I think between the most common misinterpretations of Pride and Prejudice that irritates me the most i can say the one at the top is when they say that the story is about a woman fixing a complicated guy and this becomes references in terrible romances. I've heard this so many times and as a person who grew up with the 2005 film and reads the book at least once a year I need to get it off my chest.

Starting off, Darcy is not a "complicated man". He's not a bad guy who takes out his traumas on other people, he's not a guy who's waiting to be saved by a woman who "silences his demons" and even less a guy who mistreats the women he's with. Darcy is actually a rich man with rude manners and some class prejudices. The point is that Darcy is a man with moral convictions and feelings that make him a good man despite these aspects. His rude manners are a reflection of his class prejudice, but they do not dictate how he treats people for whom he has feelings of affection. The way he would be able to move the world for those he cares about and seek the closest thing to what is considered justice in the temporal context of the story reinforces the goodness of his character. This is even more evident in the comparison that is made between him and Wickeham, where one is unpleasant but good and the other is pleasant but a cheat.

And what Elizabeth does is far from correcting him. Darcy doesn't realize how his class prejudice affects the way he communicates with people and the view he has of himself because everyone always justifies his arrogance as fair because of his wealth. So he believes that Elizabeth admires him when, in reality, she despises him for these characteristics. And what she does is just say it to his face, something no one has done before, and that's it. This is Elizabeth's contribution to any development of Darcy, to say how arrogant and prejudiced he is. It is Darcy himself who reflects on her words and realizes that she is right and that he is not being as fair as he thought he was. He realizes his own prejudice and realizes his own arrogance and of his own free will decides to change because he wants to be a better and more pleasant person.

It could be said that it was fate that put him and Elizabeth in each other's path and made her realize, now with more pleasant manners without prejudices obscuring her actions, what a good man Darcy is and become enchanted by him. But if they hadn't met again, Darcy would still take on this challenge of re-educating himself and being a better person and Elizabeth would still continue to think of him as an arrogant man in whom she feels no interest.

The other issue is that Elizabeth is not perfect. She has her own prejudices that are overcome throughout the book thanks to her coexistence with Darcy and not because of Darcy. The fact that she lives with both Darcy and Wickeham at the same time is what makes her understand how unfair she was in her first impression and how foolish she was in being guided by that to define the characters of both. Kindness and amability are not synonymous with integrity and she learns this the hard way. It's a lesson that if she hadn't learned through her time with Darcy, she would have learned it in some other way because life has things like that.

Finally, they were essential in each other's lives because of the teachings they left to reflect on their actions in relation to the world and not because they depend on each other. Both are confronted with their prejudices and realize that they were not fair and try to change for better people regardless of whether they are together or not. Their meeting after realizing their errors in judgment is purely accidental. They don't change for each other, they change for themselves, because they realize how proud they were and want to be more fair, and after that they end up being placed back in each other's lives by chance. That's what makes them such an interesting couple and makes us wish we had what they have.

Reducing the story of Darcy and Elizabeth to an asshole man who is fixed up by a woman is a mistake so grotesque that it is noticeable that it could only have been said by a person who has never seen the story or seen it with their ass.

So. I hate shipping discourse and I try to keep it off my blog nowadays. I also don't consider myself a part of the fandom. But, I find discussions about this series particularly engaging and interesting, and Elucien do have me in a bit of a chokehold these days so I feel the need to get this off my chest and put this out into the world.

A common question I see is "why do people ship Elucien? They don't even like each other". And to that, I say this:

What about it? This is why shipping discourse in this fandom (and in general) is so ridiculous, because why is there confusion as to why people ship Elain and Lucien together? SJM literally wrote them as a potential pairing, that's why she made them mates. Pairing = shipping. It's not rocket science.

Two characters not liking each other is never gonna be a deterrent for them becoming canon or for people liking them as a ship. That's why enemies to lovers is such a popular trope. However way you define enemies (on opposite sides of a war like Zuko and Katara, or thinking ill of one another based on misunderstandings and assumptions like Darcy and Elizabeth), when it's done well, the story of two characters changing their opinion about each other, getting to know each other on a deeper level, and growing to love each other after their initial discomfort/hatred/loathing/indifference is a compelling story. It's about the journey, the development, and overcoming all the hurdles and bumps that are in their way.

Another reason for why the "they dislike each other" argument is so weak is because you literally have two other canon couples in this same series who had very rough starts. No matter how you feel about these two pairings, it's blatantly clear that Rhys and Cassian did put Feyre and Nesta in uncomfortable situations and have hurt them (physically/emotionally). But clearly, that was not a deterrent for them getting together in the end. So why the heck are Lucien and Elain different? Why is "Elain is so uncomfortable around Lucien" a continuous argument? It's so hypocritical given the fact that Lucien is the only guy that isn't forcing himself upon his mate.

Also, I'm sorry but some people (me...I'm some people) are tired of the "dark, battle-born, winged-warrior brother" and "previously human, traumatized archeron sister" pairing. Elain and Lucien are both associated with nature, they're both social and like interacting with people, they both experienced a deep love previously, they both abhor violence, they are both overlooked by others yet have the ability to see what others can't. They are a compatible pairing to me because they share many characteristics that are harmonious and complementary. They are the anti-thesis of Night Court aesthetics and thought, and if they ever have a book together then I can only hope it's the best one in the series.

And yes, the "Elain needs sunshine" and "Lucien is the heir to the Day Court" connection is important, my goodness. That's what symbolism is!

Sometimes it's that simple.

Okay, that's enough shipping discourse from me.

It's kind of fascinating to me that towards the end of P&P, Elizabeth has become protective of Darcy and either a) actively tries to insulate him from Situations or b) wishes that she could and gets stressed that she can't.

Darcy deeply loves her and is very ready to do whatever he can to secure her happiness, but narratively, I think the emphasis at the end is very much more on Elizabeth's protectiveness towards him.

It's like:

When Bingley and Darcy first come back to Hertfordshire, Darcy is very quiet and Elizabeth can barely bring herself to say anything—until Mrs Bennet insults Darcy. Then Elizabeth speaks up.

Mrs Bennet enlists Elizabeth to separate Darcy from Bingley with another insult to Darcy. Elizabeth finds this both convenient and enraging.

That day, Elizabeth decides to privately tell Mrs Bennet about her engagement to Darcy, specifically so that Darcy will be spared Mrs Bennet's first unfiltered response.

Elizabeth fiercely defends Darcy's character and love for her, as well as hers for him, to Mr Bennet. She not only says she loves Darcy but that it upsets her to hear Mr Bennet's criticisms of him.

Elizabeth is both relieved by Mrs Bennet's ecstatic reception of the engagement and a bit disappointed by how completely shallow she's being about it, and 100% sure she made the right call in keeping Darcy away.

Elizabeth defends Darcy against Darcy himself, repeatedly.

There's a period where Elizabeth seems to unwind and laugh, but this passes, especially after Charlotte and Mr Collins show up. Darcy manages to stay calm around Mr Collins (I think this is framed as a significant and admirable achievement for him), but Elizabeth does not like him being in a situation where he has to deal with Mr Collins in the first place.

Elizabeth tries to shield Darcy from being noticed by Mrs Phillips and Mrs Bennet, who do seem to make him pretty excruciatingly uncomfortable.

Ultimately, Elizabeth ends up trying to keep Darcy to herself or to shepherd him around to relatives he can handle more easily, and is so stressed at this point that she just wants to get married and escape to Pemberley.

After their marriage, things are actually great at Pemberley and in their married life, despite the occasional complication.

Lydia writes a congratulatory letter to Elizabeth, asking for Darcy to get Wickham a promotion unless Elizabeth would rather not bring it up with him. Elizabeth really does not want Darcy to have to deal with this and handles it by privately setting aside a Lydia fund out of her personal expenses. (IIRC, it's not clear if Darcy even knows about this.)

Elizabeth also is the driving force behind Darcy's reconciliation with Lady Catherine.

This could read as an unsettling, unbalanced dynamic and a very odd ending point for the arc of a woman like Elizabeth, but in the context of the overall novel, it doesn't feel that way. Or maybe I'd see it more that way if I interpreted Darcy (and for that matter, Elizabeth) + their arcs differently? But as it is, I do think that by this point in the story they are genuinely doing the best they can, independently and for each other, and they've both come a long way. They shine in different contexts and support each other as much as they can in the circumstances that do arise.

It seems very them, in terms of their temperament and abilities, that Elizabeth would put all this effort into shielding Darcy, while at the same time, Darcy completely cuts off Lady Catherine for insulting Elizabeth and only ever speaks to her again because Elizabeth wants him to.

Northanger Abbey Readthrough Ch 31

Whew, I have reached the end. That was a lot of work. We'll see if I do another one of these...

but as nothing, after all, could be more natural than Catherine’s being beloved

Awwwww...

Also, the Morlands 🤝Jane Bennet, believing that their beloved person will obviously be beloved by others:

Miss Bennet’s astonishment was soon lessened by the strong sisterly partiality which made any admiration of Elizabeth appear perfectly natural -Pride & Prejudice, Ch 40 (This is when Elizabeth tells Jane about Darcy's first proposal)

having never heard evil of him, it was not their way to suppose any evil could be told.

This becomes a really big deal in Sense & Sensibility, Pride & Prejudice, and Persuasion, Elinor is constantly asking for more information about Willoughby, Meryton's not knowing about Wickham's character causes havoc, and Mr. Elliot is another case of hidden information revealing his character. Fortunately for Catherine, Henry is perfect.

Now, Henry may have been cut off from his father, but he's by no means poor, Of a very considerable fortune, his son was, by marriage settlements, eventually secure; his present income was an income of independence and comfort, and under every pecuniary view, it was a match beyond the claims of their daughter. It sounds like Woodston is a very good living, probably similar to Edmund's £800/year, so Henry is fully independent without any help from his father. It sounds like he will also inherit a portion of his mother's dowry when his father dies. Catherine bagged a catch! (without knowing it)

Henry returned to what was now his only home, to watch over his young plantations, and extend his improvements for her sake, to whose share in them he looked anxiously forward; and Catherine remained at Fullerton to cry. Whether the torments of absence were softened by a clandestine correspondence, let us not inquire. Mr. and Mrs. Morland never did—they had been too kind to exact any promise; and whenever Catherine received a letter, as, at that time, happened pretty often, they always looked another way.

Oh it's so cute. I can't even. But also, I WANT TO READ THOSE LETTERS!!!! Cruel Authoress, Jane Austen, giving me that tease. I want to read Henry Tilney sending little Gothic stories to Catherine with subtle sexual undertones...

Anyway

Then the narrator is like, "It's obviously the end of the novel, so you know this will resolve soon." Ah yes, so we do. Excellent observation.

Eleanor marries Lord Laundry List and paves the way for Catherine to get her man. This explanation of it is just so good:

I have only to add—aware that the rules of composition forbid the introduction of a character not connected with my fable—that this was the very gentleman whose negligent servant left behind him that collection of washing-bills, resulting from a long visit at Northanger, by which my heroine was involved in one of her most alarming adventures.

