#hence why i used her instead of her actual actress

[dreamingofspring]

Her giggles come unbidden, brought about by an idle thought and hastened with the fizz of the seltzer in her Singapore Sling. She presses the cards to her face, nearly leaves lipstick stands on her full house before resurfacing. "Sorry, sorry, a funny thought just came to me," she explains through her chuckles. "Before we were going steady, Beej let me guess what his name meant, and the very first name I tried, you'll never guess." She doesn't give them a chance to, giggles increasing as she leans over and squeezes Hawkeye's hand. "Benjamin John! How funny is it that in the end, I got a Benjamin and a John after all, hey?" (X)

happy holidays and happy new year to my best friend, @remyfire!! A small little moodboard for my favorite quad in the world with the silliest name, McPunnihawk. Thank you for letting me play in the Some Things Are Evergreen sandbox with you!

#mine: graphics #mine: edits #some things are evergreen #mcpunnihawk #peg hunnicutt #bj hunnicutt #hawkeye pierce #trapper john mcintyre #for those curious: bailey de young is my personal fan cast for peg from my roleplay days #hence why i used her instead of her actual actress #honestly im so proud of this #they're partially anachronistic and i didn't use like an proper coloring psd #but still it's cute and fun and I like it and I hope you do too rems!!!!

[hamliet]

Oshi no Ko's Angel of Light: Kamiki Hikaru

So, I wrote a review of Oshi no Ko previously, just not on this blog. I talked there about the meaning of Hoshino Ai as a name (it's literally hoshi no eye, Ai spelled in katakana to reinforce that it's a loanword, meaning starry eye, and of course, eye/ai is a homonym for love) and how Oshi no Ko uses wordplay and puns to introduce its themes.

Naturally, I wanted to talk about the other parent, whose name is just as significant.

Kamiki Hikaru is literally "god of light/shining god." Well, okay, sort of. It's technically "kami of light," and kami doesn't translate super well into English. It's often referred to as a god in Shintoism, but it's not quite the western perception of a god. Spirit is another popular translation.

Of course, this references the supernatural themes of the story, as well as Hikaru's role. See, "angel of light" is what the Christian Bible calls Lucifer, the Christian devil. Pretty fitting for Hikaru's role in the story as the main villain.

But wait! There's more! Lucifer itself, as a name, refers to the planet Venus, known as the morning star. Which, of course, is the "star" we see in the story associated with Ai.

(Yes, the story is very much using distinctly Christian allusions alongside Shinto ones.)

Hikaru, like Lucifer, is known to, well, want everything for himself. That doesn't mean he wants all the worship of the world like Lucifer literally did according to mythology. No, instead it's far more insidious but no less disturbing: he sees himself as entitled to dictate how the world runs. He decides whose life is worth living, and makes others pay for mistakes of people they don't even know. He's playing God, in other words--exactly what Lucifer did to fall from heaven in Christian mythology (it's not actually super biblical hence why I'm using "mythology").

Lucifer is also called "Satan" obviously, which literally means "accuser" in Hebrew. That's kind of the perfect summary for what Hikaru sees himself as: he's visiting his hatred of an abuser he has every right to hate on everyone and everything that remotely reminds him of her.

The thing is, as said above, Hikaru does have the right to hate Airi, just like Aqua has the right to hate him. But following the path of revenge is Not The Way.

So, is Hikaru Satan?

No. He's a person.

The Path To Hikaru

Hikaru is not all that different from the other characters we know and love--Ai, Ruby, Kana, Akane, and especially Aqua. Fitting since they're all idols of sorts (yes, Akasaka is constantly using religious references to add social commentary to the idea of an "idol" as a false god/object of worship). They're also all actors.

Hikaru is what Aqua risks becoming. No, seriously. Hikaru was traumatized as a child via rape that led to the creation of a life.

As a result he's pretty anti-life as a whole, and especially anti-woman. He's constantly seeking revenge on women, hence his murder-happy spree. The problem is that he's not seeing these women as individuals: he sees everyone and everything as a representation of Airi, the person who assaulted him.

Also, society as a whole's attitude towards male victims of sexual assault, especially male victims of attractive women, means that Hikaru would not be seen as a victim. One of OnK's major themes is how messed up society is and how it dehumanizes people via fitting them into roles, and this is a perfect example of the harm that can come from it. Hikaru would be seen as a boy, and all boys clearly want sex. A famous actress slept with him? Lucky him! Even though this never came out publicly, Hikaru absolutely knew this was the case and it certainly plays a role in his grudge against the world.

Even though Airi is dead (probably as a result of him provoking her husband by revealing that he wasn't the father), he still isn't satisfied. No, Airi is still everywhere. Killing the perpetrator, making them pay, did not erase his trauma.

If Aqua kills Hikaru, his trauma will likewise not be erased. Not his trauma as Gorou, not his trauma as Aqua. Hikaru's death will fix absolutely nothing in his life besides stopping more murders, but there are ways to do that that, y'know, don't involve killing. If Aqua kills Hikaru, he will lose the best part of Gorou (valuing life) and the best part of Aqua (the future Ai wanted for him, a future with Kana and Ruby).

Aqua, You are Your Father

Aqua, you are your father. It's almost like the entire series has been trying to give you this message and you keep ignoring it. (By the way, because I know I'm going to get asks about this, I am NOT saying Aqua and Hikaru are moral equivalents. Not at all. I'm just saying that Aqua is walking a path that will end with him being just like Hikaru if he doesn't get shoved off said path.)

From being the violent stalker who attacks someone who has never felt loved in his first acting job after Ai's death to scenes like this:

The story is asking Aqua to take a good long look at himself, and he's trying desperately to avoid doing this. Why? Because he's also playing God, same as his father, same as Satan in Christianity. He thinks he is responsible for everything; a natural, childish attitude that people grow out of as they age.

Of course, Aqua is not nearly as toxic in this as Hikaru--he's not attacking innocent people--but the root of this is still a belief that he somehow controls what happens, when he doesn't. He doesn't at all.

Aqua, too, is just a person.

But Aqua struggles to understand what it means to be a person, to be Hoshino Aquamarine.

He struggles to see other people as people, too. This ranges from sabotaging Ruby's auditions to how he treats Akane to his protecting Kana without considering what she wants. It's been brought up multiple times in the story so far:

Aqua also fundamentally does not see Ai as a human being, either. Unlike Ruby, who calls Ai "Mama," Aqua only ever calls her "Ai," her persona. Aqua and Ai are foils to Kana and her own mother, in that Kana's mom lived through Kana only to abandon her, and Aqua is living through his mom... but ignoring what she would actually want.

(Ruby isn't flawless or perfectly healthy, and the story certainly doesn't frame them as good twin bad twin, but Ruby's overall worldview is absolutely more in line with what the story wants to endorse.) That's why we have lines like this, where Ruby reveals that she has a healthier view of their mother than Aqua does. She knows Ai was flawed.

This is extra notable because he has 0 problems calling Hikaru his father. It's almost like Aqua is drowning in self-hatred, in feeling unloved, in the idea that he brings bad luck just by existing.

He'll call out Ruby for her negative traits, but Aqua thinks he deserves them. Aqua dehumanizes himself, the same way he dehumanizes Ai, and he has to see both his mother and himself people before he can step off this path.

Essentially, what he tells Ruby here is exactly what he needs to realize, but he has not done so.

The root of Aqua's God complex is that he cannot move past his trauma. It's actually psychologically realistic that a child who experienced such an event would be stuck in a childish mindset wherein they feel guilt for not being able to save their mother.

But it's not just Ai that Aqua couldn't save. It's Sarina, too. She is the one who introduced him to Ai, after all. He didn't move on from her death in his past life, either, which can probably be traced back to his own tragic birth circumstances--the idea that he only brings death, because his mother died giving birth to him. Gorou even states that he became a doctor to help people like his mother, but the point is also that he wanted to bring life, not death.

Except, he isn't God. Neither Gorou nor Aqua are. He can't save Sarina, and that isn't his fault. But Sarina ends up okay as Ruby, not through his own intervention. Aqua couldn't save Ai, but that's not his fault.

The point I'm making here is that Aqua needs to heal the hurting child within him. The story has also brought up the theme of children suffering at the hands of the entertainment industry numerous times:

His path towards healing would involve taking a long look not just at the hurting child in himself, but the hurting child in Hikaru, too. Which is not the same as excusing. After all, we already saw what happened with Aqua thought his dad was dead: despite the supposed justice and his proclamations about being free, he was still every inch the trapped, terrified, traumatized child afraid to live. Killing Hikaru won't be any different.

Becoming Human

So, is there hope for Aqua?

Yeah. A ton of it.

Despite the tragedy of Ai's story, every other arc has ended optimistically. The story's optimism, also, is fundamentally rooted in humanity. Every character, even the ones who seem like exploitative jerks like the producers who edited Akane to look bad and the self-centered mangakas, end up having their thoughts and motives explored, and we see where they are coming from. Not only that, but they have the best of intentions.

Frankly, this is true to life as well. Precious few people see themselves as the villain. Almost everyone thinks they're doing the right thing. It's very human.

The end of the reality dating show arc is kind of what I expect in the end here. There, all contestants came together and pooled their unique individual talents to exonerate Akane. I would expect Ruby, Miyako, Kana, and Akane (who herself has finally realized that she can step into her own personhood instead of trying to be Ai/whatever Aqua needs and vowed to stop him) to come together to save Aqua from himself.

Aqua is incredibly loved, and he doesn't seem to understand this. Love is what enabled Ai to die smiling. A lack of love, feeling undeserving of love, is what torments Sarina/Ruby, Aqua, Kana, and more. The bastardization of love is what torments Hikaru.

Love allows someone to be themselves, truly, to individuate. This is what Aqua needs to learn:

He also doesn't need to earn the love of those around him, nor the love of Ai. She loved him just because he was her son, and all she wanted was for him to be happy and to live.

Imo, it's pretty unlikely Akasaka plans to end the series with Aqua becoming Hikaru 2.0. My guess is that Hikaru will be stopped because of Aqua, and he'll even likely die, but not at Aqua's hand. I suspect Akane, Ruby, and especially Kana (the one person Aqua has consistently placed above Ai) will help save Aqua from himself.

#oshi no ko #onk #oshi no ko meta #aqua hoshino #ruby hoshino #ai hoshino #hikaru kamiki #kana arima #akane kurokawa #onk theory #onk meta

[theflyindutchwoman]

Lucy calls Tim “babe”, do you think he calls her pet names too and what do you think they are? I see most people go with “baby”, so you think Tim uses that and maybe other?

When did that start do you think? Then calling each other pet names?

I hate that we miss out on seeing when these relationship milestones started. Like how we missed the morning after

Good question… You know, since Tim called her 'Boot' or 'Chen' for years, I could actually see him wanting to stick to 'Lucy' for a while, now that he doesn't need to maintain a wall or worry about how it could look. Just the fact that he can call her by her first name could already be special enough - for now. Whereas Lucy started calling him 'Tim' after only a couple of months of riding with him, so I understand the appeal of using a pet name right away. Or, maybe he does, but in a more intimate setting, hence why we haven't seen it.

If he does use one, 'baby' would also be my guess, since he called Isabel that. I don't remember if he used any for Rachel or Ashley - besides Ash, not sure it really counts though. But 'Luce' could be a possibility as well. I think in general, he would keep it simple… Unless it's to tease her, of course.

Now if I had to guess when they started using pet names, I'd say either in an intimate moment or when the other was hurt (physically or emotionally). Especially Lucy. I can perfectly imagine her calling him 'baby' or 'babe' in a flirtatious manner. Or to comfort him, like she did when he showed her his knife wound. Same with Tim honestly. Like after she wakes up from a nightmare, since we know she has some. Timeline wise - my headcanon is that Lucy called him 'babe' for the first time when they were "celebrating" him for his move to Metro.

But yep, I understand how you feel about missing out on some of their milestones. I also wish we could have seen the morning after (and Tim seeing her tattoo again). I'm still holding out hope that we haven't missed their first 'I love you'. Having said that, I'm still pleasantly surprised that we got to see their first date(s), first kiss and first time. I was kind of expected them to gloss over these moments and have a time jump instead. I don't know if you're familiar with another TV show called Bones? In the span of one (or two episodes), we found out that not only Bones and Booth - the main characters - had started a relationship in-between episodes, they actually were expecting a child. I know it was due to the actress' pregnancy but still… way to skip all the major moments here. Same with another cop show that my husband watches : the main characters realised their feelings for each other and the next episode picked up months later, where it looked like they were living together. So, see, it could be worse haha... But seriously though, I get it. The missing "morning after/DOD tattoo" scene is the one I mourn the most.

#Ask & ye shall receive #The rookie #Chenford #Lucy Chen #Tim Bradford

[omgthatdress]

Would it be alright to ask your sources on the corset mentions of training waists? I was trying to fact check for myself because due diligence, but all I'm finding are a bunch of either unrelated things, very old things (not first source old, i mean like, 80s bad research old) and unrelated SEO spam on costume knock off sites. I tried to look on the normal academic searches I do, and found a lot of articles debunking tight lace and waist training "myths" but non confirming them. I'm not sure if I'm just using the wrong keywords or looking in different areas, so I figured I'd just politely ask instead. I apologize if this is inconvenient, I'll keep looking in the meanwhile. Though I do remember reading recently in a historical recreations book that the reason so many extent garments are so small or thin waisted, is because those were often the gowns/pieces that were put away as a woman aged, or were too small to pass down to be worn and were instead given as family heirlooms, hence why most museums have pieces with so little wear and tear overall, and the ones that were worn often are normally more tattered or fragmented when found. It makes sense to me in that specific example itself, but as with most research into period clothing, finding first hand accounts of the hows and whys as to what was worn and by who or how, is next to impossible. x-x

uuuuuh it mooostly comes from years of looking at extant garments and just knowing shit. idk where I could really give you some primary documents related to it, other than I remember Laura complaining about wearing a tight corset in some of the Little House on the Prairie books.

