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sebscore · 1 year

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rubyyy i have an idea for your gen-z driver series! when you are free, maybe you can write about when lil miss just got into f1 and had many people doubted her just for her to nail her rookie season like the goat sir Lewis Hamilton did in his. feel free to tweak it however you want. I just thought it would be cool to see more off the racing side of gen-z driver. :))))

and i really enjoy your writings, keep them coming but also don't stress out too much about them as well :)

WELCOME TO THE STRANGE WORLD

pairings: f1 grid x driver!reader

warnings: sexism. swearing. based this one on the 2018 grid, cause I imagine her joining the grid that year. christian horner & helmut marko.

author's note: this got me immediately inspired!! It's also the first time I tackle the racing aspect of the series so I hope it's a bit accurate and that it is enjoyable x

• • • • • • •

''Do you feel the pressure going into this week's race?'' The reporter asked her, a polite smile on his face.

Y/N carefully adjusted the mic attached to her cheek. ''Uh, definitely,'' she nervously chuckled as it was her first F1 press conference, ''there have been a lot of reactions, both negative and positive, so I do feel a lot of eyes on me at the moment.''

To say that there had been a lot of reactions was an understatement. The announcement of the female race car driver joining the F1 grid had become the #1 topic on several social media platforms and even international news channels had broadcasted about the ''controversial'' arrival of the young woman.

Various notable figures in the motorsport world had also voiced their opinion on the new face on the grid. There were many positive reactions, for example, Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff saying: ''It's a step in the right direction. Many young girls will see her race and get more interested in the sport, which will hopefully motivate them to start karting.''

Susie Wolff, former development driver for Williams, also showed her enthusiasm. ''I think Y/N is the perfect role model for all the young girls who watch F1 at home. We've been following her closely the last few years and she's proved that she can compete with the big guys, I'm very proud and I can't wait for her performances this season.''

Unfortunately, there had also been less positive feedback. Red Bull Motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, had questioned whether she would be able to handle the ''physicalities'' the sport asked of a driver. ''I hope I'm wrong, but I wouldn't be surprised if she would be replaced by the second race.''

His Red Bull colleague, Christian Horner, had also made some sensitive comments about the young woman. He recalled his first meeting with her, stating he thought she was one of the grid girls and that it would be tough as she's ''entering a man's sport''.

Y/N had been upset with key figures of the sport making such statements about her, but she had heard worse throughout her racing career. Men like Horner were stuck in old times.

''Sebastian, how do you feel about a female joining F1?'' Both Y/N and Sebastian internally cringed at the rookie being referred to as a 'female', trying to not let it show on their faces.

The German collected the right words before answering. ''I'm very happy that Y/N is sitting here next to us,'' he smiled at her, ''I think her being on the grid and competing alongside us, is going to bring a lot of positive changes that should've been happening a long time ago. I've known her for some years now, so maybe I'm biased, but I couldn't think of a better person joining the line-up.''

''Thank you.'' Y/N mumbled, grown shy by Sebastian's praises. He had been involved in her career since her humble karting beginnings, wanting to guide her as he knew a lot of people would try to stop her from flourishing in the sport.

The journalist then put his focus on the other world champion sitting at the panel. ''Lewis, you share the same opinion as Sebastian?''

''I agree with Seb, it's nice to see that progress is being made in diversing the sport and she's here, because she deserves to be here.'' Lewis' answer showed his disagreement with the people who were convinced that the woman's arrival to F1 was nothing more than a statement to the FIA.

Y/N wasn't ignorant and knew her claiming an F1 seat would bring a lot of publicity, not only to her, but her team as well. However, they wouldn't risk losing millions of euros, because they simply wanted to make a point that women can competitively drive as well.

''I've seen her drive, we've all seen her drive and you can't deny that she has a huge talent.'' Lewis concluded his answer, sending a soft smile her way.

The reporter who asked the question directed his attention back to the young woman. ''Y/N, it must be great to hear those positive words from such seasoned drivers.'' He said to her, his hands pointing towards the two World Champions.

She shyly nodded her head, feeling the gazes of everyone in the room on her. ''Yeah, it's, uh, very nice of them.''

''It's the truth.'' Sebastian chuckled.

''That's P11 tomorrow, Y/N! Good job, we're proud of you over here.'' Her engineer announced over the radio, letting the driver know her qualifying session was over.

She pressed her radio button. ''Thank you so much, guys! A good start!'' She enthusiastically exclaimed, delighted about her team being happy with quali.

They had greeted her back into the garage with an applause and many headpats, congratulating her on her first ever F1 qualifier. ''Let's discuss now.'' Her coach put his arm around her shoulder and guided her to the team's briefing room.

It hadn't lasted long. The team was overall very satisfied with how the qualifying session had gone and didn't have much feedback for the rookie.

''Of course it would be great to score points, but finishing P11 is the realistic standing tomorrow.'' Her team principal's words had taken her by surprise, expecting them to want to score as many points as possible at the race tomorrow.

Y/N wasn't too sure if that was the genuine opinion her team had about the next day or if they thought that she wouldn't be able to make any overtakes. Whatever it was, the dilemma clouded her mind as she walked through the paddock, ready to go back to her hotel and unwind.

However, an arm pulled her out of her thoughts, making the rookie flinch at the sudden touch. ''What the heck,'' she hastily turned towards the person, ''Seb, don't scare me like that.'' Y/N calmed down seeing the German man grinning at her, Britta standing next to him.

''You looked like you were overthinking.'' He had seen the frown on her face as she passed the Ferrari hospitality, immediately knowing something was on her mind. ''Starting P11 is good for your first race, the best of the rookies.'' Sebastian figured it was related to the qualifying session.

''No, I'm happy with my starting position.'' She assured him, shaking her head.

The Ferrari driver furrowed his eyebrows, being confused. ''Then what is it? Did someone say something to you?''

Y/N glanced around the paddock, making sure no one of her team or a reporter was standing near them. ''I just, uh, well- during the briefing, they basically said that they don't expect me to make any overtakes and that I just need to try to keep my position.'' She explained to the duo, both listening attentively.

''They're already underestimating you?'' Britta commented, shocked they wouldn't encourage her to at least try to overtake as many cars as she can.

Sebastian agreed with his friend. ''A team telling their driver to not score points is the weirdest thing I've heard in years.'' He said to Britta, a frown gracing his face.

He turned towards the young woman. ''Don't listen to them, okay? You pass as many fucking cars as you can, alright?'' It almost looked like he was scolding her.

The girl nodded her head, an appreciative smile on her face. ''You know I will.''

''I love the confidence.'' Britta laughed, patting her back.

''Don't think about it too much, Y/N. You're gonna do great tomorrow, I'm sure of it.'' Sebastian ruffled her hair, a sincere tone in his voice.

Y/N simply smiled at both of them, and thanked them for their support. ''I'm gonna go back to my hotel now, but I'll see you tomorrow then.'' She bid them goodbye, waving as she walked through the exit gates.

She could see and feel the condescending stares as she waited on the grid before the start of the race, some people didn't know how to be subtle. She had her headphones on, blasting music through them so she could drown out all of the negative thoughts.

A tap on her shoulder brought her eyes from the ground to the face of a semi-looking concerned Kimi. She paused her song and took the headphones off, ready to listen to what the older man had to say. ''Yeah?''

''I can hear your song.'' Kimi pointed at his own ears, visualizing his words.

Y/N's eyes widened, her worried expression altering into one of embarrassment. ''Oh, sorry, I'll turn it down.'' She apologized, immediately grabbing her phone to change the volume.

''No, uh, is okay,'' he told her, ''you good?''

She was stunned by his question, awkwardly staring at him for a few seconds before answering. ''Yes, I'm good.'' Kimi always kept it short, she figured she should do the same.

''Don't be nervous,'' the Finnish driver continued, looking into her eyes, ''people want to see you do bad, prove them wrong.''

She had met the man a handful of times before, but they had never talked this much with each other. Kimi kept to himself and she wanted to be respectful of that, not wanting to accidentally cross one of his boundaries.

He wasn't a man of many words (at least sober) so she appreciated his advice very much, knowing he wouldn't tell her this if he didn't think she could actually prove them wrong.

''Thanks.''

''No worry.'' A small assuring smile was found on his face, making the grimaces of her critics seem like nothing.

''Y/L easily passes the Renault, moving up to P10.'' The commentary of David Croft sounded as she overtook Sainz, going from P11 to P10.

Her team's pit crew cheered in the garage, watching the spectacle on the screen. ''Keep pushing, Y/N! We're in the points.'' Her engineer told her over the radio.

''Hehe, understood.'' She chuckled, proud of her smooth overtake.

She managed to pass the Mclaren of Vandoorne in the same lap, falling behind the Mercedes of Bottas and the Renault of Hulkenberg who was doing his best to keep his seventh position in the race.

The pair was too busy challenging each other that they didn't see the car of the female driver coming through, passing both of them when they left a gap. ''Y/L jumps ahead of both of them! She jumped Bottas and Hulkenberg, moving up to P7! What a stellar performance of the rookie driver!''

People couldn't believe their eyes as she passed the Mercedes, undoubtedly one of the fastest cars on the grid compared to her team's midfield one.

''Bloody amazing, Y/N! The Red Bull is too far up to catch, but defend for your life now!'' P6 wasn't possible anymore as she went into the last lap, Max's car being quicker and having fresher tyres than her.

The last lap almost went by in a haze, the young woman scared something would ruin the beautiful moment for her, but that never came. ''Y/N Y/L comes across the line to celebrate her dream debut and she becomes the first woman in over 40 years to score points in a Grand Prix!''

She parked her car behind Max's, her hands on her helmet as if it were her head. Y/N sat in disbelief as reality dawned on her. You scored points in your first F1 race, the sentence played on a loop in her head.

''Oi! Little Miss scoring points on her debut!'' An Australian accent pulled her out of her thoughts, several pats on her helmet making her look up. ''You passed the Mercedes? Fucking amazing!'' He exclaimed as he saw the silver car parked behind her.

''Daniel, can you help me get out? My body is in shock, I think.'' Y/N awkwardly chuckled, a bit embarrassed about not being able to get out of her car on her own at the moment.

Fortunately, the Red Bull driver didn't see the big problem and helped her stand up, supporting her underarms.

The support turned into a congratulating hug, the Australian swaying her side-to-side. ''Welcome to Formula One, baby!'' He loudly exclaimed.

Y/N laughed at his antics, touched by his excitement for her good result. ''Thanks, Ricciardo.''

''Good overtake there.'' Valtteri patted her helmet with his hand, complimenting her. She bowed her head in appreciation. ''Thank you.''

Her and Daniel followed the Mercedes driver into the cooldown room, the latter handing her an ice-cold water bottle from the table. ''What place did you get?'' Y/N asked Daniel, turning to him.

''P4,'' he sighed, ''but I got fastest lap, so a little redemption.'' The Red Bull driver laughed it off, at least happy he got an extra point for the championship standings.

A pat on her back made her look back, being met with a sweaty Charles. ''Hey, man.'' She greeted him with a side-hug.

''Saw you got P7, congrats.'' The pair had been teammates the year before at Prema Racing so they have a good friendship with each other. ''Thanks, how did it go for you?'' Y/N was curious about her fellow rookie's debut race.

He shrugged his shoulders. ''P13, but only because 5 people retired.'' Charles downplayed it, glimpsing at the ground.

''Cheer up, Charlito! It's only the first one of the season.'' She tried comforting him, not wanting him to be down about his result.

Charles just smiled and moved on, ready to go back to his team and discuss everything. The rest of the drivers, except the top 3, followed swiftly. Y/N received a grand welcome back in her garage, it almost seemed like she had won the World Championship. She had a brief discussion about the race and her team prepared her for the post-race interviews.

Surprisingly, the interviews had gone well and not one discriminating question was asked. She mainly received a lot of congratulations and one female reporter even thanked her for her race performance as it would inspire many young girls watching it. Y/N had almost teared up during the specific interview, not expecting anyone to do that.

The rookie was walking to her driver's room when a call of her name stopped her in her tracks. Lewis jogged up to her, greeting her with a big embrace. ''Good job, you did so well!'' He told her with a huge smile on his face.

''Thank you, Lewis.'' Her head felt warm, the older man making her a little flustered.

''And this is only the beginning, you know? You showed everyone today that you deserve to be here, truly amazing!'' He continued praising her.

Y/N grinned at him. ''Thank you so much, that means a lot to me.''

''The three of us were watching it back in the cooldown room, like waiting to see in which position you came in.'' Him, Sebastian and Kimi had attentively observed the screen that replayed the race, interested in knowing how the young woman had performed.

She was touched by Lewis' words, honored that three World Champions had looked out for her and wanted to know her result. ''Oh my god, that's- wow, that's really cool.'' Y/N awkwardly laughed, not knowing how to give a proper response all of a sudden.

