#and will encourage him in that discovery as much as Henry will let him

[nerdierholler]

love letters for Henry and Nate please :)

Thank you so much for the prompt! It's hard to compete with Agent Suavewell in the love notes department, though he appreciates the attempt.

Love Notes - Henry and Nate

Henry finds them everywhere,  folded in the pockets of his jacket, in between the pages of the book he’s reading, slipped under his door, left on his dresser, little notes from Nate. Most of them are short, just a few lines on slips of paper written in a graceful polished script. They contain lines of poetry, distilled expressions of emotion, and occasional compliments that bring a blush to Henry’s cheeks.

Each and every one uses words to express love and devotion in a way that Henry is completely incapable of replicating or reciprocating. He tries, finding paper and writing something out in his chicken scratch.

Your smile makes me smile. True, but underwhelming.

Thank you for having coffee brewing when I wake up. Something he really does appreciate, but it’s too much like a thank you note. It doesn’t capture how he feels.

You’re the most attractive person I’ve ever met. I’ll never understand why you decided on someone like me but I’m glad that you did. Clumsy with perhaps a little too much honesty.

I love you. He writes it big. He writes it small. He attempts cursive. He goes slow using his neatest print. He tries something hurried and casual. Nothing seems right. The words literally say what he wants to tell Nate but they don’t seem like enough.

Giving up, he crumples the paper and throws it into the fireplace to save him from the embarrassment of anyone finding it in the trash later, and not a moment too soon. Shortly after the paper is turned to ash, Nate walks into the room. 

“There you are,” he says with an easy smile, joining Henry and giving him a kiss on the forehead. “I was going to walk into town and wondered if you would like to join me.” He glances down at the blank notepad on the desk, “That is unless you’re busy right now.”

“No, I’m not. Give me a couple of minutes to get ready and we can go.”

“There’s no rush,” Nate assures him as Henry hurries from the room.

The smell of burnt paper lingers in the air and curiosity gets the better of Nate. There are faint indentations on the notepad from whatever had been written on the previous page. He takes a pencil from the desk and gently rubs it over the surface of the paper.

Your smile makes me smile. – Thank you for having coffee brewing when I wake up. – You’re the most attractive person I’ve ever met. I’ll never understand why you decided on someone like me but I’m glad that you did. – I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you.

All written in Henry’s familiar but messy writing. His heart swells with the words, though there’s a tug that they’d not been deemed good enough to share. He knows that Henry will find his way and find his words but in the meantime Nate folds the paper and tucks it into the breast pocket of his jacket, close to his heart.

#twc #the wayhaven chronicles #nate sewell #henry kingston #henry is working on finding his love language #because actual poetic words are not going to be it #but Nate is patient and more than happy wait until Henry finds his own way #and will encourage him in that discovery as much as Henry will let him #life at nerdy holler #nerdy writes

[random-krab]

Okay so let's talk about the picture of Dorian gray and it's links with Greek stuff specifically with Narcissus

The story of Narcissus has technically three parts the first being the story of when Narcissus's mother went to Tiresias and he told told Leiriope (Narcissus's mother) that her son would enjoy a long life as long as he never knew himself or saw his reflection. The second part is the more famous one of Narcissus and Echo and the story is fairly simple Echo is in love with the very beautiful Narcissus who only really loves himself (Shocker Ik) but even though she can form a lovely confession to him he still rejects her leaving her to hide in caves and forests. The second part is the story of Narcissus and Ameinias and just like Echo, Ameinias a young man falls in love with Narcissus and confessed but Narcissus yk being himself rejected him in the worst possible way ever by sending him a sword and tells him to yk kill himself which he does whilst invoking Nemesis aka the goddess of revenge or divine retribution however it works and she sees what has happened to everyone who has confessed to him so one day while Narcissus is hunting he sees a spring and happens to catch a glimpse of himself and falls in love with it and never leaves to spring simply watching himself in the water (Now this is just one version there are others but this is my favorite) but soon enough Narcissus’ despair over his self-love and his belief that he suffered justly for his harsh treatment of Ameinias leads him to kill himself and his blood causes a flower to sprout appropriately being the Narcissus.

Now I skipped over a few things 1 being character traits I mean come on with that summary anyone would be justified in thinking Narcissus was in the right.

Let's start with Narcissus.

Narcissus: throughout both story's he is well a narcissist he is self-absorbed and egotistical

Echo: rather helpful to Zeus and clever considering how she pieced together lies for Zeus and sentences for Narcissus

And finally Ameinias: we don't have much on him as he was a recent discovery but we can assume he was a rather determined but more fragile character overall.

Now as for The picture of Dorian gray

The picture of Dorian gray is one of my favorite books ever (in fact I just got a copy I have been waiting for)

The book is a novel by Oscar Wilde, about a young man named Dorian Gray who has his portrait painted by a friend. The portrait becomes cursed, so that as Dorian ages, the portrait retains his youthful beauty. Dorian leads a life of pleasure and debauchery, through out the book he becomes increasingly selfish and irresponsible, committing various vices such as gambling and womanizing. Meanwhile, his portrait becomes more and more hideous as it ages, but Dorian remains forever young. The painting is eventually destroyed and Dorian is left to face the consequences of his actions.

Now on to the characters obliviously there are more characters in this book then the story's about Narcissus's

Here's a short summary of the main characters in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and their basic characteristics:

Dorian Gray: he is young and handsome and although at first somewhat innocent becomes increasingly selfish and well narcissistic

Basil Hallward: A painter who is also one of Dorian's closest friends, Basil is the one who paints Dorian's portrait. He becomes increasingly horrified by Dorian's lifestyle (he is also totally in love him Dorian)

Lord Henry Wottount: A debauched aristocrat who is a bad influence on Dorian, Lord Henry encourages him to pursue a life of hedonism and excess.

Sybil Vane: Dorian's first girlfriend, a poor but talented actor, Sybil is initially appalled by Dorian's superficiality.

Alan Campbell: A rival of Dorian's for Sybil's affection

James Vane: Sybil's estranged husband and Alan's brother, and I won't give anymore spoliers

As you can see there are more then a few similarities between the two

And for the TLDR- In ancient Greek mythology, Narcissus was a young man who became so enamored with his own reflection in a pool of water that he fell in love with it and eventually wasted away. Similarly, in "The Picture of Dorian Gray," Dorian Gray's youthful beauty is preserved on a painting that he becomes obsessed with, leading him to a life of hedonism and sin. This obsessive love of his own image eventually results in his downfall, much as Narcissus's infatuation with his own reflection led to his death. Both stories serve as cautionary tales about the dangers of self-obsessions and focusing too much on one's own appearance and beauty.

#ancient greek mythology #greek mythology #greek myth #narcissus #the picture of dorian gray #oscar wilde #they are similar #they are so similar #Oscar Wilde you have done it again

[nashibirne]

Gimme Shelter - 1

Here it is, Part 1 of my new Henry Cavill RPF story. It's a slow burn again and I really hope you like it. If you do, please let me know and leave a like, comment or reblog.

You can find the next parts on my masterlist.

Thank you @legendarywizarddetective for reading in advance and for your encouragement 💜😘🤗

Pairing: Henry Cavill x OFC (Kat Spencer)

Words: ~2.9k

Summary: Henry has to deal with a personal crisis and he finds shelter with his old rugby mate Sam and his sister Kat. She used to be Henry's best friend a very long time ago. Will they be able to become friends again or maybe even more?

Warnings: RPF, mention of depression, burn out and mental health issues, mention of bullying

No beta! All mistakes are mine. English is not my mother tongue so expect bad grammar and wrong spelling.

Disclaimer: I don't know the real Henry Cavill, this is pure fiction and nothing more

Credits: Pics for the moodboard from Pinterest. Faceclaims: Kat = Jennifer Connelly, Sam = Charlie Hunnam

Taglist

@lunedelorient @inlovewithhisblueeyes @willkatfanfromasia @hell1129-blog @mis-lil-red @agniavateira @kebabgirl67 @omgkatinka @legendarywizarddetective @summersong69 @taebfada @xxxkatxo @madbaddic7ed @artandotherdelights

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, see the storm is threatening

My very life today

If I don't get some shelter

Yeah, I'm gonna fade away"

(Gimme Shelter, written by Keith Richards / Mick Jagger)

****

1

"I have a new tenant for the apartment."

Sam looked at his sister who was chewing on the last bite of her pizza.

"Really? That's great. Who? Kim?" Kat asked.

"No, she's back with that idiot Sean. Doesn't need an apartment anymore. No, it's Henry."

He knew she was not going to like this and he mentally prepared for a fight.

"Henry? Henry who?"

Sam arched an eyebrow. "Cavill."

Kat stared at him, mouth agape.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Nope."

"You can't be serious, Sam. He can't move in with us."

"Why not. He needs a place to live, we have a place for rent. It's perfect."

Kat got up and took a bottle of water from the fridge before she turned to her brother again. "This is anything but perfect and I'm quite sure he has a pretty home in London."

"But he doesn't want to live in London."

"Oh really? But in St. Ives? How's that?"

"He just needs a change of air."

"Fuck, Sam. What kind of bullshit are you trying to sell me?" Her light green eyes were sparkling with anger which wasn't surprising. Henry Cavill was a sensitive topic for Kat and though Sam and Henry had stayed in touch throughout the years after they'd left boarding school, he and his sister hardly ever talked about him.

"Okay, okay." He held his hands up in surrender. "No need to get mad. It's just, he had some problems lately and he really needs some time off but he doesn't want to live alone."

"What kind of problems?"

"He went through some tough shit, Kat. In his job, in his private life...plus he worked almost non-stop in the last five years. He's burnt out, had kind of a breakdown and a mild depressive episode. He's much better now but his doctors told him to find a place to recover. To take his time before he returns to the business and get some rest, for the body and the mind."

"Shit, that sounds awful." Kat started to chew on her bottom lip, an unmistakable sign that she was conflicted.

"Yeah. When he told me about it I offered to let him live with us for a while. I mean it's perfect here for someone who needs time to think and to get himself straightened out."

"And how long is he going to stay?"

"I don't know, a few months?" Sam shrugged. "I told him he can stay as long as he wants."

"And I don't have a say in this? This is my house too, Sam." Kat looked at him with a frown.

"No, not in this case, Kat. He's a friend who needs help. I won't let him down."

Kat took a deep breath.

"What are they going to tell the media? His fans? He can't just vanish into thin air."

"They're gonna sell it as a time of self-discovery including digital detox...something like this. Actor goes on a spiritual journey, you know. He said it wouldn't be good for his image and his career to admit he had a mental breakdown."

"And it never occurred to him that this may be part of the problem? That he can't just be honest?" She rolled her eyes.

"Maybe it will dawn on him when he finally finds the time to rest and reflect on the past few months." Sam shrugged again and got up to throw away the pizza boxes.

"Why doesn't he go back to Jersey to live with his family?"

"I'm not sure. I think they had some kind of serious disagreement."

"What? I strongly doubt that. They stick together like glue." Kat was really surprised and a little shocked to hear that. The Cavill family had always been so close, so happy, so perfect. The complete opposite of her own famiIy. Sam sighed. "As I said, that's just my assumption, what I think I read between the lines. I didn't want to pry. Maybe you can ask him when he's here."

"You don't want to pry but I can? Are you crazy?" Kat showed him the middle finger. "You used to be best friends, Kat. You and him were so close…"

She snorted. "Yeah, more than 20 years ago. We're not friends anymore."

"I know. One day you were as thick as thieves and the next you hardly talked anymore. And you've never told me why."

"Because there's nothing to tell. It's a normal thing. Friendships begin and end. We just...drifted apart." Kat answered with a dramatic gesture and a sarcastic smile.

"You've always been a terrible liar, little sister. But it's okay. I don't need to know, it's none of my business. But maybe you and Henry can become friends again after all these years."

"I don't think so."

"20 years is a long time to hold a grudge against someone." Sam said with knitted brows.

"I don't have a grudge against him."

"If you say so." Now it was his turn to roll his eyes. "Just promise to play it nice, okay?"

"I don't promise anything, Sam. You want your old rugby team mate to live with us because he needs shelter. Okay. Fine. I accept that. But I'm gonna stay out of his way. I don't owe him anything." Her tone was annoyed now and Sam knew her well enough to realize this was really going under her skin. 

"Sure, I know that. I just want you to give him a chance. Don't treat him like an unwanted guest. He doesn't know I didn't ask you, I told him you agreed."

She pouted her lips and took a deep breath.

"God, Sam…"

"Please?" He gave her his best puppy dog eyes and Kat shook her head in amusement. "You're the worst."

"So you're in?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No."  Sam nudged her before he pulled her into a hug. "You're not gonna regret it, sis."

"I'm not so sure about that but we'll see. When is he going to move in?"

"The day after tomorrow." Sam grinned sheepishly and Kat couldn't help but laugh. "Okay. I'm not gonna ask you how long you've kept this a secret from me."

"Yeah, you better not."

"Well, then...let's prepare for the arrival of superman."

****

Two days later Henry arrived around noon. He drove up outside the house with a pick-up truck and a little trailer that contained some furniture and moving boxes. 

He got out of the car and greeted Sam with a tight hug.

"Sam."

"Henry, it's good to see you."

"Same, mate. Good to be here. Thanks for having me."

"Sure thing."

Henry looked at the house. "It hasn't changed a bit. Must have been 23 or 24 years since I've been here for the last time."

"Wait if you see the inside. We changed a lot, complete make-over. It's much brighter and more modern than back in the days."

"Sounds great." Henry smiled widely. He was so happy to be here. It felt strangely like coming home though he had only spent one summer here with Kat, Sam and their parents when he was 14 or 15. He was a little anxious about meeting Kat after all these years and for the first time after they graduated from school. He didn't really know what to expect from her and most of all he had no idea if she'd forgiven him.

Kat was watching them from the window of her room on the first floor. Henry looked gorgeous. Of course he did. A little tired maybe but still fabulous. And it was so easy for her to recognize the boy in him who had been her best friend for 3 years at boarding school which feels like an eternity when you're a kid. He was such a sweet guy, a little dorky but really cute. Lost, when he arrived at Stowe. Lost, lonely and homesick. He was overwhelmed by the new life at boarding school, he was shy and a little clumsy and she had felt a strange kind of protectiveness for him from the moment they'd met for the first time. Kat had been sent to Stowe one year after her brother at the age of ten and three years later she was already kind of an old trouper and so she took Henry under her wings and helped him to settle in. They became best friends soon and she always got herself into trouble defending Henry from the bullies that called him fat Cavill because he was a little chubby and lemon because he had no girlfriend.

Eventually he started to play rugby and hockey and he lost weight, grew tall and turned into a very handsome teenager. When they were 16 he joined the drama group and suddenly he was popular. From zero to hero. The beginning of the end. Kat sighed. She knew she had to go downstairs and say hello. She had promised Sam to give Henry a warm welcome and to make him feel at home right from the start.

She took a deep breath and left her room.

When she appeared on the doorstep and Henry's eyes fell on her he was amazed. Kat had always been pretty. A sweet little tomboy when he met her and a lovely teenage girl a few years later. He hadn't been surprised when one of the most attractive guys of their school became her boyfriend. Aaron Taylor was an outsider who stayed away from the popular kids, not because they didn't want him in their inner circle -they would have welcomed him in their middle with the greatest pleasure since his mother was a famous actress- but because he simply didn't want to be one of them. He found their superficiality despicable and boring and never tried to hide it. He was aloof and arrogant but Kat and him made a beautiful couple. As beautiful as Henry and Poppy Edwards, Stowe's queen bee, only much more interesting because they always stayed on their own which gave them an aura of being different and special in a mysterious way. 

Now Kat was a beautiful woman and incredibly attractive with her dark hair, the fair skin and the light green eyes. The resemblance to her mother was striking while Sam looked exactly like Mr. Spencer with his blond hair and blue eyes. They used to call Kat Snow White at school, of course she hated it and they said it to mock her but that was exactly what she still looked like. Like the princess from the fairy tale. Her clothes didn't really fit into that picture -faded KISS band-shirt, skinny jeans and Doc Martens boots- but this contrast between her natural grace and the self-chosen anti-girlish look were part of her charm and her appeal, it had always been.

"Hello, Henry." She came down the stairs in front of the entrance and extended her hand to him. "Hi, Kat." He shook it with a smile. Her fingers were cold as ice. "It's been a while. Good to see you."

"Yeah, good to see you too." She returned the smile half-heartedly and an awkward silence fell over the scenery making him feel insecure. He looked at her but she avoided his gaze and Henry was relieved when Kal started to bark inside the car. Kat's face lit up immediately. "Who's that?"

Henry went to the Dodge and opened the door. "That's Kal." A big dog jumped out of the car and ran around wagging his tail.

"Oh, what a cutie." Kat squeaked and squatted down before she called the American Akita. "Come here, Kal." He ran to her and she petted him stroking his thick fur. "Good boy." Kal got really excited by the unexpected amount of love he was receiving from the strange woman and licked her all across her face which made her laugh out loud.

"Kal!" Henry scolded in a strict voice. "Sorry, Kat."

She shook her head with a jolly smile and this time their eyes met. "It's fine, Henry. Not a problem." Turning to Kal she added: "I love sloppy kisses from big hairy bears like you. You're such a cutie pie, aren't you." She kept on stroking him. "Mr. Darcy's gonna hate you." 

"Who's Mr. Darcy?" Henry gave her a curious look. 

"Our cat."

"Your cat." Sam rolled his eyes. "He hates everyone but you." 

"He just doesn't like to share my attention." Kat grinned and looked at Henry. "Don't listen to Sam. He just can't stand him. Darcy is great, a little peculiar maybe but still great."

Henry chuckled. "Can't wait to meet him."

"You will. Eventually. When he lowers himself to endure our company. The cat's a snob." Sam grinned. "So let's go inside?"

