#anyway i really really truly love bay jazz

[vodid]

yall ever experience a love for something so great that it literally hurts. like it feels like your brain is gonna explode. screaming crying throwing up except it feels like that's actually going to happen. bc you're experiencing so much emotion

because that's me with bay jazz. again. help. he has an autistic grip on me

#i cant stop watching his scenes frame by frame #ive seen them all 40 times and yet #who decided live action was a good idea he looks so real #and its killing my neurodivergent maladaptive daydreaming brain #i'm holding his head in my hand. from the statue i bought. and i just can't stop Thinking about He #and i am just so upset that we didn't get more of him and won't #I'M UPSET HE'S NOT REAL #i feel like i'm a child fresh into transformers again #dreamy sigh #but on another note this might be a bad sign that the stress is getting to me too much #at least i'm trying to make something good out of it ? even if its. really just hurting me in the end LOL #anyway i really really truly love bay jazz #time to draw him! #........just in time for jazzy week perhaps?

[ficauthor]

inspired by the prompt by @danphanwritingprompts:

Danny narrowed his eyes as the Uber arrived at the church, and he finally remembered the occasion. “Wait, Mom? Did we just pregame Vlad’s funeral?” Danny asked. Maddie scowled. “Shut up and act sober. For some reason, your dad loved that miserable creep,” she told him. “It’s the only way to get through the day,” Jazz agreed, fumbling to open the door and step out.

and some other headcannons that I've seen float around tumblr about trans Danny fic below cut if you dont wanna follow the link.

Looking out the window was making him nauseous, like really  really nauseous. The kind of nauseous he only got when sick or from a good punch. He knew a thing or two about good punches. He’d been taking them for a few years now.

It really wasn’t fair if you asked him. One should ask him because it was an experience that only he could experience. After all, halfa's were rare as can be. Skulker had certainly told him enough for him to know. Every brush with alcohol in his younger days was, well, a mixed bag. He processed it faster than the average person so he was lucky in that aspect that he got drunk faster. But if anything his messing about with alcohol before he was 21 told him it was that it also left much faster than normal. Bullshit ghost rules and all of that. Genuinely being a ghost even half one had very few upsides. Some people online speculated about how cool ghost powers must be to have but clearly none of them knew about the burden that it came with. Sometimes he still wished that he didn’t know. 

However this time for whatever reason the alcohol was hitting him and staying. Maybe it was because the previous times he’d been drinking cheap party booze in Dash’s garage with Sam and Tucker, no one but the three of them aware that they were even there. Instead this time the booze was some semi expensive shit, he didn’t know the name or type but he’d been promised quality. Why he of all people was being given quality alcohol he'd never know but he wasn’t going to turn it down.

That being said seemed the trade off was intense nausea. It wasn’t that bad all things considered, he actually preferred being sloshed for the upcoming event but his body was not agreeing with that. Not that his body agreed with a lot of things. The disagreement between ghost and human sometimes really bit him in the ass. His head was floaty, the world in front of him was spinning badly, maybe it’d be worth it to never drink again. Especially if he was going to have this reaction . If only he’d invited Sam and Tucker. They were great fun and always knew how to reel him in. Man he missed them, if only they didn’t all go to different colleges. But nooo all of their majors just had to have few overlapping colleges. At least they were all within a drives (or in his case a flying) distance. When he wasn’t feeling too sick and unbalanced he’d have to fly over to their dorms for a movie night. It’d be nice. Sam might even be able to get them into someplace cool again.

In a stagnant attempt to push the feeling away he turned away from the window and towards his family. Jazz was studying a text on her phone. Probably a message from her girlfriend at university. Maybe she was inviting her. That’d be nice. She seemed nice when he’d saved her as Phantom a month ago, then everyone was nice when their life had just flashed before their eyes and they were rescued from it’s visions. Even when he and Valerie were on the worst of terms he was always grateful when ever she rescued him in either form. Bar Johnny 13 his sisters' taste in partners wasn’t actually all that bad. He actually liked her last girlfriend. Even then with Johnny he wasn’t sure how much of that was actually her taste and how much was Kitty’s possession. 

Certainly Jazz’s apprehension couldn’t be blamed, three of her previous partners both highschool and college were driven away by how weird their family was. She claimed she was fine with it, something about them not truly accepting all parts of her but still. That sucked. School had been rough enough, he couldn’t even count the amount of people that had been weirded out from being his friend because of his parents. Well there was also his reputation but his parents being renowned ghost hunters and chaotic town kooks certainly did not help. Looking back on it more of that might have actually been on his reputation. A nerd with A+ grades until highschool only to then end up with Ds on the best of days and bruises on the worst. Yeah some of that was probably on him.

Jazz gave him a look, he’d spaced out and looked at her for too long, it was weird now. He gave her a shrug and turned to their mother.

Laughing would be rude; he had to remind himself when he spotted her dancing along to the car radio in her dorky adult grooving. It was peaceful in a way. A down time he didn't usually get to appreciate before something bad (normally ghosts) interrupted. It was almost nice in a way to be calm with his mom and sister. Even if the former looked really really stupid.

He snorted anyway at his mom’s dance moves. Discombobulated shoulder jerks and little hand motions mixed in with little head rolls that had no rhyme or reason. It was wildly out of beat and didn’t match the tone of the song on radio. It was definitely the kind of dancing that Tucker would disparagingly call “white people shit”. The thought alone of Tucker's pain at his parents' dance moves was almost enough to send him into hysterics.

Man he missed Tucker.

He’d have to check in on Tucker soon, since he started the latest school assignment he’d sort of ghosted everyone, for the lack of a better word. It was probably the stress of dealing with his assignment partners, he’d done the same last time. Still… in a town and world with ghosts it couldn't hurt to try to check in on him. Tuck was a big boy now he could hold his own in a ghost fight but he didn’t like the idea of leaving him to it. Call him what you will but obsessions were just like that. 

Maybe he was a little possessive.

Just a touch.

“Oh Danny!” his mom squealed as a new song filtered in. The Uber driver rolled his eyes, clearly he thought no one could see him but Danny caught it in the rear view mirror. ” I love this song, isn't it rad!”

He tried not to laugh, he really did, but it was so ridiculous. His parents were doing this on purpose! They had to be! There was no way that they weren’t no one was that out of touch. That behind on lingo. Warm giggles and chuckles bubbled forth, messy and loud. The kind of laugh only those closest to him could coax out of him. Back in school it was only Tuck and Sam that got him to laugh like that (maybe Jazz if she was lucky) make him lose his composure so quickly, but more and more readily his parents had been able to also force the laughs out of him.

If only fourteen year old him could see him now. He’d be so embarrassed. Sitting in the back of an Uber laughing openly at something silly his mom was doing.  She said something he couldn’t catch, teased him probably for laughing. A random pop song and the air coming in from the drivers open window were just loud enough to cover even a raised voice. Even still the there was comfort. Whatever she said was from a place of love.

He loved car rides sometimes. He didn’t always appreciate them when he was younger, kind of like how he felt about his parents. Especially when he was 14 but now? They were some of his favourite times spent with his parents. He just couldn’t help it, something about the rolling scene and music with easy conversation lulled him. It helped keep his obsession at bay, blocking it from flaring if he could see that some of the most important people in his life were there, in front of him safe and sound.

He still ached. Felt that compulsion to check Sam and Tuck. Rather than scream like normal it was a soothing whisper. He was able to drunkenly send them a text about how much he loved them without the skin crawling need to see that they were still standing.

 The Uber slowed to a crawl, the Sudan squealing as they stopped. Man that guy really needed to replace his breaks. He could get in a wreck and then whoever he was ferrying around could get seriously hurt.

No!

He shook his head; he couldn't let his obsession obsess on something so small. It was probably safe to look out of the window again so he chanced a look. Danny narrowed his eyes as the Uber arrived at the church, and he finally remembered the occasion.

“Wait, Mom? Did we just pregame Vlad’s funeral?” Danny asked. 

Maddie scowled,“ Shut up and act sober. For some reason, your dad loved that miserable creep,” she told him.

“It’s the only way to get through the day,” Jazz agreed, fumbling to open the door and step out.

Damn he hadn’t meant to forget the occasion but he couldn’t help it his mind was already prone to wandering and the alcohol was just making it worse. Really it was a miracle he passed highschool in the first place, even when sober his mind just struggled to latch onto subjects, and that was before he had to nightlight as Phantom, hell it wasn’t even nightlighting it was a full double life. Really he didn't even know how he was managing college with the heroing on the side. Best guess if he was pressed to give one was that his parents’ disappointment and the desire to go to space was combining into the ultimate peer pressure. Funny how his brain worked like that, maybe Jazz could explain that to him. She was good for stuff like that. Explanations for why his brain was weird. She tried to give him an acronym for it one time something with A's. An attention thing of some sort. He'd have to ask her about it again sometime so he could wrap his mind around it.

“Hey!” Jazz opened the door, her face inches from his, the scent of some fruity cocktail on her breath,” get out Danny, and remember, act normal. At least for dad’s sake.”

“Yeah,” he waved her off stumbling to his feet, honestly it wasn’t fair that the ground was so unsteady beneath him, kind of transphobic if you asked him. “If you wanted me to act normal then why’d we all get plastered?” he joked.

“Shush,” Jazz clamped a hand on his face, their slow amble up the church's  many  steps paused. “Don’t lick a gift horse in the mouth Danny, you know this will be insufferable.” 

He licked her hand, she recoiled, wiping the spit off on her fancy black dress. 

“Danny!”

He stuck out his tongue in retaliation.

“Behave, ”she chided.

He rolled his eyes and followed her. It was just a funeral, what was the worst they could get into?

 The second he stepped in the church threshold he knew. It put his whole body on edge, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and the faintest trickled of mist? ghost vaper? Ghost breath? He actually had no clue what it was that came out of his mouth. 

Well he never really understood what he was saying half the time anyways, his mouth had a habit of running out from under him. The worst case of that was just the other week, he was talking to Sam over skype about something and he’d forgotten that she knew about Phantom, how really he had no clue, and he just went on for about twenty minutes making some out there wild excuse for why he’d missed their last hang out when she’d stopped him.

Honestly it was getting embarrassing, even worse was trying to keep things he said to his parents in each form separate. He really had to tell them soon.

It was so easy when he was 14 the breadth of his conversations with them as Phantom at the time could be summed up with a snarky quip from him or a “I’m gonna dissect you” from them. Now though they seemed to be fully taking seriously the notion that ghosts had depth to them. Which while true was deeply inconvenient for him. That meant he had to have interactions with them as Phantom and keep his identity straight ( ha  ). Maybe he should be grateful, they weren’t threatening to dissect him anymore that was certainly a plus, they still definitely wanted to examine him however.  He had considered it, in the depth of the night, allowing them to examine him only to drop the transformation part way through. It’d be funny, just a little bit to catch them off guard like that. But they didn’t deserve a coming out like that. He stifled a groan, he thought he was done with the closet when he’d come out but no life just had to never end and add in ghosts.

“Danny,” Jazz hissed at him. 

He slurred out a huh at her in confusion.

Damn he’d been staring out at nothing, the Pastor? Priest? He didn’t know the difference to be honest, was still talking about Vlad. Shit that’s right! The second he’d walked in his ghost sense had gone haywire, Vlad was still (half) alive in that plush ass casket. He wondered how bad it'd be to fake a stomach ache and transform into Phantom for some ass kickery. Knowing his luck though Vlad might just feign full death embrace just to make a fool of him. 

He would do that, fake his death, hell he was doing it right now! Motive was still unclear to him but Danny was going to get to the bottom of it. The man at the front, religious figure of whatever denomination, was gesturing large and big as he wrapped up.  It was really official, and stuffy, when he finally fully died he wanted his funeral to be nothing like this. Maybe Tuck's ideas of dramatic funeral pranks were where it was at. Or maybe even Sam's ideas of celebratory parties that remembered the dead's life. He wouldn’t object to either of those. 

Alcohol was fading out of his system again, well it’d been nice while it’d lasted but it’d probably be best to not be sloshed if Vlad wanted to cause a scene. 

He sat at the edge of his seat as his father came up for a speech.

“Vlad,” his father stopped to blow his nose,” Vlad was a good friend of mine in college, w-we,” his lip trembled, his large jaw hammering up and down as he stammered for words. It took everything in Danny to not sink into the pew bench in embarrassment. Jack was for all intensive purposes the only person in the entire church that seemed genuinely broken up about the billionaire’s death.

“We drifted apart for a while, and he’d just started to come back to mine and my wife's lives a few years ago and- and- I-I sorry,” he winced as his fathers voice died.

While he didn’t understand his fathers affection for the man his heart couldn't help but ache for the man’s sorrow. His father had such a large heart. He was so trusting and held so much affection in his large beating heart. It was a weakness and a strength. One his mother often said he inherited. He didn’t know if he could see it. He wasn’t so soft, so trusting, so eager to love and care as his father. Then the larger man hadn’t been burned the same. Hadn’t had his heart half electrocuted to death like him.

His mom walked up on the stage, he was briefly impressed by her composure, she was buzzed but also in heels and looked to all the church exceedingly well put together. Quietly she was speaking her hands gently on Jack’s shoulders patting his back soothingly. She often sold herself short. Stating her heart not to be as big, Danny didn’t believe that, not really, his mother was just more careful in those she let in.

“I wasn’t as close to him as my husband,” she admitted, having softly taken the mic from Jack. her fingers were curled around it softly, but her other hand was in her hair. She was fidgeting and searching for words,” but I’m sure those he was close to will miss him dearly.” she said tight lipped. Jack whispered something to Maddie quietly making her smile tightly and nod. The man moved to his seat and let his wife continue his speech in his stead. 

It was nothing notable really, Danny wasn’t one for paying attention to speeches or lectures and a funeral would not be an exception. He caught a few snippets though, his moms implication that she liked him better in college. A line hoping that in death that he could hopefully move on from the past. He really tried to not laugh at that one clearly because she'd noticed the exes. How many of them had known before? How many of the exes had to learn of their blueprint right then and there in the funeral.

Still he sat teetering on the edge of his seat, half paying attention to her words and mind half trained on that open casket. Vlad lay there in the plush box waiting. What for he couldn’t tell yet but he wasn’t going to be caught unaware.

The speeches couldn’t have ended any slower in his opinion. He wished that the alcohol hadn’t run it’s course already. It was so much easier to get through shit when his mind was quieted and his obsession was dulled. Instead he was forced to wait, his waking obsession tearing at his insides making him wait. Watch the lingering guests with apprehensive eyes. A few were expected. Gaggle of divorced exes. Some smattering of people that vaguely had Vlad's chin and nose. It was bizarre, some looked wildly like him and others well. They were utter strangers to Danny. They all were but they seemed almost faceless in how unknown they were. Interestingly none of them really seemed that choked up. He’d never expected troves of people depressed about Vlad’s passing. Still to only have one sobbing mourner? Maybe they just grieved differently...

Yeah maybe.

About when he got his water from the refreshments table he realized that Vlad really wasn't pulling a stunt. Still he had no clue why he was in that damn casket if he was still (half) alive in there. He almost laughed at the absurdity of it all, his worst nightmare was being trapped in one of those, yet Vlad had clambered in willing foot after foot laying stricken and board straight for all that he knew to see him. It didn’t make sense. There had to be some trick.

There had to be.

He thought maybe after his father had bowed his head over the casket head in hands loud body wracking sobs shaking his shoulders that Vlad might then spring to life (ha) and attack them. No, instead he remained laying in that coffin, the soft plush pillow under his head holding him still, the flowers in hand still clutched in strict fingers. He must have some sort of long con going on then. Some sort of goal he was aiming to reach by laying stricken and dead.

Wouldn’t be the first time the man had pulled a bizarre stunt. The time he’d kidnapped Danny and his mom sprang to mind. But there were few situations that came to mind where faking one’s death could come in handy. 

A severe looking man walked up to him a small plate of hors d'oeuvres in hand.  Sam would hate the sight of the small snacks, not a single one was vegetarian. And Tuck? He’d be laughing his head off at the name and size. He really had to rope them into a trip to the movies or arcade sometime soon.

The man greeted him, straightening his professional looking tie as he spoke. The man was exceedingly out of place, in a clean and crisp business suit that hardly matched the tone of mourning clothes. Then his parents were wearing their jumpsuits under their fancy clothes so glass houses and all that.

The man was painfully dull giving Danny his condolences in a rather stilted and clunky tone. The man clearly didn't want to be there. He raised an eyebrow at the man as he finally asked how he knew the ‘deceased’. 

Telling the man something to the effect of, “Just through my parents,” somehow making it clear to the man that he wasn’t particularly choked up by the billionaire's death. Gee he wondered what gave it away, his flat unaffected tone? Or the fact that Vlad was a billionaire with no moral backbone. 

Huh, he must really be missing Sam a lot to be thinking like that. he hated to admit it but she was kinda right. 

Business suit was disinterested in conversation with Danny after that, he hastily wrapped up the conversation. Man even muttered “shame.” under his breath, if Danny wasn’t half dead he wouldn't have caught it. But well nothing ever really worked out well for bureaucrats did it?

Had Vlad seriously faked his death to avoid paying a few measly bucks? The man was a billionaire! He must really owe them a mean amount of money for them all to arrive at the funeral like this. Maybe they hoped the will would work in their favour? Not far in front of the refreshment table were two suits talking unabashedly about the amounts that Vlad owed them. If it weren’t for the setting Danny would think that they were coming or going from an important meeting.

For what was probably the first time he properly looked at all of the guests. Actually taking them in, a good chunk like he’d noticed before were the exes that half looked like his mom, and their kids (hopefully they weren’t biologically Vlads). Then there were the vague family members that looked like Vlad watered down with kindness. But the rest? Suits and-

Oh.

Oh he had to step behind an archway and stuff a fist in his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud. Vlad had fucking bounty hunters being sent after him! It was karmic, he had to stop himself from busting a gut right then and there in the middle of a church. It was already blasphemy enough to be the walking dead he didn't want to also throw in disrespecting the (only mostly) dead into the mix. 

Well at least they weren’t all debtors, lurking around the corners and edges of the room was a guy he’d worked with as Phantom a few years ago. He was kind of hot in a rugged sort of way. If it weren’t for Sam and Tuck he’d have considered flirting seriously with the other man. As it was his joking flirting got him in trouble with the other two.

He was really acting up being normal, that rugged man. Mingling about with other people dressed neatly.

Clear to only  Danny what he was, what the others like him were, the man wandered unaware that Danny was watching him. Ironically he only knew they were bounty hunters because Vlad had hired the rugged man and his crew to hunt Phantom that time a few years ago and now? Oh the tables have turned. Someone, maybe one of the exes, or the debtors wanted him dead. Damn what had Vlad done?

