#Almost Every Costume Per Episode

[awkward-sultana]

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Elizabeth Woodville's pale yellow gown in 1x02,3,4,6,7,

#The White Queen #TheWhiteQueenEdit #Elizabeth Woodville #weloveperioddrama #perioddramaedit #period drama #historical drama #The Price of Power #The Storm #The Bad Queen #Love and Death #Poison and Malmsey Wine #costumeedit #costumes #costume drama #Almost Every Costume Per Episode

[trashiewrites]

MW Halloween HCs

Happy Spooky day yall! Here are some HC’s i cranked up for the boys plus Farah 👀 spending time with you of the fateful day!

Price:

+No....

+you tried to do something at least decorate the house. He shut you down so fast.

+Plus, He doesn't believe in it and thinks it's a waste of money.

+You told him "THiNk AbOuT THe CHilDrEn JoHN" and I shit you not his response was "Sure I'll give them a good scare" As he pulls out his gun he carries.

+ You then make him aware of the potential lawsuits for you know BRADISHING A GUN TO CHILDREN

+He proceeds to put the gun away "No decorating"

+You ignored him, you bought small decorations anyway with your own money so he couldn't complain. Your favorite is a skeleton bowl that you placed on his nightstand one night after he fell asleep, woke up, and yelped because he woke up with a skeleton in front of him.

+Proceed to laugh in his face. To be honest, he laughs too cause it did get him pretty good.

Soap:

+ Wouldn't be surprised if Soap signed up for a decorating contest cause I feel he would love to decorate these types of things

+He even makes custom stuff

+you help him OFC, mainly by going out and getting supplies when he needs them.

+ He takes such pride and you as an extra touch Help Soap Get costumes that help match the theme of the decorations for the wear so that way when you guys hand out treats together you guys look in character and can trick a few scared in!

+Soap loves interacting with the kids. Honestly seeing the kids walk up amazed at his work on the house is why he does it.

+DadTavish energy vibes are especially high. Like he is so close to having a full-on baby fever episode.

+He gets really sad the day after because he knows he's not gonna be able to keep his props. But you guys sell the props online because they actually have a big market for this kind of stuff. Saves up money for next year's theme!

Ghost:

+He tries so hard...

+He usually doesn't pay any heed to such a holiday but he wanted to try it

+TBH the only reason he never did is that kids are normally scared to talk to him due to his mask. He's always been marked as intimidating.

+he bought simple decorations for the outside of his house and a silly little skeleton bowl for the candy he was gonna give out.

+He asked you to help him set it all up. But it was really just for the nerves

+ Day of Halloween, he didn't really dress up per se. He just kinda wore the uniform.

+Halloween became his favorite holiday that day :)

+ "Wow Mister! I love your Skull Trooper costume!" He doesn't know where exactly it's from but it meant so much to him

+ After that night he was so silently happy. Whenever it happens, he looks over at you every time with a glow in his eyes. It is so fucking cute

+Now he looks forward to Halloween every year!

Gaz:

+COUPLE COSTUMES AND YOU KNOW IT!

+He spent the entirety of the month chatting with you about different duos you both could be. This is the heaviest debate every year cause you two can never agree.

+you want to do a duo from your fav show while he would want to do the cliche couple ones like Peter pan and Wendy; just some Disney.

+You guys compromised this year by doing a duo from your favorite animated movie. (For example, Chihiro and Haku from spirited away, but you choose whatever) 

+ Once the whole costume problem ends, you can finally decide what you guys go do for the holiday itself. Which is something you guys luckily can easily get behind each other's ideas. At least, you guys have civil conversations about it.

+ he usually tries to bring up doing a haunted house and then heading to a party. This year Shut him down on at least the haunted house. Why you may ask, well Gaz doesn't do haunted houses very well... Like horribly.

+ It's either he gets too on edge and almost kills an actor, or he panics and passes out. Two years in a row... So you really don't want to deal with another hospital bill. Despite him saying He'll be okay and he won't do it... You highly doubt that... Cause he has always been pretty jumpy.

Roach:

+He wanted to go trick or treating... REALLY BADLY. 

+ Yeah you didn't believe him at first when he asked you about you, "Aren't you too old for that Gary?" You wouldn't believe how loudly he gasped.

+ "YOU'RE NEVER TOO OLD FOR FREE CANDY!"  Gary shed a single tear as he ran to your shared bedroom. You couldn't hold your sigh as he went off on his dramatic antics again. Every time, this happens every single time...

+ When you finally agree to it, he celebrates and does a little happy dance. God the shit this GROWN MAN does that makes him the world's oldest 5-year-old. 

+ That happy dance stops when you ask one question, "So, what are you going to be?" He stops right where he is and stays for a bit before looking back at you... "u h h, shit... I don't know." 

+ He dragged you to the Halloween shop with him so he can try out the costumes, which might I add, took about 3 hours of your day.

+ He couldn't pick between being Michael Myers or some other creepy monster you didn't know the name of. Of course, he asked your opinion, aka you choose which one he picks cause he's so damn indecisive. 

+ On Halloween, he was practically jumping off the walls in the evening! 

+For you, enjoying a nice stroll in the cool breeze but seeing Roach so happy is nice too. Even better when you two stop for a break and he reaches into his candy sack and hands you your favorite candy cutely. "Thank you for coming with me (y/n)." 

+ Before anyone asks, yes, yes, he does get really weird looks because he is semi-tall... Like they aren't going to say anything cause he's wearing a mask and even if he wasn't wearing one, he has a baby face so he still would get his candy. 

Alex:

+I'm going to be completely honest with Ya... He seems like the guy that likes true crime.

+ SO, instead of typical Halloween stuff like Horror movies and cobwebs. You both are watching true crime documentaries while making little knife cookies! 

+Honestly you two get really sad at the end because you can't help but feel horrible for the victims of these killers you had watched. So, after the documentary binge, you both just relax and watch normal things. 

+Honestly Alex forgot it was Halloween until someone came to the door for a trick or treat. Sadly, he had to bear the bad news to the kids. He didn't have candy but offered a knife cookie. 

+ With the consent of the parents, he put them in a little sandwich baggie and gave it to them. 

+You looked back at him with a small glare at him giving the cookies, "what you want me to leave them empty-handed?" You nodded, "Oh come on (y/n), not like you're going to eat them all anyways." You took that as a challenge. 

+ you got sick the next day :D Alex was also mad that you legit ate all the fucking cookies. He only got to have like 3 out of the 14 or so.

Farah:

+ So, Farah doesn't really get the purpose of Halloween. But she gets one thing. It is the one day she can scare the living shit out of you all day and you can't be mad at her for it. 

+She hinds in the most obscure places and somehow knows where you are going to go at all times.

+ Honestly, it freaks you out how many times she can scare you in one day... Her record is 20. 

+ Poor you get so anxious and somewhat competitive cause you want to catch her before she can scare you. Have you done so? no, currently you have zero points on that front...

+ "Boo!" you screamed and fell backward, "Haha! got you again (y/n)!" she lends you a hand as you proceed to tell her that this isn't what Halloween is supposed to be. "Well, it is this for me and I quite like this holiday. Keeps your senses sharp, doesn't it?"

Alejandro:

+ You two don't really celebrate Halloween, the most you two do is buy decorations and make little Halloween snacks. Also, Alejandro has a weird obsession with candy corn...

+ You guys also watch Horror movies but that really is for Halloween, nothing special. 

+ You guys celebrate Dias de Los Muertos, which is really big for him! You guys have an ofrenda in your house and his family usually hosts a big party to celebrate the day which you are happily welcomed to! 

+ If you have ever been to a Mexican party, you can probably expect what it's like.  If you don't know, just know its fucking amazing! fresh food of all kinds, all kinds of booze, and top that with a loud stereo or a live band! 

+ Personally believe that Alejandro would bust out a guitar and play a song or two! Aka, I believe he has a killer Spanish singing voice, English... He's okay with it.

Graves:

+Take this as you wish, But I'm telling you right now this man is way too fascinated with slasher films... I MEAN IT, HE LOVES THEM SO MUCH!

+ Legit you guys prob had a bucket that you would handle the trick-or-treaters because he won't leave that screen. HE'S SO FOCUSED!

+ It honestly shocks you how many of these types of movies this man can watch in one sitting cause honestly it prob gets boring after about 3 of them. I'm sure he watched maybe 14 movies throughout the entire day.  MIND YOU, THIS ISNT A FLEX!

+ Cheers and makes comments about the character deaths, "That girl totally deserved to die, like who the fuck is that stupid to go that way like honestly dear fucking god..." 

+ One character's head got, you know, smashed and I SWEAR, the first thing out his mouth was "Haha! Pop!" LIKE IT WAS NOTHING!!! not even a flinch... I refuse to believe this man isn't a walking red flag

#CODMW #cod mw22 #call of duty modern warfare #call of duty #modern warfare #modern warfare 2 #call of duty modern warfare 2 #call of duty modern warfare 2 remastered #captain price #captain mactavish #john price #John Mactavish #john soap mactavish #simon ghost riley #simon riley #happy halloweeeeeeen #halloween #spooky

[highfantasy-soul]

Omg I just finished the Netflix ATLA live-action and omg omg omg. It was SO GOOD!!! I genuinely did NOT expect to cry as much as I did, but damn, the character moments hit SO HARD!

All the characters are so accurate to the animated series (Iroh I did feel was a bit different, but I still enjoyed how he was portrayed), and the show really added a lot more depth to some of the backstories - like including more Gyatzo and Aang, Katara and her mother, and Sokka and his dad. Yeah, some of that hurt and I know making characters (specifically parents) not-perfect rubs some people the wrong way, but I really think it brought to the forefront the issues the characters face and set up the journey to overcoming it.

The bending was phenomenal, while they did rely on CG for some body-doubles during the movements, I'm fine with it. It's magical martial arts, people physically cannot do the things benders do, so it didn't really take me out of the story at all. The sets and costumes and FOOOOODDDD that they had just looked so good - I wanted to eat EVERYTHING on Kyoshi island!

And for how they combined several storylines and expanded the roles past Avatars played, I really, really loved it. They combined the stories in a way where there could be a common theme (really, several themes) weaving throughout and really sit with character moments and motivations that I think worked really well for an adaptation that didn't have 20 episodes with 20 full stories told per episode.

I was honestly shocked, too, at how many episodes/story arcs were almost directly, 1-1 translated to screen! The whole blue spirit arc was done so well and the siege of the north was just about as accurate to the animated as you could get it - while adding just the right amount of extra in there to really tighten some of the themes.

