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lovelytsunoda · 11 months

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the end of an era (and the start of a new one) (iv) // platonic! mercedes amg

summary: toto gives y/n the final verdict on her future with mercedes amg, and the results are better than she ever could have imagined.

pairing: platonic! mercedes amg petronas x female reader

warnings: this is actually the first installment of the series that doesn’t have any wow look at that-

author's note: here's a quick little chapter checking up on baby merc! this may seem like the end, but i promise it's not. im going to try my hardest to continue baby merc's story <3

the bowling alley was loud, and y/n had already broken a nail twice.

not that she minded, because for all she knew, this could be the last team outing that she was ever invited on. her field placement was coming to a close, and toto had never given her a final answer on where she was going next.

or if she was going anywhere at all. in a perfect world, she'd be staying with these people that she now called family. in the real world, life wasn't that simple.

but she could hope.

"george, you slimy cheating bastard!" she laughed, watching the briton score another strike. "come on, there's no way you're winning with that strong a lead."

"read it and weep, baby merc!" george laughed, taking a dramatic bow.

bowling had been lewis' idea. typically, taking the team bowling was something he did in japan. but with all the people leaving mercedes at the end of this season, he wanted to make sure they all got to be included in the team bonding ritual.

"every day you surprise me more and more." peter bonnington chuckled. "y/n, it's your go!"

"how am i supposed to match up to mr. posh spice over there?" she laughed, pointing at george before walking over to the ball machine. "i sacrificed a wonderful home manicure for this."

she bowled, taking half the pins out in one go, and all but two in the second. bowling had never been her strong suit, and normally she would have complained. but she found that her friendship with the team had grown and fostered so much that they could make even cleaning a bathroom a more enjoyable task.

she'd be really upset if she needed to let them go, that's for sure.

games finished (george had won, of course), the team sat around a big metal table (she felt like a character in a john hughes movie, but without the romantic interest. olli had texted her a few times since the holiday party, but she had continued to shoot him down), baskets of french fries, chicken tenders and a large salad for lewis in front of them.

it was bittersweet, with so many people leaving the team, and toto was the first to say so when he got up to give a speech.

"it's been a long season. the car was shit, but we made it work. we're also losing some valued members of this team. angela. nyck. james. you will forever be remembered, and know that you always have a home at mercedes if you want it."

the table started clapping as toto finished. y/n was going to miss nyck, but he'd still be around. just at a different team. she'd miss angela, but the physiotherapist would always be one phone call away if she needed her.

the three in question sat on one side of the table, teary eyed and grateful for the send-off.

"additionally, we have some new faces joining us for 2023 that i am very excited for you to meet." toto grinned. "i'd like to welcome our new reserve driver, mick schumacher."

next to y/n, mick blushed, trying to hide as the table cheererd for him, a tina turner song playing over the stereo as y/n laughed, pulling him in for a side hug.

"and, this comes as no surprise to any of us, on behalf of the mercedes amg petronas f1 team, i would like to formally offer our new intern, y/n y/l/n a permanent spot on the team for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. if you'll have us."

if the cheers for mick were loud, the cheers for y/n were louder. she was frozen, halfway to tears before she snapped out of it, lewis' hand on her shoulder as he congratulated her.

"we knew you could do it."

"thanks, lew." she beamed, giving the world champion a proper hug. "i love you guys. tahnks for letting me stay."

"don't thank us." nyck laughed. "thank toto. he's the one who made the final decision. but it was a no-brainer. you were going to stay anyways."

getting out of her chair, y/n crossed the table to throw her arms around toto wolff. the man was shocked at first, but eased into it, wrapping the younger girl in his arms.

"thank you, toto."

"welcome to the family, y/n." toto laughed. "we're lucky to have you."

and that's when she knew she found it. the family that she had always been looking for.

and she knew that she was going to be okay. for real, this time.

because true family are the friends that you make along the way.

#family are the friends we meet along the way series #mercedes amg petronas #mercedes x reader #george russell x reader #lewis hamilton x reader #toto wolff x reader #formula one x reader #mini fic

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raaorqtpbpdy · 3 months

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Brotherhood (1)

Directly following the events of Double Helix, Danny enrolls in Bayville High school and joins the Brotherhood of Mutants. He's not sure if they actually believe he's a ghost and not a mutant, but at least they don't care enough to challenge him on it, and that's good enough for him.

Written for @crossoverdanuary Week 2024, Day 5: The Owl House X-Men Evolution | Shell

I have seen exactly two episodes of The Owl House, and that was like four years ago or something, so I was not confident in my ability to write a crossover for it.

The one word prompt doesn't actually appear until the second chapter, but I tried to work in a theme of both Danny and Wanda "coming out of their shell" throughout the fic. You can also read it on AO3.

Chapter 1: Halfway House

[Warnings for mild violence and mentions of mental health issues]

Danny never realized how much of a pain in the ass it was to enroll in school by himself. Jazz really deserved a lot more credit for dealing with all the stuff their parents forgot to do. It was so much paperwork. Nevertheless, with some effort, Danny got himself enrolled in Bayville High and slipped right in under the radar. Since his human form didn't stand out, he just showed up on his first day and figured things out from there.