Corset People are a particular sub-set of the online fashion history scene and they can honestly sometimes be kind of annoying? Like yes it's true that there's a shitload of myths about corsets out there, that modern period costume makers make shitty and inaccurate uncomfortable corsets that torture the actresses who wear them, and that for the most part, a well-fitted and decently-made corset will actually not only be very comfortable but actually help people with chronic pain, but to insist that no woman ever complained about her corset is equally inaccurate.

They weren't universally comfortable. In the period when tight-lacing was popular (1850-1914), the purpose of tight-lacing absolutely WAS about creating a desired body shape and it's kind of ridiculous to insist that thinness and achieving a tiny waist wasn't a part of it. They might not have been restricting your breathing and cutting your liver in two, but a tight-lace corset would have restricted your movement.

Again, it's only a small subset of women who wore tight-lace corsets, and only during a certain period in corset history, and it was very much related to her class and how much she was willing to suffer for beauty. Corsets are complicated and understanding them and their history requires a lot of nuance that some people just don't have.

[eleni-cherie]

among thieves ✨ || bts • pjm

- chapter 0.6

"what even am I to you? your rival, your lover, an obstacle or am I supposed to be your coffin?"

about two thieves who can't live with nor without each other. and a joint past that comes back to threaten them.

© 2023 | eleni_cherie

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masterlist: here

— genre: thief au, gangster comedy, adventure, romcom, humour, angst, fluff, very flirty jimin, friends/rivals/exes to lovers (it's complicated, ok?!) f2l e2l ex2l all members play a role in this story!

ALTERNATIVE UNIVERSE. CHARACTERS NOT NECESSARILY LIKE THE REAL PERSONS. ALSO VERY UNREALISTIC PLOT LOL - JUST PRETEND READING A MANGA/COMIC OR WATCHING A FILM, REALLY.

SUGGESTIVE THEMES. MENTIONS OF VIOLENCE & BLOOD (BUT NOTHING TOO GRAPHIC, IT'S STILL A COMEDY!)

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west of Havana, Cuba.

The hidden coordinates on the old document led them to a town near the capital of Cuba. Giving them a good view of the mountain the coordinates were actually located at.

The atmosphere was hot and loud, the air stuffy as they strolled through the markets, mingling with locals.

"Oh, hey cutie." Arabella turned around when hearing Jimin's flirty voice. Seeing him ogling at a local behind a stall. The young woman giggled and offered him to try one of her plums, which he gladly accepted with a charming smile and a wink. Causing Arabella to roll her eyes behind her sunglasses, turning away. Of course he couldn't keep himself in bay.

She sighed, walking towards a stall that was selling sunhats. Pushing her sunglasses up her head, she took a better look on them. Her eyes landing on a big straw hat. It reminded her if those which famous actresses used to wear at the pool, back then like seventy years ago. She liked the touch of old hollywood feel to it and decided to try it on. Smiling at herself in the mirror.

"Suits you, love." Her smile dropped. A frown instead setting on her features as she placed it back.

"Oh, you done flirting around with strangers?" she asked unimpressed as she brushed past him. Continuing strolling through the market. Her eyes catching Taehyung and Yoongi standing a bit further away. Taehyung had seemed quite uneasy ever since they had come there. She wondered if he simply didn't like the warmth or if there was more to it. Obviously she wouldn't directly ask him though. They surely weren't close enough for her to ask such personal questions. They didn't even particularly liked each other. They just endured each other for the sake of it. Hence why she also wasn't keen in finding out. He wouldn't tell her anyway.

"Aw, Bella-baby, don't tell me you're jealous?" she heard Jimin snicker behind her while following her through the mass of people. Wiggling his brows at her when she came to an halt to let an old lady with her groceries pass.

"Don't be ridiculous. Why would I?" she huffed.

"You know it's just for fun," he smiled then and lightly grabbed her chin between his fingers. Forcing her to look at him. "No one compares to you after all."

Arabella bit the inside of her lip, preventing that smile she felt creeping up on her lips from showing. "Whatever," she mumbled and shoved his hand away. Ignoring his laugh as she walked up to the other two guys.

He knew exactly he had an effect on her as well, just as much as she had on him. That was why he didn't mind her using her tricks on him. He willingly let her do so after all.

"What are you guys looking at?" she curiously asked when standing next to Yoongi. Cocking her head at the objects in front of them.

"This old gold bracelet," Yoongi said then, holding it up, "Looks pretty cool. I'd say 12th century."

Arabella hummed. She had forgotten this guy was a bit of a nerd when it came to history. She took a look at what Taehyung was holding in his hands then. An old pocketwatch.

"Wouldn't that look cool on me?" he grinned then, showing Jimin the watch. They could steal the most expensive jewelry if they wanted to, but here he was wantinh an old pocketwatch from the late 19th century. "Sure, get it." Jimin smiled at him and patted his shoulder. His eyes then landing on something else on the table. A dagger with a sigil, quite similar to the one on the document.

"Where did you find this?" he casually asked the vendor, who said his grandfather had found it years ago somewhere in the mountains. That only ensuring him they were on the right track. After contemplating for a little he bargained with the local. Eventually buying the dagger much cheaper than its actual worth. Contently patting it when sliding it in the inside pocket of his blazer. Taehyung also getting his pocketwatch.

As they left the stall and made their way downtown, Jimin's eyes wandered to the said mountain in the distance.

"Guys, I think it's time we head to our actual destination."

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"John Rackham, known as Calico Jack, was an English captain operating in this area during the early 18th century," Yoongi explained as Jimin drove offroad through the jungle. The rocky underground making their jeep rock up and down. "He is most remembered for having two female crew members: his lover Anne Bonny and Mary Read."

Arabella nodded, understanding as they explained to her the whole backstory of what treasure they were even after. Gripping tightly on the handle above her. 

"Rackham and his crew were brought to Jamaica in November 1720, where they were tried and convicted of piracy and sentenced to be hanged," Taehyung continued, seemingly not minding all the bucking as he was sitting straight. "And eventually he was executed on 18th November."

"But there's this rumour," Jimin said then, slowing down as they drove above a pretty old looking stone bridge. "That after reading the governor's proclamation, declaring him a pirate, and before the pirate hunter got on his tracks, he had hidden all the treasures he was carrying somewhere on a caribbean island."

"You guys surely did your research," she laughed under her breath, "And you think it's here?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. It might, but I don't really think it is to be honest. Think about it. Wouldn't you rather hide a treasure on an uninhabited place?"

"So what are we doing here?"

"The coordinates on the document led us here," Taehyung said, "Maybe there're some hints here to where he hid it."

After half an hour up the mountain, they stopped in front of something that looked like the remains of a stone wall. Jimin took a look through the binoculars, spotting a construction further away in the jungle, hidden under plants. However, there was also another one on the opposite side.

"So which tower is the right one?" Taehyung wondered out loud as they stamped through high grass. Yoongi cutting some of the big leaves and low hanging branches with his sword to make a path for them.

"Not sure. I think we should just split, two take a look on the right tower, the other two on the left one," Jimin suggest before facing Arabella with a sly smirk, "What do you think? You wanna be the Anne Bonny to my Calico Jack?"

She grimaced, scrunching her nose. "Ugh, no thanks."

"You just wanna split to be alone with her," Yoongi pointed out the obvious.

Jimin raised a brow, playfully scoffing. "Alright then, does anyone of you want to go with her?"

Both, Taehyung and Yoongi exchanged a quick look before shaking their heads.

"That kinda hurts my feelings," Arabella pouted, "I'm a very nice person!"

"Only if there's something to gain from it," Taehyung mumbled, making Yoongi stifle a laugh.

"Seriously, Taehyung, screw you!" Sure, he might partially be right, however, she was really trying there to keep things polite between them. Opposite to him who seemed to purposely provoke her at any given chance.

She grabbed Jimin's arm then, linking her own around it. "Let's go!" And with that she started angrily dragging him towards the left tower. Causing him to almost trip over his own feet. 

"Bella-baby, ignore him," he said with a soft smile when they reached the front gate of the tower and she let go of him. "You know he got trust issues with you."

She heaved a sigh, looking down. "I know, alright. And I don't blame him. But right now I'm not here for any treasure. I'm here because there might or might not be my past catching up with me. And you. So we should at least try getting along together." She glanced up at him and he could see the glimpse of anxiety in her eyes before she blinked it away. "Or not?"

He nodded, sighing. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he gave them a squeaze. "You're right. Just give him some time, okay? As long as you don't pull something on us-" He nodged her side at this , chuckling, "He'll get over it."

She pursed her lips and nodded. Hoping he was right. She didn't expect her and his friends to become friends as well. That was nearly impossible. But she hoped they could go at least a day without bickering. "Okay."

He let go off her again and took a step forward. The gate's wood looked brittle, the iron rusty, probably from the centuries and humidity there. He put his hands flat on it, starting pushing it. It squeaked, not having been opened in quite some time but eventually indulged. Arabella coming beside him, pushing as well.

Dust got stired up and they coughed, entering the dim-lit space. A few streaks of sunlight coming through cracks between the stony bricks. "There, look," she said then and squatted down, brushing some dirt away from a spot on the wall. Again, the sigil of Calico Jack. They must be right then. Underneath it, however, there were some more carvings on the stone plates. More symbols. "Looks like.."

"Like astronomical symbols?"

He came closer as well, narrowing his eyes on them.

"The planets, from mercury to saturn, but they aren't in the right order." It made sense the outer planets were missing. Those had been discovered centuries after Calicon Jack had roamed the seas. Still, why were they in a wrong order?

His fingers pressed down on the brick with the mercury symbol. It sinking into the wall, a click being heard. They exchanged a surprised glance, Arabella then pressing down the one with the venus symbol, the next planet in order. And it also sank in, clicking.

Earth, mars and jupiter following.

As Jimin pressed the last one, saturn, a mechanism seemed to have been triggered behind the wall and suddenly the wall backed away. Revealing a hidden backdoor. They opened it more, a staircase leading up behind it. 

The place was apparently much bigger than it appeared from the plant-covered outside. With their phone flashlights they lit up the dark stairs, until reaching the top. The room there being bright by the sunlight reaking through the open windows at the very top of the small dome.

There were even some paintings on the walls. The colours faiding from most of them but they could still recognise some figures on them. The plaques underneath them reading "Rackham" and "Bonny".

"That's cute," Arabella mumbled to herself before joining him at the big round object placed in the middle. It shimmered golden and its flat surface had carvings that made it look like a big compass. But there weren't any cardinal points on it. Instead three circles that looked like a map of small islands.

Both looked at them intently, trying making sense of them or recognise something. One had horizontal lines and the outlines of a big island. The second one had vertical lines and the outlines of smaller islands. And the third one had the sigil and numbers.

Jimin was ruffling his hair, trying to make any sense of it. He became frustrated.

"Maybe I should call the guys, tell them we're at the right one."

"Are we though?"

"I guess so.. we just have to figure this one out."

He quickly texted Taehyung, letting them know to meet them there. Focusing back on the puzzle in front of him.

Arabella hummed then, an idea popping up in her mind. "Do you have a pencil and piece of paper with you?" she asked, making him perk up.

"Yeah sure, always carry them in my school bag," he snorted sacrastically, making her roll her eyes.

"Idiot, I'm serious. I think all three are part of one map. We have to overlay them somehow," she explained and looked around. Spotting an old torn up book in a corner. Most of the ink having vanished, being unreadable.

With raised brows, he watched her tore off some pages and passing them to him before collecting some dirt with her hands. She put a notepad page on each circle and rubbed dirt on it as a substitute for the pencil. Getting the carved outlines onto the paper.

"You're even hotter when your smart side comes through," he smirked and picked up the pages. Laying them over each other while holding them against the light. And indeed, they shaped a map. Giving them the next clue and potentially the hiding place.

She folded her arms in front of her. Intentionally lifting her chest from underneath the top she was wearing. "Am I not always hot?" she said in a playfully sulky voice. A laugh escaping his lips. "Of course you are. My hot, smart girl." And this time she didn't push him away when he planted a peck on her forehead. Making her blush.

"Jimin? Arabella?"

They heard Yoongi calling out for them. Soon his and Taehyung's heads appearing on the stairs. "You two got something?"

Jimin nodded proudly. Waving with the papers in his hand. "A map. You?"

"This here." Yoongi held out a dagger similar to the one Jimin had bought from the market earlier. "It was in a box locked with some kind of old mechanism. Might be useful along with the other one."

"Oh, so you had to solve a puzzle as well?" Arabella said with widened eyes to which Taehyung shook his head, pointing to Yoongi. "No need. Our swordmaster here just cut it open."

Right, she should've guessed it. The perks of having a sword that cuts nearly everything.

Content with their findings, they left the old construction. Making their way through the dense forest back to the car, when Yoongi suddenly stopped in tracks. Eyes narrowed as he tried listening carefully. There was something, a faint noise.

"Wh-"

He hushed Taehyung and held his hand up. All of them staying still, watching him listening intensely. There it was again. His eyes abruptly widened then. "Take cover!" he said and just in that moment they heard a shot piercing through a leaf and hitting a tree brance next to them. "Sht." They instantly ran behind some trees and bushes and grabbed out their weapons. Aiming at anything that moved.

The sound of bullets flying back and forth through the air being quite deafening.

"Guess we know for sure now these guys are after us," Jimin joked, shooting one down that had peeked behind a bush. One of the men yelled to another about where the four were hiding, the rustling of plants following shortly after.

"This one's mine," Yoongi whispered to them, holding his sword low as he crouched away. He most likely crept onto this guy, Arabella assumed as they soon heard an outcry coming from behind some plants. Yoongi appearing again seconds later. She shuddered. This guy was quiet and quick like a ninja.

"I recognize one of them," Jimin said then, pointing at a woman who was shooting out of her hideout, "She was at the market. She must have followed us."

"Explains how they fcking found us in the middle of the jungle," Taehyung huffed, hitting another one right on the forehead. Arabella followed their eyes. Seeing the woman Jimin had recognised. Her brows raising.

"I think I know her," she said then.

"What?"

"I think I've seen her before. Probably ages ago when I was younger, around the headquaters."

"What a crappy reunion then," Taehyung mumbled, perfectly aiming at yet another one.