I loved how they expanded Azula's story by showing her in the capitol before being sent out for the Avatar in season 2 - it really gives us an idea about her personality and what expectations are on her instead of just introducing her as 'Zuko's crazy little sister'. The animated series does a good job making her a massive threat, and we see bits of her motivations ('almost perfect isn't good enough') and it's later that we get to see a more fleshed out side of her - which takes time the live-action doesn't have. Azula's mind-space definitely deserves a multi-episode run. And the clarification that Ozai was just pitting his kids against each other to make the stronger one push to the front - so so so good!

Just honestly, this was a fantastic adaptation and I can't think of a way they could have done better. No piece of media is perfect (contrary to the Azulas in every fandom demanding perfection or else it's terrible and awful and 'you're SETTLING for this??') but this is as near as I can imagine it could be. I definitely felt the heart of the animated series shining through.

I'm so looking forward to season 2 and seeing how they remix the stories there to tug at my heartstrings even more.

#avatar the last airbender #netflix avatar #avatar netflix #atla #atla netflix #live action avatar

[writingsofwesteros]

https://www.tumblr.com/awkward-sultana/731118413651542016/almost-every-costume-per-episode-elizabeth

alicents sister swearing loyalty to the greens after she found out her husband (harwin) is having an affair with rhaenyra, she started wearing green everyday

Bless, and she's so conservative as well ..for now.

Harwin had not even noticed, too distracted by the births of his sons

#hot thots

[noonecaresaboutmyreview]

Review: My Uncanny Destiny

Happy Lunar New Year folks! Yesterday I spent my whole day watching this (I was trying to get the Lunar New Year vibes).

A little TMI but last year for 1 month I went on this crazy binge of watching historical chinese dramas. I spent every free time I have binge watching almost 30 dramas. I average spending 2 days max per drama (if ya'll watch chinese dramas ya'll know, esp the older ones, each drama is about 60 episodes).

Well I couldn't have done it without the x2.0 speed and ff buttons.

I have watched from the good ones (will forever stand behind Love Like The Galaxy as one of the best historical chinese drama ever) and I have watched the worst (sorry Eternal Love, my hand was spamming that ff button).

Anyways long story short, I know what I like in a historical chinese drama and this is it.

My Uncanny Destiny is about a girl who is the only heir to the throne, was brought up as a boy by her King father. And a boy from another Kingdom looking to avenge his father's death (supposedly caused by the girl's Kingdom). Very enemies to lovers trope but not exactly. FYI this will contains spoilers.

Anyways, she one day somehow save the boy but lost her memory and they connected, fall in love and have to deal with the consequences that they are enemies. (AGH)

kk wanna find out more, go watch it. There is only 24 episodes and 30 mins run time per episode (honestly, very very short compared to the dramas I've watched before).

What I love about this drama is that this drama doesn't take itself so seriously. They establish themselves as a comedy drama. THIS IS COMEDY. From the poop and fart jokes to the silly encounters and accidents. Everything is funny and so absurd I can't help but love it. I especially love the female lead. Zhang Yue Nan did such a good job at playing this clever comedic character, it doesn't end up being cringe. She's not afraid to make herself look silly at all. She reminds me of Zhao Lu Si in the drama The Romance of the Tiger and Rose. BUT don't be fooled, her character Ye Zhao Nan is a strong clever character. Which is what I love it a female lead. I hate, and I repeat, I hate female lead that is dumb. like out of this world, logic out the window dumb. (Which sadly is usually the case for female leads in chinese dramas.)

But Ye Zhao Nan is a strong clever character that could hold her own. She doesn't need the male lead to save her every 2 seconds. Speaking of male lead, mans really good looking. He reminds me of lee dong wook. I looked at his profile photos out of costume and I can say, mans look good in King costume. Anyway, the male lead Liu Xuan Ming played by Yan Zi Xian is also a character that holds his own. He is unafraid to show his love and affection towards his girl. He is jealous but doesn't treat her like his belonging. He is also a strong ruler to his Kingdom.

Together, they have so many funny and comedic scenes I wonder how many times they have to reshoot because the actors might just burst out laughing. My favourite? Is when we can clearly see Yan Zi Xian break character by genuinely laughing or smiling at Zhang Yue Nan's acting. It's so sweet because it doesn't look out of character. Instead it looks like he adores her (which the male lead character does).

I love how strong each female characters are in the drama. Most of the time, female characters are plotted into the story to benefit the male characters. But here, they are have their own story and antics. Even the villain of drama has her own arch and is of strong character.

CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE SECOND MALE LEAD! He is the most green flag second male lead I have seen in a chinese drama in a while. Yi Yang Jun grows interested in the female lead but steps away the moment she says her heart belongs only to Liu Xuan Ming. He becomes her confidant and her friend. He becomes a good friend to the male lead as well (although he occasionally tease him about taking the female lead away). He is respectful to her feelings and when he backs away, he doesn't look pitiful at all. He smiles and walk off which makes me believe that although he loves her, he loves himself equally too.

Overall, this drama had a good storyline, plot, acting and script. If they had taken themselves seriously and they had a longer runtime, I would say they would be on par with Love Like the Galaxy (and that says alot considering this is my favourite chinese drama ever).

Wrapping up, I would highly recommend you watch this drama if you're looking for a good laugh. Don't take it too seriously.

Rating: 4/5

-- Fary

#cdrama #chinese drama #my uncanny destiny #drama review #zhang yue nan #yan zi xian #fary

[27emailsicantsend]

Do you think Ricky will write a song for Gina in s4? I NEED this!! What are some things you hope to see from Rina in s4?

I literally collapsed when I saw this ask because the idea of this makes me SO happy. I would LOVE to see him write her a song. I also wrote in my last fic that Gina wrote Ricky a song by borrowing his guitar :') so I would genuinely be happy for both. Or what if they wrote a song together?? It would all be beautiful.

And even more amazing is the second part of this question... which is so, so much. I kind of wrote in that fic mentioned earlier (Of Converse and Pavement) things that might be cute from them and I made a list of a bunch of headcanons for s4/s5 I'd like to see. All of these are located in the description. Since those are more fantasies, I will answer this with things I feel like we could *realistically* see and I would really love to see (I apologize if some are redundant from my fic/headcanons):

-Rina "Can I Have This Dance"... I don't think I need to say more

-I think it would be hilarious if Rina went as peter/gwen or mj for a couples costume on halloween because of how involved it is in the fandom. Tim has had to see us screaming about that, right??

-Ricky showing up at Gina's door and/or Gina showing up at Ricky's door but he gives her a massive hug and kiss when he sees her

-I made a theory about this, but when rina says their I Love You's they parallel the first "Oh. Oh?" scene in season 1, but this time it's a pleasant shock and reciprocated

-Not a jealous gina per say, because I don't see that happening, but some sort of acknowledgement from Ricky that he is over Nini. Like maybe someone mentions her and he kind of shrugs it off (kindly) or he says "I've never felt this way about anyone" to Red and Red goes "what about Nini?" and Ricky says, "like I said, I never felt this way about anyone. Gina is different"... idk something along those lines :')

-I genuinely think we are getting a rina secret dating era, even if it's just the conflict of one or two episodes. The way corbin intentionally made sure the camera was turned off, the doc, the "students having to deal with new fame and the complications of it", it all feels like rina is going to try to keep their cool in public so things don't get bad for them

-I think at the very least Vanessa is going to make a guest appearance from some of the things she has said in interviews, but if Zac comes back too (which would be such a shame for him not to with everyone else... even as a surprise in the finale), we will have at the very least some sort of parallel to them and rina. Even just them standing by each other in similar clothes all the way to some meta conversation, even if Vanessa is the only one to guide it. I just feel like it is so on the nose; it would be weird for the show not to point it out in some way with those characters in the room.

-This is a teeny bit of a "I don't know for sure this will happen and it's likely it won't", but I would LOVE for rina to get a second chance at homecoming!

-Ricky as troy, gina as gabriella (and possibly them somehow somehow missing part of opening night to parallel movie 3)

-ricky just being heart eyes and absolutely dumbfounded at every breath gina takes because let's be real that's been him all 3 seasons so it won't be anything new

-There is a tik tok that looks like gina is at ricky's house, but her eyes almost look watery? I don't think it will be anything bad between their relationship, but I see her actually seeking him for comfort instead of running this time. Or maybe, even better, they have a sweet conversation that makes her cry happy tears :')

-To add onto the last one, I feel like it would be an absolute crime for them to not have one scene of Gina making something and ricky at the very least watching her do it (it would be even better, and my personal headcanon, that when she is hanging at ricky's house they are making something together <3)

-I think ricky is going to sing scream, which means he is going to have tough decisions to make about his life after college. Although gina won't be in the scene directly, I see him having at least a couple of scenes where he mentions her and how she will affect his course of plans for his life after high school. It will just be a really sweet way to show how much she really benefits his life.

-I think we are getting some variation of the chocolates confession. I know tim scrapped it for the finale, but I don't think he is getting rid of it. Not every viewer is on social media, so a lot of his scenes look like plot holes without this key piece of info. I think we might get a flashback or at the very least a conversation where ricky confesses this. Maybe this is the scene that makes gina cry as mentioned earlier?

-literally forehead kisses, holding hands, at least one hug from behind, and at least one scene with his arm around her shoulders. This one makes me want to collapse thinking about it.

-Lastly, for now, I would be shocked if they didn't do something to lead off of ricky's "don't get me started"*. They used that sentence specifically in BOTH variations of the script to end the scene (mind you the other way around was supposed to be gina saying it to him). He's trying to say "there's more" not only to gina, but the audience. I feel like he is either going to gush a lot over her, go on some long winded confession, or maybe even a conflict of an episode is he gets a wee bit too intense (really hoping this last one isn't true), but knows when to back off to show character growth from r*ni. Maybe rina even makes jokes about this? idk. It just felt too intentional for there not to be more.

*Maybe all of season 4 is ricky "getting started" with his feelings for Gina because they are so big and intense. I don't know.

Anyway, I hope this answers your question for now :') thank you so much for it. It made me SO happy to answer!! I can't wait for s4!!!

#rina #ricky bowen #gina porter #ricky x gina #hsmtmts #high school musical the musical the series #troyella #asks #anon #send me asks

[dragoncityinteriordesign]

The question you never knew you wanted to ask was, “If a bird was also a human, would she dress normal?” Lucky for you, Ya Qing is here with the answer: oh good heavens no.

