#books written by business leaders

[werewolf-witchboy]

Druig X Eternal! Reader

✨ (Gender Neutral) ✨

No Warnings.

After many years of being split up, the Eternals must come together as a team again. Nobody seems to know where you've been all these years, so they've gone to the one person who might know of your whereabouts...

Little did they know that you're a lot closer than they thought.

"You have given me a lot of bad news in one go, my lady." Druig's tone is a lot less welcoming after he's been told the horrible truth.

"You and (Y/n) are the main parts of our big plan. We need you both to get through this." Sersi explained again. "Will you help us?"

"We can't find (Y/n)." Ikaris cut to the chase, obviously not ecstatic about needing Druig.

"All of us have searched across almost the whole planet." Sersi subtly encouraged Ikaris away from Druig, sensing the tension already rising between them. "All of (Y/n)'s favorite countries, every area we've had somekind of special or significant moment, we've even asked elders who've written many books about (Y/n). Found not a trace of where they could possibly be."

Drugs arms stayed crossed. "I don't think it's my business to just give out personal information like that." Once his fellow Eternals showed up, his peace was interrupted and he now has a headache.

He knows he told them to "make themselves at home," but he didn't expect them to drop all of this shocking news on him about their true purpose as Eternals, and then interrogate him about your location.

"Do you all remember this forest? Beautiful." Druig walked around the room with his hands clasped behind his back, trying to make small talk and steer the topic away from (Y/n). "It was the last place that we all lived together." His tone held some sorrow at the memories.

"I've protected these people for 20 generations now. From the outside world, and from themselves."

Druig towered over Kingo's valete, Karun. "Your kind, my friend, you will be responsible for your own extinction one day. Don't you think?"

Karun looked a little intimidated, but he answered honestly.

"I think that we must learn from our mistakes and do better, sir. You must not give up hope."

Druig did not seem to like his answer, expressing so by possessing Kingo's valet and proceeding to throw his camera against a wall, thoroughly frightening Karun and pissing off Kingo.

"Oh, where is your sense of humor Kingo?"

"You are not a god. You know that right?"

"How ironic. Kingo, the movie star."

"I've directed some things too."

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

"Some internet content..."

"How many views?"

"I don't do it for the views-"

"Let's go. He's waisting our time." Ikaris started heading towards the door.

"We need him and (Y/n)." Sersi tried to reason.

"Ikaris!" Druig stepped in front of the taller man's path. "I missed you."

Druig was really pushing it right now. "Are you not gonna charm me or threaten me?"

"There's a third option if you'd prefer that."

"It must be heartbreaking to find out that you're not mothers favorite." Druig taunted about Ikaris not being the next chosen leader.

"I'm sure she'd be real proud about what you've been up to." Ikaris always seemed to fall for the psychic's taunting.

"Druig, this is serious." Sersi tried to butt in once more.

"I'll tell you what's serious." Druig's voice got louder as he seemed to get more annoyed.

"I've just been told that I was sent on a suicide mission for the past 7,000 years, and that my entire existence is a lie." He looked Sersi in the eyes. "So excuse me for not giving a shit about your plan right now."

Athena stepped forward, brushing away Gilgamesh's hand that attempted to stop her from engaging in the conflict. She'd been quiet this whole time, but nobody else seemed to be getting anywhere with the stubborn psychic.

"This is very important. Everything will be lost if we can't stop the celestial birth. You have to admit that we've all gained somekind of admiration for humanity. Not only will the humans be gone, but so will all of the memories we've shared on Earth. Our memories with each other." Athena turned away from the rest of the Eternals, only addressing Druig when she said her next line, hoping that she'll strike a chord in him. "Your memories with (Y/n)."

Everyone was silent.

Druig let out a heavy sigh, but before he could even open his mouth to say anything, the large wooden door creeked open slowly.

"Hey Druig, I-"

Silence still hung heavy in the room amongst the Eternals, but this time it was shock.

There you stood, slightly different from the last time they've seen you many years ago, but still you. It all made sense now, why you were nowhere they searched, even though they've literally checked everywhere.

Your voice got caught in your throat as soon as you entered the cabin filled with your old friends, whom you may also have been technically hiding from.

"Uh...bad timing." Druig's voice rang in your head. Your panicked eyes met his from across the room.

"Holy shit." Kingo was the first to speak up. "(Y/n) has been here with Druig the whole time?!"

You let out an awkward chuckle, not knowing how to reply.

"What have the two of you even been doing here together for all of these years?!" Kingo's arms flailed in the air dramatically, obviously annoyed that all of their searching was for nothing.

"Actually, don't answer that question." Sprite put her hands up when she saw the look you and Druig exchanged.

"Ohmygosh-" Ikaris pinched the bridge of his nose in disgust.

Confused, Kingo looked back and fourth between everyone. "Wha- I wasn't even aware the two of them are a thing."

Everyone turned to look at the man in purple with expressions that read "really?"

"Are you telling me that I'm the only one who didn't know?!" Kingo was still going on about it. "(Y/n) is too kind and cute for Druig!"

You couldn't help but laugh behind your hand as Druig rolled his eyes, fighting a small smirk.

You had to admit that you missed your family.

"Well I for one honestly don't care where (Y/n) has been this whole time. I'm just glad to see them again!" Gilgamesh stomped up to you and scooped you into a big bear hug, fits of giggles escaping you as he squeezed your breath away.

Laughter eventually erupts from everyone, the atmosphere a stark contrast from how it was only 5 minutes ago.

When all was settled down again, Sersi sat you down and told you everything...

The tragic death of Ajak, your wise leader and mother figure.

How your purpose is to keep a planet happy and thriving just to destroy it by creating a celestial.

How all of your memories have been erased countless times, because you've killed planets and birthed celestials countless times.

By the end of it, you were a sobbing mess. You've always been a little more sensitive than the others, so this obviously deeply soured the peppy family reunion mood you were in.

There was no question that you were going along with Phastos's plan. You wanted to keep these memories that you've spent centuries cherishing, and you wanted to watch humanity grow so much more.

When you declared your certainty about going with them, Druig was dragged in by default.

Wherever you went, he went.

You did the same for him when shit hit the fan in Tenochtitlan and he left.

You knew you'd miss the little civilization that you and Druig have helped create, but it'll still be there after you've saved the planet. When it's all over, you can go back with Druig and continue waking up next to him every morning to start a busy day of harvesting crops and handwashing laundry.

For now though, it's back to Olympia.

....................

"Well, look who it is!"

"Didn't think you'd be so glad to see me Phastos." Druig remarked with a smirk.

"I'm not. I was talking about (Y/n)." He brushed past the raven haired Eternal to embrace you.

Makkari elbowed the psychic, who had been grinning like an idiot while watching (Y/n).

"You look like a lovesick puppy." She signed.

Druig rolled his eyes, but his grin never faltered.

"Well, I for one, still can't believe it!" Kingo's appeared on the other side of Druig.

"I've never seen this man smile bigger than that annoying smirk." Kingo playfully leaned an arm on Druig's shoulder.

"I've also had the displeasure of seeing them kiss like 50 times during the time spand of getting here from the Amazon."

"You're just jealous." Makkari joked.

"What?! No! I get tons of babes! I just don't have the time for a committed relationship." Kingo stuck his nose in the air.

You tried not to smile while listening to your friends tease Druig. You continued pretending to pay attention to Phastos's rambling about a new invention idea.

Druig's eyes caught yours.

"Get me outta here!" He pleaded in your head.

"We just got here baby." Your voice is always so gentle and soothing in his brain. Even though he's begging to leave, he doesn't mind staying as long as you're here.

"Alright. You definitely owe me one, love." A smug look dawned his features as he affectively ignored the two Eternals babbling next to him.

You felt your ears and cheeks blush, going thankfully unnoticed by Phastos.

You are going to do absolutely anything to make sure that you both come out of all of this alive and well. There's no way you could possibly imagine a lifetime without Druig.

#druig #druig x reader #eternals #eternals x reader #x reader #gender neutral #x gender neutral reader #marvel #marvel x reader #mcu #the eternals #oneshot #imagine

[blackopals-world]

Hiiii I was just curious about Disciplinary Committee Yuu Nothing specific Anything your brain juices think up

Hmm, the ancient one.

This Yuu first appeared about a year ago on this blog taking the crown as the first A(Yuu). Their place was quickly taken by Chef!Yuu who gained more popularity through their series.

Disciplinary Committee!Yuu had an entire AU of their own all the while with a small collection of OCs.

Here are a few notes.

Is officially a second year housewarden of Ramshackle. The AU takes place one year after the year of Overblots.

Everyone calls them Officer put their title as warden is Chief.

Manifested magic due to trauma and exposure. Creates magic draining chains to physically contain. Has a magic tool that uses this spell to create an anti-magic field. (Makes Riddle look lax in comparison)

Ironically Ramshackle students specialize in magic beast-taming and have many beasts that roam the area. Most of these beasts are very dangerous and only get more so with training.

Yuu's beast is Grim who is the house mascot.

Yuu his constantly busy and overworked because of how much fighting and chaos takes place.

Is charged with writing the school handbook which contains the rules the Officers enforce religiously.

Yuu hates excessive use of magic even at a magic school. Believes that magic is a tool meant to serve the needs of other not just yourself. Limiting it decreases the chance of blotting.

Naturally the dorm is a refuge for those who seek strength independent of their magic. (Oh hey Rollo)

There is a quite hours ban on magic.

The irony of their dorm being associated with discipline is that Yuu encourages betrayal. At least of your commanding officers. You need to watch your back because the best officers are always vigilant of challengers.

It's like a pack of wolves in a way (not really. It's closer to Meerkats or lemurs) one sits at the top and the others either fight their way to the top or gets on the leader's good side.

But enough about the dorm.

Yuu claimed Sebek as theirs. Thems the rules. He was picked up by the neck.

Maybe it was the devotion he had or maybe it was the lack of discipline. Either way this man had no rizz.

Yuu keeps him on a very short leash either way.

Yuu had to add a rule to hand book that states that if Idia gets kidnapped don't complain just save him. They have to remind the officers of this rule.

If you have a question while the Chief is busy they will just point to the wall where the rules are written.

Yuu will literally walk you like a dog. Hands rated E for everyone.

If they had a dorm uniform card it would be of them locking you in a cell.

Leona gets locked away the most because (acab) and for truancy.

This Yuu is morally grey at best.

#disciplinary committee!yuu #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #sebek zigvolt #sebek x reader #sebek zigvolt x reader #leona kingscholar #idia shroud #riddle rosehearts

[hermesmyplatonicbeloved]

Why is Annabeth known as a badass strategist and leader?

Genuine question btw. Annabeth has this reputation in the fandom as being 'the best strategist and leader.' What are her top ten impressive moments? I want quotations from the books in the notes and reblogs. Gimme.

TLT: There's the moment in the tunnel of love where Annabeth has the plan to jump using the force of the wave to catapult them over the fence. But the thing is Annabeth miscalculated; if not for Grover intercepting their fall with Luke's shoes they would've fallen on solid concrete and gotten injured or died.

SoM: Annabeth's significant moment in this moment from what I remember is when she used her invisibility cap to lure Polyphemus away from the cave. But she was essentially copying a past hero? And her plan didn't even work as Polyphemus caught her and Annabeth spent the next several chapters being injured/rescued and leaving all the fighting to Percy, Clarisse and Grover.

