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cainhood · 27 days

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AMARA TSUCHIYA CODENAME: CICADA.

basics.

given name. amara tsuchiya ( née camus ). callsign. cicada, loud only in the summer. nickname. amy, give her some. age. thirty-two ( february 13, 2012 ). place of birth. portland, maine. gender identity. cis woman ( she + her ). orientation. bisexual ( femme lean ). occupation. public security intelligence for the government / room maid at the nyūtō onsen & resort. former sniper class special operative ( callsign: cicada ) in task force 155. moral alignment. neutral evil. character inspiration. carmilla of styria ( castlevania ), widowmaker / amélie lacroix ( overwatch ), samara morgan ( the ring ), helga sinclair ( atlantis: the lost empire ), delilah ( the bible ), amma crellin ( sharp objects ), azula ( avatar: the last airbender ), logan roy ( succession ), susie bannion ( suspiria ).

background.

your story begins at the bottom of a stairway. there, in her child stance lit by night’s glow. a cluster of far-off fireflies, or a whining streetlamp. there, in the poised curve of her back, confident down to the bone marrow. here, in the black speck on her smooth skin like a gnat suspended in the wrong light. glimpses of you, backdropped by the smoothed brick of your mother’s first home. the orphanage: where your choices encumber someone else, before they round back to you. a french woman adopts your mother, and another gaunt daughter. they grow into calling each other sister. just as the refrain starts. every pretty one precludes a clever one, they would say. you can’t be both. the choice isn’t yours. you are born to the pretty one. she dies before you reach a year old. the bare bones of a human. you will never learn to ask for a dead woman’s picture.

the clever one, then, inherits a pretty one. all the hushed baby-lips, without the stretch marks. mine, she dotes, my child. her belly is still ripe from childbearing; its kicks are unimportant. a clever daughter, no doubt, to match this pretty one. somewhere in you, there is a memory that’s not quite a memory. buttered fingers knead into your doughy neck. your lovely, lovely aunt who softly coos as you cry and cry. tears glass those eyes, even now, when she whispers to you with her hands bracketing your nape. for every gilded sunday, plum-dressed and thick-lashed, you will remember the outskirts of your siblings’ posse. how any other would treasure your fresh face, shying away from a pinch on your cherry blossom cheeks. for this face is your mother’s, and such pain wore her to an early grave. the wrinkling shadows, still, settle into your siblings’ grins. you watch them. that is all you can do.

in your isolation, you listen for your aunt’s silent cues. how she won’t respond to mother, no matter how hard her children tug at heart-strings that don’t connect. she ties them to a chair, maybe, and returns to nurse a cold cup of tea. they try to teeth on mama –– a screeching baby, instead of a mewling baby –– to melt a name down their throats, and into their fat hearts. a name that only they may speak. your name is so dear, they want to say, that i would not sully you by saying it. to her, an adulation. to them, a birthright. you are the one to see beyond this. to forget that she could be called mother. her ears prickle, only, when you say her name. helena. the delicacy of her smile is relentless. it curves into her lowered chin. all that gaze for you; this time, that name will be yours. and then, she begins the quote with a clicked tongue. almost breathless when she says, i wish you wouldn’t call me that. your siblings have none of the will to reach for her hand. regardless of their mother’s wants. your aunt-mother holds your hand in the crook of her elbow. they watch you. that is all they can do.

hedged by the dark, her dry hand cups your cheek. she is pale, moon-faced, and the shadows drip crimson from her open mouth. you know your lips curls in the same way. a daughter has her mother’s mouth. the maw possesses no end nor beginning. there is only the blood. anyone who isn’t us is an enemy, she will spew, we are all that matters. you were made to exclude. to inhale ease, and exhale dread. this is how one grows into a soldier. secluded to a daughter’s curse: your mother’s blood-thirst. the child of a fraught house doesn’t realise its loss, even after one calls it a bug’s name. cicada. your rhythm is for you alone. heard only under sunlight; your hum prickles the rays like flickering stars. the old hymn in your heart. i see, i want, i eat.

it is an odd lament, then, to coalesce with a ‘ they ’ as your mother’s daughter. you are part of them. there is no more you. they share your mud-gouged gaze. pull at the hardened roots of your pedestal. their nails will find your weak ribs, and the chewy sinews of your neck. you already found theirs. held and holding. this story still has one ending. with your mother’s fist at your scruff. at the base of a cave, far deeper than six feet under. cold like a broken skin. the reedy bones of a squashed bug. one of them betrays you, and you don’t want your mother. not at the end of your earth’s time. you don’t come back wrong; you were always wrong. a fluttering atrocity: regal in your lack of mercy. half-god like a roach, living long after humanity. a glutton for their own entrails. people are easier when they thrum quietly. amara tsuchiya knows this. she sips life’s nectar, and grows a new set of ribs. metallic, this time, flavoured like spilled blood. the sun will clutch its eclipse; she will be quiet.

#anarchicintro.#death //#injury //#bug mention //#emotional abuse //#? i think #her mother is the worst woman #and she is her favourite daughter <3 #this got long for literally no reason

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ecoamerica · 1 month

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youtube

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

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helgaandback · 9 months

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ʜᴇʟɢᴀ ꜱɪɴᴄʟᴀɪʀ ;; ˡᵒᵒᵏ ᵇᵘᵗ ᵈᵒⁿ'ᵗ ᵗᵒᵘᶜʰ

Heterosexual ⋆ She/Her ⋆ Thirty-Three

Occupation ;; Bodyguard/Assistant to Preston Whitmore

♫ Currently Playing ♫ ;; Destroyer by Saint Motel

☀ Leo ☾ Taurus ↑ Aries

She wasn’t born to a family of any big name or social status. Instead, she had to work hard for everything she got. Being the only girl in a big family of six children meant she had to claw her way into existence. Instead of spending time with her siblings, she preferred going out on adventures with the other street rats. With her father being in the army it meant that all of the Sinclair children had eyes on them as to who would lead their family. Oddly enough it was Helga who caught her father's eye from the beginning with her athletic ability. That was her first dip into the world of hustling on the street. This was also where she met Buster and Tramp for the first time. They ran the streets or at least she thought so. It was through knowing them that she was able to find her niche in treasure hunting, having started as only petty theft. Even though she’d always looked up to Tramp as the leader of the group, that was until he met Lilah. That’s when everything changed and she took note of it. Still, she was being trained to be something more than just a girl on the Isle and she wanted to become that.

She trained in combat and was stationed off the Isle which was how she met Commander Rourke. He was also quick to see something special in her, getting her trained to become a spy and work as a covert agent for the military. The plan was to never look back but it's never that easy. For years this was what she did, traveling the world and going undercover to bring down some of the most elite. This was also when she met a man, Billy Butcherson and after a while, they decided to get engaged. However, it was only within a year that she was left alone again after he vanished without a trace and had been rumored to have died. After his passing, Helga was ready to settle down, well in a sense, and took a private job instead. Coming highly recommended from Commander Rourke she was approached by Whitmore Industries to work for their owner as his personal bodyguard.

Helga accepted and in turn, she returned to the Isle to start her new position. Of course, there's so much more that she does for him especially now that there's been treasure in their midst and he's sent his best woman out on the job. Even though she originally planned to never return she's glad to be back, feeling as though she can finally start planting some semblance of roots.

#ᴡᴇ ʜᴀᴅ ᴀ ᵈᵉᵃˡ ( about. )

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panthera-tigris-venenata · 2 years

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Weapons the VKs would use

The inlanders of the Isle

(This should cover the rest of VKs with a role in Utopia of the Lost. Again, those are mainly notes to that story, so that's why it doesn't add up with canon sometimes. And yes, I didn't include Celia Facilier here for a reason)

All of the VK know how to use dagger and/or knife. While the pirates prefer sabers, the children living inland use a wider variety of weapons. Some also tend to get creative, though not as creative as CJ Hook.

And, look, I know that D2 and D3 had the Core 4 use swords, but that makes precisely zero sense, so... I'm ignoring it.

Evie Grimhilde - She has spent the majority of her life locked up in a castle with only her mother, so she doesn't technically know how to fight. She was taught to use a dagger, though: how to hide it, how to throw it, how to cut your victim so you won't ruin your dress. When she actually wants to hurt or kill someone (as much as the Barrier would allow), she simply gives them a poisoned treat. Hey, don't judge! It worked for her mother, didn't it?

Carlos de Vil - He has a bejewelled boxer that Jasper gave him and you can prey the headcanon of Carlos with this kind of weapon from my cold dead hands. He also fights with knives. Not daggers, knives: Ugly blades for butchering and skinning. But having few moderately dangerous inventions (or explosives) to do the dirty work for him is all the better. He meets up with his cousins in the remains of his mother's home and they invent together. It's bonding.

Jay - You know what? Jay can have the sword. As a treat. If only because it would be very inconvenient to fight the pirates without a matching weapon. His fights with Harry Hook always atract wide attention, and not only because of the drama they (ehm, mostly Harry) always cause. Jay prefers to fight with his bare hands, though.

Mal - No sword for her. No shield, either: she has yet to accept her own mortality, or at the very least the fact that she isn't invulnerable. Anyway, I was thinking about giving her two knives too, but, you know, going with two knives agains two sabers isn't exactly a balanced fight I'd imagine. So she gets a fighting staff, reinforced and sharpened. She found a better, magical version on her venture onto the Isle of the Doomed. Finally a valid reason why she would go there.

The Hearts - Jared and Rosa wield zweihanders. Their younger siblings try to do so. They actually have swords of different sizes, so they can switch up to the bigger ones when they're strong enough. Occasionally, they feel like carrying shields, but usually, they don't bother.

The Tremaines - Daggers coated in poison! One nick, and your enemy is done for, eventually. At least for a while. All of the Tremaine cousins carry one, as soon as they're deemed old enough for that by Anthony. Somehow, that age keeps being pushed further and further as Anthony grows up. Truly a mystery. Anyway, Anthony has a sword and shield which he actually uses. Lady Tremaine wasn't exactly thrilled with her grandchildren carrying such weapons around, but being safe takes priority. Oh, and the girls also have hatpins big enough and sharp enough to kill a man. Dizzy introduces Evie to this wonder of fashion eventually.

The Sinclairs - Helena Sinclair is proficient with a lot of weapons, thanks to active trade with CJ Hook. A weapon for a weapon, a skill for a skill, or any combination, really. She also had a good few guns stocked away and needles to say she was very pissed when Harriet Hook banned them and forcibly took these treasures.

#disney descendants #mal descendants #fanfic #isle of the lost #utopia of the lost #anthony tremaine #harriet hook #mal bertha #jay descendants #evie grimhilde #carlos descendants #carlos de vil #cj hook #immortality on the Isle of the Lost #the death doesn't last there #and the kids don't really know how it should work

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princess-geek · 2 years

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2021 Summary of Writing

Thank you for tagging me, dear @missameliep !

January

Dancing is, in a way, like a sword fight - Dominique struggles to tame her granddaughter. However, only Vincent can understand the heart of a Howard’s woman.

Two girls, a name, the same spirit - There is a German proverb that says: ‘ A good name is a second inheritance.’ Well, in this fic Beatrice has the opportunity of a lifetime.

It lives...and kills the curiosity - People say the curiosity kills the cat, but Edgewater's children cannot resist to a good mystery. This is an improbable Desire & Decorum X It Lives crossover.

February

Winter Adventures - All’s fair in love and snowballs - A visit to the Winter Market will teach important to the Foredale siblings. A collab with @ezekielbhandarivalleros.

Yes...No...Interesting - An innocent childish game unveils some truths; some of them easier to accept than others. ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ are among the smallest words in the English language ... but they have a lot of power.

Cheeky Monkey - ‘Trouble’ is Beatrice’s middle name. Fortunately, there is always a knight in shining armour to save her.

The dark side of the moon - The night shadows bring to light some truths about Ledford Park residents.This drabble is a Matthew Sinclaire POV (Ernest’s father is introduced on Chapter IV).

