#also apparently white eggs are an american thing

[daddy-cake]

Krueger x Mexican!Reader Headcanons

Y'all already know the drill, this is all sfw and Gender Neutral!Reader

No use of any Y/N variations

A/N: I'm Mexican and in love with him... I just had to. This place needed more Mexican!Readers anyways🙄

MEXICO RAHHHH🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽✊🏼✊🏼✊🏼✊🏼

Reader is also implied to not be part of the military. Sorry not sorry <33.

Warnings: All of these just silly goofy

MASTERLIST

First time meeting your family is going to be Krueger's last.

The family wasn't so happy to hear that you fell in love with a white man.. They could have let it slide if he was American because most Mexicans are a suck up to Americans... but Austrian? Grandma was literally crying at the news and praying for the family, she was claiming that the family was truly doomed. The only thing that will get the family to calm down is you reminding them that he isn't from Spain or Argentina. Heavy on Argentina.

Family is going to be calling him "El Barbie" in a derogatory sense. You tried to tell him that it was a compliment and means that's he's tough in Spanish.

Your dad definitely tried to bond with him by taking him to rooster fight. However, the two came home and your father was beyond mad. He starts claiming that Sebastian is bad luck because his rooster, who has a streak of wining 20 tournaments, lost. Got rubbed by the egg afterwards.

Sebastian isn't too pleased with the environment. Parents are having an argument, kids are running around screaming or crying, music is playing at full volume, one of the dogs are barking, the tías are gossiping, La Rosa de Guadalupe is playing, Grandma rubbing him with the egg and praying, Grandpa is working on the roof, and some cousin is vacuuming.

When dinner came around... lord help this man. He wasn't prepared for the spice that only he could taste. Had tears trying to escape then he had to excuse himself from the table and go outside to regain his composure. The whole family was muttering "No aguanta nada" the whole time.

To say he was relieved to hear that you two were going home is an understatement. He preferred more of a quiet environment than one that is loud and makes it very apparent that he's not welcomed there.

When you two arrived at your own place he was ready to just pass out. He was warned that the place was going to be busy, but he thought he could handle it and it wasn't that bad since he was a soldier... he should've listened to you.

The next day was spent inside and not even letting an ounce of the outside in. Krueger dearly needed it to just regain his sanity from the pervious day.

Everything was going fine until when he wanted to prepare something for lunch. He was looking all over the kitchen for the pots and pans until he finally gave up and asked you where you kept them.

"Why are they in the oven?"

"You don't put them in the oven?"

Krueger at one point received a gift that was rooster from you and was so confused why you would gift him this. At first, he thought it was some sort of joke gift from you until he realized it was a genuine gift after a few seconds of silence. Doesn't even know what to do with it, so he ended up giving it to your dad. Dad was not happy.

The one time the both of you went out to dinner, he was not expecting other guests to keep telling you two to have a good meal as it wasn't a thing in all of the countries he has lived in.

Was told by you not to speak at all when you two were out on the streets or else y'all would get jump. Krueger doesn't listen to the rules though.

When you left your Banda music on while doing some chores, he was about to turn it off but he got really into the music.

Got a chihuahua simply because you begged for one and he found it somewhat funny that despite their small sizes they are very protective. Also it was between that or the stray xoloitzcuintli down the street that's been there for around 10 years.

100% brags about thechihuahua, saying he has a vicious dog that could kill anyone. Everyone thought he got a Rottweiler for a long time.

La Quebradita. Trust once you teach Krueger the basics, y'all gonna be making your cousins and their partners jealous. Considering he's part of a PMC and once in the military, he obviously is gonna have some strength. That strength comes in handy when you two want go all out in a Quebradita competition.

Considering Krueger was once part of the military, he obviously would be sort of tidy considering that they engraved that trait into his head when he first joined. So yes, he would help you clean around the house. HOWEVER, laundry duty is always on him. Simply the way that you'll probably fold clothes would just trigger something in him like a sleeper agent.

You'll always have to be the first to initiate any sort of "I love you"s. He doesn't know why, but he just can't bring himself to say it to you.

When Sebastian is away on missions, he often times receive texts from you that revolves around staying safe. He can't help it, but to have a small smile plaster on his face.

There will be some point in the relationship that he would just go off the grid and/or no contact for a few days. It's not that he hates you. It's just that considering the life he has lead, he definitely needs some points to take a step back to recollect in a way. Also to stay away from authorities, but let's not take about that.

Would never go into any sort of detail about his background besides being part of the military. He'd never once talk about his parents or why he's no longer part of said military. To you he's kinda of an enigma. You know so little about him, but he knows so much about you. You that it was unfair in a sense. However, no matter how much you try to get answers, he'd never budge. So after awhile, you start chalking things up to him having a strained relationship with his parents (which in a lot of Mexican households would probably mean that his parents were absolutely vile if you go no contact with them) and possibly leaving the military on his own terms.

Krueger would go great lengths for a mangonada. Me too bro, me too.

#x reader #call of duty #cod #cod x reader #sebastian krueger x reader #krueger x reader #krueger cod #cod krueger #sebastian krueger #call of duty modern warfare #call of duty x reader #x you #cod x you #call of duty x you #krueger x you #sebastian krueger x you #cod modern warfare #modern warfare #cod mw19 #mw19 #mexican reader #headcanons #cod headcanons #headcanon #call of duty headcanons #some of these headcanons came out of my ass

[whetstonefires]

Fic writing asks: 17

17) What’s something you’ve learned about while doing research for a fic?

Hm. Ngl, it's relatively rare for me to do a lot of fic research. I'm much more likely to put something in a fic because I've read about it and have it on tap than to read about it because it's going to be in a fic.

Except ofc fandoms where you have to do research just to know what canon is and whether you're going to abide by it. Does that count? I know a lot of things about Batman because of fic research. I check equipment stats on the wiki when I include a specific object or class of object in a FFVII fic.

Mostly it's just, like, let's check the accuracy of this detail, or I'm interested in this subject now because I had to not get in too deep about it in that fic because I didn't know about it, but then later I can, because I looked it up.

One time as a teenager I put a white tern into a fic for poetic flavor when conveying that it was evening, and then before publishing the fic I googled their nest-building habits and it turned out they fucking don't.

They find a good spot where a tree divides and just. Balance the egg there. No nest. Notable for it.

Rather than choose a different bird I just edited that fun fact into the fic lmao. I will remember this fact about terns for my entire life due to my adolescent sense of rigor saving me from being very poetically and particularly Incorrect about a specific bird in public.

Not that anyone who read it was particularly likely to know better, but that just means I would have been promulgating false information.

I'm realizing I don't really separate what I've picked up as fic research from my nonfiction pleasure reading, most of the time. I've been reading on JSTOR about historical slavery in China lately because cdramas and cnovels use the subject for angst and drama, but tend to elide over any particulars they aren't using for the plot, and it's thousands of years of law and culture across a huge area, so there are no simple answers to be had. But that's not fic research it's just fic-related curiosity, iykwim?

Currently reading one about penal exile to servitude as publicly-owned, privately-allocated mostly-agricultural workers in Xinjiang under the Qing. It was one of the perks of being a military official in a recently conquered region, convict labor. Apparently they sent a lot of people convicted of Buddhist heresy to very specifically the desert parts of Xinjiang, because being a majority-Muslim region that China had at that time little interest in seriously colonizing, since it had limited agricultural value, Buddhist heresies would have a hard time spreading there.

Idek what illegal Buddhist opinions were, but I know that they got you sent to the region where China is currently persecuting the hell out of the Uyghurs.

But like this is not research for a fic; I am not going to set a mdzs fic in 18th century Xinjiang among the convict laborers. I would need to do so much more reading for that, and for what? To create an extremely realistic early-modern version of the Jin labor camp escape sequence in a Qing historical AU, with strange reverberations to an ongoing modern human rights crisis???

No. The work to reward ratio does not wash. Also yikes that is not my lane I would have to get it beyond reproach perfect to be comfortable sharing it.

I did have to very particularly research the layout of the White House for that Earth-3 fic where Talon!Dick breaks in and murders Grant Wilson, and then gets shot at by Adeline and chased out onto the Truman Balcony by President Slade with a sword.

I think I gave him a US Army cavalry saber because it was important that the President and First Lady charged out to fight the assassin attacking their kids in the Yellow Oval Room with the most American weapons possible. Adeline had an M-16 carbine.

I also learned fun facts about the history of the Truman Balcony, such as: President Truman economized on his household expenses to put aside enough to have the balcony installed without taking it out of his own actual pocket or having to ask Congress for a special renovation budget, and there was a huge hullabaloo and scandal about him doing this and the presumption and ruining the clean neoclassical lines of the building for all future generations of Americans and this was going to cost him reelection--and then they finished putting it in and it looked fine, actually, and the scandal collapsed.

I remember all this as a specific fic-research thing like 8 years later because I was researching the White House layout, the sightlines to the Truman Balcony (because Slade had to be correct in his assessment of how likely he was to get sniped), and military rifles all in a row and this seemed like a series of Google searches that might trip the hypothetical NSA bot monitoring my internet traffic and put a flag on me for maybe fantasizing about murdering the President.

It was still Obama back then so I wasn't in the slightest. Even though he is actually murdered later in that timeline.

Also speaking of President Obama, learned he said the Truman balcony was his family's favorite place in the White House, which is charming, because. That's just sitting out on the back porch. Like, it's on the White House and one story up, but it's just the porch sir.

Also the Yellow Oval Room has been redone a few times now but has had the same antique French furniture for decades now.

#ask #hoc est meum #chimaerakitten #fanfic #ask game #fic research #the truman balcony #i feel like i've said all this before #it is very much my most memorable fic-specific research experience #because I needed and could obtain a lot of specific information #that was slightly creepy of me to want #though i think 'assassins targeting the First Family' #is a reasonably common action scenario for americans to write #fun facts

[more-than-a-princess]

Hi! Love your sonia characterisation and from your ooc posting, I see your tastes are great~ Can I ask the mun: do you have any recommendations for books or TV series? c:

Hi anon! Thank you so much for your kind words regarding my IC content and OOC ramblings, that's really nice of you to say. I'm happy to recommend some things (I admit I did a 'Stitch laughing maniacally on a pile of wreckage' when I got this ask because anon, I am not sure you know what you have asked to unleash!).

However, I wasn't sure if you were asking for recommendations for books/TV series that have directly inspired my Sonia portrayal, or recommendations of things I enjoy in general. With that in mind, I'm going to be sharing a long list of books, TV series, manga/webtoons, and story-based video games that I just happen to like.

If you're looking for media that has directly inspired my portrayal though, please send another ask and I'd be happy to narrow it down for you!

In order not to keep the dash tidy, everything is under a cut, with notes (some important, some just me making jokes) beside a few of them. I hope you find a new favorite book/series to enjoy!

Books: 

General Notes: For book series where the first book title isn't the series name, I've indicated which book to start with, save for the historical romances because that's easier to find online and there's a lot of them. I hope that helps! Additionally, for all romance series, assume that there is some mention of sexual content in various degrees of description, aka. "spice." Depending on your comfort level of literary sex, I highly recommend checking out each title on https://www.romance.io/ for their spice level rating, at the very least. The site will also show you tropes found in each book as well as reviews.

Contemporary Romance:

The Time-Travelers Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

American Royals series by Katharine McGee

Crazy Rich Asians series by Kevin Kwan (way, way better than the movie! It's a trilogy, followed by China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems. I'd highly recommend this if you are writing a modern wealthy character of East Asian descent. Yes it's romance, humor, and contemporary family drama, but it gives what's apparently a very accurate look at high society)

Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade (if you are looking for contemporary romance with plus size heroines, you want to check out Olivia Dade! Also Mary Warren and for young adult romance, Kelsie Stelting)

Modern Royals series by Aven Ellis (start with A Royal Shade of Blue)

The Royal Runaway by Lindsay Emory

The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (and its sequel, The Heir Affair)

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (this was better than Red, White, and Royal Blue, IMO)

Fantasy Romance:

Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas

Crescent City series by Sarah J. Maas

A note about SJM series: I highly suggest reading TOG or ACOTAR first, with the understanding the first three or so TOG books and the first ACOTAR books have a slower pace and are more about worldbuilding than anything else. Read Crescent City after these two (CC 1 is also a big, long worldbuilding book). You must read ACOTAR to read CC, but you do not need to read TOG to read CC (though you'll miss some of the references/easter eggs!). 

The Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros (Start with Fourth Wing)

The Shepherd King duology by Rachel Gillig (Start with One Dark Window)

The All-Souls Trilogy/series by Deborah Harkness (Start with A Discovery of Witches)

Historical Romance:

Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma Alban

Love by Numbers series by Sarah MacLean (start with Nine Rules to Break While Romancing a Rake. If you finish this series and like her writing, move on to the Bareknuckle Bastards series and the Rules of Scoundrels series)

Spindle Cove series by Tessa Dare (start with A Night to Surrender. If you liked this series, move on to the Castles Ever After series and the Girl Meets Duke series)

pretty much anything by Lisa Kleypas (Bridgerton fans? This is how you get over your hangover/wait between finishing the books and/or Season 3. start with the Wallflowers or the Hathaways series, then move onto the Ravenels and the Bow Street Runners series. This is mostly historically the chronological order with crossover characters between the Wallflowers and Hathaways. Bow Street Runners is chronologically before Wallflowers but it's disappointing if you read it first, trust me!)

everything by Jane Austen. Just everything. 