Ghost Zone inhabitants had mixed opinions on him, many of which wanted him dead or knocked down a peg. But that was the Ghost Zone, half of them wanted  Danny  dead at some point or another. This was the human world. Earth and shit, it was much harder to piss off someone to the level of murder. Not impossible but damn. He grinned at this, Vlad was (half) alive and (sorta) well in that casket and he couldn’t do anything if he started to stir shit up. Life was beautiful, twinkling and gorgeous, he decided. He Didn’t need Tucker and Sam to have fun.

 He started with one of the exes. He went out of his way to ignore her dyed red hair and pale purple eyes as he talked with her. It wasn’t her fault that Vlad had a complex, he reminded himself as the woman talked. Fault couldn’t be pinned on her for the parallels he could search between his mother and her. She was nice in a weird way, again really like his mom. It was unnerving. He kept trying to ignore her beady eyed gremlin of a child as she talked to him about the will. 

Whatever Vlad had done for all the people in his life to only care about the will and the will alone Danny wanted to do the express opposite. It was almost painful in a way to watch all of these people act like they weren’t only here for the money. Served the man right, it was still depressing, the man had everything on paper but not a damn thing in reality.

“Do you think his daughter will show?” he tactfully added into the conversation after the woman had made some condolences about his family and Vlad. 

“Daughter?” the woman asked, her large eyes blinking slowly,” I'm sure you're mistaken, Vlad told me he doesn’t have kids.”

“Oh,” he said, feigning apology, inside he was loving this, sure Vlad couldn’t admit the truth about the clones but clearly the man had seriously left out some details to his ex lovers. “Are you sure? ‘Elle is nineteen now,” he said, it was technically true if you counted right. She was also only seven if you counted right. It was all about semantics.

“Ninete-” the woman stammered something hard settling in her eyes,” he told me he didn’t want to have children,” she looked down at her angry eyed child (he hoped the little dude didn’t kick him in the shin) who had a hand fisted in the end of her dress. “If you’ll excuse me, Daniel, this was an- enlightening conversation.” he watched her walk away to a woman with a big chunky bracelet.

Also a redhead. Of course.

A sharp pain seared in the top of his ear he prevented himself from yowling out as the fingers attached dragged him over to a corner.

"ow ow ow," he whined out quietly trying heard not to draw attention to himself. It didn't really work.

“What the  fuck  are you doing?” Jazz hissed at him when they were hidden away from the rest of the group.

“First of all: ow!” He rubbed his ear delicately between his finger pads,” I’m not a child anymore, maybe borderline sibling abuse was funny in 80’s sitcoms but it's not anymore.”

Jazz rolled her eyes,” second of all?” she pressed, she was still slightly buzzed and yet she was still holding herself with so much composure. Kind of impressive, if she hadn’t just physically threatened to rip his ear off.

“Secondly I’m not doing anything wrong.”

“Not do-” Jazz floundered,” Daniel!” she hissed out again struggling to keep her tone low. Damn she was mad, she only pulled out the full name when really fucked up,” I know your relationship with Vlad was- complicated.”

He snorted,” he tried to kill me multiple times, Jazz.”

“Yes bu-”

“Dark Dan,’’ he pressed further.

“I get it!” she snapped in a whisper-shout,” but a funeral isn-”

“He isn’t dead Jazz. Or really fully dead I guess I should say,” he laughed

Jazz rolled her eyes,” This is concerning behaviour Danny.”

“W-what?” he asked.

She tapped her chin pensively, she was psychoanalyzing him again, gag, “You must be transferring your complicated feeling about him into-”

“Jazz,” he groaned. It was best to stop her before she got on a roll, “Ghost senses remember? He’s still not fully dead, I can tell. He faked his death.”

“Okay,” she said with a sigh," I'm not saying I believe you, but say he did fake his death-”

“He did.”

She shot him a look, “Why? Why would he fake his death? He’s a rich ceo multi-billionaire with more money than most of us can conceive of, nonetheless actually obtain, what does he get out of faking his death?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, this was easier when Jazz was talking to one of Vlad’s cousins ignoring him stirring the pot. 

He explained what he’d pieced together so far, with the suits and hunters lurking around the edges of the room it was easy to point out how out of place they look. Slowly a realization fell on her face, an acceptance of what he was saying.

“When I was talking to the stepford exes they were all talking about who would get the estate.”

“Do they know who?” he asked.

Jazz shook her head,” no the will was kept really secretive from all of them. There was even a bit of an altercation from two of the younger ex girlfriends over it.”

He winced at that, he couldn’t blame them for being mad he just wished Vlad wasn’t faking death for them to take it out on. “The bottle red and the one with the big bracelet?” he prompted, remembering the end of his conversation with the former.

“No that’s Maddison and Maggie, the two that fought were Morgan and Melenie.”

“Maddison? Maggie? Morgan? Melenie?” he repeated with a grimace voice getting higher with each name.

“Yeah I know,” she said with a sigh,” a textbook case of projecting an ex, or in this case crush, on future partners leading to a string of failed relationships,” she frowned looking over at the group of clustered red heads. Danny followed and examined them, they were all looking at something their eyes occasionally darted over to- 

Oh of course, mom, they ‘d probably done the math already. He winced at the thought. He’d half thought about it before  finding the notion funny. Now in his sparkling sobriety of the evening he couldn’t find the humour.

“At least they all mostly get along,” Jazz offered, trying to look away from how the dozen or so women were looking at the one woman they were all stacked against.

“Really?” he blinked at her,” I’d have thought that they’d all be fighting cause of the- well you know,” he gestured to the, everything, of the situation.

She shook her head,” no, they seem to all understand that it was all on Vlad, two of them, Mackenzie and Melody,” she clarified to even more of his confusion,” even found out that they were seeing him at the same time. How they didn’t know with all of the press that followed him I’ll never know, but they decided to team up on the legal front if there are any issues with the will.”

“Really.”

Jazz nodded,” yeah I was surprised too, but good for them, Vlad went around causing too many issues in their lives.”

He nodded in agreement as he looked at at the sea of redheads, some of them had grown out their hair revealing dark roots, some had hair styled in poufy curls reminiscent of his mothers old style and one of them had completely cut her hair into a half shaved look, it was actually similar to the look that Sam had now.

“Want to cause some problems for him?” he asked.

“Danny, legally and socially he’s dead, what could we do?”

“Legally yeah,” he agreed,” but technically he’s still half alive in there, and can hear everything that people say-”

“Are you suggesting that we ruin his reputation?” Jazz asked with a poorly hidden smile. He loved that in the years she’d loosened up. It was a good look on her, relaxation.

“Ruin?” He said, in mock scandal, ”I'm merely suggesting we bring it down to where it belongs.”

“Oh ‘merely’ what is that a fifth grade word? I'm impressed!” Jazz teased.

He shoved her lightly with a laugh,” oh fuck off I’m in college now you know.”

“Really? Accredited and everything?”

He stifled his laugh,” shut up, you know dealing with ghost shit messed with my grades.”

Truthfully he’d expected her to joke further about it, to razz him about doing so much, or maybe analyze him, diagnosis him with trauma. Instead she hugged him.

“I’m sorry so much was put on your shoulders so young,” her voice was raw. Too raw.  

He patted her back, stomach squirming. Because what was he to do with that? The tender care held for him in the cracks of her fingers. The sorrow that settled in her pores all for him?

“Hey stop that,” he eventually said, pulling back,” or I'll make clockwork take me back in time so you never find out.” He didn’t mean it, he never did.

Jazz laughed a little wetly, he didn’t comment on it. Why would he? Also didn’t get a chance as she ruffled his hair, despite the fact that he was now much taller than her. “People are allowed to care about you, asshole.”

He scrunched his nose up at that,” ew what? I detest affection.”

“Oh detest another good one, really racking up those vocab words huh?” she sniffled her hands on her hips, a little lean in her back as she smirked.

Snorting, he stepped back and fixed his hair,” how about we make this a competition?”

“Huh?”

“First one to make Vlad burst out of his casket and rage in ghost mode wins.”

“Really? What would the winner get?”

He tapped his chin making a humming noise,” how about this, loser has to reveal their secret.”

Jazz laughed nervously,” I don’t have a secret Danny.”

Danny gave her a look,” Jazz, I’ve met your girlfriend.”

She bit her lip looking down at his outstretched hand, a debate playing in her eyes.

“Hey you don’t have to if you don’t wanna,” he said softly,” this is just meant for fun after all.” he knew better than most what forcing this stuff did.

”No, it’s fine,” she took his hand and shook, if a little clumsily,” that doesn’t mean they have to meet her though.”

“Oh don’t worry,” he said,” it won’t be my fault if they do that’ll be entirely on them.”

“Danny!” she exclaimed at him as he fled to the other side of the church. Finally this funeral was going to be interesting!

“Can you keep a secret?” he asked the swaying uncle of Vlad. The man smelled of beer and hors d'oeuvres. Not that Danny could judge if it wasn’t for the thick layer of spray on deodorant that his mom smothered him in right before he got in the uber then he’d probably smell just as rank. Then there was the fact that he’d pregamed to.

The older man narrowed his eyes at Danny, he was shocked to see the man he looked to hardly be much older than Vlad yet he was his uncle? He’d gone to ask about it but thought better about it, the less lore he knew about Vlad’s family the better, he really didn’t want to know about how many kids and when and how the Masters ‘clan’ had. Conversation with the older man was… stilted, to say the least. But he was certain that if he told him something then it wouldn’t get back to him. And that was half the game wasn’t it? Finding a way to spread the most rumours without people finding out it was him or Jazz. All without powers of course, that almost went without saying. 

The man didn’t seem too broken up about Vlad, they probably weren’t that close and Danny had always gotten the impression from the billionaire that he was a smidge too snobbish to fully have developed relationships with people. As often as he teased Jazz for being snobby, she at least was nowhere near as bad as Vlad. Man damn near invented snobbishness and assholery. He’d have to ask clockwork if Vlad’s ancestors were just as bad. Judging by some of his family, probably not.

“Well before he passed,” Danny prompted, pausing in a way to snag the older man's attention.

“Yes?” the older man asked when he didn’t continue.

“Well,” Danny fidgeted with his nail,”  you know his signed Packers jersey?”

The older man nodded eagerly.

Danny looked to the side,” it’s a fake,” he whispered to the man.

“Really?”

He nodded,” yeah, but please don’t tell anyone,” he added,” it’s bad enough that they know he was banned from buying the team-”

“He was what?” 

Danny fought to hide a smirk. He knew it’d be easier to sell this lie if he started smaller.

“I thought everyone knew!”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, most of the town knows, it’s just, no one talked about it to be polite.” okay that might have been overselling it a bit but the distant relative seemed to really be drinking it in.

“What did he do?”

Danny looked side to side like he didn’t want anyone to overhear.

“Well a few years ago when he was closing the deal to buy the team he got caught stalking some of the members!”

“Really?” the uncle asked,” wha- why?”

Danny shrugged,” they never really found the reason he was following them, he was even trying to seduce some of the wives.”

The man gasped,” I- really?” 

Danny nodded. “But you can’t tell anyone you have to promise me.”

He watched as the man smiled in what he thought was slyness,” of course! I just, with all of those wives he had!”

 Within the next five minutes Danny heard the rumour circulate across the room and it had grown legs. How glorious those rumours legs were. 

“I heard he’d tried to break up a marriage on the team!” an ex wife (Maggie maybe?) hissed.

The other ex (Mary? The other woman might have called her) laughed,” would it really be any surprise? With what he did to Morgan and Melenie?”

The first woman nodded sagely,” fair I can’t believe I even fell for his tricks.”

All things considered the rumour was spreading well, and there was not even a gasp of a suggestion that he was the source. He couldn’t wait to hear what Jazz had invented, with the rumbles he’d already started to hear, it was probably great. Jazz always did have a way of getting into people’s heads. Find what interests them the most.

“So this daughter of Vlad's?” the woman he was talking to prompted, he vaguely remembered Jazz saying her name was Maddison. She’d found him again some time later; her child now safely deposited over by the other kids with their group babysitter. They were in the middle of the church now, the other two still whispering about the packers' spouses.

“ ‘Elle?” he asked as if he’d forgotten.

The woman nodded her curls bouncing as she did.

“Can I see a picture of her?”

He pulled up an older photo of them hanging out, the picture was grainy and they were both sticking their tongues out at the camera. Shit he’d really forgotten how alike they looked.

“You both-” the woman said before stopping. She glanced at his parents. 

Shit he had to go into damage control,” well she’s also my cousin,” he fibbed.

“Cousin?”

“Yes! Technically once removed? Or something like that, I didn’t meet her until a few years ago, we were really blown away with the family resemblance!” he laughed. "Really it's uncanny!"  He continued.

Too far! Too far! He was leaning into it too much! It wasn’t like he could just tell her the truth, that Dani was Vlad's only successful half dead clone of him! Then he’d also have to out two things about himself to her.

“She travels a lot,” he added. He really needed to learn when to shut his big mouth,” she was in Paris a few years ago actually.”

“Really?”

He couldn’t even blame the alcohol! He was just this stupid naturally huh? They’d been saying it for years Sam and Tucker, if only he’d taken them seriously before this. His idiocy might really be terminal.

“Yup, I haven’t seen her in awhile though, hopefully she visits again!”

Scrutinizing eyes scanned him up and down, darting from each corner of his face hunting out the ruse. He really needed to learn to shut his big mouth.

“Do you have her number?”

Crashing noises filled his brain. Her number? The last thing that he had expected was interest in ‘Elle. he’d just thought that they’d get upset at Vlad and leave it at that.

“ ‘E-elle's?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m sorry if this is prying but me and the other ladies,” she gestured to a few of them,” we’re talking and we want to support her!”

“I-” he hesitated, he hadn’t really planned for this,” what?”

The older woman nodded,” we all talked it out and if we get the estate we’re going to support one another and the kids, and it seems like ‘Elle just got stuck in the middle of this like the rest of us.”

“Yeah uh, let me just text her first?”

“Of course honey!”

Danny walked away from that conversation feeling distinctly weirder than before. Regardless he pulled up his phone and slid out the keyboard.

He opened up the “With an I” contact.

  Hey i accidentally got you adopted by like fifteen random women that used to date vlad

5:43 p.m.

  You what? Lul

5:45 p.m.

 He looked up around him before typing out the next message

  Yeah long story short he faked his death. Its weird

5:46 p.m.

I’m at the funeral and the exes wanna like support you?

5:46 p.m.

  Well Vlad wasn’t good for much but at least i now have a multitude of mothers

5:47 p.m.

  So i can give them your number?

5:47 p.m.

  Yeah have at it! If this causes chaos for vlad im all for it !

5:48 p.m.

“So her phone number is.”

By the time he’d separated himself from that conversation a few more rumours were floating.

“I heard that the reason he died in a car crash is because he was on the run from the law!” one of vlad's relatives whispered.

“Really!” another responded.

Elsewhere some of the attending staff were murmuring too. “I heard that he got caught smuggling maple syrup cans from canada!”

“Cans?”

“Yes apparently the good stuff is canned there.”

He walked to a new group this time with the suits.

“I hear that the money in the accounts is dirty.”

“According to my source his invested stocks were backed with illegal funds.”

“If there’s drugs really attached to it like I was told then I don't want anything to do with it.”

“I agree it's hard enough to get money from wills with spouses involved. It's even harder if the feds sniff any drugs.”

“It might not even be worth it to try with all of the ladies,” a different suit complained,” I overheard them talking about lawyering up together if anything goes wrong.”

Another much older suit scoffed,” this business was much easier before the exes started working together.”

Finally he heard his own new rumour starting to gain some traction.

“Wasn’t it found out that he was stealing science equipment from the nearby college?”

“Oh whatever for?”

“I heard it was for making a specialty shampoo.”

“I’ve always wondered how he kept his hair so nice and shiny.”

 Jazz was good, too good, considering that neither of them had really clicked into any social cliques in highschool. Now she was gossiping better than even any of the A-listers.

“It’s just such a shame that they can’t come,” Jazz was even fake sobbing, damn he was going to have to up his game.

“Who couldn’t come?” One of Vlad's older cousins asked, Danny wondered if Jazz was screaming inside at the hand she had around one of the older exes' waists, it was casual and tender. If one of Vlad's exes was getting together with his cousin because of the  funeral , Danny would shriek from laughter, hell if he accidentally used his ghostly wail it’d be well worth it. Vlad of all people deserved to have a partner snatching occur to him. 

“Oh I’m sorry,” Jazz said,” I thought that everyone knew,” she looked from side to side,” please don’t tell the other ex wives Monroe I’d hate for their feelings to get hurt over this.”

Damn she was good. The wife- Monroe who was leaning comfortably on the cousin nodded.

“Of course Jazzie,” she said in a deep comforting New York accent,” this can be brought up to them later more delicately later.  Though I must admit,” she said after a pause where Jazz thanked her for her discretion.” I myself am curious who wasn’t able to come.”

“Well you know how he used to do ghost research with mom and dad?”

Where was she going with this? She was selling it well, Danny had to admit but for the life of him he couldn’t guess where this was going.

“Yes of course,” the cousin nodded as Monroe spoke.

“I can’t name the amount of times he used to write home in our youth about his little ghost adventures,” the cousin added.

Jazz nodded ,” well at the school there was the Lunch Lady Ghost and the Box Ghost, he was seeing them romantically in between their stays in the ghost zone.”

Danny held back a snort box ghost! If he laughed too hard in that moment he’d drop the ghost form and would fall on top of the group that’d gathered around her. As much control as he’d mastered over his abilities over the past couple years there was nothing that would be able to save him from Jazz’s wit. 

“I’m sure box ghost is very helpful for moves,” one of the crowd commented amicably. The others though had nothing to say. Clearly they’d all actually met Box Ghost. 

The gossip might have even stayed in that circle if it weren’t for another one of the cousins being right there and then deciding to tell his wife, who then told one of the ex-wives, who then told another, who then told a suit. So on and so forth.

By the time that Danny was back in human form and settled on the opposite side of Jazz’s conversation he was hearing the children that some of the wives had brought talking about Vlad ‘holding hands’ with the Box Ghost and Lunch Lady. Why couldn’t he have thought about that? It was so good, it was perfect, literally no one could prove it wrong. And embarrassing, seriously Box Ghost!

All the stuff he knew to be true about Vlad sounded so far-fetched.

Half ghost?

Well most people didn’t know about them.

The time he infected his two closest and longest friends with ghost pimples?

Needed the half ghost context. 

If only there was some-

“I hate Vlad!” one of the kids near him cried out stomping down his foot.

Unsurprisingly all of the kids agreed, okay he was a little surprised, usually Vlad had the wool pulled over on most people. So the fact that all of these kids  hated him really meant something.

“He stole my cotton candy at the fair!”

“Well he told me that I didn’t need to see daddy anymore cause he was gonna replace him!”

Eager ears pointed at them he drank in their every complaint. He’d known that Vlad was cartoonish levels of evil for awhile (see the infecting teens with ghost acne for personal gain as proof, or kidnapping him and his mom) but never had he truly expected for him to be so stupid as to do it all in the open in front of all of these kids. Then again some of this might be his obsession making him act out. Smallest sliver of him almost felt bad about that, the fact that Vlad was in a way forced to be this way, but it wasn’t really anything he wasn’t before. Obsessions just highlighted what was already there. Made it more severe.

