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[boylerpf]

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[leannareneehieber]

New Pretties via Torch & Arrow! Darlings! Each of these pieces are all one of a kind, so if it isn't there in the shop, it has sold, so go forth and secure your treasure! This is the ONLY TIME all year I run a 20% off sale (anything above 24.99 qualifies, anything over 35 gets free shipping!) I have cuff-links, tie chains, pendants, pins, Gothic delights, Edgar Allan Poe portrait pins, necklaces & medals, as well as Steampunk medals, Neo-Victorian fancies, restored antique accessories, Doctor Who themed goodies, art and of course, books!

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[winterspiderlover2704]

Chapter 11

Immortal Dilemmas

Moving to America proved to be quite simple, they gave the President the truth and in turn were seen as political refugees. America’s magical community was more up to common times and did not believe in putting unnecessary restrictions on a species that had no control of how they came to be. Remus and the boys had to be registered but it was only because MACUSA would be sending supplies to help with his transformation and help in meeting standards to the boys…diets. Teddy was old enough to eat solids, they had given him special cereal that he would enjoy and help with his fast metabolism. The twins were given a cooler filled with donated blood bags to last a week and bottles that would make it appear that they were just having milk. A MACUSA Healer had advised Hailey to mix in her breast milk to the blood. Remus was to be given a potion every month to ease the transformation pain and keep his state of mind intact. He was also given a book of runes that would keep himself confined to an area as long as he was a wolf. One thing that shocked all of them was that in America, you have to be eighteen in order to be considered an adult. It didn’t change their plans but it did add more paperwork as the teens had to go through emancipation.

They told officials of their desired destination and was promptly given several pictures of homes that could fit the large group. Being the Lady of two very well off families came in handy when choosing a new home. The most expensive house offered wouldn’t even put a dent in her inheritance vault, she wouldn’t even need to pull funds from the main vaults to replenish funds. The others didn’t like that she was trying to pay for everything and were gonna speak up about it…until she turned her head slightly to throw them a quick glare. It made an amusing sight for anyone who didn’t know of Hailey Potter’s feats, a petite girl holding two infants to her chest while glaring at the group of older people as if they were misbehaving children. Hailey knew not to be stupid with her money and buy a overly lavish house, a habit formed because of the Dursley’s that she was uncomfortable to buy things for herself but she has no problem spending money for her loved ones. The others relented and agreed to go with whatever decision Hailey would go with. They would need privacy and enough room for everyone, including when the family would want to come and visit.

Hailey decided on getting a white Victorian style mansion that was well isolated on a hill. It wasn’t too far away from town and could be easily updated and fixed with magic. MACUSA had stated that there was a population of supernatural creatures that did not fall under wizarding jurisdiction residing in the town, they’re called supernaturals. They gave the group items that would prevent the supernaturals ability to take advantage of them. The officials had to reassure the group that the items would not hurt the young ones or Remus because of their creature status. They were given options of what to use and they decided on necklaces that they would pass as wearing their family emblem. Hailey made the design: a platinum chain attached to their ‘coat of arms’ that would consist of the deathly hallows symbol, with a sword behind it, and with a lily, stag, and grim in different corners of the emblem. The gem would be obsidian. The young ones couldn’t have necklaces yet so they were given little bracelets instead. MACUSA had strongly advised that if the supernaturals were to cause a ruckus and bring unwanted attention to no-maj’s they could be called to send a obliviate team.

“We survived and won the Blood Wars, we can handle whatever these supernaturals throw at us.”, Ron said in order to ease Hailey when he saw she was getting worried. The thought of having to fend off the population made the group a little anxious but Ron made a point, they have survived too much for them to turn tail. They grabbed the portkey, a flower pot, to travel to Mystic Falls, Virginia. It was around mid afternoon and the house wouldn’t be ready until tomorrow morning. Tonks, Remus, and Teddy were to go to a hotel to get rooms for the night. Hermione and Ron made off with everyone’s shrunken luggage to the new house to get a closer look and what they would need to make it feel and look more like home. Despite the other’s concerns, Hailey went off alone with the twins to look around town. She gathered a lot of attention that reminded her of her time at Hogwarts, she just hoped it was just because she was new to town. With everyone staring at the new mother she made off to find a place with less people not knowing that she had caught the attention of Damon Salvatore with her unique yet familiar scent.

Damon didn’t know why but there was something about the new girl that rubbed him the wrong way. She was hot that was obvious but her scent made him wary, why did she smell like his brother? Ever since that infuriating deal was made with Klaus, all Elena would talk about was getting Stefan back and it made Damon resent him more. Why was it that every girl he was in love with, love Stefan instead? What was it about his little brother that made him so great? As far as Damon could see his brother was boring, predictable, and was too negative. Damon thought himself to be exciting (dangerous) , unpredictable (bipolar), and tries to look on the bright side (hypocrite and only does so when he doesn’t want to accept things as they are). If the new girl has some connection to Stefan he’s going to find out and see if he could use it to his advantage. If she’s not important to his brother he might as well have a little fun with her to get his mind off Elena for a while.

He walked up to the bench she was sitting on and promptly placed himself next to her. He eyed the babies she had with her for a second before disregarding them. He didn’t care about the little rugrats, she was probably just looking after her brother’s for her parents, he just needed to know what her connection to his brother was. She was startled when he sat down causing him to smirk at her. She noticed him eye her boy’s before ignoring them and starting a very uncomfortable conversation with her. Her first impression of this guy was that he was similar to Gilderoy Lockhart.

“Hey there, new girl. I was just wondering what a fine lady such as yourself is doing in our small town?”, he said with a smirk and with some compulsion towards the end to know what her goal was. Hailey looked at the stranger in disdain. She’s never been comfortable with random guys just walking up to her and then hitting on her. It’s gotten even worse after mating with Stefan to the point that it just made her angry. Her response shocked Damon.

“I moved here to get away from unwanted attention which I can see is still going to be a problem. Now please go away as I am trying to enjoy the day with my sons.”, she was not ashamed of having children and she’ll be damned before hiding the fact. She noticed that he was still just staring at her so, she gathered her baby bag and stood up to leave. But before she could walk away the pompous stranger grabbed her arm with an annoyed look on his face. She was beginning to regret wanting as little people as possible around her. He was about to speak when a blur came and pushed him away from her. In place of the blur in front of her was the back of a very rememberable man, the same man that captured her heart and took away her title of a maiden. In front of her stood Stefan Salvatore, her mate, father of her sons, and unknowingly her husband. And his face was full of rage with a possessive gleam in his eye as he stood between her and that pompous man. She looked ahead and finally noticed that Stefan had pushed that guy so hard that he had caused a dirt trail and crater. Damon had got up slowly and relocated his shoulder and collarbone. He looked towards the new girl and wasn’t shocked to see his little brother in front of her.

He was surprised to see the amount of anger on his brother’s face. But before he could taunt him, Stefan had picked Hailey up and sped away. Damon would have chased after them if not for the glare that promised agonizing pain and a slow death that his brother threw at him. He stood frozen for a while before he fished his phone out of his pocket to call the gang, it seems there were more players in the game. They had to prepare and gather information on the new girl, whoever she is she’s important to Stefan and they could use that. Stefan has proven that he doesn’t care what happens to Elena or anybody other than the Originals and they can’t do anything to harm them. A human girl though, that opens possibilities and with how Stefan reacted to him just touching her it speaks volumes of what his little brother would do for her. Though it does bring up the question: when did his little brother turn his humanity back on to care enough for her?

Stefan ran as fast as he could, mindful of Hailey carrying precious cargo. He ran until he was in front of Klaus’s mansion, only then he felt secure enough to gently set her down on her feet. She was staring at him in shock, it took him a moment before he realized he never told her about him being a vampire. While he was contemplating of what to say he couldn’t help but notice the differences in her body because of her pregnancy. Her bust and waist were slightly bigger both changes were her body preparing for motherhood. She looked a lot happier compared to when they first met, she was wearing battered clothes he assumed were caused by the car crash she was in but now she was wearing a white summer dress that reached just above her knees with a blue floral pattern and a unique family crest necklace. Everything else seemed to have stayed the same and her scent if anything was even more intoxicating. He was starting to drool before he shacked the thoughts from his head, it wasn’t the proper time to drool over his goddess. His goddess…he had reacted without thinking but what could he do, Damon had put his unworthy hands on his mate and Stefan’s vampire had lost it for a split second. The only reason Damon wasn’t in shreds was because he didn’t want to frighten Hailey. With his thoughts gathered he looked up to Hailey’s face and she had an expectant expression, it made him love her a little more because she was giving him a chance even after everything.