''Anyway, congrats and celebrate it well,'' he made a move to leave before visibly remembering something, ''oh, yeah, Seb asked me to tell you that he'd come by your driver's room.'' Lewis conveyed Sebastian's message.

''Oh, great, I'll, uh, see you in two weeks then.'' She bid him goodbye and she was on her way again, hoping the German wasn't already waiting for her there.

Fortunately for her, Sebastian wasn't there yet and she had the time to change into her casual wear so she could leave the circuit and go straight to the airport afterwards to go back home.

Three knocks on her door stopped her scroll through social media and she called for her guest to come in, not having the energy to get up from her couch.

She watched an energetic Sebastian walk into her driver's room, practically running to give her a hug. ''I told you that you could do it! P fucking 7!'' He exclaimed, excitedly.

''Congrats to you for winning!'' She retorted back, not having had the chance yet to congratulate him on his GP win.

''Thank you, honey.'' He sat down next to her on the couch.

''I would have loved to see the faces of everyone on your team the moment you passed Carlos, it must have been priceless.'' Sebastian smirked, thinking of what she had told him the day before. ''And the double overtake? You couldn't have had a better race.''

''Oh my god, I couldn't believe it, Seb! Like I finished in front of a Mercedes? Wow, just wow!'' Sebastian laughed at her enthusiasm, imagining how great she must feel now.

The winner of the day scratched his voice. ''Kimi said how nervous you looked before the race and I'm not gonna lie, I was a bit worried about you,'' he had lowered his voice, different from his loudness of before, ''but you dealt with the pressure perfectly and you didn't let it affect your race. I'm very proud of you.'' His sincerity and expression of pride almost brought tears to her eyes, the words of her idol and mentor meaning a lot to her.

''Thank you, Seb,'' a shy smile graced her face, ''that means a lot to me, I couldn't have done it without you.'' She thanked him.

''No, it was your hard work that got you here.'' He argued, not wanting to take any sort of credit for her accomplishments. ''And maybe a little of my money, but you know.'' Sebastian jokingly added, not able to help himself from teasing the younger one.

Y/N rolled her eyes at the comment. ''Always so humble! Red Bull Seb made an appearance for a second there.''

''He's still in here, I just need to keep him in check.''

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#f1 fic #f1 fics #f1 x reader #formula 1 fic #f1 x oc #sebastian vettel x reader #lewis hamilton x reader #daniel ricciardo x reader #kimi raikkonen x reader #charles leclerc x reader #female f1 driver

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adore-laur · 7 months

Text

FOXTAIL

— two lovers being blissfully domestic while living in the countryside of france 🪴

——

LOIRE VALLEY, FRANCE

The melodic humming of his wife faintly echoes throughout the greenhouse kitchen, her voice hidden under the more pronounced noises of glass jars clinking together and the faucet running.

As Harry hunches over the granite countertop and gingerly trims the miniature bonsai tree he proudly grew himself, his ears tune into Nadine's movements. He's acutely aware of the soft padding of her slippers against the tiles and the slight graze of her robe against his sweater vest whenever she passes by. It's as if she's some soundless angel who doesn't like to make her presence known yet can't help but enthrall everyone with her heavenly poise.

He will often glance up while snipping away with his garden shears and follow her figure as she gracefully floats around the kitchen and pickles various vegetables that will eventually be donated to the orphanage on the outskirts of town. The cucumber she's currently slicing is from one of his many gardens on the property. They are Harry's pride and joy. He plants abundant seeds every season, then tends to the soil and sprouts until he can harvest them. Their primary use is to be thrown into either jars or on dinner plates, resulting in whatever his wife wishes to cleverly concoct.

"Nadi, can you please fill this up for me?" Harry asks, fidgeting with the fragile pump of the plant mister in his hand.

In a second, she's by his side, carefully taking the empty glass bottle from his grasp. "Hot or cold water?"

He smiles dotingly at her lack of knowledge about succulent maintenance. She has more expertise relating to culinary uses for fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices, while he takes care of the botanical aspect.

"Lukewarm since we've had sunny weather lately," he replies as he checks how dry the compacted soil in the pot is. "Thank you."

She nods and heads to the sink, turning the handle to the left. Harry pauses what he's doing and admires how her smooth, bronzed skin and silky black hair glimmer in the natural light pouring through the greenhouse panels. He often finds himself wanting to splay his hands on every part of her warm body and let his ceaseless love seep into her, sweet and absorbent like caramel drizzle on a dessert. Whenever she innately reacts to his touch, it melts him into a puddle of molasses the same color as the deep pools of her irises. And when the sun hits her brown eyes just right, he becomes entranced. She's his saccharine daydream.

Once Harry is satisfied with the trimming of his beloved bonsai, he moves on to the second task he planned to finish this morning. A woven basket sits beside him on the floor, holding a bundle of eucalyptus and myrtle leaves he broke off from the trees in the front yard. He had already cut a piece of gold wire to form the brittle blades around it, but he didn't know where to go from there. He wants to make a leaf crown for Nadine. However, he's never attempted a crown with leaves before, only with the lily of the valley and jasmine flowers he grows by the windowsill in their bedroom. The two white blossoms represent femininity and sensuality, a perfect blend of his wife's soul.

"You are standing so still, lover," Nadine says, setting down the filled plant mister. "What are you doing? What are those leaves for?"

"You ask too many questions," he teases with a prolonged kiss on her forehead.

She frowns halfheartedly. "Laisse-moi entrer dans ton jardin de secrets."

Harry's neck flushes from the way she effortlessly switched languages. "Seulement si tu me laisses entrer dans ton pot de secrets," he murmurs against her temple, jerking his chin toward her glass jars all neat in a row.

"I'm making pickled cucumber and carrot salad for lunch since I have leftover scraps," she says enthusiastically.

Running his fingertips through her hair, he twirls the short strands and says, "I'm making a leaf crown for you."

"Why?"

"Why not? Are you worried it won't be as good as the ones the kids make you at the orphanage?"

Nadine doesn't answer and just stands on her tiptoes, wrapping her arms around his shoulders to pull him down for a slow kiss. Harry exhales blissfully and relaxes in her hold, placing his hands on her waist and moving his mouth against hers. He could kiss her lychee-colored lips for eternity if possible.

When she separates her lips from his with a wet pop, Harry begins swaying her to the mellifluous lullaby from the summer birds and wind chimes outside the greenhouse. He grabs her left hand and interlocks his fingers with hers, his other hand tenderly cupping her cheek. A sunrise dance happens frequently, whether it's in the kitchen, bedroom, or garden. Most of the time, they don't even involve music or the ambiance of nature, simply their hushed voices and synchronized heartbeats filling the space.

"Are you planting anything new today?" Nadine asks quietly.

Harry smears another kiss on her lips. "Just some arugula and parsley."

What she doesn't know is that yesterday while she took a trip down to the valley by herself, he planted her a bed of foxtail lilies in a concealed flower bed behind the tall grape trellises. He precisely calculated when they would bloom into tapered pink and yellow spikes so they could be her birthday surprise when late spring rolled around.

Nadine tilts her head to the side and smiles dreamily. "Can I watch you do it?"

"I'll let you if you smoke with me in the bath later."

She raises her thick eyebrows. "You want to get high before noon?"

"My body will be aching from crouching, and I want to relax before your family visits tomorrow."

"Of course, mon chéri."

Harry hums contently and strokes the pad of his thumb across her plump bottom lip. "Let me finish your crown, and then you can ogle at me in the garden, oui?"

——

"Sacré bleu, Nadi!" Harry shouts dramatically when she walks through the patio door completely nude.

Her curves and soft skin look ravishing under the European sky, and the sunbeams gloriously cast upon every stretch mark and blemish. He notices she's wearing his misshapen leaf crown from where he sits naked in the outdoor bathtub, reading yesterday's newspaper with a lit joint perched between his fingertips. Thankfully, no neighbors can see them in their vulnerable state since the backyard is closed off with a high wooden fence shaded by clustering chestnut and poplar trees.

Nadine gasps and kneels next to the tub, stealing the joint from him and taking a quick hit. She beautifully exhales two rings of smoke before saying, "You started without me."

"Pardonne-moi, ma reine," Harry says lowly as he flings the newspaper onto the grass and grabs her wrist to help her into the warm water. He plucked some red petals off the nearby rose bush to let float on the surface, and also brought out some bars of natural soaps Nadine handmade with excess fruit peels and herbs. She's craftier than him, but he thinks they make a good pair. He grows the plants, and she makes use of them.

Nadine's back meets his bare chest, and every muscle in his body instantly eases with the pure and healing touch of her skin. He spent hours in the sunlit garden planting autumn seeds and sneakily tending to the foxtail lilies, so the tendons in his shoulder blades feel inflamed, and his hands are decorated with new calluses. The dirt under his fingernails had been scrubbed clean while he waited for Nadine, yet there were still scrapes and aching muscles he wanted her to take care of. He's not embarrassed to admit that he likes to be babied by her.

"I brought your razor and shaving cream," Nadine tells him, setting the two objects on the edge of the tub.

Harry's lips downturn with confusion. "For you or for me?"

She turns in his arms to face him, bending her legs crisscross applesauce style. "You, miteux."

"Translation, please."

"Scruffy," she whispers like it's confidential.

A whiny laugh escapes his mouth. "Thought you liked it," he drawls, stroking circles onto her hips.

"Too itchy when you kiss me." She takes another hit before passing the joint over to him.

"Like this?" he asks before leaning forward to rub his cheek against hers and puckering multiple kisses against her skin, making a high-pitched laugh bless his ears.

"Oui, like that!" she expresses through giggles and a wide smile.

He lightly nips her jaw and murmurs, "What do I get in return for letting you shave my face?"

Nadine chews on the inside of her cheek, her dark eyes dancing over his entire body. "I think," she says while placing a wet rose petal on his collarbone, "you know exactly what I'll give you."

Harry swallows, his eyes fluttering shut. "Is that right, my darling?"

"That's right. You need to behave right now, though, or I might nick you."

"What a shame that would be, hmm?" His hands flex on her hips. "Can't go ruining my pretty face."

She cups water in her palms and pours it over the petal on his skin until it delicately falls off. "Your reflection in the bathwater is turning you into Narcissus."

"That's funny, considering your crown makes you look like Echo," he says, tucking a loose eucalyptus leaf under the wire. Are you going to start repeating everything I say?"

"No, but I'm obsessed with you like she was.

Who knew mythology could be so erotic? Harry feels his cock throb and harden as he softly kisses her neck and mumbles, "Such a sweet girl."

Nadine has an amount of self-control beyond comprehension because she suddenly scoots back and picks up the razor and container of shaving cream without another word. She begins applying a layer of the foamy cream on his scruff, spreading it on his neck and Adam's apple.

After inhaling from the joint, Harry blows the smoke toward the afternoon sky and casually rests his arms on the tub's edge as his wife shaves the stubble above his lips. She looks adorable with a concentrated furrow to her eyebrows and her tongue poking out slightly. Her body leans close to him, the curve of her breasts touching his chest and the tip of her nose grazing his own every so often. Her unoccupied hand tilts his chin to the side so she can work on his cheek. The soothing nature of her movements and the warm water engulfing his sore body feel more delightful than the weed that permeates his lungs and senses.

"Don't fall asleep on me, moonflower."

Harry's eyes blink open and blearily focus on her. He didn't realize he nodded off. A lazy smile makes its way onto his face when he sees her eyes rimmed with red from the joint she apparently took for herself while he wasn't paying attention.

"Tu me rends le bon genre de somnolent," he replies with a slur of impeding tiredness.

Nadine washes off the remnants of shaving cream on the right side of his freshly smoothed cheek. "You ramble such nonsense when you're high," she says, quickly finishing shaving the rest of his face. "Excusez moi. I'm not high… yet."

"You are. Know how I can tell?"

Harry settles his hands on her thighs. "Humor me, sunflower."

"I know because you are hard, and I haven't even done anything yet," Nadine whispers in his ear.

She's not Echo; she's the goddess of love. His Aphrodite, ironically surrounded by rose petals and wearing a crown adorned with myrtle leaves, sets the razor in a safe place under the tub and then straddles his thighs. She knows exactly how to make him weak putty in her hands.

Extinguishing the lit end of the joint in the water, Harry flips his palms up in invitation and says, "Do your worst, dove."

——

The euphoric high reaches Harry's fingertips as he touches the blades of grass he lies on. To the touch, they feel as soft as a cloud. To the eye, they are feathery and verdant.

The blue and white striped shirt he put on after the bath warps due to his spinning mind, the lines bending and blurring until they make his eyes cross. He and Nadine went through three joints each. Maybe four. Either way, the aftermath of sex while high and then proceeding to get higher has Harry feeling like he's levitating outside of his body. Although he can't complain when Nadine lies beside him, laughing infectiously over something he doesn't remember saying mere seconds ago.