To begin perfect happiness at the respective ages of twenty-six and eighteen is to do pretty well

The narrator really comes back in this last chapter and teases us with this immoral "moral" message:

and professing myself moreover convinced that the General’s unjust interference, so far from being really injurious to their felicity, was perhaps rather conducive to it, by improving their knowledge of each other, and adding strength to their attachment, I leave it to be settled, by whomsoever it may concern, whether the tendency of this work be altogether to recommend parental tyranny, or reward filial disobedience.

Lady Catherine plays this same role in Pride & Prejudice, as an aside. But yes, is the moral of this story that parental tyrants are good for love, or that being a rebellious son is rewarded? Either way, not the sort of moral a good, upstanding citizen should want.

What more can I say? I love this novel. It's so relatable, it's so human, the characters are so well drawn even though they are parodies! I want to be Catherine's best friend but I also want to steal her husband. General Tilney needs to fall down a staircase (a recently renovated one).

It's very interesting to notice how Disney's Beauty and the Beast draws inspiration not just from other versions of the fairy tale or from Disney's earlier fairy tale features, but from other love stories in classic Hollywood films and literature that were created for adults.

@starberry-cupcake's post on the ways that Disney's BatB changes the tale's core narrative parallel from the Cupid and Psyche myth to Pride and Prejudice is genius. It's slightly astounding that no one on the creative team has ever cited Pride and Prejudice as an influence: but maybe Austen's novel has become enough of a modern myth and influenced so many other love stories and comedies of manners that Disney's creative team really did write the parallels unconsciously. Of course the similarities can be overstated; Belle and the Beast are less mutually flawed than Elizabeth and Darcy, for one thing, and the Beast changes more while Belle changes less than their Austen counterparts do. (I might argue that Belle and the Beast more closely resemble pop culture's simplified ideas of Elizabeth and Darcy than they do Austen's actual characters.) But in terms of plot structure, the parallels are spot-on.

Even if the Austen parallels were accidental, though, the movie's creative team has freely admitted to other inspirations. Screenwriter Linda Woolverton has stated that there's a lot of Katharine Hepburn in Belle. That her characterization in general was strongly influenced by Hepburn's portrayal of Jo in the 1933 film version of Little Women (albeit with her tomboyishness toned down), and that her snappy arguments with the Beast in the dinner-invitation and wound-tending scenes were inspired by Hepburn and Spencer Tracy's similar bickering in their romantic comedies. The animators have also admitted to modeling Belle's appearance after such iconic Hollywood beauties as Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, and Natalie Wood. Photos of those three ladies were kept in the studio for the artists to literally draw inspiration from.

Then there are the other obvious parallels with other movies, which I seem to remember the trivia page of IMDB.com pointing out. For example, there are some obvious parallels with The Wizard of Oz. Belle's iconic blue and white peasant dress looks similar to Dorothy's iconic blue and white gingham dress, and like Dorothy, she's a dreamer trapped in a mundane workaday world, who longs to escape and have new experiences. The Beast's brief "stupid" hairdo during his makeover scene, with its curls and ribbons, also looks like the Cowardly Lion's mane after his makeover, while Lumiere, Cogsworth, and Mrs. Potts can respectively be viewed as counterparts to the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion themselves. A likable, helpful trio of sidekicks, with Lumiere as the unofficial leader who has all the bright ideas (no pun intended), Mrs. Potts as the kindest and gentlest one despite being made of a hard, cold substance, and Cogsworth as the comically nervous one who nonetheless proves to be braver than he seems. Meanwhile, a shout-out to another classic movie occurs when Belle stands on the grassy hill and sings "I want adventure in the great wide somewhere": an obvious homage to Julie Andrews' Maria at the beginning of The Sound of Music. Appropriately, we could argue that the plot structure of Disney's BatB mirrors The Sound of Music just as much as it does Pride and Prejudice. A free-spirited heroine doesn't fit in with her community; then she unexpectedly goes to live in a new household run by an unhappy, aloof master; at first she clashes with him, but soon she brings warmth and joy back into his life and softens his heart; their growing love for each other culminates in a romantic dance scene, after which she briefly leaves him and runs back to her old home (although for different reasons); but ultimately she goes back to him and they end up together. Fortunately, there are no Nazis in Beauty and the Beast to darken Belle and the Prince's newlywed life.

IMDB.com also notes some parallels with the 1958 Leslie Caron movie Gigi. The young male lead played by Louis Jourdan in that film is named Gaston. Like Disney's Gaston he's a playboy with a cocky attitude, and Gigi refuses to be his mistress just like Belle refuses to be her Gaston's wife. The characters go in completely different directions, though, since Gigi's Gaston redeems himself and gets the girl in the end, while the Beauty and the Beast Gaston... not so much. Lumiere's characterization is also clearly based on Maurice Chevalier, who plays a major role (and sings his most famous song, "Thank Heaven for Little Girls") in Gigi too.

Then there's the Beast's "death" in Belle's arms, which seems to draw strong inspiration from two romantic death scenes in earlier Hollywood classics. First of all, the camera angles are nearly identical to those of Tony's death in Maria's arms in the original 1961 version of West Side Story, as I remember IMDB.com pointing out. The fact Belle's appearance was already partly modeled after Natalie Wood probably helped to bring that scene to the animators' minds. But I also think they drew inspiration from another famous Hollywood death scene: the death of Greta Garbo's Marguerite in 1936's Camille. I've never seen anyone else notice the similarity, probably because the characters' genders are reversed, but I've noticed it ever since I first saw the Camille scene in the 1982 version of Annie. The dialogue has clear parallels, with the dying character resigned to their fate because death will set them free from their life as an outcast (the Beast's "Maybe it's better this way" echoes Marguerite's "Perhaps it's better if I live in your heart, where the world can't see me"), while their lover urges them "Don't think such things"/"Don't talk like that" and tries to convince them that everything will be fine. Then the moment of death is conveyed by Marguerite and the Beast's eyes, as they roll upward and then drift closed, and the reactions of Belle and Robert Taylor's Armand are very similar, as they both pause in horror, then plead "No, no... don't leave me..." and bury their faces in their beloved's chest in anguish.

In all these inspirations and homages, I think it shows that with Beauty and the Beast, Disney set out to create not just another children's movie, but a movie in the spirit of a Golden Age Hollywood classic that adults could enjoy too. In particular, they set out to create a genuinely romantic picture, which adult couples could enjoy as a "date movie" just as much as their kids would enjoy it as a fairy tale. And as we all know, they succeeded with flying colors!

@ariel-seagull-wings, @themousefromfantasyland, @the-blue-fairie, @thealmightyemprex, @littlewomenpodcast, @adarkrainbow

Falling in love like in a Jane Austen's novel - part 2

Pairing: Benny Miller x f!reader

Warnings: 16+; no use of (Y/N); mention of drinking; one cuss word

Words: 1485

Reading time: 5m 56s

Summary: Benny and you just met. See how each one of you reacted to the other.

Part 1

Notes: Hi I'm back! Later than what I would like, but back! What was going to be a 2 piece fic has become more. This chapter is more of a transition from what was chapter 1 and what will be chapter 3. Should I start tagging whoever is interested in my Benny fics? Let me know if you're interested. English isn't my first language, so I apologize for any possible mistake. Feel free to correct me. Thank you!!!

Benny watched you dance with your friends with a smile on his face. He didn't believe in love at first sight, but you sure had captured his attention.

A hand fell on his shoulder. Will's hand. "Are you alright? You've been standing here for a while." Has he? Benny's eyes stayed on you while he acknowledged his brother's question. "More than ever. You like those historical movies, don't you? Have you ever seen a Jane Austen adaptation?" Will had a skeptical look on his face. Why was his brother asking him about Regency Era movies in the middle of a bar during a bachelor's party? "Yeah…Why?" Benny finally met his brother's eyes. "Can you tell me what happens with a Mr. Darcy and a dancing scene?" Will wanted to laugh, but the look on Benny's face was almost desperate like he needed to know at that exact moment what happened in the movie. "It's the scene where the main characters meet each other. At first, things don't go too well, Mr. Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth, says some unpleasant things, bla bla bla, and they gradually fall in love with each other. Why?" Benny took the beer from his brother's hand and took a sip. "Just something I heard somebody talk about." Benjamin kept his eyes fixated on you giving William an idea of who that someone was. "If you want my sincere opinion, Mr. Darcy should have danced with Lizzy. He shouldn't have been so proud, even though that's the whole plot of the book. Who knows how the story would have gone from there?" The upbeat song changed into a slower one. You didn't leave the dance floor, opting to sway with your friends. Benny took this as his opportunity. "Good thing I have no pride." With this, Benjamin left a laughing Will behind.

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The change of music felt good for your fast-beating heart. It sure was thanking the DJ for the break.

Slow dancing aloud your thoughts to flow freely. You were glad the night had turned out better than foreseen. The drunk comments of your friends made you laugh and question if the night could become even better. The universe decided it could.

A tipsy Mateo made his way to you. "Don't look now, your gentleman is making his way to us!" With that Mateo dissipated the dance floor leaving you shocked, only half brain working and not properly. Was the gentleman who you were thinking it was? Was he making his way to you?

"Hey! Would you mind giving me the honor of this dance?" You turned to the man behind you and gosh, he was even more beautiful up close. His blond hair looked soft to the touch and you couldn't stop yourself from thinking about what it would be like to run your fingers through it. Just a look into his eyes and you could already tell they held a lot of emotions. They were like a pit of everything he has ever seen, good or bad. The small smile in the corner of his mouth showed his laidback nature, but not in a cocky or arrogant way. You had thought he was handsome before, now up close you realized how gorgeous he was.

He started stroking the back of his neck making you realize he must have gone without a response for too long. "Sorry, of course, you can." Taking the hand he offered and resting the other on his shoulder, you were surprised by the gentleness of his movements and touch. After a while, he spoke. "I'm Benny." You offered your name, quickly looking into his eyes when he repeated it. How could such a small gesture affect you so much?

You stayed looking into the other's orbs, not saying anything. Nonetheless, you were both thinking the same thing, "I've got to know you better." You just didn't realize you had said it out loud. "I'm glad you feel the same. Not to be creepy or anything, but I noticed you walking in and thought the same thing." Benny had a soft smile on his face. Slow dancing with you made him feel like he was on cloud nine. He wished this moment would never end. "You did?" Your voice was filled with pure shock. "How could I not?" Benjamin's implication made a shy smile form on your face. Face that you hid in his chest. At that moment he thought he was going to explode or that his heart would rip through his chest with the intensity it was beating. You were so cute! Looking up, face still nested on his soft cotton shirt, you bit your lip. "I noticed you too. I was wishing you would come to talk to me."

The song changed again making Benny internally growl out of displeasure. He didn't want to let you go just yet. Until you suggested getting a drink.

************************************************************************

Sunshine made its way through your bedroom's curtains, waking you up. Memories of last night flooded your brain while you stretched, making you smile.

You had spent the majority of the night talking to Benny at the bar, and when your friends started going home, neither of you wanted the night to end. Benny had suggested grabbing something to eat at a nearby diner. Not wanting to let go just yet of his presence, you agreed.

