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kaysutcliff-michaelis · 3 years

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Bright We Burn ending rant (SPOILERS)

Under the cut you will find my opinion with lots of spoilers, capitals and cursing about Bright We Burn (and the Conqueror’s saga in general) written by Kiersten White.

Quoting from https://booksandreaderssite.wordpress.com/2018/10/13/bright-we-burn/ “This book was ruined by the author falling in love with her own character: Perfect Beloved Radu“

I finished reading the book like an hour ago and I’ve been complaining, crying, and looking for reviews since then. I hate it, hate it so much, as much as I loved the first two books and the beginning of this one.

The impression I get from the ending is not one I expected to get from a book that had a strong female protagonist as its main selling point. Mainly because said protagonist gets the worst possible ending. I didn’t expect a happy go lucky ending, I didn’t even expect her not to die or the author to stray too far from historical facts. Just because of the title I expected her to be like a shooting star, briefly burning bright. But she didn’t burn bright, she just burn. What I didn’t expect was the ending feeling completely alien to the rest of the saga.

Lada is ruthless, strong, smart, a great tactician and has her sights focused on her goal, being the prince of Wallachia. And fuck Mehmed, Radu, her father, and whoever tries to prevent her from ruling her country. She gets the respect of her men and the people of her country, she’s a good and fair ruler even if she got there with rather bloody methods. But haven’t they all? The Ottoman Empire Mehmed and Radu are so fond of is built on the blood of the janissaries they have taken from vassal states and the blood of the Christians from Constantinople. Yet the moment Lada kills the boyars (who have been leeching off Wallachia for decades) and Mehmed’s envoys (who burnt a village first), she must be stopped. How dare a woman make life easier for the people of the country?

And for some reason, the author allows two men to ruin what Lada has built with blood, sweat and tears. And to add insult to injury, the men who should have helped her (Mehmed even claims “he gave her the throne” as the selfish and self-centered asshole he is).

And she loses everything and everyone who is important to her. Petru, Nicolae, Oana, Stefan, Daciana, and Bogdan. Oh, Bogdan. How I wished Radu lost an eye to compensate for his murder.

And in case that was not enough, the dragon that was so strong and fierce suddenly turns into a girl that is lonely and hurt and needs her brother to survive and give her back her country. The country that never recognised Radu as prince. The country that loved Lada.

HE FUCKING HAD TO GIVE HER WHAT WAS ALREADY HERS. A MAN. AGAIN. HE FUCKING TOOK THE THRONE FROM HER AND FUCKING GAVE IT BACK AS IF HE WAS A DAMN SAINT. ALL SHE DID AND IN THE END SHE WAS PRINCE BECAUSE A FUCKING MAN ALLOWED IT. HOW IS THAT FEMINIST??????????? WHAT IS THE USE IN HAVING SUCH A POWERFUL FEMALE CHARACTER IF THE FULFILLMENT OF HER DREAM DEPENDS ON THE WHIM OF A MALE EVEN AT THE VERY END?

AND HE EVEN GETS AN “I TOLD YOU” MOMENT!!! THE AUDACITY!!!

And her death... such a warrior, killed by a nameless assassin with a knife to the back. A nameless grave. So disrespectful to what Lada was. I don’t care if all the things I didn’t like were for historical accuracy’s sake. Lada was her character and deserved way better than that.

Moving on to the treacherous rat that Radu has become, I liked him so much and in this book I could only pray for someone to smack him as hard as possible. He goes from the poor and traumatised soul that is being manipulated by Mehmed and has lost his best friend and potential partner to enabling Mehmed’s actions while being fully conscious of how he’s being used, instantly healing himself from a trauma that is not relevant ever again, not giving a damn about killing people, sending Kumal to his death without sparing it too many thoughts, and having a cute little happy family while wanting to imprison his sister for the rest of her life and thinking he’s doing her a favor. He actually thought it was good and fair to plan a happy life for himself while destroying everything his sister had fought for. The sister he never ever chose.

Am I the only one who loved that the Danesti brothers started being problematic as soon as Radu gave them the throne?? Boyars will be boyars, and I don’t understand how he thought those two would be better rulers than Lada, they wouldn’t enter the castle and still wanted the money, the lands and the fancy stuff.

I honestly cannot believe how much this character has changed (for the worse), and how he acts like he’s so good and only looking for the best for those he loves when he’s a traitor, a liar, a killer and the reason why Constantinople fell. He cannot forgive Lada for protecting Wallachia, but apparently everyone and their mother have forgiven and forgotten all the blood staining his hands. Also I find it unbelievable how he sells the way the Ottoman Empire is run to Cyprian but then when Lada tried to use some of the things she had learnt there to run Wallachia it was suddenly the worse thing ever. Radu is definitely not the good Dracul sibling, he’s the toxic one.

Speaking about Cyprian, I honestly couldn’t feel happy for them. When he came back to Radu I was already too angry and wanting to send him packing back to Edirne. Amazing how Cyprian can give counsel about how to deal with Lada when all he knows about her is second-hand but he can forgive Radu for lying to him, making the siege worse for everyone, being the reason why his uncle is dead and his city was lost (and even if he doesn’t know about it, the reason why Giustiniani may have died).

And Fatima?? How she “took care” of Lada at the end? I can’t tell if she’s too broken or what, but it was creepy how she could take care of Lada when Nazira wouldn’t even stand being in the same room. Even if she was going to give them her baby, it makes me wonder how messed up she can be to be able to behave that way with the person who killed her brother-in-law and they were so adamant to condemn.

I won’t even talk about the baby thing because that was just so unnecessary for the plot and for Lada herself as a character.

Going back to Radu and before talking about Mehmed, I hate how he is 100% sure that Mehmed knows about his feelings and is using him and said feelings and he??? just??? allows??? it???? Still does whatever he wants, still appears at his doorstep no matter his trauma with Constantinople, still makes Nazira and Fatima leave their house though they had just been reunited and Mehmed didn’t care that much about finding Nazira and STILL at the end, 20 years later is in good terms with him. He didn’t confront Mehmed about using him, never called him out. Radu is the friend who will listen to you when you’re explaining how a common friend has abused you and then will keep being friends with the other person and abandoning you :D

I am not Mehmed’s biggest fan, but it’s like he isn’t even a character anymore in this book. Even if we never have his pov it always felt like this story was a triangle, but at the end it was like he wasn’t there anymore, he isn’t even the source of conflict because Radu isn’t in love with him anymore. Even for all their alleged worries about Theodora being Mehmed’s biological daughter, that issue was glossed over in a matter of three lines. I do wish he had stayed more relevant (and that he had never left Constantinople).