March

Battle of sexes - They say all is fair in love and war. However, very few have th privilege to leave any of them without scars...if not in the heart, at least in pride. The Foredale clan is growing up so are the problems. But there is no wound that a little of siblings' love does not help to heal.

Chapter V - The Talk - An incident in the library will open a door to a new world for Beatrice. Edmund opens the doors of his heart.

April

Love is the most reliable compass - Vincent has an idea for a new book and calls upon his favourite reader for brainstorming. This is an improbable Desire & Decorum X Distant Shores crossover.

May

Chapter VI - Feelings are scary - As we grow, there are senses that wake up in us ... intense, confused, different ... and that can be a little scary at first. However, if we take a leap of faith, wonderful things can happen. Sometimes, we come across mazes along the way of life. In order not to get lost, we have to let ourselves be guided by the voice of those who love us.

Spring Adventures - To celebrate the anniversary of her photography blog, Beatrice decided to do a special photo shoot. As usual, there will shenanigans, troubles and a good deal of laughs.

June

Summer adventures (I) - A summer tale - Summer brings more time for shenanigans. Beatrice has a new obsession. Ernest is to blame for that. And yes, this is another pointless fic.

Finding my way to you - Unfortunately, duty rarely sees eye to eye with heart, and Prince Hamid is commissioned for a new potion. Even though his heart is aching with longing, the imperial prince sets off once more towards the unknown. Who knows where or to whom the stars will take him this time. .(Regency Era)

July

August

Cellar Confessions - Summer Adventures II - An old adage says that ‘a drunken man's words are a sober man's thoughts’. Beatrice is about to find out if this is really true.

In another life - Roselyn Sinclaire reflects in her actions toward her ex-husband.(Regency Era; Desire & Decorum missing scene)

September

Chapter VII - “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?“(Summer Adventure III) - Summer is the season when all is effervescent and free...and with the future knocking at the door, Beatrice is trying to seize the most of it while it lasts. Fortunately, it's never too late to follow our hearts.

October

November

Affairs of the heart - The affairs of the heart are never easy to deal with; whether when love is blooming or withering.

The real treasure - A random moment between Beatrice and Dominique (completely pointless).

December

Tagging: @ezekielbhandarivalleros @secretaryunpaid @storyofmychoices @twinkleallnight @happiness21 @anotherbeingsworld @mm2305

In case any of you wish to create one as well, and if you do, please tag me.

#summary of writing 2021 #choices fanfic #desire and decorum #unspoken desires

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korporxie · 3 years

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how it starts.

Lots of people explain their maturity and strength and their wisdom by virtue - or vice - of having grown up quickly. For reasons beyond their control, they had to shoot upwards in emotional and mental years while physically, they stayed the same. I have no such story, I suppose. I grew up at the proper pace, and wanted for very little as a child. Maybe the lack of want made me even more immature than many other children. There were many parts of me, I think, that were unfortunately naive to the world around me.

So no. I cannot say that I grew up quickly and gained wisdom from it, but I can say that I was shocked out of my blissful youth at age twenty with a hot iron and a sort of desperation that belongs only to those with a knife to their throat. My maturity came by force, by necessity, by a drive to survive and ensure that the people around me survived, too.

That is not to say, however, that I knew everything I needed to know in a night. There were lessons to be learned the hard way. When my family was cast from the High Houses and sent to trial, with shackles that weren’t needed to keep my siblings and I still, kneeling on cold stone and praying, I hardly knew a thing at all. I knew music, and literature, and manners, and I knew that these things happened, but never to us. It could never be us. Right? We see the nightmares and we frown and we feel pity but we feel so certain that it could never be us standing on the chopping block.

Not until we are.

Claude Sinclair is an old, wealthy man, the Sinclair family an offshoot of House Durendaire. He’s been a widower ever since I was a young child, and he had always been beloved for being a talented artist with both words and paint. Many members of the High Houses had his paintings hung in their high homes. My own family had commissioned him for a painting of my mother while she was still on stage, glittering in rhinestone covered fabric and diamond jewelry.

We had to sell it for half its original price in order to pay for a few of our meals, but I digress.

When we became disgraced, Monsieur Sinclair came to call on me specifically, and at the time I was touched. Few people from the High Houses wanted anything to do with us. It was social suicide. We had dodged execution by a miracle and a miracle only, but we had not - and will never - be allowed back our place in society. But Monsieur Sinclair, it seemed, was empathetic to our plight. He walked to rickety home in the Brume and asked to walk with him with a smile on his face, telling me he had an opportunity for me to make some money.

Considering our circumstances - which included selling all of our worldly possessions to pay off debts - I wasn’t going to turn my nose up at anything. And why couldn’t I trust Monsieur Sinclair? I had known him since, well... since birth. He had already taken Hugo in as his personal attorney and financial advisor at that point, rescuing us before we could fall too deeply into a pit of poverty.

Surely if he had an opportunity for me then it would be just as appealing and dignified. Wouldn’t it?

“I have been meaning to hire a new housemaid, Odette,” he told me as we wove our way out of the Brume, and I blinked, but I did not balk. It stood to reason that this was one of my options.

“I see. Is that what you came to talk to me about, monsieur?”

“Ah, well, I suppose. But you’ve grown up so prettily, Odette. You are marvelously beautiful, you know this? Even more beautiful than your mother was at your age. Like... Like one of the muses of myth, come to life. Better than Menphina,” he added in a whisper, like the goddess couldn’t hear him, and I even smiled at the joke.

I smiled at the fucking joke.

“You are kind, Monsieur Sinclair, and generous with your praise, but I don’t need to be pretty to be a maid. It only stands to reason that I would need to be hardworking and reliable, no?” I asked, tilting my head, and he hummed a little at that before gesturing for me to follow him down a street that I wouldn’t usually wouldn’t take - not anymore.

It was a road that lead back up to the High Houses.

Monsieur Sinclair could clearly sense my hesitation, because now my skirts were not fine. They were of rough and unattractive wool that itched, but not as much as the rough wool socks I wore did. All of them, though, marked me - they marked me, although they shouldn’t have, because I was no lesser than I ever was. Those in the Brume were not lesser. But it is Ishgard’s way, I suppose.

“Come, mon trésor. You will be safe with me. You have my word.”

Mon trésor. My treasure. I thought little of it. He was an elderly man known for his romantic writings and romantic paintings and romantic way of speech. He was warm and familiar with all who interacted with him. Truth be told, I was quite fond of Monsieur Sinclair. He had given Olivier a great deal of advice, had always read over his poems and manuscripts and provided feedback in earnest.

There was no reason to not trust this man who had watched me go from child to teenager to young woman, who was now extending a hand out to my family in order to aid us in our time of need.

Did I not say that I was shocked out of such blissful naiveté, though?

“It is a shame that you will not be able to dance and perform as you once did, mademoiselle. To know that you were headlining a show always ensured a front row seat for me,” he lamented as he walked the winding paths with me keeping my head down, trying to trail after him as a servant might to avoid attention.

“Ah, monsieur, twenty is a bit old for ballet, anyhow. I was beginning to outgrow those leading roles. They’d soon start casting me as la matrone,” I joked, and he laughed, and I smiled because he’d like the joke. “But, monsieur... What is it that we have to talk about that I must go to your home...?”

His home was grand. Of course it was. He preferred dark, dramatic interiors to the lighter ones that I was used to. Maman adored wide open windows that let plenty of sunlight in, and light curtains that didn’t block it out. Our furniture was light, too, and the walls were painted pale yellows and greens and purples and pinks and blues. But Monsieur Sinclair had a flair for a different sort of dramatic, I suppose, with his rich, dark reds and dark browns and brocades in gold and black along his walls.

Servants bowed and curtsied to us as we walked inside, until they caught sight of my face - and then many of them looked a little confused, unsure if they should be bowing or curtseying to me at all. I wanted to tell them not to, as I always had, but something in me was beginning to feel that something was... off.

Maybe it had to do with how Monsieur Sinclair would merely chuckle or titter when I asked him questions until we got to his studio.

“I’d like you to sit for a painting for me, Odette,” he said, closing the heavy wooden door behind me, and I fought to shake off this odd feeling settling in the pit of my stomach.

“A painting...?”

“Oh, yes. You are the loveliest creature I have set my eyes on. How could I never paint you?”

“You have,” I began, and he waved a hand as he stepped through the messy studio. Canvases laid on the floor which was covered by thick white tarps, brushes overflowing in cups filled with colorful dirty water. The room spelled of oils, with more than a few splatters of color against the walls, as if someone had thrown an entire palette.

“Not like that, not like that. Not a family portrait or one specially done to hang over a mantle, you see? Something of... of substance! Art, mon trésor! One of you, Odette. Just of you. One like... One like... Let’s see here...”

I stood still as a statue as this old man - still in his thick jacket from walking outside in the bitter cold of winter - began to look through tarp-covered paintings leaned up against the wall. Someone knocked on the door, and I startled, but Monsieur Sinclair called for them to come back later, and I heard the footsteps disappear back down the hall, and we were alone again.

Leave, I thought. Trust your gut. Shouldn’t you trust your gut if something feels wrong? Tell him you have to go, and--...

“One like this!” the old man said brightly, and he stepped away from the wall with the canvas he had selected, smiling broadly while I stared.

The painting was... crude. It was beautifully done, I suppose, but it was crude all the same. It was of a woman of about my figure and size laying on her back, fully nude, with her legs spread and head thrown back, pleasuring herself with her fingers. Her mouth was open in apparent ecstacy, sweat beading along her skin, her dark hair undone and clinging to her shoulders.

“Monsieur--!” I began, horrified, and he started to laugh as he turned back to look at me.

“Exquisite, isn’t it? And how more exquisite - how more exquisite, mon trésor, if I was able to paint you just the same. No... No, not the same. You are so beautiful, Odette. You would transcend my abilities as an artist. To capture you would be to capture something heavenly. A sin, perhaps, for me to even try, but if it is sin that I am tempted into--”

“Monsieur!” I said again, louder, feeling my eyes shaking as I met his gaze, but... What else could I say? How could I have expected this? He had known me since I was a child. How could he ever-- how could he think--?

“My girl, you are as pale as a sheet now,” he said, laughing, and the laughter felt mocking. “You are not a little girl anymore, are you? Does such a painting truly shock you? I can hardly believe it would, after your upbringing with your mother, and I’ve seen how those young gentlemen chase after you. This cannot be new to you, can it? Or are you more pure than you seem?”

It felt like I had entered some terrible dream sequence. An hour ago I was merrily greeting who I thought was an old family friend, and now I was in his house, staring at a painting that he refused to tuck away and listening to him make assumptions of how pure or impure I might be, being asked to pose for just such a portrait, and...

“This is entirely out of line and disastrously inappropriate,” I said, breathless, forcing myself to look away from the painting and back at Monsieur Sinclair. “I am grateful, sir, for all you have done for my family, but this-- this is simply too much. You asked me to be your housemaid--”

“I did. And I stand by it. But how nice to make some extra money, don’t you think? I’d pay you well to sit and model for me. You know, Odette, I have had eyes for you for the longest time. If I didn’t enjoy my freedom so much, well, I’d be able to fix your tragic situation far more easily than this.”

His eyes glittered, and they were dark and horrible and did not house any of the warmth I used to see in them. In an instant, something had changed. He did not seem doddering or romantic. He seemed wicked. There was something nefarious and wrong in the way this man regarded me.

“I would marry you,” Monsieur Sinclair said, smiling, as he stared at me. “And what a beautiful bride you would be. But, I think, you make a far better muse. There is such sadness in your eyes, my girl. There always has been, ever since you were knee high. You know that? Such a tortured soul. But over what?”

“Thank you for your offer,” I muttered, starting to turn, “but I cannot accept. Not as a housemaid, muse, or your wife. This is madness, monsieur. This is surely some sort of sick joke that I can forget come morning.”

