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driftwithme · 9 months

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"Could you describe her for me?"

Herc paused then, blinking at the quiet girl in front of him. The morning rain had left the air pleasant on the roofed gardens, rose-white clouds casting shadowed patterns throught the sides over the patch of grass where Herc and Mako sat in comfort. Stacker Pentecost, Marshall of the Hunter Order and father of the young girl, was absent that day. Only his voice and steel tone could be heard pass the garden walls as he commanded the training drills of the day.

Herc eyed his son sitting on one of the high windows on the wall above, pretending to be too busy supervising the training grounds to listen to his father's tale. Yet, Herc knew him better than that.

Describe Jazmine Becket.

If it wasn't evident, he had no expected to be asked of her. Yancy and Raleigh? Sure thing, his mouth was beginning to smile on his own every time some young girl or pal with blushy cheeks asked about the princeses. Are they as blond as we've heard of? Are their eyes as blue? Are they as handsome? As powerful? As charming? As rich? As funny? As kind?

At his age, Hercules Hansen was not a man of great passions anymore ---or at least he was not the type to publicly share them. Life had took his wife from his side and drove his brother crazy. The love he felt for them was a fresh wound in his chest, a particular nasty breed of grief and devotion and the Hansen way, old and worn as rock itself. No, he was not a man of flashing cards as he shuffled.

It didn't mean he was immune to the Becket fever, not in the least.

He had met them once, about two years ago. Herc had gone to Richard Becket's crowning ceremony, taking gifts from all the Beckets in the name of the King of the Wild, Herc's true title to the world. Chuck has stayed at home, not wanting to leave his mother side in case... In case she woke up. What if she opens her eyes and we are not by his side, dad? He had wailed, tucking his 12 years old frame into the space between her bed and the window. What if we come back and she's gone?

So Herc had travelled alone, unwilling to tell the truth to his only son: that his mother had fallen for a spell with no solution; that she will never wake up from her slumber; that he had the chance to wake up only one of them and he had given the antidote to Chuck.

Maybe that was what cemented his feelings for the Beckets at the time. The empty space where the Queen should sit, the goblets full of wine that tilted and stained the robes of the King every time he asked for a new drink. The eyes, sharp and oh-so-awake, of Prince Yancy Becket, meeting Herc's stare with the resolution of a 20 years old that knows his time is closer than anyone imagine.

In front of him, Pentecost's daugther folded together her hands on her lap, always polite as she waited for Herc to continue. Mako, he knew, was not much like any other kid from the outside. She must be 13 years old, a year or months younger than Chuck. Of course, he told himself, of course she wants to know about Jazmine. She must have heard of the other two from her father, but Pentecost had never met the youngest and brightest of the three. Jazmine had not become a knight, like her siblings, or a traveler, like her mother.

Chuck had one leg dangling from the side of the wall, the other bent at the knee to rest his forearm in it. Even with his back to them, Herc could read the interest of his son in the answer by the way Chuck had turned slightly in their direction. It was in his shoulders, and of course, in the fact Prince Hansen wouldn't miss the chance to know more about Raleigh Becket, his childhood hero.

"Young," his eyes fell from his son to the the Princess of the Hunters, blue bangs freshly dyed and hair cut shorter, "and diligent. She rules Anchorage while her brothers clean the land from monsters."

"How old is she?"

"16 years old, soon."

The wind picked up, forcing Herc to stop and Mako to hold her bangs out of her face. Fall in the Wild Lands was hotter than most, but Angela's ancestors had built the castle to let the wind run always placid, allowing the sun to land always true. His people used to said it was never blinding nor fastidious, often one shade away from your arse, something that made Herc cackle every time.

Nearing sunset hours now, the residuals of the early rain kept the gardens comfortable. Herc had loved that castle from the moment he saw it, when he was but a cadet walking inside the gates beside his brother Scott. He would never forget how the wind had picked up then too, carrying some delicate woman's handkerchief to Herc's grip. That's how he'd met Angela, blushing as she claimed it to be hers and teased him for following the wind of destiny when it called.

He wondered what such wind was trying to tell him. Above him, Chuck's shadow shifted.

"Is that all?"

Oh, yes. They were talking about Jazmine Becket, weren't them?

"I'm sorry, Miss Mori. I can't say much more from my experience. It's true she was there on her father's coronation, but the ladies and the dance kept her away most of the night. She was 15 years old and I, a man of war and politics, didn't want to bored the princess to no end."

Herc shook his head at the disappointment of his son and their companion, not wanting to aggravate them youngs more. Mako had distracted herself playing with the grass and Chuck had turned away completely, bored or pretending to be, muttering curses under his breath.

"Although I can tell you what I've heard of her in the tales the travelers had brought to me." Herc cought, keeping his laughther at bay as the teens faltered in their brooding. "In the South is hard to find true worda about her. It is our luck that the princeses seem unable to abandon their sister's memory at home as they change camps. Perhaps those stories will suffice your curiosity, miss Mori, if you're willing to wait for dinner to be served. As for now..."

Herc stood up. He could tell the answer by the light on Mako's eyes, the gentle curve of her lips forming a gracious smile. He'd try to get Chuck to join their conversation, as he knew his son would want to but never admit it in fear of making a fool of himself.

" ...I must go to confer with the Marshall the state of our knight force and the status of the upcoming operations. If you excuse me."

He exchanged bows with miss Mako, feeling more than seeing the moment Chuck landed on the grass and made his way to Herc's side. Together they marched from the gardens to the central towers, where Chuck would walk up to his chambers without a word said to his father and Herc would continue to the war room, waiting for Stacker to arrive.

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natequarter · 1 year

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you know, if i had a nickel for every historical film which made a european king incredibly gay-coded for no apparent reason, had him have a prominent historical figure of the time stabbed, and featured a historical figure who by the time the film was set had been dead for three years, i'd only have two nickels, but it's fucking weird that it's happened twice

#bill (2015)#becket #(becket is set in 1170; the empress matilda is dead by 1167 #and bill is set in 1593; walsingham is dead by 1590)

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marlocandeea · 6 months

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Kaze to Ki no Uta

#had a dream about kazeki but it was set in the middle ages #was that a kazeki becket mashup. was that it #when will the gay catholic thoughts stop tormenting me #..... not a lana del rey art deco jumpscare on spotify as im writing this #tu quoque shuffle mode #shining like gunmetal cold and unsure etc #help #btw our print of kazeki pops severely #its not placed under my bed because it gives me crazy gay vietnam flashbacks. not at all #kaze to ki no uta

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mental-mona · 1 year

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You may know, if you’ve ever seen a Jewish house before Passover, it’s hard work. It really is. I try and be away from home when it’s happening. You have to clear the house of all products that contain leaven, you’ve got to clean everything, you’ve got to take out a new set of utensils and cutlery and crockery, and it is really hard work. I got somebody in England to design a special apron for Passover cleaning that read, “For this, we left Egypt?”

I used to wonder, why make Passover such hard work? And now I know: because freedom is hard work. And it has to be fought for in every generation. We have to tell and re-tell the story. We have to remind ourselves what it feels like each year to eat the bread of affliction and taste the bitter herbs of slavery.

...

Freedom is hard to attain, but it is very easy to lose. And that’s why it has to be fought for in every generation.

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks z"tl, "In Defence of Religious Liberty," the acceptance speech at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty award ceremony

#pesach #cleaning for pesach #pesach cleaning #passover #cleaning for passover #judaism #jewish theology #rabbi lord jonathan sacks #jewish holidays #freedom #jumblr

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focsle · 4 months

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Do you have any tips on how to identify sea chests/distinguish them from regular hope chests? I see a lot of neat wooden chests at estate sales that I'm always tempted by in general, but i'm not sure what the best way is to tell which was meant for a sailor

For me the biggest tell that it’s undoubtedly a sea chest are the beckets and the wood cleats to hold said beckets. It’s the most identifiable and consistent feature that sets them apart from other kinds of chests:

Sea chests also tend to have a pretty standard interior where they have a little till compartment (though it doesn’t always survive, so if it’s not present that’s not unusual):

Vs things like hope chests that might have a divider right down the middle or other configurations.

