, all cuddled up in his arms. And you saw Sihtric slowly relax and his face softened into a shy smile when he chuckled.
'I think animals just love you,' you said as you stepped closer to pet Freya.
'It seems,' Sihtric smiled, watching Freya while you petted her. As you petted the kitten, you accidentally brushed your fingers against Sihtric's arm.
'Oh, sorry,' you blushed and looked up at him, to find he was already looking at you, and you both stopped breathing for a moment when you locked eyes. You could just kiss him right there, and you felt he thought the same when you saw his eyes trail down to your lips. But then Thyra walked in and you both took a step back quickly.
'H-hey,' you greeted her and cleared your throat, pretending to look for something that wasn't there while you tried to hide your red cheeks. But you were lucky that Freya drew all the attention to her right away, so you didn't have to feel awkward much longer.
Eventually Sihtric brought Freya to her enclosure, and you saw how he stopped by Thor, the great Dane, to pet him before walking back over to you.
'I was actually thinking,' Sihtric mumbled slightly, 'maybe… maybe you could, if-if you want, m-maybe explain the adopting procedure to me, eh, while y-you maybe get a-a, a drink with me?'
Sihtric quickly looked down at his feet and sighed, feeling he completely fucked that up.
'Oh,' you said softly and felt flustered again, 'I-I would actually… like that, but… I-I have to work here until later tonight.'
'Oh,' Sihtric said and shook his head, 'no, it's okay. I-I understand.'
'But,' you quickly said, 'maybe… I mean, if the offer is still standing tomorrow, then I-I'd like to, to get a drink with… you, yes.'
******************
The next morning you were anxious to see Sihtric again. You had agreed to get a drink together after work, but you still felt he might cancel it. There was no way he could be interested in you, you thought. And as you arrived at the shelter, usually being the first to do so, you found Sihtric, smoking a cigarette, while waiting for you near the entrance.
'My type,' you muttered in your car as you studied his side profile, 'you're not wrong, Thyra, I just wish he didn't smoke,' you chuckled to yourself before you got out.
'Sihtric?' you smiled, 'you're early. And also you can't smoke here,' you grinned.
'Oh,' he chuckled, 'sorry, lady.' And he threw the cigarette away before he turned to face you.
'Oh, god!' you said when you saw his hair, 'what happened to you?' you snorted, 'I mean, oh, sorry, I don't mean it badly! I-I just… I didn't… expect this to…,' you coughed slightly.
'It's fine,' Sihtric chuckled and rolled his eyes, 'I actually only wanted to shave the sides, but I messed up. I either had to go completely bald or,' he shrugged, 'make the most of this.'
'Oh, god,' you snorted again and took a step closer, inspecting his half shaved head. You saw he had a small braid with beads in it, and on the other side of that braid he still had his longer curls, 'Actually,' you smiled with a blush, 'it's kinda cool.'
'You don't have to lie, lady,' Sihtric laughed.
'I would never,' you said and couldn't help but look away and bite down on your lip. Goddamnit, you thought, he looks really good.
********************
After Finan and Uhtred arrived later, and had finally stopped laughing at Sihtric's haircut, you put them all to work again. Today Finan was to walk the dogs with a colleague, and because Uhtred had taunted Sihtric the most, you told Uhtred he was to feed the evil parrot again, much to his disgrace.
You nudged Sihtric and told him to watch. You both stood at safe distance while Uhtred closed in on the parrot's cage.
'You're a good bird,' Uhtred kept saying, to which you and Sihtric already giggled. You watched Uhtred cautiously open the enclosure, and just as you expected, the parrot started screaming curse words to Uhtred.
'Did he just call me arseling?' Uhtred yelled back to you.
'The parrot is right,' Sihtric whispered to you, and you both couldn't stop laughing while Uhtred kept being cursed at by the hostile bird. After a few minutes you thought it was enough and told Sihtric you'd help Uhtred, but Sihtric was quick to offer his help too.
'Are you sure? The bird is pure evil,' you laughed, 'I'm serious.'
'I'm sure,' Sihtric smiled, and you beckoned him to follow you.
'Okay, try to get him out then. We need to clean the cage,' you told Sihtric.
Uhtred quickly stepped away and you told him he should go and feed the rest of the animals, you'd take care of the bird.
And to your surprise, and Sihtric's, the parrot grew rather quiet when he approached. Sihtric held his hand out, a little nervously, but you gave him an encouraging smile, and before you knew it the parrot calmly stepped onto Sihtric's hand.