BOTL: Annabeth was under a lot of pressure due to the last lines of the prophecy, which is understandable. Except instead of coping with that pressure by making plans and relying on her quest mates, she falls apart. She was suppose to be the leader of that quest. And yet in the beginning of the book she loses Grover and Tyson and doesn't find them - doesn't even know they're still alive - until near the end. She leaves Percy in Mount Helens where he's tortured and almost killed. Where are her master strategies? How did she lead them to victory? It was Percy who got Rachel to lead them through the labyrinth, and Grover was the MVP (with Pan's powers) in the actual battle at chb.

TLO: Did Annabeth even have any strategies in this book? She had Dedalus's laptop for about a year - and yet Athena and Hermes (who were very busy fighting Typhon and getting their asses kicked) had to take the time to send a message that was essentially "You have a resource (Dedalus's statue plan in the laptop) sitting in your lap. It's been there for an entire year. Use it." Malcom was the one to lead the Athena cabin while Annabeth followed Percy.

PJO, in general: Annabeth was the Athena cabin leader for all the books. She was co-leader with Luke (if I remember correctly) in the first capture the flag game where she pitted Percy vs. Clarisse & siblings by the river.

MOA: Imo this was the only book where Annabeth really shined. Annabeth's strategy to trap Arachne was amazing until Arachne won by fucking pulling Annabeth into Tartarus, where Percy was the one to defeat Archane in an instant. Annabeth finding the Athena's statue on her own by travelling alone and weaving over the chasm (if I remember correctly) was amazing. But then Rick went and invalidated that by having the other Seven blow open the roof and take the AP, without any help or instruction from Annabeth.

HoO general: Did Annabeth have any leadership moments? I remember seeing a lot of headcanons about it, but in the books all I could find was the poorly written pissing match between Jason and Percy. If anyone could share quotes where Annabeth acts like a leader that would be awesome.

So in summary, for Annabeth's badass strategist and leadership moments:

Being senior Athena cabin leader in the first 4 books.

Annabeth co-leading capture the flag in tlt with Luke

Annabeth travelling to the AP and getting past obstacles like the chasm by weaving (if I remember correctly) in MOA

Annabeth confronting her fears (spiders) and trapping Archane in MOA.

I breezed over most of the series because it's been a long time since I read it while paying specific attention to Annabeth, so I'm sure I missed stuff because tumblr pjo fandom loves Annabeth, so surely there's some content supporting that? Like that admiration isn't soley built on headcanons right?

#pjo #hoo #annabeth chase #percy jackson #percabeth #heroes of olympus #percy jackon and the olympians #percy #annabeth #chase #annabeth and percy #athena #the mark of athena #mark of athena #greek myths #greek mythology #annabeth mastermind #annabeth strategist #annabeth badass #leader annabeth #annabeth chase defense squad #annabeth chase stans

[ask-turnedtechgodhead]

this thing on

fuck yes aight check this shit out-

DAVE, I'VE BEGRUDGINGLY COME TO UNDERSTAND THAT STANDING IN A CORNER ALONE SPEWING THE TYPE OF NONSENSICAL BABBLE ONE MIGHT EXPECT FROM A WRIGGLER IS WHAT PASSES FOR ENTERTAINMENT IN YOUR EMPTY THINK PAN.

I'VE EVEN BEGUN TO APPRECIATE IT, IF ONLY BECAUSE WE NEEDED *SOMETHING* TO FILL THE AGONISINGLY LONG SWEEP WE WERE STUCK ON THAT OTHERWISE SILENT AND YET SOMEHOW JUST AS MISERABLE FUCKING ROCK HURTLING THROUGH SPACE TOWARDS CERTAIN DEATH. BUT WHAT IN THE EVER-LOVING SHIT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING WITH THAT BULBOUS FUCKING OVERGROWTH JAMMED AGAINST YOUR RIDICULOUS EYEWEAR?

damn man i thought we covered this in our human tech 101 lessons. its a camera- I KNOW ITS A CAMERA. I WAS TRYING TO LOWER MYSELF TO YOUR LEVEL SO THAT MAYBE YOU WOULD DECIDE TO GRACE ME WITH YOUR ATTENTION AND ACTUALLY LISTEN TO WHAT I HAD TO SAY. try harder SHUT UP. AND ANSWER THE QUESTION. how the hell am i supposed to answer the question if im shutting up? cant have it both ways bro. cant just have your cake and eat it too you either eat that bitch or shut your mouth forever and starve to death- HOLY SHIT WE BOTH KNOW YOU AREN'T GOING TO SHUT UP EITHER WAY. COULD YOU AT LEAST DO ME THE MERCY OF TELLING ME WHAT THE FUCK YOU'RE DOING BEFORE I DROWN IN THE PUTRID STREAM OF BULLSHIT CASCADING OUT OF YOUR MOUTH?

documentary CARE TO EXPAND UPON THAT? OR AM I NOT WORTHY ENOUGH TO GET MORE THAN ONE WORD OUT OF YOU? SHOULD I BE PROSTRATING BEFORE YOU THANKING YOU FOR DEIGNING TO GRACE ME WITH ONE WORD FROM YOUR TIGHT ASS LIPS? 'DOCUMENTARY'. TRULY A HOLY WORD. RELIGIONS WILL FORM AROUND THIS ONE WORD, DAVE. HOLY BOOKS WILL BE WRITTEN ABOUT THOSE ELEVEN LETTERS. TODAY WILL BE CELEBRATED NOT AS THE DAY WE CREATED A NEW UNIVERSE, NO- TODAY WILL BE FOREVER MARKED AS THE DAY DAVE FUCKING STRIDER SAID 'DOCUMENTARY'-

AND GET THAT FUCKING THING OUT OF MY FACE YOU NOOKWHIFFER

holy shit check it out im being censored already

karkat do you support censorship

is this what this is karkat

is this where we find out that this entire session has been your master plan to create a new world for you to go stalin on its ass

because dude im so down to create some propaganda for supreme leader vantases glorious reign

just let me finish this shit first cmon man

HOW THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO AGREE TO THAT WHEN I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT 'THIS SHIT' IS?

i told you man

IF YOU SAY DOCUMENTARY I SWEAR-

documentary

about the creation of the new universe

no big deal or nothing just thought it could be mildly interesting to get on camera

idk ill probably tape over it later for some shitty sitcom rerun

do you think theyll have the simpsons on the new planet

god i hope they do

AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW WHAT THE FUCK THAT IS.

troll the simpsons

YOU CAN'T JUST PUT 'TROLL' IN FRONT OF SOME PANDEAD EARTH THING AND EXPECT ME TO KNOW WHAT IT IS AND HONESTLY, I'M DOWNRIGHT FUCKING INSULTED THAT YOU'D THINK THAT ALTERNIA HAD ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY COMPARABLE TO YOUR EYEGOUGING EXCUSES FOR 'MEDIA'. MY PLANET ACTUALLY HAD STANDARDS, UNLIKE YOUR MISERABLE PILE OF DIRT.

says the guy that was responsible for that pile of dirt

and didnt even record its creation

imagine being an absent father to a whole universe karkat. what the fuck man

thank god im here to break the cycle of abuse

OH, I'M SORRY I COULDN'T RECORD YOUR WASTE OF SPACE PLANET BEING CREATED - I WAS TOO BUSY NEARLY GETTING MURDERED BY THE MURDERBEAST *YOU*-

oh shit idiot shuts up now

thats you youre the idiot

STRIDER I SWEAR TO FUCK

dude seriously shut up

hes doing it man

hes making it hapen

=>

#turntechgodhead #homestuck #dave strider

[oddinary4bts]

The Forgotten Spaces | teaser (jjk)

☆summary: you've been dancing on the same dance crew since your teenage years, and you finally have an important role in it. It feels like life is taunting you when your rival comes back after disappearing for a year, ready to tease you every chance he gets. Will the teasing turn into more, or are you going to take him down with you?

☆pairing: photographer and dancer!Jungkook x dancer!reader

☆rating: 18+ (minors DNI, there will be mature content in later chapters)

☆genre: slow (SLOW) burn enemies to lovers, college!au, slice of life!au, angst (oop), smut and fluff

☆warnings: I will be posting individual warnings for each chapter so look out for that! In this teaser: swearing, alcohol, frat party

☆word count: a big fat 145.6K (slow slow burn I said)

☆series masterpost

☆a/n: THE BIG BOY IS READY!!! After two months and a half of work, I can proudly say that I have finished writing the longest fic/book/story I've ever written in my life. The fic will upate every Friday starting from this Friday, April 7 2023, unless I specify that it doesn't (I do have other upcoming projects lol). Once again, I have @moonleeai to thank for beta-ing like the queen she is! You are the best <3

☆Read What Was Hidden by @daechwitatamic, the fic that inspired this big boy! It follows the story of Taehyung and Jo (who's the reader in that fic). Jo, words can't describe how thankful I feel for you writing What Was Hidden. It was a masterpiece from start to finish, and look where it brought us? The Forgotten Spaces wouldn't exist without you, and I thank you with every beat of my heart for giving me this opportunity. Thank you for reading every chapter, for screaming and crying and laughing with me during this whole process. You are amazing and I love you <3

☆☆☆☆☆

For this meeting of our end of the world

It's with you that I want to sing

On the threshold of the memories the dead of today

Them that breathe for us

The forgotten spaces

Je t'écris - Gaston Miron (rough translation by me)

☆☆☆☆☆

You turn around to make your way through the crowd. Jungkook’s lips stretch into a smirk as you move closer, and he cocks an eyebrow once you stop in front of him.

“Missing me?”

You roll your eyes. “Why are you fucking staring at me, Jeon?”

For a second, darkness overcomes Jungkook’s gaze, but he blinks and it’s gone. “I’m just chilling here, I wasn’t looking at you.”

You say nothing, raising your eyebrows as you fold your arms on your chest. He scoffs, glancing away from you.

There’s a moment where you both don’t speak, and you realize you have nothing else to tell him. You’ve never been friends, and you’ve never wanted to be friends with him. You’re about to turn on your heels to head back to the dancefloor when a question pops into your mind.

“Did you leave because of me?” you ask.

His eyes widen and his mouth falls open. You rarely see him expressing something other than contempt when it comes to you, and it makes you want to disappear.

“Is that what you all think?”

You scoff. “What else do you think they believe?”

He doesn’t know what to say. He just shrugs his shoulders, looking anywhere but at your face. You even notice his eyes dipping to your cleavage, but he’s quick to recover and look at a spot on your shoulder instead.

“Seriously, Jeon, why did you fucking leave?”

“I told you earlier, it’s none of your business.” He runs a hand through his hair, which makes it fall in front of his eyes a little. You only then notice his hair is longer, fluffier than what it was last year. “And no, it’s not because of you. Though I’m pretty sure you like me being gone, huh? Hoba told me you took my place.”

"Someone had to," you mutter.

In fact, yes, you like being second in command. You and Jungkook had fought for the spot a few years ago, when the last leader had to leave the group because his girlfriend was pregnant. Hobi, who had been second then, became the leader, and it had taken him forever to choose who would replace him.

The only reason why he had chosen Jungkook was because Jungkook was his friend. Yet, Jungkook had never let you live it down, had always felt the need to remind you of it. Even today, when he’s been gone for over a year.

