#if they were uncomfortable with the rumors they’d behave differently

[nalyra-dreaming]

Some people on Twitter are angry cause a bunch of fans have implied that there is something going on between Jacob and Sam

Nonny, I mean they can be, but… they gave us their name.

It was over when they said that 😅

That said, and just to make that clear, I don’t care nor is it my business, but honestly, whatever it is (and I go here with Eric and just won’t characterize it), they don’t make a secret of it, so… 🤷🏽‍♀️

Let’s just enjoy all the lightning in a bottle, right?! ;)))

🤷🏽‍♀️

#anonymous #asks #ask nalyra #if they were uncomfortable with the rumors they’d behave differently #it’s as simple as that imho #and ERIC called them out on it aallllll the way back then at the end of the linked video #wven before the joined name #what on earth is a fandom to do ;))) #jam reiderson #sam reid #jacob anderson #interview with the vampire #iwtv #amc iwtv #amc interview with the vampire

[kinetic-elaboration]

September 17: 3x07 Day of the Dove

I am incredibly discombobulated today—usual weekend nocturnal shenanigans I guess! Anyway it’s somehow midnight. Gonna try to write up these note on the Classic episode The Day of the Dove in as efficient a manner as possible.

Hmm, a planet with wavy pink Fraggle plants. I like it already.

But where is Spock? Very suspicious.

I really appreciate Kirk giving a little speech to set up the overall question/issue for us. (I know he does this all the time with the Captain’s logs but this is out loud and so… more obviously expository.)

Oh no, it’s our old friends…the Klingons.

I will admit that this ONE TIME, the Klingon is being reasonable. Like, it is reasonable to think that Kirk and the Enterprise attacked his ship, given that his hip WAS attacked, and who else would it be?

Three years of peace between the Klingons and the Federation? That is inclusive of the show so all this tension must technically be “peace” and also implies there was something more like a direct war going on, like, right before Kirk got the captaincy.

Zoolander voice: What is this, a colony of the INVISIBLE?

“We have no devil. But we understand the habits of yours.”

No takers? No takers on the torture? No volunteers to be mercilessly tortured by the Klingons?

Star Trek Beyond could have had Kirk and Chekov bond over being brothers! I mean, to other people.

They’ll kill 100 hostages at the first sign of treachery. He does know there are only 400-some people on the ship right? Maybe you should pace yourself, Kang.

Kirk’s so badass he needs MULTIPLE guns trained on him just to use the phone.

Oh-ho secret message to Spock. Which version of the iPhone will be capable of doing THAT?

The Klingons are “suspended in transit” is an awfully nice way of saying they’re just dematerialized atoms in space. Philosophy major and/or Bones nightmare fuel.

How did Kang not see this coming, by the way? Like, he just says “I’m taking your ship now, me and my 6 men versus your 400-some men, and I’ll do this by simply declaring it to be so. Now let’s beam up to your ship, where I’ll be greatly outnumbered, and there are armed security guards all around me.” Guess he’s been reading The Secret!

WIFE AND SCIENCE OFFICER

Aka the most important part of this whole episode.

Kirk’s face is very ?????? You can have both????

It’s legitimately not even important for her to be the science officer tbqh. Like that is so gratuitous. That’s just in there to drive me insane.

"We're prisoners, somehow, after I demanded to come on the ship, assuming they'd just give it to me without any kind of fight. How DID this happen?”

Federation death camps lol—someone’s been watching Fox News.

I do kind of wonder… is this an actual rumor that goes around the Klingon homeworld or is it something that the alien entity put in her head specifically to make her angrier right now? I mean it really could be either.

I also appreciate this episode for being pretty much the only one to actually attempt to give the Klingons a reason for being as they are. The Romulans… maybe aren’t well-described, but they do have a sort of regalness to them, appropriate for being related to Vulcans, and you can kind of imagine that they are the way they are because they’re Vulcans without the intense self-control. Plus they’re literally only in 2 TOS eps and in the second, the Federation are the aggressors. But the Klingons show up a half-dozen times only to be depicted each time as just like Cartoonishly Bad, aggressive, violent, and selfish for basically no reason. And I mean, some people really are!! But TOS has so much nuance in other places, that it always seemed a little disappointing to me that the Klingons are really just like ‘well we’re just bad and we hate everyone and we really like killing I guess.” At least in this ep there’s a little more added to that: that there is poverty on their world, that they feel aggrieved, that they feel unprotected, that taking and conquering is how they look after themselves…

I think that’s later in the episode though.

He’s detaining them in the LOUNGE lol. With their favorite dishes available to them to eat. Absolutely barbarous conditions.

I can’t believe Chekov is hanging in the elevator with the cool kids. Like, one of these things really isn’t like the others.

Kang is officially sure of himself for someone currently imprisoned in the lounge, that most fearsome of Federation death camps.

Hmm, could the glittery light alien have taken over??

You know what, that's a lot of tasks for Johnson to do all by himself: search the whole ship, fix the engines, and free 400 people.

Sulu would love this: everyone gets a sword!!

“Bridge. I gotta show this to Sulu immediately.”

Klingons have maintained a dueling tradition. That’s interesting. Finally some characterization going on.

Spock is really living up to his logical nature today. Everyone else has gone off the emotional deep end and he’s like “have you considered this completely rational explanation that accounts for the actual, observed facts??”

Whoops Chekov is actually an only child. Scratch that previous Beyond headcanon. (Interesting that his dead brother does really resemble Sam though—killed on a research colony??)

Love that Sulu knows that about him though.

Oh, that’s a pretty schematic picture of the Enterprise. I want that on a t-shirt.

Lol the pan out to the armory, now filled with… swords!!

Do ALL of these men have a fetish for swords? Sulu and fencing, Spock displaying swords in his quarters, and Kirk in his San Francisco apartment, and Scotty salivating over this Scottish blade.

“Klingon units.”

Finally Sulu gets his sword! It’s what he deserves.

Love that the shiny light alien also has a fetish for swords.

Oh no, it’s our old adversary, an alien life force.

What is the alien’s purpose? Um, I’m pretty sure its purpose is to start shit.

“An appropriate choice of terms, Captain.” I don’t even remember what this is referring to but I think it’s pretty clear that Spock is enjoying himself during a crisis again.

Bones, being so dramatic. Were there atrocities? He’s talking about the Klingons as if they were literally hacking off limbs—it’s a few stab wounds here and there, chill.

Oooh, time to behave like military men—strong words. (But I thought it wasn’t the military?? @ S**** P****) (This might not even be my best argument, given the context of this episode, but I’m sticking with it.)

This is like a giant game of capture the flag.

AU that’s just about the Enterprise crew playing capture the flag with the Klingons.

Sulu in the background standing guard with his sword

Damn, turning on Spock with the slurs now!!

Spock was absolutely ready to kill him. Like he would 100% have taken him out with a blow to the head. And he’d been doing such a good job of not feeling the alien’s effects so far! Admittedly, that was a strong provocation though.

Honestly, I really like this scene. It’s uncomfortable and tense and you can really see how the alien is bringing out the worst possible influences of their respective races. And I liked how Spock was definitely full on pre-Reform Vulcan for a minute there. It was a more effective portrayal of what that might have looked like than All Our Yesterdays tbqh.

A result of… stress?

Kirk got himself out of it first. He’s so strong. He knows himself so well, he cannot be outsmarted by any alien.

“We’ve been taught to think in terms other than war.”

“The alien brings out the worst of us—patriotic drumbeating…even race hatred.”

He’s so sad; he can’t imagine thinking like that about Spock :(

Sulu in a Jeffries tube! A man of many talents. It’s okay bb, take credit for turning on the lights.

The alien must have been getting bored. The Klingons must have been doing too well, and the playing field needs to be leveled for maximum shit-stirring.

“Let’s find that alien.” That’s how I ALWAYS feel.

Oh, Kang, you’re so close—“What power supports our battle but thwarts our victory.” So, so close to getting it.

ALIEN DETECTED.

Spock takes his sword, of course.

“Jim.” Obligatory Jim moments hit differently when they’re not so obligatory.

“Jim—stop hitting my protégé. And put that sword down.”

Kirk looks so sad, picking Chekov up to carry him bridal style.

Also in addition to ‘race hatred’ I think we need to add ‘rape-y tendances’ to the bad stuff that the alien is inspiring here.

“A brief surge of racial bigotry. Most distasteful.” Spock winning for understatement of the year.

They're assuming the alien is trying to test out their relative powers but I think it just wants entertainment. I mean, doesn’t it look like a naughty little thing?

Mara’s outfit is… little shorts? Interesting. Usually not my style but she makes it work.

Spock doesn’t even look at Johnson as he falls lol. Another one bites the dust.

“It exists on the hate of others.”

What does this remind me of? Oh, the Vast of Night and the whole “aliens made us do every bad thing ever” conspiracy theory. At least this one makes more sense, in part because it is not quite so overwhelmingly broad!

All hostile attitudes must be eliminated, he says, and there's Mara right behind Kirk giving him a death stare lol.

Kang is so obviously posing. Google Earth, always taking pictures.

Only a few minutes before drifting forever in space becomes inevitable? Good thing Kirk works well under pressure.

“Well… do whatever you can, Scotty. You know the drill.” Doesn’t even bother giving real directions anymore. We’ve been in this scenario before.

“So we drift in space, with only hatred and bloodshed aboard.”

And the 392 people below just get to…live in Enterprise prison, I guess.

Star date: Armageddon. So dramatic!

I’m not even making that up; that’s an actual quote. Can you imagine being an Admiral listening to this?

“Stop the war now.” An actual line, really aired on television.

Spock wants to threaten the wife lol. That's the old pre-Reform Vulcan seeping through. Surak who?

Damn, Kang is cold. “Eh, she gets the concept of being killed in battle.” They’re gonna need marriage counseling after this.

“There is another way. Mutual trust and help.” Yes that’s my hero!!

“No one can guarantee the actions of another.” Can’t remember the context of this entirely anymore, but great line.

The entity is loving this—multi-person choreographed sword fight!!

"Those who hate and fight must stop themselves. otherwise it is not stopped.” Another baller line. Spock has a lot of deep thoughts today. And so does Kirk. And Kang.

Kirk tries to reason with the alien. Nice try.

“Shoo. Shoo, alien. Off the ship, go away.”

Omg that last moment—Kang slapping Kirk’s back way too hard, Spock’s completely ridiculous wide-eyed expression when he does, like some sort of combo of amusement and confusion, and then Sulu just passing on by in the background….

Then the alien just yeets itself into space. And that’s the end!

Always feels weird when there’s no wrap up on the bridge.

Also, what are they going to do with the Klingons? They have no ship. They really did come out of this a lot worse than Kirk and co. No ship, huge casualties—and no one to blame even, but the alien.

I feel like the alien messed up a little in killing so many Klingons. Like, it could have accomplished its purpose, angering the Klingons and turning them on Kirk, by attacking the ship a little less violently—you know they’d react to 5 deaths pretty much the same as 400, and then there would be many more people to fight forever and produce that sweet sweet anger!

Maybe the alien’s powers aren’t strong enough to influence 800 people though. Also it wants equal forces and 800 people wouldn’t fit on the Enterprise, one assumes. So it still makes sense.

That was, of course, an excellent episode. 100% agree with is classic status, even though the main things I remembered going in were the wife + science officer bit, and everyone laughing at the end in a really forced, fake way, in order to make the alien go away.

I thought the Klingons were a lot better/more interesting today than usual. First, I think Kang is a better character, or a better actor maybe, than the others; he has a certain way about him that is… more watchable, more sympathetic. And he’s always saying these really dramatic things that make it seem likely he writes patriotic Klingon war poetry in his off time. Also, including his wife made them seem more… not human obviously, but normal. Not just cardboard cut-out villains. And of course the actual lightly specific motivations I earlier mentioned helped too.

Also, the plotting was very good: it built up slowly but surely over time, so at first the alien’s influence wasn’t that obvious, and then it became more so, and then it became horrifically obvious and extreme. And then you had to re-evaluate earlier moments: was that the alien changing facts in their heads, or a real part of the animosity between humans and Klingons? And it wasn’t always clear, which I appreciated. The tension when the people were at their worst wasn’t overdone, like in that moment with Scotty, Spock, and Kirk—or even in Chekov’s assault on Mara, tbh. The various strategies of the different sides were very entertaining too; there was never a dull moment, and they fit in a lot of straight-up actions and twists into 50 minutes.

The possible threat was truly terrifying, also: stuck in a space ship, forever, unable to die, feeling the worst possible emotions all the time, besieged, angered, despairing, fighting a war that can’t be won, being injured and suffering only to recover and fight again, and it never stops… A perfect nightmare mixture of insanity and violence and pain. And the alien, in encouraging hatred and anger, doesn’t discriminate between sides: they turn on each other just as much as on the Klingons, breeding paranoia and infighting. For eternity.

The episode also felt much more strongly anti-war than I remember tbh. Like it was not subtle. Kirk literally says “stop the war” in so many words. He has a part in his speech where he talks about the possibility of other aliens out there, encouraging other wars. And while I do think “maybe the aliens are making us do it” is a cop out explanation, or would be if it were real, the scenario gave the show a lot of room to say, like, pretty ballsy things: to include “patriotic drum beating” along with “race hatred” in a list of corrupting feelings they were experiencing; to show how the same instincts that lead to warring also lead to sexual assault and the aforementioned ‘race hatred;” to reveal the true horror of an endless war by making the participants unkillable and sticking them in a singular space ship in the middle of nowhere; to imply that the combatants of war gain nothing from it, but outside or third-party entities will pull strings of their own design to profit from the conflict as long as possible; even to make an impassioned plea to camera to stop the endlessness of the conflict. Like I can’t even totally unpack this but it is a lot!

Finally, it was also a great Kirk episode, which of course is my most important factor. He’s smart; he’s strong; he’s so sure of himself and his values that he cannot be manipulated to mindless hatred, he represents the values of the Federation, and the show itself; he treats even his enemies with basic respect and humanity; and ultimately, he saves the day.

Okay I was not efficient in writing this up at all! It is very late!!

#the year 2021 #2021: star trek #2021: fandom thoughts #star trek tos

[jellysharkbat]

Okay, I have to butt in with this. Because I don’t think I’ve really seen it discussed or explored in any great detail. What is it, you ask?

Cullen’s family. Specifically how they (and Cullen) would react to meeting each other again after spending 17 years apart. The most I’ve seen is something along the lines of Mia basically (aggressively) mothering him. Which isn’t bad, but I don’t think it’s realistic. And I’ve seen next to nothing about Branson and Rosalie. Not to mention that all 3 of them could have families (well, we definitively know that Branson does). I don’t think I’ve seen anything that even comes close to a realistic representation of their relationship with Cullen.

So I kind of want to break this down a bit as I discuss it. Buckle up, because this might be really long.

Edit: This got super long, so if you actually read it all, kudos to you. I’m surprised you stuck around for this insanely long ramble.

Okay. So let’s talk about Mia first, since she seems to be the most popular about of Cullen’s siblings. What do we know about her? Not much. Of course, I’m no expert and I don’t own any texts relating to Dragon Age so I could be wrong, but it seems to me that we only really know two things about Mia: she’s the eldest of the Rutherford brood and that she’s the one who’s been keeping contact with Cullen.

Well, she tries anyways. She always seems to know where Cullen is and I’m assuming that Cullen has informed her about his whereabouts, to an extent. Knowing how reluctant Cullen seems to be to write to his siblings, he probably doesn’t go further than “I’m currently residing in Kirkwall” or “Send your letters to an Inquisition post; it’ll find me.” I don’t believe anyone other than Cullen would tell her that kind of info. I don’t see the Order being particularly helpful, since she’s not a part of it. Likely they’d just send her on her way. And there’s no way she’d think to send a letter to the Inquisition, of all things. She might be able to find a post of theirs on her own, but she wouldn’t be able to assume that her little brother helped form the damn thing. So, Cullen must have informed her of how to contact him. But beyond that, there doesn’t seem to be much interaction. Their relationship exists through letters, and for the most part it appears to be fairly one-sided. I mean, Mia does write to him, sort of scolding him for not even telling her that’s he’s alive and doing alright!