The shape can be a clue too. This definitely isn’t always the case, but sea chests can have a flared shape like this:

This also isn’t always the case, but they also can have an extra overhang on the lid (also seen above, and below), to keep the water and suchlike out.

And this isn’t always a sure thing, but wood types, too. Most were pine. Mine is more unusual because it’s made out of camphor wood (which is why I have some Theories that it potentially belonged to a captain or mate). But they were usually cheaper woods because it was what most sailors could afford. Vs heirloom chests that are more often made from nicer woods.

tl;dr rope beckets and/or the cleats to hold them are the biggest tell. They’re also just a lot harder to find than other kinds of chests because they were a Hard Working Object.

#asks #anonymous

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fan-fantasies · 1 year

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Think What You May (part 3)

Pairing: Aemond x Reader

Warnings: men being sexist pigs, mentions of violence, mentions of alcohol

A/N: the next part will most likely be the last, I hope you enjoy!

Please comment and reblog

Part Two

Weeks had passed and you had grown quite close with Aemond. You often found yourself with him in the library, sharing your fondness for books. Aegon liked to tease the two of you, which led to you threatening to bring the frying pan back out.

Aegon’s teasing, Aemond could handle. He even tolerated the whispers of the court about him stealing “Aegon’s whore.” He knew now just how disgusting the lies of the court could be and vowed to not let them influence him again.

It wasn’t as easy, however, to ignore the taunts of the lords that would visit every so often. It was politically advantageous to wine and dine the lords of the realm, but Aemond was ready to sever all ties with them due to their vulgarity.

“So tell me, what caused you to so kindly gift your entertainment to your brother?” Lord Tyrell mocked Aegon.

“She was not my entertainment,” he said, already having enough of the other men. “She is my wife’s lady in waiting.”

“Oh from what we’ve heard, she is now more Aemond’s lady- but tell us, have you kept her waiting?” Another man snickered. Aemond refused to reply to the taunts, eagerly waiting for the topic of conversation to change.

“I must say, I would not have her waiting for my cock. She is a beauty. A rare find in a whorehouse these days,” Lord Becket chimed in. Aemond’s grip on his wine goblet tightened and it threatened to spill.

“Uh oh, I believe we’ve struck a nerve. Dear Aemond looks like his feelings have been hurt,” Tyrell chuckled. “She is all yours, man. Marry her if you wish.”

“You do not marry a whore, even when you’re a second son,” another added.

“I would not marry her regardless. I am a prince and she is just a servant,” Aemond snapped. He didn’t mean it, but he just wanted the men off of his back.

As always, his timing was impeccable. Helaena cleared her throat from behind them and they all turned their attention to you. You were holding a tray of wine and lemon cakes that Heleana thought they might enjoy. You struggled to keep a straight face as tears were ready to spill down your cheeks.

You set the tray down on the table in front of the men who openly ogled you. Aemond wanted to have every one of their heads on a pike, but he knew his head deserved to be on one as well.

You rushed from the room followed by Helaena who was glaring at her brother.

“We wouldn’t subject her to marrying Aemond anyway- we like her too much,” Aegon said before downing the rest of the wine.

After a while longer of barely tolerating the despicable lords, Aemond excused himself and set off to find you. He checked Heleana’s chambers first, but it was empty. The gardens were his next stop but he found you in the training yard, hitting a stuffed dummy with a wooden practice sword.

“Training to join the army?” He asked cautiously. “Our enemies should be wary.”

“Pick up a sword and let’s find out just how wary they should be,” you snapped, moving toward the metal weapons.

“Lady, please. I wish to talk things out with you,” he nearly begged.

“I have half a mind to go back up there and tear them limb from limb,” you said absentmindedly.

“I would not stop you,” he said.

“And would you stop me from harming you as well? Because you’ve wounded me deeper than any of those imbeciles ever could,” you snapped.

“I would not stop you if you feel that’s what your retribution should be. I am sorry for what I said back there. I was just trying to get them to stop,” he said.

You took a step toward him, now holding a real sword but he didn’t flinch.

“If you wanted them to stop, you should’ve told them to stop. It is not what you said that hurt me most, but that you let them defile me with their words and you said nothing. You did not dispute a single thing they said until they threw out the disgusting idea of marrying someone as lowly as me. I know I have no chance of marrying above my station, but kindness and respect are not limited to titles. I now know who you are, Aemond Targaryen, the real you who was exposed in secret.”

Aemond let you finish your speech and even aim the sword at him. He could easily disarm you but he trust that you would not hurt him, at least not with a sword. Your words, however, stung more than the sharpest blade.

“That is not who I am, lady. I am a coward, yes, for not defending you and I will go up there right now and right my wrongs if you’d allow me to,” he said.

“No, you had your chance to say your piece and you chose silence. You chose where you stand with me and now you will stay there.” You threw the sword to the side and walked past him. He desperately wanted to grab you and pull you into his arms, holding you against him until he could truly convey how he felt for you. But as he said, he is a coward, and he just let you walk away.

Dinner time came about quickly but neither you nor the prince had an appetite. Yet there you both sat at the table in awkward silence.

Aemond couldn’t stop stealing glances at you. You weren’t wearing the necklace he gifted you and it was the first time in weeks he had seen you without it.

“You know, brother, this may be a record amount of times one has insulted the same woman,” Aegon joked from beside him.

“Go speak to your wife and then get back to me on that,” Aemond snapped. Aegon’s wine induced smirk only grew.

“You should take her as your wife, and then anyone who slandered her would be killed for treason,” he slurred.

“It would never be allowed,” Aemond sighed to himself.

“Mother would allow it. She said so herself. It is your lady alone that would need convincing,” he chuckled with a hiccup.

“What do you mean mother said she’d allow it?” Aemond’s full attention was now on his brother. Was he just drunk and rambling or has the topic of his marriage truly been brought up?

“She said that you two made a good pair and it would be a happy marriage. But what she doesn’t know is that you’re a moron when it comes to her,” he said.

Aemond’s heart was racing at the thought of his mother approving of a betrothal to you. He always expected that he would have to marry for duty, but perhaps since he is a second son, he could be spared a small chance at happiness.

He watched as you excused yourself from the table and took your leave. He decided to wait a few minutes before excusing himself as well to go after you.

Before he could leave, however, he was stopped by Helaena.

“I swear on the seven, if you chase her off one more time, I will never speak to you again,” she said quietly.

“I only wish to make things right,” he reassured her.

“She is my dearest friend and she deserves happiness; not to be slandered by disgusting pigs disguised as lords,” she said.

“I agree. I will never let anyone speak about her that way again,” he swore. “I must go to her.”

Helaena nodded to him and he took his leave. He ran into Criston on his way out who told him that he saw you headed toward the training yard. It seemed that was your new favorite spot.

Aemond watched from a distance as you practiced your sword skill. You were more calculated in your movements than you were earlier.

“I can feel you watching me,” you said without turning to him.

“I’m simply admiring,” he replied.

“You’re full of shit, my prince.”

“You dare speak against royalty?” He asked sarcastically, testing the waters.

“Only when what I say is true.”

Aemond sighed and approached you slowly. He watched carefully and assessed your posture.

“You should square your feet more,” he suggested.

“I did not ask.”

“I’m just advising,” he said. “You’re not beating anyone with that stance.”

“Let’s test that then. Arm yourself,” you challenged.

“My lady, I have been training for years.”

“So you should have no problem proving yourself correct then.”

Aemond grabbed a sword and readied himself opposite of where you stood. You left yourself open to attack so Aemond decided to be nice and try to help.

“Perhaps try raising your sword a bit more-“ before he could finish you swung at him taking him by surprise. He quickly dodged it but you didn’t relent. You kept swinging and he only deflected, never swinging back.

“Fight me!” You yelled. You advanced your position but he didn’t step back. “Fight back, you coward!”

He was tired of your attempt to beat him so he knocked your sword from your hand. That didn’t stop you however, as you continued to try and fight him with your fists. He let you tired yourself out before you collapsed into his arms, sobs wracking your body.

