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nesiacha · 12 days

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In defense for Manon Roland

(Before beginning this defense of Manon Roland, and by extension, some Girondins, I want to clarify that I do not share most of their ideas (although I admire some, it must be admitted to avoid any confusion that I completely disapprove of the war project they pursued, which I find irresponsible. Additionally, at that time, other foreign powers were primarily dividing Poland". Moreover, for those who do not know me, you can see the position I defend in the frequency that I share in the links I have provided on my pinned post. I am engaging in the defense here while trying to raise truthful arguments, but some events, such as the arrest of the Girondins, are much more complex than evil Montagnards vs. kind Girondins).

Today, I come to the defense of Manon Roland, the muse of the Girondins, whom some accuse of being nothing more than a scheming bourgeois disconnected from reality. Citizens, I believe it is time to sweep away all these accusations. The republicanism and political activity of Manon Roland can hardly be doubted in light of the facts. Indeed, from a young age, Manon Roland harbored a hatred—quite understandable, if not legitimate, I don't think I need to explain why—for the elites of the Ancien Régime and developed a strong sense of republicanism, not for constitutional monarchy. On this point, there is a resemblance to Camille Desmoulins. She hosted a salon with what was considered in 1790-1791 to be the extreme left, namely Buzot, Pétion, Brissot, and Robespierre (she was not the only one to host a political salon; Madame Condorcet and Madame de Staël did the same). According to her memoirs, she sheltered the Roberts during the terrible shooting on the Champ de Mars due to the repression of the republicans. According to Manon Roland, she eventually sent François and Louise Robert away because they were too imprudent in their behavior, but perhaps we should see signs of the first political divergences there.

Regarding the declaration of war against Austria that Madame Roland supported, there were good reasons for the Girondins—who were not really a heterogeneous group, they did not like the nickname "Girondins" very much—to advance this idea. Let us not forget that Emperor Leopold II of Austria had just died, and his son, Francis I, had succeeded him. He was much more bellicose towards France than his father. Moreover, there were suspicions, confirmed after the flight of the King, who was arrested in Varennes, that Louis XVI wanted foreign powers to invade the country to restore absolute monarchy. If France were to enter into war, Louis XVI would make moves. Not to mention that it is logical to fear that royalist emigrants, especially the future kings Louis XVIII and Charles X, would return with an army. In fact, these emigrants obtained a joint declaration from Prussia and Austria stating that these countries were not at all satisfied with the events in France. According to Manon Roland and others of her political persuasion, logic dictated that France strike first. Louis XVI, who wanted war, would then appoint new "Girondin" ministers, including Jean Marie Roland de la Platière, Manon's husband, who would become Minister of the Interior with the aim of provoking war. This situation thus presents a duplicitous game. She would once again play her role as an organizer behind the scenes, and it is true that she advised her husband a great deal. Moreover, as the war began very poorly for France, the political group of the Girondins made certain decisions, certain decrees rather judicious, especially in the long term, such as the dissolution of the royal guard and the mobilization of 20,000 federates from all over France to form the National Guard, which would later have a decisive effect on the invasion of the Tuileries on August 10. Louis XVI vetoed these decrees, as the Girondins hoped, which showed everyone the double game the King was playing. Furthermore, if some criticize the letter that Jean Marie Roland de la Platière wrote, which led to Manon Roland's husband being dismissed, in which the content of the letter urged the King to reconsider his veto, he was dismissed in June 1792, but now Louis XVI's intentions were even clearer, and later he would become minister again, which shows a long-term victory.

Regarding their liberal economic policies and free trade, and especially the fact that they did not want to abolish private property, it should be noted in their defense that even the most radical revolutionaries were not in favor of ending private property. There is also a misconception that the Girondins were not in favor of abolishing slavery, whereas Brissot, for example, was in favor of gradual abolition. Léger Félicité Sonthonax, a Girondin, nevertheless gradually abolished slavery, gradually putting an end to an inhumane idea, but also to the astute decision that slaves would join the fight for the French Republic.

There have been ideas that the Girondins, and therefore Manon Roland—who is more associated with the Brissotins—were discredited because they voted against the death of the King, but in reality, it was a political strategy not to legitimize the events of August 10, just as the Montagnards later justified the September massacres. Therefore, we cannot blame one political faction for employing a political strategy while condemning another.

Moreover, Manon Roland had reasons to attack Danton, whose suspicions of corruption were proven true, and who could never justify his accounts when he was Minister of Justice, among other things. He was saved only by the support of the Montagnards, who, during a political session, were obliged to show their support for him, but even some of them were beginning to have doubts about him.

Furthermore, when the Girondins—about thirty of them—were arrested, Vergniaud was somewhat right to say that there was a violation of the laws of the Republic, that they were elected by French departments and not just by Paris. Following their house arrest, most of them fled Paris and fomented uprisings. Those who remained were tried, and to illustrate how contested the verdict could be, since the debate had lasted more than 5 days, there was a terrible motion: "If it happens that (the judgment…) the judgment of a case brought before the revolutionary tribunal has (lasted more than three days) been extended three days, the president will open the next session by asking the jurors if their conscience is sufficiently enlightened." This was proposed by Robespierre, but one can hold all the members of the Convention who voted for this motion equally responsible.

Manon Roland showed honor and courage, which must be recognized among other things ( it seems that she really take care of Petion wife who was in jail too… Far from a snobbish person). She stayed in Paris even though she was not bound by an oath to remain under house arrest, did not foment rebellion, yet was judged and later condemned to death, which is completely unjust. She had a certain legalistic aspect (which I find somewhat parallel to Robespierre, who also accepted being arrested by reluctant gendarmes), reinforced by the fact that she apparently refused the help of a friend to escape by pretending to be her, although Manon Roland refused.

Interestingly, she is said to have written a letter to Robespierre again—although they were initially allies then enemies—but she refuses to send it. I will send you this link; does she paradoxically, in this case, still have some respect for him compared to a Danton whom she loathes? According to Lamartine, who is unreliable on many points, so I would doubt this anecdote greatly, Robespierre signed her arrest with a "slight expression of remorse."

In any case, Manon Roland, despite all that can be reproached of her—such as her belief that women should be submissive to their husbands and must accept many rules, her mistakes in not wanting to support social policies—is a dedicated citizen to the Republic, a woman who is not an opportunist, and whose fervor for republicanism cannot be doubted.

Sources: Frédéric Bluche, Danton

See this link: http://lionel.mesnard.free.fr/Paris-revolution-Manon-Roland.html

Jean Clement Martin

Antoine Resche

Memories of Manon Roland

#frev #french revolution #manon roland #girondins #brissotins #robespierre #danton

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caelxmontgomery · 1 year

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THE TOWERS

The Tower signifies destruction. If you’ve received the Upright Tower tarot card, prepare for things to be leveled and dismantled. As with all losses, this will probably be a painful process. It can also lead to a fresh start. Before making these positive changes, you must face the truth about a situation.

STATISTICS

BIRTH NAME : Cael Brendan Montgomery ALIAS : Cay, Ares, B-12, Queens (By Aubrey) AGE : 40 DATE OF BIRTH : may 5th 1983 RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Widowed HOMETOWN : New York, USA TIME IN KISMET HARBOR : Since March 2023 RESIDENCE : Downtown (homeless shelter) FACECLAIM : Henry Cavill

trigger warning: death, schizophrenia, violence, murder, imprisonment, trauma, ptsd, illness.

EDUCATION : None OCCUPATION : unemployed GENDER : Cis-Male PRONOUNS : He/Him SEXUALITY : Bisexual HAIR COLOR : Dark Brown EYE COLOR : Blue HEIGHT : 6′1″ BUILD : Athletic ACCENT : New York LANGUAGES : English TATTOOS : None

ZODIAC : Taurus LOVE LANGUAGE : TBD CLOTHING : Black jeans, army boots, grey or green shirts or henleys and a leather jacket, a ragged scarf in winter with fingerless gloves. HAIR STYLE + BEARD: ( x ) CONDITIONS : Schizophrenia (medicated with Risperdal), insomnia, unilateral hearing loss (right) ALLERGIES : Latex, peanuts, bell pepper EATING HABITS : Cael mostly eats fast food or snacks, though his diet mostly includes alcoholic beverages EXERCISE HABITS : Bootcamp, boxing, swimming. SLEEPING HABITS : Suffering from insomnia in combination with a bad lifestyle, he sleeps in between 2-5 hours a night.

ADDICTIONS : Alcohol (specifically wodka) DRUG USE : None ALCOHOL USE : Daily

POSITIVE TRAITS : Alert, confident, honorable, observant, persuasive, uninhibited NEGATIVE TRAITS : Abrasive, apathetic, confrontational, cynical, forgetful, pessimistic, resentful, self-indulgent. PHOBIAS : aerophobia, iatrophobia, haphephobia (situational) FEARS : Losing his mother, insanity. HOBBIES : Bootcamp, swimming, cars. HABITS : Nail biting, cracking knuckles USUAL DEMEANOR : Melancholic

FATHER : Brendan Montgomery † MOTHER : Melinda Gardenier SIBLINGS : Viktor Pierce ( half-brother) PARTNERS : Sophia Carswell † (2011-2012) CHILDREN : none PETS : none.

CONNECTIONS

Pen pal - Cael received a letter when in Rikers and enjoyed contact with them. He informed them he moved to Easthaven because he discovered his mother was there (her ex's hometown) in safe harbor assisted living. they came to EH to surprise him.

Old friend - With a great lack of trying, Cael developed some friendships back in New York. Those relationships abruptly ended with his arrest in 2013. Some believed he was innocent, whereas some believed that he did it. What will they do now when they see him?

BIOGRAPHY

trigger warning: death, schizophrenia, violence, murder, imprisonment, trauma, ptsd, illness. (tltr at the bottom)

Cael was born to Brendan and Melinda Montgomery at 9.32 in the morning on Thursday, May the 5th, 1983. Forecast: sunny with a light drizzle.

Growing up, Cael was a curious and adventurous boy. Certainly giving his parents a handful from the moment he drew his first breath. Despite that, he was easily satisfied when giving something new to do. He enjoyed kindergarten, making friends and exploring the world outside of his home. When going to school, Cael tried to make the best of what he could. He experienced bullying because of his weight and being small of height throughout middle school, but didn't let that deter him from making friends. He had a passion for history and economics and was often top of his class. His grades faltered after the sudden death of his father. His teachers became concerned for the loss of emotion in the boy, and so was his mother. His smile never returned, he never spoke up in class or ignored when asked upon. It resulted in a lot of trips to the headmaster's office and staying in detention until they decided to put him into counselling to cope with his grief.

Instead of seeing better results from him, things only got worse. Cael would get into arguments with teachers, started fights in the hallways and the courtyards. When he set fire to one of the trashcans they found no better option than kicking him off of school just before graduation. Turning eighteen in a few weeks, his mother decided not to search for a different school and instead homeschool him so he'd get his diploma. Cael however had different ideas. He was more outside than he was inside, lashing out to the people that cared about him, and despite that his mother still kept her door open for him. Years passed and Cael often got into trouble with the law, setting fires and starting fights. Joining the underground ring under the alias of Ares was a way for him to make money, since no one was hiring a violent high school drop out.

Things escalated when he was twenty-four. The underground arena was swarmed by police and Cael, along with other fighters started to fight back. It ended with him in handcuffs and speaking insanity, which was cause enough for one of the police officers to suggest the psych ward rather than a night in prison. Sure enough, suffering a psychosis and a mandatory 72 hour hospital stay, he was diagnosed with Schizophrenia. He explained how he heard a voice in his head that wasn't his, one that told him he was possessed by a deity, the Greek God of War. Of how he was being hunted by others at every turn but it mattered little as he thought himself immortal. Looking back at his history, they traced it back to his teens, where his father's suicide triggered the first symptoms, but was overlooked by his grief and everything going on in his life.

Receiving the right treatment helped Cael, getting rid of the voice in his head and finding a way to get back to society. He moved out of his parental home a few years later, standing on his own two feet. He still fights, but this time in a legal boxing ring, though he kept the name. He was even offered a job as a bouncer at a prestigious club that paid him well. Things were looking forwards to him when he met Sophia, a temporary psychiatrist that took over his sessions over the summer vacation of 2010. They met after their last session and beyond his own expections they fell in love, much to the dismay of her family. Nevertheless it was Sophia that agreed to marry him, and after 6 months together they were husband and wife.

Tensions rose high between Sophia and her family, who felt that Cael had only proposed to her for her money and status, seeing as he had nothing. Nothing could be further from the truth, as he had no idea about her wealth until after they had brought it up in a discussion. Cael worked hard to be able to split the costs of a new york residence together and for a while things were looking great. They were in love, Cael's health had been good and seemingly Sophia's family had appeared to accept the fact that he was there to stay. The world stopped turning when a stranger came knocking on his door in the middle of the night. Two officers with their cap in their hands, announcing the death of his wife. He ended up in a dark hole, watching everyone pass him by in slowmotion as he tried to cope with the fact that he had not only lost his wife, but as it turned out also his unborn child. He visited the police department frequently, talking to the detective about leads, not resting until he had more answers about who had taken away the person most important to him. When they one day stood at his door again, he had hope that they had found the person. They had -- it was Cael.

Clasped in irons, clad in orange, Cael was transported to Rikers where his lawyer and the detective told him about the leads they had that made him their suspect. Cael maintained his innocence, swearing he had nothing to do with it. It was a long and grueling trial, where his integrity and entire life was crushed to pulp. With his medical history and Sophia's father testifying against him that he murdered his wife for her money, the jury was relentless and sentenced him to life in prison for second-degree murder. It was the start of Cael's mental health further declining. Even with his medication he started lacking in emotional aspects, getting involved in fights and even psychotic episodes from the stress and bad enviroment, which earned him numerous trips to solitary confinement. Two years in, Cael stopped speaking alltogether, no longer seeing visitors and withdrawing himself whenever he wasn't in solitary. Whenever he wasn't found staring at the wall or attempting to read a book, he would be exercising, using the walls and his bed if he had nothing else.

Having spent five years in Rikers, Cael received a visit from his lawyer as well as someone from the innocents project organisation, informing him about the fact they had received a tip that could lead to resentencing. Cael wasn't getting his hopes up, but he let them try. After a whole year of investigations and confronting the NYPD, Cael was told by the lead detective of his wife's case that they had found evidence he was indeed innocent, framed by none other but Sean Carswell, Sophia's father who refused to believe their family wealth would go to Cael or a child of his. Receiving an official apology from the state of New York, he was released back into the world. He sued the city for his incarceration and emotional damage, winning in a landslide. It helped little, for Cael felt even more lost now that he could go wherever he wanted. His mental health wasn't the same, and companies still wouldn't hire him. Instead he would have to pick up low paying manual labour at a dock or warehouse, causing him to end up on the streets instead.

Drifting on the streets of New York for three years, he found out where his mother had gone to: Kismet Harbor, to be with her only other son. Saving up whatever money he could gather, he got a one way ticket to Kismet Harbor, being close to his mother again who was living in assisted living, having heard she was terminally ill a year ago. Cael spends time, visiting his mother whenever he can and either spending his time drifting on the streets or in a shelter. Even after all those years he is still adjusting to life, and accepts that he's no longer as inviting and instead intimidating and scary to other people. He hardly has socializing skills anymore, so in the end it only makes it simpler for him.