"Yes. Sure." Henry nodded with a smile. He was relieved that Kat seemed to be okay with having him in their house. She was a little distant which wasn't surprising regarding their history but she was friendly and that was a big relief. Maybe they would finally manage to get things straight after all these years.

"Kat, why don't you give Henry the grand tour of the house and I'll prepare a little lunch and afterwards we will get your stuff inside, Hen."

Kat hesitated. She didn't want to show Henry around but she also didn't want to discuss this in front of him so she gave in with a forced smile. "Sure."

"You don't need to make lunch, Sam. I don't want to be a nuisance."

"Bullshit. You're not a nuisance and it will be done in a minute." Sam waved it off and went inside.

"There's no point in arguing with him about things like that. He's such a mother hen…" Kat gave him a wink and they entered the house a moment after her brother. Henry sniggered. "Really? Sam "The Bull" Spencer has turned into what? A housewife?"

"Something like that, yes. He's very domestic lately. Especially since he's with Lydia."

"Ah yes, his girlfriend. He told me about her. So it's serious?" Henry followed Kat, who went upstairs. "Yes. It is, I guess she's gonna be my sister-in-law anytime soon."

"Do you like her?"

"Very much. She's great. Perfect for him." Kat nodded with a smile.

"And what about you? Are you in a relationship or something? Found your Mr. Right?"

Kat's smile faded and her expression went blank. "No." The answer was as short as cold and he knew he had crossed a line. He bit his lip and was just about to apologize when Kat turned to him again.

"Let's start on the second floor."

"Okay." 

She showed him his apartment which was really nice. Two big, light rooms, a stylish bathroom, modern furniture and a very cosy atmosphere.

"I hope Sam told you that the studio doesn't have a real kitchen, just this kitchenette."

"Of course. He said I can use your kitchen downstairs."

"Exactly. You can use all the rooms downstairs, except Sam's rooms of course, but the living room, the library, the music room and the dining room and our little gym in the basement. We have a pool outside if you like to swim and you may remember the garden...well yeah. But I better show you instead of talking about it."

They went back to the first floor. "Here are my rooms and my office. Over there is the laundry room." She pointed at a door at the end of the corridor. When they were back on the ground floor she showed him all the rooms she had mentioned before plus two guest rooms, another bathroom and a storage room. The house was amazing and very different from what Henry remembered. After taking a look at the garden and the brand new pool they met Sam in the kitchen.

"Perfect timing." He turned around presenting them a big plate packed with sandwiches. "Come, sit." Sam gestured towards the table and they sat down.

"That looks delicious, Sammy." Henry took a  big bite of a tuna sandwich. "Thanks. So how do you like your apartment?"

"It's perfect, just like the rest of the house. I can't thank you enough for letting me stay. Both of you." He glanced at Kat who had taken the seat opposite instead of next to him. "Well, you pay rent….and we were looking for a tenant, you were looking for a place to live. Win win situation." She said chewing on her sandwich and the way she shrugged this off showed him she wasn't too enthusiastic about the arrangement 

"Right. Win win. You're not gonna regret it, Kat." He looked her in the eyes and grinned. "I'm the best tenant a landlord can wish for. I'm quiet, tidy, helpful and…"

"Trustworthy?" Kat cut in with raised eyebrows and a sarcastic smile. Henry's grin froze on his face and his cheeks started burning with embarrassment.

"Kat…" Sam shot her a warning look that was supposed to remind her to play it nice but she ignored him.

"As much as I'm enjoying this lovely chat with our perfect new housemate...I gotta get back to work." She grabbed her sandwich and got up. "See you later."