'There is just no way,' you whispered, seeing the event unfold in front of you, 'that bird hates everyone. No one can get him out.'
Sihtric looked at you with a smirk and shrugged lightly.
'You're like… like Ace Ventura or something,' you laughed, and Sihtric definitely appreciated the joke and chuckled.
The rest of the day went by fast. Finan, once again, was completely in love with all the overly excited dogs, while Uhtred needed a few plasters after a cat named Brida had scratched him. Sihtric was given the task to clean the enclosures and every time you checked on him, you found him petting a different animal. And just like every animal at the shelter, you were also absolutely smitten by that man.
You wished the men a good evening again and like the day before, Uhtred and Finan left while Sihtric waited around, but this time he was waiting to take you out for a drink. You quickly got changed in some comfortable clothes and met up with him outside the shelter.
He took you to a quiet, local bar where you came to realise that Sihtric was just all kinds of interesting. And attractive. You explained him how the adoption process goes, and if he was really serious about it, you could help him get approved. Sihtric said he'd love that, and soon after that you both chatted about all kinds of other things.
'So,' you said after a while, 'I have to ask this.'
'Ask what?' Sihtric raised his eyebrow with a half smile.
'Your community service,' you tried to hide your smile as Sihtric looked at you while he took a sip of his drink, 'a holy relic? Why?'
'Yeah,' Sihtric sighed and chuckled, 'in my defence, it wasn't my idea. It was Uhtred's. But,' Sihtric sighed and clicked his tongue, 'look,' he said curtly and locked eyes with you, 'I am not a real thief or anything, I am not a criminal. We were drunk, we passed the church as we walked home and we just thought it was a good idea,' he shrugged.
'But what did you steal? Or, well, try to steal?'
'A comb.'
'What?'
'An ivory comb.'
'Sihtric,' you snorted, 'you got arrested for stealing a comb?'
'St Cuthbert's ivory comb, yes.'
'Still a comb.'
'Uhtred said it's worth a lot of money.'
'Is it?'
'I don't know, lady,' Sihtric hissed playfully, 'we never got to sell it.'
'Oh my god!' you laughed, 'this is the most outrageous thing I have ever heard. I love it. But what were you going to do with the money? I mean, if it really was worth a lot?'
'I don't even know, I was drunk, okay,' Sihtric laughed.
'Who even is St Cuthbert?' you frowned.
'I have no idea, lady,' Sihtric snickered, 'I am a pagan.'
'You don't even know who you stole from? Jesus. Well, I hope it was worth it,' you smiled and shook your head.
'Yeah,' Sihtric smiled and looked at you, 'it was worth it.'
You blushed and looked away when you understood he was flirting, and you didn't know what to do.
'Hey,' you finally said, 'I know you keep saying you don't like animals. But they clearly like you. Have you considered continuing working at the shelter after the community service? I mean, we could really use your help.'
'You know,' he sighed, 'I wouldn't mind. But, I need a paid job to live.'
'We have those too,' you said quickly, 'I get paid for example. It just depends on how many hours you can work. If you can work full time, you'll get a contract and a payment. But a lot of people only come in for one day a week, and those are the ones who volunteer.'
'Really?'
'Yeah.'
'Hm, I might consider that,' he nodded, 'but would you want me to work there?'
'Maybe,' you blushed, 'you're the only one who has been accepted by the evil parrot.'
'Oh,' Sihtric laughed, 'is that all I'm good for?'
'Well, that and… y-you're good on the eye,' you blurted out, 'I mean good on the…the,' you sighed and buried your face in your hands, 'I can't talk myself out of that one, can I?'
'Nope,' Sihtric smiled and sat back, watching you in amusement as you tried to regain your confidence.
'But if it helps,' Sihtric smiled as he leaned in, 'I think you're good on the eye too.'
#sihtric x you#sihtric x reader#the last kingdom fic#sihtric fic#the last kingdom#sihtric kjartansson#sihtric kjartanson#sihtric#tlk#modern!sihtric
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Sundered by the Styx
underdog!Raphael, RaphaelPOV, Raphael x m!OC, conflicted!cambion, hurt/comfort, warlock!OC, tiefling!OC, whump, pining, relationship with obstacles
Spawned from anon 🔴 prompt. I hope anon forgives me for naming Tav. The prompt was so close to my own character, I decided to indulge myself.