He had driven you there and insisted on paying for everything. Part of you was still acknowledging the fact that you had gotten in a stranger's car. You couldn't quite decipher what it was about Benny that made you feel so calm and safe. Maybe his aura? Okay, that Benny had told you about being in the Special Ops, but it still wasn't a guarantee that he would be a nice guy. You knew a lot of stories about guys in the military that weren't that good.

He had been delightful! When Benny noticed you were starting to doze off, he took you home and walked you to your apartment door. "I just want to make sure you get in alright. I won't even come in." Had been his answer to your skeptical look. Only a few hours of knowing each other and you already knew Benjamin Miller was a man of his word.

Looking in the mirror after washing your face made you sigh, smile, and think "Could he be thinking of me?"

************************************************************************

Benny hadn't gotten a lot of sleep last night, but it had been for a good reason. A reason that made him smile and forget all about the constant yawning.

A little after 7 am, Benny had called William to know if they still could get their coffee. He needed it to push it through the day without falling asleep and also because of the brotherly advice he was so desperate for.

They met at this local coffee shop that Will declared was the best in town. Benny loved to mess with his brother about him being a coffee snob.

"Didn't get a lot of sleep last night?" Will had a mischievous look that made something inside of Benny get a little bit angry. He somehow felt like he had to defend your honor. "Not like that. We just grabbed a bite, talked and then I dropped her off. Didn't even pass the door." The barista called their names, interrupting Benny's speech. After sitting down at a corner table, Benny proceeded. "She's different. The way she talks and holds herself. She wasn't just flirting, she genuinely wanted to know about me and what my interests are. You should have seen how her eyes lighted up when she talked about something she's passionate about, or when we found a topic of common interest. Remember what I was telling you yesterday?" William nodded. "With her, I felt like I had all the time in the world. It was like watching a show that is so pleasing, you don't want it to ever end! I think I even felt butterflies." Benny mumbled the last part, more talking to himself than to Will.

Will smiled a bit. He had never seen his brother in such a state. Benny was learning new things about himself, and from what William heard, you were good for him. "Will, is it weird that even though we have only met a couple of hours ago, I feel like I've known her all my life, and somehow still feel that there is a lot about her that I want to know?" Will looked into his brother's eyes, giving him a reassuring smile. "It's normal. It's a sign to ask her on a date and see how things turn out. Even if she isn't the one, you'll have learned something new. Why don't you send her a text?" At that moment Benny's eyes shot wide. "Shit!! I forgot to ask for her number!"

A topic less discussed here concerns those behind the scenes where the royal children are concerned. Arthur Tudor was not an exception: his early years were spent under the care of respectful women of different degrees under the scale of aristocracy before he was handled to a full male court.

Yet, one question remains: who were these people King Henry and Queen Elizabeth trusted not only to care for their son and precious heir but also to educate the next king of England?

Here’s what we do about them.

“By the time he was christened, the first phase of Arthur’s care was established. The nursery was to have a lady governor, supported by four female servants known as chamberers or rockers.

A chamberlain would be appointed to oversee all the other officials and to swear and hold them to their oaths of loyalty and service. The more menial and physical tasks were undertaken by yeomen and grooms.

The relatively small number of offices meant that many of the male servants would have undertaken multiple roles. They would have been found in he chamber and in the hall, especially at meal times. Other men were appointed to specific posts. A sewer organised meals, precedence and seating and oversaw the serving and tasting of food. A panter was put in charge of bread and food supplies. Of greatest importance was the safeguarding of Arthur's wet nurse.

What she ate and drank was key to the health and growth of the baby prince. Her diet and portions were carefully monitored. She would even be watched by a physician as she ate, to ensure that no sudden changes came over her or the boy in her care.

The manager of the Yorkist nursery was Elizabeth Darcy. She had overseen the early upbringing of Queen Elizabeth and all of her royal siblings at Eltham. Darcy was reappointed in 1486 to head a team of nurses and daily attendants that went on to look after the first years of life of all of Henry VII and Elizabeths children.

Darcy brought in her own specialist team - a group of women very familiar to Queen Elizabeth. Arthur's cradle rockers were Agnes Burler, Evelyn Hobbes and Alice Bywymble. The prince’s wet nurse was Elizabeth Gibbs.

(…) The prince's wet nurse, Katherine Gibbs, was paid off in April 1490 with a generous annuity of £20 to come directly from the first monies received at the start of the exchequer year - a notable recognition of how Arthur had been safeguarded in his first thirty months of life.

By the time the arrangement of this payment had made its way through the convoluted exchequer system it is likely that Arthur's household had taken on a different appearance. This was the period of transition from nursery to education and service.

In March 1488, Thomas Poyntz, esquire for the king's body, was rewarded with 40 marks per year partly for services to the prince. Poyntz later received a gift of French books of hours from Arthur, suggesting that the relationships forged in that early stage of his life were lasting and would have continued had Arthur become king. These services were likely to have been related to the tightening of security around Arthur in response to the Household Act passed by Parliament before 18 December the previous year. Poyntz's specific role is not recorded but he is the first of the king's more senior officers to be personally attached to the prince.

Henry VII’s concern for his son’s health is apparent in another grant, made with the king’s ‘cordial affection’ a few months after Poyntz received his reward. Arthur’s doctor was Stephen Bereworth and the medical attention he had already given to Arthur was enough to earn him £40 each year for the rest of his life. By May 1488, when this grant was made, Arthur would have been a toddler, fully weaned and becoming exposed to the childhood ailments, bumps and bruises that as youngsters experience.

(…) In December I488 Robert Knollys, one of the king's henchmen, was instructed to join Arthur's household with a payment of 100s. He could not be admitted to the name roll of servants because the king had placed his sign manual at the head and foot of the roll and left no space for additions. The check-roll might have been small enough to fit on a single sheet at this stage of Arthur's life (it has not survived), but it would soon expand in parallel to the prince's role.

Once Arthur was considered to have grown and matured sufficiently to cope with the endurance test of the ceremonies of his knighthood and creation as Prince of Wales at the end of November 1489, his household also developed a more formal structure in preparation for this changing role. The age of six or seven seems to have been one at which many royal children moved out of the nursery and into a junior version of the royal household." In Prince Arthur's case, this seems to have happened when he was abour three years old.

(…) John Whytyng was described as Arthur's sewer in grants of annuities in November 1489 and January 1490. The naming of Whytyng in a specific appointment indicates that an element of structure and more formal ritual was entering his household.

An important first stage in his development was how the prince began to learn his social role. Mastering the first formal steps of the art of household ritual, etiquette and the hierarchy of social status would lead to a smoother transition into the refined world of court politics and diplomacy.

In January 1490 there is first mention of Richard Howell as marshal of the prince's household. Howell's role was to ensure Arthur's security and to monitor the discipline of the other men and women who served him at Farnham. The greater prominence given to household policing might also indicate that the king's heir was developing a less closeted role within his small community. Once his wet nurse and rockers were no longer required physically, the services provided for Arthur had to begin to mirror that of any other senior noble. Within a few weeks of Howell's appointment, King Henry's servant Thomas Fisher was awarded an annuity of 40 marks on 20 April 1490 as yeoman of the cellar to the prince. His appearance points to a greater sophistication in the way that the prince's meals were prepared and served.

He was soon followed by John Almor, appointed to Arthur's household on 29 October 1490. Almor was a veteran of the king's hall, one of the main military resources of the royal household. He became Arthur's first sergeant-at-arms; a post that would have incorporated the role of a personal bodyguard with broader responsibility for the security of the household such as the vetting of visitors and servants, guarding doors and access, and setting the watch.”

Cunningham, S. “Prince Arthur: The Tudor King Who Never Was.”

P&P Chapters 25 and 26

(Chapters 23 and 24)

Okay, so, last couple of chapters I had many thoughts and opinions. What will happen today, I wonder?

Score check:

Lizzy dipped down to +15.

Mr. Darcy, perpetually absent right now, is still at -10

~~~

Chapter 25

The Netherfield ladies would have had difficulty in believing that a man who lived by trade, and within view of his own warehouses, could have been so well-bred and agreeable.

Snobbity snob snob snob!

Mrs. Gardiner, to whom the chief of this news had been given before, in the course of Jane and Elizabeth’s correspondence with her, made her sister a slight answer, and, in compassion to her nieces, turned the conversation.

Good choice. Thank you for moving it along. I don't need it rehashed any more than you do.

Mrs. Gardiner: "I am sorry for her, because, with her disposition, she may not get over it immediately. It had better have happened to you, Lizzy; you would have laughed yourself out of it sooner."

A second person is telling Lizzy they're okay with her getting jilted? Because she can handle it, apparently? What is going on here? I'm feeling a little indignant on her behalf, but it doesn't even phase her. She might feel differently if she'd ever been jilted.

When the engagement was for home, some of the officers always made part of it—of which officers Mr. Wickham was sure to be one; and on these occasions, Mrs. Gardiner, rendered suspicious by Elizabeth’s warm commendation, narrowly observed them both. Without supposing them, from what she saw, to be very seriously in love, their preference of each other was plain enough to make her a little uneasy; and she resolved to speak to Elizabeth on the subject before she left Hertfordshire, and represent to her the imprudence of encouraging such an attachment.

Oh thank goodness. Auntie Gardiner is a welcome addition to the cast all around.

It's really strange to me how little Uncle Gardiner is mentioned? I know he's THERE, but he isn't THERE. I feel like the text is kind of dismissive of men in general.

~~~

Chapter 26

Lizzy: “I beg your pardon, I will try again. At present I am not in love with Mr. Wickham; no, I certainly am not. But he is, beyond all comparison, the most agreeable man I ever saw—and if he becomes really attached to me—I believe it will be better that he should not. I see the imprudence of it. [...] All that I can promise you, therefore, is not to be in a hurry. I will not be in a hurry to believe myself his first object. When I am in company with him, I will not be wishing. In short, I will do my best.”

This girl talked rings around herself throughout this whole huge paragraph. Did she even stop to take a breath? And I cut out several lines. Child is getting lost in her own head and imaginings. She's very fanciful, isn't she?

Her aunt assured her that she was, and Elizabeth having thanked her for the kindness of her hints, they parted; a wonderful instance of advice being given on such a point, without being resented.

I feel like it's a wonderful instance of advice being given without clear examples and explanation of what the actual problem is. Thanks so much for that.

“My father and Maria are coming to me in March,” added Charlotte, “and I hope you will consent to be of the party. Indeed, Eliza, you will be as welcome as either of them.”

Charlotte is still good people. So sorry she had to pick Mr. Collins. I get it, but it sucks.

Hmm, lots of Jane pining and doing her best to hold still and wait for her boy to show up.

Hmm, Jane seeing through Caroline at last, giving up on Bingley, got it.

Hmm, Wicky moving on to flirt with some other girl, Elizabeth being generally fine with it. She really only was platonically interested in him. That was pretty clear from the start.

Wow Lizzy really overthinks everything. 🤣 I say this as an overthinker.

