#this delayed the engagement for several months
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April 26: All 13 IATSE Locals Have Reached Tentative Agreements with the AMPTP; now IATSE will restart general negotiations.
After over a month of negotiating, all 13 of IATSE’s West Coast Locals have reached tentative deals with the AMPTP, IATSE announced today. Now the real fight can begin.
On Thursday, April 25, the last of the remaining 13 locals, Affiliated Property Craftspersons Local 44, reached a tentative agreement with the studios, and Studio Teachers, IATSE Local 884, reached a deal on April 19, opening the door for IATSE’s national negotiating committee to restart negotiations on the Basic Agreement. Those talks are scheduled to kick off on April 29 and continue through May 16.
“Our locals’ craft-specific issues required the employers’ attention, and at the table we’re seeing improved engagement and dialogue,” IATSE’s International vice president Mike Miller said in a statement. “That indicates the studios’ negotiators have different marching orders this contract cycle. This approach will be helpful as we continue our negotiations over the next few weeks.”
After over a month of negotiating, all 13 of IATSE’s West Coast Locals have reached tentative deals with the AMPTP, IATSE announced today. Now the real fight can begin.
On Thursday, April 25, the last of the remaining 13 locals, Affiliated Property Craftspersons Local 44, reached a tentative agreement with the studios, and Studio Teachers, IATSE Local 884, reached a deal on April 19, opening the door for IATSE’s national negotiating committee to restart negotiations on the Basic Agreement. Those talks are scheduled to kick off on April 29 and continue through May 16.
“Our locals’ craft-specific issues required the employers’ attention, and at the table we’re seeing improved engagement and dialogue,” IATSE’s International vice president Mike Miller said in a statement. “That indicates the studios’ negotiators have different marching orders this contract cycle. This approach will be helpful as we continue our negotiations over the next few weeks.”
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Each of the 13 locals (44, 80, 600, 695, 700, 705, 706, 728, 729, 800, 871, 884, and 892) were negotiating issues specific to their own crafts and union members, with two locals talking with the studios at a time. They reached tentative deals largely without any hiccups. A few of the locals, including Local 44 representing set decorators and propmakers, did not reach a deal in their allotted three days of scheduled bargaining and bled into the following week, but there were no delays in the overall schedule, and IATSE even scheduled a week of caucusing to account for such a scenario if things ran long.
The locals haven’t had a chance to negotiate a new contract for the last six years, with Covid interrupting what would’ve been the prior round of negotiations. And it’s also unprecedented that each of the 13 locals got several days of individual time scheduled in advance in order to work through their contracts. Not all of the locals has always had the time afforded to them to come to the negotiating table.
Terms of the tentative deals with each of the locals have not been revealed to members just yet, and they won’t be put up for ratification until after IATSE has reached a tentative deal on the Basic Agreement. IATSE recently flopped the order of its bargaining schedule, intending to negotiate the Basic Agreement followed by the Area Standards Agreement, which covers craftspeople working outside of Los Angeles. Negotiations for the ASA will start on May 20 and run through May 31.
The real battle now begins with the studios over issues wage increases, pension and health contributions, quality of life conditions such as lengths of workdays, meal penalties, and turnaround times, job security, residuals, and the big elephant in the room, AI.
IATSE already got the ball rolling on talks related to health plan terms and pension benefits back on March 4, and they teamed up with the Teamsters and Hollywood Basic Crafts to speed along the process. Teamsters and Basic Crafts won’t begin their individual talks until sometime in June.
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Michael and Sammy can never find out that their dads had a little something-something. Henry needs to take that one to the grave because if Michael finds out he will never stop asking him about it because of ALL the men in Hurricane... WILLIAM???? WILLIAM?! THAT TWIG SNAKE OIL SALEMAN BITCH OF A MAN? BILLY???
It probably wasn’t much of a secret to them, when they thought about it…
#fnaf#five nights at freddy's#michael afton#mike schmidt#sammy emily#henry emily#soldered wires#soldered wires au#willry#VERY IMPLIED willry#just two men#realizing that their dads were hella gay their entire childhoods#and only coming to terms with it now#this delayed the engagement for several months#answering asks
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ONLY ONE IS CANON. PLEASE READ THE QUESTION.
* For the purposes of this poll, both Legends and Disney qualify as canon.
** Eminent domain
Don't give away the answer before the poll ends! I'll reblog with an explanation once it's done.
"Why the big red--" I've already had five people vote in the wrong direction.
#Anakin Skywalker#obi wan kenobi#satine kryze#qui gon jinn#star wars#the clone wars#sw legends#quinlan vos#yan dooku#Xanatos du Crion#Xanatos#Pre Vizsla#Tor Vizsla#Tahl#Galidraan#Jango Fett#Stewjon#infanticide mention#dooku#New Mandalore#count dooku#phoenix polls#fanon#fanon vs canon
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With a history of short-term governments in Nepal’s 15 years of democratic progression, the current reconfiguration is no surprise, and it will be no surprise if the Maoists get back again with the Nepali Congress in months and years to come.
Power sharing, political discontent, ideological differences, underperformance, and pressure to restore Nepal to a Hindu state – a long list of reasons reportedly forced the Maoists to sever ties with the Nepali Congress. While the Nepali Congress expected the Maoist leader and current prime minister, Pushpa Kamal Dahal (also known by his nom de guerre, Prachanda) to leave the alliance, it did not expect an overnight turnaround. [...]
Dahal reportedly conveyed to the Nepali Congress chair, former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, that external pressure forced him to join hands with CPN-UML and form a new government.
If this assertion is true, China emerges as a plausible factor, given its historical inclination toward forging alliances with leftist parties in Nepal. This notion gains credence in light of China’s past efforts, such as its unsuccessful attempt in 2020 to mediate the conflict between Oli and Dahal.
On the other hand, India has enjoyed a comfortable working relationship with the Nepali Congress and the Maoists. Although Maoists were a challenging party for New Delhi to get along with when Dahal first gained the prime minister’s seat in 2008, the two have come a long way in working together. However, the CPN-UML has advocated closer ties with the northern neighbor China; Beijing suits both their ideological requirements and their ultra-nationalistic outlook – which is primarily anti-India. [...]
India faces challenges in aligning with the Left Alliance for two key reasons. First, the energy trade between Nepal and India has grown crucial over the past couple of years. However, India strictly purchases power generated through its own investments in Nepal, refusing any power produced with Chinese involvement. With the CPN-UML now in government, Nepal may seek alterations in this arrangement despite the benefits of power trade in reducing its trade deficit with India.
Second, India stands to lose the smooth cooperation it enjoyed with the recently dissolved Maoist-Congress coalition. During the dissolved government, the Nepali Congress held the Foreign Ministry, fostering a favorable equation for India. Just last month, Foreign Minister N.P. Saud visited India for the 9th Raisina Dialogue, engaging with top Indian officials, including his counterpart, S. Jaishankar.
As concerns arise for India regarding the Left Alliance, there is also potential for shifts in the partnership between Nepal and the United States, a significant development ally. Particularly, there may be a slowdown in the implementation of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) projects. Despite facing domestic and Chinese opposition, the Nepali Parliament finally approved a $500 million MCC grant from the United States in 2022, following a five-year delay.
China perceives the MCC as a component of the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific strategy, countering its BRI. Hence Beijing aims to increase Chinese loans and subsidies to Nepal to enhance its influence.
To conclude, the re-emergence of Nepal’s Left Alliance signals a shift in power dynamics, impacting domestic politics and regional geopolitics. With China’s influence growing, Nepal’s foreign policy may tilt further toward Beijing, challenging India’s interests. This shift poses challenges for India, particularly in trade and diplomatic relations, while also affecting Nepal’s partnerships with other key players like the United States.
[[The Author,] Dr. Rishi Gupta is the assistant director of the Asia Society Policy Institute, Delhi]
6 Mar 24
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Keep Unnecessary Meetings to a Minimum
“Don’t attend unnecessary meetings,” advises Jersey, an Autistic activist in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Jersey has been on the front lines of numerous pro-Palestinian actions in the past several months, serving as a medic during the #BlocktheBoat action to delay the shipment of munitions to Israel, shutting down the Oakland Federal Building, and blocking the Bay Bridge, an action for which he was arrested and charged with false imprisonment (among other laughable charges) by the San Franciso District Attorney. Since the siege on Gaza began in October of last year, Jersey has been living and breathing for the Palestinian cause. Yet even he has limits.
“Tell [fellow organizers] that your capacity for meeting, especially in real life, is low,” he says. Instead of having to speak at length with organizers about your interest in getting involved, see if you can articulate your own role within the movement. That way, you won’t have to be “managed” as much.
“For example, if you’re a photographer, tell people that and then demonstrate that you can show up relatively independently, take great photos, and then show them with the group,” he says. Once you have proven yourself to be reliable and competent, you can skip meetings without facing as much criticism.
Many organizing spaces are oriented around neuro-conformist standards of what socializing and planning for an event must look like. Non-Autistic people generally process new information socially as part of an ongoing dialogue, whereas many Autistics prefer receiving all the relevant facts in a single, linear document they can read and process on their own. Many activists also enter a movement with intense emotional needs, and wish for others to bear witness to their suffering and share how they are feeling too. This means that those of us who find socializing and emotional processing to be draining will have to advocate for ourselves.
“We can remind organizations to be intentional about what does and does not have to be a meeting,” says Aeryn, another organizer. “Sometimes all you really need is an online survey, a memo, or a thread where people can ask questions online.”
If you can, tell meeting organizers that you are unavailable to meet often, but that you will listen to meeting recordings or read the agenda on your own time, and then communicate through email or private message to indicate that you have. Depending on how much you trust an organization and its leadership, you can either explain directly that you cannot process information in real-time easily because of your disability, or you can simply say you’re busy with school, work, or family obligations.
Operating independently may require being strategic in the roles you take on within an organization. Jersey says: “If you’ve never done security but want to do security, you will have to do a lot of training and meeting with people. But if you’re already a trained medic and have some type of credential… you can probably just tap into a medic chat and sign up for events as they arise.” This, in fact, is what he’s done.
Of course, it will be sometimes be necessary to get to know other members of your organization of choice, express your own perspectives to the group, and receive updates through some form of meeting. However, there are still many accommodations you can request to make those meetings more accessible:
Push for Accessible Meetings
When an activist movement is new or its resources are limited, its meetings may tend to be urgent, somewhat disorganized affairs, rife with lots of thinking out loud and amorphous brainstorming and possessing little in the way of an agenda.
Autistic people typically find it very hard to contribute to such meetings, because the flow of conversation is unpredictable and confusing, and most of us struggle with knowing when it’s appropriate to jump in and offer a comment. The constant flux in conversation topics is exhausting for us to keep up with, as are all the social and emotional undercurrents bubbling beneath what’s actually being said.
After the meeting is over, we may have almost no recollection of what was shared, because we were putting so much energy into masking and wearing our “listening faces.” Critiques and questions may occur to us hours after the discussion has ended, after we’ve had some time alone to digest and reflect. Even if we are physically present within a space, we are pervasively excluded when meetings are conducted in such an unstructured, overwhelming way.
Thankfully, all of this can be avoided. Here are some of the accommodations that organizing meetings should provide in order to maximize their accessibility — not just for the sake of Autistics, but for anyone who struggles to process verbal information quickly and form their own immediate verbal responses to it on the fly:
The full essay and toolkit of resources is free to read (or have narrated to you!) at drdevonprice.substack.com
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Loki Season 2's Press Tour Is Continuing Without Tom Hiddleston & Co.
The ongoing Hollywood strikes have made an impact on the promotion of Disney+’s Loki Season 2.
The fan-favorite Asgardian trickster Loki, as portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, will return for another season imminently. A second run for his self-titled Disney+ show hits in early October.
The Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild have been on strike for months now. A conclusion to these work stoppages doesn’t seem to be on the horizon either, resulting in a wave of delays for several high-profile film and TV projects.
And, of course, SAG-AFTRA members have also been barred from promoting struck work, per union regulations.
Tom Hiddleston Won’t Be Promoting Loki
Due to the still-ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, the stars of Loki Season 2 will not be permitted to do any press for the show. This includes actors like Tom Hiddleston, Owen Wilson, and Sophia Di Martino. Any members of the WGA, which is also currently striking, will follow suit until a new agreement is reached with the studios.
To counteract this, Marvel Studios has sent Kevin Wright, an executive producer on Loki, to engage with the press and promote the series’ second season. Wright was seen at the recent Destination D23 presentation, where he spoke to attendees about what the God of Mischief will get up to next.
Marvel recently delayed a large swath of its Disney+ projects, including Echo and Daredevil: Born Again. Loki’s release plan, however, remained intact.
When Will the Hollywood Strikes Be Over?
It’s the question on everyone’s mind: when will Hollywood’s writers and actors be back to work? The short answer: no one knows, but potentially not soon.
The longer answer? The Writers Guild of America will keep striking until it makes what it deems is a fair deal with the AMPTP, which is the group through which the film studios negotiate.
The writers have demands that they feel must be met by management, including concerns over pay, residuals, and the use of artificial intelligence.
Only after the WGA has squared up with the studios will the AMPTP open negotiations with SAG-AFTRA.
In August, an offer was extended to the writers, which they promptly blasted as being ”not nearly enough.” Since then, things have been in a holding pattern, and neither side has returned to the bargaining table yet.
Marvel Studios’ Loki Season 2 premieres on Wednesday, October 6.
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International Court of Justice Rules That Israel Must Stop Killing Palestinians
World BEYOND War
The International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel must cease its warmaking in Gaza — cease committing and inciting genocidal acts — and that the case charging Israel with genocide must proceed.
DETAILS OF THE RULING:
By 15-2: Israel shall take all measures within its power to prevent all acts within the scope of Genocide Convention article 2
15-2: Israel must immediately ensure that its military does not commit acts within the scope of GC.2
16-1: Direct and punish all members of the public who engage in the incitement of genocide against Palestinians
16-1: Ensure provision of urgently needed basic services, humanitarian aid
15-2: Prevent the destruction of and ensure the preservation of evidence to allegation of acts of GC.2
15-2: Israel will submit report as to how they’re adhering to these orders to the ICJ within 1 month
This is Article 2 of the Genocide Convention:
In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
(a) Killing members of the group;
(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;
(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;
(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
Therefore, Israel must cease killing Palestinians.
This was a make or break moment for international law, or rather a break or make-a-first-step moment. There is hope for the idea and reality of international law, but this is only a beginning.
The president of the International Court of Justice, who read the ruling, is Judge Joan Donoghue, former top legal advisor under Hillary Clinton at the U.S. State Department during the Obama Administration. She previously was the lawyer for the United States in its unsuccessful defense before the ICJ against charges by Nicaragua of minining its harbor.
The court voted for portions of this decision by 15-2 and 16-1. The “No” votes came from Judge Julia Sebutinde of Uganda and Ad Hoc Judge Aharon Barak of Israel.
The case presented by South Africa was overwhelming (read it or watch a key part of it), and Israel’s defense paper-thin. And the case just grew more overwhelming during the bizarre delay (yes, courts are slow, but this genocide is swift).
People all over the world built the pressure to move South Africa to act and other nations to add their support. Over 1,500 organizations signed a statement. Individuals signed a petition by CODEPINK, and sent almost 500,000 emails to key governments’ United Nations consulates through World BEYOND War and RootsAction.org. Click those links because more emails are needed now. While several nations have made public statements in support of South Africa’s case, we need them to file papers officially with the International Court of Justice. To reach out to additional national governments, go here.
Governments that have made statement in support of the case against genocide include Malaysia, Turkey, Jordan, Bolivia, the 57 nations of the Organization of Islamic Countries, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Maldives, Namibia, and Pakistan, Colombia, Brazil, and Cuba.
Germany has backed Israel’s defense against the charge of genocide, which has been denounced by Namibia, victimn of a German genocide. Prominent Jews have denounced Germany’s shameful action.
Mass demonstrations in the streets of the world have continued in support of peace and justice, and to a far greater extent than major media outlets have reported.
Here’s a discussion of this campaign for justice with Sam Husseini on Talk World Radio.
Prior to today’s ruling from the International Court of Justice, the U.S. government pointedly refused to say whether it would comply with ruling, despite insisting that other nations comply with rulings by the ICJ.
Hamas said that it would cease fire if Israel does, and release all prisoners if Israel does
Germany, to its credit, reportedly said that it would comply.
Arming a genocide is complicity in genocide. While Israel gets most of its weapons from the United States, other weaponry comes from Germany, Italy, the UK, and Canada — at least some of which nations also provide parts to U.S. weaponsmakers that provide weapons to Israel. Italian opposition demanded an end to it. And then the Foreign Minister claimed Italy had stopped shipments on Oct 7. Meanwhile, Canada is coming under pressure to cease shipments and prevarications. In Canada, Members of Parliament are among over 250 people hunger striking for an arms embargo on Israel.
People in the United States can tell Congress to stop arming Israel here or here.
President Joe Biden already faces a lawsuit for aiding and abetting genocide in Gaza. In November 2023, Palestinian human rights organizations, along with Gaza- and U.S.-based Palestinians, filed suit in a U.S. federal court seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against the Biden Administration for failing to prevent genocide, and for aiding and abetting genocide. The plaintiffs seek an order to end U.S. military and diplomatic support to Israel. A hearing to address the government’s motion to dismiss will be held at 9 a.m. PT / 12 noon ET today, Friday. The hearing will be webstreamed to the public. You are encouraged to tune in and witness the U.S. government’s attempts at avoiding accountability and justify its support for the genocide that is happening in Gaza.
Handed down on Invasion Day (26th Jan in Australia)
How fitting ❤️ 🇵🇸 ❤️ 🇵🇸 ❤️
#free palestine#Genocide#Ethnic cleansing#Apartheid#ICJ#ICJ ruling#ICJ hearing#Palestine#israel is a terrorist state#death to israel#fuck israel#israel is committing genocide#israel is a war criminal#israel is an apartheid state#israel is evil
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(Less Than) Noble Intentions: Chapter 17 - News Flash
Fandom: TRR
Pairing: Drake Walker x F!OC (Harper Gale)
Series Summary: The social season may be over, but Harper Gale’s problems are just beginning. With everyone at court a potential suspect, can she and Drake survive the engagement tour and get to the bottom of the plot against her and clear her name? An AU take of TRR2 featuring my OTP - Harper & Drake.
Masterlist: (Less Than) Noble Intentions
Chapter Summary: Harper and the Beaumonts get on a plane to Italy… but they are not riding solo
Word Count: 4,500
Rating/Warnings: M (using the Lord's name in vain, shocking revelations, possible ulterior motives)
Chapter theme song:
A/N1: And… we’re back! I know this is a bit delayed, thanks to my new Heaven’s Secret distraction, but I am hoping to refocus myself on this continuously neglected series again for the next few weeks/months so we can make some headway towards wrapping it up. Also, I know we all miss him, and he hasn’t had as much page time as we all (Harper included!) probably want, but I promise that after this chapter there will be a lot more Drake again 🥃
A/N2: Astute readers will probably notice that there is nary a train in sight (in this chapter, or any future ones). This is deliberate because (i) I never understood why PB went in that direction in canon (is a travelling boutique really that important?!), and (ii) trains don’t make sense from a security point of view anyway (apparently the UK’s Royalty and Specialist Protection — which provides close protection to the royal family — used to hate it when Elizabeth II travelled by train, because it was always a massive headache to ensure her safety as trains travel on a fixed route and schedule, with no opportunities for diversion or evasion of things go to pot). So… planes it is ✈️
A/N3: Finally, another special shoutout to @thegreentwin for giving me the inspiration to have a crack at creating the tabloid cover page featured in this chapter. If you have not read The Rebel Prince, please do so! It is cute, funny, insightful and the gossip magazine covers that accompany several of the chapters are something else!
Chapter 17 - News Flash
"I thought we're going to Italy..." I remark the next morning as we pull to a stop on the tarmac of a secluded private airfield.
"We are," confirms Bertrand, jamming a fedora onto his head to protect against the ferocity of the morning sun... and hide the brutal sunburn he managed to acquire as a result of spending the entirety of yesterday's Festival outdoors without any SPF protection.
"Then what's with the literal mountain of luggage?" I ask as we step out of our customary limo.
Bertrand fixes me with a red-faced glare over the roof of the vehicle. "Have you learnt nothing from the social season?"
I throw him a deadpan look. "You mean apart from the fact that you insist on packing everything, including the kitchen sink?"
Maxwell's snort drifts up from the backseat.
The elder Beaumont is not impressed with my clapback. "The engagement tour will be one high-profile event after the other, which means that we will have neither the time nor the opportunity to engage in slap-dash shopping sprees. Not only would such proletarian behaviour be rude, but it would be misguided as well, given that we need to ensure that for each event we abide not just by the formal dress code indicated on the invitation, but also that we do not clash with, or indeed overshadow the hosts — or the King and future Queen, for that matter! — in terms of style and colour, all while being thoughtful in ensuring that we incorporate elements from both local and Cordonian designers to visually showcase the strength of the bonds that knit our respective nations together. On top of all that, it is imperative that we—"
"How the heck is anyone expected to pull all that off?" I blurt in disbelief.
"Through careful planning and coordination," Bertrand declares as he comes to join Maxwell and me on the other side of the limo. "Which is why I have taken the liberty of pre-selecting each outfit for each event of the tour, in consultation with the Palace's Master of the Robes."
My mouth drops. "You... Put a wardrobe together? For me?"
"Yes," comes the diffident affirmation. "Given that all eyes — not just those of our fellow Cordonians, but of our host nations' — will be on us constantly, we cannot afford any fashion faux pas."
I stare at my former sponsor mutely, mouth opening and closing like a dumbfounded goldfish.
Maxwell attempts to diffuse my slap-faced reaction with a jovial grin. "Bertrand used to lay my clothes out for me all the time when we were younger. I know he doesn't look it, but he has excellent—"
I shove an accusatory finger out. "He tried to foist me into a Medieval cosplay dress! That is the exact opposite of excellent taste!"
The elder Beaumont bristles. "It was hardly—"
"And how the hell did you afford all of this anyway?" I interject, throwing my arm out towards the carefully stacked Eiffel Tower of suitcases. "Because last time I checked, you were flat broke!"
Bertrand's already ruddy complexion darkens further. "There is no need for you to concern yourself with—"
"How?!"
After the way Maxwell had tried to sell covert photos and Christian and me from New York to the press in a bid to make bank, I am not willing to take any kind of half-baked deflection when it comes to the Beaumonts and money. I've been used one too many times for someone else's gain, so my trust is virtually non-existent at this point.
Bertrand swallows thickly as he averts his eyes. "I... I may have made recourse to an old sewing machine I found in the attic..."
My eyes just about pop out of my head. "You what?!"
I'd expected any one of six million other explanations — he'd sold the vineyard... remortgaged Ramsford... auctioned off every last chair and curtain from the manor... Even offered his soul to the literal Devil...
But using a sewing machine...? To make actual clothes...?
I had obviously caught the sun yesterday as well, and am now suffering from heat stroke...
"Bertrand has always been interested in fashion," explains Maxwell with a perfectly straight face. "He even wanted to enroll at the world-renowned Istituto Marangoni International in Milan to study Fashion Design. But then our father took unexpectedly ill, and—"
"Yes, yes..." interjects Bertrand with an embarrassed wave of his hand. "No need to revisit broken dreams and unfulfilled promises. The point is that I made the best use of what meagre funds and resources we had at our disposal to curate a serviceable selection of outfits for each of us. With a little help from Maxwell, of course."