 “Uhm excuse me,” he tapped the shoulder of one of the shorter women,” Mallory?” He'd asked the babysitter for her name but for the life of him he was struggling to keep all of the exes straight in his head. There were just too many of them and they all looked too similar to his mom.

“Yes,” her eyes flickered with recognition,” Danny?”

He laughed,” yeah that’s me!”

“Some of the others were mentioning you!” she said with a bright smile taking his hand,” thank you for telling us about ‘Elle! I can’t believe he kept her a secret from all of us for so long.”

He nodded in agreement,” well about Vlad-”

“Oh no, what else was he hiding?” she asked, there was a laugh ringing from her but Danny didn’t need ghost senses to know it was dead on arrival,” I’ve learned so much more here at his funeral than I ever did when we’d been together.”

He laughed a little at that, a stilted awkward laugh that only filled his chest halfway. He almost felt bad telling her about this, but she deserved to know the truth. “Well I overheard some of the kids complaining about Vlad.”

He filled her in on what he’d overheard about the kids, the petty little actions of Vlad. The cotton candy he’d stolen (which was weird he’s rich), the fathers he threatened to replace, it was all so bizarre. Danny was about halfway through when the casket began to shake.

Vlad masters was not an impulsive man. He was calculated, smart and forward thinking. At least he certainly liked to think so.  No impulsive man goes out of his way to plan his nemesis’ death and demise for twenty years. No reckless person would spend his time building an empire carefully crafting his abilities and connections for taking down his enemy.  Vlad however to his greatest distaste was in fact still half human and not infallible. While he was meticulous and in his personal opinion exceedingly intelligent he had no way to properly plan for wrenches in his schemes.

The fenton boy, Daniel was his biggest hurdle but it was only a matter of time before he found the right way to tackle the issue. He was just a particularly big roadblock. If only his emotional attachment to his dunderheaded father wasn’t so strong. These issues were all small potatoes compared to the one he was in now. The details can be spared and smoothed over all that was truly important was that he was at his own funeral.

He’d always wondered what people's reaction to his death would be. Contact with his extended family had been… loose, for the lack of a better term since his ‘accident’.  Deep down however he knew that when or if his time came, truly came, that they’d have a reaction. Probably sadness, he had been close to a few of them before his accident, hell he’d been close to them before his company had taken off. At the end of the day he simply had better things to do. Plans to make, revenge to ruminate on. It wasn’t his fault that they’d fallen to the wayside. They simply weren’t as important as Maddie.

He’d toyed with the idea that maybe his dear Maddie would sob over him, that she’d denounce Jack when she saw that he was no longer an option. How deeply poetic it’d be for that to happen. He never liked the idea of her only realizing their potential then but he couldn’t ignore the artful symmetry of it all. Some of the books that Maddie used to read in college had those even beginning and ends, those swooping through lines that tied it all nicely in a pretty bow. His first death had ripped her away from him. It’d gifted her to Jack on a silver platter, and his second oh how glorious it’d be if it drew her to him. Making her denounce her imbecile of a husband. Leaving the stocky man discarded.  Beauty was in the eye of the beholder and even with its harsh edges his death bringing her close to him was something to behold. If only that was what he was watching happen.

Unfortunately for Vlad Masters Owner, Ceo, and founder of Vladco. Life was not an art piece nor a well orchestrated game of football. No instead he got to lay still (half) alive in his exceedingly expensive casket and listen to the dolt sob.

It started like all of the worst things while heading to the Fenton's for another plan to be set in motion. The restraining order was still being held up in the courts so there was technically nothing legally stopping him from seeing them, or especially her. Besides he was a billionaire, those things were more fine machines than anything for him. Once it was enacted all he’d have to do was pay a fine.

Unfortunately it was during the drive that issues started. Again finer details notwithstanding for he’d run them all in his head a thousand times now while laying in this blastedly comfortable casket. While on the drive it became clear to him he was being followed.  No matter , he’d smugley told himself. He’d been followed by techbro fans before they were easy to deter. Easy to remove from his time and life. However in a deeply detestable turn of events the car following him did not belong to a fan.

He knew from the offset of seeing the make and model that it wasn't his average follower, those types usually had older beaters or worse highly expensive care that they had no business owning. No, instead this car was perfectly down the middle of class and price. How he detested those cars, they had no class. It was effectively similar to the many unmarked police cars that he used to have follow him during his brief stint as mayor. 

Regardless the car was tailing his limo, it was simple at first to attempt to outmaneuver them. Eventually his limo was pinned.

Blah blah blah mindless details later some pointless shooting at him with guns and he’d jacked their car. In the end it was simply easier to fake a fatal car crash. then there were all of those witnesses that had to see his death. Walking it back was impossible all circumstances considered. At least when they attacked him they only knocked his driver out, the legal case of that would have been a logistical nightmare and he still had some hopes of getting access to his funds later. 

It was almost funny in a karmic way. Almost as poetic as he had wanted pretending to be dead to be. Only problem was it was poetic in exactly the opposite way. The person that he hated most there sobbing the loudest. It’d be so much easier if it was Madeline sobbing. If she was sobbing, a faked death could be almost satisfying. If she melted down it could almost be worth it. Instead it was Jack Fucking Fenton. 

Numerous things were to be expected from his funeral, Daniel's arrival, yes, Maddie’s, undoubtedly. Even Jazz’s and Jack’s all expected arrivals. Some of them were more annoying than others but they were the requisite arrivals. Even his gaggle of ex flings was to be expected (they had to try and get their hands on the estate and money somehow. Well jokes on them he’d left it all to Maddie). No, what he hadn’t been prepared for was Jack’s incessant wailing and sobbing. 

The man was besides himself absolutely losing his mind right next to his goddamn open casket. It was getting hard to keep a straight face when he wanted nothing more than to leap from the plush silk sheets and throttle the man. His hands might not quite reach around the other mans thick neck but he could give it a good try he was sure. To put it simply and without intense amounts of rage he had mentally calculated for a lot of variables, not one of them being Jack of all people struggling to breath, choked out sobs instead of breaths coming from him as he hovered nearby. Not a single variable included being cried on by the most loathsome man in all of Amity Park. Every tear that fell on Vlad’s extremely expensive make up was another tally against the man’s. Had he no clue how hard it was to not flinch every time a drop of water splattered on his face? It was much harder than it looked he’d have him know.

Didn’t the idiot realize that he hated him? That he’d never cared for him? At least not since his death. 

Worse was when Maddie and the Fenton children staggered in, he could smell the alcohol on them from a mile away. It was tasteless! The smell alone nearly made him leap from his casket and throttle them where they stood (Maddie with exception of course). Have they no respect for the dearly departed? Have they no care for social decorum? Those Fenton spawn would never survive in high class society. Not like himself and Maddie. Oh how he wished he’d never gone for those pale imitations. They hardly kept up with all that he needed.

All he had to do now was ignore everyone and get through the funeral and he could be Plasmius full time. Pursue Maddie 24/7 with no worries of the law (though with some worries of Phantom). If only those blasted Fenton's would stop spreading rumours about him! And he knew it was them! Who else would say such outrageous things?

Okay certainly if one wanted to be technical Danielle was his daughter, but he hadn’t raised her. She was not his blood, she was not his in the most important ways.

Then there was that rumour about the-

“He-hey Vlad.”

Oh, oh no.

“I uh, I’m gonna miss you.” 

No no no no no! He couldn’t do this! He wouldn’t do this! He would not stand for this! He did not go out of his way to fake his death for this. 

Jack blew his big blubbering nose into a handkerchief so hard it honked. Honked! He was going to throttle this man at his earliest convenience. Getting cried on he could deal with, revolting as it was. What he couldn’t and wouldn’t deal with getting yammered at. That was not in the details. He did  not  plan for this.

“I- uhm- I know we weren’t really close these last few years.”

That was putting it lightly.

“Or really at all since college,” there was a wet laugh from Jack.

If that oaf ended up coughing slobber on him- Maybe if he tried hard enough he could die for real, that’d be nice. He’d never really craved death before, not like in this moment. It’d be so much easier if he just didn’t have to hear this.

“I-I know you didn’t really like me in the end.” 

Wait what? Had he finally gotten a clue? That was a first. Maybe his overt plotting had finally gotten through to the oaf. If Jack attacked him now that’d almost make this all worth it. He might even consider revealing he’s Plasmius if he did.

“I know I messed up, I-I must have hurt you, I don’t really know how, but- but uh, I just wanted to say I’m sorry.”

Yes ye- He was what?

There was another laugh sob from his  ex  friend,” It’s probably too late since you’re uh- dead, but whatever it is I did to hurt you, I'm sorry. I hope,” he trailed off into a high pitched keening whine. 

Stop stop stop! This is not what he wanted!

“I hope you rest well Vlad.”

Footsteps receded away from him at that. 

Well what the fuck was he supposed to do with that? What in the world was he supposed to do with that knowledge? Internalize it? Grow and change as a person? He was (half) dead! He was well past the point of growth! He was beyond growth.

For all Jack knew he wasn’t coming back! For him and basically all of them he wasn’t coming back! The only person that would know was Daniel and maybe his sister if he told her. Maybe his brat friends if he messaged them. 

What did Jack get out of telling him all of that?

Certainly not money, the will had left everything to sweet Maddie, not him. Some sort of moral upper hand? A sense of feeling like he got one over Vlad?

No the dolt wasn’t that complex, his intelligence lay somewhere between absentminded and incompetant on a good day, there was no moral forethought. Yet why did the words settle so deeply in a corner of himself? Carving out a crevice in him that ached and burned?

“Did you hear about why Vlad couldn’t buy the green bay packers?”

Why? Why did it dig in his flesh? why when he’d thought he’d burned all of that away.

I'm Sorry.

“No, why?”

Life was easier when he was fully alive. College life was simpler. At least then he could fool himself that Maddie thought of him equally as she did Jack.

“Well I heard that he was stalking the team!”

What?

Why would he stalk them? He’d never stalked someone once in his entire life! (death maybe but he’d never admit that) he could buy all the tickets to their games he had no reason to stalk them!

There was no practicality in stalking them. Just like Jack had no reason to apologize to him! The idiot didn’t even know what he’d done to hurt him. He hadn’t ripped the apology from Jack. He wasn't on his knees begging from him. Hell he didn’t even know that he’d killed Vlad. Jack Fenton was as oblivious to the fact that he’d died back in college as he was to the fact that his own son was dead and playing hero as Phantom.

The density of the man was rivaled by no other.

But then why did he apologize?

“Did you hear?”

He got nothing out of it.

Why did it ache?

Burn? He wanted for years nothing more than to make the man sob and beg for forgiveness.

Why did having it fulfill nothing?

“About him and the Box Ghost?”

Would it burn just as painfully if he finally got sweet Madeline’s confession? Would it ring just as hollow?

“I thought it was the lunch lady ghost?”

No. There was something about Jack that made it wrong. Something about that blathering moron that lashed the words to him like a blade.

“I think it was both.”

And what the hell were they all blathering on about? What was all of this nonsense about Box Ghosts and smuggling and stalking? What were any of their empty little words? 

Did any of that really matter? Their blathering human rumours and petty squabbles when he, the very guest of honour in all ways but one was laying here before their very eyes on the precipice of something? He was teetering at some edge, he didn’t know what it was but he could just make out the shape of the hole he was almost toppling in, he just had to know what it was. He just-

“Well I heard-”

They heard- they heard! What did it matter what they’d all heard! Nothing that they heard could matter in the slightest not when he was dealing with this! Not when he was reeling with whatever this was! The weight and size of it completely overtaking him and yet none of them aware, he was suffocating being overtaken by the edge of knowledge some realization he’d yet to make and hee still couldn’t read it. All because they wouldn’t stop blathering on and on about what? Lies?

Stupid foolish tales spun by his greatest enemy!

By a child.

If it were not for the show and pageantry of it all, if it were not for the display that he’d set about around him he’d be yanking his hair by the roots, tearing it slowly strand by strand from his scalp. And if there was one thing that Vlad Masters was, it was a showman! He was dramatic and he was going to be so unabashedly it was not his fault that there was no one that yearned for his life to roll onwards like Jack. None of it could be held against him. He was a romantic! Everything he did was for  her.

Had it truly all been for nothing?

All these years.

Had she never really cared?

“Dirty money, attached to drugs. I wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pool.”

All this time.

Did he really-

“Never even mentioned a daughter!

All his schemes!

Jack's tears were so warm when they cut the thick funeral makeup.

“So many secrets for him to keep.”

Dozens of attempts on his life!

Did he really  care? The water on his face was still warm.

“Wasn’t the cause of his crash a run from the law?”

“Would you all just shut up already!”

Silence blanketed the church as Vlad’s voice finished ringing out the wooden box still perched on its little stage. The casket was still shaking and the flowers were falling from the box as the hush grew sharper. Energy crackled from the casket shooting out and blowing the bulb above. Glass fell from the light falling gently on the flower petals. 

None one spoke, Danny’s father had a hand over his mouth, new large tears welling up. He looked green and pale, unlike most of the stunned guests he looked like he was about to be sick.

Danny shot a glance at Jazz, she nodded and jerked her head to the side. He ducked out. Things were about to get hairy.

There was no response from Vlad for a second as it seemed the outburst was done. Even the children who’d been shrieking with laughter and joy from their play for most of the funeral were silent. The falling glass and shaking box were deafening in the silence. Danny ducked behind a pillar and into the doorway that led to the restrooms. There was no one there. The closest person was his mom but she was standing silent and stunned not an eye tilted away from the casket. He couldn’t blame her.

It wasn’t everyday your incel stalker had a breakdown after he’d legally died.

He transformed. On the most part there weren’t many people near the casket. It was just a few lingering Exes, most people were near the refreshment table. His first line of action should be to grab the people near the stage and get them to safety. Then?

Well the rest was adlib. 

At least he had stored the Fenton thermos in his suit jacket (just in case). If only Sam or Tucker were there. Things were so much easier with their help.

Just as he was about to jump into the situation, the group of exes all swarmed Vlad. Shit he’d have to replan everything. He wouldn’t be able to get in an ecto-blast with out the fret of hitting one of them. He could always try Ice or a little storm cloud?

Just as a new plan was starting to formulate one of them (Maria?) slapped Vlad hard across the face.

Smack.

The noise echoed loudly across the church.

He grimaced.

Oh.

He did not want to get in the middle of whatever that was. He really didn’t want to get in the middle of it at all. Backing back into the bathroom he turned back to normal. Didn’t matter what the situation was, he was not going to get in the middle of a dozen or so angry exes and Vlad. It was his grave (even if Danny had helped him dig it a little) like hell Danny was getting buried with him.

“Vlad Masters!” one of the exes screamed,” you slimy pathetic excuse of a man.”

Yeah Danny was not getting in that, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to watch.

“Ow!” Vlad cried out, his eyes were glowing red, but aside from that he still looked very much the same. 

Weird, Danny didn’t expect him to stay in human form. He guessed it made sense if he changed into Plasmius the gig would be up. There’d be a lot of questions too. Knowing Vlad’s tendency to monologue he might even explain the concept of Halfa’s.

“M-Maria!” the older man stammered out,” darling hello-”

The woman smacked him again,” I’m Maggie,” she spat out.

Danny winced, yikes. Makeup covered Vlad's gaunt face but Danny could imagine the smarting red forming on his cheeks.

“Y-yes of course, how could I mistake your beauty, how foolish of me to compare the two of-”

The clearing of a throat interrupted as Maria herself tapped her foot.

“Maria!” Vlad exclaimed this time correct, even if taken by surprise.

“Yes,” the woman agreed,” but don’t mind me, what were you saying? Something about comparison?”

The billionaire awkwardly laughed as he seemed to take in the fact that he was surrounded by all of his exes. Phantom wasn’t even needed. Villain defeated right then and there by the rage and power of his many exes. Again Danny found himself desperate to find out whatever the older man had done to make everyone hate him so just to do the express opposite.

When he actually fully died he hoped his funeral wasn’t this… whatever plan he actually ended up with he just didn’t want this.

“So,” Jazz said as she settled next to him leaning on the pillar with him,” any idea what got him up?”

“Nah,” Danny shrugged looking over to his sister. She looked more sober now, less unstable on her feet.” He didn’t really decree what his gripe was this time.”

Jazz sighed,” so no winner yet.”

“Unfortunately,” he said,'' He also technically didn’t go ghost mode.”

Jazz groaned resting her head on his shoulder,” I wanted to go home, these heels are killing me!”

He stuck a tongue out at her,” shoulda transed your gender like I did,” he teased quietly.

“Ha! Really funny Danny,” she flatly commented with a roll of her eyes at the tired joke.

“Ah meany,” he pouted.

“You walk in these heels at a funeral,” she complained again,” At least if he went full ghost It’d be socially acceptable to ditch them.”

He bit his tongue remembering a rant that Sam had gone on recently about heels and social pressure. How she’d then thrown one of her platform boots at Tuck when he made a remark. Jazz probably wouldn’t appreciate his lovesick ramblings about them.

“Looks like we'll just have to continue to watch this unfold.” he said instead with a sarcastic twinge.

“Oh what a shame!” Jazz said flatly,” sucks to be us.”

Danny snickered as Vlad continued to try to dig himself out of his hole. How he wished Sam and Tucker were here. Unfortunately for him they were both far too busy. Ah well he’d just have to video it all for them.

How unfortunate for Vlad that he was made to sit through his own will reading, and how fortunate for Danny Fenton that he was the one that got to watch it all go down. In the entire time that he and Vlad had been nemesis he never knew just how much he wanted exactly this to happen. Actually if someone ever suggested this happening younger him probably wouldn’t have appreciated just how funny this was. No fourteen-to-fifteen him was far too invested in things like learning his powers and finding out just how observant the rest of town was. Also looking cool. Adult him however? Freshly 21 and college attending him? Oh he could enjoy the fuck out of this situation.

There was some minor debate among some guests over how ethical it was since Vlad's ‘ghost’ was now here to view the reading. Some point could be made that it might be weird...

“Isn’t it rude?” one family member had suggested.

But...

“It might be in bad taste,” another guest had even pipped up.

No one really liked Vlad anyways

“Oh no!” Morgan said,” I want to know what it says, and who better to see how accurate it all is.”

Oh how glad he was that those few were beaten out. How glad he was that the crowd was seeing blood. That the group was too nosey and invested in the drama to really get caught up in such small things as ethics.  How grateful he was that the exes were in half a mind to Kill Vlad a second time.

Fortunate he was, that his luck was finally turning up. It might even be the universe trying to pay him back for all of the shit he’d been dealing with since he was fourteen. Return investment on the untimely youth death. Honestly if it was it was a pretty bang up start all things considered. He’d have to find out if there was a ghost involved in the control of karma. They might just end up with an edible arrangement on their lair door. Older adults loved that shit so ghosts should too.