"What did I do?" he asks, his speech slower and more drawled from the weed that passed his tongue.

"You were going on about" — she pauses for a moment to regain her breath — "about your dream that you had last night."

"Oh." He rubs his eyes and begins giggling over whatever is making her so happy. "Where did I… what part did I leave off at?"

"The part where, apparently, our thirty nonexistent children were blooming in the garden, and they were all wailing so much, but the only way to get them to stop was to water them."

"Shit, that's right. What a bizarre dream."

Nadine reaches over and pinches his stomach. "Could you imagine having to take care of thirty children? Oh, mon dieu!"

"We could do it," he says with faux confidence. "Babies are sort of like plants, right?"

She snorts and replies, "I would rethink that statement."

He's thinking ahead and can't stop the thought from crawling across the crevices of his brain like scandent stems. "One day, we'll have little snap peas running around the garden," he muses, the words sounding far away when he speaks them.

"Snap peas, like… bébés?" Nadine asks for clarity.

Harry looks over at her, his heart melting like candle wax at the innocence that laces her question. "Oui. Tant de bébés."

"Where is my say in this?" she asks with a prod to his sock-covered foot.

He smirks, rubbing his eyes again. "You have all the say in the world, dove. Just tell me when, and I'll drop everything for you."

"When what?"

"When you're ready for bébés."

He sees it. He wants it. He needs it. He feels a deep yearning for the possibility of them having Nadine's eyes of maple syrup and heart of sweet honey. If they'll laugh in three caught breaths like her and have her lustrous hair, or if they'll cackle obnoxiously like him and inherit his wild curls. He'd like either outcome. He'd like it a lot.

"I think I will be ready in the spring," Nadine says. "I do not want to be pregnant in the winter."

"How come?" Harry murmurs, dizzily rolling over and nuzzling his face into the velvety skin of her stomach, which is exposed below her cropped tank top.

"I don't thrive in the cold, so it would be a living nightmare for me," she says, tilting his face upwards. "And I wouldn't be able to show off my baby bump if it was cold all the time."

"Nadi baby," he says while letting her poke his dimples, "do you realize that if you get pregnant in the spring, you'll be ready to pop during wintertime?"

"I can't do math when I'm high. Too many months." She uses her strength to switch positions and lay on top of him, squishing his cheeks, her favorite thing to do. "But you have to promise me a bébé in the spring."

He hooks his right pinky with hers and says, "The foxtail lilies should be in full bloom by then. They'll be our good luck charm."

He didn't mean to say that out loud, and now he just utterly ruined the surprise. Damn those three or four joints.

"Hmm? Foxtail?" Nadine bemuses, tracing the slope of his nose with her pointer finger.

Sighing to himself, he knows there's no faultless way to dig himself out of the hole he created. "For you," Harry says shyly. "I planted a bed of foxtail lilies for you that will hopefully bloom in time for your birthday."

She goes silent, spreading her hand on his cheek and parting her lips. Harry wishes he could have kept the details of his romantic gesture locked away in his conscious mind, but the way she's looking at him right now makes the mistake worth it.

"My heart," she whispers sweetly, pressing a long and tender kiss to his lips. "My love. You did that for me?"

"It was supposed to be a surprise," he says with cheeks the color of the peonies by the patio.

"Hey, listen. Don't fret about it, all right?"

"Okay. Oui."

Nadine rests her head on his chest. "Oui."

"Oui oui oui," he repeats with a ticklish breath in her ear during each staccato syllable.

"T'es chiant," she grumbles, pushing his face away.

Harry cradles the back of her head, resting his chin on top of it and soaking in her presence she graciously allows him to cherish. What a wonder to be able to hold a daydream in his arms.

Idyllic paintings could be inspired by her ethereal face and figure, especially when accented by her smile in the sunshine. She could be sculpted and hidden at the back of the most grandiose museum, yet Harry would always find her under the spotlight. She bears fruits of devotion that are seductive and sweet between his teeth, seeds from pomegranates and nectarines coated in aphrodisiacs.

His goddess of love will soon be surrounded by a bountiful bed of foxtails, and if the spring season is kind to him, little snap peas will grow alongside it.

——

#harry styles fanfic #harry styles imagine #harry styles fluff #harry styles x oc #harry styles au #harry styles #adore-laur #foxtail

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sssardonian-ssserpent · 4 months

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((Mild hot take in the read below (nothing to do with drama just my own opinion on an aspect of Hazbin):

The CherriSnake in this show was not written very well. It was written poorly. Very poorly. Extremely poorly. Which sucks to me because, I’ll admit, I was not a CherriSnake shipper going into the show. I disliked it because of how it was everywhere and I just didn’t vibe with anything about it from what I saw or various fanworks, but I tried to go into it with an open mind because I knew it was coming thanks to the episode 6 trailer featuring Cherri that came out on Twitter. I wanted to see if I could like it, see if the show could win me over because it was doing a fantastic job with Husk and Angel. And not only did it NOT do a great job, it honestly made me hate the ship even MORE because of how sloppy, slap-dashed, in credibly rushed and utterly lacking of any chemistry, bonding, or character depth it had.

First off. I’m not a fan of how suddenly and without warning Pentious’s absolute and total crush on Cherri was. Like, we’re talking about a man who literally called Cherri and Angel both “whores with no class” in the pilot during their fight (which is confirmed to be canon to the show’s timeline by the by so HE DID call her that, at some point), and seemed to completely disregard her as nothing but an enemy to try and destroy, so forgive my skepticism when in episode 6 he’s suddenly sheepishly trying to buy drinks for her/asking to have sex with her and nervously trying to declare his love for her on the evening before the finale battle. And that’s another thing that I’m not a fan of, him trying to proclaim that he loves her. Sure, you could make the argument that he did it in a spur of the moment thing because he thought there was a chance he may die, and that’s fair, but I feel like that is way, WAY too strong of a declaration for one character to make when he’s only realistically talked to her, maybe four times in the whole season, 3 of those times being the result of a three gag punchline.

Like. Proclaiming your love for someone is a very, very, very different thing from just expressing your interest or your liking someone. It’s much more heavy and it has a shit ton more emotional weight behind it. Weight that Pentious doesn’t even nearly begin to have to try and approach her and declare it right there in the lobby. And even then, what does he say he loves her for? The fact that he thinks she’s beautiful and she makes explosive weaponry that he finds amazing.

That’s it. Nothing else. Just the two most bare bones and basic shit about her character. Nothing about her personality, nothing about anything deeper in her heart that he may see, nothing about any connections he personally feels with her, NOTHING. It feels almost completely soulless and just lacking in the most basic of romantic chemistries, because we never see even a single scene of just these two talking to each other. It’s just Pentious trying to confess/awkwardly trying to flirt with her and then dipping immediately, until he doesn’t when they kiss shortly before he dies and drops the love confession from her, which, COULD HAVE been an emotional moment, if they had gotten more than, at best, three whole fucking scenes in the entire season with each other.

A romantic kiss scene should not be making me roll my eyes in annoyance and sighing. A love confession should not be making me sit there and shouting at my screen “what do you LOVE about her??? You BARELY KNOW EACH OTHER!” And yet here we are.

And that’s not even beginning to get into Cherri’s characterization because boy do I have some words for that.

First off, the actively dismissing Pentious when it’s clear he’s trying to flirt with her/leading him on when he’s clearly confused and struggling.

Now I’m not saying Cherri Bomb should’ve been immediately crushing right back on Pentious or that she should’ve been just as spellbound with him as he was for her or anything, god no. But it really doesn’t help with the “the ship has no chemistry” thing going on in the ship when it feels like the other active participant in said ship just does not have any interest at all/is purposefully trying to lead the other on with no actual intentions to follow through.

I’ve seen so many people talk about the club scenes with Cherri Bomb and how she was actively always giving Pentious so many openings to actually flirt with her, and I’m sitting like “…WHERE?” The first time Pentious tries to engage in anything close to flirting in the hotel, reaching to touch her shoulder while asking her questions, she roughly grabs his hand, and declares “don’t touch me.” That is already super fucking clearly NOT an opening. That is her shutting his ass down super fast.

Then we have the scenes where he is trying to buy her drinks. He asks her politely if she’d want to have him buy her a drink, and she snidely responds with “Why? Didn’t you say we were arch rivals?” while smirking at him in this very almost snooty way. Pentious, panicking because of having to eat his own words, backs off immediately and makes the excuse he’s buying drinks for everyone there.

And then it happens again when he does actually buy her a drink, and she just silently glares at him with an annoyed grimace on her face. Which makes Pentious back off again and immediately declare how he’s buying drinks for everyone again. (“Giving him an opening” my ass.)

She is CONSTANTLY brushing him off the entire night and not showing any interest in him in the slightest, with the ultimate blow being when, clearly drunk, Pentious asks her if she wants to have sex with him, and she responds like this.

It’s the specific wording of “I’m sorry, why would we have sex” for me. Combined with her laughing in his face and looking completely and totally unfazed by it. I’ve seen some people say that “oh she wasn’t saying no, that wasn’t a no” and I’d like to heartily disagree with that notion. People sometimes say “I’m sorry” at the beginning of their sentence either as a means of asking them to repeat themselves or as a means of softening the blow for a rejection, and the wording of “why would we” is a very EXPLICIT rejection in my mind.

It doesn’t read to me like a legit question, it comes off as rhetorical and mean, a firm and amused “no, why the fuck would we do that/no, why the fuck would you think I’d want to have sex with you?” And Pentious’s rejected expression that doesn’t change throughout that brief scene speaks to me that is exactly what was trying to be said here.

And then Pentious bails for the third time and the punchline comes when he’s dragged into that orgy by the rest of the club patrons, she happily goes on her merry way fucking some other club patron for the night and doesn’t even look at Pentious once. There is explicitly NO interest being shown with Cherri here, and it utterly kills any potential ways their characters could mesh in a way that’s fun to watch or talk about.

And we don’t even get the chance to see her again until episode 8, which is where the most infuriating aspect of Cherri’s character in this ship comes into play for me. The part where she learns that Pentious has two dicks.

This is just after Pentious runs away after nervously trying to confess his love for her (again, when they barely know each other and he spent the entire night he saw her last getting constantly rejected by her) and Angel approaches her talking about how she could totally bang/hook up with him and she responds by scoffing and saying “don’t be gross.” And then, when Angel lets slip that he heard Pentious has two dicks…

THEN she becomes interested.

THEN. ONLY THEN.

No thinking he’s cute, no thinking his mannerisms or awkward attempts at talking to her are endearing, no secretly thinking his tech and machines are cool or that the Eggbois are cute, none of that makes her interested in him. It’s the fact that he’s potentially hung in the bedroom that makes her even remotely interested in fucking him. NOT LOVING HIM. FUCKING HIM.

She barely even reacts to his death. It’s just a look of shock on her part. Her brow doesn’t even furrow.

So…Just to recap.

Angel Dust and Husk got multiple scenes together throughout the entire season where they’re constantly interacting, talking, fighting with each other, until it finally culminates in a beautiful and heart wrenching scene of understanding that then glides perfectly into a captivating and catchy song about understanding each other’s struggles and learning that they don’t have to be alone with their shitty situations and can rely on each other.

Sir Pentious and Cherri Bomb got, at best, 6 scenes with each other across two and only fucking two episodes, and it consists of nothing but a random and sudden crush that is fueled by no chemistry, no bonding, no understanding, and only consists of the most bare bones physical attraction that raises to a fever pitch of a love confession way, WAY TOO QUICKLY on one side, and total and utter disinterest that only barely reaches the desire to fuck the other just because they heard how they had a second dick on the other side, all culminating in no song, no character growth between the two, and a sacrificial kiss and love confession that feels hollow and empty because there is absolutely nothing there behind it.

Can you see why I’m so mad about how this was written now?

#mun post #ooc post #sir pentious #cherri bomb #cherrisnake

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ladymisteria · 4 months

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AMAZON PRIME'S ZORRO PROS & CONS.

After days of watching and re-watching the episodes of the new Zorro adaptation, I decided to share what - obviously only in my opinion - are its main pros & cons.

(For fairness, since I will mention spoiler elements, I thought I'd insert my reflections below the cut).

PROS:

MORE POV. It is impossible to start mentioning the pros of this series without mentioning the very obvious - and extremely right - decision to "broaden" the points of view. Perhaps for the first time, in fact, the story is not narrated almost completely by Diego alone, but also by the various other characters who are part of it (be they the Chinese, the natives, etc.).

REALITY. As already said by @aragarna, this new Zorro gets rid of the "we are all friends/we sit at the same table" contours to show - finally! - the tense and highly classist climate of a sadly very particular historical period. We see the hatred and distrust towards the natives, with the enormous difference - compared to other products that focus on this particular "feud" between colonizers and colonized - of knowing "both bells" (I don't know if there is a similar expression, in English, I apologize) and therefore being able to realize how different things are, depending on who tells the stories. This makes the series refreshingly "real" (yes, even if it includes elements like the Spirits of Native American culture).