While Stefan was thinking she was doing an analysis of her own. He had gotten a bit more defined, she could feel him under his clothes while he was carrying her. He wasn’t wearing a jacket like last time but that was probably due to the summer heat and he had replaced his ring with a smaller version. But other than that he was still a walking Adonis who she wouldn’t mind giving a few more kids to. She shook the thoughts from her head, she just gave birth to two beautiful boys and she doesn’t even know if she could have more. She wanted to tell Stefan everything; her origins to how the babies were his. But she would wait as it looks like he needs to tell her everything as well. She looked at him and hope her face showed that she was willing to listen in return she was rewarded with that knee weakening smile of his.

“Heeeeyy…so I guess I have some explaining to do.”,he said with an awkward grin.

“Ya think!”, she said incredulous and with an arched brow. He was happy to hear her voice again and almost dazed out before snapping himself back.

“Okay so…that guy that was bothering you was my brother Damon and the reason I could go so fast is because-“, he was cut off by Hailey.

“Because your a vampire, yes Stefan I know continue.”, he was shocked.

“Wait how do you know?!”, looks like he wasn’t the only one with secrets.

“I’ll answer when you tell me everything. You tell me your REAL story and I’ll share mine.”, he was still a little anxious to tell her, what if she never wanted to see him again, would she just leave with her babies? She saw Stefan’s face and noticed him flicking his fingers, a nervous tick. She was quick to reaffirm him.

“Stefan look I know we didn’t get a lot of time to know each other better but I know we connected. I want you to know that I won’t just leave…not after I just found you again.”, she said leaving herself open and vulnerable. Stefan stared at her for a moment then down to the boys. He gained an expression that she couldn’t decipher but he nodded nonetheless.

“Okay. So I’m 163 years old but I’ve stayed seventeen. I was turned in 1864 when my father had shot both me and my brother in order to stop us from becoming vampires. He had actually triggered the transition, my brother had willingly drunk human blood afterwards to complete it. The woman who we thought we loved is a vampire and gave us blood. But I didn’t want to be a vampire so I went to my father to visit him one last time before I died and he ended up trying to stake me. However he ended up staking himself and triggered my blood lust. My brother then promised me an eternity of misery because I had not only killed our father but the woman he turned for ended up picking me despite me never wanting her. Everything I ever felt for her, she forced as she was compelling me. She still a nuisance to this day and I’m reminded of her every time I see my ex, they’re doppelgängers.”, to say Hailey was infuriated would be an understatement! How dare that arrogant git cause his little brother so much misery and how dare he take his anger of his woman being unfaithful in his brother?! Next time she sees him he’ll be wishing that he had stayed human to have not met her! Seeing Hailey getting angry made him nervous but he went on with his tale.

“Which plays another huge component to now. You see with vampires it had started because of a witch a thousand years ago was in mourning of losing her youngest son to werewolves. She wanted a way for her family to defend themselves from them one thing led to another and vampires came to existence.”, he was going to continue when suddenly one of the babies had started to fuss. Hailey looked at him apologetically before moving to take the baby out. Hailey knew that cry, seems Cedar was getting hungry in the middle of his daddy’s story time. She stopped once she realized that she would need to put Caelan down, she looked to Stefan and he looked a bit panicked at Cedar crying. Well hopefully he won’t mind holding Caelan while she fed Cedar.

“Stefan could you hold him for a sec. I gotta feed his brother.”, she didn’t give Stefan time to reply as she had Caelan already leaning on his chest.

“Now just put your hand on his bottom and keep you hand on his back to hold him.”, Stefan had done as she told him but he was slightly worried about accidentally hurting the little one. He started to internally panic when the little guy looked up from his chest. Caelan didn’t know the man holding him and assessed him before he decided whether he’ll cry to go back to momma. His scent was soothing and familiar, when he looked up he could recognize that this was his daddy so he laid his head back down to take his nap. Stefan relaxed as the baby was okay with being held by him he looked to Hailey to ask about the babies but then promptly looked away when he noticed her breastfeeding. He doesn’t know if it was okay to look but he doesn’t want to accidentally offend her. She looked up and smirked at Stefan’s flustered face, she didn’t like seeing Stefan in distress and while him telling her everything was necessary it still made her a bit sad, so it made her happy she could distract him for a while.

“Stefan it’s okay to look, he’s just eating.”, she said with a small chuckle.

“R-right, umm I was just wondering what are the little guy’s names and…please just answer this and…I’msorryifthisoffendsyoubutaretheymine?!”, he just needed to know because as he got a closer look at the little guy he noticed the similar features and scents that came from both babies. Hailey looked nervous to answer which made his heart wrench at the thought of him not being the father.

“I don’t know if you can believe me Stefan as you haven’t heard my story yet but…yes these two are yours.”, she didn’t want to see Stefan angry but she was surprised when she felt his hand cupping her cheek. She looked up and saw Stefan had an elated smile on his face with tears threatening to fall. Stefan couldn’t hide how happy he was, he was quick to assure her that he indeed believed her. You couldn’t lie to a vampire especially about something like this. He looked to both babies with glee, he thought he had lost his chance to have a family but Hailey was able to give him one, he couldn’t be happier. He looked at the baby she was feeding and noticed his ring was on her wedding finger, he blushed but looked to her in question which led to her blushing.

“Let me answer your other question first. The one your holding is Caelan James Salvatore-Potter and this one here is Cedar Sirius Salvatore-Potter. I hope you don’t mind me giving them your name but-“, she was cut off with a gentle kiss. Stefan broke it and looked with her with an adoring gaze.

“Thank you, Hailey.”, his earnest reaction caused her to blush. But he took her hand that had his ring on her finger and looked back at her questionably with a flustered smile. She looked back to him with a mischievous smile.

“That one is a little more difficult to explain without telling you everything. Sooo…your just gonna have to wait until yours is done.”, she said and smiled a bit more genuinely when Stefan had pouted at her response. Cedar was done eating so they were able to settle the boys back into the carrier. Stefan decided to move them into the mansion, he took a quick look around and it was empty besides a few hybrids that had orders to let Stefan be. He led them to the living room and Hailey sat down on the loveseat with Stefan automatically sitting next to her. He started where he left off.

“Back then there was a brother in the Originals that was different then his siblings. He was the child born out of the affair between the witch and a werewolf. This wasn’t discovered until one fateful night when the son had taken away his first life. Making him the Original Hybrid, Niklaus Mikaelson. When a person is born with a werewolf gene in order to activate the curse they need to kill somebody and the gene can only be passed from parent to child. The father was mad at the witch and threatened to leave unless she was to find a way to get rid of the wolf in him. To him this had angered him so much as she was essentially locking a part of him away, always feeling it just out of reach but never able to access. The only way to break it was to use to use the blood of a human doppelgänger. Which brings us to modern times. My ex, Elena, is the doppelgänger that Klaus needed to finally break his curse.”, Stefan couldn’t hide the exasperated tone, thinking about the whole ordeal made his head ache. At least it was over with…for the most part at least. Hailey could see how tired Stefan looked when he mentioned this and rubbed his shoulder in sympathy. He gave her a grateful smile.

“In the end Klaus finally got what he always wanted. But then Damon had to go and do something reckless and got bit by a wolf, death was imminent but there was one thing that could save him. Now I have long known that my brother wasn’t…the best but until I met you I hadn’t realized how bad it was. The only cure was the blood of a hybrid and the only one in existence had requested only two things: my allegiance and for me to turn off my humanity. Only without my humanity and with you I was able to see that I shouldn’t just forgive Damon just because he was brother. You didn’t force me to get along with him because he was my family. You made me realize that I had a better brother right next to me who wasn’t even connected to me by blood. Now Klaus had one other dream, he didn’t want to be alone. He had been the only one of his kind and he was tired of it so he sent me out to find a solution.”, he thinks back to the night they met and he couldn’t fight the blush that covers his face or the goofy grin. Hailey saw this and flushed and nudged him to continue.