Ya Qing dresses like a Drag Race contestant got the challenge prompt “Edgar Allen Poe” and had only ever read one thing by Edgar Allen Poe. Her outfit is a combination of thrift-store finds and things you could not find at a thrift store because no one ever wore them in the first place. She looks like a Victorian widow and somebody’s “fallen angel” OC had a transporter accident. I love this for her.

Let’s do this top-down:

Her fascinator is doing amazing triple duty with its poof of feathers, the sparkly beading in the center, and the lightweight mourning veil that hovers menacingly over her forehead. Her hair is pulled back in two braids on either side, each of which gets run through two silver beads; the rest of it gets knotted into a high ponytail that kind of gets lost underneath all the feathers. Whatever burgundy she’s chosen for the highlights, it’s really working for her.

She’s got a single earring on her left ear, one that connects with a chain up to an ear cuff like she’s Bajoran, and the ear cuff has extra wind-chime-like danglies on it. Based on this and the single earring Da Qing wears, I thought briefly they might be going with a thing where all the yashou have single earrings, which would have been a great costuming choice. But alas, no. (For all Zhu Hong loves her necklaces, she doesn’t wear earrings at all.)

Strange as it seems based on the overall effect, I don’t think she’s wearing a dress per se. It looks to me like her outfit is three parts: a feathered cape, a lacy high-cut bodysuit, and a long skirt. In one of the shots up there, you can see both her shoulder and part of her side, which makes it look like what’s covering her torso is disconnected from the other pieces. The bodysuit has a thick, stiff collar, which suits her pretty long neck.

The feathered cape is ... well, it’s a lot. Obviously most of it’s happening around her shoulders, where there’s big sprays of flight feathers just behind her neck and down around her shoulders, with a downy layer between them. It has sleeves too, but those sleeves are like Nightmare Boy’s, in that they’re slit up the side and therefore mostly just suggestions of sleeves. It also has a long cape down the back, almost as long as her skirt is and of the same material, which sometimes makes it hard to tell where one stops and the other starts.

Her gloves are everything. They’re so weird. On the tops of her fingers and the backs of her forearms, they’re a completely different lace pattern from her bodice; underneath, they’re solid leather. They go up just below her elbows, where they stop with a curtain of thin loose silver chains. I cannot tell if the chains are attached to the gloves, or if they’re just an extra layer she’s strapped on. When she has her arms by her sides, her almost-sleeves mostly hide them; this is good, because they have the amazing effect of looking great in motion and kinda doofy when they’re just dangling there.

That asymmetrical pleather belt is every belt my mother owned in 1987.

I love her skirt, which has so many layers that it gives her extra menacing vibes whenever she’s walking. It’s full enough that it’s got about five different hemlines all going at the same time, and it’s long enough that it brushes the ground when she walks. Alas, I couldn’t get a good shot of it, but she’s also got on some amazing chunky-heeled black ankle boots on under there.

I’m assuming that either her look is based on the woman in the first-episode backstory art, or vice versa. However, that lady is clearly supposed to be mutating down in Dixing, so something jumped tracks here. (Obviously Ya Qing herself is in there too, in the shot with all three yashou, but that’s more clearly supposed to be an actual drawing of her final look.)

I also love how absolutely none of the other birdies dress like this. She is indeed the proverbial rara avis.

#guardian #zhen hun #dragon city fashion #yashou

[okeydrama]

every drama i’ve seen so far pt.4

my roommate is a gumiho

3/5

i love her

the chemistry between her and both male leads was so good

the main romance was so well organized and we had so many domestic scenes which i loved

the fantasy element was not as flushed out as i would like

there were a few things that seemed convenient/rushed/nonsensical

those things didn’t take away from my enjoyment though

i loved how lighthearted it was

the second lead was acted really well and i found myself liking the two of them together because of the angst he brought (the way he watched her 😩)

this was actually funny at times

i like how goofy it was

the secondary couple was really good because they brought a rare romantic dynamic

the way scenery/settings were shot well and it was generally aesthetically pleasing

i think this was solid overall but also not very memorable so not an all time favorite but extremely good and worth the watch

descendants of the sun

3/5

the male lead is hilarious

the bromance was hilarious

this was the first drama of this kind that i have watched

the plot was well developed

i liked how much of a subplot the romance was

the secondary couple once again was enjoyable to watch

i think there was too much drama for me and it was slow at times

i might have watched it too quickly because it wasn’t very memorable once again

squid game

4/5

omg i got the hype

i have a lot of complaints but overall it is closer to good than bad for me

first and foremost the unique settings and costuming makes this drama so memorable and vivid and have its own impact

the characters were well flushed out and i believed their motivations/actions/turmoil

introduced me to hoyeon <3

the casting was 10/10

i loved that we got different challenges every episode

the deaths all had an impact

things i didn’t like was the cheap ‘plot twist’

i also didn’t think this plot was particularly unique in concept but very unique and interesting in execution

the cop and his antics were not satisfying at the end which bothered me

the end in general bothered me

hometown cha cha

3/5

this couple was so god damn cute

this story was almost perfect

the almost is because of how annoying the last two episodes were

i don’t like when the couple goes through a third act conflict for absolutely no reason

once they get together it was boring af for two episodes of unnecessary drama

the townspeople were so cute and didn’t detract from the story for me

i love the small town vibes

there was no need for the secondary lead in terms of the romance but i do like the jealousy he pulled out of the male lead

once again cute but not too memorable (i’m not completely a fan of slice of life)

all of us are dead

5/5

omg omg omg

served what it needed to

this was beautifully executed start to finish

was on the edge of my seat and engaged the entire time

the settings, characters, plot all worked

the side romances were still dynamic and engaging which i loved

the betrayals and twists and characterizations were excellent

talented team all around and a great drama

extraordinary attorney woo

4/5

i loved this lollll

the different case per episode format was great

the cartoons that came in randomly were so cute and fun

i think it is a pretty good interpretation of an autistic person but i‘m not on the spectrum so i can’t really say

the romance was so cute and there was just enough in the drama

i loved the side characters like a lot

the friendships were just as important as the romance which i loved

the dad was so cute

the star removed are because of a few issues i had with the pacing and the random things said that i’m going to blame on cultural differences/mistranslation

user not found (web drama)

4/5

this was such a random watch and my first web drama

this was cute overall and it did what it needed to which was entertain me

it took a while to get used to the format and acting and stuff but i think it is typical of a web drama so it didn’t bother me

the friendship between the female lead and the other girl with her same name was so cute and fresh

the romances were basic but i still liked them lol

i was interested from start to finish so that was great

that’s the update! i’ll take recommendations in the comments if you have any

#kdrama #kdrama edit #kdrama recommendations #netflix #korean drama #my roomate is a gumiho #descendants of the sun #squid game #hometown cha cha cha #all of us are dead #extraordinary attorney woo #user not found #user not found drama

[sshbpodcast]

Top 3 Star Trek Voyager villains

By Ames

Invaders! Cower in fear this week on A Star to Steer Her By as we unleash some of the biggest masterminds, ne’er-do-wells, and other villains in this week’s blogtivity. We covered our more universal (and frequently more heroic) favorite characters from Voyager last week, and this week we’re conspiring with some of the baddest baddies from the Delta Quadrant. Mwahahaha!

This should be no surprise anymore. We did it for TOS, TNG, and DS9, so crawl into your favorite B-movie costume, prepare to engage in mutiny, and maybe grow a goatee for this week’s most villainous Voyager villains. Put up your dukes as you read on below, follow along with the master plan over on this week’s podcast episode (discussion at 1:01:56), and steeple your fingers thusly. Now that’s evil.

[Images © CBS/Paramount]

Ames – Wave after wave of our own men

Annorax

Arturis

Borg Queen

The diabolical plans of all of my picks are downright destructive when you get down to it. We see it with our Krenim friend, Annorax, whose beautiful timeship undoes so many people and only a patented Janeway Self Destruct™ can knock them out. We see it with the USS Dauntless, the fake Starfleet vessel programmed to get everyone’s ass assimilated, even if that means martyring Arturis in this revenge thing. And I can’t not see it in the Borg Queen, as I also did in TNG, when she willingly destroys her own ships to root out the beginnings of revolution.

—

Jake – Broken by circumstance

Annorax

Captain Ransom

Kashyk

Jake likes a villain who himself is a victim of a broader scheme, whether it be his own tragic backstory, his own people mutinying, or the player just plain getting played in his own game. So here are some more kudos for Annorax, who you can almost root for because his intentions are rational even if the execution is genocidal, for Captain Ransom whose displacement in the Delta Quadrant utterly ruined his crew, and for the double-crossing Kashyk who got thoroughly triple-crossed in just about every [Jane]way.

—

Chris – Mustache-twirlingly eeeevil!

Dr. Chaotica!

Kashyk

Warship Janeway

Chris is himself a cartoon character, so it only makes sense for him to pick some of the most over-the-top, Snidely Whiplash–adjacent, cartoonish villains for his list. Lean on that pipe organ as we introduce Doctor Chaotica!, with exclamation mark thoroughly intentional, as one of the most entertaining, least realistic villains we ever did see, but it’s a B-movie homage, so it’s okay. Let’s also bow before Kashyk, whose espionage skills rival a Bond villain’s, and Warship Janeway, the best mirror universe character not actually in the mirror universe!

—

Caitlin – Slimy scumbags, scummy slimebags

Henry Janeway

Penk

Dr. Kadan

Finally, all of the bad guys on Caitlin’s list are just scumbags to the core. They’re probably the most realistic villains on the show because we could see this level of corruption in a lot of people today. Dr. Kadan is just a kidnapping monster whose motivation is nothing but the capitalism of it all. Penk, played deliciously sleazily by Jeffrey Combs, is… also a kidnapping monster, etc. etc. And while Henry Janeway isn’t a kidnapping monster, per se, he also destroys a perfectly salvageable episode by being a selfish luddite who drags Shannon and Jason down with him.

— One more installment before we hit the Voyager finale and wrap up the series. What will we think? What will our favorite and least favorite episodes be? But I get ahead of myself: what will our favorite Voyager alien races be? Find out here next week! Also, obviously, follow along as we prepare to invade the Alpha Quadrant on the podcast, practice your maniacal laughter with us on Facebook and Twitter, and assimilate this!

#star trek #star trek podcast #podcast #voyager #star trek voyager #seska #suspiria #annorax #warship janeway #arturis #kashyk #doctor chaotica #borg queen #henry janeway #captain ransom #penk #dr. kadan

[pynkhues]

hi, sophie! i recently realised that ncis is on it's 20th season and svu is on it's 24th. i always love to see your insights into the industry, so i was wondering if you know or have any theories as to why procedurals seem to be so popular with audiences and/or easy for networks to invest in. i'm just honestly flabbergasted that some shows manage to get 20 seasons when most struggle to get 2.