Just like he'd suspected, there were several mutants at the school, meaning none of the other students picked up on Danny's weird vibes.

The guy who never took off his stupid sunglasses and the German kid whose hands were in a permanent Vulcan salute were perfect camouflage. At least, they helped him hide from the normal students. The mutant students picked up on him within the first week.

"Hey, new kid!" A group of students cornered Danny at his locker while he was switching out his books before heading to lunch.

He recognized most of them from his classes, Lance, Pietro, and a kid everyone called Toad, but Danny didn't know his real name. There was also a huge guy with a blond Mohawk who was about the same size and Danny's dad, maybe even a few inches taller. Danny had seen him around school, since he was kind of hard to miss, but didn't have any classes with him, and so didn't know his name.

"Can I help you?" Danny asked.

"You're a mutant, aren't you?" Lance asked him.

"No. What's it to you?" Danny responded.

"We're called the Brotherhood of Mutants," Pietro explained. "Or just the Brotherhood for short. We've seen what you can do and we want you to join us."

"Unless you're already one of the X-Men," the big guy said. "You're not, are you?"

"Of course he's not. We would know if he was!" Pietro snapped. "So, what do you say?"

"Join you?" Danny raised an eyebrow and gave them a skeptical frown. "What exactly would that entail?"

"Oh it's great!" Toad told him. "You get to live at the board house where there's no rules, fight the X-Men... I mean... we always get our butts kicked, but it's still cool!"

"Free room and board is enticing," Danny admitted.

He was currently squatting in a for-sale home and only getting away with it because he was already gone for school before the first tour of the day and he thought of locks as more of a suggestion than a rule.

"But I don't join just any mutant group that offers me an invitation. What are your actual beliefs, your goals? What do you stand for?"

"Uhh...." Toad put a finger to his lip thoughtfully. "You know what, I don't really know."

"We stand for ourselves," Lance told him, pushing Toad aside. "Because when it comes down to it, nobody else will, and we freaks gotta stick together. You in or what? 'Cause we ain't gonna waste our time with you any longer than we have to."

Lance extended a hand to Danny, and Danny just looked at it for a long moment before accepting the handshake.

"I'm in," Danny agreed.

These guys seemed like dicks, to be honest, but their ideals aligned with his a whole lot better than professor goodie two-shoes. Plus, maybe it was just a coincidence or an accident, but they hadn't actually called him a mutant. They'd asked if he was, but hadn't pushed when he said no, not like that stupid professor had.

"Great," Lance said. "I'll pick you up in my jeep after school, but be on time because I'm not waiting for you."

"Oh, by the way, Tabitha's part of our group, too," Pietro told him. "You may know her as Boom Boom. Hope you don't mind if there's a girl in the house."

"Why would I mind?" Danny asked.

Pietro didn't answer, just sped away.

After school, he waited by what he assumed was Lance's jeep. It was the muddiest jeep in the school lot, so he was only guessing, but he was pretty sure. He ended up being right, and Lance drove them all to the Brotherhood's boarding house. The place was a disaster area, and a complete mess. There were still a couple of free rooms, but Danny opted to lay claim to the attic and moved one of the free beds up there.

"Why would you want the creepy old attic?" asked the big guy, whom everyone called Blob.

"Because, a haunted attic is objectively cooler and spookier than haunted bedroom," Danny told him matter-of-factly. "I'm not gonna be some lame bedroom ghost. What am I, an eight-year-old girl whose depressed mother drowned her in a bathtub? No! I'm a science experiment gone wrong. Besides, this place doesn't have a basement, so I have to settle for the next best thing."

"Oh... I guess that makes sense," Blob said, though he was scratching his head.

"Uh, no," Pietro disagreed. "It doesn't. This new guy is a straight up weirdo."

"So's Toad and we let him stick around," said Tabitha, climbing the stairs to drop off her backpack before heading out again to meet the X-girls at the mall. "At least Danny showers."

"Hey! I shower!" Toad argued indignantly. "I shower every month!"

—

"There's a new mutant at school. The Brotherhood just recruited him yesterday. Should we have invited him to join the Institute instead, Professor?" Jean asked.

She and some of the other X-Men had noticed that the new kid who'd just enrolled in their high-school had strange powers. He was pretty sneaky with them, and none of them could seem to figure out exactly what they were, so they'd just been keeping an eye on him. But now, he'd started hanging out with the Brotherhood mutants, so Jean had convinced the others to bring it up to Professor X for guidance.

"He might still change his mind," she continued. "He doesn't seem like a bad guy. I saw him turn invisible to avoid a group of jerks at school seeing him walk past."

"What?" Scott asked, quirking his eyebrows at her. "Invisibility? But I saw him use a power just like Kitty's to open his locker when it jammed."

"Like, no way!" Kitty argued. "The guy's totally a telekinetic!"

"Maybe he can replicate powers, then?" Rogue suggested. "Because I'm pretty sure I saw him trip Duncan on a patch of ice when he was being a douche."

"Hmm... interesting," Professor X said thoughtfully. "What was this boy's name, did you say?"

"Oh, no I didn't, it's Danny Fenton," Jean answered.

The professor's eyes widened in recognition.

"Do you know him, Professor?"