“Why didn’t you fight back?” He could barely make out your words.

“I have no desire to fight you,” he sighed.

“No, not now. Why didn’t you fight for me?” You asked. Aemond’s heart broke as you continued to cry against his chest.

“I have no excuse. It is not commonplace to defend a lady against the opinions of lords and that is not right. I should have said something. If you’d like, I’ll have each of them hunted down and their tongues cut out for you.”

“That won’t be necessary. I never cared what they said, I just cared about what you didn’t say. I suppose it was my mistake for believing you cared enough to defend me,” you said.

“I care about you more than I’d care to admit, my sweet girl. I just have no idea how to show it. And I know my word is not worth much but I swear, I will never allow anyone to speak ill against you again and I will do my best to never hurt you,” he promised.

You finally pulled away from him and his arms felt empty. Your tear stained face was something he never wanted to see again.

“Pain is inevitable, we just have to choose who is worth it.”

“I certainly hope you’ll deem me worthy,” he gave you a small smile. His wrung his clammy hands in front of him while he considered his next words carefully. “Aegon suggested that I might marry you so that if anyone speaks ill about you again then it would be considered treason.”

He tried to play it off with a light laugh, but really he was waiting to gauge your reaction. You shook your head and laughed, causing him to frown.

“If only that were an option,” you mumbled. “But I am merely a servant as you’ve so kindly reminded everyone.”

“Lady, I-“

“It is late, Aemond. We should return to our chambers before people begin to speak more than they already do,” you suggested.

“Let me escort you back to your room,” he insisted.

“We both know that is not a good idea,” you sighed. “I shall see you tomorrow, my prince.”

You walked away from him and he considered chasing after you, but he didn’t want to offend you further.

“Goodnight, my love,” he whispered as he watched your form disappear from his sight. Instead of returning to his chamber as you suggested, he went to Alicent’s instead.

“Mother, there is something I wish to discuss.”

Part four

#Aemond x reader #aemond x reader angst #aemond targaryen #aemond targaryen angst #aemond targaryen x reader #hotd #ewan mitchell

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srbachchan · 7 months

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DAY 5754

Jalsa, Mumbai Nov 18/19, 2023 Sat/Sun 1:13 AM

Chhat Puja (Pratihar Sashthi/Surya Sashthi) Sunday, 19 November

Birthday - EF Rubina Mulchandani ; Ef Pravin Ahuja (noida) 'poet sahab' Sunday, 19 November ... birthday greetings to you and the affection f the Ef family .. ❤️

.. that strain again .. and again .. and again ... at this hour of having just finished work .. no work no play .. yes .. began at 7 am and now in completion .. that is and be the essence of day of us that work .. no work no play .. without it , like the sun never came out .. clouded in its translucent obliquity .. 'abrupt and angular but the very' ... aahh forgot those precious words of Hrish Da's brother on set on one of his films .. 'soul of magnanimity and rectitude' .. found it .. yaaaayyyy !

abrupt and angular but the very soul of magnanimity and rectitude ..

.. he had described the character I played in 'NamakHaram' .. Hrishi Da's film with Rajesh Khanna .. an Indian Becket .. that incredulous film with Peter O' Toole and Richard Burton , playing King and his confidant a commoner , almost .. christenned in the Court much to the dislike of the Church Archbishop .. but what an envious casting and performance abilities of these two giants .. and what a story .. ably adapted by Hrishikesh Mukherjee in the local version of a business tycoon, his empire and his dear friend, whom he has trusted to death and who turns the tide when he discovers the inappropriateness of the labour force that works for his friend's factory and the continued conflict that arises between these two inseparable friends ..

.. the description of the character .. but how mutedly significant in the environment of the day, when the surya devta plays truant ..

o .. lost my thought process .. in the wonderment of the days of this shoot at Mohan Studios .. now sold and converted into a multi storied real estate monstrosity , like many others .. never a word or thought of the massive creativity it encountered during its functionality .. Bimal Roy and his genius, Hrish Da, Prakash Mehra and their huge structured films and so many many others .. lost and gone to the concrete .. but in the memories of archives , now finding it difficult to survive ..

but life and work as I said needs to go on .. each day and enthusiastic run for the glory of the audience- the ones that made and make you !!

i retire ..

Amitabh Bachchan

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that-ari-blogger · 5 months

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Are We the Baddies?

I have stated before that She-Ra thrives on realism and morality, and stand by this view. But in terms of morality, apart from the first two episodes and Catra's entire deal, this hasn't been explored explicitly. The story has heavily implied some moral complexity, but not developed the princess alliance in any depth.

Ties That Bind changes this, and the way it does that is fascinating.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Before I begin, I feel the need to get on my soap box and explain something: Morally complex does not mean evil. This is a lesson that a fair few TTRPG players need to learn, as well as the people writing The Boys. You can have nuanced morality and still be a good guy, or a bad guy, or something in between.

The overarching plot of this episode is essentially a bottle episode, characters get trapped together and have to work out their differences. Usually in live action media, this is the episode for with the crew realised they had no budget left over, so they use actors that are on hand and the set they last filmed in to make something interesting.

I say this, but these episodes have a habit of being some of my favourites in the series. Heaven Sent and Blink for example are often praised as the best Doctor Who has to offer, and they follow this rule, and Wild Blue Yonder is my favourite of the 60th anniversary specials despite the set being the Tardis, a greenscreen and two treadmills and some corridors.

Characters being trapped in one place is also the foundation of a fair amount of horror and detective fiction, and its the premise of my favourite play ever written: Waiting For Godot, by Samuel Becket.

However, you may have noticed that She-Ra and the Princesses Of Power is not, in fact, live action. If you haven't noticed, I'm not sure what to tell you at this point. So why does it have a bottle episode? What are the benefits of this style?

The answer is complicated, but it mostly pertains to character drama. Characters stuck in a room together with a mutual need to get out of that situation are forced to work together. Even enemies will work together if they have a common goal. Star Wars: The Clone Wars did this in Dooku Captured and The Gungan General.

But here's the thing, Ties That Bind subverts this in one simple way, the two parties in this story have opposing goals. If they get to Brightmoon, Catra will be imprisoned. So she works to stall the journey. The story isn't three people who don't want to be in a situation, it's two people who are trapped with a third.

Catra is a gremlin in this episode. She leans fully into the idea of power that Shadow Weaver taught her, manipulation, and it gets her pretty far. Although there are a few cracks, my favourite of which being how easily Bow pushes her buttons in return, and he's doing it accidentally.

"Come on. I bet even the Horde has friends. What about Adora? You two grew up together, right? What was she like as a kid?"

Bow's love of friendship is scoffed at. Catra doesn't have friends, so she thinks she is immune to this line of question. But then Bow brings up Adora, and touches a nerve, so he keeps pushing until Catra responds with a snarl. She's trying to keep up a bulletproof exterior, but that armour still has a weakness, that being Adora.

Catra also gets outmaneuvered by Glimmer, who has learned from previous adventures enough for an escape plan. So, her manipulation skills aren't as good as she thinks they are.

Bow isn't a particularly morally gray character; I don't think that is a hot take. He's the heart of the group, and usually holds everyone else to account. That isn't to say he is morally uncomplicated; the nuance of Bow's character gets shown when he interacts with complicated problems, like the guilt of having left Entrapta behind, and the question of what to do with Catra.

"We took a hostage! We're supposed to be the good guys."

And so, a question is raised, in times of war, do your ethics change? Is this a good thing or not? Just, please don't argue about it in the replies.

Bow's ethics don't change, he is kind and empathetic, and will remain these things, even towards a prisoner, and like Shadow Weaver before her, Catra uses this as a weapon.

Glimmer, on the other hand, is much more complex, and as perfectly moral strategies begin to fail, she is the one who is more likely to actually step into the more dubious territory. This gets displayed multiple times in the episode. For example, when falling, Glimmer plays a game of chicken with Bow's life, and I'm not actually sure what her goal is with it. Maybe she's just trying to scare Catra.

But there's also the scene towards the end when Catra calls Glimmer's bluff again. But this time, Bow isn't directly in the way, so she very nearly does outright kill Catra. Once again, however, it is Bow that keeps her sane.