"I was the mannequin," he declares proudly. "I admit, I got poked a few times in the line of duty, but it was worth it. Bertrand did a stellar job – you're going to love what he made for you."
"I... I don't know what to say..." I admit faintly.
And here I'd been thinking that Bertrand's closet Harry Potter obsession had been a big reveal...
"Yes... Well..." Bertrand clears his throat uncomfortably. "We each have our unique talents. Speaking of... I trust you have been practicing your Italian?"
I frown. "My what?"
"You were supposed to give her lessons!" cries Bertrand, smacking his brother over the back of the head.
Maxwell's retro '60s sunglasses fly off his face. "My Prada’s...!"
"What about French?" Bertrand demands, rounding on me with all the intensity of a furious tomato on the verge of exploding.
"Allard and Schweitzer have been teaching—"
"Some initiative at last!" exclaims Bertrand, throwing his hands up in the air in deliverance. "Good — you'll have some semblance of a basis, then. However, while both languages share a common root — that being Latin — and a border, as a result of roughly fifteen centuries of historical and linguistic divergence, Italian has become markedly different from its Gallic cousin, so we will have our work cut out in making you even semi-proficient by the time we land in Rome. So, I hope you brought pen and paper with you."
My shoulders slump as I watch Bertrand stride off towards the waiting plane. "Great..."
There goes the next hour and a half of my life...
"I knew I had forgotten something..." admits Maxwell, rubbing the back of his head as he retrieves his sunglasses from the tarmac. "But I thought it was just my second favourite pair of boxers."
"It's fine..." I assure wearily him as I begin my own trudge towards the jet. "It wouldn't be a true Beaumont travel experience without a droning Bertrand lecture..."
Though I guess it could be worse. I could be stuck on the royal jet with Christian and Madeleine. Which — after what happened yesterday — would be like staging an aristocratic rendition of Squid Game... 20,000 feet in the air. So, on that basis, I'll willingly subject myself to Bertrand's monologuing any day of the week, if it means I can—
"And there she is..." remarks a familiar, though very much unexpected voice as I step onto the plane. "The woman of the hour."
Jerking my head to the right, my eyes land on Olivia, lounging on one of the cream-coloured leather seats, her killer spike stiletto boots dangling over the armrest as she casually peruses a broadsheet.
"What are you doing here?" I ask in disbelief.
Olivia lowers the paper to meet my eye with a quirked brow. "You mean, on my own aircraft?"
I cast a glance in Bertrand's direction as I make my way down the gangway. "Guess your meagre funds and resources didn't extend to sourcing jet fuel?"
Bertrand coughs evasively as he stores his briefcase in the overhead locker. "Since we are all heading in the same direction anyway, Lady Oliva was kind enough to—"
"Shut it, Beaumont," Olivia snaps. "I am doing this as a personal favour, not an act of charity. As Lord knows that I wouldn't normally tolerate sharing recycled air with this many people in a confined space. So, if you want to stay on this plane, you will save the histrionics for the Italian President."
Bertrand promptly clamps his mouth shut to sink into his seat without another word.
"Wow..." I say, settling in across from Olivia. "He must've been really desperate to come to you for help... No offence."
"None taken," she replies with a breezy shrug as she flips the broadsheet closed and nods to the cabin attendant. "Because the request didn't come from the Beaumonts."
My head snaps up in surprise. "Then who?"
She regards me for a long moment, as if debating whether to tell me. Finally, she lets out a resigned exhale. "Drake."
My jaw hits the floor. "What!"
Olivia scrunches her mouth up ruefully. "He twisted my arm into agreeing to look out for you while he's off playing desert soldier."
I stare at her. "How in the world did he—?"
Maxwell thrusts his head 'round the back of Olivia's seat. "Drake's playing video games! Instead of coming to Italy?”
The Duchess of Lythikos shoves the intruding face away with the palm of her hand. "No, you imbecile! Drake's gone to Dubai." Glancing at me she adds, "I presume they know?"
"They do now," I concede with a sigh.
Thanks to the slew of quick-fire developments at yesterday's Festival, followed by the rabid packing to get ourselves ready for the international leg of the tour, I haven't had a chance to bring the Beaumonts up to speed with everything that's happened in the past twenty-four hours.
But they're bound to find out about Drake's last-minute side-trip at some point, so this is as good a time as any to level with them.
Maxwell’s mouth drops with an aghast look. "But I didn't hit him that hard!"
Olivia quirks a brow at me.
"Long story, don't ask," I tell her wearily. Glancing up at Maxwell, I add, "He's gone after Tariq. Bastien found him hiding out on some rich cousin's yacht out in the bay."
"Oh." Maxwell scratches his head abashedly. "That makes more sense..."
"How do you put up with these two?" asks Olivia with a shake of her head as Maxwell sinks back into his seat.
I give her a shrug. "They have a weird way of growing on you..."
"Like some deadly fungus..." she mutters with a roll of her eyes.
"I heard that!" objects Maxwell from behind her.
"Well, maybe you shouldn't eavesdrop, then!" she throws over her shoulder snidely. Turning back to me, she adds, "And speaking of funguses, you can remind your boyfriend when he gets back that you both owe me. Big time."
My gaze darts to hers. "I— We're not—"
"Thank you for confirming it," she interjects with a sly smile. "But also, I'm not an idiot. It's obvious to anyone with a set of eyes that the fool is in love with you... and you with him. It's all quite disgusting, really..."
I feel my cheeks redden. "So, why help us, then?"
She heaves a low breath. "Because you stuck your neck out for me when you didn't have to. Despite everything I did to try and undermine you during the season. And because we have a common enemy."
She tosses the broadsheet that she'd been reading over to me.
Catching the copy of the Cordonia Sun before it has a chance to slide off the table between us, I glance down...
...and my heart sinks as I take in the unflattering picture of myself seemingly facing off against Madeleine under the sensationalist headline.
I shove the paper angrily away. "Hey. I didn't start it..."
"And yet you somehow always manage to find yourself in the middle of it, don't you?" she counters with an arched brow as the jet revs its engines for take-off. "The half-nude pictures... The Beaumonts' financial troubles... The speculations about the real reason Christian gave you a duchy... I mean, even the Duchess of Sussex would have a hard time competing with you when it comes to front-page scandals."
"And you think Madeleine is behind it all?" I ask tightly, indicating the tabloid.
"She would certainly have a lot to gain from waging a targeted media campaign against you," Olivia affirms. "She isn't married to Christian yet, and after what happened with Leo, she no doubt feels threatened by your continued presence at court. So, discrediting your integrity in the eyes of the Council would help her ensure that Christian can never formally pick you over her to become Queen."
"Because she doesn't know I turned him down..." I grumble dejectedly as the plane pulls into the air.
"And certainly would not believe you if you told her, either," she adds. "But she is not the only one with something to lose."
I sit up straighter. "You mean there are other suspects?"
"Yes," she nods. "Namely Godfrey and the Queen Mother."
Bertrand erupts from his seat at the mention of the two names. "That is an outrageous accusation! The Queen Mother would never—!"
"Madeleine is her niece," counters Olivia flatly. "Given that she has no children of her own, she practically treats that golden-haired harpy as if she is her heir. And since she was the one who brokered the original marriage contract between Leo and Madeleine, she clearly doesn't want all that work going to waste."
I frown. "But if everything was in place already, why have a social season at all? Why not just sub out Leo's name for Christian's in the contract?"
"To give Christian the illusion of choice."
My jaw drops. "You're not serious..."
"It would have been in poor taste to simply swap one prince out for another," Olivia advises. "Leo hadn't died... merely abdicated. But that decision nevertheless rocked the kingdom to its core."
"It's true," supplies Maxwell, leaning around with a mouth full of jelly worms. "The headlines were vicious."
"So..." I muse with a frown. "The Palace needed a distraction?"
"Yes," Oliva affirms seriously. "To draw attention away from Constantine's failing health."
"Wait," I cut in. "Constantine is dying?"
Olivia nods. "Prostate cancer. By all estimates, he has less than a year to live."
"Oh, my God..." I gasp, hand flying to my mouth. "No wonder Christian didn't want to talk about it..."
"The Palace is under strict instructions to keep the whole thing tightly under wraps..." she explains. "At least until after the coronation and wedding are both out of the way. They don't want the news to overshadow the first few critical months of Christian's rule."
"So, how did you find out?" I query.
She cuts her eyes over at me. "Like I said at the Masquerade Ball... Christian and I share a special connection. There are no secrets between us. Also – look at who you're talking to. I have files on each of the suitors from the social season. You seriously think I wouldn't know about something as vital to the functioning of the kingdom as the state of the King Father's health?"
"I guess not..." I concede, still trying to process this bombshell. "But how does giving Christian an illusion of a choice during the social season help cover up Constantine's cancer?"
"In the wake of Leo's abdication, support for the Rys family fell to an all-time low. The press started to question Constantine's policies, and the direction that the kingdom has been heading over the past few decades, implying that the country's current trajectory was unsustainable... and uncorrectable."
"I remember reading something about that on the flight from New York..." I recall. "There were suggestions that Leo abdicated because he didn't believe in the future of the monarchy."
"Which wasn't the case at all," she cautions. "But the Palace was worried that such intense media scrutiny would unearth evidence of Constantine's ill health... which would in turn intensify the calls from the republican factions of the country to abolish the system of hereditary rule completely. So, in a desperate bid to reunite the people behind a common cause, and shore up support for the monarchy, the Palace decided run the season again."
"But why?" I ask, still not seeing the connection.
"To charm the country with the fairytale of a royal romance," denotes Olivia sourly. "Because people apparently go ga-ga for that shite..."
Bertrand narrowly avoids choking in his seat across the aisle. "That is a crude and absolutely salacious interpretation of—!"
I whirl across the aisle. "Wait. You knew about this?"
Bertrand folds his arms across his chest. "I am a serving member of the Council. Of course I knew about the Palace's decision to run the social season again. But to suggest that it was all done simply for the sake of—"
"God, you're thick..." interjects Olivia.
Bertrand blanches. "I beg your pardon?!"
"You've been at court long enough to know that the truth is never the whole truth — there is always some hidden purpose or ulterior motive."
"But to suggest that—"
"The Palace needed a believable story — one that could capture the public's imagination — while still serving the needs of the kingdom," Olivia states. "A story of duty and love."
"Between Christian and Madeleine?" I ask sceptically. "But they don't even like each other."
"So?" scoffs Olivia. "The aim was to sell the lie to the populace. Everything else is inconsequential. And can be made to fit the narrative."
"But if you knew all this," I counter, "why did you join the competition?"
"I joined exactly because I knew the season was a sham," she replies heatedly. "To give Christian a genuine choice... not just the one that everyone else was determined to steer him towards."
"Because you love him..."
Olivia nods tightly. "Yes. And I knew it was a long shot. But even if he wouldn't end up being able to choose me — Regina would've made sure to stack the Council votes in her favour — at least I could be there to support him... as a friend."
I feel my heart go out to her, knowing from personal experience how difficult it is to be in a situation where you desperately want to be with someone, but can't because of circumstances that are outside of your control.
"But then, of course..." adds Olivia, once again with her customary breeziness, "you show up from out of nowhere with your hideous accent and relatable backstory—"
"Hey!"
"—and the whole country — Christian included — loses their collective minds. With the result that Regina's plan to make her niece Queen begins to unravel at the seams."
"Which is why she decided to set me up..." I surmise heavily as the jet levels off.
It's been fairly obvious from the start that I'm not Regina's favourite person... But the knowledge that she'd go to such lengths to publicly blacklist me? That's just inexcusable.
"You have no proof of that!" objects Bertrand, butting in again.
