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restlessmaknae · 2 months

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it's your moment, baby // jung wooyoung

wooyoung + enemies to lovers + "if i do this, do you promise to stop harassing me?" "absolutely not. what kinda sick request is that?"

➳ Characters: dance major!Wooyoung x dance major!female reader/you

➳ Genre: enemies to lovers, college au, arts college au

➳ Words: 3.6k

➳ Warning: mentions of a sprained ankle

➳ A/N: This story was requested by the lovely @stories-inbetween-the-stars for my request event. I hope you enjoy it! ❤️

Also, this story is dedicated to @lily-blue. Happy birthday, Kinga! I thought this story would be up to your liking *-*

Title taken from Dua Lipa's 'Houdini'

➳ Masterlist for the request event

➳ ATEEZ taglist: @dat-town, @tranquilpetrichor, @americanokisses, @kuleo26, @stories-inbetween-the-stars, @wccycc, @littlestartonightsposts, @koishua, @squiishymeow, @s00buwu

You knew that arts college would be difficult because of the general competitive nature of arts, but you would have never expected it to be this difficult because of one extremely annoying guy - Jung Wooyoung.

It didn’t help either that your college friend groups overlapped, and your dorm roommate - Yiren - dated San who was one of Wooyoung’s friends, meaning that you had to see this annoying guy with his annoying shiteating grin at pretty much every social gathering. On the other hand, avoiding the said events just because he was there would have made him think that he had the upper hand in your dynamics, and you didn’t want to give him that pleasure. His ego was already over the top, you didn’t need to pump it up further.

Basically everyone in the dance department knew that you and Wooyoung had some bad blood that had originated back to the orientation week when he had deemed your freestyle hip-hop dance lacking, and you had bit back that he hadn’t done it any better, so he should have shut his mouth. That had happened right in front of the whole dance department and some other new students who were passing by, so news had gotten out pretty quickly.

Egos trampled upon, you had both not forgotten about your little quarrel, so every time you had met afterwards, you had ended up bickering. Once, the teacher had even sent you out of a practice room to talk it out between yourselves instead of disturbing the whole class, that’s just how much you despised each other.

So when Wooyoung came up to you during your second year close to your midterms, asking if you wanted to be his dance partner during the year-end gala, you laughed straight into his face. However, the boy seemed uncharacteristically serious, lips pressed into a thin line as he watched you laugh to your heart’s content.

“Wait… Are you serious?” You quirked an eyebrow, finding his solemnity quite surprising and honestly… pretty pathetic.

Wooyoung let out a sigh, an annoyed one, as if he was doing you a favour by asking you the question.

“I’ve heard your dance partner for the gala sprained his ankle, and mine has to leave early for her study abroad semester, so it would also benefit you,” he stated the obvious which made you snort. Huh, so the news travelled fast enough this time, too.

What could you do though? You hated to admit that he was right, but he was right. Yunho had managed to fall down the stairs with his impossibly long legs, and he had sprained his left ankle. The doctor had said that it would take around four weeks to heal properly, but the gala was six weeks away, and you were suddenly left without a partner. So if you wanted to attend the gala, you needed a partner as soon as possible, and since everyone seemed to be taken already, or doing a solo performance, he was your best chance if you didn’t want to come up with a new choreography.

“If I do this, do you promise to stop harassing me?” You raised an eyebrow challengingly, and for a moment, just for the slightest of a moment, you thought that he could finally give you a break and answer like a normal person would instead of being the pain in the ass that he usually was.

Yet, he didn’t.

“Absolutely not. What kinda sick request is that?” He snickered as if it had been the joke of the century. Now, it was your turn to appear nonchalant, watching as he pulled himself together after his laughing session. “Besides, you have no choice but to choose me. I’m doing you a favour.”

“Huh, as if,” you retorted coldly, unable to admit that you needed him. Just as much as he needed you though. No one was doing a favour this way, right? “We are doing my choreography though,” you added with a shrug of your shoulders, hoping to turn this whole situation against him. After all, he was the one who posed the question, right? That meant that he was more desperate than you.

“Why would we do it though? I have our choreography, too. I bet it’s way better than yours.”

“Oh, please,” you bit out, letting out a huff in disbelief. Afterwards, you gazed at each other in silence, staring at the other with lips tight as if speaking up would mean that you lost, or that you gave in. Nonetheless, you couldn’t give him the satisfaction to give in, you wanted this to be fair. So you proposed:

“Fine, let’s have a vote on it. You get your friends and I get mine, we’ll show them our choreographies and we’ll see which choreography they vote for. I guess you also have a practice video or something like that to show off.”

Wooyoung seemed to be deep in thought after your suggestion - which was a very rare instance in his case -, then cleared his throat.

“Fine,” he breathed out, and you wanted to tease him about speaking up louder because you couldn’t hear him, but he was faster and proposed changing contacts and setting a date and location for the choreography vote. You agreed that it would be best if it was held as soon as possible given the six weeks until the gala, but you needed to contact your friends first. So you left it at that, but promised to get back to the other as soon as you could.

The game was on.

The rules were simple: you could have the same amount of friends and acquaintances present for the voting as the other, so even though Wooyoung said that he could get 12 people to come, you ended up with only 8 who could come on your side, so 8 it was on his, too. Since they could see who was in the video, they knew which choreography was yours and which one was Wooyoung’s, so it wasn’t like a blind voting. However, they had to be as unbiased as possible, and choose the one that they thought would fit you two better.

It ended up being your choreography for Dua Lipa’s Houdini against Wooyoung’s for Charlie Puth and Selena Gomez’s We don’t talk anymore, but everyone agreed that yours would be better, merely because it was more sensual. You didn’t really imagine Wooyoung being the one you would dance that kind of choreography with, you were so focused on winning the vote, but something’s gotta give, right?

On the other hand, when the first dance practice rolled by, you felt like a headache was creeping onto you pretty fast. However, you tried to be as patient as possible, after all, you could see that Wooyoung was hurt by the fact that his choreography wasn’t the chosen one. You tried to ignore most of his comments and focus on teaching him the steps instead of the tangible tension between you two, but it was pretty difficult when he wasn’t making it any easier.

“Please, Wooyoung, just try to act like you feel what the song is about,” you blurted out with your hands on your hips when he turned his face towards the mirror on his left instead of your own face when you two were supposed to be gazing at each other when the lines ‘tell me all the ways you need me’ were played.

“Oh, as if you are making it easy,” the boy snickered, finally looking at you.

“Weren’t you the one who told me at the orientation week that I was lacking because I didn’t know how to act out my emotions?”

“So you remember,” he commented after a few seconds of silence, a tug at his lips evident. You couldn’t really pinpoint whether it was surprise or bewilderment or a mixture of both, but you couldn’t understand him. After all, that’s what your beef had been about. Of course, you couldn’t forget about it, otherwise, you wouldn’t hold a grudge.

“All too well, thanks for asking,” you retorted with a roll of your eyes, having enough of his pettiness. He could make up excuses all he wanted, but you wouldn’t let him get away with it - you could always come up with solutions to his excuses. “I’m not saying you have to feel those feelings towards me. Imagine your girlfriend or crush or whoever you want to,” you added on a second note, throwing your hands up in the air.

There was a moment when something flashed across Wooyoung's eyes, and even though you couldn’t tell what it was, in the next moment, his lips curled into a teasing smirk, and he broke the silence with one of the most annoying questions he had ever posed to you.

“Was that an indirect way of asking me if I have a girlfriend?” He quirked an eyebrow in a seductive way, and you fake gagged to make him think otherwise. He just had to be the most impossible person on Earth, and he had the nerve to act on it. What a nuisance.

“You are insufferable.”

“That’s new because most girls call me sexy or charming or handsome or…”

“Oh, gosh, shut up, and concentrate on dancing! We won’t get anywhere at this rate,” you reprimanded him, but you didn’t expect him to comply.

To be honest, you could try all you wanted, but Wooyoung was just as stubborn as you were, so if he wanted, he could be very hot-headed and act on his emotions rather than weighing out a situation based on pure facts. Maybe that’s why it was even more difficult to be truly mad at him. Instead, you felt frustrated, and you had a feeling that he was feeling the same way.

As expected, Wooyoung just had to continue smirking at you and wiggling his eyebrows, teasing you further about being interested in his love life. He pulled himself together only when you reminded him of the time and of the fact that if he wanted it to be over as soon as possible, he should focus on the choreography, not your conversation.

Afterwards, the atmosphere became a bit lighter, and you hated to admit it, but Wooyoung was a quick learner, and when he wasn’t being a pain in the ass, he managed to follow you well. You hoped that he could keep it up for both of your sake.

Six weeks was a pretty short time when you needed to teach someone a full choreography on top of your own classes, assignments, dance practices, and oh, did you mention that someone was Jung Wooyoung? Yeah, that made things a bit more complicated.

Wooyoung had his own set of duties, so you could squeeze in some time to practise only when it was convenient for both of you, and while it wasn’t a problem with Yunho before because you had the whole semester to prepare for the gala, with Wooyoung, it was only 6 weeks, so you had to squeeze in more practices. Nonetheless, that created more conflict in the beginning because it always seemed like one of you couldn’t make it, but after a while, you got used to practising together late at night or before your first class in the morning. That seemed to be the only way to make it work.

Plus, after a while, Wooyoung wasn’t that insufferable anymore. He had his moments, of course, but he was a talented dancer, and once he got over the fact that he was supposed to be in love with you to do the moves as accurately as possible, the whole choreography seemed a lot better. He was completely different from Yunho because Yunho was a very captivating dancer but a total sweetheart off-stage whereas Wooyoung was powerful on-stage and off-stage as well, but off-stage, he was more on the jokester side and he had a whole lot more confidence than your previous dance partner had.

Which is why it was even more baffling when he directly asked you if it was how you imagined the choreography when you finished teaching him the steps and you could get started on rehearsing the whole dance.

“I mean, it’s different dancing with you than with Yunho, but I think it turned out well,” you answered truthfully because it was difficult to compare the two of them. You also modified some parts because Wooyoung had some sensible suggestions, and you didn’t even manage to finish learning the whole choreography with Yunho by the time he had managed to sprain his ankle, thus you couldn’t even compare the two routines as a whole.

“Different good or different bad?” He quirked an eyebrow as he reached for a bottle of water, a smile hiding in the corner of his lips. He didn’t seem to be joking this time, merely curious, so you gave him what he wanted to hear:

“Different good.”

“That’s good,” he bobbed his head as his own conclusion and took a few sips from the water. His skin was dotted with drops of sweat, his jet-black locks were sticking to his temple and his forehead, but he didn’t care, he merely ran a hand through his hair like always. You hated to admit it, but he looked good. To be precise, you had always known that he looked good, but that just made him even more cocky in your eyes because he looked good and he knew it.

You didn’t ask what he meant by it, but you kept thinking about it during the remaining dance practice. You were so deep in thought that you miscalculated your steps at one point, and you would have definitely lost your balance after spinning out from his arms if he hadn’t caught you. He pulled you closer to him to keep you from falling down, but it meant that you were squeezed against his chest, your body closer to his than ever before.

It was different this time, too. It wasn’t a part of the choreography, it wasn’t a calculated closeness. It was just… how it turned out, and you were flustered because of this fact even more so. If you had been prepared for such an outcome, you would have been able to keep your emotions in check, but your heart was beating so rapidly, heat rising to your cheeks, and you didn’t like this feeling one bit.

This was new, this was odd, this was something you shouldn’t have felt towards someone you hated.

“Enjoying this?” Wooyoung inquired with a lopsided smirk when you didn’t speak up and didn’t back away from him. If it had been you a few weeks ago, you would have definitely batted his hands away or freed yourself from his grip the moment he had caught you, but these options hadn’t even crossed your mind this time.