Surely I’m forgetting something but I think my point is clear XD Radu is a hypocrite who didn’t deserve his happy ending, Mehmed became so irrelevant that the plot was missing something, and Lada, our dragon, deserved way better. Oh, and don’t write a “feminist” YA book if the female character is the one who’s going to have the worst ending. It just feels like you’re telling women they will end up alone and dead if they are as strong and determined as Lada, and to suck it up because men will always be forgiven for the crimes.

#the conqueror's saga #and i darken #now i rise #bright we burn #lada dracul #radu dracul #mehmed #kiersten white #spoilers #book rant

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thecanadianowl · 3 years

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Justice league Snydercut review

Wow talk about a long movie. Remember Mass Effect's 3 shit endings that were later improved (sorta) with DLCs. Well that is kinda how this movie is.

Before we start this, I just wanna say that I was very impartial throughout the whole snydercut movement. I wasn't part of it but I do see the good that they did in regards to some of their charities and with how the fandom itself has been painted in a negative light. So its good that they got what they have been demanding for quite some time. Snyder as director for me, I really am not the biggest fan of. His movies have some great cinematic moments that look amazing but the context around it is what muddles it for me.

Is it better than Whedon's JL? YES. To start I'll look at some of the things that I do like.

I do like how it was split into parts. Gives it that miniseries/Comic book feel

Thank god they removed that stupid cringy flash landing on top of Diana's chest scene.

Darkseid looks good. I know some people have issues with it but I liked it. I mean looking at it first glance has me convinced its Darkseid. His voice isn't too bad either. Reminds me a bit of Injustice 2.

As much as I have issues with Darkseid being introduced so early I do like that he had a brief confrontation/glaredown with the League, foreshadowing a possible in person encounter and that the League needs to expand if they are going to fight against Darkseid.

Steppenwolf's design has greatly improved and looks better than before.

Loved the scenes between Alfred and Diana. Wish there was more of that.

I loved how the movie added Cyborg, Aquaman and Flash attempting to stop Superman from getting to Batman. I also liked how in this version, Batman pleading to Clark's humanity telling him that world needs him and he needs to snap out of it. Also bonus for taking out that scene of Batman on the ground groaning about how old he is getting.

Okay seeing Clark get the black suit and having the voiceovers of both his father's merge together works in terms of Clark's arc into becoming the person he was meant to be. Also like the use of Zimmerman's Ideal of Hope score wished they let it play out a little longer. Probably my favourite moment in the film is where Superman just takes Steppenwolf's Axe like its nothing and freezes it.

Now to go into some of the more critical stuff that bugged me when watching.

For a movie that is 4 hours long, pacing issues were bound to happen. I think the first example of this can be found in the opening with the Superman scream wave (which started to get a bit hilarious when his screams could be heard every now and then) hitting all three mother boxes. they are shown individually reacting to it and it takes time, where it could have just showed them together or an compilation of each of the motherboxes waking up. I know it Snyder's thing but tone down on the slow mo. Like some instances its fine (like with bullet time or Flash's scenes) but other instances I'm just like alright I get it.

The scene involving Cyborg transferring money into that single mother's bank account. Is he gonna do this for all the people suffering just like her? or just for that one person? I mean if you can hack into the world monetary system, you can solve a lot of financial issues affecting the majoirty and not just one person. Did I miss the scene but why did Cyborg go from helping one poor person, suggesting the potential good he can do to change the world for the better to "Fuck the world". Seems a bit inconsistent in character. Especially since he knows who Diana is (from what he says) and that Parademons are after the motherbox. Maybe her offering help, you should take it? idk Vic. Also the whole Auto defense system malfunction, would it not be better if this was established beforehand where we see Vic struggling to maintain his body's autonomy leading up to the Superman confrontation? Prior to that it seemed he had it under control and his biggest conflict throughout the movie seemed more to be with him coming to terms with his new body. With that being said, Cyborg's character here is much more interesting and better than it was originally. I can see why Ray Fisher is so pissed (well that and the abuse he faced). I am glad this was improved and gave the character a lot more to do.

The movie still has the same issue as before in regards to the whole motherbox plot and how convenient it was that all three are located on earth. You would think that with the involvement of Darkseid/Steppenwolf that separating them to distinct locations across space would make it more difficult to collect them. I mean we know that the Green Lanterns exist (we saw one get chomped), you'd think that they or the guardians would take one and secure it on Oa. The pushback to this would be "well there was only one green lantern and he died, so how could they retrieve the box?" which begs my question, why send only one? I mean it has been established that Darkseid is a known conqueror of worlds, you'd think the Guardians would be smart enough to send more than one Lantern to aid Earth in their fight. Did they not think it would be a good idea to have the corps be more involved/keep an eye on earth since it is the only planet that was able to repel Darkseid's forces?

Why is it that the best idea of security when it comes to humans is to bury it? Would it not be better in optics to look over it and know its location instead of dropping it somewhere on the off chance that someone might find it due to being curious or the land changing/altering making the box more easy to attain? A situation as dire/serious as this, you would think that the Amazons/Atlanteans would have been better prepped with armor/weapons for such an event. I mean you have the arrow of Artemis that shoots quite a distance to give Diana a message but not some kind of weapon that hurts/cripples Steppenwolf? Or better yet, how about the moment that the boxes started acting up after Superman's death, that Atlantis/Themiscarya would put aside any differences they had with one another and to the outside world to come together to secure the boxes? How could Darkseid forget the name of the only planet that was able to force him to retreat? nor does he know that it harbors the anti life?

Did this movie break Aquaman's continuity? because from the dialogue between Mera and Arthur, its implied that Atlanna abandoned/left Arthur at Tom's doorsteps whereas in the movie, we see Atlanna spend a couple of years with Tom and raising baby Arthur before she was forced to come back. You'd think Zack being a producer for the Aquaman movie would have edited that line or made it more clear. Well that or James Wan F'ed up when making the movie.

"I've never seen a being as strong as Steppenwolf" Did Diana just forget Ares aka the god of war who killed the Greek Pantheon/Old gods and orchestrated the first World War? Hell from the looks of the flashback it seemed Ares (I'm assuming its Ares, if its Hades, my bad) was getting some good hits in on Darkseid, who is superior to Steppenwolf. While we are on the topic of Diana, it's a bit odd that Snyder who was a producer on WW84 where one of the biggest focuses on the movie that Patty Jenkins talked about was how Diana doesn't solve her problems with violence (even though her primary weapons in this movie are a sword and shield but okay. Then again New 52 hasn't done a good job in disproving that), yet in this movie we see her using her gauntlet smash to fucking kill the one remaining terorrist. Like sure you can argue that they were terrorists and deserve to die, but given how easy and quick it was for her to take out the previous guys, why do something that runs the risks of destroying the very building that you are in (with hostages). I mean from the look of the blast and how much debris fell from the building outside, and it was a miracle no one (but the terrorist) got hurt/killed.