“Are your choreographies any good?” Jungkook asks. It’s a little condescending because he knows damn well you’ve never been good with coming up with a choreography. One of your many shortcomings when it comes to dance. “Wait, have you even created one?”

You see red again. "Fuck you", you say through gritted teeth.

“That’s what I thought.” You want to punch him, to curse him for giving up on the group and then making you feel like you shouldn’t be second. But Jungkook’s not done yet. “The crew’s not going to last long, is it?”

“Maybe if you didn’t fucking abandon everyone out of the blue we wouldn’t be in this position.” You shake your head. “But no, you’ve always been so important uh, you think the world revolves around you and you don’t care that your actions have consequences.”

Jungkook wasn’t really angry before. He was mostly trying to get on your nerves because it’s always been his favourite activity. But now, his face flushes red, and a vein pops on his neck as he stares you down. “You have no fucking idea why I left. I had no fucking choice.”

“You could have told us.”

You’re almost screaming now. But you’re alone where you stand, and you wonder if the crowd has moved to give you space on purpose, sensing the storm that is coming.

"I had nothing to tell you guys," Jungkook says.

You shut your eyes, taking a deep breath before looking at him again. “You know what, I don’t even fucking care anymore. We don’t need you on the crew.”

He chuckles, bitterly. “Oh you don’t? I recall you fucking up on live TV last year.”

Because Scottie had to take his place in the choreography. A choreography you had been working on for years, gone to waste because Jungkook had disappeared.

“You watched us?” It’s your turn to let out a bitter chuckle. “You missed us too much? Couldn’t stay gone?”

“You’re a fucking bitch when you want to, uh?”

It takes you by surprise, not expecting him to straight up insult you. “Excuse me?”

“No, but you really are.” He looks around, before settling his big eyes back on you. “I had my reasons. You getting angry at me about it won’t change anything.”

Chapter one

☆☆☆☆☆

SO ARE WE EXCITED?? Bc I sure am! Let me know what you think!!!

All rights reserved to @/oddinary4bts, 2023. Do not copy, repost or translate.

#the forgotten spaces #the forgotten spaces teaser #jeon jungkook fic #jeon jungkook fanfic #jeon jungkook angst #jeon jungkook #jeon jungkook fluff #jeon jungkook smut #jeon jungkook x you #jeon jungkook x reader #jjk fic #jjk fanfic #jjk fanfiction #jjk smut #jjk angst #jjk fluff #jjk x you #jjk x reader #jungkook fic #jungkook fanfic #jungkook fanfiction #jungkook smut #jungkook angst #jungkook fluff #the forgotten spaces series

[republicansaredomesticterrorists]

These MAGAts were once conservatives who despised Russia and now they want to fellate Trump and Putin.

NATO isn’t just a defensive alliance, these are major trading partners and allies on a host of issues linked to preserving geopolitical stability and general world order, the rule of law.

Ukraine isn’t a member of NATO but wants to join. Some of you may question supporting Ukraine or even say it’s race based. Ukraine serves as a buffer between our western allies and our greatest geopolitical rival, Russia. More importantly Ukraine is one of the world’s largest suppliers of wheat and more to the point the largest individual supplier to the third world. If Russia were to knock out Ukraine there would be widespread famine across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Accompanying this would be worldwide trade disruption and more than likely a worldwide depression leading to more wars over resources and trade.

Demagogues like Trump know very little about what they are pontificating on. He has no knowledge of the big picture. Businessmen who enter politics rarely do. It’s not as simplistic as a family business (the Trump Organization) with a balance sheet. World affairs are 4-D chess with countless intertwined variables. Trump repeatedly shows how he doesn’t have a clue about how NATO operates no matter how many times it’s explained to him by policy advisers, the press, and world leaders. He refers to NATO members as being delinquent or in default which is simply not true. They haven’t borrowed money from anyone nor do they owe NATO. Each member voluntary pledges to spend 2% of GDP on defense *if it is economically possible at the time. It’s not carved in stone and is written as an aspirational goal only. The US does not have to pay more if another country isn’t able to spend 2% on itself in any given year. Further NATO members have standardized military equipment, much of which is purchased from the US. If a country is removed from NATO then they won’t be purchasing as much or at all from US defense contractors and our economy would take a big negative hit.

Republicans have been fed lies about NATO since Trump’s run for office started in 2015. Germany is a major player in NATO. Trump and the American far-right NAZI movement have long despised German politicians, like Merkel for example, for their suppression of Nazism since the end of the 2nd World War. These same far-right Neo-Nazi Republicans have also been fed a steady diet of lies about how unfair it is that the US, in their eyes unfairly, over pays the UN and they have been told to equate this to NATO which has a completely different structure and purpose. Neo-Nazi’s have a million and one bizarre conspiracy theories about the UN and now Trump MAGAts have linked this to our greatest ally NATO. One could write a book on the far-rights conspiracy theories about the UN which include replacing white people, secret governing societies, alien overlords, transfer of wealth to the 3rd world, forced same sex marriages, sterilization, UN military takeover of the U.S.,etc.

Threatening to surrender our NATO allies to Russia and/or withdrawing from NATO are the ramblings of a poorly educated, uninformed, lunatic who has no clue about foreign policy. The resulting worldwide chaos and economic collapse that would follow would cost a million times more than the pitiful few dollars MAGA morons think it would save. Try getting favorable trade deals from a resulting hostile European Union after you signed their collective death warrants.

#republican assholes #traitor trump #republican hypocrisy #crooked donald #traitor #republican values #republican family values #resist #Trump is dumb as fuck #maga republicans are dum as fuck #nato #russian agression #Putin’s expansion

[thezombieprostitute]

Dream Come True - Epilogue

Summary: The “Garbage Men” are the guys in the mob who get the dirt on others and clean up after the higher ups. They have many different ways of gathering intel by running legitimate businesses. One such business is Jefferson/Jensen’s cyber cafe where you regularly go to work. You’ve actually become good friends with Jefferson’s daughter and Jensen’s niece. You even volunteered as their after-school tutor. One day, there’s a robbery attempt where you get hurt protecting the girls. This is how you are introduced to Curtis Everett, the guy in charge of the “Garbage Men”.

A/N: Reader is plus sized, afab. No other descriptors used.

Warnings: Insecure reader. Smut. Violence referenced but not written.

Part 10

Series Masterlist

You took another look at yourself in the mirror. You were starting to second guess this lingerie you bought on a whim. You’d just felt so confident in the moment, but now you’re wondering if it was actually a good idea. The past few months with Curtis had done wonders for your self-esteem; the fact that you could even look in the mirror this long was proof of that. It seemed like his desire for you would never fade. You weren’t complaining but it still took some getting used to. 

There were a lot of things to get used to these past few months. Understandably impressed with your work Rogers and Barnes had made sure you were given a place in the Family. Officially you were a HR Consultant, complete with the oversized checks. What that translated to was, every time there was a disagreement within the Family, a roadblock in their internal functioning, you were called in. Barnes reasoned that, if you could get Curtis to do things differently, you could get anyone to do so. There were some chuckles at that, mainly from Mace who continued to rib Curtis about “being right”. The guys would sometimes try to talk you into talking to Curtis for them but you promised to only do that if a conversation was warranted. Hal needing upgraded pool cleaning supplies? Sure. Jake needing upgraded computers for the cybercafe so he could own the leader-boards for his games? No.

Ransom was finally released from the hospital a couple weeks ago. Apparently he didn’t give you up right away and ended up with some scars for his trouble. He was absolutely doted on by a few nurses who were fans of his books so he didn’t complain much. Because everything happened at his home he was allowed to come up with the official story for the police. Sheriff Bodecker reported that Ransom was the victim of a small group of super fans; when he tried to turn them away they attacked him and destroyed his home. 

The door to the apartment opened up and you heard Curtis calling for you. You wrap your robe around you, regretting getting the crotchless lingerie, and step out to welcome him. He wraps you up in his strong arms and covers your face in little kisses. 

“Been such a crappy day,” he grumbles. “So glad I get to come home to you.”

You giggle at the affection before breaking the hug, “come on, I’ve got dinner keeping warm. Just need to dish it up.”

“Mmmm. Smells so good.”

“Are you talking about the dinner or me?”

“Yes,” he smiles.

You gently scoff and playfully slap his chest, “just promise you’ll be honest about the food? It’s a new recipe.”

“Always,” he confirms. “May I ask about the robe?”

“Oh,” you falter, “I was…um…I bought myself a little something, but I’m…I’m not so sure…”

“Can I see?”

You gently chew your lip before looking at him and opening your robe. You think you hear Curtis growl as he takes in the visual of you in the skimpy lingerie. 

“Angel, we’re gonna need to delay dinner.”

“But, I-” you’re cut off by Curtis closing the space between you and kissing you, fully removing your robe before letting his hands wander to all of your favorite spots. You moan as he kisses down your jawline, “bed or couch?” 

Curtis pulls away, “right here.” He drops to his knees and lifts one of your legs over his shoulder before attaching his mouth to your pussy. 

You use his strong shoulders to steady yourself as you enjoy his tongue’s expert movements. You look down and see his eyes are beautifully darkened with lust. You’re a little worried about falling but trust Curtis to catch you. Just like with your life, this position is an adjustment, but damn worth it.

Part 10

Series Masterlist

Tagging @alicedopey because I promised I would. 

@alexakeyloveloki

@bigtreefest

@dontbescaredtosingalong

@hisredheadedgoddess28

@icefrozendeadlyqueen

@late-to-the-party-81

@lokislady82 

@texmexdarling 

@veltana

@winter-soldier-101

#curtis everett x reader #curtis everett x plus size!reader #curtis everett x insecure!reader #mafia!curtis everett #mob!curtis everett #curtis everett #plus size!reader

[eddiemvnsonsbabymama]

Pussy Poppin

Pairing: Rick Grimes X Fem! Reader

Summary: Being in the apocalypse meant that you had no time for your husband, Rick Grimes, since he was too busy being a leader and you were too busy being his..”vice leader.” That meant that both of you were extremely busy during the day and didn’t have time for each other. However after you both have a free night, you both decide to spend that night in bliss. Or (in simpler terms) you and Rick fuck all night

THIS BLOG INCLUDES: praising, pure porn, doggy style, switching positions midway, dom!rick grimes, hickeys, p in v, eating out, ass gripping, pet names, absolutely filthy grimey disgusting smut, small angst, unprotected sex (wrap your dick so you won’t have a kid ☝️), cream pie

BEFORE READING: aaaaa so sorry for the 4 month long hiatus. went through some bad shit and to be fair, i forgot my account existed so it’s just meh y’know. also it’s been awhile since i’ve written smut but this is dedicated to my dear friend kiyah :)

You were totally and utterly exhausted. It had been a day after Alexandria was ran over by walkers, tearing apart every person they saw, but one brave soul had stepped in to clear them off: your husband, Rick Grimes. He was an incredible leader. You both hadn’t met before the apocalypse, but as the months went on, you became his right hand woman..then his wife. It happened in a span of a year after his first wife had died while giving birth to his newborn daughter and it sucked seeing your best friend in such a bad situation, even though everyone had counted on him. Hell, he killed his best friend so your group would sleep comfortably at night and wouldn’t have to worry about some psychopath going rampant after trying to kill Rick. That’s all that mattered in all honesty.