Series/books I'm in the middle of/currently on my TBR list so I can't recommend them fully yet but I'm actively reading them:

The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black (start with The Cruel Prince)

Letters of Enchantment duology by Rebecca Ross (start with Divine Rivals)

Crowns of Nyaxia series by Carissa Broadbent (Start with The Serpent and the Wings of Night)

Hades x Persephone saga by Scarlett St. Clair (Start with A Touch of Darkness)

The Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo (and Six of Crows. And everything else: I've yet to dive into Bardugo's series) 

A League of Extraordinary Women series by Evie Dunmore (Start with Bringing Down the Duke)

Royals series by Rachel Hawkins (start with Prince Charming)

Infamous by Lex Croucher

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Deliciously Dark Fairytales series by K.F. Greene (Start with A Ruin of Roses)

TV series:

Downton Abbey (my love for this show runs deep. It changed my life!)

The Gilded Age (Carrie Coon deserves an Emmy for this at some point I s2g)

The Crown (Claire Foy is the best QEII, Elizabeth Debicki is the best Diana, Josh O'Connor is the best Charles)

Gossip Girl (original 2007 series, not the remake)

The Royals (the E! show)

Succession (Come for Brian Cox emotionally and verbally harass his children, stay for Kieran Culkin, Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, Matthew MacFayden, Conheads, and a Ludicrously Capacious Bag.)

The White Lotus (Tanya is ICONIC.)

Miss Scarlet and the Duke

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (If you like Miss Scarlet, I can almost guarantee you will like Miss Fisher. And vice-versa.)

All Creatures Great and Small (the remake)

Sanditon

Black Mirror

Skins (UK series only)

Sex Education

The IT Crowd (the creator is an ass. The show is eternal.)

The Great

The Sopranos

The Empress

The Fall of the House of Usher

Midnight Mass (arguably the best Flanagan series. Fight me.)

Marie Antoinette (2022 TV series)

Dickinson

Euphoria

Stranger Things

The Tudors

Versailles

Unforgotten

Endeavour (you don't need to have seen Inspector Morse beforehand but it helps contextualize where some of this cast ends up in the future! Endeavour is the best murder mystery show ever written, IMO. Unforgotten is a close contender for second place.)

Outlander

Sherlock

Mad Men

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

American Horror Story (earlier seasons are way better than the later ones)

Gentleman Jack

Ted Lasso

Emily in Paris

Pride and Prejudice (the 1995 miniseries with Colin Firth)

Books and TV (that is, read and watch both!):

Bridgerton (books by Julia Quinn)

Magpie Murders (books by Anthony Horowitz. One of my few book recs that isn't a romance! Horowitz is a wonderful contemporary mystery writer)

Webtoons/manga:

(Because some people prefer manga/webtoons to novels! I have read all of these on MangaKatana. Mostly fantasy romance and contemporary romance, several have been made into J or K-dramas)

Under The Oak Tree

See You In My 19th Life

What's Wrong With Secretary Kim?

Like Wind on a Dry Branch

Marriage of Convenience

Father, I Don't Want to Get Married!

We Are Not Ourselves Today

An Hour of Romance

Innocent (The sole historical drama over here. Every sex and violence trigger warning you can imagine applies to this manga. It is also one of the most beautifully-drawn and intriguing stories I've ever read. Rose of Versailles fans, this is for you: this is your fave but darker.)

Marry My Husband

Video games with excellent storytelling:

(mostly. These are primarily otome games, mystery visual novels, and horror visual novels):

Zero Escape: The Nonary Games (there are three games in this series: 999, Virtue's Last Reward, and Zero Time Dilemma)

AI: The Somnium Files (There are currently two games in this series, AITSF and AITSF: Nirvana Initiative. Zero Escape and Somnium Files are basically required to play after Danganronpa. I said what I said: the storytelling is better)

Code: Realize (The best storytelling of all otome games, hands down. Do not watch the anime: it sucks. The first game is the best and really the only one you need to play. The other two games have okay side stories and are mostly romantic continuations of the first game's routes)

Collar x Malice

Cupid Parasite (mostly for the last two routes, though: if you're using a walkthrough guide. Generally much lighter than your usual otome...save for the last two routes that serve to break you.)

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (you could watch both seasons of the original anime if you really want to, but the games are better)

Umineko no Naku Koro ni (Note: please keep in mind this was written 10+ years ago in Japan, especially when you get to the Big Reveals in the final game. There are Some Takes that would go over poorly today. Like Code: Realize, do not watch the anime: IT SUCKS.)

Spirit Hunter: Death Mark

Spirit Hunter: NG (You don't technically have to play Death Mark first but it makes one of the endings far more impactful if you do!)

Honorable mentions:

Hakuoki (so many routes, so very long! But if you like Japanese history around this time, you may like this)

Olympia Soiree (good on the more mature content, bad on some of the LIs giving me pause like 'this is not a good romance idea')

Amnesia: Memories (I'm not a fan of the female main character or two of the LIs. At all.)

Piofiore (Similar complaints as Amnesia.)

#more-than-a-princess answered #more-than-a-princess musings #(Doing a Munday post today for my daily queued offering!) #(I've wanted a place to write down everything I recommend to read/watch/play and this ask was a great place for it) #(Thank you anon!) #(I'll link this in my bio too for future reference) #(LMK if you end up loving anything from this list!)

[journeysfable]

Recap of The Event for Europeans

I'm planning to unpin this on Monday btw.

This is the first time I've watched multiple streams btw. I did that for y'all. You all now owe me 1000 cookies (American version of the word not whatever cookie means in Europe)

Forever woke up!! He was wearing his president outfit lol. He had a weird dream before he woke up, though, of Richas waking him up and then it glitched to Ordo Theoritas. All the Brazillians were there with Richas in the center and then Forever woke up for real.

Cellbit was the first to see him and immediately caught him up on all the stuff concerning the maze. So many people came to visit him. Foolish, Tubbo, Roier, Mouse, Pol, Niki, etc.

He had a private talk with Bad. (I missed the first part of their convo.) Forever said he didn't choose to be drugged. He called Bad his family and promised to bring his color back. Bad said the only way to do that was to bring the eggs back. Then he asked if the Feds told Forever anything and Forever said he didn't remember much but would tell Bad if anything came to him. Bad also gave him a bunch of stuff.

Pac and Forever had a heartfelt convo, too. I don't speak Portuguese (yet) and the subtitles wouldn't work but apparently they were talking to each other about how coming off the drugs felt. For Forever, it felt like being ripped in half.

Forever asked where Phil was, since he remembers him, Bad, and Cellbit being there before he got knocked out. Tubbo said he should be back by Monday.

They all got a message to pick up Bagi. Apparently she was requested by Forever according to The Duckling.

Bagi met Walter Bob, who working on some tasks. He asked Bagi to help him. So she started doing some tasks while everybody else failed to complete a puzzle while lava slowly rose (Feel like it's worth noting the buildings they were in were white with black splotches. Another thing is they got the riddle, "What must be broken before it can be used?" "An egg") (Fun facts about q!Bagi: She's vegetarian and she has an imaginary friend named Jorge(her chat) and she's an amnesiac)

Admins eventually teleported everyone into the building with Bagi (after Walter Bob left), which eventually started to get filled with lava. The admins eventually had to teleport everyone else out if I remember correctly.

Bagi also got a book that gave her access to The Main Channel.

She also hates Forever for bringing her to the island.

According to liveblogs, Forever tried getting some info from Quackity. Idk if he was successful. He eventually went back to the house with fake Richas and broke the pictures of flowers and the Rochas. That's where his stream ended.

Also according to liveblogs, Tubbo wrote a secret book to Fred asking for their side of the story about the maze. He also went looking for eggs again.

Bagi was given a tour of the island by Roier and Cellbit.

Bad was sadly singing happy birthday to Pomme and Dapper. Tina, Foolish, and Pac saw how sad he was and joined in. Then Bad apparently threatened Pac when he asked if he was crying.

And it's started to get late for me so I'm going to bed. I hope this was helpful and I hope future events are earlier for you guys.

#qsmp

[lilnasxvevo]

Etymology adventure of the day:

“Hm, that’s interesting, the word ‘albumen’ has the word ‘album’ in it. Is that a coincidence, or are they somehow related?”

Discovery:

Both come from the Latin word “albus,” which some of you may already know means “white.” How the albumen got its name, then, is a no-brainer, since the colloquial term is “egg white.” The full Latin original term for it, in case you were wondering, is “albumen ovi,” “the white of an egg.” We recognize that “ovi” is the base word for the medical term for the egg cell, “ovum,” which is kept in the “ovary.” Most Americans will also probably be aware that the Spanish word for egg is “huevo,” and we can see that this came from “ovi” or “ovum” as well.

“Album” is the confusing part. It’s not easy to just guess why the word describing an album would come from the word “white,” and some history is needed.

First, in Roman times, “album” was the word for a writing tablet for official use that was white in color that was written on in black. Fair enough—they’re always white, so go ahead and call them “those white things,” I’m not gonna argue.

Apparently, in 18th century Germany, it was popular to create “friendship books,” which were like yearbooks but for adults because everyone in the 1700s was kind of adorable. They were used both as just a nice way to vow friendship to each other, including when two friends parted ways such as when someone graduated from university (so yes, literally exactly like a yearbook), and also as a sort of letter of recommendation—a professor from one university could write “I think this person is pretty neato” in your friendship album and you could show it to the next university you wanted to go to like, look, this person thinks I’m pretty neato, let me go to your school.

The 1700s were also a very pretentious time, so instead of just calling them whatever the German word would be for a blank book for your friends to write in, Germans took the Latin word for a blank thing to write on and the Latin word for friends, and this became the name for such a friendship book: an “album amicorum.”

In this way, the word “album” took on a second life as a collection of things. We can see the legacy of the idea of an “album amicorum” directly through the idea of putting treasured photographs of people we care about into a blank book and calling it a “photo album.”

By the 1800s, the word had an established history of meaning “a book that is a collection of similar things,” and sometimes a collection of sheet music by the same person all written around the same thing would be called an “album.”

When record players came around, people would of course come to own more than one record for their record player, and they wanted a safe way to store all these easily damaged records. The solution businesses came up with will be familiar to anyone who can remember a time when CDs were the main way people listened to music—they started selling large books full of empty sleeves that people could place their records in to keep them safe. They called this storage method a “record album.”

It didn’t take long before record companies used this format to publish collections of records that were all based around one theme, such as a collection of songs that were all by the same artist, or even publishing things like operas this way because an opera was far too long to fit on a single record. These, too, were of course also called “albums.” And I think you can guess what happened from there!

Your main takeaway from this post, by the way, should absolutely be the fact that when people refer to that one Beatles album as the “White Album,” technically they’re just calling it the “White White.” Which I think is funny. Maybe that’s just me.

[bllsbailey]

NY Firefighters Forced to Remove Flag for 9/11 Heroes After Leftwing Questioning, Backlash Saves Day

We've seen a lot of bad stories this weekend that seem to have a common theme: people on the left seem on the march to try to stomp on everything that they don't like or find problematic, including things like the White House forbidding religious displays on an Easter egg design contest and proclaiming Easter Sunday "Transgender Visibility Day." 

Now comes another story that's also a sign of leftists seemingly trying to stomp on something incredibly important. 

Apparently, someone complained about a flag that firefighters had on one of their trucks at Ladder Company 11 in the East Village. The company had a flag with a red line in it honoring six of their brethren who were killed on 9/11 as they bravely tried to save people. 

Someone who identified himself as a staffer for Democratic Manhattan Councilwoman Carlina Rivera (Photo below)

confronted the firefighters at their firehouse and said that she had complained to the FDNY management about the flag, calling it a "fascist symbol" and demanding to know from them why it was still up. 

There was also a March 19 email from Lisander Rosario (he/him, a staffer for Rivera) to the FDNY asking about the flag, saying a constituent had complained and wanted to know if displaying political symbols was allowed. 

Click on the tweet to see the full email. 

“[FDNY staff] claimed it was to honor deceased firefighters, however, [the constituent] brought up that they could’ve used an FDNY flag rather than a politically charged symbol,” Rosario wrote.  “It is to both his and our understanding that private political symbols aren’t permitted to be displayed on public vehicles.” “Can you confirm if there are any violating flags/symbols on Ladder 11?” added the email, which was obtained by The Post.

Then after the alleged staffer visited the firehouse, Fire Chief Joseph Schiralli stopped by and told the firefighters that they had to take down the flag because there was a rule about not flying "altered" American flags. That rule came in 2020 after the BLM riots when BLM tried to claim that thin blue line flags that were supportive of police were somehow bad/racist. Schiralli was sympathetic but said they had to take it down, even though it was "ridiculous." 

But that's when the backlash started. Social media erupted at such an absurd decision and the failure to recognize the importance of the flag. 

Then Commissioner Kavanagh and Chief of Department John Hodgens reversed the decision and allowed the flag back on the truck. Rivera claimed that none of her staff actually approached the Ladder Company and that it was a constituent who complained. She said they only sent out the email to find out if there were "political symbols on display." 

Rivera insisted to The Post that her office never contacted Ladder Co. 11 about the issue and that the initial complainant was a constituent, not a staffer.

There was nothing "political" about the flag except in the mind of some leftists, just like the thin blue line flag. The firefighters said they were happy it got resolved but that it should never have happened to begin with. 