Why did Steppenwolf kidnap them in the first place? Just use that mind extracting device you used on the Atlantean soldier to see if they know. Seems like a waste of time to collect them in one location only to interrogate them later.

Okay, I'm sorry but even in this cut I still don't like Miller's Barry Allen. He isn't as bad as he was in the theatrical cut but man does it stick out. When he is helping to escort the kidnapped civilians out, why doesn't he just grab them and transfer them to a safe distance? He even makes a comment about how slow they are going. Can I also just say how weird it is for Barry to take time saving Iris to caress her hair and look at her more creepily in slow mo? Like yeah its in slow mo but still I think your priority should be to get everyone to safety as quick as possible and check if anyone else could get hurt. I will admit that Barry's speech as he is running so fast to reverse time at the end was really good. Tho the more I think about all the slow mo Flash scenes are good.

They still kept the "Let's use the mother box to bring back Superman plot". Why? This is a piece of tech that you don't fully understand how it works and you are going on the whims of someone you just met. Especially if they come back as a different person/mindset all together. If Superman 's death was the reason that allowed for the Mother box to call to Steppenwolf/Darkseid, what the hell were they doing prior to Superman's arrival on earth? I mean we've seen how easy it was for Steppenwolf to attain the two boxes even if they were guarded, so why the wait ?. I get that Batman is going through an arc and trying to change from the person he was but how does go from "1% chance of absolute certainty" to "let's go on a whim and have faith" when it comes to resurrecting Superman?

Its gonna be awkward as to how Clark will explain his sudden return from the grave around the same time Superman came back.

I was wondering when the Knightmare scene will play out. Jared leto's Joker isn't over with me, it seems way too try-hard to be edgy. Other than that yeah, not much I can say about it. Tho do we seriously need another iteration where Superman (or someone with Superman like powers) is evil?

I also love how nonchalant Bruce is about J'onn appearing in front him. However the revelation that J'onn was that army general all the time breaks so much of continuity (and just why now did you decide to show up and help and not idk the time Zod invaded and nearly terraformed earth, HELL WHY TF DIDN'T SHOW UP TO HELP THE LEAGUE IF YOU KNEW ABOUT DARKSEID, I'M SORRY TO RAG ON BUT REALLY THIS CAMEO JUST OPENS UP SO MANY QUESTIONS, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE AN "PALPATINE WAS BEHIND THIS ALL ALONG" KIND OF THING ).

In terms of getting a sequel, I am not sure if WB is going to go through with it given that their current vision seems to be a different route than the one Snyder intended so who knows. Despite my criticisms I do believe this is Snyder's best DCEU film to date and probably one of his better films. You could tell that he put in a lot to make this. The movie itself does have issues mostly due to the plot surrounding the motherbox as well as pacing. I would say it's worth the watch at least once, though I think its best to watch it in doses rather than one sitting. Ultimately this is the version that we should have gotten and I can see why so many people who were supportive of Zack wanted or vouched for him to finish it. Regardless, I think the very least I am happy for Snyder. If you like Snyder's previous stuff, you will like this one, if you don't, your perception of the film won't change significantly other than some cool bits here and there.

#dceu #justice league #snydercut #snydercut spoilers #dc comics

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boat-dock · 4 years

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Marcel

part 3 of my Mikaelson family oneshots! a little bit of a darker side of Hope cause she is a Mikaelson after all

When Hope’s birthday comes around and Hope faces a surprise visit from her brother, she is forced to fight against her darker impulses and learn to spend the day with people she cares about.

Today was perhaps Hope’s least favorite day of the year. It wasn’t always, but for the last few years, it had become incredibly difficult to enjoy a day dedicated to her, without her parents by her side. No one at the school knew when her birthday is and therefore no one knows to celebrate, which is exactly how she liked it. She normally got calls from her family and some gifts sent in but not much else.

She was acutely aware that Josie knew when her birthday was because every year the young siphoner always awkwardly approached her in an attempt to be kind, but Hope always dismissed her. However, now that they were friends she was worried that the twins would plan something for her, or just inform everyone else.

It turns out the twins weren’t the ones she needed to be worried about. She should have known that her family wouldn’t just sit idly by as she turned 18. Not that they would treat her as an adult now that the law claimed she was, they were over a thousand years old and would treat her as a child until she was probably half of that.

She was sitting in her room alone, enjoying her solitude as she normally did every year on her birthday, when a strange and familiar scent hit her; it was of power and principle yet somehow faintly of apples. She knew who it was automatically and confusion overwhelmed her. She slowly made her way out into the hallway and down the stairs following the smell that wafted through the air on autopilot while her mind wandered.

If Marcel was here why hadn’t he come straight to her? There was no other reason for him to be in town if not to see her.

The school was bustling with students, but Hope wandered through them in a kind of trance, that smell was like a magnet drawing her in. When she reached the entrance to the school and saw her brother sitting in front of the large burning fireplace surrounded by every vampire that attended the Salvatore school, she froze and waited in the shadows leaning against the door frame.

Marcel was boasting and laughing while the vampires hung onto his every word. White-hot jealousy coursed through her like a snake. She felt every bit of possessiveness that she had worked so hard to overcome her entire life come boiling over and she was powerless to fight against it. The longer she waited the more she worked up she became.

That’s why when she was spotted hiding in the shadows she behaves in a less than stellar manner. “ Hope,” Mg called perking up when he saw her, “ this is Marcel, he’s the most powerful vampire in existence. Isn’t that awesome?”

He was hopelessly naive, but that wasn’t a surprise. “ ‘Most powerful Vampire in existence’ that’s quite a title,” her words dripped in sarcasm and were bitter in her mouth. She slipped on a mask, Mikaelson gravitas and grandeur were easy for her to come by. Marcel’s head snapped toward her grinning but when he saw that all too familiar expression on her face he realized exactly what thoughts were prowling around in her mind. “ and you have your own little fan club, how adorable.” She didn’t mean to sound that bitter or cruel but for the first time in a while, Hope didn’t have a good grip on her emotions.

“You might want to watch yourself, Hope,” Kaleb spoke with an arrogance that could only come from a peaceful ignorance, “ I know you’re used to being big dog on campus but one day you might meet someone more powerful than you.”