Lizzy: "They are young in the ways of the world, and not yet open to the mortifying conviction that handsome young men must have something to live on as well as the plain.”

You're too passionate to be this cynical. You like saying things that are witty and fancy, but the reality is you're gonna get knocked on your ass so hard when you finally are in love.

(Chapters 27 and 28)

Title: The Late Mrs. Willoughby (Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney #2) Author: Claudia Gray Genre/s: historical, mystery, Jane Austen pastiche Content/Trigger Warning/s: murder Summary (from author's website): The suspenseful sequel to The Murder of Mr. Wickham, which sees Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney reunited, and with another mystery to solve: the dreadful poisoning of the scoundrel Willoughby’s new wife. Catherine and Henry Tilney of Northanger Abbey are not entirely pleased to be sending their eligible young daughter Juliet out into the world again: the last house party she attended, at the home of the Knightleys, involved a murder—which Juliet helped solve. Particularly concerning is that she intends to visit her new friend Marianne Brandon, who’s returned home to Devonshire shrouded in fresh scandal—made more potent by the news that her former suitor, the rakish Mr. Willoughby, intends to take up residence at his local estate with his new bride. Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam Darcy of Pemberley are thrilled that their eldest son, Jonathan—who, like his father, has not always been the most socially adept—has been invited to stay with his former schoolmate, John Willoughby. Jonathan himself is decidedly less taken with the notion of having to spend extended time under the roof of his old bully, but that all changes when he finds himself reunited with his fellow amateur sleuth, the radiant Miss Tilney. And when shortly thereafter, Willoughby’s new wife—whom he married for her fortune—dies horribly at the party meant to welcome her to town. With rumors flying and Marianne—known to be both unstable and previously jilted by the dead woman’s newly made widower—under increased suspicion, Jonathan and Juliet must team up once more to uncover the murderer. But as they collect clues and close in on suspects, eerie incidents suggest that the killer may strike again, and that the pair are in far graver danger than they or their families could imagine. Buy Here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-late-mrs-willoughby-claudia-gray/18822240 Spoiler-Free Review: And yet another delight of a novel in this series! The mystery is a little less structured now because it's happening within the context of a small town instead of just one manor house, but it just opens up more opportunities for twists, and this book DEFINITELY takes advantage of that. The way rumors were used, in particular, was interesting: they opened up alternate ways of viewing the suspects, but also breathed life into the town, showed its dynamics: who was loyal to whom, and who was connected to whom. It also made the true culprit a bit less obvious, which is always fun. While the mystery at the heart of the plot is pretty fun, I was a lot more focused on the character dynamics this go-round. Marianne and Brandon were a delight to read about, especially after what happened in the previous novel, and it was just as lovely to see Elinor (Ferrars now, given that she's married), and to see the rest of the Dashwood clan. It was nice to read how Elinor and Marianne get on after their respective marriages, as well as to see how well Elinor and Edward have settled into married life. And of course, there's Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney. As a second murder brings them together again, it becomes immensely clear to the reader that these two have Feelings for each other - but keep on being unable to express it. This can get a bit frustrating in a good way, especially because Jonathan and Juliet keep on making entirely mistaken assumptions about what the other is thinking or feeling. It's true they can read each other very well, often able to discern each other's intent from just a glance, but they are most definitely NOT mind-readers. Please note that all of this is a GOOD thing: I like me a slow-burn romance, and the kind of misunderstandings these two have about each other are pretty much par for the course of a Regency novel - and, given that Jonathan is neurodivergent, make sense.

Given how this book ended, of course, I'm fairly sure that there's going to be at least one more in the series, because the protagonists need to get together - and this time, hopefully, in matrimony.

Rating: five glasses of port

hi  i've  been  gone  for  a  bit  and  will  get  to  replies  SOONEST  i  promise  ..  but  in  the  meantime  ...  here  are  relationship  dynamics  i  want  based  on  books  i’ve  recently  read  bc  i'm  insatiable  and  i  want  all  the  plots  in  the  world  thank  you  !  🤭  all  of  these  are  m/f  romances  in  the  book  but  as  always  i  am  keen  to  play  out  whatever  relationship  you  would  like  !  

simon  &  eileen  from  beautiful  world,  where  are  you  —  i’m  a  little  older  than  you  and  we’ve  been  friends  since  we  were  kids.  i  grew  up  near  your  house  and  was  closer  to  you  than  your  older  sibling  whom  everyone  adored,  i  looked  after  you  when  no  one  else  did,  and  i  think  i’ve  always  been  a  little  bit  in  love  with  you  but  you  never  felt  the  same  way.  i  date  other  people  but  it  never  lasts,  partially  because  i’m  incapable  of  letting  people  in,  but  i  think  it’s  partly  also  because  in  my  mind’s  eye  they’ll  never  be  you.  sometimes  we  fool  around  on  the  phone,  sometimes  in  person,  but  you’ve  always  made  it  clear  that  you  only  want  to  be  friends  (  maybe  out  of  fear  that  if  something  were  to  happen  it  would  destroy  our  friendship  )  but  all  i  deeply  want  in  life  is  to  make  you  happy,  can  you  let  me  do  that  ?

alice  &  felix  from  beautiful  world,  where  are  you  —  my  job  has  made  me  fairly  famous  and  because  of  the  constant  scrutiny  and  criticism  (  and  even  the  praise  )  i  faced  i  had  a  bit  of  a  breakdown  and  am  now  taking  some  time  off  in  a  small  town  away  from  the  city.  you’ve  lived  here  all  your  life  and  have  a  fairly  modest  job,  while  i’ve  never  really  “worked”  a  day  of  my  life.  we  go  on  a  blind  date  and  it’s  awful,  our  conversations  strained,  disjointed.  but  you  have  no  idea  who  i  am  and  that,  to  me,  is  beyond  intriguing.  then  someone  from  work  tells  me  i  have  to  take  a  trip  out  of  the  country  to  somewhere  scenic  and  picturesque,  and  against  all  logic  i  ask  you  to  come.  you  say  yes.

mr  darcy  &  elizabeth  from  pride  and  prejudice  —  my  circle  and  your  circle  couldn’t  be  further  apart,  but  in  a  twist  of  events  my  best  friend  falls  in  love  with  your  older  sister.  i  meet  you  and  and  your  family  and  find  myself  disdained  at  the  sight  of  you  all,  and  you  overhear  me  making  a  snide  remark  to  my  best  friend  about  it.  you  develop  a  hate  for  me  at  first  sight,  but  on  my  end  i  begin  to  fall  ardently  in  love  with  you.  soon  someone  i  hate  (  an  ex,  an  old  friend  )  spreads  rumors  about  me  that  you  catch  wind  of  and  you  hate  me  even  more,  even  if  that  isn’t  true,  but  somehow  your  contempt  towards  me  spurs  me  to  become  a  better  person.

cleo  &  frank  from  cleopatra  and  frankenstein  —  we  meet  in  an  elevator  at  a  mutual  friend’s  party.  you’re  older  than  me,  but  witty,  and  you  shower  me  with  compliments  and  i  can’t  help  but  be  enamored.  we  fall  in  love  quickly  and  get  married  within  months,  much  to  the  chagrin  of  everyone  around  us.  but  the  masks  we’ve  put  up  in  front  of  everyone  else  —  and  even  with  each  other  —  have  to  come  down  eventually,  and  we  learn  things  about  each  other  that  make  us  wonder  if  this  was  the  right  move.

pride and prejudice variations

i read several version of the tale this year, some very good, it was interesting to see the austenfic being published

“The murder of mr wickham”

 By claudia gray.

Most of austen’s characters,and a couple OCs, in a house where there has been a murder. 

Claudia Gray does a fuckin amazing job here. It’s hard to juggle so much, but she makes it work. 

And if you though mr darcy was autism personified, wait till you see his son. 

“Unequal Affections” by Lara S. Ormiston

Is a p&p what if

What if Elizabeth Bennet had accepted Darcy’s first proposal? Under what conditions could that have happened?

And without the defining moment of her giving him a much-needed lesson, can he become the man he needs to be to earn her heart? 

In this story, the moods weren’t running high, they don’t insult each other, so instead, darcy talks about what benefits the marriage might bring, and lizzie actually listens. And considers. She still tells him she doesn’t like him, but he is willing to work with that. Willing to bet he can change her mind. 

And the whole story changes then. 

I did enjoy it, but tbh, it ran a bit long. By like 85% i was like get it over already. 

Also i read this as uci worlds was happening so i kept imagining wout van aert as darcy. 

Only 4 stars for being too long. 

“Pride and premeditation” features lizzie and darcy as sleuths.

Ok, lawyers or wanna be ones anyway, who, due to lack of any real investigative force, must take it upon themselves to clear bingley’s name and find out who out there is the real dark force causing trouble. 

I felt this had a really good handle on the characters, and it was very charming and entertaining.  

Absolutely made ma wanna read more. A good mystery, an interesting way of changing everything but making it make sense.

My Experience with Jane Austen Part 2: Reading the Books

In part one I laid out which books I read, which ones were my favorites and least favorites, and the adaptations I've seen. Now I'd like to talk about my reading experience.

Disclaimer: I’m not an expert, just a casual reader sharing some observations, feel free to correct me if I get some details wrong. Out of the books I’ve read I’m most familiar with Pride and Prejudice.

Let's face it. Reading Austen can be challenging and I understand why some people dislike Austen.

It's easy to perceive her novels as "boring" because on a surface level, not much happens. The characters are well-off people (in the upper half of society) who spend their time at home or traveling between social calls and it's easy to dismiss their conflicts as "first world issues." Settings are often indoors, reflecting how "confined and unvarying" the lives of the rich (especially women) were. The plots often move forward through dialogue or conversations rather than big dramatic events. The focus on marriage can also make the stories feel like antiquated relics of the past and can be hard to relate to.

The writing style is also different. There isn't much dialogue at times because Austen slips in lots of very subtle commentary or prefers to describe a character's external appearance or characteristics. Often big events like proposals are described briefly after they happen rather than during, which can make the story feel rather "dry." The books are narrated in third person and sometimes there is unreliable narration (Pride and Prejudice) where we get characters' multiple points of view, but all narrated in the third person as to give each one credibility and prove that it's hard to trust others. Austen's writing style means that readers have to fill in the blanks with their imagination. For example, she doesn't give exact physical descriptions of her characters, often relying on general characteristics like "tall," "handsome," or "amiable." In my previous reviews of Pride and Prejudice adaptations, I explored that intentional ambiguity as a big reason why the character of Mr. Darcy is alluring--because the reader forms a personal connection with the character by sketching his portrait alongside Elizabeth. The characters (their physical appearance and some of their motivations) are purposely mysterious and while it gives the reader lots of opportunities for engaging with the text, without historical/literary context for "filling in the blanks" it's easy to see the characters as stiff mannequins in strange clothing rather than human beings.