And the bastard, he grabbed my arm. He moved faster than I had ever seen him, and his old hand was on my wrist, and he was preventing me from walking through the door. He was still smiling, but it was... worse. It wasn’t kind.

“I will speak plainly. You are not a stupid girl, nor are you a child, so I won’t dance around the subject. Your brother relies on me for income. No one else would take him in. And did you know that I’ve been helping Olivier get some of his writing published? I wasn’t sure if he’d told you yet. And Philip...”

I could spit. I should have hit him and run. I should have. But I didn’t.

“I offered to pay for the last bit of Philip’s studies at the boy’s school, Odette. Your parents are grateful to me. And how wonderful, wouldn’t it be, to continue working with me? I have been generous. And who else would take in a disgraced family like yours? Hm?”

How long had he been thinking of? How long had he been planning? Had he always wished for this day, where we were vulnerable and could not say no, or was it just a happy coincidence?

“What are you getting at?” I snapped, and he tightened his grip on my wrist.

“Refuse me, and I will withdraw all of my finances and all of my assistance,” Monsieur Sinclair murmured, still smiling. “You will lose everything. You will be in the Brume, scraping and begging, for the rest of your life. I have connections. I could close your father’s business down. And it is a simple thing, Odette, to clean for me, to come and sit for paintings. Isn’t it?”

Cruel. Cruel. Evil. Wicked. Shockingly wicked. A wolf in sheep’s clothing. Why was he doing this? How? And did anyone else know? Did people know this man’s true character and just chose to never speak of it? He had always known my family. How could he threaten them, now? How could he look me in the eyes and threaten them?

But I was... naive. I was young. I was scared of the power he now wielded, because I had none to retaliate with.

There was no saying no. He had trapped me, and I had never felt more idiotic in my whole entire privileged little life.

“You are evil,” I whispered, and he frowned, letting go of my wrist.

“No, mon trésor. I am giving you chances and choices, because I love you and your family so. But nothing in life comes for free. You are no fool. You understand that now, don’t you?”

Monsieur Sinclair sighed and took a step back, gesturing to the door, and I grabbed the heavy brass handle immediately.

“Take a couple of days to think on it, Odette. Ah, but... I’d keep these terms and agreements between us. Your father has a hot temper. If he storms in here, upset over something silly and the Temple Knights got their hands on him again...”

My father. My precious father, laying in the snow and bleeding from the head while Hugo tried to shield my mother from the rest of the blows the night that they were arrested. My mother was screaming, Philip was crying, Olivier had already been knocked out for clocking a Knight in the jaw. There was blood, because my father had never known how to go down quietly.

Because on the Temple Knights had grabbed me by the hair and tried to drag me down the road away from them, and he had acted before he thought, and I thought they had beaten him to death right in front of our eyes.

“Fuck you,” I breathed, and Monsieur Sinclair chuckled again.

“Only if I’m lucky. I look forward to your return, Odette. You’ll be back,” he added, winking, and I hated him. I hated him so much I could scream and lose my head. I hated him so much for preying on us when we were weak.

I hated him, because we both knew that he was right.

I stormed from the house. I stormed through the High Houses and their winding, sloping roads, and I found a dark alley, and I screamed into my hands until my throat felt like it was bleeding. Betrayal and backstabbing had always been a hallmark of Ishgardian society.

But then again, well... You never think it can happen to you, do you?

#ffxiv rp #ff14 rp #odette #cw blood

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ecoamerica · 2 months

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cartoonfangirl1218 · 3 years

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BTS Inspiration of Winner’s Curse

I know not many people read my descendants fic, but hey it’s my Bday tomorrow and I feel like revealing some of the inspiration for it. This world building was actually what inspired me to start writing it down. Originally it was going to be from the POV of a Vk, and explore all the dynamics of the “new” Isle under the Coven of 13, and get into the motivations of each but as you can see that did not happen. I was intrigued by the idea of exploring a “sidekick” trying to be the hero and all that. Other notes are

Circe was originally going to be the mother of Malik, after having a fling with Mozonroth when she got sent to the Isle. Decided it was too much drama and discarded that.

There was going to be more focus on the power struggles between the mercenaries, the Coven and the authority figures. Was going to reveal Uma and Freddie to be siblings. Ended up sidelining Freddie.

Gaston’s daughter, Cosette, was going to have a role, becoming closer with Gil.

Atlantis characters were going to be part of the main group. As well as Black Cauldron characters. Also discarded.

Was going to redeem Drizella because I heard the original plans for Cinderella III was going to be Drizella redemption but they changed so they could give more development to Anastasia. So I decided I was going to do it. Dizzy would have been given more of a role.

Hans was going to be revealed as the cruelest villain. (Yeah I was going to make him a twist villain again. Be glad I did not).

Nasira and Mozonroth were going to be lovers before I decided on mother and son.

Diego and Ivy De’Vil would have had more a role.

Hercules characters would have had more a role. Including the Muses.

Ben would have had more a role somehow.

And that‘s about it.

But some things I am proud of in Winner’s Curse. Passing the Bedchel test.

A POC majority cast (This was completely unintentional but now I see it and counting it out, there’s four Agrabians, two WOC, and three European. Though I’ll admit I have not given Harry, Calix and Gil as much spotlight as I should. So my bad. But does Greek count as a white Euro? Idk, point is, unintentional diversity. Woo)

There‘s only two romances. Both are interracial. Also unintentional. Uma and Harry are totally together. And Aziz and Lala’s burgeoning crushes that will not end in a kiss after the final battle because it’s not important. Oh well. Attempts to explore PTSD, abuse, sexual assault and poverty.

The emphasis on family and friendship between characters.

Exploring the negative side of Auradon including it’s classist system, the Magic Ban, and the Euro-countries getting more resources and riches compared to the likes of Kuzcotopia and Atlantis and Atlantica,

Psychological studies(ish) and more character exploration.

Jay faces his dad!

Hook siblings!

Getting to mention tie ins to the Aladdin animated series, Legend of Tarzan animated series, Hercules animated series, Ariel‘s Beginning and soon Disney fairies books. And adding those characters.

That I finished 20 chapters! This is my longest fic ever! And just ten more chapters to go! I’ll get there.

Coven of 13: Villains dedicated to using their old magic to take over Auradon and be restored to their glory days once more. However they all have conflicting wishes with what the final plan should be.

Maleficent: Since being “overthrown” as queen of the Isle. Maleficent had to settle herself with working with others until she can be mistress of all evil again. Is in a constant battle for dominance with Queen Nerissa, Ursula, Mozenrath and Jafar.

(Evil) Queen Grimhilde: Though she may be pre-occupied by her looks and seem to be passive, Grimhilde is secretly gunning for complete control of the Isle and Auradon when they invade. She feels there should be a new queen that doesn’t get into such petty tantrums as Maleficent. Queen Nerissa: Queen Nerissa is the unofficial leader of the coven since it was her idea but it is impossible to convince the others of that. She wishes to get her ultimate revenge on Giselle, Edgar and the rest of Auradon by becoming the tyrant.

Ursula: Ursula is smartly setting her sights on just ruling Atlantica. Unless she gets bored. Then she might expande her pool of options. She mainly just wants to stick it to King Triton and when it comes to execution time. She isn’t going to make the mistake of keeping his soul, she wants to destroy it. Mother of Uma.

Circe: Very bitter about ending up on the Isle even after Helen of Troy vouched for her to stay in Auradon. So to say that she wants to crush Adam to the bone is understatement. She wants him to grovel. And if she can find that one good man while she’s at it, that would be a plus. Mother of Calix.

Mother Gothel: Though she has an intense rivalry with Grimhilde since day one about hoarding the scarce beauty products available on the Isle, she is her closest supporter now when it comes to finding magic for revenge and curing wrinkly skin. She is the mother of Ginny who she doesn’t dote on nearly as much as she did with Rapunzel.

Yzma: She wants Kuzcotopia and she will do anything and everything to get it even if it means teaming up with a bunch of “old hags” (yes pot calling kettle). Still remains overdramatic and delusional. Has a semi-dependent abusive relationship with her children Zevon and Yzla.

Morgaine Le Fey: Morgaine Le Fey, like Grimhilde, is quiet when it comes to group work but she is always observing for everyone else’s weaknesses and flaws that she will undoubtedly exploit when she becomes Queen of Camelot. Mother of Morrían.

Nasira: Sister to Jafar and mother of Jade and Mozonroth. She isn't nearly as enthusiastic about ruling Agrabah as her brother and Mozonroth are but she is just in it to get revenge on the stinking alley rat, Aladdin.

Queen La: Without her staff, her kingdom or leopard-man army, La has resorted to her Atlantean priestess magic again in hopes of getting off the Isle and reclaiming her staff. Still delusional, still lustful and hates having to depend on the rest of these people. Mother of Ranavalalona.

Jafar: Wishes to rule Agrabah and execute the royal family that “mistreated’ and “disrespected” him so much. Is in a constant battle with Mozonroth on the fact that he is the best sorcerer and will be ruler of Agrabah when they take over. Mozonroth: Finds Jafar to be a blowhard and believes that since he already took over the Black Sands and overthrew his former mentor that he should be doing far better plots. But with the Isle’s Magic Ban, he has to go with what he has. Besides that he would like to give his half-brother, Aladdin, a taste of “brotherly love” when he puts him in a headlock to crack his skull. Father to Malik and Imran Abbas.

Dr. Facilier: Like Ursula, Dr. Facilier smartly works on the fringes, setting his sights small on the Bayou before ruling the rest of Auradon. Father of Freddie and Celia.

All-Powerful Quartet: Generally speaking, if any villain was going to be taking over Auradon, it would be these 4. But due to their all-powerful status, they’d rather not exert themselves to do such menial tasks when they have other things to do.

Mirage: Evil Incarnate. So she does get to go off-Isle to maintain some balance of good and evil in the universe but generally enjoys the place. There is just so much evil and chaos everywhere and she glories in it. Mother of Illusion and Chimera.

Chernabog: Since being put on the Isle, Chernabog remains asleep on the mountain, waiting for his day to rise again.

Horned King: Without his deathless army, the Horned King remains in his cave, slowly wasting away. Mainly convenes with Hades.

Hades: God of the Underworld. So yeah, he has a full time job to do.

Mercenaries: The muscle behind the Coven, these are people who can’t adjust to domestic life, more 20th century living and miss the thrill of a fight. They deal with the dirtier deeds of murder and treason. The big boss (literal mob boss) is Sykes who rents their services out.

Sykes: Mob boss. Basically owner of the unofficially named, “Mercenary for Hire.” He never gets his own hands dirty but he has plenty of people who will do it for him. He keeps his people in line with his files of blackmail he has stocked up.

Clayton: Desperately misses the thrill of the hunt and more modern conveniences like a well-polish gun with enough ammo to shoot all these thieves to hell. Has a coworkers- with-benefits relationship with Helga. Father of Clay.

Rourke: Since being screwed over by magic, Rourke has kept a very rigid condition that he will only deal with non-magical situations. Still maintains his treasure-seeking ways and often pilfers from Jafar’s shop.

Helga Sinclair: One of the most intimidating humans on the Isle and of the mercenaries in general. She is known for her efficiency in work, stoic demeanor and same condition to her jobs as Rourke, no magic.

Muviro: Finds mercenary life to be very suitable since being exiled from his tribe. He does it less so for the money but for the glory and bloodlust. Father of Renavalalona.

Lady Caine: Self-proclaimed, “Queen of Thieves” and pirate extradonier. She is Captain Hook’s only real competition on the piracy front leaving a lot of punch-punch kiss tension between them. Many suspect that she is CJ’s bio mom since they share the same manipulativeness, “devil may care” attitude and self-centeredness. However she has no time for any child-rearing, and leaves James to do whatever neglectful work.

Gaston: Another mercenary that does it for the glory rather than the money. He needs something to do since his hunting days are over. Unfortunately he has not won a lot of admirers on the Isle for his chauvinistic attitude (Bad move considering that many of the women have actual powers). Father of Gaston Jr. Gaston the Second, Gil, Gaston (IV) the Great and Cosette.