It was a foolish insult but it still made her blood boil. She could easily overpower this entire school without breaking a sweat, not that she would, no matter how angry she was. The Salvator school was a bright spot in the sea of darkness that is the supernatural world, it teaches control and breeds collaboration between the factions, but it was still at its core a high school. Filled with teenagers that intend to act exactly as teenagers do. Most days she doesn’t take it personally, in fact, she considers half of the people in this room her friends, but today things were just too much.

Marcel, however, wasn’t looped in on the social interactions of students, he took the words much more to heart than Hope did. He shifted in his seat, shoulders tense, his smile became cruel in the blink of an eye as he fell into the role of protective big brother. He leaned forward, bearing his teeth, “ Was that a threat?” he growled, in such a way that some might think it was a laugh.

The vampires around him bulked and pulled back, recognizing the threat in his voice. Hope was filled with perverse satisfaction. It was gone a quickly as it appeared and replaced by guilt. Her friends didn’t deserve Marcel’s wrath because of her dark impulses.

With quick steps she went behind the couch where he sat and placed a heavy hand on his shoulder effectively drawing his attention, “ No threat, “ she purred smiling sweetly at him, “ just highschoolers being highschoolers.”

That seemed to appease him, “ well then I’m very happy to never have gone to high school.” watchful and confused eyes followed their every action.

“Sometimes I forget that your education was learning to read Shakespeare and Uncle Elijah teaching you piano.”

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be, kid trust me.” Marcel’s past was no joking matter, but that didn’t need to be discussed now. No one told her much of her family’s past but she was smart enough to figure it out on her own.

“You guys know each other,” Mg exclaimed, more excited than he should be. Marcel shot his eyes at her and she met him with an eye roll.

“Yes,” Hope answered, “ and this is a lovely reminder that Marcel is here for me and not you,” she shot, enjoying the surprised and slightly terrified looks on their faces.

“Uh oh,” Marcel sang, “ Someone is in a mood today.”

He didn’t know how right he was. Perhaps she was a little testing but she had a right to be, “ Well if you’ve forgotten I did spend the better part of last year trapped in an endless void, so forgive me if my quota for familial love and affection wasn’t met,” she wasn’t sure whether these were the right words or not but once they started they didn’t stop, “ and so when I saw you here - my brother - surrounded by your little fan club, not even seeking me out, well I was a little peeved.”

Everyone was quiet for a moment before Marcel answered her, “ We asked you to come home,” he groaned, “ we told you, that you needed to recuperate but you didn’t listen,” she could go home whenever she wanted, without her mother around there was no one insisting that she even go to school. Her father’s side of the family would be more than happy to compel her everything she could ever want and need in life, but it was her choice to stay at the school.

“So how exactly do you know each other?” asked Rafael, who was sitting in the back of the crowd and had stayed silent until this moment. Hope didn’t even know he was there.

“I’ve known Hope since the day she was born,” he answered simply, but Hope decided that she should tell her side of the story.

“Marcel is my oldest friend and the closest thing I have to a brother.” She joined him on the couch where he was sitting facing the group of vampires and easily situated herself under his arm. He pulled her close and pressed a light kiss to her head.

One of the cats was out of the bag now and she doubted her other secret would stay hidden for much longer. Her family members didn’t just come to the school on a whim, there was always a reason whether it was for a major crisis or a surprise birthday visit. And that reason didn’t ever stay hidden for long.

“Now that proper introductions have been made, can we go?” she wanted to leave and go to whatever event her family had planned before things got out of hand here. With her playing the role of school hero, if everyone found out that today was her birthday they would decide to make a bigger deal out of it than it needed to be.

“Of course kid,” Marcel answered standing from the couch and grabbing her hand while motioning for her to lead the way. “We can do whatever you want. It isn’t every day that the Mikaelson miracle baby turns eighteen,”

Hope fought back her groan and forced her face into neutrality, as to not give away that this was exactly the sentence she desperately wanted to avoid. With a tight-lipped smile, she pulled him toward the exit hoping to make an escape. “Wait, what was that?” Kaleb asked, sounding smug. “Did he say turning eighteen?”

“What could that mean?” Mg wondered aloud, grinning sneaking at her. Hope’s stomach knotted as she glanced around.

As if on cue confetti exploded above her and rained down like a sea of sparkles and paper. The twins busted through the doors, Landon close at their heels, with noisemakers and party hats. Noise erupted around her as everyone cheered. “You knew,” Hope groaned.

“Of course we knew,” Kaleb laughed.

“I actually did not know,” Marcel commented, before slipping out of the group and leaving Hope to deal with everything herself.

“Happy birthday Hope!” Josie squealed, throwing her arms around from the side with Lizzie following suit, till she was sandwiched between them. She lifted her arms awkwardly till she was hugging them back. Landon appeared behind her and dropped a party hat on her head as the twins released their death grip on her.

“You guys didn’t need to do this,” Hope said looking at all the people around her, here to celebrate her birthday.

“Well, apparently we wanted to,” Lizzie answered with her usual snark causing Hope to laugh. They shoved a small blue package with a large bow into her hand.

Hope grinned, never had she had friends here who cared enough to celebrate her birthday much less ever give her a gift. Her cheeks flushed as she answered with a meek, “ Thank you.”

“It’s nothing really,” Josie insisted before pushing her towards the door, “ Now go see your family.” Hope’s attention was immediately drawn back to Marcel. He seemed to have vanished in the crowd. But she found him leaning against the door frame, his phone lifted up and pointed straight at her.

He was videoing. Hope laughed to herself at how silly this must all look, but she didn’t doubt that in twenty years or two hundred she would be grateful to watch that video back and remember this day.

But for now, she was sure that video would get sent on the family group chat for everyone to enjoy and tease her about.

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jackoshadows · 4 years

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Unpopular opinion.

Out of all the character endings on Game of Throne’s final season, the one character ending that I had the least problem with is one which the majority of fans intensely disliked – Jaime Lannister.

Jaime Lannister critique under the cut

Maybe it is because I am tired of hearing about Jaime’s non-existent ‘redemption’ arc in the books. Maybe it is because I am yet to see any genuine remorse and regret from him for his actions that has resulted in the loss of countless lives and destruction in Westeros.