TLTR;

Cael had a problematic time during his teens and twenties, often showing violent tendencies and no emotional display. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia and received treatment. Picking up life again, he got a relatively good job and got married but happiness was short lived when his wife was murdered. NYPD arrested Cael for it and he served six years in Rikers before his innocence was proven and he was released.

#( intro. )

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m3dardas · 2 years

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HELLO, NEIGHBOR III.

modern!violet x fem!reader

previous part: part two

next part: none yet

warnings: awkwardness, language, feeling of embarrassment, enemies to LOVERS-ish.

blurb: after that stunt you pulled, your mind has become restless in thought. but, when duty calls changes have to be made — perhaps, for the better?

author’s note: that last part had me literally twitching as i was writing. y/n needs to get it together STAND UP MAMA STAND UP!!

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In the past few days, you may have developed an eye twitching problem. It could’ve been the coffee’s, your lack of sleep, or the little moment you had last week — that you swear could’ve triggered you to go into cardiac arrest if you thought about it too much.

That night as a whole was a total shit show. And it’s encore was your blow up mattress popping from beneath you.

Luckily, your furniture came through a few days after that. Gifting you with a bed, couches and light fixtures to really set the tone for your apartment. Even the comfy furniture for your personal writing room.

But, even as you moved in all the new things, you refused to step too far outside of your apartment. Haunted by the aching possibility of running into your neighbor — Violet. Or the other girl who witnessed the whole thing. What was her name again?

Oh, Powder. How could you ever forget?

So, instead, while you got assignments for the paper. You stayed inside, organizing your topics — beginning your writing process. And trying your very best to forget about everything that happened that night. Hoping that the motors in your brain, washed all of that away.

Speaking of that night, when you stormed into your apartment. Leaving Violet in your wake with a sympathetic expression. She’d went inside of her home, shutting the door lightly and pressing her forehead against it. A loud sigh fell from her lips, before she turned looking at her sister. Yeah, the blue-haired girl was her sister.

Powder was already munching on the warm treats — practically stuffing them down her throat. “Ugh!” She groaned aloud, musing in the sweet flavor of the cookies. “This is the greatest thing that’s ever been in my mouth — how could you have said no to these?!”

Violet watched as her younger sister dogged the chocolate chip cookies, with a thick deepened eyebrows. “Did you have to call her annoying and noisy?” She raised her eyebrows, approaching the blue-haired sat on the couch. “And try not to get any crumbs on my furniture, please.”

“Was she not? I just find it ironic how she didn’t want to be seen as that... Yet, that’s exactly what she was proving.”

“Well, you’re not supposed to say it, Pow-Pow.”

She rolled her eyes, frowning as she munched on the cookie. The frown slowly flipped, as her large blue eyes peered up at her sister. Who was leaning against the back of the couch, with her arms crossed over her chest. She grabbed a cookie, tapping her arm with it. “I know you want one...” Powder’s persuasive eyes glimmered, still chewing on remnants of the treat. “We both know that cut-thing was total baloney.”

The magenta haired young woman, chuckled, shaking her head. Violet took it, immediately going in for the bite. The perfect amount of sweetness coated her taste buds. There was wasn’t too much chocolate, or too less — it was just right. y/n was right, she never disappoints. Violet thought, soft guilt settling in.

She had a habit of giving people a hard time, because it was fun. However, you took the jab, and tried delivering it back to her. Even if it wasn’t successful — you tried to stick up for yourself and demand respect.

That was something she could get behind. And, thanks to you, she now had a new sugar craving.

“These are fuckin’ phenomenal.”

“Oh, my Gods — right!”

Violet grabbed another one right after finishing the other. She began pacing around her apartment, with her forearm under her elbow — walking around in thought. “Maybe, I should go over and apologize.” The pink-haired spoke aloud, munching on the cookie. Bits of crumbs falling from her lips.

Powder turned around, laying her head on the cushions of the couch. Her doe eyes following her sisters every move. “Or maybe not... She seemed pretty pissed at you — you should’ve just taken her cookies.”

“I know, I know. I was just givin’ her a hard time.”

She scoffed, giggling to herself. “Obviously! And she didn’t take too well to that.”

“Yeah, Powder, I know.”

“If I were you... I’d give her some time. That was extremely embarrassing. And if I were her... I’d hide in a hole and never come out.” Her eyes averted to the dimly lit kitchen. “Ooh, I’m thirsty.” Powder hopped off the couch, trotting to the refrigerator to grab a bottled drink. Their were canned energy drinks, gatorade’s, beers, and low calorie fruity drinks.

“Don’t drink the Celsius ones.” Violet mindlessly reminded, still pacing in thought. Her sister was right. It was best to give y/n some time. It was technically her fault for you embarrassing yourself — which is why she wanted to jump and fix it. But, again, it was your doing. And Violet was sure that you wouldn’t see it any other way.

“Vi, I don’t have severe memory loss — I know what not to drink... Damn.”

Back to your curse of mindfulness — days later. With you sitting at your laptop, with notes scattered all over your desk. Your hair was an absolute mess from all the stressed pulling and twisting. Your editor had issued you a list of people to interview for the upcoming issue due the middle of next month. It was only three people, but before you did your interviews — you researched. Like any good journalist did.

It was a government official — who you practically interviewed every other month, an acclaimed scientist, and a boxer. They were all going to be mentioned in next months issue, and it was your job to get all the information and jot it all down into one column seamlessly.

Every month you interviewed three people as a means to bring the people of Zaun and Piltover together. Highlighting shared differences, as well as their success to promote overall development between both societies. Which is part of the reason why you loved writing for The Progress Report. Not only were they one of the most popular publications, they were serving all of the public — not just some.

But, even in your adoration for the magazine, you were immensely burdened by not only your personal life, but your work life. This is part of the reason why you stayed to yourself anyway.

Skimming through your email, you glance back at your list. Some of the names were taking awhile to pop up, because your editor might have still been searching for the candidate. However, now, it was there. The names listed were: Mel Medarda, Viktor, and...

And...

Violet.

For just a second, your mind went blank. Total radio silence — not a single through moving through. Until it did, then your mind was racing. Your mouth couldn’t help but go completely dry. The sound of your heart beating in your ears as anxiety rushed all over you. Each name had a date for their interview, and because you’re lucky, hers was the first one.

It was at the end of this week. While you were busy gaining information on Viktor, since you’ve yet to interview him before, you should’ve been getting information on the girl next door.

The one you had a horrible experience with — which was totally your fault for blowing shit out of proportion. Throwing your head back into the top of your chair, you grit your teeth groaning loudly. “I’m the luckiest woman on Runeterra... I swear.” You sarcastically chuckled, rubbing your hands down your face.

It was time to be an adult — real adult, and handle your business. No calling Caitlyn.

She’s your neighbor, so... You might as well, right?

Apprehensively, you pushed out of your rolling desk chair. A harsh sigh falling from your lips. You most definitely didn’t want to have to go over there and face your embarrassment, but you have to. After all the job always came first — and it’s better to squash something before business.

While your ego screamed at you, the fluffiness of your slippers grazed your feet — sliding into the child-like house shoes. “y/n, you got this... Don’t threaten your paycheck by being a chicken.” You mumbled to yourself, unchaining your lock. Their was a slight tremor to your body. It felt completely internal — naturally unnerved.

Like many people, you hated being in the wrong. Which was causing the majority of the anxiety.

You may have the intention on plainly sticking up for yourself, but... It just went totally left. Maybe, you could blame it on the blue-haired girls’ interruption. Because she did throw you off. For a second, it looked like Violet was enjoying it. You just weren’t sure which part.

It was a Saturday afternoon, so there shouldn’t be too much of a problem with her not being home. But, it’s not like you frequently keep up with her schedule.

Trying your luck, you shuffle into the usually vacant hallway. The slight smell of the lunches people were cooking up in their apartments — a much stronger scent ascending from the thin crack beneath Violet’s front door. It smelt of a toasted sandwich toasted — so she must’ve been home, unless it was Powder.

Speaking of, you wondered what her significance was. You assumed that she was related to the magenta haired young woman, simply because of her looks. And even in her slender frame, their build had similarities — their muscles structure.

Raising your fist to her door, you shut your eyes knocking lightly three times. Out of habit, you chewed on the skin inside of your mouth. Your eyes glanced down the hall as you awaited the woman on the side of the door. They were rushing into their apartment with another person, with nothing but smiles.

It seemed romantic, or lustrous. They just didn’t want to be fined for public indecency, so they remained slightly touchy beyond their security. You almost felt like you were intruding. Watching their fumbling movements and flushed faces — it made you sick.

The door clicked open, revealing a disheveled Violet. Her hair was pushed back with an athletic headband, revealing her usually covered face. Her steel eyes were just as pressing as you expected them to be, but they harnessed a welcoming fatigue. There was no irritation behind them. She was dressed in a black sports bra, and a matching pair of shorts — showcasing every ounce of muscle she’s earned in her work outs. Her dense hands were taped in grey wrist wrap, covering up to her forearms.

She really was the boxer you were interviewing, and this wasn’t a dream.

Instead of leaning on the door, like she did your last interaction, she simply leaned a hand on the knob. Her thick eyebrows lifted expectantly at your presence. “Hey, y/n.” Her other hand went up to hair, pushing stray pieces behind her ears.

“Hey, Violet... I was wondering if you had some time to talk.” You furrowed your eyebrows, lifting your shoulders.

She adjusted her footing, nodding tensely. “Uh, yeah. You wanna come in? Or...” Violet pulled door open wider, stepping to the side.

Hm. Going into her house on the bases of a good solid apology — seems like a good idea. At least if something goes wrong, it won’t be in the hallway this time. “Yeah, sure.” You respond, briefly delivering a smile. Even though your nerves were eating you up from the inside.

You stepped inside her home, immediately being engulfed with warmth. It was a comfortable warm, not a sticky warm. Like she had a fireplace on — which she didn’t, but it felt like it. Your eyes had a glimmering glaze over them, as you accepting the format of her apartment. If you weren’t so prideful about you decorating techniques, you’d say hers was better.

Shutting the door behind you, she rubbed her hands on the sides of her hips. Looking at the back of you, while you familiarized yourself with your surroundings. “Your place... Is nice.” You complimented, swiftly turning around to face her. For once, since you met her, she was unrelaxed.

Violet had tense shoulders, similar to yours — and kept doing things with her mouth. Licking her lips, sucking her teeth. “Thanks, my sister helped with the decorating — I’m not really a good interior designer.” She lightly joked, approaching you. Her hand guided you towards the couch, allowing you to get comfortable.

You chuckled, sauntering around the furniture to plop yourself on the soft cushions of her couch. You sat at one end, and she sat on the other. “Speaking of... I’m sorry. My sister, Jinx, can be a little out of pocket sometimes.”

You thought her name was Powder — where you hearing things? Powder isn’t anywhere close to Jinx, though.

“It’s not like she was wrong, so it’s fine.”

“I mean... You were loud, but I didn’t find you annoying.” Violet shook her head, placing one of her arms over the back of the couch. Her muscles flexing under her fair flushed skin. You released air hidden as a chuckle, but you really didn’t know how to respond. “That’s good to know.” Another chuckle emitted from your lips, ridden in awkwardness.

Inhaling sharply and adjusting your place on her couch, you remained on topic. Discussing the event that occurred a few nights ago. “I just wanted to come over here and apologize for the ruckus.” Your eyes softened, locking on her naturally intense ones. But, her eyebrows were lifted, showing that she was actively listening. “On both Tuesday and Wednesday.”

Violet hummed, the corners of her lips curling. “It’s really not a problem.” She shook her head, averting her eyes for a little over a millisecond. Her rigid demeanor, only becoming much more... Rigid. “I probably should be the one apologizing...” Violet began, placing both of her hands in her lap. Her eyes casting down remorsefully.

“The music wasn’t necessarily that big of an issue — I just wanted to talk to you. And, I was just pullin’ your leg when I denied your cookies. Which were so fucking good. Big mistake.”

Your lips were parted in a bit of a shock, many thoughts raging through your mind. The pink-haired athletic woman was all around just fucking with you. And if she wasn’t so attractive that would be another problem — but, she was. Violet just wanted some excuse to come and talk to you, when she really could have just introduced herself.

But, you couldn’t figure out if this made you feel better or worse about your actions. That means all that energy was used in vain. When was it your turn to be happy, goddamn.

“I see those wheels ‘a yours turnin’ — what’s going on up there?”

Frankly, you were a little stunned. Lost in thought, maybe. “Uhm... I just don’t really know what to say — because, now I feel more embarrassed.” You paused, pushing a piece of your hair behind your ear. Which caused you to remember... Your hair looks absolutely insane.

You tried to prime it, stuffing the many stray and stuck out pieces into it bun. “I really wish you would’ve just said hi — that would’ve been great.”

“Who doesn’t love a little chaos?” The pink-haired shrugged, grinning crookedly. You narrow your eyes, a smile threatening to spread on your own lips. Simply, because hers was contagious. Her hand reaches over, placing it gently on your knee. “Hey, seriously, it’s no big deal. I don’t want you to feel embarrassed.” Who knew a gesture so simple, could be so...

If only her wants could easily affect your emotions.

She chuckled, “You kind of impressed me with that attitude of yours. Initially, you didn’t seem like the type.” Her shoulders relaxed, regaining that coolness you found so appealing.

“What type?”

“The type to go in on me over some cookies — but, I did deserve it so...”

You laughed, the corners of your eyes crinkling. It sounded so silly spoken back to you. “Well, I don’t plan on doing that anymore. Unless, you deny my cooking again.” You joked, but quickly recovering yourself. “Kidding!”

Violet hummed, her grey eyes dilating. A faint smile resting on her moisturized scarred lips. “No, be my guest. Denying your cooking is a mistake I never plan on making again.” She gestures with her hands.

“Very funny.” You sarcastically responded, shaking your head with amused eyes.

A silence split between the two of you. Her eyes barely leaving your frame, while yours danced around her walls. Feeling content that all the high emotions were squashed — at least on your end. So, when the time came for the interview, there’d be no bad blood.

And... You and your hot neighbor were on good terms.

You preferred it that way. “I should probably go.” You stand to your feet abruptly, rubbing your hands on your house shorts. Violet mirrors you, stretching out her back. “Yeah, yeah — totally.” She chirped, following you as you strolled to the front door.

She pulled it opened, sharing a tight smile and friendly eyes. You stepped out, preparing to give a final wave — but she spoke.

“What are you doin’ tonight?”

Violet openly questions, squinting her eyes lightly and tilting her jaw upwards. A slight warm color flushed onto her cheeks, leaning her head gassing the door. Your lips open and close, in brief thought. “Uh, nothing. Why?” Pivoting on your heels, you wondered with skeptic eyes. Was this was you think this was? Or were you overthinking again?

“Uhm, would you wanna grab a drink with me?” She reached one of her hands behind her head, scraping at her neck. “Maybe, we could go to that popular place in the undercity — Boaz’s.”

“I definitely could use a drink.” At this point all thoughts about your assignment had vanished — you completely forgot about your priorities. Violet nodded, struggling to hide an elated smile on her lips. “Sweet.” She mused, rocking on her sneaker clad feet. “So, what do ‘ya say — eight-thirty? Nine?”

You glanced up, feigning thought. “Hm. Nine works.” A grin spreads onto your lips, as you backed up towards your apartment. Violet chortled, leaning her head outside of the door.