"The car is only twenty meters down there," Arabella said then between of shooting. Pressing herself against the tree's truck again. "You think we can make it?"

"We gotta try."

At this moment, something landed next to them. Smoke infiltrating their visions seconds later. A smoke bomb. Not necessarily a bad thing as it also gave them the perfect opportunity to run to the car without getting noticed.

Arabella shortly lost sight of the others, trying her best not to bump into any trees, barely making out anything in the smoke. Suddenly the feeling of an arm wrapping around her neck making her tense up. Someone was attempting to choke her. Her berretta fell on the ground as she struggled freeing herself from the firm grip. She took a deep breath then and with all her might, elbowed the man in the guts, serving him another kick with her knee between his legs and finishing him off with her elbow on the back of his neck when he was kneeling in pain. Sinking onto the ground.

She huffed and picked up her gun. "I don't even recognise your ugly face," she mumbled to herself before continuing making her way through the white wall. The smoke starting clearing off.

As she made her way down the hill, she spotted Jimin a few meters away. She smiled, about to run up to him when two shots echoed through the mist. Next thing she saw was him falling to the ground. Her eyes grew wide and she looked around. Catching another man in black coming out of the smoke. Sure they had taken down most of them, but there were still some left. And one of them was nearing Jimin now. Probably to ensure he had hit him. 

Her jaw clenched as she unlocked her beretta. Not on my damn watch, she thought as she soundlessly snuck on the man from the side. And with one straight shot, hit him on the neck. The man sank into the ground and without wasting a second she immediately ran to Jimin. Finding him wincing in pain, his hands pressing down on his side and shoulder. Blood flowing down between his fingers.

"Sht," Arabella cursed and wrapped an arm around his back, helping him stand up. He winced again. "Bella.."

"Don't-" she whispered in a warning tone and put his arm around her own shoulder. "Don't you dare do something stupid, ok? The car's right there."

He managed to smile for a moment before hunching again. Screwing his eyes shut. 

They somehow got to the car shortly after. It had only been a few meters after all.

Arabella didn't know where that strength had come from because although she had been fit for her job, she never considered herself overly strong, physically. And yet, she somehow managed supporting almost all his weight as he was on the verge of losing his consciousness. "I said don't you dare," she said through gritted teeth, "Stay awake!"

Yoongi came out of the woods in that moment as well. His eyes widening when seeing the two. He instantly rushed to them then, helping her slide Jimin inside the backsteat. She took off her top then and tore it apart, wrapping the cloth as tightly as possible around his gunshot wounds.

A few seconds later Taehyung appeared as well, shooting behind him while running, obviously still striking anyone down.

"What happened?" he asked when seeing the blood and Jimin curled up in Arabella's embrace in the backseat. He slid into the driver's seat and started the engine, flooring the pattel.

"One of them got him," Yoongi explained as he looked over his shoulder. Concern washing over his features as he saw his friend in that miserable condition.

The car rumbled again on the uneven ground and the high velocity with which Taehyung raced down the mountain path.

Arabella's grip around Jimin tightened, pressing him more again her chest. She didn't care if her clothes got stained with his blood. All she cared about was to keep pressure on the wounds to prevent him from bleeding out.

She glanced down on him, biting down her lips when seeing the pain in his usually cheerful face. She noticed his expression softening suddenly, relaxing more and more. Her brows raising in panic. He almost looked.. liveless.

"Don't close your eyes!" she pleaded and slapped his cheek. "Jimin, open your damn eyes!"

His lips formed a weak grin then. "Can't a guy catch some rest?"

She gasped, being relieved for a moment before realising he had been messing with her once again. Shooting him an angry glare. "You insensitive jerk, you scared me!" 

"Well, him joking around is definitely a good sign," Yoongi chuckled from the passenger seat. Hiding his actual worry. He was just relieved Jimin seemed well enough to still tease her.

Jimin laughed faintly, enjoying himself as much as he could with the numbing pain that shot through his body. It could be worse, he thought, at least he was pressed against her chest. Everything seemed a little bit better with her holding him tight like this.

And he smiled to himself. Not only because of his cheek being pressed right against her bra, a feeling he enjoyed way too much given the situation, but also because of her caring side always coming through when he needed her the most.

His eyes blinked open for a moment, closing again. "Bella-baby, don't cry."

"What?" Her brows furrowed as her free hand travelled to her cheek. She hadn't noticed the single tear rolling down her cheeks out of frustration. And she quickly wiped it away.

That idiot didn't deserve thinking she'd be crying over his sorry ass. Not after making her believe he'd have lost consciousness.

"Hold on, man, we're almost back in town," Taehyung said then. Driving back on asphalt.

"What should we do, though?" the older guy beside him asked worried, "We obviously can't bring him to a hospital or doctor's office. They'd find us."

Taehyung pursed his lips as he took a sharp turn, bewaring of the traffic. He contemplated for a moment. "The savest would be not to go back then and  instead go right to the city. It's bigger and it'd make it harder for them to find us there."

"Agreed, but what are we gonna do about him?"

"I know a place," Taehyung sighed then. A hint of sorrow brushing over his face. "And I know someone who can help." 

Yoongi frowned at his words. Remembering something in the back of his mind. "Wait.. doesn't -"

He nodded. "Yeah, she does."

»»»

next chapter: 0.7 here

#park jimin #bts jimin #jimin #jimin au #jimin fanfic #thief au #gangster au #enemies to lovers #friends to lovers #exes to lovers #ex2l #e2l #f2l #bts #bts au #bts fic #jimin angst #jimin fluff #bts fanfic #bts x oc #bts series #kat mcnamara #katherine mcnamara #taehyung #yoongi #seokjin #jungkook #namjoon #hoseok #jimin mafia

[studentlulu]

In my previous post, I shared my designs for the live-action little mermaid movie that I drew before the actual posters came out. I'll go over each character design in detail. Let's start with Ariel:

I decided to keep Ariel's red hair and the original color scheme of her outfit in my version. After reading a Tumblr post suggesting that she'd wear trinkets and gadgets in her hair, i decided to go with that and drew shells, rocks, coral, and other pieces in her hair like charms.

Next is Alana:

I decided to keep Alana's purple color scheme. I wasn't sure which actress would play Alana, but I decided to use Simone Ashley for this one since they both had dark hair. Alana is covered in fish scales, almost like an actual fish. She wears fins in her hair like a crown. It's meant to be like the original crown/hairpiece design she wears in the cartoon. If you look closely, you'll see designs on her arms. They're actually henna designs of the ocean/underwater life. Since Simone Ashley is Indian, I wanted to incorporate that into her character design somehow.

Next is Andrina:

I honestly had no idea who most of the actors in the original released photos were, tbh. Since this actor had a deep blonde hair color, which looked most like Andrina's, i decided to base my Andrina character design off her. Andrina wears fins on her body, different from the Ariel and Alana designs i did. I wanted each sister to have different underwater or deep sea elements represented.

Next is Attina:

I decided to keep Attina's coral spikes and orange color scheme for my design. Since her hair has coral spikes, I decided to use coral for her top. Yep, that's coral, not shells she's wearing ppl.

Next is Adella:

I know Adella has two different colors from her shells and tail, but I decided to stick with the green color for my design. Since algae or seaweed is also green, I decided to use algae for Adella's design. I wrapped algae around her upper torso and I even incorporated it into her hair in her braids! (Look closely, you'll see green interwoven into her hair)

Next is aquata:

(Personally, Aquata's design was my favorite) i decided to keep her blue color scheme. Since she wears pearls in her hair, I decided to incorporate pearls into her character design since pearls come from the ocean. I also decided to keep the pearls blue. You'll notice that I not only included pearls in her design in place of shells, but that i also included them as hair accessories and jewels. This means that her design is also the only one wearing jewelry.

Then we have Arista:

Since this actor appeared to be the most pale blonde from the photos and Arista has white hair, I decided to base my character design off of her features and mussel shells. I kept the red color of Arista's outfit. However, instead of scallop shells, she has mussel shells as a top. I wanted to represent a different aspect of the ocean for each mermaid, hence why I used different pieces or aspects for them.

As a bonus, here's king triton:

I wanted to keep his long hair and beard from the original cartoon for my design, but I also wanted to incorporate some of the actor's features, such as his chiseled jawline. For king Triton's outfit, I used turtles and algae as inspiration. The plates on his body armor are turtle shell and the wrap around his torso is algae.

Let me know what you think and which one is your favorite. 😊👍🏼🧜🏻‍♀️🧜🏻‍♂️

#the little mermaid #live action #disney princess #disney #ariel #Alana #andrina #Adella #aquata #arista #attina #king triton #mermaid #merman #mermay

[hoghtastic]

Hi,

When I saw interviews of Alex in the past when he would mention his family or future work he would say things like his Mum wanted him back in Denmark and to work on projects at home, etc. I can't remember the interviews or when as it was years back but I remember hearing that a few times and thinking yeah it must be hard to have your child working in another country miles away but surely if their dream was to act you would be supportive and understand them being away a lot and for long periods? If he put himself out there a bit more he could have went to Hollyweird and got some more big offers or some mid offers that were still bigger than anything back home. Yes it would mean being away from home more but usually actors/actresses/singers etc can fly back and forth often and actually see friends and family more often than those of us in regular jobs. It just makes me wonder if his Mum was a but pushy and controlling or has a big personality and influence over him and hence why he went back home and took more Danish offers and hasn't had anything big or had any offers of a big production? Also, given the COVID pandemic and lockdowns and travel restrictions he has kind of lost some momentum and now interest in him isn't as big as it was when Vikings was on so he will now struggle to stand out esp now he is hitting the 30s soon, it limits his roles a bit more also, esp in Hollyweird when there are a pool of young up and coming talent plus nepotism and those who are actively out there pushing themselves to be noticed, unlike Alex.

Another point from above I have thought is, if his mum is a bit domineering and over-involved in his decision making etc then I can see why he has ended up with someone like Johanne as she seems bossy, domineering and pushy. It also ties in with him making a life in Denmark instead of going abroad to spread his wings and get more jobs. While I don't agree with personal attacks on her looks, the things I have seen of her she comes across way too over-confident and cocky. I am more of an introvert-extrovert in the right company personality and have come across many like her and her friend group and they just take over and dominate social situations. They usually are seen as the confident ones, life and souls of the party but I always found those types sucked the life out of everyone else around them who was not loud enough to stand out from them. They can be charming though and maybe thats what he likes about her, her over the top confidence. Those types always seem to get what they want so its no surprise she is getting lots of work now. I agree that her being on every song on her podcast is just cringey and is a way to give her fame and attention and is not to promote and enhance the actual guest on the podcast.

Regarding Marco, the same interviews i mention above i read some from Marco too and in them his plan always seemed to be to move back home and do smaller independent projects, and pick productions on the quality and story rather than take everything he is offered. I remember him saying he didn't like the idea of Hollywood and all that comes with it so he had no intention of going out there or being a major actor over there. Its the same for many other shows - GoT, Cobra Kai, Stranger Things, etc its like a couple from this shows become super famous, the rest are never really seen in anything big ever again, just small parts here and there. So maybe he and many others in the Vikings cast will struggle to ever be a part of another production like Vikings. I find it strange, considering their friendship throughout the years filming vikings that many of the younger cast dont seem to interact with each other at all or hang out, even once a year or something, esp Marco and Alex living in the same country. I loved Vikings but many plots/subplots got beyond annoying by the final seasons which I think hindered the likes of Alex, Marco etc so I don't feel its entirely their fault the show wasnt as good as it was, they done the best with what they were given, same with all the extras and behind the scenes crew. It was the director who ruined their seasons in my eyes with his incessant use of pushing his daughter Torvis character into every big storyline and putting her with 1 of the main male characters each time a husband died or left her. The not aging the female characters. The falling in love with a female slave plot trope being overused and the Ivar thinking he is a God and pitting the brothers against each other killing off Sigurd, then Bjorn, not to mention the civil war and Lagertha suddenly killing Aslaug to usurp and become Queen were all hated by many loyal fans and turned them off the show. The real stories of Ragnar's sons were so much different and they all conquered so much, that could have been explored and maybe the show would have had a few more seasons in it?

sorry this is so long, i didn't mean it to be.

Thanks X

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and considerations, anon. 😊 (And don't worry about writing long texts, I'm also guilty of that sometimes. 😉)

#anon asks

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here bestie with congratulations for managing to get through that pile of bullshit known as 4x03 last night!! So since we're feeling salty about the M*ria crap from last night I'm going to dump a bunch of incoherent thoughts on your inbox about why this keeps happening, which basically comes down to the writers putting themselves in a corner. So we're all exhausted by the constant praising/propping up of her character, it's actually ridiculous, so why does it exist? We all know it's

because there's no actual evidence of it (maybe there was in S1 but all her actions in S2 pretty much negated it). Like we don't have to be constantly told Kyle is compassionate or Liz is super smart, we're shown it all the time. But M*ria is never shown being this person, so we only get to hear about it, but they need it to be true since her character was part of the S2 dumpster fire. So why don't they show it now (meaning starting with S3)? The problem is that selfless,  caring person is utterly incompatible with her S2 personality transplant, meaning the selfish, narcissistic girlboss. So we end up with these weird narratives for her that are supposed to make her look unselfish and concerned, but because the girlboss is still in place make it worse. 

She's risking her life to get visions to save someone (but only because she'd feel guilty, ignore the fact she's risking others)!! She just wants to be part of the pod squad family (but has only ever been aggressive and rude to Isobel)!! She's taking a risk to get visions to help with the new aliens (but is actually risking Kyle and only does it so she won't feel irrelevant)!! She can't make Liz feel bad she lost her powers (but refused to use the bracelet that would make the situation less urgent)!! The person they want to exists is completely different from the one they've created, and instead of propping up her friends needs to constantly be propped up instead hence we can only ever hear about it. 

So why not revert her to S1 Maria who people liked? Well then the writers would actually have to make her face the music because empathetic Maria would never have taken the actions she did (ever notice how the psychic, empathy thing got dropped after S1?). And we can't have that happen and force the RNM writers admit that they made a huge, narrative mistake that wasted an entire season. Sorry for the long salty rant, hope it was a bit fun!