(side note: I think it would be a lot easier to be the ‘big sister’ via letters, but face to face will be very different)

Don’t get me wrong; I don’t think Cullen dislikes his family or anything like that. I’m positive he cares about them a great deal, and I can see him having someone keep an eye on them in South Reach just in case. But he keeps his distance. And we can infer based on Mia’s letters that Cullen rarely writes back to her. As for Branson and Rosalie, we have no evidence that there is any sort of contact between them and Cullen. It seems like anything regarding his younger brother and sister is all relayed through Mia. Cullen himself never writes to them individually, and they don’t seem to write to him. Actually, I don’t think there’s any mention of Rosalie at all? I could be wrong, but I don’t recall seeing anything like that. As far as a sibling bond and relationship....it’s barely there. Cullen is related to Mia, Branson, and Rosalie by blood. But that’s really it. There’s no actual relationship. As far as we know, they haven’t met in 17 years. Since they were children. And young ones, in the case of Branson and Rosalie. Hell, it’s possible that Rosalie barely remembers anything about Cullen! We don’t have an exact date of their age gaps, but it’s possible that Rosalie was too young to actually retain any solid memories of Cullen. After all, I certainly don’t remember most things from when I was a kid. I’m sure you don’t either. It’s a bit of a blur. There’s no reason to assume that it’s any different for Rosalie, in particular. Memories of him are likely to be pretty hazy with maybe a handful of instances that she remembers (mostly) clearly. It’s been a long, long time since Cullen was actually their brother. He’s like that relative that you know exists, but you don’t know anything about and don’t really see any reason to make an effort to form some sort of bond with them.

They are strangers. All three of them are basically strangers to Cullen. They’ve spent more time apart than together. Cullen grew up with them for 13 years. And then he grew up another 17 without them. They were children when they were last together. How you were as a child, and how you are as an adult are pretty different.

Like I said, a lot of people seem to like the idea of Mia barging in and mothering Cullen pretty heavily (ie ordering him around or being able to kick his ass at chess). Irl, I don’t believe she would do that. It’s fun to think about, but I can’t imagine Mia would actually behave in such a manner towards Cullen. Branson and Rosalie? Definitely, after all she’s their older sister. She grew up with them. But not Cullen. And actually being face to face with him would be pretty intimidating. They are effectively meeting a total stranger. You don’t just start bossing a stranger around. And I mean, meeting. They aren’t getting together with Cullen, or reconnecting with him. They are meeting Cullen, the adult for the first time. They know next to nothing about him (and he knows only what Mia told him in her letters).

The more Mia searches for him, the more likely it is that she’ll hear things about him. Rumors about the Ferelden Circle, or his time in Kirkwall. I doubt it very much if she stumbled upon someone who had something kind to say about Cullen Rutherford (which is a big reason why Cullen never contacts his family, I think. He’s far too ashamed of his past actions and doesn’t want to involve his family in the ugliness he helped create. In his mind, he’s not the good person he tried so hard to be, or what his family probably assumes he’d be). So yeah, they’d probably would’ve heard at least a couple of things about Cullen Rutherford by the time they met him. And then there’s the fact that he’s Commander of the fastest growing army in Thedas. He helped create and holds incredibly important positions within the Inquisition. It’s not like any random Joe-Schmo can walk up to Cullen and talk to him like a normal person. His authority alone would be intimidating.

And then there’s Cullen himself. He’s a private person. He’s done his best to keep his family at an arm’s length (otherwise why wait so long to meet them?). I think he’d be pretty damn nervous to have them around, but he’s got enough of a poker face to seem like he’s not bothered. But I can definitely see him wanting to run for the hills just to avoid this whole thing.

The first time they see each other is going to be horribly awkward. They’re family, but they’re not family with Cullen. He’s just a man they’re related to (I really can’t stress that enough, fam). And Cullen is going to see 3 adults who don’t know anything about...anything. As far as we know, aside from the destruction of Honnleath during the Blight, they’d all led relatively peaceful and unimportant lives. They aren’t exactly going to treat him like the long-lost brother he is like they do in the movies. No giant hugs or tears or anything like that.

And I think that with Cullen being who he is, as he;s struggling with his family being in front of him, he might unintentionally give them a bit of a cold reception. Definitely no “OMG HI how are you?? I missed you so much!” from his end!

So yeah, those first few meetings? Super awkward and uncomfortable and quiet (probably) for everyone as they struggle to find a topic of conversation. I’d like to see more of that. I’d like to see how an actual relationship forms between the four of them over time; assuming everyone is willing to put in that effort. I mean, as far as we know, Branson and Rosalie could be totally content with never having Cullen in their lives (again, it’s Mia who has been seeking out and writing to Cullen). They’re used to his absence, after all. He’s more like a distant memory than anything substantial. I don’t think that’d actually be the case, but you know. It’s possible. I also want to see their frustration about how Cullen is so tight-lipped about himself. I think Cullen would be frustrated with himself too, but he’s got good arguments to not share anything (or so he argues with himself). He’s going to be reluctant, if not downright obstinate, about sharing anything about his life thus far. If anything, that Vow of Silence he took when he became a Templar seems to cover his entire life at the Chantry and while he’s no longer a Templar, he has no intention of breaking his Vows. At least not willy-nilly like. I’d like to see how they deal with Cullen’s trauma; if they are able to witness it. After all, he’s a warrior. He’s led a very different life from them and he’ll see the world very differently. For instance, Cullen can run a sword through someone with ease, and kill them. I seriously doubt his siblings would be able to do the same if they were in a position to do so. Think about it: can you actually kill a living, breathing human being? I can’t. Most people can’t actually kill someone. I seriously doubt they would be willing or able to either. While I think that Cullen is inherently a kind and polite man (refer back to how he was before Kinloch Hold fell), he was trained to be a fighter from a young age and he’s very much desensitized to the violence that comes with his lifestyle.

I also want to know how they react to Cullen’s lyrium withdrawal and what it actually means to be addicted to the stuff. And what could happen when someone stops cold turkey. I don’t think the Chantry tells the masses about lyrium. It’s known that Templars take it, but other than that they know nothing about it. They don’t know what happens when you take it and how fatal it is when you stop. I’d also like to see Cullen react to their own families, if he ever gets the chance to. Being in the military for so long, I imagine he didn’t spend a lot of time with kids aside from when he was a recruit himself. Personally, I like to think he’d be a great uncle (and if he had a child he’d certainly be wrapped around their little finger) but again, a bit awkward at first. But at least kids (especially young ones) don’t know or care about the past so. That’s a plus at least.

By the way, I mentioned how people do seem to have Mia kick Cullen’s ass at chess. And I don’t actually think that’s going to happen. At least, maybe it’d be a rare occasion. They were kids the last time they played. We don’t know anything about Mia, or how sharp she’s kept her skills. We have no idea if she improved on them or not. We do know she’s teaching Branson’s son to play, but that doesn’t really mean anything.

Cullen grew up in an elite military organization. He went through the ranks and earned some high positions in it. He’s among the best of the best. He’s led hundreds of Templars and Inquisition soldiers. He’s intelligent. And we know that he does like chess enough to play often. He seems to have played it regularly whenever he could.

Hell, it’s literally his job to come up with all sorts of strategies (he’s almost certainly done that in the mess that is Kirkwall, and now within the Inquisition).

And chess is a game of strategy. So I think it’d be pretty damn hard to win a game against him. He’s going to be thinking several steps ahead and calculating both of their moves to win in his favor. I’m not saying Mia couldn’t do the same, but she hasn’t made a career out of it.

If she wins against Cullen, it’s either because he allowed it, or she got very lucky. He’s not a little boy who can have the wool pulled over his eyes anymore.

So yeah, long story short, I don’t think people actually think about how Cullen and his family are literal strangers. They spent more years apart than together, and with very limited contact between. Being related by blood doesn’t change that. I’d like to see more of that, please. And you know, if I’ve been looking in all the wrong places, let me know that too. XD

#Cullen Rutherford #Long ass post #sorry #I understand if you decide this is way too long and peace out #XD

[crimeronan]

no supernatural au concept i haven’t been able to stop thinking about since considering ronan and opal were once the same age

the lynch family has a reputation.  partly it’s because they’re fucking weird, but let’s be real -- every rural town has its share of characters.  weird farmers are par for the course.  if the lynch family just kept to themselves at the barns, no one would know they existed.  however niall lynch is a swaggering larger-than-life storybook hero who loves attention and scandal, so: the lynch family has a reputation

by and large, the household is made up of known entities.  niall, the irishman who never shuts the fuck up.  aurora, the quiet beautiful wife with the bizarrely gorgeous beadwork at craft fairs. declan, the eldest son who’s got one foot in DC and won’t ever look back when he gets there.  matthew, the youngest boy with the enthusiasm and adoration and intellectual prowess of a golden retriever puppy

however.  the lynch twins are largely folkloric

it’s not just that they never seem to appear in public.  it’s that there are a dozen decade-old stories told by knitting folks on their porches that cannot POSSIBLY all be true, including:

the lynch twins set fire to the post office

the lynch twins stole four pallets of soda from the back of a truck unloading at the henrietta general store and drank all the evidence

the lynch twins lured a man into the woods and stabbed him in the leg

the lynch twins helped the local vet’s office coordinate 30 TNR procedures because they’ve befriended a colony of feral cats

the lynch twins trained a rotating cast of corvids to shit on the mayor when he leaves his office every evening

the lynch twins were banned from three local churches after incidents involving a statue of mary, stained glass worth several thousand dollars, and the preacher’s microphone respectively

adam doesn’t give much of a shit about local gossip but has gleaned quite a bit of it when being deferential and polite to middle-aged women at the dollar store.  it takes him a month of attending aglionby to put together that ronan and declan are siblings (they look unbelievably alike, but their body language and speech are SO different) and another week after that to realize ronan’s one-half of the unidentified lynch family variables

“isn’t there another one of him?” adam blurts

declan looks up and blinks, nonplussed rather than smooth for once in his life.  “excuse me?”

adam’s eating lunch and has ended up at a table with declan not because of friendliness, but because declan’s taking a break from his roving cast of intransient social interactions to work on college apps and adam’s getting a head start on homework.  neither is here to make friends.  adam nods across the room at ronan, who appears to be constructing a fully landscaped mountain sculpture out of french fries

declan says “god, i wish” as ronan upends a bottle of ketchup over the fries and causes a volcanic eruption that obliterates everything in the lunch table’s path

that tells adam absolutely nothing but also he doesn’t really care.  later, when he and gansey are friends, and he’s no closer to understanding ronan but much more actively annoyed by him, he asks gansey the same thing

“oh, his sister!” gansey says, and beams.  this at least explains why she doesn’t go to aglionby.  “she’s great.  she’s taught me a lot about what plants want to kill you”

adam can’t decide what to make of this.  once upon a time he’d think that the affection of someone like gansey predisposed the mysterious lynch sister toward being like declan, but it turns out gansey reserves that ebullient expression for losers like him and ronan and noah alone, so.  more data necessary

it’s important to note that this isn’t like, occupying a huge part of adam’s mind.  it’s just idle querying because he likes knowing things.  to that end, he asks ronan once if he’d ever met ronan’s sister when adam attended the public junior high.  they’d be in the same grade, right??

ronan gets weird and evasive with some response about how she homeschools with his mom, and adam’s like okay, some religious cult thing with the women running the farm. whatever. not my issue

adam and ronan get slowly closer over time, etcetc, you know how it goes.  eventually adam's invited to the barns.  his first few visits are normal.  suspiciously normal.  aurora is loving and gentle in a way that makes adam skittish - probably more due to his own issues than any Actual malevolence, but who knows - and there is zero mention or sign of a girl living there

it doesn’t Really bother adam, but it kind of bothers him.  less because he’s dying to meet her and more because equations that don’t add up make him nervous.  his running list of theories include 1) she doesn’t exist 2) she’s dead 3) she’s at some elite boarding school for girls in connecticut 4) she’s an emancipated minor 5) she’s not an emancipated minor but has run away anyway 6) she’s a fugitive from justice 7) she’s in prison 8) she’s dead but, like, worse this time

adam carefully and subtly raises his concerns to ronan by asking, “so is your sister being tortured in your attic or what?”

ronan, reasonably, is like, “the fuck?”

adam’s like, “look, all i’m saying is that when a twin goes missing in a story and no one seems to care, something sinister’s afoot.  that’s all i’m saying here.”

ronan’s like, “say the word ‘afoot’ again.  you sound like gansey.  come on”

he takes adam out for a walk in the woods, which seems like a pretty murdery way to respond.  adam, uncomfortably aware of that rumor about luring people to the woods and stabbing them in the leg, is like okay i’m about to die here.  i’ve uncovered a lifetime movie plot and now i’m gonna be buried in unmarked barrel #457.  what a way to go

this is pretty much confirmed when he gets attacked

he hits the ground before he’s really registered anything beyond a surprise impact.  it drives the breath out of his lungs. he flips onto his back right away.  ronan’s got half a foot of height on him and stupidly long legs so a sprinting escape doesn’t seem viable.  he’s gonna have to rely on the old-fashioned power of fingernails and kicking

he has time to see a pair of blown-pupil eyes WAY too close to his face before the weight disappears from him.  the culprit is a girl, late teens, with hair that’s probably blonder when the matted dirt is washed out of it.  “for fuck’s fucking sake,” ronan is saying, hauling her to her feet and blessedly away from adam’s vulnerable internal organs, “why. WHY.”

“holy shit.”  adam sits up, clutching his chest.  he can feel every bone in his body.  “god. god. god”

the girl is almost as tall as ronan.  she’s dressed in some kind of baggy coverall-ish getup that might once have been an army parachute.  she is not wearing any shoes.  there’s some blood on her face from a recently-opened scab, and also a black speck on one cheek that adam thinks is a smashed fly

“you didn’t jump gansey!” ronan is saying, extremely exasperated.  “why!”

“i didn’t have my hammock yet when gansey first came,” she says.  she does not sound remotely sorry

adam looks up and discovers that there is in fact a hammock stretched between the trees.  it’s one of those heavy-duty camping numbers with thick canvas and a full insect net.  it’s also thirty feet in the air.  there are branches on the way down, but they are very precariously spaced.  adam does not want to know how she parkoured to leap onto his shoulders

“when you snap someone’s neck,” ronan says, “i’m not helping you hide the body”

“who says i haven’t already?”

“the fuck? and you didn’t ask me to help hide the body?”

she darts a few feet away and pulls herself into a tree.  adam watches with slight fascination as she shimmies out along a long branch until it dips under her weight.  as he gets to his feet, trying to piece together his wilted dignity, she rides her makeshift nature elevator down until she’s staring into his eyes again.  hugging the branch like a snake.  absolutely no consideration for how normal human beings behave. it’s almost marvelous

“sufficiently free of my attic, parrish?” ronan asks

“uh, yeah. yep”

“so this is opal,” ronan says

opal flips over so she’s hanging from the branch like a sloth.  then hooks her legs around it and reaches down until her palms are flat on the ground.  cartwheels out of the tree like a particularly feral acrobat.  adam jerks back to avoid being smacked by a faceful of twigs at the whipcrack slingshot of the branch bouncing back

opal pulls a pocketknife from one of the folds in the DIY parachute sewing machine tick protection onepiece from hell.  adam eyes her warily

“opal, this is parrish. or adam. whichever. don’t stab him”

“god,” adam says again

opal beams.  she opens the pocketknife, but all she does is start cleaning bits of plaque from between her teeth with the tip, which is somehow so much worse than stabbing.  adam looks at ronan and finds him pinching the bridge of his nose.  it occurs to adam that this is the only time he’s EVER seen ronan express any sense of embarrassment in any social situation.  ronan has no sense of propriety.  adam didn’t know he was capable of feeling embarrassed

he immediately likes opal just for that.