That, though, you couldn’t tell him, or you would never hear the end of it.

“In your dreams,” you voiced out with a flippant eye-roll as you pushed yourself away from him. He seemed far too content for someone who had not given your behaviour much thought, no wonder you were ready for his call-out. What you had instead was very surprising though:

“Well, I enjoyed it very much,” he winked before prompting you to continue the practice if you finally found your footing, and you didn’t object. You needed something to concentrate on instead of the emotions he made you feel.

The gala came around sooner than expected.

With all the performances you had to showcase for your classes and the theoretical assignments you had to hand in with the end of the term approaching, you felt like you couldn’t catch your breath. Add all of those confusing feelings you had towards Wooyoung to the mixture, and you had a pretty exhausting time dealing with everything. The said boy didn’t make it any easier either because he was borderline flirting, but with someone like him, you could never tell whether he was serious or not - that included both his professional aspirations and his flirtatious remarks. You tried hard not to think too much into his behaviour, you really tried, but it was impossible to ignore the fire in his eyes or the heat of his body when he was holding you in his embrace as part of your choreography.

It didn’t help either that when you settled on your outfits for the performance, he chose black boots, black leather pants and a loose shirt that he didn’t button up properly, but you had a feeling that it was on purpose. He even said so himself that it was when you met backstage before your performance, and agreed on going through your routine once more.

“Why not? It’s comfortable this way,” he shrugged his shoulders as if it was something natural, and you shook your head, feeling very attacked by the exposed skin on his chest that was out in full display. “Don’t tell me you feel flustered because of it,” he tilted his head while he was trying to read your expression, and there it was, that damn teasing smirk playing along the edges of his lips.

“Of course not.”

“Good to know that you won’t be too distracted then,” he replied almost instantly, that smirk getting wider and wider. You kept your chin up high even when he took a step closer to you. You weren’t a fool to back away. You didn’t want to give him that satisfaction. You couldn’t.

“I’m a professional.”

“Oh, we’ll see about that,” he responded challengingly, and took another step closer to you. You kept your gaze steady, not letting your eyelashes bat faster than before, and kept the eye-contact.

A few seconds later, someone came in to let you know that you were up next in about 5 minutes, so you stopped gazing at each other, and followed the student to halt just beside the stage. Yunho was very eager to come by to see your performance (he was okay with walking now, but wouldn’t need to dance as a practical assignment until the next term) and a few of your uni friends who could make it, so you had some people to look out for in the audience.

“Nervous?” Wooyoung inquired, genuine curiosity shining in his chocolate-brown orbs this time, and you looked at him, shaking your head.

“Not really. You?”

“Me? Nervous? Oh please,” he huffed, theatrically placing a hand over his heart as if he was hurt by your question. You let out a lighthearted laugh, and punched him in the shoulder, all in good fun. He smiled back at you, and suddenly, you felt your throat close up. You felt comfortable beside him, you really did, and it was rather new, rather… unexpected.

When they called for you to go on stage, Wooyoung reached out to squeeze your hands once before letting go of you again. You got in position without giving it a second thought, but while you were dancing, you couldn’t help but wonder: was he really acting being in love with you, or did he actually resonate with the message of the song? You didn’t feel like you were acting, it came naturally, almost like speaking your native language, and dancing with him felt like having a conversation with him. He held you strong and steady when he needed to, but he was gentle when the movement required. He smirked at you at certain lines while he gazed at you intently at others. It was all a part of the choreography, but still, with him, it felt real.

The performance came to an end in no time, and you could barely catch your breath when you were ushered down from the stage. You went back to your assigned waiting area as instructed, and even though Wooyoung seemed just as out of breath as you, he started laughing. You raised an eyebrow in question, puzzled by his sudden reaction.

“It’s just that… I would have never thought that we would make such good dance partners… and I…” He sucked in a deep breath before continuing. “I remember San telling me that if I thought about it, I would realise that you and I aren’t that different. I guess he was right,” he admitted through ragged breaths, looking up at you to see your reaction.

You weren’t that far from each other, but you took a step closer to him while you were pondering over your response. When he didn’t back away, you took another step closer to him just like he had done so before your performance.

“Really? In terms of what?

“Well, he said a lot of things,” Wooyoung answered semi-seriously before closing the gap between you two and placing a hand on your back to pull you even closer to him, a smile tugging at his lips. “But I like the fire in your eyes the most, and I think we feel the same way.”

You hated to admit it - just like basically everything when it came to him -, but he was right. You liked the fire in his eyes, but you liked it even more so because that fire seemed to be burning beside you, burning for you.

No questions were asked before both of you leaned in for a kiss, and no questions were asked afterwards either. You really did make great dance partners, and maybe even better ones off the stage.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this story of mine! Let me know what you think.

If you want to read more stories of mine, let it be for ATEEZ or for other artists, consider signing up for my taglist here.

Hope you have a lovely day/night! Take care! ❤️

#ateez x reader #ateez x you #ateez imagines #ateez scenarios #wooyoung x reader #wooyoung x you #wooyoung imagines #wooyoung scenarios #ateez fluff #wooyoung fluff

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chinomiko · 7 months

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hi! i know it must be kinga boring for you recive questions about castiel bc ppl are obsessed ober him for years but like the other person who asked you a few days ago, i follow you (and ply mcl) for like 10 years and ever since day one my fav boy has been tiel. till this day at the age of 22 he's my favorite and my comfort boy so i joke that he's not a fictional character anymore for me and that i know him personally at this point lol

with that being said, i bet you can imagine that over the years i've been elaborating his personality beyond what the game gives us but he's your boy, you created him therefore you know him and your word is canon, so i'd like to ask a few stuff!! nothing too big, dont worry but here we go.

tiel is an amazing songwriter and since he's very emotional not very good at express it (he does it a lot better now that he's an adult 🥹) i bet his lyricism is very deep and poetic so i have this headcanon that he at first wouldn't like taylor swift because obviously lol but then he payed attention to her lyrics and ends up basically being a swiftie since he likes her writing a lot. what you think about that?

and what kind of music crowstorm sings? like there are any bands that you listen and think "hey this would be in a crowstorm album!" (i have a playlist with this name btw lol). im probably wrong on this one but since this is my fav band i like to think that catfish and the bottlemen are the irl crowstorm, musically speaking

and the last one: another thing that gives me so much comfort is the lystiel friendship. not having present parents, being so closed off i know that lysander is such an important presence on tiel's life because he was basically the only close person he had (specially after the debrah fiasco); if lys didnt had taken the farm and went to college and bla bla bla do you think he would still be part of the band with castiel? im not sure if im mixing the canon with a fanfic i read a while ago (lol) but the band was more of a fun thing to lys, right? he liked writing most (i always imagined him getting into a literature degree or something like this). i also like to think that he helps tiel with lyrics at times, even if he's out of the band (in my head the canon is that they are best friends and pretty close till this day, i pretend lys never left our lives just like armin)

anyways sorry for this big ask 😭 i dont even know if you will read it all but if you do, thank you! and dont feel like you have to answer, i know its too much its just that mcl is my hyperfixation till this day like for real, i have a fanfic that i write still and i even plan on making it into a book sometime. except from the main characters (who is my oc) all the characters will be based on the game's ones :)

ilysm take care and stay hydrated!!

Hellow !

Aww thank you so much and for all your love for Castiel ^^

What a long ask, I'll try to answer in order.

Castiel being a swiftie. No sorry, I don't think he would be. If candy likes her, I'm pretty sure he would try to listen. Also he is an open minded person for sure, so I'm sure he would be curious to listen and study what all the hype is about, it could also help as some sort of far away inspiration, but I don't see him being a fan.

What kind of songs Crowstorm sings This is hard to answer because my musical knowledge is pretty limited and I'm sure I would miss on lot of potential groups or singers that would fit well. And it would require too much research time to have a real detailed and clear answer, but I still did check a bit and here is a little list of songs/groups that I think would have a fitting vibe for Crowstorm

City of the dead - Hollywood Undead The worst in me - bad omens Paranoid - I prevail Trauma Just pretend - Bad omens Ice Nine Kills - A grave mistake Catfish and the bottlemen sounds nice but I think its a bit too soft for what I imagine for Crowstorm.

What is his voice like I think something similar to this (not necessarily the song itself, just the voice. )

bonus, I think this song is so so fitting for Castiel's breakup song, I love it. Dial Tone - Catch your breath

Castiel and Lys friendship. It was'nt mentionned much in UL/LL because I didnt wish to bring too much drama by mentioning Lys when he was not there for the players, but of course Lys and Cast always kept in touch. It is very clearly mentionned in Lys' AL that they keep in touch, that Lys helps Castiel write songs and Cast also like to come to his farm to have a break and spend time together. You should play it if you havent, you'll have a good chunk of Cast and Lys friendship :) However yeah I can confirm that Lys would not like to do it serisouly and professionally, but he'll be all the way around to support and help Cast.

#chinomiko #my candy love #otome game #castiel #original character #canon lore #mcl

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loosingmoreletters · 1 year

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time is weird so idk what counts as a recent fandom, so I’m gonna put a couple options just in case one of them is a little too old or something if that’s ok (and if none of the fandoms feel right pls pick whatever fandom you want, I just like the prompt)

32 “how much of that did you hear” for CodyWan, or merthur, or something Batman/dc

regardless of what you do I just wanna say that I love your writing :)

Thank you!!! I don’t ship codywan and just wrote dc so merthur it is!

“How much of that did you hear?”

Arthur didn’t look angry or afraid as Merlin would’ve been, only just resigned to his fate. There was this exhausted acceptance in his eyes that Merlin knew from all the times the king gave another order Arthur would have to follow though he didn’t agree with it.

“Enough then,” Arthur concluded and dropped back on his chair. “Are you going to tell my father?”

“What,” Merlin blurted out. “Do you expect me to go to the kinga nd tell him his son is doing magic?”

Somewhere, Merlin registered that he was falling into some kind of panic. He’d caught Arthur Pendragon practicing magic.

“Nevermind, that wouldn’t go over well,” Arthur said. “Father wouldn’t believe you anyway. I suppose it would be too much to ask you to keep quiet? I am aware you have no reason to think good of anyone practicing magic but—”

Keep quiet? About this?

Merlin laughed breathily. He felt as if the first day of spring had come early, all of nature’s might awakening with him, causing flowers to bloom wherever he walked.

“Arthur,” Merlin said. “Arthur, let me show you my silence.”

And just like that, hiding in the crown prince’s chamber, Merlin let go as he’d only ever allowed himself deep in the forest far away from the village. There, the wind had played a song for him and the trees created shadows spilling stories.

Here, in the heart of Camelot, the light of the candles danced to the tune of Merlin’s magic, crowning Arthur king with a circle of fire that didn’t burn a single hair on top of his head.

#merthur #merlin bbc #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin fanfic #ask #anon #fanfic

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darklydeliciousdesires · 1 year

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Not One of Many - Chapter Twenty Eight.

A thousand thank you’s for your patience with this, guys! I am so bowled over with the popularity of this, I truly am. It was a risky undertaking, to write a modern day Alfie, but I’m glad you all seemed to enjoy him as much as I did writing him.

Previous chapters - Prologue One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Eleven Twelve Thirteen Fourteen Fifteen Sixteen Seventeen Eighteen Nineteen Twenty Twenty One Twenty Two Twenty Three Twenty Four Twenty Five Twenty Six Twenty Seven

Tag list - In the comments

Words - 5,119

Warnings - 18+ content, adult audience only. Minors DNI!

“So, I’ve said to this girl, you don’t bloody come into my wardrobe and start calling the shots, no way, petal, not happening, and I don’t bloody care who you are, what agency you represent, or which rich footballer you happen to be getting your leg over, I ain’t having it!”