Hiiii bestie! Your rants are always fun and I am always here for the salt, especially after a pointlessly m*ria heavy episode. Sidenote, I find it odd that Mimi was such a fixture in season 1 but now everything is about Patricia. Like, I get the actress may not always be alliable, but this was the first time Mimi has been mentioned in ages. (and it’s because she’s missing again. of course) But like, why is she not getting the same treatment m*ria got? That whole plot and trying to work out how to make m*ria relevant to the plot has been so badly handled and has just created more questions than answers and resulted in SO much wastes screentime. *cough cough* vision plot *cough*

ANYWAY, as always you are completely right that by not addressing her behavior in season 2, the show cannot allow her to grow and progress in a believable way! It’s part of the reason Malex getting back together like they did with no discussion of the issues from season 2 made their reunion fall a little flat despite Vlamburn being magical and working their asses off to sell it. That whole thing is just a giant elephant in the room that the writers are not just asking us to ignore, but are actively parading in front of us and telling us it’s a cute little mouse.

I thought season 3 and m*ria being bitter and snippy to Michael about Alex like THEY wronged HER, and making snide comments to Michael about when they were getting married when she knew full well Alex was dating Forrest was bad enough. But having someone directly ask her what bad things she’s done, in an episode where she stole medical supplies from a working doctor’s go-bag and lied to him and Liz about the side effects of her treatment, and not having her able to come up with a single thing? Saying she puts others first when we have seen that be blatantly untrue? Calling her a SAINT when she was happy to sacrifice Max to try and assuage her own personal guilt? That kinda takes the cake.

#my sweet nonnie friends #sleeping at last anon #roswell nm #roswell spoilers #anti maria deluca #*she's the wooooooorst.gif*

[wizkiddx]

unusable faces

i have exams hence why i needed to write something exceptionally cringe :)

PSA: this is completely inspired from one of my fave writers own blurb @blissfulparker​ --> completely recommend u go read hers its much better than anything i could ever write!!!! (and just her whole account) = link

Summary: pure exhaustion and mutual pining, Tom Holland x actress!reader

^(just thought this was cute, doesn't really fit aha but full credit to op!!)

A scheduling nightmare would be putting it lightly. Perhaps almost unavoidable but that didn’t make it any less of a hellish form a torture. Harry had very helpfully said it actually was a form of torture, that is sleep deprivation. Y/n loved her job - it was all she’d ever really wanted - yet that thought was quickly becoming not enough to get her through the day. Not when it felt like an interrogation tactic used by the CIA. 

To give a quick timeline of the past few days may give a little context:

Thursday - filming the fight scene all day plus an evening-turned-half-the-night-shoot due to some technically difficulties delaying the process.

Friday - flying to New York while doing read throughs of scenes for the next few days; followed immediately by getting glammed and filming the tonight show with Fallon; then a dash across town to the late late show with James Corden; then straight back on a flight to Atlanta that landed at stupid o’clock in the morning

Saturday - a full day of shooting in a mock grand central station set

The press trip to NY had been unplanned… to say the least. But the star of their studios other new release had taken ill - meaning they had slots booked on some of the biggest talk shows in America that would just be abandoned (angering the shows bookers too). It was a waste of perfectly good promo time and since the studio had their two other stars together doing a block of reshoots - it wasn’t a conversation. Much more a call demanding the two of them to be on the plane.

Normally this wouldn’t be such an unmanageable ask either, except the reshoot block was really rather time pressured. You see, the promo tour wasn’t far from beginning meaning they really needed the final film in the can. So really it was a bit of a mess. Just to free up that single day the two were in New York the whole schedule had had to be rejigged - in doing so they’d lost a rare day off too. It was just typical.  

The joys of success hey?

Well, that’s at least what Y/n was making herself think whilst her incredibly talented SFX artist was in the process of crafting a deep wound onto her upper arm. The reason why she would be ‘dripping with blood’ whilst at a train station was beyond Y/n to be honest - she hadn’t been allowed to read a lot of the script so even now as filming was drawing to a close, the story arc of the movie she was headlining was still a little ‘fuzzy’.

“So I watched your ‘spill your guts’ thing on YouTube” Ellie giggled whilst reaching over for more prosthetic putty- a technical term apparently

“I’m glad one of us enjoyed the experience” Y/n replied with a sigh, rolling her eyes at the mischievous smirk on her face - no doubt Ellie took great joy out of seeing her suffer through eating a thousand year old egg. Which Y/n swore the taste of was still in her mouth… and it seemed as though it’d never leave. 

“Oh don’t worry darling I did too” Nelli called over from the next chair along, where she was doing Tom’s makeup for the day of shoots. “Between that and the animals on Fallon, you made a hell of a lot of people laugh last night” Tom’s artist was referencing the fact one of Jimmys other guests was a zookeeper, so at the end of the interview he had you and Tom join in trying not to scream at the snakes and spiders.

“You mean laugh at us?” 

“Well of course darling!” Nelli exclaimed back in an overdramatic bronx accent making all three of the women burst out laughing, Ellie’s unceremonious snorts echoing through the trailer only egged them all on more.

Tom in response, who had otherwise been absent from conversation for the majority of the morning, exclaimed a curse and jumped up in his chair. While you and Ellie collected yourself, Nelli apologised to him.

“Oh sorry love, I’m interrupting your snooze with my uncontrollable comedic gift” She spoke sweetly, even if still taking the moment to flaunt to the other women, as she squeezed his shoulder compassionately.

“No no” Tom waved off her apology, attempting to rub his eye before Nelli swatted his arm away - a stern look for the risk of ruining all her hard work she’d put into making his face look half presentable. 

“I’m impressed you can sleep while they poke you with all these er instruments” Y/n added in, having only just realised Tom had been in a light sleep for god knows how long they’d been in that chair. It did seem a bit unlikely, being able to fall asleep as you were dabbed, prodded and brushed. 

“Maybe you should try though Y/n… your purple eye bags are proving a struggle even for me” Ellie quipped back, now it was Y/n’s turn to give the stern look. Tom took the explain though, shutting her off from whatever kindly meant insult she was about to throw back at her friend. 

“No normally never, I just….” He was cut off by an ear splitting yawn, appearing almost powerful enough to crack his jaw - which would be a disaster, for no one should ruin such a beautiful and sharp jaw line. “…uh-sorry. I just think I ended up taking my NyQuil and DayQuil the wrong way round in the madness of yesterday.” Only Tom, the poor kid often seemed to lacking in any form of common sense - even if those closest to him knew just how intellectual and passionate he could be about the right topic. Affectionately, Nelli scalded his idiocy by jokingly swatting his head with a little tut.

“I can’t believe your still standing then! I’m barely alive and I don’t have any sedatives in my system.” It was true, Y/n was at that stage where every part of her body felt ridiculously heavy… eyes included … eyes especially. 

“But I did sleep on the jet back while your stupid self was studying the script!” Tom replied with a pretty inarguable point - at the time he knew her actions were stupid;  when their flight took off at 11 PM he was certain that the most valuable asset to his ability to act in the reshoots today would be sleep - rather than character development. And he’d tried to convince Y/n that briefly, but gave up. She was bloody stubborn when she wanted to be. 

“Stop competing about who has it worse cos I think it’s me and Nell”Ellie announced - making Nelli agree empathically with her coworker, nodding her head as she looked first to Y/n in her chair then back at Tom.

“Yeh because we have to deal with your unusable faces!!”

After much sarcasm thrown back and fourth, the trailer slowly ebbed it’s way back into serenity and peace as both artists focused on their work. Once Nelli was done she excused herself, Tom staying in the chair in favour of studying (more like staring blankly) at the dialogue for this mornings scenes. His pretence didn’t last long though and while Ellie was busy adding the final touches of fake blood to the now almost completely believable gash that she’d crafted on Y/n’s arm - Y/n had her attention focused the opposite way.

At poor little Tom. He looked so childlike, his slightly puffy eyes looked as if they had weights tied to them - they way he was having fight against gravity to flutter his eyes open, before loosing the next second only for the process to repeat as they dragged downwards. The broad muscles of his neck occasionally seemed to occasionally let up a little, letting his head tilt slowly at first until it gathered enough momentum to throw him off balance. The then sudden movement of his head unconsciously pulling itself back in line caused his eyes to bolt open prior to the whole cycle repeating again. All Y/n wanted to do was let him lay down someone, her heart feeling a tug in her chest just seeing him like that. 

Ellie proclaimed her completion of the wound, leaning back to admire her work before looking to get an affirming nod from Y/n. Yet instead, she was too preoccupied gazing at the boy slouched across from them. “Someone seems a little distracted.” Ellie smirked, finally garnering Y/n’s attention, only feeling more and more smug watching a light tint appear on the actors cheeks. 

“I-well-no… we need to go.” Y/n ignored her words as though nothing had happened, instead rushing off the chair to get Tom out the chair and onto the awaiting set. They had places to be.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||| (bcos im lazy)

Honestly when the director, Ed, called for lunch break, it was pretty apparent to be purely as a compassionate gesture to Y/n and Tom. Both of them had tried so hard this morning to fully commit, even so they’d both been almost completely useless. Y/n kept missing cues whilst all Tom’s actions and lines where slow, dragged out and at times completely prompted from someone behind the cameras. 

So when the lunch break was called there was only one thing on Y/n’s mind and what sandwich was available in the mess tent was not it. Still standing on the set next to her fake holdall bag she looked toward Tom, who was pulling himself up to standing from the train station bench - the pace of his movement making him look more like an old man. 

“You good?” His answer was predictable. 

“I’m so fucking shattered”

Tom swore he’d never heard anything sweeter come out of Y/n’s pink lips than her next statement.

“C’mon I know somewhere we can lie down.”

Without any sort of thought Tom blindly agreed, nodding as he took her outstretched hand in his. The gesture in itself brought a fresh wave of comfort to his aching limbs and as his feet stumbled to catchup with her slight head start he leant the majority of his weight into their connected hands. 

Neither would admit it but they were ‘a thing’… whatever the hell that meant. It was clear as day to everyone and anyone that worked closely to the two but neither of them had ever broached the topic with each other. They’d worked on a few films together over the years; each time they got closer and closer to the point any job without the other simply wasn’t as good. It was scary though, especially for two actors in the prime of their careers. If they weren’t working the same film they’d likely be the opposite side of the world to each other most of the time - quality time together would be few and far between, Really their jobs didn’t suit dating at all, yet it would be perhaps easier if one half of it worked a ‘normal’ job. Something with consistency, a regular structure. A level of dependability that neither Y/n nor Tom could offer to the other. 

So it was terrifying, acknowledging the growth in their magnetic attraction to each other. Both were acutely aware that doing that, confronting their feelings, would most likely signal the beginning of the end. 

Although none of this stoped Y/n from returning the gesture, tilting her shoulder into Tom’s left side as they took slow steps through and then out the set building. She steered the two past the hair and makeup trailer and round into a store and extra equipment trailer. Tom tilted his head as she climbed the stairs whilst beckoning for him to follow - it didn’t seem like the most obvious choice. Rolling her eyes, Y/n explained.

“It’s where all the blankets and coats and kept for the raining scenes plusssss no one will disturb us in here.” Again Tom was not in a position to disagree, eyes drooping as his shoulders sagged to the floor. Right now he’d take anything. 

So he climbed up the stairs and shut the door behind him, just as Y/n flipped the light on. She was right, it was well equipped and with an almost mountainous supply of red blankets that normally the crew and extra would all be wrapped up in after the freezing rain scenes with all the ‘waterfall machines’ as Y/n called them. However it was also um…. It was cosy. “Oh I don’t think I realised how small it was” She chuckled lightly, since now the door was closed her back was pressed up against the far wall of cabinets and still her front was mere millimetres from Tom.

“I…I don’t mind… if-if you don’t?”

“I’m too tired to care” She giggled in response, and Tom , now with her seal of approval, immediately started ransacking the piled shelves for all their worth creating a floor carpeted in the pale red of the blankets, in an attempt to make it more cosy. Joining in, it was almost remarkable how quickly their bodies suddenly agreed to move, with the new promise of rest mere moments away. 

Once the trailer was fully drowned, Tom kicked off his costume shoes and threw his jacket off - it haphazardly landing by the doorway. Y/n copied him, leaving her stood up whilst he had the advantaged of already settling down on the floor, her standing and looking down at him.

The space between the two opposing shelving units was not close spacious enough for two people to lie down whilst keeping a respectable level of personal space. Suddenly feeling a wave of awkwardness, Y/n stayed standing, wringing her hands slightly - whilst fairly certain Tom could hear her heart running at 100 mph. 

“You er… gonna stay there or?” Tom, contrary to popular belief, wasn’t a complete idiot - he could see she was suddenly self conscious. He got it too - they’d never crossed this boundary of choosing to cuddle into each other. It had happened once of twice accidentally over there 2 years of knowing each other. Both of those times it was completely accidental, falling asleep watching a movie with a safe distance of space b between the two, only to find hours later their bodies almost completely intwined. Tom would be lying if he said that his heart didnt skip a beat when he had awoken to Y/n’s soft and gently breath fanning into his neck. He’d loved it, but understood that was unconsciously breaking down part of the wall they’d both been the constructors of.

For fear of getting hurt. 

So now, as Y/n awkwardly bent down and lay on her side, he thought it was imperative to make her feel comfortable. Naturally then, his arm slid round her shoulders and pulled her down toward his chest, releasing a little breath as he felt her relax, her legs slowly wrapping round one of his. 

“This okay?” He murmured, now into the crown of her head as she lay half on her side half on his chest. In reply she nodded into him and Tom couldn’t help but grin- unbeknownst to him but Y/n was doing the exact same thing. 

The peace lasted all of 3 seconds until she groaned again.

“What?” Tom enquired as she wriggled out his hold and stood up. Instead of replying though she just leant over and flicked the one harsh light bulb off making Tom chuckle as she fumbled her way back onto the padded floor in the darkness, earning a few grunts from both as she accidentally kicked Tom’s thighs or banged her head on one of the now empty shelves. Fumbling her way back into a comfortable position, occasionally cursing when she stubbed her toe- or Tom did when she accidentally elbowed him in the ribs. 