NOT CLEARLY GOOD/BAD CHARACTERS. Monasterio is no longer the Commander, absolutely "black", devoid of scruples and good sides. Indeed, as the season continues, he increasingly demonstrates that he is an individual who well understands the absolute injustice of what he does - while nevertheless not shying away from doing it because he is faithful to his position. He is in conflict between what his principles and his role impose on him, effectively making him a magnificent "grey" character. Diego and Nah-Lin themselves are wonderful examples of "well-rounded" characters, because even in their most wrong actions, they maintain a sincerely credible and even - at certain points - justifiable motivation.

TECHNICAL VISUAL ASPECT. The scenes are masterfully shot, the soundtrack is not intrusive but rather an excellent way to underline the various thoughts/feelings of the characters, etc..

ZORRO'S LEGACY. The idea of a "generational change" of Zorro, in a choice that potentially makes it possible to see more sides of the same character - trivially because more people interpret him. A fact demonstrated in this same first season, where we had three Zorros, all three with their "characteristic side".

THE DECISION OF DEPRIVE DIEGO OF HIS MOST RECOGNIZABLE TRAIT. Depriving him - and so soon! - of his father (and consequently of the only person who knows him perfectly), the series allows Diego to always act as himself (within the limits desired by the situation of the moment), without having to resort to that supposed inability to defend himself/laziness/cowardice which is renowned as one of the particular signs of his character.

DIEGO IS NOT INVINCIBLE. It might seem stupid, but in many adaptations, Diego is seen as practically infallible. His plans always come to fruition, he never gets hurt, he makes almost no mistakes... This "new" Diego doesn't; here Diego is young (according to my calculations he is just 21/22 years old), he becomes Zorro not because of his choice but because - literally! - the spirits give him (via Night Crow) the costume and send him home with a lapidary: "You are the new Zorro, whether you want it or not", he still acts like a daredevil boy (complete with Bernardo-Mother Hen)... And this translates into some - very justifiable - errors and just as many choices that are not exactly well thought out.

CONS:

TOO MANY IRONS IN THE FIRE. To be clear: the various plot threads are all (well, almost: Samael and Guadalupe and their "inheritance hunt" have not managed to involve me at all, for the moment) interesting and well structured; but they are objectively many, for a single season. We have the Bear Clan, the Russian-American Company that wishes to "take over Los Angeles", Guadalupe's aforementioned inheritance hunt, Nah Lin's desire for revenge, the search for the truth about his father's murder on Diego's part... And of these very few - if not almost none - had an effective conclusion. The feeling I got was that the producers wanted to "play their cards" all at once, in the hope that this would secure them a renewal for a second season. Something along the lines of: "Hey, we need the renewal! Look at all the unresolved things we left!".

LOLITA. I'm sorry to say this, but I just can't understand what the producers had in mind when they created her character. Or rather, to be more precise, when they created her relationship with Diego. She is initially shown to us as angry at Diego for going to Spain (I think?), in an attitude that could even be understood - if only that same attitude didn't remain as if petrified throughout the rest of the season. Why, exactly, does Lolita remain so resentful towards Diego all the time? Because, despite knowing that he loves her (he himself tells her this, when she helps him with his wound, and even in the very first episode), she constantly pretends not to know what feelings bind him to her, and indeed continually acts in such a way as to hurt him on purpose? Mha! It remains meaningless to me.

Here it is. I have indicated, I repeat, what for me are the main pros and cons of the season (you will probably have found others, or even none).

#zorro #zorro 2024 #amazon zorro #don diego de la vega #diego de la vega #monasterio #nah-lin #alejandro de la vega #diego & bernardo #lolita marquez #pros & cons

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sfb123 · 1 year

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Hands Down

Chapter 2: "Waves"

Catch up here!

Pairing: Liam x Riley

All characters belong to Pixelberry

Summary: Can Liam and Riley still find their way to each other despite Riley turning down Maxwell's invitation to Cordonia?

Rating: G

Word Count: 3,304

Song Inspiration: Waves - Dean Lewis

A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this out, life hit me hard the last month (both good and bad), but here it is. I promise I'll be better about regular releases.

A/N 2: Thank you to @ao719 for the song suggestion, and helping me work through some of the made up in my head issues.

A/N 3: This was not properly beta'd, so please excuse the many errors.

Tags are below the cut/in the comments. If you'd like to be added or removed, please let me know!

“His Highness, Crown Prince Liam Rys.”

All conversations halted, and heads turned to the doors at the front of the room as Liam entered the ballroom. It was the final night of the social season, and he was only hours away from becoming the King of Cordonia.

This also meant he was only hours away from having to announce which suitor would become his queen.

He surveyed the room, observing each of the women, hoping for some sign as to who the right choice would be. He had spent the last few months with them at various events, spending one on one time with each woman, trying to make a connection or find a spark of something. He would always end up comparing them to her, and they would always come up short.

But she wasn’t here. She rejected the invitation.

Throughout the social season, his mind would drift to thoughts of Riley Brooks, memories of their night together. But that’s all they were, and all they would ever be. He had barely slept since the season began, spending his nights going over his options, trying to figure out who would be the best choice to rule by his side.

Kiara Thorton, a polyglot with a natural sense of diplomacy. She would certainly be an asset in building relationships and alliances. But would she have the compassion and candor needed to win over the citizens?

Penelope Ebrim, compassionate to a fault. However, her naivete would prove challenging during the more complex aspects of the job.

Hana Lee, a newcomer to Cordonian court. In the brief interactions Liam had with her, he found her to be kind yet incredibly timid and insecure. It was a toss up which one of them was least enthused to be a part of all of this. She was obviously there on her parent’s order alone.

Olivia Nevrakis, one of Liam’s oldest and dearest friends. She certainly cared for him, and he for her. But not the way a husband should care for his wife. Besides, she was a Nevrakis, a family with a checkered past in the Cordonian history books. She would be a controversial choice, questioned by many.

And finally, Madeleine Amaranth, the top contender in the press and with the council, including Liam’s parents. She had been his brother’s chosen suitor, jilted when he made the decision to abdicate. It was an unofficial betrothal agreement when they were children, so she had spent her whole life in training to sit on the throne. Everyone was sure that she would be Liam’s choice. Everyone, except for Liam.

While he did agree that Madeleine would be an excellent queen, there was something missing. He didn’t feel he could be the best king possible with her by his side. He needed a wife that would see him, and support him as a man, not just a king. He wanted to be able to retire for the evening and spend time as a family. He didn’t see that with Madeleine, her strength was also her weakness. He needed to be able to just be Liam sometimes, with Madeleine, he would always be the king.

“Little brother!” Liam was startled out of his thoughts by the sound of his brother’s voice.

“Leo? What are you doing here?”

“I couldn’t miss your big night!” He clapped his brother on the shoulder. “So, have you made your choice?”

Liam sighed at the question. His choice would have been for Leo to live up to his birthright, allowing him to remain the spare and hold on to a small semblance of freedom. “You will see in due time.” He responded, not wanting to admit that he still hadn’t decided.

“Oh, come on. Not even a hint?”

“How was the cruise?” Liam asked, diverting the attention away from himself.

“Ugh,” Leo groaned. “It didn’t go quite as planned.”

“So that woman, the one Madeleine found in your bed?”

“Yeah, she’s in someone else’s bed now.” He said nonchalantly.

Liam’s jaw ticked, as his fists clenched at his side. The woman who had captivated Leo so much that he had abdicated the throne, and put all of this on Liam’s shoulders, was with someone else. Leo gave everything up for nothing.

“Your Highnesses,” a voice interrupted before Liam could respond. The brothers turned to find a photographer holding up a camera to them. “Can I get a quick picture?”

“Of course, my good man!” Leo threw his arm around Liam, pulling him to his side. Liam put on his most stoic smile, hiding all of the emotions that were flowing through him in that moment.

Once the picture was taken, the photographer thanked the pair before bowing and stepping away.

“I don’t regret a second of it,” Leo continued once they were alone. “Everyone comes into your life for a reason, she helped me to see that this wasn’t the life I was meant for.” He signaled to the opulence of the room around them. “I needed to step away and find my own path. I’m not there yet, but I’m figuring it out.”

Liam nodded, noticing the parallels in their situations. In that moment, it all clicked, and he knew exactly what his decision would be. “If you’ll excuse me Leo, I need to meet with father before the announcement.”

“Of course, knock ‘em dead, bro!”

As Liam walked across the ballroom, looking for his father, his mind began to race. Maybe Riley wasn’t the love of his life, maybe that night was just meant to be a sign. Perhaps he could have it all, be the best king he could be without sacrificing his happiness.

“Excuse me,” Liam said, interrupting Constantine, who was deep in conversation with Madeleine's father. No doubt making plans for the impending engagement tour. “Father, if I may have a word with you, privately?”

“You’re going to be making your announcement shortly, we can speak afterwards.” He replied dismissively.

“Please, it’s urgent.” Liam insisted.

Constantine excused himself from his conversation and followed Liam into his study, closing the door behind him. As soon as they were away from the eyes of the court Liam’s demeanor changed, he seemed anxious, pacing back and forth across the floor. Constantine attributed it to the changes he would be going through in the next hour, and was grateful that he was able to conceal those emotions when he was in front of others.

“Godfrey and I were just discussing the engagement tour. We are going to begin in Fydelia, since it is the home of your future betrothed.” Constantine broke the silence in the room.

“I’m not choosing Madeleine.” Liam stated flatly.

Constantine’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Well, there will certainly be some damage control needed, but it’s not the end of the world. Don’t tell me you’ve chosen the Nevrakis girl. I know you two are close, but she was only invited to participate out of obligation. She cannot sit on the throne.”

“No, I’m not choosing Olivia.” Liam took a deep breath, preparing himself. “I will not be choosing one of the suitors.”

“But son, you need to be engaged to ascend the throne. You know I’m in poor health, I need to step down before…”

“That’s why I wanted to speak with you,” Liam interrupted. “I would like for you to make a change to the law. One final decree as reigning king.” He noticed his father’s trepidation, and continued speaking. “I just don’t think I can be the king Cordonia needs, or deserves, if I am married to one of those women. You know how important it is for a king to have the right queen by his side.”

“I do, that’s why I’ve been encouraging you to choose the countess. She has been preparing for this role since she was a child.”

“So have I, I went through all of the same lessons that Leo did. I can be a great king on my own, until I find a queen that will be good for this country, and for me.” Liam pleaded with his father.

Constantine studied Liam’s expression, he was steadfast and unwavering. “And if I refuse?”

“Then when I go up on stage tonight and I will announce my abdication. I believe the line of succession would then fall to the Nevrakis girl,” he mimicked Constantine’s earlier tone. “And you’ve made it quite clear how you feel about that.”

The reigning king’s eyes went wide at Liam’s ultimatum. “You would throw thousands of years of tradition away over this?”

“Over my happiness? Absolutely.” Liam’s expression softened in a final attempt to get his father to understand. “Cordonia deserves me at my best, and I cannot do that with one of these suitors, so I would rather step down than give them anything less.”

“You are certainly a fierce negotiator.” Constantine observed.

“I’ve learned from the best.” Liam replied, he smirked at his father, hoping to lighten the mood slightly. He was unsuccessful.

“And where do you imagine you’re going to find this woman?” Constantine asked. “I will not have you plastering your personal information all over these dating websites I’ve been hearing about.”

“No sir, I wouldn’t,” Liam assured. “I much prefer making a face to face connection.”

Constantine stood in pensive silence, thinking about Liam’s proposition, but also studying his son. He was looking for even the slightest break in his expression, but there was none. Liam knew he was being tested and failing was not an option.

“If I do this for you, you will make the announcement and deal with any of the fallout on your own.” He warned.

Liam nodded in understanding. “Of course.”

“Son, this conversation has shown me that you will be exactly the ruler this country needs.” Constantine placed a hand on his shoulder. “With or without a wife.”

“Thank you, father.” Liam’s tone remained even, afraid his father might change his mind if he showed too much enthusiasm. Inwardly, he was screaming.

“I will need about an hour to make the arrangements. You are to return to the ball, and keep this information to yourself. No one is to know until you step onstage and make the announcement.”

“Yes sir,” Liam extended a hand, which his father shook briefly before pulling him into a hug.

“I’m proud of you, son.” Constantine said, patting him on the back before pulling away. “Now get out there and keep everyone occupied.”

Liam nodded with a smile, and returned to the ball feeling lighter than he had in months.

As soon as he set foot in the ballroom, he was approached by Penelope, who asked him to dance. He obliged, and led her to the center of the floor. Penelope hadn’t stopped speaking once during their dance, but Liam didn’t hear a word she said. All he could think about was his announcement, and what this meant for him. He was one step closer to living his dream, and falling in love.