Jaime Lannister is the one character in the books that I find hard to sympathize with in any form and whose motivations don’t really resonate with me in any way. I can understand a Cersei – an ambitious woman born in a man’s word and restricted by her gender – better than I can understand a Jaime. The one thing I appreciated the show doing until the last season was fleshing out and writing more for Cersei than for Jaime. I am not a fan of GRRM turning Cersei into a cartoon, crazy lady villain in the later books, while trying to ‘redeem’ Jaime – considering that in the very first book, it was Jaime who tries to murder a child to cover up his incestuous adultery and Cersei who tries to stop him.

I can understand a Tyrion Lannister – abused by his family for being disabled and ugly . Cersei – who can only have power on the whims of men and endures marital rape. This does not excuse their actions – but it explains their bitterness. Theon Greyjoy – a child torn from his loving mother and siblings and brought up with his enemies living with the threat of death if his father misbehaved. Hell, we can even see why Ramsay Bolton turned out the way he did. Ramsay and Jon Snow are supposed to contrast as bastards – because of who Ned Stark and Roose Bolton are as fathers.

Jaime Lannister is Tywin’s golden child. A privileged man born into everything – good looks, wealth, power. And yet his motivation for every single one of his actions can be narrowed down to his incestuous love for his twin sister. I often hear about how Jaime was disenchanted with the Kings guard. Not really. Jaime joins this celibate organization in the first place to be close to his sister and have sex with her – so he was already breaking their oaths and had no high regard for them even at the very beginning when he joins them.

He stabs the fleeing mad king in the back only after Tywin and his men enter KL and he knows he is safe. And then he sits on the throne waiting for Ned to get there, while Elia and her babies are being raped and murdered by the Mountain – even though his KG oaths mean that he has to protect them. Then he blames Ned for not being grateful to him – despite not explaining anything to Ned. Then wallows in self pity about how no one recognizes what he did.

He engages in adultery with the king’s wife when they are guests at WF – and attempts to kill a child to cover up this adultery. And no, he did not do this because he cared about his children – he equated Joffrey to sperm at one point. He then tries to hunt down and kill Arya on Cersei’s orders for the incident at the Trident. If Ned had not found Arya first, Jaime would have killed her. He is nonchalant about killing children.

Then Jaime spends considerable time as a prisoner and loses a hand. We get the Jaime-Brienne saga where Jaime verbally abuses Brienne and mocks her ugliness while she falls in love with him. He saves her from the bear pit - points for Jaime! – and then returns home. Does Jaime have moments of kindness – like, when he helps Brienne and Pia? Yes. But so does every other character with the exception of Ramsay Bolton who is one dimensionally evil.

So this is where Jaime’s redemption supposedly starts …. And I am sorry, but I just don’t see it. He is still busy making sure Tully lands go back to the Freys who betrayed and murdered Robb, even threatening to trebuchet and murder poor imprisoned Edmure’s baby to defeat the Blackfish. And through the Blackfish, GRRM points out how farcical Jaime’s ‘excuses’ and justifications for his actions always are.

"Are there any terms you will accept? he demanded of the Blackfish.

"From you?" Ser Brynden shrugged. "No."

"Why did you even come to treat with me?"

"A siege is deadly dull. I wanted to see this stump of yours and hear whatever excuses you cared to offer up for your latest enormities. They were feebler than I'd hoped. You always disappoint, Kingslayer."

Jaime then proceeds to hang some hungry outlaws – outlaws that were created by his war (A war that started because of his casual adultery with the King’s wife, his twin sister) – and boasts about being Goldenhand the Just. Never stopping to thing about why there are hungry desperate men in the riverlands in the first place. Catelyn Stark asks him to save her daughters in return for his freedom – he hands that task over to Brienne and continues to push Lannister agenda by seeing off Jeyne Poole as she leaves to marry Ramsay Bolton.

A groom led a fine grey mare out the stable door. On her back was mounted a skinny hollow-eyed girl wrapped in a heavy cloak. The girl’s long brown hair blew wild in the wind. She had a pretty face, he thought, but her eyes were sad and wary.

When she saw him, she inclined her head. “Ser Jaime,” she said in a thin anxious voice. “You are kind to see me off.”

Jaime had never paid much attention to Arya Stark, but it seemed to him that this girl was older. “I understand you’re to be married.” “I am to wed Lord Bolton’s son, Ramsay. He used to be a Snow, but His Grace has made him a Bolton. They say he’s very brave. I am so happy.”

Then why do you sound so frightened? “I wish you joy, my lady.”

“Good speed,” he told Steelshanks. Nage raised his peace banner, and the northmen formed a column as ragged as their fur cloaks and trotted out the castle gate. The thin girl on the grey mare looked small and forlorn in their midst.

He has no issues sending off this small, frightened girl to marry someone like Ramsay Bolton.

Ultimately Jaime only refuses to help Cersei because he learns about her other affairs and that she was sleeping with other men. He disposes of her because she was not faithful to him. Not because of any great revelation about good and evil.

And honestly, more than Jaime becoming a better person through his relationship with Brienne, I am worried about Brienne getting corrupted by someone like Jaime. Lady Stoneheart has every right to hang Jaime Lannister – after everything Jaime has inflicted on both house Stark and Tully. If Brienne tries to intervene on his behalf, I am going to be displeased.

So ultimately, considering book Jaime’s story so far, I really don’t have an issue with the show ending. Mainly because I am tired of years and years of Jaime apologists (from hanging out on book forums) justifying and excusing all his actions – including attempted child murder. I personally think Brienne deserves better than him.

I really don’t think Jaime is getting a happily ever after ending with Brienne in the books – and the show just fast tracked to his ending. He is most probably going to kill Cersei and die in the process as his final act.

Ultimately, I think it’s Theon who is more sympathetic and has an actual redemption arc in the books – despite having done far worse. While Jaime sends offs a nobody like Jeyne Poole to get raped and tortured by Ramsay Bolton, Theon Greyoy– despite his own rape and torture at Ramsay’s hands – risks his own life and worse to save hers. We see Theon’s genuine regret and remorse for his actions and a desire to right them. I don’t think Theon is going to survive either, but I see him having the same ending in the books – dying while protecting/saving Bran Stark.

So in a way I do think we got Jaime and Theon’s book endings on the show. The show just took the wrong way to get there.

#Jaime Lannister #Cersei Lannister #Brienne of Tarth deserves better #Theon Greyjoy #GOT #series finale

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permian-tropos · 6 years

Text

Interlude: the Imperialis, twenty-five years ago, again

(my first -- is it really first? -- Galli & Palpatine fic, inspired by a cool fic I’ll link at the bottom. CW abuse, brief mentions of body horror)

“Before you,” the old man rasps, gnarled fingers splayed and fluttering around the small golden goblet like an illusionist showing off an item he is about to magic out of existence, “is the most dreadful, dangerous concoction. Quite possibly the most terrifying ever created. I want you to guess its effect, dear boy. I want your imagination to run wild with possibilities.”