Part 1 | Part 2 (soon)
"Nice decor."
An interesting response. Not phased by being whisked away to some unknown place. And either brazen or of good taste. Which one of the two, Raphael had yet to figure out.
"The House of Hope, where the tired come to rest, and the famished come to feed - lavishly. Go on. Partake. Enjoy your supper. After all, it might just be your last."
The tiefling who seemed to be the leader of the group of mortals raised a brow, then turned and browsed the table. Eventually he picked up a particularly good looking piece of cake and began eating. A sweet-tooth.
Raphael was intrigued by the reaction. "Not easily rattled, I see. Good. Makes the next part that much more straightforward." And with that, he dropped the human guise and showed off his true from. Spreading his wings and preening before his audience. The mortals looked shocked.
"Fuck. A cambion." the other tiefling, Karlach, cursed.
"What's better than a devil you don't know? A devil you do." Raphael cited his practiced line with a satisfied grin.
The leader of the group kept chewing on his cake, only halting for a short moment when Raphael revealed himself, then returned to munching.
Raphael had to admit, the equanimity of this one intrigued him. Provided it wasn't utter stupidity that made the mortal simply dull and callous. He would find out sooner or later.
He continued his introductory speech, enjoying the mortals' reactions to it. Ah, he loved the underlying panic in their expressions.
When he was done with his speech, he waited for their reaction. The group looked to their leader, who swallowed the last bite of cake and cleaned his hands with one of the napkins from the table.
Manners, Raphael observed approvingly.
"Great introduction," the tiefling said honestly, "I liked the 'devil you don't know' part. Very clever."
Raphael raised a brow, trying not to look too taken aback by the reaction.
"Alas, I'm afraid I won't be making any deals anytime soon." He put the napkin back neatly on the table and offered a slight bow, "Varvain 's the name, by the way."
The name rang familiar to Raphael, but he couldn't quite place it. Some of the tadpoled mortals had been harder to identify than others. Karlach and Wyll had been easy to figure out, due to Raphael's decent rapport with Zariel.
But this one - this Varvain - he had trouble to place. He could sense the warlock pact, but he didn't know who or what he was pacted with. Another fiend would explain the unflappable attitude upon seeing a devil. It would also be highly inconvenient for Raphael.
"By all means, take your time," he told the mortals, "Shop around..."
He launched into another dramatic speech, enjoying himself greatly, as he put on the theatrics. Upon finishing, he sent the mortals back to where he had plucked them from.
Raphael rubbed his chin in contemplation for a moment, before snapping his fingers to summon Korrilla.
"Watch those mortals, and eavesdrop on their leader. I need to know who is lending him their powers."
The dwarf nodded, "Will do, boss."
He dismissed her with a wave of his hand; sending her back to the mortal realm.
The leader of the group lingered on his mind. "ell mannered, not easily rattled, and admittedly not unpleasant to look at. Raphael's eyes fell to the napkin left neatly on the table, and narrowed his eyes in contemplation. The tiefling didn't look highborn, but he certainly knew decorum. An intriguing puzzle. A puzzle, Raphael set out to solve.
He mobilized some of his resources within Baator to discreetly keep an ear out for any mentions of a Varvain. It didn't take long until one of the cambions sworn to him returned with news.
"I might have found this Varvain's patron, master." she said, as she approached Raphael, who was browsing books in the archives.
"Well, don't let me wait." He responded drily, turning his attention to the other fiend.
"I figured someone in the Fetters in Dis might know him. And they did. He actually has a bit of a reputation there." the cambion reported, "Apparently he's the favorite pet of a pit fiend called Frith."
Raphael's expression turned into an annoyed frown, "Frith..." He felt the need to punch something. Or someone. He knew the name. One of Dispater's lap dogs.
"Anything else?" he asked, trying his damnedest to stay composed.
The cambion shook her head, "No, master. That's all I could find out without my questioning becoming obvious."
Raphael nodded, "Good work," and dismissed her with a wave of his hand.
He mulled the information over in his head for a while. This might be an obstacle for his plans, depending on the details of the contract between Frith and Varvain that gave the mortal his power.
When he finally turned to leave the archive, he saw the Archivist giving him a look Raphael didn't appreciate. Upon seeing the devil glaring at him, the archivist swiftly busied himself with a ledger.