Once the dance was over, Liam parted ways with Penelope and made his rounds through the room, his eyes intermittently flickering toward the door. As the time passed, his nerves grew, worried that his father may renege on their agreement.

Liam was in the middle of a conversation with the Beaumonts when the music stopped, and a throat clearing over the speakers pulled his attention. He looked up to see his father standing on stage.

Once the crowd quieted down, Constantine began to address them. “The moment we’ve been waiting for all season has finally arrived. It has been my great honor to serve Cordonia these last few decades.” His expression sombered as he continued. “We’ve had turmoil, but Cordonia has pulled together even during our toughest times. I couldn’t be more proud to have been Cordonia’s king.”

The crowd applauded as Constantine searched the faces for his son. When his eyes locked on Liam, he nodded. Liam took the signal and made his way to the stage. When he took his spot at his father’s side, Constantine continued.

“I only now pass the crown to Prince Liam because I know he’ll carry on exactly as I have. I couldn’t ask for a better successor.”

“Father…” Liam’s expression softened, touched by his words.

“It’s true. I love your brother, but you are the king Cordonia needs.” He turned to smile at his youngest son before continuing. “You have more than proven that to me. Especially tonight. Today, I pass the royal signet ring to you. Cordonia is yours, my son.”

As the crowd cheered, Constantine took a step back, standing beside Regina, as Liam took his place in front of the microphone. “Thank you all for being here tonight. This is an incredible honor and a responsibility that I don’t take lightly. I only hope that I can serve Cordonia with the distinction that my father did.” He turned to his father and step-mother, bowing to them before pulling them each into an embrace.

“And now, the time has come, your prince will choose his bride.” Regina announced.

“Actually,” Liam returned to the microphone. “In the interest of hitting the ground running, I spoke with my father earlier tonight, and he has put through one final decree as king.” Liam looked to his father, who nodded in approval. “I truly appreciate all of the ladies that participated in the season. Your grace and poise throughout the weeks has not gone unnoticed. Your unwavering support for this country is an inspiration. However, I will not be choosing a bride tonight.”

The crowd immediately broke into gasps and murmurs as they took in Liam’s announcement. He looked out over the confused faces, taking in each of the suitors' reactions. Shock appeared to be the general consensus, until his eyes landed on Madeleine. Her expression remained impassive, but he could see the fire in her eyes before she abruptly turned and exited the ballroom. Liam did feel bad for her, this was her second time thinking she would become queen, and the second time the opportunity had been taken from her.

Liam heard a throat clear behind him and he turned, locking eyes with Constantine. He didn’t have to say a word, Liam understood. He lifted a hand to silence the crowd. “If you will allow me to explain,” he said, once the noise had died down. “As I said, each of the suitors showed immeasurable grace and dedication to their country, all of which are crucial qualities for a queen. However, there was one very important qualification that I could not find. I was unable to connect with them in the way that a man should connect with his wife.”

He paused for a moment, allowing a few whispers of confusion to ripple through the room. “I want to give this country my absolute best. To do that, I believe that I need to forge my own path, and find the right partner for me, and for this country.”

Questions were shouted out rapid fire from the crowd, Liam once again raised a hand and waited for the room to quiet down. “I understand that there will be many questions and concerns, I will do my best to answer and address them all in due time. However, right now, we do need to proceed with this evening’s agenda. I appreciate your support, and look forward to continuing to guide Cordonia into greatness.”

Liam ignored the lingering comments that were scattered throughout the crowd, and the evening went on as planned. He took his oath and was officially crowned the king of Cordonia. Despite the upset earlier in the evening, the tone for the rest of the event was full of cheer and hope. There were, understandably, lingering doubts about Liam’s decision, but the court had enough faith in him to be able to celebrate this moment for what it was, a new beginning for Cordonia.

At the end of the night, once the guests had retired to their rooms, Liam sat on his throne, taking in the gravity of what had just happened.

“You know you don’t have to sleep on that thing, right?” The gruff voice of his best friend pulled him from his thoughts.

“I know,” Liam responded. “I suppose I’m just letting things sink in.”

“That’s fair,” he shrugged. “So what now?”

“Well, there will be a few interviews and photo ops with the press. I will need to be formally introduced to our allies and neighboring countries.” He paused for a moment. “I suppose we will need to rebrand what was supposed to be the engagement tour. I will work out the details in the morning.”

“Yeah, let’s talk about that for a second,” Drake smirked. “What happened?”

Liam let out a humorless laugh. “Leo, of all things.” Drake looked at him curiously. “I was speaking with him earlier, and he was telling me about that woman from the cruise. It didn’t work out.”

“Shocking.” Drake deadpanned.

“Right? Well, he said something that resonated with me.” Liam explained Leo’s theory, and how it inspired him to stand up to his father, and forge his own path.

“That’s great Li, I’m really proud of you for standing up for yourself.” Drake congratulated his friend. “So when are you going to New York?”

Liam’s gaze snapped up, meeting Drake’s. “What do you mean? Why would I go to New York?”

“For the waitress.” Drake said with an arched brow. He knew Liam better than that. “That’s what all of this was about, wasn’t it?”

“Not quite,” Liam sighed. “Riley was my sign, not my soulmate. She made it clear that my feelings are not returned.”

“What are you talking about? I’m pretty sure it was obvious to everyone but you that she was into you.”

“Then why didn’t she accept Maxwell’s offer to join the social season?”

“Seriously?” Drake slapped his palm against his forehead. “Listen, take a step back and look at it from her point of view. She has this whole life, a job, a family, friends, and you expected her to give all of that up and join this mess because of a couple of hours? Nobody in their right mind would do something like that.”

Liam let out a deep breath, shaking his head. “It doesn’t matter, the moment has passed. I’m sure she’s moved on.”

“Li, you literally changed history for this woman. You mean to tell me that you’re not even going to try?”

“I changed history for myself.” Liam corrected him.

“Fine, you changed history for yourself, but it was because of her.” Drake rolled his eyes. “You’ve got a couple of weeks before the tour starts, right?” Liam nodded. “Okay, so take care of all the press and that stuff now, once that’s died down, fly out to New York and find her. If she’s going to reject you, at least have her reject you to your face so you know for sure.”

A silence took over the room as Liam considered Drake’s words.

“At least think about it.” Drake finally spoke up.

Liam locked eyes with his friend. “Thank you, Drake”

Drake nodded and took his leave, not wanting to push any further. It was a decision Liam would need to make on his own.

As Liam walked to his room, the king’s quarters, he found himself more conflicted than ever. He thought that his announcement would leave him feeling lighter, more at ease with his new role as king. However after his talk with Drake, he had so much more to think about. Should he return to New York? Was it possible that he could still have a chance with Riley?

He needed to start focusing on his duties as king, but once again, he couldn’t get her out of his mind.

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Hands Down:

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mrsreinhart · 1 year

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Lili Reinhart - Grazia Italia Interview

In the cult TV series Riverdale we met her as an always fearless heroine, often forced to confront others and with herself. But even in real life American actress Lili Reinhart, 26, has often found herself having to look within to overcome difficulties.

At 14, when she was already determined to pursue a career in acting, she was diagnosed with a form of depression. Very young, she went through anxiety attacks and various kinds of difficulties, not least that body dysmorphic disorder that leads her to see herself differently from others and to suffer from some physical characteristics that she perceives in a distorted way.

Reinhart has therefore become the champion of the battles for mental health and for the acceptance of different types of beauty. She didn't hesitate to expose herself even to a global celebrity like the queen of social networks Kim Kardashian: the actress found that losing so much weight and in a short time to get into a dress that belonged to Marilyn Monroe was not a good example for her women who have difficulty accepting their body.

At the Women in Film Gala 2022, Lili then received the Max Mara Face of the Future award, dedicated to emerging actresses. «My family», declared Maria Giulia Prezioso Maramotti, «has built a company that honors and celebrates women, above all in the arts. We wanted to award the prize to a young artist who embodies our values, but who is still evolving. What Lili is going in is an excellent direction to follow.

I meet Reinhart in Los Angeles, while she's curled up in the make-up artist's chair for Grazia's fashion shoot that you see in these pages. She remains seated for a long time with her legs pulled up to her chest, a position that evokes the tenderness of a little girl. But she talks to me about serious topics and does it with honesty and depth, even when it comes to revealing the most intimate aspects of her life. She became a global celebrity thanks to the character of Betty Cooper in the TV series Riverdale, which reached its seventh season.

Do vou ever think that the success of this role has somehow slowed down your career as an actress?

I am grateful to Riverdale for everything it has brought me. If I'm sitting here with her now, it's because of the success of the show. But at some point in life, it's time to move on."

Do you feel that you have something to prove to others or to yourself?

I've been acting since I was 12, l've come a long way since then, but I think I haven't yet fulfilled my potential. And this is a challenge for myself. I want the actors who inspire me to talk about me, I want to go far and deserve it. For the past seven years, I've been doing a teen show, Riverdale, with a style that isn't necessarily. what i prefer. But Riverdale it has been incredibly successful and takes up practically all my time, so it has been difficult for me to seize other opportunities

Have you had to make many job cuts?

Last spring I was offered a role that I wanted to play with all my heart, but unfortunately the dates did not reconcile with the filming of the show. It was devastating to say no.

What was she like as a child? Did you imagine that when you grew up?

| was an introvert, I lived in my own little world and I always felt a bit isolated. I think I have an old soul, with my peers I felt like a fish out of water and I didn't quite understand which was the right place for me. Just yesterday I was talking to my mother about when I enjoyed dressing up as a child. We had a box full of costumes we'd collected over the years, I even changed three times a day. I put on plays and plays for my family, I always wanted to perform. So, in the end, I moved on to the theater up to television and cinema.

Was performing a way of expressing yourself?

Some people are naturally outgoing, funny. I felt I could only be by performing. I was very insecure and acting gave me the opportunity to explore sides of my personality that I would not have known otherwise.

And i also brought out a very intimate and vulnerable side by writing a book of poems, Swimming Lessons: Poems ("Swimming lessons: poems").

Yes, it was a time in my life when I felt like I wanted to. to do something that came exclusively from me and over which I had total creative control. I was very nervous at first, because it was a bit like sharing a diary with people who were ready to judge it and judge me. As an actress I feel safe, as a writer I don't: hence the negative comments on mine. book strengthened my fears. I know that no one would have paid attention to my poems if Lili the actress hadn't signed them, but I never had the claim. to establish myself as a writer. I'm a romantic and I just wanted to share a different side of me.

Don't you think maybe you're too hard on yourself?

I internalize a lot, especially the criticisms. After all, poetry is the way I express my emotions. What I wanted to convey was not, "Look at me, I'm a writer." | wanted to tell the people who follow me that I am an absolutely normal human being: I have feelings, insecurities, I struggle and face life's challenges just like anyone else.

She has often spoken about her insecurities, especially physical ones, and is a spokesperson for the "body positivity" for the acceptance of all physicalities. Do you remember the first time dysmorphia, a disorder you suffer from,presented itself?

I have an average build and, when I began to get to know the world of fashion and clothes better, I met models with very different physiques from mine. There have been times when the clothes they offered just didn't fit me. So I said to myself: "Why don't I have a smaller physique?". When a dress designed for someone two sizes smaller than you doesn't fit, you start to think you're wrong and you have to do something to fit the clothes. But in a young woman these thoughts can hurt a lot.

I recently Today, however, she sees her photos everywhere. What does it feel? She likes herself?

I talked about this with my therapist. In fact, I feel like i live in a sort of perpetual comparison with other, more glamorous versions of myself. I started acting as a child and learned that my body is always changing. Today I accept myself more and judge myself less, however Hollywood doesn't want you to get old and puts pressure on you for it. Don't you think it's crazy that at 26 | worry about not having the same face as when I was 19? Of course I don't have it! Even the one in these photos is certainly a more beautiful version of me: I'm not like this every day. Constantly having to show a better image of ourselves can play tricks on us, because it can make us believe that our everyday version is not enough.

And how does she find a way to get everyone along these versions of itself?

I can't, they don't get along. There is my everyday self that reminds Lili of the glamor that looks like this only if she is surrounded by professionals who they make up and comb her hair. But I'm making peace with the fact that first I have to learn to be okay with each version of me. For example, I now have an acne breakout. Who sees them? Acne has always triggered severe mental and emotional distress in me. It makes me feel bad and makes it difficult for me to appear in public or take pictures without makeup because I know my skin would otherwise look different than everyone expects. Instead I should think that a rash doesn't take anything away from me, it doesn't define me. It's always me. Unfortunately it's a constant struggle: I live in a world that demands perfection and, at times, I think I've begun to demand it too. But then I think that everything happens for a reason and maybe the reason why acne always shows up on my face is because I have to learn to love every season my skin and my body go through because that's right. I'm a human being, not a mannequin.