Those yellow eyes curdle Galli’s blood. Tightening his grip on the armrests of the chair, he does as he’s asked and imagines the worst. It should be easy. All he has to do is imagine what would happen if he fails this test.

It can’t be death, too simple, so it could be something painful. It might melt the organs slowly. Worse than that — it might be full of parasites that would grow in your gut and then start burrowing through your body, hollowing you out and keeping you alive, until you are a mass of holes and creepy-crawlies scuttling in and out of them. When he first learned of death, Galli was so little he didn’t understand that bodies felt nothing, and for years he hated the mice that he feared might start nibbling on his body if he slept too soundly.

But it isn’t imaginative enough. A child’s nightmares. He is no child. He is a man. Galli lifts his chin and forces himself to stare into the Emperor’s reptilian gaze.

He is afraid of the man — so afraid, in fact, that it brings a paralyzing fog. Calm acceptance starts to roll in. And then a strange compulsion to lunge forward and swallow the contents of the cup. Take on the worst, and prove that he is brave. Because, and this is a transcendently blasphemous thought, between Palpatine and the cup, Galli is to believe that the cup is the more dreadful. And it sits there so harmlessly. Easily fitting in his hand.

No — imagine, whatever is in the cup, is the last thing in the universe you would want to taste. It will make you hate music. It will deaden your soul to opera, it will slaughter your destiny, it will send you back to Jakku. It will make you want to go back to Jakku. It will have you kneeling in the burning sand and repeating prayers for the rest of your miserable life until your body turns to dust. Because it will make you believe you deserve that.

Galli tries to force sound out of his throat. He has the answer, so he must speak.

Palpatine laughs. “I can sense your fear. Vivid, isn’t it? How it brings clarity to the mind?”

“Yes, sir,” Galli nods.

“Then what do you think is in the goblet?”

Dry-mouthed, Galli parts his lips. “Guilt,” he whispers. “It makes you feel ashamed.”

The Emperor pauses, and begins to cackle. “Oh, you ridiculous boy. I commend your effort. But it is a trite answer. Clever for the sake of cleverness.”

Galli feels — ashamed. Terribly so. He feels angry, too, because he thinks Palpatine might be wrong. There is nothing worse than shame, nothing more nauseating.

“It is subservience,” Palpatine continues sharply. “But of the most appalling kind. You see, Galli, as you sit shivering in your chair, you are afraid of me because you know I can kill you. And that is right, for you to fear. And to feel yourself strengthened by that fear, until you have mastered control over your mind, your body, every facet of your being, all in the service of staying alive. But this draught offers a kind of subservience that robs you of dignity. You will be a slavering, slobbering servant to everyone you meet. Anything they ask, you will do. And it will please you so utterly. Their whims are your whims, their pains are your pains. You will be consumed, torn apart from all sides, quite literally dissolving into the cosmos with a blissful, idiotic grin on your face.”

Again anger blazes in the back of Galli’s mind. But that’s what I meant! He can’t possibly speak this aloud. The most condemning thing of all might be that it is true, but for him to know this, he had to have allowed himself a spare moment of weakness. A moment to despise himself for everything he has done. In a sense, he has already tasted the potion, and learned how potent it could be. The man sitting in front of him surely knows nothing of guilt. And this is why his wizardry is powerful enough to pinch Galli’s life out of existence.

Palpatine taps a fingernail against the goblet. “And like all poisons, it is a popular drug among the vulgar crowds. Metaphorically, of course. But it is so cunningly conceived in its liquid form. A masterful creation.”

“May I hold it?” Galli asks. “The cup?”

Confusion, or intrigue, flashes in the Emperor’s features. “Of course not.” He grasps the goblet by its stem. “I know what you’re thinking. I know… that it tempts you.”

Galli has not yet admitted that to himself. But it’s true. An unconscious part of his mind has been scheming. It thinks this promised idiot’s death will be better than life. And Galli recoils from the realization, revolted. He has never wished to die — except that he has, again and again, made such peace with the notion — but this is not who he is.

Or perhaps it is who Galli is. But that boy is a pathetic creature. The man he will become will be hewn with keener tools. Cutting away and discarding every scab and callus and cancerous lump on his soul that grew from festering under the Jakku sun.

Palpatine lifts the goblet to his lips and downs the draught in one gulp.

Galli is not shocked. His mind rearranges itself in a flash. He knows Palpatine would never do this. So it did not happen, or it was not what it seemed. It was a test. The test-giver cannot be wrong.

Seconds later, a low hissing sound starts up. Like a sand-snake slithering out of its den. Galli’s eyes do widen, when Palpatine bares his teeth in a grin, and black steam pours out from between them. It rises and curls around the man’s pale, wrinkled face.

“To answer your — insolent, unspoken — question. No. Of the two, I am still the more terrifying. You see how even it fears me.”

Dizzy with mortification, Galli nods.

Palaptine flicks two fingers at him, as if brushing Galli out of the room as he would a speck of dust from his cloak. “Now begone, boy. I hope you’ve learned something of value here.”

The black liquid comes from @unspeakablehorror’s highly entertaining Palpatine redemption fic Heart of Shadow. Because it has the power to force people to, well, be less villainous, and because the fic is set when Palps is still just an apprentice, I wondered about Palpatine being able to resist the effects at the height of his Sithly power, right around RotS era, when he’s absolutely basking in his own evil. And having his own interpretation of what the effect even is.

Check it out if you want to see Palp being affected by the liquid and having Shenanigans with Plagueis and baby Maul and Mother Talzin.

#gallius rax #sheev palpatine #aftermath trilogy #my fic #my post

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itscaitymoore · 6 years

Text

You What?

Pairing: George X Reader

Word Count: 1320

Request by: @dannydevitodevoted I really hope that you like it! I’m sorry it took me so long, about half way through I realized I hated what I had written and wanted to write you something new. Enjoy!

“George, she’s going to be so angry.” George and I were walking up to the burrow. Normally, whenever I saw George’s childhood home I got all warm and fuzzy inside. I have so many memories from this place; Fred, George and I would ride around on our brooms for hours here just playing quidditch, Ginny and I would stay up all night talking about boys and her not so subtle crush on my brother. I remember sitting at that kitchen table with Molly and Remus when I was told about my actual parentage, and I spent the rest of the night in George’s bed crying.