“yes,” opal says, unconcerned, answering a question no one’s actually asked.  “ronan is the normal one”

#i spent nearly. 2 hours writing this stupid thing. this concept is so excellent #trc #pynch #opal lynch #my writing #this was SUPPOSED to be short enough i wouldn't have to readmore it but. shrug emoji #adam parrish #ronan lynch

[queenjunoking]

Wolf Taming Pt 29

CW: Noncon - Shock Collar - Pain - Petplay - Drugs - Kidnapping  - Manipulation

Z

Nothing felt real.

Maybe it wasn’t.

Eos wouldn’t have taken Sasha away from me. The Society wouldn’t have let her take Sasha, I had done nothing wrong. I gave her a good home. There was no way she would rename her. Sasha was her name, it was meant for her. 

She wouldn’t have sent a retrieval team after me. That couldn’t have been her. It didn’t make any sense.

None of this could be real. But I looked into the empty cage, the door hanging open, it cleared my head a little. Even if it didn’t feel real it had to be. The door felt real. The sound it made when I opened and shut it was real.

I walked back into the toy room and grabbed the old shock collar and it’s remote. I wrapped it around my neck and walked back in front of the cage. I pressed the button and felt the electricity wash over me as the seconds slowly passed. 

The pain felt real.

But the cage was empty.

So what could I do now? I took off the collar and dropped it onto the floor before I took out my phone. It was noon. I had lost hours of time just sitting here. But it didn’t feel like any time had passed. It felt like just seconds ago Eos had walked out. That Sasha had been sitting in her cage.

I scrolled through my phone. I didn't have a lot of contacts. Satori had to have given me up. How else would Eos know anything? Every contact in my phone was someone in Eos's social circle. None of them were safe to talk too.

Except for one. Briar.

I hadn’t really talked to her in over a year. Briar was a strange person who made me feel very uncomfortable while being one of the few people who treated me like a normal person when I joined the Society. Sometimes it was easy to forget what I had been doing when I was talking to her, everyone else was always caught up in their work and it was hard to escape from it.

We talked a bit after I left my breaker work for the Auction House, but I ended up shutting almost everyone out after I got Penny. Everyone but Eos because she just wouldn’t stop coming around when I wouldn’t answer the phone. She had encouraged me to spend all my time with Penny. I had loved Penny so much. Until I didn’t. Until one day she was no longer the person I had felt something for that I hadn’t in such a long time. Maybe something I had never felt before.

Who knew if this was even Briar’s number anymore, for all I knew she had changed it several times over. I doubted she worked for the Auction House anymore. She always had some vague plans she was working towards that she never elaborated on.

I had no one else I could turn to. No clue what I could do to get Sasha back. Trust is hard in the Society. Why would you trust such gleefully evil people? Even if Briar was nicer than most of the other people I’ve met here, she was still a member and who knows what she might be like now. Vulnerability was dangerous. But I had to try and give my trust blindly. I pressed call and waited.

It kept ringing.

Her number had probably changed.

Or maybe she didn’t want to talk to me anymore after I had ignored her for so long.

I was about to hang up when I heard a voice on the other end. “Z? Everything ok?”

I didn’t really know what to say. Do I just tell her what happened? What if she doesn’t care? Or worse, what if she’s friends with Eos now? I did the only thing I could think of now that I had gone through the trouble to call her.

Briar

She hung up on me. 

It had been over a year since I had last gotten to talk to her. She was a difficult person to work with. A conversation with her could be like navigating a maze, one wrong turn and you’d hit one of the walls she put up. I worked with her for over six months and barely made it past the surface level with her. I was desperate to learn more.

But then she left. I managed to stay in contact with her for a little while, but once she got ahold of Penny it became impossible to get her attention. The last time I had heard from Z was hearing Penny was sold. Then there were the rumors about what had happened last night that were spreading.

I knew Eos was always hanging around her. I knew she was untrustable. But I knew Z well enough, she went along with Eos because it was easier than rebuking her. Outside of the occasional violent outburst Z was a fairly passive person. I never did figure out what set those off.

I dialed her number and waited for her to pick up. No answer. I dialed again. I was starting to get worried. What if something was wrong? After the fourth call I sent a red notification. I’d wait the entire day if I needed too. If she wasn’t going to pick up I’d just go over as soon as I could.

Ten minutes passed as the phone kept ringing. Who could even know what that meant? For all I knew she had just shoved her phone in a drawer so she didn’t have to listen to it. But what if she was hurt and couldn’t answer the phone?

“Hello?” Her voice broke through my thoughts.

“Oh thank god you answered. Are you ok? What’s going on?” I waited for her to tell me what was happening and was just met with silence. “Z, I can’t help you if you won’t tell me what happened.”

“Sasha.” She finally said something. She sounded like she was in a daze.

“What about Sasha?” I had been filled in on who Sasha was when I saw the report this morning. She had apparently picked up a new canine recently.

“Eos took Sasha. I don’t know what to do. Is there anything I can do?” I felt my heart break. Z wasn’t an emotional person but she sounded devastated.

“Are you at home right now?”

“I’m going to kill her.” The emotion in her voice was gone again.

“Z, please.” Alarm bells began to sound in my head. Z was in a bad place right now. I absolutely believed she would do it. “That’s not going to accomplish anything. That’s just going to guarantee you’ll never get her back.” I heard some snapping and looked up across the desk. Satori was trying to get my attention. He slid a note across the desk.

Tell her to stay in the basement. I haven’t cut the feed yet.

I waved him away. “Z, please promise me you aren’t going to do anything until I get there.” Last I checked Z couldn’t drive, but I didn’t want to have to go search for her if she decided to walk off. A few seconds past in silence. “Z.”

“Fine. I’ll stay here.”

“Thank you.” I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe she was lying, but it was something.  “I will be there as soon as I can. We’ll figure this out, I promise.” I hung up the phone.

“I should be done cutting the feeds in a few minutes.” Satori was still just at his computer typing away.

I had turned to Satori when I first heard the rumors, he was one of the few people Z talked too. If anyone knew what was happening he would. Not only did he know, I was upset to learn he had taken an emblem from her last night. No one in Eos’s social circle was trustworthy and Satori was no exception. Some help moving a slave might be worth a favor, but it was hardly worth an emblem.

I turned my attention back to Satori. “I don’t know why it's taking you so long.”

“This is security for a member of the Society, the most basic stuff we use is better than most of the market options. It takes a while.” He kept typing away at his computer as he talked. 

“I don’t care. That bitch has access to them and they need to be cut ASAP. When you finish with that Satori.” I walked behind him and leaned down, whispering into his ear. “You’re going to tell me why you don’t have Z’s emblem anymore and it better be a really good fucking answer.”

Z

I wasn’t sure what I should do while I waited. Calling Briar was stupid. I’m not sure why I did that. There probably wasn’t anything I could do.

You should just kill Eos. That little voice chirped up again.

Maybe it was right. It made sense. If she was gone they’d have to give her back to me. What else would they do with her? If Eos was gone there was no one to take care of her. She’d have to be returned to me.

But Briar edged back into my thoughts. I think she was right. That wouldn’t solve my problems. Even if I succeeded I wouldn’t get to see Sasha ever again. She’d go up for auction or someone else would take over the farm.

I wandered around the Wolf’s Den and wondered what I could have done differently. Would she have behaved on the call had I not lost my temper in the gym? Should I just have given her nice food from the start? She didn’t enjoy the tricks, but dogs were supposed to know tricks. I guess I could have turned down the shock collar, but it was helping her understand her place. She never would have given an inch without it.

I was just trying to help her.

I walked into her cage and looked at all the things I gave her. The soft pet bed. The pillow and blanket. The litter box. The toys. The teddy bear. Was it not enough for her? Did she want more? I had spent so much money on everything in here. Did she want more toys? She didn’t seem to like these ones, I never saw her playing with them. Was the bear too small? Maybe her bed wasn’t soft enough? Did I not give her enough attention?

I heard the doorbell ring and checked my phone. I had been standing there for over an hour. It didn’t feel like it though, it felt like just a few seconds past.

I tried to open up the security feed and was met with nothing. My heart jumped into my throat. No video. No sound. Nothing on any of my cameras. Was it Briar? 

A darker thought slipped into my head. Could it be someone else? What if the people who came with Eos were coming back? What could they want? Did they cut the feed? What else could they want from me? Why did they come back? What else did I have that they could take away from me? 

My pulse shot up as I heard some footsteps coming down the stairs. I never locked the entrances after Eos left. I looked over at the box of things I had grabbed earlier and saw the cattleprod. I grabbed it and quietly slipped into the toy room, leaving it cracked open.

"Z? Are you in here?" A woman I didn't recognize called out my name. She was dressed casually, long black hair. She was tall, maybe around six foot. I couldn't think of anyone who matches this description. 

"Z? Please come out." She called my name out again as she walked over to the cage. She was looking at all the gifts I had gotten for Sasha. She was looking at Sasha’s bear. Was she here to take that away from me as well?

I wasn’t going to let her take it.

I quietly left the toy room and approached her from behind. I pressed the button on the cattleprod and lunged at her.

Briar

I heard the crackle of electricity and barely managed to move out of the way before the cattle prod hit me. I tried to grab it and pull it out of her hands. I almost didn’t recognize her, she looked wild and angry. She was trying to rip the cattle prod out of my hand with more force than I thought she should be able to muster. Then for a second our eyes connected and she calmed down slightly.

"Oh. Briar?" She blinked a few times and let go of the cattleprod. It looked like she was surfacing from a fog, the frenzied look on her face from just a few seconds ago was gone. I tossed the cattle prod aside and examined her to make sure she was ok. It seemed to take her a few seconds to register what I was doing and pull away from me. “What are you doing here?”

“Z.” I started cautiously. I’d never seen her like this. “You called me here.”

“Oh. Right.” She blinked a few more times before turning to the cage. “They took Sasha.” I saw her lip quiver slightly but like always any sign of emotion was quickly gone.

“Z, look at me.” To my surprise she actually turned to look at me. “We’ll get her back. I’ll do everything I can to help, I promise.” She just nodded slightly. “Have you had anything to eat today?”

“I ate yesterday.” 

I suppressed a sigh. I couldn’t help but wonder how far into old habits she had fallen since she started living alone. I’d need more hands to count the number of times I was told she had collapsed because she hadn’t been eating. “That’s not today. Let’s make something to eat and then we can plan on how we’ll get back at that bitch.”

I ushered Z upstairs without too much complaint. She was still in a bit of a fog. Now was going to be the easiest time to work with her. She’d be the most receptive to suggestions, maybe I could talk her out of the more violent options she was considering.

 I’d call in a few favors to figure out what was happening and what our options were. I had a lot of favors stockpiled at this point, a benefit of my line of work. Some obscure law or maybe someone of a high enough rank we could convince to overturn the ruling.

Maybe, after all this effort, my little Z will finally appreciate everything I’m doing to help her.

[theliberaltony]

via Politics – FiveThirtyEight

Editor’s note: This article contains a detailed description of the sexual assault Tara Reade says Joe Biden committed against her.

Carolyn Van Houten / The Washington Post via Getty Images

Tara Reade says that in 1993, then-Sen. Joe Biden pressed her up against a wall in the United States Senate, kissed her neck and hair, slid his hand under her blouse, then used his knee to spread her legs and penetrated her with his fingers. Biden denied the allegations Friday: “I’m saying unequivocally it never, never happened.”

The country has spent four years in a messy reckoning over sexual assault, harassment and accountability. Every high-profile case has been argued on its own terms, and Biden’s will be no different. But past instances of sexual assault allegations in politics have shown that it’s party officials who help decide whether a politician weathers the storm. If precedent tells us anything, it’s that establishment Democrats will help determine whether Reade’s account has any impact on Biden’s campaign. In politics, believing women is complicated.

Biden isn’t a stranger to accusations that he’s made women uncomfortable. Last year, a number of women alleged that he invaded their personal space in ways that felt inappropriate, if not sexual — though some felt his touching was indeed sexual. Reade was among those who came forward with an account, though at the time she did not relate her allegation that Biden had pressed her against the wall.

The public reaction to the initial allegations was muted. A Morning Consult/Politico poll of Democratic voters found that half of respondents said the allegations would have no bearing on whether they’d decide to support Biden, and 32 percent of Democrats said that he hadn’t behaved inappropriately at all. The Hill and HarrisX ran a poll around the same time that found that 62 percent of Democrats said the allegations shouldn’t preclude his presidential ambitions.

Of course, Reade’s new allegations are quite different from the ones Biden faced last year. Vaginal penetration falls under the Justice Department’s definition of rape.

In many ways, Biden is in a precarious political position with his Democratic base. The party has squared itself firmly behind the “believe women” ethos of the MeToo movement, and Democratic voters have consistently showed less tolerance for sexual misconduct and assault. A Pew Research Center survey from 2018 found that 62 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents thought that men getting away with sexual harassment was a major problem and 60 percent said the same about women not being believed when they lodge harassment claims. Those numbers were about double the share of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who said those issues were major problems.

There was a similar partisan gap when Christine Blasey Ford and others accused Justice Brett Kavanaugh of past sexual misconduct. An NPR/Ipsos survey conducted in October 2018, a month after Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, found 75 percent of Republicans thought the MeToo movement had gone too far, but only 21 percent of Democrats thought so.

The question, of course, is whether numbers like those will hold when a Democrat is involved. For example, a Washington Post-Schar School poll conducted shortly after the Kavanaugh hearings found that 76 percent of Republicans were concerned that men could be accused unfairly of sexual assault. Only 34 percent of Democrats felt the same. Theoretically, that could mean trouble for Biden.

But Democrats’ principled stance on sexual misconduct can soften a little — or at least get more complicated — when it comes to members of their own party. Sen. Al Franken resigned in 2017 after Leeann Tweeden alleged he forcibly kissed her during a USO tour and a photo appeared to show him groping her while she slept. In November of 2017, 59 percent of Democratic survey respondents in a Morning Consult/Politico poll said elected officials — generically — should resign if faced with credible allegations of misconduct. But only 49 percent of Democrats in the same survey were in favor of Franken, specifically, resigning. A KSTP/SurveyUSA poll of Minnesotans from the same time found 34 percent of Democrats said he should remain in office, 14 percent thought he should resign and 46 percent thought he should wait for the results of an ethics investigation.

But while Democratic constituents waffled, Democratic elected officials were more decisive. In early December 2017, a group of Franken’s Democratic Senate colleagues, led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, demanded he resign. Franken did so a day later, his fate sealed by his colleagues’ loss of confidence.

Franken’s case shows that what can truly sound the death knell of a politician’s run is the loss of support from party insiders; the condemnation of one’s peers is a damning thing in this line of work. After the “Access Hollywood” tape revealed that Donald Trump had bragged about making unwanted advances on women, some Republicans, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, abandoned him. But he maintained the backing of powerful allies like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and, luckily for Trump, his scandal broke close enough to Election Day that Republicans had few viable choices to replace him.

So far, Democrats seem to be following a similar playbook, perhaps because Biden is running against Trump. The president has been accused of sexual assault — including rape — by 17 women. Even if the accusations against Biden are true, Democrats might be willing to rationalize voting for him if they perceive him as the lesser of two evils.

Democratic officials have closed ranks around Biden even as Reade’s allegations have received further attention and reporting. When asked about Reade’s allegations, Gillibrand said, “I support Vice President Biden.”

The political cover that Biden already built for himself by declaring that he would choose a female vice president — a consolation prize of sorts for voters disappointed by their white, male de facto nominee — is paying off as his campaign fights Reade’s allegations. Potential vice presidential picks have, so far, not come out against Biden. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said, “I think this case has been investigated,” and talked about Biden’s record on helping victims of domestic abuse. Another senator in the vice presidential running, Kamala Harris, said Reade “has a right to tell her story” and that she could “only speak to the Joe Biden I know. He’s been a lifelong fighter, in terms of stopping violence against women.” Stacey Abrams, another vice presidential contender, said, “I know Joe Biden, and I think he’s telling the truth and this did not happen.” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, herself a survivor of rape and another name that has been batted about in vice presidential speculation, was slightly more circumspect when asked about Reade: “Well, I think women should be able to tell their stories. I think that it is important that these allegations are vetted, from the media to beyond. And I think that, you know, it is something that no one takes lightly,” Whitmer said. “But it is also something that is, you know, personal. And so it’s hard to give you greater insight than that, not knowing more about the situation.”