"Not directly, no," Olivia admits. "But all the evidence we have to date fits. The money Tariq received for his involvement came from a numbered account located in Switzerland. The blackmail letters distributed at the Coronation Ball were printed on Palace stationery. And as far as motives go, the Queen Mother would have more reason than most to influence the outcome of the social season."
"I cannot believe I am hearing this...!" decries Bertrand with a shake of his head. "The implications alone would be—"
"Ruinous to the Rys family," confirms Olivia. "I am aware. Which is why we must tread carefully in order to avoid tarring Christian with any of this. The monarchy would not survive the ensuing scandal."
"What about this other guy?" I ask. "Godfrey? How does he fit into this?"
Olivia throws her hands up. "Lord, you're more clueless than him!"
"Excuse me for not knowing every single Cordonian nobleman by name," I snark back. "I've only been a duchess for a day..."
"I'll send you my files," Olivia huffs wearily. "All two hundred of them."
My eyes widen. "There's two hundred—?"
"There's more, but those are the important ones," she replies with a dismissive wave of her hand. "And if you want to be an effective duchess, I suggest you study up because you need to have the entire contents of those dossiers memorised and ready to deploy in any given conversation."
"Sweet Jesus..." I gasp faintly, making recourse to Drake's favourite invective, as it certainly fit the magnitude of the task Olivia has just dumped on me.
"You didn't grow up in this world, so you have a lot of catching up to do," Olivia shrugs unabashedly.
"Yeah, I'm very much aware of that..." I concede dryly, rubbing my temples. "So, who is this Godfrey?"
"The Third Earl of Huntford, and Duke jure uxoris of Krona."
My brows furrow in recollection. "Krona... Does that mean he's—?"
"He's Madeleine's dad," supplies Maxwell, popping his head into the aisle again, this time in the company of a CapriSun juice pouch.
My eyes widen. "The man at the garden party! But what does he have against me? I've never even met him!"
"The fact that you are still here..." offers Olivia blandly. "Competing against his daughter for the attentions of the King."
"It's not exactly a competition," I scoff. "I'm not trying to steal him away from her."
"Except that isn't how the press is portraying it," counters Olivia pointedly, tapping the front page of the Sun.
I open my mouth again, but quickly shut it, realising that Olivia is right. As regardless of my personal reasons for being back at court — as the Royal Consort, no less! — the view from the outside presents very differently. And given that Madeleine herself clearly feels threatened by my continued presence at Christian's side, it's no small jump to imagine that her father — who, based on what I saw at the garden party a few days ago, is just as power-hungry and image-conscious as his daughter — would also feel the same.
"Crap..." I huff, falling back into my seat dejectedly.
"Not the most elegant of phrasing," muses Olivia. "But certainly succinct."
"What am I going to do?" I ask morosely, starting up at the cabin's air vents.
"Help me gather as much proof as we can during the course of the tour," Olivia instructs. "So we can narrow down our suspect list... or indict all three of them. In either case, we will be more effective if we work together."
"That plan is akin to sedition!" cries Bertrand, clearly aghast by the very suggestion. "Bordering on treason! All of us are in enough hot water already without—"
"Which is why it is imperative that no word of anything that we have just discussed leaves this aircraft," declares Olivia with a steely look. "Or I will personally hunt you down and turn your face inside out."
I gulp at the gruesomeness of that particular image. "What... What about the staff? Can you trust them?"
"They are all Lythikosians," Olivia states. "Who have sworn blood-oaths to House Nevrakis. They would never dare betray me."
"Good to know..." I admit, watching the cabin attendant re-appeared with a selection of drinks, and wondering if underneath her uniform she is as armed to the teeth as Olivia supposedly is.
"I presume the same goes for your beefcakes?" asks Olivia, nodding her chin towards the back where Allard and Schweitzer have taken up residence for the duration of the flight.
"Yes," I confirm. "I trust them with my life."
She dips her head in approval. "Good. So, as first order of business, I suggest—"
"Can we tell Hana?" interjects Maxwell, bobbing up from behind Olivia again. "She's helping us, too!"
Olivia heaves a breath. "Yes, fine. But—"
I hold up a hand. "And Drake will probably want t—"
"Yes, fine!" she snaps irately. "Anyone else? Your maternal grandmother, perhaps?"
I bite my bottom lip as I peek up at her. "Do we tell Christian?"
Olivia holds my gaze for a long moment. "No. Not until we have concrete proof. One way or another. He has enough crises to manage right now without lumbering him with a major constitutional one as well."
I nod in understanding. The mere suggestion that his godmother and future father-in-law have been conspiring to put Madeleine on the throne (potentially with his fiancée's own buy-in!) would be soul-destroying. Which is why we need to find that smoking gun — ideally several — before we present our accusations.
"Not sure if it will be of any help at all," I say, "but Ana de Luca managed dig up some information on the freelance photographer Tariq was working with on the day of the Jamboree."
"Did you bribe her with another exclusive?" chaffs Olivia dryly.
"We'll need someone to help us set the record straight," I affirm. My shoulders slump suddenly. "But I gave the flash-drive to Drake."
"Which he gave to me," smirks Olivia, pulling the device from the pocket of her jacket.
I gape at the piece of plastic in her hand. "Drake really trusts you, huh?"
"More than most," she shrugs coyly, flipping the drive over to me.
I catch it with both hands. "We should review whatever is on here. Who knows? Maybe the photographer is part of the press corps covering the tour."
"I have my laptop with me," Maxwell offers. "I was going to use it to mix some tunes, but—"
"You'll only get one chance to unravel a high-stakes aristo racket!" I quip, dangling the drive between my fingers.
"God, your incessant American optimism is stomach-turning..." Olivia groans. "And you've clearly spent too much time with Walker."
"Hey," I hit back. "This is the best lead we've gotten yet. We shouldn't discount it. This photographer could be key to linking Regina and/or Godfrey to the plot to influence the outcome of the social season."
"Assuming you can find them..." counters Olivia. "And get them to talk."
I meet her eye with a level look. "Good thing that's your area of expertise, isn't it, Duchess?"
The corner of her mouth lifts craftily.
"But what about Harper's Italian!" disparages Bertrand. "We'll be landing in less than an hour, and she still doesn't know the proper way to greet the President in his native tongue without insulting him!"
I swallow a groan. "Do I really need t—?"
"Being able to carry a conversation with the Head of State in Italian will go a long way in demonstrating to both the public and the press that you are serious about your new role as Duchess of Valtoria," he advises frankly. "And will score you some much-needed diplomatic points with our hosts as well."
"Guess we have our work cut out for us, then," I accede with a sigh. "Any chance for some coffee?"
"Turkish, Irish, or Sicilian?" asks Olivia.
"Which is closest to a latte?"
"Probably the Sicilian," she advises. "If you make it into a granita di caffe."
"I'm feeling Italian already!" I gibe in an attempt to lighten the mood a bit.
Bertrand groans loudly from his seat. "Oh, Dio..."
The story continues in Chapter 18 - Diplomatica
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#harper gale#drake walker#the royal romance#less than noble intentions#maxwell beaumont#bertrand beaumont#olivia nevrakis#trr au fanfic#Spotify
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Nayeon and Momo had been married for a good two years by now, shockingly young for two women who were only 26 and 25 respectively.
This came after three years of dating and one year of engagement. Of ups and downs, lows and highs, and several breaks in between. Typical of dating at such ripe ages.
Even when they were engaged, they nearly called it off. The trouble only lasted a week, but Nayeon would say it was one of the scariest points in her life. Momo would too. The thought of losing someone who you had spent so much time with and dedicated your life to…
But in the end, everything led back to Nayeon and Momo. They could never be apart for too long.
Of course they still had disagreements. Nayeon working too many hours, the possibility of getting another pet. but for the most part they had sorted their shit out, and now had a marriage that made it near impossible to tell they had once been on such shaky ground.
But there lied the problem with Nayeon. The very problem that had been a source of many a disagreement and many falling outs.
You see, Nayeon’s sexual appetite was only satisfied by multiple people.
And funnily enough, Momo functioned the same way.
It took them a long time to realize that they weren’t inherently bad people for it. And even longer to realize they could come to an agreement and set boundaries for their activities.
That being said, you would think the big shocker, the issue that almost brought their marriage to a crashing end would be related to cheating. Yet neither of them have ever done such a thing.
It’s not to say they didn’t both have thoughts, or wandering eyes. But those thoughts remained deeply repressed for both of them. It lead to times where they thought they were bored of each other, or that they had fallen in love with other women, but no. That was never the case.
Nayeon loved Momo and Momo loved Nayeon. Romantically, they only had eyes for each other.
But sexually? Well…
To put a long story short, it took them a whole weeks worth of discussions to finally put that bit in order and another week of working it out for the engagement to be back on. And by the time they finally said their “i do’s” they had a new look on life and their relationship.
It should be noted that on their slightly-delayed honeymoon, a month later, they’d invited Jeongyeon. And of course they’d taken her to bed nearly every night of their stay.
Insatiable. That’s what you could call them.
So here they were, 2 years in and happy, with Nayeon cooking dinner for a change while she waited for Momo to come back from her little “excursion.”
She was glad Momo had taught her some tips and tricks for the kitchen. Her newfound love of cooking was something she never thought she’d unlock. But once she didn’t have to worry about setting the kitchen ablaze every five minutes, it became relaxing. She could zone out, destress, and just have a little time to herself.
She had just finished up skimming the top of the boiling pot of beef curry when the door knob started to jangle.
Kookeu scampered away from her feet, currently more interested in his other mother’s return than the delicious smell wafting through the kitchen.
“That smells so good…”
She heard Momo before she saw her,
and could only imagine the pleased look om her face. When she rounded the corner into the kitchen, she was proven right (with Kookeu nearly tripping her up in the process).
She licked her lips, and Nayeon couldn’t help but notice the little bounce of energy in her step, the way she practically glowed, and how her hair that was in a neat pony tail when she left was now down and tussled up.
She must’ve had a great time out.
“Hi sweetheart,” Nayeon set the mesh ladle down carefully onto the tray, “How was Mina?”
She opened her arms for Momo’s impending hug, which came so easily, her wife slipping so perfectly into her embrace.
“The usual,” Momo gave Nayeon a quick kiss, “Good, but a little pent up from work.”
“I’m sure you helped her with that,” Nayeon laughed, turning back to the pot. She set the lid on top of it to let it continue cooking as Momo practically skipped over to the couch.
“Of course,” she singsonged, plopping herself down on the chair of their small dining room a few steps away, “And now you have me all to yourself.”
“For now,” Nayeon scoffed, wiping her hands on her apron. Though they both knew there was no bite to it. Just a harmless joke at the absurdity of their self-imposed circumstances.
That aside, Nayeon wasn’t expecting to get the response she got next.
“For a while, actually.”
Nayeon’s hands stopped at the implication of those words. She snapped her head up, looking at Momo curiously. “Oh?”
In a second, she stood next to where Momo sat, eager for the details. Of course, Momo continued.
“Sana’s staying with Jeongyeon and Jihyo for a bit. Trying to… ,” she flicked her wrist, gesturing in the air towards nothing in particular, “work things out I guess.”
Which meant Jeongyeon and Jihyo were most likely off the table for Nayeon too.
“Is that so… well. Good luck to those three.”
“Good luck is right,” Momo agreed, cuddling into her wife the moment she sat down next to her.
There was more to it, that they both wanted to say. But it’d be a but unfair to call judgement so early. It’s not their business… but it also kind of is. So they let that unspoken discussion go for another time.
Don’t get them wrong, they knew their relationship had its kinks (the pun fully intended), but those three had much more to work out. While Nayeon and Momo were only romantically involved with each other, Jeongyeon, Jihyo and Sana were not, with Jihyo being a sort of middle man for the other two. Jeongyeon and Sana barely knew each other, which wasn’t shocking. Nayeon only knew her well because of how long she’s been friends with Momo.