“That’s how we met, now everything is working in Klaus’s favor as he’s no longer alone. And now I’ve found you again but…there will still be problems because my brother has never been one to accept things as they are if it wasn’t how he wanted it. And he definitely didn’t want Klaus to have his way.”, earlier amusement gone. Stefan did it he explained his entire story to Hailey, he felt so relieved that he could feel tears start to build up in his eyes. He knew how vicious his brother can be and how little he cares that it would break Stefan to see her hurt, all he cared about was how he could use her to get Stefan to obey. Hailey noticed the tears and reacted without thinking to help. She put her hands on his nape and brought their foreheads together, it caused them to close their eyes and think back on everything.

Stefan opened his eyes and gave a silent thank you along with a loving forehead kiss. Feeling a bit more better he dropped a kiss on his sons heads as well…his sons it was still something that he was marveling at. He hopes that Hailey will be able to help explain how they came to be. She took a deep breath and he squeezed her hand in hopes of comfort, he situated them were he’s in the corner of the loveseat with her and the babies were between his legs with her back against his chest. She leaned her head back on his chest and smiled up at him in thanks. She started her story.

“I was born to loving parents that were apart of a secret society filled with everything and anything magical but hidden away from everyone else. Our world while similar to yours, has…just more of everything and we live separately from the normal world. We have our own currency, governments, society, and business. At the time of my birth there was a war happening, a war surrounding the propaganda of whether those who are the first in their family to have magic are inferior or on par with those that come from a long descent of magic users. My mother was the first in her family and my father came from a long line of magic making me a half blood. However my parents died at the hands of a powerful wizard that was the head of the ‘dark’ side when I was a baby. I was supposed to die as well but my mother was able to sacrifice herself to save me, so when he tried to kill me it rebounded and killed him. I went down in history to be the first to live the killing curse and to defeat a dark lord as an infant, the named me the ‘Girl-Who-Lived’. I wouldn’t be aware of any of this as when my parents died they had placed me with my mother’s sister, who loathes anything abnormal including me. For the first eleven years of my life my room was a cupboard under the stairs and went without knowing my true story or heritage. One fateful night I had turned eleven deeming me old enough to go back to the magic society to learn magic. I thought that it was the happiest day of my life but it was replaced a few years later.”, she said while looking down at Cedar and Caelan.

Stefan couldn’t help but smile at her. His mind was reeling about there being an entire world that he didn’t know about and the Originals likely don’t either. But he thought back to her comment about her maternal family and his blood was boiling. He didn’t care if they were family, they caused her so much pain and neglect as far as he’s concerned they’re going to wish he never learned of their existence. Seeing as how Stefan was getting angry she moved on, she read about vampires being very unpredictable when concerning their mates. She’s worried about how he’ll react to her school adventures when she’ll have time to tell him more in depth.

“My school years were in short magical. But as I said I was considered very famous, it didn’t change once I got to school. I was accepted into Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I was put into a sorting and came out as everyone expected. Every year since I was eleven I had to avoid life threatening situations, I had secrets kept from me, I was constantly having to find a way to keep me and my friends alive, and I had to put up with everyone gossiping and having expectations of me. I was able to build my own makeshift family with the few friends I could make. The life threats always had one thing in common, they were to bring the Dark Lord back and it did.”, she gained a very dark look that it made Stefan worry for what could have happened to her. But he let her collect her thought so he could do the same, what kind of school let children fight for their life?! If she was gathering so much attention why didn’t anyone notice when her and her friends lives were in danger constantly, why didn’t anyone try to help?! He broke his train of thought when she began again, but he started hugging her around her waist when he noticed her eyes become misty. Thinking of the war will always bring dark memories.

“He came back when I was fourteen and I had witnessed him taking the life of a friend. The ministry didn’t want to admit it they called me a liar, so we were left on our own to protect ourselves. Even at that a lot of people on our side had left it up to us, just kids really, to fight the war. When I was fifteen I lost my godfather to battle, I was so enraged that I had ended up lethally injuring six of the twelve soldiers of the Dark Lord. My brother, Ron, and my sister, Hermione, where able to calm me down some but not enough to stop me from hunting down the woman responsible. Soon after the real war broke out and we were on the run. We fought from the shadows and did our missions to ensure the fall of the Dark Lord. I had defeated him in a duel that led to his death and soon his entire side had crumbled. A series of events that happened in the war including my brief death, but came back to life and also became what is known as the Mistress of Death. I had found that out the day the war was over, the same day we met. With my kind we experience accidental bouts of magic when our emotions are very overwhelming. When learning about my new title I had accidentally transported myself from Scotland to America. Then you found me.”, she said with a sheepish smile. Stefan just gaped at her, is it normal for them to be able to teleport to a different continent?! He wonders if the boys will inherit that amount of power?

“I had a dream that night. Death itself came to me and had explained that we had completed a very old prophecy. I, the Mistress of Death, and you, a Creature of Death, had accomplished in making the Heir to Death.”, she said with an impish smile. With her story finished she knows he’ll have questions and no doubt he starts spouting off.

“Was everything okay? Where you in pain? How long did the pregnancy last? When did you find out about them being twins? Will me being a vampire be a problem for them? What about-“, he was cut off when she put her hand on his mouth with an smile on her face. She understands that he has questions but she knew to cut him off before she forgets to answer the first few.

“Everything was fine. The only pain I was in was when the boys would kick as they are stronger than a normal baby. The pregnancy was supposed to last about 3 months but with me having twins I delivered two weeks early. I found out when I noticed that I had to push out another baby, my kind’s magic does not react well with technology and I was having trouble controlling mine so I couldn’t go to a doctor. My world would be in a frenzy if they found out their savior had children out of wedlock, halfbreeds at that.”, at her response he calmed down some but his face hardened at hearing about her world not being accepting of his sons.

“Are you telling me your world would have done something to the boys? Just because a vampire is their father?”, he said with his vampire face coming out. It seems he’s already grown overprotective of the boys. She couldn’t help but take note of his face being the same as Caelan when he had shown his for the first time. And while he is right she needs to make sure he understands a very important detail.

“Stefan…with you being their father it does make things more difficult for them. My world sees creatures as inferior and back home we are trying to fix it and ban the laws that they placed on halfbreeds. But with me as a mother they were always going to have a target on their back. I am the sole heir to two very powerful families and my government wants control over who I marry to ensure that my heir would be easy to manipulate. Not to mention there is still some of the Dark Lord’s followers out there and…I can’t even bare the thought that the boys could get hurt over what I had to do. I did the selfish thing and kept our boys with me.”, she started to cry over the thought alone. She was selfish and had only thought about getting what she wanted and didn’t think of what her sons could go through. Her crying had woken up the boys and they were not happy to see their mama crying so they started cooing and making little noises to get her attention and Stefan noticed as well what his sons were trying to accomplish. He repositioned all of them so that Hailey would be sitting on his lap with the boys still strapped to her. Hailey finally noticed her boys trying to get her attention, when she looked down at them they both had smiled up at her. She turned to Stefan to see him staring at the three of them in adoration. He reached up to cup her cheek.

“Never think that you wanting a family is you being selfish. And if it is I’m overjoyed that you chose to be selfish because it gave me a gift that I thought I would never be able to receive let alone deserve to get. We’re going to keep the boys safe, we’re going to do right by them. Because we both came from families that could have been better but we know what they are going to want and need. And I hope that you get that when I say ‘we’ it means that I’m going to be there with you every step of the way.”, he said hugging her close to him in an almost painful hold but to Hailey it was an embrace filled with love and ensured her that he was there. Wanting to break the tension she took his hand into her own, her hand that had his ring on her finger. He noticed and again gave a teasing look with a brow arched. At this point Stefan thinks that she just put in on her finger to keep guys from flirting with her. He won’t lie, the thought of her wearing an actual engagement ring given from him got his blood pumping south but he shook his head, again not the time for his vampire or him to get aroused from having something on her that would prove that she wasn’t on the market. He thought he was right when she started to flush. But her response shocked him still for a while.