I couldn't help but notice the tattoo on her right forearm: an arrow.

I did it around 18, 19. It represents my battle against depression: an arrow can only go forward if it is first pulled back. It's like saying that, once you hit rock bottom, you can only go back up.

In which direction is it pointing then?

Forward, always. My mental health has its ups and downs and this arrow reminds me that I always manage to get out of it, because I'm a tireless fighter.

But, during this fight, I hope she takes moments to appreciate what she has achieved.

I appreciate my battles, it is thanks to them that I am such a strong person. I wouldn't change anything about me. Having had the experience of depression leads me to experience moments of joy more intensely and makes me establish healthier and deeper relationships. The moments of discouragement have taught me so much about myself and it is right that I experience them and face them when they arise, rather than trying to escape.

She was cast as the Max Mara Face of the Future. How does this recognition make you feel?

It's a complicated feeling to explain. It's hard for me to accept that people see me this way. I almost feel like I have imposter syndrome, because I don't think I've shown my worth as an actress yet. I have exposed myself as an activist for body positivity and mental health, but in my work I think I haven't given my best yet. I'm waiting for that opportunity, which is on the horizon, but l'm waiting. So to receive the award before I've even been able to demonstrate what I think I can do as an actress is very encouraging. And I'm grateful because this recognition makes me understand that l'm already doing something good.

-Credit to lililovebots on Twitter for posting the interview.

#tried to translate the best I could #lili reinhart #grazia italy

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betterpathoflyfe · 5 months

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12/31/23 - Peace in the Transition

As 2023 comes to a close, I can honestly say that in its totality — it was a good year.

A stretching year. A growing pains year. A lowkey, kinda highkey TOUGH year.

But a good year nevertheless.

I’ve learned a lot about certain habits, mindsets, standards that I need to let go of, and equally the ones that I want to embody.

Yet, letting go has always been a bit difficult for me. The balance between moving forward when I wanted to stay put and trying again even when I knew what the end result would be, was…not fun, to say the least.

But I know that I am in transition — that God is doing a new thing in this next chapter of my life, and I’ve finally…finally come in agreement.

I’ve finally found peace in the transition because I’ve surrendered it to Him.

I had a conversation with one of my friends a few weeks back regarding things we wish each other would experience moving forward, and she mentioned this idea of peace. And honestly, I have been doing so much this year when it comes to my job and finishing this Master’s degree (but by the graaaaaace of God, we have officially finished our Master’s program!!!), that I felt like I was chasing my tail! There was just so much going on that I couldn’t take a minute to breathe.

That being said, one Sunday night, as I preparing to bake chicken for my dad, I reflected on my conversation with her and the different things that have come to an end, as well as the ones that are going to begin in the new year.

And in that moment of preparing to bake chicken, I reflected on how far God has brought me. And how, even in the midst of the various things that occurred this year, His hand never let me go. He kept me, He pruned me, and He has blessed me abundantly…above allll that I can ask or think, COME ON SOMEBODY!!! 😭🙌🏿 (Ephesians 3:20-21)

But seriously…it just made me stop and really…smile! And be all the more grateful. Because His favor, His grace, His mercy, is not dependent on us, but on Who He is. And what He has done for me, and continues to do for me, makes me want to do nothing more than to praise His name and tell others about what Him!

And then, even today, right? My pastor, at the end of the service, declared over us that that this will be a year of establishment. And right when he said that, it was like I felt the Holy Spirit all through me — like it was the biggest confirmation for me yet! He even talked about how some of us have been sitting on gifts that God has put in our hearts to do, and that is the truth!! We have got to do what God has instructed us to do, because all of this is really about bringing Him glory, bringing people to Christ, and seeing Heaven crowded at the end of the day, right?

All of this to say, I really believe 2024 is going to be that year of establishment. Not just for myself, but others as well, and I’m so excited about it. I’m expectant. But as these different aspects and seasons develop and eventually come to fruition, I have so much peace in the transition, and I pray you do as well.

Happy New Year, and God bless you <3

And here’s to renewed consistency with these blogposts! 😅🥂

"Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." ~ Philippians 3:13-14

~ May the Author

#blogposts

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nightlet · 2 years

Video

youtube

Recap and thoughts.

TS4 base game is free-to-play as of today. Personally not too pressed about this, though it would’ve been nice to get more than just a kit as compensation for long-time players. But if it gives people who’ve been holding back or couldn’t otherwise get the game a chance, cool.

Upcoming content, including two expansions. Tbh I don’t know the frequency of the deliveries up until now, but hopefully they uphold their claim of monthly updates because that’d be nice. Don’t care about upcoming kits, but Phil mentions two expansions in the works.

If these images are any indication as to what’s coming, I’m guessing a proper generations-style EP? Something to expand on the groundwork laid with Parenthood and focus on other life stages would be fantastic. Basing this idea more off of the right image with the kid on the bike and the baby backpack thing.

NEW. WHAT. 300 new kits? Knowing EA, probably. And then we hear a little baby cry, which is expanded on later.

Insert segment where someone asks strangers on the street what they think of the sims.

Steam-workshop-esque platform for mods. Bit of a love/hate feeling with this. It does kinda feel like an attempt to control the modding community. Because it’s going to be ultimately be controlled by the devs, there’s going to be plenty of mods that won’t be welcome on the platform. HOWEVER. If they can make it to be console-friendly, that’d be a great move. Odds are it won’t be, but a girl can dream.

“Maxis invented the life simulation genre.” Sounding a little insecure there. Cities:Skylines shake ya guys? Not feeling threatened by Paralives, are ya? Lol. “We’re not content to sit still.” LMAO. Ok, ok. sure.

Insert segment with a singer and then some dancers with a simlish cover. Chat replay is just “tomato tomato tomato” yikes.

Insert segment with sim gurus using freeplay sims as avatars. Freeplay sims are getting a facelift, also yachts? And a seasonal quest coming later this year.

Mobile is getting balconies.

Insert segment highlighting various creators. YES that is happening. Coulda used some Jim Pickens though.

Could it be? Is it TS5? Is it a spinoff?

The modular editing is something that Paralives had shown off very early on too, and was probably what really got me interested in their project. It’s something that, along with CASt, really gives some much needed freedom with the game and, let’s face it, would let devs get away with a lot less assets while still offering SO many more customizing choices.

So CASt will be making a return in their new game, both my dream and nightmare because I suck at it lol.

It does kinda sound like they’re hinting at a multiplayer option, which does scare me a little. I’ve said it before, but single player should come first in a game like this. I don’t hate on the idea of adding in multiplayer, but I’d hate if it ends up feeling like a game that’s MEANT to be played with others.

The cross-compatibility aspect is kinda interesting. Don’t hate it, but also unsure of how well it’ll work or if it’ll end up limiting the game to the capabilities of mobiles.

TS4 is getting real babies in 2023. Personally, babies are not high on my list. Toddlers have been anxiety-inducing enough and at the rate I’m going on my 100 baby challenge, I’m gonna have to deal with these for a good final portion of it which is scary. But I know it’s been a huge deal for a big part of the community, so congrats guys. Looks like the babies are finally being freed from their teeny tiny prisons. Though really this looks like a toddler to me so hopefully there’s enough of a difference.

And finally,

#the sims #sims #behind the sims summit #sims summit #sims 4 #ts4 #sims 4 news #sims 4 dlc #sims 4 expansion #sims freeplay #sims mobile #sims project rene #sims 5 #sims 5 news

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shenevertricks1831 · 2 years

Text

(eddie munson x reader)

part 1. Sept 1984

TRICK'S TREATS (Author Notes)

This will be a multipart piece of the history of Eddie x Reader (if you'd like to know more about my reader, or how I write and have based them let me know!) This will cover various aspects of their relationship. From first meeting, to their friendship, parts of season 2 and 3 involving Y/N...I'm actually very nervous and anxious to post this, probably because for the first time in ages I've fallen for a character and a passion and a drive to write for them. So please be nice lol. This will all kind of be a shameless self insert and I'm so sorry...also an offical title is pending.

Triggers- not much for this part, mentions of divorce, uhm eddie being a little perry maybe lol uhm flirty and flustered eddie

Pt1 Sept.1984

Eddie Munson sat on his porch smoking. He watched as a uhaul pulled up to the trailer next to his uncles. Apparently someone finally bought the damn thing. He was intrigued when a short blond woman got out of the uhaul's driver seat. Then his interest truly peaked when she stepped out of the passenger seat. She had black high top Converse, black bike shorts that made his pants shamefully tight, and a fucking Motley Crue cropped t-shirt, holy shit! Then as his eyes wondered up he found the cherry on top. Her hair. Her fucking hair. It was teased, and curled, big. She looked like she could be a groupie, or a fucking centerfold. God and her fucking face, she was perfect. He should not be this fucking turned on just looking at a girl while he's sitting on his porch.

*thwump*

His uncles hand lightly smacks the back of his head. Shit when had his uncle even came out here? He hadn't even realized, to enthralled with the girl who was apparently his new neighbor. Lucky him, he thought.

"Come on, are you gonna stand there gawking all day or are you gonna come with me and offer these ladies a hand?" His uncle spoke in a gruff yet amused voice. Eddie hopped to his feet quickly following his uncle the short distance over to the next trailer. Uncle Wayne went to talk to the blonde woman, presumably the mother. Eddie made his way around to the back of the uhaul, to you, but he didn't see you. So he peaked to the side of the uhaul with the passenger door; and there he saw her, bent over the seat leaning in to grab something. He didn't realize he was staring again, not until you climbed down from the vehicle and looked at him.

"Hey perv." You said flatly. Eddie blushed furiously and quickly tried to apologize. "I am so sorry! I just came over looking for you, and you weren't in the back so I just peaked over here," oh God he knows he's rambling, but he can't stop himself, "and you where there, and ya know, well uhm, it's, uh, it's very," he paused, guestering with his hands, rounding them as though he were cupping her ass, "uh, n-nice..it's nice. D-did you need help with your boxes?" Eddie finally shuts up, he is red, beet fucking red. And then he notices, she's blushing too. It's silent for a moment. Oh God he fucked up, he has officially ruined any minuscule chance he might have had. He is ok the verge of just leaving, and then he hears it. She laughs, no, giggles; and its the most beautiful sound Eddie has ever heard. Has he died? Did he just die of embarrassment, but then wind up in his own personal heaven? He knew in that second that he was going to marry her one day. He didn't know how or when, and that didn't matter right now; but you were his future wife.

"Your funny." Y/N smiles at him,."You remind me of my cousin a little." She notices his face drop just the slightest bit at that. "But I do have to day you're cuter than she is." You smirked. Eddie finally fully snaps back to reality. "Hold on," he states as he rushes back behind the back of the uhaul, "let's try this again!" He shouts to her before walking back over to her again, leaning against the vehicle. "So, where's a pretty girl like you from?" He asks trying to flirt, and oh my god! She actually blushes again, but still quips back. "Hawkins." She states, in a bored tone.

"No, no, no," Eddie shake his head, "I'd remember a girl like you." He looks down noting the Motley Crue top, not the average for most hawkins girls.

"Well then maybe your memory sucks Munson." She laughs before it turns into a sigh. His eyes widened, holy shit she knew him, she wasn't bullshitting. "So why don't I know you?" He asked, genuinely curious, but not expecting the answer she gave.

"I was born and raised here, but my mom and i moved to Georgia 3 years ago, then she got divorced, so.." She held her hands out in a 'here we are now' type motion.

"How old are you?" He asks, trying to do the math of how old he was 3 years ago and how he might know her, he doesn't remember her. She chuckles. "I'm 17, grade younger than you. But don't worry Eddie, I wont expect you to remember me, I was different years ago." She puts her hand out towards him. "Y/N Buckley." She introduces herself and he grasps her hand to shake it. They both pause, it's electric; but neither knows how to act on this. So they awkwardly pull away, and silently shift till Eddie speaks again. "So, uh, w-would you like some help with your boxes?" She nods. "Y-ya, that'd be great." She smiled at him.

#eddie munson #stranger things #joseph quinn #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson stranger things #eddie stranger things #stranger things 4

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7grandmel · 1 year

Text

Todays rip: 27/06/2023

slideless

Season 6 Featured on: Transmission Archive ~ The SiIvaGunner All-Star Nuclear Winter Festival Collection

Ripped by Retro Gaming

youtube

Part of Voiceless Week!

With the release of slideless at the tail end of Season 6, five years had already passed since voiceless had made impact with the channel like a meteorite. And to some viewers, that wait has been excruciating. Not because slideless itself was hotly anticipated, but because The Christmas Comeback Crisis storyline that voiceless was originally made for had still not been finished since its start in Season 2, and still hasn't as of writing. That wait, as expected, has stirred up some mixed feelings in the fanbase. Whenever I'd find myself looking over those discussions over the course of Season 5 and 6 in particular, it sometimes felt as if voiceless never even happened, that the channel had just full-stop moved past that glorious spark.