She’d started out as just “Momo’s best fuckbuddy friend” a year ago, and slowly worked her way into the friend group, and then into Jihyo’s heart.
Now they didn’t hook up nearly as often because that was a whole situation on its own. But there was nothing they could do except hope for the best between everyone.
“Hmm….”
There was a purposeful lilt to Nayeon’s vocalization, one that begged for Momo to acknowledge it.
“Hm?” Momo took the bait so easily.
“If they’re still trying to figure things out by the end of the week, do you want to hit up that club in the city?” Nayeon smiled so cutely. All teeth, as if the prospect of what she was asking for was normal.
Well, it was their version of normal.
“The usual one for…?”
Nayeon nodded before Momo could even finish the question.
“For a little one time thing, yeah. Only if you feel up to it.”
Momo shook her head, but still pulled her wife in for a tender kiss on the forehead. “You’re restless this week.”
“Says the one who just got back from screwing Mina.”
“Ok, ok,” Momo knew she had her there, “I’ll let you know, but the answer as of right now is a yes.”
“Oh I knew it would be,” Nayeon laughed. After all, she knew her wife too well. She could deny it, but they both knew she was never one to turn down an opportunity to have fun with Nayeon. On her own, or with others, sure. But when it came to her wife, there was no one she’d rather do it with more, as crazy as that might have sounded out loud.
She just hoped that getting lucky would come quick and easy that weekend, if that was what they had to look forward to instead of having Jeongyeon over.
Patience was never one of her virtues.
#tied together au#is the name for now#namo#debating whether to keep this here or ao3 but for now i start here
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what is going on with thunderbolts??
Several things bestie. I’ll try to keep this as concise and calm as possible:
- if we’re first talking about real life, there has been stuff going on for a while because the script was rewritten twice and changed directors months ago. And It keeps getting delayed for reasons the now unrelated to the strike.
- Second real life issue is apparently something about it just sucks, because three actors have dropped. A long time ago, the person who plays Ava Starr, Hannah John-Kamen supposedly dropped out. However, there’s rumors that Goliath is in it so it’s unclear if maybe they negotiated to get Hannah back in the cast.
- Steven Yuen was supposed to be the main antagonist, he dropped out of it recently and marvel went to several actors to take his place, and multiple rejected it. Now, Ayo Edebiri (who was supposed to play Val’s assistant) has also dropped the movie. These are confirmed by the actors themselves.
- They are very obviously trying to recreate James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad after they seen how successful it was, however they’re very blatant about it. It’s barely hidden that they’re actually trying to create their own version of what their competitor made but the issue is that they aren’t actually thinking or trying to make a good, compelling story here. It’s solely cash grab and trying to get hype. That’s it.
- Bonus for real life issues: This isn’t talked about a lot and it’s messy, unclear situation, but essentially the team of people writing and directing Thunderbolts are actually proud rapist defenders.
Now let’s get into the issues with the movie itself and why I (and many many others) think it’s gonna be awful:
- Just to give a basis, other than some people here on tumblr, majority of the rest of the MCU fan base does not want this movie to be made. It’s a pretty general consensus amongst everyone that what they’re doing is not good. And I’m saying this just so you know I’m far from the only one with these opinions.
- The villain of the movie is Sentry/Void. Which is an absolutely awesome character but it makes absolutely zero sense for him, one of the most powerful characters, to be the antagonist against a team of 3 super soldiers and 3 regular humans. Realistically he would obliterate them, and for the thunderbolts to beat him, it’d take a lot of plot armor. And to me, that’s not only a waste of Sentry as character but also a waste of a movie. Because me and most others, don’t want to watch a movie where the protagonists only win because of plot armor. I wanna watch something thought out, engaging, where the threat is real and the end battle is hard because they’re on par. This is not that. And Sentry/Void could be used with other characters in such a cool way, there’s so much potential that’s been thrown out by doing this.
- With him being the villain, what’s been confirmed to happen in the third act is that Sentry will become Void, but the void is a new dimension in the multiverse. That’s literally what he becomes and the thunderbolts have to enter it. For one, that makes absolutely no damn sense to do for this movie and two, they already have a dimension in the mcu called the void. It’s in Loki.
- If they are gonna have team with only hand to hand combat abilities, then it should be a grounded, more street level movie. And it’s not. And it’s fucking stupid.
- There’s no power/ability diversity on the team which makes it kinda boring for one, but two, if they’re gonna have an extremely powerful villain, they need a team that’s not just people who know combat. There’s so many characters who should be Thunderbolts that would be more fitting and make the movie more interesting. White Vision should absolutely be there, especially considering that he’s government property. It makes no sense that he wouldn’t be on a government team and he alone would bring some uniqueness to the skill set. Abomination should be there. Zemo, despite being a normal human, should absolutely be on the team considering he was the actual founder and primary leader of it in the comics. For fucks sake they could introduce a new character or two just to give the team some interesting abilities.
- I’ve been saving this for last. As a Bucky fan, obviously one of my biggest issues is that he’s apart of the team. I’m gonna try to keep this short, but he doesn’t belong there, it doesn’t make sense for him to be on the team after the past ten years of his arc and development. All this time he’s been the good guy victim who’s overcome the fact that he was manipulated and used by the villains. But now, they’re pivoting into villainizing him, which is not speculation, Feige and other people involved have made several quotes now claiming he’s bad.
- Even if it’s technically comics accurate, Bucky is a very different character in the MCU than he is in the comics. He’s a much more violent and rough character in the comics because that’s all he’s ever known, he was raised as a child soldier then became an assassin. In the mcu, unlike the other characters on the team, he is not morally grey. Yes, what he does have in common with Yelena and Taskmaster is that he was mind controlled and is now a hero, but it’s a very different situation. Yelena and Taskmaster were from birth raised as assassins, even if they’re reformed and free now, the only thing they have experienced and been taught is violence, they have a rougher edge, they’re very much morally grey because of it. Bucky on the other hand, lived a normal life until he was nearly 30 years old. He was grown man when hydra took him. In those 30 years, he developed a strong moral compass and I’d say it’s close to that of Steve’s. Take Hawkeye as an example, even though Yelena is a good guy now, she was still perfectly fine with killing Clint because she viewed him as a bad person. She’s not afraid to kill someone if she deems it necessary. Bucky, on the other hand would not do that. He consistently talks about how he doesn’t want to kill or severely hurt anyone, whether they’re a villain or not. And in TFATWS, he even pulls his punches. Also he doesn’t kill Zemo when he has the opportunity, Yelena (and definitely any other team member) would have. That’s a big part of where the difference lies and how they’re not following what’s been established for his character.
- Also it’s claimed that Bucky is supposed to be the leader of the team which is another thing that’s out of character. For one, he’d never willingly join this team and lead it. Basically the only way is if he was forced by conditions of his pardon. Two, he doesn’t have the leadership skills, he’s not a natural leader, he’s always preferred to be the side kick and let someone else take the lead. Three, there’s no way in hell he could actually manage that team and get any one of them to respect him and follow his authority. I’m sorry but they would absolutely all brush him off as a joke. Even TFATWS, John Walker uses Bucky as a damn doormat yet I’m expect to believe he and other people like him will listen to what Bucky says? No.
For your sake, this is all and this is the simplified version of my thoughts because I don’t wanna make this longer than it already is. But yeah, I don’t know if you’ll disagree with me, but I think this is just a damn mess of a movie that either needs to be entirely scrapped or be revised top to bottom.
#I’m very sorry for how long this is#I tried my best to keep it short but….#anyways yeah I’m extremely anti-thunderbolts and I’m manifesting it just gets cancelled at this point#asks#thunderbolts#mcu#marvel#bucky barnes
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if you’re doing the fanfic trope mash up, can i suggest 42 and 56 for jangosoka?
Fanfiction Trope MASH-UP: Send me two (2) tropes from this list + a ship and I’ll describe how I’d combine them in the same story.
This ask meme is from over a year ago. Please don't send new prompts.
42. The Big Damn Kiss
56. Awful First Meeting
Okay, so: time travel, as is standard for this ship
We'll say Ahsoka is ehhhh 23, has been doing Fulcrum stuff for five or so years, is very competent but not perfect. She falls into the past, as one does, shows up about a year pre-Galidraan, so Jango is 21.
Ahsoka has slipped into some undercover work, eeling her way into the upper echelons of society, attending galas and events and so on in fancy dresses and jewelry. How is she funding this? However you want. Maybe she robbed a Hutt. Maybe she has the codes to some shadow accounts nobody knows she's accessing. Maybe she found teenage Bail and talked him into bankrolling her based on The Future. Doesn't matter.
(Actually, the Bail thing would make a great fic on its own, especially if Ahsoka were young enough to pretend to be his girlfriend. Tell me that wouldn't be hilarious. Not here, but somewhere. Bail is absolutely in love with Breha, but like... the fate of the Republic! The fate of the Jedi! That's a cool thing to be doing! With a cool person!)
Point is, she's lying to a lot of very wealthy, very dangerous people when she shows up at these things. She could have theoretically tricked her way into being someone's long-term date, but that would mean dating to attend more than one, and she's not doing that. Better to just pretend to be the heiress to a company from the rims that's very rich but not quite rich enough for everyone in the Core to have heard of.
She is using these events to spy, of course. Slipping into hotel rooms to slice datapads, bugging white collar criminals with a tap to their favorite watch, wandering into servant's tunnels while pretending to be drunk, all the usual fun stuff.
She gets caught, of course.
Jango's side of the story starts about when Ahsoka's does, with him hearing tales of someone stealing information and sabotaging deals, and he gets hired as security by one of those especially important events. He keeps an eye on this, and he... notices Ahsoka.
He does not notice her as a spy, but as a person who is being harassed by an intoxicated, rich old man, whom she'd clearly like to ditch but cannot safely do so.
(At least, as far as he can tell. We know her better than that.)
Jango steps in, because it's not like he's got a lot to do right now, and intercepting drunk old men has been about the only interesting thing he's had to do all night. Ahsoka... I mean, she thanks him. Technically. She doesn't hide her distaste for him as a person. Jango would think this is just about him being Mandalorian, except she doesn't react as negatively to any of the others. She's neutral and ignores most of them, but there are two moments where she interacts positively, laughing at a joke or something. So. She just doesn't like him.
The night ends without incident. It's not until weeks later that there's an information leak. It could have happened during the party Jango was guarding, but it could have happened at any of three other incidents that same month. There was at least one midnight break-in, several days after the party; there's a solid chance his presence did discourage whoever this spy was from engaging, and made them delay their actions to a Plan B.
Months later, he's doing personal guard duty for the king of something or other. It's another gala or fundraiser or coronation or--honestly, he doesn't care. He's getting paid to keep this one specific person safe, and that's all that matters.
He's not the only mando there, so when he sees a young woman, vaguely familiar, stumble out of the hall with an expression that says 'drunk' as much as it does 'roofied,' he doesn't commit any dereliction of duty by excusing himself to just... see that she's okay. The woman is familiar, even if he can't place her. That usually means something; what if she's an assassin he's run into before, here to kill his client?
(That really is why he's following her. If she's familiar but unplaceable, that usually means she's In The Business.)
He follows her at a safe distance, and sees her ask for a bathroom, get pointed in the right direction, and then... go down the wrong hallway, and enter a room that he's pretty sure is supposed to be locked.
He gives it a few seconds, edging closer slow enough that his boots can't be heard (the music and carpet both help muffle the noise, but he's still wearing a lot of metal), and then opens the door to a library-esque space.
The "drunk" girl is hard at work slicing into a computer terminal she 100% should not be at.
They stare at each other.
"Give me one good reason to not shoot y--"
"I can give you intel on Death Watch."