The cambion's nostrils flared in annoyance, but breaking spines would have to wait. He had a problem to solve.
Raphael made his way to Dis. He didn't particularly like the place; mostly because every time he came here, the streets had changed, making navigation difficult. It ground against his sense of order. At least coming here was easy enough. Due to the fetters being accessible to mortals, Raphael could just slip in without any trouble.
The fetters' market was a curious sight. Mortals and devils, both peddling their wares to each other. Many a deal struck, many a soul claimed. Though he did not like the city, Raphael had to admire the industrious efficiency of the procurement of souls in this place.
He focused back on his task - it wasn't hard to find Frith's haunt, the "bath house", as he called it. Truly it was more of a brothel, but appearances mattered in some way, when trying to trap mortals.
It was a gaudy place he's been to before. There was a pool in the middle of it, so technically calling it a 'bath' was valid, even if most of the mortals who found themselves lured here, ended up enjoying either the music, or other physical pleasures outside the water.
In a way, the place reminded him of Sharess' Caress, but with very different clientele. In the far back, on a dais lording over the place stood, what could only be described as a throne, with a large bed not far behind it. Raphael wrinkled his nose but was glad, that Frith wasn't heaving any entertainment right now.
The pit fiend sat on his "throne", wearing his more palatable disguise of a handsome devil - tiefling, even - with short horns, slicked back hair, and a gaudy beard that reminded Raphael of both, his father and Dispater.
As he walked along the outside of the pool, Raphael took stock of the other beings present. Most were mortals, either guests who will probably never be able to leave again, or Frith's enslaved mortals who offered the entertainment. Some played music, some made food, some lulled the guests into letting their guard down by massaging them, and some... well.
But there were also devils here. A succubus or two, Raphael noticed. Made sense, given the purpose of this place. But also some other devils who were here to be entertained. Probably allies of Frith's enjoying some sort of treat, Raphael assumed.
He was pulled from his thoughts, as he closed in on Frith's "throne".
"You, cambion, you're not one of mine. I hope you have a good reason to be here." Frith's smooth but powerful voice boomed at him.
Cambion. Raphael ground his teeth. Not only did the pit fiend not recognize him, he was also degraded to just a cambion.
"I would have a word with you," he replied, doing his best to not let his frustration show.
"I don't waste my time with half-breeds not sworn to me. So unless you're here to pledge your undying allegiance - shoo." Frith waved his hand dismissively.
Raphael clenched his fists in anger. Half-breed? Half-breed!? He took a deep breath, "I am Raphael. You might have--"
"Oh, one of Mephistopheles' brood. I've heard of you." Frith interrupted him with a chuckle, "Bit of a rebel from what I hear. Not in your father's best graces, hm?"
Raphael wanted nothing more, than to wipe that smirk off the fiend's face. But he knew he was no match for him - yet. This would all change, once he had the Crown of Karsus. Only a matter of time...
He took a frustrated breath, "Yes. My father and I don't exactly see eye to eye. But I'm not here to speak about him."
Frith kept smirking condescendingly at the cambion before him, "Well, I am intrigued what would bring you here, half-breed, So I'll humor you." he beckoned Raphael to come closer, which he did.
"Why do you visit me in my humble abode?"
Raphael's jaw clenched, "I think I have stumbled upon one of your wayward warlocks." he tried to sound casual, "And I got curious what kind of relationship you have with them. I've seen different kinds of patronages during my days. I'm always interested to..." he gestured vaguely, "...learn, from others and their experiences."
Frith's superior smirk slowly vanished, "And which warlock would that be, pray tell? Do you have a name?"
Raphael did his best to sound conversational, "He did introduce himself as Varvain." The moment he said the name, he saw something shift in Frith's expression. Though he couldn't quite tell what it was.
"Varvain - my pet. He's having an unplanned vacation in the mortal realm." Frith replied and narrowed his eyes, "How did you run into him?"
Raphael shrugged, "Oh, I was looking for souls, you know. Lots of death going on at the Sword Coast these days." He smirked a little.
Frith regarded the cambion for a bit, "Well, you won't have Varvain's soul. It is mine." he put a lot of emphasis on that last word, adding a threatening undertone that was hard to miss.
Raphael gave a little sideways nod, "Far be it from me to get between you and your pet. But pray tell, might I have a look at his contract, by any chance?" This was far from smooth, but there was no way around asking about the contract sooner or later, "Merely to serve as inspiration for my own, you understand. There's a little tiefling girl I'm interested in... mentoring."