“See you then, y/n.”

“See you then, Violet.”

Being calm, cool and collected has it’s perks. Let’s see how long you can keep it up.

#i kinda hate this #arcane imagines #vi arcane #vi arcane league of legends #vi x reader #caitlyn kiramman arcane #arcane smut

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sachas · 3 years

Photo

TASK: CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

BASIC INFORMATION.

Full name: Aleksandr “Sacha” Ruslanovich Tarasov

Nickname: Sacha, Cha Cha ( taking applications for others xoxo )

Birthdate: 17th of December, 1989

Age: 32

Zodiac: Sagittarius Sun, Leo Moon, Scorpio Rising

Gender: Nonbinary

Pronouns: He/him & They/Them ( used interchangeably )

Romantic orientation: Biromantic

Sexual orientation: Bisexual

Nationality: Russian

Ethnicity: Russian

Rank: Dominion

Affiliation: Death

BACKGROUND.

Birthplace: Moscow, Russia

Hometown: Moscow, Russia

Social class: Upper class

Educational achievements: Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Psychology from The Sorbonne ( mostly paid for with daddy’s money x )

Father: Ruslan “Lana” Yevgenovich Tarasov

Mother: Alexandra “Sanya” Pashovna Tarasova

Siblings: None

Pets: None

Previous relationships:

Though Sacha prefers to keep his relationships loose, often leaving things without labels, there are a few notable entanglements.

- Saint Warden: The two experience a brief and heady whirlwind relationship ten years ago, one Summer in Paris bringing them close together, high off the drugs and each other. While a young Saint was fast to fall in love, Sacha cuts things off quickly, rathering to keep things casual than let someone become his weakness. Over the years, they reconnect occasionally, their affairs stretching a few days or weeks before the illusion is shattered again, sending Saint off again back home to London.

- Laura Vardhamana: Who’s chasing who here? Maybe that’s half the excitement, Laura plays hard to get with ease and Sacha knows they’ve met their match. Late night hook ups meld into something more, an uncanny amount of time spent together, their relationship developing a seriousness that Sacha’s never experienced. He gets suspicious, uses connections in Death to check out Laura’s tech from a far. There it is — bank statements, withdrawals and transactions made, Sacha’s been conned and is made quite the fool. So they blackmail her, turning the same receipts into threats of prison or Death.

Arrests: Breach of the Peace ( during a Death-staged protest )

Prison time: None

OCCUPATION & INCOME.

Current occupation: Executive Producer, Pale Horse Media / Dominion, Death

Dream occupation: He doesn’t dream about working, only having power

Past jobs: Never truly worked a day in their life x

Spending habits: As Death’s benefactor, Sacha allocates a certain amount of money from his family funds to the cause. On top of that, their personal spending could be described as excessive, spending mostly on clothes and other impulse buys.

In debt?: Hahaha

SKILLS & ABILITIES.

Physical strength: Average

Speed: Average

Intelligence: Above average

Accuracy: Above average

Agility: Above Average

Stamina: Average

Teamwork: Because he’s so good at manipulating others to bend to his will, Sacha doesn’t mind teamwork, though he would much rather work alone if possible

Talents: Persuasion, Manipulation, making playlists and mean cocktails

Shortcomings: Detached, vain, selfish, jealous

Languages spoken: Russian, English, French

Drive?: Yes

Jumpstart a car?: No, they have people for that

Change a flat tire?: No, they have people for that

Ride a bicycle?: Yes

Swim?: Yes

Play an instrument?: Piano ( strict lessons from his childhood burning scales into his brain )

Play chess?: Yes

Braid hair?: No

Tie a tie?: Yes

Pick a lock?: No, they have people for that

Cook?: hahaha

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE & CHARACTERISTICS.

Face claim: Robert Pattinson my beloved

Eye color: Blue

Hair color: Dirty blonde

Hair type: Mostly straight with waves / 2a curl pattern

Glasses/contacts?: No

Dominant hand: Right

Height: 6’1″ / 185 cm

Build: Lean

Exercise habits: Combat training and the occasional run once or twice a week, Sacha’s definitely not passionate about exercise

Tattoos: General Tattoo Inspo ( x, x, x )

Highlights

- Death Skull on his left shoulder close to collarbone, able to be seen from straight on

- “Тарасов” or Tarasov in Russian under left collarbone

- a shitty stick n poke pansy on his thigh, given by Saint around ten years ago

- “Ignorant Style” tattooing, really vibe with @/bad.badtattoos on ig’s style ( here, here, here, here, here, here, here, )

Piercings: Earlobes

Marks/scars: Freckles across skin, though none too pronounced. A few scars from drunken shenanigans gone wrong — Sacha really becomes reckless when he drinks.

Clothing style: Varied. Some days, they’re very casual, slouching on stupid graphic tee with jeans, other days are more like sleek designer boots and trendy, high waisted pants.

Jewelry: On dressed-up days, Sacha might swap his basic silver hoop earrings for something with shine, or might throw on a sleek watch to impress. His family has passed down two items of significance: a signet ring meant for each patriarch of the Tarasov family, and his grandfather’s pocket watch. Neither are worn or used on regular occasion, though might be broken out when Sacha is sent on official Tarasov Media Conglomerate business.

Allergies: None

PSYCHOLOGY.

MBTI type: INTJ - The Architect

Enneagram type: Type eight - The Challenger ( independent, stubborn, determined )

Moral alignment: Neutral Evil

Element: Fire

Emotional stability: Sacha keeps emotions hidden well beneath surface, often disguising one emotion as another, whatever is the most useful for the situation. Most of the time, people perceive him as detached and cold, making it hard for him to maintain regular relationships for long.

Introvert or extrovert?: Extroverted

Obsession: Finding people’s weaknesses

Phobias: Snakes! Egads!

Drug use: Recreational, mainly drugs like ketamine, molly, acid

Alcohol use: Daily, mainly vodka

Prone to violence?: No, would rather use their snakey ways

Prone to crying?: hahaha, no

Believe in love at first sight?: No

MANNERISMS.

Accent: With years of effort and practice, Sacha manages to disguise his natural Russian inflection with something closer to a Southern English accent, though it’s not perfect and you can hear it on occasion, especially if he’s been drinking

Hobbies: Binging shit TV, giving shitty stick-n-poke tattoos, making shitty tunes on the piano, listening to music, demanding aux privileges

Habits: Drinking, smoking, lying their ass off

Nervous tics: Clenching jaw

Drives/motivations: Power, control, greed, attention

Fears: Failure, losing control, submitting to others

Sense of humor?: Kinda fucked up tbh

Do they curse often?: Tastefully

FAVORITES.

Animal: Bears

Beverage: Iced Coffee or Vodka

Book: Bret Eason Ellis’s American Psycho

Colors: Green, Purple, Silver

Food: PIZZA! but a childhood comfort food is syrniki

Flower: Orchids

Gem: Chalcedony

Mode of transportation: Land Rover

Scent: Vanilla, Oud, Tobacco

Weather: Cloudy, breezy

Vacation destination: Swiss Alps

ATTITUDES.

Greatest dream: Becoming bigger and more influential than his father ever was

Greatest fear: Missing a huge opportunity, becoming irrelevant, being controlled

Most at ease when: exerting control

Least at ease when: being forced into something

Biggest achievement: Making a name for himself outside of Russia / Becoming the benefactor of Death

Biggest regret: Not negotiating with Uriel to enter Death as a Seraphim x

#task.#about.#drugs cw #alcohol cw #it's task day for sacha

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bubblyani · 4 years

Text

The Flannel Giant

(Flip Zimmerman x Black!Female Reader)

A Flip Zimmerman One Shot

Rating: Mature

Request: flip zimmerman x black! female reader ?? it could be literally anything im just so desperate 😞💕 thank you if you do and even if you dont thanks for writing ! - @pastelhybristophiliac

Author’s Note: This man is a literal thirst quencher. So this fic did not take long to form. I did take some time to write it cause I wanted it to be as perfect as it possibly could be. Plus, my very first Black! Female Reader fic. Hope y’all enjoy!

Colorado Springs Police Department.

The sign just said it all.

Exhaling deeply, you began to walk towards the building. Your steps were slow, as if you were doubting yourself. And you could not help remembering the phone conversation you had with your friend Patrice an hour earlier.

“But Patrice! Why do I have to be the one to do it ?” You asked.

“Because you’re the one who saw it happen...” She said, “We can’t just let this go...” persuasion was strong in her voice.

“I know ...but-“

“Do you not want to go to the police Y/N?”

You paused. For she caught you there. “Maybe...” You began, as you twisted the phone chord “Can’t trust those pigs”

“Not all of them are...” Patrice said, “Ron isn’t a pig. And even his coworkers are nice”

You scoffed. “Maybe that’s cause they all know you through Ron”

“Just go will you” Sighing, you nodded to thin air. “Fine”

Unwilling to break the promise, there you were, walking towards the building. With another deep breath, you entered with a cause.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“Ma’am? Can I help you?”

A man in uniform inquired upon seeing you in the hallway. Directed towards the Intelligence Division, you stood there confused in the hallway. You noticed his name tag: Sgt Trapp.

“Uh yes Sergeant...” you said softly, entering the room he gestured you into, “I’m here to see Ron Stallworth”

“Oh, I’m sorry but he’s not in today” Sergeant Trapp replied.

As you glanced upon the empty desk next to you, you realized he was right. Embarrassingly, you sighed heavily. But that realization came at a cost when there was a room full of men at work, possible detectives typing away reports in their typewriters. Yet now, they were all looking at you.

Except one particular person, who kept busy with his files.

All this staring made you quite uncomfortable. But being a black woman, this was nothing new.

“It’s just that...” you began “I was told to give a statement...” you continued, “... about the attacks that ...that happened last Friday” taking a deep breath, You added , “...during the Black Student Union meeting”

Suddenly, the sound of scribbles were stopped, and the occupied man looked up from his files. As you only saw his back, you could only notice the full head of raven locks that was filled with.

“Flip...” a grey haired man addressed the raven haired man, “...aren’t you working on that case too?” Standing up, Flip finally turned to face you.

“Yeah. Why don’t I-“ He paused, a few seconds upon seeing you, “...take...your statement” He said softly, his eyes never leaving your sight.

It had been a while since a man had left you with quite an impression. You thought you were so hard to please.

Until that very moment.

He was taller than the others in the room, almost gigantic. His dark blue flannel shirt along with the leather holsters complimented his wide shoulders perfectly. With his raven long hair elongating his face, you swore you were breathless.

And surprisingly, you weren’t intimidated by the room anymore.

“Flip Zimmerman...” he said in his deep, soothing voice, “Please. Take a seat” ushering you to Ron’s seat as the sergeant pulled it out for you.

“Thanks...” you replied, “Y/N Y/L/N”

Like a spell wearing off, the others quickly resumed working as Detective Flip Zimmerman took your statement.

His pace was comforting, you felt calm. You answered all questions with confidence and detail. But at the same time, you wondered how you were able to maintain that whenever he looked at you. You could tell he listened to you with intent. And whenever he was not jotting down notes, his eyes were always on you.

“...and just like that...they just ran off from there” you said, crossing your legs.

Reaching out to one of his files, Flip took out a photograph. “Did they happen to look like this?” He asked, showing it to you. In the effort to being polite, you merely leaned forward to look. Your eyes widened.

“Yeah! They’re the ones!” You replied with enthusiasm.

Snapping his fingers, Flip nodded. “Knew it!” He said, looking at his partner, “Jimmy, Ron was right...” he muttered softly.

Jimmy looked at you. “Okay...” he said, “Thank you Ma’am for coming in...I think we got all that we need”

“We did?”

“You did?”

Realizing you and Flip both inquired Jimmy in unison, you could not help but stifle a chuckle. And you hide it well. Clearing his throat, Flip began as he looked back at you.

“Yeah...we did” he said, standing up, “Thank you...Miss Y/L/N?”

Smiling warmly, you stood up in kind. “Yeah ...Miss Y/L/N...” You said, as you exited the room.

Smiles were abundant on your face as you walked out of the precinct, which was quite the contradiction compared to a few minutes before. Quite the interesting interaction it turned out to be. And you weren’t the only one to agree.

“Man...” Jimmy began, watching you walk out, “She is a beaut, huh?” “Mmm...”

Flip merely acknowledged as he sat down. Looking at his partner, Jimmy was no fool to not notice.

“Well well...look who’s getting chummy now?” he said, inciting a chuckle out of Flip.

“Fuck you, Jimmy” he said while laughing, trying to hide his subtle blush.

“No really Flip...“ Jimmy teased, “I’ve never seen you like this...”

“Fuuuck Youuu!”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Days went by. And all was just as it should be. You carried on with everything.

Except, there was a new distraction in your head.

Detective Flip Zimmerman. The Flannel Giant.

The mere thought of him made you smile to yourself every single time. So much that sometimes you’d get in trouble when others asked you what was wrong.

“Y’all! she found herself a brother to love. All good!”

You’d smile shyly and cleverly move on to another conversation. You did not know how everyone would feel about you having a soft spot for a white man. Let alone a white police detective. But it wasn’t for you to choose. You couldn’t steer the heart. The heart steered you. And you did not mind.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The soapy bubbles covered your hand like a glove as you washed the dishes over the sink. The radio softly played in the living room on a Thursday afternoon.

The ring of the doorbell forced you to finish the washing with haste. You wondered if it was Patrice, needing a textbook for class. Wiping your hands with your apron, you opened the door, only to find yourself lose your breath.

For it was Flip Zimmerman standing there.

“Ms. Y/L/N” he said softly, giving a soft smile. You involuntarily smiled back.

“Hey” you breathed, “Wait! How did you know where I live?”

“You gave it to us...” Flip said, “When you came to the precinct”

“Oh...of course”you chuckled embarrassingly at your own carelessness, “Please...come in...”

You found it surprising how you just let him in without even asking the purpose. He was just that easygoing.

“I’m sorry about this I was Uh...washing dishes...” you said embarrassingly as you invited him to sit on the sofa.

“Yeah Hehe...I can tell...” Nodding, Flip chuckled, watching you toss away the apron and sit on the armchair across from him.

The detective had come bringing forth good news. The two perpetrators behind the attacks were indeed members of the organization. Thanks to your valuable information they were arrested and will be tried. A huge wave of relief washed over you upon hearing the news. You couldn’t help but clasp your hands together with happiness.

“Oh, Detective Zimmerman, this is just wonderful”

“Flip...” he corrected in an instant, “you can call me Flip”

“Okay...” you nodded, “Flip” you added with the sincerest form of affection.

With lips parted slightly, Flip nodded back. As if he was in mid contemplation.

“Anyways, Thank You very much for your cooperation Ms. Y/L/N”

Your heart sank upon hearing those words, when he stood up to leave.

“I-I’m so sorry I couldn’t even offer you a beverage” you said, standing up“You came all this way-” “Oh no no...” shaking his head, the flannel giant responded, “I was in the neighborhood”

Unwillingly yet enslaved to politeness, you made your way towards the door.

With your grip on the handle, you knew this could be the last time you’ll ever see him again. The case was closed, faster than you imagined.

“Thanks do much for coming, Flip” you said, halfway opening the door. “My pleasure, Ms. Y/L/N”

“It’s Y/N...” this time you took the opportunity to correct him. “Y/N...”