"We can't take that chance, we're not them."

That's all it takes. All Glimmer needs to hear is that she has becoming her enemy. Bow's line draws attention to what he perceives as the difference between the Horde and the Princesses. The Horde gambles with people's lives, the Princess Alliance doesn't, in his eyes. But throughout this episode, Glimmer has done just that multiple times.

Glimmer's complexity comes from her strength of will. She is the person who will take that extra step when everyone else stops. She has the loosest moral code, and despite still being a good guy, she can react to situations in a completely different manner to others on her side.

The reveal of Entrapta's loyalty also brings up something interesting. People in this story can have goals beyond "good" and "bad", most of them do, in fact. Entrapta's switch from Team Princess to Team Horde shakes Glimmer and Bow's preconceived notions about binary morality. The best way of explaining that is actually this:

"You're on the side of the Horde?"

"I'm on the side of science!"

Don't get me wrong, the Horde is evil as an organisation, and people who are a part of it get up to some pretty heinous acts, this episode just complicates that. It gives a bit of wiggle room within the two sides of this war. But it makes something abundantly clear with Entrapta:

"At least we know for sure that Entrapta's alive, and working for the Horde, making weapons to wipe us out."

Being morally grey does not obfuscate the actions taken. Entrapta isn't villainous, but her actions do further a destructive end, and she is very clearly accountable for that. Being neutral is possible, but Entrapta is very much not neutral, she has chosen a side, and is aware of the consequences of that. It's a stretch to say Entrapta is evil, but she isn't good either, and she is complicit in the Horde's destruction.

Final Thoughts

This episode is ok. I'm not overly impressed by it, but there is some neat storytelling on display, and the animation is cool. Adora's storyline does raise a few more questions about the first ones, most notably: Why did Mara break the watchtower? There's more to this story and Light Hope isn't telling Adora what that is.

Next week, I'll be looking at Signals, so stick around if that interests you.

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myfavoritepeterotoole · 3 months

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Director Peter Glenville and Peter O'Toole on the set of Becket

Becket (1964) directed by Peter Glenville

Peter O'Toole as King Henry II

#peter o'toole #peter glenville #becket #on the set of becket #on the set of #crew

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randomgentlefolk · 2 months

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CPC EPILOGUE

One last...One last review...before...*gasp for air*...it all fall into the pit of daily pass...*dramatically fall into the ground*

ALL THOSE CHAPTERS. Those were some damn rollercoasters. And yet with everything we've been through, we're finally here...

Let's get right into it

JACK FINALLY REUNITING WITH LEELATHAE!! Relationship goal fr <3 This whole Leelathae portrait stuff is actually making me curious about some things. For instance like, does Leelathe still sleep? I mean, she's pretty much a spirit now, right? Does she still do daily human acitivities, or does she roam around the castle all day?

It's awesome to see what the pastel siblings are doing now! :D

First of all, Lorena definitely deserve that A+++++. No questions asked. Hopefully this can make up for her whole grade, considering she said she has never gotten an A in her entire life XD

I love how Maria is becoming really ambitious towards her dream!

And Gwen bonding with her mom's side of the family <3 That is simply so sweet. It looks like Jamie love those food XD I wonder what are the recipes for those dishes.

Also pretty curious what those little beads are! I assume they are berries?

Jamie and Leopold creating lots of paintings so Leelathae can venture around!! Since Leelathae can also visit dreams, do you think she visits each of her children's dream every night?

Old guard name reveal HECK YEAH!! I've been waiting for that. So happy he got all those recognitions and promotion!!

And Becket getting demoted lmaoo

Is it rude for me to say that with what Beckett did before the invasion (ignore Frederick), and how he immediately decided to confess to Maria without any consideration for the room, he kindaa had it coming? xd I get that he was excited but don't just do that man.

Just wanted to say I absolutely love Lorena's outfit in this panel! Between all of the pastel siblings, her fashion style has always been my favorite. VOTE QUEEN LORENA WOOOOO!!!!

Everyone's getting their appreciations like they deserve!! I'm happy for everyone.

FREDERICK FINALLY GETTING THE RECOGNITION, THE APPRECIATION, AND THE PROUDNESS HE DESERVE!! I'M SO PROUD OF HIM EVERYONE LOOK AT HIM. LOOK AT THE BOY.

The Cursed Princess Club!! Everyone may have a hard time accepting them at first but they always have their family and friends' back <3 Love how Tori is just "CLAP YOU HEATHENS" Lmao XD

Also the fact that Whitney is just standing there so awkwardly :') he looks like the standing emoji.

Welp, out of the town and to the prison we go~

Leland not getting any visitors in the prison is honestly a really good punishment; a painful one too. How we see in the last chapters about how he realized that Jack actually love him and he has a breakdown, Isolde's speech to him about what else could he possible want, realizing that this whole time he has had everything. And now he's rotting in jail losing everything he once had. All because of envy and hatred. Just because he wasn't satisfied until he could see the man he once love the most suffer. Emotionally, that's really fucking painful.

Out of the prison we go~

So, Pizza exist in the CPC universe? XD That's not supposed to be surprising but I was taken aback for some reason. I guess CPC is set after the 18th century, then!

I can imagine it already. With Suzie moving to the Pastel Kingdom, Lorena will definitely hang out with her almost everyday. Them sparring and eating at a cafe in their free time <3 Sometimes Lance would join too :] They would share notes!!

FINALLY THEY STOLE THE PORTRAIT BACK!! I wonder where they will hang it up? Maybe at the Cpc? Or at the Pastel Palace?

Jack declaring the cpc's forest as a protected place is so damn awesome like, he cares about his daughter's friends!! ALSO THE SPIDER TALKING ABOUT NEWEST MEMBER?? I wonder who...

This panel is everything for me.

BENEDICT IS SO DAMN DEVOTED WHAT??? BRO He tricked the sea cucumber to curse him so he can find his lover!!! (This sounds so confusing out of context lmao) TRUE RELATIONSHIP GOAL.

BLAQUELYN LOOKS SO PRETTY???? I LOVE HER FASHION STYLE SO MUCH!! She rocks that outfit fr!! But Greyden 💀 Deep down I'm still wondering how very little of his hair could make a whole damn coat..

GUYS. GUYS IT'S HAPPENING. EVERYBODY STAY CALM

NELL AND JOLIE WEDDING LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOO

Holy shit. First of all another point about the outfits cause I loveee observing everyone's outfit!! Their wedding dress is absolutely!! Pretty!!! The details Lambcat put is amazing. I can see that Jolie's wearing high heels, so can we assume she and Nell has the same height? Absolutely adore how Jolie's dress has ruffles look while Nell's more silky!!

The wedding's decoration is totally magical too!! It looks so majestic and angelic.

Celso and Aurelia is a couple I would never expect but honestly? I'm not complaining. Imagine their date is them sitting at a cafe right at the window seats, watching people outside while roasting each one of them <3 Dream date fr

I do hope it's true love though because if not, R.I.P Celso XD

Holy shit.. EVERYONE PLEASE, ALLOW ME TO MAKE YET ANOTHER FASHION REVIEW. BECAUSE GOODNESS GRACIOUS THIS DRESS IS MAKING ME SWOON. OKAY DAMN YOU GO MARIA YOU GO. First of all the blue fabric looks so metallic, I love that!! The light blue glittery ruffles with little pearls on its edges are also gorgeous. I love the lace necklace complimenting the dress and especially, I fricking love the blue transculent fabric on her arms!!! She looks so graceful.

She got noticed by her idol!!! That is so dang amazing. How she looks in the album cover is also just, woah.

Blaine buddy you cannot just do that. You cannot just. No. Please I'm begging you, reunite with your family. You can go on ahead with your self discovery journey, of course! But at least visit them once or twice :') Your mom is real worried about you, man...

I hope there's going to be a spin off or something about Blaine's journey...

NEW CPC HEADQUARTER??? HECK YEAH!!

Monika opening her jewelry store and achieving her dream!! So proud of her :D and Gwen opening her own bakery!!