Frith was quiet for a moment, as he looked Raphael up and down. Then he stood up, smiling casually - but something wasn't right, Raphael could tell.
"You want to look at Varvain's contract?" He echoed the request, as he stepped down from the dais and approached Raphael. The cambion felt like he should be retreating, but he stood his ground.
An error.
Frith's hand shot up, grabbing Raphael by the throat and pulling him close to his face, "Varvain is mine, and whatever you think to want or get from him, you best swiftly forget about it, you half-mortal filth." Frith growled.
Raphael grabbed the pit fiend's arm, tried to wrest himself free, but to no avail. "I am no mortal!" he croaked angrily, defiantly, but only got a laugh in response.
"Well, you're certainly no devil either." Frith hissed and tightened his grip. The cambion tried to respond but all that came out of his strangled throat was a strained gurgle.
"Mephistopheles would probably thank me for getting rid of you, but you are his problem, mortal spawn. Get out of my domain. Now." He threw Raphael to the ground like a ragdoll, "And if you dare to even so much as sniff on Varvain's soul, I will throw you into the pit of flame myself!"
Raphael could see the pit fiend's eyes burn with rage, and he had no doubt he was one spark away from dropping his disguise. Coughing, Raphael staggered to his feet. He glared angrily at the other devil, but he knew if it came to open violence, he would draw the short end of the stick.
The entire bath house had become silent. The music had stopped and nobody dared to speak or move.
Raphael glared at Frith, but he knew when to make a tactical retreat. He turned and stomped out of the building, stewing in his anger and frustration. He swore to himself, once he had the Crown of Karsus, he would return and tear Frith limb from limb. But for now he would have to bide his time.
He returned to the House of Hope to nurse his bruised ego.
(To be continued...)
#bg3#fanfiction#raphael bg3#bg3 raphael#baldur's gate 3 raphael#raphael the cambion#rds#baldurs gate 3#anon ask#raphael x tav#conflicted!cambion#gn!tav#Varvain and Frith#warlock!Tav#hurt/comfort#jealousy
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Will adult birds eat too much if you let them? I remember you said something a while ago about bug having an uncomfortable crop bc she ate too much, and given the general joke around here is "peafowl have 0 braincells" do you have to control how much food you give them? I feel like that'd be hard, cuz they live in a big flock and if you give them too little(ie: not more than a single bird can defend) the boss bird will eat it all? So was bug just an idiot bc she's a chick?
They won't eat too much regular dry feed, and should have access to feed during all waking hours. Even Bug won't eat too much regular feed.
What they WILL gorge on is treats or high-value foods. Things like wet feed, bugs, small animals, meats, fruits etc. I came home once to Eris looking like she was choking on something, with a huge lump halfway down her throat, and (thinking it was a piece of plastic or something, or that she was actually CHOKING and not just being an idiot) when I wrestled her to the ground and worked it out of her, it was an entire quail egg, still whole and unbroken that she'd just horked down for some reason.
They're also not super mean when it comes to treats, usually, and I've never seen a peafowl keep all birds away from a feed bin the way boss chicken hens will sometimes do. I've never had to add a second feeder for that purpose, with the peafowl. I don't see them typically defend "all treats" either, so much as defending "my treat." They ARE dirty little thieves who will steal a treat from another bird, so that's valid. The most I usually see is a bird getting too close to another bird while treats are on the ground, and getting chased a few feet off to prevent direct theft. Even among the youngsters, Wendy (bottom of the totem pole) still gets treats at the same time as everyone else, even though she does get moved around when she gets too close.
And even when they DO really like a treat, I've only rarely seen them overeat. More often, they'll eat what they want, and then walk away even if there's still treats on the ground. I've only seen a couple of people ever ask what their bird is doing when they make that "uncomfortably full" face and it's often mistaken for a respiratory or gapeworm issue, but crop adjustments are VERY distinct from those motions. So, some adults still do it occasionally. But it's not that big of a concern, in the end.
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Hey Kat! @mybrainismelted
Here is Drabble challenge 34 , as asked.
“ You work for me. you are my slave “
Please note, GILF ( Ginger I’d Like to F@*k )
Ian was finally home after ten years in the military, two Purple Hearts, and a Medal of Honor. Gnarly chest scars and nightmares about the brothers he could not save. He was not ready to go into EMT work yet but needed routine.