"Indeed," he confirmed, steepling his fingers as he considered his memories of the boy. "Daniel Fenton is a mutant with an incredibly powerful and versatile set of abilities, notably similar to the abilities ghosts are thought to have—flight, invisibility, intangibility, the ability to create cold spots, move objects telekinetically, and warp electrical fields, among others.

"I first met him at a mental care institution for mutants where I perform regular evaluations on their younger patients," he explained further. "Because of his particular range of powers, Danny is under the delusion that he actually is a ghost, rather than a mutant, and as such, he believes that he cannot die, which causes him to sometimes be reckless with his own life. It also upsets him severely to have his delusion challenged by others.

"I was informed of him escaping from the institution, not long ago, but I never would have expected him to come here. I'm even more surprised that he would be willing to align himself with a mutant group. He always showed clear disdain when I mentioned my school to him, and even more so when I tried to imply that he was truly a mutant, rather than a ghost."

"Sounds like Danny will end up being a powerful enemy," Scott said.

"Indeed," the professor agreed. "He's one of the most powerful mutants I know of, and to make matters worse, he has a tendency to lose control over his powers when you do or say anything to upset him."

"So basically, don't try to argue with him about being a ghost," Rogue surmised. "That about cover it?"

"For a start," Professor X said. "You'd also do well not to get in a debate with him about ideals, he's rather... passionate about his."

"I take it he doesn't agree with yours?" Scott guessed.

"You're quite correct," the professor confirmed. "You would all do well not to engage with him. Offering to let him join the institute at this juncture would no doubt end poorly. Best to leave him alone for now. But keep an eye on him. He could be dangerous."

"Understood, Professor."

—

"So, Lance," Danny crossed his legs and floated in the air by the couch in a way that he knew unsettled the rest of the Brotherhood, which of course meant he thought it was dreadfully funny, "care to explain the rumbling this morning? I'm pretty sure Bayville isn't on any fault lines."

"Kitty asked him to the dance," Toad answered for him, making mocking kissy faces at him.

Lance shoved his face away, but all five of them had already devolved into teasing Lance mercilessly.

"Stuff it, Toad. It's not a big deal," he said.

Danny snickered at him as the teasing continued, Tabitha seating herself on the arm of Lance's chair and leaning into his personal space to ask if Kitty was gonna be his girlfriend while he sat there with a resigned expression on his face.

"We wouldn't be caught dead at that stupid dance!" Blob declared, and Danny laughed even harder.

"Really Freddy?" Tabitha asked, tapping her finger on his nose with a teasing pout. "Aw, that's too bad. 'Cause I was thinking of askin' you."

"U-uh... you were?" Blob asked dumbly.

"Yeah, but if you don't wanna go..." she raised her arms as if giving up on the idea.

"Ooh! Ask me! I'll go!" Toad volunteered, jumping up and down with his hands raised.

"Pathetic," scoffed Pietro, always pretending he was too cool for the rest of them, like he wasn't sprawled out of the same greased stained couch the rest of them sat on.

"Hey, speedy." Tabitha turned to him and put her hands on her hips. "You think you're too good for me?" she asked, leaning down to him with laughter on her voice."

"Nah, you just couldn't keep up with me," Pietro explained. "I mean, I can keep four girls busy dancing at the same time." He did a lap around the room at super-speed to prove his point. "Ha!"

"What about you, cold spot?" she asked Danny.

"You're nice and all," he said with a light-hearted smirk, "but I'm only interested in people who don't know I'm alive, don't want me alive, or have actively tried to kill me in the past, whether or not they succeeded doesn't matter though."

"Is that so?"

Tabitha tossed one of her little bombs in his lap, but he turned intangible and let it blow up on the floor below him.

"Now that that's settled, let's all go! And show that school how to party!" She whooped and just like that, everyone was on board, even Lance seemed happy about it, although admittedly, Danny still wasn't really interested in going. A school dance sounded like a really boring way to spend his evening, and he didn't even have a suit.

Luckily, Danny found some nicer clothes in a box in the attic. They were a little big, but they'd do.

And like that, the Brotherhood all went to the school dance. Pietro actually showed up arm-in-arm-et-cetera with four different girls.

Danny wasn't much for dancing, but in the end, the dance was a lot more exciting than he'd thought it would be. That kind of thing happened when weird little dinosaurs tore up the dance floor—literally.

He was thrown off for a moment when one of them jumped at a girl and went right through her, thinking maybe the creature was some kind of ghost. But then a table went right through her too, and he made the connection. The girl was Lance's date, meaning she must've been Kitty, who was a mutant. Intangibility had to be her mutant ability. It was a good one, came in handy a lot. Good for her.

They looked scary, but the creatures weren't too hard to take down, especially not once Danny got his hands on one and could sense it was from another dimension. He'd never had much luck making portals before, but it was easier to send stuff back where it came from than it was for things to be in dimensions where they didn't belong, and after almost dying a second time, he finally managed to send one of the creatures back to its own dimension.

"How did you do that?" shouted the guy who always wore sunglasses—and after seeing him lift them to shoot lasers out of his eyes, Danny finally understood why.

"Uh... luck, mostly!" he answered.

