#makes me mad the recruits just met di shadis

[in-tua-deep]

Ok I totally want to hear more about this survivors au/Delores is real! How do the siblings handle having this different version of Five? Five may be better adjusted but he still has to heard his family around like a bunch of stray cats. What happens when Hazel and Cha Cha show up? How do they find out that Vanya causes the apocalypse and how does Five handle that revelation?!

here is the thing, i think the survivors au has the potential to be HILARIOUS

no one knows how to handle a well-adjusted five, and this absolutely includes the commission

So you mentioned Hazel and Cha-Cha?? Five in this au was not nearly as absolutely feral as he is in the show bc he knows how to interact with people - he was raised by a competent adult and a weird best friend and they occasionally saw other survivors as well

please picture old Five hanging around the water cooler and chatting with Hazel

the other funny thing is that Five is competent passing - he is well adjusted emotionally but functionally?? Hazel is out there complaining about dental being cut and office parties and budgets and Five is there sipping his drink having never filed taxes in his life. Five doesn't know what the fuck a dental plan is, he was a child soldier and then lived in an apocalypse.

So please picture for me Hazel being like "okay I know corporate wants us to keep what we're being paid to ourselves but fuck that, workers unite, what do you get paid as a legend old timer?"

and five is like "you're getting paid? i get to not get tossed back into the apocalypse, I think"

"but what about expense forms? what about medical care?"

"I'm like 80% sure i'm being experimented on, actually." Five says nonchalantly, "Don't get me wrong, my idea of medical care is fucked by being a child soldier but I'm pretty sure regular people don't have electrodes attached to their heads every time they get a checkup. Could be wrong though! My ex-dad used to monitor my brainwaves while I slept so like, my idea of appropriate shit is fucked, you know?"

This is a Five who was raised by Rick, he is polite to his coworkers. If Dot asked him if he wanted to grab lunch, Five would have gone and grabbed lunch with her or politely said that he couldn't.

Cha Cha only ever talks to Five when she wants to talk shop, so they've had a couple of conversations about weapons but not much else tbh, Hazel just tends to be more personable

So when they're sent after Five, Hazel is much more hesitant to kill who he perceives as a "work friend" and also is definitely thinking about all the times Five casually revealed a way the commission was being highkey shady about him, such as the potential experimentation, no pay, working under duress etc. He's much more easily turned against the commission because he's even more primed to say "fuck the commission" than he is in canon

Hazel out here like "how did Five break his contract when Five wasn't even being paid? I kind of want to read it."

Hazel out here like "I would unionize if I didn't think the commission was anti-union enough to send literal assassins after me if I suggested it :/"

meanwhile with the siblings

Five just. talks over them a lot and makes so much sense that it's actually really hard to argue with him, and he's weirdly considerate of his family's obligations

Like Diego is like "i have to go see Patch" then Five is like "that's great I'm proud of you buddy, it would actually be really handy to have some law enforcement read into the situation if you think she's up to the task. that goes for everyone by the way! If y'all have people you trust, more bodies would be super helpful I think"

the entire family, collectively, who have like zero trusted social links: uhhhhhhhh

Diego, with this weird permission, probably?? Does? Awkwardly attempt to read Patch into the situation? Patch is, obviously, like "what the fuck, Diego" but probably goes with him to the mansion (????????) because she's concerned and then meets his fucking whacko family with their superpowers and suddenly everything is 100% more realistic

Five is just like "yes hello I'm aware I look like a child, i'm actually in my late 50s or early 60s (apocalypse time amiright) because of time travel stuff. Yes I am Five Hargreeves who went missing in like 2002 or whatever. anyway it's lovely to meet you, i'm so glad diego has someone he trusts, and considering my sibling's shifty looks when i told them to invite anyone they trusted this genuinely makes me concerned that Diego is the most socially well-adjusted of them."

"That cannot be possible." Patch says, like someone who has met Diego Hargreeves.

"You haven't met the rest." Five says sympathetically, "In our defense we were raised in isolation as child soldiers."

"That... explains so much." Is all Patch can say to that, "But you seem..."

"I'm adopted." Five waves away.

"We're ALL adopted." Diego grits out, very aggrieved by this and also not sure if he likes the fact that Patch seems friendly with Five, or at least is listening to him?

"I'm double adopted."