Models. Oh, if they even dared try and test Magda’s authority within her sacred space, how quickly they got shut down for it. The ELLE wardrobe department was her chapel, and she didn’t allow anyone to sully the sanctity of such. It also made for some very amusing brunch conversation, especially for Mimi, who was sitting next to Beth, meeting both Magda and Kinga for the first time. The former she found a little scary, but very entertaining, it had to be said.

“So, darling,” Kinga began, dabbing her mouth on a napkin as she looked across at Mimi. “I hear from Beth that you landed a role at London Life and Style! How is that going for you?”

Mimi politely finished her mouthful of toast before replying. “It’s going very well, thank you for asking. I’m learning the ropes, mostly over office dynamics, who to be in with, who to avoid, and how to keep my schedule running for the most efficiency, timekeeping wise. But yes, I’m really enjoying myself.” For Mimi, it all felt so wonderful, sitting there at a lovely restaurant, enjoying food that she’d paid for, feeling so professional with the three powerhouse career women in her company, invited into their world and accepted as an equal.

It was a real shot in the arm for her, to be someone on her own and not just one of a rich man’s three girlfriends. She saw the way people viewed her so differently now she was out there under her own merit, and she partly had Beth’s friendship to thank for that.

“For you,” she spoke a little while later, holding out something wrapped in pink tissue paper. “Sorry it isn’t wrapped properly, but here. I thought you’d like it.”

“Oh, you sweetheart,” Beth hummed, stopping their little tour of the small shopping arcade, taking her gift and unwrapping it gently. There inside was a dainty silver bangle with a heart charm from the small jewellery shop they’d just visited. She’d wondered why Mimi had suddenly scurried to the counter without showing her the purchase she was about to make. “Mims! It’s lovely! Thank you so much!” she cooed, placing it on her wrist and pulling her into a hug. “You shouldn't have, though! Didn’t you mention your rent was going to be a struggle?”

“Not any longer! We found a fourth person for the last room in the house, so that’s saved me a hundred quid a week, and even more with the share of the bills, too!” Her original plan to share with friends in Notting Hill hadn’t been successful, losing out on the property. They’d since found a lovely townhouse in Islington to rent, though, the fourth person now making such a property a much more pocket friendly abode. It also only took fifteen minutes on the tube to get to work.

“Oh, that’s great! I’m so pleased for you! Oh, and before I forget, Alfie suggested the 18th for our night out, if you and Josh can make it then?”

Mimi nodded brightly. “Yes, I’ll put it to him when I see him later, but I think that should be fine! He’s a bit nervous, bless him, but I’m so glad he’s fine with the idea of me and my ex being friends. I mean, no disrespect to Alfie, he’s my bestie, but like I told Josh, I’m becoming more your friend now as we see each other quite often.”

She was right, too, Beth thought, since she did usually see Mimi once a week now, for brunch and shopping, or to go and ride the horses together, sometimes a mix of it all, as they were doing that day after their shopping trip had concluded, Beth driving them out to the stables for a couple of hours riding over the fields. After their lovely ride out, they returned to London to have a nice afternoon with Amira, meeting up for a coffee and a walk through Richmond Park before Mimi went out on her date with Josh, the women all taking a seat and enjoying the blissful warmth of the late summer sunshine.

“Isn’t it a bloody beautiful day, girls?” Amira chirped, adjusting her sunglasses, her face absolutely pristinely made up. She’d been on a photoshoot since the early hours of the morning, so had arrived in full glam to meet her friends, Mimi sitting with her bag in her lap, rummaging through all the free skincare samples she’d received courtesy of the company she’d worked the job for.

“Can I have these?” she asked, Amira waving her hand.

“Get in there and take anything you want!” she enthused kindly. “They gave me so much, and I’ll never use it. Beth, there’s some lavender setting spray in there, wait a minute.” Reaching over into Mimi’s lap, she rummaged, pulling the bottle out and passing it over. “Here, I know you love the smell, and I can’t bloody stand it, so go on! Oh, and try this lotion as well, it’s so nice! They gave me above five of the same one!”

“Well, first Mims treating me to jewellery and now you giving me skincare goodies,” Beth began, Amira comically continuing.

“Face mask, toning water, pillow mist.”

“I feel very spoiled!” she finished, laughing at the rate the products came her way. “You’re only doing this so you don’t have so much to lug home, aren’t you?”

Amira widened her eyes. “Ahh, shit. You caught me out!” The women shared laughter, Mimi finished with her raiding for freebies and handed Amira her bag back, falling into conversation as they caught up with one another. Beth was having fun doing just that, when the incessant ringing of her phone disturbed it.

“I’m so sorry,” she began, polite as always. “If I don’t take it, they’re just going to keep on calling me.”

“No, it’s fine,” Mimi reassured her as she answered her phone. They chatted between each other while Beth took the call, her exclaimed cry of ‘what?’ making them sit up and take notice, Amira kindly shuffling her hair around to place a caring hand on her arm when she noticed tears pooling in her eyes.

“Are you okay, chick?” she asked, as soon as Beth had finished the call.

“No, I’m not. I’m bloody furious!” she began, Mimi quick to offer a paper napkin across the table, Beth thanking her with a sniff. “That fucking woman! She’s now taken to emailing one of my editors about me, apparently warning him off hiring me!” she took a breath, drying her eyes and swallowing hard. “That was Piers Taylor on the phone, editor of Southside City, one of the magazines I freelance for. Luckily because we’ve had a sterling relationship for many years, he paid it no mind, only calling to give me the heads up on it, but still! She’s interfering with my bloody work now, and I will not have it!”

Amira shook her head, continuing her affectionate rubbing of her arm, while Mimi picked up her own phone. “This ends now.”

“Mims, what are you doing?” Beth asked.

“I’m calling her, putting a flippin’ stop to this!” Opening FaceTime, she was connecting the call before Beth had a chance to stop her, but by the time Talia had answered, she wasn’t entirely sure whether she did want to cease what Mimi was about to do. “Right, you listen to me, and you fucking listen good! We had the grace to part ways with Alfie amicably and not try to wreck his new girlfriend’s life, and I’m telling you now, you need to do the same!”

“Mimi, what the fu...” This was as far as Talia got.

“No, I’m talking, right!” Beth and Amira shared wide eyes there, neither having witnessed that amount of ire come from their cheery little friend before, not ever. “What you’re doing, yeah, it’s bloody wrong! He isn’t going to get back with you, no matter how much you hate Beth. Interfering in her work now too? Spraying Alfie’s car? Like, what the fuck? Where do you draw the line?”

“I draw the line in stating to you what I did to Alfie, this isn’t coming from me! It really isn’t! I’m fucking done with being accused of something I haven’t had anything to do with. Now, will the lot of you just fucking leave me alone! I’m happy, I’ve moved on, got a new boyfriend, I don’t need this shit, Mimi! Don’t call me again, in fact, I’m blocking you. Piss off!”

“Oh my god!” Amira cried once the call had ended, covering her mouth with her hand. “Shit, babe. You really gave it to her!”

Beth was too stunned to speak for a moment, but when she did, it was with an observation that cut the lingering anger from the air entirely. “I think you channelled Alfie a bit there, using the words right and yeah as punctuation.” They all shared laughter, Mimi shaking her head as she slipped her phone away.

While she might have felt better for chewing her out to begin with, something just wasn’t sitting right with her, that something being that she honestly, deep down, didn’t think Talia was lying. She knew when she was, and seeing her there on the screen, her vehemence had been so very clear. She knew that sharing such a doubt would likely upset Beth, though, so for the sake of her friend, put it away at the back of her mind, but made a mental note to broach it at a later time with her.

“Right, well I’m going to love you beautiful ladies and leave you,” Mimi began, getting up. “Give me hugs, you gorgeous people!” They instantly granted her such. She wanted a long bath before going out with Josh later that evening, so was heading back to the front of Richmond Park, where they’d met up, Amira and Beth walking with her before turning back the way they came, Amira picking them up a couple of fresh coffees from the small outdoor cart by the main gate.

“Don’t drink it yet, babe!” she warned, Beth about to take a sip. “It’s fucking steaming hot, I just burned my bloody lip on it!”

“Appreciated, thanks,” Beth chirped, the women taking the small path that led them away from the main hub of activity, out towards where the many wild deer of the park grazed contently.

“So, what articles are you working on at the moment?” Amira asked, falling into step at her side.

“Right now, I’m up to my ears in researching about a huge one relating to what we’re learning is likely considered cult like activity, a group of people over in America we’re researching. Myself and Kinga are working on it as a team, in fact, since it’s such a huge undertaking.” Amira’s eyes widened.

“What, are we talking an expose or something?”

Beth nodded, raising her eyebrows. “Yes, so we need to get our ducks in a row. It points a finger at a certain prominent individual within the corporate investment world, hence why we have a lot of ground to cover, people to interview, you know, the usual. It’ll be the biggest piece in my career to date, and I’m even receiving advice from Steve as I go, over the legalities of such, since it’s obviously an undertaking with many legal ramifications.”

“Blimey!” Amira exclaimed, looking bowled over by the magnitude of it, asking what she could as they continued to walk.

Meanwhile, Mimi was keeping an eye out for her Uber, watching the car move slowly along on the app, thinking he was likely stuck in traffic leading down towards the entrance to the park, since a horse-drawn hearse had just passed by. She thought how grand it was, the beautiful, black horses with their full plumage, pulling the immaculate carriage containing a coffin covered in white lilies. What a fitting way to give someone an elegant send off.

Noticing that through her own equine endeavours (namely riding out in the rain without her gloves on) she was beginning to get chapped fingers, she rooted around in her bag, having a look through the many samples for the tube of hand cream Amira had gifted her.

“Avocado oil, eye cream, exfoliator, peanut oil. Oh, shit. I didn’t ask her if I could have one of those,” she began, muttering to herself. “Ahh, doesn’t matter. I saw she had another.” Continuing her search, something suddenly hit her like a thunderbolt. Peanut oil. It wasn’t something commonly used in skincare. It also wasn’t a sample size. As all the little pieces that didn’t make sense suddenly fitted together, Mimi’s eyes widened in horror.

She was sure Talia wasn’t lying.

The harassment had to have been coming from someone they both knew.

Beth was deathly allergic to peanuts.

“Oh, Jesus!” she gasped on a sob, turning at a run, almost knocking a lady behind her clean off her feet. “I’m sorry!” she called back as she ran flat out down the path...

“Awwww, Beth look at the baby!” Amira cooed as the women came to a stop to watch the deer in the middle distance, one of the small fawns haphazardly trotting along after its mother on brand new, shaky long legs.

“Absolutely precious,” she confirmed, taking a sip of her coffee, glad it was now cool enough to do so. Immediately, she felt that something wasn’t right, her lips starting to tingle, her throat starting to itch. She swallowed, feeling her airway beginning to tighten, panic setting in.

“Beth, what’s up?” Amira asked, grasping her arm gently.

“Peanuts... in the coffee... something with nut extract.” she rasped, Amira’s mouth falling open.

“Those stupid people! I told them one was for someone with a nut allergy and checked that nothing had bloody peanuts! Fuck! Right, give me your bag. You’ve got your EpiPen, haven’t you?” Beth nodded through a wheeze, her throat tightening dramatically, passing her bag over, Amira crouching as she opened it and began to root through. “Bloody hell, mate, you’ve got so much in here!”

She frantically rooted through until she found the orange tube containing it, straightening up again, watching as Beth fought for air. “Is this it? Beth, is this what you need?” Her rapid nods through each panicked breath confirmed it, Beth reaching, a feeling of cold dread snapping through her when Amira’s face darkened in an instant, snatching the EpiPen away. “You took what was mine, so now it’s only fair I take something of yours. Bye.” Dropping her bag to the ground, Amira turned and ran, leaving Beth standing there, with no lifeline, nothing to stop her throat from rapidly closing. It was her... it had been her all along.