His voice, you never heard it softer than you did just then. Standing merely inches away, he stood so tall before you. As your heartbeat began to quicken, as your cheeks started to burn, you knew the effect this man had on you was no joke. You did not want this to be the last time.

With the blink of an eye, his face seemed to appear centimeters away ,only to glue his lips on yours. And that was when you knew he felt the same.

The kiss was gentle. It was sweet and innocent. His facial hair sent shivers down your spine. But that just the first taste.

Lips were met once again for more experimentation, signaling your hand to push the door back and lock it tight.

The silent attraction that was developed between both parties from the first meeting seemed quite evident now.

Flip’s masculine hands made themselves home on your waist, moving behind to grab onto your buttocks. The way his hands felt you, made the white cotton of your short dress seem nonexistent when he pulled you closer to him.

Jumping into his arms felt effortless as he held you with ease. With your legs wrapped around his waist and your arms around his neck, you were comfortable as expected, body lines fitting with his like puzzle pieces.

The sounds of heavy breathing and kisses began to infuse with the soft sounds of the radio. Making himself comfortable on the couch, Flip was hospitable with you straddling him.

The kisses grew heated as his tongue caressed your own, deepening its connection and weakening you by the knees. Your moans echoed within him, urging you to hold him tightly by the collar. Indulging in pleasure, your body was naturally inclined to roll your hips against him.

But, all plans seemed to fly out the window when the telephone rang loudly, forcing both of you to pull away with surprise. Stretching out, you clumsily grabbed the phone.

“H-hello?”

“Y/N? It’s Patrice”

“Oh hey!” You greeted her breathlessly, keeping your balance as you held on to Flip.

There was a slight pause.

“You alright?” Patrice sounded serious as she inquired , “You sound weird”

“Yeah yeah I was just uh....dancing”

Covering the bottom half of the phone, you playfully slapped Flip on the shoulder in order to stop him from breaking into loud laughter.

“Oh...anyways, you coming tonight for the party-”

“I’m busy...” you cut her off, “Sorry Pat. Busy night tonight”

Finally hanging up, you blushed deeply upon seeing Flip‘s eyes that burned with desire. For there you were, with lips so swollen, straddling a man you barely knew oh so casually. Shyly, you allowed yourself to fall back on the couch next to him.

“Well...” Flip began, panting “this was-”

“....unexpected?-“ you guessed, panting alongside him.

“...Great...” clearing his throat, he revealed his final answer ”...this was really great”

Giggles erupted out of you in response , only to stop when he leaned towards you. Fully meaning well of what he just expressed, his lips greedily captured yours, enabling you to catch his scent easily while doing so.

“Bet your partner is wondering what’s taking ya so long to get back” you breathed into his lips, as he pulled away once again “Do you think he knows something’s up?”

“Maybe..” he said, staring at the wall ahead of him in thought. “Or maybe...with the case successfully solved, you invited me out for a drink....” Flip added, looking back at you, fueling inspiration, “...only if you wanted to-”

“I want to...” Your answer, it was so quick, so certain. And hearing his response was simply worth answering.

“Good...”

——————————————————

#adam driver #flip zimmerman #flip zimmerman x reader #flip zimmerman x black! reader #flip zimmerman x woc reader #blackkklansman #flip zimmerman imagines #adam driver fics #adam driver imagines #adam driver fanfiction #kylo ren #reylo #tros #star wars #adam sackler

308 notes · View notes

neeliepsrecs · 4 years

Text

The HP Fanfic Fan Poll Awards Round 4: Spring-Summer 2013

Awards hosted here

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "Deus ex Coemeterium - A Tale of Christmas Eve" by apAidan SECOND PLACE: "Perfectly Normal" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: "Harry Potter and the Omniscient" by Argetlam22

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "Perfectly Normal" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "Ogden's Finest Effects" by aaliona THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Dark Story none nominated this round

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Something Less, Something Worse" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "Never Gone" by shattered petal THIRD PLACE: "Forest of Dean" by onlyou

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "A Final Goodbye" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "Vestige" by Extrinsical THIRD PLACE: "Can't Forget the Things You Never Said" by Sunflower

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Notebooks and Letters" by chem prof SECOND PLACE: "They Did It Better" by Sunflower THIRD PLACE: "Eighth" by lorien829

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "Hermione's Favourite Gift" by TycheSong SECOND PLACE: "Tidings of Comfort" by avidbeader THIRD PLACE: "To Touch, To Try" by MiHnn

Best Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Plus One" by maia.maiestas SECOND PLACE: "A Very Merry Christmas" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Scorpius Malfoy x Rose Weasley (Scorose)

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "The Mistakes We Make" by xxx_angelin_xxx SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Comedy Story* FIRST PLACE: "Thank Me Later" by dream_BIG SECOND PLACE: "Arrested Development" by enchantedteapot THIRD PLACE: "Delicate" by padfoot4-ever

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "Protego" by Toujours Padfoot SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drabble

none nominated this round

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Delicate" by Toujours Padfoot SECOND PLACE: "Beautiful Magic, Tragic Love" by elle_blessing THIRD PLACE: "Conatus" by Lumos Nox

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Broken" by MajiKat SECOND PLACE: "Caring Is Creepy" by Josephinee THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "Budge Over" by drcjsnider SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Smut Story none nominated this Round

***

Draco Malfoy x Hermione Granger (Dramione)

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "These Stolen Lights" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "Breathe" by RZZMG THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "Private and Confidential" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "One Kiss, Two Kiss, Slow Kiss, Hot Kiss" by Unseenlibrarian THIRD PLACE: "You Made Me Love You" by strawberry_kait

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "Promise" by y3llowdaisi3s SECOND PLACE: "These Stolen Lights" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Dramione Drabbles: Yule" by RZZMG SECOND PLACE: "Of gift horses and mouths" by ningloreth THIRD PLACE: "Red" by captainraychill

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Seven Years and a Day" by darkrosefanfics SECOND PLACE: "These Stolen Lights" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: "Dark Chocolate" by mister_otter

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "The Fallout" by Sage/everythursday SECOND PLACE: "How We Imagined Light" by atalanta84/horcruxnumber8 THIRD PLACE: "The Dragon's Bride" by Rizzle

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "For Her Favor" by captainraychill SECOND PLACE: "Only Once, and Forever" by RZZMG THIRD PLACE: "Missed Connections" by Unseenlibrarian

Best Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Kiss, With Tongue" by tamlane SECOND PLACE: "Powers of Persuasion" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: "Clever Girl" by ldymusyc/Musyc

***

Albus Severus Potter x Scorpius Malfoy (Albius)

Best Alternate Universe Story none were nominated this round

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "A Birthday Surprise" by bookwormergirl SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Dark Story none were nominated this Round

Best Drabble none were nominated this Round

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "When They Ask You Why" by HedwigBlack SECOND PLACE: "Ghosts Lie Between Us" by tryslora THIRD PLACE: "Told In the Wrong Order" by HalfCrazedPrince

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Wherein Scorpius Ascertains His Sexuality" by nerakrose SECOND PLACE: "Irradiance" by melusinahp THIRD PLACE: "The Ghost of Malfoy Manor" by writcraft

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "ragged" by downeyjr SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Enemies With Benefits" by 0idontknow0 SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Severus Snape x Lily Evans (Snily)

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "Glitter Disco Hot Mess" by acciosalmon SECOND PLACE: "A Dream Carved In Stone" by diadelphous THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "Frogs Are Gross" by loki charms SECOND PLACE: "Five Phases of Fatherhood" by Ralinde THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "Nocturne" by Tarpeia SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Always" by tryslora SECOND PLACE: "He Loved Her First" by mysticrox123 THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Four Seasons" by cloverlover & Your_best_enemy (co-authors) SECOND PLACE: "Glitter Disco Hot Mess" by acciosalmon THIRD PLACE: "Rewarded" by Sarah1281

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "The Redemption" by Tarpeia SECOND PLACE: "A Deft Hand At Charms" by Jenwryn THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "Dreaming Out Loud" by Summer4Girl SECOND PLACE: "Requiem for a Lost Boy" by Lady Tuesday THIRD PLACE: "A Dream Carved In Stone" by diadelphous

Best Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Making Me Love You" by kci47 SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Tom Riddle Jr. / Voldemort

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "The Forbidden Ship: a collection of completed short stories - KITTEN" by NerysDax SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "I Wouldn't Even Known What to Title This" by Zombie Reine SECOND PLACE: "The Forbidden Ship: a collection of completed short stories - KITTEN" by NerysDax THIRD PLACE: "Ginny Doesn't Know" by GrrHatLet

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "In The Style of a Lover" by purplefluffycat SECOND PLACE: "Periods of Wakefulness" by drinkupretty03 THIRD PLACE: "The Game" by drinkupretty03

Best Drabble none were nominated this Round

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Anguilliform" by gmth SECOND PLACE: "Power Speaks to Power" by songquake THIRD PLACE: "The Shard in the Heart" by natt

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE (TIE): "Tainted" by krhviolin & "All I Desire" by DawnEB SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "Seasons Change, And So Do We" by calrissian18 SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Het Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Sooner of Later (I Always Get My Man)" by songquake SECOND PLACE: "No Mere Mortal" by miss_morland THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Slash Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Periods of Wakefulness" by drinkupretty03 SECOND PLACE: "The Game" by drinkupretty03 THIRD PLACE: "Ginny Doesn't Know" by GrrHatLet

***

Minerva McGonagall Best Alternate Universe Story none were nominated this round

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "New Beginnings" by chatefable SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "Things Needful" by kellychambliss SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drabble none were nominated this round

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Smiles of a Summer Night" by kellychambliss SECOND PLACE: "Not Precisely Friends" by lash_larue THIRD PLACE: "When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again" by squibstress

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Resolving a Misunderstanding" by MMADfan SECOND PLACE: "Gin a Body Meet a Body" by squibstress THIRD PLACE: "Witness" by kellychambliss

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "The Thing About Travelling" by tetleythesecond SECOND PLACE: "Epithalamium" by squibstress THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Femmeslash Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Nothing You Don't Want" by miss_morland SECOND PLACE: "Brooding on a Broom" by themissinglink THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Het Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "One All" by purplefluffycat SECOND PLACE: "When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again" by squibstress THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Golden Trio (Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley)

Best Alternate Universe Story none were nominated this Round

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "Ronnie Doesn't Know" by Blood Brandy SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "the tired sunset of our fettered grace" by Clarise Waters SECOND PLACE: "A Long Time Ago" by writcraft THIRD PLACE: "Ronnie Doesn't Know" by Blood Brandy

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Within Temptation: Bittersweet" by Silverneko9lives0 SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Always" by DrinkingAlcoholicRainbows SECOND PLACE: "Outside Looking In" by HalfASlug THIRD PLACE: "A Long Time Ago" by writcraft

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "One More" by MiHnn SECOND PLACE: "Through Nightmares, Dreams Are Realised" by ShinigamiPhoenix THIRD PLACE: "Three Parts of a Whole" by opalish

Best Romance Story none were nominated this Round

Best Threesome+ Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "When the Magic Stops Working" by tryslora SECOND PLACE: "Games People Play (In the Middle of the Night)" by ragdoll THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Founders (Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff)

Best Alternate Universe Story none were nominated this round

Best Comedy Story none were nominated this round

Best Dark Story none were nominated this round

Best Drabble none were nominated this round

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Founder's Story" by Pyttan SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Legacy Story none were nominated this round

Best Romance Story none were nominated this round

Best Het Smut Story none were nominated this round

Best Slash Story none were nominated this round

Best Threesome Smut Story none were nominated this round

***

Weasleycest (and Weasley family member x any other Weasley family member related by blood)

Best Alternate Universe Story none were nominated this round

Best Comedy Story none were nominated this round

Best Dark Story none were nominated this round

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Stay Silent and Mine" by tryslora SECOND PLACE: "Fingers" by yeaka THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE: "Here's No Great Matter" by tamlane SECOND PLACE: "The Things We Do" by fluffyllama THIRD PLACE: "Just One" by yeaka

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Tonight We're Gonna Party (Like It's 1999)" by Ragdoll SECOND PLACE: "Never Alone" by ShinigamiPhoenix THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Romance Story FIRST PLACE: "The Things We Do" by fluffyllama SECOND PLACE: "Perfect Storms" by unbroken_halo THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Femmeslash Smut Story none were nominated this round

Best Het Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Here's No Great Matter" by tamlane SECOND PLACE: "The Nearest Thousandth" by tamlane THIRD PLACE: "Stay Silent and Mine" by tryslora

Best Slash Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Snow Is Cold; Warm Your Hands on My Skin" by teas_me SECOND PLACE: "Shell" by yeaka THIRD PLACE: "Sun" by yeaka

Best Threesome+ Smut Story FIRST PLACE: "Just Wrap Me Up in Chains" by tryslora SECOND PLACE: n/a THIRD PLACE: n/a

***

Gen Fic

Best Alternate Universe Story FIRST PLACE: "A Puzzle to Keep Working On" by songquake SECOND PLACE: "No cure" by ShinigamiPhoenix THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Comedy Story FIRST PLACE: "How Hermione Granger and AOL Got Umbridge Sacked" by apAidan SECOND PLACE: "Nightmare in Pink Sequins" by Pennafana THIRD PLACE: "Inconspicuous Much?" by MiHnn

Best Dark Story FIRST PLACE: "A Puzzle to Keep Working On" by songquake SECOND PLACE: "Alone and Palely Loitering" by squibstress THIRD PLACE: "Things Needful" by kellychambliss

Best Drabble FIRST PLACE: "Nightmare in Pink Sequins" by Pennafana SECOND PLACE: "Sunrise" by MiHnn THIRD PLACE: n/a

Best Drama-Angst Story FIRST PLACE (TIE): "The Essence of Sunset" by shefa & "what if the storm ends?" by elle_blessing SECOND PLACE: "Hopeless" by kellychambliss THIRD PLACE: "A Puzzle to Keep Working On" by songquake

Best Legacy Story FIRST PLACE: "Death's Dominion" by MMADfan SECOND PLACE: "The One True King" by SharaLunison THIRD PLACE: "A Destiny In Time" by Gmariam

#x #sshg #awards #fanfic fan poll awards #round 4

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noodlecupcakeswritings · 5 years

Text

Just One Bad Day - Chapter 5 (JeromexOC)

Warnings: Unplanned/Unwanted pregnancy, Abortion (if this triggers you please dont read), Language, Awkward interactions with ex’s, Jerome's poor timing

Let me know if you would like to be added to the taglist. If you liked what you read please leave some kudos or maybe a reblog or comment. Consider hitting the follow button too for more content.

Chapter 5

Emerald’s P.O.V

Only I could have gotten myself into this mess. The small red cross stared back at me, telling me that I was positive. I sighed, pulling out another test. I had to make sure. This one could just be a dud. I tried it again and waited for it develop. I took a deep breath, nervous to look at the result. I grabbed the stick and forced myself to look. Another red cross. Fuck. A baby was the last fucking thing I needed right now. And Jerome, a father? Don’t be stupid. He couldn’t know. He had enough to worry about right now, he didn’t need this as well. I just had to get rid of it and nobody would ever find out. We couldn’t be parents. I wasn’t cut out to be a mother for starters and we were both too young for a kid. There were thousands of reasons why having a kid was a bad idea.