Unfortunately I've run out of picture space...

Gwen can finally see her own reflection I am so proud of her :') She love herself!!

Goodness...Leelathae's letter... I need a moment to sob.

I fricking love the message this webtoon gives, man. It's just so damn wholesome and important. Beauty is on the inside. It's a simple message but damn it really is important to understand that message!!

Gwen is wearing braids Y'ALL 😭😭 SHE'S SO BEAUTIFUL

Okay, I'm wondering about something here! In the panel where the pastel family are having breakfast together, we can see Leelathae eating pancakes in her portrait too! Does this mean she can eat? Can food be transported to portraits? Or did Leopold paint a pancake or smth XD

THE LAST. FUCKING PANEL.

Gwen and Frederick holding hands in front of the CPC building while being surrounded by sunflowers which once scare Frederick but now he looks so happy and in peace. I'm so glad everyone each got their deserved ending :')

Well, I suppose this is the last review, then. That's kind of sad, to be honest. But I've loved writing each of my reviews, and I want to say thank you to people who have interracted with them. I always love hearing y'all's thought and theories!! Maybe one day I'll find a new webtoon series which I can write these reviews on!! But for now, this shall be the last cpc review I write!

Mono out! (But still in to hear your thoughts)

#cursed princess club #cpc #mono reviews

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missathlete31 · 2 months

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We love a busy Glen!!!!

The filming of Glen Powell-starrer ‘Huntington’ is set to begin in South Africa this May. John Patton Ford is at the helm of the movie. Ford wrote the thriller inspired by Robert Hamer’s 1949 British black comedy film ‘Kind Hearts and Coronets,’ starring Alec Guinness and Dennis Price. The film revolves around Becket Redfellow (Powell), an heir to a multi-billion dollar fortune who won’t stop at anything to garner “what he deserves… or thinks he deserves.”

#glen powell #huntington #we love to see it #busy and booked

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driftwithme · 10 months

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According to the pacrim wiki, Coyote Tango was the first jaeger the program lost. By that time, Pentecost and Tamsin were not piloting anymore. It was June, 2016.

The order of pre-knifehead fallen jaegers is:

- Coyote Tango. Destroyed in combat against Itak. On its second set of pilots. June, 2016.

- Victory Alpha. Destroyed in combat against Raganarok. The pilots survived. July, 2016.

- Tacit Ronin. Abandoned because its pilots died of neural overload. July, 2016.

- Lucky Seven. Abandoned because one of its pilots was decommissioned. 2019.

Following this pic from the wiki:

We know that the first jaeger was launched in 2015 (Brawler Yukon) and the last in 2019 (Striker Eureka).

The golden age of the jeager program was from 2017 to 2019, three years of gaining more than they were losing. The peak was in 2019, with 20 active jaegers. The bottom was in 2025, with no jaegers left.

2024 was the year with more deaths, with 8 j-pilots going KIA. Then 2025, with 7 deaths between the Double Event that killed both Cherno and Crimson, and Operation Pitfall, who claimed Pentecost and Chuck.

Between 2019 and 2023 there were 9 KIAs.

Which means Yancy was the first jaeger pilot to die on combat. It makes sense, given the reaction of Penecost to hearing that they had lost Gipsy's signal (and Yancy was dead).

It marks:

- 2019-20: 1 lost jaeger, 1 pilot KIA.

The list of fallen jaegers Post-Knifehead:

- 2020-21: 2 lost jaeger, 1 pilot KIA.

- 2021-22: 3 lost jaegers, 2 pilots KIA.

- 2022-23: 2 lost jaegers, 3 pilots KIA.

- 2023-24: 8 lost jaegers, 2 pilots KIA.

- 2024-25: 0 lost jaegers, 8 pilots KIA.

- 2025: 4 lost jaegers, 7 pilots KIA.

Let's compare all this info with the following Kaiju War Timeline from the wiki:

A) 2013-2014: The Feral Burst. There were no jaegers yet to defend humanity against the 3 kaijus that invaded the world.

B) 2015-2019: The Long Game, Part I. There were 24 jargers up around this period, with a total of 13 kaijus making contact.

Special mention to the Beckets, who got an impressive mark of 5 kills during those years. It means they helped killed more than a 1/3 of those bastards during the golden era of the jaeger program. For what I see, Raleigh is the only pilot who had ever abandoned the jaeger program because he wanted to, not because he was hurt or kicked out.

C) 2020-2023: The Long Game, Part II. The amount of kaijus who invaded in those three years equals the amount of kaijus who made contact within the first 6 years of the war. It means the precursos sent as many kaijus in half the time. Humanity went into this phase with 19 jaegers. By the end they had 4.

2024 reports 13 kaiju attacks. It makes sense that they lost 8 jaegers and 10 pilots more or less in that year. With 12 jaegers active, it is more than a 1vs1 situation. Something tells me that most of Striker Eureka's kills were during this phase.

Special mention to the Hansen, btw. *During Chuck active years, he participated in almost third of the kaiju killings that happened then. I don't know Lucky Seven's score in this race, but *Herc's win amount to a 1/4 of the whole kaiju fights during his active time.

*The count stops at Mutavore. It does not include the Double Event or Pitfall.

If we include Post-Mutavore but not their participation/assistant at killing Leatherback:

- Chuck: 11 kills, 35 kaiju appereances during his active career (almost a 1/3).

- Herc: 12 kills, 44 kaiju appearances (not counting 2016 and adding at least 2 kills of the Lucky Seven era; around a 1/4).

Yet again, if by statistics alone, Mako is the most winning jaeger pilot of the movie. In her active years there had been 5 kaijus and she has helped kill 4. It's worth mentioning that her debut was on a double event followed by a triple event, with the only Category-5 ever saw. Impressive, to say the least.

On the other hand, Raleigh has helped kill or killed himself almost half of the kaijus that had appear on his active years.

Here: (ratio is 19-20 kaijus, 9 kills).

- 2025: 6 kaijus, 4 kills.

- 2015-2019: 13-14 kaijus, 5 kills.

The Hansens record is impressive just in the sheer size of their killing count, which is still not complete given I don't have the info on Lucky Seven. Meanwhile, Raleigh and Mako are impressive for the efficiency record.

Of the 51 kaijus that invaded the Earth, Gipsy and Striker combine to 20 kills. That means 2/5 of the total.

The last three j-pilots hold the best or most insane records of the program. Herc with the most wins, Mako with the best efficiency and Raleigh fucking Becket who had solo piloted twice and explode a jaeger in another world.

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that1nerd-20 · 10 months

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Chuck Hansen X F!Reader (Birthday special)

Warnings: Jealous chuck, Violence, Talk of sexual stuff, Gets a bit spicy, Swearing, a bit of angst, Chuck being a butt, MDNI! 18+ / ageless blogs don't interact!! Or you will be blocked

Word count: 4.7k

Other:

Reader can put her hair in a low pony, and is described as being shorter than chuck and she goes to the gym, as well as her cheeks can become red. Chuck is also able to pick her up, but only for a few split seconds and can carry her a few feet from a wall to a bed. But other than that, she is very open ended

this was purely self-indulgent, I love Chuck so much and I wanted to do something for him for his birthday. let me know if yall want part two with the smut. also, we are gonna pretend they are at the shatterdome for like a year before they close the breach, we also gonna pretend like he doesn't die. sorry for any grammar issues or sentences just don't make sense, I'm sometimes really bad at writing things, and other times my writing sounds amazing

His birthday is Aug 14th. so this will be posted on Aug 14th.

The alarm blared loudly in my ears. Groaning, I pull myself up out of bed. I stretch, hearing the bed across from me rustle. I look over, my older brother Jacob is still fast asleep. Smirking widely I make my way to his bedside.

Cupping my hands around my mouth I scream “JACOB!!” in his ear. Jacob bolts upright, “Where's the danger?!” he rapidly looks around finally setting his eyes on me and groaning. I walk over to our shared bathroom grabbing my uniform as he gets up off his bed. I give our two dogs, Xerxes the Doberman and Baron the Deutsch Drathaar, pats on the head I close the bathroom door before changing into my uniform. I head out of the bathroom to see Jacob finish zipping up his uniform top. We both grab our bomber jackets, Jacob puts his on, the large silver lettering displayed across his back our Jaegers symbol in gold underneath. I threw my jacket over my shoulder holding it there. We both put our aviators on and headed out the door. The voice announced over the kaiju alarm.