The Biden campaign sent out talking points this week for surrogates who will need to address the Reade question. “Here’s the bottom line: Vice President Joe Biden has spent over 40 years in public life: 36 years in the Senate; 7 Senate campaigns, 2 previous presidential runs, two vice presidential campaigns, and 8 years in the White House. There has never been a complaint, allegation, hint or rumor of any impropriety or inappropriate conduct like this regarding him – ever.”

The plan for now, it would appear, is to deny, deny, deny and encourage Democratic officials to do the same. In the political world, that calculus isn’t half bad and has worked to great effect: President Trump, it should be noted, continues to deny all 17 assault claims against him.

#IFTTT #Politics – FiveThirtyEight #politics #538 #Clare Malone

[nonamememoir]

The Bar by Tori Bloom

Setting

It was uncomfortably warm in the bar that night. It was dimly lit and sparsely crowded. The neon light that hung over the liquor fizzled and flickered. The bar itself was sticky from rings of condensation and drinks that had been spilled and forgotten. In one corner of the room a couple whispered unintelligibly and pawed at one another. In the other corner a man sat alone and drew circles on the table with his thumb, his mind dulled by his fifth glass of bourbon. Outside, the moon hung low in the sky, but that didn’t stop lovers from kissing in the backseat of their cars or teenagers from crouching behind dumpsters and passing around a cigarette.

A lonely martini glass sat on the bar, swirling fuchsia liquid with a sweet scent filling it to the brim. A man’s fingers curled around the glass and he brought it up to his lips.

Protagonist

There was a charm even in his frown, a warmth like the violet flush of nightshade. His jaw was cut and framed by scruff, and his green eyes were set deep in his head. His hair curled against his cheeks, auburn under the fluorescent glow of the neon light. His looks were inviting, but his eyes were cold. This coldness might have repelled company, but Micah was skilled in seduction. All of his time spent observing translated into an excellent ability to predict how people would behave and react, and what he should say to get the reaction that he wanted.

Sometimes Micah would come to the bar and predict how a conversation would play out, or if it intrigued him enough he would intervene and attempt to influence the situation. Often times he recoiled at how others behaved when they weren’t aware that they were being observed. Above all he despised stupidity. He would liken his obsession with human behavior to masochism if anyone asked, because more often than not people were stupid. For instance, the bartender was stupid for asking him for the tenth weekend in a row what he would like to drink.

“Pomegranate martini. Thanks.”

The woman that sat beside him was stupid for eyeing him up every weekend at least five times a night without introducing herself.

His brother was stupid for calling and leaving a third voicemail on his phone.

Dialogue

“You know, I’ve seen you around here but I haven’t had the courage to say introduce myself until now,” the woman lied. It wasn’t courage that finally broke through her silence. That night he was wearing a suit, and he found that people, in general, were more willing to talk to a man when he was decked out in Armani. Still, he smiled warmly. She was an attractive young woman. She had curly locks and brown skin that was painted with freckles. Her eyes were the kind that could peer right through you, and maybe that scared him a little.

“You’re only on your second drink,” Micah noted, a smirk playing at his lips. He could see her pupils dilate. “Make that third. Bartender?” He gestured for the man to refill the lady’s cup.

“Oh. You really didn’t have to do that.” She feigned humility. Of course he had to. “But thanks. I’m Emily, by the way.”

“Micah. Some people call me Gabriel, though. My last name.” He kept a smile on his lips, even though the small talk was draining him. His internal monologue was one continuous groan. “I guess Micah is just too ‘out there’.”

“I like Micah. It’s...different.” She sipped at her new cup and watched him with the intrigue that he’d seen on every other face he’d encountered. Even if people could not see behind the mask that he had crafted, the seduction of the unknown peeked out now and again, like the sensuality of it could not be contained by his facade. Or, maybe it was just the suit again.

His phone buzzed again and he glanced it. Of course it was his brother.

“That’s the fourth time I’ve heard your phone go off. Must be important.” He wasn’t sure, but her tone sounded almost accusatory. “Aren’t you going to answer?”

“It would be rude not to give you my full attention.” Micah leaned forward just a bit, his chin held up by his palm. He watched the blood rise to her cheeks.

“Are you usually such a kiss-up?” The girl’s eyes flashed with mischief.

“I don’t know. Is it working?” he countered with ease, and he could see the resignation in her expression.

“Unfortunately, yes.” She glanced down at the time on her phone. Either he had imagined that suspicion or his flattery had chipped away at it. “Look, I don’t normally do this, and especially not so soon after introducing myself, but how about we get out of here?”

“Well, I’ve got nothing better to do.” He downed his drink and took her hand, sparing a glance at the lovers in the corner on their way out.

An hour later they were curled up in her bed, her head on his chest. She had fallen asleep to the sound of his breaths. His fingers brushed out tangles in her curls and then traced down her spine, visible in the glow of the moonlight. Their bliss was interrupted when his phone buzzed again from its spot on her nightstand and Emily shifted in her sleep, letting out a moan of protest.

“Just answer your phone. Or put it on silent for God’s sake,” she complained, sitting up and letting the sheets fall from her naked body. “Actually, you’ve got me curious. So how about you tell me why you’ve been ignoring your phone for hours?” Her brows furrowed. “If you’re married, just tell me.”

“I’m not married.” Micah laughed, although it felt entirely fake on his lips.

“Then pick up the phone,” she insisted, “Or I will.”

He had been hoping to avoid this. Frankly, he should have put the phone on silent, but he had been curious just how many times his brother would actually attempt to call him before he gave up. There was something pleasing and sadistic about ignoring his calls. Now, with Emily’s demand, there was always the option of simply leaving without answering the phone, but it would make things inconvenient if he ever ran into her in the future. The last thing he wanted were rumors of imagined infidelity. He could picture the disgust on strangers’ faces and the pride they’d take in their superiority. Micah glanced at his phone and let out a sigh, resigned. He’d brought it on himself.

Flashback

He was meant to write her eulogy. It came as no surprise, considering how distraught Will was. He doubted the kid could get through a few lines without bursting into tears. Micah wasn’t thrilled about the task, but he did his part. He stood up at the podium, uncomfortably close to his mother’s corpse, and looked out over the crowd.

“My mother was an ambitious woman up until the day she died. She did everything to provide for us, and for that I will always be grateful. I know that I’m going to miss her in my life, but I choose to believe that it’s what she did in life that mattered.” Micah was surprised with his own honesty. He had been planning to use more cliches and perhaps even fake a few tears, but as he stood up there he realized how easy it was to miss her.

After the eulogy was over he didn’t stick around. It was bad enough with an atmosphere of death and decay poisoning the air around him, but then he had people coming up to him and hugging him, telling him how heartfelt his speech was. He couldn’t stand their fake sympathy. It made him sick.

Conflict

“So? Who was it?” the woman asked, and he cursed himself for choosing such a nosy bed mate, but worn down by a long day and a few too many drinks, he let his mask slip.

“My brother. He’s pissed at me for leaving our mom’s funeral early today,” Micah sighed, “I avoided answering him because I really didn’t feel like trying to deal with his sobbing. Frankly, that’s why I left early in the first place. And I hate crowds… and funeral homes.” He found it amusing how just a few minutes ago he was worried about drama coming out of this one night stand, and yet now he was purposefully concocting some.

“Oh. That’s awful. I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have… now I feel like I took advantage of you.” Emily’s eyes went soft. She was a sweet girl, he thought.

“No, trust me, you didn’t,” he assured her, his arms wrapping around her waist.

“You know…” She pulled back a bit, but there was less reservation in her expression. It was comical how the most macabre confessions brought about intimacy. “You can talk about it. I know I’m just some girl from a bar, but, I mean… how are you feeling about it?”

It would be easy to say that he felt awful, and to explain that the reason he felt no empathy for his brother was that his mother was abusive or that she treated him differently. Still, there was something about her that fascinated him. He knew she was stupid but would she be afraid if he told her the truth?

“Honestly? I feel complete and utter apathy,” he answered, his lips in a flat line and eyes devoid of any playfulness. Despite that he pulled her back to his chest, although she didn’t fall as easily as she had earlier.

“Apathy?” A look of fear marred her delicate features, peering up at him through the dark.

“She was a good mom, and now she’s dead,” he said, as if stating the weather. His hair clung to the sheen of sweat on his skin and all of the charm that twinkled in his eyes faded with his facade. “I guess I’ll miss her, but that’s the extent of it.” Emily watched him like he was under her magnifying glass. The quiet calm had dissipated, and tension laid like electricity between them.

“She must have done something awful to you.” He could almost see her thoughts churning, trying to come up with some comprehensible explanation for his vacant expression, his seemingly sunny demeanor all evening, and the way his voice dropped into monotone in a second. “I couldn’t blame you. It’s hard to feel anything for people that hurt us.” Her voice dripped with sincerity, but he could feel her heart racing where her chest pressed against him.

“She wasn’t abusive at all. I actually think I loved her..”  It was silent for a few beats after he finished talking. The pauses kept getting longer.

“Oh.” Was all she could mouth, bewildered by the confession. It was a knife that cut through the suspense. “Look…uh, it’s getting late. I think you should leave.” Emily sat up, pulling the sheets with her and bunching them up at her chest.

“I was just being honest.” Micah tilted his head a bit. It was so fascinating how quickly her blood went cold. Part of him had hoped she would understand, but like a devotee looking at the face of God she trembled.

“You just told me that your mom died and that you couldn’t care less. That’s not normal.” All of the openness in her expression had faded and was replaced with a look so frosty it might have scared anyone else. “You should get help. Go to grief counseling or something.”

“Why would I go to grief counseling? I just told you that I have no grief.” He laughed and brushed his fingers through his hair. He paused, a brilliant and perhaps cruel idea popping up in his head. “What if I told you that I killed her?” Micah pondered as he stood up, his face still a blank slate. Emily’s expression melted into what he could only describe as shell-shocked. He chuckled as he slipped into his clothes.

“You’re sick.”

Micah spared the woman a final glance as he headed toward her bedroom door.

“So I’m a monster because I’m not like you?” His hands slipped into his pockets, a stance too casual for the circumstances. His charm had not completely faded, but it was overwhelmed by an aura of power and uncertainty. In that moment he resembled a politician or, on a more extreme scale, someone like Ted Bundy.

“Yes. No. I don’t know, just please go.” Emily stole a look in the direction of her nightstand. In one swift movement she opened the drawer and pulled out a pocket knife, knuckles white as she gripped the handle. “You’re what? You’re a sociopath? Were you going to kill me? Is that was this is about? Is that why you were at the bar every week?”

“Wow. Just because I don’t empathize doesn’t mean I don’t have any feelings. Way to hurt my feelings, Em.” He frowned, his lower lip pushing out into a pout. He couldn’t keep that expression for long, a smile breaking through. “This isn’t an Investigation Discovery show, put the damn knife away,” he laughed and she lowered the knife. “Well at least one of us was honest tonight,” he paused, “Tell your husband that I dropped by.”

Micah went back to the bar the next weekend and sat by himself. The seat where Emily had sat was empty, and he soaked in the inevitable disillusionment.

“Pomegranate martini, right?”

“Yeah.”

#fiction #again not my best work but #meh

[girlygameofthrones]

Let it Snow

Fandoms: Game of Thrones and Disney (this one is Frozen)

Summary: While at a particulary dead night at work the other, I started playing around with Disney princesses meeting various characters from Game of Thrones.  This is the first one.  After being proclaimed King in the North, Jon Snow goes to create an alliance with the “Night Queen” in hopes of stopping the war with the dead.

Warnings: None...except it being cheesy

Jon Snow found himself beyond the Wall once more, thick Northern furs there to protect him from the chill, yet his shoulders still quivered.  His hand rested on the hilt of his sword, one of dragonglass.  They’d told him about the supposed “Night Queen”, that she was different from the rest of the White Walkers, that she could be bargained with.  Sansa had told him to form an alliance with her to save many lives.

North of the Wall had always been a dreary place, and it was still dreary, completely blanketed in snow, the conditions too harsh for most animals to live in, but as Jon trudged forward, he saw something ahead of him that hadn’t been there last time.

That must be where the Night Queen lives, he thought to himself.

Before him was a magnificent castle, complete with protruding towers, spires, stain glass windows, balconies, and it was entirely made of ice.  

Since becoming King of the North, Jon couldn’t afford to be uncomfortable, but for the first time since that fateful evening, he found himself unsure, confused, and anxious to go inside.  He wasn’t like Robb.  He was never trained to be a leader.  Oh sure, he had led his men in the Night’s Watch, but who was he when it came to political allegiances and really playing the game?

He straightened himself, angry at his hesitation.  He approached the great blue doors and knocked upon them.  At once, though he saw no one there, they opened, beckoning him inside.

The inside was different than he’d ever seen before, but it was magnificent.  The entrance had a fountain right in the center, and two stairwells that curved and went up both sides, only to meet in the center to take whoever into the further part of the castle.  When Jon’s eyes traveled up the left stairwell, he made a little noise in the back of his throat.

Standing at the top was a woman, white as snow, and just as lovely.  She was slender, graceful, face a perfect heart shape.  She had thick white hair, like the Targaryens, pulled into a messy braid.  Her eyes were an icy blue, and she wore a shimmery blue gown some would call scandalous.  It displayed her shoulders and one leg through a slit.  Regardless of one’s opinion on the dress, it was clear that it wasn’t one fit for Winter, and yet this woman was perfectly still, her body not quivering from the cold at all.

“I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle,” the woman said, voice bold and intimidating as a queen’s should be.  Jon himself had never heard of an Arendelle before.  “What brings you to my castle?”

“I am Jon Snow, son of Lord Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell, and King in the North,” Jon said.  “I came to speak with and perhaps create a treaty with the Night Queen, the Ruler of Ice.”

Queen Elsa’s eyebrows furrowed, and in that moment Jon saw confusion, a strange thing on such a regal face.

“Why do you want to create a treaty with me…?” She asked.  “I don’t have anything to offer.  Arendelle is very far from here, and only I live in my ice castle.”

“I want you to tell your white walkers to stop attacking us,” Jon said.  Was she a White Walker herself?  She didn’t look dead and icy though…  “The Seven Kingdoms is in disarray already.  Cersei Lannister sits on the throne, the woman who burned half of King’s Landing to the ground, and it’s rumored that Daenerys Targaryen, daughter of the Mad King and possibly as mad as he is, is traveling here with three fully grown dragons.  Meanwhile, my sister and I are slowly but surely rebuilding Winterfell, but we can’t do that, we can’t care for our people, if we are continuously threatened by the dead.”

“I have no control over the White Walkers,” said Elsa, a shiver in her voice, though it had nothing to do with the cold.  

“Didn’t you create them?” Jon asked.

“The White Walkers have been around for thousands of years,” she said.  “However, those with powers like mine have been able to create more and control, depending on how well they can use their power, these creatures.  There are two kinds of White Walkers.  The ones created from the dead, and the ones created from ice, created by dark magic.”

“And why would you create such things?  Surely you know what kind of destruction they bring,” Jon said impatiently.

The Queen sighed.  “Because I’m losing control of my powers once again, and they came from the ice around my heart when I was too weak to stop it.”

“Ice around your heart?” Jon repeated.

Elsa flicked her wrist, and Jon jumped back in surprise.  A very light amount of snowfall descended from midair, the flakes landing in his dark hair and all over the floor.  Elsa moved her hands again, and ice sculptures were created right before his eyes.  He gasped in both awe and fear.

“I’m not the first to be able to control the ice like I do,” Elsa explained.  “But it’s a difficult power to have, and it reflects the inner emotions of a person.  The reason I subconsciously created more White Walkers and can’t control them is because of my fear.”

“Fear of what, your grace?” Jon asked carefully.

She smiled sadly.  “Do you have brothers and sisters, King Jon?”