But nowadays, Rick didn’t have to worry about any psychopaths or cannibals ever since your group had arrived in Alexandria. Members of the group got their individual houses and you shared a house with Rick and his son, Carl. But work would only continue for you both within Alexandria and there was no time to relax or properly see each other. It was torturous, especially for you since you hadn’t loved anyone else as much as you loved Rick and when you didn’t see him as much in the day..well, it hurt. You would even wake up to an empty spot next to you on your shared bed, and you wondered if you can even call it a shared bed anyway since no one was inhabiting it.

You hummed softly as you tugged on an oversized shirt — Rick’s shirt since it was something that he’d probably wear — that stopped at your thighs and you sighed as you slipped on a pair of panties. You had recently showered so your damp hair was tied up to the nape of your neck and you walked from your room to down the hallway where Carl’s room was. You gently knocked, waiting for a response and you slowly opened the door to reveal the dark haired brunet laying on his bed with a comic on his lap. You peered only your head in with a soft smile and you waved. “Lights out in 15 minutes.” You playfully reminded, causing him to break out into a soft smile and he placed the comic book away.

“You think my dad is gonna come home tonight? I mean, he has to, right?” He asked you as you were about to walk back to your bedroom, but you stopped when you heard his question and your heart had dropped at his sentence. The same thing that you had told yourself countless times when you were alone those nights and you could merely shrug while offering a meek smile. “I hope so, sweetie. I really hope.” You reassured, watching as he was satisfied with your answer and you closed his bedroom door before you walked to your own bedroom. You were exhausted from how much work you had done in the day and you sighed as you turned off the lights within minutes within the shared bedroom before you crawled into the empty.

A few minutes later, you heard a click from Carl’s bedroom which put you at ease and you sighed as you closed your eyes before falling asleep. At this point, you had gotten used to the feeling of an empty bed, but it still didn’t stop the pang of hurt within your heart. Where even was your husband? Did he just..leave? Not like there’s anywhere to go, but it just sucked in general. As if your thoughts had been answered, a ghostly presence had over-loomed your arm and the sudden feeling of warm skin had made contact with yours. The familiar sensation had caused you to stir and you blinked as you tried to make out what had happened.

Instinctively, you called out,”Rick?” The bed had moved down, an inhabitant had taken up the empty space and you gasped softly as familiar, calloused hands had been placed over your cheeks. It was him. He was finally back. No words could express how happy you were to finally feel him since you had missed his touch so much and your lips had twisted into a smile as they pressed against his. He pulled away after awhile, laying his head into the crook of your neck and you felt the small stubble that took the entirety of his chin. “I’m sorry.” He rasped, his lips brushing against the hot flesh of your neck and you gently reached up to cup his cheeks, forcing him to look at you. There was a moment of silence, both of your breathing were mixed and you whispered,”You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

A thankful smile came across his face, causing him to lean forward and kiss you again. The first kiss was short yet sweet, but he pulled back to catch some air before he leaned in and kiss you again, except that he was more lustful with his kissing. You didn’t mind though because he was in your arms now and his hand reached towards your shirt before he pulled away, tugging on the hem. He looked up at you in the dark. “This my shirt?” Rick asked you, waiting for an answer and you couldn’t help, but sheepishly smile at his question. “Maybe.” You replied, causing him to chuckle softly and you immediately discarded your shirt, your nipples hardening from the cool air. You felt his lips kiss in between your breasts before they began to make a line down your stomach. Instinctively, your back arched from the lustful contact and you felt his teeth against your warm skin.

Your panties were pulled down past your knees, cold air hitting against your warm skin and you giggled softly when he placed your legs on either side of his head. “Is this your way of an apology?” You whispered, desperately trying not to moan from his kissing on either side of your inner thighs and the man stopped for a moment or two. “I guess so.” He answered, a small smile coming onto his face and you smiled too before you felt pleasure take over your body when his lips had wrapped around your clit. You almost gasped, but you quickly cover your mouth with your hand and your free hand grabbed ahold of his gray locks, causing a groan from him as you felt his tongue move further down.

You squeezed your eyes shut as you moaned softly, one of his toned arms wrapped around your thigh and his other hand had pressed against your pelvis to prevent you from squirming. His nose was pressed against your clit as he firmly moved his tongue up and down your folds before finally paying attention to your throbbing pussy. You tried hard to be quiet, but with the kitten licks he was doing and the feeling of his stubble against your thighs almost made you burst. “Fuck.” You cried out softly, hoping the lewd noises wouldn’t wake up the people within the house and you jolted your hips when you felt the pad of his thumb play with your clit. You moaned at the new sensation, his hand continuing its firm placement down on your pelvis and felt your orgasm beginning to come. “Rick, Rick, fuck — I’m close.” You said, your eyes were squeezed shut and your orgasm began to approach faster when the flick of his tongue began to gain speed with more rhythm.

Wet sounds emitted from his mouth as he continued to eat you out, causing a hazy sensation to take over your body as your back arched and you tilted your head back into the pillows. His tongue continued to speed up and your orgasm was steadily approaching, but he suddenly pulled away which made the warm feeling disappear and he grabbed your hips forward. “Get on your hands and knees.” He said, sounding out of breath and the sound of a belt unbuckling made you even more excited as you positioned yourself on your knees, your hands grabbing onto the panel end of the bed.

The mattress sunk from behind you, causing your stomach to burst with butterflies and you yelped when he had a firm grip on your hips, your ass near his pelvis as you awaited for the familiar penetration. His calloused hands moved upward, his fingers gripping the flesh of your ass and you anxiously waited for him. You gasped when he slammed hard into you, catching you by surprise that you almost fell forward if his grip hadn’t tightened and you sighed as he began roughly thrusting into you, the flesh of your ass hit against his pelvis. Soft groans emitted from him as you moaned softly, trying your best to be quiet for a second time at that point.

“You’re doing so good, honey.” He praised with his gruff voice, digging his fingers deeper into your flesh and you moaned at his praise alone. Hearing those words from him made your heart throb and you continued to moan when his thrusting picked up pace, the headband starting to creak against the wall. “That’s it. Just relax.” He said, leaning over you to kiss your spine which made you shudder and all you could do was meekly nod. Your head was dizzy and hazy from earlier events, but you were suddenly free from that feeling when he began pounding harder into you.

The headboard banged against the wall, your moans and his gruff groans, and the sound of skin slapping filled the room as he relentlessly pounded into you with no remorse. You had gripped the bedsheets so hard that your knuckles were turning white and your body had bounced with every rough thrust he did, pleasure consuming your body. “Oh, fuck. Fuck.” You whined, squeezing your eyes shut and your moans began to grow louder as his nails dug harder into your skin. “Rick, I’m close. I’m close.” You reminded him, breathing heavily and you gasped when he turned you around, laying you on your back before placing your leg onto his shoulder.

He continued with his hard thrusts, his groans were louder than before and through the darkness, you could see the tip of his cock in your lower stomach. He was deep into you, leaning forward to groan into your ear and it felt like hours as he continued fucking you; having to stop twice to hold back his orgasm and he still continued as your chest began to rapidly rise and fall. “Rick, Rick, please.” You pleaded, your head dizzy from how good he felt in you and sweat began to form at both of your foreheads. He looked down at you, seeing at how fucked out you looked which drove him insane and his thrusts grew faster.

The speed made your orgasm wash over, your pussy clenching around his cock as you arched your back and your moans came spluttering as he continued to roughly fucking you through your orgasm. “That’s it, honey. You’re doing so well for me.” He breathily praised, his hips still thrusting into you before he came with a loud groan, cum spilt into your stomach and he felt his arms slightly grow weak as you both breathed heavily. He slowly pulled out, his cock still emitting strings of cum from your pussy and he groaned as he placed the pad of his thumb on the entrance of your pussy. “We’re not done yet.”

You were so fucked out of your mind that you didn’t even catch onto his sentence and you tilted your head to the side in confusion. You might’ve thought that you made up what he said. “Wha—What?” You asked, your mouth going dry and you watched as his silhouette towered over you. “I said. We aren’t done yet.” And then you sighed in exhaustion. This was going to be a long night.

AUTHOR’S NOTE:

#Spotify #rick grimes #the walking dead #the walking dead smut #rick grimes smut #rick grimes x reader #eddiemvnsonsbabymama #andrew lincoln #andrew lincoln smut #save a horse ride a cowboy #the walking dead season 6

[adrianasunderworld]

More of the Twst Stardew Valley au!

Just because I like it and want to continue.

Part One

Part Two

I've mentioned before that the witch that turns your chicken eggs into void eggs is Malleus grandma. That also means the witches hut is also his grandmas house. In that quest line you learn more about Malleus backstory of how he was orphaned and raised by his grandma and Lilia. And how his childhood was all about learning magic and thus he never got used to making friends. That is until he meets Yuu.

When you go down into the mines, the deeper levels have the blot phantoms for you to fight.

Fleur Town is the neighboring town you can take by bus, and there you can meet Rollo and friends. You can buy things off of them there, and yes, like Fellow and Giddel, there is a quest to get him to move to Night Raven.

If you marry Epel, he will occasionally gift you an apple or even an apple sapling.

Marja is kinda like the Evelyn in this au. Your sweet local granny who will occasionally gift you food if you befriend her. Specifically her famous apple pie.

The towns little school house sadly does not have much to offer in terms of arts programs. So Vil has occasionally volunteered to teach the kids about acting and helping them put on small shows for their families for them. Maybe a heart event or quest line for Vil is to help him collect supplies for the kids show. " Farmer, help! I need this amount of wood and this amount of cloth so I we can build the sets and costumes for the children."

In the same vein as the farmer going into Robin and Demetrius room in the game, and finding books about blended families, if you go into Falena and Ashas bedroom, you'll find books about how to recognize being the Golden Child and moving forward from there. One of Falenas friendship heart events is him expressing how he wishes to be closer to his brother and recognizing that their father played favorites and wasn't a good parent to Leona.

Again in the same vein as above, part of Leonas storyline is learning about his childhood and always being ignored by their father, and when he wasn't, being compared to Falena and how that soured his relationship with his brother.

If you marry Leona, The Kingscholars recognize you as a member of the family and make references to it. Like Cheka referring to Farmer Yuu as Auntie/Uncle/etc.

Idia has once, and only once, attempted to go into he mines and considered joining the adventures guild, thinking it would be like one of his fantasy RPGs. He was sorely mistaken and never did it again. He saw one green slime and got the fuck out.

Cater lives in a house with his two sisters and they are almost always arguing over the division of chores.

Once Yuu starts getting close to Riddle, his mother will have a cutscene telling them that Riddle has a bright future ahead of him, and that Yuu should tread lightly around him so as not to ruin anything.

Like Kent in game, you don't meet Lilia until after the first year in game. Baul, Silver, Malleus, and Sebek all mentioned Lilia throughout that first year. From they tell Yuu, Lilia is a veteran and the leader of the adventurers guild and is off on his travels. Hes written to Silver that he will be back soon, and then the mysterious Lilia shows on your doorstep at the start of Spring of year 2 to introduce himself.

Ruggie lives in trailer just outside of town and close to where he works, he mentions he sends money to his grandma back home. Obviously if you marry Ruggie, his financial situation is much better, and he has dialogue about how he can help his granny so much more now thanks to you for it. The house is always in top shape and the animals fed when Ruggie is your husband.