Blind terror hit her square in the chest, trying to fight for air, not able to get as much as her tingling lungs required, her tongue and lips inflating, falling to the ground, searching her surroundings for someone, anyone who might have noticed her drop, suddenly then hearing her name being screamed over and over.

“Beth! Beth, I’m here, I’m here!” Mimi, thank the stars, she wasn’t alone. “Where’s your EpiPen? I know what she did, I bloody worked it out!” Grasping Beth’s bag, she upended it onto the path, searching, panicking when she couldn’t see it anywhere, the vital piece of kit needed to prevent her friend from going into full-blown anaphylaxis. At not seeing it there, she knew then there was truly no limit to what Amira was prepared to have done in the name of cold-blooded revenge, obviously swiping it before hightailing it away, leaving Beth to her fate. “It isn’t here, it isn’t here! Fuck, what do I do? Fuck!”

No. This couldn’t happen.

“Help us, please! Help!” Mimi screamed, trying to lift Beth’s head back to open her swollen airway. “She can’t breathe! Please help us, someone! I need an EpiPen!” Turning back to Beth, she clutched her hand, stroking her head. “It’s going to be okay, babe, it will! Try to keep calm.” Pulling her phone out, she called for an ambulance, just as she witnessed two ladies running over to them, a man coming from another direction. “It’s my friend, she’s having an allergic reaction and she can’t breathe! We’re in Richmond Park, about three minutes off the pathway leading from the front gate, first little path on the left,” she began to tell the operator after dialling 999. “No, someone took her EpiPen, please hurry, she can’t breathe!”

“It’s okay, I have one, I have one,” one of the ladies who arrived with her told her, pulling it from her bag, the operator hearing and telling her to stay on the line to assess her reaction once it was administered, telling her she was sending an ambulance right away all the same. Even through her frightened tears, Mimi breathed a sigh of relief as she watched the lady prepare it, plunging it down into Beth’s thigh, a few seconds passing before she heard her take a breath, her airways opening enough to allow it.

Mimi was shaking so hard, the man who crouched with them took her phone, explaining to the operator that the pen had been administered, his words muted to Mimi as she sobbed, stroking Beth’s face. “Are you okay, are you alright?”

“Yes... no... I... god, Mims! If you hadn’t come back!” she sobbed, pulling her darling friend into a hug, feeling dizzy and taking her to the ground with her when she lay back, the two women crying with a mixture of residual fear and relief. They had a little moment to fall apart before Mimi helped her sit up, the two other ladies assisting, the man asking if they wanted him to wait as well, and if there was anything he could do. They told him no, but thanked him profusely, the man handing Mimi her phone before wishing them all well and departing, continuing on his jogging trail.

“Thank you so, so much. You saved me!” Beth exclaimed, swallowing, her throat sore and still a little tight as she reached for the lady who had administered the EpiPen, watching her take her hand with a smile.

“My little boy has an almond allergy, so I have one in my bag at all times, even when he ain’t with me! You alright now, though? How do you feel?”

“Shaken up!” As rightly anyone would, going through such. The women, who Beth and Mimi learned were called Angela and Helen stayed with them until the ambulance turned up, the paramedics assessing her at the scene and decreeing it likely the safest option to have her looked over by a doctor. Mimi cancelled her plans with Josh while Beth was being checked, telling him there’d been an emergency and she’d call him later on, making a call then to Alfie, telling him of what had happened.

She rode in the back of the ambulance with Beth, telling her that Alfie was on his way, Mimi the first person to see him after she’d popped outside the A&E entrance, Alfie bundling her up in a hug.

“You bloody saved her life, treacle,” he told her a little shakily, squeezing her tightly. “I know everyone used to joke about you not being the sharpest knife in the drawer, but the way you put all that together. Fuckin’ ‘ell! I just can’t... and is she alright? Can I go see her?”

Mimi kissed his cheek, squeezing his shoulders, remembering whenever he was tense, that’s exactly where that tension went to. “She’s fine, she’s obviously quite shaken up, but she’s seeing the doctor right now. I just came out here to call her mum for her and let her know what had happened.”

The truth was, Mimi only had little guesses to go on with the evidence she’d witnessed, Beth being the one to fill them in over it all after the doctor had discharged her, deeming her well enough to go home, but remain vigilant for anything further. It was as the three sat in Alfie’s lounge, the man himself bundling Beth up in a blanket and a massive hug that she shared with them exactly what had happened after Mimi had left.

“So, we were just walking along, talking about work and watching the deer, and I took a sip of the coffee she’d bought me, which I now know why she told me not to drink while we were up on the main path, because she obviously wanted to get me far away from anyone who could help, or see what she did. I felt my lips and throat itching and swelling, and she made like she was trying to help me, looking for my EpiPen.

“When she found it in my bag, she asked if this was what I needed, and then told me that since I’d taken something of hers, she was taking something of mine. The way she looked, her face, god, the hatred! She ran off then, I suppose from her standpoint thinking she’d just committed the perfect crime. She knew, of course, that my peanut allergy is deathly, that I could die within minutes from anaphylactic shock. She knew that right from the start, back when I was here as a journalist and she offered me some peanut butter on toast, I explained it to her then.”

She took a moment, waving her hand, feeling teary again as she leaned back against Alfie’s comforting bulk, but equally reaching for Mimi’s hand. “I know it was Angela’s EpiPen that did it, but ultimately, you saved my life today, Mims. If you hadn’t had that little wondering about the peanut oil in her bag, then all of this could have taken such a turn. I owe you a huge debt. Thank you, I love you.”

Mimi’s lip trembled, shuffling closer and throwing her arms around her, Alfie jointly hugging them both. “Aww, I ain’t had a group hug off of a few beautiful ladies in a while now!” Both women reacted at the same time, but with different words.

“Oi, enough of that.”

“Don’t you be getting any ideas!”

They shared laughter, Alfie pinching Mimi’s cheek. “Nah. I got me a great woman, and one hell of a brilliant little bestie, here. Wouldn’t change that for the world.”

Mimi stayed only for half an hour longer, both Beth and Alfie thanking her again and again, the former telling her she’d keep her posted in case the police wanted to take her statement, Alfie calling them not long after they’d seen her into a cab at their expense at the door. With her being a little shaky still and Alfie reluctant to take her to the station in light of such, an officer came out to them to take her statement, asking too for Mimi’s details, as well as what they could give him about Amira.

Once it was just the two of them, they sat and quietly reflected on the gravitas of the culmination.

“It’s fucking knocked me for six,” Alfie lamented, rubbing a hand over his beard, Beth next to him, Cyril half lying in her lap. He knew something different was afoot with his mummy. “I don’t half owe Talia a fuckin’ massive apology, accusing the poor cow of all this, and she ain’t even had a hand in it. I mean I know, yeah, she wasn’t exactly squeaky clean in her behaviour, but she weren’t lying when she said she’d moved on from it all. But bloody fuckin’ ‘ell, for it to have been Amira, all this time?”

Beth felt for him, to have yet another ex behave in a way that showed loud and clear that ultimately, he hadn’t known them half as well as he thought he had. “I know, she had everybody fooled into thinking she was something she wasn’t. But look, I’m fine, and it’s over now, all of this that had been hanging over us. We’re free of her messing around, her stalking, everything she was doing in an attempt to hurt me. We’ll feel the shock of it for a while, but at least we have each other. And Mims. She’s become so important to me, and she’s testament to the fact that at least with some girls, you bloody did make fantastic choices.”

He smiled then, turning to her. “I made the best one when I knew it was you I wanted my future with, though.” In the months that followed, right up until and beyond Amira facing a judge for her actions, Beth would only continue to solidify that notion, too...

Epilogue

The Burj Khalifa; it was perhaps one of the most impressive masterpieces of modern architecture in the world, the impossible height deeming it the world’s tallest building, the view from the balcony upon the 117th floor testament to that, even if it had taken Beth Solomons three days after her arrival to be brave enough to venture out upon it.

“Ahhh, look at that,” Alfie chimed from the apartment, smiling as he watched his new bride finally step out into the sunshine. “She’s found her balls!”

Shaking her head, she blew the steam from her coffee, taking a careful sip. “Yes, admittedly I perhaps should have conquered it upon our arrival, but better late than never!”

They were in Dubai as part of their honeymoon tour, fresh from spending a week in Bora Bora, stopping off for another week in the emirates for Alfie to check in on progress at his resort currently still under construction, the huge complex now two thirds finished. His most important endeavour, though? Enjoying the break with his wife, both of them actually setting aside their need to throw themselves into their careers and instead, enjoy their life together as newlyweds.

After the chaos with Amira the previous year, Alfie had decided to propose to Beth on her birthday, just a week after Hannukah. Their families had thought it was a little rushed, but had been very happy for them all the same, Beth’s darling bubbe decreeing it to be bashert. They’d married in a beautiful ceremony in New York, at one of the most stunning synagogues in Manhattan, before they’d had their reception at The Plaza, Alfie happy to fork out the thousands upon thousands to fly all of their loved ones out there first class.

The wedding itself had cost an eye watering seven hundred thousand dollars, and Beth hadn’t protested a moment of it, like he worried that she might. She’d eased into being the fiancé, and then the wife of a multi-millionaire with ease, once she’d gotten used to it. In fact, Alfie was well underway to making his first billion at that point, so why not celebrate with a huge, luxurious wedding? As long as he’d let her buy him a pint and lunch a few days a week, and pay her way with what she could manage, all was fine in her mind.

It had truly been a lavish affair, Kinga and Magda acting as bridesmaids, and Alfie having Steve and Marcus as his groomsmen. His best man? Mimi. “Well, you are the best woman, ain’t ya?” he’d spoken upon asking her, his dear friend bursting into tears and hugging him as she’d accepted. Her actions in saving Beth’s life had truly cemented them as wonderful friends, Alfie standing there at his reception, watching her, Beth, Kinga and Magda dancing to Hava Nagila together, telling Steve and Marcus how unbelievably fortunate he felt, to have married a woman like Beth, and got to keep in his life someone he thought as highly of as he did Mimi.

They’d finally been able to set aside the events of the previous year just over three months previously, when Amira’s criminal case had resulted in her receiving a custodial sentence of fifteen years for attempted murder. It was what their legal team had anticipated she’d receive at best, of course all thought she should have received a heavier sentence for the cruel and vindictive premeditated plot to try and take Beth’s life, but within the legal parameters, and taking into consideration that Beth didn’t suffer any long-term harm or deliberation as a result, this was realistic. She wouldn’t be eligible for parole for at least ten, either.

Amira was behind them, now, though, only a beautiful future ahead, Beth’s journalism going from strength to strength. Her work with Kinga to expose a cult had been one of the vital pieces of evidence to bring the figureheads of the organisation to justice for many offences, such as money laundering, human trafficking and slavery, Beth and Kinga having their names flushed to the forefront of gritty, British journalism, both even featuring in the documentary series that would air later that year, once the case had been brought to trial in America. Alfie had never been prouder of her.

“It really is a stunning view up here,” she spoke, running a hand through her hair, the gorgeous, cushion cut diamond on her left-hand glittering in the morning sun. It still made him laugh, when he remembered her reaction to opening the box containing it and having him swiftly propose. Stunned didn’t cover it, Beth nearly scaring Cyril half to death after she’d screamed ‘yes!’ at about a thousand decibels.

“Yeah, but it ain’t nothing compared to this one.” Turning her, he smiled, nodding. “Yeah, that’s the best view in the world for me. Whenever I’m looking at the missus.” She leaned in close, receiving the kiss he granted her with before he left her to it to go and answer his phone, Beth hearing him chatting to Marcus about how things were going with the resort.