She left the room and Henry realized he had been wrong believing that they could live together like nothing had ever happened between them.

~~~~~~~~~~

tbc

#henry cavill #henry cavill fandom #cavillry #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill rpf #rpf #henry cavill x ofc #slow burn #friends to lovers #friends to lovers fan fic

[veryverynotgoodwrites]

Chapters: 2/? Fandom: Once Upon a Time (TV), A Discovery of Witches (TV) Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Captain Hook | Killian Jones/Emma Swan, Captain Hook | Killian Jones & Emma Swan, Prince Charming | David Nolan/Snow White | Mary Margaret Blanchard, Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Maleficent Characters: Captain Hook | Killian Jones, Emma Swan, Snow White | Mary Margaret Blanchard, Prince Charming | David Nolan, Evil Queen | Regina Mills, Maleficent (Once Upon a Time), Rumplestiltskin | Mr. Gold, Knave of Hearts | Will Scarlet, Wicked Witch of the West | Zelena, Pinocchio | August Booth, Liam Jones (Once Upon a Time), Arthur (Once Upon a Time), Henry Mills (Once Upon a Time), The Apprentice (Once Upon a Time), Mad Hatter | Jefferson, Robin Hood (Once Upon a Time), Red Riding Hood | Ruby, Alice Jones | Tilly, Belle (Once Upon a Time) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Crossover, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions Summary:

“Once the world was full of wonders, but it belongs to humans now. We creatures have all but disappeared. Daemons, vampires, and witches - all hiding in plain sight, ill at ease even with each other. But, as my father used to say, in every ending...there is a new beginning.”

A Captain Swan AU.

*I do not own any of these characters from OUAT, nor any part of A Discovery of Witches. Some dialogue and events are taken from both OUAT and ADOW to create this story, and are products of their original writers. This is just a fun CS au for your reading pleasure.

-

Hello everyone! Bet you thought I forgot all about this fic after all this time, huh? ;)

Well, never fear! I may not have a schedule, but I have a VISION, and it must be completed, no matter how long it takes! Anyone who has read Perilous Harbor since the beginning knows how long it sometimes takes me to update (@ that six month break I took after I moved to Europe lol), but I promise there's always one coming!

I spent two months dreading writing this chapter despite knowing it would be so much fun, but when I actually sat down and started, I had it finished within six hours. Lol.

Anywho! On to business! I had so much fun writing your first look at our vampire Killian! Truth be told, vampires really aren't my thing, but I love this story and I love who Killian is in this tale, and I think we will have so much fun with him! I also hope everyone will enjoy the three new characters introduced in this chapter!

I want to give a huge shoutout to @ultraluckycatnd​ for being my incredible beta and for being so understanding about my creative break since July! And to @mariakov81​ for the absolutely incredible artwork she has created for this story! I'm so in awe of your talent and the fact that you're so patient with me and my erratic writing pattern. I'm so happy this event brought us together!

As always, a huge, huge, HUGE thank you to all of my friends over at the CSMM Discord. I love all of you, and you keep me going, whether that's by encouraging me, flailing with me, or giving me so much to read that I can't possibly ever catch up with my list.

I also want to thank the team at @cssns​ for setting me up with an absolute dream team, and I'm so happy I got to participate in this event <3

As a side note, this work is also now listed under the Captain Swan Netflix and Chill collection in addition to the CSSNS collection! You can click on both the links to these collections to find some incredible stories by some of my favorite people!

If you would like to be added to my tags list, please let me know!

@teamhook​ @hollyethecurious​ @the-darkdragonfly​ @tiganasummertree​ @jrob64​ @justanother-unluckysoul​ @ultraluckycatnd​ @winterbaby89​ @snowbellewells​ @xarandomdreamx​ @klynn-stormz​ @omninerdgirl​ @kmomof4​​

#blood and magic #blood & magic #cs au #captain swan #fic #alternate universe #au #adow au #a discovery of witches #killian jones #emma swan #other characters as well lol #veryverynotgoodwrites #cssns #cssns21 #cssns 2021 #captain swan supernatural summer #captain swan netflix and chill #csn&c

[nabrizoya]

Thanks for the prompt, mate, @jb-lh. Sincerely hoping you enjoy this!

Prompt: 46 + “Please don’t say that about yourself. Don’t believe that. You’re so much more than that. You’re so...”

Ship: Thomas x Alastair (Thomastair)

White Tulips and Purple Hyacinths

Ambling through Hyde park with Alastair Carstairs was not what Thomas had expected on a nimble December evening. As such, he was equal parts wary and interested. The London skyline was a melancholy orange blurring against the snow atop trees and buildings. It reminded Thomas of pumpkins covered with cream.

He thrust his fisted hands into his pockets. Silence ensued. “I like blueberries,” Alastair started.

He glanced at the boy next to him. “What?”

Alastair waved his outstretched hand towards a distant tree with budding flowers. There were scars that were beginning to fade on his knuckles, looking elegant on his caramel skin. “Those flowers you see there, they grow into blueberries. I know.”

Thomas looked away, not sure how to respond. Were there blueberry plants in Hyde Park? He decided to say, “I once had a blueberry pastry. It was nice.”

They walked along mutedly, each lost one another’s silence. Thomas felt dreadfully awkward; he should have turned back when he had first noticed Alastair instead of reckoning a conversation. It hadn’t even been him; Alastair had started talking after he’d returned Thomas’s curious yet accidental gaze. Alastair had been by the lake, looking at the ducks forlornly. Did he like ducks?

“You seem to know a lot about flowers,” Thomas ventured finally. He relaxed his fingers in his pocket before adjusting his mittens. Oddly, it struck him only then that Alastair was not donning his gloves. He wasn’t sure what to make of it either. In truth, he had no idea what to make of Alastair at all.

“I do,” Alastair replied, but did not continue. Many moments of silence later, he carried on, “I- when Cordelia and I were children, we grew up in Iran at the Institute.” Thomas looked at him, only to find stagnant brown eyes looking up at him hesitantly. “You would like it there, I think.”

Thomas paused. “I think I would,” he agreed. His interest in history and the slowly growing curiosity towards ancient architecture did lead him to the structural marvels of Persia. He had looked up the books on buildings and the history they contained. London had its fair share of history, but two places were never the same.

“You would,” Alastair confirmed assuredly, his posture and tone changing at the mention of his home. “The lands; every grain of sand in the deserts around, every leaf and flower, each trace of a design and creation has a story. It is life personified. You like history,” he pointed and continued, “you would like Persia.”

“I like history,” he agreed absently. He was more focused on how Alastair’s shoulders had released some tension. “I like languages too. I speak Persian.”

“I know,” he nodded and then froze.

Breeze swayed the trees, gently shaking the leaves that shed their little share of snow. A flew leaves blew into their faces. When they dusted away, there was snow still harbouring the side of Alastair's shining hair.

“Have you read the Rubaiyat?” Thomas asked instead, a little more determined to not let the conversation go astray. Alastair was trying; it wouldn’t harm to see how this discussion could take a different turn. James, surprisingly, was the one to suggest to give Alastair a chance. To tell him that Alastair was indeed trying to mend things. Thomas had then spoken to Cordelia who had only assured to make the choice his. 

“Have you forgiven him?” 

“I did,” she’d said. “I truly believe my brother is trying to make amends. He has...” Cordelia hesitated. “Thomas, if I tell you something, would you give your word to keep it to yourself?”

When he had promised his assent, Cordelia began to explain the days of desolation that Alastair had spent after returning from the academy. She elaborated on Alastair’s moodiness and withdrawal from reality. How he often resorted to spending his time by himself, making himself unworthy of love and respect and conversation. She mentioned the bruises she had seen along his face and arms as though he had been in battles all day along. Instead, he had been climbing trees, sometimes wielding his spears from the topmost ones as a part of his practice. His aim was very poor, Cordelia had said, much to Thomas’s shock.

“I wish I knew better,” she’d sighed. “He always held darkness in him, and I have come to realise that myself only a few months ago.” With some doubt then, she had further explained the origins of a letter that contained some details that were not Cordelia’s to speak about, a letter about which Alastair had extracted a promise from her. 

“I understand,” Thomas sympathized. 

“I have not,” Alastair said now, gazing at the flowers around them, “However, I plan to. Cord- Layla gifted a copy of it to me this birthday.” In a soft tone he added, “She wanted- She told me to embrace where I am from and not conceal who I am.”

“Cordelia is wise,” Thomas agreed. “There were moments where a few of my Persian words were smudged by my accent. She offered to correct me. I was glad that she did.”

His companion merely nodded, albeit deftly. Thomas felt his own nerves ease. “Like I mentioned earlier, when we were children growing up in the Institute, we had regal gardens. They are still there and when we frequent it as a vacationing destination, we spend time in the gardens.”

Thomas followed his narrative closely. “Our mother ensured us the knowledge of flowers and their meanings, plants, herbs and the medicinal uses that they can be put to. Cordelia knows them all but I’m afraid I might have forgotten them. We learnt perfumery too.

“I’m ashamed,” he endured. Thomas glanced at him sharply. “Years of my life, I wasted away in hiding- hiding behind insecurity and, uh, and bearing through childhood- and in the process, I have hurt people beyond repair.” Thomas continued to gaze at him, though Alastair did not meet his eyes. Instead, he kept looking ahead, staring off into the distance.

How was he to offer comfort to him here? Thomas looked at the lake and momentarily thought of James. He thought of the kind things he could tell Alastair. However, he was unsure of the meaning and value that Alastair might hold of his words, if Alastair held any.

They trudged in eerie quietude. Songbirds chirped high in the trees, weaving an evening melody. “Cousin Jem told me,” Alastair resumed, “that life offers a second chance to those who ardently seek for it. I do not know why I am telling you this; perhaps I want you to know that my heart weighs down everyday with the guilt I carry for being an arse.” He must have presumed Thomas would laugh at that, but Thomas gave no reply.

He wondered if he could assure him, to tell him to not think or say that about himself, that he was more than that, more than the guilt he carried. Those were the words he would commit to any of his friends with certainty when their esteem fell below their knees. Thomas curled his fingers and relaxed his fists. The words to assure the fellow felt hollow to him; he was desperate to say something, but the wound was still raw. Why hadn’t he turned away? Why did he continue the conversation with him? He wasn’t prepared.

For a briefest moment, Thomas wondered if Alastair really meant his apology, if that even was one. Rage had tore through him for the many months after the confession during Cordelia’s engagement. Now he only felt numb and empty. 

Despite the assurances he had about Alastair from his friends, he was uncertain about what to think of him. The tears that his parents had shed when the rumour began to devour their family was vivid in his memory. It was the first time he had seen his father, an excellent, kind and virtuous man, cry. His sisters were pale with anger at the audacity of the Enclave to even partake in such nonsense and his mother had wept, her dignity compromised by mere words. Just a rumour to question years worth of loyalty.

Thomas himself had felt invalidated, but Aunt Tessa’s words were always there for affirmation. He had brushed the rumours off and so had the rest of London eventually. It struck him only then how odd Matthew must have felt when he heard the senseless claims about his father. How Charlotte and Henry had faced their woes. Had there been anybody with whom Matthew had shared his grief? James might know, he thought solemnly, yet his gut nagged no. He didn’t think it was possible that Matthew had shared his pain with someone. The guilt of not being there for his friend began to wreak his heart.

“I- Thomas, I don’t expect you to excuse me. I don’t excuse myself- nor do I expect you to. James did tell me to give you time and I only-” Alastair rambled, stopping to look up and face him. Thomas wondered what his expression conveyed, for Alastair’s face shut up, his form taking on the edge of formality. “It is growing dark,” he declared. “I must leave. It was pleasant seeing you, Lightwood.”

Thomas wasn’t sure what had prompted him thought his hands moved on their own. He held his hand out forth, as if meaning to shake. “Farewell,” he said stonily. Alastair nodded curtly and they parted ways.

Later that evening as night fell over London, Sophie called Thomas to the parlour. He had been looking for more information about Belial, jotting his observations in a notebook he liked to maintain once a moon. Watching Christopher record his observations had encouraged him to write his own thoughts and discoveries down. “These came for you, mi hijo,” his mother said, ruffling his hair with her tired hands when he entered.

Thomas crossed the room towards the contents on the table. On it was a small bouquet of white tulips and purple hyacinths. Inscribed on the small card that came with the flowers were Persian words. They were easy for Thomas to read: the dedication of the Rubaiyat.

White tulips and purple hyacinths denote seeking forgiveness. 

Thank you so much for reading!

#thomas lightwood #alastair carstairs #thomastair #thomas x alastair #i absolutely loved writing this #such raw such discomfort such distress #*chef's kiss* #the last hours #tlh #and you cannot tell me alastair would not give flowers to thomas #mine*

[hypnotica-ships]

I've been so overworked lately, and to relax a bit I'm going to finally give some more info about Heinrich/Henry, my fanchild. Both good and bad.

While Holger and my S/I, Crow, were serving in the Air force as mercenaries, during one of the many mandatory checkups, they had 'blood tests'. Unbeknownst to them, their blood was used in a secret government experiment to try an make super soldiers/clones.

They weren't very successful, only 6 of the subjects managed to survive until the secret project was found out...nearly 10 years after it began.

Even though the experiment was going o for 10+ years, the surviving subjects were closer to babies then 10 year olds. This is due to the extremely long process of making sure the 'embryos' were stable enough to continue on with a normal life cycle.

Thanks to each of the subjects, named Units 01-06, being extremely well documented, it was easy to find out who's DNA was used in which subjects. Effectively giving each 'Unit' a set of biological parents.

Unit 01's document was a bit different than the others. This one seemed to be the best and most successful one of the group, having little to no trouble in the process. It was noted that there were some abnormalities, but they were proven not to be a detriment in his growth, so they were not mentioned too much in 01's document.

Major Guile was made aware of this experiment's discovery. Who after getting all of the details, had to make a very important phone call.

Unit 01's DNA was made via blood samples taken from both Holger and Crow.

As soon as Crow got the very vague phone call from his uncle, he and Holger rushed to the base.

They were greeted by Guile, and then ushered them into a make shift nursery.

Neither one of them were expecting to be introduced to their new son. However, once the initial shock passed, they were accepting of him and immediately gave him a new name. Heinrich, or Henry for short.

Ok, now that that part is out of the way, here are some more randomish ones, not really in a linear story like the above ones.

Pre-Crow's Death and the Events in SF3 (around ages 0-5ish)

His Papa, my S/I, gave him a sunflower pin to wear, since his Pa always calls him his little sunflower due to his brown roots of his blonde hair. Henry calls it his 'lucky charm', and is almost always seen wearing it.

When he gets a bit older and starts to ask questions of where he came from, his parents try to avoid it at first, but eventually explain it to him. They extremely sugar coat it, and make sure that even though he's different, he's extremely loved.

While he's young his hair is pretty flat and straight. His Vater, Holger, likes to keep his hair short since it's a bit easier for Henry to manage at such a young age, but won't stop him from growing it out when he gets older if he wants. He eventually chooses to keep it short when he gets to that point, but his hair starts to curl a little at the ends. This is because his Pa's hair, who usually keeps it long, curls when it gets cut short, so Henry is taking after Crow in this regard.

Post-Crow's Death and During/After the Events of SF3 (mostly in his teenage years)

For some extra info on that, check out this post.

After one of his many training sessions with his Vater, he starts to snoop around the house, due to him trying to find a disguise for when he enters the the tournament. He stumbles into a hidden room with a suitcase filled with Holger's old army gear...and a respirator?

He brings this up to Holger who immediately denies any knowledge of it, until Henry threatens to ask Guile. As soon as Holger is done explaining his past, Henry is angry and confused about it all and storms out of the house. He tries his best to forgive his Vater for all of his crimes, but their relationship is a bit strained for now.

Doesn't stop Henry from stealing some of the before mentioned equipment to use in the tournament.

He has a hard time with controlling his powers. No one but his Pa really understood how they work. It takes a lot of trial and error by himself to get to point where he can consider his powers 'useful'.

During one of said trial and error attempts, he almost blinded himself. He had to get his eyes checked, but he was overall fine.

He frequently blames himself for his Pa's death. 'If i stayed out of the forest, Pa would still be here, he'd still be alive...it's all my fault!' He doesn't let anybody know he blames himself this much though, but anybody who's close to him notices it through his actions.

He has a form of ADHD. He also suffers from a mild delusional disorder, due to the shock and stress he went through when he was present in his Pa's death. (I also read an article that certain disorders like that can be passed genetically. I and my S/I have a very similar disorder, on top of others. Holger definitely has had some type of psychosis as well, among other things. So if I"m to believe said article, those may be factors as well.)

Some point in the future, his close friend and cousin Amy encourages him to find the other Units from the experiment that created him so that he can have some new possible friends. He's against it at first, but it doesn't take long for him to find an ulterior motive in finding them.

Since he accused the wrong man of killing his Pa, maybe one of the other units could help him find the actual murder.

He manages to convince all 5 other units to form a team with him, and hunt down his Pa's killer.

That's all for now, but I'm sure there'll be more in the future. Also sorry this got long, I don't know how to not make things long.

#my writing #sonnenblumen tranen #...i still haven't covered every thing yet... #I also have a wip of an older Henry but it's just a bust and he's not even in his SF3 costume that i have to redesign... #I've been busy and my art isn't going anywhere so I don't know when I'll post the bust #this fact list helped me relax though so that good #I just hope this isn't too confusing

[arcadianambivalence]

World on Fire, Episode 3

December 1939

After the invasion of Poland, the newly declared war seemed to ground to a halt.  The nervous calm of the autumn of 1939 led to the war’s nickname of the “phony war.”  As Nancy describes it: “There is simply a feeling among the allied forces that the inevitable will never come to pass.”

In World on Fire, British forces stationed in Northern France fill their time with digging, minor spats, and talk of home.  Because of his class, Harry has been set up as an officer, but his sergeant seems to be better suited for the job.  While Harry tries to be a friend to the men, Stan speaks plainly and gains their respect.  Wanting to help Poland but winding up in France, wanting to protect the Tomaszeski family and having to leave them behind, wanting to fight but digging trenches instead, Harry feels listless and useless once again.

(Read more)

Conversely, Tom is still at the bottom of the pecking order in the Navy, and he bristles at the strict order of life at sea.  To supplement his income, he gets his peers to place bets on when the ship’s canary will lay an egg, but he runs into trouble with a crewmate named Henry.  Crewmate Vic confiscates the money from Tom.  Then the ship goes on red alert.  Tom rushes into the skirmish with enthusiasm until a hit from the German battleship knocks him off his feet, kills Vic, and blows off Henry’s arm.  All personal disputes are set aside as Tom helps Henry to his feet.

Heavily damaged but still afloat, the Exeter is a smokestack gliding across the water.  Tom retrieves the betting money from Vic’s body and gives it to Henry.  “This doesn’t make us mates,” he protests.  He has a reputation to uphold (with whom?  Himself?).

In London, Douglas is desperate for news about Tom as the idea of peace grows fainter by the day, especially with news of the sinking of the Admiral Graf Spee.  Robina is starting to reassess her opinions, too.  Despite calling herself not much of a mother, she can see that Jan is miserable at school.  Her words of encouragement ring hollow even as she says them: “And that’s what you do in this life, you get used to it.  And it makes you a better person.  Eventually.  Resilient, at least—a quality much undervalued.”  

But the immediate ostracism does not make Jan resilient, and Robina quickly changes her tune.  She marches Jan up to the other schoolchildren and stands up for him with a long speech about how everyone in Jan’s family is fighting Hitler and deserves their praise.

(I’ve only had Jan for a day and a half, but any boy who attacks this fine young man must be on Hitler’s side!)

Ludwig, a member of the Resistance, encourages Kasia to use her position as a waitress to observe the occupying German soldiers.  If anyone tries to flirt with her, he says, she could lure the soldier to the bombed-out corner of the city and avenge her mother.  Kasia attempts to do this with a soldier but gets scared and lets him go at the last minute.

That soldier is Klaus Rossler, and his parents are terrified that they will lose both children to the Nazi Regime.  After Hilde’s seizure last episode, the Rosslers believe she will be taken away to an institution like a neighbor’s son once was.  Concerned for Hilde, Nancy investigates the institution and makes a horrifying discovery about its state-sanctioned euthanasia program under Dr. Voller.  She confronts the doctor, but he tries to justify the program with Social Darwinism.  She refutes him with “Human progress is driven by our capacity to look out for those who are weaker than us.”