However! With the recruitment of Patch, herding Diego becomes like 90% easier.

Honestly the worst to herd are probably Luther and Allison? Luther because he's Number One and resents Five taking charge and also resents Five's casual dismissal of Reginald and also suspects that Five (or at least the commission) has something to do with Reginald's death?

Allison because she is torn between following Luther and helping him and helping Five but also calling Patrick and Claire at every possible moment while ALSO trying to repair her relationship with Vanya. She's flighty - she'd bail on a Five-apocalypse-assignment if Vanya mentioned being hungry or if Luther called or anything like that

Vanya likes to be included and, if asked, would probably drop as many current obligations as she can. Like she would probably cancel her teaching if Five genuinely and sincerely asked her for her help, which he does because he's 100% sure Dolores would manifest in front of him and smack him if he dared even imply someone without powers wouldn't be helpful

Vanya is like "I'm not sure if i'll be helpful - I don't have powers ):" and Patch is like "wtf are you talking about - my superpowers are Gun, Backup, and Reading Comprehension and i am like the most useful member of this team right now"

Vanya gets a confidence boost just from hanging out with Patch honestly, I think they should be friends

Klaus is thrilled to be included are you kidding?? He says he does it for money but he's just happy to be there and also as one of the most emotionally intelligent siblings he is mildly concerned about the fact that Five looks like he's about to cry and also emotes

Five also gives Klaus positive reinforcement, hugs, and Five absolutely weaponizes the I'm not mad, but I believe that you can do better and I'm going to give you more chances because I love you and fully believe that next time you'll be amazing way that Rick used on him.

I feel like Five ends up saying something along the lines of "I understand that x is really important, and we're definitely going to look into it. Is it something that needs to be addressed right now, or is it something that can wait until after April 1st? If it can wait, I can write it down here on this list so we don't forget. If it can't wait then we can figure out a time to address it and help you" a lot

Like Grace malfunctioning and potentially killing Reginald?

"We don't have to make this decision right now." Five says patiently, "Because Grace is a robot, we have some options. Living with a robot who is potentially malfunctioning and homicidal is dangerous, but Luther saying that means admitting that Reginald might have made a mistake or error with Grace's programming or upkeep. I haven't been here for a long time, but I remember Reginald being very precise. Regardless, this isn't a choice between permanently shutting her off or not. We can shut her down temporarily until we can fully address the issue. We can ask and see if there is a 'system reboot' option or some sort of system check that Grace can undergo. We can try find and hire an expert to take a look at her programming to find the issue."

Five gives this speech while like, organizing the weaponry in the house on a table very nonchalantly

Five out here making buzzer noises at his siblings arguments like "yeah no that's a false dichotomy and a strawman's argument, want to try again?"

(Look apocalypse nights were long and they had games that were literally about arguing pointless shit like ranking types of chairs or the best way to break out of a prison without powers and things could get heated)

"Who died and made you boss?" Luther demands.

"Uh, the world? Were you not listening?" Five asks, looking very purposefully confused.

It gets even MORE delightful when Five reads Rick into the situation because a) he promised and b) his siblings really have like, no connections jeeze

Rick fully believes that this is his son from the future, like Five introduced himself, but Five skipped out on a few key details. Such as being adopted.

So Rick spends a solid chunk of time just staring at Five, who looks basically nothing like him, trying to think like, who is his mother ???? if we save the world will Five stop existing? why would I name my child 'Five'? Does everyone have powers in the future? was there like... a radioactive apocalypse? would radiation give future humans superpowers? when did my life turn into a comic book? am i even allowed to ask these questions? will knowledge of the future fuck things up?

and then when Five comes back and is like "what is up everyone this is my dad Rick who will be joining us, he doesn't have any memories of me thanks to time travel but if anyone is mean to him i WILL kneecap them"

"Your DAD?"

Five does kidney punch Klaus for saying that Rick is a DILF but otherwise everyone just is like, warily looking at this Normal Dad Man in confusion because?? This is the dude who raised Five, who they watched take out like an entire commission team by himself yesterday? He looks so. Normal.