Shan Yu: Finds himself very low being part of a mercenary gang instead of invading foreign countries. But it does provide some thrill that he can work on his own and make his homicides as bloody as he wants them to be.

Sa’Luk: Former “King of the Thieves,” Sa’Luk uses his mercenary work to get rid of his excess energy and anger towards his enemies. He joins Rourke in pilfering from Jafar’s shops and has a penchant for shiny gold trinkets.

Lt. Col. Jean Staquait: Former French officer and best to hire when you need someone to torture prisoners.

Authority Figures: Villains who are used to have some amount of power in more domestic/civilian pursuits. Pretty much like big corporations that constantly drain the other villains of cash, small trinkets, food and whatever other valuables are on the Isle.

Queen Saleen: One of the most malevolent mermaid, well only mermaid on the Isle. She spends most of her time in the Isle’s waters, avoiding the annoying two legged people. She is often in some sort of feud with Ursula.

Lady Tremaine: Guardian to Anthony Tremaine. Lady is getting on with her years and remains more or less infirmed in her house with a dozen grandchildren. She runs her house with an iron fist and is the most vocal on the Isle in support of child labor. She misses her days of richness and convenes with other elder women about how low they have fallen.

Medusa: Just like she did before the Isle, Medusa owns a pawn shop that is on a constant losing streak to Jafar’s so she has opened a small casino next to it too. She rather delusionally considers herself to be an entrepreneur and tries to work with those higher up in the social ladder to get more money herself.

Cruella De’Vil: While she spends most of her time tending to her furs and car and drinking, when she is sober she tries her hand at fashion design as in the olden days. She works closely with Lady Tremaine and Medusa.

Prince Hans: More or less the least-adjusted to the Isle with his loss of kingdom, servants and anyone gullible enough to believe his lies or manipulations. He is in close cahoots with Mozenrath and bought Drizella as his mistress. Father to Lars, his only son and heir since Stalyan refuses to ruin her figure again.

Sheriff of Nottingham: Serves as the Isle’s one man police force and a sucky job at that as he lets his henchmen squad do most of the work while he serves as trial judge and executioner with the Queen of Hearts: She works a bit on the judicial system, mainly the one who suggests the executions. She can also be found bringing most of the cases to court against henchmen who have wronged her or disobeyed her Tea Shop’s rules.

Captain Hook: The sole owner and commander of the coasts of the Isle while Ursula controls its seas. He is still as obsessive as ever about Peter Pan, his hand and crocodiles and can be found frequenting bars and other brawling areas on the Isle where his hook serves as a nasty weapon. Father of Harriet, Harry and CJ.

Gov. Ratcliff: The only one on the Isle that deals with paperwork. Sort of a treasurer of sorts. Not so much in organizing it but guarding it with his life and spends his time staring longingly at the piles wishing it were genuine gold than copper coins. Claude Frollo: Father of Claudine. Maintains his strict preaching and inflaming others against sin and towards prejudice. But he also tends to lose his inhibitions more and is a regular at the brothels of the Isle late at night. No woman has replaced his lust for Esmeralda though. Claudette seems to becoming close to that though.

Stalyan: Hans’ wife and Lady Caine’s part-time lover which drives Prince Hans crazy. She has her eyes on one thing and one thing only, money and bad boys that make her look good. She has no real ambitions of her own and depends on her father, the Baron, to give her what she wants. Mother of Lars.

Regular Citizens: Citizens that hold no sort of power and are pretty much everyone’s punching bags.

Morgana: Morgana would have been put part of the coven, but her sister, Ursula forbade it. Besides everyone knows that Ursula is far more powerful and talented than her sister. Instead Morgana is blackballed from any real position of respect and takes care of Ursula’s restaurant when she is away.

Marina Del Ray: Since losing her job to Sebastian she has become the Madam of the Isle’s seaside brothels, using the money to spiffy up her gaudy wardrobe.

The Bimbettes: Claudette (red dress) used to be Gaston’s gf but left him after he tried to “throw away” their daughter, Cosette, to try for a boy. She has since then been seen with the likes of Prince Hans, Mozenrath and Frollo. Laurette (yellow dress), the mother of Gastons 1-3 is Gaston’s favorite. Paulette (green dress), Gaston’s official wife is more or less his servant/punching bag and mother to Gil.

Drizella Tremaine: Since she couldn’t be married to Prince Hans, she has settled for being his mistress whenever he and Stalyan have a fight. A thankless position since she regularly bends over (literally and metaphorically) to his will and gets discarded like trash every time.

Lefou and Smee: Live together and own a kinda profitable gun and fishing shack. By far the best parents on the Isle due to their goofy more sympathetic natures.

Jasper and Horace: Still devoted henchmen of Cruella, they serve as secretaries, gophers and all manner of assistance to her. Fathers to Jace and Harold.

Ivy De’Vil: Mother of Diego, is the brains behind Cruella’s beauty designs since she isn’t drunk all the time. Can be considered one of the better mothers on the Isle.

Animals: No explanation needed

Scar, Zira, Shere Khan, Sabor, Benzai, Ed and Shenzi, Tublat, Hista

Couples: Captain Hook and Lady Caine (fight-hate sex rivalry. Child- CJ)

Lady Caine and Stalyan (with-benefits)

Stalyan and Prince Hans (Married. Child- Lars)

Prince Hans and Drizella (affair, possibly Dizzy?)

Mozenrath and Hans (Hans swears it was an accident. Or he was too drunk. Or it was magic)

Lady Caine and Hans (Revenge against Stalyan)

Queen Grimhilde and Prince Hans (One night stand)

Ursula and Dr. Facilier (fling, potentially Freddie and Uma)

Frollo and Claudette (with-benefits)

Gaston and Laurette (Affair/borderline married. Children- Gaston Jr. Gaston the Second, Gaston (IV) the Great)

Gaston and Paulette (Married. Child- Gil)

Lefou and Paulette (Lefou deux, drunken night of pity sex because Gaston’s treatment of them)

Smee and Lefou (Couple. Adopted Sammy)

Ivy De’Vil and Frollo (One night stand. Child-Diego)

Mozonroth and Morgaine Le Fey (Fling)

Clayton and Helga Sinclair (co-workers with benefits)

Queen La and Muviro (Married and dumped. Children- Ranavalalona. Musala, Taytu Betuvira, and unnamed, deceased)

Queen La and Clayton (Fling- Leopold, deceased)

Queen La and Gaston (Fling. Children-Amina and Shaka, deceased)

Queen La and Rourke (Fling. Child- Euware, deceased)

Queen La and Mozonroth (Fling. Child-Sarounia, deceased)

Shan Yu and Sa’Luk (Once- There’s no straight men in the trenches)

#disney descendants #disney villains #winner’s curse #bts #inspiration #my fanfic #world building

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medea10 · 4 years

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My Review of Fruits Basket: 2nd Season

It’s really happening! It’s fucking happening! The never-before animated story to one of the best shoujo series in the 21st century is finally happening!

HISTORY: Just read my long-ass review for that.

Okay, okay!

Tohru Honda stumbles upon the family secret of her classmate, Yuki Sohma when she moves in the Sohma household. Whenever a member of the Sohma family is hugged by a member of the opposite sex, they turn into an animal from the Chinese Zodiac. Because of this, the Sohma family is very secretive about this issue and only let close people in on the family secret. And even then, it rarely happens! But after a lifetime of worry and hell these members have been put through, they learned that Tohru cares about each and every one of them. She was able to bring out the sun for many of these characters who have suffered a lifetime of ridicule, pain, and isolation.

SEASON TWO: It’s the start of summer and many things around Tohru, Yuki, and Kyo are changing. For Yuki, it means taking over the student council full-time, as his seniors will be graduating in the spring. And for one Sohma family member, she’s made it her mission to lift the curse that has plagued the Sohma’s for generations. This season is filled with the cute and fluffy moments it’s known for where characters are having fun. But then you remember this is Fruits Basket and the cute and fluffy moments are shrouded in pain and misery.

And when you have an unstable character like Akito, people are going to be hurt. With the addition of several characters, we do detour from time-to-time for stories about them instead of following Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru. But many of these characters have some sort of connection to the main cast. With the introduction of Rin, we see the desperation in finding a way to rid the Sohmas of the zodiac curse. The student council members introduced this season helped Yuki come out of his shell even further. And the introduction of the final zodiac Kureno gave us possible hope for Tohru and a possible love interest with someone you probably didn’t see coming.

LICENSING: Thank you FUNimation. Thank you for once again taking the helm by licensing it and putting in the delicate care the mangaka went in to creating it! And also thank you for not being greedy dickholes and letting Crunchyroll and Hulu air it too. Anyways, the cast from the previous season have returned to do their respectable roles in both the English and Japanese cast. It’s just that due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the dub wasn’t as frequent as it was last year so I spent a good chunk just sticking to the original Japanese audio.

NEW CHARACTERS: In the final episode of season one, we were quickly introduced to several new characters who are going to make a big splash this time around. Just a reminder, there are only two zodiac members that were never introduced until this very moment. But there are several characters, who may not be part of the Sohma clan, but are a big part of the story and to several main characters.

First, I would like to introduce Kakeru Manabe and Machi Kuragi. They will now serve under Yuki as Student Council Vice President and Treasurer. They’re also half-siblings (same father, different mothers). Now by no means are these two ever going to be let-in on the Sohma family secret like Tohru, but they definitely make a big impact on Yuki’s life as Yuki seems comfortable enough to have one-on-ones with Kakeru and share common themes with Machi.

Isuzu (or Rin) is a Sohma with long, black hair. She is the horse of the zodiac curse. She doesn’t let a lot of people in her corner and usually only confides in either Hiro or her boyfriend, Hatsuharu. A lifetime of family issues and Akito being a cunt has something to do with it. Rin’s mission is to find a way to break the curse set on her and the rest of the Sohmas. But after an altercation with Akito, Rin has taken it upon herself to become a lone wo-, um horse in this mission.

Kureno is the final zodiac member to be introduced. And if you haven’t guessed, he is the rooster! Kureno is usually never seen by anyone in the Sohma family due to the fact that Akito keeps him on a short leash. But once Kureno was able to step away from Akito’s side, he finds comfort in one of Tohru’s friends.

I’m familiar with many of these voice actors they’ve added to these new characters. The only one I was surprised at came from Aki Toyosaki playing Rin. I think it’s just leftover questioning after hearing her voice these cutesy, moe characters (blame K-ON for that one). But Rin’s voice isn’t bad.

As for the dub, thank you FUNimation for bringing Aaron Dismuke back to the Fruits Basket family. If you’ve been following Fruits Basket from the very beginning, you might recall him being the original voice of Hiro Sohma. But since he was quite a young child when voicing Hiro, that voice he carried at the time wasn’t going to stay forever. Puberty happens! Aside all that needless info, I really liked his Kakeru! I’m digging Ian Sinclair as Kureno. I spent a full-on decade imagining who would voice him. And back in the day, I always thought Micah Solusod or Vic Mignogna would do him justice. But once 2019 happened…

*crosses off a name on a list*

…Yeah, Micah Solusod would do his voice justice, just him, no one else! But Ian Sinclair is awesome in nearly every thing he’s in and this is fine by me. Brina Palencia as Rin…eh, I mean she always plays characters who are monotone or serious. I’m not bashing it, but it was a predictable role for her. Here’s what you might recognize these folks from.