Sometimes, she still couldn’t believe that the decision to enter that high end bar in Chelsea to drown her sorrows in a bottle of wine she couldn’t really afford had put her on the path to where she’d ended up, but she wouldn’t change anything for the world. She was exactly where she needed to be. And then she made the critical mistake of looking down.

“Nope!” Back inside she speedily went, placing her empty mug down and wrapping her arms around her husband. Now she was exactly where she needed to be.

The End.

#alfie solomons #alfie solomons fanfiction #alfie solomons fanfic #alfie solomons fic #alfie solomons smut #alfie solomons x ofc #modern alfie solomons #tom hardy #tom hardy fanfiction #tom hardy fanfic #tom hard fic #tom hardy smut #tom hardy x ofc #peaky blinders #peaky blinders fanfiction #peaky blinders fanfic #peaky blinders fic #peaky blinders smut #peaky blinders au

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pencil-amateur · 6 months

Note

2 and 6 + any f/o(s) for the f/ovember ask game!

Two women, a tall fair one wearing glasses and a tired-looking redhead, have received your question!

2. So, how have you and s/i been? What have you two been up to recently?

Tracy's eyes light up. "Erin and I have been working as usual, but they've been showing me around where they live when we get free time! We went to Pride together, which was really lovely. It's rather different from what I'm used to, but then so are a lot of human traditions."

Kinga gives a little shrug. "Eh... well, things have been better. There was a huge amount of destruction to the Gizmoplex, and our main test subjects have disappeared into the past with my grandma, so that's kind of a setback." She manages a small smile. "But despite it all... it's nice to have Blivian here. She's been a huge help with rebuilding, and making sure we don't work ourselves too hard. Lately we've mostly been watching video essays on faked alien evidence when we get time to relax together."

6. Be honest, what was your first impression of s/i when you first met them?

"When I first met Erin, I remember I told myself not to get attached," Tracy says. "Though I wasn't handling her case, I still felt the sting from losing my friend Derek. I didn't want to end up feeling that strongly for another human, only to have them forget me when their service was completed." She shakes her head, grinning. "Of course, we've got things worked out since then. But to answer your question, I thought they seemed nice, though a bit shy. That's pretty unusual for a human sent to work here. So despite my best efforts, I suppose my curiosity got the better of me. Thank goodness."

"Oh my god." Kinga laughs. "So what happened there was, it was an experiment day and we were all trying to get set up in the hours before we sent the movie. This tiny, crappy little ship asked permission to dock, and when we let it, Blivian comes down and introduces herself as a handyman, or maintenance or something. My first impression of her was a mix of confusion and 'this weirdo doesn't seem too bright', basically. She managed to convince me by giving me a free trial run, and she did do a good job..." She rolls her eyes. "That is, until Jonah was watching the movie and a random scene went missing because Blivian DRANK part of the Kingachrome. I was pretty pissed and made her leave after that. But she kept coming back, and well, eventually somehow she made me start to like her. That's another story, though."

#TY DANNY this was fun!!!#f/ovember #tracyrin #klivian #erin #blivian #tracy #kinga forrester

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monkeypretzel · 11 months

Text

In MST3K canon, Mike Nelson promised Tom Servo and Crow that he wouldn’t leave the Satellite of Love without them. and he didn’t. After it crashed, they lived together in a half-bath garden apartment on the bus line and watched bad movies because they wanted to, on Earth.

In canon, Joel Robinson of a thousand years in the future casually mentioned that his Tom Servo and Crow (because I guess it doesn’t matter how many of them there are, they’re interchangeable now according to the Word of God) are floating around in space with nowhere to go, since Dr. Erhardt pulled the Satellite of Love (that I guess never crashed) back through time while Tom and Crow were out on a space walk, because Dr. Kabahl told Kinga and Max they needed a third Test Subject.

This leads me to two conclusions:

One: Do not ever let me see anyone who thinks that the Season 13 storyline is funny and great and fantastic also bitch about how bad the Season 8 storyline was, because you know something? Season 8 is Shakespeare in plot and pace compared to Season 13′s monkeys with typewriters spewing shit like I summarized above; and

Two: Hands down Mike Nelson is more of a father, and a goddamn better one, than Joel Robinson ever was to those bots. This is not up for debate.

#mst3k #Mike Nelson #Joel Robinson #the abomination that is Season 13 of MST3K #I've been sitting on this rant for a while #fandom wank

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stulili · 2 years

Text

Obey me! Logs

シファー, もう一回! (Lucifer, one more time!) ANIMATION

I decided to report the progress, because it will take a lot of time, and I’m curious how many people would be even interested in seeing the whole project as it is.

Today’s 6/2/2022

Storyboard: 85 panels are done out of 120 Animation: 83 seconds are done out of 452 Background: 1 is done out of 6 (A friend of mine works on this.)

I started the project on 5/8/2022.

I’d planned this for a long time now, but I didn’t have the opportunity to make it because of my exams, and I was unsure whether it would be a good idea or not. (Thank you @sir-crocodile-slut for convincing me it was. Though, I’m still a bit unsure, but oh well, I love you.)

Original audio: Obey Me! Official Podcast — Otaku FM Anime and Chill — #07 (Available on Youtube and Deviltube in the game)

These are the first character designs, though, I had to make them more cartoon-like, because they would be a pain in the ass.

That’s all I can give now. *evil chuckles*

Obey me! Log 2

Today’s 6/9/2022

Storyboard: 86 panels are done out of 120 Animation: 89 seconds are done out of 452

Here's a little animation from the whole thing. The background is merely a sketch yet.

And these are the "final" character designs. First I wanted to draw Leviathan without his jacket, but he looked a bit odd, so I decided to keep it. I know that hand looks terrible in the corner, but I had to make sure I'll be crazy enough to animate his two sided gloves with different colors.

... I am.

If you have any questions, just hit me with them, it would be my pleasure to answer them.

Until next Thursday!

Obey me! Log 3

Today’s 6/16/2022

Storyboard: 93 panels are done out of 120 Animation: 116 seconds are done out of 452

Okay, so this half tugged shirt is really a thing for him. Awesome.

__________________

Art collab for the animation:

Baby Lucifer (Me) DONE

Baby Mammon (Linus) DONE

Baby Leviathan (KJ) DONE

Baby Satan (@angeredmelon ) DONE

Baby Asmodeus (@proudimouto ) DONE

Baby Beelzebub (AyakoAizawa) DONE

Baby Belphegor (Alma) DONE

Baby Lord Diavolo (Jeni) DONE

Baby Barbatos (Kinga)

Baby Simeon (Bogi) DONE

Baby Solomon (Lazy) DONE

Luke (Kincső) DONE

Mephisto (Kincső) DONE

Thirteen (Kincső) DONE

Raphael (Me) DONE

Michael (Kincső) DONE

If you’re interested in participating, feel free to DM me, and I’ll tell you the details!

EVERYONE IS TAKEN!

Obey me! Log 4

Today’s 6/23/2022

Storyboard: 97 panels are done out of 120 Animation: 124 seconds are done out of 452

Look at that impressive Satan impression. Leviathan really is the best at cosplay.

This is the only time we’ll see Leviathan in his adult demon form though, it’s a pain in the ass to draw. Only this little 2 seconds of animation absorbed my whole afternoon… Don’t get me wrong I LOVE his demon form, but it’s really detailed.

Baby Lucifer on the ground, my poor soul.

Obey me! Log 5

Today’s 7/1/2022

Storyboard: DONE (120 panels) Animation: 127 seconds are done out of 452 Background: 2 are done out of 6

This is a chaos, but this is the beauty of an animation.

I might take advantage of taking off their body parts. But honestly, wouldn’t you do the same if you could? Making them bald, jawless, and it’s only a click...

Obey me! Log 6

Today’s 7/7/2022

Animation: 135 seconds are done out of 452

I’m so excited to see how this one live action scene will fit in the whole project.

(Ps. Please if you can somehow read the phone number, please don’t call my sister- Yes, she’s Lord Diavolo)

Bonus... Drinking wine while cosplaying Lucifer.

Obey me! Log 7

Today’s 7/15/2022

Animation: 146 seconds are done out of 452

Storyboard + Animation

Obey me! Log 8

Today’s 7/21/2022

Break.

Obey me! Log 9

Today’s 8/4/2022

Animation: 162 seconds are done out of 452

No tween, only pure lineart.

I took a long break, but my friend could continue 2 background, and I still have to add details to them, thus I’ll have to deal with them too. However I’ll continue now the animation as soon as I can.

I hope I can finish it this year, but since I’ll go to a college, I have my doubts.

Ah it’s done! Not the background, that’s still work in progress, but the family photo in my style! I think they look cute on the wall in the kitchen as a big lovely family. <3

Until next Thursday!

Obey me! Log 10

Today’s 8/11/2022

Animation: 178 seconds are done out of 452

Speed animation:

https://youtu.be/ULU5rYg4ZBI

Goodness, please stop me from this.

Obey me! Log 11

Today’s 8/18/2022

Animation: 189 seconds are done out of 452

When you animate 2 people. Folder 1 is Lucifer, Folder 2 is mini Leviathan.

“HANA RURIIII~ FLASHUUU!” Oh my Lord, I love animating them.

Obey me! Log 12

Today’s 8/25/2022

Animation: 212 seconds are done out of 452

Here are the notes on the fridge. It’ll be only a small detail in the background, but come on, I couldn’t miss it.

The notes are made up, except the one which was addressed to the Main Character, which is connected to the fridge mission in game. (Since Beelzebub basically bit in half the note addressed to him, Lucifer had to ask MC to take care of him. And yes, he drew a little heart next to his signature for his beloved sheep. <3)

I wanted to mention everyone on the notes, basically because Lucifer is taking care of them like a father, except of Leviathan (to some extent). The whole episode is about the third and the first borns’s relationship, how left out Leviathan feels himself, how he thinks Lucifer sees him as a ghost, and when his 3 years old self tells him how he’s looking for excuses to spend some more time with his brother is really heart warming.

Lucifer and Leviathan don’t really have much in common, but they still really love each other, even though they can’t do anything together in particular. They’d do anything for each other.

The recipes are canon:

The Devil Carrot Curry is Beelzebub’s invention from Obey Me! The Anime #3 — Carrots, Please! episode.

The Siren’s Song was Beelzebub’s wish from Lesson 34-5.

The sticker is Leviathan’s favorite little pancake, Azuki-tan! (He can’t be left out of the fridge.)

Obey me! Log 13

Today’s 9/1/2022

Animation: 244 seconds are done out of 452

MORE THAN HALF OF THE ANIMATION IS DONE!

Though, I unfortunately won’t be able to work as fast as before, because in the dorm I’ll be in have barely any wifi, not to talk about I can’t bring my precious computer with me, thus I can’t animate... *cries*

But let’s celebrate...? Pfft, who am I kidding, nobody reads this. xd

Obey me! Log 14

Today’s 9/11/2022

Animation: 285 seconds are done out of 452

I actually finished the last part of the animation, so the ending is done, the last 40 seconds. I move into my dorm today, and the school starts tomorrow... But fear not! I’m planning on keep continue the animation, even though I won’t be able to animate, I want to do as much as I can.

Also, team Verstappen.

Obey me! Log 15

Today’s 9/16/2022

Animation: 285 seconds are done out of 452 (+4 seconds Diavolo)

Now this should be interesting. It’s sooo much fun to make a phone call with these two. (Lucifer and Diavolo)

Obey me! Log 16

Today’s 9/25/2022

Animation: 294 seconds are done out of 456

I found 4 more people for the art collab, and I could finish the phone call I was working last week. I have quite a few other work to do, and at the moment I lack of motivation a little, but I’ll do what I can. I could animate 2 scenes this weekend, which is 9 seconds total. I think this is fair.