Not only does this show to what depths some on the left will go, but it also shows that pushing back against such insanity can bear results. 

[hadarmarkin]

Beyond Latkes: Sephardic Hanukkah Recipes and Traditions 🕎

Hanukkah is here and if you are already tired from Latkes dipped in sour cream, here are  some traditional alternatives from the Sephardic kitchen. 

For a healthier version of Latkes, try Keftes de Prasa- leek patties-  popular among Sephardim in the Balkan communities, such as  Bulgaria and Turkey. Here the dominant flavor is leek, which is paired with herbs and sometime feta cheese. The use of leek is ubiquitous in the Sephardic repertoire from ancient times. In fact, according to Jewish folklore, being caught cooking leek or smelling of it during the Spanish Inquisition, immediately revealed one’s Jewish identity and led to a sentence of death by torture. Despite this dark chapter, Sephardim remained loyal to their favorite allium for its tender flavor, abundance and low cost. Leeks are the main ingredient in many Sephardic holiday dishes, and here is the Hanukkah one. 

Leek Fritters (adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi’s Plenty)

For the sauce (optional but recommended)

-½ cup greek yogurt (I increased to almost 1 cup)

-½ cup sour cream (I reduced to 2 tbsp)

-2 garlic cloves

-2 tbsp lemon  (I used 3 tbsp)

-3 tbsp olive oil

-½ cup parsley leaves

-2 cups cilantro leaves 

-Blend all the ingredients together in the food processor until they turn green.

For the fritters

-3 leeks cleaned; white and light green parts sliced into 1 inch slices

-5 shallots finely chopped

-⅔ cup olive oil (you may use less depending on need)

-1 fresh red chili pepper, seeded and finely chopped

-½ cup parsley - leaves and thin stalks finely chopped

-¾ tsp ground coriander

-1 tsp ground cumin

-¼ tsp ground turmeric

-¼ tsp ground cinnamon

-1 tsp sugar

-½ tsp salt

-1 egg white

-¾ cup +1 tbsp self-rising flour

- 1 tbsp baking powder

-1 egg

-⅔ cup milk

-4 tbsp melted butter

-Sauté the leeks and the shallots for 15 minutes or until soft on medium heat.

-Transfer into a large bowl and add the pepper, all the spices, sugar and salt. Mix well and allow to cool.

-Whisk the egg white until foamy and add into the veggie mixture. 

-In another bowl mix together the flour, baking powder (I recommend sifting dry ingredients to avoid bulks), whole egg, milk and butter to form a batter. Gently pour the batter into the veggie - egg white mixture. 

-Put 2 tbsp of oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Spoon half of the mixture into the pan and form 4 large patties. Fry each side for 2-3 minutes or until golden and crisp. Transfer to a platter with paper towels to absorb the oil. Repeat the process to create 8 patties total. 

-Serve warm with a spoonful of the green yogurt sauce on top.

On the sweeter side of things, the Israeli national obsession with Sufganiyot (traditionally jelly and nowadays extremely sinful) is definitely rooted in the diaspora. Almost each Sephardic and Mizrachi community makes its own variation of a sugary fritter using the spices common in their country of origin. In India, for example, Jews celebrate Hanukkah with Gulab Jamun- also a popular street food- that is yogurt based and often flavored with cardamom and rose water.

In Greece, Turkey and the Balkans, Jews made Bimuelos often scented with orange blossom, dipped in honey syrup and fried in olive oil. The Iraqi-Syrian’s Zengoula is closer in texture and shape to an American funnel cake.

Last but certainly not least- is the Sfenj- the ultimate North African competitor to the Ashkenazi Sufganiyot. Similar to its French cousin the beignet, Sfenj is simply pastry dough randomly shaped and coated with powdered sugar. It’s extra delicious when eaten fresh off the frying pan.

Ditch the Deep Fryer for Ricotta Pancakes

If frying is not your thing, rest assured that Hanukkah is also celebrated with dairy. Apparently, the miracle of the everlasting oil in the temple and the bravery of the Maccabees is not the only Hanukkah story. In fact, many Sephardic communities honor the heroic act of Judith - Yehudit. According to the Book of Yehudit and Talmudic tales, Judith lured into her home the Syrian Greek General Holofernes, who was attempting to besiege the city of Bethulia. She offered him salty cheese and wine. Once sedated, she killed him and displayed his corpse at the city gates. Seeing what had been done to their commander- terrified the soldiers, and they fled immediately. The liberation of Bethulia raised morale among the tired Maccabee fighters, and helped bring victory one step closer. 

'Judith and Holofernes,' 1605, by Jan de Bray.

The crucial role of cheese in the story of Judith gave reason for certain cultures to celebrate Hanukkah with a variety of dairy dishes.  A particularly decadent one is the Ataiyef-  the Syrian answer to mundane breakfast pancakes. These are stuffed with ricotta cheese, dipped in rose water syrup, sprinkled with pistachio pieces and deep fried, in honor of Hanukkah of course. 

A similar and more attainable recipe is the Roman-Jewish Cassola. This simple gluten-free sweet ricotta pancake is perfect for a weekend breakfast on Hanukkah and throughout the year.  

Cassola (adapted from Claudia’s Roden Book of Jewish Food)

-1 lb (500 g) ricotta

-1 cup sugar (recipe calls for 200 gram I reduced to 170, and it was still a little too sweet)

-5 eggs

-2 tbsp oil (I subbed for 1 tbsp butter)

-Grated rind of 1 lemon (optional but adds significantly)

-Blend the ricotta and sugar with the eggs in a food processor. 

-Heat oil/ butter in a large ovenproof pan.

-Pour mixture into the pan and cook on medium-low flame until the bottom has set firmly. 

-Put under the broiler and let it brown for a couple of minutes. 

I served it with cherries and berries and a spoonful of homemade granola. No syrup needed!

A Women’s Fest

The story of Judith inspired several Jewish communities to add other customs in addition to the dairy feast. In North Africa, the sixth (and sometimes seventh) night of Hanukkah was known as Chag Ha’Banot - (Eid Al Bana', in Judeo-Arabic), or The Festival of Daughters.  During this night, women went to synagogue to pray for the health of elderly women in their community, and to ask for a good match for their single daughters.  They lit the Menorah recalling remarkable Jewish heroines, such as Judith and many others. The praying sometimes turned into a lively party featuring singing, dancing and drinking wine.

The feast usually included dairy foods, followed by several desserts, such as sweet couscous with chopped nuts and dried fruit.  

This ritual is representative of the endless number of mini traditions existing in the Sephardic-Mizrachi world around Hanukkah. To that point, I am sharing one last non-food tradition- the extra candle.  Ladino speaking communities and in Aleppo, Syria, had the custom to light an extra candle each night of the holiday in honor of their ancestors, who were exiled during the Spanish expulsion of 1492. A popular song that accompanied the candle lighting was Ocho Kandelikas (8 little lights in Ladino). Enjoy listening!

#sephardic

#Hanukkah

#Youtube

[montyterrible]

An American Clouseau in Africa—or, Ernest Gets Problematic-er?

I think the potential trouble with 1997’s Ernest Goes to Africa is pretty clear from the title alone, but the above image, which was the first thing I saw upon loading the IMDb page for the movie, gets at the heart of the matter pretty cleanly as well. Of all the Ernest movies I remember watching and re-watching from my childhood, this was one of the ones I expected to have aged the worst, and that is pretty much true. You’ve got the brownface from the above image, topped off with a pretty racist accent, and which goes on for a bit, the treatment of native people and their languages and customs as a somewhat prominent part of the overall story, and a man-in-a-dress gag sequence where Ernest disguises himself to infiltrate a harem. And while there are still some fun elements, like Ernest using the bra that was part of his harem disguise to launch ostrich eggs at a pursuing truck and knock out some gunmen, the fun is definitely spoiled some for me these days because of the above insensitivity. But I more or less expected that going into it.

What surprised me most in the end was that Goes to Africa apparently was actually shot in Africa (in Johannesburg). That doesn’t absolve it of anything, obviously, but I had figured that after all of the above, the final kicker of it all would end up being that it was filmed in Tennessee or something. I wasn’t sure, looking at the outdoor locations on offer. My feeling was definitely more American Lawn Grass at points, an impression that I think arose partly from the fact that in somewhat stark contrast with Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), Goes to Africa looks much less like a “real movie.” It looks a bit flimsier, a bit less… cinematically lit, and with some footage that seems to be at a higher frame rate, though at least some of that might be intentional, to create an illusion of speed at certain points. Looking into the movie a little afterward and finding out it was one of the later, direct-to-video Ernest features made those observations make a lot of sense.

I’m keeping the “American Clouseau” thing in the title because Goes to Africa still reminds me a little of The Pink Panther. A heist to steal two precious stones in the opening scene in Africa contributes to that impression, but the international intrigue elements that kind of develop off on their own away from the main character for stretches also add a nice bit of (maybe) compelling drama to the proceedings just like they do in a similar fashion in The Return of the Pink Panther (1975). On the other hand, the visual reference for that opening is clearly Indiana Jones, and the daring fictional hero that gets evoked at points as Ernest’s love interest’s ideal man is called “Illinois Smith” to really drive that point home.

Goes to Africa is a lot Bigger than Goes to Jail in terms of its basic concept—Ernest P. Worrell, recently fired gas station mechanic, gets mistaken for a secret agent of some sort and whisked off to Africa with the waitress he’s been trying to impress—but there is something fun about the aggressively Blue-Collar-Coded Ernest, with his jeans and denim vest and ballcap and grit-colored t-shirt, being in this situation, with his pockets full of rubber chickens and teddy bears and, like, salami. It’s also just nice to watch a movie with such incredibly normal-looking people in it. It’s been said before, and about far better “old movies” than Ernest Goes to Africa, but we’re sorely missing folks like this in these dark airbrushed, roided-out days. I was mesmerized by the main antagonist’s thinning hair in part because he absolutely looked the part of the sort of White Guy Poacher you’d expect to steal valuable jewels from indigenous people in Africa, and I just know that role would not have been so well-cast if somehow Ernest Goes to Africa was made today. Which is to say that when conservatives want to make a point about “wokeness” or some such nonsense by invoking the un-make-ability of Blazing Saddles (1974), they could at least go for the deeper cut and use Ernest Goes to Africa instead, for variety’s sake maybe.

#film #movies #movie review #rewatching #jim varney #ernest p. worrell

[iwhumpyou]

One of the best tips for writing descriptions of pain is actually a snippet I remember from a story where a character is given a host of colored pencils and asked to draw an egg.

The character says that there’s no white pencil.  But you don’t need a white pencil to draw a white egg.  We already know the egg is white.  What we need to draw is the luminance of the yellow lamp and the reflection of the blue cloth and the shadows and the shading.

We know a broken bone hurts.  We know a knife wound hurts.  We know grief hurts.  Show us what else it does.

You don’t need to describe the character in pain.  You need to describe how the pain affects the character - how they’re unable to move, how they’re sweating, how they’re cold, how their muscles ache and their fingers tremble and their eyes prickle.

Draw around the egg.  Write around the pain.  And we will all be able to see the finished product.

#writing advice #whump writing advice #the story is all-american girl by meg cabot #thanks to the many commenters that pointed that out #also apparently white eggs are an american thing #learning all sorts of new things today

[thenightling]

The menu of a Dreamlord

I have decided to compile every instance of Morpheus eating and drinking in The Sandman comics that I can recall.  Some of this is assumed and we’re not directly told he ate it.

First:  The binge after the seventy-two-year fast.  

After Morpheus escapes from his near century of captivity, the very first thing he does is seek out food in someone’s dream. This food is likely made of the same substance as dreams and as Morpheus is the embodiment of dreams it could be assumed that every time he eats in The Dreaming he is actually re-absorbing some of his own power.  But it induces in him a sense of satisfaction similar to, or identical to, physical food digestion.  It seems unlikely that he would or could starve to death but he clearly feels hunger.  Now let’s analyze what he ate of that dream feast when he escaped.

1.  Frog legs (probably uncooked) in a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC).  In a later panel we see what look like actual chicken legs in his hand, along with a hero (also known as a sub or grinder) consisting of a long loaf of bread with tomato, lettuce, and what may be American cheese.  There’s a slice of pizza falling loose from his hands. He may have already eaten one.  There’s something in there that looks like it might be a rabbit or deer’s leg.  He’s not picky and this was a buffet in someone’s dream, there’s some random things here.

2,  Water in The Soft Places.   On his way home Morpheus got lost in The Shifting Zones before being rescued by Gregory.  While here he ran into Marco Polo, who had wandered in from The Waking World.  Marco Polo was kind enough to give Morpheus some of his Waking World water.  Morpheus was thirsty but too proud to admit it.  In gratitude Morpheus used his last bit of strength to send Marco Polo home.

3.  Mystery meal.

While Morpheus is recovering at The House of Mystery Cain prepares him a meal.  We never see what that meal precisely consists of...  It’s a mystery.  But I imagine it was some kind of breakfast.  But metaphorically the keeper of mysteries did feed him a mystery. So after his years of starvation he had food made of dream-stuff, waking world water, and a mystery.

Based on the dishes, I think it’s safe to assume part of that meal consisted of a soft boiled egg (see the smaller dish) and the glass might contain some kind of juice.  I’d think orange juice but the color isn’t quite right.  Perhaps apple juice?  I’d wager a guess possibly non-alcoholic sweet apple cider (clouded apple juice), a popular Hallowe’en / autumn drink in the US that can be served warm or chilled.  Cain is still very much a Hallowe’en-y character.  