“Well, the night we…made the boys was also the night that we apparently got…married?”, he was looking at her gobsmacked hoping that what she was saying was true but still hoping that she could explain it a little more.

“It was registered by the bank of my world. It is run by creatures and they view mating to be similar and as sacred as marriage. So we’re mated and unknowingly in the eyes of my government we are married. Which if they did know they would shit themselves because they wouldn’t be able to declare that the boys can’t inherit my names. They are legally able to inherit everything once they come of age as not only are they sole heirs but they are legitimate ones.”, she said this in a faux nonchalance as she did not know how Stefan would react. She was surprised by the almost hysterical giggle that came from him followed by an actual hysterical laugh.

“Anything else I should be made aware then my lovely wife?!”, he said trying to cope with the amount of happiness surging through him. Damon had made a vow to make him miserable and his life before Hailey has been so. He has never felt so overwhelmed with happiness that he didn’t know how to react to him being a father and having a wife, his seemingly impossible dream coming true.

“Well I named the boys because of the…other titles they would inherit. I’m the Mistress of Death…and Magic’s Chosen. Caelan meaning eternal warrior, he’s the Heir to Death. And Cedar’s name means a magical wood because he’s the Heir to Magic. Also I didn’t come alone, I brought some of my family, including my werewolf uncle.”, she said tentatively. Stefan just sat there until he smashed their lips together in a surprising and passionate kiss that she slowly melted into. When they pulled apart he had a goofy smile on that matched her own.

“Things are never going to be quiet around here with you then, huh? For you and with you I’ll be happy to be there in all the noise.”, he said. He looked to her then down to the boys in a loving gaze. Then he heard an adorable noise come from Hailey, her stomach was growling. He looked up to her and her face was scarlet. “How about we go into town to get something to eat. You and I can consider it our first date.”, he added sheepishly and turned beaming when she nodded with her own beaming grin. The got up and left the mansion and made their way to a little place called the Mystic Grill. Stefan had insisted on holding the baby bag for Hailey as she was already holding the boys. She had the boys to her chest and was securing them with one arm while holding hands with Stefan while he used his other arm to hold the baby bag. They made quite the image for the small town, gossipy townspeople we’re coming up with all sorts of theories. Young women and men had all started mourning at the loss of some of Mystic Fall’s most good looking residents.

The family continued their journey for food ignoring it all. Once they got to the Grill the boys started to pick up a fuss at being hungry, since she had already fed Cedar she was…empty…so she planned to use the bottles for the first time. She and Stefan sat at a table for two and she put the bag on the table and took out the ‘special’ bottles for the boys, already had her milk and the donated blood in. She hoped the boys like the mixture and would take to the bottles well. She unstrapped the boys from her and gave Cedar to Stefan, who was still a bit cautious at holding something so precious and small. She took one bottle and gently placed it in Caelan’s mouth, he was eating like there was no tomorrow and gave appreciative coos. Stefan copied her actions and Cedar exactly like his brother was happy with the mixture. The new parents were in their own world before it burst when a suspicious and gobsmacked Jeremy Gilbert came to take their order. With their order taken Stefan had finally noticed all the attention that they were getting and grew furious when he saw males casting leering and lingering gazes at Hailey. He also noticed Matt and Jeremy staring at them distrustfully, he felt his vampire snarl at them for sending the same looks to Hailey. He carefully scooted his chair next to hers and was internally gleeful when she laid her head on his shoulder.

It proved that they were together and it also helped in soothing his protective instinct. But no sooner as they had finally started to relax the door had burst open. Damon, Elena, and the rest of the gang had decided to come. Damon sneered in their direction. And Elena had looked on in jealousy. Hailey was getting uncomfortable with their stares and turned to Stefan more which just caused the looks to intensify. With Hailey practically tucked into Stefan with both of them with a baby in their arms they made quite the picture when Rebekah and Klaus came in.

#harry potter #fem!harry potter #harry potter x stefan salvatore #master of death #stefan salvatore #vampire diaries #babies

[softersinned-arc]

@denieddeath​ / plotted starter.

Run. The voice echoes around her just like it did the first time she had the dream. The dream was the reason she came out here, anyway — too curious for her own good, not so clever as she liked to imagine. Astoria does as she’s bade, and she runs, and she runs, and she runs, the gravel kicking up under her boots, a sharp pain in her chest with each ragged breath she draws. And then the voice speaks again: Hide.

          The first time she had this dream, she kept running. She kept running, and running, and every time it caught her, claws sinking into the flesh of her back, tearing her apart. But this time she hides. This time, she takes a sharp turn, nearly collapsing as she does; there’s a mausoleum, the door ajar, just out of reach, and she bolts towards it and pulls the door closed with all her strength, latching it shut. It shudders and shakes as it throws itself against the metal, and Astoria raises her shaking hands, tries to summon some kind of power, something, anything...

          But it’s no use. The door dents and Astoria ducks behind a small stone bench but it’s not much cover, not really. The crumple of metal is sickening, and so is it’s screech — the thing is pure white, except for the blood dripping from its claws and mouth, and the black of its eyes, and it looks like once, it might have been human —

          — it lunges at her with a scream, pins her beneath the upturned bench, its breath smells of blood and meat and rot and she tries to fight back but her ribs are broken and she can’t find the power to summon to her hands and it raises one of its own to tear her open —

          — and then there’s a flash of light.

          And then there’s nothing.

          And just before she loses consciousness, she realizes that this time, it’s not a dream.

She wakes with a start, and she tries to sit up but the pain in her side sends her back down; she’s on a sofa she doesn’t recognize, in an apartment she doesn’t recognize, in a city she barely knows. A trip — for her birthday, for research purposes, it hardly matters now, because she’s lying on an unfamiliar sofa in an unfamiliar apartment and she’s trying desperately not to vomit from pain or fear or both.

          A cursory glance down tells her that she’s still dressed, and carefully, Astoria peels her shirt up to look down at her abdomen. There’s already a nasty bruise forming across her side, and when she presses down gingerly, her fingers glowing black as she does, she feels at least four — no, five broken ribs. Her head is pounding and she’s thirsty and she’s hungry but if she’s going to do anything she needs to be able to move, and so she summons what power she has to her hand and she gently urges the pulsing shadow from her fingertips to the skin of her abdomen, underneath the blood and to the bone, and she feels her bones knitting together again. When she’s finished all she has to show for the injury is the bruise — smaller than it was but still nasty enough that she’ll have to finish the job once she’s got some food in her.

          Wincing, Astoria stands and lowers her shirt. Someone took her shoes off, and the carpet is plush under her feet. The room looks anonymous — a hotel room? A safehouse? A lovingly decorated room by someone whose idea of interior design is soullessness? — beyond a handful of items left on a desk, and Astoria approaches cautiously, hand extended to feel for any web of magic she might need to avoid.

          At the center there’s a book, leather bound and old — a bestiary, according to the title, and Astoria gingerly opens the cover and flips through the pages. A Victorian reproduction of a medieval text, she’d guess, judging by the quality of the leather and the paper, and magically preserved. Beside that is a necklace, and Astoria pokes at the chain before leaving it be. And a half-burned candle — and when Astoria leans forward and sniffs, she’s pleasantly surprised by the intertwined scents of lavender and bergamot.

          The silence is broken by the creak of an opening door. At once, Astoria moves, and she positions herself near the fireplace as she picks up a wrought iron poker and holds it loosely in her hand, ready to drop or to swing as she waits for the new arrival — captor or savior, or perhaps both.