JAPANESE CAST: *Kakeru is played by Takuya Eguchi (known for Cheren on Pokemon BW, Takeo on My Love Story, Ryouma on Love Stage, Kujo on Gosick, Watanuki on Inu x Boku SS, and Fumiya on Domestic Girlfriend)

*Machi is played by Ai Kakuma (known for Misaka Worst on Index III, Rossweisse on High School DxD, Lala on Monster Musume, and Hato on Genshike Nidaime)

*Rin is played by Aki Toyosaki (known for Uiharu on Railgun/Index, Yui on K-ON, Suu on Shugo Chara, Satsuki on Maid-sama, Momo on To Love Ru, Chitose on Yuru Yuri, and Aoi on Beelzebub)

*Kureno is played by Yuichiro Umehara (known for Gorou on Darling in the Franxx, Mars on Black Clover, and Goblin Slayer)

ENGLISH CAST: *Kakeru is played by Aaron Dismuke (known for Al on FMA, Hiro on Fruits Basket, Young Hohenheim on FMA: Brotherhood, Van on Escaflowne [redub], Marx on Black Clover, and Takami on Deadman Wonderland)

*Machi is played by Caitlin Glass (known for Winry on FMA, Haruhi on Ouran HSHC, Maki on Love Live, Miria on Baccano, Petra on Attack on Titan, Evergreen on Fairy Tail, and Kirigiri on Danganronpa)

*Rin is played by Brina Palencia (known for Nina on FMA, Ciel on Black Butler, Yuno on Mirai Nikki, Saten on Railgun/Index, Juvia on Fairy Tail, Touka on Tokyo Ghoul, Holo on Spice & Wolf, and Chopper on One Piece)

*Kureno is played by Ian Sinclair (known for Whis on DB Super, Bard on Black Butler, Sousuke on Free!, Chuck on Panty & Stocking, Magna on Black Clover, Brook on One Piece, and Space Dandy)

SHIPPING PART II:

I still know who everyone ends up with and I’m doing my darndest to keep my mouth shut and not let out a decade-old spoiler. So let’s get some crap over with!

*Yuki x Motoko: Yeah, remember Motoko? That Yuki-obsessed chick who literally can’t breathe without the boy in her life! Well, first episode of the season, we get an episode featuring her once more. Because Motoko is one year older, she faces the harsh reality of graduating a year before Yuki and is pretty depressed over that. Not only that, but she's still super jealous that Yuki spends so much time with Tohru. But it gets a little deeper when she noticed that Yuki has changed as he’s smiling a lot more (and those smiles are not fake this time). She so wanted to be the woman in his life to make him smile like that. But Motoko’s probably just going to admire him from a distance. Oh and she still finds time to harass and/or threaten any foreign girl that hangs around Yuki’s aura.

*Ayame x Mine: I almost forgot to talk about this one. Probably because we really only got one episode to show the slightest ship hint from them. Mine has got to be the only female on earth who is able to handle Ayame’s wacky behavior 24/7. Then again, Mine has a few quirks herself. But both of them find that they can confide in each other. Here’s the thing with this one, it is unknown if Mine actually knows about the family curse up to this point. And if they are really in a relationship, Akito hasn’t given her “blessing”. I don’t know, maybe everyone in the family thought it would be best to not pry into Ayame’s private life for many valid reasons.

*Hatsuharu x Rin: So these two were actually in a (secret) relationship. Secret for obvious reasons! They knew the consequences after what Akito has done to Hatori and Kisa for being loved. In this season, we see how much these two really care for each other. Rin is so desperate in finding a way to rid Hatsuharu and everyone else of the zodiac curse that she’ll pursue it by any means necessary. And when she dumped Hatsuharu, this devastation built up pretty big until it burst in the destruction of a classroom. Hatsuharu can be very laid-back, but the break-up really devastated him. Later this season, we do get the development of this ship. Hatsuharu is one of the few people in Rin’s inner circle she was able to rely on and this blossomed into both of them confessing their love. And even sleeping with each other! Yep, Fruits Basket gave us a sex scene! However, Akito found out and Rin took the blame for everything.

…And Akito gave her blessing by shoving Rin off the second story.

Akito’s blessings really should come with an advisory.

Advisory: DON’T ASK AKITO FOR HER BLESSINGS!

*Hatori x Mayu: If you’re wondering who Mayu is, that is Tohru’s homeroom teacher. She surprisingly has some history with Shigure, Hatori, and Kana. First of all, Mayu is best friends with Kana. When Kana was dating Hatori, Mayu started to get these feelings and she ended up dating Shigure (seriously, bad choice). But she knew like the rest of us that Shigure is distant, sneaky, and you just can’t trust him. But Mayu was the only one to cry for Hatori’s sake. Mayu does hold out hope for one day going out with Hatori. Five, ten years, however long it takes!

*Kureno x Uo: The one time Kureno was allowed to escape from Akito’s grasp and he enjoys the company of Tohru’s best friend Uotani. When I first read this in the manga, I thought this was absolutely random, but cute nevertheless. And after watching their small time together, I yearned for there to be more time for Kureno and Uo to be together…but you know it’s not possible because you know the real deal. I mean, Kureno has spent the majority of his life as Akito’s personal bitch. After that one episode, Kureno has remained on the Sohma estate and Uo has wanted to see him again. So much so that she quit her part-time job where she first met Kureno because she feels like she’ll never see him again! Thing is Kureno promised to stay by Akito’s side after a really big revelation happened (stay tuned). Kureno is like the only Sohma that is able to cast his shackles aside and be with someone he loves. And Uo is the first person he’s ever truly felt that about!

No…I’m not going to mention that OTHER ship just yet. I get upset just even thinking about it.

*sniffles*

Just let the little bird fly and be free already.

*Kyo x Kagura: I probably should have covered this in the first season. But I was too focused on the sad ship and cute ship. Anyways, it’s well known that Kagura loves Kyo. REALLY LOVES HIM! But after Tohru moved in, Kagura slowly learned that Kyo has changed because of Tohru and knows that Kyo might not like Kagura that way. In the 11th episode, we get a moving storyline where Kagura goes on a date with Kyo and we learn a little more into why Kagura began to like Kyo. Kagura pitied Kyo as a child since he was the unfortunate child cursed under the cat. It made her feel better about her own sad fate of being cursed under the boar. But she still played with him until she accidentally took off Kyo’s rosary beads that revealed the demonic cat curse. By this time in the story, it’s absolutely cemented with Kyo that he’s in love with someone else and is ready to tell Kagura that he will never love her. But that doesn’t stop Kagura from telling Kyo that she loves him.

*Yuki x Machi: Unlike all the other girls in school, Machi doesn’t see Yuki as a prince. She sees clearly through his fake smile that he gives off all the time. At least that was her thought at the beginning of the series! Machi has been pretty quiet and kept to herself whenever at the student council. No one even knows what her favorite foods and colors are! Truth is, Machi doesn’t know either. But it wasn’t until a simple (and I do mean simple) gift from Yuki that Machi changed a little bit! This ship didn’t get much action until near the end of this season where the student council met up for some lunch. This was the first time we saw Machi act all tsundere around Yuki when he noticed she held onto the gift he gave her.

It was a leaf. He gave her a friggin’ leaf. And then she turned it into a bookmark.

*Tohru x Yuki: Sigh. He kissed her on the forehead and cried. Moving on! She’s not even friend-zoned. She’s MOM-zoned! Tohru is the mother that Yuki turns to because Yuki’s mother is an uncaring cunt. I know who Yuki really ends up with in the end, but if you ask me, I prefer Yuki x Kakeru.

Don’t at me, I love seeing these two together! Okay, final shipping for the category.

*Tohru x Kyo: There is no doubt that Kyo and Yuki have changed for the better since meeting Tohru. Both of them felt that there was no hope and only self-isolation in their life. In Kyo’s case, he knew early on that his life was fucked. His mother committed suicide, his father abandons him, the Sohma family shuns him, and once he reaches a certain age, he faces a lifetime of being locked in confinement. So Tohru’s kindness and persistence has definitely done wonders for the boy. Romance, wise? Let’s just say that things were almost said at the beach. And we get a realization from Kyo that Tohru is precious to him. His precious!

Oh, there is ONE certain ship I feel I should mention. However, it’s still too much of a shock for people to take in. So I will wait for the final season to let it rip.

HORRIBLE PARENTS: The original series only scraped the surface of how horrible the Sohma parents truly are. I could have done my worst parents/mothers/fathers list with at least half of these people. But the original series never showed us the ugliness when it came to Yuki’s mother, Kyo’s father, and queen of the bitches, Ren Sohma. Bitch, I will see you in season three! Thankfully, we’ve got at least one or two nice parents like Hiro and Kagura’s mothers.

Before I bring up the worst this series had to offer, can we just talk about how precious this woman is? Hiro’s mother loved rams and was very happy when Hiro was born. Hiro’s mother is just so precious for this series. She loves her son and even loves Kisa. It’s adorable! As for Kagura’s mother, even with Kagura’s aggressive personality, her mother is quite supportive of her daughter and even Rin. So let’s go down this rap-sheet of the worst ones!

Kyo’s father was never able to forgive his own son for “causing the death of his wife”. He even refuses to call Kyo by name, he only refers to Kyo as “It” or “That Creature”. Thank God we have Kazuma to replace this dick. I know Kazuma’s hands aren’t clean either, but he has treated Kyo like the son he never had. More than what I can say about this fucker!

Yuki’s mother did some unpleasant things to her son. For starters, selling Yuki to Akito for her to do whatever she wanted with him. Because the rat in the zodiac was the first to arrive, it is said that the rat is closest to the god. This gave Yuki’s mother the opportunity to have Yuki deal with Akito’s scary tantrums and scar him for years. Ayame doesn’t have anything pleasant to say about his own mother either. Last I recall, she’s quite cold to Ayame as well. She’s a cold, uncaring witch.

Ah shit, here we go again! Momiji’s father! Yes, that very same father who told Momiji that his mother’s memories of him had to be wiped away in order for her to get better. We see him once again taking away more from Momiji because his daughter Momo is catching on. In an episode, Momiji is told that he should give up playing the violin. Why the fuck for? Well, Momo’s getting music lessons from Momiji’s teacher and feels these two should not meet or even cross paths. And of course, his father isn’t too keen about Momiji coming to his office so he can watch the family he sacrificed so his mother could be saved. This boy just can’t catch a break and I still want to hug my little bunny-kins.

Rin gets panic attacks spontaneously due to her parent’s physical abuse and abandonment. Rin’s home life was okay until one question sparked years of abuse. Because Rin caught on to her parent’s fake smiles, they showed who they really were. Rin hid her abuse until she passed out from so much pain that she had to be checked into the hospital. It was there that Kazuma and a young Hatsuharu learned she was being beaten by her parents. And what do the parents do? Abandon her then and there at the hospital!

Kakeru and Machi aren’t a part of the Sohma family, but that doesn’t stop the fact that they have a messed up home life. Kakeru and Machi are half-siblings (same father, different mothers). Kakeru was an illegitimate child, but was the elder sibling (+ male), so is a prime candidate to be his father’s heir. And both of their mothers fought over who would be the heir to their father’s fortune in the future, putting endless stress on Kakeru and Machi. As a kid, Kakeru would have spontaneous panic attacks because of the stress his mother put him under. While Kakeru was able to tell off his mother and she begrudgingly accepted it, Machi’s mother still puts pressure on her to a point where Machi just does what she’s told and has infrequent bouts of panic attacks.

Oh, there’s another parent worth mentioning. But the final season will take care of that one. I know you’re expecting me to say something about Ren Sohma (Akito’s mother). Problem is, she only had one line in this whole season. I could say there was a scene where her name was mentioned at Akito and Akito went a little berserk. But that’s all I can say here.

SADDEST MOMENT OF THIS SEASON: Hands down, anything involving sweet, little Momiji is going to hurt. Granted, this doesn’t hurt as much as the backstory between him and his mother. But when we get the episode of Momiji’s sister Momo spying on Momiji playing the violin, it’s like a knife to the chest. You want these two to see each other, but it’ll trigger some unhappiness with the family. Momiji sacrificed a butt-ton just for his mother to recover. Momo knows that Momiji exists, she just doesn’t know that Momiji is her brother.

So what does Momo do?

Ask Tohru to ask Momiji to be her big brother.

Ouch. Ow, Fruits Basket! I know this scene hurt when I read it, but it nearly killed me in animation. God and Momiji’s crying. I want to hug him so much.