Austen as a romance writer: Her romances don't always match up with our perception of what a romance should be. Some people start Austen expecting intense emotions and outbursts of passion but become disappointed when presented with formal courting and stately dances instead. Emotions are often veiled behind dialogue and for a first-time reader it can be challenging to see a romance developing. Most of the time readers have to rely on the clues given by Austen (descriptions of characters "blushing," looking "pale," or losing their composure) to detect the stirrings of love, but on a first reading it's difficult to do so when one's trying to figure out the plot and the characters. Finally, the dialogue can't always be taken literally; lots of people, including me, were disturbed when Mr. Knightley said he loved Emma since she was 13, but it was actually a joke made in response to something she said.

Her books are products of their time, and I sure am not an expert in Regency era economics or social norms. Sometimes the implications of certain actions can be lost on a reader if they don't know about the social norms of the time (I had no idea that Darcy following Elizabeth around, alone, on her favorite walk at Rosings was a sign of his love for her). Differences in social class are also very subtle and while one can generalize the characters as all "well-off" people, they are separated by many levels of hierarchy and their ideas about social position and status affect how they interact with others outside of their station. Darcy looks down upon those whom he perceives to be below him, and while Emma wants to make an advantageous match for Harriet, Harriet's lower social position means that Emma's schemes are not likely to work.

Because of the unique quirks within the novels, the reader is required to go beyond the surface level of plot and appearance and read between the lines to understand character motivations and actions. Without historical context (Regency era society having little social mobility, women having few legal rights and needing to make good marriages to secure material comfort) or literary context (the Enlightenment, 18th century Gothic novels referred to in Northanger Abbey, the birth of the novel, early Romantic writers just to name a bit) reading between the lines is nearly impossible.

So why do we read Austen? Below are my personal reasons.

The novels feature female heroines that have dignity and self-respect. It's significant that the stories focus on women who are trying to live according to their own values and speaking their own minds rather than acquiescing to societal dictates. Elizabeth Bennet is revolutionary in part because she wants a marriage based on mutual admiration and respect between two partners who know each other well, rather than an economic arrangement for a home. One could go on forever about how Austen is a feminist, but, the characters don't act like modern day feminists--they are still people of their time. However, it's easy to assume "feminist" heroines have to have "aggressive" characteristics (rebelling, fighting, defiance) in order to be labeled as "feminist." Importantly, Austen's women are allowed to be vulnerable (they cry or struggle with their emotions) without that being a shameful thing. We also see different types of personalities celebrated: Jane Bennet, who is kind to everyone, is seen in a positive light rather than shamed for seeing good in everyone. Anne Elliot, who is regarded as "old," becomes more beautiful as she gets older and has a second chance of love. Emma Woodhouse is spoiled yet confident and assertive and "not likely to be well-loved" (paraphrase of Austen's commentary on Emma). Fanny Price is a shy person but still achieves her happy ending. Her heroines are real people who have flaws and get opportunities to learn and grow so that they can make their aspirations reality.

A unique take on the universal conflict of humans versus society: Austen's characters are bound by social norms of etiquette as well as a value system that idolizes wealth and connections above all else. Persuasion is a great story in part because it focuses on how Anne Elliot learns to follow her heart and avoid being "persuaded" by others (and by society) to follow a path that will not make her happy. She's had to live with the regret of following the well-intentioned but harmful advice of others (Austen notes that Lady Russell values social connections too highly) over her own feelings and judgment, nearly losing her chance to be with Wentworth. The romances are significant in that they reinforce the dignity and self-respect of the female heroines. To a certain extent, Austen's stories are realistic in that marriage is necessary for material well-being in a patriarchal society that provides few ways for women to provide for themselves. But most importantly, she also sees marriage as a means of affirming self-respect and dignity of the women. It's one of the few parts of their lives over which they have any control because they get to choose whom they marry (for the most part, unless the marriage is arranged). Their wish to marry for love is revolutionary because they dare to aspire for something more than wealth. They want their future partners to be their equals, someone who they can love and respect (or be totally honest with them) and who will provide the same in return. This line from Emma (the 2020 movie adaptation) sums it up: "I have none of the usual inducements of women to marry. Fame I do not want. Fortune I do not want. Consequence I do not want."

The difference between outward appearances and inner character is a fascinating theme that appears in several Austen novels, most notably Pride and Prejudice, where Wickham and Darcy are foils of each other ("one has got all the goodness, the other all the appearance of it"). A lot of the villains in Austen's novels are those who deceive others about their motivations or lie for their own advantage. A common trait these villains all have is that they have a charming outward appearance that masks their true natures; they don't look ugly nor are they unpleasant (ex. Wickham having great social skills, Willoughby following the trope of the knight rescuing Marianne as the damsel in distress but leaving behind many broken hearts, Mr. Elliott being charming and knowing exactly what to say and how to act but actually a swindler). In contrast, the "good" characters are honest, even at the cost of social displeasure, use manners/etiquette to show respect rather than deceive people, and act selflessly to prove their worth (actions speak louder than words). It can be summed up this way: "don't judge a book by its cover."

Psychology: Austen very effectively described hindsight bias when sarcastically commenting on how the village of Meryton turned on Wickham after the elopement with Lydia, when previously they regarded him as an "angel of light." She also understands how easy it is to manipulate peoples' minds through confirmation bias (Wickham telling Elizabeth all the dirt about Darcy, which she eagerly takes because she hates Darcy so much). She also knows that emotions can override people's judgment: "angry people are not always wise." It's fun seeing how her people are social animals who make flawed judgments based on first impressions/emotions.

The secondary characters: Mr. Collins the clergyman is the most famous and he's so funny because of his arrogance in spite of his low social position (he keeps worshiping Lady Catherine instead of respecting God). Another great one is Sir Walter Elliott, a nobleman who is vain and constantly checks himself in the mirror (the most obvious social criticism). Also Austen understood how women insult each other: through passive aggression (ex. Caroline Bingley and Louisa Hurst talking negatively about Elizabeth behind her back). Austen's female bullies use their talent and "good breeding" to intimidate or shame others.

The romance (no explanation needed): "You pierce my soul. I am half-agony, half-hope. I have loved none but you." I love how the couples learn about each other through many spirited conversations and become slowly fascinated with each other until they realize they are in love and then have a conflict between formality and their growing passion...or they fall back in love with each other...or they are friends who slowly realize that they are more than friends...okay I'll stop talking nonsense I've been trying so hard to be semi-scholarly

Tags: @talkaustentome @austengivesmeserotonin @austengeek @princesssarisa @appleinducedsleep @colonelfitzwilliams

For the shipping ask game: Faramir and Eowyn

I don't mono-ship it like Elizabeth/Darcy, but I do ship it a lot!

1- What made you ship it?

It is about 70% the beautiful writing of their romance in the book to 30% my love for them individually and being delighted at the concept of putting them together and letting them find happiness that way after lives of such grinding hopelessness.

2- What are your favorite things about this ship?

I really like that, as contracted as their romantic narrative is (and I do wish there was more of it, pacing be damned), Tolkien takes care to establish that they're friends. They like each other as people!

I don't think Éowyn really saw Aragorn as her friend in that way—he was too glamorous in her eyes for that. She didn't truly know him. But though the overall course of her relationship with Faramir is so fast, I think she does know and care about him for his own sake and not only for what he brings to her.

Even when she thinks she doesn't return his feelings, she's quite gentle about it in a way that's pretty unusual for her. And though Faramir always has a strain of gentleness in his character, I think a lot of his sternness (though not strength) falls away with her as they become close.

I also think there's something very adorable and characteristic about their physical impressions of each other, lol. Faramir is like ... wow, she's prettier than flowers, and the women of my own people, and I'm sorry she's sad like me. Maybe we could spend some time together. And Éowyn is like, damn, he is tall, and could kick the ass of almost everyone I know. He's nice about it, but what if I seem silly and immature to him?

<3

3- Is there an unpopular opinion you have on this ship?

I think they're happy, but it's complicated by political necessity—not in the sense of them being at odds politically, but of them being in separate places for substantial lengths of time. I think this would especially be the case in the earlier years, when Aragorn is often at war; Tolkien described one of Faramir's responsibilities as hereditary Steward as "representative of the king during his absence abroad" and another as "chief counsellor" of Aragorn's council.

Ithilien, meanwhile, is in a vulnerable position with a lot of work needed to keep it safe and functional, and my headcanon is that while they do work together, there are plenty of times when it's Éowyn doing a lot of the day-to-day work of holding things together in Ithilien while Faramir is first and foremost the Steward of Gondor. Arguably, she's more Prince of Ithilien than he is.

And much later, of course, they're separated for a pretty long while by her death. :( I don't think she gets Éomer's lifespan and Faramir would still outlive her considerably if she did.

Oh, also, I like their arcs overall, but I do agree with some of the critiques of Éowyn's part in the treatment of war. It's not that she should have stayed a warrior because she's a badass blahblah (this makes zero sense in the context of LOTR), but that the totality of her rejection of her previous way of life is not fully prepared for structurally, and Tolkien's ideology of peace > war etc seems far more integral to her character's resolution than any human man's, including Faramir's.

Théoden and Éomer are glorified as warriors, and Faramir's prowess is emphasized even though he doesn't like it (and Tolkien seems to have imagined he'd continue to act as a military leader and be the one clearing out Ithilien). But abandonment of fighting is built into Éowyn's arc beyond any character's but Frodo's (and he was never a warrior anyway). Her interest in the specific future she chooses with Faramir is not much prepared for in terms of writing. And this whole part of her arc is compressed into one small part of one chapter. So, yeah, the defenses of how this aspect of their romance is executed do ring a bit hollow to me.

Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde (1/?)

Part One: The introduction

Spencer Reid x Female Reader

Summary: Reader meets a mysterious stranger at the library during a book club meeting.

Part Two, Part Three

Series Masterlist

A/N: Hey Heyyy! This is my first Dom!Spencer fic in so long!!! My last one was also funnily enough for a fic swap as is this one! I had @aperrywilliams for the fic swap organized by @imagining-in-the-margins. I had so much fun writing this one- it’s based on a prompt that I got from @andiebeaword and @spencers-dria helped me by guiding me with the book club idea- with a little twist! I am considering making this a series, if y’all are interested PLEASE let me know- I really want to because I had so much fun writing this. Thanks to all y’all for reading and requests are open!!

Warnings: 18+, Dom Spencer, Public Sex (is anyone that surprised??), Impact Play, Post Prison Spencer, Use of the nickname Doctor during sex, Spencer is a brat tamer, Spencer is morally ambiguous but doesn’t do anything explicitly immoral

Main Masterlist Word Count: 3.0k

As soon as you walked in through the large wooden doors it felt like history hit you over the head with a book. Even though it was on the small side for a library it still probably held more books than a normal public library, almost every wall was adorned with built-in shelves stacked from bottom to top with old books. They ranged in every subject you could think imaginable, from every point in history imaginable, and from every point of view that was imaginable. When you had first discovered this place it had felt like you had been transported to another world. You were surprised that more people didn’t know about this old library nestled in the corners of D.C, it was just sitting there idly watching as history passed by day by day, while it sat writing down all its secrets.

A meeting of the classics was scrawled on the standing white board you saw right when you walked into the library. A meeting of the classics from 7pm to 11:30 in reading room C were the exact words, you didn’t even really need to read them as you had been looking forward to this event for weeks.