Obey me! Log 17

Today’s 10/2/2022

Animation: 304 seconds are done out of 456

I’m so glad I could animate a little! Here you can see the result. In the dorm, I started to work on the special scene, which will force me to think a bit more than it should. xd It’s a challenge, so be it.

CLICK HERE for the animation.

Obey me! Log 18

Today’s 10/9/2022

So I’ve decided to make an extra animation to start the whole video, because my 2 years old nephew was so cute and participated by imitating my voice. I couldn’t miss the chance to animate a baby Lucifer, now could I?

CLICK HERE for the animation.

Obey me! Log 19

Today’s 10/16/2022

Animation: 315 seconds are done out of 456 (+16 seconds)

Storyboard:

Sketch:

Lineart:

Color:

Final(Except the Background...and other small details I won’t name now.):

See you next Sunday!

Obey me! Log 19

Today’s 10/23/2022

Animation: 330 seconds are done out of 472

Isn’t he adorable with those hungry eyes?

Obey me! Log 20

Today’s 10/30/2022

Animation: 379 seconds are done out of 472

Dare to say that they’re not adorable. (OH NO SPOILER ALERT)

Obey me! Log 20

Today’s 11/06/2022

Animation: 434 seconds are done out of 472

Today, I’m honored to demonstrate: How to hold a bag of potato.

This makes things just worse.

Obey me! Log 21

Today’s 11/13/2022

Animation: 440 seconds are done out of 472

Finally! I’m so excited to see how these puppets will look like once I’ll be able to finish and edit them!... After record them with my precious staff from my dorm. xd

Obey me! Log 22

Today’s 11/20/2022

Animation: 457 seconds are done out of 472

I have nothing else to say. I can’t solve the problem with the green screen. But take it as I’m an amateur, and it was on purpose. It was so difficult to execute. AND I FORGOT BARBATOS’S CLOTHES HAVE THE SAME COLOR AS THE BACKGROUND. ...I mean I did not, but later when we recorded it, I happened to not remember it. xd

Obey me! Log 23

Today’s 11/27/2022

Animation: 457 seconds are done out of 472

Break.

I did try to animate, but I really wasn’t in the mood it seems. Even if there’s only a little left... Please give me energy. xd

Obey me! Log 24

Today’s 12/4/2022

Animation: 465 seconds are done out of 472

I could continue it a little. It’s almost done, but bruh... exams and essays. Boring.

Obey me! Log 25

Today’s 12/11/2022

Animation: DONE (472 seconds total)

YES THE ANIMATION IS DONE, GUYS! I’ll have to deal with the not animation part of the video, which means recoloring stuff, effects, editing, sound effects, subtitles, writing the cast etc.

And I’m still waiting 3 art from the baby collab. And someone who would draw Raphael for me... Hm, maybe I’ll just do it myself, I love him either way. Oh, and also the backgrounds. I think that will be the biggest problem of them all.

Obey me! Log 26

Today’s 12/23/2022

Background: 3 are done out of 6

So now that the animation is done, I’m working on everything else. I’ve done a lot of editing, fixed almost every little detail I found, I recolored everything needed. Also 2 more babies are done, 2 to go! (Barbatos and Raphael.) And the backgrounds... I feel like they will be never done... *sighs* Looks like I’ll have to gather all the sound effects too, because the guy I asked to do it only promised it, but still did nothing after... months.

I won’t go insane, I prom... I hope. xd

I even redraw my part of the collab, because I didn’t like the first one... Oh wait, no, I also did it, because the one who drew KJ forgot the fact, that I drew Lucifer like this, so he can hold Leviathan’s hand. But oh well, who can blame them, right?... I mean, obviously, it was a long time ago since we talked about it.

Maybe I should use this instead... Or this? Nah, they’re all used.

Obey me! Log 27

Today’s 1/7/2023

I’ve finished with quite a lot of editing, I’m basically only waiting for the backgrounds to be done. So until then, I’ll work on the after credit scene, which will be a little extra, a live action scene with the cute brothers together. It’s mostly a pain in the ass, but at least entertaining.

#Obey me #Animation #Obey me Lucifer #Obey me Leviathan #lucifer #leviathan #om! lucifer #om! leviathan #Obey me animation #om lucifer #om leviathan #obey me shall we date #I will focking die #but I don't mind.#obey me log

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madi2112 · 6 months

Text

Thoughts of Random Randomness #74

I was surprised that my social media pages (Facebook and Instagram) had half a dozen messages on them Sunday morning.

Turns out my episode of Finding Adventure with Kinga Philipps aired on broadcast television here in Orlando!

I'm pleased to say all the comments were positive and some went to a lot of effort to find me.

Like this one from someone I already knew:

"When I turned on my TV this morning... it was you! So enjoyed your story. Thank you for sharing. I am sure this will help many others. Great, great big virtual hug ❤️"

The others explained how they saw the show, Google me or searched Facebook and felt compelled to share a communication with me.

Once again I'm honored to have my story help someone in someway.

~Madison

#transgender #girlslikeus #mature transgendered #transwomenmatter

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ruerock · 2 years

Note

If you don't mind, will you tell us about the ocs in your latest post ? They look so cool and I love their little plushies!! What are they like :)

of course i dont mind, thank you for the ask!! :3

they're main character of my story called Color Theory and (in a very short summary) they're basically characters from a book that found their way out of it into the real world and now are living in it as some sort of deities (they're pretty much superhuman/alien + immortal). in the book they were kind of fated villains so theyre now thriving and making it up for it with all earth has to offer. main idea is basically "if could rewrite your story, would it be for better or worse?" and some deep stuff on learning how to love and trust again. i chose their plushies based on the contrasting sides of their personalities, i might make another post on it if anyone would be interested! but here's some info on them!

queenie; queenie is, well, a lot - she's quick to overreact and hides a lot of fear behind her mean demeanour. she's snarky and childlish, struggles with social interactions but tries not to let it show. VERY annoying and constantly dissatisfied but goes through a massive character development arc. works as a social media star.

kinga; a disney princess, friend to all. he's living his best life honestly, the most well adapted of the group. curious about knowledge that humanity has to offer and dont even get her started on the creatures called CATS. loves fame but adores humans just as much. always gets science facts wrong. works in music industry as singer and composer, an activist.

ace; to put it shortly, ace has a hero complex but no social skills. is always ready to solve problems for others but is also a really reserved person that prefers to keep most to herself and bottling up emotions. they come off as tired and experienced; brooding in their free time. they work as a detective/vigilante. (they're also mute!)

jackie; The Terrible One TM - loves what humanity has to offer (power) but despises humans. jackie has a lot charisma and a real talent for wrapping others around their finger - everything is a performance to them. they're stylish, honest and unapologetic. easily bored and dismissive, they don't take anything seriously and goes to show on many ocassions they're not willing to change. works as a fashion designer (and regularly does crime, has moral backbone of a chocolate eclair)

#thank u for asking about them TT~TT <3 #my ocs #oc: queenie #oc: kinga #oc: ace #oc: jackie #sunanswers #ocs: color theory

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baek1nho · 2 years

Note

12, 25, 15!! for the creator ask game!!

12: Pick your favourite creation of yours based on the colour palette

this one, this was a perfect shade of sky blue! also very proud of my rainbow wkx gifset! the colors came out so pretty!!

25: Do you use PSDs or colour everything by scratch?

i do make new adjustments from scratch but i also use the same base settings and adjust accordingly

15: Talk about some of your favourite creators: what do you love most about their creations?

i have a lot. okay here's the first ones i can think of. if I didn't mention you it's not because i don't love your gifs it's just there are so many.

@ashinlae — i'm always in awe of her colorings and the way she does everything. also lately her process posts are so cool and it helps me learn things. the gahan ones with the blurred part, i love it.

@deokmis — your sharpening is always so sharp, and you have so many creative ideas. when you did those b/w & color my country sets, it looked so good!!

@namchyoon — her sets are always very high quality & sharp too!!

@yohankang — what would we be without kinga's sets of gahan, nowhere actually. that blended wenzhou one is one of my favorites!

@surii — bianca always watches the same dramas/shows i'm into and her sets are very bight and sharp!

@cuddlybitch & @orangesyellow — i love the way hannah & angela both use color overlays, i'm always in awe.

@jaehwany — justine too has very nice quality gifs and her compilation sets are always so good!

honestly i could go on and on

#tag games

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thormanick · 2 years

Text

another genshin conspiracy theory: there was only one alien invasion (caused by primordial one)

I have very little evidence BUT

If we merge together Before Sun and Moon and Gnostic Chorus, I feel like it makes sense.

There was Phanes and the four Shades. I would assume you could equate them to a King, Queen, Priest and Two Heirs (them being accordingly Phanes, Shade #1, Istaroth, Shades 3&4) based, once again, on Parable of a Tree (I know I cannot shut up about it I am sorry) (I'll add to that that I reassessed my theory on connection between Shades and Artifacts, and now would like to propose you another alignment: Phanes & Shade 1 are Kinga and Queen (Flower of Life and Plume of Death), Istaroth is the Priest (Circlet of Logos), Shades 3&4 are Eon and Eonothem (sands and goblet) (bc I can't resist that they might be "twins" and have similar names). Feel free to debate XD)

Phanes sends out one of his Shades to investigate whatever the Genesis Pearl is. The Shade is corrupted, and thus becomes the "Queen of Abyss". So, technically, there are now two Royal Houses - First Throne and Second Throne. And then Second Throne goes to war with Phanes and, presumably, wins.

As a follow-up to this theory I actually started thinking that Paimon may be either "Eonothem", because she knows so much about Teyvat (eonothem being a term used in geology... to show a strata accumulated over a time period... something like this (thank you wiki), and Paimon is a "guide" who technically knows stuff), or Phanes themselves, suffering the same fate as the Traveller twins without knowing ("A kind of seal was cast upon me..."). That hypothesis is made solely because she has a crown (King?) and because I think it would be very cool if it appears in the very end that the Primordial One saw how Teyvat changed without them and even considering all the massive f@*kups the humans are still living and thriving in this world, and that even without their direct presence their dream for a prosperous humanity lived on. I think it would be kinda a poetic journey to have :')

Quick Edit: *screaming* paimon as in erODED PHANES oooooo i like this

#genshin impact #genshin impact lore #genshin impact thoughts #genshin impact theory #genshin impact phanes #genshin impact shades #genshin impact traveller #genshin impact paimon #afinna explores teyvat

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kirua9 · 2 years

Text

Brass sounds gold , as the goods which are sins.

"Oh, Henriette was not lucky at all, as you can judge. " – Dio looked around and saw a young woman in a vermillion velvet suit. Her face was oddly pale and chiselled, the unnaturally bright yellow eyes were drilling him with an intense She was too audacious for a young woman. Just for a woman.

Dio's already been drunk, although he had only two glasses of some heady drink.

The tone in which she was speaking, her straight sombre gaze slowly cooled down everything in the room, she was too loud for his mind, even though she said only a sentence.

"Get out, foolish woman..." – groaned Dio, putting his drink on the table furiously and clumsily, as the drunk would do.

The woman, who started talking about some Henriette, stepped back in the most laid-back manner, laughing wildly, as if she was a goat.

" Shut up.! You'll be thrown away from here, if you continue suffocating me with your ridiculous existence!" – he was about to punch the woman, but some other people from tavern stopped Dio's fast fist.

"No needs to make a fuss, sir! " – she only turned her head towards the crowd – "I see, young master Dio has no interest in listening to me. Well, as he wishes... But he should know, as long as he's alive, I am on his side. "

"Waht kind of insane abomination is she?.. Vulgar slut, talking her nonsense to me, Dio!.. " – Dio has already regretted he wanted to fight the stranger woman: people who were holding him, also squeezed his arms and chest tightly, just like steel rings pushing his ridges from l around.