Mandy Milkovich. Bestie and Beard since freshman year. Flew out to Walter Reed and held his hand, making sure he wanted to still live. Now a regular at his and Carl's apartment. Her brothers owned Kings of the Southside Ink and her brother Mickey, the star tattooist, temperamental shit and hot beyond the dirty, angry older brother who would flop on the couch and give him and Mandy crap.
He was also in need of an assistant and receptionist, and somehow Mandy talked Ian into the job. After two weeks, he understood why the position was open. The appointment book was a mess, their insta needed an upgrade, and the complimentary beverage and snack service reminded Ian of the psych hospital.
And then there was his direct boss, Mickey. Surly and sexy, the man had no filter and no boundaries. Hard working for a man you either wanted to strangle or suck off. It was also harder as his phone blew up each day with the requests, demands, and ramblings of the raven-haired thug.
He had just come back from his run when the phone vibrated.
Pocket Jefe: Hey, is the place you get coffee the place with the coffee I like?☹️
GILF: You drink it black; literally, anywhere I go has the coffee you like.
Pocket Jefe: That’s what I pay you for; how the fuck would I know which shop? I never go to any.
GILF: That’s because your ass was banned from like 9 by the shop because of your donut tantrums.
Pocket Jefe: What, you don’t care about donuts?”
GILF : Well, I am always a fan of a glazed hole.😜
Pocket Jefe:🖕🏻
Back at the shop, Mickey was beet red, grabbed his coffee, and fled to his station.
——————————
Ian was enjoying the quiet of Staples, which he knew would not last. His phone lit up with photo of a sleeve of gears and lilies, Mickey.
Pocket Jefe:🎤 Whips and chains excite me.
GILF: Are you asking or telling me?
Pocket Jefe: Keep up the Gallagher. Song. What’s the name of the song with those lyrics?
GILF : Ok, again, I cannot read your mind; I need a little more than your professing love of BDSM for me. Which FYI , I am a fan. You a power bottom by chance? Also, it’s Rhiana, S&M.
Pocket Jefe: Jeez, this assistant of mine makes my dick twitch.
Pocket Jefe: Shit, did I send you a text by accident? FYI, not about you.
GLIF: What text, Mick?
Pocket Jefe: Don’t worry, your pretty head, sweetheart, just get back here, oh, and bring me a big ass snickers. 🍫
Ian smiled and filed the information he had just given away for a later date.
————————————
Ian had just settled after a long day of explaining to Iggy that if he did not write down appointments, Ian could not add them. He had ice cream, jacked off to a certain pair of blue eyes, and was about to watch Drag Race. He had just settled in when his phone almost vibrated off the coffee table.
Pocket Jefe: WTF, Gallagher! You asked Colin about ink?
Pocket Jefe: What you don’t trust me, that stings, man. ☹️
Pocket Jefe: I do much better scar coverage.
Pocket Jefe: not being nosy, but saw those when you changed into a skin-tight tee. This is a semi-professional atmosphere Army, not a rub-in tug.
GILF: I never asked you cause last time I mentioned your work, you were your usually grumpy prick self and threatened to stab me with your Taco Bell spork. You were watching me change; I used to charge guys to see that. So you think of yourself as my pimp?
Pocket Jefe: Fuck you, is what I think. Enough of this touchy-feely bullshit. Enough chitchat; my appointment is running late. Can you go feed Carl Barks and Noodles for me? Oh, and get me some Pringles, a BBQ, and a pack of smokes. You know the code to my loft.👍
GILF: You know I am off, right?”
Pockey Jefe: You get off when I tell you to get off. You work for me. You are my slave. "C'mon, please.“
GILF: Fucking fine, you need me to peel you a grape too? 🤬
Pocket Jefe: I mean, I wouldn’t say no. Seriously, when you get there, just text me and let me know everything is fine. If you want to stay, we can maybe talk about a coverup piece or something.
GILF: Ohhhh, can we have pizza and a sleepover too?
Pocket Jefe: Your pushing it, keep talking back, and your going from slave to sex slave.
Pocket Jefe: Umm, damn autocorrect, sax slave, not sex 🎷
GILF: Whoring me out to Kenny G? 🥹Bummer.
Pocket Jefe: 🖕🏻
Ian grinned. He was about to get either fired or fucked; he hoped for the latter.