Crowley is always hatching schemes to bring in more tourists and business to town. So he often ropes Farmer into helping him get supplies for whatever event or ideas he has in mind to bring people to Night Raven. That usually includes handing over fliers to Rollo to hang up in Fleur Town. Or gathering wood to build stands for the farmers market he decided to open.

If you marry Jack, his personal add on room and hobby corner in the yard is full of exercise equipment and his cactuses. He has dialogue about how it's great being able to jog around the farm in the morning and how you shouldn't strain yourself and ask him if there's any heavy lifting to be done.

The cave on your farm that lets you either grow mushrooms or collect fruit are two separate offers. Jade will tell you that the cave on your property is a prime spot for growing mushrooms and he can set it up. Or Lilia will come and tell you about the fruit bars in the area and how he can help so bats are more likely to hang out in their and this leaves fruit for you to collect. You can choose to accept one offer over the other, if you reject both at the time, you can tell them you changed your mind later.

Mr. And Mrs. Shroud will ask Yuu about the blot monsters in the mines, and regularly put out commissions on the community board or Guild about the monsters. They are scientists that research them and always welcome whatever info you tell them, or giving them the stone items they drop when you kill them.

Royal Sword Mart Manager, Ambrose has a grandson he mentions if you come over to shop. Eventually said grandson, Arthur, will come to town, stating he's come to live with his grandfather now that he's getting older and Arthur worries for him and his health. Yes Arthur is also a marriage candidate.

Trey works at the local bakery and often gifts Yuu things like cake and bread as they become better friends.

One of Riddles cut scenes is Yuu overhearing a conversation between Riddle and his mother. Mrs. Rosehearts complaining about Riddles friends, Trey and Che'nya. Riddle tries to defend them, but his mother won't hear it. Once she walks away, Riddle notices the farmer, he explains how his mother was always strict and homeschooled him over sending him to the local school house with the other kids. Especially because she didn't approve of the local kids like Trey and Che'nya, who would always sneak Riddle out to play. If you marry Riddle, he has plenty of dialogue about how he's excited to invite Trey and Che'nya over for dinner, what sweets they should serve for dessert, and how much his mother would disapprove.

@mangacupcake @marrondrawsalot @writing-heiress @the-weirdos-mind

#twisted wonderland #twst #twst stardew #stardew valley #twst yuu #miss yuu #twst oc #malleus draconia #dire crowley #ambrose the 63rd #riddle rosehearts #twst chenya #cheka kingscholar #leona kingscholar #falena kingscholar #asha Kingscholar #arthur ambrose #jack howl #ruggie bucchi #vil schoenheit #idia shroud #trey clover #cater diamond #twst che'nya #lilia vanrouge #epel felmier #marja felmier

[compacflt]

If you want, and only if you want to, could you explain about making Logistics a big part of Ice's career path? Not only did fit so well with your Ice's characterization, it was just so neat I've made it my HC for Ice's career path.

yes!

I got REALLy deep into the defense policy weeds in this post so I’m putting a cut to save people’s dashboards

1. when i was rewriting chapters 8 &9 last winter i did literally the bare minimum of research about the current set of high-level officers. the commander of the pacific fleet at the time had previously been the director of pacific fleet logistics ordnance & supply. So that was easy to yoink. a proven chain of succession.

2. but also: it fit ice’s (or his alter ego admiral Kazansky’s) neat, orderly, effective, collected, strategic characterization. And as professional tactics go, there would be no better promotion for a high-level officer looking to take over the fleet than DFLOS. understand the fleet by the numbers, you comprehensively understand the fleet.

3. In terms of secret-keeping logistics, ice is supposed to be kind of the best. like, because of his logistical thinking, he & maverick get away with it. Or that’s how I would’ve written it if I were a little smarter. Obviously in practice a bunch of people find out so it’s not great. but the navy AS A WHOLE doesn’t find out.

4. The field of military logistics is rigorously bureaucratic, boring, soulsucking, selfdefeating, notoriously corrupt, and yet entirely necessary for the military to succeed at any level (in the very first draft of WWGATTAI i included a famous US marine corps maxim that most people have heard at some point: “amateurs talk tactics. professionals talk logistics.” but that was literally the only good thing about the original chapter 6 which got entirely rewritten a month after i published it). So logistics as a field of specialization fit in perfectly with my secondary character thesis that rising through the boring bureaucratic ranks of the Navy sucked all the humanity & will to live out of ice one day at a time.

a couple related interesting things that I’ve never talked about on this blog & might never get the chance to again:

a) ice canonically joins the navy as a fighter pilot & ends his career as a glorified bureaucrat. that sucks. obviously the struggle to rise in the ranks is a notoriously cutthroat, political, sleazy business (you do not get to the top of the United States Navy by being nice to people), but i would also not be the first person to say that—for exemplary officers—leadership is an EXPECTATION that can counterbalance someone’s natural drive to excel, if that makes sense. You get promoted because you’re good at something (flying), but you get promoted away from the thing you were good at. There is an extent to which you have to fight for a promotion—but there is also an extent to which commanders above you pick you for the job, suck you up along the pipeline. Loss of agency—a major major component of joining the military—does still apply to upper-level officers.

B) to that end, i am reminded of one quote from Todd Schmidt’s 2023 book “Silent Coup of the Guardians: US Military Elite Influence on National Security.” This is an Army training & doctrine commander speaking: “the military has a lot of two- and three-star senior leaders that were confident, charismatic commanders at the O-6 level. But that’s the end of the story. One in fifty, maybe one in a hundred, truly have what it takes to operate successfully at the strategic level and make a real difference for their service. The problem is that they all tend to think that, since they have stars on their shoulders, they’re the one.” —I’ve been writing ice as “The Chosen One,” the officer unicorn, for two reasons: one, it provides him cover for his illegal relationship (and also asks an interesting chicken-egg question: does he get away with his rlnship because he’s so good, or is he so good JUST to get away with his relationship?); and two, he’s “the chosen one” in canon, i.e. he already has four stars in canon: canonically he is not a mediocre officer. But most officers (cough cough maverick) are not cut out for high-level leadership.

C.) in Thomas E. Ricks’ book “The Generals,” Ricks argues that (at least in the Army) mediocrity in the general/flag officer ranks is unfortunately by design. In WWII, if you were a mediocre officer, you got relieved! You got fired! It’s part of why we won: merciless culling of the general officer ranks! But between WWII and Korea, officer relief began to be associated with shame & wasted resources. Mediocre officers got promoted anyways. The military elite pipeline sucks mediocrity up the chain of command. Ricks blames this issue for (at least the Army’s) shit leadership in every post-WWII war, including but most especially Iraq and Afghanistan. There’s no penalty for mediocrity. That in turn reflects on military strategy (mediocre strategists at the helm) & the outcome of every military foray (mediocre outcomes).

D) additionally. There’s a whole neverending debate in the field of civil-military relations (an extremely interesting field of study btw) about the corporatization of the military—lots of high-level talk over the years of “running the military like a business.” If you get kinda into defense policy like me (am i still antimilitary? Idk! but i CAN easily tell you i am against the navy’s littoral combat ship program! It sucks!) then you will know that the navy is struggling right now on a lot of different fronts (procurement [shipbuilding esp. is a disaster—ford-class carriers are under budget though 👍🏽], recruitment, theatre prioritization, general preparedness, readiness against major adversaries [China in particular]). Simply, the navy is pretty mediocre at the minute. I talk a big game about ice being COMPACFLT & SECNAV, but if those are true, & if he “exists” in our current timeline, or even canon timeline (COMPACFLT in 2020), then he’s complicit in a lot of why the navy is sucking ass right now. He didn’t do his job very well. LOL. So, because I love (especially my version of) ice too much to see his legacy suffer, I am stating for the record that my timeline is a different timeline where ice saves the navy from itself and fixes all its issues & solves all its problems & makes it the pride of the armed forces & the tip of the spear of American defense :) because I said so

E.) unrelated but important. It sounds obvious but it must be said. Ice dies on the job in TGM canon. To the extent that in earlier drafts of the script, not-his-sister-Sarah even points out to maverick that ice is still active duty, in the same breath as she tells him ice is sick again. (A wise move to remove that line.) ice does not resign his commission. Ice does not retire to spend time with his family at the end of his life. Ice dies as commander of the pacific fleet. He dies on the job; he dies FOR the job, bureaucratic as it is. If you were wondering why I wrote ice so dormantly suicidal, it’s because canon (i argue) has made it clear that—since the second ice signed up to be a fighter pilot during the Cold War to the second he died active duty—ice has ALWAYS been ready and willing to die for his honorable Navy career.

#so imagine what would have happened had he been publicly dishonored 😶 #It’s also why i interrupted his SECNAV tenure with his cancer #to pay respects to compacflt Ice having the same thing happen to him #my Ice is built different tho. it doesn’t kill him #he retires to spend time with his family ☺️ #unlike selfish asshole canon ice ‼️🤬 #/s #this post gets DEEP into it but i find this stuff sooo interesting #got really into defense policy & missing the forest for the trees #i will admit that #military bad? yes but. #but defense policy so interesting anyway. #tom iceman kazansky #top gun #top gun maverick #icemav #edts notes #asks #last post of the night

[emprexxluxaic]

ᰋ ׅ࣪ ꒰ possible symbols ♡︎ meeting places in meeting your future spouse ꒱

⠀ׅ ♡⠀࣪ emprexxluxaic ⸺ your ángel ׅ ࣪ 𝅄

book a reading ﹏ ✿𝆬  available ⬞ ࣪ ࿀

NOTE : in this reading i name some symbols or even how will you meet your fs, i don't used different photos instead i used same images to test your intuition,good luck(LOL JUST REALIZE I POSTED THE WRONG PACシ︎

PILE 1 PILE 2 PILE 3

PILE 4 PILE 5 PILE 6

⠀ᨳ  ࣪ .  ⠀𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑚𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑦⠀    ── ⠀   ˚   ✧ 

STRAWBERRY ONE

banks,goverment stablishment,a reletive by marriage,four-leaf clover,nest aggs,caution signs,written letters,a ring,proposal of a couple,money signs(recieving alot of money),diamonds,ranking in uniforms,police,military,politician,into sports,acquaintance of your workmate,good luck signs(anything that symbolizes goodlucks),serious looking,alcohol,nighclubs and bars.

STRAWBERRY TWO

peaceful environment,a bright smile,knitting or sewing things,right signs,proposal,dream about them,feminine energy,the word beautiful,neighbor,buying in department store in home appliances section,vandalism about bussiness,wearing shirt that has 4 wheel vehicle,a celebrity?,fame,color red,wishing wells,cautions signs,repeating numbers,amd wearing eyeglasses.

STRAWBERRY THREE

university/campus/schools,messages from spirit guides,growth within inside either you or them,part-time work,peace signs or peaceful surroundings,yard,busy,workaholic,talkative,older than you,power and authority,works as lawyer/judge/police officer,foreigner,been married?,knife,and sad eyes.

STRAWBERRY FOUR

death of someone,beaches/lakes,dark color,cold weather,winter,foreigner,power and authority,older than you,cold personality,window or widowed or divorced,cold aura/personality,a leader,a public servant,works in medical field,exams,hot person,summertime,a happy family,seeing lovers that causes to assume your only single in this world,quiet person,interested in psychology,a ticket,a wallet/jewelry left in the ground,social event,a gift from them,and a clock hanging in the wall.