Rick is very confused and like, wonders if he's supposed to be the team mascot? But Five keeps involving him and asking his opinion and in return Rick enforces snack breaks and makes everyone sandwiches and has gentle talks with everyone

Every time Five notices someone about to blow he just lovingly makes sure that that person is alone in a room with Rick

Luther ends up crying on the sofa with Rick gently patting his back as Rick calmly states that Luther seems like he's put a lot of time and effort into his family and making his father proud and that since Reginald isn't here to say it, Rick will have to be the one to say that he's proud and that they've been dropped into a difficult and stressful situation - so soon after Reginald's death when they're still grieving! - and he's doing so well

Luther, experiencing unconditional positive paternal regard for the first time in his life: i don't know why i'm crying so much

honestly this is just a comedy of juggling the gang, having impromptu therapy sessions and discussions, investigating the apocalypse and the eye, leonard trying to meet vanya continuously and failing because she's constantly surrounding by family or rick/patch, the commission trying their best to bust up the dream team/isolate Vanya/kill or remove Five, while Hazel lives out his romcom dreams with Agnes and also says "fuck the commission"

#HUH? #survivors au #well adjusted five au #long post #far tua long #five recruits rick to be team dad #rick is DEEPLY confused #but he's the kind of person that rolls with it #dolores probably ends up tagging along as well on at least one occasion #dolores and patch bond #five pretends that dolores is a new sibling and not his dolores #five calls rick 'dad' and it messes with everyone else #patch is on team fuck-the-apocalypse(-and-reginald) #vanya is never alone so fuck leonard #five finds out that vanya causes the apocalypse and is like #vanya: HUH? #luther: maybe we should lock vanya up - #rick: are there are any other possible actions that might be more appropriate in this situation? #vanya: i could try get more meds to take and we could address the powers thing after april 1st #vanya immediately gets validated that reginald sucks #even luther who has had multiple conversations with rick is like 'dad... didn't always make the best choices...' #everyone: :0 #hazel doesn't kill patch so he probably joins team anti-apocalypse at some point #hazel: why are you a child #five: oh you know i'm young at heart and all that #OH forgot to mention one of the main differences in this au is that five like properly grew up this time #so while he is inconvenienced by his body he's not so deeply uncomfortable or angry about it #just resigned #'this might as well happen' - five #five probably makes jokes about it as well

[devourer--of--books]

SGE x PJO AU: wiki pages

PART I: Hester

Okay, so hm, before we start.

Warning: some minor cursing, as well as spoilers for all percy jackson and the olympians, heroes of olympus and school for good and evil books. Basic knowledge of the main plot points is heavily recommended. 

Now that that’s out of the way, an unnecessary note:

I was unsure on how to structure this au, as I was originally going through the events of the novels book by book, but turns out that made the posts way too long (longer than they already are) and more like a mini-fic than an au post, so, for now, we’re sticking to a character-based wiki-like structure, one at a time.

This is obviously an au, so while we'll follow loosely the events of the riordan-verse, there's many tweaks, so it's easier to follow if you're familiar with the canon material but hopefully, I'll be able to answer any questions y'all might have.

I just might do mini-fic posts or write a one-shot or two, but that takes a while so maybe tell me if you’d be interested in that, because as usual, I am fueled by validation.

This is so goddamn self-indulgent. 

Hester Ravenswood

Daughter of Nemesis

Occupation: Head counselor of cabin 19 / High school student.

Early years: Used to live with her father, until he tragically died in a mysterious factory fire when she was 10. 

It is unknown how Hester got to camp, aside from the vague explanation she gives to Sophie and Agatha: she ran away from an orphanage and her mother guided her to Camp Half-Blood using dreams. She arrived at camp in the same night as Chaddick Edwards, and witnessed his death at Half-Blood Hill.

Camp years: Hester used to be a year-round camper at cabin 11. Since Nemesis didn’t have an actual cabin at the time, Hester was placed there, as per camp tradition, and while she often flaunted her parentage, she never got officially claimed. 

Within her first year, Hester dueled an older, unnamed demigod for a bunk bed at cabin 11. She wins the duel, but ends up with a bad reputation as a “shady back-stabber” around camp, due to her use of a hidden knife to win. The bottom bed of said bunk used to be always empty, despite Hermes’ cabin being very crowded, until Agatha’s arrival a few years later.

Hester is the third member of the quest to retrieve Zeus’ lighting bolt, alongside newcomers Agatha and Sophie.

The following summer, she runs away from camp with Sophie Martin to help on the quest for the golden fleece. 

Later that year, she participates in the mission to retrieve Yara and Willam Thomas from Westover Hall. 