Danny was getting the chance to see a lot of their abilities for the first time tonight. That red-headed girl had telekinesis. The German kid teleported away with his date after Lance ripped up the gym floor to corral the creature back Danny's way. These kids seemed to be pretty powerful.

Now that the gym was basically evacuated, it was just Danny, the mutants, and one more monster.

"Can you do it again?" Lance asked.

"Are you kidding? I barely did it the first time!"

While they were arguing, the creature forced its way into the hall.

"Shit! We better go after it!"

The remaining Brotherhood members and X-men left the gym, chasing after it. Down the hall, they ran into a guy Danny didn't recognize, but the X-men called him Forge, and he was carrying a strange device.

"Whatever that thing is, don't point it at me!" Danny said when he saw where Forge was aiming it, albeit probably unintentionally, and he stepped aside, out of the blast zone.

"It's a portal maker," said Forge. "It'll send them back to the dimension they came from."

"In that case, definitely don't point it at me," Danny said.

"My scans indicate traces in the gym."

"I already took care of the one in the gym, sent it back myself," Danny said. "We need to get the one that ran down the hall." Much to Danny's relief, Forge didn't question him, and instead, they all got back to running.

By the time they found the one that got away, Tabitha, Blob, and Toad had already taken care of it, and were sitting on it to keep it down.

"Hey, I recognize that thing!" Toad remarked, pointing to Forge's portal-maker.

"I modified to to sent these things back to the dimension they came from," Forge explained. "Everyone step back."

The three of them were more than happy to do so. The creature barely had time to get to its feet before it got zapped back home.

"That should be all of them," Forge said. "My sensors aren't picking up anymore traces from that dimension."

"Thank the Ancients," Danny said, half-sarcastically. "Does this kinda stuff happen a lot around you guys? Cause I may have to rethink my membership."

"You'd be more than welcome at the Xavier Institute," Scott started to say, only to get elbowed by Jean.

"He doesn't want to join Institute," Jean hissed. "Remember what the professor said?"

"Yeah, sorry, but she's right," Danny said. "Professor Xavier and I don't exactly see eye-to-eye. It was fun fighting monsters with you, but I'm gonna stick with the brotherhood. See ya around."

They two groups parted ways, The X-Men to their institute and the Brotherhood to their board house.

"I didn't know you knew Professor X," Tabitha said as they headed toward Lance's jeep. "How'd you meet him."

"At a mental institution," Danny answered, trying to keep his voice casual.

The casual tone did not prevent the rest of them form turning to stare at him when they stopped at a red light.

"It's nothing you guys have to worry about," he assured them. "I'm not crazy. It was just a misunderstanding."

"Some misunderstanding," Lance scoffed. "Let me guess, it was the ghost thing, right?"

"Are you really gonna go there?" Danny asked, his tone warning.

"Ha! No," Lance replied. "You may be a ghost, but I don't plan on joining you any time soon."

"Good call," Danny said.

He had no idea if these Brotherhood folks actually believed he was a ghost, or if they were just playing along, but it didn't actually matter. They respected him enough not to call him delusional, and that made them better than the X-Men and their fearless leader.

#dp #danny phantom #x men evolution #x men #dp x x men evolution #fic #things i wrote #crossover #dp crossover #crossover danuary week 2024 #crossover danuary week #double helix #brotherhood #sequel

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0shewrites0 · 4 months

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Are there any new fics you plan on working on in 2024?

Hi there!

I plan on continuing/finishing if not today, maybe tomorrow because it's been on hiatus for quite a while now, but I've been so busy with liquid gold and my RC fanfic that I kinda lost track of intmt. The problem with planning new fics is that fb is constantly putting out new content and people lose interest in previous seasons almost immediately.

Take S7 for example: I'm not even halfway through lg yet, but the season is already over and S8 will be released in February. No one will give a shit about Alex. I talked to @libelle949 about it and we both said we're just sick of it and have lost our motivation to continue our S7 fics because of fb.

So it's safe to say that I won't be posting any more content for the newer seasons (or maybe just focusing on one-shots instead of chaptered fics) and would rather go back to the "older" seasons (I'm mainly talking about S1-4). In a way, those LIs are easier to write anyway because they feel like full fledged characters, whereas the LIs of the newer seasons are almost always interchangeable and you basically have to make up your own headcanons for every detail about them.

Phew, I just had to get that off my chest, sorry 😩

So, what are my plans?

finish my ongoing chaptered fics intmt, lg and Dead of Night

focus on one-shots and especially challenge myself to write for LIs I haven’t written for before

But I'm open to prompts and pairings, so if there's something you'd like to see, put your requests in my inbox and feel free to be really specific about what you'd like to see! Like salt and pepper (Tai/MC) and the ghost of you (Oliver/MC) are actually fics that came out of anon requests, and I really enjoyed writing them 🪽

#litg #litg fanfic #litg ff #litg fanfiction #anon asks #rae answers

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boozles · 4 months

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Boozle's Top Ten Actors 2023

As part of my 2023 review, I thought I would include my top ten actors of the year. (Lets be honest, I just love making lists, and end of the year lists are the best!)

In no order whatsoever...

(i) First Kanaphan Puitrakul I know, you're all shocked beyond comprehension. In all seriousness, though, First continues to blow me away with his acting. He really can play any part and he puts his everything into each role. It's been amazing the last few months to see people start to realise how amazing he is. A bonus is that he is a bloody lovely human being, too.