“Yes,” he said.  “I love them very much.”

“I have a sister,” Elsa explained.  “Her name is Anna, and she’s as warm as the sunshine.  She was my sunshine, and she always kept me strong, always believed me, even taught me to use my powers thanks to her kindness.  She melted the ice around my heart.”

Jon shifted a hair beneath his fur cape.  The way she spoke of her sister reminded him of the old days with Robb, back when they were a family, back when he brooded over being a bastard.  He’d take those days over being King in the North any day.

“But Anna was stolen from me,” Elsa said harshly.  “Taken by a woman, ripped from my life!”

“Did someone kill your sister?” Jon asked.

“No,” said Elsa quietly.  “But she was captured and is being held a prisoner.  When Anna was taken, I couldn’t help it.  The number of White Walkers doubled.”

Suddenly Jon found himself walking up the stairs, walking toward the ice queen.  All at once she wasn’t frightening, but rather frightened.  Her mouth fell open, and he noticed her beauty all over again when he drew in closer to her.

“Then we must rescue your sister,” Jon said to her.  “That will be our treaty.  We will form an alliance and we shall bring Anna back home to you...to melt the ice.”

“Your grace…” Elsa began.

“Call me Jon,” he said.  “Now, do you know who took your sister?”

Elsa nodded.  “Queen Cersei of House Lannister stole her when Arendelle wouldn’t bend the knee to her rule.”

Jon’s hand instinctively tightened around the hilt of his sword, but his eyes never wavered from Elsa’s.

“Then we will work together to retrieve her from Cersei,” he said.  He held a hand out.  “Is it a deal?”

There was a moment of hesitation, one where neither of them breathed, but at long last, Elsa took his hand and nodded.  Her eyes lit up like there was a hope in them.  Then Jon offered her a small encouraging smile.

“We move out today,” he said.  “Come, your grace.”

He only behaved how he’d seen other lords do it, wrapping his arm in Queen Elsa’s and guiding her down the stairwell to the front entrance.  He was just about to lead her out into the snow when he paused and turned back to her.

“Perhaps you should get a cloak, your grace,” he said concernedly.  “It’s very, very cold out there.”

For the first time Jon saw Elsa smile a bit, and though it was small, it still took him aback.

“You don’t need to worry about me,” she said confidently.  “I will be fine.”  Then she shrugged.  “Besides, the cold never bothered me anyways.”

#game of thrones fanfiction #frozen fanfiction #game of thrones crossover #disney fanfiction #jon x elsa #disney game of thrones

[nalyra-dreaming]

Someone said on Twitter that they know for certain, from a person that was at SDCC last year, that one of them was leading the other by the hand whenever they were in the crowd and that they were really intimate, so much so that the person who saw them was already sure that the show would be good. People started replying "it's obvious there is something, everyone can tell immediately" and other people took offense cause they say they are crossing boundaries. This is the summary of what is happening on Twitter.

Ah. Yeah I remember that, but I believe it wasn’t the SDCC event though but another press screening.

Again, people are people, and personally I just love that Sam and Jacob are comfortable enough not to care, and I hope this deep whatever they have will stay all their lives. ;))

And … people can take offense on their behalf if they want, but ultimately it burns down to what I said in the tags of the last anon, imho, namely: if they were uncomfortable with the rumors they’d behave differently. Because they are very far from naïve or stupid. So… 🤷🏽‍♀️

(I remember getting a whiplash of second hand embarrassment hearing Eric on them and they were there.)

The only thing that goes always and forever and no matter what and that I‘d like to add here: be respectful. Because whatever it is (or not) is not our business.

#anonymous #asks #ask nalyra #interview with the vampire #iwtv #jam reiderson #sam reid #jacob anderson

[class301-blog]

NEW SUSPECT.

MOON NABI is the #07 on the class 301 rollcall list. born on september 14th, 1999. links up with the brunch bunch ( pepper ) and the mystery gang ( the spy ). voted most likely to murder park jisoo? let’s run by the evidence.

THE PRECEDENTS.

THE COLLECTED INFORMATION ON THE SUSPECT.

MOTHER - His mother is as innocent as she is beautiful but not even growing up in a quaint town like Jinhae could spare her from the evils of this world. She dropped out of high school in an attempt to escape the rumors surrounding her name and ends up in Seoul and in even more situations that make her odds of survival shrink to unlikely. Yet, somehow, he found her before all hope was lost. From one pained smile, he could see there was still a light that shone beneath the filth that had been piling up on her. He’s much older; fifteen years older, in fact. But he is kind and gentle and that’s all she has ever wanted. He is a successful man and has the power to whisk her away from anything that can hurt her, just like a King in a fairy tale. Their union is an unlikely one and whispers continue to follow her, but it’s different this time. She knows that she has earned the unconditional love and support of a soul that matches hers. No one can hurt her now. She is safe. FATHER - He has blood on his hands and the more he tries to wipe it off, the more it spreads until it’s caked onto his fingers. The blood dries and hardens and he fears there’s nothing to keep the digits from curving into sharp claws only capable of drawing more blood; causing more destruction. Yet, somehow, She found him before all hope was lost. From one pained smile, she could see there was still a light that shone beneath the filth that had been piling up on him. In that moment he knew that he’d found what his heart had been yearning for. Something pure; a lonesome dove to protect and nurture. Her grace warmed his heart and her tears of happiness washed away the blood on his hands, at least, in his mind. He treats her like a queen, the word “no” never passes his lips, at least, not until her child is born. BROTHER DEAREST - He’s a hellion. From the moment he greets this world and draws breath into tiny lungs; he’s wailing. From the moment his legs can carry him; he’s flailing, knocking down everything in his path. His mother tries to calm him but even as a child, he overwhelms her. Her husband still loves her as much as the day they met and anything that upsets her must be removed. Taeho is removed. He’s taken to a home for “special” children and abandoned there until he’s worthy to be in his mother’s presence. A BOY NAMED BUTTERFLY - He never tells her “no.” Not even when she decides on a new name for their first born. They’d settled on something quite masculine and formidable weeks before, but one look into big cat eyes blinking inquisitively changed her mind. “No, not like a butterfly…like a kitty,” she corrects her husband sweetly and turns her attention back to the quiet child in her arms. “Right, Nabi? Nabiya…Nabiya.” She sings him to sleep cooing the name and his father can’t help but wince from rekindling fear that had been smoldering in his gut. Weren’t they stacking the deck against him a little early? It reignites. HOME SWEET HOME - The big city of Seoul is no place to raise a child and as much as they’ve enjoyed traveling all across the globe on a honeymoon that’s lasted, literally years; it’s time to settle down and play house. They’re sure relocating to Jinhae is the best thing for their children. Yes, children. Taeho is collected from Europe and he fits even less with the picture-perfect couple now that there’s a brand new baby to love. His Korean has suffered terribly during his time abroad. He needs special care to catch up with the other children. His mother loves him cautiously but focuses on the baby. Her husband ignores him. They hire a nanny to raise him. And when that one quits, they hire another and another. CHILDHOOD - A lot had already happened to his family before Nabi came into the picture but he was their hope. He was a good boy; the child that they’d wanted. Curious but obedient, clever, quick, and sharp. He was thoughtful and empathetic and sweet. Taeho was the opposite. He was mean; a bully. He was much bigger and older and Nabi was obviously the bane of his existence. Nabi understood there was a difference between how he and his brother were treated but he could only attribute the contrast to how disobedient Taeho was. If he’d just behave, his parents wouldn’t be so hard on him. Nabi didn’t realize that wouldn’t have changed anything. For all the times he was teased and picked on to tears or beaten, he kept his mouth shut. If his parents asked what had happened, Taeho’s story was repeated word for word from his bloodied, split lips. He was like his father; he could take a beating and get back up. He would endure hardships on his own until he found a way to settle things himself. Taeho was bigger and stronger, but Nabi was smarter and it wasn’t long before he’d learned exactly how to take away the enjoyment from Taeho seeing him hurt. 7th GRADE - School changed everything for Nabi. He took off running and never looked back. He was bright-eyed and thirsty for knowledge. He was confident and smart and stood up for kids who were picked on because he knew how that felt. He had friends in every class, but a small group that he felt personally close to, a few kids that he felt were special and he trusted them, implicitly.

Despite being like his father and surviving his older brother’s bullying, Nabi was still very much like his mother. He had the same innocence, the same trust in the universe; an unwarranted faith that he could present his true self to the world and the world would not pick him apart or rip him to shreds until there was nothing left.

Like his mother, he was wrong.

And like before, Nabi clamped his jaw shut when fingers were pointed at him and bore the blame on his own; a sacrifice to angry adults who said he was just like his troublemaker brother, just like his father; a thug from Seoul that made his fortune from the misfortune of others. They were criminals.

He was a criminal. JOHN THE APOSTLE - “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” He is shaken to his core, but the sentiment gives him desperately needed strength and before long, the man’s name is inked into his skin, among other things. He justifies the actions of his so-called friends and his own inaction. It takes a long time until he can swallow over the lump in his throat, but with an entire month of mandatory self-reflection, it gives a sensitive and now jaded boy like Nabi a lot of time to plan. PEPPER - The walls go up on every side. Walls to shield a tender heart and what is left of his pride. He hands the key to Cinnamon and puts on a mask before facing his peers. He’s not going to let anyone hurt him again. He’s determined to smile and laugh and brush off everything thrown his way. He faces his adversaries with a cold glint in feline eyes. If they’re expecting a delinquent; a rebel, then he won’t disappoint them.

THE SPY - He keenly observes those around him and assesses the given situation. Whether it’s comforting words that purr forth from thick lips or a lashing from a sharp tongue that brings an uncomfortable truth to light, Nabi has the power to say what others wish they could, but wouldn’t dare. He’s allied himself to many secret causes throughout the span of his high school years and has forged alliances where not even his close friends would think it possible. It’s rumored that at least half the crimes he’s taken credit for aren’t his own.

It’s also rumored that his main motivation for pulling in favors in an attempt to find out who really murdered Jisoo, is because he knows there are few people the town would rather see punished for the crime than himself.

THE ALIBI.

THIS ACCOUNT IS CONSIDERED UNRELIABLE.

“I already told you.” His tone is flat but the edge of his words begins to sharpen. He’s been there for hours, repeating the same information to one ugly mugged cop after another; each one more disbelieving than the next. “We saw him coming out of his mom’s office. I don’t remember what day it was…Sunday? Tuesday? I don’t fucking remember.” Arms unfold from his chest and clasp behind his neck. Annoyance that had been pinching his face is gone once the youth stretches from side to side in the hard chair in which he’s been sitting for far too long. He should have a parent or guardian present or legal representation, but a phone call is not offered and he’s too proud to ask for one.

“And the night of the murder?”

“At home, with my family… like every night.” His answer is the same as he’s said before and his tone is just as smug. The truth is that it doesn’t matter what he told the police; they wouldn’t believe him anyway. However, the alibi he’d chosen was too clearly a lie. Any police officer and anyone who lived within a mile radius of the Moon’s lavish home could tell you that his parents were rarely home simply from the amount of noise complaints that were called in on any given night. The couple was almost always off on some exotic getaway, doing their best to put the love of Gomez and Morticia Addams to shame.

“Yeah and I bet you, and dear old dad, and your addict brother all took turns with her… like every night.”

It’s clear that the officers are frustrated and what better way to incite the rage of a teenage delinquent than insulting his precious mother? Indeed, Nabi feels bile rise and burn the back of his throat, but he swallows his fury, as he’s practiced. He smirks as he lifts his eyes to the older man and smiles; vicious and cold, as he’s practiced.

“Yeah… something like that.”

THE TESTIMONIAL.

THE SUSPECT’S THOUGHTS ON JINHAE HIGH.

He operates largely behind the scenes; habitually conducting business in dark hallways and empty classrooms. He considers himself, amongst other things, a sin-eater; a necessary evil. He deals in secrets and lies; some that are his own, but many that are not. He’s deceitful and whether it’s to help or to hurt isn’t ever clear. He holds sway over student, teacher and parent alike but you won’t catch him gloating or showing his cards until the moment is right.

He’s a Joker in this House of Kings and Queens. Jinhae High’s very own Least Likely to Succeed.

#301: file #cc: the brunch bunch #sc: the mystery gang

[texanredrose]

@makas0ul, part 2, because why not. More arranged marriage miscommunication shenanigans.

Part 1 / Part 2 (here) / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10

Yang drew in a deep breath and let it go slowly, trying to keep herself calm and centered. The steady plodding of her horse's hooves over the worn dirt road helped, as did the rhythmic creaking of her saddle, and she focused all her attention on the subtle music of a small army on the march. It was a trial as of late- she'd always been quick to anger, especially regarding matters close to her heart- but one she was weathering like so many battles over the past decade or so. When the war between the clans first started up and her father became the dreaded Defender of Patch, she stayed one step behind him, learning to fight and lead in his shadow. She wasn't as good at that later part as her sister, she thought, but Ruby had left on some mad quest as per her usual the moment everyone was behaving, leaving the blonde to bear the crown alone. Her father refused to take it- the future belonged to the youth, he'd said, and he trusted his daughter's judgment- but now she wished above anything that he had ascended to the spot in her stead. The job itself wasn't so bad most days, seeing as the various clan leaders respected her authority and themselves were grateful to have a reason to lay aside their weapons and come together once more, but there was always some little detail that proved to be a thorn in her side.

For the past few years, that thorn was the kingdom of Atlas, seemingly hell bent on making war with the Valen provinces. It was a meddlesome annoyance but, seeing as it relied on combat prowess, Yang had triumphed time and time again simply by outlasting her opponents. The Atlesian soldiers couldn't adapt to Vale's warmer climate quick enough and she exploited their recurring dehydration issues to drive them back from the shores. But now, they were at peace with the kingdom across the sea, and her newest headache came in the form of her wife.

Queen Weiss Schnee was a force to be reckoned with in her own right, but in ways that completely blindsided the warrior. Some of it was to be expected in hindsight- they'd grown up half a world away, surrounded by differing customs and values- but she hadn't quite anticipated just how persistent the other woman could be. They were raised differently, they dressed differently- complete opposites. The Atlesian was all long sleeved, high necked dresses, riding side saddle with a straight back and a tilted chin, the absolute picture of grace, while Yang was more comfortable in trousers and an open faced vest barely tied together with a leather cord, sitting astride her big bay with a slight slouch, ready for anything but relaxed all the same. They were already starting to acclimate to one another, though, and the results were... interesting.

It wasn't a bad thing all the time. Ever since her comment about having the thin blade she called a sword but being unable to wield it, Weiss had taken the slight criticism to heart. Valens were warriors by nature, after all, and she thought it a deficiency that she couldn't even begin to hold her own in a fair fight. Luckily, that was easy enough to fix; although he was soft spoken, Yatsuhashi was one of the best swordsmen in Vale and a patient teacher. Where she could not possibly hope to match his strength, Weiss had become quick and flexible, and she was now skilled enough to make even Yang seriously doubt trying to challenge her to a duel even in jest. And, despite the two of them speaking Atlesian when alone- which, if the little smiles she earned were any indication, the blonde was getting better at speaking; at least her wife wasn't suppressing a cringe at her accent anymore, anyway- Valen spilled from her wife's lips in a way that made even some of the older warriors blush and wonder if they were doing it wrong this whole time. That crisp, almost haughty dialect Weiss used just made the words sound so much better and she'd caught a few of her personal guard imitating the accent when they thought no one was looking.

All that was fine. Yang actually found it really amusing, honestly.

What wasn't so amusing, however, was when her own words came back to bite her in the ass.

Weiss had taken it upon herself to learn the language and customs of Vale; unfortunately, Yang had only focused on the former of Atlas. She'd conveniently missed how the foreigners measured their unions and had already paid a bit of a price for her ignorance. Their first week together, spent at Fort Beacon, was rife with cold glares and bristling anger, all because the blonde had refused to consummate their marriage.