You made your way down to the reading room that was specified, only encountering a few stragglers similar to yourself on the way down. You were somewhat new to the events that this library ran, only coming to the past four months. It was quickly becoming your favorite thing to do every month.

There was always a theme to each of the parties, ranging from different eras of history, specific novels, and including things that were open to interpretation. Tonight’s theme was as stated on the white board, a meeting of the classics, which had been described as “Pick your favorite literary icon from a classic novel and dress up as them.”

You had decided to not pick a character from a classic novel, but rather an author, Mary Shelly. You based your entire look on the iconic writer of Frankenstein (with a twist of course) because it had been your favorite novel as a child, it still was your favorite novel.

Once you had made it into the large reading room you took in the full room like you did every week. People were dressed as many outlandish characters, with some being more difficult to decipher than others. As you walked around the reading room you could feel the eyes of another on you.

You could feel his stare following you intently as you walked around mingling with the others that you had met before. The eyes belonged to a man you hadn’t had the pleasure of meeting yet, a man dressed as someone instantly recognizable, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. What other iconic character would be split down the middle, half innocent doctor and half evil alter ego.

Even behind the costume you could tell how attractive the man was. He was extremely tall and lanky, with deep brown eyes and the fluffiest brown hair you had ever seen.

“Who’s that?” You asked the married lady and gentlemen dressed up as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy. Maybe it was shameful that you didn’t know their actual names, but you guess that’s what some people want when they come to an event like this

“That’s Dr. Spencer Reid, he hasn’t been here for a while and he sometimes misses things because of work. You didn’t hear it from me, but I heard he got in trouble with the law, that’s why he hasn’t been here for almost six months.” Her gossipy voice was drenched in fake sugar that made you gag on the inside. You still did appreciate her information as it gained you the name of the man who couldn’t stop staring at you like he was trying to figure you out.

“Must not have been that bad if he’s already out now, or maybe he’s innocent.” Ms. Bennet shrugged her shoulders at that. You may have even been naive to not heed her warning, but the idea of getting to know the mysterious fluffy haired man that had been staring at you all night was too intriguing for you to ignore.

“Who are you?” The mysterious man asked when he finally decided to approach you instead of staring at you from across the room.

Trying to maintain the same level of mystery as the man had you dodging his question with a simple redirect, “Who’s asking?”

“I thought it was quite obvious who I was.” He was right it was obvious, but why would you let him know that despite the fact that you knew what character he was you could tell the man underneath was the real mystery of it all.

“You’re the one who is not obvious.” The back and forth you had already picked up with him was thrilling, you sensed the fact that in most conversations you would have with him it would be a kind of battle that you would have to win.

“If you must know, kind sir, I am dressed as Mary Shelly, author of Frankenstein, with a bit of a modern twist.” You made sure to call him sir instead of his earned honorific this time, to see if it would poke any buttons.

“I am not a sir since my name is Dr. Spencer Reid. I can see now who you are dressed as, but I would still argue that it is not what the intentions were when they set this up.” You could tell that he was only teasing you with the way the inflections of his voice sounded, you were glad your teasing had been a moderate success.

You did also provide him your name before deciding to poke his buttons once more,“But, isn’t she a classic, Dr. Reid?”

“But, you have not made her a classic anymore by putting as you say a ‘modern twist on things’ though I must say it does look well made.” You would’ve been offended if you could not tell that it was all in jest, though you still got the sense that you still were not seeing what all this man was about.

“Thank you, Doctor I made it myself. However, you still haven’t answered my question yet, Dr. Reid.” You asked the next question hoping he would get what you were implying, “Who are you?”

“I suspect you may already know, but I am dressed half as Dr. Jekyll and half as Mr. Hyde.” At least he started to somewhat catch on to the hidden meaning in your words, though you still had not dug up the real answer you were looking for. He was too intriguing to persuade you to stop digging, you wanted to find who the doctor really was, not the partial mask he was still using.

“Yes, I suspected as much, but aren’t you breaking the rules by dressing up as technically two characters?”

“Were there rules that said I couldn’t dress up as two characters?” He fell nicely into the small trap you had set for him, retorting quickly without thinking. Which you found odd for a man that was clearly intelligent.

“No, but were there rules that said I couldn’t dress up as a classic author with my own twist?” The look on his face had let you know you had won the debate. You smirked with triumph as you glanced over the man, taking note of each of his handsome features in case you would never see him again.

You decided to pivot the conversation to another question that was on the forefront of your mind,“Do you have a dark side, Dr. Reid?”

“Doesn’t everyone?” He was deflecting, but he didn’t seem agitated by your question, simply amused by your dogged curiosity.

“I am curious though, what are you exactly underneath it all Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde?” Your coy smile was most definitely not lost on him, he could see right through your facade. He could see right through Mary Shelly to find the true you underneath. You only wished you could figure him out as well, you wondered how he got so good at being able to read people in an instant.

“I haven’t figured that out yet.” Well, at least you got the answer to what you were looking for, even if the answer wasn’t as straightforward as you may have been expecting. But, you were realizing that Dr. Spencer Reid was probably anything but straightforward.

Your heart was pumping fast, his words had a bigger effect on you than he had probably expected, your panties hidden underneath your long dress were dampening quickly. Though as you saw the smirk on his face grow as you fidgeted in your chair you realized that maybe this was intention all along.

You excused yourself for a moment with a veiled excuse of going to the bathroom. You hoped he’d follow right behind you, to see that you were going to one of the empty reading rooms. If you had read his intentions correctly the heavy doors on each of the rooms should significantly squash any noises he or you would make.

Sure enough after an appropriate amount of time had passed so as to not raise suspicion, the good doctor (that may or may not be good at all) entered the empty room.

He brought you into a dominating kiss that made you want to cower at the same time as be completely defiant. You fought with valor as he tried to consume you entirely with the kiss, not letting his tongue slip into your mouth for as long as you could hold off. In the end you still lost the fight when he lifted you up onto one of the large wooden desks in the room, causing a gasp to fall from your lips that finally gave him full access to your hot wet mouth. He suddenly pulled away to pinch your cheeks together with his hand to make you look at him which made you whimper pathetically at first, but you appreciated his next question immensely.

“Do you want this?” You nodded as vigorously as you could with his hand pinching your cheeks.

He however was not satisfied with my eager nod and prompted you to confirm once more with an even harsher tone, “Speak up when you’re talking.”

“Yes, Doctor.” You replied with his honorific instinctually and you were pleasantly surprised with the eager groan that came from his lips in response. Plus, you were slightly rewarded with being able to feel his lips on your collarbone, sending even more shivers down your spine.

“Let me know immediately if that changes.” The contrast of his sweet meaning words with his hand gripping your jaw was jarring, but you couldn’t deny that you enjoyed it. It just made you want to be as bratty as possible because even if he was harsh there was still the underlying care in everything he did, you felt safe.

“Maybe I should just call you Mister instead, since that’s clearly your dominant side.”He growled into your neck that was quickly getting covered in hickies, next thing you knew he flipped you around to face the desk closest to you with your back to his chest.

“Bend over.” He commanded, to which in response you opened your mouth to retort. Instead of letting you run your mouth as you had done before he wound his hands through your hair and pushed you down to take the position he wanted. He then pulled up your dress to uncover the panties you had soaked through. You thought maybe he was going to give me some relief of the ache in my core, but you were given a harsh slap on your ass instead.

A whimper involuntarily came out from your lips from the harshness of the slap that you assumed was revenge for not following his commands. He then spoke with deadly conviction, “I want you to say thank you, doctor after every time I spank you.”

You only agreed because you were afraid that if you did not comply now he may not give you what you wanted. So, as soon as the next stinging slap came down on the same spot as before the phrase fell from your lips, “Thank you, Doctor!”

He continued his repeated hits onto your ass and you made sure to never miss thanking him with a cry. Once he was satisfied with how much you were punished for your sassy remark he rubbed over the inflamed skin of your ass with his large, unbelieving hands. He moved your panties to the side to dip his deft fingers to run through your folds, collecting some of your wetness. You whined loudly and perhaps pathetically in response to him only lighting touching you instead of obliging the heat you felt everywhere.

“Be patient, you’ll get what you want since you decided to start listening to me.” He snapped which caused your knees to buckle again.

“I can be patient, Doctor.” He definitely appreciated the continued use of his honorific in this scandalous situation as he let out a groan almost every time you said it. Instead of answering you he started to undo the pants of his outfit, a pair of slacks that were also equally as split as the rest of his costume. You didn’t look back to see his cock because you did not want to be punished by him twice in one night. But, you certainly felt it.

You could tell just as he was running the head of his cock through your folds and pulling your panties to the side again that he would be the biggest you had ever been with. What should have worried you slightly only ended up sending a shock through your core instead. He was at least somewhat gentle when he finally started to enter you, letting you get somewhat adjusted before sinking in all the way to the hilt.

As soon as he sensed that you had adjusted he started a rough brutal pace, not that you were complaining as he hit all of your most sensitive spots as his cock dragged through your walls.

He made no effort to stifle the loud moans that were coming from your mouth, maybe he thought the thick wooden doors would stifle the noises. But, there was no way no one would be able to hear the unintelligible wails that were coming from you.

“You like bringing out this side of me don’t you?” He rasped out after he pushed your torso back down to flat on the desk once you started to lift yourself up on your elbows. When you only answered with a noise that was not understandable he prompted you to speak up with another slap on your ass and said, “I said earlier to speak up when you’re trying to talk to someone.”

“Yes, Doctor!” You finally were able to cry out with a few more slaps to your ass from him.

Each time you kept getting close to the edge he’d pull away from you slightly dashing your orgasm away from you cruelly. Each time you decided to whine out loud to voice your displeasure even if it was involuntarily he would just prolong edging you for even longer. You were babbling incoherently when he pulled you by the hair so your back was pressed into his chest and after a few more moments of hearing you beg nonsensically with tears in your eyes he finally gave you the command,

“You can cum.”

“Thank you, Doctor!” You wailed as your orgasm washed over you in devastating waves, you were sure no other man had made you finish so hard in your life. You kept repeating, “Thank you, Doctor!”over and over until you had completely come down from what was arguably the best orgasm of your life. Your own orgasm helped propel his forward, and you made sure to confirm out loud that you were ok with him cumming inside you. The warmth that filled you as he pumped into you a few more times caused one last groan to come from you that was weirdly harmonious with the groan from the doctor.

Normal aftercare wasn’t really applicable in this type of situation, you hardly knew him and the added fact that you were in an old library with a party down the hall didn’t help either. He still cleaned you up with a softness you had yet to see from him during your short encounter. Aloe probably would’ve been the best option to soothe your raw bottom, but he did massage you for a few minutes after he cleaned the rest of you. He had even made sure your clothes that were not period accurate, as he had pointed out earlier, were neat before you both left. There were no cuddles and soft loving words exchanged, but you still felt immensely cared for by a man who claims he might not be a good man. He was a strange case.

“You still never answered my question, Doctor.” You stated as you stood on the steps of the library after you two had slipped out to leave.