EVERYONE’S FATE: In this season, we hit the asphault when it’s revealed that Kyo made an ultimatum with Akito. If Kyo is able to beat Yuki in a fight before the two of them graduate high school, he will obtain his freedom and avoid a lifetime being caged (like the previous cat). As this clock ticks, Kyo knows he doesn’t have much time left before he spends the rest of his life sealed away.

And it isn’t just Kyo! All the other zodiacs are destined to live on Akito’s estate so that Akito can have her delusional “eternal banquet”. So of course, Akito feels threatened that Tohru has such a hold on almost all of the Sohmas. That’s why Rin wants to free everyone from this curse and a little later once she learns about this, Tohru wants to do the same.

THE HAT: Remember the hat that seems out of place for Tohru to have? An old, dusty hat that doesn’t match anything! It was mentioned briefly in the original series and expaneded a bit in the first season. This season gives us a little surprise in the form of the hat connecting to Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru.

The hat originally belonged to Kyo. When they were children, Yuki tried to talk to Kyo and it turned into Kyo yelling at Yuki because he’s the rat of the zodiac. And as the story goes, the rat lies to the cat about the banquet and the cat is left out. A lot of the zodiacs were always sour at Yuki growing up. Moving on! Kyo’s hat fell and Yuki never returned it to him. Yuki once wore the hat on his head and ran away from the Sohma estate. It was at that time he came across a lost, little girl (Tohru). Yuki lead Tohru back home and puts the hat on her head as he leaves from her sight. And that’s the tale of that mystery hat you might have seen prior.

Oh, there’s another connection with Kyo…yeah, you guessed it. Third season! Wait for it.

ENDING TO SEASON TWO: So this season seems to be getting 25 episodes as well. That means if the final season only has 13 episodes that would equal up to 63 episodes in total. And that would make Eric Vale’s comments in a video a year ago correct. Eric Vale is bad with spoilers, isn’t he?

Anyways, this season has given us a lot to mull over. We get new characters that have no connection to the Sohma family, but has a big impact with Yuki that he changes for the better. We finally get to see the two zodiacs that have never made their debut until now. And the backstory of Tohru with the out-of-place hat as a child is settled. Inching closer to the second season finale, we get some cute and semi-impactful stories around the school. Tohru and Kyo were in a class production of Cinderella where Kyo finds out Tohru knows what’s going to happen after graduation when she accidentally blurts out the wrong thing on stage. Then we have Yuki opening up more to his student council members (especially Kakeru) and long-time holdout Machi opening up and becoming a blushing girl like many her age.

Well folks, it’s New Years and time for another zodiac banquet. And Yuki was feeling a sense of weight being lifted from his shoulders. He was going to make a change with his life by not blaming others for his problems. So Akito gives her blessing by…

You should know by now that when I say that, it’s not going to end well.

Let’s just say, hearing Yuki say those words, Akito started to recall a time with Kureno that really struck a cord. I’ll get to it in a second. Akito struck Yuki in the face with a blunt instrument and thankfully he did not end up blind like Hatori. Akito had yet another psychotic outburst that resulted in one of the Sohmas being hurt. And you have to wonder why Akito is this evil, twisted soul that hurts her family physically and mentally. Hatori permanently loses the sight in one of his eyes and still forgives Akito. Kureno stays by Akito’s side no matter what she did to him.

In the final episode, we get quite a few revelations exposed (especially for Tohru). The play, Tohru, Hana, Uo, and Kyo were in was videotaped and Momiji gave a copy to Kureno. Let’s just say that Uo sent her own secret message of wanting to see a certain someone again. Kureno was conflicted that he wanted to reach out and talk to Tohru. When Tohru met with Kureno, she came upon some startling discoveries about the man possessed by the rooster zodiac (or bird).

When walking towards birds, they flew away from him. If you recall, many animals are drawn to the zodiacs (i.e. cats to Kyo, rats to Yuki, etc.). But with Kureno, they all just flew away! And finally, Kureno walked right up to Tohru, hugged her, and he didn’t transform.

Kureno has been curse-free for several years. Actually, since he was in high school and dude is in his 20’s currently. It’s unknown why only he was released from the curse and everybody else still transforms. Kureno kept it from everyone in the Sohma household (even though Shigure was suspicious for a while). And when the curse lifted from Kureno, he felt as though he could finally fly free (irony is that he can no longer “fly” being a zodiac bird). Problem is that Akito had a mental breakdown when she saw Kureno was free from the curse and she screamed at him to stay and never leave her side. This was actually the one time Akito didn’t hit or injure someone during one of these fits, so this felt very different.

And because of Kureno’s decision to stay by Akito’s side, he feels he can no longer see Uo. Even though, he really feels a connection towards her despite only seeing her two times. This was his first actual love! And then, Tohru learned another bombshell.

Actually, this bombshell isn’t as huge as it was years ago.

You see, up until this point in the manga it was hard to decipher what gender Akito was. In the original anime ALL of Akito’s voice actors (even in Japanese) were male. Yes, including when Akito was a child. Aaron Dismuke was everywhere 15 years ago. But then a chapter from the manga came out where Kureno clearly tells Tohru (who had no idea at the time) that Akito was female. So, for hardcore fans such as myself, this wasn’t so much of a bombshell. Although I forgot Tohru didn’t know about Akito’s true gender. New fans to the anime, it might’ve caused great impact. Anyways, the second season ends on that note.

Come on Fruits Basket, you announced another season on my birthday last year. Surely you can give me something to go on for my birthday this year.

OH HELL YEAH!

This totally…doesn’t make up for RBG dying over my birthday weekend, but it’s a start!

Aside from ONE episode, this season was totally brand-spanking new, never-before seen in anime form. And it was satisfying to watch many of these moments I thought were going to remain on the printed page forever finally in animation. This season gave us the good and the bad. We’ll have those light and funny moments that Fruits Basket was notorious for. Tohru visiting Ayame’s clothing store, Yuki’s class taking a trip, and the Cinderella storyline. But then you get all the heavy stuff like Akito coming to see Tohru at the beach house, Rin’s backstory, Kureno’s reveal, and Momiji’s sister wanting to know more about him. Every Momiji episode hurts me! Momo is too precious for this world and she just wants to know her secret onii-chan.

Now some people might think the lineup of these episodes and story is a bit sloppy with how it’s listed. Well, that’s how most of it was in the manga, just go with the flow. I mean, yeah, I’d agree with you there and maybe if this series were one continuous anime with no breaks, you’d get no complaints there. But whatever, you can’t please everyone on everything. This season gave us more character development from these characters. Kyo, while still an angry kitty from time to time has really matured a bit. He doesn’t fly off the handle to fight Yuki every day like you’d see in season one. Yuki was able to realize many aspects of his life and grow from there. Hatori was able to move on from Kana. Ayame learned to be a better big brother…though he’s still a yutz.

Shigure is NOT to be trusted!

I know some people have been saying that since season one and I feel it’s well worth repeating. And it’ll get worse next season, believe me! The only character I was disappointed in by not seeing that much of was Ritsu. But as I recall, Ritsu doesn’t get that much action in the second year arc. I’m so happy to hear the original dub (most of them anyways) with this new material that they’ve never done before for these characters. And I’m hoping to ride this train going into 2021. I love this story and I can’t wait for the final season.

Yes, watch this. Watch the first season too! Hell, watch the original series, it’s not out of print yet!

All of the episodes are available to watch on FUNimation, Crunchyroll, and Hulu. The dub is available through FUNimation only. And if you want to watch the original anime (w/o the new story), Hulu still has it available.

#anime review #Fruits Basket #fruits basket 2nd season #Tohru Honda #kyo sohma #Yuki Sohma #hiro sohma #hatori sohma #kagura sohma #kakeru manabe #machi kuragi #rin sohma #akito sohma #ayame sohma #shigure sohma #momiji sohma #kureno sohma #arisa uotani

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regencylady1810 · 5 years

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Love at First Sight

Desire and Decorum fanfiction. SinclairexMC

Description. Mr and Mrs Sinclaire are about to become parents. Something they've looked forward to since their engagement. (In this Percival has been adopted by them) However Mr Sinclaire is extremely worried of what will happen.

@princess-geek thank you for your support and hope you enjoy!

The screams echoed from the birthing chamber. The room traditionally used for the births of the Edgewater children. But that wasn't the only echo. Another echo was also that Mr Ernest Sinclaire pacing back and forth. Rubbing his sweaty forehead with his shaking hand.

"Mr Sinclaire. You must sit. You must relax. You must have walked miles simply pacing in here. Sit down and have a drink. Have a sandwich and play a card game." Mr Chambers said. "Distract yourself. All will be fine. Countess Wilhelmina will be healthy. As will your son or daughter. And you must take care of yourself for them." Mr Chambers said calmly and concerned at the same time. For the first time Mr Sinclaire stopped his pacing.

"I do truly appreciate your kind offer Mr Chambers. But I must decline. I do not wish to distract myself. I must be ready." Mr Sinclaire said as he resumed his pacing. Mr Chambers sighed and sat down next to Percival resuming his lesson on his favourite card game.

"Papa?" Percival asked. Mr Sinclaire again stopped at the quiet voice.

"Will Mama be well?" he asked.

Mr Sinclaire paused as he thought his answer. He kept telling himself she would. But he knew he could not promise it. Not after all that has happened in his past.

"She Will. She will." he said as he stroked Percival's hair.

"Will I have a brother or sister? Percival asked.

"We have to wait until the baby is born Percival." Mr Sinclaire replied.

"I don't mind which. I want to be a brave big brother who will always look after my brother or sister and will make sure no one ever hurts them!" Percival said running around the room. Mr Sinclaire allowed himself to smile.

"Yes. You'll be the best big brother that anyone could ever hope for." Mr Sinclaire smiled as he crouched to the ground and held out his arms for Percival to embrace him.

"I promise you Papa. I'll take care of my brother or sister. I won't let anything bad happen to them. And I will teach them to play games and to play the piano!" Percival said.

Mr Sinclaire simply smiled as he continued to hug him. He stood up.

"Mr Chambers. Could you take Percival to the gardens?" Mr Sinclaire asked. "Percival how about you show Mr Chambers all the animals in the gardens. Introduce them to him? And show him what you've learnt about the plants?"

Mr Chambers smiled. "Oh what a wonderful idea! I do love animals and would love to be introduced to them." he said as he held out his hand for Percival to take.

Percival immediatly began to talk about the animals. "There are swans Mr Chambers. I named them Samuel and Sienna. Papa says they are mating. And swans mate for life. Mama said that she and papa are like swans. She said they'll always love each other. Oh and Mr Chambers I saw a fox and I named him Freddie. And there was a Robin. I named him Robin. And the family of ducks. They are called Joseph, Matilda, Ellie and Bertie!"

Mr Sinclaire smiled at the childish and innocent enthusiasm of Percival. But before they left the drawing room Percival shouted from the door.

"Papa!"

"Shush. It's not gentlemanlike to shout indoors." Mr Chambers said calmly.

"Sorry. Papa may I name my brother or sister?"

Mr Sinclaire smiled. "How about a middle name?"

"Yay. Let's away Mr Chambers. I must introduce you to the animals!" Percival said grabbing Mr Chambers hand again as they exited the room. Mr Sinclaire watched from the window as Percival ran around the garden showing Mr Chambers the animals and plants. Mr Chambers clearly getting exhausted of chasing after the active child.

Mr Sinclaire continued to pace. Flinching at his beloved's screams and cursing the fact he could do nothing to reduce that pain. The door opened. The midwife emerged. She rose her hand before he even uttered a word.

"Won't be long now." she said matter of factly.

"Please is she fine? Is she going to survive? Please tell me."

"Mr Sinclaire. I have been delivering babies since before you were born. I have delivered more babies than you've had hot dinners. I assisted my mother as she worked as a midwife as she assisted my grandmother when she worked as a midwife." Mrs Nelson said. Mr Sinclaire was trying hard not to hide his annoyance at her diversion from his question.