Hi! Thank you for your lovely words! I love talking about the TV industry, and certainly read and listen to enough about it, haha, so I was delighted to see your ask, because - - well, yeah! Procedurals are pretty fascinating in both their longevity as individual shows and as a format for television generally. They’ve been a stalwart of TV for almost as long as TV has existed; in fact, one of the first procedurals, Telecrime which aired in the UK in 1938, is also one of the first ever multi-episode drama series ever made and one of the first TV dramas written directly for TV and not adapted from a play or a radio play.  

Funnily enough, it doesn’t seem like the genre has even really changed that much. Telecrime followed a detective, Inspector Holt, as he tried to solve one crime per episode, and challenged the audience to solve it before him (in real bummer news: the series is lost to history, with no surviving recordings, so unfortunately we can��t watch it! The pop culture historian in me would love to, haha). Still, you can compare that synopsis to something like Law and Order or House, and the basic concept is the same. They’re your classic whodunit’s, regardless of whether the who is a person or a disease, and in that sort of vein, they’re a televised replacement for the Agatha Christie novels of yore.

And yeah, y’know, they’re comforting. They’re cosy. They’re shows you don’t have to keep up with to enjoy, but will potentially get more out of if you do, because the puzzle is more the point than the characters.

They’ve always been crucial to the TV landscape, but I think right now, they feel strange because they mark a widening gap between TV and Streaming, and I think in a lot of ways also mark a bit of a shift in the industry now.

Let me explain.

The Colour of Money

First thing to remember is that comparatively to most TV, procedurals are cheap to make.

I know, I know, it doesn’t always seem that way with an explosion or two and headlines telling you how much certain actors earn, but the reality is procedurals are usually limited sets, not-all-but-a-lot of early-career writers and directors, limited (and often very established) sets meaning few builds, easy costuming (a lot of cop uniforms for instance will be hired en mass from a costume house and not require extensive design in a way something like, say, Game of Thrones or Succession would), and can even share sets. Courtroom sets can be, and are, used by a lot of shows and movies, meaning many studios will have a set that every show can use, so you don’t have location costs of shooting off the studio lot.

They also make money.

They’re an easy sell to advertisers, particularly if they’re established procedurals – advertisers know exactly what they’re associating their product with when they slot themselves into commercial space on NCIS or Chicago Fire, and they know these shows rate (which I’ll come back to the why of shortly), and knowing content and context makes them safe in a way that, for instance, Twitter, isn’t. You don’t know on Twitter what your ad might be nestled between, or, y’know, when the platform is going to be acquired by a megalomaniac.

They also sell internationally, which is crucial.

I’ve talked a little on here before, but streaming services have really killed off territory sales, which is really, really bad for TV as an industry. Territory sales is actually how shows have historically made money. NBC would, for instance, front the costs for producing a show like, say, Good Girls, and how they would make that money back would be through selling Good Girls as a complete season to an Australian network, to a French network, to a Japanese network, to wherever, with each sale building profits to ultimately recoup costs, make a bit of profit, and then fund future seasons of the show.

Streaming services now typically acquire international rights, meaning production companies make one sale instead of multiple, and most streaming services currently pay really badly. Like - - a fraction of what used to be possible with territory sales.

This is a bit of an aside, but we’re starting to see the impact of that. It’s why streaming services are starting to pull their original content to sell it to other networks or streamers. TV is expensive! Territory sales have always been where the money was.

So yes. Because procedurals are still predominantly on Network TV, they still have old territory deals, meaning a lot of them are still making old territory money. Law and Order and NCIS still air on Channel 10 here in Australia, meaning it’s still a network territory sale, and not a streaming sale as an international deal, and this is the same in many other countries around the world.

These long-running procedurals are still selling TV to TV network, not TV network to international streamer, meaning they’re still making the sort of money TV used to, which means they’re still making the sort of money that’s recouping costs and funding new seasons.

But why are they selling so well internationally still?

People watch them, which I guess is kind of your question, haha.

So, why do people still watch them? Truthfully, who knows! There are a lot of theories that get bandied about as to why procedurals still work, and they range from ones I find unfairly pessimistic to unfairly glorifying. My personal theories tend to vary, but I really think it comes down to appointment viewing versus regularly scheduled programming.

Appointment viewing is usually what you call viewing you have to watch at the right time, usually because they’re expected to be conversation pieces. A sports game, The Bachelor in its prime, a show like Succession. Shows that are going to be significant to your life, to your friendship network, hell, even just because it’s the show you and your co-workers have found common ground with. They’re shows you talk about, so shows you risk getting spoiled on.

Appointment viewing used to really be certain nights of the week – never Friday or Saturday, because the assumption with broadcasters was that you’d be out, and rarely Mondays. Thursdays and Sundays were often prime for this, meaning networks would program their conversation starters on those nights, and pepper the rest of the week with regularly scheduled programming, and usually Fridays and Saturdays with re-runs or old movies. It meant Mondays, when NCIS airs, isn’t for appointment viewing, it’s there to be the thing you catch when you’re home from work and put the kids to bed, but aren’t quite ready to go to sleep yourself. A comfort show with a little mystery that caps off your evening before work the next day.

That sort of programming has always been crucial to the TV landscape, but Netflix is not TV, and Netflix, somewhere along the lines, decided everything should be appointment viewing.

Binge culture is rough, and the model of streaming services like Netflix (although not all of them, I will say), is to keep your interest (and your money) by offering you an endless parade of conversation starters. Their model talks about content over story, meaning quality is irrelevant, and by treating everything as urgent viewing, ultimately, nothing is. There’s a switch, which I think we’re seeing right now, where appointment viewing fatigue has set in, and people want their comfort shows.

They want their Law and Order SVU and their Yellowstone and their 9-1-1 where it doesn’t matter if they miss an episode, and it doesn’t matter if they forget subplots, and there aren’t any easter eggs to have to look for, or Wiki pages to read to figure out what’s going on. For a lot of people, it’s too much, and on a Monday night, between work and kids and life, most people don’t want appointment viewing, most people just want to solve their little whodunit and go to bed.

The Snap Back

Interestingly, I think we’re starting to see the shape of TV really reverse, and to me, this is sort of a marker of that. Network TV seems to be really reverting back to weekly models, and going back to longer season runs of series’ that are cheap and fun and popular – Abbot Elementary’s 22-episode season 2 is a real indication of that to me – and the fact that it’s timing with Netflix caving in on itself like an undercooked cake, more streamers hiking up fees, WB pulling HBO’s content off its own streamer to sell elsewhere, and Hulu, Disney+ and Prime all shifting to weekly content instead of season drops paints a pretty distinct picture. I think streamers are realising that their model doesn’t work, and TV networks are starting to entertain the idea that their model – while very imperfect – actually sort of did. I think it means we’ll end up somewhere in the middle of both – that TV needed to be dragged forwards but that streaming was a huge leap that we need to now be dragged back from, and what that looks like in terms of actual shows and platforms is anyone’s guess.

That’s not really your ask though, haha, so yes! Really, I think it comes down to the fact that TV is a business, and procedurals are cheap and sell well and are a crucial part of the TV eco-system, and shows that are maybe better, but more expensive, or harder sells, or do sell to international streamers who can’t work out how to profit off them in the way they want, is why procedurals are the only shows that really feel stable right now.

#tv asks #welcome to my ama

[michael-yagoobian]

Illogical Reasoning Chapter 6: Mountain Ash

Ao3 | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6

Summary: Nina and Will Holmes have lived in Beacon Hills, California, for a little over a year by the start of their sophomore year of high school. In their time in the small town, Beacon Hills has always been quiet and boring. On the first day of school, the lower half of a Jane Doe is found in the woods; a Jane Doe that only Nina and Will seem to believe was murdered. Per their mother Imogen’s pleas, the twins agree to stick to the sidelines and let the police do their job, but it’s hard to do when every new development drags them closer and closer to the center of this case.

This is a shorter chapter, but I hope you like it! I'm excited to write for Nina now that she knows what's going on and the season is starting to wrap up. I usually write 2 episodes per chapter, depending on what happens in the episode and how much extra I add, so I think there will be 2-3 more chapters left for season 1.

As always, please comment on what you like about the story! Please I need validation so badly.

Popcorn, sweets, and nail polish bottles littered the coffee table as The Princess Bride played on the living room television. Allison had never seen it, which was promptly deemed as a crime by Lydia, and it kicked off their girl’s night. Allison sat on the floor between Lydia’s legs as Lydia braided her hair, and Nina sat curled up in the opposite corner of the sofa. 

“Westley, what about the ROUSes?”

 “Rodents of Unusual Size? I don’t think they exist.”

 Even though Lydia had the film memorized — which, by extension, meant Nina had it memorized as well — all three girls jumped at the large, furry, and painfully obvious fake rodent that was thrown at Cary Elwes. 

 Kate laughed as she passed through the living room. “That scared you guys? Jesus, there’s a lot scarier things in the world than a pillow in a rat costume.”

 “… Werewolves?” Nina repeated, the word leaving a bad taste in her mouth as Chris and Kate Argent stood in front of her. The former fronted an image of stoicism and protection as he stood behind the desk, while the latter leaned against it with a look of boredom. Two sets of armor that, while constructed differently, served the same purpose. 

 “Wow, you can see the data failing to compute in real time,” Kate teased with a grin. She turned to Chris, jerking her head in Nina’s direction. “I told you she wouldn’t believe us.” There was a silent ‘but Allison would’ that followed. From Chris’s insistence on Allison not hearing a word about the attack, to Kate’s attempt at manipulation — “You should be able to tell your friends anything, I can’t imagine how heartbroken Allison will be to know you didn’t trust her enough” — it was an obvious point of contention between the two.

 As idiotic as it made her feel, Nina did believe them. She would have written the attack off as another ‘hallucination,’ if it weren’t for the physical reminders.

 “What the hell happened to you?” Lydia demanded. Nina followed her gaze to her ankle, where her pajama pants had ridden up and her sock fell down.

 Allison turned, both her and Lydia’s attention was on the large, deep purple bruise that circled her entire ankle. “Bruising is a side effect of the medication I’m on,” Nina lied. “It doesn’t even hurt.” Lydia’s hand shot out to test Nina’s statement, but she dodged, shoving her foot into Lydia’s face instead. The girl squealed out protests as Allison laughed. 

 With her hair fully braided, she returned to the couch, effectively stopping Nina’s attack on Lydia. Thankfully, the similar coloring on her elbows and forearms remained hidden by her sleeves.