“Hm,” the lawyer said when they entered the room with the walking corpse of Vlad masters. The office was small and hardly held everyone, but snugly, far too snugly for comfort they all fit on the other side of the large desk.

No one said anything to the lawyer. Whether the man had been privy to the rest of the funeral or had just arrived Danny didn’t know but he had to admit this entire situation was bizarre even with full context. Not many of them knew ghost rules and the only ones that did were in either stunned or gleeful silence. There was no objection to the fact that Vlad had dragged his body with him, not a voice descenting on the fact that his form hadn’t shifted. Not a single attendee seemed perturbed by the fact that Vlad was not really a ghost.

Even the paid bounty hunters didn’t know how to discern ghosts from humans judging by their stunned expressions. Though he’d love to watch one of them attack Vlad in the middle of a church. Stabbing a man in the house of god might just be a big sin, though Danny wasn’t sure.

“Well this is unprecedented,” the lawyer commented,” never in my time have I ever seen a dead man rise for the reading of his own will.”

Vlad grumbled but no one could make out the words as the two exes on either side of him glared. 

Oh how fortunate Danny was indeed, never before had he ever been so glad for his untimely death. If it all led to watching Vlad squirm like this still trying to keep his alter ego a secret? Pain and strife, the many attacks and attempts on his life were worth it.

“Well if there is no protest,” the lawyer said. For a moment Vlad looked very much like he wanted to protest, but the glares of the exes kept him silent and made him snap his jaw shut. Danny knew what went into keeping a corpse looking fresh. Shame the mortician seemed to have skipped wiring the jaw shut. Then, Vlad didn’t seem to need physical wires to keep him silent and well behaved, his Exes were all doing that job very well.

“In that case,” the lawyer sounded queasy, if Danny wasn’t so invested with the drama unfolding he might have turned to verify. “Then I believe we will begin.”

The man started out by reading the long legal preamble, the paragraphs upon paragraphs of titles and information about Vlad that was included. Danny understood that him being the owner of VladCo was technically important for the will but did he need to include all of his ten titles at the company in the will? It just felt excessive. ‘Ceo, entrepreneur, founder, head of decisions, etc.’ did anyone care? Leaving out the most important title of ‘asshole’ was the biggest mistake of his will.

“Yes I think we get it,” Monroe said, her accent clipping the words in stiff professionalism. Bless her for cutting the pain short. “I do have,” the woman glanced at the cousin who was still holding her hand,” A more important social engagement to attend to with Carmila.”

The lawyer stammered,” yes of course ma’am my apologies.”

“It reads:

‘First, I hereby denounce all previous wills made by myself, Vlad Masters, no matter nature or kind.

Second I Vlad Masters hereby appoint,” the lawyer paused making a face before he continued,” Madeline Fenton love of my life as the executor of my estate, networth, and-” the lawyer paused,” the ownership of my beloved cat ‘Maddie the cat, the third-”

“Huh, I guess you listened to my suggestion after all and got a cat.” Danny muttered as at the same moment his mother reached her breaking point

“You what?” Maddie was standing out of her chair, indignation flaring in her eyes,” Vlad! I don’t want any of this.”

“But but,” Danny tuned the man out as he made the normal declarations of love. Trite at this point his mind was already trying to entertain itself. Fast forwarding this would be nice, if only his core was time based. But no he got Ice, and Weather, and other weird disconnected powers. He was electrocuted to death! Cruel that he didn’t get cool electrocution powers.

They were still arguing when he tuned back in. Loath wasn’t a powerful enough describer for this love diatribe that Vlad spewed every three to five business days. His mom yelled something back, a few of the ex wives even chiming in agreement. Well at least they didn’t hate mom that was a plus.

He shot Jazz a look as he repositioned his phone camera to get a better shot.

‘This again?’ he tried to communicated with his expressions. Tuck usually laughed when he tried and Sam told him he looked to constipated.

She shrugged and nodded as if to say  ‘this again.’

“I am happily married! I told you I won't leave Jack for you!”

Tuning out the conversation didn’t seem to leave out many details. Everything was falling exactly into the same patterns as always.

“Maddie please-” the billionaire tried to beg.

This made the woman snap,” no don’t Maddie please me! You have not respected my decision to marry Jack since it happened, well guess what Vlad it’s too late for you! You were never even an option!” she turned to Jack and put a hand on his shoulder. her voice much softer when she spoke,” come on honey we’re leaving. Kids?” She turned to the two Fenton children. The both of them stood with no protest. Like hell they were going to end up on the wrong side of their mother right now. Mission orientated as she was they had no doubt she could commit Vlad's murder and get away with it. legally she might even considering the fact that he was technically a 'ghost' right now.

Just as she was about to step out the door she turned,” oh and ladies, don’t worry about a legal battle I’ll work with our family lawyer to transfer everything to all of you.”

There were some small thanks from the stunned Exes as the office door latched shut behind them.

 The air in the car was-

Well the word tense didn’t really sum up the air but it was the best approximation that Danny had. It could have gone worse, he supposed he could have genuinely ended up fighting Vlad again. Chances where that if he fought Vlad while he was Plasmius that the formerly rich business mogul would then use the moment to out Danny as Phantom. Not just his family but all of the church. If he had to rate the evening it was definitely not as bad as he expected. About a six or seven, depending on his critical he was being.

“Uh so who won the bet?” he whispered to Jazz. he wasn’t worried about his parents, Maddie was soothingly rubbing circles on Jack’s back as the man drove. That and they were sat in the back, sometimes the front seats struggled to hear them at a normal level forget a whisper.

Jazz furrowed her brows,” I guess neither of us really won, he didn’t even go ghost.”

Nodding, he thought back to the man’s loud entrance,” He also didn’t say what rumour got him up.”

“So do we both lose?”

“I guess?” he looked over to his parents,” so we both tell them?”

Jazz sighed leaning back in her seat, hair dramatically laying behind her,” yeah I guess.”

“You don’t hav-”

Jazz cut him off with a snort,” no it’s fine, my things not really as big all things considered.”

Fair, she had a point with that. Their parents already knew that she was interested in men and women but still revealing partners to them was always weird and nerve wracking. The first time he’d introduced Sam and Tuck as partners and not friends he’d expected a lot more questions. Turns out if you hunt ghosts for a living nothing is really weird after that. They just bought him new sex ed books. Sentiment appreciated but still weird considering he could google that sort of thing now.

“So Danny,” his mom said, her fingers tightened on her phone. They were lucky she got old brick Nokias instead of those new Smart phones. She’d break them in a week. Jack wasn’t paying them much attention as he drove, he seemed to still be shell shocked. Hopefully he didn't crash, okay so maybe he didn't always like car rides. Sometimes the looming threat of a car crash really messed with his obsession.

“Yeah mom?” he asked.

“I was talking to some of the ladies.”

“Uh huh?” wherever she was going with this he didn’t like the tone.

“And imagine my surprise when one of them tells me Vlad has a daughter.”

“Weird right,” he said. Please stop, please stop! He begged, wherever this was going it was nowhere good. It would have been better if he’d just died in that accident. Screw whatever he thought back when he thought his luck was turning up. He was still the most unlucky bastard in all of amity park.

She hummed in agreement,” and imagine my surprise when they said she was your cousin.”

Danny didn’t have a response to that, Jazz was stifling a laugh next to him.

“And then,” she said,” she showed me a picture of her.”

“Really.”

“Yeah, Danny," there was a pause as she seemed to collect her words," why does she look like you pre transition?”

“Does she?” sweating wasn’t really something he did so much anymore, not since his core started cooling his mortal flesh, it was nice sometimes. But it didn’t stop nervous sweating. “I hadn’t noticed.”

“Hadn’t- Danny,” his mother sighed,” sweetie if you want to start presenting as a girl again you can. We won’t judge you.”

Wait what, “ what?!” 

Shrieking loud bursts of laughter came out of Jazz. 

“Jazz!”

That set him off, it was just so ridiculous.

“Honey I’m serious,” his mom sounded so upset her tone lost. She really was trying.

He couldn’t help it, it wasn’t his fault. It was just so out of the realm of what was happening. Man his parents really didn’t have any of the facts.

“Danny?” his father asked the tenseness in his shoulders from the funeral leaving way to confusion.

Him and Jazz made eye contact and the laughing got so much worse. If being part dead didn’t make him need to breathe so much less he’d be choking. He’d die, it was just- they still didn’t know and somehow that was all the funnier. God he was calling Tuck and Sam right after he explained everything they were going to get such a kick out of this. Especially Tucker.

“That’s not-” wheezes high and stringy, cutting him off, he was struggling even with his ghost lungs.

“Danny my boy,” Jack asked quietly,” what’s funny?”

“We’re trying to support you Danny!” his mother exclaimed.

Finally he quelled the laughter enough to speak,” okay okay,” he whipped a tear from his eye. “I’ll explain it all it just probably isn’t something dad needs to be driving for.”

“Danny what do-”

“Just trust me okay?” he grinned at his mom in what he hoped was reassurance. 

She sighed and looked at her husband, Jack furrowed his brows and the pair silently communicated before the man hit his turning signal.

 The small side road was perfectly out of the way enough that no one would be able to peer in. It was some half abandoned picnic area but none of them reached for their seatbelts to leave the car. It was just the closest spot they could stop.

“Okay,” he started giving Jazz a look, she nodded comfortingly,” Remember how the portal didn’t work at first?”

It took them a moment but they nodded in remembrance. 

“Right well I died.” it was best to just rip the Band-Aid off.

“What?”

“Danny- honey you’re not dead.”

He thought so at least, he sighed pinching his nose,” I need you guys to wait for questions till the end okay?”

“But honey you’re not dead!” she didn’t sound so sure as she looked him over.

“What your mother said my boy! You’re sitting right there!”

Danny groaned,” guys please?” there was a pause as they looked at each other and finally finally agreed to wait till the end. “Sam said I should check it out, see if I could fix it. I put on my suit, and,” he made a buzzing noise with his tongue,” the button shocked me to death when I hit it. It was dark so I didn't see,” he looked to the side. The trees outside were swaying peacefully in the wind. Jazz put a hand on his shoulder, he took a steading breath and clenched the hand with the thin invisible scars. “It was an accident but,” he turned back to them resolution in his eyes,” I died that day, When I woke up, well, brace yourselves okay,” he let the tugging cold of hic core shift and change his appearance.

There was silence. He’d expected something but, no, even Jazz wasn’t saying anything.

He cracked an eye open, his parents were staring at him dumbfounded. Yeah that was about par for the course.

“Well this happened and now, I’m half Ghost,” he admitted,” everyone in the ghost zone knows that’s why there were always so many attacks at the school.”

“Half?” his mom asked despite herself.

Danny nodded,” yeah I still age, and need to eat and breath... mostly on that last one. It’s kind of cool I can go invisible,” he demonstrated before changing back,” and phase through things and float,” he demonstrated both in succession allowing the belt to glide through him as he hovered up an inch. “Shoot Ecto-blasts… probably best if I don’t do that one in the car though,” he laughed.

“Okay,” his mom said. 

“Okay?” he asked.

His father nodded,” sure Son, we love you. It’s weird but, well we hunt ghosts for a living.”

He laughed,” yeah fair enough.”

"I-" his mom looked over at Jack," We're proud of you sweetie, that's a lot to undertake at so young."

he chuckled," it wasn't so bad, I had a lot of help," he grinned at Jazz," Between her Sam and Tuck I don't know if I would have lasted half the battles I did."

"You knew Jazz?" Their father asked his tone soft and slightly hurt.

She smiled softly," yeah, I walked in on him transforming. Thought it was best if I let him tell you guys."

"Part of the apprehension might have been the dissection thing," Danny addmited.

"I- honey-" his mom put a hand over her mouth in shock.

"I'm sorry son," His dad said," it was closed minded of us to assume stuff about ghosts we didn't know."

"Well you weren't always wrong. Just usually."

“So ‘Elle?” his mom prompted before Jack could pepper in questions about what the got right.

He sighed,” yeah her full name is Danielle, technically she’s the only living clone of me Vlad made.”

“Only living Clone?”

“Vlad made?”

Man he had a lot to explain. Years of events just gone unsaid. Some small part of the divide between them was shifting, growing smaller. 

“Is now a good time to tell you guys I have a girlfriend?”

Danny choked on a laugh. Not to long after his parents followed after the tension disrupted, Well at least he had Jazz to help explain. Sam and Tucker too when they weren’t busy. It'd be a mess and weird to finally clear the air between them, but at least he knew they were proud of him.

#My writing #danny phantom #trans danny fenton #trans danny phantom #everlasting trio #thats their ship name right? its not like super there its minor but ye #danny phantom exists in my brain in vague memories and nothing else #only the smallest amounts of cannon may be contained in this fic #idk i dont have enough brain to know tho #danphanwritingprompts

[prettyboy-parker]

Peter gets grumpy and fussy when he hasn’t had tony’s cock in his mouth or ass in a while - I've put it in your inbox now, will you write something about this, pwease? I would love you till the end of time 🥺😂

thank you for pushing me to write this, bc i really wanted to! this is set in the untitled mafia au ☺️

warnings: feminine peter and throat fucking 😳

***

Peter is going to scream.

He is absolutely going to throw a hissy fit and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.

“Pete, are you okay?” Loki asks softly, looking up from the pair of lacy, forest green panties in his hands. Peter takes a deep breath and fans his eyes quickly.

“Yeah Lo, I’m fine,” He breathes, gently patting the corners of his eyes with the collar of his frilly pink chiffon top. He spent way too much time on his makeup this morning, and he doesn’t want to mess his hard work up because of some petty tears. Tony had texted him saying that he wouldn’t be home tonight.

This is the third time this week.

“Peter,” Loki says, more sternly this time. “You’re about to cry. Something’s wrong.”

Peter bites the inside of his lip, trying to keep his tears at bay. Thank god they’re in the farthest corner of the store where the PINK employees can’t see his meltdown.

“Tony just said he’s not going to be home tonight. Again,” Peter grumbles, tapping a quick ‘k love you’ to the aforementioned mob boss. “I haven’t gotten dicked down since last week.”

At this, Loki widens his eyes.

“You’re kidding,” He gasps, twirling a thick lock of black hair around his finger. “Doesn’t he fuck you at least once a day?”

“Well, he used to,” Peter complains, honey eyes flicking around the store before speaking again. “He’s just been so wrapped up in this shit with Hydra. He comes to bed when I’m asleep and leaves before I wake up. I’m sick of it.”

Loki makes a sympathetic noise as he adjusts the strap of his Hermès purse.

“Bucky hasn’t lent a helping hand yet?”

Peter shoots Loki a disgruntled look. The other man raises his hands in mock defense. Peter crosses his arms and pouts.

“Hey, I have an idea.” Loki says. Peter can practically see the gears turning in his head.

“Do you, now? Spill.”

***

Tony slams the front door open so hard the sound of it echoes through the entire mansion.

His crew are dead silent as they walk inside, shuffling after the mob boss. He can feel the tension in his jaw, his joints, his everything. The foyer is silent, except for the faint crackle of the fireplace from the main living room.

“You’re all dismissed,” Tony grunts, shucking off his dress shoes and leaving them by the door for the maids to get. Bucky and Natasha scurry off as Tony heads into the living room. He’s expecting Peter to be curled up on the couch, but it’s just Loki.

“Good evening, Mister Stark,” He greets, looking up from his worn copy of Poetic Edda.

“Hello, dear,” Tony responds, impatiently gripping the back of the couch.

“Peter is upstairs. He’s been waiting for you.”

A sharp pain of guilt pricks his heart as his cock twitches in his dress slacks. (So what? He knows his baby.) He nods and bids his goodbyes to Loki before climbing the grand steps of the mansion. For some goddamn reason, his heart pounds in his chest. Down the hallway, he can see their bedroom door slightly ajar. He walks closer and hears the muffled sounds of very quiet jazz music. He gently pushes open the door with his foot, the sight that greets him taking his breath away.

Peter is outstretched on their shared California king, looking like an absolute snack. He’s donned an intricate, black bustier, ribbons crossed over his middle and tiny bows placed at his shoulders. The panties he’s wearing are incredibly sheer, showing his stiff cock. The top is connected to black thigh-highs that cover his long legs. He smiles, brushing a chestnut curl that looks incredibly soft out of his face.

“Oh, dolcezza,” Tony breathes, truly awestruck from the angel in front of him. A sweet blush emerges over Peter’s plump, freckled cheeks. Somehow, he shuts the door and his feet carry him to the edge of the bed. He reaches out but hesitates, almost unsure where to touch. He settles for gently gripping the younger’s ankle and rubbing his thumb across the material covered skin.

“Hi daddy,” Peter purrs, hiding part of his beautiful face behind his crossed arms. He looks so cute, so perfect, so innocent. (Minus the revealing lingerie, that is.)

“You’re gorgeous, Peter.” Tony croaks, running his hand up Peter’s covered leg before reaching the sliver of skin above the thigh-highs, opting to stroke the softness there. “I must be the luckiest man in the world.”

Peter’s honey eyes flutter shut at the praise, the tips of his long lashes kissing the skin under his eyes. Tony takes his time drinking in the beauty of the boy beneath him.

“I’ve had the worse week. I get cranky when I don’t have your cock in me.”

Ah, there’s his Peter.

Tony laughs lowly, squeezing the boy’s bubble butt. Peter’s eyes open and he kicks his legs before clambering up onto his knees. He uses his delicate, manicured hands to knead at the front of Tony’s crotch.

“Missed it,” Peter hums softly, mostly to himself. Tony groans at the slight contact against his growing cock. He reaches up and cups Peter’s cheek in his scarred hand. When Tony presses his thumb against Peter’s lipgloss slathered lips, he obediently takes the digit into his mouth.

“You’re a sight, cucciolo.” Tony murmurs, titling his head to the side as he watches Peter suck on his finger. He slips his thumb out of the boy’s mouth before leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead.

“Daddy,” Peter whines, kneading Tony’s thick cock through his expensive slacks. “I want you to fuck my throat.”

Tony groans and his eyes flutter shut, Peter’s dirty words swimming in his ears. He curses as he feels Peter mouthing at his clothed cock, making a mess of the fabric.

“Yeah, baby?” Tony grunts, opening his eyes. He takes Peter’s face in his hand, squeezing his cheeks and tilting the boy’s head upwards. “You want daddy to be rough tonight?”

Peter whines and nods, eyes glazed with pleasure.

“I know how stressed you get. Take all that out on me. I don’t like when daddy’s upset,” He breathes, slightly grinding his leaking cock against the sheets of the bed. Tony lets go of Peter and hurriedly pushes down his slacks and boxers. His thick cock bobs in the air, the tip flushed dark red and leaking. Peter swallows thickly and gives the head a few kitten licks. Tony groans and grips Peter’s soft curls gently. The younger takes more of his dick into his mouth, sucking on the head while using his tongue to massage the sensitive part just underneath it.