It was Gotham. Both its parents were criminals meaning if we were caught by the GCPD they would take our child away. Its father was currently in Arkham and its mother was the leader of a fucking cult. The poor thing wouldn’t have a single grandparent as the father had killed all of them. It just was a bad situation. I wasn’t going to risk getting rid of it myself and doing further damage. But I couldn’t go to an abortion clinic without likely getting arrested. There was word going around of a doctor in The Narrows. Maybe they could help me. I gathered some cash as well as a gun. Both could be used as persuasion. I hid both in my purse and headed out. I called a cab when I was a safe distance away from the theatre. I didn’t want any members finding out either.

The drive to The Narrows was a short one thankfully. I stood outside ‘Cherries’ anxious to go in. I didn’t know how to feel about this. Shouldn’t I feel bad about getting rid of the child? Or at least a little sad? I forced myself inside the club, walking through the hall and into the main building. In the centre of the room was a boxing ring, splatters of blood across the floor. Now it made sense why a doctor would work here. The place seemed empty, not even someone stood behind the bar. Maybe I should have come a little later. I turned to leave when I heard a familiar voice call out my name. A voice I never thought I would hear again, one I wish hadn’t said my name. Not like that. Why the fuck was he here? It felt like there was a sudden weight on my heart. There shouldn’t be, I didn’t love him anymore.

I turned back to face him. There stood Edward Nygma in his trademark green suit. Only his hair looked like a mess. He seemed just as stunned to see me. We both just stared at each other for a while, both of us unsure what to say to each other. I sure hope he wasn’t the doctor I needed to see. I should kill him. But did I really want too? “I thought you were on ice?” I asked. “I had some help getting out. You look…great,” He complimented. I forced myself not to smile. I didn’t need this. I knew if Jerome were here he wouldn’t have hesitated to tear him apart limb by limb.

“Is the doc around? I need to see them,” I asked, changing the subject. “She’ll be back in half an hour, your welcome to wait.” Being alone with Edward Nygma for thirty minutes. I could handle that. “What do you need to see her for?” He asked. I bit my lip. It wasn’t really something I wanted to tell him. Unless it might hurt him. It might get him to back off. “Well I’m not sick, nor do I have any injuries. You can figure it out,” I shrugged. Ed frowned, thinking about it for a moment. It was taking him a lot longer than it normally would. Perhaps there was something wrong with him too, it would explain why he was here. “Your pregnant?” He asked.

I nodded. Ed remained silent for a little while as if processing the information. “Does he know?” Ed asked. “I didn’t want to worry him. He's got enough going on at the moment.” “Don’t you think-" “Don’t you think you should shut up. It's nothing to do with you.” This got him to back off. Thankfully someone else came in as if to diffuse the tension. Lee? What the fuck was she doing here? And when did she turn goth? Not saying it was a bad look, it was just different to how she used to be.

“Is there something you needed Emerald?” She asked. “Well I'm here to see the doc.” “What can I help with?” This day really was full of surprises. Lee motioned me to follow her. We headed upstairs and into a small apartment. She sat me down on an examining table and pulled up a chair opposite me. “Funny how you were my therapist and now your helping me with this,” I giggled. “And what exactly is this?” She asked, clearly bored. “Unwanted pregnancy. I'd like some help getting rid of it please.”

Lee nodded, “your one hundred percent sure that’s what you want?” “Yep.” “Alright.” Lee headed over to a cabinet and began searching through various pill bottles until she found what she was looking for. She produced two and got me a glass of water. “So, your queen of the narrows now?” I asked. “Yeah, it wasn’t part of my plan, but these things happen. I’m guessing the baby wasn’t planned.” “Of course not. What baby is planned nowadays? Was working with Ed part of your plan? Its not like he ruined your life or anything.”

Lee sighed, handing me the tablets and the glass of water. She didn’t seem to want to talk much, she had definitely changed. I remember when she was sweet and innocent little Doctor Tompkins and now she was running half the narrows. I took the pills and swallowed them with a mouthful of water. Relief filled me, the problem was sorted. Nothing to worry about now. “Ed was definitely not part of the plan but he's helping me with this place whilst I'm meant to be helping him with his problem,” Lee explained. “His problem?” I asked. “Ever since he came out of the ice, his brain hasn’t recovered fully. He can’t answer riddles the same. I personally don’t see a problem with that,” she smirked. “Probably makes him less annoying,” I joked. “A little.”

Lee explained the process to me and how I would need to take another pill tomorrow before the abortion would be fully complete. She gave me the pill I would need to take tomorrow in a small container. If anything, out of the ordinary happened I needed to contact Lee again. She led me back down to the main room. Ed was still hanging around like a bad smell, he really didn’t know when we he wasn’t wanted. “Make sure he doesn’t catch feelings for you, he might try and kill you otherwise. And some people think I’m crazy for staying with someone who pushed me out a window,” I aimed the last part of Ed.

I said my goodbyes to Lee, seemingly on good terms with her now. I ignored Ed, leaving the club. At least I knew to stay away from the narrows now. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket and frowned. I didn’t get phone calls very often now, so I had no idea who it could be. I pulled my phone out and checked the caller I.D. Unknown number. I answered, holding it to my ear. “Hello doll face,” came Jerome’s voice. “Jerome? How did you get a phone?” “One of the guards was a little careless with theirs, so I figured I'd have it.”

Figures. The staff in that place were useless. Oh well, it would be nice to talk to him more often now. “So, what were you calling for?” I asked. “That depends on you. What are you wearing?” He laughed. I rolled my eyes, giggling, “well I’m currently out in public so I think that your timing is awful.” “Aww. Oh well there's always later. We can stay up all night on the phone like those cute couples in movies.” “We are far from those cute couples and you know it.” “Your right, we’re better.” “Your cute.” “And your hot.”

“And you’re gonna get caught with that phone if you don’t get off it.” “Your right. I’ll call you tonight gorgeous.” “I look forward to it.” We said goodbye and I hung up, putting the phone back in my pocket. I smiled to myself, it was nice to know that Jerome and I would be able to talk to each other whenever we wanted now. My phone buzzed again, and I rolled my eyes with a smile. He was probably already texting me. Miss you x.

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back-and-totheleft · 3 years

Text

60 Minutes: Oliver's Story

60 Minutes [x]

"Oliver's Story"

Aired Nov 25 1990 Produced by Patti Hassler Introduction: "Wall Street. Platoon. Born on the Fourth of July. Salvador. All movies written and directed by Oliver Stone. All of them deal with subjects central to that generation that came of age in the Sixties - from drugs to greed, from war to remembrance. His next film deals with the music. The one after that, the Kennedy assassination. The images and ideas of Oliver are a mirror to an American age, expressed in the most American of all art forms."

[Behind the scenes footage of Oliver directing The Doors.]

Morley Safer: "Is movie-making, given the number of people involved - is it art or is it kind of serious, clever commerce?"

Oliver Stone: [chuckles] "Probably from your point of view it's commerce. I don't know how you regard it. I've always regarded it as serious business. It's a lifelong interest of mine. It's a commitment. I'm putting the best of myself out there. I'm trying my hardest. I'm trying to understand the world through movies. I'm trying to shape the world through movies: reshape it."

Morley Safer: "Have movies become the literature, you think, of this generation?"

Oliver Stone: "When I write a script, I try to put my heart in the script. To speak as a poet would speak. I think as long as there is that guiding vision - a respect for the origin that will come through in the movie - it will be as valid as a piece of literature."

[Footage pans over Oliver's home to him typing in his home office on a typewriter.]

Voiceover: "The successful artist at work. Sedate, comfortable, 44 years old, making the movies he wants to make: his own stories. Twas not always thus. His own story an allegory for his generation. Rich, unhappy kid. Seeker of approval of distant, stockbroker father. Dropout. Wild man. Drug-frazzled Vietnam vet. And then - as in all fables - an overnight success: an Academy Award for writing Midnight Express. And as with all outlaws, that was not enough."

Oliver Stone: "And I always knew the ballgame. The ballgame is to direct the thing, is to write and direct it. Once you've proven that you can direct your own material successfully - with some modicum of box office coming in - box office income - that's the solution to freedom."

V/O: "Freedom, if there is such a thing in movie-making, came in 1986 with the release of both Salvador and Platoon. Salvador was his story of a rogue journalist confronting the violence and corruption of Central America. It was acclaimed. But Platoon was a phenomenon - a critical and financial blockbuster - the first film, it was said, to show Vietnam as it was. It was Oliver Stone's own story, played by Charlie Sheen, the rich kid who is not drafted, but volunteered."

Oliver Stone: "I went because I felt that it was important for me to see, in my lifetime, a war. To be in combat, [the] infantry, and not to be an officer. I felt it was very important to be at the lowest level."

[Clip of Platoon]

Oliver Stone: "I think I had a very strong death wish. I was a troubled kid. My parents had been divorced. There were problems in the family and I wanted to get away from the family. I certainly felt very strong feelings that there was no point in growing up, in going on and becoming an adult - that the world had nothing to promise."

Morley Safer: "Well if you were that much adrift before Vietnam, I could see how the war could make you really believe that there wasn't a point in living."

Oliver Stone: "It sparked me the other way. It made me aware of what death really is. I smelled death. I saw it. And it hit me very hard. I made a commitment to life, I think, and I said, 'I want to get out of here. I want to make it out of Vietnam.'"

[Pan over his photos and military citations.]

V/O: "Fifteen months later, twice wounded and decorated for bravery, Stone left Vietnam. In Platoon, he tried at the very end to make some sense of the madness he'd been through."

[Clip of ending narration of Platoon]

V/O: "Noble thoughts. In fact - "

Morley Safer: "You came back from Vietnam a bit of a wreck, right?"

Oliver Stone: [quietly] "Yeah. Yeah."

V/O: "He was barely home a week when he was arrested on drug charges and thrown into jail. He finally pulled himself together, went to film school, and came at least partially to terms with Vietnam."

Oliver Stone: "I realized we were just, in a sense, ghosts in their landscape - that we were marching through their history and we were just a brief flicker of white faces in the din and we were gone. Ultimately we didn't mean anything geographically, socially, politically to the region. We were forgotten. It's twenty years old now. Accepting that conclusion was good for me."

Morley Safer: "In a certain way, Vietnam really shaped you as an artist."

Oliver Stone: "It shaped me as a political person. As an artist, it gave me a sense of the visceral. A sense of reality: of smell, of touch, of feel. I started to see the world in much more visual and sensual terms as a result of being there. It shaped me as a.....yes, it did. You're right."

V/O: "There is a muckraking quality to all of Stone's work: the journalist unfettered, allowed to say what he wants through barely fictional characters. The Wall Street he knew as a child was a noble place, the place his father worked."

[Clip of Wall Street]

Oliver Stone: "He believed in the power of productivity, of making things, investment and profit and initiative, and he ingrained those beliefs in me early in my life."

V/O: "Wall Street the movie cataloged the beliefs of the roaring 80's through the character of Gordon Gekko, played by Michael Douglas. The ethic is not work or productivity, just greed."

[Clip of Wall Street] Oliver Stone: "I'll never forget at the premiere of Wall Street, in New York, I'd invited a bunch of Wall Street people, and Michael Douglas had invited Donald Trump and people like that. They sat through the movie and I could see that the audience was really rooting for Michael. At the end of the show, Donald came out and he said to me, 'I like that Gekko!'"

[Clip of Born on the Fourth of July]

V/O: "Stone had received scorn as well as praise. In Born on the Fourth of July, he was accused of playing fast and loose with the facts of the life of Ron Kovic, a paraplegic Vietnam veteran. Stone showed Kovic, played by Tom Cruise, being beaten and knocked down and arrested at the 1972 Republican National Convention in Miami. But Kovic wasn't beaten or arrested in Miami."

Oliver Stone: "But he was arrested in Los Angeles and seven or eight other places. He was beaten in Los Angeles. He was thrown from the wheelchair. So I think that I was not violating the spirit of that time."

[Clip of Platoon]

Morley Safer: "Drugs are in a lot of your movies. How destructive a force in your life are or were drugs?"

Oliver Stone: [laughs] "I think that drugs have played an very ambivalent role in my life. They've been very creative and they've been very destructive. They work both ways. Certainly they freed my mind up very much in the 60's. But it would be wrong from a 90's perspective to look back and say drugs were so horrible. They weren't. They taught us a lot."

V/O: "Elizabeth is Oliver Stone's second wife. They both used drugs, including cocaine, but now say all that is over. They live reasonably contented, prosperous lives in any one of their three houses. They have a child, five year old Sean."

[Clip of Oliver playing with Sean in their backyard]

Morley Safer: "What would you tell him about drugs, for example?"

Oliver Stone: "Depends on the drugs and how old he was. I think cocaine is very destructive, and crack, but I think there are some very strong drugs that are out there that the good Lord made. He put them in nature."

V/O: "If that sounds like a bit of familiar 60's rhetoric, well, Stone is in that mode these days."

[Clip of Oliver driving to work, listening to "Riders on the Storm"]

V/O: "His new film is about Jim Morrison and The Doors: the outlaws of rock music, who for some made excess - sex, drugs, outrageous behavior - into a form of spirituality. Val Kilmer plays Jim Morrison."

[Clip of Oliver directing Kilmer in rehearsals]

Oliver Stone: "It was, for me, a wonderful freedom to be able to go back and be a Jim Morrison fan again. To be 21 and listen to the music. There's something very mysterious about Morrison and trying to capture that on film. This has been a great year. I'm enjoying it, getting to be young again, you know. Rock and roll!"

Elizabeth Stone: "What I see in all of his films is that Oliver identifies very strongly with his main characters. When an actor becomes that character, there is a special relationship that I see that develops between them. They both sort of get into each other's heads and the character emerges out of that union.

"When we were first together, and I didn't know him that well, we would have these intense fights at night, and the next day I'd be typing and I would recognize that the dialogue I was typing was actually the argument we had had the night before. What he'd been doing was seeing how and what a genuine reaction was to this character's plight."

[Clips of behind the scenes of The Doors, Oliver and Sean holding hands on the set]

V/O: "Stone is in the final stages of The Doors movie. On the set, he can be a loving, tender father and husband. And a demanding, arrogant tyrant. In the early days, Elizabeth was his assistant, his typist and gofer. She's graduated to photographer, but success, she says, has not totally tamed him."

Elizabeth Stone: "He likes to shake people's cages. He actually likes to rattle people up and get sort of an honest response out of them."

Morley Safer: "I'm told that that temper of his can reduce people to tears."

Elizabeth Stone: "Oh, sure! [laughs] He's a very persuasive and powerful individual. Very charismatic and when he encourages you, you feel like you're on top of the world. But it hurts, you know, when he lashes out."

[Clip of Oliver on set of The Doors, telling unnamed crew member, "I mean, if I had time for you to be perfect, I'll be here until next year. One more and that's it." ]

Morley Safer: "It has been said of you, by those who love you most, that you do like to rattle people's cages."

Oliver Stone: "Yeah."

Morley Safer: "Shake 'em up."

Oliver Stone: "Yeah but not by, that's by, uh...[laughs]"

Morley Safer: "So it's true?"

Oliver Stone: "That's the only way you get some truth. No, you have to get past the veneer. You have to get into their souls, their eyes."

Morley Safer: "Do what extent do you enjoy the idea of being an outlaw?"