Jango pauses. Considers. It is not his job to keep information safe, this time. His job is to just keep one specific man alive, and this is an unrelated crime.
There are footsteps in the hall, and he sees her start to look around the room for an exit route. He tries not to think too hard on how she was planning on making the very-much-screwed-into-the-wall vent work.
"Fine," he says, and she looks quick at him, and then at the door, and then disengages from the computer and hops the desk to--plaster herself against him?
She giggles, high and drunken, and fumbles for his helmet. "Oh, come on, Mr. Mando, just a kiss? Just one ki--I told my friends I'd run into a Mand--ma--Mandaloriana... Just a kiss! I wanna--wanna one-up 'em..."
He hears the door crack open, and has no idea what he's supposed to do to play along to this... cover? Cover, sure. "Ma'am, I'm on a job."
"And you can't play? Your friends are totally--"
There's a cough from the door, and Jango turns, and the security guard that actually works here is grimacing.
"You can't be in here."
They manage to talk their way out of suspicion, something about how she claimed she'd seen something important but was just trying to seduce him, does the guard know anywhere a drunk guest can be deposited? Thanks.
She does give him information, but she disappears before he can learn anything more about her.
(Galidraan is avoided, oh so narrowly, because of what she gives him. He may never know how close it really was.)
Months pass. He gets invited an event that isn't a job, but is rather some large gladiatorial event. He's not a fan of it--he's pretty sure the fighters aren't nearly as voluntary as people are claiming--but he goes. He watches.
A familiar face enters the arena. He stiffens.
His helmet can zoom in and analyze, and he finds that the cuffs she wears are Force-dampening.
Definitely not willing.
He dithers too long to figure out how to help, or if he even can, because she wins her fight (no deaths in these matches; makes it expensive to find new combatants), and is ushered out, and Jango himself is invited to an afterparty. Someone tells him that the winning gladiators get to attend. It's a reward, the food and fancy outfits. Even 'the pretty one you seemed to like' is going to be there.
People are still pretending that the combatants are voluntary. Jango grits his teeth. He goes.
He finds her, removes his helmet, meets her eyes from across the room. She is bruised and bandaged, but alert. She blinks at him, slow and measuring, and then taps her lips twice.
He doesn't understand, until she signs--where did she learn Mando battle sign?--and asks him to lie and say they're a couple.
(Well, she's using battle sign, not actual MSL, but he's pretty sure 'cover spouse you self extraction' is... yeah. Sure, that sign for cover is usually about cover from fire, and 'spouse' is a splice of 'law' and 'partner' that is usually hard enough without trying to hide everything, but he thinks he got the gist.)
(He does kind of owe her; the information she gave him was more useful than he'd expected, and even if it hadn't been, he can probably convince her to share something else as 'payment' for getting her out of this.)
He stomps through the crowd, pushing people out of the way, and then sweeps her into his arms and bends her backwards to plant the showiest kiss he can on her.
He holds it long enough for the silence to spread, and then pulls them back upright, closes his eyes, presses his forehead to hers, and hopes that it's enough to sell it to the people around them.
His hands drift down to her wrists, a calculated move that looks natural if he's lucky, and asks quietly for them to remove the cuffs.
Jango Fett is a very heavily-armored, heavily-armed man. People read into his quiet the way he wants them to: that he is very close to slaughtering a whole lot of them, and trying incredibly hard to stay calm.
There are cuff removals, and 'negotiations' for Ahsoka's freedom (he still doesn't even know her name, but he hears the fake she gave to the people who arrested her), and she leaves the planet on his arm, and on his spaceship.
She explains that getting arrested and sent to the gladiatorial arena was part of a greater plan, but that her extraction partner was delayed. They might be dead. She doesn't know, but she was already planning her own escape. She tells him she's gotten out of worse scrapes before.
The fic would end with them separating, and her promising to come find him again. Any sequel would involve a reveal of the Future thing, possibly after a one-night stand.
#ahsoka tano#jango fett#jangosoka#star wars#the clone wars#sw legends#time travel#phoenix answers memes#this was meant to be a 'how would you' not-fic but it ended up. half fic
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Mediation - Chapter 2 - TIGmas Day #9
And now, with no further delay, Chapter 2 of @thedeadsingforme's TIGmas request! I've got a busy weekend planned, but then I'm off for a week, so I'm really hoping to sit down, shut up, and get the rest of this done!
Happy Valentine's Day, y'all! Enjoy a bit of (questionably) platonic fluff between Terry and Reader (y'know, when they're not arguing) for you to celebrate the occasion!
Previous Chapters: Prologue | Chapter 1
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Mediation
Chapter 2: Diversion
---
– The next day –
Reader’s POV:
You are utterly exhausted as you drive to the precinct the next morning. You’d slept fitfully the night before, trying to figure out the best way to convince Terry to at least hear his former friend out. The tension between the two of them was overwhelming last night, and you’re more certain than ever that Terry’s obsessiveness and tendency to see everything in a firm, unyielding dichotomy stem from what he saw as Cash betraying his trust. Forgiving Cash – or at the very least hearing him out – is imperative for Terry to get the closure he needs to heal and move on. Rather than time working in his favour, his resentment and its accompanying anger have only grown during the years of his friend’s absence, and while you hadn’t been around during the initial months of Terry coping with the loss of his friend, you’d seen enough in the intervening years to know that his issues will only continue to fester until they’ve taken away everything wonderful about him.
And then there was Cash. While the time apart had made Terry grow bitter towards their friendship, the opposite seemed to be the case for Cash. You had only spoken briefly last night, but your conversation had provided a lot of insight into the man’s mentality. He was hell-bent on earning Terry’s forgiveness and repairing their relationship, seeming to attach all hopes for his redemption towards reconnecting with his close friend and former partner. The separation made Terry closed-off, paranoid, almost overwhelmingly protective at times, but Cash clearly liked to rile people up just to get a reaction out of them; anything at all was better than the silence he’s had from Terry.
You’d long wanted reconciliation between the two men for Terry’s sake, but speaking with Cash yesterday, seeing the pain in his eyes as Terry refused to engage with him… you find you want to help for his sake as well.
But how could you get Terry to listen to reason?
You’re not even sure that you should tell him you stuck around and spoke to Cash last night. He’d stormed off so quickly, you’d barely been able to tell him to call you and let you know he’d gotten home safely – it wouldn’t be the first time he’d disappeared for awhile while in a state of emotional turmoil.
But sure enough, there had been a message from his home number waiting for you when you got home, the red light of the answering machine blinking at you as soon as you’d walked in the door. His curt “I’m fine.” had upset you, but it wasn’t unexpected. You just wish there was something, anything you could do to get the two of them in a room together and have them hear each other out.
…You don’t want to think too highly of yourself, but it was largely your presence that had helped Terry somewhat return to his former self, both when you were brought on to replace Cash as his partner, and after the incident with Frankie and Devlin. If anyone could lead the big stubborn horse that was Terry McCain to water and make him drink, it would be you.
Pulling into your assigned parking spot beneath the precinct, you brace yourself for a day of intense observation – you’ll need to wait for the perfect opportunity to get through to Terry.
---
It isn’t until the late afternoon, driving back to the precinct with Terry after conducting lengthy interviews with several witnesses to a bank robbery, that you feel the moment is right. The interviews had been productive, you’d stopped for coffee at his favourite spot, and you had a good half hour on the road before you got back to the office.
“Hey Ter?” you ask, trying to sound casual and not nervous. You keep your eyes glued to Terry’s profile as he keeps his own on the road; you’ll need to look closely for any emotional response he may let slip.
“Oh no, what do you want?” Terry jokes, glancing over at you with an arched brow and an amused smile.
“I really, really want to talk to you about you and Cash.”
His smile fades, and his grip tightens so much on the steering wheel that you can hear his knuckles crack. You refuse to break the silence, giving him the time he needs to process.
“I thought we agreed that that was a subject not worth bringing up, Y/N.”
“I know, Terry, I know. But I just… last night I could just tell how much you meant to each other, and how hurt you both are, and I know you’re angry at him. I know –”
“You don’t, though,” Terry interjects, and you can tell by the deceptively soft tone he’s using that he’s really trying to maintain his composure and not tell you off. Part of you wishes he would; anything would be better than watching him bottle up his rage and never let it out.
“You don’t know anything about this, Y/N, and I want it to stay that way.”
“Terry, please, can you just hear me out?” you plead. “I’ve watched you struggle to deal with all of this for years, and I really think you need to just talk to him, give him a chance to explain himself –”
“Stop,” Terry hisses at you through gritted teeth, the word nearly coming out as a growl, and your words die in your throat. “Let me make one thing about Cash Ewing perfectly clear: he is selfish, he is deceitful, and he will go against anything and anyone if the price is right. The things he did…” he pauses to swallow thickly, clearing his throat.
“It wasn’t a crime of passion, he didn’t get caught up in the heat of the moment, he didn’t do it on a whim. He stole, he sold contraband, he did nearly everything he could to make a quick buck. He lied to my face for who knows how long just to line his pockets. I was his partner, his best friend for years, and he threw it away like it was nothing because he got greedy. I’m not even sure that I ever knew him in the first place.”
You take a moment to digest this information. As you had expected, Cash’s crimes had been relatively victimless; no violence or real, lasting harm done to anyone. No, you know that Terry’s real issue was the deception of it all. You wait until you hit a stop light before replying, reaching out to lay a comforting hand on his arm.
“I understand that he lied, Terry, and that it hurt you. But shouldn’t we give him another chance, even just to explain himself? He did his time, paid his dues, he seems remorseful and rehabilitated and –”
“How could you know that, Y/N?” Terry asks, turning to look at you fully for the first time since the conversation had started. His blue eyes were always so expressive, and right now you were getting a glimpse of the depths of his frustration and his hurt.
“You’re a good cop, sweetheart, but you were with him for all of two minutes last night; not even you can read people that quickly.”
The light goes green, giving you time to try to tamp down your guilt as you avoid responding. Unfortunately, with all of the time the two of you had spent together over the years, Terry could read you like an open book.
“You stuck around to talk to him after I left, didn’t you?” he asks in a broken whisper, clearly offended, though you can hear his pain beneath his words. “Didn’t you?!” he demands, and you jump in your seat despite yourself. Terry tried to only be intimidating to those who deserved it, and to be on the receiving end rather than a witness to it is incredibly overwhelming for you.
“Yes,” you admit in a broken whisper. Of course he would read into the situation as you lying to him; he couldn’t see that you had only withheld that bit of information because you knew it would shut down the conversation entirely.
“I can’t believe this! I can’t believe you!” he exclaims, eyes unblinking as he stares ahead at the road, the speed of the car approaching the unacceptable without your flashing lights being on.
“Terry, I’m sorry! I wasn’t trying to keep it from you, I just –”
“You just thought you could have one conversation with a convicted felon and take him at his word? Against everything I’ve ever told you about him?”
His phrasing implies he’s told you plenty about what happened with Cash, when nothing could be further from the truth. Still, you don’t call him out on it, knowing it wouldn’t help the situation.
“Answer one question for me, Terry: did he ever offer you an explanation for why he did what he did? Did you ever even let him try?”
“That’s two questions,” he points out petulantly instead of answering. You growl out a warning low in the back of your throat.
“No, I didn’t. I have no interest in listening to a criminal and a liar,” he informs you huffily, turning onto the street that led to the entrance to the precinct’s underground parking lot.
“People do the wrong thing for all sorts of different reasons, Terry.”
“And the courts brand them all the same.”
“So, what, someone makes one bad call and they’re meant to be labeled a criminal for life?”
“That fucker didn’t make one bad call, he made choice after choice. And yeah, in my book, ex-cons are still cons.”
You bristle at the way Terry dismisses any sense of nuance or humanity, painting anyone who had ever had trouble with the law with the same permanent brush.