“I know you can do better than that, sweetheart,” Tony mutters, pushing down the boy’s head so he takes the rest of his aching length into his mouth. The mob boss moans at the feeling of Peter’s wet lips sliding down his cock. He’s a vision, too, mouth stuffed full. Peter starts to bob his head up and down, spit dribbling from the corner of his mouth.

“Hands behind your back,” Tony orders, and Peter obeys like the good little slut he is. Tony starts to slowly move his cock in and out of the brunette’s mouth, hissing at the overwhelming pleasure. Tears spring at the corners of Peter’s eyes.

“Fuck, such a hot mouth,” Tony groans, hips snapping as he slides his cock through the boy’s plump lips. Peter whines around the large length in his mouth. “S’like you were made for me.”

Tears spill down Peter’s flushed cheeks. The sight makes Tony’s orgasm approach quickly.

“I’m gonna cum on your face, okay, bambino?” The older man asks, breathless. Peter tries to say ‘okay’, but it just comes out as a muffled ‘ngh’.

Tony pulls his cock from Peter’s mouth, taking the wet, hot length in his hand and stroking it quickly. Peter sticks his tongue out slightly and closes his eyes, which pushes Tony over the edge.

“Ah, ah, fuck-“ Tony cries, cock spurting thick ropes of cum onto Peter’s face. Only a little makes it onto his tongue, the rest spattering onto his cheeks and chin. Peter swallows the bit that’s on his tongue.

“Thank you, daddy,” He breathes, lapping at Tony’s now flaccid cock. The older man grunts softly before pushing Peter down onto the bed. The boy lets out a surprised squeak, but lies down anyways.

“Alright baby, it’s time for daddy to make you feel good.”

#starker #ask #anon #request #nff #untitled mafia au

[randomnessunicorn-imagine]

What about if Ut & Uf Sans and Us & Fs Papyrus with a winged S/O?

{ I’ve chosen to make the wings differentsometime, with different forms and all. }  

~ Sansy ~★

Your pair of wings is so colourful and enchanting, transparent atthe same time, they seem insect’s wings. They can change their shadows and tonein base on the luminosity. The first time Sans saw you, he thought you were asort of fairy. Yes, it was somewhat true, even if you’re not a magical fable’s creature,but anyone could have mistaken you for a pretty pixie.

Your wings are just something too fabulous to him. Sans does not appearas if he is truly interested, he still has his usual lazy grin on his face, buthe thinks it’s cool you can fly and all that jazz.

Since he is a truly lazybones, he will ask you if you could give him aride on your wings, flying is faster than walking, despite the fact that he canteleporting himself every time and everywhere he desires. Maybe he wants tobother you; feeling like a bird for one time in his life. Give him thisexperience, and then he won’t complain anymore. Maybe. Because the puns and thejokes are always on demand. Since you are his fairy and you have wings, youknow what you can expect by him.

Looks like this joke just flew right over you, «Why is Peter Pan alwaysflying? Because he Never Lands», while you’re here, why don’t you take him toNeverland, too? Ah, he is too old, not a kid, anymore. But Sans has a whole bunchesof jokes about fairies, « Last night I left a denture under my pillow. The toothfairy must have come because she left me a pile of Monopoly money with a note saying,“Nice try”», you must love all of these. You must love him!

~ Reddy ~➤

Was he dead? Was he in Heaven now? For which crazy reasons did he seeangels?

The most important question is: Why was he in Heaven and not burning inHell, instead?

Someone has to explain that to him, because the poor boy is tooconfused.

Actually, he doesn’t believe your wings are real at a first sight. Youare just playing with his damaged mind. He thinks it’s a costume or somethinglike that.

In addition, he can’t believe in angels or in any other benign deitiesbecause this world is too cruel and merciless. Sans would laugh in front of God’sface if he ever met him one day, (he will make to him a lot of dirty and blasphemousgestures I don’t say). Then, if you are a Messenger of God, he is going toignore you acting like an asshole, more than usual.

He doesn’t know you are just a winged person, he is too stubborn to giveyou the appropriate time to explain it.

After you finally have succeeded to approach him, convincing him you arejust a regular person with a pair of wings, he growls between his sharp teeth,saying he still doesn’t like them, thinking your wings are stupid and cumbersome.Everyone in Underfell will notice you definitely, so you become an easy targetto every monsters. And none is going to respect Sans anymore, in the eventthat they see him with an angel (you still seem one of them). Your wings arenot totally useless, because you can run away easy, when you fly. Sans has beentoo precipitous to judge you this time.

Actually, you are not a bad person since you can handle this worldsomeway, and at a certain point he will say sorry to you for his horribleactions. His apologies seem a sort of threat, he is still rude and cold, buthe can speak to you now, without ignoring your presence, at least.

Then, he will get used to your wings; he still thinks they are not a bigdeal, he has seen a lot of weird things in his life. How could he be surprised by something?

~ Stretch ~✽

Your wings are just like bee’s wings, this time.

Oh, if it’s not destiny, what would it be? You are his pretty Bee. Thetwo of you should do a duet, covering the song “Bumble Bees”, by Aqua (I hopeyou are not so innocent since that song is full of double entendre. But if youare a innocent one, there will be more fun for him to bother you).

Don’t we forget about something really important? Yes, the jokes. Heknows you love them, «I know that bee puns really sting, but listen to thisanyway: “Who’s a bee’s favorite singer? Bee-yoncé.“», Oh, whenPapyrus starts, nobody is going to stop him, « What do you call a bee that’s a sore loser? A crybay-bee~», don’t you think it’s so funny? « What do bees like with their sushi? Wasa-bee~», thenyou walk away, face palming yourself.

The truth must be told, he loves so much your wings features, they are sogood to the touch, he enjoys to caress them or, simply, observing them underthe light (even if it is just artificial light). Papyrus often says your wingsare cool, because he does not want to offend you with all his jokes. He wantsto bee funny. You hive to forgive his bee-haviour-!

~ Rus ~ ✦

You are just his true angel comes from above.

His reaction is similar to Red’s one, but less violent and grumpy, sinceRus was enchanted by your preternatural beauty. He could not believe his tired eyesthat have only seen misery and terror. The place where he lived were not soangelic.

Your wings are white, soft, bushy and so warm, he loves using them as apillow or a blanket, sleeping between them is something so wonderful, like hewas in a subconscious paradise. Actually, he is truly on cloud nine with you.He hopes, he is not only dreaming, he always touches your face with delicacy,because he wants to taste reality, realising it is not just a dream. You arereal and he is glad. You are the angel he must protect with his own life.

#randomnessunicorn-imagine #anonymous #undertale #undertale headcanons #undertale scenarios #underswap #underfell #fellswap #swapfell #sans #papyrus #imagines #ask #winged reader #x reader #bad jokes #I cant resist the jokes

[geekade]

Buds Worthy: Ear Hustle

I must admit, the things I’m most afraid of are the things that fascinate me the most. That list includes, but is not limited to things like bees, aliens, and prison. I’m confirmed not allergic to bees, and aliens are probably a statistical anomaly I don’t have to concern myself with too much. While I feel like my life choices lend themselves to finding myself in prison to be unlikely, you never know what the fates hold in store for you on any given day. I would imagine plenty of incarcerated Americans never envisioned themselves behind bars. On a personal level, it’s that fear that sparks an intrigue in the US prison system. It’s why I love movies like Shawshank Redemption and Green Mile, why I watch docs like 60 Days In, and Lock Up late night on MSNBC, and why scripted dramas like Prison Break grab my attention, for the first season anyway.

Needless to say I was super jazzed when I heard about a new podcast called Ear Hustle produced by Radiotopia. If you’re a podcast enthusiast, then you’ve at least heard of other Radiotopia productions. More popular Radiotopia shows include: The Truth, 99% Invisible, The West Wing Weekly, and Criminal. All high-quality products. Ok, the concept behind Ear Hustle is that it’s a podcast produced by the inmates of San Quentin State Prison. I fired up the first episode really excited to get a “behind the veil” take of prison directly from the inmates themselves. Right off the bat we get the prison speak definition of ear hustle. Ear hustling is listening in on other peoples’ conversations. Yes! This is going to be raw and unfiltered, and we are going to hear about stuff that isn’t regurgitated and sanitized by the mass media.

Wrong.

Let me preface my critique of Ear Hustle with a couple of points. First and foremost, I let my enthusiasm of a concept cloud my rational thought. In what world would convicted felons be allowed to broadcast whatever they want though iTunes? Secondly, I’m sure this podcast’s existence is widely known amongst the inmates, therefore any real intrigue of current situations would probably be self-censored for the inmates’ own safety.

Ok let’s hit it. As of this writing we have four episodes available so this is by far the “newest” podcast I’ve reviewed, and traditionally podcasts get better over time. Here’s my first issue with the podcast. Some of the topics they choose to discuss are super predictable. Two of the four episodes are about cellmates and the SHU. It doesn’t get any more stereotypical prison than that. What makes it even more frustrating is that the other two episodes “Looking Out” and “Misguided Loyalty” are very interesting takes on time spent in incarceration. Both tales show a truly human experience, the first about coping with imprisonment and the need to care for someone or something. The other is about how one inmate got involved in gangs and a series of choices led to not only his conviction of a crime but a yoke of guilt that he will never shed.

My next issue is the hosts. Earlonne Woods is an inmate, and Nigel Poor, an artist living in the Bay Area, paint a verbal picture that lacks a spontaneity that lives in normal conversations. I’ll put it this way. I’m never going to like a podcast that sounds like the hosts are reading, because, guess what? They are.

My final point of contention is that every episode is approved by the prison’s communications officer. Yeah, upon hearing this, it makes total sense, but I don’t like how it’s dropped at the end of the episode. It makes me feel that everything I just listened to is PR or spun to caste the prison system as a whole in a positive light. It also makes me yearn for a pod to let these guys loose on whatever topics or ideas they truly want to express.

Episodes are pretty consistently between 25 and 30 minutes so they’ll fit in almost any commute.

Ear Hustle isn’t worthy of your buds just yet, but I’m really hoping this is a podcast that needs to find it’s groove in telling the personal stories of inmates because this can be a beautiful and haunting podcast that can stay with you hours after you’ve stopped listening.

#Podcast #podcasts #articles

[mediumalto]

Best Dear Evan Hansen Moments

This is a list I’m still working on but here’s what I have so far, from what I remember when I saw it and from the cast album. 

When he dropped his cards during his speech and he just sat there on the stage and it was DEAD silent

In words fail when he’s singing that mini reprise of WTAW and he sings “worst” in the most heart-tearing way possible, you can hear his own self-hatred in his voice

All of sincerely me

How he sang in like 3 different octaves in for forever

When CONNOR PUSHES EVAN DOWN AND THEN WAVING THROUGH A WINDOW PIANO STARTS AND YOURE LIKE OH

When Evan spins around in WTAW and the lights turn on and they’re facing away from him

The dialogue in between verses of WTAW

All the foreshadowing in for forever that when you look back on breaks your heart

Having mike faist sing sincerely me

The dancing in sincerely me, including will roland in it

Ben Platt was even better singing live than in recordings

Literally the projections especially of Evan’s letter like ??? what an idea

Jared is literally hilarious and a very realistic teenager

The fact that the story was so realistic, like how Jared said that it sounds like they’re lovers which is exactly what teenagers would think of that, or just how brutally honest Jared was

The jazz band jazz thing – I feel like that’s the kind of thing I would stumble and say to my crush

“The only man that I love is my dad”

Hearing the orchestrations of waving through a window live

“Did you fall? Or did you let go?”

The ending wasn’t really resolved and in a way that’s how it was resolved. I’m so glad things were still a little strange between him and Zoe but they accepted each other as well

Evan telling Zoe he could get her a discount at Pottery Barn

“I don’t need you to sell me on reasons to want you”

“Try to quiet the noises in your head – we can’t compete with all that”

“I never thought there’d be someone like you who would want me. So I give you ten thousand reasons to not let me go”

Laura Dreyfuss’s smooth voice

Can we talk about the costumes?? Connor’s jacket and his nail polish and his skinny jeans, all of Zoe’s outfits and her backpack and the way she walked and carried herself, Evan’s pants and shoes

Addressing how the Murphys are rich and that they don’t really understand and whatever that line was about Cynthia getting bored as a rich mom and changing her interests or something?

How the Murphys had a family song, what a great idea, how they all felt about it differently but they’re sharing this tragedy

“Or girls we wish would notice us but never do” the little look at Zoe, the look down and the cough

Evan noticing things about Zoe in jazz band, seriously it’s so beautiful to watch someone you love playing music

Evan imagining that Connor comes and gets him and takes him to the hospital

On that note, Evan to Heidi “who do you think took me to the hospital?” getting mad that Heidi wasn’t the one…. IT’S NOT HER FAULT

The final set in the apple orchard

The inspirational video of Evan was him standing in front of a mustard yellow-type curtain in an auditorium I was like THIS IS SO ACCURATE for high school

The melody of: “But he kept it all inside his head”

Ben Platt literally sobbing and sniffling in Words Fail with very real tears and snot and spit like TOTAL DEDICATION and emotional investment

“I’m sorry I’m not enough”

At the end of Waving Through A Window when the backup voices cut out and Ben sings the final “whoa”

“You can reach, reach out your hand. And oh, someone will come running” WHY

The first chorus of You Will Be Found just the piano and silence and him singing. So gentle

Whenever Will Roland gets to sing alone

In You Will Be Found they’re in a circle around Evan with the spots on them but this time they’re facing him

Laura’s solo in You Will Be Found and then everyone coming in in harmony right after

RACHEL BAY JONES SINGING IN ANGER AND GRIEF AND CRYING AND I CAN’T

When Connor starts singing the beginning of For Forever near the end

Connor singing Disappear to Evan and him believing it and singing along with him and getting some hope? And I know this thought takes the form of Connor but it’s really a part of Evan that’s telling himself this. And by the end of the show you see how much he really doesn’t like himself but in this scene I have this hope where he truly doesn’t believe he deserves to be forgotten

The piano in If I Could Tell Her

Ben’s falsetto on that long sustained “I love youuuu” in If I Could Tell Her

“Heee thought you looked really pretty – er – it looked pretty cooool”

The melody on “but what do you do (when there’s this great divide)”

The orchestrations (especially the strings) of Waving Through A Window

When the scene is building up and you know Evan’s going to tell them the truth and YOURE LIKE I CAN’T WATCH I CAN’T LISTEN I CAN’T LOOK AT BEN PLATT ACTING LIKE THIS. Like listening again is LITERALLY painful

Falsetto “woooords fail”

HOooooooow in the world does Ben Platt do the song Words Fail EIGHT TIMES A WEEK

“And you want to believe it’s true, so you make it true. And you think maybe everybody wants it – needs it – a little, too”

“’Cause then I don’t have to look at it, and no one gets to look at it”

The smooth transition from Words Fail into a Waving Through A Window reprise

The short For Forever reprise at the very end

I cannot emphasize enough how much I love the melody of For Forever

The fact that Ben sings the first chorus of “For Forever” with falsetto, then the next chorus in full voice, then another time the octave down (in a different key?)

All of Ben’s hand movements and fidgeting and playing with his sweater or his shirt

The set for the final scene

The scoop in harmony in “miss you dearly”

Mike Faist really going all out in sincerely me

“And oh, someone will come running. And I know they’ll take you home”

“Have you ever felt like you could fall and no one would hear”

The last note of the show is (in solfege) “fa”, making it sound unfinished – but not in an unsatisfactory way. I think it makes it seem hopeful and like there will be things coming next and we don’t know what they are yet but we’re getting better at facing them

“Your mom isn’t going anywhere, your mom is staying right here. No matter what”

Rachel Bay Jones’s rocking emotional voice on Good For You

How the last “disappear” of the phrases are in unison

“Kinky!”

Anybody Have A Map? is literally so so great, it’s so catchy, it’s the beginning which sets us up for knowing that the parents are an important part of this show, and not to overlook how they feel. Heidi was the character I felt the most related to my life (not necessarily in myself) and she was so important and from the moment she started singing I was on board with this

“Goodbye, goodbye, now it’s just me and my little guy”

Laura Dreyfuss’s voice when she switches into singing a bit higher – the switch is so seamless and she does it with such grace and elegance. In Only Us, Requiem, all of that

The “oh”s at the end of Requiem

“No no I don’t really care anyway—“ “No no he said so many things I’m just I’m trying to remember the best ones”

WILL FUCKING ROLAND IN SINCERELY ME

The beautiful harmonies in the finale

The harmonies at the end of Sincerely, Me

“Dear Evan Hansen, today is going to be a good day, and here’s why: because today at least you’re you, and that’s enough”

I mean all of the sets with the blue windows/light coming through

Literally all the use of lighting like the squares that they stand in and the projections

“one of my closets acquaintances”

Every single lyric of Words Fail

#me #dear evan hansen #ben platt #laura dreyfuss #mike faist #will roland #kristolyn lloyd #michael park #jennifer laura thompson #rachel bay jones #alex lacamoire #benj pasek #justin paul #steven levenson

[splendidlittlesims]

KiKi Update

I decided to do an update on KiKi and her family since I didn’t take pictures when I was super uninspired gameplay-wise.  The kids will each have their own posts with their rooms in the new house.  

For starters, no this isn’t Odin.  That’s a long story (like seriously, I hope you have a few minutes).

To tell you the truth, I made Odin simply to get unique genetics in my kids.  They’ve all looked pretty similar for the past few generations.  I thought he and KiKi were cute together, but they never really were my OTP.

In game Odin was very focused on work.  He loved video gaming and programming.  He was a good provider for his family, but he and KiKi always had the “hurt” or “deeply wounded” sentiments about each other because they would autonomously fight a lot.  Odin didn’t really treat KiKi special or make her feel truly loved.  He had a very specific idea in his head of what his generic family should look like.

When they first moved to Windenburg, a man they met (who was married with his own children) came on to Kiana.  She rejected him because she wasn’t that kind of girl.  However, as the years went on, and Odin’s attention to her got less and less, she started to get very lonely.  So she called up the guy.

They had a brief affair.  KiKi felt guilty about it, but he made her feel warm and appreciated again.  Eventually though, the guilt was too much for her, and she told Odin about him.  

Odin was of course furious.  He agreed to try and make things work, but he needed time.  However, after a little while and Odin not trying any harder to keep her, KiKi decided she didn’t want to make things work anymore and filed for divorce.  Odin moved out, taking both of their cats (who he said liked him better anyway) with him.

KiKi felt super guilty about everything that had transpired, but ultimately, was not sad to be free of Odin.  

Then she met this guy Eric Bracken (on the gallery-I will look him up if you would like to know his creator).  He was romantic and caring.  He liked her kids (and wanted to spend time with them), and he always made it clear that KiKi and her family came first in his mind.

They had a whirlwind romance and KiKi ended up pregnant.  They weren’t over the moon, but Eric decided to propose (he had been wanting to anyway).  He then said he wanted to build her a house, and she could choose anywhere she wanted.  Even though she loved Windenburg, the memories were too painful for her.  Plus her father had just died and her mother was aging and alone.  So she chose to move home to Brindleton Bay.