"Mr Sinclaire. I understand you are anxious. All fathers are. Especially ones with a past such as yours. The Countess has not shown any of the warning signs that I have seen in mothers that pass on."

Mr Sinclaire beamed. But her expression was still strict. "Having said that. I cannot promise anything until the whole process has been over for several hours. However I am not for the time being concerned. She is young. She is healthy and she is living a happy life with a wonderful husband. I must return. It will not be long."

Mr Sinclaire sat down for a few seconds before returning. Still not able to relax. Mumbling to himself that he hated how long childbirth was. She had been in there for hours. Her pains began in the middle of the night and the sun was now beginning to set.

More pacing and more worrying. He asked the nanny to set Percival to bed. Despite his pleas to stay up for the birth of his sibling.

The screams continued and doors remained closed.

But finally the sound came. The sound of crying. The sound he was waiting for.

The doors opened. He ran towards them. The Dowager Countess stepping out. Smiling a shocked smile.

"It is not over yet my dear." she said in shock.

"What do you mean my lady?" Mr Sinclaire. "I can hear the crying. Wherefore must I not be at my wife's side?"

"You cannot. She is having another child."

Mr Sinclaire repeated the words. "Another child?"

"It shouldn't be long. The second is never far behind the first Mrs Nelson said. I will return when the second is born." She said turning to return.

"My lady! Is it a son or a daughter?"

"The first is a son Mr Sinclaire. I have a great grandson." she smiled as she closed the door. Mr Sinclaire tried to catch a glance but he didn't. Wilhelmina was still screaming. A few more minutes past. The doors opened again. Mrs Nelson being the one to come out.

"You may-" she said but was cut off by Mr Sinclaire rushing past her to his wife. Not waiting for her to say it. He was overwhelmed at the sight. Two small babies in his beloved Wilhelmina's arms.

"Wilhelmina. I am so proud of you." he said kissing her gently and moving her from her face.

"We have one of each Ernest! We have a son and a daughter!" she said tiredly.

"I am so happy. They are perfection. This is love at first sight. I love them so much. I love you. I am thanking God for the fact you are still here."

"You could not get rid of me that easily. Thank you Ernest for giving them to me."

"Thank you also. This is love at first sight. I love them so much."

"Hold them Ernest." she said. The Dowager Countess helped place the twins into their fathers arms. The instant love he felt upon gazing at them only elevated with holding them and their snuggling into his chest.

"Hello my beautiful children. I see you have your mother's looks. I love you so much. I am looking forward to my life with you in it. I cannot wait to watch you grow up. I cannot wait to teach you things and take you on holidays to the seaside. You are my treasures." he whispered as he walked closer to the window. Glancing at Wilhelmina who was lovingly looking at him. "Mama, Papa, here they are. Your grandson and granddaughter. How I wish you could hold them But I know you are watching. I hope you are proud. And Mrs Mills. Earl Vincent. I hope you too are proud. I hope you think I am worthy of your daughter. I love her so much. And she has given me the greatest gift anyone could give."

"Of course they think that Ernest." Wilhelmina whispered. "All our parents are proud. And watching over us. And Ernest. They resemble you more. They have blue eyes and golden hair."

"Well. They look like us both. But I hope they have your strength and your wit and intelligence."

"I am sure they will. I hope they have your kind heart. And your intelligence too. We are indeed both intelligent in our own different ways."

"What names? Percival asked if he could name them. But I said he could chose the middle name."

"That's sweet." Mr Sinclaire sat on the bed as she took their son into her arms while he continued to hold their daughter.

"For him. I like the name Peter. But also Vincent. And for her. Blossom. I have seen the first emergance of the blossom just yesterday. And Lydia too. And we must allow for Percival' s choice."

"They may have more than one middle name my dear." the Dowager countess smiled. Still trying to get to grips with the idea she had lived long enough to meet her great grandchildren. Percival ran through the doors the nanny chasing after him.

"I am awfully sorry. He did not sleep and I tried to keep him to his chambers but he ran out." the nanny said out of breath.

"It is no concern. Percival. Meet your brother and sister."

"I have both! You had two babies in your tummy?" Percival said gobsmacked.

"I did suspect. My dear I mean no offence but you were rather too big for it to have just been one in there." the Dowager Countess said with a smile.

"Yes Percival. Come up and say hello." Ernest said. Percival jumped on the bed and began kissing his siblings heads and saying hello over and over again and introducing himself.

"I think my brothers middle name should be.. William! And my sister's middle name should be Penelope!"

"Wonderful choices Percival. I wonder if there is a position that requires naming things. It seems to be a perfect job for you!" Dowager Countess said. "But your mama and papa have to agree."

"I love them Percival. Ernest what are your thoughts? Wilhelmina smiled.

"Peter William Vincent Sinclaire and Blossom Penelope Lydia Sinclaire. Wonderful. Well done Percival. What do you think you two?" Ernest said to his children. Smiles appeared on their faces. "I take that as a yes. This is the joint happiest day of my life."

"Joint?" She asked

"I could not possibly have a single one since you came into my life. They have all happened since you came into my life." Ernest smiled. "I love you so much."

"And I love you too."

A few minutes past and the family were given privacy to spend each other in a quiet environment. Wilhelmina fed her children and Ernest hummed a sweet lullaby. The one his mother would sing. The one he sadly could no longer remember the words too. But could still remember the melody.

"Perhaps we should write our own words." Wilhelmina said.

"You always do come up with the wonderful ideas my love." he whispered as the twins fell asleep.

"We have a family. And it is much better than I could have imagined." she smiled. Her grandmother walked in apologizing out of worry of waking the babies.

"Lady Grandmother. Could you inform the Marlcasters that their godchildren have been born and perhaps acknowledge how long it takes in for the fact that is plural to sink in. I have a feeling it will not be instant." Wilhelmina smiled. Her grandmother smiled and and kissed her great grandchildren and her granddaughters heads before fulfilling Wilhelmina' s request.

Ernest, Wilhelmina, Percival, Peter and Blossom all stayed in a comfortable silence. Excited for the rest of their lives as a happy family.

#desire and decorum #desireanddecorum #ernest sinclaire #ernest x mc #ernest sinclaire x mc #mr sinclaire x mc #mr sinclaire #pb choices desire and decorum #pb choices fanfic #pb choices

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melodyofgraves · 4 years

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Desire and Decorum Masterlist

Chanevi

Playing favourites

Sweet memories

Lazy morning

Keeping company

Stolen moments

Bad Boy (modern Chanevi)

In your arms

Chanevi Fluff ABCs

The Real Wedding

Unexpected Company

Birdwatching

In Hurry

The Hawfinch Incident

Treasure

Smile

Teamwork

The Reading List

Dancing Through Life

Behind the closed doors

Red

At the beginning

Road Trip part 1 (modern AU)

Other stuff

The Cutest Ally (Sinclaire and MC’s pug friendship)

A little secret (Chambers and Sinclaire friendship)

Hide and Seek (Chambers and Sinclaire friendship)

What Are Friends For (Annabelle x OC) - part 1

Before the Storm (MC and Marlcaster) - sibling fic

The Five Rules series (Felicity Holloway x OC)

#im trying to update/rearrange my masterlist #masterlist

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we-are-only-halfway-home93 · 5 years

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Beautiful Trauma 1- We Burned So Bright- [Billy Hargrove x OC]

Summary: The worst way to miss someone is for them to be right beside you and you know you can’t have them.

Characters: Billy Hargrove x OC, Steve Harrington x Nancy Wheeler, Jonathan Byers x Nancy Wheeler, Max Mayfield, Will Byers, Lucas Sinclair, Dustin Henderson, Mike Wheeler, Eleven, Joyce Byers, Jim Hopper

Warnings: Child abuse, underage sex, underage drinking, implied cheating, step-sibling incest, secret relationship, violence, language

Word Count: 2162

Author’s Note: I’ve had this idea rolling around in my head for a while and after the ending of season 3 I felt like I had to get it written. I wanted Billy to have someone who understood him and I felt like the best way to represent that was to have a character who knew him before Hawkins. I gave Max and older sister, Valerie, who loves Billy in spite of who he is and what he does.

“I believe I am in hell therefore I am.”

~Arthur Rimbaud

Valerie jerked suddenly when the Camaro came to an abrupt halt. She lifted her head and glanced at Billy but he didn’t look at her. He got out of the car and slammed the door so hard that the glass in the frame rattled. She sighed and looked out the window up at the house in front of her.

It was October and her mother had just moved her and her sister to Bumfuck Egypt in the middle of Nowheresville America following her wedding to Valerie’s new step-dad, Neil Hargrove. Neil had an infuriating son, Billy, who had gone to school with Valerie in California. They had been close before the wedding. To say the marriage changed things was a bit of an understatement.

The marriage had been a bit of a surprise. One minute Billy and Valerie are enjoying their time together, their respective parents ignorant of their after-school activities when Susan asked her and Max to dress nice because they were having dinner guests.

Valerie was surprised when her boyfriend and his dad showed up with a bouquet of flowers and a bottle of wine. Billy’s face betrayed very little but Valerie had gotten good at reading him in their time together. He was just as surprised to see her as she was to see him.

Susan had ushered them in and they sat down for a lovely, if somewhat tense, dinner. During dessert, Susan had stopped eating and reached over to hold Neil’s hand. Valerie felt her heart rate pick up at that and could hear her blood pumping in her ears. She felt the hairs on her arms stand on end. She tried to keep the apprehension off her face but she didn’t think she did a good job.

Susan announced that she and Neil had been seeing each other for several months and were ready to announce their relationship to their children. Max was the only one who expressed herself verbally. She told her mother she was happy for her when her face expressed pretty much the opposite.

The rest of the night had been tense and Neil and Billy left soon after. Several hours later, Billy was knocking on her bedroom door, ranting about his father and his sudden desire to date again. Billy’s mother had been gone for nearly seven years and in all that time Neil Hargrove hadn’t dated a single woman. Not one woman until now and it was Valerie’s mom. The universe must’ve been playing a dirty trick if this was their lot.

Valerie had shushed him and held his face in her hands. He had a new black eye and hers started to burn. Billy brushed her off was tender hands and settled them on her bed. He held her until she was asleep and he was gone when she woke up that morning.

Six months after they announced their relationship, they announced their engagement. Valerie cried every night after that. Billy would come to see her sometimes but he never stayed long. They spent most of their time together at school but even then it was few and far between. It was like the engagement created a rift in their relationship.

Susan and Neil made quick work of a wedding. Four months after they announced their engagement they were wed in front of their closest friends and family. Less than one hundred people. The reception was held in the basement of Neil’s country club with even fewer people.

Life moved pretty fast after that. Neil and Billy moved into their house and within two months they announced their move nearly halfway across the country. Some podunk town in Indiana.

Valerie had never been angrier at her mom.

They sold their house and backed their things in record time. The new school year had been in session for almost two months and Valerie just knew that she would be treated like some rare oddity, some hidden treasure newly discovered to be gawked at and observed. She was from California, after all, and, if she had to guess, she bet that no one in this tiny town had ever left.

She heaved the last of her boxes into her room. Neil and Susan had at least had the decency to purchase a four-bedroom house so that she and Max wouldn’t be forced to share. That had been a nightmare for the few months they did it in California.

She turned to the door and watched Billy stalk by with his own box, a set of headphones draped over his neck blaring Metallica. He ignored her.

She took a deep breath and swung herself outside her room, heading towards the end of the hall to Max’s. She leaned her shoulder against the door frame and watched her sister toss various comic books and cassettes on the dresser. All her boxes labeled ‘clothes’ were stacked in the far corner and all her personal possessions were currently being rifled through.

Max looked up and met Valerie’s eyes. Neither of them said anything, content in the shared displeasure that arose from their situation.

Valerie shoved off the door frame and ventured back to her room. She glanced in Billy’s room as she did and ripped her eyes away quickly.

Life was already painful enough.

~*~

Valerie hated Billy’s music.