During the quest to rescue Artemis, Hester is absent due to being given another quest by oracle/camp director August Sader: scouting the labyrinth. 

Next summer she leads the quest to find Daedalus, but after the incident in Hephaestus’ forges, she chooses to remain at camp to prepare for Kronos’ invasion, as well as aiding Dot Nottingham with Anadil Bloodbrook’s recovery after her time wandering by herself in the labyrinth.

A year later, Hester and Agatha blow up the Princess Andromeda cruise together, and she is heavily involved in the events leading to and during the Battle of Manhattan. Hester and Anadil are responsible for convincing a few minor gods, including Hester’s mother, to betray Kronos and help the campers fight off his army once Kronos cuts off connection between himself (alongside Sophie, Agatha and Yara) and his army to get to Olympus.

Post-war, she attends school alongside Dot Nottingham. It’s unknown what she plans to do after graduating, though it’s implied she might have to retake the year, as she often skipped classes to look for Agatha with Sophie. In one of those missions, Nemesis guides Hester to rescue Nicola Saylor, bringing her to Camp Half-Blood.

Currently: Hester is one of the seven demigods of the prophecy, and is abord the Argo II, headed towards Camp Jupiter.

Connections:

Dot Nottingham

While Hester mostly kept to herself during her first years at Camp Half-Blood, she has a secret soft spot for Dot, as she once overheard the girl standing up for her against Beatrix Jolie. 

She is the one that teaches Dot how to use a dagger. 

Every year, Dot offerers to house Hester for the school year, and every year she refuses, until after the Battle of Manhattan, when she accepts the invitation.

Agatha Schwartz

Hester and Agatha become friends shortly after her arrival, alongside Sophie, at Camp Half-Blood, when Hester claims to be impressed by Agatha’s confrontation with Aric Lesso, which seemed to freak every other camper out. 

Through the years, Hester  develops a not-so-one-sided crush on her, leading to a, rather messy, undefined romantic relationship between them after Hester kissed Agatha at Mount Saint Helens, but the two decide they are better off as friends after the Battle of Manhattan.

Hester is greatly distraught by Agatha’s disappearance after the war and feels horribly guilty for ignoring Agatha’s attempts to contact her prior to it due to remaining pettiness post-break-up.

Sophie Martin

Off to a bad start upon meeting, the two become tentative friends during the quest to retrieve the lightning bolt, and they even manage to join forces to aid Agatha, Hort Scourie and Aric Lesso on their quest for the golden fleece. 

However, Hester quickly grows suspicious that Sophie might be a spy for Rafal at camp. Once she hears that this accusation was proven true, during the quest to rescue Artemis, it causes an irreversible shift in their mostly playful previous dynamic, even though Sophie changes sides again after Rafal betrays her trust at Mount Tamalpais. The peak of their animosity is at their duel after “Agatha’s funeral”, in which Hester nearly strangles Sophie with her whip while blinded by grief, only stopping due to interference from Agatha herself.

Thankfully, things seem to have smoothed over between them after Sophie stabs, and sucessfully kills, Rafal in the Gods’ Throne Room, "ending” the Battle of Manhattan by keeping Kronos from destroying Olympus.

Sophie and Hester grow closer during Agatha’s disappearance, often meeting up for search missions whenever one of them believes to have a lead on their friend’s whereabouts.

Anadil Bloodbrook

Hester first meets Anadil during her first mission an the labyrinth, in which she manages to convince Anadil to help her escape Kronos’ forces, but isn’t able to take her along, feeling horrible guilt, believing Anadil to have been killed.

Once she learns that Anadil managed to escape and is actually alive, having been wandering through the maze on her own for months, Hester vows to save her, stepping down and handing over the quest for Daedalus to Agatha.

Hester manages to find Anadil, whose mind appears fragmented after so long in the labyrinth, and begs Dot to help her find a solution. The daughter of Dionysus eventually does, combining her mild influence over madness with Reena Shazabah’s healing talents as a daughter of Apollo.

Anadil and Hester keep in touch often after that, becoming very close friends and formulating a plan to secretly recruit minor gods and their children back to the olympian side.

The two of them start dating officially a few weeks after the end of the war and are currently still together.