“Comfy?” Tom asked a little sarkily as he squeezed her a little more into his side.

“Mhmmmm… I’m gonna sleep for 100 years”

“Yeh me… me too”

And with that they both almost instantly and in complete unison sagged into each other and the blankets - the pent up stress and tension of the past few days ebbing away.

What the pair had neglected to remember was that sleeping for 100 years wasn’t really an option. The whole crew of 50 people, who wanted to restart filming after 45 minutes, had not been told about Y/n’s little hiding place. The pair were so completely safe in their own little cocoon of comfort they were completely oblivious to their teams calling there names more and more frantically. Completely oblivious to the game of hide and seek the situation had descended into, completely oblivious to Harrys natural annoyance as the director asked him for the whereabouts of the two stars - as though Harry was childminder to the pair of them.

It was Nelli who found them first. She’d and Ellie and Tom’s manager had all been recruited by Harry as part of the man hunt. Both girls, having seen first hand the state of the two this morning, were fairly certain they’d both crashed out somewhere. So Nelli, already with a sneaking suspicion, opened the door gently, her figure blocking the majority of the light from seeping through to the dimly lit inside. The sight she was met with had her actually pouting at the cuteness - and yes its a cringey word but also the only one appropriate.

Between bedding down and barely an hour later the two had managed to become impossibly tighter pressed to each other. Y/n’s face was pressed into the crook of Tom’s neck and his arms seemed to have pulled her on-top of him almost completely. Her left leg was hooked under his right, which was then sandwiched by his left too. They both looked so pure and innocent and god did Nelli know they both needed any extra time they could get.

Nelli cared a lot about Tom, she’d been working with him from the beginning, from the child star days to now. She cared about him like her very annoying surrogate son and she wanted to see him looked after. She also so completely wanted the two stars to stop pining after each other. Because frankly it was getting a little frustrating for everyone else. 

So she chose to tactically forget about her discovery, sneaking a photo on the sly before silently pulling the door closed and leaving them to their sleep. 

#tom holland #tom holland fluff #tom holland x reader #tom holland x famous!reader #tom holland x actress!reader #fluff

[accioecho]

Lee Da Hee for GQ Korea

"Everything becomes memories in the end. You should always strive to have a positive energy."

Feel free to share this translated interview! Though I would appreciate if you could credit me by linking back to this blog or tagging me on Twitter ^_^

GQ: But... uh, why do you look so happy? You’re looking at me with such a happy expression that I don’t know what to do right now.

LDH: Hahaha. No but if I kept listening with a blank expression, I would come off as cold looking. And you would go: “Are you in a bad mood?” So I try to smile more. Otherwise I would come off as cold looking.

GQ: That’s quite a big difference. I got startled when you pulled a straight face.

LDH: Right, it looks like I’m angry. But I’m not, so this is why I try to smile more. If I don’t smile like this, people tend to think I’m cranky. Of course when I get angry, I have a temper, but I’m not usually like that.

LDH: And it goes both ways, it’s easier for me to open up to someone if that person is smiling instead of sporting an expressionless face.

GQ: You were laughing/smiling so brightly that I was kind of hypnotized.

LDH: Hahaha

GQ: When you appeared in the drama “Beauty Inside”, you weren’t the typical villain wearing a red lipstick but were the kind of villain to wear a new, nude shade.

LDH: Ohh, that’s a very nice way to put it.

GQ: Really?

LDH: A nude tone villain. This is the first time I’m hearing this expression, I like it. Yes, up until then, secondary female characters usually tried to win someone’s heart or because they lacked attention and love, they tended to bother the female lead. But “Beauty Inside” was different. It was a different kind of role. I played a villain but my character wasn’t hateful. She had her own convictions and that’s why she was so interesting.    

GQ: Kang Sara was that kind of character, played by Lee Da Hee.

LDH: This is why I didn’t want to play the typical secondary character, the typical second female lead. Yes she was given a fancy background but I also wanted to try something new, something different. Not something that could be shown through strong makeup, I wanted to add a layer of depth to her style.

GQ: I think we could feel the difference hence why it was so interesting. It was obvious that you studied this role a lot and this perfected style has stuck to you, the actress.

LDH: Well, first of all, I find it fun to radically search for something new. In a way that doesn’t stand out too much, while still being faithful to the character, I try to bring out the best of what I can do. Back when I was younger, I had no clue about all that so I just did what I was told to do. As I matured, I discovered what were my weaknesses, what to cover/hide etc. For example, you might think that I’m skinny, and that all my clothes fit me well. But I have a big bone structure so clothes don’t fit all that easily. But because I know this about me, I’m able to adapt,  know how to find the right clothes to try to keep looking pretty. Thanks to the GQ photoshoot, I got to try out this colorful mascara for the first time. And it’s so much fun. As I experience new things one by one, I’m able to see what’s right for me and what’s not.

GQ: It might be insensitive/rude to say this to an actress who has a career spanning 20 years, but I feel like the name Lee Da Hee has become clearer to me since “Beauty Inside”.

LDH: No it’s not insensitive. I’m really thankful that you remember me from that role. No matter how recent the drama is, the point is that you remember me because I left you a good impression. I really appreciate it. To be honest, a lot of people remember me from my role in Beauty Inside. People actually think I didn’t play in many projects before that.

GQ: But you did consistently star in various projects.

LDH: Yes, but I guess they weren’t memorable roles. I don’t think I played characters that stayed in people’s minds. Beyond the character and the role in itself. A drama can be loved by a lot of people, but beyond that, when I watch a show as a viewer, there are some actors that leave a deep impression in the way they play their characters. I wonder if I lacked that kind of aspect. I kept thinking to myself that maybe there was something missing in my acting that didn’t leave a memorable impression.

GQ: You left quite a strong impression after playing roles like Kang Sara in Beauty Inside and Cha Hyeon in Search: WWW. But more recently in LUCA: the beginning, I feel like you shed that strong image. If you found a type of role that fit you, you could have just kept on playing the same kind of characters, but it looks like you’re not afraid to radically change your image.

LDH: You’re right, I wanted to do something different. I wanted to show a different side, something that differed from the bright roles I usually played. After Beauty Inside and Search: www, I was afraid of being type casted. I didn’t want people to think I always played the same kind of roles. But I think I was was too confident when I chose to play in LUCA. I thought I could do anything.

GQ: You thought you could do anything but it didn’t turn out this way?

LDH: Even my mom thought the same thing. That it wasn’t a really good fit. In a few words, she thought my acting felt a bit forced. Hahaha. That it didn’t really flow well. The main takeaway is that I tried something different. If it turns out to be a good fit, then it’s good and if it doesn’t, it means I can just find something that does.    

GQ: Your mother sounds like the type of person who doesn’t mince her words.

LDH: My mom is very level headed. Just by looking at my back, she can tell if I was focused or thinking about something else. I spent a lot of time with my mom, even more so than with friends, and I also cried a lot in front of her. If I ask her “Mom, what’s wrong with me”, she’ll tell me not to think these kind of thoughts, that whatever I’m thinking is not true. We had a lot of moments like that.

GQ: You looked so cheerful today that I didn’t think you could also have rough times.

LDH: Why wouldn’t I? I went through times of depression when I would think, “Am I charismatic enough?”, “Do I lack something as an actress?”. There were times when my self-esteem was very low.

Since I’m tall, I used to have Directors who always said “you don’t match, you don’t match” (with fellow actors). Since I couldn’t do anything about my height, I thought that I could at least work on my body, make myself smaller. So I worked really hard on my diet. I used to eat rice cake soup that my mom used to make using beef broth, once every day. My mom followed along and did the diets with me. Every time. You can guess what kind of mom she is, right? I used to say: “Mom, should we at least drink soju since we only had one meal today?” And we’d share a bottle.

GQ: Hahaha, I see that you don’t hide your positive energy.

LDH: Everything becomes memories in the end. You should always strive to have a positive energy. And try not to think negatively. This way, you can find more motivation when an opportunity comes along, and this is also how more opportunities come up. I know that if I don’t love myself, I’ll end up being depressed and have a low self-esteem. So starting with myself, I also try to be nice to everyone, to compliment them. Let’s not be hurtful, and let’s try not to say mean things. I try to tell myself I’m a good person, and I project that to others as well. Let’s be nice to each other. Let’s be someone that gives off a good energy.

GQ: Why did you hurt your knee?

LDH: Ah, this? (Points to her left knee). I rode one of those electric scooters and fell as I tried to avoid an electric pole.

GQ: It must have hurt a lot if you fell while riding it.

LDH: I’m okay now. It was a bit concerning at first, but I’m just glad I didn’t hurt my face. It’s too bad I fell while riding it for the first time, but I wanted to try it so I learned my lesson now. I don’t even look at the scooters now. I know they’re too dangerous for me.

GQ: You made a very decisive conclusion based on your experience.

LDH: Yes, I should never try to ride a scooter again.

GQ: I also see a scar on your neck. Do you fall often?

LDH: Hahaha. No, I was washing a necklace. It’s a necklace made with my grandmother’s ring but the edge is a bit sharp. I got scratched while washing it a bit hastily.

GQ: Did you grow up under your grandmother’s care?

LDH: No I didn’t... actually both of my grandparents died in a car accident. They were so healthy so I thought they would live for a long time, but they suddenly passed away. When I didn’t work for a while, they used to say “When are you going to make money”, or “how long are you planning to live like that, without earning any money for your mom and dad”. It hurt me sometimes. But whenever I appeared on tv, they were the first ones to watch, and they always asked me when I would be on TV, on which channel... and when the time came, they always made sure to turn the tv on and watch my shows, and whenever we met, they told me they were proud of me, holding my hands and hugging me. I always think about these times. I miss them. Very much.

GQ: This is very moving. I believe these emotions and feelings make who you are.

LDH: I might sound like a crazy person, hahahah, but I have a picture of my grandma and grandpa next to my bed, and I always speak to them: “Grandma, I’m back”. If I’m upset about something, I say “Grandma, this thing just happened and this is so hard. I miss you.” - that’s how I cope and move on. This is how I try my best everyday. It makes me focus on what’s important. My family, tomorrow (the future) and all the things I love.

#lee da hee #이다희 #gq korea #kdrama #search www #the beauty inside #i love her i love her i love her

[shihalyfie]

The relationship between the Yagami siblings

The above line is possibly one of the most vital lines in contextualizing the relationship between the Yagami siblings, but is all too often omitted, and so it can lead to a lot of other questions about whether Hikari has dependency problems or whether Taichi has a natural tendency to be overprotective (also not helped by the fact that Hikari’s own voice actress, Araki Kae, was very fond of joking about Hikari having a brother complex). Once the proper context is applied, however, the relationship between the two ends up saying a lot about both individually!

That's the kind of girl she is! She's always thinking about other people before herself, and she'll never tell anyone that she's in pain or having a hard time, even if it kills her! The thing is, she might not have even wanted to come to this stupid world at all...But when people tell her that the fate of the world is in her hands or something, she could never refuse!... ...That's why...That's why I'm supposed to look after her and protect her...

The summary of everything going on between the two siblings at the time of Adventure has to do with the following:

Hikari is “always thinking of other people before herself” (i.e. she “doesn’t want to be a burden”, a very common sentiment among these very selfless kids in Adventure and 02), and therefore will accept massive burdens or pain on herself because she doesn’t want to trouble others. Because of that, she also will not speak out about her pain, simply suppressing it and pretending that everything is fine, while working for others’ sake.

Even Taichi has no idea what she’s thinking, because she’s so bad at vocalizing what she wants or is actually feeling that he has to guess. While he’s obviously emotionally compromised and thinking the worst of everything at the time of the above incident in Adventure episode 48, he also states that “that’s the kind of girl she is,” which implies that the above incident where Hikari got pneumonia was not an isolated incident, and therefore that Hikari has a repeated pattern of behaving like this. Hence, why Taichi has to keep stepping in -- he has to constantly assume the worst and go overboard, because Hikari will not do anything for herself if left to her own devices.

Both siblings are characterized as “dangerously self-sacrificial”; Taichi will recklessly risk his own welfare if it’s for the sake of others not getting hurt, whereas, as just indicated here, Hikari will refuse to burden other people even if it leads to her own personal destruction. This is not the only time Adventure has portrayed the negative aspects of being too selfless (it’s also a huge theme of Sora’s character arc), and it’s also why Hikari so easily offers herself up at the end of Adventure episode 36; it’s not just about Taichi! Hikari just puts others before herself by default to the extent that, while doing something for herself is hard to do, doing things for others is a no-brainer.

This is also why Hikari’s actions of “clinging” to Taichi in Adventure episode 21 shouldn’t be contextualized as her being clingy to him and wanting him there for her own sake -- remember, the point that was made is that Hikari thinks so little about what she wants that she doesn’t even consider her own wishes as an object, so the reason she bids for them to “stay” in this episode is because she knows he’s been in another world, a potentially dangerous one, and is about to go back and risk his own welfare for it. Since her attitude revolves around “other people’s sake”, it’s natural that she’s not going to be very enthusiastic about her brother and their new friend heading back to the unknown like that. (Remember, she seemed to be fine with him being out at camp and being away from her for prolonged periods of time in general.)

Which is especially enhanced when we see the context of why Taichi has his massive freakout in Adventure episode 48, and the way Hikari behaves in both the episode and the flashback:

The conflict in the episode was kicked off by, once again, Taichi being unable to tell what Hikari was thinking or feeling, and underestimating how much pain she was in, while Hikari had been suppressing it because of her selflessness. As Taichi says, he can’t tell if Hikari had wanted to come, or if she had simply come out of “obligation” regardless of how she’d felt.

And, in the flashback depicted, again: Taichi hadn’t insensitively dragged Hikari out, he had legitimately thought she was fine and misjudged her condition, and Hikari had agreed to go out without protest, only for that to be very much not the case. And when Hikari returned, she had no blame for him and only continued to blame herself for ruining his fun. So, again: Hikari doesn’t even think of herself, and only thinks about how much of a burden she’s being on others, and the incident (and presumably others) had brought Taichi into the understanding that he cannot use what Hikari says about herself as an accurate bar for how she’s doing.