STRAWBERRY FIVE

butterflies,student,younger,body language,their fingers,sport events,gym,job interview,goodluck signs,two female friends/siblings,written notes,a receipt/check,messeges from spirit guides,a place fro higher learning,lost license/certificate/ticket/wallet/jewelry that owned by them,family oriented,wishing wells, being on the top in success,teeths?,sharp objects,word violence, and ice.

STRAWBERRY SIX

skull symbol,works in medical field,exams,bussiness minded,butterflies,clubs,hard worker,into sports,rank in uniform,from wealthy family or wealthy person,wishing wells,younger,closes with female family members or friends,4 friends/siblings(2boys-2girls),arts,actor,artist,poet,filling water of cups,beaches/lakes,speed,airplaine,flights,travel,and freedom.

──⠀۪ ♡ ۫ donatation and tip ୨୧ [ 𝚒'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚊𝚖𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝 ! ]

♡⃝ ࣪ ۪ છ۪ 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚊 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𓂂 ׄׄ ᘡ 𝅄 masterlist

#pick a card #pick a card reading #pick a pile #pick a card readings #future spouse pick a card #tarot reading #pac reading #pick an image #future spouse #tarotblr #pick a deck #pick a photo #tarot pick a pile #pick a picture #pick a pile reading #tarot pac #pac readings #pac tarot #pac #tarot community #paid readings #future spouse pac #future spouse reading #future husband #for you #foryoupage #intuitive readings #intuitive reading #intuitive tarot reading #tarot

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

I love your OC “Raven”, she’s so cute and adorable. I just saw your post about what she would dream of during Malleus’ overblot and thought that it would be difficult for the guys to try to wake her up as Malleus tells her sweet dreams and seems genuinely happy that she can become the main character in this dream reality. So when the guys try to tell her that it’s all fake and she is still a storyteller, Malleus would get really angry (probably more angry about that then, when the rest of them are getting out of the dream) as in the post about the masquerade event, it was like Malleus and Raven were siblings, so Malleus would most likely put some barrier to keep them out of her dream or something.

[Referencing this post and this story!]

Wah, thank you 😭 I'm glad you like her and find her little stories and interactions with the other characters interesting~

It’s been quite interesting to hear about how others perceive certain relationships and dynamics that Miss Raven has with her peers. I think this is actually the first time someone else has told me there’s a sibling-like bond between her and Malleus 😂 (I would like to mention that I had a running joke that Sebek mistook them as distant relatives, but didn’t think that I’ve ever written Malleus and Raven with the intention of being sibling-like.)

(I’m going to talk about this for a while, so see the rest below the cut ^^)

They mainly see each other sporadically and in a “professional” capacity because Raven serves as the middle man between the other dorm leaders + the headmaster and Malleus (since they often miss each other). Again, she’s the Diablo to Malleus’s Maleficent— With the events of Glorious Masquerade, it feels like they’ve come to understand one another a little more. They’ve both people who want to fiercely defend their own ideals, even if it comes at the cost of putting themselves on the front lines. Malleus leaves the masquerade with newfound respect for the audacity (or is it stupidity?) of Raven to stand against him, which I guess is where a vague sense of “fondness” comes from in spite of how cordial their interactions usually are.

When you say they feel like siblings, I’m assuming it’s Malleus = big brother and Raven = little sister? 🤔 I wonder if he’s ever canonically wanted to be a big brother… That would, uh… require his parents to still be alive and present. I’d imagine it’s lonely in his castle whenever Lilia’s busy, so maybe Malleus has thought about having a sibling that looks up to him and is by his side. In Raven’s case, she has wished for siblings to keep her company before—whether older or younger, she’s not picky. Some days she wants to be the one taking care of others, and other days she wants to be the one being taken care of. I think both Malleus and Raven could be either; they both have their moments of maturity and immaturity that the other bounces off of like they’re a trained comedy duo. I mentioned here that maybe she’ll go to Briar Valley for her 4th year internship and develop stronger bonds with the Diasomnia characters (and mainly Malleus) through her work. I think maybe Lilia recognized those similarities and that’s why he’s so excited to that Malleus has found a potential friend of his own accord.

It’s usually Raven being the “Fairy Godmother” to others by writing the stories that others wish to see themselves in—but now Malleus has usurped the role for himself, and he’s her Fairy Godmother. I think Malleus likes to be the one making others happy (as some sort of coping mechanism for his own inadequacies). Book 7 is obviously one huge example, but another is Endless Halloween Night. His whole motivation for what he did was that ghosts that arrived late for the holiday wouldn’t feel like they had missed out. He also has a strong sense of duty and protectiveness to his people, stating that he was told that the Draconias are powerful so they can protect the smiles of their people. Malleus is… very socially awkward around his peers (to say the least), but his desire to make others happy even if the logic is sometimes twisted is genuine.

When I think about it, I feel as though this kind of sentiment would extend to how Malleus views Raven. Her entire existence is also one of loneliness and wishing to belong, but constantly gaslighting herself into thinking that she can’t be “a main character” like everyone else, that she’s just a footnote or a supporting character in the story. She’s an outcast, just like he is, even if for different reasons. Again, Maleficent and Diablo energy— That would probably make Malleus sympathize with her and want to ensure she has her “happy ending”.

As Raven spirals deeper and deeper into her dream, he looks on with pride. This is his work. He’s done go much good, Malleus tells himself. Just look at her big dumb grin. Then—suddenly—BAM!! The doors to the ball venue are kicked in, and the orchestral music screeches to a halt. In storm Yuu and Grim, flanked on either side by Silver and Sebek, their boots on the door they just took down. “We’ve come to rescue the princess.”

“She’s in need of no such thing. It is you who are the monsters come to steal her away and lock her in a tower,” Malleus would probably say. She’s in a confused daze, wondering why suddenly her classmates are acting “out of character” in her dream world. There’s supposed to be a musical number going on right now, not a fight about to break out on the dance floor.

“Raven, please listen to us. This—” Silver gestures to the glittering lights and decorations. All smoke and mirrors. “—none of it is real. You’re still Night Raven College’s storyteller. Our storyteller. Please… open your eyes! Wake up!!”

“Do not listen to a word he says. He is an uninvited guest come to crash the celebration.” A mist seems to fall over her eyes. Once so bright and filled with curiosity, now clouded over and dull. She quietly seeps back into the waiting arms of some fabricated mystery man promising to whisk her away.

“ROUSE YOURSELF AT ONCE, BIRD!! We didn’t come all this way to be turned away at the door!!” Sebek shouts, snapping her lucidity back for a second with the sheer magnitude of his volume. “HOW WEAK OF HEART YOU MUST BE TO SUCCUMB TO THESE LIES! I THOUGHT YOU STRONGER THAN THAT!”

“Sebek.” Malleus’s lip curls, his tone patient but dangerous. “So even you have turned traitor. What a plot twist for the pages.”

Sebek balks at his liege’s words—he’s having difficulties speaking his true feelings in front of the man he has revered his entire life. Guilt and shame fill him. That’s when Yuu steps up, Grim nestled in their arms.

“Miss Raven, let’s go home together,” Yuu suggests. “Everyone’s waiting for us. There’s so many stories left to tell.”

“Everyone… waiting? Stories to tell…” She blinks a few times—

“ENOUGH!!” Malleus’s voice thunders, loud enough to rattle the entire ballroom. “I will not allow one more second of this drivel. The young Crowley has dreamed her entire life of this very moment—yet you would rob her of it? I will put an end to this myself…! This story is mine to pen—for the sake of every single happy ending!!”

#twisted wonderland #twst #disney twisted wonderland #notes from the writing raven #twst oc #twisted wonderland oc #Raven Crowley #spoilers #Diasomnia #Lilia Vanrouge #Silver #Sebek Zigvolt #Grim #Yuu

[belit0]

You are very busy lately I don't want to request but wanted to give my little ideas for writing I just had so many ideas whenever I read your blogs so here it is ( reader reading spicy books and him making her read it to him while doing it for indra )

💗💗 love your blogs keep it up

Thank you dear for your patience, here I am at last! I'm glad my writings give you ideas, that's always the goal.

It's crude, dirty, humiliating in the best sense of the word. Leaning against his chest, (Y/N) holds the book she was so determined to hide in her hands, legs spread wide and waist encircled by her husband's arms.

She didn't intend for her dark little secret to be revealed, she thought she was doing a great job of keeping Indra from finding that volume, but the leader of the Uchiha clan always has the most mysterious ways to surprise.

"Go on, continue reading." The low tone of his voice in (Y/N)'s ear makes her tremble in his grip, and she rearranges herself on the bed as much as she can. She doesn't want to do it, doesn't want to utter those words out loud, read something so raw and explicit in front of her own husband, but there is never a choice when it comes to him.

The girl coyly begins, recounting the beginning of a terribly exciting scene, one of the best in the whole book. The protagonist is finally captured by the antagonist, and he uses and abuses all his supernatural techniques to possess her as he wishes. It's awful, morbid, complicated in terms of tastes and fetishes, something that (Y/N) would prefer to keep private and away from Indra's mind. Her husband doesn't need to know how dirty she is, the things she likes to read, it would be ideal if he kept the elegant and perfect image he had of her before this.

(Y/N) accepted an arranged marriage with the most powerful man in the world for several reasons, but good sex was never among them. The woman never expected to be satisfied in the way she liked, in the way she needed. She thought her function would be based on procreation, to open her legs every few years and create a valuable lineage for him, but when Indra himself surprised her with unusual tastes and interests between the sheets, the book she brought with her from home was forgotten.

That same unfortunate afternoon, her husband stumbled upon the dusty pages by mere chance, after looking for a scroll of his own in the wrong place. Reading the contents of the tome left him feeling a mixture of different things, but one sentiment won out over all others.

"Louder, (Y/N). I can barely hear you." Torturing her is a regular part of the process, and one of his large hands slides down the expanse of her stomach, caressing the soft skin of her inner thigh and back up. He won't let her stop, that much is clear, but he intends to make use of her amidst all this lewdness.

She continues, follows his intrusions, and when the scene reaches the point where the antagonist begins to touch the protagonist, her husband's fingers caress her clothed crotch, a quiet touch but one that says more than a thousand words. (Y/N) tries to ignore it, to end that process as soon as possible and forget the existence of her intricate tastes in literature, but when the raw skin-to-skin contact blossoms on her pelvis, meaning begins to slip from her vision.

Two fingers stroke up and down her slit, pressed by the clothes she wears and which Indra seems to have no intention in moving out of the way. (Y/N) lays her head against his shoulder, sighing at the sensations of looming pleasure, but her husband halts when she ceases reading. " Have I told you to stop?"

(Y/N) knows there is no escaping this, that she will be subjected to admitting the arousal this kind of written content provokes in her, and the inibition begins to fade as that hand resumes its caresses, gathering moisture from her hole and going over her lips from the end all the way up, wetting the entire area in the process.

In the book, the antagonist probes the protagonist's pussy with his tongue, and Indra increases the speed of his touches between her legs. Two fingers are tasked with drawing wonderful circles on her clit, and (Y/N) can't even think about the state her underwear must be in.