Oliver Stone: "I do and I don't. I'm a very conflicted individual. I have alternate periods of conformity and then moments where I want to break away from it and do something radical and restart my life again. I want to strip away old friends and find new friends. I have this vision of Gogan going out to the south seas at the age of 40 and starting a third life."

Elizabeth Stone: "His fears are getting stale and stodgy. He sees that as the demise of American, basically. Tedium, boredom."

Morley Safer: "Middle age, it's called."

Oliver Stone: "I started feeling middle-aged about 37, 38 and had a lot of sleepless nights about it. Death is coming on and I feel it. But then again I saw death quite a bit when I was 18, 19 and 21 in Vietnam and I know that I'm lucky - luckier than a lot of the guys that were over there - to have made it back, so for me it's a little bit of gravy. This whole life has been gravy."

#oliver stone #60 minutes #morley safer #elizabeth stone #transcript #video #the doors #sean stone #vietnam #ptsd #born on the fourth of july #platoon #behind the scenes #wall street #donald trump

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fictionalcharactermbti · 7 years

Text

ENFP Fictional Tropes

Most ENFP characters fall under at least one trope. There are many cross overs in tropes and some ENFPs may not fit the categories presented. However, these tropes do loosely address the roles ENFP characters play in narratives.

The Idealist

These ENFPs see the very best in everyone they meet. They are often the person who will forgive and help the most villainous of characters. They often bring out the best in others by just being themselves. They don’t even need to actively help others, but inspire others with their dreams and ideals. Their enthusiasm brought on by their Ne is often enough. Combined with their Fi caring towards individuals makes the caring on top of it. The idealist ENFPs are usually the most optimistic characters you will find.

Examples: Kenneth Parnell (30 Rock), Antoine Triplett (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Mad Hatter (Disney’s Alice in Wonderland), Tara Maclay (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer), Eleventh Doctor (Doctor Who), Buddy the Elf (Elf), Nemo (Finding Nemo), Barry Allen (The Flash), Olaf (Frozen), Kiki (Kiki’s Delivery Service), Ariel (The Little Mermaid), Moana (Moana), Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto Shippuden), Henry Mills (Once Upon a Time), Capheus (Sense8), Joyce Byers (Stranger Things), Rapunzel (Tangled), Jessie (Toy Story), Kimmy Schmidt (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Ottoki Otoya (Uta No Prince Sama), and Tara Chambler (The Walking Dead).

The Activist

The Activist ENFP is often first struck with Ne curiosity in the world and the ideas within it and then as they shape their Fi they rally behind a certain cause. The ENFP Activist is passionate about their cause. They may break the rules of society and systems, but they will never turn against their individual cause. Just like the Idealist, the ENFP activist often inspires others, however, they inspire those to follow them. ENFP activists can be very persuasive, living their life in line with their beliefs.

Examples: Hayley Smith (American Dad), Aang (Avatar: The Last Airbender), Karen Page (Netflix’s Daredevil), Marshall Eriksen (How I met Your Mother), Cindy Lou Who (Ron Howard’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas), Helen Parr (The Incredibles), Ray Palmer/Atom (DCTVU), Erik Lensherr/Magneto (Marvel Comics and X-MenCU), Mike Wheeler (Stranger Things), Sir Thomas More (The Tudors), Sam Seaborn (The West Wing), and Judy Hopps (Zootopia).

The Salesman

This ENFP character can convince you of anything and sell you on their vision. Whether they are healthy or not, their Ne makes them idea people that inspire, their Fi helps them appeal to people and their individual sense of self. They make you think that they can help make all your dreams come true. Healthy or unhealthy, their Te can help them make you think their idea is your priority, like they have your interests at heart (combined with Fi). This can help them actually help you or help them completely swindle you. No matter what they will make you for at least a moment feel special as they take you on a romantic journey of your dreams.

Examples: Katherine Pierce (The Vampire Diaries), Genie (Aladdin), Walt Disney (Saving Mr. Banks), Randy Marsh (South Park), Tom Haverford (Parks & Recreation), Erlich (Silicon Valley), Taco (The League), Tiffany Doggett (Orange is the New Black), Michael Scott (NBC’s The Office), Christian (Moulin Rouge!), John Hammond (Jurassic Park), Thomas Jefferson (Hamilton: An American Musical), Bumi (Avatar: The Legend of Korra), Gob Bluth (Arrested Development), and Malcolm Merlyn (Arrow).

The Prince

This is the darker side of the ENFP. They are probably the most self-involved trope. They believe their their wants are the needs of others. They demand others to serve their personal priorities. They often don’t see their work as selfish, but part of a greater cause or purpose. However, they are usually looping ENFPs. Many Prince ENFPs find themselves in leadership positions because they are over using their tertiary Te that they think is morally just because of their minimal use of their secondary Fi function. They use Te objectivity as a shield against their own subjective motives of Fi-Si. These types often have potential to be more positive tropes, but have faltered in their quest to satisfy their inferior function fears and desires.

Examples: Ice King (Adventure Time), Malcolm Merlyn (Arrow), Cheryl Tunt (Archer), The Master (Doctor Who-10th Doctor Era), King Richard, Jaime Lannister (Game of Thrones), Ronald Weasley (Harry Potter Series), Sean McGinnes (Hell on Wheels), Willis ‘Diamondback’ Stryker (Luke Cage), Julia (Syfy’s The Magicians), Erik Lensherr/Magneto (Marvel Comics/X-Men Cinematic Universe), Obito Uchiha (Naruto Shippuden), Peter Pan (Once Upon a Time), Marshal D. Teach “Blackbeard” (One Piece), Klaus Mikaelson (The Vampire Diaries/The Originals), and Catherine Earnshaw (Wuthering Heights).

The Champion Leader

ENFP leaders become so in their hope to help others. They are concerned with the forgotten because of their Introverted Feeling. They are a champion of a cause like the activist, but find themselves leading others in order to accomplish their goals. Their leadership style isn’t one of intense organization, but of individuality and independence. They are often because of Ne-Fi on the ground doing tasks with their followers in order to accomplish group goals. They have a hard time delegating, standing back and letting only others enjoy the fun of the action. This is due to their Ne being more present oriented and Fi being a function that can’t be used conceptually, but perceptually. The ENFP leader is far more comfortable helping others in the situation rather than apart from it.

Examples: Clark Kent/Superman (DC), Renly Baratheon (Game of Thrones), Chris (Bravest Warriors), Peter Quill (Guardians of the Galaxy), King Arthur (Mists of Avalon), Moana (Moana), Hashirama Senju (Naruto Shippuden), Peter Pan (Disney’s Peter Pan), Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece), Dr. Alexander Sweet (Penny Dreadful), Erik Lensherr/Magneto (Marvel/X-Men Cinematic Universe), and Captain Kirk (Star Trek).

The Goof

This is the most under-estimated ENFP character. They come off is aloof, odd, and carefree on the surface. But this is often a misread. The ENFP goof is often wandering the unbeaten Ne dominance path, seeing things differently in ways that other types can’t accept or don’t understand. Their sense of genius is mistaken for oddity. They usually surprise others with their intelligence and success, because it is never how others would go about completing a given task or goal. Their genius word play is often seen as simply humorous rather than an indicator of a deeper intelligence.

Examples: Mabel Pines (Gravity Falls), Second Doctor & Eleventh Doctor (Doctor Who), Troy Barnes (Community), Fez (That ‘70s Show), Gregory (Over the Garden Wall), Spongebob Squarepants (Spondgebob Squarepants), Bing Bong (Inside Out), Hugo ‘Hurley’ Reyes (LOST), Bert (Morry Poppins), Mei (My Neighbor Totoro), Winston Bishop (New Girl), Erin Hannon (NBC’s The Office), Russell (Up), Lorelai Gilmore (Gilmore Girls), Madam Mim (The Sword in the Stone), Gene Belcher (Bob’s Burgers), Scooby-Doo (Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?), Peter Quill (Guardians of the Galaxy), and Bolin (Avatar: The Legend of Korra).

#ENFP #character #tropes #ENFP character tropes #mbti

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ncmagroup · 5 years

Text

Written by Aja Frost

How to Convince Someone

Ask them to share their thoughts.

Match their type of reasoning — if they’re being emotional, appeal to their emotions; if they’re relying on logic, be logical.

Get them to lower their guard with a genuine compliment.

Pose a counter-argument (without making them defensive).

Don’t hide behind jargon or unnecessarily fancy words.

Some people call George C. Parker the most convincing American who ever lived. Once or twice a week for several years, Parker convinced people he owned the Brooklyn Bridge. After they believed him, he’d sell it to them. His buyers would usually discover the swindle when police arrested them for putting on toll barriers on “their” bridge.

While Parker definitely isn’t a good role model when it comes to honesty, there’s no doubt he knew how to bring others around to his point of view. Once you know exactly how to convince someone (the right way), you’ll be a better salesperson, entrepreneur, and/or professional.

1) Give them a chance to explain

When was the last time someone convinced you by verbally bulldozing you? Probably never. Even if you submit on the surface, in your head you’re still clinging to your beliefs. And you’re irritated and resentful of the other person, to boot.

The opposite approach is far more effective: Listen respectfully to the other person. In fact, let them go first. As soon as you decide you want to convince them, say, “I’d love to get your thoughts on X. Would you please share them with me?”

Here are a few alternatives:

“I know you’ll have some well-thought-out opinions on Y. Are you open to discussing them?“

“This sounds like a topic you feel strongly about. It would be great to hear your reasoning.”

“Could you please walk me through your thought process?”

“Let’s talk about Z. Please, tell me what you think.”

2) Match their reasoning

Turns out, “fight fire with fire” is a smart persuasion technique. Research proves that using the same type of reasoning as the person you’re trying to persuade is much more effective than using a different one.

So if the other person is being logical, use logic too. If, on the other hand, they’re making decisions based on their emotions, sway them with an emotional argument.

Let’s say you’re talking to a prospect who’s unsure about changing suppliers. They’ve worked with their current one for 10 years and really like them.

Because they’re using emotional reasoning, don’t lead with a logical argument like, “Switching to our product will cut your manufacturing time by 10%.” It’s probably not going to resonate.

Instead say, “I completely understand. We really try to provide that same level of support and trust to all of our customers. In fact, during your first year, we provide a second account manager at no extra cost to make sure your transition is as smooth as possible and you feel secure.”

Not sure how to differentiate between different arguments types? Pay attention to which words the other person is using.

Logical reasoning words

Analyze

Calculate

Conclude

Compel

Determine

Discover

Find

Gauge

Hypothesize

Predict

Reveal

Think

Validate

Verify

Emotional reasoning words

Believe

Feel

Guess

Imagine

Intuit

Suppose

Suspect

3) Compliment their thought process

Next time a prospect says something you agree with, reply, “It sounds like you’ve put some thought into this.”

According to a study published in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, “Individuals who were led to believe that they had thought a lot about a two-sided message felt more certain about the resulting attitude than people who were led to believe that they had thought only a little about the same message.” In other words, if you make prospects think they’ve spent some time coming to a belief, they’re far likelier to hold on to it.

What would that look like in practice? Imagine the prospect says, “Since we’re expected to grow 150% in the next year, the flexibility of your software is really appealing.”

With this trick up your sleeve, you’d respond, “It seems like you’ve really thought about what you’ll need as you scale.”

Now, validated in their thinking, they’ll be even more convinced your product is a good fit.

Looking for other options? Try:

“You make some great points.”

“You’ve definitely given me a lot to mull over.”

“I’m impressed by your reasoning.”

“I wish more people had your ability to consider both sides of the topic.”

4) Present the counter-argument

Not only should you be prepared for any counter-arguments the other person brings up, you might even consider bringing up the counter-arguments for them.

It may sound crazy. However, a meta-analysis of 107 studies with a total of 20,111 participants showed that, across the board, two-sided arguments are more persuasive than one-sided ones.

The key is to refute the counter-argument after you’ve raised it — otherwise, this approach doesn’t work.

For example, you could tell the prospect, “Our accounting software doesn’t enable users to give clients their own accounts. I know that’s a feature you’re interested in.”

Laying your cards on the table immediately makes you more credible. But you don’t want to leave any potential issues unaddressed, so follow up with: “We chose to offer automatic, recurring billing instead — once you’ve set it up, you never have to worry about payments again. Plus, clients can view their invoices in their email without the hassle of logging into a whole new platform.”

Because you’ve gained the prospect’s trust, this explanation will be more impactful than if you’d waited for them to bring up the issue.

You can even introduce a point you don’t think they would have brought up on their own. Again, this sounds counter-productive — but it will boost your trustworthiness and make you seem more convincing, assuming you successfully dismantle the counter-argument.

To illustrate, you might say, “You might be thinking about safety. Many customers are, in the beginning. Is that something on your mind?”

Once they say yes (they’ll almost always say yes, because they don’t want to seem uninformed or careless), you’d respond, “It’s a very valid concern. The Consumer Protection Agency has actually found our product makes your home safer, because … “

Ultimately, setting up arguments before knocking them down will make you far more convincing.

5) Be Clear and Direct

My brother — who’s a philosopher — once handed me an extremely dense text on the Münchhausen trilemma, telling me it would change my life.

A month later, he asked what I’d thought. I said, “Honestly, I couldn’t understand more than 10 words in a row.”

The takeaway: The strength of your argument doesn’t matter if your audience can’t understand it.

And this holds true whether you’re talking about a complex psychological theory or how your product works. It might be tempting to fill your explanations with five-dollar words, jargon, and industry buzzwords, but you’ll only confuse your prospects — and ultimately lose the deal.

With that in mind, speak as plainly you can. For example:

Wrong: “We’ve developed a real-time pipeline that ingests the full Twitter stream, then cleanses, transforms, and performs sentiment and multi-dimensional analysis of the Tweets that were related to the campaign and finally delivers a valuable real-time decision-making platform.”

Right: “Our tool grabs the data from Twitter accounts, analyzes it, and puts the relevant information in an easy-to-use dashboard. It updates in real time, so you’ll always be making the most informed decision possible.”

It’s clear which statement is more convincing: The second one.

When you’re unsure whether you’re being direct enough, pretend you’re speaking to a fifth-grader. This strategy will help you choose clear, comprehensible language and examples.

Now that you know these science-backed persuasion secrets, moving your prospect’s hearts and minds should be a little easier. But make sure to use your powers for good, not evil — in other words, don’t sell any bridges.

Go to our website: www.ncmalliance.com

5 Clever Ways to Convince Someone (Without Being Dishonest) Written by Aja Frost How to Convince Someone Ask them to share their thoughts. Match their type of reasoning -- if they're being emotional, appeal to their emotions; if they're relying on logic, be logical.

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barbecuedphoenix · 7 years

Text

El Police Department AU: Part 2

You people reviewed. :)

So here’s Round 2 of the El Police Department AU. Because it’s not the 18th Century in that world: there’s a good number of ladies rubbing shoulders with the guys in the police force.

And they’re exactly equal in terms of efficiency. >_>

Miiko, the Chief of Police

They’ve been calling her ‘Iron Fox’ well before she started ruling the roost in the El Police Department. Because back when she was still a regular patrol officer, she threw a pimp she was arresting face-first into a sewer grate after he called her ‘a sweet fox of a cop’. The pimp was still wearing the sewer-grate-bar-code on his face when he was finally brought into the station (sans front teeth), and Miiko received a reprimand for using ‘overzealous force’ from the then-chief. She just told her boss that she’ll stop beating the teeth out of scum if they stop complimenting her legs while she’s cuffing them. It happens every time.