"Now you listen me, Dio Brando. Adjure you."

Her voice wasn't female at that minute. It was longing as the oscillating low vibration, Dio felt he was able to hear only this noise, the tinnitus in his head. Those sounds were like low-tembered brass instruments or an old organ. Goddely, majestic, so spiritual — at the same time wild, throat-howling and sinister.

Dio looked around: people, who holded him a second ago were already standing as a lifeless statues. They're eyes were lacking of any aim. Brando looked at the stranger. She smirked eerily. Dio was struck by subliming sounds of brass from nowhere, also the stranger's gaze into nothing, through Dio, as if young Brando was transferred to that human looking creature.

"Listen to me, my child. Your luck you've met me – Paimon, the Great King of Hell. I'm greatful to the human woman Henriette P., who let me borrow her body. You, Dio, was choosen as her inherent. Isn't this news honorific for your small miserable Name?

Now You obey me, the one pf nine Kinga of Hell. I'll do everything you want from me, if you swear that I take your soul one day, no matter what happens to you.

And that day, when your time comes, your Body and her Head will gift me the incarnation."

She or He, Them or Paimon itself grabbed his wet with tears face and the atrocious brass became blessing gold.

#not dl #kirua9 #lol idk some phantom blood AU about dio and Hot Pants alter ego #surprisingly #idc if that is cringe #did that for myself.#Spotify

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ftf-appreciationweek · 2 years

Text

Questions and answers were taken from Ursa’s telegram chat

Question about Kingu's emotions: why were they redrawn?

Ursa: Because they were not very good :")

Kingu tried to get Ningal out of Irkalla? Did he have that opportunity?

Ursa: Spoiler.

You said that Kingu's eye color can change, like Ishtar and Shamash, when emotions take over, but Kingu controls emotions well. Will we see Kinga in this emotion with a different eye color, and if so, what color? In the emotion of screaming, his eyes seem to be brighter... is that it?

Ursa: At the start of the story, Kingu was drawn in two... variations. You will soon see which.

Was Niall a cruel guy before? Do we learn anything about this from the novel?

Ursa: A little. And stupid. A lot. He has changed a lot since then. Let's find out.

Ningal is not Enki's daughter?

Ursa: Not his daughter.

Did Kingu know that Nikkal was in Irkalla?

Ursa: ......not yet.... :""")

Are we going to change clothes for Kingu too, or is he already used to wearing the same clothes?)

Ursa: I don't know yet. He will change himself.

Will we be able to see some kind of interaction between Niall and Kingu? Distrust, friendship, jokes or confrontation?

Ursa: Spoiler.

Is it only the Five who change eye color?

Ursa: Like the strongest, yes. There are still moments, but this is a spoiler.

Kingu dragon or huge Anunnaki? What should we prepare for?

Ursa: If I joke that it's huge, then it will be spread all over the Internet... :""")

Did Niall buy the pendant back in Ur and carried it with him all the time for a special occasion? A very cute feather, in fact, the personification of himself, which means that he obviously reverently chose it himself, at least.

Ursa: Ordered. Did not buy, ordered.

Did Niall have children? Or have any thoughts on having them?

Ursa: No and no.

Ursa, will we get something from each favorite for the given memory?

Ursa: Well, this is a spoiler, perhaps?

Does Nikkal know with whom she gave up the memory?

Ursa: Do you have such dreams when you wake up and do not remember anything, but do you know that there was a person in this dream? It happens to many people.

What is Niall's mother's element?

Ursa: Also air.

Do the generals take some kind of oath of allegiance like the one Nikkal made to Kingu?

Ursa: Almost.

Did Niall hear Nikkal's thoughts in Irkalla? If yes, what were they? What did Niall feel at that moment?

Ursa: Not exactly.

How many daughters/sons do Enlil and Shamash have? What about grandchildren/granddaughters?

Ursa: Lots @_@

#tiamataw #q&a #the flower from tiamat's fire #rc appreciation weeks #romance club #rc tiamat #tiamat appreciation week

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byneddiedingo · 2 years

Photo

Michalina Olszanska and Marta Mazurek in The Lure (Agnieszka Smoczynska, 2015) Cast: Marta Mazurek, Michalina Olszanska, Kinga Preis, Andrzej Konopka, Jakub Gierszal, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Magdalena Cielecka, Katarzyna Herman, Marcin Kowalczyk. Screenplay: Robert Bolesto. Cinematography: Jakub Kijowski. Production design: Joanna Macha. Film editing: Jaroslaw Kaminski. Music: Ballady i Romanse. I'm pretty sure this is the only "Polish horror musical" I've ever seen, to put The Lure into the category Wikipedia assigns to it. It's not a genre I'm inclined to follow with any great enthusiasm if any others exist. It's the story of two mermaids who pop out of the water and join a group of musicians who play in a nightclub. The two, named Silver and Golden, begin as strippers with the group but eventually get their own act. When they're dry, the mermaids have what look like human legs but no sex or excretory organs (like a Barbie doll, as one musician observes); their tails appear only when they're wet. Tension between the mermaids arises when Silver falls in love with the bass player Mietek and Golden picks up a stranger and eats him. Silver still wants to be human and to marry Mietek, so she arranges for a sort of lower-body transplant: Her tail is cut off and replaced with human nether regions. (We don't learn anything about the human donor.) But Mietek decides to marry someone else, and when that happens, Silver is told by the god Triton, who has become a heavy-metal musician, that she must eat Mietek or else she'll turn into sea foam. Because Silver can't go through with it and, as the sun rises, dissolves into what look like soap suds, Golden tears Mietek's throat out. So if you thought this was going to be The Little Mermaid (Ron Clements and John Musker, 1989) or even Splash (Ron Howard, 1984), too bad. There's a lot of pop music and some moments of grossly silly fun in the movie, but its main attraction is that you've probably never seen anything quite like it.

#The Lure #Agnieszka Smoczynska

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darklydeliciousdesires · 2 years

Text

Not One of Many - Chapter Fifteen.

Are you ready for this, guys? Because I don’t think you’re ready... ;) and thank you all for your lovely comments and continued interest. I have so much love for my devoted audience!!

Previous chapters - Prologue One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Eleven Twelve Thirteen Fourteen

Tag list - In the comments

Words - 3,590

Warnings - 18+ content, adult audience only. Minors DNI!

“Well, your face don’t half match the weather,” Magda began, she and Oliver viewing their friend where she sat across the table from them next to Kinga, looking up from her phone a little dazed.

“Hmm?”

“I’d say you were away with the fairies, but such magical little creatures so full of zest and cheer could never be responsible for a face like that, darling,” Oliver observed. “I don’t understand it either! You’re the talk of town with your article, you wrote an absolute bloody hit! Like Mags correctly identifies, your face exactly matches this bloody rain currently blighting our lovely day out!”

It had been two and a half weeks since she’d last seen the subject of her article, the piece published four days previous to then, earning Beth rave reviews from her peers, new work offers flooding in and the kind of publicity she usually wouldn’t have sniffed at whatsoever. None of it mattered without him.

“Hung up, ain’t she? I fucking told you, didn’t I?” Her reminder that she’d indeed told her so was delivered in her usual blunt fashion, but Magda softened then, sensing Beth’s need for it. “I’m so bloody proud of you, though, for not forsaking your morals, your pride. You did the right thing in walking away from him, sugar plum. You always said, you ain’t one of many, and you proved it. Hold your head up high for that, my precious. If he can’t see it, ain’t your problem.”

“Exactly this, because there aren’t many women who wouldn’t have had that strength, to realise their feelings and still walk away with their worth intact,” Oliver chimed, stroking her arm kindly. “You’re so strong, and I know it hurts, lovely, I know how much it must be weighing on you, but Mags is absolutely correct. You did the right thing.”

Kinga sighed then, sweeping a hand through her hair. “I feel responsible. I was nothing but on board and cheerleading your decision to go and sleep with him, and now look at you. Downcast and forlorn, when you should be celebrating your success.”

“I’m not forlorn,” Beth began. “And it isn’t your fault either. You didn’t drive me there and kick me through the doors of The Pendulum against my will. I tried to hide how I felt for the sake of hot sex, and I was wrong to think that I could. I’m nearly thirty, I’m a big girl now, capable enough of making her own decisions and mistakes. I’ll be fine, honestly. I just need a little bit of time to pass, especially in the wake of the article being published. I’m so sorry for being glum, I’m such a bloody wet blanket.”

“No, you ain’t at all!”

“Oh, baby, don’t say that!”

“Darling, don’t be silly!”

They all separately chorused the above, reaching for her again, Oliver and Magda taking a hand each while Kinga wrapped her in a hug. She felt a little teary, excusing herself to go to the ladies, her friends all watching her walk away before they huddled in a little.

“I want to go smack him in the mouth, truth be told, but I can’t cus’ it ain’t even the bloke's fault! He’s been honest with her, told her how it is and all, and I get it. He’s into polygamy and she ain’t. Isn’t anyone’s fault, although quietly I think he’s a bit mental, not seeing that wonderful girl is enough for any man all on her own.”

“I’m too sissy to hit people, but I could certainly go in for a bit of toe stomping and pushing him in stinging nettles!” Oliver chimed, Kinga laughing softly before she added her two pence worth.

“I hope he comes around. I hope he’s realising just how miserable life is without that vibrant, wonderful girl of ours. Then again, I always wish for the fairy tale.”

“And if it don’t happen, then we just have to keep her spirits up until she’s over it,” Magda sighed, picking up her cigarettes. “Back in a bit.”

Being there for her was the main aim of their day out, starting with breakfast before hitting the shops and heading to a spa for some pampering treatment and lunch, before dinner and then onto a bar for drinks. It was the first day in weeks all four of them didn’t have other plans or work commitments, their catch up and luxuriate day rebranded a little bit as a cheer Beth up day.

In the ladies' room, the lady herself dried her eyes, making sure her false eyelashes were still well-adhered, quickly lining her eyes again and taking a few deep breaths. Magda was right, it was his loss. But that didn’t stop it being hers as well. He’d never look at her again like he did when he’d perched her upon the sink, deep inside of her but still, staring at her in a way that made her insides catch fire. Never again, and she hated her principles for it as well, but she would not budge.

She hated herself for that even more.

“Come on, Beth. You’re made of tougher stuff than this. Time to pull yourself together, you’ve had your two weeks to be sad now.” Straightening her high waisted trousers a little, she smoothed the silk of the grey (which she guessed she did suit, finally relenting to Magda’s insistence) camisole she wore, fixed her smile in place and walked back out to her friends.

“There’s that lovely smile I feared we wouldn’t see any time soon,” Oliver chimed happily as she sat, her breakfast waiting for her at the table.

“I can but try, at least.” Kinga made a little fuss of her, rubbing her arm sweetly before she tucked into her turkey bacon and scrambled eggs, Magda arriving back with them.

For the rest of the day, she immersed herself in the warmth of her friends, from parading outfits for Oliver, who critiqued or praised (as per his career as a fashion critic) to spending far too much money as a result of that due to her persisting emotional instability. What is a girl to do when she finds Agent Provocateur underwear for a third off, or a pair of Ralph Lauren jeans that weren’t, but she just had to have? With work coming her way left and right, a little splurge was in order. She definitely reminded herself of this after spending nine hundred and eighty-five pounds on a Balmain bag, and over two hundred pounds on a bottle of bath oil, candle and matching perfume. Jo Malone was a dangerous experience for her every time she entered the shop.

An hour on and they were all lying in a line in the massage suite of the spa, being kneaded thoroughly by talented hands, the man pummelling Beth’s back working out a series of clicks that made her feel much better for the release of pressure. Now, perhaps next for that emotional release of tension. A cocktail out in the gardens, swathed in a fluffy robe afterwards saw to it somewhat, but beneath her cheer, the little tender spot still prickled.