“That’s because I still don’t have an answer.” And, with that you parted ways into the cool air of D.C. You hoped he had the same feelings as you when you had both parted ways, you wanted to see him again. There was another meeting next month, maybe then you would get your chance again.

The thrill that ran through your veins whenever you interacted with him, whether he was fucking you or having a rousing conversation about classic literature made you want him no matter whether he was Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde. You’d take them both.

Part Two, Part Three| Series Masterlist

———

Tag list (message me if you want to be added):

All works:

@shotarosleftpinky @90spumkin @kyra-morningstar

Spencer Reid/CM:

@calm-and-doctor @destiny-tsukino @safertokiss @slutforthegubes

Dom Spencer (new tag list):

Okay, I was scrolling through your Tumblr and the mention of a Titanic inukag au!?!? I need to see that! (But it has to be a happy ending, I could not bear it one of them died) 😭😭😭 What other AU's would you be interested in seeing??

Good news about the Titanic AU: @swaggingtomboy has recommended this little gem. I haven't read it yet so I don't know if there's a happy ending, but come on! It's a Titanic AU!

Now, when it comes to Inuyasha, there are a lot of alternate universes I take interest in. Some of them I've been actually meaning to write one day, so I'll be keeping those out of this list. But here are the ones I would love to read, in no particular order:

1. SINBAD: THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN SEAS

Sinbad and Marina are basically pirate!Inukag, let’s face it. I like pirate stories because I love the sea. Also the atmosphere of forbidden love, since Marina is engaged to Sinbad’s chldhood best friend, makes everything extra spicy. Their constant bickering and teasing, the way they’re always challengins each other and working together like a well oiled machine, how their journey start off with the wrong foot but they find balance in the end... those are just a few of the things that make me love them (and Inukag) the way I do. 

2. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Darcy and Inuyasha have so much in common. The nonexistent social skills. The lack of trust in people. The tendency to isolate themselves. The way they go to extreme lengths to protect those they care about without never taking credit for it. Constantly putting their foot on their mouths. The arrogance. The stubbornness. The absolute refusal to admit their feelings. And then Elizabeth and Kagome are smart, feisty and have the inherent ability to put men in their places. Just as wqually stubborn as their love interests. And let’s not forget they’re always being overlooked: Lizzie being outshined by Jane and Kagome by Kikyo. Inuyasha and Darcy are so similar and at the same time so different from Kagome and Elizabeth, that their chemistry it’s just off the charts. I love modern AU’s as much as the next person, but sometimes you gotta go vintage.

3. SHREK

Hear me out! You can’t look me in the eye and tell me Inuyasha wouldn’t have isolated himself in a swamp as well. Also, Kagome as a cursed princess such as Fiona would have been an absolute kickass. We don’t have enough of it. Shrek is a beautiful story with a wonderful message and the hardships the main couple finds along their journey really reminds me of Inukag. The prejudice they faced, the slowly built trust and even our main girls giving up something they loved in the end to be with their love interests, who just want them to be happy and would never think of themselves as worthy of such a sacrifice (even though they are). Plus, you know me. I love the fairytale vibes.

4. FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS

I know, I know. The title is self explanatory and it’s not like we have a lack of this trope in fanfictions, but let me sell it to you, okay? This movie is literally one of the best rom coms ever made. I’m talking about shy, never-left-the-monotony-of-his-hometown Inuyasha, who runs a pretty successful advertising website and headhunter Kagome, who manages to convince him into accepting a job at GQ.

Only he has to move out to New York to do it. And since she’s his first friend there, they grow pretty close. Bonding over their latest failed relationships and how long it has been since they had sex, they decide to become friends with benefits. Because this always works. Bonus points for their backgrounds. The parents issues really flesh out the characters and make everything way more emotional and exciting.

5. THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

What can I say? This movie is perfect! Kagome and Tiana are resilient, kind, persistent, stubborn and hard working as all hell. I also like the relationship Tiana had with her deceased father and I feel like exploring Kagome’s own relationship with her deceased father in the same way would have scratched an ever present itch I have on the matter. I love to read fanfics where this is addressed.

Also, there’s this amazing parallel between Inuyasha and Naveen, since they start their journey with a clear goal in mind. Inuyasha, to become a full demon by using the the Sacred Jewel and Naveen to marry a rich woman so he wouldn’t be broken anymore and wouldn’t have to work for the rest of his life. But after they met Kagome and Tiana, their dreams change, because they end up realizing it’s not what they truly wanted (it never was) and that they can so better than that. So they do.

6. HITCH

Not actually Inukag. I feel like Miroku and Sango fit this AU better. You know how the story goes: he is a "date doctor" who coaches other men in the art of wooing women into long term relationships. He gets hired by Albert (Inuyasha), a shy, socially akward guy who needs help acting on the crush he has on a client of his investment firm, celebrity Allegra Cole (Kagome).

In the meantime, Hitch (Miroku) meets and falls in love himself with Sara Melas (Sango), a workaholic journalist who is always chasing after the hottest gossip. As Miroku succeds in helping Inuyasha date Kagome, this becomes the talk of the town and the more Sango snoops around to find out how that happened, the more she gets closer to find out what Miroku’s job truly is.

7. JANE THE VIRGIN

Now, this is more about the premise than the characterization. Imagine Kagome has decided to save herself for marriage and due to a series of crazy ass events, she ends up accidently inseminated with Inuyasha’s sperm when she goes to her gynecologist for a simple check-up.

The kicker (if you even need one at this point)? She has met Inuyasha before. He had showed up one night when she was about to end her shift. They it it off, flirted for hours and shared the best kiss ever, but he never called her after that. Now she discovers that not only is he the father of her miraculous baby, but also the owner of the hotel she works in as a waitress and that the sample that was  accidently inseminated on her was his last chance to be a father.

In the original, the female main character, Jane, is engaged while the male love interest is in an unhappy marriage, but even though I did enjoy the love triangle(s), I also don’t see it as a mandatory thing. I feel like it works either way.

8. TARZAN

Everybody knows the story, don’t they? Talk about worlds colliding. Talk about Jane (Kasgome) showing Tarzan (Inuyasha) what love is. Being all of his firsts. Teaching him so much. Chasing his loneliness away. And talk about him protecting her with his life, showing her things she had only dreamed to see in person: beautiful places, wonderful creatures... Talk about her falling for him and his world so much that she chooses to stay by his side. Plus riding vines together like Kagome rode on Inuyasha’s back? Chef’s kiss.

9. LISBELA E O PRISIONEIRO (LISBELA  AND THE PRISONER)

I even wrote a little something about this a while ago. Leléu (Inuyasha) is a womanizer con man. For each city, a different name and a different way to get easy money. In one of those cities, he meets Inaura (Kikyo) and they have a passionate affair. The only problem? She is married to the abusive Frederico Evandro (Naraku), a hitman that catchs them in the act.

Inuyasha manages to run, but Naraku swears to find and kill him even if it’s the last thing he does. In search of a safe place to hide, Inuyasha arrives in a small town where he meets Kagome, a sweet, romantic lady that simply loves to watch american, silent, black and white romance movies on the theater (the story takes place in the 20th century).

They fall in love for the very first time, but there is just a little complication: she is engaged to Douglas (probably Koga), an arrogant prick that’s more interested in sex and in her looks than in Kagome herself. She breaks the engagement off to be with Inuyasha, even though her father (or maybe Grandpa Higurashi, in this case), who is the city’s deputy, thinks Koga is the best for her. But when they’re about to be officially together... In comes Kikyo, still in love with Inuyasha and insisting they should run together because her husband was too close of finding out where Inuyasha is.

Inuyasha feels obligated to go with Kikyo, which makes Kagome think he never truly loved her, so she and reconciles with Koga. Inuyasha comes back and risks his life to prevent the wedding from happening, getting arrested in the process. I won’t spoil the ending in case anyone want to watch it, but it’s a happy one. And even though Kikyo doesn’t end up with Inuyasha, the play she roles is very important, badass and satisfying. Trust me. 

10. DIRTY DANCING

Baby is innocent and naive. And idealist at heart. Johnny is more realist, cynical and mature. But even though she was a bit spoiled, she was kind enough to put her life on hold to help him (a “nobody”) and his friends to get out of a stinky situation. And even though he is skeptical about her at first, he ends up respecting and admiring her very much. The forbidden love vibes and all the dancing makes everything even hotter. A classic, just like Inuyasha.

Honorable mentions (because I love them but people has already talked about those AU’s to exhaustion): The Mummy, Atlantis and Beauty and the Beast (duh).

Lavender's Blue {5}

Series Masterlist

A/N: So here’s the thing, I recognize that Sam Uley was like 19 in canon, but in my world, I have decided he’s like 25, Emily too. This is a heavier chapter, not as happy go lucky, but I will create so much found family so help me God. Jake will be 16, he has the angst level requirement that can only come from a 16 year old. Also this story is being extremely pushy about wanting to be written. 

Warnings: Language, Self Deprecation, Trauma, Angst

Summary: Bella reflects on what happened the previous night, she reaches out to Emily. Jake begins processing what happened, as best he can. And Paul learns about Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. 

Rating: M

Word Count: 2,864

Bella Swan woke up the next morning from the first restful night in months. No nightmares plagued her slumber, she just felt at peace. But her mind was racing, by now, she should be used to life altering, earth shattering events. Werewolves, it made sense, if there were vampires, there would need to be something that would defeat them, other than fire and each other. Then there was the imprint, that weighed on her mind. She had thought she found her soulmate in Edward, and now she had found him in Paul Lahote. 

Her knowledge of Paul Lahote was filtered through several channels and she wasn’t sure what to believe. Charlie always had said he was a trouble maker, a nuisance. Jake had not hidden his absolute hatred of him. He never said why he hated him so deeply, was it just the beginning of the pack forming? What would Charlie think of the situation she had found herself in? Glancing out her window she noticed a flash of silver fur, Paul. Had he been out there all night? It couldn’t be comfortable sleeping out there.The events of the previous night had not let her discuss with the wolves all of the information that Laurent had passed to her. Victoria was looking for revenge, and that would only be satisfied by Bella’s blood. But Victoria hadn’t shown herself, maybe Laurent had been lying, vampires lie. It might have been kinder to let Laurent kill her, that day in the meadow. Victoria would not let Bella go without a fight, she would not stop until she had her. 

Vampires feel things deeply, time is different for us. Alice’s voice echoed in her mind. 

Humans feel things deeply too. She thought wryly as she got dressed, snapping at the imaginary voice in her head that was tittering. Bella got dressed and grabbed a quick breakfast before going to school. For the past few months she had been in a haze, then she started to hang out with Jake, and she came out of the fog. But then Jake had left her behind, to the wolves, which was an ironic thought, given the current circumstances. She wasn’t sure where she and Jake stood for the first time in her life. There had been a closeness between them since they were kids, best friends. Last night he barely could look at her and her gut told her that it wasn’t just a wolf thing. Charlie had always alluded to the fact that Jake had a crush on her, and she chose to ignore it. Maybe it was because she didn’t really think there was anyway he thought that way or that she could never return it, because she didn’t feel the same way. But this was never a conversation she had with him, perhaps if she had been a few years wiser she would have had that conversation. 