It’s possible he also had tea while recovering at The House of Mystery.  Cain and Abel love to serve tea and biscuits or cake.  

Cain also seems to like bottled soda like Coca-Cola and Ginger Ale.  We see him drinking from a glass soda bottle while Morpheus is heading toward his castle.

4.  The next time we see Morpheus eat or drink anything it is during Men of Good fortune.  Here we see him drink ale and wine respectively.      

5.   In the sixteenth century, though Hob has ordered wine for them both it also appears he had a full meal brought for them.  It’s in the middle of the table so probably not just for himself.  They’re to spilt a roast chicken (or goose) and perhaps some sort of salad or other green vegetable?  Boiled cabbage (or Spinach), maybe?  There’s also apparently some sort of bread (or dinner roll) or meat pie but Hob might be eating that for himself.   

So we have ale, wine, and probably some sort of poultry in The Waking World.  

They also had white bread but Hob may have hogged it.

6.   In the nineteenth century Hob and Morpheus appear to be having tea. 

7.    Later when Morpheus meets up with Hob in Season of Mists it’s wine again.  This time not of the waking world though.  But he does leave the half-finished bottle in the waking world for Hob.

Chateau Lafitte 1828.  

8.  Near Morpheus’ “Nightmare throne” we see what may be wine and apples and bananas.

9.  Morpheus is apparently drinking red wine again while watching Emperor Norton.

10.   Now for the first meal we actually see Morpheus specifically pick the dishes of, which makes this one significant because it suggests these are foods he definitely likes.  An omelette (probably with cheese), a light salad, and white wine.  This is while Morpheus is grieving his breakup with Thessaly.  Probable confirmation: Morpheus likes omelettes. 

11.   Morpheus wanted dark mead but settled on Scotch. By the way, Hob, Dark Mead still exists so WTF, man?!

12.   A vegetable dish and plain rice.

13.   Sausage? I don’t know what he’s roasting here but based on the context of the scene I’ll say either the alien equivalent of sausage or hotdog. Some sort of space knockwurst?  Though he might be preparing it for Hope.   

Bonus: He’s also conjured bread, and for the children in The Kindly Ones, he produced ice cream and exotic fruits. 

#The Sandman #Sandman #Morpheus #Dream of The Endless

[iwishicanbeagoodpianist]

the Wifilcon and the Winter Router

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x OC/Reader Summary: When Bucky learns that his neighbor has been stealing his wifi for months. Warnings: None A/N: I'm not a fanfic writer at all, this, like all my stories, are adaptations to fanfics. My original stories are not written in english, so this is also a translation. please do not repost my work

For an instant, Bucky thought that the knocking he was hearing was coming directly from his head, I mean, it wouldn't be the first time his mind played tricks on him, but he realized that the sound was actually coming, unluckily for him, from his apartment door. Oh no no no no no no no, I just got back from putting up with Sam for almost 6 full weeks, I don't need interaction with more people for now.

Bucky thought for a minute to ignore the sound, to wait for the person to give up and leave, anyway he didn't spend many days on this apartment, almost no one had seen him leave or enter the building and he had no contact with the neighbors, only with the lady on the 7th floor who once lost one of her cats, which ended up in Bucky's apartment, accidentally. Not that I found the cat in the alley and actually brought him to my apartment, it doesn't mean that I stole the cat, he was in the street by himself, I rescued him.

When the banging on the door stopped and Bucky thought he could breathe calmly again, a voice between altered and annoyed was heard all the way to the living room where he was sitting trying to overcome his third panic attack and fourth existential crisis of the day .

-"I know you're in there! I saw you coming in a few hours ago! I've been waiting for days for you to come back!"-

More out of instinct than anything else, Bucky pulled out the knife hidden in his right boot as he slowly backed away from the door. Do I really have a spy as a neighbor? Should I call Sam? Is he in danger too? Never mind now, you need an escape route Bucky, concentrate, third floor, window to the alley, 2 minutes max, the bike is parked far away, I'll have to run, but to where, rendezvous point, safe place, think....

- "for God's sake, open the door, I need you to pay for your fucking internet plan, I'm in the last season of my series and I need to know if Carolina died or not!"-

- "The internet?"- Between the andrenaline from escaping and the shock of not understanding what was happening Bucky spoke louder than an assassin, with over 60 years of experience, should have spoken. Oh, shoot.

-"Yes! Your wifi, I need it to finish watching my series"-

Whispering "wifi" to himself, Bucky tries to remember where he has heard that word before, this is what I get for never listening to Sam when he talks to me. But before he can continue his mental analysis of all the conversations with Sam about such stupid things as his favorite American Football team, the New Orleans Saints, that I remember, to how Antonio could possibly leave María on the last episode of the 6 o'clock telenovela of which Sam is a fan, his apparent "neighbor" spoke up again:

-"Jesus Christ, can you open the door? So we can resolve this like adults"-

Bucky resigned to the fact that he has given his position to the "enemy", walks to the door and opens it waiting for his death. Well at least if I die I won't have to listen to Sam again talking about Antonio and María. But on the other side of the door, there was a woman, who in her pajamas, very unthreatening but cute, was watching him as if he were a ghost but still with defiance in her eyes, in one breath she introduced herself and continued her speech about her complaint to Bucky:

-"As I was saying, I need you to pay for your internet"-

-"I'm sorry, but I'm not sure I understand what you mean"- mumbled Bucky.

- "Good Lord"- To Bucky's surprise his neighbor, pushes him and enters his home, well not so much a home home, more like the headquarters of his secret club, of which he is the president, vice president and only member, the point is that it is his place, where he can (and wants to be alone), as she lives here. This must be a dream, maybe I hit my head too hard in the last mission and I am unconscious in the hospital.

Crossing the room, Bucky's unwanted visitor looks around searching for something while whispering the words "I see you are quite minimalist, but maybe this is too much, someone urgently needs to look for some inspiration on Pinterest". She stops abruptly in front of the shelf where, in theory, a TV should go, while shouting: "EUREKA", she bends down and picks up a white device which has two antennas and like a million little blinking lights, damn, that looks like something out of a spaceship, I'm being watched by aliens? I'm being spied on by Kree?

-"This is your router, this is where the internet signal comes from, which I need you to pay for so I can finish watching my series"-.

Bucky, still in shock for the third time in less than 15 minutes, as he processes the idea that perhaps Thanos' unknowing twin is spying on him for a second invasion of earth and revenge for his brother's death. He can only nod to his now more relaxed and happy neighbor.

-"Perfect, thanks! I need to check the food I left in the oven, I'll talk to you later"- and as quickly as she came she left through the same door, leaving Bucky with more doubts than answers, peeking down the hallway, he realizes that she is the neighbor who lives next door, to his right. When Bucky comes out of his initial stupor, still not fully understanding what is going on, he decides to take his cell phone out of his pocket and call his own personal Google to solve his doubts about this century: Sam Wilson.

-"Hey Buck! What's up?"-how does he always manage to sound so happy? focus Buck.

-"What the hell is a router and why do I have one in my house?"- somehow Bucky manages to formulate, although maybe his voice cracked a little on the last words.

-"That thing's been there for at least two months and you didn't even notice it? Have you even paid the bill?"-

-"You put this in here? Without telling me????"- maybe Sam is also a Kree? Who can I trust now? It's all a trap?

Listening to Bucky's accelerated breathing, Sam tries to explain to him slowly, that in this century life without internet is not life, but obviously as Bucky does not even know how to set the alarm on his own cell phone, he was in charge of buying the router and creating the contract with the company so that, the 106 year old man could have his personal network at home. He had given it the name but he had not given it a password so that Bucky himself could set it up later. "I am an excellent friend, I mean co-worker, if I may say so"

-"Sorry man, after all that happened, we got called for a mission and I forgot to tell you, do you have your laptop over there? I'll help you set up a password, so your neighbors won't steal your internet anymore"- and with that comment everything started to make sense in Bucky's slightly screwed up but functional mind about the events with his seemingly non-spy and harmless neighbor.

Meanwhile Bucky was trying to remember his own password to unlock the laptop in front of him, also courtesy of Sam. "Bucky, when you learn about online banking and that you can pay your rent, electricity, phone and everything with a click of your computer, you will thank me". It should be noted that Bucky hasn't used that laptop once, like a good 100 year old grandpa he goes to the bank to make his deposits and pay his debts, which obviously consisted only of electricity, water, gas and phone because the man had no idea that there was a device in his house that spit out internet, apparently only his next door neighbor knew this. Buck tells Sam how he thought his router was an alien device and how he thought his neighbor was a KGB agent coming to kill him. "Relax Buck we all have undesirable neighbors that steal our internet signal sometimes", well undesirable is not the word I would use to describe her but ok.

When Sam finally explains to him how to connect his computer to the internet, Bucky can finally see the name that his wonderful co-worker, not friend, because he could never be friends with someone so stupid as to think that the name "THE WIFILCON AND THE WINTER ROUTER" was a good name.

- "my god Sam, you're such an asshole!"-

-"HEY! That's a great name!"- Sam responds with as much indignation as possible, he's the best at naming everything from dogs to wifis.

- "I can't believe you're Captain America, I can't believe we're even friends"- Bucky really can't understand his luck to have friends, well, co-workers whatever.

- "Well excuse me but we're co-workers..."-

- "Well, take this call as my formal resignation, bye"-

-"Wait a minute Buck..."- Bucky ended the call, to finish -his self-imposed- punishment of listening to Sam Wilson talk for over an hour. At least I asked him how to use the bank's website to pay for the internet. Suddenly, without warning and without explanation, the memory of his neighbor is lodged in his head, her hair in a ponytail, her reading glasses, pink shorts, her sweater from some university of which he can't even remember the name because he was watching out for other things... that she wouldn't kill me obviously, he was watching out that she wouldn't pull a knife out of her back and kill me right there. The message on his laptop indicating that he can now set a new name and password to his wifi distracts him enough to stop thinking about his sweet and cute non-spy neighbor and how she would look with her hair down and her glasses off.

Still with the sweet feeling in his chest and the desire to see her again he writes as the new name of the wifi, while laughing:

"If you want free internet, you owe me at least one free dinner"

After paying the internet debt and closing the laptop, Bucky gets up hoping to find something edible in the kitchen, while leaning over to look inside his fridge and analyzing how bad it would be to eat a fried egg with pasta and sriracha, he hears again a knock on the door, but this time it does not cause Bucky the anguish and anxiety that caused him the first time, but quite the opposite.

-"Open the door Winter Router! I prepared chicken pot pie for dinner"-.

#bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes #bucky barnes x reader #james bucky barnes x reader #james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes fluff #marvel fanfiction #the winter soldier #winter soldier #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes x original female character #bucky barnes x OC #marvel #mcu #fanfiction #mcu fanfiction #james bucky barnes x original character #james bucky barnes x OC #sebastian stan

[ofcowardiceandkings]

I think you mentioned listening to podcasts? Do you have any favorites to reccommend? I've run out of content :(

that i do !

im not entirely sure what kind of podcast you'd be interested in but i'll throw out a few of the goodies in my huge library of stuff , i'll miss out a few of the HUGE podcasts that have been all over tumblr though

a LOT of it is true crime or human interest stuff , or history because im nerd ,, and a few of these dont have nearly enough attention so [shrug] i'll try to keep this short i guess lol this isnt EVERYTHING ive got in my library or listened series' by any measure

i AM gonna pop a shout to both Stuff You Missed in History Class and Stuff You Should Know from iHeartRadio because their HUGE archives have kept me from losing my mind many times over , and they cover a wide range of both important and wacky topics

BomBARDed (ongoing) this is the only fiction podcast i have happening right now really but its DAMN GOOD ONE .... it's an actual-play D&D 5E podcast in the DMs own musically-inspired world, focussed on a group of multiclass bards going to music school !! and all players (+DM) are members of the Texas band Lindby !! and they actually use and play music in the show with one original song an episode !! Kyle's worldbuilding and storycraft are truly incredible, and (Nick) Goodrich, (also Nick) Spurrier, and Ali's characters are in depth and interesting as well as an absolute powerhouse :') i actually made a piece for its first fanzine, Bardic Dreaming, which published earlier this year and is free to view now, all the players and the community are super wholesome its just very good overall 💙

History & Humans;

Fall of Civilisations (ongoing) legit one of my favourite podcast finds, im so glad my youtube autoplayed one of these ... it took me like 2 hours to realise it was 1) not the same as what was playing before and 2) had been on for 2 hours and wasnt near finished lmao. anyway, this is a series by historical fiction writer Paul Cooper, and is honest to all thats good one of the best documentary series ive encountered in years - and ive consumed a LOT of documentaries. it covered the downfall of various civilisations through history, and the episodes run from an hour to FOUR hours depending on the topic. its so chill to listen to and just get done, but over the pandemic all of the episodes have been given full movie-quality video versions too on youtube if youre more of a visual person.