Though I'm of course still overjoyed with the success of later seasons of SiIva and greatly enjoyed the creative directions its gone in, I was equally as overjoyed to find that even this far into the channel's life, voiceless was still not forgotten. slideless did of course not mark the first time the track had reappeared on the channel, yet a combination of various factors made it really stick out to me althesame. Slider, as you may well know, sits among the pantheon of SiIvaGunner tracks that will just never stop receiving rips at a regular pace. It holds a special place even amidst that pantheon though, being a track that consistently draws in clicks from a high number of SiIva's viewerbase, likely due to the source track's pre-existing popularity. Even with their frequency, to me Slider rips have always been moments of celebration, where huge parts of the fanbase all gather to celebrate whichever joke is being featured at the moment - I really don't doubt that most SiIvaGunner fans have listened to a majority of all the Slider rips uploaded during their time on the channel.

Pair that legacy with the arrangement being genuinely fantastic, using every part of Slider's instrumentation as effectively as possible, and you have a rip that still sits with me six months removed from it. Everything feels perfectly planned out: The alternating between the accordion and whistle between the intense and calm parts of the song, the aspects of Slider's backing remaining in the backing banjo instrumentation, the way the accordion is layered in different parts of the song to give it more weight... Retro Gaming isn't a name I've covered here on the channel before, but his trademark lies very much in being silently impressive: These super well done arrangements that feel right in line with what the original composers would produce for the game in question. Simply put, it makes me really happy that these talents go toward upholding voiceless' legacy.

#todays siivagunner #voiceless week #season 6 #siivagunner #siiva #Retro Gaming #super mario 64 #super mario 64 music #mario 64 #nintendo 64 #nintendo #super mario

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detectivechandler · 9 months

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what? That description in the post is actually much more on point than yours in the tags! He throws pizza boxes? Who does he call unintelligent? He hides behind his mental illness...?! Which behaviour did you consider arrogant? He was quite self-doubting, Miles actually gave him a few talks on that!

alright, I said I would answer this yesterday afternoon but the day got ahead of me and my brain was too fatigued to open a laptop so here's hoping you still give a damn enough to read it. First of all, I think it needs to be understood that I never said I necessarily disagreed with the traits presented in the post, nor did I state that the traits I mentioned within the tags were all there was. I did nothing but defend Joe 100% of the time when I first made this character because he is a super, soft, sweet man... but he is also human and that is what makes him compelling. He is not all positive traits (just as he is not all negative) and that is what my tags were trying to point out - instances of opposite behavior. One does not negate the other. I want a character to be complex, especially one that means so much to me. Recognizing flaws and mistakes and what would be considered 'negative' personality traits, does not mean you hate the person/character. On that note, since I do have ten thousand reasons why I love Joe and wish to protect him at all costs throughout various posts on my blog and have been meaning to address some of the things you mention anyways, I'm gonna try to go point by point. Under a cut because its gonna get long, I think.

Also want to note that sometimes, nailing down Joe's characterization is pretty difficult even as a casual observer that doesnt put much thought into it because whitechapel (i love it, i truly do) is very inconsistent with its writing. He has 5 cars in the span of four seasons, for example. The way he reacts to people and stress changes. He is very puppy (my little golden retriever boy) in season 2 and, while he remains the same in some aspects, he is back to being Joe in season 3 and 4.

I touched on everything in this ask (I think. My brain is mush right now) except for the mental illness post because I believe that deserves its own meta so that will be the next thing I go insane over. And again, thanks for sending this! For real. You motivated me to actually sit down and write out the various things in my mind rather than let my blog stay a shrine to all things Joe (stay gold, ponyboy) because it is/was so tempting. As my comfort character, I'm motivated (especially during this time of my life) to really build up how wonderful he is and ignore more negative traits (that again, dont necessarily negate the positive ones. Personality aspects co exist, even when they seem to contradict one another) and that's not the kind of writer I want to be. But, more importantly, that's not a true comfort character. I find strength in the fact that Joe is as fucked up as the rest of us in his own ways. He's struggling. He can be mean. He yells when hes frustrated and he makes snap judgments about others before getting to know them. He's a person. Like me. Like you. Like all of us. THAT is what I find comfort in. I love that he is three dimensional and I get that some people don't like acknowledging things like that, I do... but personally, for me, I don't believe in entirely herowashing or only focusing on the good. I love him because he is as flawed as me but he fights to be anyhow.

What's that stupid quote from the last episode of season 2? I may stumble, but I never fall.

For the pizza box thing - season 4, episode 4. The exchange that leads to it starts at 14:42. I wish I could gif it but alas. I don't have photoshop on this computer and won't have my mac back until next week. Basically, Joe and Miles are looking at the whiteboard while Joe tries to piece together the common factor shared between the cases thus far. He asks a question about a victim and Mansell speaks up and supplies the necessary information. Joe is extremely frustrated and goes on a bit of a tear. It culminates with him picking up the empty pizza box at Mansell's desk and throwing it at him. The whole exchange is as follows:

Joe: What about the first victim, Harry Barnett, did he have a record? Miles: Well, we've got his prints on file. Something to do with a stolen car. Mansell: Yeah, it was a hit and run. Barnett was questioned but he reported his car stolen, so the case never came to court. I've got the file here somewhere. Joe: Why didn't I know about this? Mansell: Well, I've been concentrating on cracking the code. Joe: Well, get on to it, will you? It's important! Sort your desk out, it's a disgrace. Mansell: Yes sir. Joe: How can you think straight with all this chaos and crap everywhere? A young man's life hangs in the balance and all you can think about is which topping to have on your pizza! We gotta stay focused or otherwise we make mistakes!

And then he throws the pizza box at him. I'm not saying he's a bad person for it, I'm not even saying I wouldn't do the same thing (I absolutely would) but I AM saying that I won't ignore the fact that he does it. Reasons why this was called out by me in the tags to come towards the end when I tie all of this together. For now I just wanted to give the reference of when it happens.

Calling someone unintelligent. Does he say "Gosh (insert name), you are so unintelligent!" No. If he did we wouldnt be having this discussion and I wouldnt be writing the character because I like to have to dig not have things handed to me. There are multiple instances of him questioning someone and commenting things about their thinking that while they do not explicitly say you're an idiot... they do say, what the fuck are you thinking? I will concede that maybe 'unintelligent' was the wrong word to use in my description, but I was eating a chicken tender and typing one handed on my phone. I'm gonna skip to your arrogance thing because a lot of this ties into that so just .. bear with me for a second.

Arrogance. This is gonna be a big one. I'm gonna list some points and then cite the scenes (with timestamps and episodes) that sort of led to me forming this opinion. First, I think it should be acknowledged that arrogance and insecurity/self-doubt can often go hand in hand. In fact, arrogance is often used as a defense mechanism for those with low-self esteem who want to be accepted and given respect and believe they won't be if they aren't perfect.

There is a type of arrogance referred to as Belief Arrogance in some psychiatric journals online through various databases (such good reads always. Highly recommend). This is defined as follows: Belief arrogance comes before a person is truly proved as being right. They may even still believe they are right after they are proven wrong. It is often based either on excessive self - confidence or as a cover up for a lack of self-confidence.

Some general examples of arrogance that bring this to mind (we'll go episode by episode, shall we? and please note my internet is being slow so I'm using the scenes that immediately come to mind so that I can cite without losing my fucking mind. I can go way in depth later if you so wish. ):

Season 1, Episode 1:

We are introduced to Joe in what can be considered a state of arrogance for him. He is part of the metropolitan police social club for the high and mighty (its a thing, i researched it lmao) and as he makes his way to the commander, he is greeted by much older detectives and accompanied by mutterings (of a good kind). "It's joe! look its joe! hi joe!". Very Simba walking up pride rock of him tbh. He was groomed for this job. He is being pushed through the ranks (as my high school principal always said .. its not the grades you make, its the hands you shake) and the confidence and belief in himself that comes from that is part of it. This does not negate the fact that he practices things in front of the mirror etc, but those things also do not erase arrogance. He is bothered when he feels like he is being undermined (again, understandable) and he literally yells and asks if his team has heard of showers and tells them they smell. Thats judgmental, mate. And that comes from a place of arrogance.

Season 2, Episode 1.

This example begins in a diner where Joe is conversing with Ed after the bayonetting at the snooker hall at 25:47. It goes as follows:

Joe: Steven Dukes is part of a notorious crime family. He must have grown up idolizing the Krays and now he's using the legend to build his own empire. Ed: Does he wear Italian suits, a monogrammed shirt? Joe: Not when he was standing in a snooker hall, no. Ed: Ah, but don't you see? If he were the copycat, he would. The copycat went to great trouble to recreate the exact details of Frank Mitchell's death. Lenny Cobb was taken from Dartmoor Prison, just like Mitchell, and his injuries were, tragically, just like Mitchell's. Anyone who cares enough about those details would at the very least wear the suit. Joe: This is about power and fear, not fancy dress. Ed: But it's not about a pretense or an act. It's about being a Kray. I don't think it can be Dukes. Joe: Dukes has motive. He has opportunity, and he inspires enough fear to ensure silence. My instinct tells methat he's the one.

Same episode, 37:50.

Ed: It's not Dukes. It's not about power, or money or empire building. The motive is revenge. The victimes are being chosen from those that gave evidence against the Kray twins and they will be killed in the manner of their testimony. Joe: So who do you think will be next? Ed: Slasher Daneford. He testified about the death of Jack 'The Hat' Mcvitie, and he's like Mcvitie in many ways.I tried to warn him, but he's refused to run or seek protection. I am a real detective, in my heart, in my bones, and I do not need a warrant card to prove it! Joe: Thanks for the tip. We really appreciate it [as a side note here, please pay attention to the expression his face. It's one of indulgence more than it is an expression of genuine gratefulness) Ed: Don't just humor me, Joe! You must talk to Slaher. I can't have his death on my conscience.

As another side note in this episode, he judges Mansell the moment he walks through that door and continues to do so until the show ends. He actually makes a face that cracks me the fuck up lmao.

I'm skipping seasons because - again - slow internet and I'm using hulu for now until I get my laptop back but lets go to season 4 shall we. I love season 4. But Lucas, he's under a lot of stress you might say. You might argue 'but season 4 makes the worst of every character come out' .. and you're right! it does! which means these traits exist in Joe all along, they are just brought closer to the surface thanks to the joy that is frustration (which is something that happens to all of us).

Season 4, episode 1.

Timestamp 7:31. His first introduction to Louise Iver. He gets so upset. Why? Because she is pricking at a sore spot, she is prodding at an open wound that is already a detriment to his pride. Conversation is as follows:

Louise: Are you in the book? Joe: No, I'm not. Louise: Oh, I understand. [Joe sort of gives her a look here like, you understand what exactly? He's already in defense mode] Did he leave you out to spare your feelings? Joe: I beg your pardon? Louise: Never bringing in a killer alive is a terrible legacy. Joe: I'm not in the book because I'm a serving police officer. Louise: Oh, well, your memoirs will be a depressing read, won't they?

Timestamp, 40:00. The conversation with Wingfield.

Wingfield: Well, I didn't think I'd walk away. Joe: You had an alibi. Why were you spying on us? Wingfield: You have been infiltrated by an agent. Joe [scoffing]: I don't think we're that interesting. Wingfield: Any soul is of interest. And you have been chosen. Joe: By whom? Wingfield: I first heard of this agent when I was in captivity. It is a provocateur whose purpose is to incite others to commit evil acts.

[Joe literally scoffs again]

Wingfield: Markov. Calvi. The Krays. The Ripper. An immortal entity was behind them all. Planting the seeds, watching the horror grow. The provocateur had Zukanov killed. It was a setup to silence me. Now that has failed and another way will be found. Joe [scoffing. again]: you're mad. Wingfield: I wish I were. I wish I was wrong. Good luck.

Alright, let's talk about this. First of all, I would like to mention the definition of a scoff. Scoffing means contemptuously ridiculing or mocking someone or something. This man scoffs SO FUCKING MUCH at people. I cannot believe that someone would argue to blatantly MAKE FUN of someone's belief or opinion is not in itself, a display of arrogance at some level. What would you call that then? I will point out other examples of scoffing that I remember in the other episodes, but if you want episode by episode examples for every single one ... I'd be happy to provide.

Season 4, episode 2

I do also think that during the autopsy review of Dorothy's body, Joe hyper-fixates on the knowledge that the killer has gangrene. How long before he dies? When Llewelyn answers "He could die at anytime." Joe responds with, not if i get there first. It has stopped being about saving future victims and has started to become a race to simply catch a killer alive, saving his own ego. Arrogance, in a form.

Timestamp 25:40, when going through the woman who drowned's belongings (I cannot remember her name, rip lady I apologize).

Joe: It doesn't look like she had many friends, just work colleagues. It's quite sad, really.