(ii) Force Jiratchapong Srisang I know there was a lot of discourse during Only Friends where Force (and Book) seemed to get a lot of hate, and I do not understand that at all. It was only this year that I discovered them because of A Boss and A Babe, and between that, Enchante and Only Friends...Force is a bloody fantastic actor! When he's on screen he commands your attention, and I cannot wait to see what is next in store for him.

(iii) Khaotung Thanawat Rattanakitpaisan I know, what a shocker, eh? Khaotung deserves all the recognition he has been receiving this year, he really does. This man puts his heart and soul and then a little more into every performance, and I am still not over Ray's therapy scene in Only Friends. I can't even find the words to completely explain how much I adore this man's acting, I just love him so much. I would really love to send a fruit basket to whomever made the decision to pair him and First together, because it literally may have been the greatest decision ever made in the history of acting.

(iv) Mark Pakin Kunaanuwit Mark really has been the stand out for GMMTV this year, hasn't he? Not only is he a precious wee bean, he's so bloody talented and we can't get enough of him. I know he has said he doesn't really want to play any big lead roles, but regardless, I hope we see lots more of him (after he gets some rest because he was super busy in 2023!).

(v) New Thitipoom Techa-apaikhun Gosh, he's a little cutie, isn't he? This year was the first I'd ever seen New in anything, and it was actually The Warp Effect that introduced me to him, and I just fell in love. There's just something about how New portrays emotions, especially sad ones? It's like he manages to change his aura and just really put out what the characters are feeling, and I'm looking forward to the rest of Cherry Magic, and Peaceful Property in 2024!

(vi) Jan Ployshompoo Supasap "Finally, a woman!" I hear you all cry as we pass the halfway mark of this list. I love Jan. Every time she pops up in a series I get all giddy because not only is she an amazing actress and singer, she's so funny! I think the first thing I saw her in was Tonhon Chonlatee, and I honestly think I wouldn't have made it through the show if it weren't for her. I think you can watch her series through the years and see her grow as an actress, and I'm so looking forward to seeing more of her in 2024!

(vii) Book Kasidet PlookPhol I know I already mentioned it with Force, but I really do not understand the hate both of these men received this year with Only Friends. Book has blown me away with his acting; it never feels like a repeat performance with him. I often think about how different Theo, Cher and Mew are and it blow my mind that the same person played all three roles. If you don't like Book, i honestly worry about your taste.

(viii) Mek Jirakit Thhawornwong I had to include my husband, Mek. The thing is, I think Mek is a fantastic actor, but GMMTV really did not treat him as well as he deserved. Star and Sky was a terrible series, but Mek really stood out to me (I only watched the show because it was the only series includied in Our Skyy 2 that I hadn't seen, and Mek was the only part of it I came out enjoying). 2023 has seen him mostly doing modelling and promo spots, but I am so excited to see him in Red Peafowl and My Stand In in 2024 (plus, it looks like we're going to get new music from his band, Saint After Six)!

(ix) Neo Trai Nimtawat I think I'm lucky that the first thing I saw Neo in was The Eclipse, because he said that beforehand he always felt like he played the class clown, whilst he got to actually show his acting skills in The Eclipse. Fast forward to Only Friends and he came out victorious with everyone being blown away by how versatile he is as a performer. I've adored him since he was Kanlong, and I hope he has a long and lucrative career.

(x) Tay Tawan Vihokratana When I first watched Kiss Me Again this year, initially it was because I wanted to watch more New, then this little terror just sideswept me off my feet. I won't lie, I still haven't watched 3 Will Be Free (I know, I know, I'll be fixing that in the New Year) so my experience with Tay is just his performance as Pete in Kiss Me Again & Dark Blue Kiss, and what we've seen of Cherry Magic so far...and I love him. The difference between Pete and Karan is enough to prove how fantastic Tay is as an actor, and I am so looking forward to Peaceful Property. It doesn't hurt that he has the most heartwarming smile that makes my legs feel like jelly.

Honorary Mentions: (i) Billy Patchanon Ounsa-ard (ii) Babe Tanatat Phanviriyakoo (iii) Silvy Pavida Moriggi (iv) Louis Tien Chiang (v) Bright Rapheephong Thapsuwan (vi) Nonkul Chanon Santinatornkul

#2023 top ten list #billy patchanon #babe tanatat #first kanaphan #khaotung thanawat #force jiratchapong #book kasidet #mek jirakit #louis chiang #bright rapheephong #nonkul chanon #silvy pavida #jan ployshompoo #tay tawan #new thitipoom #neo trai #mark pakin

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lestappenforever · 5 months

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Controversial opinion to send here but I think Charles re-signing with Ferrari is totally the right move for him. Here's my take:

1. We are often forgetting that this year is still tying up loose ends with the remnants of what Binotto and the old crew were up to. The crew that did not prioritize Charles, and built a car not suited to him. Our frustrations with this season are tied a lot to what was left by old management.

Halfway through the season and we can see that Fred and the newly appointed heads are making good effort and progress. The car was reworked to help Charles' driving range, and the strategy overall has improved significantly from last year. Of course, strategy under pressure vs not under pressure is still to be seen. But still overall, less terminal strategic fuckups this year.