#denieddeath #thread: denieddeath002 #(it's been YEARS we finally gOT IT i'm so excited c: ) #(we can put em in new orleans if u want! i just didn't want to assume a location) #(only places it couldn't be for her are boston - ny - dublin - stockholm - london - venice) #(she'd know those cities too well) #(otherwise i'm down for anything)

[antiquariusv]

[laustsenriber53]

Jewellery privy be a grand endue to prove somebody how you palpate. It toilet too be the perfect memento to check a especial function. Or so populate view it an investment funds simply the dependable value in jewellery is how it makes the wearer finger. This clause bathroom aid you when stressful to picking KO'd jewelry for somebody you sexual love.

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#Titanium bracelet

[pastsplendors]

[fashionthroughtimewithlucy]

Woodstock.

Woodstock, the most famous of the 1960s rock festivals, held on a farm property in Bethel, New York, August 15–18, 1969, at the end of the hippie movement. The hippie flower child look from the late 1960's carried over into the first half of the 1970's, in a non-restrictive bohemian silhouette with a heavy folksy influence. Arts and crafts had a huge impact on fashion during this time including tie-dye, batik, knitwear, crochet and macrame.

1970s Gunne Sax dresses.

Gunne Sax's aesthetic has been described as feminine, nostalgic, Victorian, old world and romantic. Though the brand is now closely associated with formal and bridal wear, its origins date back to late '60s San Francisco.  In 1969, San Francisco boutique Gunne Sax needed a house designer. Enter Jessica McClintock, an elementary school teacher with a life-long interest in fashion. When a friend told McClintock of the opening at Gunne Sax, she applied immediately. McClintock was hired despite her lack of formal training in fashion design or clothing manufacture. Herself and designer Laura Ashley popularized the prairie dress phenomenon.

Sometimes referred to as Granny or prairie dresses, a typical Gunne Sax dress of the early 1970s featured a banded Empire waist and a long maxi-skirt. Lace trim, high collars and long sleeves evoked an amalgam of past eras and created an overall impression of demure femininity.

Vogue Italia March 1970.

Twiggy for Vogue 1970

Thea Porter, Godmother of Bohemian Cheque.

Thea Porter, who is credited with bringing the bohemian look to London catwalks. Although Thea Porter is not as famous a name as Mary Quant or Laura Ashley, her influence on the look of her era is just as potent. Her loose, draped shapes and fabrics helped create the style of stars such as Faye Dunaway and Elizabeth Taylor in the 1970s, and they have since become forever entangled with the idea of rock-star self-indulgence. She celebrated ethnic styles in Indian style prints, free flowing breezy gauzy tent dresses and wide legged pants.

Porter's seven signature looks: the Abaya & Kaftan; the Gipsy dress; the Fraye dress; the Brocade-panel dress; the Wrap-over dress; the Chazara jacket, and the Sirwal skirt, as well as important fashion photography from the pages of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Women's Wear.

Changing skirt sizes.

This was the year of the changing hemline. There is no longer one length for one woman, but a whole wardrobe of lengths from which to choose. Mini, regular, midi and maxi length. Both emerald and bottle green were popular colours of the 1970s along with rust, wine red, purple, orange, and brown.

Tom Wolfe called the 1970s the "me decade" Across the land, Americans seemed determined to escape from the wars and social movements of the previous decade. Disillusionment with national and global action led many to look inward and find solace in discovering more about themselves. Women demanded respect as equal partners, and began to emerge into the work place. As women asserted themselves economically, socially, and politically, the idea of remaining trapped in an unhappy marriage became less and less appealing. Consequently, the divorce rate soared. An 1974 book entitled the courage to divorce  encouraged individuals to put their own happiness above that of their spouses and children.

Every rule of fashion was shattered in the 1970s. Lapels, ties, and collars, reached record widths. The polyester leisure suit, available in a palette of citrus and pastel colors, was extremely popular among young males. The jacket, pants, and vest were often worn with an open collar to display thick necklace chains nestled in exposed chest hair. A senses of masculine style emerged in the film 'Annie Hall' which created a sensation with Diane Keaton wearing a fitted vest with a collard white shirt and men's neckties.

[quanjewelry]

All Of The Best Jewelry-Related Tips And Tricks

Buying jewelry for a loved one can be a stressful experience. Lessening the stress and allowing the buying experience to be a happy one can be very beneficial to both the buyer and the seller. This article gives you a multitude of methods to help you be more confident and less stressed when buying your jewelry.

Use a polishing cloth for all of your jewelry pieces. You can keep your items shiny without using chemicals. It's easy, just use the dual-sided cloth to wipe down your jewelry, just as you would polish a beautiful glass. Use one side for polishing and the other for improving its shine.

Store your jewelry in felt. It is always annoying when a piece of your favorite jewelry starts to tarnish. To keep it from tarnishing, just make sure you store it properly. Use a felt bag or even a jewelry box lined with felt. It will help to keep the jewelry from tarnishing.

You can get jewelry that speaks of ancient and vintage times passed. They take their styling from the Victorian era and other famous time periods. These make perfect pieces to any wardrobe where you want to show some old world class. Popular types include Bakelite jewelry, book chains, cameos, celluloid jewelry, doublets, filigree jewelry, and much more.

Buying used jewelry can be a great way to expand your options without spending a lot of money. Look for estate sales or yard sales. Depending on where you live, prices may be lower than antique stores (which use the name "antique" to charge a bit more). Browsing in person can be a fun way to find things you might not have thought to go looking for.

To show off a graceful neck, try wearing a choker. A choker will immediately draw eyes to your neckline and can accentuate it in a variety of ways. A simple ribbon choker can make your neck look more delicate, while a dramatic, showy choker can make your neck look longer. If you're proud of your neck, a choker is a great way to complete any look.

You can untangle delicate necklaces that have become knotted. Don't give up on getting the knots out, instead get a sheet of plastic wrap. Put the necklace on the plastic wrap and cover it with a little baby oil. Needles can be used to untangle it. When your necklaces are straight, use dish soap to wash the oil off and pat them dry.

Selling jewelry online requires you to capture stunning images of the piece. This is extra important because the customer can not handle jewelry with an online transaction. Photograph jewelry in a setting that concentrates the viewer's attention solely on the jewelry; avoid distracting backgrounds.

To convey a sense of physical prowess, energy, passion, and love, look for pieces that incorporate deep red stones like rubies and red garnets. Red is an especially powerful color that is best suited to bold rings and necklaces that allow the stone to take center stage. Rubies are also popularly known as the birthstone for the month of July.

One of the biggest dangers to jewelry is loss. When you are not careful with the pieces of fine jewelry that you have, it can be quite easy to lose it. By paying attention, especially to very small pieces and stones you will ensure that you have your jewelry throughout your life.

As was stated in the beginning of the article, buying jewelry can be a very stressful experience. Knowing your way around a jewelry counter can help give you the confidence and capability to make the right choice for your loved one. Apply the advice from the article and you will find yourself knowledgeable and ready to meet your jeweler.

[faroutgardengirl]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Set of 3 Hand Crafted Alice-in-Wonderland Necklaces; Mad Hatter, Alice, Rabbit.

[stringsofstarlight]

Thankfully, I found this Victorian gold filled book chain necklace before the two dudes from the shit can army (my new name for them) came in and took over. 🙏☮️💝

[boylerpf]

Marvelous Victorian Silver Book Chain Collar Necklace

via Boylerpf

#victorian necklace #book chain #sterling silver #silver #chain #collar necklace #antique #jewelry #watch chain

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Anonymous asked: Have you watched Lupin? What did you think? (And are you a fan of the books or other adaptations of the character?)

The short answer is yes, I have seen Lupin on Netflix. Overall I enjoyed it so long as I suspended my disbelief at certain things.

Unfortunately it took being struck down by Covid and being bedridden for me to actually to binge watch the whole series. So I was behind the curve when my friends, French and those outside of France, started to talk about it around me. I had to beg them not to give away spoilers until I had seen it all.

It did surprise me that it won rave widespread reviews outside France because usually French drama series don’t travel very well outside of France. I’m sure even Netflix had no idea how successful it would be for them. I’m sure being in Covid lockdown had something to do with it. In any case I don’t begrudge its success as it’s well earned.