————————
Mickey was just cleaning up his station, and his focus was not on his big fat tip from this work.
Ian Gallagher.
He secretly crushed on the gangly redhead when he would hang with Mandy. He knew about Ian’s history as a medic and the almost-life-ending injury that ended his career. But he saved five that day, who, by accounts, should not have survived the firefight. Deep scars were over that broad chest and hard abs. The story made those scars beautiful. He was always flustered around Gallagher, but he thought he hid it well.
His phone vibrated, he glanced, his mouth went dry, and the warm tingle went to his crotch. Gallagher sent a photo.
Tight Kings tee, a truly Godzilla-size cock trying to break out of blue boxer briefs. A motherfucking collar. And on a silver platter no less, a small whip, a chain, grapes, and a big ass tube of strawberry lube.
A text
GILF: Waiting for you to tell me when I can get off; may I peel you a grape in the meantime, sir? 🫦
Mickey grabbed his keys and jogged out to his car, eager to go blow Ian’s sax.
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I find it fascinating that some people think that Roman’s mountain top outburst with Matsson was a fucking business strategy, that it was actually a negotiation tactic. I’m sorry, but did we watch the same scene? Not only did Matsson fuck them over by giving an offer the board absolutely won’t refuse (which shits right on the genius master plan of Kendall taking over Waystar - yet again, for what?), he also pretty clearly blew his lid off. Is revealing all the ways they planned to fuck the deal supposed to be this amazing tactic? Absolutely not. He lost it, it was a culmination of all the grief, all the anxiety, and all the anger at Matsson for dragging them up there days after their father died, and he just fucking erupted. Comparing him to Logan in that moment only matches if you think about Logan fucking losing it and making a stupid decision because he lost his tempter (like his little tantrum after PGN went to shit). I feel like in their world, you’re either an emotional wall or you lose, that’s it. No cards on the table, because you can’t manipulate someone if not only they can clearly see through you, but you also just come out with unhinged monologue, revealing everything (which I’m happy that Roman did it, he needed that catharsis, but also - not a good business move overall). Lucas was not intimidated by Roman, he was amused, he threw more money at them to solidify the deal, because he saw an emotional value ATM holds for them. That’s what the picture from Shiv was about, that was his one big fuck you. In the end of the day, it is a big dick competition.
I also saw some interesting (if only questionable) opinions on Shiv - Matsson stuff. Like yeah, I think girlie was definitely winning this episode, especially when you had her brothers as a comparison, who just stood there with dicks in their hands, looking absolutely clueless half of the time. At this point what is going on between Shiv and Matsson could be considered a mutual symbiosis; they are kind of like two parasites feeding of each other, playing each other off but to the benefit of both of them. But this cannot be long-term, we all know how things go - the closer you get to the sun, the more painful the fall is going to be. Matsson getting Shiv on his side (with quite a lot of enthusiasm on Shiv’s side, she did try to play her own angle all along), is a very easy way of getting himself an insider to the company. It’s also very easy way to take care of Kendall and Roman problem. Shiv has a motivation to stab her brothers in the back, she can sense that she is not being included, and she can very clearly see that her brothers are actually incompetent and don’t have a plan. Which means that Matsson going with “you remind me of your dad” was an extremely good move on his side. It solidified it for Shiv, it literally lifted her of the ground. Because everyone with a pair of working eyes can see that Roy siblings cling to Logan like he’s a raft, and all they want to do is either make daddy proud or be like daddy. For Shiv it’s a compliment of a highest standard to be compared to Logan, because Logan was the big boss, because in the end of the day - Logan always won. They are still playing the same old game, and I’m worrying that it’s about to bring the same results it always brought, just from a different person.
Then again, obviously this show is very highly open to interpretations and I might possibly be giving a bit too much credit to Matsson (in the end of the day he might turn up to be a complete idiot, business-wise, although I doubt it), but that was my overall read on the last episode.
#roman roy#they have no fucking clue what they’re doing#especially ken and roman#i think they are all very clearly getting played by matsson#and its about to turn into a fucking bloodbath#where they stab each other and bring the whole family to ruins#succession#kendall roy#succession hbo#shiv roy#logan roy#lucas matsson#marta rumbles poetically
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Super Lesbian Animal RPG Is The Best Video Game I've Played Since Minecraft
Now that I've finally regained my ability to make publicly visible posts, I'd like to take a moment to gush about the critically acclaimed indie game classic Super Lesbian Animal RPG by @ponett and associates.