She hadn't meant any offense, of course. They were practically strangers and, while she'd seen enough of the woman's character to determine her course of action in trying to win Weiss over, it made her intensely uncomfortable to think about... intimate encounters that didn't feel too dissimilar from a night spent with a prostitute. The expectation that they would just... do it, without taking time to really connect on an emotional level, wasn't something the warrior could wrap her head around; it felt cheap of her to simply assume that she would have the ability to touch her new wife in such a way without earning that privilege first. She thought she was being considerate.

Atlas, however, was different, and Weiss saw their separate bedding arrangements as an insult, apparently.

"Hey, Blondie." The blonde blinked, shifting her gaze from the horizon ahead of them to look at the bear of a man riding beside her with a massive club strapped to his back, his black eyes glinting with mirth. "Your wife's at it again."

Almost dreading what she'd find, Yang turned further in her saddle to look further back along the convoy. She was riding near the front, as per usual, as much out of habit as so she could be one of the first to lay eyes on her hometown again. The Atlesian vacillated between riding at her side and further down, often having spotted something that needed 'correcting' as she put it. The Valens weren't nearly as strict about their marching order but the blonde didn't interfere; the warriors who'd accompanied her as a wedding party would learn first hand that Weiss was not a woman to be trifled with and word would spread quickly if she allowed things to play out. There were a few who had spoken out against the marriage, seeing no reason to shackle Vale as a whole to the kingdom across the sea, but they would likely mind their tongues if rumors started flying that Yang's bride was equally terrifying when incensed.

And, honestly, she was beginning to wonder if the woman possessed any other state of being.

"What is she doing?" Although slightly exasperated with her wife's antics, Yang couldn't help the way her lips curled into a small, dopey grin. Yes, it was something of a headache remaining a step or two away from the woman to ensure she didn't accidentally get in over her head- the blonde had made it abundantly clear that anyone even thinking to harm even one hair on Weiss' head would be sorry- but she honestly got a kick out of watching the prim and proper Atlesian trying to whip the lax Valen into some semblance of order. It was like watching a mountain lion herd cats, but the results were obvious. Everyone sat straighter in their saddle or marched together with a sense of decorum, and though she personally was never addressed about her own poor posture when riding, Yang couldn't help but try her best to emulate her wife's poise. That just meant there were others she could address instead, though.

Today, she seemed fixated on keeping the 'bannermen' marching in time, their burdens carried aloft proudly rather than resting against their shoulders. Yang had only brought them along because it seemed proper- like something out of those old fairy tail books her sister loved- but now it seemed like the group might actually have some idea of how to properly do the job before they reached Patch. Each carried a flag with a different design attached to the long poles, depicting the eight major clans that remained more-or-less intact now that the war was over.

Junior offered with a helpless shrug. "She's something else, huh?"

"Yeah," the blonde replied with a fond sigh. The whole lot were teens on the verge of adulthood, far too young to be veterans of the civil war and the defense against Atlas. They were largely too intimidated by the crowned Dragon of Vale to think about refusing her wife's orders, but they were a good bunch.

"You gonna go save 'em?"

"They're fine." She turned back around to face the horizon. "But, make sure they get an extra dessert tonight, would ya? I think they deserve it."

"As you wish, my liege," he mockingly said though she didn't even think to take offense to the tone. Junior was one of the men she'd fought beside during the largest defense against the Atlesian army during their initial invasion just south of Patch. It was the site of the thickest fighting, when Atlas was at the height of its power and motivation; breaking the invasion turned the remainder of the war in Vale's favor and she couldn't have done it without the man's club bashing down those who refused to fall to her fists.

Idly, her gaze fell to Ember Celica, once again adorning her wrists and catching the midday sun. Once their week was up, they'd traded weapons back, but in the meantime they'd established a sort of ritual. Yang was never allowed to drape the thin swordbelt around her waist herself; that was Weiss' duty and hers alone. Likewise, the blonde carefully strapped her cestus onto pale, thin forearms with reverence. Now, the process was reversed, of course, and she took a bit of pride and a larger amount of happiness in being able to slip her arms around the woman's waist to fix Myrtenaster in place on her wife's smaller frame. Whether or not that same amount of care was returned depended on Weiss' mood, which seemed to be growing more sour as of late, harsher tugs on the leather fastening her cestus in place.

It wasn't until last night, just as they'd made camp on the other side of Forever Fall and a day's ride from the shore, that Ren had explained the situation to her, at least in part. A fearsome fighter in his own right, the young man was much more suited to studies than war and had taken the liberty of bribing a member of the Schnees' entourage in exchange for a few scrolls on customs and courtesies. When he finally got to identifying and translating the segment regarding marriage customs, the young man immediately brought the issue to Yang's attention, having correctly guessed she was not as informed on the subject.

Just as it had hurt Yang to consider having her weapon returned to her, there was a similar dishonor in refusing to consummate their marriage. The blonde had no idea and Weiss had yet to say as much outright but that had to be it; in trying to pay the woman proper respect, she'd unintentionally insulted the Atlesian.

"Junior, we should get in just before sundown, right? You think the ferries will still run?"

"The bigger ones, no, but I'm sure there's a fisherman or two willing to make a few trips. Some of us would have to stay behind with the horses, though." He shrugged again, shifting in his saddle impatiently. Riding always made him antsy, for some reason. "You that eager to be back home?"

"Yeah, actually," she said, glancing over her shoulder again. With Weiss riding beside them, the little retinue of banner bearers looked like proper soldiers, their burdens lightly flapping in the breeze. "I definitely need to be home by tonight."

"Then you will be," he replied simply, nudging his steed to move a little quicker. Those on foot would be able to keep up so long as they didn't hold the pace too long and Yang found herself focusing intently on how she would approach the matter. Honestly, she'd prefer to wait, but if that was viewed as a problem for her wife, then there simply was no other way around it.

She had to do something.

Twilight in Patch was always a treat. The softly lapping waves slipping along the shore brought with them a cool night breeze that smelled of salt, the occasional gull calling in the distance a counterpoint to the low drum of the city market. A dense copse of trees were all that separated the Xiao Long home from either, tucked away from sight in a small clearing. The house itself wasn't too impressive- before the civil war erupted, they farmed their own food and hunted game, and every beam was set in place by a member of her family, none of whom were above a basic skill set- but it was sturdy, cozy, and much quieter than their makeshift camps and Fort Beacon.

Yet, Yang couldn't find it within herself to accept the calm. Her father was off in the village proper, entertaining the visiting clan leaders for the night so the newlyweds could have some privacy. Both of them would have to weather their steady stream of congratulations at yet another feast the following day- while her wife likely wouldn't see it as such, the attempted invasion was the best boost Vale could've hoped for towards healing, not only uniting the kingdom against a common enemy but providing additional supplies whenever Atlesian cargo was captured, which meant a lot of celebrations before winter hit and they would have to use their own stores- before seeing to a few administrative duties the blonde was already dreading. Leading a kingdom into war was certainly easier than managing it at times of peace, or at the very least it was more entertaining.

"Is there a particular reason you're staring aimlessly out the window?"

Blinking, Yang shifted her attention towards the doorway, noting her wife's stiff posture as she raised a single pale brow in askance, arms crossed over her chest. "I was just thinking about tomorrow."

And avoiding thinking about tonight, she mentally added while turning to face Weiss properly. It was strange, returning to her childhood home as not only a Queen but a married one besides, and briefly she considered if her father's subtle present of a new, larger bed was more appropriate than a new room would've been. At least then there would be no memories to distort; she half expected Ruby to come dashing in any second, jumping up onto her bed to hear one more bedtime story before retreating to her own room.

"I'm surprised they didn't attend the wedding," the Atlesian said, her voice even and expression neutral, but Yang was getting better at reading her wife's posture. Weiss was tense and wary, as if expecting something ill in response.

"I didn't want to risk tempers flaring." Furrowing her brows, the blonde took a few steps away from the window, slowly closing the distance between them. "While I know attacking Atlas would be a dumb idea, some of the clan leaders are still angry about the damages done to their villages, their people. We might be less strict in our courtesies in Vale but we're also not above offense; having a bunch of drunk warriors with grudges in the same room as their former enemies when none of us know each other's customs as well as our own... it just seemed like a recipe for disaster."

Lilac eyes were trained on her wife's form, expecting at least some of her stiffness to slide away- and it did, just barely. However, the woman seemed more inclined to accept the answer for what it was and turn herself to other things. "I suppose my room is down the hall-"

"No," she said, her heart rate picking up slightly as she spoke. It still made her nervous, because to her mind she was asking for something she'd yet to earn and that always made her anxious, but all she received was a flat look at first.

"Ah. Then I'm in this room?"

"Yes. With me." She tried to sound resolute but broke at the last second, hunching her shoulders slightly. "If that's okay?"

That seemed to break the metaphorical mask Weiss perpetually wore, surprise flashing across her expression before it was shoved aside. There was no hiding the little bit of hope that seemed to take up residence in those blue eyes, though. "Why now?"

"What I said about not knowing each other's customs- that's something I'm guilty of." Her gaze lowered to the wooden planks beneath their feet. "I spent so much time learning your language, I forgot to even find out what Atlas' marriage customs might be like, to compare them to our own. That's my fault and I apologize. You only asked of me to treat you as my wife and, though I felt like I was doing that right by Vale standards, I wasn't by yours because... we... well-"

"You haven't bedded me yet." The woman supplied, saving her fumbling for the word. It was a blunt and crass way of putting it but Yang suspected that was at least in part for her own benefit; the informal language did seem to hint that her wife might not be as cross with her as she'd assumed. "You aren't wrong. By Atlesian standards, we aren't wed. But this is Vale-"

"And you are a daughter of Atlas." The blonde raised her gaze to meet those peerless pools of blue and edged forward a little further with that interjection, still mindful of any sign of retreat from the other woman. It still felt too soon, too abrupt, but she didn't want to continue hurting Weiss, or forcing the woman to disregard her heritage. "I want to respect that. Even if it still... makes me uncomfortable."

"You're not the first to say so." Initially, the non-sequitur threw Yang off, but she quickly realized what the problem was when her wife's hand moved unconsciously to brush beneath the scar that neatly bisected her left eye before catching herself and looking away.

It suddenly hit the Queen of Vale harder than a warhammer. The night of their wedding, she'd lead both of them to their temporary room, which was just one of the nicer lodgings at the Fort that was spruced up a bit for the ceremony. Her headdress was already off but Weiss hadn't removed hers until after they were in the room and before Yang brought up their separate sleeping arrangements. Honestly, she'd almost forgotten how to speak Valen much less Atlesian when confronted by the beautifully pale features of her bride, how her white bangs fell across her forehead like tiny wisps of moonlight, how her eyes shone like gemstones, and that cute button nose that hindered the severity of her expressions only slightly. The scar- faded and uneven- was an after thought, something she noticed and immediately did her best to ignore, but not out of disgust. An injury like that, after all, could've just as easily taken the woman's eye or worse, and the thought was more distressing than she would've guessed possible. The thought of her hurt... even if they hadn't even known the other existed at the time, it made her sick.

So, not only had she failed to heed one of Atlas' customs, causing Weiss some amount of grief, she'd also mistakenly lead her wife to believe that the unintentional rejection was caused by something the Atlesian obviously felt ashamed of still.

"No, Weiss, that's not what I meant." Throwing caution to the wind, the blonde stepped up and lifted both hands, cupping the other woman's cheeks softly. Aside from outfitting the other for the day, physical contact between them was sparse- again because she hadn't felt like she'd earned that privilege yet- but there were only so many ways Yang could think of to offer comfort and reassurance, all of which required touch. "You are beautiful- you- you're-" She cursed, unable to find the right words and switching to her mother tongue to save them both. "Please, believe me; you are like a legend come to life, a Goddess walking among mortals. The sun is jealous of your radiance and the moon of your composure; you put the stars of the night sky to shame. I'm so sorry I made you think otherwise. It was never my intention."

There was a moment of silence, skepticism showing plain in her wife's face before blue eyes flicked to hers, shoulders dropping ever so slightly as tension slid away. "Then... what did you mean? What... what about me makes you uncomfortable?"

They were both using Valen now and, at this point, Yang felt it was easier to simply roll with it rather than switch back to Atlesian. "It's not you, Weiss. Well, I suppose that's not- what I mean is." She took a deep breath and let it out, trying to center herself. "Weiss, just because we're married doesn't mean I can touch you without your permission. I don't believe that." She rubbed her thumbs lightly along the other woman's cheekbones in an attempt to soothe and almost distractedly happy when she felt slim hands come to rest on her hips. "When we left the feasting hall, I didn't even know if you'd be willing to stay with me, much less have me touch you. I didn't want to pressure you into anything; we'd hardly met, you were forced into this, and I'm... I'm not the one you would've picked, if you were given a choice in the first place."

"I think you sell yourself short, Yang," the Atlesian said, her voice soft. "You... possess a certain kind of charm that would be entirely alien in Atlas. Had we met in my court instead of yours, my opinion of you wouldn't necessarily be a poor one." Tentatively, Weiss moved her hands, gloved fingers tracing across the skin left exposed by the blonde's vest, delineation in muscles earned from years fighting and riding. "You're strong and kind, firm and gentle, powerful and sincere. These things... do not often come together in my homeland."

The blonde frowned, lilac eyes drifting to the faint scar as worry filled her. "No offense, but your people sound a little... barbaric." Somehow, that brought a chuckle out of the other woman, which was enough of a boost to her confidence for Yang to move a little closer, allowing her left hand to drop down to her wife's shoulder. The right remaind, though, her thumb tracing the bottom of the scar. "Will you tell me one day how this happened?"

"I'll tell you right now." Weiss closed her eyes, any trace of amusement absent as she continued. "It's my father's belief that children should be seen and not heard, and even then only when called upon. It was a lesson I... forgot once too often."

Yang instantly felt her blood boil, absolutely livid at the implication, but she had to be sure even as heat suffused her being. "Your father did this?"

"Not personally, but it was on his order." The Atlesian turned her head, away from her touch. "It was years ago. Old news."

She wanted to argue, clenching her jaw for a moment to keep the words on her tongue and set her right hand on the woman's shoulder. Even if she itched to regain the former contact, she wouldn't push, at least for the moment. It took a supreme amount of effort but she managed to go for a different approach, though there was no hiding the anger lurking in her tone. "Your father's never allowed near our kids unsupervised."

Blue eyes turned to her, half of a laugh out of her mouth before it was cut off. Even if she'd managed to keep from expressing her rage in a direct manner, there was one way it always showed through. "Your eyes..."

"I'm upset," she said, as if that was all the explanation she needed for suddenly sporting blood red pupils. It was something she'd noticed over the years warring with Atlas, yet another difference between their homes. The kingdom across the sea relied on steel, bulk, and advanced weapons to win their battles while Vale's warriors focused on skill, camaraderie, and the development of their inner chi. The blonde's always manifested with a surge of heat and blood red eyes, somehow empowering her to weather blows that would tear weaker souls to shreds.

Weiss seemed to notice her higher body temperature a moment after her eyes, appearing somewhat surprised, but she didn't draw away. She did glance at the hands on her shoulders, though, making a thoughtful noise in the back of her throat. "I... suppose that explains why half of Atlas is convinced you're part dragon."

"It's just my chi. It tends to flare when I'm hurt or mad." The warrior pulled in a deep breath, trying to center herself. "And right now I'm just... I'm so angry. What sort of father would do that to his own child? Why weren't you allowed to speak your mind?" She was going in the wrong direction, her voice beginning to raise the more she spoke, so she cut herself off with a growl. "He was probably just jealous you're smarter than he'll ever be."

Perhaps insulting the man wasn't the best move but it certainly went a long way towards cooling her temper. Had she known before the wedding, venting her frustration might've included at least one punch, but she suspected that's all it would've taken. The soon-to-be former King of Atlas looked as though he was made of broken glass, all jutting edges poorly smoothed over by an unsteady hand. One good shot might've crushed his skull in and she didn't feel particularly remiss for having that thought.