She moans as she reads, losing her breath word after word, unable to concentrate but determined to give what her husband demands of her. She will recount the entire scene, whatever it takes.

When the antagonist finally penetrates his victim, two fingers enter her, deep and hooked to strike that wonderful spot inside her. (Y/N) trembles as a thumb presses against her clitoris, unmoving but present in sensation, and the book closes in her hands as she opens impossibly wider for him, exposing all she has and more.

The reading is forgotten as Indra's free hand closes over her jaw and turns her head, devouring her mouth as her pussy is serviced by his manual skills. It's dirty, terrible, exposed in a totally unexpected way, but a dark satisfaction glows inside her knowing that her husband likes her eating that kind of material.

Indra touches her, fucks her with his hand, and when (Y/N) finishes on him without even having undressed, she knows that the party has just begun.

#indra otsutsuki x reader #otsutsuki indra x reader #indra x reader #otsutsuki indra #indra otsutsuki #indra #naruto #naruto imagines #uchiha clan #naruto shippuden #otsutsuki clan #naruto x reader

[chthonic-cassandra]

Recent books, fiction -

Emma Cline, The Girls - a teenage girl in the late 1960's ends up on the outer edges of a Manson-like (very closely Manson-like) cult. This was okay, but not great, falling too often into cliches about teenage girlhood and lacking a sharp understanding of cult dynamics. By basing the fictional cult in the novel so closely on Charles Manson's Cline gets to handwave a bunch of things about how and why it works, but the seams in the construction show through anyway; Cline's understanding about what leads people to join and stay in these kinds of groups, and how the internal dynamics function, seemed to me persistently surface-level. The strongest part of the novel is the protagonist's potent desire for one of the closest inner circle girls in the cult, which is the reason she becomes entangled much more than any draw from the cult leader himself. There was something interesting there, if Cline had focused on it, and something interesting too in the hints about our protagonist's solitary experiences of lesbian masochistic desire, but this thread was resolved in a way that felt to me disappointingly simplistic. The hints about our protagonist's adulthood following her experience of the cult are also flat, without the messiness of what it can mean to survive that experience. Worth reading as an example of a fictional depiction of organized abuse, but not a great one.

Mona Simpson, Commitment - family saga novel following three siblings as they make lives for themselves following their mother's depressive breakdown and institutionalization in the early 1970's. This had some flashes of clarity and insight, but fizzled out quickly into banality. There were some things that Simpson wanted to say about pragmatism vs making art, and about living in fear of mental illness, but it all got sanded down. The depiction of 'mental illness' is also two dimensional at best. This suffered especially for me in proximity to a recent read-through of The Frederica Quartet, which deals with some similar themes with an incomparably greater level of complexity and beauty. While this novel wasn't terrible, the fact of how lauded it has been made me feel cynical about the state of contemporary literary fiction.

Dion Fortune, Moon Magic - a hilarious but less than successful chapter in my weird journey of reading Fortune's fiction work. Like The Sea Priestess, to which it is a loose sequel, this novel centers around a blatant Dion Fortune self-insert initiating a repressed professional man into sexualized spiritual enlightenment. Unlike The Sea Priestess, Moon Magic is told largely from the point of view of said Dion Fortune self-insert, which brings the narcissism levels up to the nearly intolerable. Left unfinished at Fortune's death, the final chapter was written by her friends which was also not a great choice.

Melody Razak, Moth - a left-leaning, intellectual family in Delhi struggles to cope with the cataclysmic violence of partition. Stepping back from this book there are elements of it, and of the way each character was drawn, which I appreciate, but I felt consistently uneasy reading it, so much that I put it aside for a week in the middle, which is unusual for me. There was something about Razak's narrative gaze which felt exoticizing in its hazy simplicity; this maybe has to do with her conviction to "tell the untold stories" of women who experienced violence during partition, which I don't think is ever a great way to go into a fiction project for reasons I have written about elsewhere. However, the intensely brutal violence of the final section of the book somehow landed for me more as a reader; I don't actually know how I feel about the representational ethics of it, but something about the extremity brought it to a narratively more effective place. I'm still trying to sort through why.

Stacey D'Erasmo, The Complicities - after her husband's conviction for fraudulent business practices, a woman moves to a town in New England, opens a massage practice, and gets emotionally involved with a beached whale. Ugh. This was very bad, and I don't know how it ended up on my to-read list. Flat, simplistic prose style, irritating narrative voice, unlikable characters. Whatever.

Kikuo Tsumura, There's No Such Thing As an Easy Job (trans. Polly Barton) - genuinely hilarious satire on Japanese capitalist culture. A young woman, burnt out on her previous job (the nature of which isn't revealed until the end, which was an effective choice for me and so I'm not spoiling it), seeks to find a form of employment that will require the least possible from her intellectually and emotionally, ending up in increasing surreal work situations. This kind of book often doesn't work for me (I'm not a big humor person), but this was sharp and understated and very good. The section at the cracker factory in particular had me trying ineffectively to explain its hilarity to people around me. Recommended.

Catherine Lacey, Biography of X - in an AU United States where the southern states seceded in the mid-twentieth century, a newly widowed woman attempts to find out the truth about her wife, a notoriously secretive and manipulative artist. This was ambitious in its metafictional conceit and had a premise that intrigued but ultimately didn't live up to its promise. The world-building of Lacey's AU felt implausible and insufficiently developed; there were so many aspects of it that didn't land, like the distracting use of real-life figures or the total lack of critical analysis around race and gender. If the AU premise had been removed and the focus kept tighter on the central relationship it might have worked, but there too we just didn't have enough to go off of. This mostly just made me wish I was rereading Siri Hutvedt's The Blazing World, a much, much stronger metafictional depiction of a female artist, which maybe I should do.

Mariana Enríquez, Our Share of the Night - in Argentina during the period of military dictatorship, a young father attempts to save his son from the abusive group of which he has been a part since childhood. I loved this book so so very much. As a horror novel, as a depiction of organized abuse and intergenerational trauma, as a representation of the ways that state and interpersonal violence repeat and mirror. It's not a perfect book - I think that the last third could be tightened and shifted in certain ways - but what it's doing is so strong and specific that I don't mind. I sort of want to buy a copy and reread it right away. Strongly recommended, with the content note that it is a very emotionally plausible and unsparing depiction of its subject material.

#books #trauma frameworks

[wannaeatramyeon]

Hi, can I request break up to make up (angst to fluff) story with Jake Kim? It was when Jake running an illegal toto, that time Jake was super busy that he neglected his s/o & his s/o hated that he running an illegal bussiness, then they broke up. After he got out from juvenile, he looked after his s/o to say sorry and try to win his s/o's heart back. Sorry for my bad english & thank you in advance 💙

Anon, your english is pretty fantastic. And even if it isn't, don't apologise for it!

Thanks for the ask and so sorry for the delay!

Jake Kim x Reader: To the end

Gambling arc to juvie release

"I have to do this for Big Deal."

"But this isn't what Big Deal stands for!"

"It's what I need to do for us to survive."

You hate that Jake never looks at you. Not once. Like he's already made up his mind. You were meant to stand with him to the end. He promised.

"You know how much Sinu would hate this!"

"Sinu isn't here anymore." Jake's words hit you like a gut punch.

He catches your lower lip trembling. Those lips he's kissed a thousand times before, and wants to kiss forevermore. Your touch, your taste. It's seared into his memory.

"You're going to ruin other people's lives including your own. I can't watch you do this," you whisper. He's going down a path you cannot and will not follow.

Countless shows and movies and books have misled you. You thought a break up would be screaming, tears, anger. All you feel is empty. Helpless.

Like the Jake Kim you know is slipping between your fingers and there is nothing you can do to stop it.

"I don't want you to neither," Jake holds your hands, thumbs brushing your knuckles. He memorises the feel of your hand in his.

I'm protecting you, he reasons. It's for the best.

He forces the words out, "I think this is the end of the road for us."

How odd to think only a couple days ago you woke up in each other's arms. You thought your love for one another was so obvious, that everyone could practically see a love heart pulsating overhead.

Yet now, so suddenly, you've reached a dead end.

"...If that's what you want," You can't bring yourself to remove your hands from his, to sever the last of your connection.

Big Deal is too dangerous. Your safety is a risk Jake cannot take. The gambling racket is a burden he needs to shoulder. Alone.

"It is," he lies, and lets you go.

He never meets your gaze even as you leave.

It's easier this way.

.

.

"Please Jerry, just write down what I say and deliver it to Y/N."

Even with the visitor's barrier between them, Jake could feel the displeasure radiating off Jerry.

(When Big Deal initially found out about the break up, no-one said a word. They didn't need to. The disagreement with how their leader has handled his own personal relationship was written all over their faces.)

And maybe Jake should let sleeping dogs lie, Jerry certainly thought so. But after ending up in Juvie, he feels like he owes you an explanation. Or at least an apology.

Shame that you are right to the bitter end. The lives he's dragged down with him weigh heavy on his conscience. That young kid - Jiho. Members of Big Deal including Brad, Jason.

What a mess.

.

.

Juvie gives Jake a lot of time to think.

That the quicker you forget about him, the better.

But the thought of forgetting you. Of referring to you as in the past, history, done. Of your face and smile and voice fading from memory. It hurts him more than he can bear.

Every night, drifting off to sleep in a room full of other delinquents, he would allow his thoughts to wander.

What are you doing with your life now? Are you still fretting over your grades? Have you been spending your spare time with friends? Did you go to that new cafe in the end? See that film you were excited for? Have you found someone that could actually make you happy? Do you still think about me? Do you remember the times we had? Do you miss me like I miss you-

Jake imagines the lilt of your voice as you respond, eyes bright and full of life, smile beautiful and beaming.

Other times, the masochism takes hold and under the cloak of darkness, Jake gives into the fantasy of you both living a normal life. An alternate universe where there are no complications, and you are both two kids that simply fell in love.

Eventually, dawn breaks and in the cold light of day, there is no escaping reality.

.

.

"Hi Jake,"

"Y/N?"

It's you. Really you. Is this a nightmare or the most perfect dream? Jerry had delivered the letter and this was the last thing Jake expected. Did he not make it clear enough how dangerous this is for you?

"Yeah... Jerry pulled some strings so I could visit you."

Oh. Well Jerry kept this quiet.

Awkwardness and tension lingers in the air. Neither one of you had spoken or seen each other since that night nearly a year ago.

"Y/N..." Strange that your name feels rusty on Jake's tongue when you are constantly in his thoughts.

"Fuck you," Your vitriol catches him off-guard. Eyes full of fury, lips turned down, "You promised we're a team. You promised you wouldn't leave me out."

You slam the letter against the screen, "This is bullshit, Jake Kim. And you know it."

"How do you not understand this?" Jake's voice starts to rise in frustration, "The danger with Gun and the crews? This is for the best-"

You cut him off with the one and only question that matters to you. That frayed the edge of your sanity for months on end-

"Do you still love me?"

The question stuns him. He considers saying otherwise but he can't refute this. After everything, denying it feels like one lie too far.

Jake doesn't offer anything but a lack of answer is enough for you. For your spark of hope.

"I'll wait for you. I'll see you when you get out."

Your intentions are laid clear. Jake doesn't say no.

.

.

You don't visit again.

However, you give snippets of your life faithfully delivered by Jerry.

It starts as a few sentences, then develops into paragraphs, and finally into pages.