She didn’t mind it when they were dating but now it was next to insufferable. It might have had something to do with the fact that he listened to it at near-deafening levels but she wasn’t one hundred percent sure.

It was Monday morning at hers and Billy’s first official day at Hawkins High School. Max was attending Hawkins Middle School just down the street and brought her skateboard along to ride down the block.

The engine rumbled as Billy pulled into the high school parking lot. It cut off with a stutter when Billy killed the engine. Valerie turned to him but he was already out of the car before she could speak. She huffed and glared at his back.

She turned then to Max and gave her a forced smile. Max rolled her eyes and pushed at the back of her seat. Valerie stayed put and turned in her seat.

“Do you have everything you need?” Max rolled her eyes again and nodded. “I’ll get whatever books I need today. Mom got it all set up with the counselor.” Max’s tone was exasperated.

Valerie nodded and pushed out of the car. She pulled her seat forward and Max leaped out, dropped her skateboard and pushing away down the broken pavement. Valerie watched her go and slammed the car door shut.

She shuffled around the front of the car and eyed the girls oogling Billy’s ass.

Admittedly he had a nice ass but she felt a certain possessiveness. He hadn’t been hers for a while what with their parents' marriage but they hadn’t exactly broken up either. Mutually, they came to an understanding that being together while living under the same roof was not a good idea, especially with Neil’s temperament. They agreed that it was best for them to ignore their feelings for each other.

To call what she felt for Billy ‘feelings’ was a gross understatement. What she and Billy had was beyond basic teenage emotions. They understood each other. They complimented each other. He brought out the best in her and she in him. For life to come and rudely rip it away from them was cruelty in its truest form.

There were lots of tears shed during their agreement. She had cried for days and Billy had started multiple fights at school.

Neither one of them had been happy since before the wedding. Hell, really since before Susan and Neil announced they were dating.

Valerie pulled up alongside Billy and tried not to be hurt by his refusal to acknowledge her. She knew that this was hard on him but it was hard on her, too. He wasn’t making it easier.

They stopped in the office first thing and got their schedules, locker assignments and combinations. As soon as they were done in the office Billy walked in the opposite direction as her even though their lockers were in the same hallway. She watched him go and felt tears rush to her eyes. She turned with sharp precision down the hall and headed towards her locker.

She twisted the dial with shaking hands and stuffed her back inside, pulling out only a notebook and a pen. She jumped when a load shriek echoed four lockers down from her.

A petite brunette had a tall boy pressed against the lockers. His dark hair was styled in neat swirls across his forehead and along the sides. He was clean-shaven with broad shoulders and long legs. He held himself with an ease and a confidence that was foreign to most high school students.

Billy had it and it was largely what attracted her to him. His confidence with his surroundings and the general high school drama. Both acted as if nothing could touch them. Everything just slid right off their backs like oil in water.

She knew that with Billy it was largely an act, a front he put on to protect himself. She wondered if this boy was the same.

The girl glanced over and saw her looking. Valerie blushed and looked away, into the depths of her locker. She closed her eyes when she felt a presence come up beside her.

“Hi! I’m Nancy. You’re new, right?” Valerie turned her flushed face to Nancy and nodded, taking her offered hand. “Yeah, I’m Valerie.” They shook hands and Nancy turned slightly to gesture to the tall boy she was swapping spit with earlier. “This is my boyfriend Steve.” Valerie shook his hand as well and continued to admire him.

He had an angular face and the shadows dipped in all the right placed. He had a long sloping nose that accented the sharp lines of his jaw and cheekbones. His forehead was strong and framed his eyes in a way that made him look older. He had deep-set brown eyes that looked like they’d seen a lot in their short time. Valerie wondered if he and Billy were so different.

Physically so, yes, quite a bit. Billy’s hair was light were Steve’s was dark. Billy had hard eyes and Steve’s were soft. Billy was shorter but broader, compacted with muscle. Steve was taller and leaner.

She could appreciate Steve’s beauty but he wasn’t Billy.

She sighed and shut her locker. “So, maybe you can help me find something to do in this town.” Nancy smiled and glanced up at Steve. “Actually, I might have something that’ll interest you.” She watched Nancy pull a bright orange sheet of paper from her binder.

~*~

The car ride home was tense. Valerie could count on one hand the number of times Billy had spoken to her since the move

Once. One time and it was to tell her to “Get in the fucking car or you can walk home!” She felt a rage so potent simmer beneath her skin that she was sure he could feel it.

Max hadn’t said anything when she got in the car and Billy peeled out of the parking lot, speeding down the road to their house.

Valerie glared at the side of his head until he looked over at her. “What?” She snorted and shook her head. He slammed his hand on the steering wheel. “Goddamnit! What? Why are you staring at me?”

She scoffed. “I’m just trying to figure out why you’re being such an asshole.” He glared over at her and intentionally jerked the car to the side. She gasped and had to grab the Jesus handle to keep herself from hitting her head. Max cussed.

Valerie shoved his arm and he gave a malicious laugh. “Baby, I’ve always been an asshole.”

Her nostrils flared and she reared back.

It was true. He hadn’t been particularly nice in California but it was familiar anger. Something that was seen often at their old school in their old town.

Here, in this place, his rage was unfamiliar. It was new. There were new reasons for it.

She shook her head. “Not like this. We used to be,” He gave her a sharp look when she started that sentence. Valerie glanced briefly to Max in the back seat but she was focusing too much on trying to stay still from his dangerous driving habits to pay attention to their conversation. Valerie amended her statement anyway.

“We were friends. At least then I could tell why you were angry. Now you’re just cruel.”

Billy smirked at her and gave her a mocking kissy-face before speeding up and flying over the hills. Valerie shook her head and turned away from him. If he saw her tears he would laugh.

#billy hargrove #billy hargrove x OC #nancy wheeler x jonathan byers #nancy wheeler x steve harrington #stranger things #eleven #mike wheeler #lucas sinclair #max mayfield #dustin henderson #will byers #step sibling relationship #jim hopper #joyce byers #beautiful trauma

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the-writerly-night-owl · 5 years

Text

The Significance of a Garden

Desire and Decorum/Ernest x MC

Summary: Ernest Sinclaire realizes that his happiest moments happened in a garden.

Authors Note: For day 5 of the choices March Challenge. Tomorrow is TE and I think you’ll be happy with that. Then TRR on the eighth. Enjoy!

Tag list: @flyawayboo @cosigottahavefaith @am-i-invisible777@countrymusicandncis-blog @fluffy-cat-whisper @melodyofgraves @symonde @paisleylovergirl @mariamulroney @queen-among-writers

Ernest Sinclaire had a long day as he entered Ledford Park. He wanted to find Clara and the children and sit down for a hot meal. Perhaps Clara would join him in his study tonight, he thought, with a smile. They could catch up after all.

“Where’s Mrs. Sinclaire?” he asked his butler. The man told him that she and the children were outside around the back playing. Ernest furrowed his brow hoping to hear that Vincent was at least learning his sums.

Ernest headed toward the back of the house the garden in full view. The scent of difference fragrances and the sight of the flowers just made him smile. He could remember helping his grandmother sometimes outside. The memory of meeting Clara for the first time came back to him.

“Tolerable,” he said his gaze lingering a little longer than necessary. She had mentioned that she was the person he nearly ran over in Grover. The feeling of intrigue washed over him as they started to walk across the gardens at Edgewater. The way she flirted was surprising to say the least, he had no idea what to say most of the time. He was right to admit that he didn’t know what to make of her. Ernest thought that she would have been a woman trying to climb the social ladder. Or interested in him for his money. Instead she seemed very genuine as she reached out wanting to hold his hand. He was almost willing to let her but stopped himself before they could take it too far.

His eyes snapped up and out of the thought. Looking back they had come a long way from ever calling her tolerable. He treasured that moment where they had locked eyes for the first time. While it wasn’t the greatest meeting it was the start of their love story.

Ernest heard shrieks of laughter not too far away and picked up the pace. It had been a tiring day and he just wanted to hug and kiss his family. He could remember kissing for the first time like it was yesterday.

Finally, Ernest caught up to his wife and children. The sun was shining high in the sky and children played in the back yard of Ledford Park. Four-year-old Vincent Sinclaire chased after his mother as Clara pretended to be slow on purpose. Ernie running in the opposite direction not sure what to do really. Clara put a hand on her swelling stomach as she stopped taking in a breath. She was due to give birth next month and she ran like it was no big deal.

“Alright children,” said Clara going to scoop up her youngest son. “It’s almost time for your father to come back and we want you to be presentable.”

She took Vincent’s hand and turned only to find him standing. Clara looked breath taking in the midafternoon light. Her bonnet loose around her neck, dark hair flowing in the breeze, and the white dress hanging off her body perfectly. She had a toddler in her arms, a child hugging her legs, and a swelling figure. It was the perfect sight, everything he could ever want right in front of him. Clara’s eyes sparkled as her free hand reached out for his.

“You’re back too early,” she said teasingly pouting slightly. “Supper will be ready soon.”

“Good evening father,” said Vincent happily. “We had so much fun today, mother played with us. I learned how to…”

“Well why don’t you tell me at dinner,” said Ernest, his eyes flicking to Clara who looked pleased with herself.

“You need your nap,” said Clara reminding him and Vincent nodded.

It was quiet as Ernest picked him up. It was hard to believe that he was this old already. He could remember Clara telling him that she was with child for the first time. Right here in this very garden next to the flower beds.

The sun was starting to set as Ernest Sinclaire held his wife close to him. Her head resting on his shoulder holding hands as the sun was starting to set. The garden in full bloom around them but he could only stare at her.

“Ernest,” she said softly taking his hands and intertwined them with her own. “I have something very important to tell you, very very important. I’m not sure if I should tell you right now though.”

“Clara,” he said a little alarmed. “What’s wrong?”

She smiled mysteriously taking one of his hands and used hers to touch her. His palm moving from her arm to the area just above her stomach. “I saw the doctor this afternoon while you were out and… I’m having a child Ernest. We’re going to be parents.”

His body froze unable to believe it. His palm pressed against the fabric covering her swelling baby bump. To have a baby so soon? His heart swelled with pride. A baby! Concern grew in him remembering how Roselyn died but reminded himself that Clara was stronger much stronger. The logical part of him wanted a son but a daughter made his heart sing.

Clara’s eyes grew wide as Ernest lifted her up and twirled her around. Lips met lips unable to help it excitement coursed through him unable to think of anything else. She was going to have his baby and that was the best part of his life.

“Ernest are you okay?” asked Clara rubbing his shoulder softly. “You just randomly stopped.”

Confused he realized that his feet did in fact stop moving. Vincent was pulling at his jacket trying to keep him alert. Ernest shook his head looking around the garden area. He could think of simpler times with his mother and grandmother come back to him. Marie and Lydia Sinclaire’s faces popped up in his mind that Ernest could just smile to himself.

“Yes, I’m fine,” he said putting Vincent down. “Although there is something I want to show you.”

“Okay,” he said brightly.

Ernest lead the small family to the bench not that much of a walk away. Taking in the scent he sat down and motioned for Vincent to listen.

“You know it was right here where your mother told me she was having you,” said Ernest seriously. “I remember it being one of the happiest days of my life. I knew that you were going to be born and I couldn’t wait.”

“Really?” asked Vincent almost shyly, his brown eyes wide.

“Really and I stopped because I remembered that moment and how happy I was. Vincent, I want you to remember that I love you no matter what. Even if you don’t think I do, I will and the same for all your siblings, understand.”

“Understood,” he said a bit mesmerized as he looked around at the flower beds. “Can we get food now?”

“Of course,” he said picking him up and kissed his head.

Finally heading inside Ledford together. Clara stood close to him as his hand brushed against her stomach softly. He could feel the baby’s kick at the touch. Garden’s were important to him, it was where everything fell into place for him. Ernest could only hope that more was to follow. His hand slipped into Clara’s perfectly with Vincent running ahead. There really was something significant about a garden.

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