“Well we have to tell her at some point, Y/N. Eventually she’s going to start asking to help you plan the wedding. How can she plan something that already happened?” I glanced over at him and noticed he was beaming. He was so incredibly happy and not acting like we were about to tell his mother that we went and eloped without telling anyone.

“Besides,” he continued, “it’s not like she can really be angry at us. We’re both out of school, you have your job in the ministry, and the shop is doing well. We didn’t do this because we’re having a baby, and you can even tell mom we did it this way, so she wouldn’t be so stressed out! If she starts to look angry, bring up the fact that you saved Fred. You just guaranteed a way out for life, have I told you how jealous I am of you lately?”

“Please don’t bring that up, George. It took her a month to stop making all my meals and doing my laundry. Besides, I’m not telling your mother anything. This was your brilliant idea, you can tell her. Plus, she’s your mother George, I’m sure she’ll want to hear it from you.” By this time, we were standing outside the front steps and George noticed I had suddenly become very pale.

“Y/N … Everything is going to be okay. She’s probably going to yell, be angry, maybe even cry—"

“Not helping, George.”

“-but she’s still going to love us at the end of the day. Do I wish we had waited just a few more weeks? No. I’ve been telling everyone since our first year you and I were going to get married and now I’m so glad that we are. I’m so glad I can finally call you my wife.” George pulled me in and wrapped his arms around me while I laid my head on his chest. He kissed my forehead a few times and whispered that he loved me.

“Alright Weasley, let’s do this thing.” As soon as we walked in we were met with warm hugs and the smell of dinner cooking. I was first hugged by Ginny and then Hermione before making my way into the kitchen to help Molly. I met George’s eye on my way in there and nodded towards the kitchen. Once we walked in we were met with the sight of Molly running around the kitchen like a crazy woman.

“Mrs. Weasley, let me help, please.”

“Hey, that’s your name too!” I jabbed him in the ribs for that comment.

“Nonsense, Y/N, just go in there and relax with everyone else. We all know you could use one with how much you’ve been working lately. Goodness knows somebody has to find all those old death eaters and throw them in Azkaban. And how many times do I have to tell you to call me Molly? You’ve known me practically your whole life, Arthur and I helped raise you. Thank goodness you and George are getting married, so you can officially be one of my children. Sit! Let’s talk about the wedding! Have you two picked a date yet?”

“About that, mom. Y/N and I wanted to talk to you. So, funny thing happened a few weeks ago. You’re going to think this is hilarious. See, we—"

“Georgie, what’s going on?”

“Y/N and I are already married. We eloped two weeks ago.” Molly’s jaw dropped and there was total silence. I couldn’t hear anyone make any noise in the living room either.

“You what?” Her voice was scarily quiet.

“See, mom, here’s the thing—”

“You two are already married?”

“I think you’re missing the big picture here—”

“No, George. I am not. The big picture here is that you two went and got married behind our backs. Without telling a single soul.”

“That’s not entirely true either. We did need a witness, so Fred and Angelina were there.”

“You said you wouldn’t tell!” Fred yelled from the living room.

“Who else was there?”

“No one, it was just us—”

“Is she pregnant?”

“No, mom—”

“You guys are still so young, and you haven’t even been engaged for a year!”

“We know that we’re young mom, but here’s the thing—”

“You guys don’t have your lives figured out yet!”

“Now that’s just unfair—”

“Do you really think I wanted to miss your wedding? You two are my babies.” Molly looked over at me and she held back the tears. I opened my mouth a few times trying to find the right words to say while George blabbered on in the background about how we were perfect for each other and we couldn’t wait any longer. At this point I walked over and pulled Molly in for a hug, the tears flowing freely now.

“Plus, there’s the fact that she will be one day carrying your grandchildren. Now you can’t be mad at the future mother of my children. Wait, why are you hugging her? Are you still mad?”

“I’m so, so sorry Molly. George and I didn’t do any of this to hurt you. We were just going through inventory at the shop one day and George looked at me and said, ‘let’s get married’. This was all done on a whim. We were both thinking life is short, so I know I wanted to spend my time with the one’s I loved while I could. If I could go back and do it all over again I would.”

“Okay, ouch, love.”

“I know that you two wouldn’t try to hurt me on purpose sweetheart. I just, wish you had waited so we could have thrown you the celebration you two deserve. When your mom and dad died I promised Remus that we would always take care of you and treat you like one of our own. We lost so many people in these wars, especially Y/N and Harry. I just wanted to get everyone we still have left in the same room.” Molly started blubbering and I couldn’t understand everything after that. I looked over to George and I think he and I had the same idea.

“I never thought of it that way.” I started, “Well, mom, how about we still have a wedding? We can have Hagrid or someone ‘officiate’ it and keep the eloping between us. That way George and I are still technically married, and we can have that big party that you want. We can do it here at the burrow, because let’s face it. Even if George and I move into a big house of our own, this is still home. I want to celebrate my marriage with those closest to me.”

Molly just started nodding through the tears and everyone from the living room piled in and joined in the hug. Except for George, he decided to just stay on the outside with my brother.

“You know” I heard Harry softly say, “I don’t care if you and my sister are older than me. You hurt her, I hurt you. I fought Voldemort, you’ll be a walk in the park.” Harry walked over to me with a smirk on his face and pulled me in for a hug.

#george weasley #george weasley imagine #george weasley oneshot #george weasley x reader #fred weasley #Harry Potter #harry potter one shot #harry potter imagine

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gatorsnot · 7 years

Text

Can we please talk about Leopardfoot for a second?

Seriously, she’s such an underrated character that nobody seems to notice, and yet she’s gone through some rough shit, like:

She was injured in her first battle as an apprentice.

Her labor was described as long and excruciating, and she nearly died during the birthing process from all the strain and blood loss.

Her mate left her and her young, deathly ill kits on a whim to be a kittypet. Sure, Pinestar thought they’d be better off without him, but Leopardfoot definitely felt betrayed and heartbroken. Not to mention he left her to tend to three sickly kittens on her own.

She had to endure the losses of Mistkit and Nightkit.

Then she had to raise Tigerkit through that grief. She indulged her boy because he was the one everyone expected to die first, and she probably devoted all her time and energy into ensuring he was going to thrive. Not to mention, Tigerkit was described as being more than a pawful alone.

How do you guys think she felt about Thistleclaw training her son? Of course she probably wanted him to have a strong mentor that would train him vigourously to further validate his chances of survival, but Thisteclaw was repeatedly harsh on Tigerpaw, and keep in mind that Tigerpaw developed violent tendancies while he was still a pretty new apprentice.