Casting Lots: A Survival Cannibalism Podcast (on series break) yeah that says that lol ... its a SUPER niche topic but its very interesting and treated very well despite being kind of comical at times, the hosts are just naturally funny lol ... it delves around from the history of cannibalism in whole regions to specific incidents as recently as the 1970s, and of course the first episode is about the Donner Party, and it covers things ive never heard of despite being kind of important ?? anyway Alix and Carmella are good eggs

Sawbones (ongoing) i probably dont need to mention much here other than say that Justin and Sydnee saved me from being SO BORED sooo often, the history of medicine is wacky as hell and its what most of my history GCSE was on so [shrugs]

Cautionary Tales (on series break) this was a wild-card find lol ... it's by Tim Harford "the undercover economist" who writes for the Financial Times, and its topics kind of weave modern topics and science with how to learn from historical errors ... its a bit weird but well worth a go, also each series has a few celebrity guest voice actors which is pretty awesome

Ephemeral (ongoing) this is a very strange but thought provoking series about sounds and other things just barely saved. topics include the last castrato, the hello girls, hand-stamped records, the spread of kīkā kila music, and acoustic fossils of wild places.

Neat! The Boozecast (ongoing) history and bartending whats not to like lol ... hosted by Teylor Smirl and now their dad Tommy, they're just digging around in how important booze is to human culture

True Crime (white collar and weirdness);

Swindled (ongoing) this is an amazing show full stop. A Concerned Citizen details some of the most impactful and unruly things to happen in white collar and corporate crime. very factually accurate but given the sheer bullshit of the topics the deadpan snarking is [chefs kiss] absolutely warranted ..

American Scandal (on series break) this one is a series within a series type, and spends a few episodes at a time poking holes in some of America's biggest scandals, from a dramatised but fact-based point of view. such as what the hell was going on with Enron, how big tobacco was forced to own up to covering its own ass, how Iran-Contra happened, etc. it also now has a sister show called British Scandal, which does the same thing for British cases but with a slightly different format.

Missing in Alaska (finished) this was a fascinating series, a deep dive into what happened to two US government officials who disappeared on a small chartered flight in Alaska in 1972. it goes some really strange places, but it actually turned up a lot of previously unknown information through the audience. John Walczak's new series in a new feed is Missing on 9/11 which looks into what happened to Dr Sneha Philip.

Pretend (ongoing) Host Javier Leiva holds interviews with anyone living a lie, or who have been touched by them. con artists, snake oil salesmen, former cult members, catfishing victims, anyone and everyone.

Power: The Maxwells (finished) hosted by journalist Tara Palmeri, the story of media tycoon Robert Maxwell from nothing to empire to mysterious death and the scandals uncovered after he was gone.

Lets Talk About Sects (ongoing) Sarah Steele covering cults from around the world, in particular those in Australia - where she is from. She often has former members on the show to share their stories, and share knowledge of how they left. each story has the relevant content warnings at the start of each episode.

Brainwashed (finished) investigation of the CIA's covert mind control experiments, centred on the experiments performed at a hospital in Montreal, and its cultural impact.

Dr Death (2 series finished) two series investigating huge cases of fraud and medical malpractice, and how they were brought to a stop. series 1 covers Dr Duntsch and his horribly butchered neurosurgery, series 2 covers Dr Fata and his fraudulent cancer clinic

The Immaculate Deception (finished) untangling the weird and disturbing fertility fraud of Dr Jan Karbaat, who fathered children himself through his fertility clinic, and the impact of his deception. later episodes also touch on other similar cases.

True Crime (Violent/General);

The Casual Criminalist (ongoing) Simon Whistler of-the-many-youtube-channels cold reads a script about the case of the day, with some of his daft commentary thrown in.

Southern Fried True Crime (ongoing) Crimes from the American South hosted by Erica Kelley, she puts all the facts out there but refreshingly for true crime she doesnt hesitate to tell you if she thinks someone is human garbage lol

They Walk Among Us (ongoing) probably one of the most popular UK crime podcasts, very measured and well put together, not weird or annoying about it either.

All Crime No Cattle (ongoing, feed slowed down for now) specifically about crimes from Texas, hosted by Erin and Shay, they're very sensitive hosts and a lot of the cases they cover shed light on why the Texas criminal system is how it is or show an impact at a national level

Canadian True Crime (ongoing) Canadian crime from an Aussie who's lived there for a decade, Kristi is again a sensitive and measured host covering some important topics

True Crime (Violent/Deep Dive);

Hitman (finished) journalist Jasmyn Morris digs around in the sticky tangle around a book published by fringe publisher Paladin Press, and its apparent use as a blueprint in the killing of a mother, her friend and her 8 year old boy for financial gain.

Camp Hell: Anneewakee (ongoing) this series is exploring how a wilderness camp "correctional facility" was endorsed by the Georgia care and juvenile reform system, despite widespread abuses and shady practices the whole time. warning for csa and child cruelty throughout.

True Crime Bullshit (on series break) this one is a huge huge rabbithole but a very interesting one where the host Josh Hallmark has spent years digging into the life and potential crimes of Israel Keyes. Keyes is often mentioned as a serial killer with no pattern, but in picking it apart thats not quite true, and has sparked some re-evaluations of missing persons cases and stumbling upon information the FBI has redacted organically. there's also a series in the middle looking into the crimes of Kelly Cochran

Forgotten: Women of Juárez (finished) this series looks into the huge numbers of missing women of Ciudad Juárez, the strange circumstances surrounding them, and the potential cover-ups and corruptions on both sides of the border, trying to give a voice to all of the forgotten women and girls and their families without answers. the series itself is finished, but a spanish language edition is being released every week now.

aaaaaand i'll call it there before i list everything lol, i hope you find something to plug your boredom hole with !!

#audio #rory's ramblings #podcasts #asks #anon #long post

[risquefanfics457]

Mon Tout // Polnareff x pregnant reader

You woke when a kiss planted itself on your forehead. “Good morning, ma Cherie.” You groaned for a moment before raising your hand and searching for his face so you could give him a sleepy kiss. He then took your hand in his and put it up against his cheek. You could feel his freshly shaven face. “Smooth…” You mumbled. He chuckled for a moment, “Yes, I’m sure. I just finished shaving and making some breakfast.” You smiled with your eyes still shut, “You’re my hero.” He sat you up and gave you a small glass of water with a pill in his hand. You opened your eyes slowly and blinked at the brightness of the room with the curtains pulled away from the window. You took some of the water and went to reach for the pill when your stomach lurched and you felt like your gag reflex being pushed on. You lept from the sheets and stumbled to the washroom. Polnareff held your hair as you retched profusely, and rubbed his hand in circles around your back. You finished with one final heave and then came up dry for the last few gags. This sucked. He grabbed some toilet paper and you wiped your mouth with it. “Okay, at least I didn’t throw up the pill, like yesterday.”  He let your hair go and flushed the contents of last night’s dinner. “Aren’t we lucky?” He laughed dryly. Then he grabbed an elastic and put your hair up again but now in a messy ponytail. “Better?” You smirked and put your hand out, “I think I’ll take that pill now that that’s over.” 

You threw some toast on your plate and slathered it with butter. “Mon ange, Je fais des oeuf, vous en voulez?” You nodded. They slipped onto the plate and you didn’t waste a moment to drown the eggs in ketchup. He gave you a confused look, “I can see the cravings have already started kicking in.” You gave him a fake stink eye, “No, eggs are just better with ketchup.” You said with a mouthful. “I’ll just take your word for it then.” He said sitting next to you with a plate of eggs, but just salt and pepper. You nudged him “Hey, It’ll be worse when I’m putting the hot sauce into my onion soup” His face wrinkled in distaste, “That’s disgusting!” You laughed. Despite everything he had tried, he could never make you lose your American palette. “You know, I bought these condiments so you could have something to put on your...  hotdogs and whatnot.” You smirked wickedly, “Are you saying I’m abusing my condiment privileges?” You fake gasped. ‘That is exactly what I’m saying.” He retorted. “What are you gonna do about it?” You asked slyly, sliding closer to him. Polnareff placed a finger under your chin leading your face closer to his, “I don’t know, maybe I should punish you, what do you think?” You got closer and almost slid right into his lap. “Maybe…” Before you knew it you were pinned to the wall under him. He left a path of kisses down your neck and nibbling down to your shoulders when you suddenly stopped him. “Wait-” He stopped and looked at you up and down worried. You snorted in spite of yourself and facepalmed. “I have to pee.”

It was just after lunch when you hopped in the car and went for your first ultrasound. Polnareff said that he could see your stomach getting bigger, but frankly you were more upset that you looked like you just started high school again. He kept trying to tell you that having some acne wasn’t a big deal at all, but with the accompany of having sore breasts, you just felt gross and greasy. It was week 9 and you had no idea how on earth you were going to make it through the rest of the pregnancy like this. But today was the day. 

When you got there, you were first asked to get them a urine sample. You just went silent, and walked to the bathroom, really confused. You came back and your doctor complimented you on how well hydrated you were. Finally, you laid down and held Polnareff’s hand as he sat next to you. The doctor came in, rubbed some really cold gel on your abdomen and started booting up her computer. You waited in silence for less than a minute before a strange-looking stick probed your stomach. Then a black and white picture appeared on the screen in front of you. Not much, some black area and a little grey blob in the middle. And with the picture came a noise, small and at a neat pace, like a heartbeat. “Is that?” You heard him say. “There it is!” She said excitedly. “Wait, that’s our baby?” You murmured louder than you thought you did. The doctor nodded happily at you. Polnareff’s hand gripped tighter around yours, “T-that’s our baby!” You looked over at him, his eyes were teary. No sooner your own vision became blurred with tears. “Now keep in mind, this is what we think the heartbeat sounds like.” She said after a couple of moments of taking the sound in. 

“Can you tell what it is?” He asked. 

The doctor chuckled, “Not at the moment, no. Give it till at least 7 more weeks.” Things really started sinking in. It felt as if you had known him for a lifetime, but almost like you had just met and fell in love for the first time all over again. Having this baby, this was going to be… there just weren’t words for it. It was indescribable. Much like the occasional twitches and cramps down at your midsection. After some thought, you told this to your doctor and she told you that they were normal. Though if there was any bleeding, she should consult her again as a precaution. You also learned that it was now a fetus and no longer an embryo, and with that, the baby was healthy as can be. 

You walked back to your apartment with a small card in hand. That small grey blob. Apparently, it was now the size of a cherry, which for some reason brought Polnareff to more tears than before. Something about Kakyoin? He didn’t exactly elaborate. He didn’t really bring up the trip to Cairo. It had been a topic that was touchy, not that you didn’t know what happened, you heard about how there were many foes and friends, and… well casualties. Kakyoin being one of them. That and Avdol and Iggy. But Jotaro and Joseph had gone scathed but alive. You had met Joseph… but he didn’t seem to be the sharpest, well anymore. Either way, it kind of solidified the name you had come up with if you were to have a girl.

Cherry kinda sounds like Sherry, right?

You sniffed. A congested nose being one of the many highlights of being pregnant. 

Whoop de doo. 

When you got home you dumped your purse on the counter and flopped on the couch. 

“Tired, my love?”

You mumbled into the cushions incoherently. 

“Y/N, I don’t think I quite got that.” You pulled your face from the plush, “Making a baby is hard.” He smirked, “No, mon coeur, making a baby is easy.” He squats down beside you and pulls the stray hairs from your face, “Growing a baby, that’s much more difficult.” You groaned. “But, if there is one thing I know, it’s that you are going to do amazing.” You turned and smiled. His lips touched yours. “And, I’m going to be with you, every single, amazing step of the way.” Your fingers link and he kneels down. “I love you, Y/N, I can make that vow now and always. I will always love you, and with that, I love the life you are growing. You couldn’t be making me a happier man.”

“Are you proposing to me?”

“Not yet, my love. But that is a promise I intend to keep.”

#pregnant reader #polnareff x reader #jean pierre polnareff x reader #jjba x reader #jjba x oc #jjba x y/n #jojo x reader #jojo x oc #jojo x y/n #polnareff x pregnant reader

[lovelyirony]

Title: I wish i could forget you

Tony Stark was not supposed to be in the car when Howard and Maria Stark attended a Christmas holiday party for another company. In fact, Hydra had wanted him to stay home. 

Unfortunately, Tony had ticked off Howard a bit too much, and so here he was in a tuxedo that was a bit too big, uncomfortably shiny shoes, and a temper that was close to blowing. 

Thank god they were almost home. 

When a car crashes, one almost can’t believe it. Tony can see the outside blurring, and he can hear glass crunching, and he hears things that he really doesn’t want to hear. He is fairly sure that Maria screamed. 

A metal arm. 

Huh. 

Well, not the most typical. He also doesn’t think that the man knows he’s here. 

Howard and Maria Stark are killed. Tony feels like shit because he couldn’t do anything. His forehead is bleeding and he didn’t want to move out of fear for himself, which seems selfish, but also maybe a survival instinct? 

God, his bow-tie is still constricting air flow. 

Once the man turns, Tony realizes that he wasn’t the target. They probably had no idea he was in the car, whoever “they” were. 

He gets out of the car. The car door creaks, and the man whips around. 

His eyes widen. 

“You--what?” 

The voice is surprisingly American. 

Surprisingly? He’s not sure why it’s surprising, it’s not like an American can’t kill just look at history, but still, Kind of surprising. 

"What, wasn’t supposed to be here?” Tony rasps out. He realizes now that he’s basically sent himself a death sentence as the man surges forward. 

“What are you doing here?” 

His eyes are piercing. Also very, very familiar with some photographs that Peggy has on her mantle and her desk. 

James “Bucky” Barnes. Son of a bitch. 