Not long after they moved in, KiKi lost their baby.  😥 You will see a little table in the pictures dedicated to their little boy, Oliver.  Kiana was afraid this would be the end of her and Eric’s relationship, but instead it brought them closer.  They both have multiple sentiments for each other and are so in love.  

For now, they are mourning their baby, but they are able to take comfort in each other and their family.  They plan to marry in the spring.

KiKi Jones-INFP-Writer

-cheerful, green fiend, bookworm

-Likes: fitness, rock climbing, gardening, writing, the colors blue and green

-Dislikes: focus music

Eric Bracken-ESTP-Civil Designer Level 4

-Loves the outdoors, romantic, freegan

-Likes: jazz music, fitness

Dislikes: programming (which is ironic)

#sims #sims 4 #the sims 4 #simblr #TS4 #ts4mm gameplay #ts4 legacy #KiKi

[i-am-very-very-tired]

SUBSCRIBE HOME ARTICLE 'Suits': Inside Harvey Specter's mind and office MANDI BIERLY Updated August 18, 2011 at 06:41 PM EDT Gabriel Macht, who stars as Suits‘ Harvey Specter, one of New York’s best (and best-dressed) legal closers, had an idea that USA would renew the show for a second season even before creator Aaron Korsh announced it on set last week as they were shooting the Sept. 8 season 1 finale. In addition to making USA the most-watched network on Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET this summer, “Everybody at USA was constantly telling us how great the show is,” Macht says. “Jeff Wachtel, who co-runs the network, was like, ‘Gabriel, I’m telling you. We pull out our pens to take our notes for each episode, then all the sudden, we put the caps back on the pens and we just watch, and we’re entertained, and we don’t have any real notes.’ That was pretty exciting to hear along the way.” With four episodes left this season — and 16 episodes ordered for 2012 — it’s officially safe to let ourselves get invested in trying to figure out who the mysterious man who only wears Tom Ford suits is. We asked Macht for some clues. Here’s what he had to say: Image Craig Sjodin • Harvey’s a collector: Exhibit A: The line of autographed basketballs on his window sill. “He represents and is friends with major athletes. He’s got Michael Jordan on his speed dial. He’s got basketballs signed by Jordan and Patrick Ewing. He’s got a baseball signed by Derek Jeter,” Macht says. “He’s got really signature — signature, ba dump-dump — sports memorabilia, which he’s gotten from auctions but also probably from the people themselves. He takes a lot in pride in that. He’s a man of the town. He’s connected.” We’ll learn in tonight’s episode — which features guest star Eric Close as an undefeated Boston lawyer who weens his way into a class action suit just so he can say he defeated Harvey Specter — that Harvey, who Macht suspects has season tickets for the Knicks and Yankees, is a former athlete himself. “Harvey wasn’t even on the case. It was Jessica’s case, but he brings up a high school baseball game where Harvey was the pitcher and his shoulder went out, and the team won without him anyway. Harvey still felt like he lost. I think that’s part of his reason for always wanting to win,” Macht laughs. “His sense of self was demolished at that point. He threw his arm out. Big deal. It happens. It wasn’t his fault. Why’s he got to be so serious all the time? My god.” Exhibit B: Harvey’s wall of records. “I think he puts his music on when he needs to mellow out and really focus and think,” Macht says. “He’s a jazz man and a blues man, those are his staples. But he’s got so many records there, he must listen to everything … His vast knowledge of obscure music marries well with his mental library of obscure facts.” Image Craig Sjodin • There are no drawers in Harvey’s office. Strange, right, because you’d think a man like Harvey would have things he’d need to hide. “Yes, but you know what, that’s what he’s got Donna for,” Macht says. “Donna has her little area, which is really interesting, because whenever we get the name of the locations we’re shooting, it’s actually called ‘Donna’s Area.’ There’s always some funny sexual innuendo that Sarah Rafferty, who plays Donna, throws out there. ‘Okay, you’re coming into Donna’s area.’ [Sarah] is awesome. She’s been my friend for over 20 years. She’s one of my best friends. Our daughters are best friends.” One thing Harvey does keep in his masculine, streamlined office, besides that furniture Macht describes as “classic, modern, timeless, Eames- and Herman Miller-inspired pieces that cost a mint”: a can opener. “It’s hidden in his office, and it reveals itself in the finale,” he teases. • Harvey is a movie buff. “There’s always a film reference or two in the episode. Harvey likes to try to stump Mike [Patrick J. Adams] or other characters. He’s playful.” • If you want to see Harvey’s lighter side, look on his office walls. “His artwork was chosen to show that he has a whimsical side with a truly wicked sense of humor,” Macht says. Image Craig Sjodin • Despite his protests otherwise, Harvey does have a heart. “He’s tough as nails, but he’s fair. He has a huge heart, but displays it behind everybody’s back. So he’ll stand up for Mike, but not to his face. He’ll go to Jessica, and say, ‘You’ve got to give this kid a second chance,’ and he’ll go to Lewis and go, ‘Are you nuts? You’re not gonna take this kid. He’s mine, and there’s no way you’re gettin’ near him.’ He believes that Mike is absolutely his ace in the hole, and that he’s a younger version of who Harvey was. He messes up and makes mistakes and he does things in a rogue way because he thinks he’s being clever, and sometimes he gets caught. That’s what Harvey did early on and still does, but he just gets away with it.” • Harvey loves Jessica (Gina Torres), but not in the way some fans may be hoping… “Jessica put Harvey through law school. He was in the mailroom. She found him and saw that this guy was an ace of her own and decided that, ‘I’m gonna put him through law school, and I’m gonna get him trial experience,’ and that’s how Harvey became an assistant district attorney in Manhattan,” Macht says. (We’ll meet the DA that mentored Harvey, played by Gary Cole, in the Sept. 1 episode, when his office comes under investigation and he turns to Harvey for help.) “I don’t think there was ever anything physical between Harvey and Jessica,” he continues. “I think Harvey loves Jessica just because she gave him his start and pulled him out of whatever mess he was in — and hopefully we’ll learn about that in season 2. But it’s funny. I was on YouTube the other night, and someone sent me a video, one of those where they cut together their own interpretations of relationships. Obviously, there’s this whole bromance [on Suits], so anyone who wants the homosexual twist between Mike and Harvey [can use] those really awkward moments of delayed, long looks. They’re so funny. But then there was one with Harvey and Jessica, and it just looked like, who knows what’s behind that story,” he laughs. “It was well done. It’s just funny to me, because I’m there everyday going, this is a total business relationship with [Jessica]. He’s the mentor to Mike…” Loading video Loading video Read more: Five reasons to love ‘Suits’ USA renews ‘Suits’ ‘Suits’ season finale scoop in the Spoiler Room MORE FROM EW.COM Real Housewives star Barbara Kavovit demolishing Harvey Weinstein's NYC office The Bachelor Fantasy Suites recap: Intimacy issues Sunrise Bay reunion! Inside the scandalous Schitt's Creek soap opera drama David Morrissey gets tormented by a sports mascot in Inside No. 9 clip What to Watch on Monday: Fantasy Suites on The Bachelor and Nick Jonas on The Voice premiere EW.com Learn More Subscribethis link opens in a new tab Content Licensingthis link opens in a new tab Sitemap Connect Follow Us © Copyright 2020 Meredith Corporation. Entertainment Weekly is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation All Rights Reserved. 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[wehveechen]

On the nature of MadNes

I realized that I always scream about Madnes without ever explaining the deeper underlying mechanisms and feelings/thoughts that sit at the heart of this dynamic so here. Have unnecessarily detailed explanations on their messy relationship. I put it under a read more because I accidentally wrote an essay smh.

There is layer one, prestige. Ignes is... moderately attractive. Not the hottest noble he ever met, but good enough. More importantly, having her is a big  "Fuck you" @ everyone. Roctis, who had the largest faction in the union .Yeah look I got your precious daughter now. The best Union scientist they had left (or at least so he thinks). And well. a noble clan leader. essentially, she is moderately prestigious enough. Not a "first choice" like Lunark, but she is a passable second choice. Layer two. part one :  Maduke projects onto her. She kills without mercy, she even enjoys it. The strong rule, even if it means they take the lives of the weak. This is a belief they share. Also, the parallel, of him not becoming Faelan's successor instead of Muzaka and her not inheriting the clan weapon for such a long time. He tries to draw parallels. He wants to see himself in her, and he wants it to be loveable. Well. Loveable. He wants someone who understands him. Someone who can see his true face and acknowledge it. Unlike Lunark, he does not need to hide his true self, because his true self and her self are alike. A monster does not fear another monster. Which leads to layer two part two: part two: he has power over her. Unlike Lunark, Ignes is an outsider wherever she goes. The Union is turning so human-centric, they will not make her an elder anyway. she has no power. the nobles are her enemies. The werewolves see her as an intruder. Essentially, Ignes maneuvered herself into a corner in which she depends on his goodwill. Unless madam wishes to live as a hermit somewhere in the himalaya. or something. he enjoys this power. Lunark was well respected in the Union and even more respected among the werewolves (before the whole modification story...). which means she was out of his reach. her word had weight. His power over his subjects is not absolute. he cannot just go and do whatever he wants with key members of the pack without upsetting others too much. Ignes? like who cares what happens to her. Ignes' word and opinion on him mean nothing to anyone. 

Ignes is just this extremely alluring combination of powerful fighter, competent scientist, sadistic monster and .... a child. As Lunark would call her, she is a child in the body of a woman. Ignes is immature, she depends a lot on others, she is aimless, she is scared, she is emotional, she is easy to control. He does not want a partner who is his equal. he wants someone he can control, someone he can mold the way he wants,  or at least that's his idea of her. Someone he can use easily. Her immature personality and her absolute lack of social and political influence paired with superficial assets like knowledge and physical power make her just right. She clearly has no idea what she's doing and that's just right.  As adressed before, Ignes lacks influence. Her opinion has no consequences. And.. she is supposed to be  like  him. which means... as innocent as this sounds, he can be himself with her. Something all living beings strive forward of course, his true self is sadistic, narcissistic, abusive and the whole jazz, but like, girl will just have to live with that. This, a dynamic similar to neskreia, is liberating. He does not have to act around her. or at the very least, he eventually stops doing so. This, of course, unlocks a whole load of other issues because... this man is lonely. he starts thawing. Even though he is a fucking monster, he is also just a man. A lonely man with an ugly personality who knows no one will ever love him for who he really is. But like... once you start opening up to someone, how do you stop?He cannot dehumanize her like he did with Garda. She is not a prisoner who is not meant to ever see the light of day again. And neither is she Mirai(or urne, who is dead. rip).  ... like... if he wants it superficial and meaningless, that's what he has them for.  Essentially, yeah, that bitch absolutely only got himself to blame. get cozy and intimate with someone you cannot treat like some sort of object or animal and you risk catching feels.

And at some point he realizes... shit. He likes her. Like, of course, he hates her, but damn he likes her. he fucking hates her because wow shit he got emotionally attached? how  dare  she make him feel emotions he had no intentions of ever feeling at any point in time. Look at what love brought to others. His Uncle (who was murdered by his brother.) Muzaka. Roctis. And probably many more. LOVE  NEVER DID ANY GOOD FOR ANYONE IN THE HISTORY OF EVER And just... he hates her for that. She is a liability. Even if she has no power over him, she is a liability and... he wants to kill her. He wants to see her dead, best at his own hands, while he still can. But he... cannot. And this makes him hate her even more. The more he loves her, the more he hates her.He hates her, because he is a weak bitch, essentially. He knows that he should get rid of her while he still can, and with her, get rid of the last part of his heart that is capable of something that is not hate, disgust, contempt, malicious joy, greed, pride -  Now that he got a taste ,though... of affection... of holding someone and calling them  yours ...  he cannot stop. he cannot deprive himself of that. And so instead, she must be broken. She cannot be trusted, this wild thing, but then again, no one can be trusted. This is kind of at the heart of what really drives him into his incredibly toxic, abusive behaviour towards her: for one, he is a fucking sadist who enjoys inflicting pain, and two, he is just... well. He has seen that not even Ignes can love him,. (uhm... she is a lesbian... and... she has more of a bad bitch persona than actual nature...) so... she must break. Melt her like a candle and mold the wax into something nice. because this is the only way he will ever, truly have someone: in shards he can cradle in his arms  Ignes is supposed to essentially satisfy all of his emotional needs, while he simultaneously hates her for satisfying his emotional needs because he wants more and more and yeah he hates himself and that's why he hates herit's all Ignes' fault, obviously.Not his own awful character. never. ever. as if. The witch bitch is to blame. 

And some more additional thoughts regarding Ignes’ perspective on all this. 

I would like to start this off with the fact that coming to Maduke was not her first choice. In my HCs, she spent the many chapters between roctis' death and her reappearing on WW island looking for Lagus in places she knew he used to have laboratories and, at her wits' end, she turns to maduke. She learns of Lagus' death from Maduke too, btw. She comes to him in a very difficult time of her life. She is just now realizing that she is alone. That's adulting for you. She longs for purpose, for protecting, for guidance, and initially she meant to go and look for it from Lagus. And so she stays with Maduke instead, who is the only one with enough power to protect her from the wrath of the Noblesse and the nobles in generla. the union is a sinking ship, no point in bothering with them.

Anyway. Obviously, she uses Maduke for his power and ressources. She knows he is a monster - but that's her main mistake when interacting with him: she assumes he is a reasonable man who will act in a consistent manner. We have several examples of her completely being way off the mark in her predictions about his behaviour in MoLM (both positive, when he apologized to her, as well as negative, when she was mistaken about Gaura). She hopes to be able to harness him. He needs  her expertise. she has a know how the werewolf scientists did not have until now. And... she thinks she is safe because of that. that's also why she kept him at bay. sex is meaningless. it's just two bodies mashing together. That's nothing special. But she did not want to fire all her bullets prematurely. She did not expect this to backfire but... yeah. The main reason she rejected him was because she did not want to give him everything he wants too easily. She needs to keep some cards up her sleeve for when he got his superwerewolf army.

( I can write a whole essay on what about  MoLM's chapter "Love" really hit, it was not the physical aspect, but... yeah. i will stay kids friendly and skip over that) in this AU she is mostly just "oh shit... " because she missed her opportunity to slip away. The original plan to just leave during the whole chaos kinda got broken by the fact that she simply does not get another opportunity to easily get away. And.. more importantly... she knows Maduke is too proud to just let her _ go _ . Which means, she is not safe as long as he lives, not safe as long the nobles have a major fucking grudge against her, but that is a whole other can of worms

I genuinely think.. this could have been a real ship. I mean, still a dysfunctional one with no attraction or anything from her, but... it's not to be loved. When the whole world hates you, isn't it nice when there is at least one person who doesn't?

What follows is a lot of stockholm and trauma that does not reflect her personality or anything so this is where i quit thank you for coming to my ted talk

#madnes

[endlessarchite]

Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we’ve thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they’re happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I’m too excited and it’s not a good look. But you know I can’t contain myself so I’m just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES!

That room above is the living room on the RIGHT side of the duplex in all of its painted and trimmed glory (remember, there are two identical – just mirrored – fully separate functioning units in this house – they even have two different street addresses). The wall color that we chose for every last wall in the entire duplex is Sherwin Williams Spare White, which is a barely-there gray color with just enough contrast from the Sherwin Williams Pure White trim.

With all the colorful tile (and doors! and stair risers! and cabinets!) that we chose for these spaces, it just feels like the right backdrop to support those bolder choices. Even from the living & dining room’s extremely simple state in the photo above, you can already see the progress from what it looked like when we first laid eyes on it:

But before we get into things like that wider doorway at the back of the house (and that glorious indoor transom that we’re adding!), just FEAST YOUR EYES upon what is happening the second you walk in the front door. Our chippendale railings all the way from Richmond are in!

If you heard this week’s podcast, we talked about how we demo’d the railings off of our porch back in Richmond (just to open things up before we paint the house white) only to discover they were a perfect fit for the stairs in the duplex!!! If that isn’t fate, I’m not sure what is.

There’s one at the bottom of the steps on each side of the duplex. Remember we opened the stairs up because they were originally completely closed in and dark. This is the old framing. Picture drywall covering the entire staircase from both sides.

This helps you see what it looked like from upstairs looking down. There was just a tiny doorway to squeeze through to see into the living room.

It’s so much nicer to have the bottom five stairs opened up to the living space – and it still blows my mind that the railing that we needed happened to be the exact railing size that we had in Richmond from our porch! There were also two straight railings that we removed from the sides of our porch back in Richmond, and they’re virtually the exact length that we need for the top of the stairs on each side of the duplex. Literally just some trim pieces need to be added, but they’re going to be a perfect fit as well. WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

In summary: It was RIDICULOUSLY THRILLING to see that the railings at the bottom of the steps truly do fit perfectly and that they do exactly what we wanted them to do for this house’s interior: which is to add a little bit of geometry and interest. We still might tweak the newel post situation (I call the round thing at the top of the post a “hamburger” and I’d like to cut it off and add a more square top there) but I’m not gonna let that rain on my railing parade.

But back to the back of the house – because there’s lots of good stuff happening there too. First of all, Sean mocked up the transom window that we’re adding to the (now much wider) doorway into the kitchen. It’s just two 1 x 6″ boards nailed in to create the base of the window and check the proportion, and thanks to that exercise in mocking it up, we all agreed that it would look better if we made that bottom trim a little narrower, hence the 1 x 4″ note written on it by Sean.

We think that will help the glass-to-trim ratio feel a bit more balanced (more glass, and trim along the bottom that’s the same size as the trim on the sides). But again, I’m not gonna let that little need for tweaking rain on my parade… which is now a railing AND transom parade, in case you’re keeping track.

Almost all of our primed solid wood five-paneled doors were hung too and – as you’ll see in a minute – some even got their first coat of paint (hint: they’re not staying white… so the one below hasn’t been painted yet). But it was really excited to see this view start to come together. The pretty paneled doors, the transom window, and the exposed brick chimney back in the kitchen all feel like “something special” – and they all seem like they could have been here all along, which is always the goal.

Since this house was a rental for so many years, it had a lot of small & cheap upgrades and patch-jobs over time, so there was significantly less original stuff to salvage than the pink house (almost all of the doors, lights, and hardware were replaced by newer and less cool things). Which is why our goal to bring back some of that older feeling charm with things like the transom window, the exposed brick chimney, and nice solid wood doors are so exciting to finally see in the space.

The kitchen itself is crammed with boxes at the moment (they’re our bathroom vanities) but it’s going to be such a nice space in the end. It feels like the perfect size, and we love how balanced it feels with that wide opening to the dining room and those nice double pocket doors that lead to the laundry room/mudroom. It’ll have even more fun details – like a wall full of tile to the ceiling – which you can see in this post about our tile choices.