“Kaiju alert, Sideswipe pilots please report to your conn-pod station.” walking down the hallway, many of the others moved out of the way.

“So how's it going with Alice?” I asked my co-pilot nonchalantly, looking at him as he whipped his head around his mouth hanging open slightly.

“How did you find out about that?!” he whisper shouted, looking around to make sure no one else heard. Smirking I look forward “She told me. I mean I am friends with her.” I said like it was no big deal. I chuckled when I heard him groan “I didn't know she was telling people about us…” I shrugged the two sets of dog tags around my neck jangling. “I'm pretty sure she only told me, since im your sister.” we walk past LOCCENT, a quick glance inside I see the Hansen boys, Mako Mori, Raleigh Becket, Cherno Alpha’s pilots, and the Wei Tang brothers.

While there is an actual kaiju attack, we are the only Jaeger being sent out. Since my brother and I are a newer Jaeger pair, Marshall Pentecost wants us to show off our skills to the other Jaeger pilots. We finally reached our conn-pod station. Jacob and I place our jackets and aviators neatly in a pile on one of the benches at our station.

Pulling my hair up into a low ponytail, our crew gets to work helping us put our armor on. I hear the marshall and a group of people walk to the entrance of our station. A low psst sounds from my brother's direction, I look at him with a slightly annoyed look “What?!” I whisper harshly, he smirks softly “What about Chuck?” he whispers back, my eyebrows crease in confusion, glancing at the aforementioned pilot, who was watching us like the rest of the group.

“What about him?” I whisper back at my brother, whose smirk only gets wider “You fuck ‘im yet?” he whispers back, my face turning bright red. The crew members who were working on us paused, some also going bright red, A few of them snickering. I glared at the group, “is there a problem?” an authoritative voice rings out. Jacob and I freeze, gulping. I glance at the marshall “No sir.” Jacob and I answered at the same time. Our team hastily resumed their work, Jacob and I straightened our backs staring straight forward “Good.” the marshall simply states. The last piece of my suit is secured in place, our helmets are handed to us.

I look over at my brother “Ready, Luke?'' His nickname comes out harshly “As ever, Leia.” He brings his fist up waiting expectantly, a big grin stretches across my face, and I hit my own fist against it. We head into our conn-pod, “Good luck pilots.” Marshall Pentecost says before leading the group away. We step into our footholds, Jacob to my left, our team hooks us up to the neural bridge, and we both put our helmets on.

“Testing 1, 2, 3, Sideswipe can you hear me?” Tendo’s voice sounds out, and Jacob reaches his right arm up to the control panel. “We hear you loud and clear Mission control.” Jacob lets his arm fall. “Initializing neural handshake.” I feel the pull at the back of my head as we enter the drift. Memories from our childhood in Wisconsin flowed through, everything that flashed between us is stuff we'd both seen before. Memories of our younger brother Atlan float by too. We are brought out of the drift quickly “Neural handshake completed and holding strong.” our jaeger is then picked up to be brought to the kaiju.

Jacob’s mind fills up with explicit images of his girlfriend making me gag in disgust. “Dude, are you really thinking about Alice like that right now?!” I yell over at my copilot. He smirks and looks over at me. “Well you're thinking about how you'd like to screw that-” Cutting him off I yell at him “-that nothing, im not thinking about screwing anyone!” although both he and I knew that wasnt the case, we were in each others head, we can't lie. Memories of Chuck when he's working out in the base gym flash in my head, and my mind wanders to the memory of how the muscles in his arms strained and moved while he worked out. I was always blessed when he decided to wear tank tops while he did. Him being so hot in a tank top got me hurt once.

“C'mon, you got this! You are so close!” Jacob had challenged me to see who could run for the longest time on the treadmills. Anytime we did this I would share my earbuds and blast music to keep us going. Jacob gave up ¾ of the way through my run, but I was close to beating my record on how many miles I could run in one go, which was 3.5 miles. I was nearing the record, and Jacob and a few others were cheering me on.

When I finally hit it, the small group that had formed around me started cheering, but I wasnt completely tired yet so I wanted to keep pushing. Right after I hit 4 miles, that's when he appeared, large arm muscles and broad shoulders being shown off by the tank top. Chuck asked one of the others around me what was going on, gripping the towel around his neck, but when he glanced at me my foot slipped out from underneath me.

I slid down the treadmill, pulling the emergency cord with me. Although the treadmill shut off pretty quickly, I still got shot to the floor. My right arm and leg burned. “Shit! Y/N!” Jacob leaned down near me, rolling me onto my left side to assess the damage to my right side. I groaned opening my eyes, asking my brother silently how bad it was. He answered through our link “It doesn't look too bad, just bad rugburns in a sense.” I saw Chuck peer over my face, his beautifully hot, sweaty face, filled with concern. “Ya alrigh’ love?” my face flushed red, not trusting my voice I nod.

“Dude stop that! I don’t need to see you drooling over lover boy-” Jacob nearly screamed at me, shaking me out of my thoughts, “You’re such a little baby.” I retorted. The helicopters above us slow down getting ready to drop us. We both brace ourselves when Jacob speaks “But I’m your little baby” I can practically hear the smirk in his tone. The cables on our Jaeger snap and we are released. When we land we steady ourselves, Jacob and I share a look, before we turn our attention to the kaiju in front of us, not making a move until we say “Let's kill this piece of shit.”

Time skip

Our Jaeger docks in the shatterdome, the head lifts off Sideswipe, and heads up to our station. We get unhooked from the neural bridge, taking off our helmets we make our way out to our docking station. We see the marshall and the other Jaeger pilots having a conversation at the entrance of the room, our team starts to disassemble our suits.

Jacob and I face the group of pilots, as the last few bits of our suits are taken off. I try not to glance at Chuck, but I can't help but look at him at least once, I find him looking away from everyone with his arms crossed. Jacob and I head to our jackets, we unpile the stuff, taking what was ours. I put my boots back on after folding my aviators on the collar of my uniform. I sling my jacket over my shoulder again as Jacob puts his on. We approach the group that was blocking our way out, our crew long gone.

The marshall turned towards us, I gave him a nod, and Jacob addressed him directly, his normally light, joking tone replaced by a cold serious one. “Marshall.” the marshall gave us both a curt nod.

“You two performed well,” the marshall starts, “Color me impressed.” he offers us a small smile before turning back towards the group and walking out. The Wei Tang brothers and the Cherno Alpha pilots leave with the Marshall, Herc comes up to us giving us both a pat on the shoulder. Before Herc leaves he gives me a strange look, like he's trying to tell me something. Mako and Raleigh both tell us Good job before walking out as well. Jacob heads out giving me a knowing look as I take notice that Chuck is still here. I turn towards Chuck, who has his arms crossed over his broad chest, an annoyed look on his face, as he stares off into a corner of the room.

Making my way over, I place my jacket over my arm, as I get closer to Chuck I can see he's lost in thought. “Hey.” I stop about 2 feet in front of him. It seems to snap him out of his trance, he looks at me quickly before he storms out of the room. I sat there gaping staring after him. What was that about?

I make my way down to the mess hall since it was dinner, but not before stopping by Jacob and i’s room to grab the dogs and to change. I change into a gray T-shirt and black cargo pants, keeping my combat boots on and both sets of dog tags. A few weeks after Jacob and I became friends with the Hansen boys, I had a gift left on our doorstep. Chuck had given me a spare set of his dog tags, he wrote a note saying that he wanted someone to get his dog tags when he died, and most likely his main set would be impossible to recover. He said that he thought id be a good choice. If he saw them find a home around my neck, he didn't say anything. While we barely knew each other a few weeks, we had become really good friends. I put my aviators on, grabbed the dogs' leashes, and headed toward the mess hall.