However I wasn’t too surprised that within France itself the French reviews were decidely mixed and divisive. The critic at Le Point painfully hit the nail on the head when he wrote, “Le plus gros défaut de l'ensemble reste la pauvreté des personnages, tous unidimensionnels, caricaturaux et aussi épais que du papier à cigarette.“ - loosely translated as, ‘the biggest flaw of the whole thing remains the poverty of the characters, all one-dimensional, cartoonish and as thick as cigarette paper’.

There’s a growing amount of good French stuff on TV and streaming services but a non-French audience will not have had the chance to have seen all of it yet. I can think of any number of French television drama/dramedy/cmedy series that are much better than Lupin with better plots, characters, and even a truer perspective of French society and even modern day France (Dix pour cent (Call My Agent!), Le Bureau des Légendes, Engrenages, Baron Noir, and Paris Police 1900). But you would be hard pressed to find anything that comes close to Lupin just for the sake of something fun to watch during the Covid lockdown.

What makes the current generation of home made French television series so interesting is how much of it is a reflection of France’s own anxieities about itself and its role in a increasingly English speaking dominating world. In a funny way it sees itself as defiant plucky Asterix fighting off the Roman American cultural hordes from totally invading their Francophone culture.

For sure, it has societal and racial issues stemming from its colonial legacy and issues of immigration and integration (France has the largest Muslim population in Europe). However it seems to want to ‘resolve’ these issues through the almost sacramental adherence to French secularist ideals rather than American inspired ideas of social justice and equity. There’s always been something very admirable about the French - from the time of General de Gaulle and perhaps before - always swinging from snooty ambivalence to outright antipathy towards the influence of American culture ‘americanising’ French culture (no to Walmarts or fast food chains for example).

Is it any wonder then that Netflix’s ill-conceived American series ‘Emily in Paris’ was widely hated and mocked within France for just perpetuating those lazy American tropes of Paris and French culture?

Personally I know Francophile Americans, long resident in Paris, who were frankly embarrassed and spent a lot of time apologising to their French friends. I have one American friend who has told me that she was so mad that she would have blind folded Emily and shoved her hard in the car boot and drive her all the way to the poorest of the banlieues in the grimey crime saturated suburbs of Paris - Seine-Saint-Denis came to mind - and dump her preening arse there. She would slap her and tell the spoilt entitied brat to make her own way back home - you know, to her spacious apartment in one of the most expensive arrondissements of Paris that of course(!) any American intern working for French marketing firms can afford.

I digress. My apologies. Watching this God awful show gives me PTSD.

Onto Lupin.

Thankfully Lupin doesn’t try to play to non-French tropes of what Paris is or isn’t. It does skim the surface of current discontents within French culture and society (race, class, power, and money) but ever so lightly so as to not get in the way of just spinning a good crowd pleasing yarn. It invites you to have fun and not to think too much. I have to be honest and say I enjoyed it as long as I suspended my disbelief here and there.

Lupin refers of course to the character Arsène Lupin, the French gentleman thief who stole jewellery from Parisian haute bourgeois and aristocracy at the turn of the century. Lupin, as written in the novels and short stories by Maurice Leblanc between 1905 and his death in 1941, was the archetypical anti-hero, a Robin Hood who stole from those who deserved it but kept the loot himself. He was often portrayed often a force for good, while operating on the wrong side of the law.

Lupin never really made much of an impact outside of France as he had within France where is revered with many French film and television adaptations. In England, we already had a Lupin type character in the form of A.J. Raffles, a cricket playing gentleman thief with his aristocratic side kick, Bunny. E.W. Horning’s stories of Raffles’ daring heists proved to be quite popular with the British public when Raffles first appeared on the scene in 1898. And even later Leslie Charteris’ The Saint took over the mantle from Raffles as the gentleman thief/adventuring Robin Hood.

I think Hollywood tried to introduce him to an English speaking audience (legendary actor John Barrymore even played him) but he didn’t really take off and eventually they found their gentleman thief archetype in Sir Charles Lytton aka The Phantom (played by David Niven and Christopher Plummer) in the Pink Panther movies. So Lupin never got the English audience he deserved.

I first got wind of who Arsène Lupin was when I was growing up in Japan as a child. As strange as it sounds Lupin was big in Japan especially after World War Two. The Japanese did their own take on the Lupin character using Japanese actors and plot lines but it was Lupin.

I don’t know how exactly but I remember watching these scratchy DVDs of these Lupin inspired films. I think it was one of my parents’ Japanese friends who was mad for all things Lupin and he had studied French literature in France. Jogging my memory I now recall these black & white films were done in the 1950s. One starred Keiji Sada and the other version I remember was with Eija Okada (he was in Resnais’ classic film, Hiroshima Mon Amour) as Arsene Lupin called (I think) Kao-no Nai Otoko. I didn’t understand most of it at the time because it was all in Japanese and my Japanese (at the time) was pitiful, but it looked fun.

There was even a Japanese manga version of Lupin which was called Lupin III, - so named because he was the grandson of the real Arsène Lupin.

The 1960s manga series spawned generations of TV series which I do remember watching and finding it terribly exciting if somewhat confusing.

It was French expatriate friends whom my family knew that introduced me to the real Arsène Lupin. They had a few of the books authored by Maurice Leblanc. It was in French so I read them to improve my French but enjoyed the story along the way.

I also remember them showing me scratchy episodes of the 1970s Franco-German TV series ‘Arsène Lupin’ with the monocle wearing Georges Descrières in the lead role. It was a classical re-telling of the adventures of the aristocratic gentleman-burglar and very family friendly viewing. I don’t really remember much of it to be honest.

It was some years before I actually started to read more of the Maurice Leblanc’s novels and short stories collection. I have them all now. I was a teen and I remember being stuck in a snowed in a Swiss Alpine chalet and with nothing else to do but pull out a few dog eared books from the bookshelves belonging to our French host and read to pass the time.

I read Les Dents du tigre, Arsène Lupin vs Herlock Sholmes, and Les Huit Coups de l'horloge and thoroughly enjoyed them in the original French. I was already reading classic detective and mystery novels (Sherlock Holmes, Poirot etc) so it was natural to read the adventures of Arsène Lupin.

I haven’t got around to reading all the novels and short stories but I have read most of them and I enjoyed them all immensely. In the same way Conan Doyle, through Holmes and Watson, manages to conjure a convincing picture of late Victorian and early Edwardian England, so Leblanc manages to give us a taste of Belle Epoque France through the eyes of his suave gentleman-thief, Arsène Lupin.

Indeed it's a lot like reading Sherlock Holmes in that you're always trying to figure out how he did it, but the difference is that you are rooting for the bad guy. You can’t help but be drawn to this gentleman thief who is charming, comic, playful, and romantic and generous. Lupin is not an intellectual puzzle-solver but first a master criminal, later a detective helper, who maintains his curious ethics throughout his adventures. In this regard he is very much the anti-Sherlock Holmes; and I wasn’t disappointed when I actually read the story where Lupin faces off with Holmes himself. Brilliant!

I’ve also seen the 2004 French movie with Romain Duris in the Lupin lead role and it also starred the majestic Kristin Scott Thomas and the sexy Eva Green.

It was a decent adventure flick and it was a clear confluence of different Lupin novels (The Queen's Necklace (introducing Lupin's childhood), The Hollow Needle (where the treasure is the macguffin of the story), The Arrest of Arsène Lupin (the gala on the ship as a backdrop) and Josephine Balsamo, (one of Lupin’s most memorable opponents in the The Countess Of Cagliostro).

Romaine Duris, a fine classical actor, was I felt miscast because he didn’t have Lupin’s levity of wit and be at ease within himself. I love Duris in his other films but in Arsène Lupin and even in his other film, Moliere, he seemed ill at ease with the role. Perhaps that’s just me.

The latest Netflix adaptation (or reimagining to be more precise) is a welcome addition to the world of Arsène Lupin.If you don’t over-think it, it’s bags of fun.

Omar Sy is immensely likeable. Sy is a deservedly a big star in France - he won the best actor César for “The Intouchables,” an international hit - and has played forgettable secondary characters in big-budget American special effects movies (he was Chris Pratt’s assistant in “Jurassic World” and a minor mutant in “X-Men: Days of Future Past”). It was reportedly his desire to play Arsène Lupin, whom he’s compared to James Bond (“fun, funny, elegant”), that led to the series, created by British writer George Kay. And it is on his charm that the series largely, though not entirely, rests.