The pocket door glass isn’t frosted, it’s just covered in a protective paper for now – but look how pretttttty this area is becoming with the addition of these doors. We’ve been going back and forth on whether or not to paint the pocket doors. I love the wood, but John thinks that we might have trouble staining the pockets to match the color of the diamond door (they’re different base wood types) plus we are doing blonde wood cabinets in the nearby kitchen.

So even if we can get them to match the diamond door, they won’t match the lighter wood cabinets in the kitchen… which is why John’s voting that we paint them (but not white… more on that in a second). We definitely want to stain the identical pocket doors on the other side of the duplex (since that kitchen will have blue cabinet doors and that diamond door is already painted). So in the end both kitchens will have a mix of wood and painted accents.

Speaking of painted accents, Sean’s crew started painting some of the interior doors upstairs and they are EXACTLY what we were hoping for. On this side (the unit on the right) all of the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which is sort of a gray-blue with a hit of seafoam in it. It’s very neutral, but still pops nicely agains the white walls and trim. I could not be more in love with this wall/trim/door combo, guys. If I could give it ten jazz hands I would.

Plus, look how charming they look with the shadow of my diamond paned windows reflecting on the floor in the front bedroom!!! I DIE.

On the other side of the duplex (the unit on the left) the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams White Truffle, which – despite the name – isn’t white at all. It’s a soft muted pink that also pops nicely against the light walls and white trim without being like a crazy hot pink. WARNING: THESE DON’T LOOK AMAZING YET BECAUSE IT’S JUST ONE COAT (and the walls look green here because leafy trees were reflecting in the window) but hold out for the final look. It’s gonna be great. I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES.

We’re headed there this weekend to – cross your fingers everybody! – hopefully start tiling. I KNOWWWW! WE ARE AT THE TILING PHASE! That means all that’s really left after that is floor refinishing and assembling the kitchen and hanging the lights and installing the bathroom vanities. BUT WE CAN TASTE THE FINISH LINE!!!! I told you this post was gonna have a lot of caps lock. And I feel like they’re warranted. WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!!!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates and progress as our little twins start to feel more and more like real houses. And to catch up on everything we’ve done to get the duplex to this point, you can read all the previous posts here. And you can listen in on how we could even afford to take this project on (in the middle of finishing the tile at the beach house) in this podcast, if you’re interested in investing in vacation rentals – or just houses in general.

The post Exciting Developments At The Duplex appeared first on Young House Love.

Exciting Developments At The Duplex published first on https://bakerskitchenslimited.tumblr.com/

[truereviewpage]

Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we’ve thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they’re happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I’m too excited and it’s not a good look. But you know I can’t contain myself so I’m just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES!

That room above is the living room on the RIGHT side of the duplex in all of its painted and trimmed glory (remember, there are two identical – just mirrored – fully separate functioning units in this house – they even have two different street addresses). The wall color that we chose for every last wall in the entire duplex is Sherwin Williams Spare White, which is a barely-there gray color with just enough contrast from the Sherwin Williams Pure White trim.

With all the colorful tile (and doors! and stair risers! and cabinets!) that we chose for these spaces, it just feels like the right backdrop to support those bolder choices. Even from the living & dining room’s extremely simple state in the photo above, you can already see the progress from what it looked like when we first laid eyes on it:

But before we get into things like that wider doorway at the back of the house (and that glorious indoor transom that we’re adding!), just FEAST YOUR EYES upon what is happening the second you walk in the front door. Our chippendale railings all the way from Richmond are in!

If you heard this week’s podcast, we talked about how we demo’d the railings off of our porch back in Richmond (just to open things up before we paint the house white) only to discover they were a perfect fit for the stairs in the duplex!!! If that isn’t fate, I’m not sure what is.

There’s one at the bottom of the steps on each side of the duplex. Remember we opened the stairs up because they were originally completely closed in and dark. This is the old framing. Picture drywall covering the entire staircase from both sides.

This helps you see what it looked like from upstairs looking down. There was just a tiny doorway to squeeze through to see into the living room.

It’s so much nicer to have the bottom five stairs opened up to the living space – and it still blows my mind that the railing that we needed happened to be the exact railing size that we had in Richmond from our porch! There were also two straight railings that we removed from the sides of our porch back in Richmond, and they’re virtually the exact length that we need for the top of the stairs on each side of the duplex. Literally just some trim pieces need to be added, but they’re going to be a perfect fit as well. WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

In summary: It was RIDICULOUSLY THRILLING to see that the railings at the bottom of the steps truly do fit perfectly and that they do exactly what we wanted them to do for this house’s interior: which is to add a little bit of geometry and interest. We still might tweak the newel post situation (I call the round thing at the top of the post a “hamburger” and I’d like to cut it off and add a more square top there) but I’m not gonna let that rain on my railing parade.

But back to the back of the house – because there’s lots of good stuff happening there too. First of all, Sean mocked up the transom window that we’re adding to the (now much wider) doorway into the kitchen. It’s just two 1 x 6″ boards nailed in to create the base of the window and check the proportion, and thanks to that exercise in mocking it up, we all agreed that it would look better if we made that bottom trim a little narrower, hence the 1 x 4″ note written on it by Sean.

We think that will help the glass-to-trim ratio feel a bit more balanced (more glass, and trim along the bottom that’s the same size as the trim on the sides). But again, I’m not gonna let that little need for tweaking rain on my parade… which is now a railing AND transom parade, in case you’re keeping track.

Almost all of our primed solid wood five-paneled doors were hung too and – as you’ll see in a minute – some even got their first coat of paint (hint: they’re not staying white… so the one below hasn’t been painted yet). But it was really excited to see this view start to come together. The pretty paneled doors, the transom window, and the exposed brick chimney back in the kitchen all feel like “something special” – and they all seem like they could have been here all along, which is always the goal.

Since this house was a rental for so many years, it had a lot of small & cheap upgrades and patch-jobs over time, so there was significantly less original stuff to salvage than the pink house (almost all of the doors, lights, and hardware were replaced by newer and less cool things). Which is why our goal to bring back some of that older feeling charm with things like the transom window, the exposed brick chimney, and nice solid wood doors are so exciting to finally see in the space.

The kitchen itself is crammed with boxes at the moment (they’re our bathroom vanities) but it’s going to be such a nice space in the end. It feels like the perfect size, and we love how balanced it feels with that wide opening to the dining room and those nice double pocket doors that lead to the laundry room/mudroom. It’ll have even more fun details – like a wall full of tile to the ceiling – which you can see in this post about our tile choices.

The pocket door glass isn’t frosted, it’s just covered in a protective paper for now – but look how pretttttty this area is becoming with the addition of these doors. We’ve been going back and forth on whether or not to paint the pocket doors. I love the wood, but John thinks that we might have trouble staining the pockets to match the color of the diamond door (they’re different base wood types) plus we are doing blonde wood cabinets in the nearby kitchen.

So even if we can get them to match the diamond door, they won’t match the lighter wood cabinets in the kitchen… which is why John’s voting that we paint them (but not white… more on that in a second). We definitely want to stain the identical pocket doors on the other side of the duplex (since that kitchen will have blue cabinet doors and that diamond door is already painted). So in the end both kitchens will have a mix of wood and painted accents.

Speaking of painted accents, Sean’s crew started painting some of the interior doors upstairs and they are EXACTLY what we were hoping for. On this side (the unit on the right) all of the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which is sort of a gray-blue with a hit of seafoam in it. It’s very neutral, but still pops nicely agains the white walls and trim. I could not be more in love with this wall/trim/door combo, guys. If I could give it ten jazz hands I would.

Plus, look how charming they look with the shadow of my diamond paned windows reflecting on the floor in the front bedroom!!! I DIE.

On the other side of the duplex (the unit on the left) the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams White Truffle, which – despite the name – isn’t white at all. It’s a soft muted pink that also pops nicely against the light walls and white trim without being like a crazy hot pink. WARNING: THESE DON’T LOOK AMAZING YET BECAUSE IT’S JUST ONE COAT (and the walls look green here because leafy trees were reflecting in the window) but hold out for the final look. It’s gonna be great. I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES.

We’re headed there this weekend to – cross your fingers everybody! – hopefully start tiling. I KNOWWWW! WE ARE AT THE TILING PHASE! That means all that’s really left after that is floor refinishing and assembling the kitchen and hanging the lights and installing the bathroom vanities. BUT WE CAN TASTE THE FINISH LINE!!!! I told you this post was gonna have a lot of caps lock. And I feel like they’re warranted. WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!!!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates and progress as our little twins start to feel more and more like real houses. And to catch up on everything we’ve done to get the duplex to this point, you can read all the previous posts here. And you can listen in on how we could even afford to take this project on (in the middle of finishing the tile at the beach house) in this podcast, if you’re interested in investing in vacation rentals – or just houses in general.

The post Exciting Developments At The Duplex appeared first on Young House Love.

Exciting Developments At The Duplex published first on https://aireloomreview.tumblr.com/

[statusreview]

Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we’ve thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they’re happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I’m too excited and it’s not a good look. But you know I can’t contain myself so I’m just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES!

That room above is the living room on the RIGHT side of the duplex in all of its painted and trimmed glory (remember, there are two identical – just mirrored – fully separate functioning units in this house – they even have two different street addresses). The wall color that we chose for every last wall in the entire duplex is Sherwin Williams Spare White, which is a barely-there gray color with just enough contrast from the Sherwin Williams Pure White trim.

With all the colorful tile (and doors! and stair risers! and cabinets!) that we chose for these spaces, it just feels like the right backdrop to support those bolder choices. Even from the living & dining room’s extremely simple state in the photo above, you can already see the progress from what it looked like when we first laid eyes on it:

But before we get into things like that wider doorway at the back of the house (and that glorious indoor transom that we’re adding!), just FEAST YOUR EYES upon what is happening the second you walk in the front door. Our chippendale railings all the way from Richmond are in!

If you heard this week’s podcast, we talked about how we demo’d the railings off of our porch back in Richmond (just to open things up before we paint the house white) only to discover they were a perfect fit for the stairs in the duplex!!! If that isn’t fate, I’m not sure what is.

There’s one at the bottom of the steps on each side of the duplex. Remember we opened the stairs up because they were originally completely closed in and dark. This is the old framing. Picture drywall covering the entire staircase from both sides.

This helps you see what it looked like from upstairs looking down. There was just a tiny doorway to squeeze through to see into the living room.

It’s so much nicer to have the bottom five stairs opened up to the living space – and it still blows my mind that the railing that we needed happened to be the exact railing size that we had in Richmond from our porch! There were also two straight railings that we removed from the sides of our porch back in Richmond, and they’re virtually the exact length that we need for the top of the stairs on each side of the duplex. Literally just some trim pieces need to be added, but they’re going to be a perfect fit as well. WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

In summary: It was RIDICULOUSLY THRILLING to see that the railings at the bottom of the steps truly do fit perfectly and that they do exactly what we wanted them to do for this house’s interior: which is to add a little bit of geometry and interest. We still might tweak the newel post situation (I call the round thing at the top of the post a “hamburger” and I’d like to cut it off and add a more square top there) but I’m not gonna let that rain on my railing parade.

But back to the back of the house – because there’s lots of good stuff happening there too. First of all, Sean mocked up the transom window that we’re adding to the (now much wider) doorway into the kitchen. It’s just two 1 x 6″ boards nailed in to create the base of the window and check the proportion, and thanks to that exercise in mocking it up, we all agreed that it would look better if we made that bottom trim a little narrower, hence the 1 x 4″ note written on it by Sean.

We think that will help the glass-to-trim ratio feel a bit more balanced (more glass, and trim along the bottom that’s the same size as the trim on the sides). But again, I’m not gonna let that little need for tweaking rain on my parade… which is now a railing AND transom parade, in case you’re keeping track.

Almost all of our primed solid wood five-paneled doors were hung too and – as you’ll see in a minute – some even got their first coat of paint (hint: they’re not staying white… so the one below hasn’t been painted yet). But it was really excited to see this view start to come together. The pretty paneled doors, the transom window, and the exposed brick chimney back in the kitchen all feel like “something special” – and they all seem like they could have been here all along, which is always the goal.

Since this house was a rental for so many years, it had a lot of small & cheap upgrades and patch-jobs over time, so there was significantly less original stuff to salvage than the pink house (almost all of the doors, lights, and hardware were replaced by newer and less cool things). Which is why our goal to bring back some of that older feeling charm with things like the transom window, the exposed brick chimney, and nice solid wood doors are so exciting to finally see in the space.

The kitchen itself is crammed with boxes at the moment (they’re our bathroom vanities) but it’s going to be such a nice space in the end. It feels like the perfect size, and we love how balanced it feels with that wide opening to the dining room and those nice double pocket doors that lead to the laundry room/mudroom. It’ll have even more fun details – like a wall full of tile to the ceiling – which you can see in this post about our tile choices.

The pocket door glass isn’t frosted, it’s just covered in a protective paper for now – but look how pretttttty this area is becoming with the addition of these doors. We’ve been going back and forth on whether or not to paint the pocket doors. I love the wood, but John thinks that we might have trouble staining the pockets to match the color of the diamond door (they’re different base wood types) plus we are doing blonde wood cabinets in the nearby kitchen.

So even if we can get them to match the diamond door, they won’t match the lighter wood cabinets in the kitchen… which is why John’s voting that we paint them (but not white… more on that in a second). We definitely want to stain the identical pocket doors on the other side of the duplex (since that kitchen will have blue cabinet doors and that diamond door is already painted). So in the end both kitchens will have a mix of wood and painted accents.

Speaking of painted accents, Sean’s crew started painting some of the interior doors upstairs and they are EXACTLY what we were hoping for. On this side (the unit on the right) all of the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which is sort of a gray-blue with a hit of seafoam in it. It’s very neutral, but still pops nicely agains the white walls and trim. I could not be more in love with this wall/trim/door combo, guys. If I could give it ten jazz hands I would.

Plus, look how charming they look with the shadow of my diamond paned windows reflecting on the floor in the front bedroom!!! I DIE.

On the other side of the duplex (the unit on the left) the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams White Truffle, which – despite the name – isn’t white at all. It’s a soft muted pink that also pops nicely against the light walls and white trim without being like a crazy hot pink. WARNING: THESE DON’T LOOK AMAZING YET BECAUSE IT’S JUST ONE COAT (and the walls look green here because leafy trees were reflecting in the window) but hold out for the final look. It’s gonna be great. I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES.

We’re headed there this weekend to – cross your fingers everybody! – hopefully start tiling. I KNOWWWW! WE ARE AT THE TILING PHASE! That means all that’s really left after that is floor refinishing and assembling the kitchen and hanging the lights and installing the bathroom vanities. BUT WE CAN TASTE THE FINISH LINE!!!! I told you this post was gonna have a lot of caps lock. And I feel like they’re warranted. WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!!!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates and progress as our little twins start to feel more and more like real houses. And to catch up on everything we’ve done to get the duplex to this point, you can read all the previous posts here. And you can listen in on how we could even afford to take this project on (in the middle of finishing the tile at the beach house) in this podcast, if you’re interested in investing in vacation rentals – or just houses in general.

The post Exciting Developments At The Duplex appeared first on Young House Love.

Exciting Developments At The Duplex published first on https://ssmattress.tumblr.com/

[vincentbnaughton]

Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we’ve thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they’re happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I’m too excited and it’s not a good look. But you know I can’t contain myself so I’m just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES!

That room above is the living room on the RIGHT side of the duplex in all of its painted and trimmed glory (remember, there are two identical – just mirrored – fully separate functioning units in this house – they even have two different street addresses). The wall color that we chose for every last wall in the entire duplex is Sherwin Williams Spare White, which is a barely-there gray color with just enough contrast from the Sherwin Williams Pure White trim.

With all the colorful tile (and doors! and stair risers! and cabinets!) that we chose for these spaces, it just feels like the right backdrop to support those bolder choices. Even from the living & dining room’s extremely simple state in the photo above, you can already see the progress from what it looked like when we first laid eyes on it:

But before we get into things like that wider doorway at the back of the house (and that glorious indoor transom that we’re adding!), just FEAST YOUR EYES upon what is happening the second you walk in the front door. Our chippendale railings all the way from Richmond are in!

If you heard this week’s podcast, we talked about how we demo’d the railings off of our porch back in Richmond (just to open things up before we paint the house white) only to discover they were a perfect fit for the stairs in the duplex!!! If that isn’t fate, I’m not sure what is.

There’s one at the bottom of the steps on each side of the duplex. Remember we opened the stairs up because they were originally completely closed in and dark. This is the old framing. Picture drywall covering the entire staircase from both sides.

This helps you see what it looked like from upstairs looking down. There was just a tiny doorway to squeeze through to see into the living room.

It’s so much nicer to have the bottom five stairs opened up to the living space – and it still blows my mind that the railing that we needed happened to be the exact railing size that we had in Richmond from our porch! There were also two straight railings that we removed from the sides of our porch back in Richmond, and they’re virtually the exact length that we need for the top of the stairs on each side of the duplex. Literally just some trim pieces need to be added, but they’re going to be a perfect fit as well. WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

In summary: It was RIDICULOUSLY THRILLING to see that the railings at the bottom of the steps truly do fit perfectly and that they do exactly what we wanted them to do for this house’s interior: which is to add a little bit of geometry and interest. We still might tweak the newel post situation (I call the round thing at the top of the post a “hamburger” and I’d like to cut it off and add a more square top there) but I’m not gonna let that rain on my railing parade.

But back to the back of the house – because there’s lots of good stuff happening there too. First of all, Sean mocked up the transom window that we’re adding to the (now much wider) doorway into the kitchen. It’s just two 1 x 6″ boards nailed in to create the base of the window and check the proportion, and thanks to that exercise in mocking it up, we all agreed that it would look better if we made that bottom trim a little narrower, hence the 1 x 4″ note written on it by Sean.

We think that will help the glass-to-trim ratio feel a bit more balanced (more glass, and trim along the bottom that’s the same size as the trim on the sides). But again, I’m not gonna let that little need for tweaking rain on my parade… which is now a railing AND transom parade, in case you’re keeping track.

Almost all of our primed solid wood five-paneled doors were hung too and – as you’ll see in a minute – some even got their first coat of paint (hint: they’re not staying white… so the one below hasn’t been painted yet). But it was really excited to see this view start to come together. The pretty paneled doors, the transom window, and the exposed brick chimney back in the kitchen all feel like “something special” – and they all seem like they could have been here all along, which is always the goal.

Since this house was a rental for so many years, it had a lot of small & cheap upgrades and patch-jobs over time, so there was significantly less original stuff to salvage than the pink house (almost all of the doors, lights, and hardware were replaced by newer and less cool things). Which is why our goal to bring back some of that older feeling charm with things like the transom window, the exposed brick chimney, and nice solid wood doors are so exciting to finally see in the space.