The 2024 car and the 2024 season overall will be the first one under Fred's direction as team principal, and should be the season to judge them on, not this one, or any past seasons.

Additionally, for those who think Sainz is the problem - we're finally hearing that he's only being offered a 1 year contract. If true, this means Ferrari are prioritizing Charles, and are looking for a better #2 for him. This is exactly what a team needs to win a title, and they are building that for him. They are finally going in the right direction - let's let them give it a shot.

2. Contracts as we've seen, are not set in stone. Therefore it's good that Charles is signing until 2029. Of course we know he's talented to stay in F1 anyway, but this guarantees him a seat. And if it's a 2+3 like previously rumoured, then it means he's guaranteed a seat and he still has options to leave if he wants. And in that situation, he's probably going to be the most sought after driver on the grid, and he'll get paid even more to go to another team. It's a good business move.

3. We are severely over-romanticising the situation if Charles were to leave to RB. They might get along and avoid a brocedes situation, but battling Max on his home turf where he knows all the people, how the team runs, how the car generally works, and where the entire team treats him like their golden boy - Charles will have a tough time winning there, assuming he's more talented than Max and has the speed to begin with. And he'll have to deliver on his very first season there, because new regulations are approaching and there's no guarantee RB will be good in 2026. Coming into a new team and winning a championship immediately? Nearly unheard of. As shitty as we may think Ferrari is, they have the best and only shot at beating RB these days.

4. Charles is not an idiot. We are outsiders who just see him as the Ferrari boy with a dream, but he obviously cares a lot about winning, and winning championships. He is unhappy unless he's winning, despite being in his dream team. We joke about him being brainwashed or being delusional about Ferrari, but we don't know him personally. Even so, I'd bet if you asked him would you rather win a WDC not at Ferrari, or never win a WDC but be a Ferrari career driver? He'd pick the former. If we know anything about Charles, it's that he is an insanely competitive person. He wants to win above all. Therefore, if he's re-signing with Ferrari, it's because he's seen the proof of the future project, or he knows that Ferrari is his best and only shot at a title. He knows more inside info than we do. I'm sure him and his management have done their research and made the appropriate decision.

Of course I understand the frustrations and it's easy to think he'd be better off if he left - but I really don't think there's a better team out there for him. Do I love Ferrari? Not as often as I'd like to. But do I think Charles should go elsewhere? No. And it's not his fault - the grid has some very talented drivers and unfortunately the other top seats are already taken. No matter what you think about Ferrari, this is still a top 3 team. Literally half the grid would probably jump at the chance to drive for Ferrari. At the end of the day, I still think it's the best option out there for Charles.

An interesting take, without a doubt, anon, and I definitely see where you’re coming from!

It's not a take that I agree with, having watched Ferrari fail time and time again for so many years, but that’s the beauty of having different opinions, and I love seeing different opinions from different people. So I'm very glad you decided to share your thoughts, and I don’t find it controversial at all. ❤️

#Asks #Anon asks

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leqclerc · 11 months

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Deep down I would still really love seeing charles winning in ferrari instead of changing teams, but it doesn't feel like there's any hope honestly.

like, before was "next year is our year" but now even next year already seems doomed

https://twitter.com/FUnoAT/status/1667556319463702533?t=W3fsCNE2itVZqVKqw1AGbg&s=19

Oh no gang 🤐 I remember seeing a tweet or something saying June is likely going to be crunch time at Ferrari when it comes to preparation for 2024. I know Fred's been trying to poach staff where he can, especially engineers, and I know some of them have been released/are due to finish their gardening period soon, but there have also been setbacks, and ultimately I don't think he ended up getting the guys he was after, certainly not all of them. I'm really hoping next year's project is a step in the right direction, but there's no denying they're in a difficult place right now so it could really go either way. With how strong (and most importantly stable) Red Bull's situation looks, with Aston's facilities and upgrade packages, and with Mercedes seemingly starting to steer the ship in the right direction once again, Ferrari are definitely on the back foot.

Also, being in the middle of a little nostalgia fest right now and looking back at content from 2019, particularly the interviews and longer feature docus centered around Charles... a lot of the magic of the time stemmed from the fact that he was so young and on the rise. I mean, his second year in F1 overall and his debut season in Ferrari and he already showed so much promise and talent and determination. I think he was really this injection of new youthful energy into the team, into the Tifosi as a whole (even Seb called this "new beginning" with Charles joining the team one of the best moments of his Ferrari career, which is huge). Up to that point Ferrari had generally banked on established drivers, often champions. And here's a young hotshot who doesn't yet know the taste of winning and has this fervent desire to experience it in red. He had a clear goal in sight and he pursued it relentlessly, even if it meant getting caught up in questionable on-track situations. There was maybe a bit of naivety in that, but also a lot of boldness and tenacity that can only come from being young and wanting to prove yourself. Add to that a dash of his penchant for self-criticism, and you can totally see why the world was so swept up in the rookie Ferrari driver's story, why he became the main subject of character study fics at the time. It was fascinating. Like, sometimes, more than anything, I would just love to be able to go back and experience all of that again, just live in that brief moment in time when it really seemed like the only way is up and things can only get better.