Nemesis

Hester is contacted by her mother more often than most demigods, probably due to Nemesis status as a minor goddess. Nemesis offers to help Hester on occasion, but Hester always stresses that her mother is anything but kind; no help from her ever comes free of charge.

August Sader

Despite making a few jokes about the oracle’s host being past his prime, Hester shows a deep respect for the camp director, even if she doesn’t always agree with his tatics.

Reena Shazabah

Hester’s active dislike for Beatrix during her first few summers at camp lead to her passive dislike of all of the daughter of Aphrodite’s friends and flings, including Reena, but they eventually become friends and, after Reena aids Dot in healing Anadil’s mind, the two of them can often be spotted training together at the arena.

Rafal

While they were in the same cabin and Rafal was one of the few campers that didn’t avoid her, Hester tells Agatha she does not trust him. 

Once Rafal reveals himself as Kronos’ son, offering Hester a spot in his army, due to her being a child of a minor goddess, she tells him to “get fucked” and stabs him in the arm with her dagger, establishing their dynamic for the rest of the war.

Nicola Saylor

Hester is initially resentful of Nicola, for her presence reminded Hester of her own failure to find Agatha, but once the roman girl reveals that Agatha was most likely stuck at Camp Jupiter without her memories, Hester starts acting less hostile towards her.

Yara Thomas

Hester is part of the rescue party that retrieves Yara and her brother Willan.

At first the two seemed to get along, but after Yara joins the Hunters their friendship sours, as Hester has a very strong disdain for the group.

However, they start talking again during the Battle of Manhattan and grow closer once Yara offers to try and track down Agatha once she goes missing.

The current status of their friendship is unknown, as Hester will probably be livid once she finds out Yara met amnesiac!Agatha at Camp Jupiter months prior to Nicola’s arrival at Camp Half-Blood.

Hort Scourie

She doesn’t really care much for Hort at all before he is revealed to be one of the seven, but tolerates his presence on occasion, though Hester does state that kicking his ass on the arena is one of her favorite hobbies.

Weapons and Powers: Hester is very skilled with daggers and knifes, though her weapon of choice is usually a whip given to her by her mother on a deal they made when Hester first found out she was a demigod. Whatever Hester had to give her mother to keep her end of the bargain is currently unknown. 

The whip is shown to have a mind of its own, moving in fast snake-like motions that Sophie describes as “demonic”, glowing red when “awake”, but its use is rather dangerous for long periods of time, as it draws energy directly from Hester’s life force.

Hester has some sort of control over chance, being able to strike deals to tip the scales of balance in her favor, allowing her to succeed in unlikely situations, but more often than not, the price for doing so is way too high, being a last resort for her.

#school for good and evil #The School for Good and Evil #hester of ravenswood #hester sge #sge au

[anditendshowyoudexpect]

i was just browsing to get a new picture for my avatar

(from the book Gimson’s Prime Ministers by Andrew Gimson, illustrated by Martin Rowson)

LORD MELBOURNE Lived 1779–1848; prime minister 1834 and 1835–41

ON BEING ASKED to become prime minister, Lord Melbourne said he thought it ‘a damned bore’, and was ‘in many minds as to what to do’. 

His private secretary, Tom Young, retorted: ‘Why, damn it all, such a position was never held by any Greek or Roman; and if it only last three months, it will be worth while to have been prime minister of England.’ 

‘By God that’s true,’ Melbourne said. ‘I’ll go!’ 

We have this story from the diarist Charles Greville, who saw a great deal of Melbourne but, like most people, could not quite make him out: ‘Everybody wonders what Melbourne will do. He is certainly a queer fellow to be prime minister.’ To the world in general, Melbourne concealed his thoughts and emotions behind an affable, witty, tolerant, teasing exterior. As a young man, he had suffered the most notorious marital difficulties of any future prime minister. Yet he still loved and needed the company of spirited women, and became in the first years of her reign the adored prime minister and mentor of Queen Victoria. She saw at once that he was ‘straightforward, clever, honest and good’.

He was born William Lamb. His mother established herself as a great Whig hostess: beautiful, intelligent, vivacious, ambitious and promiscuous, she had children by several men while remaining married to the rich but unremarkable Lord Melbourne. William, her second son, was generally supposed to have been fathered by Lord Egremont and was educated at Eton, Trinity College, Cambridge, and Glasgow University. He grew into a tall, dark, handsome, amusing and unpushy young man, who was liked by everyone he met. The death of his elder brother enabled him to renounce the legal career on which, with no enthusiasm, he had embarked and to enter in 1806, at the age of twenty-six, the House of Commons. 