What remained of her rage was snuffed out in the blink of an eye as she became abruptly aware that Weiss was moving. The blonde expected her wife to draw away, gain distance, as most often did when she became peeved. Instead, the woman moved closer, the hands that spent most of the conversation tracing along the grooves of her abs slipping around to her back and pulling her closer. It was exhilarating; Weiss didn't often initiate contact between them, and even that was limited. A touch at the shoulder or elbow for attention, a brush of hands in reassurance, or a playful swat after a bad joke or a particularly awful pronunciation were about as far as the two had gotten.

This was actually their first hug and all the tension keeping Yang's shoulders rigid flowed out at that realization, her own arms encircling the Atlesian to hold her gently as she bent her head down to whisper in her ear. "No one else is going to hurt you like that, ever again." She felt emboldened by the positive contact and gently pressed her lips against her wife's temple. "I promise."

"That's a difficult pledge to make," Weiss replied, though she didn't seem perturbed by the kiss.

"So? I'm the Queen of Vale and the Dragon of Patch." She closed her eyes, soaking in the feel of the smaller woman pressed against her. "It doesn't matter how hard it is; I'll do it. You're worth protecting, Weiss."

At that, her wife drew back ever so slightly, a silent request for her to open her eyes and look. The moment she did, the blonde saw the slight wonder sparkling in those blue eyes, as if some part of the Atlesian was unable to process her words. Finding herself suddenly lacking the willpower to resist- and hoping she wasn't overstepping her bounds- Yang quickly snuck in another kiss, this time aiming for the scar. The reaction was immediate- a slight jolt that passed through her wife's frame- but no motion was made to push her away or discourage her. Instead, the moment the blonde drew back to reaffirm her promise, a slim hand quickly slipped up to cup her jaw and guide her into a proper kiss.

This time, it was the warrior's turn to jump, shocked slightly at how good it felt and how her eyes slipped shut seemingly of their own accord just before she pressed into the contact. There was a bit of pride welling in her chest at having gotten this far, earning this little bit of glorious affection from the Atlesian, but that would be something she could reflect on later. The matter at hand was keeping up with the woman as she suddenly drew back, trying to hide her sudden shortness of breath by surreptitiously inhaling deeply. Seeing as Yang's arms were still wrapped around her, though, it was a futile effort, and one she abandoned completely when the blonde let out a breathless laugh, leaning forward to rest their foreheads together.

"Well, that was... something." Weiss offered, obviously flustered for perhaps the first time in their all-too-brief relationship.

"Yeah." The blonde smiled. "But, the choice is still yours, you know. We could just sleep. It was a long trip and a night in a proper bed will do us both some good."

Her offer seemed to be carefully considered before blue eyes flashed with determination. "I would rather we consummate our union, Yang. Some part of me thinks my father might be foolish enough to try taking Vale again, either by brute force or subterfuge. I want there to be no doubt where my loyalties lie."

"With me?"

The Atlesian drew back enough so Yang could get the full effect of how she rolled her eyes. "Yes, you dolt, with you."

"I'm just making sure," she replied, trying to sound at least a little annoyed but failing miserably as a wide smile split her features, to the point she was sure her cheeks would start hurting if she held it long enough.

Although she was already missing the contact, the blonde stepped back so she could begin undressing. She was quickly stopped by her wife, intent on tackling the task herself. First went her weapon, each cestus laid with reverential care on the desk pressed against one wall, and then her vest, followed by her trousers, which were all relatively simple. However, lithe fingers slid them away from her body with such deft precision that Yang almost had to wonder how often her wife had undressed another before settling on the more likely explanation: she was simply too meticulous to fumble with the simple buttons and ties. When the tables were turned and the warrior was faced with the task of removing the dress- which laced up the back and how did Weiss even manage to dress herself every day anyway?- she found the other woman's calm instructions easy and offered with only a little teasing lilt to her voice.

Unlike the Atlesian, who had remained almost clinical during her turn, Yang couldn't help but let her fingers wander across newly exposed skin. She didn't need the aid of a mirror to be aware of the scars crisscrossing her own back, barely hidden by her luscious hair now that her vest was removed, and she could see well enough the ones on her arms and knuckles from more battles than she could count. In contrast, her wife's skin was smooth and unblemished, except for the mark marring her face, and further cementing in the blonde's mind that she was, in fact, blessed enough to have married some forgotten deity trapped on the mortal plane. Everywhere she touched, a shiver followed, until finally Weiss refused to allow her exploration to continue and lead both of them to the bed. Only once they were both laying down, underthings discarded with far less care than the rest of their respective ensembles, was the blonde allowed to continue.

It was slow going, especially at first. Committing to memory a thousand responses, touching and touching again to see if the same reaction would come or if it was just surprise, and once her wife even commented on it.

"At this rate, we'll need days to finish this, you know."

"Then days we'll take," she replied, ensuring she met the woman's gaze as a small smile curled her lips. "I'm in no rush."

It wasn't perfect. They were learning together what worked and what didn't and the Atlesian was reluctant to speak up on some of those things, so Yang had to read her body language, the pitch of her voice, the hitch in her sighs to determine her pleasure. The blonde was easier, more straight forward, but she kept in the back of her mind to not ask too much. Then they moved together, out of sync but eventually finding their rhythm, giving and taking in equal measure. There were still some rough spots but, for a fight night together as a wedded couple, it certainly wasn't bad.

When they finally came to rest late into the night, covered in sweat and curled up together, the Queen of Vale felt peace descend on her much easier than it had in the past six months, and she hardly had the presence of mind to draw a blanket around them before slipping off to sleep.

The morning light streamed in through the open window, birds singing their song loudly for all to hear. Faintly, she could remember waking before the sunrise in this very room, rushing downstairs to help her father with breakfast for themselves and Ruby before following him out to their small garden, and cutting wood when she got older to take to market. The simple joys of a life filled with hard work, before the wars and the blood and the crown she now bore, and she sighed slightly at the mental acknowledgement that she'd already overslept. No doubt her father or one of the clan leaders would come banging on the door soon, calling her to the town square to introduce her wife to each of the grizzled old warriors and those set to take their places, but the moment she started to shift, a voice cold as ice froze her in place.

"Don't. You. Dare."

Blinking the world into some small semblance of order, Yang noticed that her arm was loosely curled around Weiss' waist, pulling the smaller woman's frame against her as they lay together. Suddenly, all the memories from the night before came rushing back and there was no stopping her from carefully leaning over and pressing a kiss to the Atlesian's cheek. "Morning."

"Yes, it is morning, very astute observation." Her voice was thick from sleep and her eyes remained closed but there was nothing subtle about the way her wife pressed back against her, one arm laying over the blonde's. "Now, stop moving. I want another hour, at least."

There was a cheeky comment on the tip of her tongue about having tuckered the woman out so thoroughly but the woman did have a tendency to be a bit cranky early in the morning. "Kept you up with my snoring, huh?"

"Actually, you don't snore when you sleep on your side, I've noticed," Weiss replied, snuggling under the covers a bit further. "I'm simply comfortable and we just finished a long trip. Is an extra hour too much to ask?"

"Nah, not at all." Closing her eyes, the blonde inhaled deeply and let it go, happy to lounge in the morning with her wife for a while longer yet.

The worst that could happen would be the clan leaders starting the celebrations without them and, honestly, that was fine by her. Everyone would soon know of the Atlesian one way or another and she didn't doubt they would all be as awestruck as she was. Unfortunately for the lot of them, she was the one lucky enough to be married to the woman.

So, that was a thing. *shrug* I may come back to this eventually. No idea what I'd do with it but fluffball-warlord-uxorious Yang is a lot of fun to write. There’s now a Part 3.

#Freezerburn #Freezerburn Friday #Freezerburn Arranged Marriage AU #TRR writes #Queens of Vale fanfic

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Tara Reade’s Allegations Put Establishment Democrats In A Bind: Believe Women Or Back The Nominee

Editor’s note: This article contains a detailed description of the sexual assault Tara Reade says Joe Biden committed against her.

Carolyn Van Houten / The Washington Post via Getty Images

Tara Reade says that in 1993, then-Sen. Joe Biden pressed her up against a wall in the United States Senate, kissed her neck and hair, slid his hand under her blouse, then used his knee to spread her legs and penetrated her with his fingers. Biden denied the allegations Friday: “I’m saying unequivocally it never, never happened.”

The country has spent four years in a messy reckoning over sexual assault, harassment and accountability. Every high-profile case has been argued on its own terms, and Biden’s will be no different. But past instances of sexual assault allegations in politics have shown that it’s party officials who help decide whether a politician weathers the storm. If precedent tells us anything, it’s that establishment Democrats will help determine whether Reade’s account has any impact on Biden’s campaign. In politics, believing women is complicated.

Biden isn’t a stranger to accusations that he’s made women uncomfortable. Last year, a number of women alleged that he invaded their personal space in ways that felt inappropriate, if not sexual — though some felt his touching was indeed sexual. Reade was among those who came forward with an account, though at the time she did not relate her allegation that Biden had pressed her against the wall.

The public reaction to the initial allegations was muted. A Morning Consult/Politico poll of Democratic voters found that half of respondents said the allegations would have no bearing on whether they’d decide to support Biden, and 32 percent of Democrats said that he hadn’t behaved inappropriately at all. The Hill and HarrisX ran a poll around the same time that found that 62 percent of Democrats said the allegations shouldn’t preclude his presidential ambitions.

Of course, Reade’s new allegations are quite different from the ones Biden faced last year. Vaginal penetration falls under the Justice Department’s definition of rape.

In many ways, Biden is in a precarious political position with his Democratic base. The party has squared itself firmly behind the “believe women” ethos of the MeToo movement, and Democratic voters have consistently showed less tolerance for sexual misconduct and assault. A Pew Research Center survey from 2018 found that 62 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents thought that men getting away with sexual harassment was a major problem and 60 percent said the same about women not being believed when they lodge harassment claims. Those numbers were about double the share of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who said those issues were major problems.

There was a similar partisan gap when Christine Blasey Ford and others accused Justice Brett Kavanaugh of past sexual misconduct. An NPR/Ipsos survey conducted in October 2018, a month after Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings, found 75 percent of Republicans thought the MeToo movement had gone too far, but only 21 percent of Democrats thought so.

The question, of course, is whether numbers like those will hold when a Democrat is involved. For example, a Washington Post-Schar School poll conducted shortly after the Kavanaugh hearings found that 76 percent of Republicans were concerned that men could be accused unfairly of sexual assault. Only 34 percent of Democrats felt the same. Theoretically, that could mean trouble for Biden.

But Democrats’ principled stance on sexual misconduct can soften a little — or at least get more complicated — when it comes to members of their own party. Sen. Al Franken resigned in 2017 after Leeann Tweeden alleged he forcibly kissed her during a USO tour and a photo appeared to show him groping her while she slept. In November of 2017, 59 percent of Democratic survey respondents in a Morning Consult/Politico poll said elected officials — generically — should resign if faced with credible allegations of misconduct. But only 49 percent of Democrats in the same survey were in favor of Franken, specifically, resigning. A KSTP/SurveyUSA poll of Minnesotans from the same time found 34 percent of Democrats said he should remain in office, 14 percent thought he should resign and 46 percent thought he should wait for the results of an ethics investigation.

But while Democratic constituents waffled, Democratic elected officials were more decisive. In early December 2017, a group of Franken’s Democratic Senate colleagues, led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, demanded he resign. Franken did so a day later, his fate sealed by his colleagues’ loss of confidence.

Franken’s case shows that what can truly sound the death knell of a politician’s run is the loss of support from party insiders; the condemnation of one’s peers is a damning thing in this line of work. After the “Access Hollywood” tape revealed that Donald Trump had bragged about making unwanted advances on women, some Republicans, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, abandoned him. But he maintained the backing of powerful allies like Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and, luckily for Trump, his scandal broke close enough to Election Day that Republicans had few viable choices to replace him.

So far, Democrats seem to be following a similar playbook, perhaps because Biden is running against Trump. The president has been accused of sexual assault — including rape — by 17 women. Even if the accusations against Biden are true, Democrats might be willing to rationalize voting for him if they perceive him as the lesser of two evils.

Democratic officials have closed ranks around Biden even as Reade’s allegations have received further attention and reporting. When asked about Reade’s allegations, Gillibrand said, “I support Vice President Biden.”

The political cover that Biden already built for himself by declaring that he would choose a female vice president — a consolation prize of sorts for voters disappointed by their white, male de facto nominee — is paying off as his campaign fights Reade’s allegations. Potential vice presidential picks have, so far, not come out against Biden. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said, “I think this case has been investigated,” and talked about Biden’s record on helping victims of domestic abuse. Another senator in the vice presidential running, Kamala Harris, said Reade “has a right to tell her story” and that she could “only speak to the Joe Biden I know. He’s been a lifelong fighter, in terms of stopping violence against women.” Stacey Abrams, another vice presidential contender, said, “I know Joe Biden, and I think he’s telling the truth and this did not happen.” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, herself a survivor of rape and another name that has been batted about in vice presidential speculation, was slightly more circumspect when asked about Reade: “Well, I think women should be able to tell their stories. I think that it is important that these allegations are vetted, from the media to beyond. And I think that, you know, it is something that no one takes lightly,” Whitmer said. “But it is also something that is, you know, personal. And so it’s hard to give you greater insight than that, not knowing more about the situation.”

The Biden campaign sent out talking points this week for surrogates who will need to address the Reade question. “Here’s the bottom line: Vice President Joe Biden has spent over 40 years in public life: 36 years in the Senate; 7 Senate campaigns, 2 previous presidential runs, two vice presidential campaigns, and 8 years in the White House. There has never been a complaint, allegation, hint or rumor of any impropriety or inappropriate conduct like this regarding him – ever.”

The plan for now, it would appear, is to deny, deny, deny and encourage Democratic officials to do the same. In the political world, that calculus isn’t half bad and has worked to great effect: President Trump, it should be noted, continues to deny all 17 assault claims against him.

from Clare Malone – FiveThirtyEight https://ift.tt/2WjpdIK via https://ift.tt/1B8lJZR

#clare malone #clarethings

[helloworlddemo1122-yahoopar-blog]

Everything You Need to Know About the Harvey Weinstein Scandal -- From the Accusations to the Fallout

As the scandal surrounding Harvey Weinstein continues to develop every day, with more celebrities condemning the producer's alleged actions or coming out with their own claims of sexual harassment, ET is looking back and breaking down the scandal as it's developed.

From a look at Weinstein's rise to Hollywood power before the scandal broke, to the big-name stars who claim that they were harassed by him, to the producer's current sex addition treatment, here's everything you need to know about the massive controversy.

The Hollywood Mogul

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Harvey Weinstein has been a powerful and influential Hollywood producer for decades. The media mogul and his brother, Bob Weinstein co-founded the independent film distribution studio Miramax in 1979 and in 2005, they left to start their own independent movie studio, The Weinstein Company.

Through his decades in art house production and distribution of wildly profitable films, the 65-year-old executive formed friendships and professional connections with a huge number of A-list celebrities and celebrated filmmakers, often early in their careers.

In 1987, Weinstein married his personal assistant at Miramax, Eve Chilton. The pair, who share three daughters -- Lilly, 22, Emma, 19, and Ruth, 14 -- later divorced in 2004.

Later that same year, he began dating English fashion designer and Marchesca co-founder Georgina Chapman, They tied the knot in 2007 and share two kids -- 7-year-old daughter India and 4-year-old son, Dashiell

First Reports Surface

While many insiders have come forth to say that rumors of Weinstein's inappropriate conduct have been circulating around Hollywood for years, the first major report detailing specific allegations was published by The New York Times on Oct. 5.

The report -- which claims Weinstein has reached at least eight settlements with women over sexual harassment claims from 1990 to 2015 -- featured an interview with Ashley Judd, who was the first big-name star to go on the record with her allegation that Weinstein sexually harassed her.

Judd claimed Weinstein invited her to The Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel for a breakfast business meeting, but was surprised when he sent her up to his suite. Judd claims the producer appeared in a bathrobe and alleges that, despite her repeated rejections, he continuously requested intimate favors from her -- including a massage, a shoulder rub and allegedly asking if she would watch him take a shower.