But now we're halfway through 2023. 2019 was, somehow, unbelievably, already four years ago. And the story that was supposed to be filled with success and victories has been marred by misfortune and subpar machinery. Now he's no longer a 21-year old sensation winning in Monza, but just another title-less driver in their 20s trying to do the best with what they've got. His career has pretty much stalled and he's being increasingly criticized more than he's being praised (not that he escaped criticism in 2019-20, far from it, but there's a little bit of leniency to be found when someone's young and starting out, or when they can respond to this criticism with a win because the facilities are there). From being called the "Vettel Slayer" or whatever, to being ranked on par with or even below Carlos. What was once an engrossing clash of young generational talents (Silverstone 2019, anyone?) has become a completely unfair, skewed comparison that is ultimately used to portray Charles in a negative light. So the whole thing has lost its shine a bit, and what started out as a journey full of hope and potential is now increasingly turning into a drawn-out tragicomedy.

And obviously the disappointing, frustrating thing is that it's largely down to circumstance and whatever the hell is going on internally within that team that's preventing them from performing at their best. The stats are bleak, and it's so frustrating to know that the results table on Wikipedia or any other site aren't a genuine reflection of his talent and abilities, but they're ultimately what people remember and choose to base their perception of a driver on. Objectively he's still young and he can still go far, but equally, this sport can be ruthless and cruel and success is hard to reach if the stars don't align. Statistically speaking, he's got about ten years left in his career as a full-time driver, give or take. Fernando's more of an exception than the rule, and there's even less Lewises out there (having his most successful run in his 30s, so in the back half of his career.) Then again, even if the Mercedes stint had completely not worked out for him, he still wouldn't be going home empty-handed, because he was already crowned champion once before he joined. I think that frees you up, mentally and otherwise, to focus on other pursuits. Crossing that threshold and getting your first championship is always the hardest step. The thought of Charles never finding out what that feels like and being left to wonder what could have been is really hard to take. :/

#replies #anonymous #alexa play wasting my young years by london grammar 😭😭😭😭#very very sorry about the long and unwarranted rant im just in feels recently :<#it's so hard rewatching say 2019 interviews or hell even hearing the commentary during sessions #and how they always talk about charles getting a title like it's a sure thing and merely a matter of time #and maybe that can still prove to be true but at the moment things look pretty bleak esp in terms of winning with ferrari #it's depressing to know just how many pieces of the puzzle have to fall into place for a driver to clinch a title these days #and seeing how ferrari doesn't seem to know how to find their way back to consistently winning.......... one fear #charles leclerc #discussions and predictions #long post

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uselessdancedata · 2 months

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I’ve heard about that! That was crazy. Honestly ballet seems so made up, like if anyone was gonna make up a sport, it’d 100% be ballet. Also it shocks me how nobody actually knows how bad pointe is if you go on too early? Like the tumblr comp dance world seems to seriously be forgetting that fact since they don’t seem to know much about pointe. I wish my takes were cold takes if I’m being honest. Like normalise going en pointe at the right age 💔

oh ballet history always sounds SO made up, don't even get me started on the la fille mal gardee chicken orchestra rivalry thing

tbh! i don't know a whole lot about the dangers of going en pointe too early, at least from a medical perspective! i don't talk about it much because even though i've read and heard opinions from all over, i wouldn't say any of them are from reliable sources - no doctors or medical professionals etc. so feel free to tell me more about it, i'd like to know more :)

that said, i do think competitions and the culture around them are starting to erode the understanding of a child around age 11 as a beginner to real ballet. in competition culture an 11-year-old is likely already fluent en pointe, rehearsing and performing something like princess florine or swanhilda waltz, while in a classical ballet school an 11-year-old is going through the full process of learning the hand positions, arms, stretching, strengthening the feet, doing beginning pointe work etc. (i'm not familiar with other systems but i do know vaganova starts them halfway through the first year and by the end of the year they can do very basic centre work). i do understand that it's a necessary evil to start competition training very young nowadays, because i don't think there's a real way to stop comp dance moms and dance teachers from seeking the highest possible level at the youngest possible age.

however i think there are a lot of ways competitions could make a difference. first of all, yagp's repertoire divisions make absolutely no sense. swanhilda waltz should not be permitted en pointe for the pre-competitive division, at least in the adapted competition format we see it in today (the original is so much simpler and i assume that's what they originally were thinking of when they put it in the pc repertoire). i would love to see much simpler variations in the repertoire, like those from cipollino or the other soloist roles in fairy doll. (why is the principal variation so popular and all the others are nowhere to be seen? french doll is soo cute). or maybe they could make the pre-competitive division free from a repertoire list, like it used to be, but i think that might trigger a wave of 9-year-old odiles lmao.

the expectation for 12-year-olds to be en pointe is also not right given that yagp now starts their season in june, so a competing 12-year-old could easily only be 11, an age where they shouldn't be expected to be confident enough en pointe to do the junior repertoire variations. i know yagp technically doesn't mandate that all juniors be en pointe, but the way existing participants have been rewarded has absolutely set the expectations that they should be. i don't have any bright ideas for how they could fix this, but i think putting it in writing that dancers are permitted or even encouraged to dance demi pointe in the junior division would at least help, and then if they would start awarding these dancers on demi pointe, then that would help even more. i think it's very reasonable to expect competing 12-year-olds to be on demi, especially since half of them will still be 11 during the first competition of the season. yagp's brazil 2024 stage is in JUNE 2023. that's just silly.