That fierce temper and double-immunity to criticism would have kept Miiko to the lower ranks-- chauffeuring weepy drunks in her squad car at odd hours in the morning, and drinking tar-like coffee in the officer’s lounge—if the unthinkable hadn’t happened: the Oracle was destroyed. Within that first nightmarish year after Ashkore’s opening shot, El’s stark-blind police department was whittled down to a sliver as they scrambled to restore order in a city that lost all trust and fear of the law. Her chief was quickly bumped off when his car backed up over a pipe-bomb, followed by the next dozen in the chain of command, until Miiko was the most senior officer left standing. By that point, no one was really willing to take issue with how many groins this classic ‘bad cop’ kicked in over the years. (In fact, that traditional skill might come in handy in the new criminal landscape.)

Nowadays, Miiko only metaphorically aims below the belt. Usually when it’s time to argue against police budget cuts with the city council. (Because do they really expect her people to rebuild the Oracle, and make their trips to their mistress’s apartments less prone to inconvenient car-jacking, with a negative pay raise?) With her own people though, she has a surprising magnanimous streak. She’ll be the first to tell them at a staff meeting if they’re a bunch of slack-jawed morons, but they’re still her slack-jawed morons. So no, she’s not about to fire them, even after this royal screw-up. Just expect a pick-up truck’s worth of paperwork and late night holding-cell duty to make up for it. They will learn to take responsibility for their own actions. And Jamon could use some help scrubbing the tiles clean in the drunk tank.

Much of this tough love protectiveness comes from her little-known weakness for underdogs and those who grew up on the wrong side of the law (and don’t hit on her). About half of the new generation of officers she hired are redeemed troublemakers from various walks of life, while the others are here because… they’re one of the few in the El who still believe in supporting the police department. So how can she afford to turn any of them loose? Even if she’s still waiting for the day that this recruitment policy pays off.

Cameria, the SWAT Lieutenant

Valkyon’s cheery, bighearted right-hand woman in the special response division, who acts as a bona fide big sister to all the recruits who can’t stand up to her punches during spars. And there are a lot of them. But even if their line of sight is still dancing a few inches away from her face, she’ll pick them up from the training mat with a ‘You did great, beautiful’ and take them out for a nice protein-kale smoothie. What? It’ll help them build up more muscle in weeks.

She’s the subject of awe and fear for that peculiar training regimen she invented, in which she straps a massive water drum (full of course; she doesn’t take shortcuts) onto her back and runs up and down the hundred steps in front of the city’s courthouse. Cameria has stopped asking rookies to join her for this exercise though, after the last one fainted halfway up the stairs when she wasn’t looking. And rolled backwards.

This hard-hitting lieutenant is comfortable enough on the field to head into an armed hold-up or a dangerous sting with few, if any, partners. (And if reports can be believed, the SWAT team doesn’t bother carry a battering ram if Cameria is on the field. They haven’t yet found suitable non-steel door that can stand up to the force of her kicks. That water-drum training has its perks.) Also, she seems to bring back an awful lot of guns and contraband every time, liberated from their uncooperative owners ‘for better use in the police department’. She has a very persuasive nature.

Ewelein, the Coroner

A brilliant ex-physician who works alongside Ezarel in the forensics department, analyzing the bodies brought into the lab (in varying stages of ‘completeness’) from a medical standpoint to determine the cause of death. Along with other somewhat-useful nuggets of knowledge on whether they were all-that-innocent in life. (Example: since starting as a liaison in the El Police Department, Ewelein has met an awful lot of people who liked doing weird kinky things in bed when they were alive. Just check the lower-body X-rays in her lab.)

However, Ewelein often reverts back to her trauma surgeon roots to patch up the next careless officer who got themselves shot, whacked over the head with a two-by-four plank, pulled into an advanced training session with Cameria, etc. Some of them are just too damned proud to go to real hospital. (And seem to think that they’ll be fine with a few stitches and painkillers in their pocket.) In fact, half of the morgue at HQ has been converted into as a miniature hospital ward for the still-living. Ewelein leaves helpful labels on the foot of each table—like “Not dead; still healing”-- to keep visiting officers from screaming at seeing their friends lying around in her lab.

Between Ezarel’s eternal-grad-student influence and the type of ‘less lively’ company she receives most hours in the morgue, it’s no surprise that Ewelein has developed a very wry sense of humor and a calm, no-nonsense approach to uncooperative ‘patients’ (living or dead). She still abides by the Hippocratic Oath after all: she’ll do her best to look after them, ease their suffering, and keep the secrets they don’t want to disclose within the walls of her ‘clinic’. And she’ll stand vigil in her lab during lunch with her botanical scrapbook and a mug of coffee, just to make sure Ezarel doesn’t draw dissection lines in marker on the faces and chests of recovering patients. Or switch the labels at the foot of each table. Show some respect, boy.

Karenn, the Cyber-Security Specialist

Nevra’s little sister had a very colorful reputation back in tech academy, before her big brother convinced her to put her ill-gotten hacking skills to good use by catching other hackers. That’s the best way to keep her from ending up in the jailhouse anyway. Think of their family’s reputation! Miiko had barely glanced at her resume before telling her that she was hired. (Though it might have been because right before Karenn’s interview, Ashkore and co. sent the police department another helpful ‘tip-off’ about some compromising photos of a city councilman. That somehow ended up on the city’s tourism website.)

Karenn stands out even among the colorful younger generation of the police force for her sprightly jokes, the number of computer games she plays at her desk (outside of her lunch breaks)… and how she definitely doesn’t wear her uniform right. Even if it’s not Halloween, she continues to wear a Renaissance-era doublet, an ounce’s worth of piercings on both ears, and hair that’s exactly-half magenta. Well, it’s not as if anyone cares what she looks like when she’s sweeping for bugs and stalking criminals in cyberspace. Is there a dress-code for busting people online? Observant colleagues though can guess what Karenn’s real reason is for sticking to civilian clothing: it makes sneaking outside the station and eavesdropping on citizens that much easier. Nevra doesn’t get to have all the fun when doing a case study.

In her off-time, she keeps up an elaborate cross-platform social networking profile under her favorite alias—the notorious Nightingale—to post outlandish news, gossip, and politically-incorrect questions. She always manages to avoid getting tracked by site bots or flamers. And whenever she knows she has a good chance of getting away with it, Karenn pulls together all her internet-ghosting skills to visit the fan-sites dedicated to Ashkore and his group (from different devices and IPO addresses each time). Just for… research into their methods and the mindset of their public cult.

It’s practically sacrilege in their department, but Karenn is in begrudging awe of Ashkore and cohorts. In her mind, for all the ill that was caused by their actions, they are still the most badass hackers she had ever witnessed second-hand. And it’s up to the El Police Department to try to catch them… She’s not fooling herself about their chances.

Enthraa, the Coast Guard Liaison

Not a lot is known about this contact from the coast who generally enjoys keeping to herself. Besides one framed photograph at HQ of a tall, rangy officer on a speedboat—with a mullet and no life-jacket-- holding a wickedly-sharp gaff… which had just scooped up a dripping-wet smuggler who tried unwisely to jump off her boat. Miiko keeps that photo in the foyer just to let visitors know that escape by sea is futile.

Every time a suspect gathering is spotted under the bridge, a message is intercepted about an incoming shipment overwater, or someone disappears conveniently into the river, Enthraa gets a call to keep her eyes out for suspicious activity at the river mouth. Being situated downriver from the city of El means she sees some very interesting flotsam passing by on a regular basis. Proof: she is very practiced with using that gaff.

Though it can be a lonely job out on the coast, where the most face-time she receives each week comes from boarding nervous ships for inspection, Enthraa couldn’t imagine living away from the sea. She still calls the people who move from the coast to the big cities in the interior ‘idiot in-landers’.

Ykhar, the Reporter

An intrepid, super-conscientious young crime journalist who’s still searching for her breakout story… and seems to think she’ll find it by shadowing the El Police Department. She’s bound to succeed one day: the officers in the force don’t have the heart to kick her out every time Ykhar shows up at HQ’s foyer or at a taped-off crime scene with her notepad, tape-recorder, and an out-of-breath smile. Part of it is because a childhood spent reading detective novels has given her a healthy respect for what the officers do. But it’s mostly because she has that wide-eyed, ‘rabbit caught in the headlights’ look every time someone ignores her ‘freedom of the press’ speech and shuts the door in her face. So whenever she arrives, in contrast to other members of the press, interns and off-duty rookies are automatically put on ‘feed/water/stall Ykhar’ duty until one of the senior officers arrives to field her questions.

Though it’s been a few years, Ykhar still carries that ‘fresh out of journalism school’ attitude: from her idealism in broadcasting the truth, how hopefully she smiles at her interview subjects… and how quickly she’ll serve up a ‘journalistic integrity!’ speech if they start eying her tape-recorder suspiciously. (It’s still about 65% effective.) Not to mention her quick fainting spells if her editor tells her that what she printed in her article “…may not be the most accurate statement”. Coworkers at her newspaper have learnt to keep smelling salts nearby every time Ykhar passes out from anxiety.

Alajea, the Witness

A perky, up-and-coming pop singer who moved to El some years ago from a little town on the coast (and always seems ready to burst into song on how glorious big city life is, away from the sea). That level of optimism says plenty about her, because in this glorious big city, she always seems to end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, leading to so many visits to the police station as a witness that she’s actually on first-name basis with the officers there. Some are starting to suspect that she’s actually a femme fatale under the ditzy airhead persona, from her suspiciously-regular streak of ‘bad luck’ and the way her stories seem to change every other day. But there’s only circumstantial evidence that she was actually involved in the wrongdoings she witnessed. So far.

In her spare time, Alajea also visits the station just to ogle that dashing head detective Nevra, who learnt within the first day that this is one recurring damsel-in-distress who isn’t worth all the trouble attached. Still, he’s got his eye on her. And not in a good way.

Huang Hua, the Casino Owner

Every city has that one place where you only need to be seen once to become “Someone worth noticing” (with a capital ‘S’). In El, that’s Huang Hua’s House of Fortune: the premiere luxury casino, bar, and after-dark entertainment hotspot. Practically anything is game under Huang Hua’s roof: from every variety of card game imaginable, to Mah Jong, slot machines, Pachinko, roulette, billiards, and even high-stakes shogi that’ll never make you settle for less after you try her version once. And if you stay late enough (and are blessed with extraordinary luck), you might just meet the great madam herself: sweeping in with her scarlet, phoenix-crested qi pao with a traffic-stopping keyhole and thigh-slit, flashing you that million-dollar smile as she sits down at your table and asks for a game. You better not refuse her. And when you lose, accept your defeat gracefully and beg for the privilege of her company in the future. She might just deign to give you a seat at her side for the midnight burlesque show upstairs, VIP only. And yes… there you’ll find women, men, and everything else that can surprise your soul. ;)

Every entertainment magazine in El has it right when they say Huang Hua is the life of the party, and her House of Fortune your last earthly stop before paradise (or purgatory, depending on your moral persuasion). And she’ll do anything and everything to make sure it stays that way. There are no other gambling dens, bars, or strip-clubs within thirty miles of Huang Hua’s casino. And police-chief Miiko is already a regular guest and drinking partner in her private lounge (sometimes accompanied by that delicious-looking SWAT captain of hers, whenever the chief is trying to negotiate for a little less trouble on that side of town. Huang Hua always scores a date with poor, unsmiling Valkyon in exchange.)

The only things guaranteed to make that winning, diamond-edged smile vanish: 1.) if you try asking about her real age. 2.) if you try to cheat in her casino. Very little escapes this madam, and before you know it, you’ll suddenly find yourself surrounded on four sides by her team of elite Shaolin-trained bodyguards. One of whom will sarcastically tell you to kindly step outside, if you want to avoid further embarrassment.

Sadly, the cop-AU fun stops here. (At least until the Eldarya team introduces more characters who can fit into the noir genre.)

Though if you’re interested in reading the first, testosterone-pumped part of the cop-AU, check it out here!

As always, read, enjoy (hopefully), and review. My inbox is always hungry for feedback. :)

#headcanon #Eldarya #Alajea #Cameria #Enthraa #Ewelein #Huang Hua #Karenn #Miiko #Ykhar

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olusegundare · 5 years

Text

GENETIC ALTERATION

A. INTRODUCTION

In a bid to move forward in life, I traveled to another town out of the state that I have been born and bred some years back... to some in the advanced country this could be called tourism, but this is more than tourism because I actually thought I would be settling down in the state until the tide of things changed and I have to move back to the state I was raised up from. The state I traveled to is called Ekiti State, it is one of the Yoruba states in the South-West of Nigeria. This documentation is essentially centered on Ekiti State, Nigeria.

However, on getting to the state I migrated to some few years back, I started to notice many things are apparently distantly different in modal frequency from those things that I used to see and know in the place I grew up from and of course those things are equally uncommon in those other places I have once transciently sojourned.

Some of the noticeable physical differences in human beings include: 1. Number of hunched back people, 2. Number of albinoes, 3. Number of calcaneal valgus deformity people These apparent differences put a question mark in my heart of hearts, the reason/s for these noticeable differences ought to be found out I said to myself.

B. POSTULATIONS

Several things could perhaps be alluded to cause these problems, these include among others the followings: 1. Vitamin deficiencies 2. Local herbs usage, 3. Lethal dosage of those local herbs indeterminant, 4. Hormonal disturbances, 5. Childbirth (parturition) method - ? Trauma during parturition 6. Post-parturition trauma due to stretching or flexing and extending the neck of neonate during

parturition

7. Accidents

C. PATHOPHYSIOLOGY

Since embryonical development needs hormonal, vitamins, essential minerals etc to be in normal physiological range for the physiological growth and development of the fetus/es, any alteration to the normal physiologically range of these required ingredients in-utero shall indubitably affect the fetal development and if uncurbed early or if the bud is not nibbed in time, it shall invariably result in permanent disability of the developing embryo, which shall be ostentatiously visible after parturition. The probable means of the pathogenesis is that they cause alteration to the mitotic division of the tissues responsible for such region or area's normofunctioning thus resulting in dysfunctioning. The failure to curb this could also lead to the arrest of some spindle formation which are responsible for the separation of cells during the mitotic cell division.

It won't be an understatement stating that at some instances, there may also be total cleavage of the gene responsible for such development in utero.

The gene responsible for such growth and development and subsequently responsible for the physiological functioning of such area could also undergo substitution and elimination method, thence forming a NONSENSE CODON which shall invariably result in types of manifested abnormalities been seen after parturition. Biochemical analysis and documentation showed the significance of vitamins for physiological development, vitamin D is particularly noted to be of immense use in bone growth and (perhaps) formation. The pathway of this vitamin and other vitamins alike that is essential for the normal development of the embryo could be gravely affected at any of the stages of its pathway; either early, middle or late.

The hormones working in consonance with the body's hormones for adequate and or proper bone formation may also have been affected, at the site of production, after being produced or even at their receptor site.

The nervous physiological action requires some minerals but this could also be affected. The nervous connection responsible for harmonious functioning of the parts of the body (muscles, bones, tendons etc) could also be affected during parturition because the people who inhabit this region for financial reasons yet patronize traditional parturition method. The statistical record of this may not be accurate because of the false belief of the people when being questioned by researchers. But close observation and interaction sell them out that they patronize the traditional method of childbirth than the medical method.