The Character Complete File gives us a bit of an interesting tidbit about Taichi and Hikari’s home lives, in that, if you pay attention, you’ll notice that the Yagami siblings don’t share a room anymore by the time of 02. According to both Taichi and Hikari’s testimonies, Hikari had “constructively” kicked him out by hint-hinting that she was actually not very fond of sharing a room with him and was embarrassed by it! She does eventually admit that it’s a bit lonely without the second person around, but she’s very happy to claim her room as “my own little castle”, and, moreover, with the above context, you can imagine that she, once again, might have been self-conscious about being a “burden” on him due to both of their spaces intersecting too much.

So when we do get to 02...

The line from the second screenshot is the most commonly cited line about Hikari’s attitude regarding her brother in 02, but recall that this is from Hikari basically doing her own version of rambling incoherently. The actual context clue required to decipher this comes from earlier in the episode, when, drowning in the negative atmosphere and impact the Dark Ocean is having on her, Hikari has a vision/flashback of saying “I’m sorry” to her brother. Remembering that the Dark Ocean is heavily associated with “negative emotions”: what does “I’m sorry” mean? “I’m sorry” -- or, in other words, “I caused you more trouble again.” So when Hikari says that “my brother always protected me”, she’s basically saying “I’ve been burdening my brother by making him protect me all of the time,” and the fact that she pairs this with a statement “the next time they call me, I may end up there” is one about inevitability -- she does not like the idea of continuing to burden him, and is letting horrible things happen to her because she would rather not keep doing this to him.

This is what threads the apparent “contradiction” between Hikari supposedly being so “quiet” about certain things yet so assertive about others -- Hikari has never shown any hesitation about putting her foot down assertively when it’s about other people’s sake, but it’s always about her own sake and her own feelings when she suddenly clams up. Tailmon even alludes to it herself in the episode:

Hikari is “strong”, and she’s shown it many times -- she’s assertive, brave, and heck, in this very same episode, the moment she realizes the “Hangyomon” need help, she doesn’t even hesitate to do her best to help them even at the risk of pain to herself! But she’s not going to make it until she can accept the help of others instead of denying everything out of worry for being a burden, which is why the issue starts to resolve a little when Hikari finally breaks down and admits that she wants others to help her, including Takeru, whom she had spurned earlier during the episode.

Hence, this is why the “follow-up” to this episode, 02 episode 31, doesn’t involve Taichi at all -- but it does involve a continuation of the same thing about Hikari’s problem, and she even confirms what Taichi had said about her back in Adventure episode 48, that she won’t vocalize her own problems. On top of that, she adds another layer to it: Hikari compulsively suppresses her own problems to the point she’s outright jealous of Miyako for being able to vocalize them. Hikari’s “selflessness” problem is so bad and self-destructive that even she realizes it’s a problem and wants to do something about it, but literally cannot. This is how bad her problem is, and why none of her actions to this point can really accurately be read as her being clingy or wanting to do anything for truly selfish reasons; this problem of “self-destructive selflessness” was so bad that even she didn’t like this about herself. And, hence, why she felt like she was “burdening” her own brother while she was at it -- it was a problem she did with everyone, but since he was one of the people she knew and trusted the most (having literally grown up with him, and all), it had been the worst with him.

Therefore, Miyako is able to address this issue even without Taichi being involved at all, because the problem wasn’t really about Taichi -- but 02 is a series about the importance of relationships and accepting a need to grow with the help of other people, and therefore, Miyako addressing Hikari’s issue of being so closed-in, and encouraging her to seek help and stop accepting her own destruction just to not “burden” others, is likely to help her have a better relationship with her brother in the future.

...although, by this point in 02, this really was more of Hikari’s own issue than it was Taichi’s by this point, because Taichi treats his sister pretty “neutrally” over the course of the series -- when Hikari’s stranded in the Digital World in 02 episode 7, Iori’s the one more panicked than he is, and he’s mostly just concentrated on having an alibi for her to come back with. And he has zero problem with her flinging herself into dangerous situations over the course of the year, including the stakeout trip started in 02 episode 18 (and for what it’s worth, Hikari herself clearly had no issue flinging herself into such a situation). And when he discusses the issue of the new kids in the 02 group having to accept that killing an enemy will soon become an inevitability in 02 episode 43, it’s a pretty serious conversation with him advising her the way he would have advised any of his other juniors.

This is why context is so important! Taichi had said, back in Adventure episode 48, that he’d hovered over her because he’d had no clue what she was thinking, and would have to take extra precautions because she could easily get herself killed like that. But in 02, it’s not like she was constantly suffering a cold, and it’s a lot more obvious that her actions throughout the series were because it was what she wanted to do, regardless of the risks, so it’s her right to do whatever she wants, and therefore he leaves her to it; she’s clearly doing a much better job taking care of herself, so there’s no reason for him to step in.

Hikari also takes his advice at face value and doesn’t have any particular weirdness about it; she’d never put him on a pedestal or anything, she just still happened to have very self-destructive tendencies that were ultimately resolved with the help of the rest of the 02 group. Often submitted as Hikari having proof of putting him on some kind of weird pedestal is her reaction in 02 episode 4, when she gets angry at Daisuke for being disrespectful about an older sibling, but this omits the fact that Yamato (being a very offended older sibling) got in on it too; the point was more about the disparity between Daisuke and Jun’s more vitriolic relationship compared to the more mutual-esteem relationships between the Ishida-Takaishi and Yagami siblings, plus the fact that, even if the perspective was different, Daisuke was being pretty harsh about his wording (he outright says he hates his sister...).

This is also presumably why, when everyone is presented with illusions regarding their personal worries in 02 episode 49, Hikari’s is the only one that has no relation to her family or home life whatsoever. She has nothing to really worry about with her home life, and Taichi seems to be fine and she has no particular interest in what he does as long as she’s not burdening him further. Rather, again, her character was largely about “doing more for other people than doing anything for herself,” so of course, her “dream” ends up being about everyone else in the world being happy.

In the end, it was more about her larger issues of her relationship to “other people” versus her relationship to “herself” than anything else -- it was just impacting the siblings the most since they were, well, siblings.

#digimon #digimon adventure #digimon adventure 02 #yagami hikari #yagami taichi #hikari yagami #taichi yagami #shihameta

[theflyindutchwoman]

How do you think the writers will take Chenford moving forward? I know exploring long-term UC for Lucy and how that will impact Chenford's relationship is a possibility, but what do you think about other things like proposal, marriage and kids? Especially kids, since that is something Tim and Lucy have talked about numerous times.

I have this thought that pregnancy storyline was always written mainly due to logistics instead of what the writers wanted in originally. This mainly stems from the fact that the few times they have pregnancy in the show were because the actresses that played Angela Lopez and Nyla Harper were pregnant themselves and thus pregnancy was written in the storyline, so it kinda makes me think Tim and Lucy having kids may not be something we will see in the series. What do you think?

Ooh speculation time… This might be an unpopular opinion, but I agree, I don't see Lucy and Tim having a baby in the near future, at least not if the writers have a say in it.

As you mentioned, these storylines have been written to accommodate the actresses' real life pregnancies (not sure for Angela's second baby). They didn't get to properly prepare in advance, hence the three unplanned pregnancies plotlines. And I think that's partially the reason why Tim and Lucy have been speaking about kids so much : the writers want to do with them what they didn't get to do with the other couples. We didn't see the conversation, the planning… None of that. They have this opportunity here. Even better, Lucy and Tim had both already their own arc about this topic : her with the fertility clinic and him with having his dream of being a father being dashed repeatedly. And it's something they've discussed together in the past, so it makes sense that they would bring it up from time to time. But I don't think that means they are planning babies just yet. Ideally, Lucy would first get settled in her career - same with Tim for that matter. Otherwise, it would simply be a repeat of Angela's struggles when she got pregnant just as she was becoming a detective. I also wonder whether they're going to reopen the fertility clinic arc or not… In the meantime, having them coach Little League or spend a day with their Make-A-Dream kid is actually a smart way to give us some insights on what kind of parents they could be, without having to introduce a child just quite yet. We may get to see them as parents one day, I'm not ruling it out completely, but it will depend on how many more seasons we get.

If I had to venture a guess, I'd say that the first order of business would be to resolve the undercover/promotion storyline for Lucy. The writers have been teasing this arc all season long, so it's time to move forward. I don't mean that Lucy necessarily has to take a final decision regarding undercover, just that she needs to get to the next stage of her career. Undercover aside, Tim already mentioned that their scheduling hours could present an issue once she makes detective, that they might spend less time together. So it would be interesting to delve a little into that, see how they make it work… which could, in turn, lead to a conversation about moving in together and/or buying a house. After all, that's the discussion that set the wheels in motion and brought Tim and Lucy together. So that could be a full-circle moment. And it could pave the way for the next step : proposal.

Now, I don't think we will see one next season : with S6 shortened, it might be tricky. I know it might also seem too soon, but these two are already serious and committed, they know what they want and they know the other very well. Besides, so far, all the main couples got engaged relatively fast : Wesley proposed to Angela after 6-9 months of dating, Nyla and James got married after a few months (though in all fairness, it was precipitated by the pregnancy) and Nolan was ready to ask Bailey after dating her for like 8 episodes?! There's clearly a pattern here. But again, with a shorter season and a wedding already planned, the writers might want to keep that for later… All in all, it will really depend on how short this season will be (we stand with WGA/SAG-AFTRA in this house) and whether they can get a renewal for s7.

#ask & ye shall receive #the rookie #chenford #lucy chen #tim bradford

[epicspheal]

If I can continue the pokemon champions/ adults discussion, I had the sudden realization that Diantha ( and the E4) could have easily taken up Sena and Dexio's thing of disguising themselves to investigate Team Flare.

First of all, Diantha is an actress. She would easily disguise herself into a entire new character. It's literally her job.

Secondly, her and the E4 going undercover would be great plot point. Like, say, the reason they're going undercover is due to Team Flare using Holo Caster to spy on people, hence they need to get up and personal with everything. Or because they don't want the public to panic, so they kept everything underraps( which could be used as a double edged sword as the public might think they're doing nothing)

Thirdly, what good did Sena and Dexio ever contribute to the entirety of XY. I forgot they existed until I replayed USUM recently ( which I still haven't finished). Like they're cool and all, but they also felt forced? Maybe that's just me.

Idk man. I used to hate Diantha so much, but recently I just felt bad for her. She got done so dirty, and from her dialogue in Masters she sounds super interesting. That's mostly apart of Pokemon's not so great writing in general ( especially towards female characters).

Anyway that's my take for making some if the Kalos adults more proactive. Hope you have a nice day/night!

Hi there @ihopethisendswell Listen, you’re right and you should say it. I love your ideas for this seriously. *steps on my soapbox* See my problem with Gamefreak’s writing is that the writers can be staring at a very obvious solution and refuse to even go down that route making the characters we’re supposed to view one way look completely incompetent or flat or whatever the writing issue. Like I don’t think their intention was to have a good portion of the fandom find her incompetent, but by not either giving her a way to help the story or a solid excuse why she wasn’t there it just makes her look sso bad and the prime example of “these adults are useless” How you described Diantha using her acting skills as a way to disguise herself is perfect. It takes a known trait of hers (acting) and allows it to affect the plot in a meaningful way instead of just being a cool quirk. Not that there’s anything wrong with something just being a cool quirk with no plot relevance, but I personally feel you can really elevate the writing when having a certain skill actually be useful. I’m also just imagining Wikstrom and Drasna dressing up in like regular outfits and no one recognizing them. Absolutely perfect! I’m also thinking about maybe instead of Siebold dressing up let him create a spy network with the people who work at his restaurant. A lot of...interesting details get shared over a meal and him having his waitstaff (if not him himself) be a set of eyes and ears on the ground in the attempts to thwart Team Flare

And then we have Malva who we all know is part of the Team Flare. Honestly if they really wanted to make it so Diantha and the rest of the Elite Four weren’t involved...they could’ve had Malva actively manipulating the information the League is getting to throw them off. It would’ve been a really nice story point to show that even adults that are as powerful as the elite 4 and champion can be duped. So many ways this could’ve actually worked to make Diantha and the rest of the Elite four not seem incompetent but for some reason the writers were like “Nah let’s just not have them involved and not give any explanation why”. Like what were you doing Diantha? Did you have an acting gig you were doing at Pokestar Studios in Unova?

Yeah Sina and Dexio they honestly just weren’t that useful. I honestly forget they exist most of the time.

And I feel you on hating Diantha (well game!Diantha, I actually liked her anime adaptation because they allowed her a chance to help out). I was the same way for a long time. I mean granted she’s still not my favorite of the champions but I’ve mellowed out on my feelings because like you said she was done extremely dirty. Yeah she really falls hard in the “Gamefreak can’t write girls well” trap which is such a shame because she (like so many character in the franchise) had so much potential.

#champion diantha #sina #dexio #ask epic spheal #pokemon xy #siebold #elite four wikstrom #drasna #elite four malva

[anya-grace]

Two beautiful people sent me an ask about my rivetra actors au, and boyyyy let me tell you, it was so fun making them again 😍 thank you to the pretty souls who asked this! 💘

The first actors au were from season 1 and 2, this one will focus on the filming of season 3 until the last season :) here you go!

more rivetra actors!au headcanon (some are nsfw-ish)

- Let me get straight to the point: lots of sex. Car sex. On-set sex. Dressing room sex. Name it.

- Both of them are aware that it was unprofessional, but there was a time when they did not see each other for more than a month because of their (especially Levi’s) busy and conflicting schedule, so when Petra surprised him on set, the frustration and longing just piled up and they had sex.

- Then it became a habit.

- And this habit, of course, didn’t go unnoticed by the other casts and even crews of the show. Armin heard them once, and the poor boy made a mental note to never ever come close to Levi’s room again.

- The older casts are fine with it since, you know, normal adult stuff. But for the love of the three Walls, can you lovebirds tone the moaning down? People are trying to get some sleep wtf.