So the basic story revolves around a jewellery heist. Sy plays Assane Diop, a first-generation French-Senegalese man in contemporary Paris. A collection of Lupin stories, a gift from his father - whose undeserved fate Assane set himself to avenge in long-delayed, Count of Monte Cristo style upon a criminal tycoon - has made the actual Lupin books a foundation of his life and profitably illicit career. This fan-ship goes as far as borrowing practical ideas from the stories and constructing aliases out of anagrams of “Arsene Lupin,” a habit that will attract the interest of a low-level police detective (Soufiane Guerrab as Youssef Guedira) who shares Assane’s love of the books. (That the detective also shares an initial with Lupin’s own adversary, Inspector Ganimard, is possibly not a coincidence.)

Among the many comic delights of Lupin, is an unspoken one. Time and again, the show’s hero, master thief Assane Diop is able to slip into a place unnoticed, or by assuming a minor disguise that prevents witnesses from providing an accurate description of him to law enforcement.

Why is this funny?

Because Omar Sy is six feet three (and, since most actors are short, seems even taller), is roughly as wide as soccer pitch, and is memorable even before he flashes his infectious million-Euro smile. This is not a man for whom anonymity should be possible - even allowing for racial bias in a majority-white country, Assane would be memorable and distinctive - and Lupin seems cheekily aware of this. Like the various incredible sleights of hand Assane deploys to pull off his thefts and escapes, his ability to be anyone, anywhere, is treated more as a superpower than as something even the world’s greatest criminal would be able to pull off.

At one point, when he’s slated for a cable news appearance as a much older man, we learn that Assane is also a master of disguise. The revelation of this skill arrives with a wink in the show, and it feels pointless to ask where he learned it, or how he affords movie-quality latex and makeup. Or rather, asking the question feels wrong.

We know this is impossible, the show seems to be asking its viewers again and again, but isn’t it so much fun?

The performances and the production - it has that particularly European filmic quality of feeling natural even when it gets stylish - keep the series warm even as the plot is made up of incredulous contraptions that require everything to go right at just the right time and for human psychology to be 100% predictable. Its physics are classical rather than quantum, one might say, and like the world itself, which becomes more curious the deeper you peer into things, it is best handled along the surface. You do not want to take too much time working out the likelihood of any of this happening. Just go along for the ride.

Somehow, though, it all works because Sy is so magnetic and charming that questioning plot logic feels wildly besides the point. Though he never looks appreciably different in his various aliases (including one ill-conceived live-TV appearance done under old-man makeup and a thick beard), he changes his posture and voice ( if you watch it in French that is) enough to allow for the willing suspension of disbelief, in the same way that any lead actor as Superman has to do when playing Clark Kent. But Sy and the show are at their strongest when Assane is just being his own Superman self, utterly relaxed and confident in his own skin, and so captivating that his ex-partner, Claire, can’t really resist him despite ample reason to.

If Assane seems practically perfect in every way, he is not perfectly perfect. His most obvious failing is that his criminal shenanigans and revenging make him less than reliable in his daily life, affecting his relationships with ex-partner Claire (Ludivine Sagnier, whom non-French audiences might recognise from “The Young Pope” and “The New Pope”), who despairs of his inability to show up on time to see his son Raoul (Etan Simon). Like Sy, Sagnier brings a lot of soul to her part - though onscreen far less, she’s as important as Sy to the series’ success - and the two actors have great chemistry. Also impressive and key to creating sympathy are the actors who play their flashback teenage selves, Mamadou Haidara and Ludmilla Makowski. Really, you could do away with action elements and build a series around them.

This is a pity because Lupin often fumbles its emotional reveals in other parts - the story of Diop being torn between his job and his family feels like wheel-spinning, rather than genuine emotional intrigue.

Soufiane Guerrab is wasted in the Young Detective Consumed by the Case role and spends most of this season pinning colour printouts of book covers to cork boards and getting waved off by his colleagues, who are all blinded or otherwise hampered by careerism.

But to my mind the weakest link is the villain himself and his daughter. Veteran actor Hervé Pierre hams it up as Hubert Pellegrini, a business tycoon who is the patriarch of the Pellegrini family. He just comes across as animated cartoon villain with no character depth (think moustache twirling Russian villain, Boris Badenov, in the Rocky & Bullwinkle cartoon shows). He just emotes anger a lot without any nuance or hint of complexity.

Even Clotilde Hesme who plays the daughter who is unaware of her father’s criminal tendencies is miscast. For the record I adore Clotilde Hesme as she one of France’s most talented classical actresses (that non-French outsiders will not have heard of). She is a classically theatre trained actress and is one of the best stage actresses of her generation that I have ever seen. I’ve seen her in plays where she is just mesmerising. She has said before that she’s more comfortable on the stage than she is on the screen. And when she has been on screen she still has been a powerful presence. She’s actually won a César too. Here in Lupin, she seems to have no agency and looks bored with nothing really to do.I really hope they give her more scenes in the next part of Lupin.

The series is at its best when following Diop enacting his plans, and when revealing each one from a different vantage, making us privy to every moving part like a magician revealing his secrets. The show captures the momentum of a clockwork heist, the tension of sudden obstacles and the ingenuity of improvised responses, with thrilling precision (especially in “Chapter 1 - Le Collier de la reine,” directed by Now You See Me’s Louis Leterrier).

Lupin is also politically incisive when it wants to be; it brings to mind Ladj Ly’s Oscar-nominated 2019 film Les Misérables, which adapted the broad strokes of Victor Hugo’s novel about the 1832 Paris Rebellion, and modernised the story by focusing on the police brutality faced by non-white Parisians.

Lupin opens with Diop disguised as cleaning staff and entering the Louvre after-hours, alongside dozens of forgotten, anonymous non-white workers as they pass by “La Liberté guidant le people,” Eugène Delacroix’s famous painting of the July Revolution of 1830 which replaced France’s hereditary rule with popular sovereignty.

Before any semblance of plot or character, Lupin centres broken ideals and promises unkept (without giving too much away, the show’s primary villain has much more nationalistic view of French culture and history which merely adds to a cartoonish caricature than a complex character). The rest of the episode is about valuable jewels once owned by Marie Antionette - one of the most recognisable symbols of wealth and extravagance in times of extreme poverty - which are put up for auction by the Pelligrini family, and bid on by other wealthy collectors with bottomless purses and no sense of irony.

Granted, beyond this auction subplot, explorations of race and class are largely limited to individual interactions, but the show continues to refer back to (and implicitly comment on) its source material in ways that wink at the audience. An elderly, unassuming target of Diop’s schemes seems like an unlikely victim at first - Diop, though he acts in his own self-interest, usually displays a moral compass - until this victim reveals the colonial origins of her wealth, immediately re-contextualising the ethics of the situation, in a manner that Leblanc’s stories did not. (The show is yet to apply this lens to Arsène Lupin himself, who Diop treats with reverence, but that’s a secondary concern since Lupin is entirely fictional in-world).

Barring some nagging structural problems - like cutting to flashbacks when things are getting exciting, or epilogues that feel ten minutes too long - Lupin mostly works. It plants a few personal seeds early on, which it keeps hinting at without fully addressing, but by the time its scattered elements come into focus, the show finally figures out how to weave them together, and delivers a mid-season cliffhanger that renders many of these flaws irrelevant.

Lupin manages to have fun even with an antiquated premise - the story of a suave con-man who charms his way through high-profile robberies - while adding just enough new spin on the concept to feel refreshing. Omar Sy may not have much to work with, but his alluring presence makes Assane Diop feel like a worthy successor to Arsène Lupin.

Lupin isn’t going to win César, BAFTA, or Emmy awards, or even turn heads for its ability to develop tertiary or even secondary plots or characters - that doesn’t really matter. You’re there to see a difficult hero be difficult and heroic - everyone else is there to be charmed, vexed, or eluded by them. Sy’s performance bounds off the screen, and is almost musical. He floats through scenes like he glides over the roofs and through the back alleys of Paris; he outmanoeuvres his foes with superior literary references and sheer athleticism. He is irresistible and also good at everything he tries, even kidnapping.