Xerxes was a pretty tall muscular dog, he was a traditional-looking Doberman; black coat, docked tail, and cropped ears to stand tall. Baron was on the smaller side, still a big dog, but he wasnt as tall, he was somewhat stocky and looked very mean but was a sweetheart, both of them are. Baron's black coat was littered with singular white hairs across his chest, feet, and face he was a traditional Drahthaar with a docked tail as well.

With one dog on each side of me, I made my way into the mess hall. I see Jacob already sitting with Herc and Chuck, so I stop by the table and hand the dogs over, who immediately lay down next to the table. I head up to the counter and grab my food. When I get back to the table, I sit down across from Jacob and next to Chuck in my normal spot. The dogs move from their spot and lay down by me, I could feel Max under the table resting his head on my foot. We all talked, but Chuck wouldn't say a thing to me. He wouldn't even look at me, the air around us got awkward. As soon as Chuck was done eating he jumped up and stormed off. He even left Max, which he never does.

I look over at Herc, my face contorted in confusion and hurt.

“Sorry kid, he's an ass sometimes,” he shrugs before continuing, “I think I have an idea of wha’ it’s about but he needs to deal with it on his own.” Herc gets up, not realizing that Max was still under the table. I look at Jacob still confused “What is it with you men being cryptic all the time?” I ask him. He shrugs “I guess we're just programmed like that” he takes a bite of his food “Not everybody is like me and expresses their feelings.” he chuckles softly. Taking a bite of my food I smile. “You are truly one of a kind.” I laugh swallowing my food, “and not in a good way.” he pretends to pout. “Well thanks, sis for being so nice to your big brother.” he sarcastically comments. We stare each other down for a few moments before we burst out laughing.

We finish eating so I get up to throw my tray away. “Can you take the dogs back to the room? I gotta get Max back to Chuck,” I asked Jacob, Max’s head perking up, Jacob nodded. I called Max, and he got up and followed me while I dumped my tray. Making my way out of the mess hall with Max following behind me. I slowly walk through the shatterdome halls not really knowing where Chuck is.

Luckily I see Herc, I call out for him "Herc!!" He looks behind him spotting me and stops. "Do you know where Chuck is?" He nodded scratching his chin "he's in his room." Turning around I head back down the hallway calling out a thank you as Max chased after me down the hall.

Arriving at Chuck's door I hesitate before finally knocking. I hear some rustling before I hear faintly from behind the door "What?!". Glancing down at Max I slowly speak up "I-it's me," swallowing some spit I continue, "You left Max in the mess hall so I brought him to you." Hearing nothing I sigh, "I-i don't know what I did, but I'm sorry…" still getting no response I leave Max at the door and head back to my room.

Chuck ignored me for the next week. I started eating up by my Jaeger's conn-pod station. The dogs often joined me, offering me sympathy as they rest their heads against my legs.

One day Herc came running up "Kid I need your help! Raleigh told me chucks gone crazy, said he's beating up some guy in mess." I didn't look up from my food, he kneeled beside me "Look I know he's been an asshole lately but you might be the only one able to stop him." I finally nod. We run down the halls to get down to the mess hall. When we reach the dining area chucks on top of a guy, clutching his shirt and screaming at him. Herc and I run to Chuck, we both manage to pull him off of the guy, and I push Chuck away from him by his chest. His face was full of anger and hatred. His body was tense beneath my hands but seemed to relax as he managed to feel my hands on him. "Chuck you need to calm down…" I spoke softly, he looked down at me relaxing more.

He tensed once more when the guy spoke up "Yeah that's right you gotta get your daddy and your little piece of ass to stand up for you." I looked back at him, feeling Chuck get angry again. I see my brother obviously being held back by his girlfriend Alice. Chuck goes to move but I push firmly on his chest "Don't call her that!" Chuck's voice seething with anger. Herc steps beside me helping me keep him back. Noticing that the guy is one of my crew members, getting a little pissed off myself I step towards him. "How 'bout instead of focusing on other people's lives you focus on keeping that mouth of yours shut, 'cause it just cost you your job."

The large group of personnel all snicker and laugh at the man. Two guys quickly grab him and leave the mess hall. I turn around to face Chuck, his face and hands were bruised, bleeding, and cut up. I take his arm in my hand, feeling his warm skin, I guide him back to his room. Our three combined dogs follow behind us.

When we reach his room I open the door as he and the dogs walk in. I push him softly towards the bed. Grabbing his first aid kit, knowing exactly where it was from the countless times I'd had to patch him up. Turning back to Chuck his shirt is off as he looks down. A large bruise is starting to form on his stomach. Small cuts litter his shoulder. "God Chuck, what happened…?" I whisper making my way back to him. Trying to focus on patching him up and not the fact that he's shirtless. I sit next to him a slowly tend to his wounds. He doesn't look at me or speak. Only halfway done I get fed up "Chuck." He doesn't look up. "Chuck. Look at me.." I caress his cheek with one hand, slowly forcing his head to face me. "Chuck, what happened…?" His eyes finally met mine before quickly turning his head away from me. He shrugs slowly getting off his bed "The guy was just being a piece of shit, I just tried putting him in his place." His tone is relaxed like it was no big deal.

"I can clean the rest of my cuts, you can go." He rummaged through one of his drawers. I watched his back, trying not to gawk, but I snapped out of it. I stood up and walked towards him. "No im staying because we need to talk about you being a total ass hat." He whipped around, I could feel the heat in my face for two reasons. Anger was starting to form on my face, but my face was red from being face-to-face with him. His expression went from confusion to annoyance and anger.

"There's nothing to talk about." His voice raised slightly, I clenched my hands, my nails digging into my palms. "Why won't you talk to me?!" I yelled at him, tears forming in my eyes "What did I do?!" He just looked away from me, knowing I wasn't going to get an answer. I pulled my dog tags out of my shirt. I swiftly grabbed his tags and pulled them off from around my neck, I slapped it down behind him. I turned around and walked to his door, opening it. "Xerxes, Baron, let's go," I called out to my dogs who jumped up and followed me out of the room.

For the next month, I completely avoided him. Herc tried to get me to talk to him but I refused. I always ate in my conn-pod. I always went to the base's gym late at night when no one was there. Jacob was worried, I could feel it through the drift, he noticed I was distracted. I was and I was miserable. Every part of me just wanted to run to Chuck and tell him how much he means to me but my mind was telling me that he didn't want me. He clearly displayed that.

On Chuck's birthday, I made sure I stayed in my room the whole day but that was short-lived when Marshall Pentecost called Jacob and me down to his office. When I entered the room I saw Chuck and herc standing by the Marshall's desk. Before I could even think about leaving Jacob was pushing me towards the front, and the door closed behind us. The marshall stood up from his desk. Herc and Jacob went by the marshall as he moved out from behind his desk. "It's been brought to my attention that you two are having some sort of problem." The marshall starts, clasping his hands in front of him. Chuck and I don't glance at each other. I keep my distance from him, Jacob is looking at me with his disappointed older brother face. "I've noticed that it has significantly affected your performance as pilots," I cross my arms in front of me, I admit I have been very tired since I've been up late working out. "So I've decided that you two will stay in Ranger Hansen's room until the problem gets solved. Hercules, Jacob, if you could please." The marshall motioned to us, but before we could protest he glared at us, "That is an order." Not wanting to get on his bad side we both let Herc and Jacob lead us to Chuck's room.

When we arrive at the door they open it and shove us inside. The door closes quickly. We stand in silence before I take a seat on the floor near the door. He sits on his bed, head in his hands. I pull my knees up to my chest, leaning my head back and looking at the ceiling. The silence is killing me so I pull my iPod out, plug in my headphones, and select my playlist. I hit play as I push the earbud into my left ear. I tap my foot along to the music and close my eyes. I can feel Chuck's eyes shift to me but I don't look at him. Tears start to prick at the corners of my eyes. Opening my eyes I turn my head away from Chuck.