 Chris sighed, dragging his hand over his face. “I didn’t bring her here for fun, Kate. She was almost killed by the alpha.”

 “So was Allison.” At Kate’s scoff, Chris said something back. At that point, Nina wasn’t listening.

 The alpha. Nina’s face scrunched up in confusion. “Wolves don’t do that.” Both siblings stopped their squabbling to look at her. “Alpha, beta, omega, that bullshit. L. David Mech couldn’t replicate the results, it was disproven.”

 Kate huffed a laugh. “Well, sweetheart, these aren’t wolves. They’re shapeshifters. Monsters.” Her smile fell slightly on the last word, really trying to drive it home.

 “Then why are they called that?” Nina continued, her confusion only turning into frustration. “They don’t act like wolves, they don’t look like wolves—”

 “Some do,” Chris replied. “I’ve only seen a handful that can do it, but some are able to take the form of a wolf.”

 None of this was making sense. Nina rubbed her temples, trying to keep herself calm. “Mech’s book on wolves was published in 1970. Did they display a hierarchical structure before then? Did he know about them and falsely attribute their behavior to real wolves? Or did some asshole read the book and decide he wanted to be in charge?”

 “That doesn’t matter—”

 “Of course it matters!” Nina protested. “Centuries of hunting these things, and you don’t know if there was a shift in their behavior in the last few decades? How bad are you at your jobs?”

 Both Kate and Chris shared a look, Kate tilting her head with a smile. “This is gonna be a long day. Should I get lunch?”

 It was Nina’s turn to get pampered, Lydia decided, as she forced Nina down to the floor with her hands laid out on the coffee table. Lydia took two bottles of nail polish and put one on either side of Nina’s face. She tilted her head, eyes flitting between the two colors like she was deciding which chemical would cause a bigger reaction in an experiment. “Allison, which color would look best?”

 Allison broke her attention from the movie to look at the two bottles. “Uh, the blue?”

 Lydia pursed her lips and gave Nina a knowing look. “It’s periwinkle,” She corrected, setting down the pink and opening the bottle Allison chose. “But good choice.”

 “Girls, it’s getting a little cold. Do you want me to put on a fire?” Victoria stood at the stairs, overlooking the teenagers in the living room. 

 Allison looked up at her mom and shook her head. “No, we’re okay. Thanks, mom.”

 Victoria smiled. “Alright. If you change your mind, you know where the matches are.”

 With Kate gone, Chris faced Nina alone. The girl sat in an armchair across from the desk while he remained standing. “You said I was almost killed by it. I wasn’t.” Chris didn’t respond, only tilting his head slightly as an indication for her to continue. “If it wanted me dead, I would be dead. Just like at school.”

 His eyes closed, the reminder of his own daughter being put in danger just too much to handle. “I don’t know why it attacked you,” Chris admitted. “We don’t know its motives for the murders, either. It’s what we’re trying to figure out.”

 The disbelief on Nina’s features increased. “How? It’s going after people involved in the Hale fire.”

 “The Hale fire was a tragedy.” Chris’s voice was sharp and unwavering. “There were humans and innocent werewolves in that house. Children. We don’t kill those who haven’t spilled human blood. It’s against the code.”

 ‘We hunt those who hunt others.’ It was a bit simplistic, but worked for a family motto being passed down through generations. From what she was learning over the course of this pseudo-interrogation, Chris seemed to truly believe in the code. Still, Nina was hard pressed to believe that someone with super strength, speed, and smell wouldn’t be able to tell that a house was on fire and get everyone out in time. Paired with the identities of the victims, save for the janitor who was still unaccounted for, it didn’t make sense. “So it’s killing people who it thinks were involved,” Nina amended, not voicing her thoughts. Chris saved her, and she was grateful, but she didn’t trust him. Not enough to accuse him or his family of murdering innocents in an isolated building full of hunters. The best course of action was to change the subject. “If they’re human most of the time, how can I tell?”

 ~~~

 Nina sat across from Allison at the lunch table, eyeing Jackson as he walked away with a smug look on his face. “What was that about?” She asked, opening her lunch box. Allison still looked a bit down and unsure; they were probably talking about Scott.

 “I was just asking him if I did the right thing with Scott,” Allison admitted, hair falling in front of her face as she looked down. “I asked Jackson and Lydia, and they said I did the right thing, but they’re… them, y’know? What do you think? I mean, you were friends with him before we started dating.”

 Friends was a stretch. They worked together, and Nina respected that he worked hard enough to make up for being an idiot. And now… it was possible that he was a werewolf. 

 After Chris told her how to spot one, it was obvious. Sudden displays of strength or athleticism; Scott’s new performance on the field, check. Uncontrollable strength; dislocating Jackson’s shoulder, check. Sensitive hearing and smell, his intense reactions to the whistle and the time he actually drooled when the cafeteria was serving ‘mystery meat,’ check and check. Easy to anger, check. Even easier to anger during a full moon, check. 

 She said nothing about her suspicions to Chris. It wasn’t even confirmed. If she knew without a doubt that Scott was a werewolf, maybe she would tell Chris. The fact of the matter was that the ‘code’ only applied to killing those who have killed others. It said nothing about stalking, threatening, or harming those who might kill others. And Nina was confident that Scott hadn’t killed anyone. She was also confident that he had nothing to do with everyone getting trapped in the school. Werewolf or not, he was still a terrible liar, and he was more surprised to see everyone else there than he was about the attack. 

 “What happened on Wednesday night wasn’t Scott’s fault,” Nina said, choosing her words carefully. Allison nodded in agreement. “But, leaving us in the chemistry room just showed us a pattern.”

 Allison’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

 Allison and Scott being together only put the both of them in danger. Allison, from a world that she was still blind to. Scott, from the Argents. Did he know about them? “He invited you to Lydia’s party, which he knew you weren’t very interested in, and then ditched you to fend for yourself,” Nina began. It was likely Scott’s first full moon, and while it couldn’t be helped that he was too out of it, it showed a serious lack of care for Allison or anyone at the party. Assuming he even knew what he was at the time. “Which then left you to get into Derek Hale’s car. Not Scott’s fault, you got into the vehicle of an adult man who was sniffing around a high school party, who also later turned out to be wanted for murder, but Scott still put you in that position.” Even if Derek Hale wasn’t the murderer, Nina wasn’t going to let Allison off the hook for getting in a car with him.

 “Right.” Allison frowned, setting her spoon on her tray. 

 “He then never told you why he ditched you. He’s kept a lot of secrets from you.” Possibly being a werewolf being the biggest one. “Obviously, he deserves his privacy. But you deserve to be with someone who you can trust.” Allison nodded, still looking guilty. “The first time, you ended up in the car with a murderer. The second time, we all ended up trapped in the school and hunted for sport. What do you think will happen next time?”

 The question made Allison lift her head to meet Nina’s eyes, concern and the barest hint of fear in her gaze. Good. The less likely Allison was to take Scott back, the safer everyone would be. 

 ~~~

 At the end of the school day, the halls were mainly empty save for those staying for lacrosse practice. Nina was putting her books away and getting her coat when she heard footsteps approaching. She closed her locker door to see Scott staring her down. “Why would you tell Allison not to forgive me?”

 Cornered by a possible werewolf in an empty hallway. How convenient. Nina sighed, shouldering her backpack. “I didn’t tell her not to forgive you. I reminded her of your previous disappointments and encouraged her to come to her own conclusion. Try showing her that you can be trusted.” 

 She began to walk away, but an iron-like grip latched onto her shoulder, pulling her back to face Scott’s glare. She couldn’t help but not take it seriously. It felt like his face wasn’t built to be threatening. “I can’t show her anything if she doesn’t give me a second chance!”

 Nina’s own annoyance spiked. “This isn’t your second chance, Scott!” She glared right back at him, unable to follow the voice in the back of her mind shouting danger, leave immediately! Her temples pulsed, the onset of a migraine simmering to the surface. “Your second chance was after leaving her at Lydia’s party. Your third chance was after lying to her all night last week. Your fourth chance was after leaving us in the chemistry room when she begged you not to, and then locking us in there! I didn’t tell Allison not to forgive you. I told her that she would be safer without you in her life.”

 Scott blinked, his mouth opening and then closing, a spark of hurt flashing in his eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

 “We’re not.” Nina schooled her expression, her tone just as icy as her glare. She ignored the way her stomach dropped at the look on his face. “We’re coworkers. And if just being your coworker lands me trapped at school with a serial killer, why would Allison ever want to be your girlfriend?”

 This time, when Nina walked away, Scott let her. At the end of the hallway, Will stood, watching them. “Still trying to protect me?” She snapped, continuing past him.

 Will fell in line with Nina, glancing back before leaning in closer to her ear. “I finally got the janitor’s record. He was a serial arsonist. Five separate arrests since he was a teenager in San Bernardino, one being when he started a fire in the urinal during class.”

 “Why would the school ever hire him?” Nina asked, looking up at her brother. Her annoyance dissolved now that there was a new revelation in the case. 

 He grinned. “That’s what took me so long to figure it out. All arrests and convictions were expunged by the San Bernardino police department in 2005. Want to take a guess when?”

 Nina’s eyes widened. “After the Hale fire.” 

 “A month after that, he started working here. Can you believe it? The police were involved as well.” The boy was almost gleeful, appearing as though he was about to jump and snap his heels together. 