I would encourage anyone to watch Lupin for a fun care free ride. But the only caveat I would make is watch it in the original French.

If you don’t know French then put on the subtitles to understand (that’s what they are there for). The real crime is to watch this (or any film or television series) dubbed in a foreign language. It’s disrespectful to the actors and film makers and it’s silly because it’s comical to watch something dubbed over.

Please watch it in the original French.

Then go and read the books. You won’t regret it.

Thanks for your question.

#question #ask #lupin #omar sy #netflix #tv show #culture #personal #arsene lupin #japan #maurice leblanc #france #french #society #arts

[wonderloste]

What are key features to know on Faelen's appearence? (yes this is for a evil plan of mine)

SLAMS BOOK SHUT. an excuse to do an appearance lore dump on one of my characters ? say no more KJNMEKRJHNM this’ll prob have more details than u actually want or is relevant but it gives me a chance to point out some of faelen’s face / body / dress features so i’m taking it. 🤡

in general it’s worth noting faelen is kinda color-coded to light blues, gold, & white & that’s reflected in little details (like his makeup, the colors of his ribbons, clothes, etc)

w face and hair, faelen,

wears eyeliner + generally has a smokey thing going on w eyeshadow

has long, blonde (very light / not quite white, but almost) hair that reaches just below his shoulder blades. he will usually wear it in fancy updo’s (like, bridal styles - braids, ponytails, buns lmao.) if he leaves it down, he braids the front back.

^ may or may not have ribbons threaded through his hair depending on the style.

has lilac eyes !

he doesn’t have ears, he has feathers that stick out where his ears would be, which are a mixture of golden & white.

w body features, he

has two large scars along his back / shoulder blades where beatrice made him cut out his own gryphon wings shortly after he fell under her control.

paints his nails.

has skin which is very porcelain tm by which i mean unnaturally perfect, making the disfigurement of his back extremely noticeable.

w clothing,

he tends to wear a lot of very fancy / adorned suits, usually white. very big victorian vibes, if u just. threw steampunk up on it KJNMEKRJHNM. gold accents, frilled cuffs, gloves. etc.

+ also generally wears a white cloak / cape so he can put the hood up any time he needs to hide his face / when leaving the castle without beatrice knowing.

also occasionally wears golden jewelry on his (ear) feathers or adorning his head (chains, crowns, headbands.)

+ bonus points for bracelets, necklaces, etc. in general, he just loves beautiful things.

generally his fc (vil twst) is a godsend for getting his basic appearance down, the vibes are just completely different ironically 😂 faelen is very soft & ‘angelic’ in appearances, often teased because he looks the complete opposite of valentin, whom he is very close friends with. it’s often remarked by heart kingdom’s royal court that it’s “hard to believe” he was ever a war hero, with how delicate / sophisticated he presents himself now.

#juwul #he's ... soft #a soft mans #KJNENMRHKJNEHMR BUT ALSO HELLO??? SQUINTS AT U #◟ ⋆ CHARACTER STUDY › gryphon. #◟ ⋆ OOC › otome games are my thirteenth reason.

[dtyblogger]

Top Terrifying-But-True Horror Stories Reported in the News

Sure, a scary movie, book, or program can get your heart racing in the moment, but you can rest comfortable afterwards knowing that what you witnessed was a work of fiction. What's scarier is when the actual world becomes creepier than anything Stephen King could conjure up.

Real fear occurs all around us every day, even if it doesn't always make it into your newsfeed. Murders, disappearances, demonic possession, and devil worship aren't simply fiction from a writer's imagination; they're news headlines.

We've compiled a list of some of the most horrific and inexplicable real-world stories below.

The Axe Murder House

The Villisca Axe Murder House in Villisca, Iowa is a popular tourist destination for both ghost seekers and horror fans. The location of a brutal unsolved 1912 murder in which six children and two adults had their skulls totally smashed by an unknown perpetrator's axe was acquired in 1994, restored to its 1912 form, and made into a tourist attraction. Staying at the ancient haunted house costs $428 per night, and tourists frequently claim unusual paranormal encounters, such as images of a guy with an axe wandering the hallways or faint screams of children.

The haunting, however, took a worse turn in November of 2014. Robert Steven Laursen Jr., 37, of Rhinelander, Wisconsin, was on a routine recreational paranormal visit with friends when he experienced genuine terror. According to VICE:

His companions found him stabbed in the chest—an apparently self-inflicted wound—called 9-1-1, and Laursen was brought to a nearby hospital before being helicoptered to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha.

According to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, Laursen received the self-inflicted injury about 12:45 a.m., around the time the 1912 axe murders in the home began.

Laursen was able to recuperate from his injuries, but he has never talked publicly about what happened that day. The event was unpleasant for the home's owner, Martha Linn. "It's publicity, but it's not the type of publicity you're looking for." I don't want people to assume that if they come to the Villisca Axe Murder House, something will happen that would force them to do anything like that.” Today, the home is accessible for tourist visits and overnight stays.

The Haunted Doll

When you think of haunted dolls, you often think of the eerie old Victorian-looking porcelain variety. None of which you're likely to have lying around. However, don't get too comfy with any children's toys too soon: a Disney's Frozen Elsa doll that was given as a present for Christmas 2013 in the Houston region made news earlier this year when it appeared to be haunted.

The doll recited phrases from the movie Frozen and sang “Let It Go” when a button on its necklace was pressed.

“For two years it did that in English,” mother Emily Madonia said. “In 2015, it started doing it alternating between Spanish and English. There wasn’t a button that changed these, it was just random."

The family has owned the doll for more than six years and never changed its batteries. The mother says the doll would randomly begin to speak and sing even with its switch turned off.

In December of 2019, the family decided to get rid of the scary doll. They discovered it inside a bench in their living room weeks later. “The kids said they didn't put anything there, and I believed them because they wouldn't have searched through the rubbish outside,” Madonia explained to KPRC2 Houston News.

Elsa stopped singing the English version of "Let It Go" at that moment, speaking only Spanish when pressed. The strange doll was then double-bagged and placed at the bottom of the family's rubbish, which was carried out on garbage day. They went on a trip soon after, but when they returned, Elsa had also returned and was waiting for them in their garden.

Elsa was shipped to a family friend in Minnesota, who fastened the haunting doll to the front bumper of his truck this time. According to Madonia's most recent February Facebook update on the scary doll, it does not appear to have found its way back to Houston.

A Dangerous Exorcism

Kennedy Ife, 26, of North London, began acting strangely and aggressively in August 2016 after experiencing throat pain. Before his family confined him to a bed using wire ties and severe force, he allegedly bit his father, threatened to chop off his own penis, and spoke of a python or snake inside of him.

According to the BBC:

“The family then set about attempting to ‘cure’ Kennedy through restraint and prayer over the next three days, the court was told.”

His brother, Colin Ife, told police:

“It’s clear that thing was in him, what we believed was a demon because it was not natural. It was clearly trying to kill him,” he said.

“We had to restrain him for himself. It was clear if we didn’t restrain him, he could have tried to harm people in our family.”

Kennedy Ife had been chained to his bed for three days without medical treatment when his brother contacted 911, saying that he was suffering from dehydration. He looked to be having respiratory problems and was pronounced deceased at 10:17 a.m.

According to The Independent:

While police were at the house Colin Ife allegedly carried out an “attempted resurrection” by chanting and praying for Mr. Ife.

Kennedy Ife had been chained to his bed for three days without medical treatment when his brother contacted 911, saying that he was suffering from dehydration. He looked to be having respiratory problems and was pronounced deceased at 10:17 a.m.

According to The Independent:

Kenneth Ife told jurors he ordered his sons to take shifts and use "overwhelming force" but denied that an "association with cults, occults and secret societies" played any part in the death.

After a four day jury deliberation, all seven family members were cleared of charges on March 14, 2019.

#horror #horrible histories #real horror stories #american horror story