also, while we're on the topic, someone has GOT to stop the royal ballet school from insisting on only putting their kids en pointe after age 12 "for health reasons" only to kick 90% of their girls out at age 15 and replacing them with YAGP kids who've been en pointe since 9. it's hypocritical and is just asinine coming from a school with as glorious of a reputation as the royal ballet school. it's so goofy how they have to brand their lower school and their upper school as two separate schools to get away with it. it's openly broadcasting that their lower school training isn't good enough to feed into the upper school, and it's just such a bad look. and of course, it also sends the message that for young ones, competition training >>> classical training. which leads back to putting your very small children en pointe.

i think there's a balance that can be struck here. i could be wrong on this - i'd like your opinion - but i don't think it's unreasonable to start kids en pointe at 11, since that's just a year off from the recommendation. especially if you're going through strict screening processes like all the old ballet schools do (presumably they choose those with strong enough feet and a toe structure that makes it easier to go en pointe). now if you start at 8 or something then i really can't agree with that. that's a little too far off imo.

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bllsbailey · 2 months

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Trump, Biden Clinch Nominations, Winning Delegates to Set Up Rematch

Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden clinched their parties' presidential nominations Tuesday with decisive victories in a slate of low-profile primaries, setting up a general election rematch.

The outcome of contests across Georgia, Mississippi, and Washington state was never in doubt. Neither Biden, a Democrat, nor Trump, a Republican, faced major opposition. But the magnitude of their victories gave each man the delegate majority he needed to claim his party's nomination at the summertime national conventions.

Trump, in a video posted to Rumble, celebrated what he called "a great day of victory."

"But now we have to get back to work because we have the worst president in the history of our country," Trump said of Biden. "So, we're not going to take time to celebrate. We'll celebrate in eight months when the election is over."

He also posted a message to Truth Social.

"It is my great honor to be representing the Republican Party as its presidential nominee," Trump wrote just before midnight. "Our party is united and strong, and fully understands that we are running against the worst, most incompetent, corrupt, and destructive president in the history of the United States.

"Millions of people are invading our Country, many from prisons and mental institutions of other countries. High interest rates and inflation are choking our great middle class, and all our economy is bad, and our stock market is rising only because polls are strongly indicating that we will win the presidential election of 2024.

"We are now, under Crooked Joe Biden, a third-world nation, which uses the Injustice System to go after his political opponent, ME!

"But fear not, we will not fail, we will take back our once great country, put AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN – GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE.

"November 5th will go down as the most important day in the history of our Country! GOD BLESS AMERICA."

Not even halfway through the presidential primary calendar, Tuesday marked a crystalizing moment for a nation uneasy with its choices in 2024.

There is no longer any doubt the fall election will feature a rematch of the 2020 election that featured the most votes for a sitting president in history, and the most votes for any candidate in history.

At 81, Biden is already the oldest president in U.S. history. Their rematch — the first featuring two U.S. presidents since 1912 — will almost certainly deepen the nation's searing political and cultural divides over the eight-month grind that lies ahead.

Biden entered the White House promising to be the unifying president. It never materialized, and Trump argues division has only gotten worse.

In a statement, Biden celebrated the nomination while casting Trump as a serious threat to democracy.

Trump, Biden said, "is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America."

"I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party — and our country — in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever."

Both candidates dominated Tuesday's primaries in swing-state Georgia, deep-red Mississippi and Democratic-leaning Washington. Trump also won Hawaii's Republican caucus.

Despite their tough talk, the road ahead will not be easy for either presumptive nominee.

Trump is facing 91 felony counts in four criminal cases involving his handling of classified documents and the 2020 election challenge, among other alleged crimes. He's also facing increasingly pointed questions about his policy plans and ability to negotiate with some of the world's most dangerous dictators. Trump met privately Friday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has rolled back democracy in his country.

Biden, who would be 86 years old at the end of his next term, is working to assure a skeptical electorate that he is still physically and mentally able to thrive in the world's most important job. Voters in both parties are unhappy with his handling of immigration and inflation.

And he is dealing with additional dissension within his party's progressive base, furious that he has not done more to stop Israel's war against Hamas terrorists in Gaza. Activists and religious leaders in Washington encouraged Democrats to vote "uncommitted" to signal their outrage.

In Seattle, 26-year-old voter Bella Rivera said they hoped their "uncommitted" vote would would serve as a wakeup call for the Democratic party.

"If you really want our votes, if you want to win this election, you're going to have to show a little bit more either support of Palestinian liberation — that's something that's very important to us — and ceasing funds to Israel," said Rivera, a preschool teacher who uses they/them pronouns.

Almost 3,000 miles away in Georgia, retiree Donna Graham said she would have preferred another Republican nominee over Trump, but she said there is no way she would ever vote for Biden in the general election.

"He wasn't my first choice, but he's the next best thing," Graham said of Trump. "It's sad that it's the same old matchup as four years ago."

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