Weinstein Responds, Apologizes and Threatens to Sue

In a statement to ET, Weinstein's lawyer, Charles J. Harder, said the New York Times report was "saturated with false and defamatory statements," and that it "relies on mostly hearsay accounts and a faulty report, apparently stolen from an employee personnel file, which has been debunked by nine different eyewitnesses."

"We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish," Harder stated. "We are preparing the lawsuit now.  All proceeds will be donated to women’s organizations."

After the report was published, Weinstein released a lengthy statement to the New York Times where he wrote, "I came of age in the ‘60s and ‘70s, when all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different. That was the culture then. I have since learned it’s not an excuse – in the office or out of it. To anyone."

Weinstein also stated, "I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it.  Though I’m trying to be better, I have a long way to go. This is my commitment. My journey now will be to learn about myself and conquer my demons… I so respect all women and regret what happened."

Over the past year, high-profile attorney Lisa Bloom had been advising Weinstein on "gender and power dynamics," according to The New York Times.

"I'm working with a guy who has behaved badly over the years, who is genuinely remorseful, who says, you know, 'I have caused a lot of pain,'" said Bloom -- who took some heat while serving as Weinstein's advisor from critics who accused her of defending his behavior -- on Good Morning America on Oct. 6.

The next day, however, Bloom announced that she had resigned from the position, tweeting, "My understanding is that Mr. Weinstein and his board are moving toward an agreement."

I have resigned as an advisor to Harvey Weinstein. My understanding is that Mr. Weinstein and his board are moving toward an agreement.

— Lisa Bloom (@LisaBloom) October 7, 2017

Accusers Continue to Come Forward

The NYT article spoke with eight women who alleged that they'd been targets of Weinstein's sexual harassment, and many others have come out with their own stories in the days following the report. Some accusers spoke with Ronan Farrow for a New Yorker piece that led to Weinstein's rep releasing a statement. 

"Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein. Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances," reads the statement. "Mr. Weinstein obviously can’t speak to anonymous allegations, but with respect to any women who have made allegations on the record, Mr. Weinstein believes that all of these relationships were consensual. Mr. Weinstein has begun counseling, has listened to the community and is pursuing a better path."

Here are some of the A-list stars who are among the myriad of accusers.

- Mira Sorvino

The Oscar-winning actress claimed in a lengthy New Yorker expose that Weinstein sexually harassed her and tried to pressure her into a physical relationship while they worked together. Sorvino alleges that during the Toronto International Film Festival in September 1995, she warded off Weinstein's advances in a hotel room, telling him it was against her religion to date married men."He started massaging my shoulders, which made me very uncomfortable, and then tried to get more physical, sort of chasing me around," she alleged.

- Rosanna Arquette

The Pulp Fiction actress claims she too rejected Weinstein's advances in a hotel room in the early '90s. She agreed to meet Weinstein for dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel to look at a new script, but was told to meet him upstairs in his hotel room.

She then claimed Weinstein opened the door wearing a bathrobe, and after telling her he needed a massage, grabbed her hand. She alleges that the incident escalated when, after yanking her hand away, he allegedly grabbed it again and pulled it towards his visibly erect penis.

"My heart was really racing. I was in a fight-or-flight moment,” Arquette said. The actress claimed that, after rejecting Weinstein's advances, "He made things very difficult for me for years."  

- Rose McGowan

The New York Times reports that Weinstein reached a previously undisclosed settlement with actress Rose McGowan in 1997 "after an episode in a hotel room" during the Sundance Film Festival, when she was 23 years old. The publication reports that they viewed legal documents that stated McGowan received a $100,000 settlement, which was "not to be construed as an admission" by Weinstein, but intended to "avoid litigation and buy peace."

While McGowan has not addressed the settlement directly, she's been vocal about the recent allegations on Twitter and has called on the entire board of directors at The Weinstein Company to resign.  

- Asia Argento

The actress claimed Weinstein sexually assaulted her in 1997 at the Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc on the French Riviera when she was 21 years old. Argento says she came to the event for a party that Miramax was throwing, but found herself in a hotel room alone with Weinstein after a producer took her upstairs to him.

Argento alleges that, after reluctantly giving a massage to Weinstein, who was in his bathrobe, he forced her legs apart and performed oral sex on her after she repeatedly told him to stop. "[Weinstein] terrified me, and he was so big," Argento claims. "It wouldn’t stop. It was a nightmare. ... I was not willing."  

- Gwyneth Paltrow

The Shakespeare In Love actress spoke with The New York Times in an article published on Oct. 10, where she alleges that Weinstein summoned her to his suite at the Peninsula Beverly Hills hotel for a work meeting when she was 22, before production began on the 1996 romantic dramedy Emma. The meeting allegedly ended with the producer placing his hands on her and suggesting they head to the bedroom for massages.

"I was a kid, I was signed up, I was petrified,” Paltrow said, adding that she refused his alleged advances, and told a few friends, family members, her agent, and her then-boyfriend, Brad Pitt. ET has learned that Pitt "strongly confronted [Weinstein] and told him repeatedly that it better never happen again."

- Angelina Jolie

Jolie recounted a time when Weinstein allegedly made unwanted advances during the release of Playing by Heart in 1998. "I had a bad experience with Harvey Weinstein in my youth, and as a result, chose never to work with him again and warn others when they did," Jolie told The New York Times in an email. "This behavior towards women in any field, any country is unacceptable."

- Lauren Sivan

The TV reporter told the Huffington Post that in 2007, she went to eat at an restaurant that Weinstein owned and claims he invited her downstairs to tour the kitchen and then attempted to kiss her.

"I immediately rebuffed and said, 'Whoa, whoa, whoa. I had no idea that that’s what this was. I’m sorry, I have a very serious boyfriend and I’m not interested,'" she told the Post, claiming that Weinstein then blocked the door and proceeded to masturbate in front of her. "[He] said, ‘Well, then stand there and be quiet’ … It happened very quickly and he immediately exposed himself and began pleasuring himself."

- Cara Delevingne

The model-turned-actress took to Instagram on Oct. 11 with allegations that Weinstein had sexually harassed her on two different occasions. According to Delevingne, she first heard from Weinstein in her early years as an actress. "I was working on a film and I received a call from Harvey Weinstein asking if I had slept with any of the women I was seen out with in the media," she claims, calling their talk "odd and uncomfortable."

Delevingne says her next encounter with Weinstein occurred "a year or two later," when he Weinstein allegedly brought her to his hotel room and tried to get her to kiss another woman who was already waiting there.

"I swiftly got up and asked him if he knew that I could sing. And I began to sing....I thought it would make the situation better....more professional....like an audition....I was so nervous," she wrote. "After singing I said again that I had to leave. He walked me to the door and stood in front of it and tried to kiss me on the lips. I stopped him and managed to get out of the room."

These are just some of the woman who have stepped forward with claims of sexual harassment and assault. Other accusers include several of Weinstein's former employees -- Emily Nestor, Lauren O’Connor, Lauren Madden, and Zelda Perkins -- as well as actresses Heather Graham, Lucia Evans, Emma de Caunes, Jessica Barth, Romola Garai, Katherine Kendall, Tomi-Ann Roberts, Judith Godrèche, Léa Seydoux, and Louisette Geiss.

Costume designer Dawn Dunning, charity coordinator Louise Godbold, model Zoe Brock, artist and writer Liza Campbell, and model Ambra Battilana Gutierrez have also spoken out with allegations of sexual misconduct, and the accusations stretch back nearly 30 years.

A spokesperson for Weinstein, Sallie Hofmeister, issued a statement to The New Yorker in response to the allegations, and said Weinstein denies any allegations of non-consensual sex.

“Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein. Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances," the statement reads. "Mr. Weinstein obviously can’t speak to anonymous allegations, but with respect to any women who have made allegations on the record, Mr. Weinstein believes that all of these relationships were consensual. Mr. Weinstein has begun counseling, has listened to the community and is pursuing a better path. Mr. Weinstein is hoping that, if he makes enough progress, he will be given a second chance."

Celebs Condemn the Allegations

In the wake of the massive sexual harassment scandal, many stars began speaking out against Weinstein and a pervasive culture of sexism and sexual misconduct that some say permeates the entire entertainment industry.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Meryl Streep said in a statement to The Huffington Post that "The disgraceful news about Harvey Weinstein has appalled those of us whose work he championed, and those whose good and worthy causes he supported," adding, "The intrepid women who raised their voices to expose this abuse are our heroes."

It was a sentiment shared by many of Streep's fellow A-listers, including Judi Dench, Kate Winslet, Glenn Close, Mark Ruffalo, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Lawrence, Matt Damon, George Clooney, Christian Slater, Nicole Kidman, Leonardo Dicaprio, Benedict Cumberbatch, and dozens of others.

pic.twitter.com/1IOLFnPN2H

— Leonardo DiCaprio (@LeoDiCaprio) October 11, 2017

Many of those who spoke out against Weinstein's alleged actions also said that there were rumors that he behaved inappropriately, but the extent of the accusations was largely unknown.

According to Jessica Chastain, however, the stories of misconduct were more pervasive than people have acknowledged.

"I was warned from the beginning. The stories were everywhere. To deny that is to create an environment for it to happen again," Chastain tweeted on Oct. 9.

I was warned from the beginning. The stories were everywhere. To deny that is to create an enviornment for it to happen again.

— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) October 9, 2017

Chastain also tweeted her support for a Variety article by critic Maureen Ryan about the need for men in Hollywood to take a vocal stand against pervasive sexual harassment in the industry.

"Yes. I'm sick of the media demanding only women speak up. What about the men? Perhaps many are afraid to look at their own behavior....." she wrote.  

Yes. Im sick of the media demanding only women speak up. What about the men? Perhaps many are afraid to look at their own behavior..... https://t.co/tGUsjUYNMR

— Jessica Chastain (@jes_chastain) October 9, 2017

The Fallout

- His Termination

The Weinstein Company board of representatives -- which includes Weinstein's brother -- released a statement to ET on Oct. 8 announcing that the embattled producer's employment had been "terminated, effective immediately."

On Oct. 10, the board released a follow-up statement again decrying Weinstein's actions and promising to conduct an independent investigation and assist in any criminal investigations.  

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

"[We] are shocked and dismayed by the recently emerged allegations of extreme sexual misconduct and sexual assault by Harvey Weinstein," the statement read. "These alleged actions are antithetical to human decency. These allegations come as an utter surprise to the Board. Any suggestion that the Board had knowledge of this conduct is false."

"We are committed to assisting with our full energies in all criminal or other investigations of these alleged acts, while pursuing justice for the victims and a full and independent investigation of our own," they added.

The Weinstein Company announced in a statement on March 19 that they had filed for bankruptcy, and revealed their decision to end all legally binding non-disclosure agreements that had allegedly been used by the disgraced former movie mogul to silence accusers.

"Today, the Company also takes an important step toward justice for any victims who have been silenced by Harvey Weinstein," the company stated. "Since October, it has been reported that Harvey Weinstein used non-disclosure agreements as a secret weapon to silence his accusers. Effective immediately, those 'agreements' end."

"The Company expressly releases any confidentiality provision to the extent it has prevented individuals who suffered or witnessed any form of sexual misconduct by Harvey Weinstein from telling their stories," the statement continued. "No one should be afraid to speak out or coerced to stay quiet. The Company thanks the courageous individuals who have already come forward. Your voices have inspired a movement for change across the country and around the world."

The statement also said TWC "regrets that it cannot undo the damage Harvey Weinstein caused, but hopes that today’s events will mark a new beginning."

- His USC Endowment

In the apology statement he sent to The New York Times, Weinstein claimed he had begun organizing a $5 million endowment for the University of Southern California -- which would grant scholarships to aspiring female directors at the university -- long before the allegations came to light, writing, "While this might seem coincidental, it has been in the works for a year. It will be named after my mom and I won't disappoint her."

On Oct. 10, USC rejected the proposed $5 million endowment.

- His Marriage

Chapman announced on Oct. 10 that she plans to leave her husband in the wake of the allegations.

"My heart breaks for all the women who have suffered tremendous pain because of these unforgivable actions. I have chosen to leave my husband,” Chapman said in a statement to People. "Caring for my young children is my first priority and I ask the media for privacy at this time."

Weinstein addressed their split in a statement obtained by ET after the allegations broke: "Over the last week, there has been a lot of pain for my family that I take responsibility for."

"I sat down with my wife Georgina, who I love more than anything, and we discussed what was best for our family. We discussed the possibility of a separation and I encouraged her to do what was in her heart. In the end, she made the decision to separate. I understand, I love her and I love our children and hopefully, when I am better, I will be in their lives again. I support her decision, I am in counseling and perhaps, when I am better, we can rebuild."

A source close to Chapman told ET that she is "not doing well,"  following the storm of accusations and the couple's subsequent split. "She is very upset and feels defeated," the source said. "She is not concerned about her own finances whatsoever."

The source added that Chapman, who is currently living in New York City, "always knew [Weinstein] exhibited questionable behavior."

A source told ET in January that Chapman and Weinstein had reached a divorce settlement. 

NEWS: Harvey Weinstein Heads to Arizona Treatment Facility Amid Scandal, Source Says

Weinstein Seeks Treatment

On Oct.10, it was reported that Weinstein was planning on leaving the country to seek treatment for sex addiction at a live-in facility overseas.

However, a source told ET on Oct. 11 that his originally-planned trip was delayed due to "plane issues." Hours later, a source told ET that the film producer has flown out of Los Angeles and is headed to Arizona to receive treatment. According to the source, Weinstein was planning to go to Switzerland for treatment, but his brother, Bob, suggested he go to The Meadows in Arizona. 

On Oct.12, our source said Weinstein's private plane actually made a last-minute diversion to Scottsdale, Arizona, instead of landing in Wickenburg -- which is near The Meadows rehab center.

The source says that there is a continuing discussion within Weinstein’s team about where he will officially receive his treatment, since the team is worried about information leaking from a live-in treatment facility. While the plan was originally to go to The Meadows, according to the source, there is potential for leaks since the center is such a popular treatment facility for celebrities.

The new plan is for Weinstein “to receive treatment at a private Arizona residence that is isolated from the public eye," the source says, adding that therapists will come to the location and treat him in private one-on-one settings.  

The Arrest

Weinstein was taken into custody on May 25 in New York, where he pleaded not guilty to rape and other sex crime charges filed by the Manhattan District Attorney's office.

ET can confirm that the 66-year-old former movie mogul turned himself in to police in New York City just before 7:30 a.m. ET. 

"Today, at the NYPD’s 1st Precinct, Harvey Weinstein was arrested, processed and charged with rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct for incidents involving two separate women," read a statement from the New York City Police Department at the time. "The NYPD thanks these brave survivors for their courage to come forward and seek justice. The arrest and ensuing charges are the result of a joint investigation between the NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office."

Weinstein surrendered to police after the Manhattan District Attorney's office and NYPD's months-long investigation into allegations of sexual abuse. He was arraigned later that morning, and was charged with rape in the first degree for two alleged incidences involving two different women in 2013 and 2014.

“Today’s charges reflect significant progress in this active, ongoing investigation,” said District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. “I thank the brave survivors who have come forward, and my office’s prosecutors who have worked tirelessly on this investigation. I would also like to thank Commissioner James O’Neill and our dedicated partners at the NYPD. We urge additional survivors and others with relevant information to call our sex crimes hotline at 212-335-9373.” 

Weinstein's attorney, Ben Brafman, released a statement to ET following the arraignment, which reads: "Mr. Weinstein has always maintained that he has never engaged in non-consensual sexual behavior with anyone. Nothing about today's proceedings changes Mr. Weinstein's position. He has entered a plea of not guilty and fully expects to be exonerated."

A source tells ET that Weinstein did post bail and left the courthouse following his arraignment. 

For more on the ongoing scandal and the many accusations leveled against Weinstein, watch the video below.

RELATED CONTENT:  

How Georgina Chapman Is Coping Amid Harvey Weinstein's Arrest (Exclusive)

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Georgina Chapman Opens Up for the First Time About Harvey Weinstein Scandal

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