- Levi’s make-up artist had to deal with the pain of covering his hickeys (courtesy of Ms. Petra Ral) every shoot. The ones on his neck, especially those near his adam’s apple were the most visible. And since Captain Levi rarely wore a cravat in season three, part one, it made the work harder for the make-up artist.

- As compensation, Petra always bought a special souvenir for Levi’s make-up artist whenever she flies overseas for her theater shows.

- For the premiere of season 3, Levi took Petra as his date on the red carpet. It was the first event they attended publicly as a couple.

- It was a big milestone for their relationship because they are both public figures. And we all know what happens when celebrities publicize their relationships, it is prone to issues and controversies.

- And you can very well guess that Levi Ackerman showing off his beautiful girlfriend to the press was big news. As big as the AoT premiere even.

- During the air of season three, Levi became more famous and he attracted many overseas fans as well as international actresses because of his brilliant scenes with Kenny.

- Although Petra is not the jealous type, she admitted that somehow it affected her when other international actresses expressed their admiration towards Levi. Some even said that Levi is their type and they are looking forward to working with him in the future.

- When Levi sensed this, he immediately headed to his IG and posted a picture of Petra with a very cheesy caption lmao. Forgive him, he's new to this kind of relationship.

- Did I mention he also posted a picture of them kissing in front of the Eiffel tower?

- Only a few know this, but the real Levi is one clingy boyfriend.

- He is very touchy when it comes to Petra. He just really loves holding her. Sometimes he just randomly hugs her, caresses her, nuzzles her. He just loves having skin-to-skin contact with her.

- His love language is actions and gestures.

- His favorite gesture to do to Petra is a back hug with his arms under her boobs. It was a soft gesture and it wasn't sexual in any way...until it did.

- More than half of their sex started with Levi touching Petra’s underboobs tbh.

- Sometimes Levi thinks that he's neglecting Petra and more than once he considered quitting the show business for her. But then he’ll see her smiling at him, and she tells him that she's very proud of what he’s doing and that she's happy that she gets to support him with doing the things he is really passionate about and just… all he could think of that time is that he wants to marry this amazing woman.

- He is also supportive of Petra’s theater actress career, of course. And he hates the fact that he needs to hide whenever he watches one of her shows since people eventually gather around him asking for an autograph and he feels that it’s rude for Petra. This is her moment and he doesn’t want to ruin it for her.

- Hence, his all-black and mysterious get-up whenever he watches her show.

- AoT season three was a huge success and plans for season four are already on the move. Casts were given a long break before the shooting began again and both Petra and Levi took this as a chance to bond together.

-Petra's favorite thing to do with Levi is playing with animals. She has a soft spot for animals, and she wanted for them to adopt a pet but she knew that the poor animal will only be given less attention because both of them are always busy.

-When Petra's theater world tour ended, she and Levi started living together. They didn't have the chance to do it before since they were both busy.

-Them living together is probably the height of their relationship. They fought, they had sex, they laughed, they played, they bathe together. They did everything together and it was a beautiful experience.

- For their third anniversary, Levi booked a vacation on a private island for a week. It was also their last bonding because Levi is going to start filming again for season four in less than a month.

- They did not communicate with anyone during that one week. It was just them, and they made the most of it.

- Mornings were spent for morning sex and breakfast in bed. Afternoons were for swimming, sleeping, cuddling, hugging, kissing, and every activity they could think of doing. They explored the island, they petted stray animals, they dived into the ocean, they build sandcastles, they ate different dishes, they had sex in caves and while swimming on the beach, they climbed trees, they bought souvenirs, and most importantly, they took many pictures together.

- Evenings were the most romantic of all. They had sex in the darkness of their own room while they hear the ocean waves crashed to the shore outside and as the sea breeze cooled their sweat-slicked skin. They took the time to explore each other’s body like it’s their last (because it will be in a matter of days).

- On their last night, Pet cried while they’re having sex. Levi’s face was buried on the crook of her neck and she was moaning one moment, and then the next she’s sobbing like a poor little baby.

- She said that she’d gotten used to life with Levi always by her side and she didn’t want it to ever change. Levi comforted her. He petted her hair, and he said that it’s going to be okay. He kissed her head, then her hair, her face, and her body. Then they had the most emotional and meaningful sex of their entire life.

- Levi started shooting again for season four. Petra, like the past seasons, visits him as much as she can. It was hard adjusting to this type of life again, but she’s a strong woman. And besides, she’s going to start rehearsing for another theater show again.

- They need to undergo medical check-ups before the casting and she found out then that she is pregnant with Levi’s baby.

- It freaked her out. She and Levi never talked about babies before since they’re busy with their careers, and their relationship has always been just the two of them.

- Levi was out of town for the shoot, and she didn’t want to tell him the good news on the phone so she patiently waited until he got home.

- He was greeted with a fancy dinner, and a “Welcome home, Daddy” by Petra. Levi thought that it was her being cheeky and naughty at first, but when dinner ended and she ran for her life to the sink, that’s when he started getting worried. And when Petra showed him the positive result in her medical check-up, well, let’s just say that on that day, Levi Ackerman received a good reminder of what he did to her on their vacation months ago.

- But seriously, he was seconds away from calling his manager and dropping his AoT contract just so he can take care of Petra and their baby. Petra said that it was fine, and she doesn’t want him to quit.

- Levi apologized to Petra many times because he wasn’t there when she discovered it, but she assured him that it was alright and it wasn’t his fault. God, he’s with the perfect woman.

- Since Levi is a big shot in the industry, he demanded control over his schedules. Honestly, he wanted to be at her side 24/7. He wanted to see her belly swell as months went by. He wanted to be the one to satisfy her midnight pregnancy cravings. He wanted to kiss her face and her belly first thing in the morning.

- He convinced Petra to move temporarily to the Ackerman family house where Levi’s parents are staying. Kenny and Mikasa also lived in the same affluent neighborhood. He had doctors, and helpers, and bodyguards hired for Petra. But she said that she’s too uncomfortable with many people around her.

- Petra and Levi’s mom build a bond of their own. She’d gotten to know more of Levi through his mother’s perspective. The older woman showed her Levi’s teenage room, his past awards, his photos, his audition tapes that weren’t out for the public, and she fell in love with him more.

- They had a super private wedding with their relatives and closest friends. Petra was six months pregnant by that time and season four is planned to air three months from now.

- So, you know about that one holy Rivetra panel where Petra is looking back to Levi? The reason why the scene was not in the actual show was that she is pregnant. That’s why the directors are forced to use old scenes from season one instead.

- Despite all the efforts of being private, paparazzi and the media still caught wind of the secret wedding, and rumors about Petra being pregnant started circulating over the internet. Levi shut down these rumors every time someone attempted to question him in his interviews.

- When the shooting ended, Petra was already eight months into pregnancy. As per tradition, the cast and staff held an after-party, but Petra was surprised when it became a baby shower for her instead.

- The baby was supposedly due in the third week of December, but Petra’s water broke around the first week instead and she started her labor. She ended up having the same birthday as their healthy baby boy.

- The baby was named River Ackerman. He was named after Levi’s role where he won the Best Actor Award when he was seventeen. It was also a tribute to Levi’s role in AoT since his name was sometimes spelled as ‘Rivaille’ on many occasions.

#this was so long oh boy #i love this au so much tooooo #y'all can send me more ask about this au if u want :) #rivetra #levi x petra #rivapeto #rivetra headcanon #rivetra actors au

[dfdph]

Spotlight - Prologue

Author D.

Pairing Jungkook x Reader (female)

Genre Actor AU | Hollywood AU | Exes to Lovers AU | Romance | Fluff | Angst

Warnings Mentions of cyber bullying

Word count 3.5k

Summary “Her stylist had chosen a wonderful black Elie Saab Haute Couture for the occasion. The gown was long, sleek and structured, with overlaying tulle and tafta, the top was semi-transparent, with long sleeves and padded shoulders,  and the whole dress was adorned with an intricate golden embroidery that highlighted her figure craftily. Her hair had been pinned neatly in a bun on top of her head, with some twists and braids that she had no way of replicating on her own. The make up artist had played with golden eyeshadow and had drawn a strong and thick black line with the eyeliner, making her gaze sharper and sexier. Y/N looked like a chic princess warrior, ready for battle. And, somehow, she really felt like it. She wasn’t anxious only about the ceremony, she had read the lineup, she had read his name. She knew there was no avoiding him this time: her first love, Jeon Jungkook.”

©️ dfdph, 2021 - All rights reserved. Reposting or translating onto other sites is NOT allowed.

     Award season was the period of the year Y/N hated the most. Despite being in the entertainment industry since she was a teenager - and now being in her late 20s -, she still couldn’t get used to the stress it put her through. She actually looked forward to dressing up and posing in front of dozens and dozens of photographers at the beginning of her career, but now that she had made a name for herself, now that everyone knew who she was, Y/N would gladly stay in her king sized bed watching some movie instead. Unfortunately, even if she wanted to, there was no way she could avoid attending this season’s ceremonies. 

     The past year had been Y/N’s most rewarding yet. She had been in fact casted by a renowned and award-winning director as the main character of his new historical movie, which turned out highly successful at the box office - earning more than $110,000,000 on its opening weekend - and highly acclaimed by the critics who had praised, not only the cinematography and the intricacy of the plot, but especially Y/N’s performance - described as raw, heartbreaking and graceful. To no one’s surprise, she was soon nominated as Best Actress in most of the award events, winning all of them despite the high competition and enriching the collection of trophies she had displayed in her home office.

     When she debuted ten years ago with a minor role in an episode of a television series she only dared dreaming of reaching such a peak in her career. She could have never imagined that she would become one of the highest paid actresses in the industry, that she would afford buying her dream car and her dream house in Los Angeles, and that she would have millions of fans supporting her all over the world. Yet, there she was, getting ready for ‘the dream come true’, the award of the awards: the Oscars. And she, Y/N Y/L/N, had been chosen as the strongest contender in her category: Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role. She had already been nominated twice before, but this time was different, this time she felt she could actually win. Hence why she couldn’t stop walking anxiously back and forth in the 5 star hotel room her staff had booked for the day.

     Her stylist had chosen a wonderful black Elie Saab Haute Couture for the occasion. The gown was long, sleek and structured, with overlaying tulle and tafta; the top was semi-transparent, with long sleeves and padded shoulders, and the whole dress was adorned with an intricate golden embroidery that highlighted her figure craftily. Her hair had been pinned neatly in a bun on top of her head, with some twists and braids that she had no way of replicating on her own. The make up artist had played with golden eyeshadow and had drawn a strong and thick black line with the eyeliner, making her gaze sharper and sexier. 

     Y/N looked like a chic princess warrior, ready for battle. And, somehow, she really felt like it. She wasn’t anxious only about the ceremony, she had read the lineup, she had read his name. She knew there was no avoiding him this time: her first love, Jeon Jungkook.

     Y/N was a completely different woman from who she was back in high school.

     She had grown in a very poor family. Her mother had to raise her, alongside her older brother, all on her own, working long hours as a housekeeper for a rich and snob family who mistreated her and paid her just enough so that she couldn’t resign. She was a very sweet woman who had to struggle every day to give her two children the most normal life she could afford. Y/N’s father, on the other hand, was never present: an alcoholic who couldn’t keep a job for more than a month, he regularly failed to pay child support after the divorce and never once made a call to hear from them.

     Y/N understood the importance of money early on, in elementary school, when her classmates started teasing her because of her hand-me-down clothes. She was used to wear her brother’s old t-shirts every now and then and never thought too much of it. She didn’t see any difference between the rock bands pictures or the flowery prints, she didn’t realize it mattered. And when she had told her mother that those girls had laughed at her, the woman almost cried, so Y/N decided not to mention it ever again.

     Y/N grew up into a very introverted and shy teenager. She wasn’t good with socializing and generally preferred being on her own. Her desire for solitude was so evident that her classmates gave up on their attempts to befriend her and she soon became the lone wolf of their high school. By junior high, she became almost invisible. 

     Strangely enough, Y/N’s dream was that to become an actress, a profession that required a lot of things she lacked of. Confidence, to begin with, or charisma. The only thing she believed she could do was hide inside the unused storage room on the second floor and play with the old props left by the drama club. 

     She met Jungkook while doing just that. 

     The boy was just coming back from the first meeting of the Mathematics Discussion Club - of which he was the president - when he heard someone crying from a room he never noticed before. He opened the door quietly, peeking his head inside the dim lighted room, only to find the silhouette of a girl lying on the floor in a fetal position and seemingly crying her lungs out in pain. She had her hands clutching tightly her head and she was sobbing so hard that she was on the verge of hyperventilating. On instinct, Jungkook rushed to her side, his books, pencils and calculator clattering all over the floor. 

     “Are you ok?!” he screamed in worry, putting his hands over her shoulders.

     Y/N jumped up, her wailing stopping so abruptly that it made Jungkook jump as well. As it turned out, Y/N was doing nothing more than acting the part of a terminally ill girl who was suffering intense head pains - a part she had invented all on her own to test her ability with dramatic scenes. it was something she did quite often. Just the day before she was performing Meryl Streep’s part in “Into the Woods” to an invisible audience.

     “I-I’m ok.” she mumbled, drying the fake tears from her cheeks.

     “What the hell?” Jungkook murmured, looking at her in astonishment. “What was that?”

     “I was ... I was just pretending.” she replied, her voice horse from all the screaming.

     “Pretending?” he repeated as he sat bewildered on the dirty floor. “You were pretending to be in pain? Why?!”

     Y/N felt the heat rising to her face. This was the first time she had to explain her weird little secret to anyone. “Acting.”

     “Acting.” Jungkook repeated once again. “And why are you doing it in here?” he asked looking around the creepy space, with its spider webs and abandoned miscellaneous objects. “What is this place anyways?”

     “It was the old storage room of the drama club.” Y/N replied. “They don’t use it anymore. There’s no space left.”

     “I can see that.” he said staring at the shelf just above their heads that looked about ready to collapse. “So, I guess you’re not in the drama club?”

     “No.” Y/N answered looking down at her crossed legs. She wondered if he was going to snitch on her. She really didn’t want to get in trouble. Besides, it wasn’t like she was doing something that terrible.