“What are you doing alive?” Tony asks. “I thought you were lost in a ravine in Europe somewhere.” 

“What--huh?” 

“Ravine. In Europe. You know who you are, right? Is this some kind of sick...what did they do to you?” 

“I do not know what you are talking about.” 

His eyes get cold again. 

“Who are you?” 

“I am the Asset.” 

It is now that Tony realizes that every single shitty sci-fi book is probably right, and his disdain of “wacky science” and “magic” have all been for nothing, because here is Bucky Barnes, who apparently has no idea who he is. 

Then Tony gets knocked on his ass. His body slams against the icy road, and Barnes is rushing towards a motorcycle. 

And he’s alone. He can’t breathe, all the wind knocked out of his chest. He thinks he broke a couple of ribs. 

- 

No one believes him. At all. SHIELD brushes it aside. 

“There’s no way Barnes could be alive. You were probably just seeing things,” they tell him. “Would you like us to find you a therapist?” 

“No,” Tony says, and they ask why. He laughs, sipping on his water. “SHIELD has so much loyalty to itself, I’m afraid I’d be compromised.” 

“Therapists aren’t supposed to divulge any information,” Nick Fury adds carefully. “And we’re a secret-keeping bunch. Nothing goes out that comes in.” 

“Unless, of course, it’s necessary,” Tony drawls, staring at Fury. God, the leather outfit...that’s weird. “Then I’m out in the open, Nicky. And what fun is that unless I get to show off an outfit in full-coverage?” 

“...I’ll have an agent escort you home. We’ll have guards overnight.” 

“Don’t bother.” 

“And why is that? Think you can handle it by yourself?” 

“Fury, my family has made a career out of thinking a lot of things. You’re not being as detrimental as you think.” 

He finger-waves, grinning and winking at agents on the way out. 

- 

Now comes paranoia. This is welcome, actually, because it’s allowing him to work up new security measures and hack into various security cameras around the world to see if he can find Barnes. 

It’s like he’s a ghost. And fuck, maybe Fury was right. Tony doesn’t like that, but that may be it. 

Merry fucking Christmas. 

- 

Years go by, and Tony keeps a tiny ear to any news about mysterious deaths that can’t be explained. A man that glows in lamp-light, has no identity. He’s not sure if it could be Barnes. God knows he’s no longer seventeen, and Barnes--it if it was Barnes--would be way older. He should’ve been an old man in 1991, but he wasn’t. 

It kind of reminds him of the conspiracy theory that Walt Disney was kept cryogenically frozen, which is just ridiculous, because as far as he’s concerned, you’d need a bit more to you than just regular skin and bones. 

And this is where it hits him. 

Barnes was experimented on when he was captured by Hydra. Peggy told him that Rogers told her that he was repeating his dog tag number over and over, as if someone was trying to take him over. 

Yeah, you’d need a bit more. 

Like a fucking super soldier serum. 

- 

This then delves into Tony realizing that if Barnes is flash-frozen, then...well, could Rogers have survived? He always thought his dad was crazy, but a broken clock is right twice a week or however the hell that saying goes. He never used it, he wasn’t a broken clock. 

(He was broken, but he’s not going to compare himself to a clock. Perhaps  Model-T.) 

- 

They find Rogers. Tony realizes Howard did his math completely wrong for years, and probably never let anyone look at it because he was a World Super Genius. And a Colossal Dick. 

Steve Rogers is one tough cookie to crack. Tony chips off some of the ice and puts it in a glass of scotch. 

“Do you really think that’s the most appropriate thing to do?” Phil Coulson asks. 

He’s shocked, but mainly because Tony has seen his Cap collection, and that man has so many limited edition cards and lunchboxes that it’s a bit crazy. But at least he knows how to decorate with it and not have it look like an absolute nutjob swept into his house and did it all in red-white-and-blue. 

“Phil, my darling, when have I ever done anything the appropriate way?” Tony asks. He stares at the face that’s emerging out of the ice. “Besides, what else are you going to do with this ice, hm? Besides melt it all off?” 

Steve is a miracle. Every scientist on earth wants to poke and prod at him. 

Tony breaks him out of SHIELD in a week, because he swears to shit if one more scientist asks to take blood samples “to see how going under Arctic temperatures affects the bloodstream” (and also take DNA for cloning) he’s going to lose it. 

Fury yells at him for two hours. 

Steve flips Fury off from the couch, where he’s been channel-surfing for the better part of three hours. 

“You’ve already corrupted him,” Fury scowls. “Rogers, we need to talk--” 

“He’s retired,” Tony says. 

(Steve is not, technically. Hasn’t said anything. But Tony is putting him on mandatory retirement for at least a year.) 

“What’s...what the ever-loving fuck is that?” Steve asks. 

An infomercial. For an automated chair. Mostly used for old people. 

Tony grins. 

“You wanna see how fast I can launch you out of one?” 

“I’m going to say yes. Professionally.” 

Ten miles an hour, and Steve goes flying across the room into a pile of pillows. 

It’s not the end-all solution. God knows Steve calls him “Howard” and asks where a lot of nasty food is, and sometimes can’t tell the difference between what his brain is seeing and what is actually there. 

But Tony gets him help. And Steve goes to art school. 

It’s all very funny, actually. Steve rants about “modern art” and how “if he could kill any concept it would be abstract expressionism, what the fuck.” 

Tony buys and then donates a Rothko in his honor. 

Steve fumes, but finds it hilarious. 

Then, there’s the attack on New York. 

Norse god of mischief decides to end New York, blah blah blah. 

Captain America reappears, everyone loses their shit, and Tony almost dies. 

Then he gets four other roomies besides Steve, and he has to make a chore chart. Ugh. 

- 

Barnes reappears in France. Tony gets a fairly good image, and Natasha stills. 

“You know about Winter Soldier?” 

“Barnes? Yeah.” 

“You know who he is?” 

“James Barnes. At least, I think. He tried to kill me, wasn’t very successful at it.” 

Steve overhears. 

This leads to a chain of events that ends in Steve not coming to family dinner because he’d rather sit in his room and listen to Green Day or Glenn Miller or whatever the hell gets him even more upset. 

“Listen, Steve, I’m sorry. But up until this picture? I was only about sixty percent sure I wasn’t full of beans.” 

“Why is that the phrase you use?” 

“What, full of beans? Bruce says I have to work on my cursing. Apparently, children are impressionable. Who knew?” 

It’s not a total success. Steve still doesn’t like that Tony didn’t outright tell him, but Tony isn’t going to tell Steve that he has the mental stability of a single cashew. 

So begins the hunt for Barnes. Which actually isn’t too bad. 

He’s in DC. Not for any political clean-up, unfortunately. He’s trying to kill Fury. Tony doesn’t know why, at least until he looks up Pierce, who’s technically, mostly retired from SHIELD. 

And yet still uses most resources that technically? He needs more than one authorization from multiple people. 

God, people are getting bad at covering their tracks. Used to be harder to catch and see if someone was doing dirty deals. 

(Okay, not like he can talk because Obie was...well, no use in discussing that now. He needs to focus.) 

Nat and Steve are bad at lying. This kind of surprises him, because Steve is usually a successful liar. He’s convinced Clint that it’s not him who keeps eating his peanut-butter-fudge ice cream, but Thor. 

And Natasha used to be Natalie Rushman. Then again, Tony was poisoned during that one, so that might just be on him. 

-

Helicarriers go in the water. 

Tony’s working on making sure most of the information doesn’t reach the general public, although he can’t stop it all. 

Barnes falls off the face of the earth, and Steve wants to go on another treasure hunt. 

“Let him come to us, or figure himself out.” 

“This isn’t a college kid going backpacking in Europe for a year,” Nat snaps. “He’s...you know who he is, who he was, and what he can do.” 

“Counterpoint: we don’t know if he secretly really wanted to see traditional decoration of Ukrainian Easter eggs,” Tony says. “God knows that I want to learn more about that.” 

“Is everything a joke to you?” 

"Only on federally mandated holidays,” Tony says with a shrug. “But let him be. Steve, it’s one thing that he didn’t kill you. It’s another thing that he hauled you up from the Potomac. I’m not sure I would’ve done that because who goes up alone to a helicarrier?” 

“Historically nobody,” Natasha says. “Most people don’t have any helicarriers.” 

“God, this situation sucks,” Tony says. “What if. We potentially. Ignore all of it and have spinach and artichoke dip? Hm?” 

“With toasted bread?” 

“I’m not an animal, Steve.” 

“Your penchant for four a.m. coffee while you don’t realize you’re singing songs from the seventies says otherwise,” he responds. 

“Well well well, if it isn’t the punishment of you getting the aux taken away for a week,” Tony taunts. 

“Oh, come on!” Steve whines. 

“Nope, just you having to listen to more of Bruce’s questionable tastes.” 

“Fuck.” 

- 

Barnes comes stateside. The only reason Tony knows this is because Jarvis says that he may have spotted Barnes, but he’s not sure. 

“J, you’re the most advanced system in the world, not to mention my son, and you like to hack into the Pentagon for funsies.” 

“All of that could not have prepared me for this.” 

Barnes is wearing a neon green tank top that is advertising Coco Beach in Florida. 

“Can I laugh? Or is that sad?” 

“Multitask, Sir.” 

“Oh, true.” 

- 

Barnes is not in New York. Tony has to near-about put an electric fence around the whole state so that Steve doesn’t go on a road trip. 

Hell, Tony doesn’t even trust him to go to coffee alone, but that’s a bit much. 

“We have to wait,” Tony says. 

Sam Wilson is a godsend. Also the funniest man Tony knows. 

He is also emotionally healthy and very perceptive, so he has been noticing that Tony is nervous. 

Because how do you face the man who killed your parents? Technically? 

“Are you talking to your therapist?” Sam asks. “Just thinking you should.” 

“Sam, we’re working on my issues from 2007. Believe it or not, it will be taking a full year.” 

“I don’t like that I can never tell if you’re serious.” 

“I know you remember the tabloids from 2007, I wrote a mesh vest. Clearly, I need so much help.” 

Sam snorts. 

“Maybe. Hey, I’ll catch you later. Clint and I are gonna go try and find some questionable shirts to crop.” 

“Did his little protege convince you? Bishop, right?” 

“Kate, yeah. She’s convinced our public image will go viral or something. Good luck with helping Steve and Nat with your super-soldier hunt.” 

“Thanks. Let me know if you find a shirt with my face on it. I want it.” 

Sam snorts. 

“Will do.” 

- 

Bucky Barnes comes to New York in early May. The springtime is slowly but surely fading off, sun approaching more and more. Tony is enjoying coffee on a veranda, and then suddenly his waiter is nowhere to be found and he’s not entirely sure if his visitor takes credit or debit. 

“Can I help you?” 

“Maybe. Depends on if you’re gonna kill me or not.” 

“I think Steve would be a bit broken up about it.” 

“Do you care what he thinks?” 

“On this situation? Yes. When it comes to culinary choices? No.” 

There’s a ghost of a smile on his face. Tony’s trying extremely hard not to remember shattered glass and a motorcycle on ice. 

“Can we, uh, table this conversation? For later. Espresso and all that, plus the added bonus of our shared history, so...” 

“Shared history?” 

“You don’t remember?” Tony asks. Bucky shakes his head. “Ah. Then this is truly a comedy of errors. Maybe. Um. Listen, I, uh...I gotta go. You need to talk to Nat or Steve or hell, maybe even Thor. Is Thor a good option?” 

“I’m sorry, what?” 

“Barnes, I can’t exactly face you right now.” 

And then he jumps off a balcony. 

A fucking balcony. 

Jesus H. Christ, his therapist is gonna be so excited for their next session. 

The suit wraps itself around him, and he can finally breathe, and he’s thinking about calling Pepper and see if she would like to schedule him a vacation for maybe anywhere but New York and Iowa. 

“Why not Iowa?” Pepper asks. “They have good antique stores. I’ve gotten quite a few good finds for clothes.” 

“I can do shopping retail literally anywhere else, absolutely not.” 

“Spoilsport. Steve know you’re leaving?” 

“I didn’t even really tell Steve what happened with my parents.” 

“Oh, your therapist called. She sounded concerned, but also intrigued.” 

“It’s because Sally almost became an employee of NASA and still has a soft spot for aerodynamics.” 

“What exactly did you do when faced with Barnes?” 

“Check the front tabloid page tomorrow, just tell everyone I’m out of town.” 

“Got it. And Tony?” 

Her voice is soft. 

“Yes, dear?” 

He can feel her rolling her eyes. Affectionately, of course, but rolling all the same. 

“Be safe, and come back. You know Rhodey and I miss you.” 

“I miss you too.” 

- 

A week is spent in Malibu. He really is thinking about selling this place. But for now, it suffices. 

Steve texts him. 

bucky’s back. holy shit 

be back in a week. radio silence. 

got it. no more messages from me. thor tells me to tell you that he broke the sink 

:(((( 

And that’s it. He’s sitting in the house for a week, has already called Sally once and explained how his suit works, and then listened to her talk about how “his reliance on the suit to help him escape unfavorable situations is not exactly the healthiest but also none of my clients have had to face someone who is of weird standing.” 

It’s no secret that Tony doesn’t like Howard Stark. Who would’ve liked that sorry excuse for a father, a man who was so cold-hearted the Arctic looked like a tropical paradise? 

Maria was...Maria was different. 

She wasn’t a good mother. No, she was never a good mother. But she tried, and she didn’t deserve her fate. 