You know she kept on eye on Tigerclaw / Tigerstar after she died. Imagine how she felt when she saw that he killed Redtail, made Ravenpaw fear for his life, tricked Cinderpaw into getting hit by the car that crippled her, led the rogues to attack ThunderClan, attempted to assasinate Bluestar, and all the other things he did? How could her precious baby that she fought so hard to save and loved so much become such a monster that she could barely recoginze?

She didn’t get to give him a life at his leader ceremony!

And the final battle in The Last Hope. No doubt he saw Tigerstar at the head of the Dark Forest cats, his main goal to destroy the living and StarClan. Leopardfoot saw her son set out on a quest of death and destruction, how could she try to fight him?

Leopardfoot needs the recognition she deserves. She was a struggling mother who suffered through abandonment by her mate, the deaths of her two frail daughters, and had to endure the torture of watching her only survivng child whom she loved so dearly become a tyrannical monster.

Leopardfoot is a strong character.

#Warriors #Warrior Cats #leopardfoot #tigerclaw #tigerstar #Shut up Dawn #seriously though??#she deserves better #i really love leopardfoot now that i thought about all she had to put up with

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a-mess-abroad · 7 years

Photo

Quick note for those of you new to tumblr, you can view all pictures full size (complete with stupid captions) by clicking on them.

I’m not doing a great job of blogging this time around. I’m really trying to soak it all in. Once I get back to the States, I’ll be uploading everything from my camera and doing a big travel vlog, so stay tuned for that! For now, the best way to stay following my minute-by-minute adventures is on Snapchat: misspdt.

On day four I arrived in Dublin. I love Dublin, but I only spent one night there before heading straight to Galway in the morning. I checked into Barnacles Hostel Temple Bar (which was so cool) and took a much needed shower. I headed straight to my favourite pub, O’Neills and was sadly a bit disappointed this time round. I wandered over to Grafton St. right around the time everything was closing and that’s when the sleepiness hit me like a ton of bricks. I walked around a bit more, got some delicious gelato at Gino’s, and then finally gave into the lack of sleep and headed back with just over 15,000 steps on my FitBit for the day. I ended up falling asleep to the sounds of drunken tourists at around 8pm and not getting up until 9am the next morning.

I gathered my things and ran back to Grafton Street to see if I could find a passport cover like the one I got last time I was in Dublin. I luckily have a very good sense of direction and a fairly photographic memory. I found what I believe to be the shop (Article) inside Powerscourt Centre but it didn’t open until I had to be back at my hostel and on my way to the bus stop. Guess I’ll have to come back! ;) I stopped by M&S to grab some food and continue my search for bite-sized Colin the Caterpillars. The two I’ve been to so far only have the big ones and I just don’t think it’s polite to eat a whole Colin in one sitting on public transport. Even after nearly 13 hours of sleep, I still proceeded to sleep almost the entire journey to Galway. I checked into Kinlay Hostel, which I highly recommend. Side note: I’ve had the best luck with hostels so far. Last time I had a few I wasn’t super pleased with, but every one I’ve mentioned so far I would definitely recommend.

While waiting for my phone and camera to charge, I booked my trip to the Aran Islands and Cliffs of Moher for the following day on Viator. Shout out to my coworker for suggesting it to me…it saved me around €10 on that tour alone! I headed to a very highly rated restaurant called The Pie Maker which was the definition of cosy. The food was absolutely delicious and I ended up meeting a very lovely girl there who gave me the run down on Galway. I love meeting locals who genuinely adore with their hometown. Many people don’t have great things to say about where they grew up (myself included) so I think it’s special to find people who do. SHE ALSO INFORMED ME THAT ED SHEERAN WAS IN TOWN. His little ditty about a girl from Galway has brought lots of attention to this relatively small town. I ended up at a pub she highly recommended called the Salt House. I drank my fair share of whisky and chatted with some locals. I decided to quit while I was ahead so I wouldn’t be hungover for my early start to the Cliffs.

Thursday probably deserves a blog post in and of itself, but I already included the pictures so you’re just going to have to endure this long post. First off, the tour company I went with was called the Spirit of Ireland Executive Travel. I highly recommend them because it’s smaller than the Galway/Aran Tour Company (that’s the one you’ll see everywhere) and the tour guide Phil was truly spectacular. We visited the smallest of the Aran Islands: Inisheer. I honestly had never even thought about going to the islands but booked it on a whim and WOW, I’m so glad I did! It was an absolutely gorgeous day. I rode around with a man and his horse (and dog)! Most people from my tour group seemed to opt for the self-guided option either by foot or bicycle hire, which I don’t understand. I always suggest mingling with the locals! Speaking of locals, I met a little boy who thought I was a famous YouTuber! I told him I would subscribe to his channel and to never give up on his dream. Wow! What a cute little fellow. I still can’t believe how clear the water is on the west coast of Ireland. We even saw a dolphin(!!!) as we waited and boarded the ferry back. I definitely was not expecting that! The Cliffs of Moher were spectacular, both by sea and up on land. I even sat on the very edge of the cliff (sorry mom), which was equal parts exciting and terrifying. When I was younger and hiking/camping a lot with my parents, my dad was always the one pissing mom off by standing too close to the edge. Somebody had to take his place! Before this trip, I’ve always planned my travel almost exclusively to/around big cities and I’ve quickly realised how mistaken I’ve been. Mother Nature is one badass bitch and I’m trying to appreciate her more. Huge shout out to everyone who insisted I visit the Cliffs while in Ireland. That tour was more than worth the €40 I paid for it.

We arrived back in Galway nearly 10 hours later, so naturally I needed some time to recover. I had planned to spend most of my night in a pub, but I just didn’t have it in me. Once I headed out to dinner and realised it was raining, I was ready to get back into bed. I had fish & chips at the famous McDonagh’s but truth be told, I wasn’t very impressed. I thought it was fine, but nothing worth being famous for. I grabbed gelato once again at Gino’s (sorry Dojo, but they’re my new #1). After I came back to my hostel, I started chatting with two American girls who are spending the semester in Dublin and were just visiting Galway for the weekend. I try not to associate with Americans when I travel (sorry folks) but they were lovely. I solidified plans with the friends I’m staying with while in England and then called it a night.

I’ve just checked out of my hostel (and just happened to meet a girl from Cincinnati in the process)! Unfortunately many things are closed on Good Friday in Ireland, which I didn’t think about when I booked a late flight to London. I’m going to head out in a few to see what I can find open and then I’ve got a date with HRH this evening. Stay tuned as I return ‘home’ to London, baby! (Yet another Friends reference)

#travel #europe #backpacking #solo travel #ireland #galway

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