Nancy shares her findings with the Rosslers: first the parents receive a letter asking for consent to institutionalize the children, and if they don’t reply, there is a second letter and a threat that the child will be taken away.  If the parents still refuse, they will be committed to forced labor and their child taken anyway.  The final letter is a death certificate.  “There is no treatment, only murder.”

But knowledge comes at a cost.  Nancy’s act of investigating the institution may very well draw attention to her and the Rosslers.  Uwe Rossler is furious and forbids Nancy from contacting them again, but he too could have stirred up suspicion at work today.  He interrupted a fight between two workers and refused to deliver any kind of punishment for the women involved.  One worker tries to pull rank with her status as a Party Member and is unhappy when that does nothing to sway Uwe.

No good deed goes unpunished anywhere.  Konrad and Grzegorz continue to run for their lives, but now they have two factions to evade.  I mentioned in my review for episode two that the Soviet Union invaded Poland in 1939, too.  Because of the time jump between episodes, the news of a second invasion is left off-screen (one of a couple of revelations I wish we had time for), but Konrad and Grzegorz are well aware that everyone they meet could turn them in to one side or the other.

A farmer catches the two men as they sneak through his land, but instead of denouncing them, he gives them a warm meal.  This act of kindness doesn’t last for long, though, when a Soviet truck pulls up with a couple of suspicious soldiers.  One soldier in particular takes his time inspecting the house while Konrad and Grzegorz hide in the cellar below.  

Just like in episode one, Grzegorz fights back a nervous coughing fit.  Just like in episode two, the encounter ends with shocking violence as the soldiers murder the farmer and his family.

Compared to all this, the reunion of Lois and Harry seems trite (compared to anything, the back-and-forth with Lois and Harry seems trite!).  Not even an episode has passed since their separation, so the arrival of the ENSA troop Lois happens to be in at the camp that Harry happens to be in doesn’t even feel like two long-lost lovers meeting.  It just feels convenient.

Finally free to make her own choices without thinking of her father and brother, Lois is all smiles for the troops (who are more than happy to see her too!).  Shocked by this side of her, Harry flips his shit and punches a soldier Lois is flirting with.  But, class and rank being what they are, it’s the poor soldier who is apparently in trouble for the fight.

But enough has happened in the few months apart to make Harry wonder if the two can be friends again, even though he decked her date.  And enough has (not) happened for Lois to realize that she’s pregnant.  (I guess an episode-long subplot involving this discovery and Lois coming to terms with it wasn’t as important as Harry’s emotional baggage...)

To complicate things further, Robina realizes that Harry and Kasia are married.

That night, Harry confides his situation to Stan, who casually suggests that the war has done him a favor.  At the thought that Kasia could be dead, Harry flips his shit again.  

There’s no one to punch, so wasting ammunition and scaring some owls will have to do.

For all the flack I’ve given the love triangle, though, it does serve a thematic purpose.  Harry’s sense of guilt and obligation for Kasia and Lois is emblematic of the conflict felt by many soldiers.  At one point, Lois asks him “Why are you here?” and he immediately begins to list his grievances about his inability to fight on the front lines for Poland.  

Britain declared war on Germany after the invasion of Poland, but no major combat occurred for several months.  Meanwhile, Britain began to shift its focus to its own shores and the threat of their own German invasion.  

The feeling that Britain abandoned Poland is symbolized by Harry’s separation from both Kasia and Jan, and his concern for his own country is symbolized by his relationship with Lois.

When writing World on Fire, Peter Bowker chose his characters carefully, each one drawing attention to a different aspect of life during World War Two: refugees and civilians whose lives were upended by war, partisans who resisted, collaborators who didn’t, soldiers who went to war willingly (or unwillingly), and the cross-section between these areas.  

Lois and Harry can worry about their love lives because they aren’t in danger every second.  Nancy can investigate the euthanasia program because as an American journalist, she is given looser restrictions than German civilians.  Robina has the freedom to (publically) change her sympathies with relative ease after meeting Jan,  but the Rosslers or the Tomaszeskis are too busy trying to survive unnoticed to dare that.  Douglas is able to talk of peace because he is not personally at war (yet).

So when Kasia witnesses the brutal beating and murder of Ludwig, her decision to actively involve herself in the luring and killing of a soldier, and the way this is framed as the death of Kasia’s own innocence, opens up other moral questions for viewer.  What makes that soldier different from Klaus?  And if the answer is “Nothing,” then did Klaus deserve to die, too?  If all Germans are the same, then what does that make Hilde?  Robina sympathized with the British Union of Fascists, so why are we supposed to care what Jan thinks of her now?  And if Nancy has certain freedoms afforded to her as a guest in Germany, why doesn’t she do more?  And finally: if I were in the same situation as any of these characters, what would I do?

With the spring of 1940, the phony war was over, and Germany invaded Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium, and France.

Notes:

The battle Tom survives is called The Battle of  River Plate, which places this episode in early December 1939.  Christmas decorations are visible when Nancy goes shopping and when Robina celebrates Jan’s birthday as other clues for dating the events.

One of the women in the fight that Uwe breaks up uses “Jew” as a slur, which unfortunately would have been one more way to dehumanize and debase Jewish people.

Lois is carrying a Hitler puppet at the start of the episode.  I wonder how that routine goes.

…And is it bad that I’m still holding out hope for a Connie subplot?

Further Reading

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/specialfeatures/world-on-fire-s1-ep2-history-images/

#world on fire

[goodticklebrain]

Q&A August: Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company

They say you should never meet your heroes, but obviously “they” were never enlightened enough to consider Austin Tichenor of the Reduced Shakespeare Company a hero. Like many Shakespeare geeks, I was exposed to Reduced Shakespeare Company’s performance of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) at an impressionable young age. Once the DVD came out, I watched it over and over again, soaking up the irreverence and affection for Shakespeare like a sponge. It never occurred to me that I would one day meet the curly-haired pompous idiot in the black pants whose antics had entertained me so much, let alone be lucky enough to call him a friend, but that’s exactly what has happened.

I first met Austin (after exchanging mutually admiring tweets with him) in April of 2016, during their world premiere of William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) at the Folger Library. I was prepared to be utterly starstruck, but Austin was so wonderfully down-to-earth that within minutes I felt like I’d known him forever. Totally lacking the pomposity and idiocy of his stage persona, Austin was overwhelmingly encouraging and supportive of my work, immediately welcoming me to play with him in the Shakespeare comedy sandbox. I had literally just started working full-time on Good Tickle Brain, so his enthusiasm meant the world to me.

I could gush about Austin for many more paragraphs, but I’m sure you’d rather hear from him, so here he is, my Comedy Fairy Godfather, in his own words!

1. Who are you? Why Shakespeare?

I’m Austin Tichenor, a playwright, director, and actor. I'm the co-artistic director of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, a three-person comic theatre troupe that reduces long serious topics into short silly comedies.

My first exposure to Shakespeare was undoubtedly in the original series of Star Trek! I read Shakespeare in high school English classes and got to see fantastic productions of Shakespeare at American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and the Berkeley Reprtory Theatre, but I didn’t get to actually WORK on Shakespeare until grad school where I both played Claudius in a production of Hamlet and reduced my first Shakespeare (it was a directorial exercise: a five minute reduction of Much Ado About Nothing). My first professional theatre job was creating plays for young people so I went to Shakespeare immediately, creating 45 minute cuttings of Much Ado, Midsummer, and The Tempest.

So the opportunity to join the RSC in 1992 and perform its signature work The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) (written by the RSC’s founders) in London’s West End for eight months combined all my theatrical loves: smart silly comedy, non-realistic theatricality, and Shakespeare — which is kinda redundant, now that I think about it

2. What moment(s) in Shakespeare always make you laugh?

My favorite moments are typically when characters make incredible discoveries about themselves, and these are usually comic. Malvolio’s “I am…happy!” Terrible actor Francis Flute fully committing to the moment on “Dead, my dove?” Benedick’s “There’s a double meaning in that.” Hamlet toying with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, or telling Claudius he “shall nose” the dead Polonius as he goes upstairs. Olivia’s “Most wonderful!” when the penny drops and she realizes “Cesario” is actually Viola (and Sebastian’s twin).

3. What's a favorite Shakespearean performance anecdote?

I have two!

1) We were performing William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) for the Shakespeare Theatre Association conference — the savviest and most knowledgeable group of people I’ll probably ever perform for, ever. I was playing Richard III and limping downstage to say my first line, one of the most famous first lines in all of Shakespeare. But I was distracted because I saw there were people sitting on the sides and I didn’t want to limp too far downstage for them to see — and in my distraction I said, “Now is the moment of our...” As soon as the word was out of my mouth, I knew I’d blown the line (it’s supposed to be “Now is the winter of our discontent”) and I knew I couldn’t pretend that it hadn’t happened; not in front of that crowd, not in our style of show. So I quite audibly said, “Oh f&$# me,” and limped back offstage to come in again. This time I said the line right and emphasized the first word: “Now is the winter of our discontent!” It brought down the house and everyone asked whether I’d planned it. Sigh…no, I hadn’t.

Mya interjects: I was in the house for this performance and this moment remains one of the highlights of my theatre-going career. What Austin neglects to mention here is that Reed, who had been left alone onstage after Austin had retreated, went over to the wings as if to confer with Austin, and said, sotto voce, “No, I don’t think anybody noticed.”

2) We were performing The Complete Works on a stage that had a little runway that circled the orchestra pit. In one of the scenes, Adam Long (one of the RSC’s founding members) decided to hop over the pit, from the stage to the runway, and he ended breaking the runway floor and falling through the boards. Thankfully uninjured, and delighted that he had this opportunity, he immediately uttered the immortal words, “Don’t worry, it’s just a stage I’m going through."

4. What's one of the more unusual Shakespearean interpretations you've either seen or would like to see?

I’m glad that nowhere in here have you asked what my favorite play is. I don’t have favorite Shakespeare plays, but I do have favorite productions. Here are two:

1) The Folger Theatre at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington DC’s production of Love’s Labor’s Lost was delightful from start to finish: Incredibly smart, wildly funny, and wonderfully charming. The director and her team made the King’s desire for “a little academe” quite literal by re-creating the Folger Library’s handsome reading room onstage. (I wrote about this terrific production here.)

2) The Chicago Shakespeare Company production of The Tempest, co-directed by Aaron Posner and the magician Teller, turned Prospero into an actual wizard and filled the production with literal magic. (There must have been magic in Shakespeare’s original production as the First Folio has a stage direction that mentions that characters disappear by means of “a quaint device”. Teller filled his production with many quaint magic tricks and devices!) With music by Tom Waits and great comedy from its clowns, it was the most entertaining and completely realized production of The Tempest I've ever seen.

Favorite moments?

When Henry IV (Jeremy Irons) slaps his snotty son Prince Hal (Tom Hiddleston) in The Hollow Crown adaptation of Henry IV, Part 1 taking him (and the audience) by total surprise.

When Francis Flute’s (Sam Rockwell) emotions bubble to the surface unexpectedly in the ridiculous “Pyramus and Thisbe” in the film version of Midsummer.

When Juliet (Claire Danes) stirs and almost wakes up in time to prevent Romeo (Leonardo DiCaprio) from killing himself in Baz Lurhmann’s Romeo + Juliet.

When Antigonus (Gregory Linington) distracted the Bear, dooming himself but preventing the death of Perdita, in the Goodman Theatre production of one of my least favorite plays The Winter’s Tale.

5. What's one of your favorite Shakespearean "hidden gems”?

The hidden gem of Shakespeare is actually right out in the open: He’s written incredibly theatrical plays, filled with rich and elusive characters that still fascinate us 400 years later, and even the most serious of his plays (including his Histories and especially his Tragedies) contain more comedy than is generally realized (or pulled off). Shakespeare was a showman whose livelihood depended on entertaining his audiences, so he created plays filled with music, devices, comic bits, fascinating characters, time jumps, changing perspectives, and shifting tones that are always serious (especially his Comedies) but never solemn.

(You don’t ask what my Shakespearean pet peeve but here it is: Productions that lack urgency and ignore the above, as in: Comedies that are beautiful-looking and melancholy but not funny. Histories that ignore the comic chaos that Shakespeare layers in. Tragedies that are one-note, over-the-top, and not in any way believable. Romances that equate pastoral with languid and not compelling. Argh.)

6. What passages from Shakespeare have stayed with you?

Oh so many...

Beatrice’s “Kill Claudio,” which comes seemingly out of the blue and yet is so right.

Falstaff’s honor speech, when done right, in front of a live audience.

And I find Miranda’s “O brave new world that hath such people in’t” just incredibly moving. (I’m always moved by Joy. Tragedy can suck it.)

Mya interjects: “Tragedy can suck it” might be my new personal motto now. Thanks, Austin.

7. What Shakespeare plays have changed for you?

Henry VI, Part 1. Reading it again recently, I was struck by the level of chaos Shakespeare depicts in a kingdom struggling without a ruler. It’s almost like Monty Python meets Veep: Sentences can’t get finished because people are running in and out, declaring “I’m in charge! I’m in charge!” with grand impotence. Of course Shakespeare would write it like that: He needed to entertain his audience, who were probably also nervous about their aging queen who had yet to declare a successor. Shakespeare created a chaotic warning that England shouldn’t descend into that kind of comically dangerous madness again — a warning that wasn’t really heeded, unfortunately.

8. What Shakespearean character or characters do you identify the most with?

Having played so many of them (albeit in reduced forms), that’s a tough call. But because I’m also an actor and a playwright, the ones I probably identify with the most are Shakespeare's seemingly autobiographical ones: Peter Quince, the only (I think) actor-playwright in the canon. Hamlet, the Danish prince with surprisingly strong opinions about theatre’s power and how certain speeches should be played (and how annoying comedians can be). Benedick, who struggles with his writing so comically. Suffolk, who in Henry VI, Part 1 declares, “I’ll call for pen and ink and write my mind.” And Bottom, of course, who thinks he can play anything.

Mya interjects: PETER QUINCES OF THE WORLD, UNITE!

9. Where can we find out more about you? Are there any projects/events you would like us to check out?

I’ve spent the last several years doing incredibly deep dives into Shakespeare, across many media:

My RSC partner Reed Martin and I wrote Pop-Up Shakespeare, an incredibly fun (and useful) introduction to the Bard’s life and works with beautiful, amazing, and funny illustrations by Jennie Maizels.

I contribute monthly essays about the intersection between Shakespeare and popular culture for the Folger Shakespeare Library’s Shakespeare & Beyond blog.

My weekly podcast (now in its 13th year) is a backstage glimpse into the life and works of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, featuring interviews with our many comedian, actor, playwright, author, director, composer, dramaturg, and artist friends and many many deep dives into matters Shakespearean.

Reed and I also wrote the definitive irreverent reference book, Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention-Impaired (abridged), which is still inexplicably in print (perhaps cuz it’s definitive).

We also wrote the stage play William Shakespeare’s Long Lost First Play (abridged) (“An absolute resolute hoot of a bawdy comedy of errors!” Broadway World), which premiered at the Folger Theatre in 2016, has toured the US and the UK, and is available for licensing via Broadway Play Publishing.

And in November 2019, the RSC will perform the international premiere in Israel of our brand new script Hamlet’s Big Adventure (a prequel) — what would happen if Tom Stoppard wrote Muppet Babies. It’s the comedy of the Prince of Denmark!

If after reading all this, for some insane reason you still want to get in touch, come find me here on Twitter. I think Mya will agree that it’s a much more civilized and fun place than its reputation suggests.

(Back to Mya) Thanks so much to Austin for taking the time to answer my questions! If you want to HEAR us actually talking to each other check out:

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #493

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #532

Reduced Shakespeare Co. Podcast #653

Q&A August continues next week with two phenomenal women who are using Shakespeare to build the most amazing things.

#Q&A August #shakespeare #reduced shakespeare company

[bee-kathony]

The Oath | Ch. 1 - “Discoveries”

Reeling from a bad breakup, Claire finds comfort with a stranger, Jamie Fraser — owner of Fraser & Co. the newest Whisky company in Edinburgh. They share their pain, loss and dreams, after all… it was just supposed to be one night together.

a/n: Hello there! This is a brand new fic I’ve been working on and am so excited to finally share this with everyone! I hope you enjoy and can’t wait for the rest of this story to unfold xx

January 20th, 2019

Claire was running late (as usual), and had just texted Frank to let him know she was on her way home from work. Being promoted to Chief Resident at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, while amazing and the highlight of her career thus far, also came with its obvious stress. She had been late more times than she had been early since her new role and while Frank was a forgiving man, Claire knew he could only take so much of her tardiness.

But it’s not like Frank had been perfectly punctual in their entire four year relationship. A history professor at Edinburgh University, Frank Randall had his fair share of late nights grading papers and tutoring students.

A quiet ding came from Claire’s pocket and she pulled it out to check the message.

Frank: No rush

“No rush he says,” Claire muttered under her breath as she wrapped her scarf loosely around her neck. “We’ll see if you’re in the same mood when I get home, shall we?”

Claire had an awful habit of talking to herself and had received her fair share of odd looks on the street and on public transportation. She held her own however, being born and raised in England by strong and loving parents, Claire wasn’t afraid to be herself — strange habits and all.

Edinburgh had become a second home to her after she finished university at Oxford. That’s where she had met Frank who was a teaching assistant in one of her classes. They began dating, taking things slow at first but soon Claire found herself packing her bags and following him to Scotland — a country she had never even been to before.

Call it love, call it a foolish thing to do, but Claire adored Frank and had no regrets about uprooting her life.

Twenty minutes later, Claire unlocked the door to her home, relishing in the warmth as she stomped her snow clad feet on the welcome mat.

“Frank, I’m home!” She called out, but heard no response.

Unbuttoning her brown tweed coat, Claire slid her arms out of it and laid it across the chair in the entryway. How odd. Frank was usually home at this time of day and always called out to her when she entered.

Brushing it off as nothing but good thick walls, Claire strolled into the kitchen to see what Frank was making for dinner. Even odder. There was nothing on the stove — no pots or pans, and no glasses of wine waiting on the counter to welcome her home after a long day.

This wasn’t like Frank to not cook dinner, especially on Fridays, their home date nights. Checking her phone for any missed messages, she saw no new notifications and so she laid her phone out on the counter and resolved to search the house.

“Frank?” She called out his name as she climbed the stairs to their bedroom. If she was being honest with herself, his lack of presence around the house shouldn’t be too out of character… especially recently.

They had been having problems, as most couples do at some point in their relationship. Claire wasn’t too much of a fool in love to admit that Frank had his flaws — as did she. At times, she found herself flinching when he raised his voice above normal volume because the phone company had billed them wrong again. Or when he smashed his fists down on the table angrily whenever Claire had told him about applying for the Chief position at work.

He was always supportive of her dreams, but not when they got in the way of their time as a couple. This was all very understandable — who wouldn’t be upset that their significant other would ultimately be spending less time with them? But Frank had held it over her head… her commitment to her job. Even if he didn’t voice his every thought out loud to her, Claire had felt the iciness in his touch the past couple of months and the greedy way he came to her in the night, spreading her legs and entering her without warning.

She often wondered what her parents would think of Frank if they were still alive. Henry and Julia Beauchamp died in a terrible car accident when she was only fourteen and since then she had been under her Uncle Lamb’s guardianship. Her uncle had been her rock when she lost both her parents, and had encouraged her to follow her dream to become a doctor and save lives — making up for the sheer fact that she wasn’t able to save her parents lives.

The light was on at the end of the hall in their bedroom, and for some reason Claire felt that she needed to be quiet as she padded down the hardwood floor.