One swim, a facial and a manicure later and she was feeling fully restored, ready to head back into central London where they had reservations at their favourite bar and grill in Soho, seated at a window table, looking out at the sky.

“It’s going to bloody shit it down again soon, look at them clouds!” Magda exclaimed, the sky dark and foreboding, the break in rain giving way to the kind of heat that usually did stir up the sort of summer storm the four were anticipating as they gave the waiter their drinks orders, all deciding on the share grill platter pretty quickly.

“Please keep the pork products separate from the rest, though. My friend here is Jewish,” Oliver asked the waiter, Beth smiling. She never had to speak such herself, her friends were always so quick to do so for her.

“Oh, same as. You’re just the kind of girl my mother would be delighted if I brought home, too,” the waiter spoke with a little flourish of flirt, Beth smiling shyly. She just wasn’t ready to entertain anything of such a nature, though. “I’ll be right back with your drinks, guys.”

They thanked him, Beth quickly checking her phone, smiling when she saw that the article she had written for The Times last week while in the depths of Alfie-related despair had actually been accepted, her prose being why women felt so pressured to have it all, and inevitably felt as if they’d fallen short, should they lack one out of the lovely home, good job and loving partner triangular goal.

Her friends congratulated her warmly, Magda asking a passing waiter to bring them a bottle of Moet, Beth attempting to protest.

“I won’t hear of it, duchess. This is The Times; it calls for a celebration!”

Duchess. He’d often called her that.

With champagne proffered speedily, a cork popped, flutes filled and a toast to her success raised, she stuffed back down the little glimmering shard of remembrance of her lost love, sipping back a mouthful of pure indulgent bubbles and fixing her smile once more.

“So, my wonderful lot. It’s the ELLE summer style party in three weeks on Saturday and I of course have guest privileges. Can I put you all down as attending?” Magda asked a time later as they all helped themselves to the scrumptious looking food before them, being met by three very enthusiastic nods. “Perfect! You’ll have to get your own clobber together, though, naturally. If my editor sees you in anything from our wardrobe, it’ll be my head on the bleedin’ chopping block!”

Beth was just thinking on what on earth she had in her summer wardrobe to wear when her phone began to ring, looking over at the display to see a number she recognised immediately. She’d deleted it after vowing to move on, but the fact Alfie’s mobile ended in three twos and three fives was instantly recognisable.

She nearly brought back up her mouthful of chicken, staring at the screen a little wide eyed before cancelling the call. Ten minutes later, and he tried again.

“Who keeps calling you, darling?” Kinga asked, grappling with a butter swathed segment of corn on the cob, trying her best to eat it somewhat neatly in an effort not to completely ruin her makeup.

“Alfie.” Three pairs of eyes landed on her in stares of disbelief. “I’m not answering it.”

“Aren’t you even a teeny little bit curious over what he could be calling for?” Kinga asked lightly, Magda snorting.

“Unless it’s to say he’s chucked his girlfriends and finally come to his senses that our girl is the best bloody thing that’s ever happened to him, then it ain’t worth answering!”

“But she wouldn’t know that, unless she did answer,” Kinga reasoned, Oliver chiming in.

“This is very true. Beth might be a brilliant wordsmith, but a psychic, she is not.”

“I’m still not answering,” she vowed, her phone ringing again, Beth refusing the call once more. A few minutes passed, her chicken breast finished as she moved onto the coleslaw, before a message notification came through. Everyone bar her stared at her phone. “What? I’m finishing my meal, freshening up, enjoying a few more sips of my wine and then I shall see what the bloody hell he wants.”

“Spoilsport.” Magda muttered, bobbing her tongue out playfully, making her laugh softly. She made a point of not rushing the itinerary of what she’d pledged would come before reading the message, although the anticipation absolutely killed her. By the time she did open it to read, her heart was hammering, her mouth dry.

‘I need to talk to you, Beth. Where are you? I came by your flat, but you obviously ain’t home.’

“So, what did he say?” Oliver asked, eyes wide.

“He says he needs to talk and asks where I am. Apparently he went to my flat.”

“What are you going to tell him?” Kinga questioned, excited.

“Guys, give her breathing room, Christ on water skis!” Magda then exclaimed, holding out her hands.

“Give me a minute.” Picking up her phone, she left the table, heading outside, the distant rolls of thunder soft in the sky, the heat beginning to die down. Except within Beth Drake, who felt like she needed to go and stand in a meat fridge. There was only one way to discover what it was he wished to talk to her about.

Holding the phone to her ear after pressing call, she felt her heart at the back of her throat, her hands tingling as she heard the phone ring out.

“Hello, darlin’. Thanks for calling back.” Her stomach tingled and her heart did a little backflip, hearing his voice again.

“What do you want, Alfie?” she asked coolly, chewing her lip with nerves.

“As I said in my message, I need to talk to you. Where are you?”

“Alfie, I said I was cutting ties with you,” she began, being swiftly interrupted.

“It’s about why you had to do that, that I have to talk to you. Where are you?”

She felt her throat tightening, trying to hold back the words that flew from her mouth before she’d had a chance to process. “Sophie’s in Soho.” Shit.

“Gimme half hour and I’ll be there. This is important, I can’t do it over the phone. See ya in a bit.”

He hung up before Beth had time to answer, turning and heading back inside, striding to the bar.

“Can I get two shots of gold Patron, please?” she asked the server, the girl nodding before placing the shot glasses on the table and dutifully filling them. One Apple Pay transaction later, two tequila shots were sunk, and Beth was only marginally calmer.

“Well?” Magda asked as soon as she sat down.

“He’s on his way over, said he’ll be half an hour.”

“What?” all three chorused.

“He said he needed to talk to me, I told him that I said I was cutting ties with him and was about to continue with how I wanted for him to respect my wishes there, but before I got chance to, he said it was about why I did that, that he needed to see me,” she explained, her heart still hammering madly.

“Well, if this is...” Kinga began.

“Nope! No! Nobody speak a word about it, nope! I need radio silence while I sit here and work myself into a panic while attempting to drown it in Soave.” Lifting her wine glass, she sank it, Oliver quick to top it up again.

“Okay, change of subject. Did we all see that utter hatchet piece Alex Martin-Smith wrote on the AW 2022 Versace collection last week?” Magda offered, all four of them falling into conversation over how unfair they’d found it, such a blazing critique of Donatella’s work, of which they were all huge admirers. Even though the topic had changed, Beth felt sick with nerves within, continuing to drain her wine with such gusto, another bottle was ordered for the table.

The minutes crept by, with her keeping one eye on the street, until she picked him out, her heart somersaulting. “He’s almost here. I’m going outside.”

“Good luck, darling. We love you.” Kinga offered, kissing her arm, Oliver and Magda squeezing her hands.

“No compromises unless he’s offering you all, baby,” Oliver reminded her.

“Any bullshit and tell him your feisty bestie will knock him out.” Magda vouched, giving her the little chuckle she needed as she walked away from the table, heading outside and waiting for him, spots of rain in the air. Looking down the street, she saw him look up and smile. Her heart did a somersault, her skin feeling hot and prickly as her temperature rose, mixing with the summer heat.

A tempest of nerves whirled within her, her pulse flipping madly, summing up composure from her depths, her head an absolute mess as anticipation claimed her. Still, she would be cool and calm in the face of seeing him again, reminding herself of that when he finally stopped before her.

“Hello, duchess.” Her knees felt weak, hearing him say that, his scent flooding her nose, her mind being transported back to when she’d first smelled him, how intoxicating she’d found it. “Look, I know I’m the last person you likely want to see, but I had to see ya, right? I need to talk.”

“About what?”

Seeing a group of people coming up behind her, he touched a hand to her arm to move her over, the spot tingling beneath his touch. “About us.”

She shook her head, her heart panging with sadness. “There is no us, Alfie. Not while you’re living the lifestyle you do. Like I said, I don’t expect you not to either, you just can’t have me, too.”

“Well, that’s the thing, darlin’,” he began, taking a breath, actually looking a little nervous. “I’m not living that lifestyle any longer. I’m single.”

She felt as if a firework had gone off in her chest at hearing those words, her hands shaking, her mouth going dry. “You... you finished with them?” she whispered, bewildered. It couldn’t be, could it? Was she about to get what she’d coveted so very much?

“Half and half. Mimi broke up with me, because she knew she wasn’t the one who made me truly happy any longer, and off the back of that, I ended my relationship with Amira.”

“Why?” she blurted, feeling like an idiot instantly, Alfie chuckling, taking her face in his hands.

“Because I’ve gone and fuckin’ fallen in fuckin’ love with you, ain’t I? Can’t fuckin’ bear to live another fuckin’ minute without you either!”

“Could you have crammed more F words in there?”

He looked thoughtful, tickled by her witty retort. “Probably. So, what do you think? Think this foolish man who took way too long to admit to himself there was only one woman for him is worth it?”

There he was, Alfie Solomons, the man famed for his multiple girlfriends and unapologetic stance over dating them, single, having taken the steps he needed, all for her. Because he was in love with her.

“Of course, you bloody are.” He beamed, leaning down to kiss her, the shrieking cheers of her friends from inside making her laugh a little into their kiss, before it deepened, her heart blooming. It never happened like this for her, it always went wrong somehow, until now. Until it went right.

At that exact moment, overhead, a boom of thunder shook the sky, people all around beginning to exclaim as the rain duly pelted down.

“Alfie, it’s raining,” she breathed, his thumbs stroking her cheeks.

“Well, we’re getting wet then, ain’t we?” he kissed her again, a kiss unbreakable, unstoppable by even the raging storm that rendered London a wash from the furious cascade. It was a moment so perfect, right there, they were every romantic cliché in the world, the rain soaking them through, but their care over such non-existent as their love bloomed. As if it couldn’t get more complete, the opening bars to a song that made all the hairs on the back of Alfie’s neck stand up began to filter out from the bar.

“Fuckin’ ‘ell!” he exclaimed, laughing, kissing her again. “She Sells Sancturary. How bloody apt. Because you do.”

“I like to think I give it freely rather than for a monetary exchange.”

“I’ll put me Amex away then, ay?”

She giggled, stroking his face, never witnessing him smile like he was right then, right at her. “I think we should go in, eventually. Besides, we have an expectant audience.” Turning, they saw Magda, Oliver and Kinga all at the window, applauding with huge grins.

“Eventually.” He confirmed. They continued to kiss, not a care in the world, Ian Astbury’s lyrics reigning so true for Alfie as he lost himself fully to his heart’s desire.

The fire in your eyes keeps me alive And the fire in your eyes keeps me alive I'm sure in her you'll find sanctuary I'm sure in her you'll find sanctuary

At last. He’d found it, after looking in all the wrong places for so many years, he’d found his sanctuary, right there in her.

“I love you,” she breathed, nuzzling her nose against his.

“Good! Because I am lovable when I’m not being a stupid tosser. So, you gonna take me in to meet your friends after I’ve gone and rung me shirt out?”

“Yeah, come on.” Taking his hand, she led him out of the rain, Alfie heading to the toilets while Beth ran to the table, hugging her friends in triumph, giving them a very quick explanation before raiding her shopping bags for the lovely, black maxi dress she’d bought, figuring she needed to change. One long stay under the hand dryer later to dry her hair, and she was back at the table, a considerably dryer, but still damp Alfie joining them after a few minutes.

“So, you’re the silly sod who took your bloody time with this one then, ay?” Magda asked, arching an eyebrow as he sat down, pulling Beth onto his lap.

He took her hand, kissing it as he smiled at her, so in love, he felt like he was about to burst. “Guilty as charged.”

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