It also enabled him to propose marriage to the 19-year-old Lady Caroline Ponsonby, daughter of the Earl and Countess of Bessborough and niece of the Duchess of Devonshire, with whom he was in love. She was an upper-class wild child – slim, high-spirited and used on all occasions to getting her own way or else throwing a tantrum. For a few years they were happy, then they were unhappy. In 1812, she began a conspicuous affair with Lord Byron, a month after the poet awoke one morning and found himself famous, thanks to the publication of Childe Harold. It was Lady Caroline who described Byron as ‘mad, bad and dangerous to know’. He called her ‘the cleverest, most agreeable, absurd, amiable, perplexing, fascinating little being’. But he soon tired of her impetuous rages, realised her parading of their affair was doing him social harm and decided to break it off. She was infatuated with him, and refused to let him go. Her rages grew ever more extreme and culminated at Lady Heathcote’s ball in July 1813, where Byron refused to dance with her, so she broke a glass and began gashing her naked arms. 

The scandal was the talk of London and was followed by Lady Caroline’s excruciatingly embarrassing autobiographical novel, Glenarvon. Melbourne’s family urged him to separate from a woman who had heaped humiliation on them all, and most particularly on him. He agreed, but could not bring himself to leave her until 1825, and even after that, with tender good humour took what care he could of her until her death in 1828. They had one son, who was mentally handicapped, to whom Melbourne was devoted and who died in 1836 at the age of twenty-nine. 

For many years, his political career seemed no happier than his marriage. In 1812, he left the Commons, unable to stand the heavy cost of getting himself re-elected. He told his mother that leaving Parliament felt like ‘actually cutting my throat’, for it deprived him of ‘the greatest object of my life’. He cared about politics more deeply than he would generally admit. In 1816, he returned to Parliament, but these were the long years of Tory domination under Lord Liverpool, when there was no place for even a moderate, middle-of-the-road Whig like Melbourne. 

In 1827, Canning became prime minister and needed some moderate Whigs to serve in place of the stern unbending Tories who refused to join. In came Melbourne as Chief Secretary for Ireland. It was his first real job, and he demonstrated his ability to conciliate Catholics as well as Protestants, and also his well-hidden capacity for hard work. In Dublin, he relaxed in the company of the young, beautiful and animated Lady Elizabeth Brandon. Her husband, the Reverend Lord Brandon, attempted to get a bishopric for himself out of this, and having failed to do so, sued Melbourne, but was unable to prove that anything improper had occurred. 

The following year, Melbourne was one of the Whigs who resigned in sympathy with William Huskisson from the Duke of Wellington’s government. But at the end of 1830, when Lord Grey replaced Wellington, he appointed Melbourne to the vital post of Home Secretary. For while the Reform Bill made its tempestuous passage through Parliament, the country had to be saved from sliding into civil war. This Melbourne did with energy and firmness. He avoided sending in troops, but urged magistrates to use their powers to the full. Once again, he had given proof of his executive abilities. 

By 1834, the government was disintegrating and Lord Grey retired to Northumberland. William IV had to decide which of the Whigs to invite to take over as prime minister. His choice fell on the dependable Melbourne, for he seemed best placed to preserve the still-precarious order. His Cabinet colleague, Lord Durham, offered another reason for choosing Melbourne: ‘He is the only man to be prime minister because he is the only one of whom none of us would be jealous.’ 

So in came the amiable Melbourne. He was fifty-five and lasted for 121 days before the King decided to replace him with the Tory leader, Sir Robert Peel. The most memorable event at this time was the burning down, in October 1834, of the Houses of Parliament, an event greeted with cheers by the London mob. Peel had no majority in the Commons, so called an election, but made insufficient progress to gain control, so in April 1835 resigned. 

Melbourne, with some reluctance, was back. Few people expected him to last long, and he had renewed difficulties in his private life. He had for several years cheered himself by calling on his way home in the evenings on Mrs Caroline Norton, a beautiful and high-spirited young novelist who had established herself in rooms at Storey’s Gate, not far from Parliament. She was the granddaughter of the playwright Sheridan, a famous Whig whom Melbourne had known in his youth. 