Snapshots of you. Your life, your thoughts. A little like how it used to be.

Jake hears your voice each time he reads your words. Thinks about your furrowed brows or dimpled smile that accompanies. He reads each letter over and over again, until they're dog-earred and turning brittle at the creases.

Even the ones full of anger and hurt.

He responds whenever he can. Treasuring the stationery rewarded for good behaviour, greedily hoarding it all to write back.

Over the weeks and months, the ice starts to thaw.

.

.

On the day Jake is released, the rest of the crew greet him with smiles and signage and "Good to have you back, Sir!"

You're also there. Standing next to Jerry and Big Deal, like you have always belonged.

"Welcome back, Sir," you tease, easily slipping back into old habits.

"You actually waited for me?"

"I said I would."

Of course you did. But Jake couldn't blame you if you changed your mind.

.

.

The conversation continues in his bedroom. Away from prying but well-meaning ears.

Jake has missed this. Being around his things, his crew, his street, you.

"I love you, you idiot. For better or worse."

The underlying tension still remains though you see no point in withholding the depth of your affection.

Jake takes a moment, running your words through his mind. He still needs to ensure you truly understand what being with him means.

"You know how dangerous getting mixed up with Big Deal is, right?" he attempts. You cut him off with a sharp look.

Seriously. If he starts this shit up again. Who does he take you for? Some innocent little girl?

"Fine, fine." Jake holds up both hands as a sign of surrender, before he finally says those words you have been dreaming of:

"I love you too."

(He wonders if he would ever regret this moment of weakness and selfishness, but he sees your smile and knows he could never regret making you happy.)

The tension breaks.

Jake slips easily back into his old habits too, snaking his arms around your waist and capturing your mouth in a kiss.

He has missed this - being yours, most of all.

When you break apart, Jake doesn't shy away from your gaze this time. He intends to keep his promise to you. You're his partner. His equal.

With him to the end.

#im so sorry if you could tell i fizzled out in the end #i just want jake to be happy #lookism #lookism headcanons #lookism x reader #lookism hc #lookism fic #lookism webtoon #lookism manhwa #jake kim #jake kim x reader #kim gimyung x reader #kim gimyeong x reader #wannaeatramyeon

[drconstellation]

The Newton/Crowley Mirror-Parallel in S1

Future Echoes from the Past #2

Let me take a moment to try and explain the process of how I approach meta writing. I’m not new to this. I might be new to this fandom, but I’ve been writing metas for twenty years in other fandoms. I’m an old hand at this, and I learnt how to do it with some pretty critical masters of the game. I’ve been wrestling with this meta for several days, which never a good sign. I thought I was on the right track here but got to a point where I was trying to make my biased square blocks fit into the round holes I was expecting to see, and they weren’t, and thought, nope, it’s time to back off and see what is there instead. When things don’t fall and click into place, when you can’t see the next connection easily, when it becomes too convoluted - and actually, I think some of the story is missing in the crucial places - that's a dead end for the time being, so the meta I was expecting (and hoping) to see didn’t emerge. But there is still something there to be revealed, and it was from a bit that I didn't think had much importance.

A few days ago I posted a meta about how the paintball fight at Tadfield Manor was a loose re-creation of the Great War in Heaven that lead to the formation of Heaven and Hell. It was more a description of events and the two sides, and I didn’t assign any of the S1 characters to the celestial characters that we would have expected to be involved with the rebellion. For example, the manager Nigel strikes me as standing in for Gabriel, and jaded old Norman, who is on the verge of retirement, and who organized the “team building exercise” is most likely to be Lucifer  - he is the leader of the Yellow team, who are quite unhappy and full of complaints about the others in the office. But other than those two, the other bit players amongst our regular cast were missing, or unclear. And this was a problem, a BIG problem, because while there hints to who was Crowley, the match to Aziraphale was nowhere to be seen, and he should be there. So, let’s leave that for the time being, and move on.

In the middle of all this is Newton Pulsifer. He oddly arrives in the office, destroys the electrical system, then leaves before the war begins. And there is an even odder follow-up exchange in the car park of the office as he departs. I had to ask why - why add this in?

[It should be noted, at this point in the discussion, that while the paintball fight was written in the original book, the office scene that is the prelude to the fight, and the scenes with Newt that I’m about to discuss, weren’t. They are from the tv series only.]

I have been building up a library of notes and screenshots to help me with my metas, and Newt and Anathema have been on my radar. I came across this screen shot of Newt lying on Anathema’s bed after his accident in Tadfield and went “Huh, he looks very Crowley-coded there with this black/grey clothes and yellow and red socks. That’s not the line I of thought I had been following..”

I kept going and then @ennas-aesthetic posted this meta about Jesus in S3 and mentioned that Anathema was an Aziraphale parallel, so that would make Newt a corresponding Crowley parallel – which would explain the screen shot mentioned. Then the final pieces for this meta were these two posts, one from @mouseonamoose about their thoughts on angel!Crowley and one from @cornchrunchie on part of the exchange between Aziraphale and angel!Crowley in Before the Beginning, at the start of S2E1. I’d already had a thought about another set of lines in this part that formed a parallel to Newt, but getting a second set of lines to tie it in to this S1E2 segment was a bonus, I must say.

So where am I going with all this rambling? Right. Let’s get down to business.

Hopefully by now I’ve established that one of Newt’s roles in the office scene that sets up the rebellion is to be not just a parallel to Crowley, but a mirror – he’s kind of the opposite, in a way. It’s like they are on opposite sides of the looking glass.

At the beginning of S2E1 we are shown angel!Crowley, the Starmaker – the Engineer. And what is Newt supposed to be? A computer engineer. Only, angel!Crowley engineers light, while Newt engineers darkness. Everywhere Newt goes, he turns out the lights. Which is why when he runs into Shadwell shortly after and is given the newspaper advert that declares “ASSISTANT REQUIRED TO COMBAT THE FORCES OF DARKNESS” if he joins the Witchfinder Army that I was cackling at the irony of this. Perhaps we’d better not get sidetracked with that though.

There’s a critical point here that I’d like to highlight that I noticed, and how I made the link, because it may have implications in the future, maybe in S3. In Before the Beginning, Crowley sets everything up to get the nebula started, then there is a slight pause.

Az: …is something meant to happen? Cr: Oh, right, sorry, yes yes. Knew I'd missed one. Let there be light.

It struck me that Newt’s efforts in making anything with electricity, the modern source of light, don’t work because he doesn’t check that he’s got everything right. He blacks out his neighborhood as a child without checking the circuits, he shuts down the entire office without checking his work.

Why would you need both light and dark? You can't really have one without the other. It's the yin and yang. Its balance. To see the light you need darkness. And to see shadows you need light.

So we get a short scene of Newt heading off to office, with his Almighty mother handing out some lunch rations, and wishing him luck. Hmm. He’s holding a box that contains, amongst various things, a pot plant (a bromeliad) with a deep red flower, for all love. Ngggkgk.

At the office, Newt is given the cold shoulder by the senior co-worker opposite him (I call her “Pearls,” because I don’t have the S1 script book and I’m not sure what she’s called.) She asks his name, but never offers hers. Sounds familiar, where have we seen that before…?

Az: Um, hello. I'm Aziraphale. Cr: Nice meeting you. Okay, here goes!

@mouseonamoose mentions that angel!Crowley wouldn't feel the need to mention his name if he was a high ranking angel here, he would expect other angels to know who he was. [op adds another item to their list of pointers to angel!Crowley being a senior Archangel...it's up to 18, btw. Yes, I know its only fanon at the moment...] Just like the Supreme Archangel "fucking" Gabriel hasn't got time for a bit of social chit-chat before Aziraphale!Crowley is supposed to be executed in the hellfire in S1E6. Just get on it with it, pleb! We've got better things to do with our time!

Outside, we see Newt has been given his marching orders. He's leaving already. A sharply dressed woman in a masculine-cut suit approaches quickly. I don't know about you, but she looks like a demon to me. Black suit, red hair, pink (which is a tint of red) shirt - she's a copy of Crowley. This is another Crowley-copy about to give some internal criticism to a Crowley-mirror.

"Need a hand, Dick?"

Then she power-walks past. Newt is not even worth her time stopping for.

*Snort* - and ouch. That's a below-the belt joke.

She's just called him a wanker. In the US you might use the term jerk instead. Someone who's a bit egotistical and more in it for themselves than others. (and I never thought I'd be fact-checking the meaning of this word ever, but there's always a first time...) She's basically just equated him Gabriel, in my book (and in more ways than one.)

That doesn't sound like the Crowley we know, does it? Maybe, maybe not - but it does reveal to us a world of information about what the other demons think about Crowley, and more importantly perhaps it gives a hint of what he was like pre-Fall and why he was cast out as a sacrifice for the team, a scapegoat and example for the losing faction, in addition to the asking of questions reason.

It's quite notable that Crowley doesn't have any other demon friends or allies, even after 6000 years. Plus, he seems to have gotten special treatment during that time. Furfur complains about this in the dressing room in 1941, remarking :

"No, what's ridiculous is demons like you doing what they please. And somehow still getting on, while demons like me graft for hundreds and hundreds of millennia and never get a sniff of a promotion! Well, not this time. Expect a Legion to come for you first thing tomorrow. Enjoy your last night on Earth."

Hastur calls him "Mr Slick," and thinks he's been up on the surface of the Earth too long. And you kind of get the idea that Lord Beelzebub is holding back their hand somewhat in their conversation in S2E1 when they summon Crowley down to Hell for a little chat about the missing Gabriel.

CROWLEY: [waving flies away] Augh. Oh, I thought we had a [spits out flies] generalized understanding. BEELZEBUB: We don't. You're still a traitor. I could put a price on your head any time I wanted to.

But they haven't put a price on Crowley's head. And they don't intend to. Crowley is still being given the special treatment. Also in that particular conversation is a hint that he was once on a similar footing to Beelzebub, and Beelzebub was also a high ranking angel before the Fall - they aren't Grand Duke of Hell and Satan's right-hand demon for no reason.

Its ever-so subtle, but its there. Those traces of privilege we were pointing out that Gabriel and Beelzebub flaunt when they abscond? Once upon a time Crowley had them too. But the passing millennia has slowly worn them away until we can barely see the traces of it. Although, it still shows up occasionally.

We should finish off the scene back in S1E2 with Newt, though, because he does show us s little bit more of our mirror-Crowley in the car park scene. As the demon-lady walks past him he calls after her:

"My name's not actually Dick, it’s the car's name. You can ask me why if you like."

Aww. Poor Newt. While Crowley was stopped from asking questions, and cast from Heaven because he wanted to ask questions, his mirror-character Newt is offering to answer questions for other people. It's just that they aren't interested in doing that either. Either way, the conversation stops, doesn't it.

To finish off, I'm going to leave you with this. I know, its about Newt not being a computer engineer, but since we've been discussing how Newt is a mirror-parallel to Crowley, perhaps it's something we need to tuck away in the back of our minds for S3 as well, when the past comes back to haunt us.

Further reading in this series:

#1: The Great War of Tadfield Manor

#3: "Not Even At Gunpoint!"

#good omens #good omens 2 #good omens meta #good omens analysis #crowley #newton #gabriel #lucifer #the great war #tadfield manor #he is not what he says he is #he's a demon he lies #pre fall crowley