The kitchen itself is crammed with boxes at the moment (they’re our bathroom vanities) but it’s going to be such a nice space in the end. It feels like the perfect size, and we love how balanced it feels with that wide opening to the dining room and those nice double pocket doors that lead to the laundry room/mudroom. It’ll have even more fun details – like a wall full of tile to the ceiling – which you can see in this post about our tile choices.

The pocket door glass isn’t frosted, it’s just covered in a protective paper for now – but look how pretttttty this area is becoming with the addition of these doors. We’ve been going back and forth on whether or not to paint the pocket doors. I love the wood, but John thinks that we might have trouble staining the pockets to match the color of the diamond door (they’re different base wood types) plus we are doing blonde wood cabinets in the nearby kitchen.

So even if we can get them to match the diamond door, they won’t match the lighter wood cabinets in the kitchen… which is why John’s voting that we paint them (but not white… more on that in a second). We definitely want to stain the identical pocket doors on the other side of the duplex (since that kitchen will have blue cabinet doors and that diamond door is already painted). So in the end both kitchens will have a mix of wood and painted accents.

Speaking of painted accents, Sean’s crew started painting some of the interior doors upstairs and they are EXACTLY what we were hoping for. On this side (the unit on the right) all of the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which is sort of a gray-blue with a hit of seafoam in it. It’s very neutral, but still pops nicely agains the white walls and trim. I could not be more in love with this wall/trim/door combo, guys. If I could give it ten jazz hands I would.

Plus, look how charming they look with the shadow of my diamond paned windows reflecting on the floor in the front bedroom!!! I DIE.

On the other side of the duplex (the unit on the left) the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams White Truffle, which – despite the name – isn’t white at all. It’s a soft muted pink that also pops nicely against the light walls and white trim without being like a crazy hot pink. WARNING: THESE DON’T LOOK AMAZING YET BECAUSE IT’S JUST ONE COAT (and the walls look green here because leafy trees were reflecting in the window) but hold out for the final look. It’s gonna be great. I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES.

We’re headed there this weekend to – cross your fingers everybody! – hopefully start tiling. I KNOWWWW! WE ARE AT THE TILING PHASE! That means all that’s really left after that is floor refinishing and assembling the kitchen and hanging the lights and installing the bathroom vanities. BUT WE CAN TASTE THE FINISH LINE!!!! I told you this post was gonna have a lot of caps lock. And I feel like they’re warranted. WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!!!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates and progress as our little twins start to feel more and more like real houses. And to catch up on everything we’ve done to get the duplex to this point, you can read all the previous posts here. And you can listen in on how we could even afford to take this project on (in the middle of finishing the tile at the beach house) in this podcast, if you’re interested in investing in vacation rentals – or just houses in general.

The post Exciting Developments At The Duplex appeared first on Young House Love.

[vernsbrandt34-blog]

Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we've thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they're happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I'm too excited and it's not a good look. But you know I can't contain myself so I'm just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES!

That room above is the living room on the RIGHT side of the duplex in all of its painted and trimmed glory (remember, there are two identical – just mirrored – fully separate functioning units in this house – they even have two different street addresses). The wall color that we chose for every last wall in the entire duplex is Sherwin Williams Spare White, which is a barely-there gray color with just enough contrast from the Sherwin Williams Pure White trim.

With all the colorful tile (and doors! and stair risers! and cabinets!) that we chose for these spaces, it just feels like the right backdrop to support those bolder choices. Even from the living & dining room's extremely simple state in the photo above, you can already see the progress from what it looked like when we first laid eyes on it:

But before we get into things like that wider doorway at the back of the house (and that glorious indoor transom that we're adding!), just FEAST YOUR EYES upon what is happening the second you walk in the front door. Our chippendale railings all the way from Richmond are in!

If you heard this week's podcast, we talked about how we demo'd the railings off of our porch back in Richmond (just to open things up before we paint the house white) only to discover they were a perfect fit for the stairs in the duplex!!! If that isn't fate, I'm not sure what is.

There's one at the bottom of the steps on each side of the duplex. Remember we opened the stairs up because they were originally completely closed in and dark. This is the old framing. Picture drywall covering the entire staircase from both sides.

This helps you see what it looked like from upstairs looking down. There was just a tiny doorway to squeeze through to see into the living room.

It's so much nicer to have the bottom five stairs opened up to the living space – and it still blows my mind that the railing that we needed happened to be the exact railing size that we had in Richmond from our porch! There were also two straight railings that we removed from the sides of our porch back in Richmond, and they're virtually the exact length that we need for the top of the stairs on each side of the duplex. Literally just some trim pieces need to be added, but they're going to be a perfect fit as well. WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

In summary: It was RIDICULOUSLY THRILLING to see that the railings at the bottom of the steps truly do fit perfectly and that they do exactly what we wanted them to do for this house's interior: which is to add a little bit of geometry and interest. We still might tweak the newel post situation (I call the round thing at the top of the post a “hamburger” and I'd like to cut it off and add a more square top there) but I'm not gonna let that rain on my railing parade.

But back to the back of the house – because there's lots of good stuff happening there too. First of all, Sean mocked up the transom window that we're adding to the (now much wider) doorway into the kitchen. It's just two 1 x 6″ boards nailed in to create the base of the window and check the proportion, and thanks to that exercise in mocking it up, we all agreed that it would look better if we made that bottom trim a little narrower, hence the 1 x 4″ note written on it by Sean.

We think that will help the glass-to-trim ratio feel a bit more balanced (more glass, and trim along the bottom that's the same size as the trim on the sides). But again, I'm not gonna let that little need for tweaking rain on my parade… which is now a railing AND transom parade, in case you're keeping track.

Almost all of our primed solid wood five-paneled doors were hung too and – as you'll see in a minute – some even got their first coat of paint (hint: they're not staying white… so the one below hasn't been painted yet). But it was really excited to see this view start to come together. The pretty paneled doors, the transom window, and the exposed brick chimney back in the kitchen all feel like “something special” – and they all seem like they could have been here all along, which is always the goal.

Since this house was a rental for so many years, it had a lot of small & cheap upgrades and patch-jobs over time, so there was significantly less original stuff to salvage than the pink house (almost all of the doors, lights, and hardware were replaced by newer and less cool things). Which is why our goal to bring back some of that older feeling charm with things like the transom window, the exposed brick chimney, and nice solid wood doors are so exciting to finally see in the space.

The kitchen itself is crammed with boxes at the moment (they're our bathroom vanities) but it's going to be such a nice space in the end. It feels like the perfect size, and we love how balanced it feels with that wide opening to the dining room and those nice double pocket doors that lead to the laundry room/mudroom. It'll have even more fun details – like a wall full of tile to the ceiling – which you can see in this post about our tile choices.

The pocket door glass isn't frosted, it's just covered in a protective paper for now – but look how pretttttty this area is becoming with the addition of these doors. We've been going back and forth on whether or not to paint the pocket doors. I love the wood, but John thinks that we might have trouble staining the pockets to match the color of the diamond door (they're different base wood types) plus we are doing blonde wood cabinets in the nearby kitchen.

So even if we can get them to match the diamond door, they won't match the lighter wood cabinets in the kitchen… which is why John's voting that we paint them (but not white… more on that in a second). We definitely want to stain the identical pocket doors on the other side of the duplex (since that kitchen will have blue cabinet doors and that diamond door is already painted). So in the end both kitchens will have a mix of wood and painted accents.

Speaking of painted accents, Sean's crew started painting some of the interior doors upstairs and they are EXACTLY what we were hoping for. On this side (the unit on the right) all of the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams Oyster Bay, which is sort of a gray-blue with a hit of seafoam in it. It's very neutral, but still pops nicely agains the white walls and trim. I could not be more in love with this wall/trim/door combo, guys. If I could give it ten jazz hands I would.

Plus, look how charming they look with the shadow of my diamond paned windows reflecting on the floor in the front bedroom!!! I DIE.

On the other side of the duplex (the unit on the left) the doors are getting painted Sherwin Williams White Truffle, which – despite the name – isn't white at all. It's a soft muted pink that also pops nicely against the light walls and white trim without being like a crazy hot pink. WARNING: THESE DON'T LOOK AMAZING YET BECAUSE IT'S JUST ONE COAT (and the walls look green here because leafy trees were reflecting in the window) but hold out for the final look. It's gonna be great. I CAN FEEL IT IN MY BONES.

We're headed there this weekend to – cross your fingers everybody! – hopefully start tiling. I KNOWWWW! WE ARE AT THE TILING PHASE! That means all that's really left after that is floor refinishing and assembling the kitchen and hanging the lights and installing the bathroom vanities. BUT WE CAN TASTE THE FINISH LINE!!!! I told you this post was gonna have a lot of caps lock. And I feel like they're warranted. WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!!!

Anyway, stay tuned for more updates and progress as our little twins start to feel more and more like real houses. And to catch up on everything we've done to get the duplex to this point, you can read all the previous posts here. And you can listen in on how we could even afford to take this project on (in the middle of finishing the tile at the beach house) in this podcast, if you're interested in investing in vacation rentals – or just houses in general.

The post Exciting Developments At The Duplex appeared first on Young House Love.

[michaelberry-blog]

Havana day 2: cigars and lots and lots of other things

Over breakfast, the German girl mentioned that she had purchased unbranded cigars in Viñales but realized she didn't like them. The factories there are forced to send the tobacco to the government before it is distributed to the major companies, but if you buy it straight from the plantation you get the quality for a fraction of the price. I bought them off her and realized I didn't even know which end was which. I stopped in a local bakery as I passed and bought some sweet bread for 1 Cuban peso. That's 3 cents! I munched as I walked to the Partagás cigar factory, through some of the most dilapidated neighborhoods I have seen in all my travels. The Cuban people are poor, yes, but they're not necessarily in need. The government provides free healthcare, schooling, and all basic needs, so the average monthly income of $15 probably goes toward rum and cigarettes. Life is not easy, but everyone can survive. I looked around for a hotel in which to buy a ticket to the factory. The owner of one B&B (which actually had an AirBnB sticker) was thrilled to meet me. "California!" he exclaimed. "Apples! Come in, I will explain everything." I'm not sure if he was talking about the fruit or the company, but he introduced me to his family ("California!") and we sat on the balcony. He informed me that the factory is overpriced and not quite authentic, and if I was going to Viñales tomorrow I should wait until then to see the real tobacco process. Everyone, I mean everyone, in Cuba is on the hustle. People in the tourism industry make more than doctors, so although the people are friendly, they also want your money very badly. Because of this, I expected him to try and sell me his own cigars or something, but he simply sent me on my way and told me it was nice to meet me. After that, I managed to ride in my first "colectivo" of the trip. They're hard to distinguish from normal taxis, but some of the old cars (called maquinas) run a set route and only charge 50 cents. It's basically hitch hiking. They let me off near the Viazul bus station, where I purchased my ticket to Viñales. In order to do so, I had to wait in a long line, then go to a different office, then go back to the original office, then the printer ran out of paper and everybody kind of just went on break. Next door was a little cafe where I had a surprisingly good espresso while listening to an old Skrillex mashup, circa 2010. I was loving it. Across the street I caught a cab with a friendly old man named Ricardo, who claimed he was the original owner of this 1957 Citroen and did all of the maintenance himself. Imported cars are taxed at an astronomical 10x, meaning the few newish German cars I saw would cost around $300,000! But you can't buy them anyway, unless you're a government official. I think my favorite thing is talking to taxi drivers. He dropped me off near the American Embassy, which used to display uncensored news to the Cuban people from large screens behind its gates. To counter, the communist regime created the Monte de Banderas: a monument of huge flags directly in front of the Embassy. How convenient! I walked for a while along the Malecón seawall, refreshed by the ocean breeze. Like a seasoned veteran, I caught another colectivo back to Old Havana to check out Castillo San Salvador de la Punta. This fort, along with its sister across the bay, protected the port from pirates and corsairs for centuries. There was a period when all of the riches of the new world came through Havana before sailing back to Spain, and attacks were so frequent that they even strung a chain across the mouth of the bay to effectively clothesline any would-be assailants. The man running the entrance was visibly bored, and stopped me for a while just to talk. He looked around the empty area to be sure it was truly vacant and pulled out a box of Cohibas, explaining that his family works in the factory and they're easy to pilfer. I purchased 2, and even if they're fake, it doesn't really matter since they were ten times cheaper than market value. I struck out on getting a colectivo back and ended up paying for a normal taxi. It was a 52 Buick, with a dashboard lifted directly from a 21st century Peugeot. Back in the hostel I discovered that my phone charger cable was missing. The outlet plug was still in the wall, but the cable was nowhere to be seen. I mentioned it to the señora, who became visibly upset and started talking too quickly for me to understand as she turned the room upside down. For now she gave me a battered cable one of the other guests had left behind. My feet were rubbed raw from all of the wet socks and the walking, so I chilled out for a while in the park to get some wifi and watched a fight break out in front of a cafeteria. One man chucked a piece of concrete at the other, who narrowly dodged it as it exploded into fragments against the wall. The Habaneros in the park watched with excitement. I was itching to hear some live music for which Havana is so famous, so I asked my waiter that evening if he had any recommendations. Without hesitation he responded "La Fábrica," which was a popular music establishment with different genres in each room, housed in a now-defunct oil factory. The hipster in me was excited. A spry Cuban with an Afro picked me up in his Chrysler, and roared through the hot night whistling at every sultry mamasita he passed. Despite what people had told me, La Fábrica was closed because it was Monday. So I had him drive me to another spot I had heard about, a subterranean venue where up-and-coming Cuban musicians and locals hung out. Also closed. Third time's the charm, and I ended up at La Zorra y el Cuervo. I'm pretty excited to be able to say the phrase "I went to a jazz joint in Havana" for the rest of my life. Cover included 2 (strong) Mojitos, and I chatted with the bartender until the music started and the place filled up. The song started out slow, lazy piano keys and soft rapping of drums. I tried to tap my fingers to the beat but it kept changing as the musicians searched for meaning, then lost it, then found it again. The tempo picked up. The drummer began to sweat, I could see the fog of his breath under the lights. The piano man stood up, pounding the keys and forgetting about everything but the moment. Then the tenorman hooped up and blew his top, squealing and blasting and through his trumpet poured all the answers to the questions everyone had forgotten to ask. Now I was living my "On the Road" dream! Dean appeared next to me, rubbing his belly and shouting "Yes! Blow man!" and digging everything. A group of 12 Americans came in, getting in the way of everybody and taking videos they would never watch again. Still, they were American, so I talked to them a while. I asked the bartender if he had any other recommendations, and he told me to go to El Gato Tuerto (The one eyed cat) for "music with feeling!" I walked the 2 blocks and sat watching the salsa band play their hearts out and the cute girl who danced with all the Cubans. Just then I figured it all out: dark skin, tequila, music, inability to keep myself away from Spanish countries... I must be Latin deep down inside.

[livinginlongdistanceabout-blog]

I am Not Your Average Guy

I am not really your average guy. I currently live in Nova Scotia for school but am originally from Toronto Ontario. Back home I played in a band which was sort of a acid jazz rock kinda thing and graduated from one of the most ghetto high schools in Toronto. All my life I have been a very odd kind of person. For instance my favourite candy would have to be black licorices, I take cold showers, I have a bunch of weird mental problems and love drastic change. With mental problems I have experienced a whole array of set backs in life, mostly regarding relationships and especially academics. I moved out east becuase I was unable to achieve high enough marks to get into any business programs in Ontario. Nova Scotia takes your top 4 courses and not your top 5. Further more i was able to squeeze myself into a business program at tiny school on the bay of Fundy.

The fun starts  when i meet this wonderful Women at a party around mid summer. (if you want to skip the next three paragraphs which really is just the story about how i got into my long distance Relationship, you man do so. However please read the  Stared*  snippet at the very end)

Acceptance for universities has long passed and my plan is to get the summer over with so I can start my university career. Ok back to the party. I drove to this party with a bunch of my band mates and a close friend of mine. We pulled up and they all got out and I went to park. These parties I go to are through my band mates, I really don’t have a problem not being close with anyone at these party becuase my school has no parties, its better than nothing. Later on during this party I find myself sitting out side on one of thoughts out door sofas in an L shape arrangement talking to this girl. Typical conversation was passing between us but I really was not very interested in her. Although I would come to know later that this girl i am talking to would be my girlfriends best friend. However This wonderful girl i mentioned earlier was why i wasn’t interested . This blonde haired goddess had been sitting next to me for about 15 minutes before I tried to introduce myself. I was immediately shut down.This might  sound really cheesy but as a side note, I can still remember what she was wearing. A green kind of elaborately designed shirt with ripped high-waisted jeans and who cant forget about a huge bottle of white wine in her hand.

Months pass its late July  and i find myself a plus one at another party. Turns out its the girl i was not interested ins party. I enter the party say my hellos to my “hello friends” who are people i know and they know me but thats about it and start drinking. On account of my broken knee, I was having a pretty hard time standing inside. So I retreated out doors and I saw her.  To be honest I wish I could be cheesy here but I was honestly too drunk by this point. If you would have given me one more shot i would have passed out in the flower bed. But anyways, I asked a girl I knew, out of sheer drunkenness if she could tell this girl I was looking for her. A few minutes later I see her. she moseyed  up to me  and says to me,what? I being anxious nervous and crippled said “wanna have a cigarette”? out of sheer luck and probably alcohol on her part we had a cig together. We start chatting and its going pretty well. By this time the party is getting packed and we are pretty much forced off of the patio we are smoking on. We retreat to the garden where we sit next to a wooden fence and talk. Much like every Drunken high school party talk we ended up kissing. Post kiss i asked for her number, got it then went on our separate ways. The next day I broke my phone and lost her number.

About a week or too later I run into a picture of her onI, I had no idea that I was following her. I then persisted to Instagram dm her a pretty sincere but lame message that went a little like" hey remember me? We met at a party a little wile ago. We exchanged numbers but my phone broke".  She replied and we started talking. We went on out first date on the 5th of August and I fell in love. Bubble tea and a walk was my date choice and it turned into bubble tea and a 6 hour walk. She talked about how she was going to France in September to be a nanny as we walked around Ossington village. I shared how i was moving to nova scotia to study. After this date I think we had made it pretty clear to each other that a serious relationship was not what any of us where looking for right now. However after that date I am pretty sure we saw each other almost every day. She would work all day as would I. Then I would go do my second job which was uber eats on my bike till 9 then go to her house and hang out till around 2 every day, just to get up at 7am for work the next day.

The day she left was the worst day of my life. This dream life fairy tail was over and she was gone for what I thought, forever. I returned to my job for a few more days only for fate or karma or bad luck to struck me. The job site I was working at after she left was on her street. During this time we where trying to loosen ties becuase she wanted to enjoy paris and I wanted to be able to enjoy university. Obviously it didn’t work!

*This is where i am going to leave it because this is pretty much what my blogs about. Living in long distance. With this blog i wish to pass on stories,ideas, tips and tricks about my experience and experiences with someone i truly love and truly cant see my life without even though she’s on the other side of the planet

#About #livinginlongdistance