“How can you judge everyone so blindly like that?!” you ask, your temper coming out. You know that Terry is stubborn, and that being betrayed by those close to him has definitely altered his sense of justice, but this complete inability to forgive or show any compassion at all is concerning. “We’re police officers, Terry! It’s our job to get criminals into prison to serve their time, not to condemn them even after they’ve been rehabilitated!”
“Once a dirtbag, always a dirtbag, if you ask me.”
“Well, sorry to burst your bubble, Officer Holier-Than-Thou, but Cash wasn’t your only partner with a criminal history.”
Terry stomps on the brakes before turning into the parking lot, whirling around to stare at you. You both ignore the honking of aggravated drivers all around you.
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. But by all means, condemn us all to hell regardless of circumstance.”
You eject your seatbelt, tossing it over your shoulder, and throw the passenger door open, getting out quickly before Terry has any say in the matter.
“I’ll leave you alone, McCain – I wouldn’t want my misdeeds to taint your perfect record.”
You storm into the precinct, throwing some minor case files in your bag to work on at home and sticking your head into the Captain’s office, biting your tongue to maintain a somewhat pleasant façade.
“Are you alright with me heading out a bit early today, Sir? Those interviews were a doozy, and Williams always comes in early for his shift.”
The Captain waves you away, dismissing you with a nod, and you disappear into the elevator, taking the long way to your car to make sure Terry hadn’t anticipated your early departure and was laying in wait for you. Once you determine that the coast is clear, you quickly get into your car and drive away, wanting to mull over everything in relative peace.
---
You’ve gone through your typical strategies to blow off steam: a trip to the gym, a long, hot shower, and watching something mind-numbing on TV to drown out your own thoughts. But nothing has worked, and it’s been hours. You can’t get Terry’s words out of your head, or his stubborn refusal to listen to either of his best friends, past or present.
Why did the man have to be so damn stubborn?
You can appreciate that he’s been hurt, and hurt badly, but it’s clear as day that he needs to face this issue rather than allow it to eat at him, as it had been for years. For him to not even hear you out – you, the only person he says he trusts anymore – is unbelievably frustrating, not to mention incredibly painful.
Your phone rings and you ignore it, hardly in the mood to talk to anyone right now. Eventually your refusal to pick up the receiver triggers the answering machine, your prerecorded message echoing through your otherwise quiet apartment. After a beep, you hear a familiar voice.
“It’s me. You don’t have to talk, just let me know you made it home safe, alright?”
The call disconnects there, and you glare at the machine, refusing to let the tears in your eyes spill over. You’re so overwhelmed by all of this – anger, sadness, and frustration all building up inside of you until you feel like it’s going to completely consume you. You’re sure that Terry is feeling something along the same lines right now, too.
…And yet, he had put his emotions aside to reach out to you, just as he had last night. It proves he is still capable of compartmentalizing his feelings and moving forward, which is somehow even more infuriating since he refused to do it for Cash. Still, you should be grateful that he hasn’t extended his vendetta against Cash to include you at this point.
Taking a deep, calming breath, you move to the phone and hit number one, speed-dialing Terry’s number.
He picks up on the first ring.
“Hello?”
It takes you a moment to be able to bring yourself to speak.
“It’s me. I’m okay,” you manage to choke out in a hoarse whisper. You hear a sharp intake of breath on the other line, knowing that you aren’t fooling him, that he can hear your pain, and hastily hang up the phone before the sob manages to push past your lips.
What was wrong with you? You’ve gotten into it with Terry before, but you weren’t exactly someone to hold a grudge, especially not with him. Normally, you’d have forgiven him by now, but instead this is eating you alive, turning into something festering and unpleasant in your heart. Terry’s steadfast resentment seemed to be contagious.
It must just be because he was being so stubborn with this when you know that you’re in the right. Well, you could be stubborn too, and if it was a battle of wills that Terry McCain wanted, then that’s exactly what you’ll give him.
---
The next morning at work, Terry silently sets a lovely potted plant on your desk by way of greeting, a clear apology. You glare at the offending foliage, refusing to acknowledge its presence as well as Terry’s, turning your gaze back to your computer and continuing to type up a report. You can feel his stare practically heating up the side of your face, and he lets out a frustrated sigh as you refuse to engage with him, but says nothing.
You do your best to continue the silent treatment, but eventually the weight of his gaze on you proves to be too much.
“Can I help you with something, Officer McCain?” you snap irritably. It was your second day in a row of terrible sleep caused by trying to help the bastard see reason, and you were in no mood for drawing things out.
“Yes, actually,” he returns icily, giving you a challenging expression. “Meet me in Interrogation Room B, partner. I’ll grab us some coffee.”
He stands up from his desk and strides to the kitchen without another word while you glower at his back, brow furrowed. You try to turn back to your work but find yourself unable to focus and so, grumbling to yourself all the while, you storm over to the interrogation room, throwing yourself into one of the chairs and crossing your arms across your chest.
Terry enters the room a few minutes later, placing your coffee on the table in front of you, pausing briefly to seemingly take in your bad mood in its entirety before closing the door and taking the seat across from you.
“If you brought me in here just to tell me off some more, I don’t –”
“I’m sorry.”
Terry’s interruption makes your jaw snap shut, and you stare at him mutely. He takes it as a sign to continue.
“I’m sorry for yesterday, for the day before, for everything I’ve kept you in the dark about surrounding Cash. I didn’t want you involved, I didn’t want to talk about it, and I didn’t want what he did to impact my relationship with you. I still don’t. But you’re a damn adult, Y/N, and a friend, and you’ve done a lot for me, so I at least owe you some answers, some explanation for why I don’t want to engage with him anymore.”
Of all the things you imagined Terry might have brought you in here to say to you, regurgitating what you had been hoping he would say practically word-for-word was not one of them. You open your mouth, intent on speaking, but close it again, content to let him divulge what he is comfortable with. It would be a start, at least.
“Believe it or not, I am working on forgiveness for Cash, alright? I know it may not seem like it, but I want nothing more than to make peace with what he did and move on. I don’t particularly like the person that I’ve become since he went away.”
“You’re not so bad,” you offer, giving him an encouraging smile.
“But even if I do manage to forgive him, that doesn’t mean I’m going to forget what he did. I can’t forget, not matter how much I wish I could. I’m happy that some of the other guys are able to welcome him back with open arms, but he didn’t lie to them the way he did to me. I don’t see him the same way anymore; I can’t.”
He takes a brief pause to catch his breath and rein in his emotions, and you give him the space. His expression is forlorn, as though he himself is unhappy with his inability to give Cash a second chance, and you feel the urge to throw yourself over the table to console him. The poor guy had been through so much, had remained trusting and open to you despite everything, and you had jumped to your own conclusions and believed a perfect stranger over your best friend, the only person you trusted to watch your back out in the field. Who were you to presume to know what Terry needed?
“I’m sorry for keeping you in the dark about this for so long, but I’m asking you to trust me now, Y/N – please follow my lead here and believe me when I say that we’re both better off without him around,” he says, giving you a pleading look that has your remaining resolve melting away. You think back to what you had told Cash the other night: Terry was – and should be – your top priority. Time for you to start acting like it.
“I… okay,” you concede, maintaining eye contact with him as he tries to detect a lie in your sudden acceptance; you both know that your stubbornness could rival his own when you really set your mind to something.
You press on.
“You’re right, Terry. I shouldn’t be involving myself in your personal life; you know more about your issues with Cash than I ever will, and that’s how it should be. I’m sorry for pushing so hard, I just… I just worry about you.”
He seems to be weighing each of your words carefully, his piercing blue eyes still locked with yours, and you do your best not to fidget under his stare. Terry hardly needed to go to the excessive lengths he did with perps to get a confession out of them; he was more than intimidating enough with his gaze alone.
Eventually though, his stony expression breaks, a relieved smile spreading across his face.
“Thank you, Y/N,” he says sincerely, reaching across the table and taking your hand, squeezing it gently as he rubs his thumb across the back of your hand. “I won’t forget this.”
You feel a pleasant warmth in your belly, a smile stealing across your own expression. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off your shoulders, the gloomy clouds hanging over your relationship evaporating. The moment lasts for a long time, and you’re content to let it, up until you start to yearn for more contact. This happened every so often with Terry – and how could it not? He was your best friend, your protector, the most important person in your life. Not to mention how incredibly attractive he was; there was a reason he was able to land supermodels like Anna Gilmour, after all…
“Enough with the silly drama – let’s get to work!” you say loudly, removing your hand from his grip to clap your hands with mock enthusiasm. Terry surveys you with a curious look for a moment, before nodding his head, giving you his typical dazzling grin that briefly takes your breath away. Unfortunately for you, you were no supermodel, though that was likely in the best interest of both your working relationship and friendship. You know you’d never find another partner like Terry.
“A lot of enthusiasm for the justice system, coming from the little felon herself,” he teases, and you give him a lopsided grin, pleased that he was willing to return to your typical friendly banter.
“That’s me – the worst of the worst!” you announce with mock pride, and he rolls his eyes, getting up from his chair and moving to open the door. “And don’t be ridiculous, Terry, it was never a felony.”
“Well, out with it! What’d you do, L/N?” he asks, and you decide that his own moment of transparency had earned him one of your own. You regale him with a brief summary of your rap sheet as a juvenile – petty theft, mostly, though there was a citation for a particularly brutal brawl you’d gotten into – happy to see him smiling again. Apparently his rigid moral standards held an exception where you were concerned, at least in this instance.
Truth be told, there’s still a part of you that feels that you’re making the wrong decision by abandoning your attempts to get Terry to listen to Cash. But you know that what he needs right now is for his trust in you to be proven valid; you would not betray him like Cash or Frankie had. You would be on his side for this, and hopefully that would be enough for him to come to the right conclusion on his own eventually.
You can’t see any other path to Cash’s - or Terry's - redemption at this point.
Gosh, he's pretty.
---
Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7
[Future chapters will be posted here!]
#Thomas Ian Griffith#Cash#Cash Ewing#Black Friday#Black Friday 2007#The Kidnapping#The Kidnapping 2007#Terry McCain#Excessive Force#TIGmas#12 Days of TIGmas#Smut#Romance#Suspend your disbelief please and thank you#Cash x Reader#terry mccain x reader#terry mccain x reader x cash
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Another example of something that never happens.....
By Anna Slatz December 22, 2023
CONTENT NOTICE: This article contains explicit references to child sexual abuse, as documented by the Federal Bureau of Investigations during a predator sting. Reader discretion is appreciated.
A transgender pedophile in Vermont has been sentenced to 11 years in federal prison after being caught in a law enforcement sting targeting predators. Scarlet Moon Shadows, also known as Dragongurl69, pleaded guilty to attempting to entice a minor into sexual activity.
As previously reported by Reduxx, Shadows, born Randy Emillion Goodreau, first appeared in federal court last year after being arrested in Albany, New York while trying to meet who he believed to be an 11-year-old girl for sexual abuse.
The incident began after Shadows messaged a social networking account established by the FBI seeking to attract predators. The profile was made to look as though it belonged to a woman in custody of an 11-year-old girl, and included a number of pedophilic “dog whistles” in the biography section. Shadows messaged the account, and, after a brief exchange in which he expressed interest in “teaching” the child sexual acts, the two moved their communications to an encrypted messenger.
Shadows then asked to speak to the child directly, and began messaging with a second undercover agent posing as the girl.
According to an affidavit submitted by Special Agent Jenelle Bringuel, Shadows quickly offered to “date” the girl and introduce her to sexual acts. He also sent the girl several photos of his “breasts,” and plotted how to keep their relationship a secret from the public.
“We can be a real couple when we are home, but in public [kisses] have to be on the cheek. Can probably still hold hands though,” Shadows said, using text-lingo to convey his point to the minor. He continued: “We can kiss on the lips, like at home or in car rides depending how busy traffic is … at home [we] can do whatever you want. We can make love if you want to.”