"I-i don't know what I did to make you hate me…" I speak more to myself than to Chuck. I hear him click his tongue, and a faint curse leaves his lips. He stands up and moves to lean against the wall opposite me. "I don't hate you love." He hits the wall lightly in frustration, "It's the exact fucking opposite…" He turns to face me, as the tears run down my face. I stand up with anger, "What the fuck does that mean?!" I yell at him, I press pause on my music and take out my earbud. He takes a step forward looking away for a second, "I'm in love with you God dammit!" He yells out in frustration, raising clenched fists for a second. He turns around sighing, running his hand through his hair.

"What…?" My voice comes out in a small squeak, not sure if I heard him. "I'm in love with you. But I heard you and your brother talking about someone, he was talking about how you wanted to screw someone you liked." He turned back to me with his hands on his hips. "I just knew you weren't talking about me and I just got so pissed. And then that guy from your crew was talking about your body at lunch and I just saw red." He explained. I heard what he said but it didn't process, I was still stuck on one thing. "You're in love with me?" I looked up at him, my face frozen in surprise. He scoffed "That's all you can focus on?" He looked away from me and I smiled softly. I quickly grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him down, smashing my lips against his.

He pulled back quickly "What are you-" but I didn't let him speak, pulling his face down again. He kissed back roughly, placing his hands on my hips, pulling me closer. I wrapped my arms around his neck. When I needed air I pulled back, a smile on my lips. "We were talking about you." He cocked his head to the side, raising his eyebrow, "Jacob and I. We were talking about you, you are the only one that has been on my mind for the past 5 months." He smirked. He stepped back for a second realizing something, he walked to his dresser. Grabbing something off of it he walked back to me. He lifted his hand, dropping the object, revealing his spare dog tags dangling from his hand. But he didn't put them around my neck, he put them around his, then took off his main pair.

Transferring his main dog tags from his neck to my neck. I looked down at the tags, before looking up at him as he placed his hands on my hips. "Take my real ones, to show that I'm yours." He smiled softly, I got an idea, I took my dog tags off my neck, and put them over his head. "Then take mine, to show im yours." smiling he pulled me back in for another kiss. Our lips moved in sync, he tapped the back of my thigh signaling me to jump. I jumped up, his hands hooked under my legs. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he pushed my back against the wall. His mouth moved from mine, down my jaw to my neck. He moves around my neck kissing, biting, and sucking marks into my skin. His hips slowly grind into mine as I moan out his name. He pulls back, admiring his work on my skin, he looks into my eyes, kissing me again. This time it's slow, sweet, and delicate.

Pulling away I whisper to him, “Ya’know you were pretty hot when you were angry at that guy.” he smirks at my words, and he responds in a low raspy voice, his accent going straight to my core “I reckon I should get mad more often then ay?” I bite my lip slightly. “That day I fell on the treadmill, was because of you…” I slowly confessed, “You were just so hot in that tank top, all sweaty.” it seemed as if my words went straight to his pants. He nodded signaling me to keep going, “I couldn't keep my eyes off you, you do things to me that no one else can.” I lightly kissed his jaw, whispering sensually to him. “You dont know how much self-restraint it takes me to not touch you like I want to.” I sucked a few hickeys into his neck earning some groans from him.

“You have no idea what you do to me darlin’...” his voice comes out as a groan, I moan as his hips rub into mine again. He pulls back, bringing me away from the wall and over to his bed. He sits down with me in his lap, he rubs circles into my back as he looks at me. “Im sorry I was such a dickhead to you…” he apologized softly, “You dont deserve that.” I shook my head slightly. “It's alright Chuck, people make mistakes.” I placed a kiss on his lips, “Think of me as a birthday present from me because I love you and I want to be yours.” I smiled. He chuckled softly before kissing me, “Then this is the best birthday ever,” he smirked, “and right now I just want to unwrap my present from my girlfriend.” I laughed softly, as he slowly laid me on my back on his bed. He hovers over me as I give him the consent that he pleads for with his eyes. “Go ahead, handsome.” he quickly kisses me, running his hands along my body as his knee rests between my legs. He pulls back for a quick second “You better sit your pretty little ass next to me at dinner, I've missed you a lot, princess.” I giggle softly at him, “I've missed you too, hot stuff.” he smirks before pressing his lips hungrily against mine.

#x reader #oneshot #chuck hansen #mako mori #raleigh becket #pacific rim #hercules hansen #stacker pentecost #Chuck Hansen x reader #female reader #chuck hansen x y/n

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beardedmrbean · 24 days

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Maryland’s largest school district does not have to allow parents to opt their K-5 children out of classes and books that discuss LGBTQ topics like sexuality and gender, at least for now, a federal appeals court ruled on Wednesday.

The 2-1 ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court decision denying a preliminary injunction on the basis that the parents had not shown how the policy – initiated by the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) board – would violate their children’s First Amendment right to free exercise of religion.

The parents had argued that refusal to provide an opt-out from their children’s exposure to LGBT-themed books and related discussions violates federal and state law.

Some of the book titles include "The Pride Puppy," "Uncle Bobby's Wedding," and "Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope."

The parents argued that the books contradict their religious duty to train their children in accordance with their faith on "what it means to be male and female; the institution of marriage; human sexuality; and related themes."

The litigants - three sets of parents who are Muslim, Jewish and Christian, along with a parental rights organization -- argue that the responsibility for what their children learn should fall to them, instead of the schools.

However, the court ruled that the mere exposure to ideas contrary to one’s faith is not enough of a burden to implicate the First Amendment and that exposure to issues that one disagrees with, even for religious reasons, is "part of the compromise parents make when choosing to send their children to public schools," the ruling states.

"We take no view on whether the Parents will be able to present evidence sufficient to support any of their various theories once they have the opportunity to develop a record as to the circumstances surrounding the Board’s decision and how the challenged texts are actually being used in schools," U.S. Circuit Judge G. Steven Agee, President George W. Bush appointee, wrote for the majority in the opinion.

"At this early stage, however, given the Parents’ broad claims, the very high burden required to obtain a preliminary injunction, and the scant record before us, we are constrained to affirm the district court’s order denying a preliminary injunction."

U.S. Circuit Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum, Jr., who was appointed by former President Trump, dissented, writing that he disagreed with the district court motion finding the parents failed to establish that the board burdened their First Amendment rights.

"The parents have shown the board’s decision to deny religious opt-outs burdened these parents’ right to exercise their religion and direct the religious upbringing of their children by putting them to the choice of either compromising their religious beliefs or foregoing a public education for their children," Quattlebaum wrote.

"I also find that the board’s actions, at least under this record, were neither neutral nor generally applicable. Finally, I find the parents have established the other requirements for a preliminary injunction. So, I would reverse the district court and enjoin the Montgomery County School Board of Education from denying religious opt-outs for instruction to K-5 children involving the texts."

Eric Baxter, a senior counsel and vice president at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty which is representing the parents, tells Fox 5 DC that the group is disappointed with the decision and says the themes are inappropriate for students.

"They involve issues around sexuality that are simply too mature for such young children," Baxter said.

Baxter tells The Hill they plan to appeal the ruling.

"The court just told thousands of Maryland parents they have no say in what their children are taught in public schools," Baxter tells the publication. "That runs contrary to the First Amendment, Maryland law, the School Board’s own policies, and basic human decency."

MCPS, which is the wealthiest district in Maryland, announced in 2022 efforts to include an LGBTQ-inclusive reading list as part of its English language arts curriculum. The decision sparked several rallies pushing for the school district to put the opt-out policy back in place.

Bethany Mandel, a mother and contributing writer for Deseret News, told "Fox & Friends First" last year that she believed it's a parent's right to tackle controversial topics, including sexuality and gender ideology, with their children on their own terms.

"Some of the books were first, second, third-grade read-aloud books about transgender ideology, about sexuality," Mandel told Carley Shimkus. "Some of the parents who spoke in favor of banning the opt-out said… 'I'm gay, and a book didn't make me gay and... There's no way that your child, if you shield them in this manner, can sort of operate in the outside world,' and that's not what anyone is asserting."

"No one thinks that our kids can turn gay by reading a book. What we're asserting is that children are best learning about these sort of tricky, sticky subjects from their parents, and their parents should have a right to determine how their kids are first introduced to this," she continued.

#nunyas news

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