“Frank?” She tapped her knuckles softly on the door before pushing it open. “Are you in here, love?”

“In the bathroom, Claire! Just a moment,” came Frank’s muffled voice from behind another closed door to her right.

Looking around the room, Claire noticed that their bedroom was slightly disheveled and wondered what Frank had been doing. He always kept the house in tip top shape, not a chair out of place which frankly annoyed Claire to no end. A home was supposed to be lived in, not simply a shell to hold furniture and things.

Her feet were sore from a long day of speed walking through the hospital hallways and Claire stepped out of her tennis shoes — boring and bland, the kind that were stereotypical for doctors. The sound of running water came from the bathroom and Claire sighed to herself, impatient for Frank to come out.

As she took another look around her room, Claire noticed something sparkle out of the corner of her eye on the nightstand. With her heart racing, Claire glanced at the bathroom door before going over to inspect the sparkly object.

It was an earring. And not one of hers.

In a matter of a few short seconds, Claire’s world turned on its axis. She looked down at the small diamond in her hand and felt hot tears well in her eyes. Her throat was tight and her breath caught in between her ribs like someone had punched her.

She should have known. Frank had been somewhat aloof the past few weeks, his attitude completely shifted from how he used to act. What used to be heated arguments over dinner about her attending another work conference over the weekend, turned into a nod of the head and a “See you on Monday,” farewell.

But he clearly still felt comfortable using her body for pleasure whenever he needed it. Just last night, Frank had kissed the back of her neck sending a chill down her spine. Needing to feel some kind of human comfort from the stress of her hectic week, Claire had rolled over to face him and joined together with him.

Her belly was coiled tight now and she slid her fingers down over her neck, breasts and stomach, fingers trembling at the thought of those same fingers she knew well on another woman.

The bathroom door opened with an ear splitting creak and Claire froze, her back turned away from him.

“Sorry about that darling, I was just in the shower — had a hard day at work,” Frank said and came up behind her, his hands sliding up her back and over her shoulders.

“Don’t touch me,” she whispered and she wondered if he had even heard her. An answering squeeze to the tight knots in her shoulders told her that he hadn’t.

“I said don’t touch me, Frank,” Claire said it a little louder and finally turned around to face him. The sight of his face — the hard lines that decorated his cheeks, the chiseled jaw and brown eyes made her sick now, almost violently so.

“Claire, what’s gotten into you?” He looked at her with almost a scowl, as if it was her that had done something wrong.

Afraid that her words would fail her, she lifted up her fist to Frank and slowly, one finger at a time opened her hand to reveal the diamond earring of his lover.

“Fuck,” he said under bated breath. So it was true.

Claire dropped the traitorous piece of jewelry onto the floor between their feet and stormed for the door. She was jerked back by Frank’s grip on her arm and she whirled around, slapping him with a force so strong her hand stung.

“Jesus, Claire!”

“A hard day at work?!” Claire felt the strength return to her voice as she spoke, and smirked as he rubbed his red cheek. “The only thing that was hard about your day was your cock, Frank.”

“Claire,” he sighed and his hands rested on his hips which were only clad in a towel. “Can we please be civil about this? You must have known, surely—“

“Civil? For fucks sake, Frank!” Claire scoffed and spun on her heel, heading towards the closet to retrieve an overnight bag. Thankfully her best friend, Geillis lived just a few streets over. There was no way Claire could fathom spending another night under this roof.

The fact that Frank wasn’t putting up a fight gave her mixed emotions. On one hand, it made it easy to hate him, but on the other… it only crushed her, making her feel pathetic — like she wasn’t someone worth fighting for.

“Just tell me,” she said seriously as she came back into the room, bag hastily packed. “Do I know her?”

She saw the twitch of his eye and thought she might be sick right there on the carpet.

“You’ve met her a few times,” he confirmed and sat down on the bed. “Her name is Sandy and she works with—“

“Oh spare me the details, please!”

“I’m sorry, Claire. This isn’t exactly how I wanted this to happen.”

Claire looked at him, a feeling of grief for their relationship washing over her, and only felt hatred for this man.

“It isn’t?” She laughed, an almost evil witch sounding laugh. “So you were planning on still sleeping with me while you had your affair? Were you ever planning on telling me?”

“There were conversations,” he mumbled, “Between Sandy and I about ending it.”

“Ending your affair?”

“No,” he said defensively and looked up at her. “About ending our relationship.”

Claire closed her eyes, counted to three, took a deep breath and walked out of the room. There was no use in further discussion with Frank because it wouldn’t be a discussion, only an excuse to make her look like a bigger fool than she already felt.

When she reached the front door, she heard footsteps on the stairs behind her and paused, her hand on the doorknob.

“Claire?”

“Yes?” She said this to the door. Claire wouldn’t spend another minute looking at his face. A face she had loved and spent lazy mornings running her fingertips over. A face that had once looked at her with so much love it was as if she was his whole world.

“You will come back to collect the rest of your things, right?”

“Fuck you, Frank Randall.” She opened the door quickly and slammed it shut behind her, clutching her overnight bag tightly.

As she walked down the street, every step taking her closer to Geillis, she began to look for her phone to tell her friend she was coming over.

“Damn it,” she cursed, her hands franticly searching her jean pockets for her phone. Claire began to shiver in the cold January air and realized that in her haste to get out, she had left her coat on the front chair… along with her phone on the kitchen counter.

There was no way she could return to that house, even if it was to retrieve her phone. Her dignity would not be squashed another time tonight. Instead, Claire wiped away the few frustrated tears that leaked from her eyes and kept walking, only hoping that Geillis was home.

When her trembling hand rang the doorbell and the red headed woman opened the door, Claire’s bottom lip shook and she collapsed into her open arms.

++++++

“There, that’ll fix ye right up,” the ginger scot said as she handed Claire a full glass of whisky. They had stood on Geillis’ doorstep for five minutes before Claire managed to pull herself together enough to make it to the couch.

“Now,” Geillis took a seat beside her, pulling the fuzzy blanket over her feet. “Will ye tell me what the hell happened tonight?

Taking a long sip for bravery, Claire swallowed deeply letting the liquid burn down her throat. Her right hand fidgeted with a loose thread on the couch and she kept her eyes forward on the roaring fire as she spoke, giving Geillis a play by play of her eventful evening.

“That fucking bastard!” Geillis all but stood up, her face beaming red to match her hair. She set aside her own glass of whisky and gathered Claire into her arms. “I’m sae sorry, lass.”

“I just feel so stupid,” Claire wiped at her nose. “When I think back, I knew there was something off but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I just didn’t want to let myself think he would still be sleeping with me while he had an affair.”

“He’s a damn fool, Claire. I never liked him and ye ken it well. The moment ye introduced us, I felt my wame turn and I got weird vibes,” Geillis rose from the couch and refilled both their glasses.

Claire welcomed the whisky as it warmed her body. It was like a balm to her wounded soul and made her mind fuzzy. She wanted to curl up in a ball under the covers and imagine that this entire night hadn’t happened.

“Ye ken yer welcome to stay here as long as ye need.”

“Thank you,” Claire smiled sadly and then remembered. “I will need a massive favor from you.”

“Of course, I’ll do anythin’ for ye,” Geillis smiled and gave her leg a gentle pat.

“I don’t think I can face going back into that house. Would you be able to collect my things for me tomorrow? I also left my phone on the kitchen counter,” she sighed.

Geillis nodded and pulled out her own phone. “I’ll make a list of everything so I dinna forget.”

“You really are the best friend a girl could ever ask for,” Claire smiled and then felt a new wave of tears come about, but this time they were happy tears of gratitude.

“Och, dinna cry, Claire — ye’ll only make me start,” Geillis pulled her in to another embrace, stroking her unruly mop of curls between her fingers.

“Sorry,” she sniffed again.

“Ye’ve nothin’ to be sorry about, lass. Now… tomorrow I’ll go and get all yer wee things, but I’m afraid tomorrow evenin’ I canna be wi’ ye, that is unless ye wanted to come wi’ me to Broch Mordha.”

“Broch Mordha? What’s up there?” Claire sat up slightly, trying to recall the geography of Scotland.

“Och, tis a small town, but a few friends of mine ken of a local distillery that is launching their new whisky and I promised to go wi’ them to the grand opening.”

“Oh,” Claire thought about her work schedule and realized thankfully that she had the next three days off. “I don’t mind tagging along, that is if it’s alright.”

“Are ye sure?” Geillis asked. “I would prefer if ye did come just so I can keep an eye on ye to make sure ye dinna off yerself.”

“Geillis!” Claire laughed, a welcome sound and hit her friend on the arm. “I’m not there… yet.”

Geillis winked at her and pulled her into another hug, “That’s my lass. Let’s get ye into a nice hot bubble bath and then off to sleep. Tomorrow we’ll deal wi’ whatever comes yer way.”

They both rose from the couch and Claire followed Geillis to the bathroom. For the first time that day, Claire looked in the mirror and didn’t recognize herself. Her riotous brown curls were a frizzy mess around her slim face which was looking haggard. Bags under her red eyes from the crying and puffy cheeks to add — she didn’t feel too hot.

Once the bath was ready, she shed her layers and climbed in slowly, letting her body adjust to the changing temperature. Claire laid her head back against the bath, eyes fixated above her on a black speck on the white ceiling.

“Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ,” she muttered and submerged herself under the water, letting the weight of the world wash away.

Chapter 2 “Strange Whisky Man” 

#the oath #outlander fanfic #mclairefras #claire fraser #jamie will come soon enough #dinna fash #discoveries #FINALLY #chapter one

[a-pretty-nerd]

Blackmail (Patrick Hockstetter x reader x Henry Bowers)

Request: "Hey! I saw you take requests, and it's amazing because I love your writings, and I was wondering if you could write one with Patrick and/or Henry and a very shy and quiet reader, where basically they back into her house (for a bet or something) and find like sexy clothes and decide to tease and blackmail her because of this. I hope you understand what I mean, English is not my first language so I hope I didn't make a mess😂" ~ Anonymous

I love this!✌❤

A/N: Yes! Tits true! My inbox is open! Though I'm a little more picky with what I write than last time, you can ask whatever you want as many times as you want. Know that it means a lot to me that you guys like my writing! The sweet encouraging things you guys drop in my inbox litterally give me life! So please, your requests and feedback keep me goin'! ❤

Warnings: NSFW, blackmail, threeway, sex, rough sex, Pat x Hen stuff, Patrick's pan ass, etc, etc, ETC! LETS ROCK N' ROLL!🤘

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

You stared down at the blue plastic tray that sat before you. Riddled with slop, goo, and what barley passed as a piece of bread. Derry High being a public school, what were you expecting? Every week day at lunch you had to swallow your pride and what the lunch lady called 'pea soup' all alone in the back of the lunch room.

But latley, lunch was getting more and more interesting. And by interesting I mean, down right annoying. This small group of boys that sat a table away from you had started to pay attention to you. You hate attention. You sit in the back of the lunch room, back of the classroom, you spend P.E. class on the benches, you faced being sick one day so you didn't have to present a paper to the class. You have this general, 'I don't exist' vibe, and you like it that way. No one talks to you, no one picks on you, and you would have rather kept it that way.

But those boys had somehow found you an interesting target as of late. You don't know what triggered it, what made them look at you. But they wouldn't stop starring, talking to one another and then cackling like crows before looking back at you. It made you anxious and sweaty when they looked at you. Like they were planning something. Plotting. And today they took action.

It was a particularly hot spring day, and you were forced to wear a shirt that perhaps wasn't as appropriate as you would have liked. For the first time, the girls were out to play in the wild. And the boys took notice. You're not sure who threw the first shot, but suddenly you felt a scratchy little thing fall down your shirt. You looked down, and found a piece if popcorn sitting happily atop your breasts. You barley had time to remove it before another fell in. Farther this time. You hissed and tugged at the bottom of your shirt so it would drop out. The third hit you in the nose, and then you heard them burdt into laughter. You looked up at the four, Reginald Huggins, Victor Criss, Patrick Hockstetter, and an infamous Henry Bowers sat at the table in front of yours. Laughing like maniacs. It made you red in the face. Almost as red as Reggie's who tried his best not to look, but still his large shoulders bounced as he chuckled. Vic's hand shook Reggie as he laughed through the other hand that covered his mouth. Those two trying not to make too much of a scene. The other two however, didn't give a fuck. The lankiest, limbs flying through the air as he cackled himself to the point of falling out of his seat and falling onto the disgusting yellow tile. He made people stare. And Henry just sat tall and let out a harty laugh.

You starred at them for a moment in disbelief. Then came the anxiety attack that tore through your body. Forcing ribbons of tears to fall from your eyes. People were starring at you. All the eyes, all the attention. You bolted out of the room to hide in the bathroom till your next class before you could go home. You walkes home with red eyes and a tight frown you held as the event still played through your brain and gave you the shivers. Never again would you wear that shirt. You were burning it as soon as you got home.

Of course you didn't really burn it. You threw it in the hamper and changed into a baggy T-shirt to match the way you felt. You felt like crawling into bed and hidding away. But the world wouldn't let you. You were shaken by the loud chime of your doorbell. You made your way to the front door with a confused look on your face. You unlocked the door and peeked from the crack you opened to look at the guests on your front porch. Your heart painfully leaped out of your chest and you used all your might to try and close it. But a sturdy hand firmly planted itself, and pushed so you couldnt.

"Aw, c'mon kid. Don't be like that." A naisally voice cooed.

"We just came to apologize for our little...joke at lunch today." Henry pushed the door open further, there was no use in you fighting.

"H-How did you know where I live?" You quivered as Patrick slinked past you and into the entryway.

"Doesn't matter." He muttered.

"Your parents home?"

"No- But you can't- hey- I said-" You tried to argue but they came in anyways.

"Nice place, Y/N." Henry commented as he looked around, as Patrick started to climb the stairs. Wait, your room was up there. He can't see your room. They can't see whats in your room.

"Hey!" You shouted at Patrick who paused. His head slowly turned to look down at you standing there by the now closed front door. "You can't be up there!" You warned him. He looked back down the hallway upstairs, then back at you.

"Why? Whats up here?" His smile reached from ear to pierced ear. Oh shit.

"Nothing, its just, my parent's room is-"

"Oh, but we're not interested in your parents room." Henry chuckled at Patrick's retort before they both made their way there. You managed a few weak words of protest as you rushed to follow them. You started to panic as they made their to your room, and opened the door.

"Lets see, what do we have here?" Henry asked himself as he first made his way to your dresser. Oh no. Oh no no no! You lunged for the dresser but you were too late. "O-hohooo!!" Henry reached in with his fingers and let the pefectly layed out fabric glide across his rough skin.

"Oh shit! I knew it!" Patrick looked into the drawer, both of them grinning like absolute idiots. Your heart raced. "I told you she was a freak!" Patrick nudged Henry as he held up a particularly prized piece of yours. A very lacy, very white and very revealing bra.

"Takes one to know one!" Henry insulted him, but neither truly cared. Too wrapped up in the discovery. You'd have thought they'd found a pirates treasure to way they handled the tiny pieces of fabric. You had a thing for pretty underwear. It was something of a self-esteem bust, even in your social crippled world, like any other it made you feel pretty. It was for you. Even the black one with all the tight straps and the underwear that was practically string. This was your little secret. Was.

"Put this one on!" Patrick demanded with a goofy grin as he turned to you.

"W-What? No!" You denied. It caught Henry's attention.

"I bet she's wearing one right now." He cooed. They turned away from the dresser and started to advance.

"Get away from me!" You shouted as you backed up. You tried to run, but Henry grabbed your arms and held you there.

"We'll make you a deal hot stuff. You give us a little show, and no one has to know about this." They smiled at you with cruel, knowing grins. "And if you don't, and you kick us out. Everyone will know about your dirty little secret. How you dress like a little slut under all that."

"False modesty." Patrick added. Your chest heaved as you thought for a moment. A little too long before Henry's fingers loosened and they began walking past you.

"Have it your way. Guess you better get used to all the new attention at school, slut."

"Wait!" You cried in a panic. They turned back to you with knowing smiles. You swallowed hard. "What...did you want to see?" You said with practically a whisper. They laughed.

"Atta girl." They walked back into the room, and closed your bedroom door behind you. You barley had time to say a word before Patrick reached down and practically threw your clothes off of you. He smiled, pressing his front to your now semi-bare back as he looked down at your underwear. "Look at that. Pink." He chuckled above you. You cowered under him as he practically inspected your form. You felt the pricking of denim on your lower back, above your butt.

"It's alright I guess." Henry shrugged it off. "I want to see her in this." He threw a bright ruby red piece onto your bed. Patrick grunted with approval. You reached for it, and hid in your small walk-in closet to change. When you came out in a basic red bra and panty decorated with lace and hearts, you found the boys patiently sitting on your bed. Their eyes lit up with curiousity, and lust when they saw you. You could have sworn that Henry nearly creamed his pants the way he looked at you. Patrick didn't seem too impressed, though his eyes didn't look away. The adrenaline rush you got from this. It was a little, nice. You started to feel a little, good. And the way they looked at your body, the end all be all of that moment. It made you a little more confident.

"This one." Patrick threw a one piece at you. A complicated piece to put on with straps, and sheer fabric. It was borderline bdsm. It barley covered what it needed to. You stepped out, and found both intriged but not satisfied.

"What? You don't like it?" You asked nervously.

"Why? You want us to like it?" Henry probbed with a cruel grin. You shrugged. The next one, was something you didn't wear very often, simply out of fear that you'd ruin it. The white piece Patrick first layed eyes on but Henry didn't look too excited for. Of course, the restricted bulges in their worn jeans said otherwise. When you opened the door, you watched as Henry shifted uncomfortably in his seat on your bed. All eyes were on you, no one said a word. You couldn't help but smile coyly.

"This ones my favorite." You admitted as you rocked your body from side to side playfully. Finally Patrick smiled and stood.

"Mine too." He cooed, his lithe fingers reaching for some loose fabric and grazing his skin against to feel it. His hot heavy breath crashing into your neck as he loomed over you, getting closer and closer. He inspected your body in the garment with those inquisitive eyes. Henry grew more and more hot headed as Patrick started to touch your bare flesh. Gliding his knuckles against your shoulder, back, belly, thighs, anywhere, teasingly. Egging Henry on to say or do something. "What do you think Henry? I'd like to see the blue one on next-"

"I don't want to see anymore of that shit!" He barked. Patrick just looked at him and smiled. "I want a different show." He told you as he stood and sauntered closer to you. Your cheeks went red.

"Different?" You asked, knowing damn well what he meant but being too damn scared to admit it.

"I want more." He growled as his hand reached out and firmly pressed against your hip.

"Hey, I was here first." Patrick told him, faking jealousy.

"Fuck off." He told him as he leaned in to kiss you. Henry's lips were shockingly soft, and the kiss was surprisingly sweet. Even as it heated up, he was gentle and conservative. He made you moan into his lips. When he pulled away, he latched onto you neck and pulled you close by your hips. Suddenly you felt pressure on your back, and long fingers forced your face up. Patrick kissed you from above and Henry felt you up. Patrick's kisses were more liberal, passionate, and spiced. His touch was more gentle than Henry's were. He was more patient, Henry was needy.

Henry made a fustrated grunt when he couldn’t get your bra off, he sounded almost like an angry child. You went to remove it yours, but Patrick beat you to it. He tossed it to the side and got the first grope. From behind, he reached from underneath and held them tightly. Rubbing in circles as he pinched at your nipples. He chuckled into your neck when you made a soft squeak. Once he let go, Henry took a turn roughly groping and sucking as he pleased. Patrick rubbed his clothed crotch against your as. Grinding up against you, forcing you to likewise grind into Henry. Who's erection was getting painful with excitement.

"I want her first." Henry growled after another needy kiss as he started undressing himself in a hurry. Patrick held your half naked body and rocked you from side to side with affection. You leaned back into him with your eyes closed. Your brain completely fogged over with lust.

"You said we had to take turns?" Patrick chuckled.

"Me, I did." Henry barked at him. "I don't want your dick in my way. This was my idea anyway!" He pulled you away from Patrick, and glared at him as he took you in his arms. He began kissing and loving on you as he took you to your bed. He had you get on the bed and bend over doggy stile. He pulled down your damp panties and he let out a satisfied sigh of approval before he rubbed his tip against you. You heard him shutter as he entered you. Your jaw dropped and your mouth hung open as he began fucking you. The feeling ran over your body in a pleasurable warmth. Patrick took the opportunity. He undressed himself, and was stroking himself as he walked over to the other side of the bed. He ran his fingers through your hair before he pulled your forward so his tip slipped between your lips.