 Her first thought went to the Argents. Their day job was arms dealing — mainly to the police. If the police weren’t directly involved in the fire, it wasn’t out of line for them to expunge a man’s arson record in exchange for weapons, no questions asked. 

 ~~~

 Nina and Will sat together on the bleachers, Will recording the changes in the lacrosse lineup. Scott was the new co-captain, and Rodriguez, Taylor, and Stiles — Biles, according to Finstock — were promoted to first line after Greenberg spread a case of pink eye. “We’re doomed,” Nina muttered, watching Stiles trip over a lacrosse stick and fall to the ground. He picked himself back up, looking around and waving to no one.

 Will nodded. “Hopefully Jackson can pull his head out of his arse long enough to make up for it.” 

 A minute before practice started, Lydia sat down next to Nina. “Hey,” She greeted, her voice an octave higher than usual. Nina saw Scott coming from the same direction a moment later and turned to Lydia, immediately noticing her lipstick smudged. There was also a cheap chemical-y scent of pine. “Is there a reason I can smell Scott’s terrible cologne?” Nina adopted a smile as she looked at her friend accusingly.

 “I ran into him inside. He asked me about Allison, and I told him that she didn’t want to talk.” She looked out over the field, running her fingers through her hair.

 Nina rolled her eyes, a pit growing in her stomach. “I can’t believe you sometimes.”

 “We have a deal, Nini,” Lydia sang. “I promised I would stop setting you up with Jackson’s friends if you stayed out of my own endeavors.”

 Endeavor was certainly a word for it. “What you do to make Jackson jealous is your own business, but why would you bring Allison into it?”

 Lydia scoffed and tossed her hair over her shoulder. “Please. This has nothing to do with Allison or Scott. Jackson lost his status as sole captain, now he’ll know he can lose his privileges as sole booty call. It’s just politics.”

 “And this has nothing to do with how Jackson has been treating her a lot nicer than he treats you?” Nina tilted her head to the side, watching Lydia. The shift in how he talked to Allison was obvious, and she knew Lydia saw it too.

 Lydia hummed, peering over the players. “I think Logan is free this Saturday. I’ll go ask him for you.” She stood, grabbing her bag and beginning to step down the bleachers.

 “In the meantime, I’ll tell Allison about your election campaign.”

 She stopped and faced Nina with a smug smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll do it myself. And when Allison totally understands, maybe you’ll finally realize you’re not better than everyone else.”

 Lydia strutted away without another word, leaving Will and Nina sitting alone.

 “That was the stupidest fight I’ve ever seen,” Will muttered. Nina rolled her eyes and watched the field, pointedly ignoring Logan Davis every time he tried to get her attention.

 ~~~

 Nina stood in the examination room, arms folded over her chest as she watched Deaton come in from the back with a few pieces of medical equipment. “Nina, hello.” He set the equipment down and gave her a pleasant smile. “I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon. How are you feeling?”

 He gave her and Scott a week and a half of paid time off, the plan being for them to start back up the next Monday. With everything the Argents told her, Nina was debating on whether or not she would talk to her boss about it. It seemed best to get a second opinion. “It attacked me at the library on Thursday night,” Nina revealed, watching Deaton’s mannerisms. He began setting the equipment out, along with the sterilization materials. That was her first clue that Deaton knew more about what was going on than he appeared. He always gave someone his full attention when talking to them — save for when there was a patient needing immediate attention, or if he was hiding something. “Chris Argent interrupted before it could hurt me. He explained everything about the Hales, and about the serial killer. He also told me about you. You’re a druid?”

 “I’m retired,” Deaton said, sparing her a look as he continued sterilizing the equipment. “That’s not a part of my life anymore.”

 “You can’t decide that.” Nina stood at the opposite end of the table, laying her palms flat against the cool metal. “It’s a part of my life now, and the Argents don’t know if it will come after me again or not. Their best way of keeping my family safe is posting someone outside my apartment building all night. I need something that I can do myself to make sure we’re actually safe. I don’t trust them.”

 Deaton paused and met Nina’s eye. “Do you trust me?”

 “More than them.” 

 After a beat, he nodded. “That will have to be good enough. Follow me.” 

 He led her to the back supply room. It was filled with every spare supply they had in stock: pet food, collapsible kennels, and blankets. File cabinets lined the opposite wall, each one locked. He pulled a key out of his pocket, opening the cabinet in the very middle and procuring three vials. “Dried plants,” Nina said, her brow quirked.

 “Can you identify them?”

 Nina huffed and took the vials, holding them up to the light. The bottles were unlabeled, but each one held a distinct plant. In the first one, the berries looked more like white raisins, and the leaves were curled into little spirals from the drying process, but the shape of the leaves was still the recognizable oblong teardrop. Mistletoe. In the second, the petals were a darker and duller purple, but the veins were still prominent. Wolf’s Bane. It was one of the things she saw consistently in her research over the weekend. In the third, small, white petals surrounded prominent stamens of a similar color. The leaves were longer than they were wide, with spiked edges. “I don’t know this one. Is it native to California?” Nina looked to Deaton, who watched her.

 “It’s Mountain Ash. A tree found in the mountainous regions.” Deaton pulled a mortar and pestle from a different cabinet before the two returned to the examination room. 

He set them down, and Nina followed suit with the bottles. “I never would have guessed,” Nina replied dryly. 

Deaton chuckled. “All three serve a different purpose, but are equally able to give you what you need.” He gave her a quick run-down on each plant’s properties. Mistletoe warded anything and everything supernatural, while Wolf’s Bane specifically affected werewolves. “Mountain Ash is different. If its ashes form an uninterrupted barrier, it will prevent anything supernatural from leaving or entering that barrier. The clinic is built with its wood and lined with its ashes.”

Scott immediately came to mind. Deaton must have known, right? “But it’s interrupted.” She wasn’t asking.

“Correct.” He didn’t acknowledge any hidden meaning in her words. “We don’t deny service. The clinic was built to let any supernatural being inside, and ward against causing harm. That way, we can safely treat them if they need it.”

Her brow rose. “Do we have something like that for humans that may cause harm?”

Deaton smiled. “Unfortunately, no.” He gestured to the three bottles. “You can use any of them, and it will keep you safe tonight. Or a mixture, if you need the extra assurance.”

All three sat in a line. The Wolf’s Bane and Mistletoe seemed to be more concrete, since they were toxic to both animals and humans. The Mountain Ash made her nervous. How could a plant protect against ill will? Nina picked up the Wolf’s Bane and Mistletoe bottles, setting them off to the side before opening the mountain ash and emptying its contents in the mortar. A quick glance at Deaton revealed silent approval ghosting his face. “I have dogs on my floor,” She muttered. 

Once it was grinded into a powder, Deaton gave her some tree gum and water to make a paste with the instructions to paint it over the door frame. Nina held the bottle in her hands, examining it. It was exactly what she had asked for. Something she did herself. And every question she asked was met with nothing but patience and understanding. Not like the Argents, who got increasingly frustrated. Still, it wasn’t exactly scientifically tested. “How do you know it will work for me?” She asked, looking up at her boss. 

While she had been working, he continued sterilizing the medical equipment. He stopped when she spoke and met her eye. “Because I’ve seen your work,” He stated plainly, as though the answer was obvious. “If you put the same confidence and care into this as you do with our patients, I have no doubt in my mind that it will work exactly as intended.”

It didn’t take long for Nina to retrieve her things and start out of the room, but she paused in the doorway. “Why do they use alpha, beta, and omega labels?” She asked.

He chuckled. “You know, I always thought when you found out, that would be what you got hung up on.”

That night, no one came knocking at the Holmes apartment; human or otherwise. Nina stressed over it all night, which usually led to a dull migraine, but didn’t notice any pain when she finally went to sleep.

#teen wolf oc #teen wolf reader insert #stiles stilinski x oc #stiles stilinski x reader #nina holmes oc

[awkward-sultana]

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Margaret Beaufort's red and green velvet gown in 1x01,4,5,6

#The Spanish Princess #TheSpanishPrincessEdit #weloveperioddrama #perioddramaedit #period drama #historical drama #Margaret Beaufort #The New World #The Battle of Harry #Hearts Versus Duty #A Polite Kidnapping #costumeedit #costumes #costume drama #Almost Every Costume Per Episode #Awkward-Sultana

[impervioustotheworldssoftdecay]

I posted 889 times in 2022

That's 518 more posts than 2021!

14 posts created (2%)

875 posts reblogged (98%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

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I tagged 172 of my posts in 2022

#dracula daily - 60 posts

#analysis - 26 posts

#pers. - 10 posts

#fashion inspo - 6 posts

#london - 6 posts

#much ado about nothing - 6 posts

#tender is the flesh - 5 posts

#shakespeare - 5 posts

#interior design - 3 posts

#tsh - 3 posts

Longest Tag: 111 characters

#the shift from flies to spiders being symbolism for sin is a really interesting aspect i wasn't aware of before

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

0 notes - Posted May 10, 2022

#4

"In den Poren der frauenfeindlichen Narrationen verbirgt sich die Widerständigkeit der Frauen."

~ Die Erschöpfung der Frauen, Franziska Schutzbach S. 43

0 notes - Posted April 20, 2022

#3

watched the first two eps of "The Haunting of Bly Manor" with my gf. surprised by how much I like the characters, they are really three-dimensional. the main character is in equal parts outspoken and fragile, she didn't shy away from being frank with the kids uncle but she obviously has her own struggles with panic attacks etc.

And the boy, I wonder if he's possessed? Possibly the demon/creature sprang over from the former governess or she sacrificed herself for them. Might explain Miles question in the school lesson, if demons need permission to enter men (yes), his curious strength and weird behaviour towards the protagonist. What does he mean with the talk about needing to find keys though? Keys to what? And how does the emphasis on the innocence of animals fit into this? Why do the children leave at midnight to the lake (I'm assuming).

Why does the former governesses boyfriend turn up? Was he possessed as well (and has passed it onto her, driving her to suicide)? Is Owens remark that people are born and die in Bly relevant?

Anyway, I'm quite excited for the next episode.

3 notes - Posted October 12, 2022

#2

saw "much ado about nothing" at the globe today. one of these experiences making me wish I had photographic memory in order to go over every moment again and again. the scenery showing a villa in post-war italy. the wonderful period-appropriate costumes (and Beatrice was the only one of the women wearing pants! very fitting). the hilarious physical comedy - while eavesdropping, Beatrice got tangled in a sort tennis net, then stepped onto the sprinkler on the lawn. The whole theatre was laughing. They also constantly involved the audience, like looking at someone in the audience during the "one woman is fair, yet I am well" monologue.

I also stood during the whole performance, having chosen the cheapest tickets, meaning I was mich closer to the actors and it made for a wholly different interaction with the crowd, it was so immersive. and the actress playing beatrice was so attractive. certainly helped keep my eyes on the stage

4 notes - Posted October 16, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

one thing I like about "Tender is the Flesh" is how it's not a perfect dystopia. The systems has cracks showing, people are sometimes more, sometimes less aware of the inhumanity of this. Not everyone is 100% on board, 100% brainwashed, no matter what the media tries to instill in people. Think of the job applicant getting sick when seeing the slaughtering process for example.

That's what draws you in though, that's the terrifying aspect of it. This world seems so realistic and natural, it's not comfortingly distant from our own reality. And even "good" people, normal people who sort of recognize the atrocity of it, participate in the system because they need to.