Hell-to the fucking - o ??? Pot calling kettle black. Also it makes me sad and emo because its like .. hes also passing judgment on himself whether or not he realizes it and i want to hug him and call him my precious but this write up isnt about that so .. moving on.

Also, lets jump back to the temper I mentioned that is evidence by the pizza throwing incident .. in this episode (timestamp 30:30) during the fight with Mansell and Kent, Joe doesn't just stop the fight .. he throws Mansell against a table. Pushes with extreme force? Idk what you want to call it. He did NOT have to act that way. It is a combination of temper and, as I pointed out earlier, the fact that he has judged Mansell and considered him lacking/unprofessional/unworthy since day one.

The scene where Joe and Miles share a drink at the end of the episode and are later joined by ed. Timestamp is 40:40

Joe: Septicemia. Once the infection took hold, there was nothing the doctors could do. Miles: I'm sorry. Joe: Another killer escapes justice. Miles: I think you're being too hard on yourself. You saved Nick's life. Joe: You know, if you'd told me five hundred years ago that I was cursed, I would have believed you. Miles: Here. [pours another drink] Here's to bringing on in alive.

[skip ahead to Ed appearing at 42:40 after making a connection in Wingfield's notes down in the archive]

Miles: How can you hear a bottle open all the way down in the archive? Joe [laughing]: Come in. Ed: I'm so sorry to intrude, but I have a matter of some urgency to share with you. Joe: Have a drink. Ed: Oh...yes. After you hear this, we'll all need one. Um... As you know, Wingfield was trying to catch a provocateur. Joe [amused]: The instigator of all evil in Whitechapel. Ed: This is a visual record of all Wingfield's points of surveillance. Miles: It's a madman's map. Ed: Yes, so it would seem. This is us. Here. Joe: Well we know he was watching us from the hotel across the road. Ed: Did you know he was also watching John Washington's bakery? Fascinating, isn't it? Washington thought his life had been blighted by a witch. Wingfield was following an ancient evil that visited the bakery. Miles: They were after the same person. Ed: Wingfield seemed to think so. And he followed them to this building. [Joe's expression after this line when the camera cuts to him is literally like are yall fucking kidding me right now lmao?] Miles: Are you saying there's a demon in this station? Joe: Right. That's enough for one night. Miles: And you criticize me for not being open-minded. Joe: I'm sure there's a rational explanation for all the connections, we just need to find it. Miles: I hope we do

Again, his confidence in being RIGHT in his opinions and so easily dismissing those that he considers absolutely insane is illustrated so heavily in here. A pattern that repeats stronger and stronger until he signs his own demise in the final episode. Continuing on, however...

Season 4 episode 3

The fucking birthday scene. This is so hard to watch, jesus take the wheel from me. Granted, I fully believe they did not plan this little birthday get together well considering location and activity and obviously Joe is a little out of his depth and frustrated/annoyed by it. But this scene is saturated with arrogance.

At 00:58, we see Ed giving Joe a birthday present. Joe looks so excited at the prospect. He's smiling, he's there for it mate. Look at his fucking face when he opens it. I have seen my nephew be more gracious than that when he was given socks on his 6th birthday. Anyways, short recap:

Ed: Happy birthday, Joe. It's not much, but ... it's a hagstone. It's said to protect the wearer against witchcraft and evil charms. Thought it mgiht bring a smile to your face. Obviously not.

It is SO HARD for me to watch this because Joe is absolutely acting like a spoiled little bitch. He makes a face so obvious that Ed picks up on it and he apologizes and looks both embarrassed and crestfallen. It's awful. Again, that's arrogance. Sorry, anon.

Timestamp 5:38, in the museum when they are discussing the skinned face. He is rude as fuck.

Joe: Get it checked for prints. [walks off] Llewelyn: Well someone's forgotten their pleases and thank yous.

Timestamp 7:24, Joe visits Ed in the archives looking for historical precedents to murders involving flaying. Ed gets a bit excited sharing a particular story and Joe brusquely interrupts him with a very irritated How does this help us? Ed, I just need the information, not the conjecture. Actual conversation below, because there are quite a few other rude interactions in this scene.

Joe: What've you got for me? Ed: I was just looking at this. The Flaying of Marsyas by Titian. Marsyas was a satyr, half man, half goat. He was skinned alive for daring to challenge Apollo to a musical duel. It was on loan at the National Gallery a few years ago but Mother wasn't keen. Joe: How does this help us? Ed: Well, your body was found in an art gallery, was it not? The killer could be recreating scenes from all the Grand Masters. Joe: Ed, I just need the information, not the conjecture. Ed: Of course. Well, historically flaying was a means of punishment or torture. A number of Chinese emperors of the Ming Dynasty liked to cut the flesh from their enemies' faces. In fact, Lingchi, the so called death of a thousand cuts, wasn't abolished in China as a form of execution until 1905. Joe: What did they do with the skin? Ed: It depends. The ancient Assyrians would flay their enemies alive and then nail the skin to the city walls. A warning to others not to step out of line. Oh, look, the molds got in here. Now, this is ridiculous. Joe: Have you got anything I can take away with me? Anything I can study? Ed: We're talking ancient history here, Joe. I'm not going to find it in the Metropolitan Police Archive. Joe: Well, I can't go back upstairs with paintings by Titian and stories from Ancient Assyria. That's not what I pay you for.

Timestamp 10:10, Joe makes the assumption that HE is better suited for interviewing what they believe is Sebastian Marlowe's assistance. He tells Miles he needs the interview to go well and doesnt want any belligerence, hinting that he believes Miles would only get in the way. This comes to bite him in the ass when he later finds out that Miles has connections in the art world and would have been able to find out much more than he did. That's a judgment. Again, arrogance.

During the actual interview scene with her, the following exchange happens and I laugh every time.

Joe: Some people wouldn't call it art. Assistant: Some people only look skin deep.

This makes me laugh because of the skin deep pun but also because Joe is clearly meant to be included in the some people. She picks up on the arrogance too. Also he stares at her birthmark and that gets me everytime also. Not in a funny way but a .. bro are you serious way.

Season 4 episode 4

There's the pizza scene mentioned above, obviously. But before that, there is the scene where Miles and Joe are leaving the dentist office. The important bit begins at timestamp 13:00.

Joe: In a missing persons case, the first twenty four hours are the only twenty four hours. Miles: What? You think I don't know that? ... You want me to call in Whacky Jackie? Joe: Who? Miles: Jackie Brierley. She's a last resort. Joe: Who's Jackie Brierley? Miles: She helped us out on a missing child case back in the nineties. She said she saw a vision of running water, led us down to the Lee Valley Resevoir and the divers found the body in ten minutes. Joe: She's a medium? Miles: Yeah. We used her once or twice back in the day. She's not always right, but when you've got no leads ... What are you looking at me like that for? Joe: Well, I can't believe you'd be so gullible. Miles: Well, I've learned to keep an open mind. Joe: A medium??Miles: Well, she found the girl. Joe: So? It was a lucky guess. Miles: Well, we could do with a bit of luck right now. Do you want me to call her or not? Joe: No!! We're detectives. We use police work. Anything else would just be weakness of character.

In case you're wanting to dismiss this whole thing .. let's re read it and remember that Miles states he and his team HAD USED HER a few times. He, Miles, Joe's colleague and one of the closest things to a friend that he's got, has ADMITTED using this woman .. and Joe ridicules him for it. This is arrogance, but it also ties into my 'unintelligent' comment in the tags. Telling someone theyre gullible is the same as saying they aren't intelligent enough to resist falling for something meant to dupe them. Worse than that though, is that Joe is offhandedly insulting the fuck out of Miles with the weakness of character comment, considering Miles has admitted (ten seconds ago, Joe!! come on!!) that he had done the thing Joe is so adamantly against. That's arrogance, buddy. Miles is actually offended. You can tell by his expression and the way that he mutters to himself. Honestly, I would be too.

The scene with Miles in the bathroom when Joe goes into detail about the death of this father (I'm having to bite my tongue because there are so many GOOD things I want to say about this scene and again I want to hug him) also alludes to arrogance in order to cover self-consciousness. Joe states that as a child, he was embarrassed by his mother's actions and started taking an extreme interest in details because he didn't want others to see how much their lives had fallen apart. This is pride. At ten years old, he had wounded pride.

Okay, this is a big one. It might seem like a stretch. Just bear with me. Timestamp, 43:43. It's the scene in the station chapel towards the end of the episode, involving the conversation between Miles and Joe.

Miles: I was just looking up that Vengeance is mine quote. If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thristy, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap coals of fire upon his head. Do not be overcome by evil. But overcome evil with good.Joe: If only it was that easy. Do you believe in all of that? Miles: What? Joe: The ... Afterlife. Miles: Well, I was brought up Catholic, I have to hedge my bets. Joe: Is that why you consulted a psychic? Miles: No, the family asked for her. What's all this about? We caught the guy, the case is closed. Joe: No. we didn't catch him. He chose to die. He taunted me.

Alright so. Were do I begin with this one. First of all, the verse that Miles reads aloud would actually be a fantastic answer to most of Joe's issues during this season (and throughout the show), if only he would give it the time of day. But he doesn't. In fact, though he does listen while Miles read it aloud, he also makes his usual expressions and immediately dismisses it by asking Miles if he believes in such a thing. We already know he (Joe) doesn't. His pride has been pricked. I've already mentioned the illustrations given throughout other episodes, but it is growing more and more apparent. This verse is TELLING HIM he should do the opposite. Rather than being overcome by evil (aka, being driven to the more baser parts of his personality, the more negative traits) he should be approaching the situation with mercy and grace towards himself. Instead, he is angry. He is frustrated. He is upset by the fact that he feels (rightly so) taunted. Imagine you're 6'8. Weird, I know. But hang on. So you're 6'8 and you're in a cafe somewhere, waiting on a coffee. A person walks in and says 'wow, you're so short." You would go about your day (most would at least, I think) because you know they're wrong. They are not attacking an insecurity. Youre not arrogant, youre just confident in the fact that you're fucking 6'8 and that isnt short. However, when attacked or wronged in some way in regards to something that does bother us (something we are already insecure about perhaps), arrogance does come into play when we get offended. How dare they say that! How dare they think it! You're furious! Joe is reacting the same way. His ego is being attacked.

Season 4, Episodes 5 and 6.

I'm actually wrapping this up really quick because I could go on for fucking AGES about these two episodes and I probably will one day, but the last 3 hours of putting this together is starting to get to me and todays another not feeling so great today. Joe's arrogance comes home to roost in these episodes. He is so ashamed of meeting with Jackie, he double and triple checks that they are doing so in secret. He makes it VERY CLEAR during their conversation that he thinks shes a fucking hoax. He refuses to read the letter given to him through Miles that supposedly contains a message from his father. What would it have cost him to open the letter? It doesnt mean anything to open something. But to Joe it did. To Joe, opening that letter, would be like saying there might be some shred of truth to what Jackie says and what she is and his ARROGANCE does not allow for that. He was too arrogant in his belief of being correct to take ten seconds to do something that would have changed the whole plot of the show. Whitechapel is about sin coming home to roost. Arrogance/Pride in the case of Joe is a great example of that. If you're a true fan, I honestly believe you know this and understand the implications.

Don't put them all in the same van.

HE fucked himself over. His inability to be open minded because he was to arrogant to admit that there might be a slight, SLIGHT chance or at least a small miniscule worth in opening a letter and reading a note that would be absolutely harmless at its worst .. dug his own grave. And that's really what it comes down to.

#headcanon. it's not a disability. it's a gift.#whitechapel itv #hopefully the readmore works ajhdfjfjhf #anyways. this was probably supposed to be a combative ask and i didnt take it that way at all #so i'm sorry if it was my buddy.#i can gather from the punctuation and the fact that you said 'nah you dont understand him at all based on your tags' that it was #probably meant negatively??? idk though. I'm not really offended by differences of opinion.#If anything - I love constructive conflict because I think it helps both parties grow in their opinions.#You dont have to walk away from a disagreement suddenly on the same page .. but I do believe in respecting other opinions #when they are thought out and the other person is willing to rationally explain their thought patterns #so by all means - please feel free always to jump in for some discourse! I'm here for it.#If everyone thought the same thing the world would be so damn boring.#and you never know what I (or you. or even someone who stumbles across it) might learn #sorry for the fandom tag but idk who sent this and if they'd even check to see if i replied #so i'm making it easy #whoever you were - i love you for loving joe enough to send a stranger an ask to defend him #100% serious.#I'm so embarrassed to admit this but thanks to my illness I have no life whatsoever for the first time and #I literally watch this show for 7-8 hours a day.#And then when I hit the end of season 4... I restart.#Immediately.#It is ALWAYS on in the background and I can hear it even if I'm not actively watching it.#I swear to you that I do actually have references for every single thing I say on this blog. even when i just spout idiot stuff out

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