Apart from those who patronize the traditional method of delivery, there are others who yet deliver by themselves, those who deliver at home. All these expose them to different kinds of risks. D. EFFECT

The effects are many, part of which include: 1. PSYCHOSOCIAL

· The people affected are disdained,

· It takes time before they are accepted in the public,

· It takes time before people associate themselves with them,

· People at times consider it a curse

· They treat such people as if it is a transferable disease?

· Marriage difficulty

2. ACADEMIC

· Find it hard to get admission into any school: primary, post-primary or tertiary

· Not preferentially treated, they are subjected to the same stress that other people who do not have genetical problems are subjected to, this therefore makes it difficult for them in so many instances to cope in schools and colleges, resulting in drop-out and becoming dependant people in the society.

3. ECONOMICAL

· Business affected

· People may not want to patronize them,

· Difficulty in securing employment

4. MEDICAL

· The affected area shall become difficult to treat, if infected/during accident,

· Extra-cost required for their treatment,

· Specialists required to treat them and not just general practitioners,

· The presence of other underlying problems (could not be ruled out) due to genetic mutation and which may be hidden at infancy/childhood

E. TREATMENT

1. Educating the women on taking of local herbs particularly during pregnancy, 2. Help in determining the lethal dosages of those herbs, 3. Educating the public, 4. Educating the traditional child deliverers, 5. Analysing the herbs and determining the chemical compositions of them before they are used 6. Etc.

F. CONCLUSION

It is no hidden fact that the vast majority of people of the south-western part of Nigeria yet trust local herbs or drugs for treatment than they do trust orthodox medicine or drugs. This trust of theirs’ is demonstrated in their patronization of traditional herbal homes. They also do have believe in local herbs due to the resistant of some micro-organisms to certain anti-microbial drugs, the antibiotics. This believe of theirs’ make them arrive at the assertion in some quarters that certain orthodox drugs are not meant for this part of the world but for Caucasians, Scandinavians... Hence, even if they go to hospitals they simply do so "for going sake" and not as if they trust that something good will come out of the place, they simply go to hospitals due to the persuasion of some people close by. They though receive some succour through this traditional medicine, but yet those unfound and unexpected problems that sometimes accompany such drugs/herbs usage which are not prepared for are usually being attributed to some demonical "orchestry". G. LIMITATIONS

1. Inability to access the genetic compostion of such people, 2. Inability to follow the progenition of the affectee to the 4th or 5th filial generation to see if the

phenotypical expressions of the affectee's filial tree do express such deformity, 3. Inability to check the effect of location -geographical- on the pregnant women, 4. The effect of green house couldn’t be affirmed, 6. The effect on spermatogenesis/spermatozoa couldn’t be affirmed I. RECOMMENDATION

1. Guidance on the type of herbs use by pregnant females, 2. Taken of blood sample, tissue extracts or samples etc for analysis and histopathological

studies 3. X-ray or Scan analysis of the fetus, 4. Amniotic fluid collection for analysis

5. Jobs creation for the affectee,

6. Guidance and Counselling, 7. Education on the social effect, 8. More specialist required to treat them,

9. More funding required to do the research as well as sponsor the specialists,

10. Special School established for them at subsidized rate

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entergamingxp · 4 years

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Microsoft still hasn’t made the case for Xbox Series X • Eurogamer.net

Let’s get the obvious comparison out of the way, now that we can compare the summer’s two great trailer showcases – separated this year by six weeks rather than the usual day and a half: Sony edged it.

Neither PlayStation nor Xbox delivered a slam dunk when making the software case for their new hardware launches this year. Stripped of the wheeler-dealing, jostle and theatricality whipped up by the industry’s convergence on Los Angeles for E3 in a normal year, there was a sense of hesitancy about both showings, with many exclusive properties and first-party studios not ready to take the virtual stage, and most big third-party publishers declining to lend their weight to either side. We saw a lot of indie games – great for representing the true diversity of the medium, not so good as ammunition in a hype war. We didn’t get a decisive megaton announcement from either.

Still, Sony was more convincing. It had, in Resident Evil Village, the patronage of one storied third-party franchise (just the one). It had a few arresting curveballs, like Ghostwire: Tokyo, Pragmata and Little Devil Inside, plus a spectacular remake of Demon’s Souls for the gaming cognoscenti. The PlayStation Studios exclusives felt that little bit closer and more tangible than their Xbox counterparts, especially in the impressive gameplay footage of Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and Gran Turismo 7. It had a simple pitch: if you want to play these games, buy a PlayStation 5.

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Astonishingly, we still can’t be sure that we have seen a game running on Xbox Series X

Xbox’s showcase last night was bookended by a gameplay demo of Halo Infinite – a very tangible prospect, to be fair, but one which you will be able to play on Xbox One and which was reportedly captured on PC – and a teaser reveal for a new Fable that, while cute, had little to add to the rumours of its existence that have circulated for years. Much of what filled the space between them was interesting, exciting or both, from the emotional lockdown trailer for Tetris Effect: Connected to the news that Fatshark was taking its trademark co-op chaos into the Warhammer 40K realm with Darktide. But most of it was frustratingly opaque. Stalker 2’s debut trailer was, it turned out, target footage. Forza Motorsport was present as a graphics demo with an ominous note that it was “early in development”. Rare’s Everwild, on second showing, remained as mysterious as it is lovely to behold. Xbox Studios prospects State of Decay 3 and Avowed got CG teasers only. There was, overall, a striking lack of gameplay footage – and, astonishingly, we still can’t be sure that we have seen a game running on Xbox Series X.

Nor can we be very sure whether we will need to buy an Xbox Series X to play games like Everwild, Forza and Avowed. That they will all get PC versions is no surprise. Microsoft has previously stated that it will continue to support Xbox One with first-party releases for a year or two after Series X launches – a controversial but clearly articulated strategy about playing to the widest possible audience rather than forcing generational change. Yet, when push came to shove, the company didn’t seem willing to promise anything beyond Halo would actually get an Xbox One version, and a follow-up tweet from Xbox marketer Aaron Greenberg passed the buck to studios rather than settle the matter. It’s possible that most of these titles are bound for 2022 or later, after Xbox One has naturally passed away, but that would hardly be good news for Xbox fans.

Future 1P titles are developed for Xbox Series X first. Not saying those games won?t ship on Xbox One, only that we are leading with Series X & each studio will decide what’s best for their game/community when they launch.

— Aaron Greenberg ?????? (@aarongreenberg) July 23, 2020

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Bearing in mind Halo Infinite’s underwhelming looks, all of a sudden Xbox’s pro-cross-gen stance sounds less like a strategy than like a rationale to explain away a last-gen game that got itself delayed into the launch window for the next console, and thus had to release on both – Zelda: Breath of the Wild style. (To be fair, we should note that PlayStation 5’s launch game, Spider-man: Miles Morales, is an update and extension of a PS4 hit. Maybe you just can’t launch with a proper generational exclusive in 2020.) But then, this view doesn’t square with developer 343’s assertion to IGN that Halo Infinite is a “platform for the future” that should last 10 years without getting a traditional sequel.

It is hard to believe that, as a new console generation approaches, Microsoft is once again fluffing its lines. The hardware reveal went well – unsurprisingly, since it had been so carefully rehearsed with Xbox One X a couple of years previously. But we have yet to see anything that shows those impressive stats in action, and corporate strategy seems once again to be getting in the way of what players want to see and hear.

How much does Microsoft really want to sell you one of these?

If Microsoft isn’t persuading us to buy consoles and games, that’s because it doesn’t really want to

This is not to say that the nightmare of 2013’s Xbox One launch is about to be repeated. Then, a fuzzy Trojan-horse strategy about media convergence and owning the living room seemed to have little to do with video games. Now, Microsoft’s vision for the future gaming is both far-sighted and persuasive, with its emphasis on streaming technology, device agnosticism and reaching the largest possible addressable audience.

If Satya Nadella’s company isn’t doing well at persuading us to buy consoles and games, that’s probably because it doesn’t really want to. What it wants to sell us is Game Pass subscriptions. Viewed as a pitch for a couple of years’ worth of an entertainment service at 10 dollars a month, rather than as a pitch for a 500-dollar piece of consumer electronics, yesterday’s showcase was far more effective: a broad range of enticing games that don’t need to blow us away in the here and now if we can check them out at our leisure in future. With the streaming service xCloud to be included in Game Pass Ultimate subs, the matter of which boxes these games will be playable on also becomes a potential moot point. Microsoft is playing a different game altogether to Sony, and it would be a mistake to judge its performance on the standards of a decades-old PR war that, at the highest level, its executives probably consider a strategically irrelevant and rather old-fashioned sideshow.

And yet, 2013 still has an important lesson to teach us. Microsoft fluffed it so hard then because it thought a pitch to the core gaming audience no longer mattered. It was wrong. This audience of tastemakers is still the hub the wider gaming community revolves around, and it really matters what excites them – what excites us. If your games don’t thrill us, if your pitch seems driven by theory rather than passion, you are in trouble. Xbox still has work to do.

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2020/07/microsoft-still-hasnt-made-the-case-for-xbox-series-x-%e2%80%a2-eurogamer-net/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=microsoft-still-hasnt-made-the-case-for-xbox-series-x-%25e2%2580%25a2-eurogamer-net

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spookypiratestranger-blog · 7 years

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Ten movies in Feb. 2017

Hidden Figures This feel-good drama about three unsung heroes topped the US box office on inauguration weekend, and has since nabbed Academy Awards nominations for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay. In an era of segregation, African-American women Katherine Johnson (Taraji P Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer – who received the nomination) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe) calculated the mathematical data needed to launch Nasa’s first successful space missions. Directed by Theodore Melfi and based on a true story, the film is an ensemble piece, with a cast including Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst and Mahershala Ali in “a mash-up of the space race and civil rights that serves both well”. Screenwriter Allison Schroeder – who grew up at Cape Canaveral, and whose grandmother was a computer programmer at Nasa – has crafted a film that’s “both a dazzling piece of entertainment and a window into history”, according to Time magazine. Released 2 February in Brazil and Germany and 23 February in Singapore. The Salesman Oscar-winning writer-director Asghar Farhadi (A Separation) returns to Iran with The Salesman, which has picked up a Best Foreign Language Film nomination in this year’s Academy Awards. Shahab Hosseini and Taraneh Alidoosti star as a husband and wife in Tehran navigating marriage problems while performing in a production of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. Forced to leave their apartment, which is in danger of collapsing, they struggle to cope after a mysterious assault. “With every shot, our sympathies flicker and tilt”, says The New Yorker, while The Chicago Reader praises Farhadi for privileging “a woman's viewpoint without either sharing or exploring it”. Released 2 February in the Czech Republic and Germany and 23 February in Argentina. Land of Mine Another Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, this tense Danish drama delivers “a classic wide-screen World War Two epic… with a number of unsettling twists”, according to the LA Times. Writer-director Martin Zandvliet’s third feature tells the story of a group of German POWs forced to remove landmines from a stretch of beach at the war’s end. According to Variety, “Zandvliet’s script and direction avoid milking an innately loaded situation for excess melodrama or pathos, sticking to a discreet economy of approach that accumulates considerable power”. Released 9 February in Greece and 17 February in the US. The Great Wall Critics have been mixed about this Chinese-US blockbuster from acclaimed director Zhang Yimou, with Singapore’s Strait Times calling the epic an “attempt at Hollywood capitalism with Chinese characteristics”. Backed by a Chinese-owned Hollywood studio, The Great Wall is the most expensive film ever made in China, which is expected to become the world’s largest film biggest market by 2019, and there have been doubts over its cultural sensitivity. Yet some reviews have been positive, with The Guardian saying “Simultaneously futuristic and historic, the visual spectacle carries the film… the director’s artistic touch is on display in his long panoramic sweeps and artful use of colour”. Matt Damon stars as an Irish mercenary alongside Andy Lau and Jing Tian in a film that looks at China’s relationship with foreigners – without being too heavy-handed. According to the South China Morning Post, “Zhang appears to remember that he is delivering fantasy entertainment, not a political manifesto”. Released 16 February in Russia and Australia and 17 February in the US. I am not Your Negro Billed as “a journey into black history that connects the past of the Civil Rights movement to the present of #BlackLivesMatter”, this documentary from film-maker Raoul Peck (Sometimes in April) imagines an unfinished book by James Baldwin. At the time of his death in 1987, the writer left 30 pages describing an assignment he turned down in the late ‘70s. They outlined a personal account of the lives and assassinations of three of his close friends, the civil rights leaders Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. Weaving Baldwin’s words (narrated by Samuel L Jackson) with archive footage, Peck “makes a persuasive, intuitive case for Baldwin as a poet and a prophet”. He also makes connections between the past and present, opening with a montage of photos from Ferguson, Missouri and of Tamir Rice and Trayvon Martin. According to The New Yorker, “Peck’s references to current events reveal Baldwin’s view of history and his prophetic visions to be painfully accurate”. Released 3 February in the US, 17 March in Sweden. The Space Between Us Peter Chelsom (Hector and the Search for Happiness) directs an interplanetary adventure tackling a perennial young adult topic with a cosmic spin. The Space Between Us stars Asa Butterfield as a teenage boy who was born on Mars when an astronaut discovered she was pregnant en route to the red planet. After beginning an online friendship with a girl called Tulsa (Britt Robertson), he travels to Earth but discovers his organs can’t survive there. Running out of time, he goes on a road trip with Tulsa in search of his father. In an interview, Butterfield described how the film doesn’t fit one genre: “It’s kind of got a sci-fi element. It’s a road trip. It’s a love story. I think, most of all, it’s a coming-of-age film about this boy learning to be human and finding out where he belongs.” Released 3 February in Canada, 9 February in Germany and 16 February in Hong Kong. The Lego Batman Movie Arrested Development alumni Will Arnett and Michael Cera co-star as Batman and Robin in this spin-off from 2014’s The Lego Movie. Rosario Dawson is Batgirl (who in this role is also Gotham City’s female Police Commissioner), Siri plays the batcave computer and Ralph Fiennes is Alfred Pennyworth in what director Chris McKay has called “a critique of the Batman character”. In a panel discussion, he said “we wanted to take a look at how absurd this guy is… The thing that he does to fix the hole in his heart is to go out and learn karate and dress up like a bat and fight criminals at night.” That said, Arnett’s reprisal of the role looks to be a more sympathetic take than the pompous character in The Lego Movie – in the trailer, he sits by himself in his mansion attempting to synch his gadgets. On general release from 9 February. Kiki An artform made famous in Madonna’s 1990 Vogue music video has seen a revival in recent years, and some of the scene’s key figures appear in a documentary combining personal stories with exuberant dance performances. Jennie Livingston offered an inside look at New York’s ballroom culture in her landmark film Paris is Burning, which won the grand jury prize at Sundance in 1991, and this film from director and co-writer Sara Jordenö and co-writer Twiggy Pucci Garçon shows a new subculture combining art with activism. According to The New York Times, “Kiki fluidly combines interviews with on-the-street and dance-floor scenes to create an exhilarating, multifaceted portrait of ballroom participants, a number of whom are LGBT activists”. Following seven characters from the Kiki community over the course of four years, Swedish film-maker Jordenö looks at the lives of the youth outside the dances to create “a kaleidoscopic and vivid rendering of a world that is larger than life, flamboyant but ultimately fragile”. Released 24 February in the US and online.

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