21 notes - Posted October 14, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #gotta tag more of my posts I suppose

[joomma]

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Dean gets to their motel and Sam’s dressed it all up, even though he spent much of the Lover Cat All Ovver Print Cat Face Ugly Christmas Sweater not wanting to celebrate. They share some jokes for the rest of the episode, clearly trying not to get teary-eyed or reminisce too much about their…well, mostly shitty lives. They share some presents, express some gratitude, drink some eggnog, and watch a game on TV. Smiling and enjoying each other’s company. I love this episode and it goes down as my favorite Christmas story because the writers did not hold back on making it bittersweet as fuck. These two poor sons of bitches have almost nothing at all – they’re sitting in a cheap motel, both their parents are dead, Dean is going to be dragged to Hell for eternity within the year, and the only reason they wake up in the morning to save other people is because they literally cannot do anything else now that they’ve been hunting for so long.

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[ghostface001]

Illogical Reasoning Chapter 6: Mountain Ash

** originally posted to @michael-yagoobian

Ao3 | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6

Summary: Nina and Will Holmes have lived in Beacon Hills, California, for a little over a year by the start of their sophomore year of high school. In their time in the small town, Beacon Hills has always been quiet and boring. On the first day of school, the lower half of a Jane Doe is found in the woods; a Jane Doe that only Nina and Will seem to believe was murdered. Per their mother Imogen’s pleas, the twins agree to stick to the sidelines and let the police do their job, but it’s hard to do when every new development drags them closer and closer to the center of this case.

This is a shorter chapter, but I hope you like it! I'm excited to write for Nina now that she knows what's going on and the season is starting to wrap up. I usually write 2 episodes per chapter, depending on what happens in the episode and how much extra I add, so I think there will be 2-3 more chapters left for season 1. Please comment/reblog if you like the story!

Popcorn, sweets, and nail polish bottles littered the coffee table as The Princess Bride played on the living room television. Allison had never seen it, which was promptly deemed as a crime by Lydia, and it kicked off their girl’s night. Allison sat on the floor between Lydia’s legs as Lydia braided her hair, and Nina sat curled up in the opposite corner of the sofa. 

“Westley, what about the ROUSes?”

“Rodents of Unusual Size? I don’t think they exist.”

Even though Lydia had the film memorized — which, by extension, meant Nina had it memorized as well — all three girls jumped at the large, furry, and painfully obvious fake rodent that was thrown at Cary Elwes. 

Kate laughed as she passed through the living room. “That scared you guys? Jesus, there’s a lot scarier things in the world than a pillow in a rat costume.”

“… Werewolves?” Nina repeated, the word leaving a bad taste in her mouth as Chris and Kate Argent stood in front of her. The former fronted an image of stoicism and protection as he stood behind the desk, while the latter leaned against it with a look of boredom. Two sets of armor that, while constructed differently, served the same purpose. 

“Wow, you can see the data failing to compute in real time,” Kate teased with a grin. She turned to Chris, jerking her head in Nina’s direction. “I told you she wouldn’t believe us.” There was a silent ‘but Allison would’ that followed. From Chris’s insistence on Allison not hearing a word about the attack, to Kate’s attempt at manipulation — “You should be able to tell your friends anything, I can’t imagine how heartbroken Allison will be to know you didn’t trust her enough” — it was an obvious point of contention between the two.

As idiotic as it made her feel, Nina did believe them. She would have written the attack off as another ‘hallucination,’ if it weren’t for the physical reminders.

“What the hell happened to you?” Lydia demanded. Nina followed her gaze to her ankle, where her pajama pants had ridden up and her sock fell down.

Allison turned, both her and Lydia’s attention was on the large, deep purple bruise that circled her entire ankle. “Bruising is a side effect of the medication I’m on,” Nina lied. “It doesn’t even hurt.” Lydia’s hand shot out to test Nina’s statement, but she dodged, shoving her foot into Lydia’s face instead. The girl squealed out protests as Allison laughed. 

With her hair fully braided, she returned to the couch, effectively stopping Nina’s attack on Lydia. Thankfully, the similar coloring on her elbows and forearms remained hidden by her sleeves.

Chris sighed, dragging his hand over his face. “I didn’t bring her here for fun, Kate. She was almost killed by the alpha.”

“So was Allison.” At Kate’s scoff, Chris said something back. At that point, Nina wasn’t listening.

The alpha. Nina’s face scrunched up in confusion. “Wolves don’t do that.” Both siblings stopped their squabbling to look at her. “Alpha, beta, omega, that bullshit. L. David Mech couldn’t replicate the results, it was disproven.”

Kate huffed a laugh. “Well, sweetheart, these aren’t wolves. They’re shapeshifters. Monsters.” Her smile fell slightly on the last word, really trying to drive it home.

“Then why are they called that?” Nina continued, her confusion only turning into frustration. “They don’t act like wolves, they don’t look like wolves—”

“Some do,” Chris replied. “I’ve only seen a handful that can do it, but some are able to take the form of a wolf.”

None of this was making sense. Nina rubbed her temples, trying to keep herself calm. “Mech’s book on wolves was published in 1970. Did they display a hierarchical structure before then? Did he know about them and falsely attribute their behavior to real wolves? Or did some asshole read the book and decide he wanted to be in charge?”

“That doesn’t matter—”

“Of course it matters!” Nina protested. “Centuries of hunting these things, and you don’t know if there was a shift in their behavior in the last few decades? How bad are you at your jobs?”

Both Kate and Chris shared a look, Kate tilting her head with a smile. “This is gonna be a long day. Should I get lunch?”

It was Nina’s turn to get pampered, Lydia decided, as she forced Nina down to the floor with her hands laid out on the coffee table. Lydia took two bottles of nail polish and put one on either side of Nina’s face. She tilted her head, eyes flitting between the two colors like she was deciding which chemical would cause a bigger reaction in an experiment. “Allison, which color would look best?”

Allison broke her attention from the movie to look at the two bottles. “Uh, the blue?”

Lydia pursed her lips and gave Nina a knowing look. “It’s periwinkle,” She corrected, setting down the pink and opening the bottle Allison chose. “But good choice.”

“Girls, it’s getting a little cold. Do you want me to put on a fire?” Victoria stood at the stairs, overlooking the teenagers in the living room. 

Allison looked up at her mom and shook her head. “No, we’re okay. Thanks, mom.”

Victoria smiled. “Alright. If you change your mind, you know where the matches are.”

With Kate gone, Chris faced Nina alone. The girl sat in an armchair across from the desk while he remained standing. “You said I was almost killed by it. I wasn’t.” Chris didn’t respond, only tilting his head slightly as an indication for her to continue. “If it wanted me dead, I would be dead. Just like at school.”

His eyes closed, the reminder of his own daughter being put in danger just too much to handle. “I don’t know why it attacked you,” Chris admitted. “We don’t know its motives for the murders, either. It’s what we’re trying to figure out.”

The disbelief on Nina’s features increased. “How? It’s going after people involved in the Hale fire.”

“The Hale fire was a tragedy.” Chris’s voice was sharp and unwavering. “There were humans and innocent werewolves in that house. Children. We don’t kill those who haven’t spilled human blood. It’s against the code.”

‘We hunt those who hunt others.’ It was a bit simplistic, but worked for a family motto being passed down through generations. From what she was learning over the course of this pseudo-interrogation, Chris seemed to truly believe in the code. Still, Nina was hard pressed to believe that someone with super strength, speed, and smell wouldn’t be able to tell that a house was on fire and get everyone out in time. Paired with the identities of the victims, save for the janitor who was still unaccounted for, it didn’t make sense. “So it’s killing people who it thinks were involved,” Nina amended, not voicing her thoughts. Chris saved her, and she was grateful, but she didn’t trust him. Not enough to accuse him or his family of murdering innocents in an isolated building full of hunters. The best course of action was to change the subject. “If they’re human most of the time, how can I tell?”

~~~

Nina sat across from Allison at the lunch table, eyeing Jackson as he walked away with a smug look on his face. “What was that about?” She asked, opening her lunch box. Allison still looked a bit down and unsure; they were probably talking about Scott.

“I was just asking him if I did the right thing with Scott,” Allison admitted, hair falling in front of her face as she looked down. “I asked Jackson and Lydia, and they said I did the right thing, but they’re… them, y’know? What do you think? I mean, you were friends with him before we started dating.”

Friends was a stretch. They worked together, and Nina respected that he worked hard enough to make up for being an idiot. And now… it was possible that he was a werewolf. 

After Chris told her how to spot one, it was obvious. Sudden displays of strength or athleticism; Scott’s new performance on the field, check. Uncontrollable strength; dislocating Jackson’s shoulder, check. Sensitive hearing and smell, his intense reactions to the whistle and the time he actually drooled when the cafeteria was serving ‘mystery meat,’ check and check. Easy to anger, check. Even easier to anger during a full moon, check. 

She said nothing about her suspicions to Chris. It wasn’t even confirmed. If she knew without a doubt that Scott was a werewolf, maybe she would tell Chris. The fact of the matter was that the ‘code’ only applied to killing those who have killed others. It said nothing about stalking, threatening, or harming those who might kill others. And Nina was confident that Scott hadn’t killed anyone. She was also confident that he had nothing to do with everyone getting trapped in the school. Werewolf or not, he was still a terrible liar, and he was more surprised to see everyone else there than he was about the attack. 

“What happened on Wednesday night wasn’t Scott’s fault,” Nina said, choosing her words carefully. Allison nodded in agreement. “But, leaving us in the chemistry room just showed us a pattern.”

Allison’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”

Allison and Scott being together only put the both of them in danger. Allison, from a world that she was still blind to. Scott, from the Argents. Did he know about them? “He invited you to Lydia’s party, which he knew you weren’t very interested in, and then ditched you to fend for yourself,” Nina began. It was likely Scott’s first full moon, and while it couldn’t be helped that he was too out of it, it showed a serious lack of care for Allison or anyone at the party. Assuming he even knew what he was at the time. “Which then left you to get into Derek Hale’s car. Not Scott’s fault, you got into the vehicle of an adult man who was sniffing around a high school party, who also later turned out to be wanted for murder, but Scott still put you in that position.” Even if Derek Hale wasn’t the murderer, Nina wasn’t going to let Allison off the hook for getting in a car with him.

“Right.” Allison frowned, setting her spoon on her tray. 

“He then never told you why he ditched you. He’s kept a lot of secrets from you.” Possibly being a werewolf being the biggest one. “Obviously, he deserves his privacy. But you deserve to be with someone who you can trust.” Allison nodded, still looking guilty. “The first time, you ended up in the car with a murderer. The second time, we all ended up trapped in the school and hunted for sport. What do you think will happen next time?”

The question made Allison lift her head to meet Nina’s eyes, concern and the barest hint of fear in her gaze. Good. The less likely Allison was to take Scott back, the safer everyone would be. 