"Good girl." He forced your head to bob up and down on his cock as Henry rammed you from behind. Your eyes practically rolled back inside your head as you sucked Patrick's big cock. You couldn't make it to his base. Suddenly you felt yourself grow weaker, yet stronger? The strange sensation of a building orgasm as you were rocked between two worlds. You let out helpless sounds of pleasure as you were tossed back and forth. You let out an almost angry and fustrated grunt when Henry came before you. Having tired himself out, he passed out on your bed beside you. Leaving you unsatisfied. "That bastard." Patrick grunted, pulling his cock out of your mouth and walking around the bed. You gasped as you felt him enter you. "I'll give you what you need, baby." He held onto your hips and began thrusting. Deeper, harder, and you were already so close, it kept building.

"F-Fuuuuuuck" you moaned as you gripped onto your bed sheets.

"Haha thats it. Cum for me Y/N." He called to you as he fucked you, relentlessly. He had you practically screaming as you came around his cock. He let out a surprised huff as you shook under him. He came a few good thrusts after you. He panted over you as his hands let go of your hips, where he left small marks from holding onto you so hard. You panted with him, laying on your bed and taking a moment of rest. When you opened your eyes and looked up at Patrick, he was starring down at the passed out Henry. Patrick looked up at you and licked his lips before he reached over. He fondled Henry as he layed there.

"What are you doing?" You asked him.

"He may cum fast, but the fucker can reload quick." You muffled a laugh, covering your mouth. You watched Henry as his head shifted and his face scrunched up. When Henry was completely up again, Patrick looked at you. "Watch this." He knelt down by the bed and began licking Henry's cock.

"Mmmhh" he moaned with his eyes still closed, still in a passed out daze. Patrick continued, to the point where he was sucking him completely. Taking him entirely. "Mmmhhh Y/N." Henry moaned your name. You stiffled another laugh as you watched them. Until Henry let a struggled grunt, and a few daze hip thrusts later. Henry came into Patrick's mouth. Once sure he was done, he pulled himself up. Keeping his mouth closed as he crawled onto the bed with you. Henry's eyes fluttered open just in time to watch you. Patrick reached out and grabbed the back of your neck to pull you to a kiss. The residue of Henry's orgasm on Patrick's tongue going to you. You kissed Patrick back in the moment as he held you close to him.

From then on, you had new friends at school. The Bowers Gang were well acquainted with you, and shockingly they kept your little secret that turned dirty.

#the bowers gang x reader #henry bowers x reader smut #bowers gang smut #henry bowers x reader #henry bowers smut #henry bowers #patrick hockstetter smut #patrick hockstetter #patrick hockstetter x reader smut #patrick hockstetter x reader #henry bowers x pregnant reader

[okimargarvez]

THE PUNISHER -3

Original title: The punisher.

Prompt: mental and physical torture, guilt, contrast love, dark drama, punishment.

Warnings: Luke OOC, sexual content.

Genre: romantic, smut, comedy, angst, drama, friendship.

Characters: Penelope Garcia, Luke Alvez, BAU team, Roxy.

Pairing: Garvez.

Note: oneshot.

Legend: 💏😘😈👓🔦🐶❗👻.

Song mentioned: none.

The Punisher- Masterlist

GARVEZ STORIES

Note: this story stems from the vision of the program “Monster in my family”. I repeat: Luke is OOC, especially in the last parts of this story. If you don’t want to read, don’t do it.    

Part 3

-Did you like the Little Red Riding Hood fable?- that tone again. Penelope immediately understood where he wanted to go. –

Which was your favorite story, as a child?- he really wanted to know, but he wouldn't limit himself to acquiring this information and putting it in his memory.

Alice in Wonderland.

He had to expect it. The little girl who fell asleep and dreamed of a fantasy world. And they had also recently made the film version in HD. He had liked her choice.

-Caterpillars who smoke, mushrooms that change size, queens who want to cut off heads...- he had run his tongue from the neck to the hollow of the breast. -White Rabbit or Mad Hatter?- the decision seemed too easy.

 She hadn't thought about it again. The weeks had passed so quickly... indeed, a whole month had passed. In the end she had twisted her ankle and also weakened her other leg: the result, crutches for a while. More embarrassing explanations to their colleagues. They had decided not to tell them anything for now. In fact, Luke had actually decided. But she had agreed. No one had noticed the fact that Agent Alvez was absent much more frequently from his desk, just to appear only a few yards away, watched by a thousand computer eyes... or that when they were out on a mission, he spent every free minute texting, with a sly look. And even if they had noticed, they hadn't wanted to intrude.

Penelope surrendered also on the transfer. Piece by piece, in a few days there was nothing left in her old apartment. And he had been right once again. Their things matched perfectly, almost as if they had been bought together, on purpose. Those of Luke gave that touch of tranquility and practicality that was missing from those of Penelope... and vice versa. Roxy had been even happier than her master. There had been so many lunches and dinners, and hell, he cooked divinely. Another plus point. The man of a thousand surprises. And there were plenty of walks.

And the kisses, the caresses. They made love every day, at least once a day. She thought she was too old for this kind of things, but he made her want to sing Katy Perry's Teenage Dream. Because it was true. It made her feel young, desirable and... loved. She still hadn't managed to tell him what she felt, but she felt she was very close to it...

 She hadn't thought about it again until today.

Penelope opens the door (he obviously gave her a copy of the keys, cause now this house is also hers, and how to not think about the sweet key ring he had attached to it?) And she enters. Luke is not there. He's coming back from the last case, just solved. A man who took advantage of his position to kidnap and kill young women. Nothing new, yet never predictable. Roxy runs to meet and to show her love. This is also a positive side of not being single anymore. She looks at the ring on her finger. It's a simple thing. Completely different from all the others, yet no one paid any attention to it.

She smiles and goes to the bedroom. She wants to make herself beautiful for him, because she knows what effect abstinence makes to him and she misses him too much. As soon as she enters she notice something strange. A package on the bed. For my chica, says the ticket. The smile becomes even bigger and more mischievous. But how did he do it, if he is miles from here to... She opens it. Inside there is a costume, like those used to make cosplay. From Alice in Wonderland. Blue and white dress, exactly like that of the Disney version... and then... Oh God. Even the matching shoes. And the long stockings well past the knees. And the black headband. She doesn’t resist, she wears it. It is no longer she who decides, it is an impulse that is transmitted directly from the dress into her body. The heels are much more vertiginous than the originals, and also for the rest... it makes her breast stand out very much (as if it were needed) and it almost seems like she has a narrow waist.

-Better still than I thought.- she literally leaps into the air. The heart beats very fast, even though she has recognized the voice. Luke emerges from behind the curtains. But wait... he's dressed as a Mad Hatter! And above all that hat, how he is looking good with it... For the rest, she would laugh. If she weren't bursting her chest.

-But... but... you weren't... and how did you... oh, Alvez, I give up!- he laughs shamelessly of all her mumbles. He approaches slowly.

-I took a flight earlier, as soon as the case was closed. I said it was an emergency...- he looks down -... and it's not really a lie.- she feels his excitement pushing. -Do you like it, Alice?- she feels a bit ridiculous, but just to be with him... she nods.

-But I don't understand what it's for. Ok, my tits are about to explode, but I don't think...- he pulls a cord that is under her armpit, which she hadn't even noticed and... two small windows appear, exactly in the middle, one for each breast, which leave only free the tips, while the rest of the chest remains forced into the bodice. She opens her mouth in shock. -But where do you find them, things like this?- an answer is not necessary, just his mischievous look. -Were you going to look for it at night?- but it's a stupid question, because at those times he's busy with other activities, and she knows it perfectly...

-Let go, and I will take you to a land even more extraordinary than that of wonders...- does she need another kind of encouragement? Her eyes close in the same instant that she feels his tongue, his hands, his hair tickle her, as he continues to tease her and then he slips his hands under her skirt and then... then she completely loses control and then, lying down on the mattress to catch her breath, she is no longer able to say what happened. Luke does this effect on her.

But it's not just good sex. It's another thing to wake up and have someone next to you who snores or gets up perpetually with a fixed thought. Go for a walk in the park holding hands. Ruin all the film endings, after years of watching them with Derek and having learned the various dynamics, by now. Receive visits in her bunker. Flirting in the elevator. Doing disasters trying to cook for him. All small and trivial things. No candlelit dinners or rose petal paths. The best of the best is to go grocery shopping. Although she is often lost to look in the cart space where the bag rests, but where many others hold something much more precious...

 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 -Stomach ache? Did I do something wrong?- his worried tone brings her back to earth. She realizes that her stomach is tightening, but the reason is very different from what Luke thinks. And she is certainly not able to tell him about it. She tries, opens her mouth, but the words don't want to go out. She shakes her head to let him know that it's not his fault. But then, who knows how, he comes to understand everything. This month they had practically told each other their lives, their thoughts and he knew a great deal about her. -Are you happy to be Henry and Hank's godmother?- the woman nods. -You... never wanted... your children, Penelope?- it's not a normal thing. How can he read my mind so easily? No one has ever succeeded before. Not even Morgan. It makes me feel so... discovery. For me, love must be like this. It need not be necessary for one to ask for something, the other has to intuit it automatically... without reason. But what did I think? Love. Love. And I can't even say something nice to him. He only repeats to me how beautiful, attractive, intelligent, sexy, witty I'm... and the best I can do is to compliment him on the job.

-Yes.- she finally whispers after those that seem centuries. She looks down, because she knows she will cry. She will cry for all the babies that never born and who will never come to light. He caresses her cheeks and then gently lifts her chin.

-It's not too late.- But this time Luke is wrong. The biological clock has run its course. Already many years before. She thought Luke had understood, since she had never asked him to wear protection and she didn't take the pill. -The first time I saw you interact with Spencer, I thought you had to be a wonderful mother. Maternal. The first adjective that came to mind looking at you. You are made to have a your baby.- it's all too pressing. The sweetness and at the same time the strength of his words; the way he touches her; that pain that has always been too string to hunt in the depths of her soul. And now everything comes up again, like a punch to the gut.

-When... when I saw you with Roxy, the first time, you seemed like a...- she can't find a suitable adjective -...you behaved with her as if she were your child...- Luke smiles.

-She is. But the idea of some brat who runs around the house, with Roxy isn't bad either.- it's really more than she can handle.

-You want... you want a...- he doesn't let her finish.

-Yup. Here we go again, it's premature, we've been together for a month... but let's face it, we're no longer very young, and like I told you, I don't want to waste what's left. I never thought about being a father until I met you. I've never had the right woman with whom to think about the future...- she falters, then he puts her closer. -In reality it was after that case, what JJ and I risked burning... not being able to save that baby marked me. But I also thought about how many creatures are without parents, whether they are in the "system" and how many potential future serial killers are just waiting to be trained... when it would be enough for them to find a home that welcomes them with love. And you are love. We are love.- at first she could have doubts, fears and uncertainties. How normal it would have been for anyone else in her situation. But now Penelope believes in him blindly. Her biggest dream is coming true. Too little time has passed, but maybe just too much.

-Luke... I... love you.-

While they visit websites that explain how adoption works, she doesn't notice at all that the man's smile is strange. A grimace that at a superficial glance would seem only a symptom of contentment and instead is pure enjoyment and satisfaction. Like when a long-established goal has been achieved.

 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

TAGS: @arses21434 @kathy5654 @martinab26 @reidskitty13 @jenf42 @gracieeelizabeth27 @silviajajaja @smalliemichelle99 @charchampagne14 @thinitta   @myhollyhanna23 @garvezz @mercedes-maldonado  @shyladystudentfan @cosmicmelaninflower @avengerquake123vanuusims  @inlovewithgarvaz @the-ellen-stuff

#garvez #criminal minds #cm #penelope garcia #luke alvez #penelope x luke #luke x penelope #garcia x alvez #alvez x garcia #luke ooc #dark theme

[schmergo]

How do you think Richard III's disability affects his character and choices throughout the play? I'm talking about the literary Richard (not the historical real deal) and your own personal interpretation of him, not necessarily what Shakespeare's authorial intent was.

This is actually a really good question because my personal interpretation when I directed the play (and wrote my book-length piece on it) was more influenced by history than the actual text itself and was more about the idea of ‘invisible disability.’ I’ll get more into that in a second.

But in the play itself, Richard keeps sort of ‘blaming’ his personality and his poor choices on his unpleasant appearance– he basically says that he thrives in wartime but that during times of peace when people are more concerned with love and personal relationships than politics, he is left out because his appearance keeps him from attracting/pleasing women. Even AFTER he wins over Lady Anne, he basically gloats that he tricked her into agreeing to marry him despite his obvious physical inadequacies. His deformities clearly give him a horrible self-image,which causes him to crave the highest honor and admiration in the country, but I feel like he chiefly uses it as an excuse.

His mother also expresses that she sees him as a ‘cracked’ image of her husband, while her other two sons were reflections of him– it’s clear his mother is less proud of him than the others, though this is mainly because he’s such a nasty dude. By contrast, in Henry VI part 3, his father was very proud of him for his achievements in war (”Richard hath deserved best of all of my sons”) and his brothers seemed to love him. None of them ever mentioned his deformities. It was only his enemies and Richard himself who brought up his physical shortcomings.

The funny thing is, in the play itself, Richard’s disabilities do nothing to prevent him from being an extremely skillful warrior. In the original text, his disability is all about appearance and doesn’t seem to hold him back in what he can do.

Now, as you probably know, the historical Richard had severe scoliosis, but it would not have been noticeable beneath his clothes unless you were specifically looking for it. When I directed the play, I wanted to use that historical information to portray the character for a few reasons– the first because the discovery had been so recent and it was still a bit of a novelty. The second was because I feel like many stage productions of Richard III do a kind of ‘disability drag,’ where a performance of Richard is partially judged by how elaborately the disabilities are portrayed with prosthetics, mobility aids, physical contortions, makeup, etc. I feel like that’s…. a trend that should stay in the past.

The third reason is that while I was planning on directing Richard III, I experienced a very eventful experience with chronic pain! I have a mild connective tissue disorder that suddenly flared up pretty bad earlier that year (I’m doing much better now!) I thought about Richard, who is an extremely tenacious dude who constantly pushes himself to the limit, experiencing nonstop lower back pain from his scoliosis, how his pain would affect his sleep, influence him to abuse substances (because he’s way too stubborn to curtain his lifestyle, and surgery and physical therapy and stuff didn’t exist back then), and warp his already unpleasant personality into EXTREMELY irritable and impatient. I saw the negative ways that pain impact my decision-making and patience and applied that to his characterization in the show. It was a really personal project for me, and oddly therapeutic. I feel like Richard always had a lot to prove and was afraid of showing any weakness for fear of it being used against him.

There were a few scenes in the play where we showed Richard’s pain coming through, although he hid it most of the time when interacting with other characters. When he had to get up out of a chair after sitting for a long time, we had him play it slowly and wincing. We cast an actor who is naturally fidgety in his mannerisms, but encouraged him to play it up– he constantly moved around and shifted himself in his seat a lot. There was a bit where the little prince jumped on his back and Richard collapsed on the ground in intense pain and had to be helped up. When he knelt at his coronation, he also got slightly ‘stuck’ for a second before getting up. And most eventfully, we used a bit of history during the ‘a horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse’ bit. In real life, Richard would have been a capable warrior on horseback, but he couldn’t fight for very long on foot because his asymmetrical ribcage didn’t let his lungs expand fully, so he got short of breath. When Richard was unhorsed, he began to tire out quickly. We had Henry Tudor, who knew he was a less experienced warrior, deliberately zig-zag about a bit, leading Richard on a chase until he got out of breath, and then slashed him in the leg. When Richard fell down, he had trouble getting up and Tudor stabbed him fatally.

#Richard iii #shakespeare #literature #theatre

[tomeandflickcorner]

OUAT Episode Analysis- Is this Henry Mills?

Woo boy, this episode.  This one was…something else.  While I don’t condone drinking irresponsibly, I really think episodes like this are the reason why alcohol was invented.

We pretty much pick up where the last episode left off, with Lucy finding out her parents’ kiss didn’t trigger a curse-breaking True Love’s Kiss.  She immediately runs off to tell Regina about this.  Regina is initially shocked that there was an attempt to break the curse on account of Henry’s poisoning, so Lucy has to fill her in on how Facilier was able to cure Henry’s poisoning through a combination of voodoo magic and the Glass Slipper.  Unfortunately, this is when Gothel pops up in order to be her usual nasty self.  She informs the pair that the reason why Henry and Jacinda/Parallel Ella’s kiss didn’t break the curse is because Henry no longer believes in fairy tales and happy endings.  Which is a really strange obstacle for them to come up with.  Especially since the last episode clearly showed that Henry was very open to the possibility that the curse was real and Lucy was his daughter.  Now you’re telling me that the Truest Believer no longer believes?  Apparently so, because Gothel states that the belief of an adult is less potent than the belief of a child, and Adult Henry has experienced too much pain in his life to believe as strongly as he did in his youth. (Yeah, as if Young Henry had never experienced more than his fair share of emotional pain and loss.)  Once she’s done gloating, she turns to leave, but not before informing Regina of the ritual that is being performed at this very moment- the one that will wipe all of humanity off the face of the Earth once and for all.  She offers Regina a place among her and the other witches in the Coven of Eight, since Regina had been the one who had been blackmailed into helping cast the new Dark Curse.  Regina, however, refuses.  Instead, she decides to help Lucy in getting Henry reacquainted with his belief again.

As such, Regina and Lucy spend most of the episode trying to restore Henry’s belief by reawakening his true memories.  Their first attempt involves Regina trying to brew up a new wake-up potion.  As she starts to work on this potion, Rumpelstiltskin slinks in, apparently with his tail between his legs.  Naturally, Regina is not at all pleased to see him, as she hasn’t forgiven him for stealing the vial of Anastasia’s magic from her and essentially wasting it.  But Rumpelstiltskin states he’s here with a peace offering.  Taking advantage of the fact that people in Hyperion Heights still think he’s Detective Weaver, he obtained a sample of Parallel Hansel’s blood from the city morgue and managed to extract trace amounts of the memory potion Facilier had used to wake Parallel Hansel up.  Regina, pretty rightfully so, questions Rumpelstiltskin over why he’s willing to help out now, considering he’d knowingly chosen his dagger over Henry’s life the day before.  In response to that, Rumpelstiltskin states that he never meant to hurt Henry, and he’s starting to accept the fact that he might never be able to join Belle in the afterlife, so he might as well try and help the only family he has left.  To be honest, I find that explanation a bit eye-rolling.  First off all, it doesn’t really matter if he hadn’t meant to harm Henry and endanger the possibly of him being cured of the poison.  Because that’s exactly what he did.  It’s a bit like someone causing a car crash that ended up killing someone.  You might not have meant for someone to die, but they did regardless.  As for the bit about him rejoining Belle?  I’m sorry, but did anyone really believe it was even possible for Rumpelstiltskin to get into whatever this show calls Heaven at this point?  Even his attempts at behaving himself this season was simply him trying to earn some brownie points.  It wasn’t done because he simply wanted to do the right thing.  He was only in it for the reward.  At the same time, I guess this could be interpreted as an indication that he’s finally gotten the point and is actually making a genuine effort at making amends for his past actions.  But given this man’s track record, I’m going to need to see if he can keep this new attitude up for an extended period of time before I actually believe he won’t eventually go back to his old ways of only caring about himself.