Approximately one month after beginning to communicate with the undercover agents, Shadows travelled from Vermont to Warren County, New York with the intention of having sex with the child. Shadows was arrested after arriving at a meet-up point, and was found to have had an engagement ring, condoms, and gifts for the child on his person. During questioning, he claimed the sexual texts were nothing more than “roleplaying.”
A psychosexual assessment of Shadows revealed that he was subjected to a viewing test which indicated his interests in juvenile females, adolescent boys, and very young girls. The assessment also revealed that he had a “high interest” in infant females.
A press release put out by the Department of Justice detailing the case referred to Shadows using she / her pronouns and gave no indication that he is male or that he identifies as transgender. According to the DOJ, the investigation was conducted by the FBI and its Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including the Colonie Police Department and the New York State Police.
In April, Shadows pleaded guilty to Attempted Enticement and Coercion of a Minor. Shadows has been in FBI custody since, with a number of delays occurring during the hearing process. In October, his public defense attorney abruptly dropped his case, citing “conflict of interest,” and the case was put on hold until a new defense attorney could pick up the sentencing negotiations.
On December 20, Shadows was sentenced to 11 years, one year more than the mandatory minimum of 10 years the defense had been seeking.
Shadows was active on Facebook prior to his arrest, and made multiple posts utilizing the trans pride flag and calls to “cherish trans women.” He also uploaded his own poorly-drawn artwork to his account, some of which featured disturbing themes.
In one pen-work picture, Shadows shows what appears to be an older man with a much-smaller girl.
“We will never brake, not even from our darkest sin. The devil is no longer in charge. We are the new rulers of hell,” the picture reads.
Two posts seen on Shadows’ Facebook account.
While it is currently unknown where Shadows will be incarcerated, he will be under the jurisdiction of the federal Bureau of Prisons, which currently has a gender self-identification policy in place for housing transgender inmates.
On January 13 of 2022, the Bureau of Prisons revised its Transgender Offender Manual, which included guidelines previously scrubbed by the Trump administration with respect to gender self-identification for federal inmates. Under the Trump administration, inmates were housed based on biological sex as a sole consideration, but the Biden administration renewed Obama-era guidelines requiring gender identity be considered when making housing assignments.
There are currently 1,500 federal inmates who identify as transgender. According to Keep Prisons Single Sex USA, almost 50% of trans-identified male federal inmates are in custody for sex offences. This is compared to just 11% of the non-trans male federal inmate population.
#usa#Vermont#His birth name is Randy Emillion Goodreau#Why do TIMs give themselves goddess names or stuff like Scarlet Moon Shadows?#An abusive TIM#Not A Woman#NotOurCrimes#the Bureau of Prisons revised its Transgender Offender Manual#KeepPrisonsSingleSex
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Reijean with Poorly Timed Confession + Anger Born out of Worry
Hello!! I'm very sorry for the delay.
I have two scenarios for this, both post-Rumbling for some reason:
Jean is a walking, talking, breathing example of the "anger born out of worry" trope. For years he's been constantly pissed off at Eren for endangering himself, but now that Eren's gone, Reiner becomes his main target. Because Braun is such a careless idiot. Because Jean has to terrorize him into properly taking care of himself. He needs a hobby, alright?
Maybe one day he mutters something among the lines of "I really care about you, you sad piece of shit, you realize that, right?" while bandaging Reiner's hand. Braun cut his palm open in the kitchen, and Jean knows he didn't even bother to disinfect it. "You're such a moron, such an absolute disaster of a person, I really don't know why I fell in l–"
His eyes go wide, confirming what he was about to say. And Reiner grunts, dropping his gaze and taking a step back. "Yeah, sorry. I'm not interested," he says almost sheepishly, and Jean's soul nearly leaves his body. He definitely leaves Reiner's apartment right away. He needs some time to cool off, some time to understand what he has just done. Because it was so unexpected, so stupid and yet... it was real.
Now Jean is the careless one; getting drunk in some shady pub, talking about his heartbreak to a barman who's suspiciously interested in Jean's work as the ambassador. Jean's already on the floor when the man introduces himself as a Yeagerist spy. He wants to kill Jean, but Reiner bursts into the bar just in time to save the day. And to apologize for turning down Jean's advances (he was just being shy).
For obvious reasons Reiner is always worried (and, therefore, angry) when Jean mentions his plan to win Mikasa over. Because Reiner has been trying to woo and win him over for the past several years. When one day Jean shows him the engagement ring he bought, Reiner loses the remains of his composure and blows up. He ends up yelling "I LOVE YOU, YOU DICKHEAD", leaving Jean almost deaf in one ear.
Jean is trying to be kind when he turns him down, but he's still pretty much straightforward. He tells Reiner that he's not into men. That he'll never be into men. He chooses Mikasa, not Reiner. And so, they part ways. Jean and Mikasa eventually get married; they have children and a decent life somewhere in the heart of Paradis. And Reiner travels the world, learning to live for himself.
They meet again ten years later, completely by accident, somewhere away from Paradis or Marley. Jean finally grew tired of being compared to a dude that had turned into a pigeon and got a divorce. The kids stayed with Mikasa, and he's now flying solo. Reiner's nomadic lifestyle and rough, sailor-like appearance appeal to him a lot, and Reiner of course allows him to tag along for a few weeks. The said few weeks turn into months and finally into years, and make Jean rethink his stance on his own sexuality.
But does Reiner still want him?? (spoiler alert: yes)
Thank you!!
FanFiction trope MASH-UP
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I've been putting off setting up a fundraiser for months, but I recently became homeless so now's the time to do it. ❤️
I'm 23 and top surgery has been the only thing keeping me alive for over a year now.
I have c-PTSD, bipolar and late-diagnosed ADHD that has caused me to withdraw from university, escape my transphobic and abusive parents and pay for private healthcare in order to survive daily life. I am now homeless living in temporary accommodation from the council which I still have to pay for.
I’ve managed to save £5.5k the past three years to pay for top surgery (removal of breast tissue to achieve a flat, masculine chest). I’m now having to withdraw thousands from this fund due to worsening life circumstances. With my surgery quote at £7,991 and booked for 2nd November later this year, I’m facing working 48 hour weeks as a carer for people with dementia, in order to replenish my fund and pay for this live-saving surgery in time. Every month delayed has a huge impact on my mental and physical health.
I receive abuse and punishment at home which has contributed to my mental health and constant state of hypervigilance, even when there is no real threat around me. My stress resilience is tiny compared to my peers and I am extremely emotionally reactive to things, unable to cope with the intensity of my pain and regulate myself when distressed.
I have been seeing mental health professionals since I was 13, through school, charities and funding from Disabled Students Allowance. When I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2020, I was self-harming and on track to ruining my life with addiction and £16k in debt.
Since then I’ve engaged in many forms of therapy that teach the basics of how to sleep and coping with emotions. I was on antidepressants and now on two mood stabilisers, hormone blockers to prevent persistent bleeding and further mood episodes, and am starting ADHD meds in order to get me functional, back to work and able to finish school again. My psychosomatic symptoms include nausea, digestion issues, muscle aches, cramps, and brain fog most days, which worsen when I’m stressed and leave me unable to even sit up in bed some days, leave the house or walk long distances.
I chose to study psychology because I want to be a therapist for disabled, queer, POC (people of colour) and immigrant students like me one day. Things I’ve done for the community include being a POC community officer for my uni's Pride Society, LGBTUIA+ rep for my course, getting charity funding for a BPD wellbeing community I co-started, and volunteering on the NHS LGBTI+ Sounding Board.
Now for the hardest part: asking for help.
Any donation (or simply sharing this fundraiser) could help ease the stress I'm going through as I struggle to budget for:
Therapy
ADHD treatment
Food & shelter
This life-saving surgery
Time to take care of myself, much less have fun
I've been so focussed on survival for so long. It's difficult to find motivation to do anything, and, especially recently, I think about wanting to die for several hours every day. I cancel outings with friends because the thought of travelling and having to schedule around 12 hour work shifts is too stressful. Figuring out where I'm going to sleep, shower and commute from, plus timing when to take my medication so I'm not sedated during work shifts, has me feeling constantly worried and sad.
Thank you in advance for any help, and if nothing else, reading and getting an understanding of issues trans people can face accessing healthcare.
#top surgery#fundraiser#transgender#c-ptsd#bipolar#bpd#homeless#transmasculine#nonbinary#mutual aid#adhd#lgbt#trans#fundraising#crisis#trans healthcare#hormones#guy sterne#boost#qpoc#poc#neurodivergent#personal#thank you x#trauma tings
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France will invest 13.3 billion euros in SCAF and Rafale by 2035
In total, all payment credits already allocated to these two programs reach 1.6 billion euros for SCAF and 11.7 billion euros for Rafale.
Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 10/13/2023 - 21:25 in Military
Behind the United States, France wants to maintain its leadership in combat aviation. That is why it will invest colossal amounts during the period 2023-2026 in the European SCAF program and Rafale.
France is investing massively in its combat aviation to remain in the major leagues. Thus, the Future Air Combat System (SCAF) program, led by France, is gaining momentum. And this is very clearly seen at the budgetary level. This emblematic European program between Germany, Spain and France is also beginning to weigh on the budget of the French Ministry of the Armed Forces. Thus, over the four years of the period 2023-2026, the payment credits for the system of air combat systems of the future (combat planes, drones, weapons, combat cloud, etc.) reach 1.36 billion euros. In addition to 2026, the Ministry of the Armed Forces also plans to spend almost 300 million additional euros. Or 1.65 billion euros in total already budgeted.
Signed in December 2022, the contract for phase 1B of the SCAF, whose value reaches more than 3 billion euros equally financed between Germany, Spain and France, has an approximate duration of 36 months. The current work concerns the development of a technological demonstration program aimed at bringing innovative capabilities in the field of combat aviation. To this amount are added national investments from France. Thus, the main commitments planned for 2024 for the SCAF concern investments in the technical direction centers of the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) and the national work in support of the demonstration program.
While waiting for the commissioning of the SCAF program beyond 2045, France continues to invest massively in Rafale. There are 6.4 billion euros, including 128 million for the nEUROn (UCAV) recently released from the naphthalene under the military programming law 2024-2030, during the period 2023-2026. The Ministry of the Armed Forces has also budgeted payment credits in the amount of 5.36 billion euros in addition to 2026. This represents a total of 11.76 billion euros, which will partially end up in the coffers of Rafale's main contractor, Dassault Aviation, which will then redistribute to the 400 companies working in this crucial program for France, including Thales and Safran. This figure includes economic increases due to inflation.
Of this total, France continues to finance the Rafale F4 (2.27 billion euros), whose standard qualification 4.2 delayed one year (2025 instead of 2024). This version will make it possible to face evolving threats in more contested engagement contexts, notably improving connected collaborative combat capabilities. The Ministry of the Armed Forces begins the reinforcement of the Rafale F5 program (111.9 million euros) at the budget level with, in 2024, the continuation of work related to the RBE2 XG radar and risk reduction studies. But most of these budgeted credits refer to payments on the delivery of Rafale, 13 copies of which will be delivered in 2023 and then in 2024. This represents a total of 8.5 billion, including 3.7 billion during the period 2023-2026.
The ministry is currently negotiating with Dassault Aviation a new Rafale order for the French Air Force, which should be announced by the end of this year (42 units). The future LPM foresees a Rafale (Air + Maritime) fleet of 178 aircraft by the end of 2030 and 225 aircraft by 2035.
Source: La Tribune
Tags: Armée de l'air - French Air Force/French Air ForceMilitary AviationDassault RafaleSCAF
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Fernando Valduga
Fernando Valduga
Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Dayton Airshow and FIDAE. He has work published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. Uses Canon equipment during his photographic work in the world of aviation.
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