Holy shit. Holy shit? This game is so fucking good you guys. Are you kidding me? I know the title sounds like a stupid joke and there is actually a lot of humor in this game but you know what? This is a video game that's worth taking seriously. I've never given a shit about romance as a genre before getting into @slarpg because all the romance stories I've seen as a kid are either dragged-out "Will They, Won't They?" types, painful divorce stories, or fucking Romeo and Juliet. There seems to be this overwhelming belief in the genre that the greatest obstacle faced by a truly happy couple that's meant for each other is the process of getting together, and once they've gotten together the story can end. Of course, anyone who's ever had parents knows that shit isn't true, which is why I'm so fucking happy that SLARPG is a romance story about a couple that's already together and it showcases how they can have disagreements and awkward moments but still overcome them and keep going. I love that shit.
In my opinion, the most important thing a turn-based RPG developer needs to do is make sure the plot of their game is solid. With a more action-oriented game like the Souls series or Armored Core, the story doesn't fucking matter and nobody cares about it. People are in it for the exciting, challenging gameplay. If you show them a crisp parry animation that feels better than sex when you time it perfectly or a sick-ass command grab from a boss or whatever, then they're already sold without even knowing who any of the characters are. But you can't have those things with a turn-based RPG so the story is the most important part, and holy shit did SLARPG have the story nailed down on a cross and ready for worship.
See, I've spent my entire life searching for more stories that are relatable to people who live in the real world but at the same time provide a better alternative to the bleak reality we all know and don't love. SLARPG is one of those stories. Melody and Allison will talk about shit like housing being too expensive and Claire will mention how she doesn't talk to her transphobic parents anymore but they're also able to find happiness and stability with the power of love. It gives the game a sort of hopeful undertone that it's meant to represent the real world if people had the courage to do something about all the awful shit we have. Basically, SLARPG shows that misery exists in its world without normalizing it. Every drop of tear shed by Melody is treated with the immense gravity it deserves. At no point did the game say "This suffering you feel is just what happens in the world, better get used to it kid." but it also simultaneously shows how it's possible to move forwards from that sadness one step at a time. I fucking love that shit.
Read more for spoilers.
Now, getting into spoiler territory. I really like how this game also managed to marry its personal, emotional conflict with its greater, physical conflict. At no point in the game are you made to feel like the action-packed excitement of "Fight enemies, save the world." is interrupted so the characters can work through their private emotional insecurities. No, the characters' emotional insecurities and the world-ending threat they face feed into each other and feel as though they're one in the same. Even the main villain was revealed to be someone suffering from similar insecurities in the end and it's the protagonists' ability to make a positive example of themselves that played a key role in defeating her.
Speaking of the villain, she actually made me briefly consider not liking this game since she initially said that she wanted to destroy all the world's evil and recreate the world in a better state, only for the heroes to immediately try and stop her. I had a huge issue with this plot development at first because I hate it when people who wish to change the world for the better are portrayed as the bad guys for some reason. That is, until SLARPG revealed that its main villain was just making up an excuse and simply wanted personal revenge for the perceived murder of her wife that didn't even actually happen, while the heroes wanted to stop her because they were understandably ignorant and afraid of what the fuck her plan actually meant and how many casualties it might cause. In other words, the villain never actually intended to make the world a better place and was thus not portrayed as a bad person for doing so. She wasn't portrayed as a bad person at all, in fact. Rather, she's more depicted as someone blinded by her own rage and victimized by enabling trolls who wanted to start shit for fun, which made her far more relatable and interesting in my opinion.
All in all, I think SLARPG was great. It's a thematically consistent and tonally hopeful story with a good message and relatable characters. The game itself also left quite a few unaddressed antagonists like the evil crypto-mining corporation that keeps the reanimated corpses of former employees as slaves, or the mysterious being from the astral plane that possessed the protagonist and was never truly defeated. These things make me hopeful that we'll get a sequel or DLC or something one day, and I'll be there to support this series every step of the way. Bobby, if you're reading this, thank you so much. I haven't seriously enjoyed a contemporary work of fiction for years now but this game reminded me of how it feels to actually love a video game for once instead of playing through it out of spite like I did with the Souls series. Keep up the good work, for real.
#slarpg#super lesbian animal rpg#ponett#furry#lgbt art#video games#video game analysis#video game praise
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