And then there was the question of Bucky Barnes. Who wasn’t Bucky when he was there, but still so damn recognizable. 

It’s kind of like when there’s a movie about a famous person, and another person plays them. Like Tom Hanks, essentially. Bucky played whoever the fuck they get Tom Hanks to play and it’s similar: you see the resemblance, but it’s not it. 

So yeah. 

There’s also the little tidbit that things get complicated when you involve personal feelings and rationality, and really? Tony misses New York. A lot. And he’s not going to let someone else overtake his life just because he’s uncomfortable. 

So he flies back to New York. 

- 

He’s in a bad way, Barnes is. 

“He remembered you,” Steve says. “What he did.” 

“Ah, there’s that.” 

“He doesn’t have to be here,” Natasha says. “I have a couple of SHIELD safe houses to choose from.” 

“None would be adequate to house something like me,” comes the response. 

Barnes looks remarkably shitty, as if he hasn’t slept in eighty years. And maybe he hasn’t. 

“Jail would be more fitting.” 

Tony rolls his eyes. 

“You are literally the most dramatic person ever, and Bruce threatened to take over the government because Thor ate the last croissant. Put those on the grocery list, Steve

“We’re not gonna throw you in jail,” he continues on. “Not because you happened to be used as a goddamned Swiss army knife. I have issues, sure, but I’m not going to be going all Hannibal Lecter or whatever.” 

“Who the hell is that?” 

“Cannibal. I realized that that’s a terrible comparison, please forgive me.” 

“Why a cannibal?” 

“Couldn’t think of anything else but Anthony Hopkins, the actor. My mistake. Point is, we’re gonna have to go through some channels, and I’m introducing you to BARF, as well as a new person who’s gonna rock your world.” 

“I’m pretty much well-acquainted with vomit.” 

“No, not that,” Tony says. “Although we can cover that through my 2005 edition of partying if we really wanna dig up some old magazine interviews. No, I’m introducing you to something that’s going to change your life.” 

-

After that, Tony doesn’t have much to do with Bucky’s life. 

He serves as a permanent guilt trip, nothing says “well, shit” much like being a permanent guilt trip. 

Sally tells him that they should talk it out. Do all that “and how do you feel?” questioning that makes his skin crawl and his eyes ascend to the ceiling. 

I mean yeah, they share a living space. Tony has seen Bucky laugh and smile with Sam, talk with Bruce about a really interesting article about regeneration of plant cells or whatever, and Bucky enjoys videochatting with Wakandan royalty. 

(It also helps that Shuri is blunt as ever, but so blisteringly smart. He’s reading her paper on regeneration of nanotechnology, and it just...it’s the Pieta of research, that paper.) 

But he never speaks to Bucky. Well, he does. But it’s more along the lines of “hey Barnes” and “how are you?” which aren’t exactly the Most Thought Provoking Statements Ever Made. 

Summer comes swiftly, and about near with a vengeance. Tony’s dealing with a heat wave and trying to figure out if going outside is even worth it, and then he and Bucky are alone in the kitchen. 

Tony was debating getting a couple of popsicles from the freezer. Bucky is considering sabotaging Clint’s smoothie that was supposed to be special for tonight, but that he’ll most likely forget. 

“Hey,” Bucky says. “Um, can we talk?” 

Shit. 

He’s been avoiding this, officially, for a month. Potentially more if you’re going to count a few choice events that have been brought up by his psyche. 

“Sure thing, buttercup. What are we talking about. Economy, world crises, the great debate on financial advice?” 

“Isn’t the third thing just the economy?” 

“We can break it down over coffee.” 

“Mm, maybe another time. No, I’m talking about us. About how I--I kind of ruined your life.” 

Tony blinks. 

“You didn’t ruin my life. If my life was ruined you’d be hit with so many lawsuits that I could make the rest of your life look like the third circle of Hell, or wherever it is that people go nowadays in Dante’s eyes. No, you didn’t ruin my life.” 

“I still killed your parents.” 

“If you hadn’t, someone else would’ve. Believe me, there were about fifteen others in line. Sometimes, myself included.” 

“You can’t not take me seriously,” Bucky stresses. “I still did a terrible thing. I just want to make sure you know that you’re being too kind.” 

“I most certainly am not,” Tony says. “Being too kind would have me feeding you grapes.” 

Bucky’s face blanks. 

“Don’t. I...I don’t wanna take advantage of your hospitality. I don’t want to remind you of what happened.” 

“You wouldn’t be here if you weren’t wanted,” Tony says. “Believe me. And if you want to leave, you’re free to leave. I don’t want to make you feel like you need to stay here.” 

“I...I want to make it up to you.” 

“Then use BARF and review it,” Tony says. “I’m serious. I need user feedback, and you’re the best candidate for it. Also, please try to convince Steve to wear neon yellow. I just want to see if he’ll do it.” 

- 

Steve wears neon yellow. Tony laughs so hard he cries. 

Bucky smiles. 

It’s a nice smile, really. It’s wide and happy and wow. That’s all worth it. 

And then BARF. Bucky just gives user feedback, nothing else. Tony doesn’t want to know anything else, but they start talking more. 

Tony finds out that Bucky’s been doing crosswords to catch up on current events, and he’s bought taped recordings of World Series games. 

He loves antique stores. He visits them and brings home little trinkets that he remembers in his own house, or what he remembered. He watched old commercials from the fifties and sixties, laughed as he remembered the Sears catalogs that would come in the mail. 

“Me an’ my sisters would beg my mom for new clothes from the catalog, and she never would. Always sewed our pants and skirts so damn well, I probably could’ve used them for the next ten years.”  

Tony laughs. 

“Well, I can’t promise I can sew. But I could give you some armor that could last you twenty years, if you want. Steve told me you’re thinking about doing some distance missions.” 

“Just observation, no armor required.” 

“Sometimes it’s the simple missions that get the worst hits,” Tony says. “Believe me, I know how it goes. So, do you want some armor?” 

Bucky smiles. 

“Sure.” 

“I’ll need feedback.” 

“I’ll give it all I’ve got.” 

- 

Bucky is a goddamned dream to design for. He knows exactly what he needs, what areas are most likely to be pierced, and also has a flair for the dramatic: he requests an Iron Man helmet be embroidered on the back. 

“You’re really just trying to be sweet on me, aren’t you?” Tony teases. 

“My master plan to gain your fortune,” Bucky teases right back. “I’ll waste it all on champagne pools and the worst-looking but most expensive shoes I can find.” 

Tony laughs. 

“Sugar, that’d be incredible if you could spend all of my money on that. I’d commend you.” 

Bucky smiles, and it shouldn’t be as nice of a smile as it is, but here Tony is with his opinions and his concerning thought that maybe he wants to see more of Bucky. 

- 

In the morning, there begins a routine. Tony is always up at eight o’clock. It’s a rare lull in Avenger-morning-routines: Nat, Steve, and Bruce are all done, and Thor and Clint won’t be in until ten o’clock at the earliest. 

(What can he say? Thor’s a god and Clint...well. He needs a lot of beauty sleep.) 

Tony makes coffee, and Bucky makes them both breakfast. Says that officially, it’s to test and make sure that his prosthetic is still performing under optimal conditions. 

(They both know that’s not it.) 

Tony always says he pours too much water, makes enough for two cups. 

- 

Steve calls them out on it. 

“You two are being weird,” he says. “And not like Thor and Bruce trying to reenact that one show about ghosts and unsolved things.” 

“That’s their form of courtship, don’t be fucking rude,” Clint remarks. Natasha snorts. 

“What, us being weird?” Tony asks, pouring a bit more coffee into Bucky’s mug. He always uses too much creamer and then won’t finish his coffee unless there’s more. “Why do you say that?” 

“It’s because you both do couple shit,” Bruce says, breezing into the kitchen. “Also, Steve, lovely to see that you have volunteered to be the next guest on Avengers: Unsolved. We’re planning on using you as a guilt-trip in order to access files about aliens.” 

“Truth will be found!” Thor adds. “But also, yes. Bucky, I thought you were taking him on a date to the art museum on Saturday.” 

Bucky turns red. So does Tony. It really is quite inconvenient. 

“I mean, we could go on a date there,” Tony says. “If you’re okay with that.” 

“You’re doing this in public?” Natasha asks, eyebrows raised. “Hm. Would not have called that.” 

“You owe me fifteen dollars,” Bucky says. “Not you Tony, quit looking at me like that. Yes, it will be a date on Saturday, I’ll wear a nice shirt. Nat said that I couldn’t do anything that surprised her.” 

“Technically, Tony surprised me.” 

“I thought dates were mutual events, hm? Fifteen dollars. I’ll use it to buy the best bouquet in New York.” 

“The best bouquet costs over a thousand dollars,” Thor answers. 

“Not questioning how you know that, but I’m scared of you,” Bucky says. “Then I will get the best fifteen-dollar-bouquet in New York.” 

Tony snorts, smiling. 

“I guess I’ll spray a bit of my perfume on my pillow then, soldier.” 

“I’ll pick you up at noon sharp,” Bucky says, grinning. He finishes his coffee. “We’ll make fun of Steve’s art exhibit together.” 

#lovelyirony writes #holy shit this was longer than expected #thank you to angel for this inspiration #winteriron #avengers as a family #personally i like the fact that thor and bruce are doing avengers unsolved and have to force different avengers on #natasha romanoff #bruce banner #thor #bucky barnes #tony stark #howard stark #maria stark #sally the therapist

[comrade-meow]

This is a transcript of a speech by developmental biologist Dr Emma Hilton delivered on 29 November 2020 for the ‘Feminist Academics Talk Back!’ meeting. This talk was originally published by womentalkback.org

Sex denialists have captured existing journals We are dealing with a new religion

Thank you for the invitation to speak today, as a feminist academic fighting back.

As ever, let’s begin with a story. And, trust me, by the end of this talk, you’re going to know a lot more about creationism that you expected:

1. In the 1920s, in concert with many other American states, the Tennessee House of Representatives passed the Butler Act, making it illegal for state public schools to: “teach any theory that denies the Story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible.” In other words, banning schools from teaching the theory of evolution.

Three months later, Tennessee science teacher John Scopes was on trial, charged with teaching the theory of evolution, a crime he was ultimately found guilty of. He was fined £71 – about £1064 in today’s money – so it could have been an expensive affair for him, had he not got off on a really boring administrative technicality.

Yet, despite the evidence against him and his own confession, he was an innocent man. Scopes was not guilty of teaching the theory of evolution. He admitted to a crime he had not committed. He even coached his students in their testimonies against him. So why would he admit to this wrongdoing of which he was entirely innocent? Why would he contrive apparent guilt? In protest. In protest against a law he viewed as fundamentally incompatible with the pursuit of scientific truth.

2. The history of creationism and education laws in the US is turbulent and often opaquely legalese, especially for those of us unfamiliar with US law. Some of the methods of the wider creationist movement, however, will be immediately recognisable as they are employed by a new movement, one which seeks to erase another scientific truth, the fact of sex.

Method 1. The framing of human classifications, whether it’s species or sex, as “arbitrary”. This leads to the premise that such phenomena are “social constructs” that need not exist if we chose to reject them. That truth must be relative and consensual. Never mind that these “arbitrary” classifications appear to be surprisingly similar classifications across all cultures and civilisations.

It also necessarily spotlights tricky boundary cases – not really a personal problem for the long-dead evolutionary missing links, but a very real problem in the modern world for people whose sex is atypical and who are constantly invoked, even fetishized, as “not males” or “not females” to prove sex classification is somehow no more than human whimsy.

People with DSDs have complex and often traumatic medical histories, perhaps struggling to understand their bodies, and they deserve more respect than to be casually and thoughtlessly used as a postemodernist “gotcha” by the very people so horribly triggered by a pronoun.

Method 2. The distortion of science and the development of sciencey language to create a veneer of academic rigour. Creationists invented “irreducible complexity” and “specified complexity” while Sex denialists try to beat people over the head with their dazzling arrays of “bimodal distributions arranged in n-dimensional space”.

Creationists, unable to publish in mainstream science journals because they weren’t producing, well, science, established their own journals. “Journals”. Sex denialists have captured existing journals – albeit limited to more newsy ones and to occasional editorials and blogs about gender (which is not sex), about how developmental biology is soooo complicated (which does not mean sex is complicated – I mean, the internal combustion engine is complicated but cars still fundamentally go forwards or backwards), about how discussing the biology of sex is mean (OK, good luck with that at your doctor’s surgery). Many such blogs and articles are written by scientists who simultaneously deny sex to their social media audience while writing academic papers about how female fruitflies make shells for their eggs (no matter how queer they are), about the development of ovaries or testes in fish and about how males make sperm.

The current editor-in-chief at Nature, the first female to hold this position, studied sex determination in worms for her PhD, and she now presides over a journal with an editorial policy to insert disclaimers about the binary nature of sex into spotlight features about research on, for example, different death rates in male and female cystic fibrosis patients.

The authors of the studies are not prevaricating or handwaving about sex, but the editorial team is “bending the knee”. I used to research a genetic disorder that was male-lethal – that is, male human babies died early in gestation. I’d love to know if this disclaimer would be applied there.