However, when Regina stops by Henry’s apartment and tries to spike his drink with her new wake-up potion, nothing happens.  Henry is still convinced he’s an ordinary Uber driver, planning to treat Jacinda and Lucy to a mini vacation on Bainbridge Island, that island Jacinda tried to run away to back in 7x01.  Regina is shocked that the potion didn’t work, but she doesn’t give up, trying to encourage him to believe, reminding him of how much he wanted to believe just the day before.  She does so by calling attention to the whole murder wall he’d put together, as well as pointing out the discovery of the Glass Slipper.  But Henry basically rolls his eyes, stating that he’s decided to stop trying to pretend to be something he’s not and just accept reality, etc.

Going back to the drawing board, Regina and Lucy once again put their heads together on trying to come up with a way to convince Henry of the truth and help him wake up.  And you know, I have to admit I’m a bit amused by the irony of this whole situation.  Back in S1, Regina was the one going out of her way to discourage Henry from believing in the curse and preventing it from being broken.  Now here she is, doing the exact opposite.  How times have changed.  Anyway, her and Lucy’s brainstorming session leads to Regina remembering how Emma’s memories returned at the end of S1 when she touched the original Storybook.  They theorize that if Henry also touches the Storybook, his memories will also return.   The problem is, Lucy has no idea what Steppunzel did with it when she died.  Regina, however, has an idea.  She recalls her vault back in the Storybrooke Cemetery and how she kept most of her secrets hidden there.  Regina suspects that Steppunzel had arranged for the original Storybook to be buried with her.  Her suspicions turn out to be well-founded, but…. basically, this means that Regina went grave digging in broad daylight, and nobody saw her and tried to interfere. Sure, Gothel’s ritual was causing a pretty nasty rainstorm that might have been making the civilians want to stay inside, but there must have been people driving to work, the movies, the store etc.  You’re telling me nobody noticed a random woman digging up a grave in the pouring rain?

Regardless, Regina is able to recover the original Storybook, and Lucy manages to get Henry to come to the bar so they can get him to touch the book.  But Henry still isn’t swayed by the sight of the Storybook.  And when he decides to humor Regina and Lucy by touching the book, nothing happens.  Thus crushes Lucy and she runs off in tears.  In desperation, Regina once again shows Henry the photograph of her with Little Boy Henry, also telling him about the adoption papers she tracked down that stated a Regina Mills adopted a boy named Henry Mills.  However, that still isn’t enough to convince Henry, and he challenges Regina by asking her where Snow, Charming and Emma are if the stories in the Storybook are true.  

And this is when Regina finally gives us the in-show explanation for the absence of the original Nevengers throughout this season.  Turns out, when Gothel cast the new Dark Curse, it didn’t just send them all into Hyperion Heights.  It also sent them back in time.

Yeah, throughout this episode, we’d been seeing a sequence with Young Henry, at key moments during his senior year of high school.  Turns out he’d been questioning his place in the world during that entire year. Regina had been expecting him to attend college in Storybrooke (because Storybrooke has a college now), but Young Henry isn’t exactly on board with that.  His issue is that he’s the only kid in town  who wasn’t born in the Enchanted Forest, and that Storybrooke was the only home he’s ever known (apart from the time he lived in New York during the Lost Year, which they don’t acknowledge).  As such, he’d like the chance to stretch his wings a bit and ends up applying to multiple colleges outside of the town.  Regina initially seems to be hesitant in regards to the possibility that Henry might choose to leave Storybrooke to attend college, but she eventually comes around, stating that she knows she’ll have to one day let Henry go.  (Isn’t that the same lesson Regina ends up dealing with in 7x06?  Then again, this IS Regina we’re talking about here.  She does have a history of needing to learn the same lesson more than once before it sinks in.)

Somehow, despite the fact that he’s skipped school countless times during the course of six seasons, Young Henry gets acceptance letters from all the out-of-town colleges he applied to. Something that greatly pleases Regina. (On a side note, one might think that Emma should have been involved in the discussion of Henry’s college selection, but at the same time, I realize the reason why they couldn’t show her participation in all of this.)  However, Young Henry is still not satisfied.  Because he’s realized that his adventures in Neverland, Camelot, Isaac’s AU World, etc. will set him apart from everyone else at those other colleges. He can hardly tell anyone about all of that, so now he feels that attending a college outside of Storybrooke would mean he’d have to spend his college years pretending to be someone he’s not.  So now, Young Henry has no idea what he’s supposed to do.  And Regina admits she can’t give him any answers, as only he could decide what to do.

And basically, that whole sequence of Young Henry trying to figure out what path he’s going to take once he’s done with his senior year of high school and the events of this season…. has been happening at the same exact time.  Okay.  Hey, remember the Wizard of Oz arc?  When they made it abundantly clear that time travel was considered to be completely impossible, and how extraordinary it was that Zelena was attempting to attempt it? And the only reason why her spell ended up working was mostly because Zelena was a magical protégé that managed to be the only one who figured out the secret?  Well, apparently, that’s a walk in the park now.  While I suppose the same could be said about realm-jumping and magic beans, I do have to point out that it was implied that Anton did manage to somewhat salvage his bean field after it was destroyed at the end of S2.  Considering how he and Ruby managed to produce a magic bean during the Wizard of Oz arc, that is.  And Emma also mentioned him in a deleted scene during the Frozen arc.  So it’s probably safe to say the bean field was at least partially viable.  And there’s the matter that Killian Prime managed to obtain a bean in the S6 finale and never got the chance to use it.  Perhaps they ended up planting that bean to produce more fertile bean plants.  So it’s entirely possible that Storybrooke has a healthy supply of magic beans stored up by now.  This, on the other hand?  How is time travel so easy to achieve now?  Are we simply supposed to chalk this up to the fact that this new time-traveling Dark Curse combo came from Parallel Enchanted Forest, and how it’s basically a ‘new world, new rules’ sort of deal?

What really puzzles me is what’s supposed to happen when this curse breaks and everyone can go home  If all of this is actually happening before Young Henry even left on his soul-searching quest,  Adult Henry and his new family can’t exactly just stroll into town after his younger self leaves.  If he did that, then Emma, Killian Prime and Regina would therefore already know what was going to happen during this particular season.  Meaning Killian Prime would have known that Wish Killian was going to try to take his place when he and Regina answered Adult Henry’s SOS.  Not to mention how Regina should have already known that Drizella would misuse the magical lessons she taught her, and how the Coven of Eight would poison Henry to force her to help cast the new Dark Curse.  So therefore, when this whole thing is done, Adult Henry and company would have to travel forward in time before returning to Storybrooke and reuniting with the rest of the family.  Seeing them trying to work their way around this one should be interesting.

Anyway, despite Regina’s best attempts, Henry still refuses to believe.  She ends up theorizing that it’s because he subconsciously blames himself for not being able to protect Parallel Ella and Lucy in the Parallel Enchanted Forest.  All this time, Regina had thought that the pain Henry was feeling over not being able to save his family had been because the curse had implanted false memories into his head, which has led him to believe his wife and daughter were killed in a fire.  But now, Regina realizes the pain Henry had been feeling from that was real, and a residue of the pain Henry felt from not being able to save Parallel Ella and Lucy from the curse.  She once again begs Henry to see that his real family is right in front of him. But to no avail, as Henry won’t accept what Regina is telling him.

A short time later, Henry, despite the fact that she had a considerable amount of a head start, manages to reach Jacinda and Sabine’s place at the same time as Lucy did.  Lucy angrily starts shouting at Henry, stating that he just doesn’t want to believe, and that she wishes he hadn’t grown up, because his insistence at being an adult is preventing him from believing. The exasperated Henry then notices that Regina had slipped the adoption papers into his bag without his knowledge. Initially, he rolls his eyes a bit, but then I guess he decides that it wouldn’t hurt to try and call the phone number listed on the adoption papers.

To his utter shock, when he dials the number, the person that answers the phone is himself, at age 18.  The moment he hears Young Henry’s voice, BAM! All of Adult Henry’s memories come flooding back to him in a flash, resulting in him remembering everything. Well, this is one bizarre way for someone’s memory to get jogged, but apparently, even with his cursed memories, Adult Henry had remembered this phone call his younger self had received before heading off to his high school graduation party.  Because that’s what day it is back in Storybrooke- the day of Young Henry’s graduation party.

Adult Henry is still mystified by this conversation he’s having with his younger self.  But because he remembers how the conversation went on Young Henry’s end, he ends up giving his younger self the same advice he got back then. About how home isn’t about a place, but the people who are in it.  He then tells Young Henry to not overlook the small graduation present that fell behind his dresser.  That present turns out to be a magic bean.  I didn’t quite catch the name on the gift tag, but I THINK it said it was from Anton/Tiny.  Which would make sense, given the contents of the present

So, it turns out that Young Henry got the idea to go on this whole soul-searching quest from his older self. That’s something else.  But in any event, Adult Henty now remembers everything. And when Lucy emerges from her room again, Henry enthusiastically embraces her, finally recognizing her as his daughter.  But before he could properly explain things to Lucy, Henry decides to head back out to find Regina, as he now remembers she’s his adoptive mother.  By the time he locates her, however, she’s already gotten into a brawl with Gothel.  And because the curse hasn’t been broken yet, Regina can only defend herself against Gothel’s magic with a broken stick.  As such, she pretty much get her butt kicked and ends up getting knocked out.  Long story short, Henry ends up breaking the curse with a Regal Believer TLK.  Which I admittedly find a bit eyerolling, but at the same time, I guess it kinda makes sense. After all, Regina cast this new Dark Curse to try and save Henry’s life from the poison, so it’s a logical conclusion to have it be a Regal Believer TLK that breaks the curse.

Meanwhile, in Subplot B, Tilly has joined the other witches in casting the spell that will permanently wipe out mankind.  And because Rogers is tied up, he can only watch.  Right away, we see that this spell is actually draining the witches of their energy, and when their strength has been completely drained, they will intently transform into tree saplings.   So, does this mean that this spell to destroy the human race is actually killing the witches?  Doesn’t this kinda defeat the purpose of what they’re doing?  Last episode stated that they’re trying to commit genocide of the humans so the Land Without Magic will be restored to its original magical state. The way it was before the Mean Girls and their pals massacred the Tree Nymphs.  But if the spell that will accomplish that task will only end up killing them, why even bother, since their deaths will mean there would be nobody left to enjoy the newly restored magical realm?

Confusing motivations aside, Rogers soon manages to break free of his bonds, no doubt subconsciously tapping into the skills he obtained as Wish Killian by temporally removing his prosthetic hand. I did appreciate that part, as it’s the first time we really were able to get a good look at Roger’s modern-day prosthetic appendage.  The moment he’s free, Rogers tries to get to Tilly and get her to stop.  But it turns out that, the moment the ritual began, Tilly fell into some kind of hive-mentality trance and Rogers is therefore unable to get through to her. When Rogers tries to pull her away from the ritualistic circle, he instantly recoils in pain, as a result of the curse upon his heart re-activating in the presence of magic. Unsure of what’s going on, and realizing he might need some help in snapping Tilly out of it, Rogers hurries off to gather some reinforcements.

He ends up approaching Rumpelstiltskin on the matter.  Who finally levels with the man about how magic is real and he’s actually cursed into believing he’s somebody else.  After everything he’s seen, Rogers admits he has to believe what he’s being told.  So he asks for Rumpelstiltskin’s help in saving Tilly.  The two men end up approaching Margot, telling her that Tilly is having one of her bad days and might need Margot to help her get through it. Margot readily agrees to help when she learns Tilly is in trouble.  The three of them travel down to the bowels of the theater, where they find that only Tilly and three other witches have yet to change into tree saplings. Meaning the ritual is almost complete. Margot is a bit taken aback by what she sees, especially when the three remaining witches also transform into tree saplings before her eyes.  But she manages to keep her head in the game, focusing on Tilly and the need to help her. Unfortunately, Tilly is too wired into the hive-mind trance by this point, and not even Margot’s words can get through to her, and she magically throws Margot back before shrinking her, Rogers and Rumpelstiltskin down, thereby preventing them from doing anything to help her snap out of her trance.

But this is when the Regal Believer TLK occurs.  And with her memories restored, Alice is able to come to her senses, leading to a rather sweet Curious Archer reunion, and for Wish Killian to recognize Rumpelstiltskin. Across, town, Parallel Ella and Tiana also wake up, and immediately confront Facilier.  There was a subplot when Sabine started to worry about Drew/Naveen, who still hadn’t shown up for work.  When they found a tarot card in a backpack Drew/Naveen left in the back of Sabine’s truck, which Lucy identified as belonging to Mr. Samdi/Facilier, they went to confront him, only to find that Facilier had somehow managed to get Naveen out of police custody and was holding him prisoner in his broom closet. And when Jacinda and Sabine showed up to confront him, Facilier manages to force the two women into the broom closet with Naveen by using a voodoo doll to incapacitate Sabine.  When the curse breaks and everyone wakes up, Parallel Ella and Tiana immediately try to face off against the witch doctor.  But he teleports away before they can apprehend him. And while Tiana reunites with Naveen, apologizing for taking so long to save him from Facilier, Parallel Ella hurries off to locate her family.

However, there’s still the matter of Gothel, who is not going down without a fight.  And she’s quick to point out that, even with Regina’s magic being restored, it’s not enough to stop her.  That’s when Rumpelstiltskin, Wish Killian, Alice and Robyn arrive on the scene, with Rumpelstiltskin pointing out that Alice’s magic might be enough to take Gothel down.  Alice, on the other hand, has her doubts that she’s strong enough to defeat Gothel. But Wish Killian encourages his daughter, telling her that she’s twice as strong as Gothel.  To further boost her confidence, he braves the pain of the curse upon his heart to stand at her side, grasping her hand.  Interesting that he’s not getting thrown backward by this contact, but I guess the bit about magic working differently in the Land Without Magic still holds up.  And instead of being propelled backwards, Wish Killian simply feels intense pain from being near Alice.  While Robyn isn’t marked by the same curse that’s causing Wish Killian harm, she likewise voices her belief in the strength of Alice’s magic, stating that she’s right there with her, too.

This display of solidarity apparently is enough to rattle Gothel’s confidence, for she starts to resort to her tactic of telling Alice that her allegiance should be to her mother.  But Alice once again states that she doesn’t consider Gothel to be her mother, and that she’ll never be like her.  Because she won’t let herself be ruined the way Gothel was, and will choose love instead of hate.  With those words, the two fire off magical blasts at one another, with Alice ultimately coming out on top.  As such, Gothel gets magically transformed into a tree.  Which effectively kills her for good.  For an idea of how I was reacting to this moment, check out Phelan Porteous’ review of House of Wax and fast-forward to the reaction montage to Paris Hilton’s character dying, starting at the 12:05 mark.

So Gothel is finally dead. (Hallelujah).  And with a voice-over from Young Henry talking about hope, home, family and so on playing over the scene, we watch Adult Henry properly reuniting with Parallel Ella and Lucy.  While in the background, Alice and Robyn watch in silence as Wish Killian is tended to by a team of medics.  Because him standing near Alice for so long agitated his cursed heart to the point when he needed medical attention 

As for Rumpelstiltskin, he slips away to revisit the evidence room he maintained during his time as Detective Weaver. It turns out he’s going there to revisit the scrapbook Belle had put together during their globe-trotting adventure that was briefly depicted back in 7x04.  He was going to try and take a moment to apologize to her because he’d given up on the hope that he’d earn enough brownie points to be allowed to reunite with her in the afterlife.  But when he opens the safe to take out the scrapbook, he finds it’s missing.  Right away, he realizes that it was taken by Facilier.  So he goes off to confront the witch doctor.  But it turns out, I guess, that Rumpelstiltskin’s magic just isn’t what it used to be, because his attempt at placing Facilier into a Force Choke Hold lacks its usual potency.  Or something like that.

But then, with no warning whatsoever, Facilier falls over dead. And guess who killed him.  Wish Rumpelstiltskin.  That’s right, everyone.  We’re now dealing with both Rumpelstiltskin Prime and Wish Rumpelstiltskin. At the same time.

Okay.  So…. that just happened.  And it looks like Wish Rumpelstiltskin will be the final Big Bad of the series.  Where do I begin?  Now, while I am hoping that this means that Regina will finally have to fully acknowledge the fact that she killed real people when she murdered Wish Snowing and therefore left Wish Henry completely alone, I am really peeved that they’re making Wish Rumpelstiltskin the final Big Bad. This is a complete and total rehash of that whole Split-Queen story arc they forced down our throats in S6.  Back then, they decided to go the whole Jekyll and Hyde route with Regina because they felt the best way for Regina to fully ‘redeem’ herself was by giving her an evil twin and pinning all the bad things Regina ever did on her ‘evil side,’ as if the Evil Queen was a completely separate entity. Now, they’re doing the same crap with Rumpelstiltskin.  Because it’s really looking as if they’re going to have him achieve full redemption status by defeating an alternate version of himself.  Sometimes, I’m really astounded that these are the same people who wrote Killian’s Prime redemption arc.  Because Killian Prime was the only core villain in this show who actually had to work to redeem himself and earn forgiveness from himself and others.  But with Regina and Rumpelstiltskin?  Nope, we’ll just have them fight and defeat an ‘evil twin’ version of themselves, and then they’ll be in the clear.   It’s really frustrating.  Especially when you remember both Regina and Rumpelstiltskin were the ones that were constantly flip-flopping back and forth between hero and villain.  The narrative had them saying they were redeemed, but they just kept on doing the same crap they always did.  As if the writers couldn’t make up their minds over whether they wanted these two characters to be full-on Ultimate Big Bad or a redeemed hero.  And it appears that, in both cases, they just gave up and decided to just do both, with a ‘good’ version of the character fighting an ‘evil’ version of the character.  Therefore allowing the writers to have their cake and eat it, too.  I don’t think I’ve ever been this disappointed in the writing for this show than I have at this moment.

Look, I get that Gothel was defeated in this episode.  And they needed to come up with something to do with the remaining two episodes.  And it would probably have been a bit boring to have two episodes focused solely on aftermath stuff. But they could have dedicated the next episode with them working on a way to cure Wish Killian’s cursed heart and allowing him and Alice to properly be together at last.  Also, hello, there was still the matter of Facilier.  I don’t think they ever really explained what his motivation was, or what he was even doing.  Like why he was after the Dark One’s dagger in the first place.  Or why he was trying to force Naveen to spy on Sabine/Tiana.  Not to mention his quasi-romance with Regina.  We could have spent an episode exploring all of that.  But instead, he gets unceremoniously killed off to make room for Wish Rumpelstiltskin.  It’s even more frustrating when you take note of the pattern going on here.  This is pretty similar to the subplot with Merlin. There was quite a bit more they could have done with him.  Such as what his plan would have been to separate Emma from the Darkness if Killian hadn’t received his mortal injury from Excalibur.  It was pretty much established that destroying the Darkness with Excalibur’s blade required a life sacrifice.  So was he originally planning on having the Nevengers kill him to free Emma from the Darkness?  And why did he apparently have a mansion in Storybrooke when he was trapped inside a tree and therefore never set foot inside the town?  Also, Lancelot and Guinevere.  What happened to them after Arthur died?  Did they ever reunite?  The fact that all three of these storylines that were abandoned before they could be fully resolved involved POC?  That kinda makes it even worse.  I really wonder.  For them to just kill off these Black characters when there was still so much potential left to their storylines, or at least throw them down the wayside; do A&E realize how this might come across?  Either they’re completely oblivious or there’s a serious racial issue going on in the writer’s room.  Honestly, I’m not sure which option is worse.

Either way, we’re down to the final two episodes. So… it’s all down the wire, now.

(Click here to read more Episode Analyses)

#ouat episode analysis #ouat 7x20 #henry mills #parallel!cinderella #jacinda #lucy mills #regina mills #gothel #wish world!killian #detective rogers #alice jones #tilly #robyn hood #margot #rumpelstiltskin #tiana #sabine #naveen #dr facilier

[thaliawinsor]

GRANDPARENTS:

Selene Millpond - Helen Mirren FC - Deceased - Psychometry