     “I could tell.” Jungkook replied. “I saw last year’s winter play and, let me tell you, you, crying on the floor 5 minutes ago, were ten times better than that.”

     Y/N looked back at him with her mouth open in surprise. She had no idea who this boy sitting crossed legged on the floor with her was, with his white button down shirt and over washed jeans, but he singlehandedly gave her the best compliment she could wish for. “Right?!” she exclaimed sitting straighter. “I thought so too! But everybody else acted as if they saw the best performance of their lives! I knew I couldn’t be the only one who taught that their interpretation of Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra was nothing but underwhelming.”

     “Damn right.” the boy nodded in agreement. “I actually looked forward to it because I prefer it over Romeo and Juliet, but I was so disappointed. You should have played Cleopatra!” he added in an afterthought. “Why didn’t you?”

     Y/N felt herself blush once again. “I never performed in front of anyone.” she confessed. “Apart from my mother an brother, that is.”

     “That’s a shame.” Jungkook murmured pensively. “You have real talent, storage room girl. Believe me, I’m an expert.”

     Being friends with Jungkook was easy, falling in love with him was even easier. It came so naturally that Y/N didn’t even have the chance to fully realize it before they were officially dating.

     He was everything Y/N wasn’t and everything she wanted to be. Even at 16 years old he already was a very confident boy. He was incredibly smart, funny and a little bit nerdy. He didn’t belong to the upper class of their high school social pyramid, nor the middle, but he had no care in matching those standards because he loved himself for who he was - Stark Trek t-shirts, consumed tennis shoes and all. 

     In the short year the two of them were together, from junior to senior year, Jungkook became the reason behind Y/N’s happiness. She wasn’t aware of how lonely she really had been while asking to be left alone. Jungkook taught her to be open towards the world, to be curious and to believe in herself and her abilities. Thanks to him and his never ending support Y/N came to realize that she wasn’t meant to hide inside the abandoned storage room on the second floor, but she deserved the chance to follow her dreams.

     Together they filed their applications for college: Jungkook always wanted to become an aerospace engineer and had set the personal - and ambitious - goal to work for NASA; Y/N, on the other hand, had worked hard during her last year in high school to win a scholarship for whichever Performing Arts College was willing to take her in - it didn’t matter which one because she knew she started her acting career late. All she wanted was to study to become an actress, to perform on stage and bring to life incredible stories, to be someone one day and someone else the other.

     But it was such a big dream, something so fickle and risky, that Y/N couldn’t help but being overwhelmed by fear, not only for her future but that of Jungkook’s as well, because after all, despite all the changes she had gone through, a part of her was still hiding from the world. So she did something stupid, something very cliché, that nevertheless seemed the right thing to do at that time: she broke up with him.

     It’s for his own good, she had thought. He is brilliant, I don’t want to hold him back.

     Jungkook fought her and for her. He was afraid something like this would happen, he was sure it wasn’t what she really wanted, he knew she was just afraid. But Y/N was a very talented actress indeed and for a moment, as she looked straight into his dark eyes and told him she didn’t love him anymore, Jungkook felt his confidence waver.

     “I’m really thankful for what you’ve done for me.” she had said. “I wouldn’t be who I am today if it wasn’t for you.”

     “Please don’t lie.” he had whispered, trying to stop the angry and disappointed tears from falling from his eyes. “Don’t pretend. Not with me.”

     “I’m not.” Y/N replied, her voice firm. “I loved you, I really did. You’ll be my first love forever, Kook.”

     And the very next day, just like in one of those cheesy television dramas her mother loved so much, she flew hundreds of miles away from him, trying to not looking back. 

     If she said she never regretted it over the following years, it would be a lie. As she started her new life, she never failed to think of him. She wondered how he was doing, if his dreams were coming true and if he ever thought of her as much as she did of him. As she grew up and matured, Y/N realized how stupid her choice had been and how important Jungkook’s role had been in shaping her personality and in breaking her shell. Y/N was sure of it: if he didn’t found her that day inside the storage room, she wouldn’t be who she was today.

     Years after she broke up with him, Jungkook still popped up into her mind every now and then. She thought of him the first time she was casted for a walk on role in a movie; she thought of him the first time her name was credited in an episode of a TV show; she thought of him the first time she won an award.

      She thought of him with regret and a little bit of melancholy. Y/N never forgot him. Not even when when became so famous she barely had the time and energy to think about herself.

      The first time Y/N heard his name spoken by someone else’s mouth, three years ago, was a complete shock. She never talked of him to anyone, apart form her mother, her brother and Jimin, her best friend and manager, so he was supposed to be a nobody to everyone else but herself. As it turned out, with a very mysterious turn of events, Jungkook had left the path towards aerospace engineering and had decided to take his chance with acting. And from what Y/N gathered from the overheard conversation, he was starting to make a name for himself as well. 

     That night, back in her multimillion dollar villa, Y/N researched his name on the internet for the first time. 

     He was new to the industry and there wasn’t much about him, it was like he popped out of nowhere. But it was definitely Jungkook, Y/N recognized him from the pictures. He had grown into a beautiful man, so handsome that she did a double take and then had to stop herself from drooling. It wasn’t like he was ugly when they were together, but he was just a skinny teenager back then and this was a man, a real man who had lost all of his baby fat and now had a razor sharp jaw and a muscular body. Apparently, he was the protagonist of an ongoing TV series that was gathering a lot of success putting him in the center of the attention. ‘The new heartthrob’, that was how he was being called.

     Y/N couldn’t help but wonder what happened after they lost contact with each other that made him change his career so drastically. Whenever she thought about him she imagined him working on some challenging project for NASA, never on a movie set. She remembered he was passionate about theatre and cinema, but never once he had expressed the desire to become an actor like her. Y/N didn’t know what to think.

     As the years passed, Y/N watched as his acting career grew, as he starred in a success after the other and as he earned the respect of even the most strict directors and critics.

     Y/N watched, yes, but from afar, never daring to contact him and secretly avoiding the chances to meet him again. 

     She had been successful, until now.

     The drive to the Dolby Theatre went far too quick for Y/N’s taste. She could barely remember how she got from the hotel room where she had been preparing to the black luxury van. Before she knew it her stylist was taking away her favorite slippers and was putting on her dress-matching Dolce&Gabbana heels.

     Y/N didn’t have the time to think. Three years of running away and finally the moment had come. Jeon Jungkook - her first love, her ‘the one that got away’, probably her biggest regret - was probably in the car behind hers.

     “Y/N, two minutes.” Jimin called out, warning her to get ready. “You know the deal. Deep breath and own that red carpet as you always do. And-”

     “I know.” Y/N interrupted him. “The left side is my best side.”

     The man, dressed up as well in a black tux, gave her a wink. “I’ll be right behind you. You got this.” he declared, looking at her intensely. “This is the one.”

     “Thanks, Chim. But from all we know I could be the next Di Caprio.” she joked, the roaring noise from the red carpet now deafening.

     “On my dead body.” he smirked. “Talk to you later, princess.”

     “Later.” she hugged him briefly. “Oh, can you please make sure my mom and Seokjin got in fine? I totally forgot to call them.”

     “Of course. My assistant is with them, anyways.” Jimin said, putting a hand on the door handle. “Ready?”

     Y/N took a deep breath, put on her best charming expression and nodded. “Ready.”

     As soon as he opened the door, Y/N was immediately hit by the boisterous and echoing call of the fans. She wasn’t sure if it was only her impression but it seemed like every single one of them was screaming her name. She was, indeed, one of the biggest names of the night, there was no use in denying it, but Y/N couldn’t help but wish they stopped making her presence so obvious.

     A young usher, pretending not so well to be indifferent and trying to be professional, guided her towards the beginning of the red carpet, hundreds of cellphones following her movements like magnets.

     “Please, come this way, miss Y/L/N.” the usher instructed in a slightly trembling voice. “There will be someone from the staff signaling you were to stop to pose for the photographers.”

     Y/N knew this already. She had attended countless of events like this, after all. Yet she didn’t say anything to the shy boy, preferring to smile at him sincerely. “Thank you very much.” she said, watching as he blushed violently.

     Y/N started her walk, Jimin and her stylist following a few steps behind to make sure that everything went smoothly. The photographers went wild as soon as they saw her, the flashes of their cameras blinding her almost angrily. She was used to it now, she had mastered the trick: squinting sexily and blinking strategically.

     As she walked slowly towards the entrance of the theatre, posing with confidence and channeling her best princess warrior, Y/N almost forgot the worries she had about Jungkook, until a new wave of screams echoed to her ears. She stiffened, even if imperceptibly. It was him, the line up said he would be walking right after her. 

     The time had finally come. Ten years had passed and she was seeing Jeon Jungkook again for the first time. 

     She continued to walk nonchalantly, every step confident and her chin up and proud. But once she reached the end of the red carpet and the photographers moved their attention away from her, Y/N couldn’t help but stop for a second, ignoring a fellow actress and ‘friend’ waving at her a few feet further. 

     She could feel him, she could feel his presence behind her back. She could either turn around and catch a glimpse of him, or resume walking and pretend he wasn’t there. It took her a couple of moments of indecisiveness, in which Jimin looked at her questioningly, before taking the umpteenth deep breath of the evening.

     She turned, the hem of her $30 000 black dress brushing almost magically over the carpet, and there he was. For a moment the memory of the nerdy boy from high school overlapped the image in front of her. She was well aware of the fact that he wasn’t that teenager anymore, she had seen his pictures, watched his movies and interviews. The boy she remembered was long gone: standing tall and proud, more than twenty feet from her, was now Jeon Jungkook ‘the actor’, dressed in a perfectly tailored night blue tux that highlighted his toned body, black patent leather shoes and impeccably styled hair.

     And he was staring - with his dark and deep black eyes - right back at her.

#bts #bts fanfic #purplearmynet #bangtanarmynet #thebtswritersclub #bts jeon jungkook #bts jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkook #jungkook angst #jungkook fluff #jungkook romance #dfdph #spotlight

[cerastes]

Right, so:

Idol culture is toxic, and toxic idol culture is one of my most hated things, I've never made any secret of it, and I get it brings a lot of unga bunga red Superchats, but Cover (parent company of Hololive) really keeps showing time and again that they are woefully incompetent and/or uncaring about their talent. If they really want to embrace this image of being a ~*~Virtual Idol Agency~*~, they could at least provide the prim and proper protection their talent needs and is entitled to. The moment you fashion yourself as an “idol agency”, you are opening the floodgates to a lot of profit, but also to a lot of toxicity, especially directed at your talent, because you are explicitly making them idols, objects of adoration on which people push their expectations and desires, and I am using the word “objects” as lamentably literally as I can in this context.

The least you could do is, you know, prove you are not indeed a soulless husk and actually stand up for your talent, providing them with the protection they require and deserve when faced with an audience that vehemently will crucify you the moment you are not their perfect ideal dream girlfriend?

Let’s talk about Mel: Mel had to pay for her lawyer out of her own pocket in order to deal with her stalker situation. Apparently, the stalker was her own manager. Cover did nothing and let her sort this out while she was clearly depressed and terrified, and I get it, some people will say “they can’t just fire that manager because he might leak personal information on other vtubers”, but I’m not talking about firing him, I’m talking about, you know, having paid for Mel’s lawyer and just in general having her back, actually take legal action against their terrible employee, because, you know, it’s their employee harassing their talent, they had an implicit duty to get involved, the fact that they didn’t speaks lengths of Cover management.

Then you have Mio nowadays: She’s on the brink of channel termination due to copyright strikes that hit her overnight, and they more or less have also left her to solve the issue on her own. Cover makes bank. How much money do they make? Well, of the top five most Superchated channels worldwide, Hololive takes four of those spots: Coco #1, Rushia #2, Pekora #4 and Aqua #5. Superchats, for those not in the know, are basically in-stream donations (of which YouTube takes a cut, and then, in the case of Hololive, Cover takes a cut), and what I’m trying to say here is that Cover definitely has more than enough money and projected profits to be able to purchase streaming rights from video game companies that make a fuss about it. They instead decide to let their talent deal with that by themselves.

We also have to address the Towa incident, just in case you think I’m exaggerating about the ‘toxic idol culture’ thing: Months ago, her mic picked up a male voice. A chunk of her fans got enraged by this and started asking her who the hell was that, to which she responded “it’s Hololive staff”, and people called her a liar. After calming down, Towa explained it was a friend of hers, and that she said it was Hololive staff because she got nervous in the moment. This prompted Cover to tell her to “take a break” for a number of weeks to let the heat die down (which happened at an important time for growth in her channel, hence why her sub count is substantially lower than her fellow 4th gens). Why? Because a bunch of her fans got furious about her knowing a man. The simple idea that their idol might interact with men outside of her streams is immediately infuriating to them because What If He’s Her Girlfriend, What Are My Chances Now, Why Is She Not As Ideally Pure As I Want Her To Be? Another situation in which Cover should’ve gotten their hands dirty and stood by their talent, but they washed their hands of the incident instead.

So, basically, this is nothing new, and this should be concerning: Mano Aloe did make a mistake, but she’s not the only one at fault. That TwitCast she forgot to delete was made with the consent of her manager, who also should have made sure it was deleted. Not only that, but Cover themselves should’ve made sure to double check everything before the 5th Gen debut to be certain everything was in order, as any respectable and competent show biz entity would, this is the most fundamental of the show biz basics, and yet they failed to ascertain this. The result? Fans doxxed her, harassed her by calling her personal phone, and left a ton of negative comments in her comment sections and Twitter. Cover’s response? Make Mano Aloe make an apology video (~*~like an idol would~*~) and ban her for two weeks. Again, Cover also messed up here, so they should’ve taken their share of the blame, but I suppose it’s easier to just use your talent as a bullet shield in a shootout.

Whether they terminated her or she decided to walk away on her own, it speaks loudly of Cover’s incompetence when you consider every other case prior to hers. This is only limiting myself to Hololive, by the way, Holostars has had their own stuff. I hope the actress behind Mano can find peace and can heal, because she didn’t deserve getting harassed as horribly as she was over what could’ve been solved and settled in far, far more peaceful and productive manners.

#hololive #mano aloe