Method 3. Debate strategies like The Gish Gallop. This method is named for Duane Gish, who is a prominent creationist. What it boils down to is: throw any old argument, regardless of its validity, in quick succession at your opponent and then claim any dismissal or missed response or even hesitation in response as a score for your side. In Twitter parlance, we know this as “sealioning”, in political propaganda as the “firehose of falsehood”, although Wikipedia also suggests that it is covered by the term “bullshit”. So, what about intersex people? what about this article? what about an XY person with a uterus? what about the fa’afafine? what about that article? look at this pretty picture. what about what about whataboutery what about clownfish? The aim is not to discuss or debate, it is to force submission from frustration or exhaustion.

Method 4. The reification of humans as separate from not just monkeys but the rest of the living world. The special pleading for special descriptions that frame humans as the chosen ones, such that the same process of making new individuals, common to humans and asparagus, an observation I chose because it seems superficially silly – it could have been spinach – requires its own description, one that accounts for gender identity.

3. In the Scopes trial, which saw discussion of whether Eve was actually created from Adam’s rib and ruminations on where Cain got his wife, Scopes was defended by a legal group who had begun scouting for a test case subject as soon as the Tennessee ban was enacted. This legal group claimed to advocate for:

“Freedom of speech for ideas from the most extreme left such as anarchists and socialists, to the most extreme right including the Ku Klux Klan, Henry Ford, and others who would now be considered more toward the Fascist end of the spectrum.”

The legal group so keen to defend the right to speak the truth, in this case a fundamental, observable scientific truth? The American Civil Liberties Union, a group whose modern day social media presence promotes nonsense like:

“The notion of biological sex was developed for the exclusive purpose of being weaponized against people.”

and

“Sex and gender are different words for the same thing [that is] a set of politically and socially contingent notions of embodied and expressed identity.”

and shares articles asserting that biological sex is rooted in white supremacy.

Since the Scopes case, the ACLU have fought against many US laws preventing, or at least compromising, the teaching of evolution. I cannot process the irony of a group of people historically and consistently prepared to robustly defend the truth of evolution while now denying one of the most important biological foundations of evolution.

4. How do we fight this current craze of sex denialism? A major blow for creationism teaching was delivered in 1986 while the US Supreme Court were considering a Louisiana state law requiring creationism to be taught alongside evolution. The Louisiana law was struck down, in part influenced by the expert opinions, submitted to the court, of scientists who put aside their individual and, as one of them has since described “often violent” differences on Theory X and Experiment Y, to present a unified defence of scientific truth over religious belief. 76 Nobel laureates, 17 state academies of science and a handful of scientific organisations all got behind this single cause, and made a very real change.

Support for creationism has slowly ebbed away and the US is in a much more sensible position these days, although I still meet the occasional student from a Southern state who didn’t learn about evolution until college.

Sadly, one of the Nobel laureates has highlighted how unusual this collective response was and that he could not imagine any other issue that would receive the same groundswell of community support. Although he forged his career listening out for the Big Bang, so maybe I need to go through the list and find the biologists.

Part of the problem petitioning biologists to speak out is not necessarily fear of being cancelled or whatever, but simple lack of awareness of the issue, or incredulity that it is being taken remotely seriously. I’ve been working on a legal document and was discussing with a colleague about my efforts to find a citation for the statement, “there are two sexes, male and female”. He laughed at the idea that this would require a citation, told me to check a textbook, then realised that this statement is so simple that it would not even be included in a textbook.

And he’s right. I can find chapters in textbooks and hundreds of academic papers dedicated to how males and females are made, how they develop, how they differ, yet very few that feel the need to preface any of this with the statement “There are two sexes, male and female”. It is apparently something that biologists do not think needs to be said.

But of course, I think they are wrong, and that we live in a time where it does need to be said, where some aspects of society are being restructured around a scientific untruth, and where females will suffer.

Without recognition of and language to describe our anatomy, and the experiences that stem from that anatomy, mostly uninvited, we can neither detect nor measure things like rates of violence against women, the medical experiences, the social experiences of women and girls.

And, as for creationism, the reality of sex perhaps needs to be said by those with scientific authority, in unambiguous terms. Otherwise, we are living in a society that tolerates nonsense like there is no such thing as male or female, that differences evident to our own eyes are not real, that anatomies readily observable and existing in monkey and man alike do not actually exist. I’m sure this last assertion has the full support of the creationist community. And perhaps, as for creationism, a true tipping point will be tested when it is our children being taught these scientific untruths, or worse, when it is illegal to say different.

5. At the end of his trial, the only words Scopes uttered in court were these:

“Your honor, I feel that I have been convicted of violating an unjust statute. I will continue in the future, as I have in the past, to oppose this law in any way I can. Any other action would be in violation of my ideal of academic freedom—that is, to teach the truth as guaranteed in our constitution, of personal and religious freedom.”

I do not exaggerate when I say we are dealing with a new type of religion, a new form of creationism and a new assault on scientific truth. I also do not exaggerate when I say it may take a high profile court case to rebalance the public discourse around sex. There is only so far letters and opinion articles can go.

Two things I predict: 1. It will not be defended by the ACLU, and 2. With the recent proposals on hate speech law, it will probably involve a Scottish John Scopes, who finds themself in front of a judge for the seditious crime of discussing the sex life of asparagus at their dinner table.

Dr Emma Hilton is a developmental biologist studying aspects of human genetic diseases, and her current research focuses on a congenital motor neurone disease affecting the genitourinary tract, and on respiratory dysfunction in cystic fibrosis. She teaches reproduction, genes, inheritance and genetic disorders. Emma has a special interest in fairness in female sports. A strong advocate for women and girls, Emma tweets as @FondofBeetles.

#Anglo.txt

[missmaxime]

how do you feel about the show making rio so unlikable? is the backstory a fix it?

Let me start of with that I don’t think the show is making Rio more unlikable. I don’t know if you mean that they are visibly showing him committing more violence and crime. But I’m assuming this is an ask in response to the wire-scene from Sunday’s episode.  Watch me under the cut go through the past three seasons and a little some season 4 to tell you how I see Rio’s character progression. I’m not really sure if this is what you’re asking an answer to, but if it’s not tell me! * Rio’s (non) POV * Escalation in violence * Different views on S3 * More into the wire-scene * Prediction for 4x06 / Backstory

Rio has always been shown to be a ruthless and violent criminal. In the beginning of S1 he had no problem murdering the girls, and has made death threats ever since. He shot Dean, killed Eddie, had Turner assassinated and murdered Lucy in front of the girls. I don’t know how people can see him any other way, it’s not something that was ever hidden by the show. He’ll go through every length to protect himself and his business.  We know Beth has been a soft spot for him since Season 1 too. In the beginning because it was a fun and interesting business opportunity, but we’ve seen their relationship develop for better and worse across seasons. I think we have to keep in mind that Rio is a character we’ve seen almost exclusively through POV that aren’t his own, and mostly through Beth’s. And we as viewers see a limited amount of information about him, that we translate in our own ways. I’ve seen people interpreted the 2x01 scene where Rio shows Marcus to Beth through such rose-colored glasses for example. I can see how a viewer, and Beth, could see it as a scene that would frame him as more likeable. But I also see how that was exactly Rio’s point; He wanted Beth to see that it’s not just her who has kids on the line with her crime-life, as a way to invalidate her constant argument of ‘being a mom’ and ‘having a family’ as if that would make her special or something. She’s a drug dealer and counterfeiter like him, not a criminal with a heart of gold because they happen to have a child. Season 2 really started unpacking Rio’s character more. In Season 1, if the whole Rio/Beth – CH/MM chemistry hadn’t existed, I could definitely see the character of Rio being done late Season 1/early Season 2. But that’s not what happened, so now Rio had to become a person with connections and feelings and deeper motivations – but it’s still a character that’s in the base there to drive Beth forward as a character and deeper into crime. Which is a tricky balance, and I don’t think the show always made that work. Obviously the most clear example of that is the loft scene in 2x13. Now there’s more than one thing to be said about that scene, but I’m focusing now Rio himself. It’s the big finale, a lot of things needed to come together here and explode. Overall I don’t think the build-up was executed well, but it doesn’t help that we have no Rio POV here. His decision to kidnap Beth, confront her with her lack of taking responsibility and lying about her rotten eggs, and his complete oversight of her response to being pinned his fall guy really dropped out of – maybe not completely thin, but at least barely medium thick – air for me. Concerning the racial element I think THIS POST by @septiembrre explains this much better than white, non-American me ever will.  Regardless of the fact if the racial element of 2x13 affects a viewer, this poorly executed finale left lots of people unsatisfied at best. When Season 3 started we did start to see more Rio POV, or parts of his story told through Rhea, even though it was limited. I know there’s a lot of critique on the S3 we got, that I personally don’t understand – I loved it, it was so amazingly angsty, especially the Beth and Rio interactions were so loaded and simmering with guilt and anger and sadness and desperation – but if you’re searching for catharsis in a way of Rio coming back with a vengeance with guns ablaze, then that’s really not what you got. What Season 3 did do was putting the violence and cruelty Rio is capable of more on the forefront, and making us feel the weight of it more (I don’t know about the rest of you, but in the previous seasons I felt they really underplayed a lot of it). Rio had competing gangs taken out through Turner, has Turner assassinated along with a lot of other FBI agents, he fully intended on killing Beth before the pregnancy lie, kills innocent Lucy through Mick and disposes her body gruesomely, has the girls deliver Boomer with all intention of harming him (if not murder) and full on frames Beth for Lucy’s murder with her prints on the gun. I don’t think these kind of actions weren’t going on in the previous seasons, but now it’s more on display because Rio made Beth a part of this side of crime (and with that, us the viewers). In the beginning of Season 4 I feel like we’re making a bit of a jump when it comes to Beth and Rio’s relationship, maybe one that’s a little too big compared to the distance we ended on in Season 3 (even if they seemed friendly in their last Boland Bubbles scene). Lucy’s body is found and we learn that said gun was also used to taking out some gang member of an opposing gang of Rio’s, so after Turner’s sweep he apparently wasn’t done. That gun now becomes a much bigger thing to hold over Beth (and I’m speculating because we don’t know for sure, but we can guess that now Annie’s prints are on it – which is an ever bigger press on Beth because she won’t let her little sister take the fall, while she would do so herself. And I think she’s up for a rude awakening that while she’s under the impression that Rio has always employed the three of them, what was actually going on is that Rio employs Beth, and he sees Annie and Ruby as Beth’s employees and thereby offers them zero protection). So her counter with his print doesn’t come a moment too soon. I feel like Beth asking him to murder ‘Dave’, albeit with a lie about his identity and not as straightforward as Rio might wish, is a positive shift for him. She might not pick up a gun herself to do the deed, but much like Rio has Mick shoot Lucy, she very deliberately gives a killing order through him. And with a very drama heaux set-up we see him personally – and he has no reason to not have Mick do it – shoot Fitzpatrick. Aside from the fact that I have no doubt Rio may not have knew the specifics but he knew Beth had something orchestrated, the fact that some sniper dude was the target has it really drive home to him that it’s something else than Secret Service, and that they are still active around Beth. So we’re finally here, 4x05 The Banker – which I’m gonna guess was the reason you send this ask in the first place. In particular the wire-scene. In the first scene we learn that Rio has found the tracker on his car, and he turns it off or breaks it – so he knows he’s still being watched. It makes the most sense that even if he takes the leap that he put down a Secret Service agent, that they just replaced them and Beth is likely still working for them. He meets her in her kitchen – which isn’t that common at this point, last we know he was there is after the failed hit on him. And she doesn’t even jump when she sees him, just accepts it. He motions for her to be quiet before slowly stepping into her space, and she very logically responds with a ‘what are you doing?’, and he stares back long and hard to say that he means business. He has all the reason to suspect her wearing a wire, even if this wasn’t a planned meeting, and it wouldn’t be the first time she lied to his face. It’s clear to me (but I’ve seen this interpreted differently) that Beth fast finds a solid stance in this powerplay. Rio doesn’t seem happy about the fact it has come to this, and neither does she. I’m not sure if you send me this ask because you have negative feelings about this scene, but I can tell you I can’t answer those. This scenario could have been portrayed so wrong with any other actors or the way they shot it, but I feel like they delivered superbly on it. It’s in no way sexual or intimidating like I’ve seen some posts suggest, I just see two brokenhearted people who see the little trust they rebuilt fall apart in in thirty seconds. At the end Beth ends up winning, a bitter win maybe, this confrontation. Rio’s obviously still suspicion, but she also gained some trust with her asking him to kill ‘Dave’, so setting her up as The Banker is some sort of twisted reward and punishment and test at the same time. It’s not explained, but I think ‘The Banker’ might have been a hidden figure before Beth stepped up to show her face (before her flunky’s came to collect in name of The Banker) – making this an even better set-up if it’s so because that takes Rio out of the equation altogether even. We end the episode on the note where Rio tells Beth he has people he answers to, and that they want to meet her. Which, again, sound like both a reward and a punishment and a test. We’ll have to see next Sunday what it really means. IN this episode we’ll meet some of Rio’s family, likely his boss(es) and get backstory on him. I don’t see that as a fix-it, but mostly because I don’t see anything needed of fixing. I’m glad we’re getting an insight into Rio’s past, and I love that it likely will broaden his backstory and motivations more. But I feel like the way Rio’s character and the amount and the way of it seems very fitting to the story and the perspective it’s told through. I’m not sure if this is an answer to your question, so feel free to send me a more specific one if you want to!

#gg spoilers #anon ask #rio #gg analysis #beth x rio #rio analysis #nbc good girls