A carrier of the dominant gene that has ensured her family has generations of metas, Selene was gifted with the ability to see another person's memories through touch. It seems that the powers change between each family member but the one rule is that everyone is limited to touching in order to use their gifts. Selene was the first person to notice Thalia’s gift whilst she was still young and did her utmost to protect their discovery from anyone else. Whilst she never used her powers for the crime fighting heroics those with powers do today she still tried her best, alongside her husband, to create a better life for her family. She gave up the upper class family name and lifestyle when she married but still held a taste for the finer things in life. 

Theodore Millpond - Scott Wilson FC - Aged 80 - No Powers

Theodore was and always has been a hardworking man who cares deeply for his family. Whilst he has no gifts or powers himself he never once judged others who did, long before the knowledge of meta’s was widespread. His family didn’t come from much, unlike his wife, but he worked hard for all he had and to create a life for his daughters they could be proud of. Since becoming a widow he’s been content living near the coast and leaving the inheritance from his wife to his daughters. Whilst he enjoys spending most days fishing or gardening, a visit from family and friends is always most welcomed. He is aware of Thalia’s gifts and often encourages her to take the risks she’s hesitant about.

PARENTS:

Donax Winsor - Gregg Henry FC - Aged 61 - No Powers

Donax Winsor, the current Mayor of Newhaven, has made no secret for his dislike of meta’s and Vigilante’s in general. The irony that he married into a family with a dominant bloodline of powers has been lost on him and to date he remains utterly clueless about his wife and daughters secrets. He has a bad reputation but does just enough of the ‘right’ things to keep himself in office. He runs with the wrong crowd, though many whisper he’s the one calling the shots, and knows some dangerous people. He cares more about being a politician and businessman than he does being a father. Thalia has fully distanced herself from both parents as an adult, with no future plans to change that. 

Calathea Winsor - Sharon Stone FC - Aged 55 - Ice Transmutation

Thalia’s relationship with her mother is strained at best. Her parenting technique was truly reflective of her powers, cold and unforgiving. She was hard on Thalia for every little thing, through nitpicking and backhanded compliments, which proved to only distance their bond as mother and daughter. She has firmly kept her gifts a secret from everyone but her own parents and sister - and Thea has no intention to let anyone else know of her shame. She is a calculating and incredibly intelligent woman who knows where she wants to be and how to get there.

EXTENDED FAMILY:

Streya Millpond (Aunt) - Charlize Theron FC - Aged 47 - Kinetic Charging

Thalia’s Aunt was more of a mothering figure than her actual mother and because of this the two share a close bond. She’s fiery and direct, the near opposite of her older sister, and has a great love for adventure. Whilst she too has a gift, in the form of absorbing kinetic energy and charging it into objects, she’s not nearly as withdrawn about the fact. Neither her or her partner currently reside in Newhaven but frequent the city to stay in touch with her niece.

Whytt Lohrlock (Partner / ‘Uncle’) - Keanu Reeves FC - Aged 50 - Magnetism

Despite never marrying her Aunt Streya, Whytt is her Uncle in every way but formally. He has a slightly more serious nature to her Aunt, a more of a strong and silent presence that helps keep Streya in check. Whilst neither are big softies it’s incredibly clear the pair are very dedicated to each other. They avoid confirming exactly how they met but given he is also a meta, a powerful one at that, Thalia has assumed it had something to do with that. It’s never going to be confirmed but Thalia’s thing for tall, dark and handsome men clearly comes from her confusing crush on him growing up.

#talkvig #prompt #**mine #hc #the thalytt crush is there and just confirming her father figure issues tbh

[lala-kate]

Hello, you have been identified as An Awesome Writer™! Congrats, you rock! So that all of your readers can shower you with some extra love today, please tell us your favourite five (or as many as you want) stories of yours and why you like them and then send this to another five fic authors you think deserve this title!

Thank you so much, Tara!!! Before I list my favorites out of my own work, let me encourage any and all OQ fans who have not jumped on board with your wonderful Happiness Can’t Be Arranged to do so now! It’s one of my current favorites and should not be missed!

As I began making my selections, I realized that even though I’m going to list the fandom and the pairing, you honestly can read them as independent stories. So even if you didn’t watch Downton or you’re not a Oncer or Kabby fan, you could read any of these and still (hopefully) enjoy the narrative and the characters. They’re also all complete works, so no worries about falling in love with something still in progress. (although I will add my favorite WIP’s as an addendum for anyone who’s interested.)

So without any further ado, here are my five favorite pieces I’d like to share with my readers and followers: 

1.  In the Company of Strangers  

Fandom: Downton Abbey 

Pairing: Mary Crawley and Charles Blake (my version of Charles Blake, that is) 

Time Frame:  Post S3

Premise:  One year after Matthew’s death, Mary begins to open herself up to life again little by little. An encounter with a certain Charles Blake spurs her forward and challenges her to consider risking her heart again. 

Why I love it:  This is my first fic, the one that brought me into writing fanfiction, and it is my heart story for that reason as well as many others. This story is basically my own version of S4, mostly written before S4 ever aired. There are several original characters, and there is still an entire sequel for this narrative in my head. There are also some one-shots based on this verse you can read once you’ve finished the story: Whispers in the Firelight, Father of the Bride, and Fathers and Sons. So if anyone wanted to thrill my soul, they’d read this story. When I still occasionally get a new reader and/or new reviews for Strangers, my heart does a dance especially reserved for this verse. It means more to me than I can ever express.

2.  This One

Fandom:  Once Upon a Time

Pairing:  Regina Mills and Robin Hood

Time Frame:  American Civil War AU

Premise: A widow and her son discover a wounded Confederate Soldier in their barn they set out to save in more ways than one. 

Why I love it: First of all, I’m a sucker for historical fiction.  I also enjoyed the challenge of writing Robin’s anger at being disabled, Regina’s stubbornness at not letting him wallow in his own misery, and Henry’s never-failing hope, regardless of the circumstances surrounding them all. 

3.  Play Dates and Park Benches

Fandom:  Downton Abbey

Pairing:  Mary and Matthew 

Time Frame:  Modern AU

Premise:  Two single parents meet through their daughters who have become best friends in Kindergarten. Romance and daily life ensue. 

Why I love it:  This is basically a rom com with fast-paced banter, lots of innuendo, and doses of real-life parenting situations and extended family drama.  There is also an open-verse series of drabbles that accompany the verse called Tales from the Park Bench if you fall in love with this version of the Crawleys just as I have. 

4.  Room Enough

Fandom:  The 100

Pairing:  Abby Griffin and Marcus Kane

Time Frame:  Great Depression AU

Premise: Abby Griffin is a widow trying to make ends meet for herself and her daughter during the Depression by taking in borders. Her daughter and another child make a discovery that changes both Christmas and life as Abby and her favorite border Marcus Kane know it. 

Why I love it: I wouldn’t say that this story showcases my writing at its best, but it does show my heart and beliefs when it comes to family, second chances and generosity. It’s a story full of hope in the hardest of times that shows that happiness can be found in the strangest of places.  

5.  Pulse Points

Fandom:  Once Upon a Time

Pairing:  Regina Mills and Robin Hood

Time Frame:  Modern non-magical AU

Premise: Loosely based on the movie Return to Me, Regina Mills is a pediatrician who has been hiding from life due to the fact that she had a heart transplant. When she meets restaurateur Robin Locksely, her new heart beats in a way she’s never before experienced. 

Why I love it:  Italian food, chemistry, banter and Roland trying to give his dad dating advise make me adore this story. Forget slow burn–this romance fires up on instant attraction and deep connections that do face adversity but still hold strong. A continuing verse has been started for this story called Heart of the Matter. 

Favorite Works in Progress:   

1.  Things Hidden:  Downton Abbey:  Mary and Matthew

I get more requests to complete this fic than any other. Once I finish my original book All Things Sacred, I’m planning to do just that. 

2.  The Hungover Games:  Downton Abbey:  Mary and Charles

This is one I want to finish and then possibly see if I could publish it as an independent work. Banter, innuendo, and two stubborn people who are thrown together in the midst of personal difficulties, only to become unlikely allies, friends and lovers. 

3.  From End to Beginning:  Once Upon a Time:  Regina and Robin

A teenage romance led to a son Regina gave up for adoption. Twenty years later, that son finds her and is determined to also find his biological father. Personally, I think this story contains some of my best writing. 

As a writer, I’d love to hear from you, as well. What’s your favorite work of mine? Why do you like it? What work of mine would you like to see completed? 

As for tagging other writers, here goes:  @lillie-grey, @ninzied, @miscreantrose, @broadwaybaggins, @audreysl0ve, @scapeartist and @daggzandarrows. :D  

#Laura writes #Mary Crawley #Matthew Crawley #Regina Mills #Robin Hood #Marcus Kane #Abby Griffin #kabby #outlaw queen #writing

[imagineclaireandjamie]

The Getaway

Will Jamie and Claire’s parents want them to get married because of the bairn? Are they old enough to legally marry or do they still handfast in modern Scotland?

Anonymous said: I am looking forward to another chapter of The Getaway! I’m obsessed with that story!! I hope it’s soon :)

Anonymous said: Can you continue The Getaway? It is so addictive and I miss it.

@lindseyylu17 said: I am eagerly waiting for The Getaway!!

Jamie dragged Claire across the empty courtyard, their hands solidly entwined as Claire giggled behind him. Their parents had them under serious guard - opting to encourage activities to tire the teens. Although it was far too late to stop them from getting themselves into bother, the Beauchamps and the Frasers were determined parents.

“How long do you think it’ll take them to notice we’ve skipped out?” said Claire, a breathless murmur on the breeze as they rushed around the far side of the barn.

“No’ long, sassenach. But we’re younger and quicker than them, aye?”

Joking aside, Claire thrust Jamie against the cold wood and stood between his knees. Panting she bent upwards on her tiptoes and took his warm lips against hers. They had been allowed to stay together in Jamie’s room but neither of them, until now, had the energy to experiment further with one another. So far their parents plots had worked - tiring them out daily meant they’d just fallen into blissful slumber each evening at bedtime.

Now though, Claire had developed a ferocious need for Jamie and had suggested they ditched the daytime ‘thrills’ Julia, Henry, Ellen and Brian had in store for them and just skipped off alone. Jamie hadn’t disagreed.

“Well then,” Claire whispered against his warm lips, “where should we go?”

Jamie had the perfect place, somewhere secluded on the Lallybroch lands that he loved to escape to when his exams had gotten too much for him. Quirking an eyebrow, Jamie twisted Claire around so that he was no longer at her mercy, took hold of her hand once more and led her away from the big house.

“Do you trust me?” Jamie said, his pace not ceasing as they disappeared off into the surrounding forests.

“Y-yes…” Claire returned, her breathless answer barely registering as her pulse thundered in her ears. “Of course.”

It didn’t take them long to reach the clearing - the expanse of lush, verdant green appearing before their eyes as the banks of the wee loch lapped against a small sand beach. It was incredible and Claire couldn’t hold back her gasp of wonder at the beauty of the place.

“…and this is still on your land, Jamie?” She exclaimed, her eyes flitting from each corner of the glade.

“Aye, it is.” He replied, his eyes focused solely on Claire.

Toeing off her shoes, Claire padded across the soft undergrowth of grass that lined the small open piece of land, her fingers staying with Jamie for as long as possible. Letting him go, she crept closer to the water, the lapping of it calling her forwards.

“Can we swim?” She asked, nervous that the weather wasn’t fair enough without using wetsuits.

“Maybe paddle, sassenach. But we dinna want to risk the bairn, aye?”

Nodding, Claire settled herself on the banks of the loch, her toes resting up to her ankles in the cool water.

Jamie’s gaze was transfixed on her as she wiggled her bottom into the dense sand, getting herself into a comfortable position as she let her head flop backwards. The sun was filtering through the treeline casting sharp rays over her tangled mass of curls as they toppled across her shoulders. “Ye belong here, Claire,” he whispered, pulling her from her silent thoughts and she tilted her head back enough so that she could look him up and down. A wry smile crossed her face and she twisted her hips, laying her hands in the sand to hold her weight as she batted her eyelashes softly.

“I belong with you,” she answered, her tongue peeking out to wet her lips as a red tint blossomed across her cheeks. “Wherever you are, Jamie Fraser, is where I’ll be.”

“Aye,” he returned, a deep rumble coating his words as the emotion bubbled beneath his skin. “And where you are, I am. Same in return, Claire Beauchamp.”

A small burst of light twinkled in Claire’s eye at his reiteration of her declaration and Jamie couldn’t help but be drawn to her. “Marry me,” he blurted out, all thoughts ceasing in an instant as he saw a future for them both flashing before his eyes.

Claire’s heart skipped a beat and she almost fell into the yellow granules in shock at the proposal. “W-what?” She stammered, half believing herself to have misheard him.

“Shit, Claire…I didna-” he replied, his instant reaction to retract the offer.

“Fuck ‘didna’, Jamie, what did you just ask me?” She repeated, turning onto her hands and knees as she crawled slowly up towards him, her mock-Scottish accent blending in with her slight Oxfordshire one as she tried to coax the words from him once more.

“I asked ye, Claire Elizabeth Beauchamp, in a rather unforeseen way…will you marry me?”

“YES!” Claire cried out, flinging herself to her feet and throwing herself into his arms.

Jamie let out a quiet ‘oof’ as she wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her nose against his chest.

“Yes?” He whispered as he leant down and nuzzled the top of her head affectionately.

“Did you think I’d say something different?” She mocked, leaning her head backwards as she brought her lips to the base of his throat and kissed him softly on the exposed skin there.

“Nay, of course not. I just…after I left ye in the airport -before-,” he inhaled, one deep breath that made his chest rise and fall.

Claire waited for him to gather his bearings. She could feel his heart beating solidly against her and she counted the beats as her own began to thrum in time. She couldn’t yet feel anything concrete from the baby growing within her, but on the odd occasion she could feel slight movement. It always happened so quickly that she almost believed she’d wish it- but now, with Jamie wrapped around her, the bairn seemed to want to make itself known. Butterflies twisted and turned in her belly, a powerful beat that seemed to reverberate through her as if joining with her own rhythm. The feeling was intoxicating.

“I dreamed that one day we might have this, Claire,” Jamie finally continued, unaware of Claire’s newfound discovery. “But I didna think it anymore than a wee pipe dream…”

Stepping back a little, Claire stopped Jamie mid flow. Taking his hand, she adjusted it over her tummy, pulling her thin t-shirt over her head and throwing it to the ground so that he could touch her -skin on skin.

“Can you feel him -or her?” Jamie whispered, his eyes going wide.

“Mhmm…” Claire mumbled, bringing herself back closer to Jamie as she bent up on her tiptoes to take his lips against his. “I know you might not be able to…yet. But I can’t wait for the day you can. But I think, maybe, she or he knows you’re here. I couldn’t feel it like this before, but as you were talking, I swear he moved.”

“Do you think…?”

“Yes,” Claire sighed against his mouth, tugging at the bottom of his jumper suggestively. “They always say they can hear us, I believe it now.”

“God, I love you,” Jamie returned, pulling his jumper and his t-shirt off at the same time as Claire did the same.

Every day she looked different these days, the babe growing quickly beneath her skin. It was only slight, but he liked to take in as much as he could.

Slipping her fingers along the bottom of her bra, Claire tugged at the tight fabric, her head tilted coquettishly forward as she viewed Jamie from beneath her lashes. Her ribs ached with wanting him and with the hormones racing through her body, she wasn’t prepared to be denied now. Steadily, her eyes never losing focus on Jamie, she unclipped the clasp of her bra and allowed the flimsy fabric to fall into the grass. Taking his hand, she brought it up to rest over her newly exposed breast.

“Christ, sassenach,” Jamie gasped, his thumb massaging her pert skin gently as his brain to mouth function slowly deteriorated. “Here? Are ye sure…?”

“I want you, Jamie. Here and now. Do you want me?”

Struggling to contain his nervous laughter, Jamie leaned forwards to run his nose along the length of hers. He closed his eyes in an attempt to control his baser urges although he could see that she’d abandoned her own. “I always wanted ye, Claire. From the moment I met you.”

“Then don’t make me wait, Jamie. Please.”

Unable to resist any longer, Claire reached forwards and drew her hand down the length of Jamie’s closed flies, only undoing them when she was certain he was ready for her to do so. Reaching beneath the waistband of his trousers and his boxers, Claire bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from groaning too loudly as her palm came into contact with the evidence of Jamie’s arousal.

“Jesus, Jamie,” she whispered against him, “I’ve missed you…”

Mimicking her actions, Jamie began to relieve Claire of her own trousers as they finished undressing one another.

The sun peaked in the sky as Claire pulled Jamie into the soft grass. Pushing him onto his back, she straddled his thighs, her legs sitting snuggly either side of his as she hovered over him. Jamie’s longish curls splayed across the dry ground as his hands finally came to rest on Claire’s waist as he held her tightly. Her skin was so taut around her middle now, her hips widening ever so slightly to accommodate her tiny bundle.

“Sae beautiful, Claire,” Jamie said, his words almost inaudible. But in the calm quiet of the silent glen, Claire could hear every syllable.

Taking that as her cue she pressed herself downwards, taking every inch of him inside her as she gulped and breathed out a rather large sigh of pleasure. Only when he was buried comfortably (and fully) inside her did she allow herself to rock slowly against his abdomen.

Jamie thrust his head back further at the sensation, the feel of her muscles clenching around his hard skin knocked him for six and he squinted his eyes open to watch as Claire continued with her subtle movements.

“J-Jesus…fuck, Claire,” he moaned, his pupils dilating at the sight of her rising over him, the swell of her tummy only adding to her ethereal beauty.

“God, Jamie,” Claire sighed in return, lolling her head forward, draping her curls around Jamie’s head as she created a curtain around them. Secluded as they were neither anticipated being interrupted. “When?” She asked, her voice breathless and airy as she rose up over him and held herself there, precariously wobbling as her knees dug further into the dry mud. “When can we marry?”

“Soon,” Jamie replied, his fingers digging into her fragile flesh as goosebumps rose over his hypersensitive skin, “as soon as humanly possible.”

“G-good.” Pushing herself down once more, Claire made the agonising move to take Jamie fully inside her once more, watching with great satisfaction as he squeezed his eyes shut and let his mouth fall open.

He was close.

But so was she.

As her pregnancy had progressed she’d slowly become more and more libidinous. Here, lost in the wilds of Broch Tuarach with Jamie beneath her, she couldn’t help but feel incredibly fortunate.

Two more shallow thrusts and she could feel the familiar flush of arousal that signified the imminent end. Her thighs clenched, shuddering briskly as her breathing intensified. A deep, pulsating throb began to oscillate through the base of her stomach as her toes curled. Flopping over Jamie, Claire moulded her lips to his, her tongue seeking his in a desperate attempt at contact as her orgasm flowed through her, her entire body shaking with the pressure of it as it enveloped her.

Gripping her tightly, Jamie allowed her to fall, shifting her to the side and rolling on top of her as he continued to move over her, his world tearing as he came to her hard and fast. Sweat dripped down his brow as his arse clenched. His vision blurred as he joined her in oblivion, letting the darkness flow around him.

Panting, Jamie and Claire lay for some time, letting the cool afternoon breeze dry the sheen of sweat that had covered them head to toe during their amorous activities.

“We should probably get back soon,” Claire whispered, kissing Jamie’s collarbone as she brought herself around.

“Aye, soon.” Jamie reiterated, not making a move to actually get up. “Or…we could just stay here and hide.”

‘Ha…” Claire snorted, tickling the coarse hairs on Jamie’s legs with her toes as she leaned up on her elbow, holding her head aloft with her hand as she smiled down at him. “I think we might be found if we don’t make an appearance before dark. As much as I think we’re safe for the moment, I doubt they’d let us completely disappear.”

“Yer right, as always, sassenach.” Jamie sighed, pushing himself up so that he could kiss her softly. “We should probably tell them about our engagement as well.”

Claire’s smile dropped a little as her heart picked up pace once more, its steady beat increasing with worry. “Do you think they’ll let us?”

“Let us?” Jamie returned, his left eyebrow quirked sardonically, “you try and *stop* them. Mam is a tour-de-force when it comes to these things. She’ll be squealing and picking out patterns for yer dress afore you can say ‘wedding’.”

Claire laughed then, a joyful sound that echoed around them long after she’d regained her composure. “That bad, eh?”

“Aye, Claire. You don’t know what yer in for.”

Pulling her t-shirt from the ragged pile of their clothes, Claire let her fingers idle in the soft fabric for a second longer, half anticipating an encore of their intimacy.

Jamie, sensing her hesitation, ran his hand along Claire’s bare thigh, his fingers tickling her as he slid his warm fingers between her legs and massaged gently. “There’s no rush, ken?” He whispered, his delicate words flowing over her receptive flesh. HIs mouth found hers a second later as his nimble digits fluttered across her damp skin, eliciting deep sighs from her chest as she touched the tip of his tongue with hers before tracing the inside of his mouth. “No…rush…at all…”

#asks #The Getaway #jamie x claire #teenage jamie and claire #teenage pregnancy #;Mod MBD #submission