~~~

At the end of the school day, the halls were mainly empty save for those staying for lacrosse practice. Nina was putting her books away and getting her coat when she heard footsteps approaching. She closed her locker door to see Scott staring her down. “Why would you tell Allison not to forgive me?”

Cornered by a possible werewolf in an empty hallway. How convenient. Nina sighed, shouldering her backpack. “I didn’t tell her not to forgive you. I reminded her of your previous let-downs, and encouraged her to come to her own conclusion. Try showing her that you can be trusted.” 

She began to walk away, but an iron-like grip latched onto her shoulder, pulling her back to face Scott’s glare. She couldn’t help but not take it seriously. It felt like his face wasn’t built to be threatening. “I can’t show her anything if she doesn’t give me a second chance!”

Nina’s own annoyance spiked. “This isn’t your second chance, Scott!” She glared right back at him, unable to follow the voice in the back of her mind shouting danger, leave immediately! Her temples pulsed, the onset of a migraine simmering to the surface. “Your second chance was after leaving her at Lydia’s party. Your third chance was after lying to her all night last week. Your fourth chance was after leaving us in the chemistry room when she begged you not to, and then locking us in there! I didn’t tell Allison not to forgive you. I told her that she would be safer without you in her life.”

Scott blinked, his mouth opening and then closing, a spark of hurt flashing in his eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

“We’re not.” Nina schooled her expression, her tone just as icy as her glare as she ignored the way her stomach dropped at the look on his face. “We’re coworkers. And if just being your coworker lands me trapped at school with a serial killer, why would Allison ever want to be your girlfriend?”

This time, when Nina walked away, Scott let her. At the end of the hallway, Will stood, watching them. “Still trying to protect me?” She snapped, continuing past him.

Will fell in line with Nina, glancing back before leaning in closer to her ear. “I finally got the janitor’s record. He was a serial arsonist. Five separate arrests since he was a teenager in San Bernardino, one being when he started a fire in the urinal during class.”

“Why would the school ever hire him?” Nina asked, looking up at her brother. Her annoyance dissolved now that there was a new revelation in the case. 

He grinned. “That’s what took me so long to figure it out. All arrests and convictions were expunged by the San Bernardino police department in 2005. Want to take a guess when?”

Nina’s eyes widened. “After the Hale fire.” 

“A month after that, he started working here. Can you believe it? The police were involved as well.” The boy was almost gleeful, appearing as though he was about to jump and snap his heels together. 

Her first thought went to the Argents. Their day job was arms dealing — mainly to the police. If the police weren’t directly involved in the fire, it wasn’t out of line for them to expunge a man’s arson record in exchange for weapons, no questions asked. 

~~~

Nina and Will sat together on the bleachers, Will recording the changes in the lacrosse lineup. Scott was the new co-captain, and Rodriguez, Taylor, and Stiles — Biles, according to Finstock — were promoted to first line after Greenberg spread a case of pink eye. “We’re doomed,” Nina muttered, watching Stiles trip over a lacrosse stick and fall to the ground. He picked himself back up, looking around and waving to no one.

Will nodded. “Hopefully Jackson can pull his head out of his arse long enough to make up for it.” 

A minute before practice started, Lydia sat down next to Nina. “Hey,” She greeted, her voice an octave higher than usual. Nina saw Scott coming from the same direction a moment later and turned to Lydia, immediately noticing her lipstick smudged. There was also a cheap chemical-y scent of pine. “Is there a reason I can smell Scott’s terrible cologne?” Nina adopted a smile as she looked at her friend accusingly.

“I ran into him inside. He asked me about Allison, and I told him that she didn’t want to talk.” She looked out over the field, running her fingers through her hair.

Nina rolled her eyes, a pit growing in her stomach. “I can’t believe you sometimes.”

“We have a deal, Nini,” Lydia sang. “I promised I would stop setting you up with Jackson’s friends if you stayed out of my own endeavors.”

Endeavor was certainly a word for it. “What you do to make Jackson jealous is your own business, but why would you bring Allison into it?”

Lydia scoffed and tossed her hair over her shoulder. “Please. This has nothing to do with Allison or Scott. Jackson lost his status as sole captain, now he’ll know he can lose his privileges as sole booty call. It’s just politics.”

“And this has nothing to do with how Jackson has been treating her a lot nicer than he treats you?” Nina tilted her head to the side, watching Lydia. The shift in how he talked to Allison was obvious, and she knew Lydia saw it too.

Lydia hummed, peering over the players. “I think Logan is free this Saturday. I’ll go ask him for you.” She stood, grabbing her bag and beginning to step down the bleachers.

“In the meantime, I’ll tell Allison about your election campaign.”

She stopped and faced Nina with a smug smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll do it myself. And when Allison totally understands, maybe you’ll finally realize you’re not better than everyone else.”

Lydia strutted away without another word, leaving Will and Nina sitting alone.

“That was the stupidest fight I’ve ever seen,” Will muttered. Nina rolled her eyes and watched the field, pointedly ignoring Logan Davis every time he tried to get her attention.

~~~

Nina stood in the examination room, arms folded over her chest as she watched Deaton come in from the back with a few pieces of medical equipment. “Nina, hello.” He set the equipment down and gave her a pleasant smile. “I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon. How are you feeling?”

He gave her and Scott a week and a half of paid time off, the plan being for them to start back up the next Monday. With everything the Argents told her, Nina was debating on whether or not she would talk to her boss about it. It seemed best to get a second opinion. “It attacked me at the library on Thursday night,” Nina revealed, watching Deaton’s mannerisms. He began setting the equipment out, along with the sterilization materials. That was her first clue that Deaton knew more about what was going on than he appeared. He always gave someone his full attention when talking to them — save for when there was a patient needing immediate attention, or if he was hiding something. “Chris Argent interrupted before it could hurt me. He explained everything about the Hales, and about the serial killer. He also told me about you. You’re a druid?”

“I’m retired,” Deaton said, sparing her a look as he continued sterilizing the equipment. “That’s not a part of my life anymore.”

“You can’t decide that.” Nina stood at the opposite end of the table, laying her palms flat against the cool metal. “It’s a part of my life now, and the Argents don’t know if it will come after me again or not. Their best way of keeping my family safe is posting someone outside my apartment building all night. I need something that I can do myself to make sure we’re actually safe. I don’t trust them.”

Deaton paused and met Nina’s eye. “Do you trust me?”

“More than them.” 

After a beat, he nodded. “That will have to be good enough. Follow me.” 

He led her to the back supply room. It was filled with every spare supply they had in stock; pet food, collapsible kennels, and blankets. File cabinets lined the opposite wall, each one locked. He pulled a key out of his pocket, opening the cabinet in the very middle and procuring three vials. “Dried plants,” Nina said, her brow quirked.

“Can you identify them?”

Nina huffed and took the vials, holding them up to the light. The bottles were unlabeled, but each one held a distinct plant. In the first one, the berries looked more like white raisins, and the leaves were curled into little spirals from the drying process, but the shape of the leaves was still the recognizable oblong teardrop. Mistletoe. In the second, the petals were a darker and duller purple, but the veins were still prominent. Wolf’s Bane. It was one of the things she saw consistently in her research over the weekend. In the third, small, white petals surrounded prominent stamens of a similar color. The leaves were longer than they were wide, with spiked edges. “I don’t know this one. Is it native to California?” Nina looked to Deaton, who watched her.

“It’s Mountain Ash. A tree found in the mountainous regions.” Deaton pulled a mortar and pestle from a different cabinet before the two returned to the examination room. 

He set them down, and Nina followed suit with the bottles. “I never would have guessed,” Nina replied dryly. 

Deaton chuckled. “All three serve a different purpose, but are equally able to give you what you need.” He gave her a quick run-down on each plant’s properties. Mistletoe warded anything and everything supernatural, while Wolf’s Bane specifically affected werewolves. “Mountain Ash is different. If its ashes form an uninterrupted barrier, it will prevent anything supernatural from leaving or entering that barrier. The clinic is built with its wood and lined with its ashes.”

Scott immediately came to mind. Deaton must have known, right? “But it’s interrupted.” She wasn’t asking.

“Correct.” He didn’t acknowledge any hidden meaning in her words. “We don’t deny service. The clinic was built to let any supernatural being inside, and ward against causing harm. That way, we can safely treat them if they need it.”

Her brow rose. “Do we have something like that for humans that may cause harm?”

Deaton smiled. “Unfortunately, no.” He gestured to the three bottles. “You can use any of them, and it will keep you safe tonight. Or a mixture, if you need the extra assurance.”

All three sat in a line. The Wolf’s Bane and Mistletoe seemed to be more concrete, since they were toxic to both animals and humans. The Mountain Ash made her nervous. How could a plant protect against ill will? Nina picked up the Wolf’s Bane and Mistletoe bottles, setting them off to the side before opening the mountain ash and emptying its contents in the mortar. A quick glance at Deaton revealed silent approval ghosting his face. “I have dogs on my floor,” She muttered. 

Once it was grinded into a powder, Deaton gave her some tree gum and water to make a paste with the instructions to paint it over the door frame. Nina held the bottle in her hands, examining it. It was exactly what she had asked for. Something she did herself. And every question she asked was met with nothing but patience and understanding. Not like the Argents, who got increasingly frustrated. Still, it wasn’t exactly scientifically tested. “How do you know it will work for me?” She asked, looking up at her boss. 

While she had been working, he continued sterilizing the medical equipment. He stopped when she spoke and met her eye. “Because I’ve seen your work,” He stated plainly, as though the answer was obvious. “If you put the same confidence and care into this as you do with our patients, I have no doubt in my mind that it will work exactly as intended.”

It didn’t take long for Nina to retrieve her things and start out of the room, but she paused in the doorway. “Why do they use alpha, beta, and omega labels?” She asked.

He chuckled. “You know, I always thought when you found out, that would be what you got hung up on.”

That night, no one came knocking at the Holmes apartment; human or otherwise. Nina stressed over it all night, which usually led to a dull migraine, but didn’t notice any pain when she finally went to sleep.

#teen wolf fanfiction #teen wolf oc #stiles stilinski x oc #my writing #my ocs tag

[awkward-sultana]

(Almost) Every Costume Per Episode + Elizabeth of York's gold and pearl headband in 1x03,4

#The White Princess #TheWhitePrincessEdit #weloveperioddrama #perioddramaedit #period drama #historical drama #Elizabeth of York #Burgundy #The Pretender #costumeedit #costumes #costume drama #Almost Every Costume Per Episode #Awkward-Sultana