School had become a place she went to, she sat with her friends, but they weren’t sure how to speak to her. And honestly, she couldn’t blame then. She had become a shell, she was just passing the days, but last night, her shell shattered. It was the first time since moving to Forks that she had felt like the Bella she had been in Arizona, her true self. Even though she sat with Angela, Jess, Mike, Ben and Lauren, she felt alone. So much had happened in the past twenty-four hours and she couldn’t say anything to those who surrounded her. At the end of the day she punched in one of the numbers she had received the previous night. 

“Hey, Emily, it’s Bella Swan.” 

“Bella, nice to hear from you!” Emily answered, her voice sounding a bit excited, when was the last time someone was excited to hear from her? 

“I was wondering if I could take you up on talking?” Bella chewed on her bottom lip, waiting for Emily’s response. 

“Of course, the boys are out right now, probably won’t be back until dinner. Why don’t you just drop in?” 

“Sounds great, thanks, Emily.” 

“See you soon.” 

Bella’s truck rumbled down the road to La Push and to Emily’s home. Without the daunting reality of the werewolves existence, it was a cute house. It was cozy, a place for gathering and coming together. The front door opened to reveal Emily as Bella shut off the engine. Emily waved as Bella walked to the porch. 

“Thank you, again.” Bella said as she approached the house. 

“What are friends for?” Emily responded with a smile. “Let’s get in, I just made some tea, I find it calms the nerves.”

Bella nodded and allowed herself to be led into the house. “Why don’t you get settled in the living room and I’ll be back out.” 

Bella hesitantly walked into the living room, thinking about the conversation that had occurred in the same room last night. Equivalent of a soulmate, echoing in her head. She curled her feet under her as she sat on one of the large plush sofas. Emily walked in and handed her a steaming cup of tea. 

“So what’s on your mind?” Emily asked. 

“Do you think the imprint could make a mistake?” Bella asked meekly. 

Emily snorted, and Bella mentally recoiled. “Sorry, Bella, that wasn’t how I meant that. I think you’ll understand when I tell you about Sam and I’s imprinting.” 

“Okay.” Bella murmured, taking a sip of the tea in her hands. 

“I didn’t live here, originally, but the Clearwaters are my cousins. I was fiercely close with Leah, before…” Emily sighed. “Sam and Leah were engaged, childhood sweethearts, I was in town to visit and it happened. He imprinted on me and it was the worst thing that I could have imagined.” 

Bella shifted uncomfortably for a minute, the tea in her mug sloshing too close to the edge, she took a sip to steady herself. The sweet tang of orange blossoms hit her tongue, causing her to hum. 

“It’s not that way anymore, but it was. In an instant his attentions were turned from Leah and onto me. I couldn’t do that to her, I pushed him away, rejected him, I even left.” Emily sniffed. “He explained everything to me, even showed me his wolf, but I couldn’t accept him. He was Leah’s, he needed to go back to her. Then he was at my house, every day, trying to convince me to give him a chance. And one night, I said some cruel things, low things that I knew from Leah, things that I used against him. He lost control.” 

“And that’s how you got the scars.” 

Emily nodded. “I woke up in a hospital bed, and Sam was there, he should have been in the bed next to me, he looked like death. We said it was a bear, seemed like the easiest answer. And he stayed with me until I left, there was something there. Something I couldn’t deny. And I gave in and… It hasn’t been the easiest of roads, but I am happy, and so is Sam.” 

Bella set the empty mug on the table and pulled her knees up to her chin. “So you believe it’s not a mistake?” 

“I don’t think it makes mistakes, but I understand how you feel, feeling like it is a mistake.” Emily murmured. “You were chosen for a reason, for Paul. There are things that he will tell you in time, and he might seem like an asshole, but he’s a good guy.” 

“What if it’s not him that’s the mistake, but me?” Bella murmured. 

“Oh honey,” Emily rose from her spot on the opposite couch and settled next to Bella and pulled her into her side. Bella’s shoulders started shaking as tears flowed from her. “No one’s perfect Bella. And the universe believes that you and Paul are meant for each other. Paul is lucky to have you.” 

“I’m sorry.” Bella murmured, letting the older woman wrap her in her arms. 

“Don’t be sorry, Bella. Never be sorry.” Emily answered as she embraced Bella. She was overcome by the weight that was pushed onto them. The expectations that were put onto them, just because they looked into someone’s eyes. Emily had accepted her role, her purpose, but it was on her terms and she would fill it how she saw fit. The universe be damned, some day, it would get a reckoning from her and the hell it had put kids through. Because all of them in this house, they were just kids. 

“Why do you do all of this?” Bella asked, still wrapped in Emily’s arms. “You and Sam are young, you could leave.”

“They’re just boys, Bella. And everyone expects them to go off to war for them.” Emily shook her head. “But they’re not going to go to war without knowing that someone here cares about them, for more than being the almighty protectors. If Sam and I left, they would choose another Alpha, they would soldier on. We all deserve a respite from the realities we face.” 

Bella pulled away and looked at her with admiration, someone looking from the outside would have a different picture in their mind of who Emily Young was. They would see a scarred young woman who had taken her cousin’s fiancée and now spent her days cooking and cleaning after a group of rowdy young men, who had been deemed a gang. That wasn’t what Emily Young was doing, she was building a home, yes, but she was building a purpose. A place where those  touched by the wolves could just be. 

“None of us here are going to push you into this, but get to know Paul.” Emily said, “You don’t have to fall in love instantly, but this is a part of you now. I think your previous experiences will give you some help in dealing with all the weird.”

Bella laughed at that. “Glad it gave me something useful.”

Emily smiled, the girl on her couch was different from the girl she had met last night. But there were still shadows in her eyes, and pain that was not going to go away over a cup of tea. And Emily would be there for her, Emily would be there for both of them. 

Jacob Black had a plan for his life since he was the age of five. He would grow up, be strong, and he would marry Bella Swan. It was a simple life plan, but it was what he knew would happen. Then the fever started, the shakes, the pain, and finally, the transformation. His first phase had been the scariest thing that had ever happened to him, but that was quickly bumped to second place when he entered the meadow and saw Bella face to face with a vampire set to kill her. But he saved her, he wasn’t allowed to talk to her, but he did help rip up a vampire. He had tried to talk to her, to tell her what was happening, and he couldn’t. Couldn’t because Sam had forbidden it, and they all had to do whatever Sam said. 

Pack dynamics were the biggest bitch he had about becoming a wolf. Never being able to ignore an order from Sam had been the worst thing about being a wolf, at least, until yesterday. A part of him had decided to begin accepting that Bella was not his imprint, he had tried to force it, that day in the meadow. He tried to will it with his entire soul, but it didn’t happen. Sure, he still felt like the world stopped when he saw her, but that was normal. He wanted the can’t eat, can’t sleep, reach for the stars, over the fence, World Series kind of feeling. The feeling he had learned about from watching too many romantic comedies with Bella. 

And he saw that feeling, in Paul’s head and he saw red. Becoming a wolf heightened his senses and anger. He had to fight, had to and wanted to in that moment. He took a lot out on Paul and he was surprised that Paul let him get away with it. Today he had caught glimpses of the fight from Paul’s point of view and he understood why he was able get the upper hand. Paul’s focus had been on protecting Bella, like his should have been. There were a lot of things he wished he could have done differently last night, but Sam had reminded him that you don’t get do-overs, only second chances. 

Jake watched Paul and Bella turn out of the driveway and back to her home. He started out the front door and heard Sam’s voice behind him. 

“Jake, where are you headed to?” 

“Home, I think I’ve had enough of a night.” He muttered, not meeting Sam’s eyes. 

“Jake, you’re going to leave them alone. They need time.” Sam said and Jake felt the tell-tale sensation of an Alpha order tugging at the base of his skull. 

“I’m not gonna do anything.” He grumbled, looking at Sam now. There was a look in Sam’s eye that he couldn’t quite place, like he was in a memory. 

“Jake, you don’t have to like that they are imprinted. You’re allowed to feel disappointed that it’s not you.” Sam took a deep breath. “But you need to think about how your actions will affect more than just Paul in the moment. Hurting him could hurt Bella, it could hurt your friendship with her.” 

It was supposed to be me. Jake thought sullenly. “I know.” 

“No amount of sulking will change the fact that this happened. Now get home and get some sleep.” Sam ordered again.

Jake stomped his feet down the porch steps and phased. Instantly regretting that choice when his mind was swarmed with Paul. He saw Bella’s smile, a quick laugh, then he saw the outside of her house. 

I’m watching her kid, get some sleep. Paul’s voice broke through his musings, all visions of Bella removed from his mind.

Jake had about a thousand smart ass remarks that he could have responded to Paul. But he stopped, what Paul had said to him earlier flicked through his memories. But there wasn’t any twisted intent in Paul’s mood. Maybe Paul wasn’t the villain that he had made him out to be, but that didn’t mean that they were suddenly going to become besties. 

Paul could smell Bella even before he saw the truck parked at Sam and Emily’s. He felt a jolt down his spine, she was here. Not that he had been looking for her, but he did pass through her usual haunts, to check on her, and he had been feeling a little uneasy that he couldn’t find her anywhere. And losing someone in Forks was a rarity, all you needed to do was yell loud enough and they’d stumble out of their hiding spot. 

“You gonna stand out here like an idiot or are you going to say hello?” Sam asked, Paul started, not realizing he had stopped walking. 

“I don’t want to impose.” Paul answered, well, lied. 

“That’d be a first.” Sam snorted before adding. “Come say hi, or Emily won’t let me hear the end of it.” 

When the two men entered the house, they had not expected to walk into the living room to find Emily and Bella huddled on the couch, Pride and Prejudice on the television, and a large bowl of popcorn between them. They quoted the lines back and forth in probably the worst attempts at British accents ever heard, Sam shook his head and knocked on the doorway. “Ladies.” He greeted.

They both turned towards him. 

“I’m glad that Emily has found someone who shares her love of romantic movies.” 

“You got here just in time! We’re almost to the best scene!” Emily said excitedly, mischief in her eyes. 

“I wouldn’t say the best scene, second best.” Bella supplied, her eyes landing on Paul who was standing timidly behind Sam. 

Emily slid to a further end of the couch and Sam sat down next to her. She immediately burrowed into his side, leaving Paul standing awkwardly in the doorway. Bella slid over to give him some space on the couch and pointedly nodded to it. 

Paul sat down gingerly next to her and whispered.“So what is this, some rom com?”

“It is the pinnacle of love stories.” Bella replied, her eyes still glued on the screen. “They started out hating each other, but then, they realize, maybe it’s not hatred. And it’s quite appalling to not be hatred.” She continued to ramble and he focused on her, the words falling out her mouth quickly, but he hung onto every word. He might not remember who Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are, or why they mattered. But he would remember the way her eyes sparkled as she spoke about the characters. The way her breath hitched when they declared their love for each other. He would forever remember this as the moment he began falling headfirst into love with Bella Swan.