George Norton, her villainous husband, decided to sue Mrs Norton for divorce, with Melbourne cited as co-respondent. But there was no evidence whatever that she had slept with him. When she was ill, Mr Norton had actually accompanied Melbourne to his wife’s bedroom. On another occasion, Mr and Mrs Norton had visited Melbourne together in his house in South Street, Mayfair, where he continued to live even after becoming prime minister. 

Melbourne asked William IV if he should resign. The King said definitely not. He and the Duke of Wellington suspected a shady plot to discredit Melbourne, and neither of them wanted anything to do with it. So Melbourne fought the case, though he did not appear in court himself, but sent the attorney general to make the case on his behalf. The court proceedings caused huge excitement but only lasted a day, for the main witness Mr Norton had managed to recruit was a drunken groom called Fluke, whose ludicrous evidence fell to pieces under cross-examination. The jury acquitted Melbourne without even leaving their box to confer. 

This was a success of a kind, and one which showed the prime minister’s resilience under pressure. But it also left a gap in his emotional life, for while he remained anxious for Mrs Norton’s welfare, he could no longer risk visiting her. This void was to be filled in a most unexpected way. 

In June 1837, William IV died, and was succeeded by his niece, the 18- year-old Princess Victoria. She was on bad terms with her mother, the Duchess of Kent, whose husband, the duke, had died when their daughter was only one year old. During Victoria’s childhood, the duchess, prompted by the unscrupulous Sir John Conroy, cut her off from other sources of advice and tried to lay the foundations for permanent control over her. 

Victoria was determined to resist them. But to whom could she turn for help and comfort in this endeavour? As soon as she met Melbourne, she knew she could count on him. And on whom could it be more proper to rely than on her prime minister? He became her private secretary, spent six hours a day with her and soon had his own bedroom at Windsor. Ministers were allowed to do pretty much as they pleased. Lord Palmerston, the Foreign Secretary, nearly started a war with France. Melbourne was engaged in the vital work of tutoring the young Queen, for which he was entirely suited. As she herself wrote, ‘he alone inspires me with that feeling of great confidence and I may say security, for I feel so safe when he speaks to me and is with me’. 

His conversation was fascinating. He dropped the swear words, but was as witty as ever. He had known everyone worth knowing for the last forty years, including her own family. Her uncle George IV had been as, Prince Regent, a regular visitor, and something more than a visitor, to Melbourne’s mother, and had become very fond of Melbourne himself. 

For although Victoria was Queen, the Victorian age had not yet set in. Melbourne remained, in his manners and sense of humour, a man of the eighteenth century, who detested earnestness and refused to admire the middle classes. His attitude is caught in his remark after hearing an evangelical sermon: ‘Things have come to a pretty pass when religion is allowed to invade the sphere of private life.’ He was deeply interested in religion, and had read widely on the subject. But he was not pious. 

Nor was he abstemious. He ate and drank huge amounts. In 1838, Lady Lyttelton observed that he was quite safe in office ‘unless he contrives to displace himself by dint of consommés, truffles, pears, ices and anchovies, which he does his best to revolutionise his stomach with every day’. 

In 1839, he made a dreadful error of judgement. One of the Duchess of Kent’s maids of honour, Lady Flora Hastings, had been unkind about Baroness Lehzen, who ran the queen’s household. Now Lady Flora grew unexpectedly large, and Melbourne encouraged the Queen in the idea that Lady Flora might be pregnant. When Lady Flora died, she was found, at the postmortem, to have an enormous liver tumour. The Hastings family were furious, and Victoria became for a time very unpopular. 

In the same year, Sir Robert Peel seemed about to become prime minister, but indicated that he would expect the Queen to replace some of her ladies-in-waiting. Victoria said she could not bear this, and Melbourne encouraged her in her resistance. Somewhat irregularly, he remained prime minister for another two years. 

In his offhand way, he helped to clarify the doctrine of Cabinet responsibility. For when he and his colleagues were discussing the Corn Laws, he told them: ‘Now, is it to lower the price of corn, or isn’t it? It is not much matter which we say, but mind, we must all say the same.’ 

But in 1840, he became superfluous to the Queen. She married her cousin, Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, who transported her to a state of married bliss, and quickly became her chief adviser too. She wanted to make Albert a King Consort, an idea against which Melbourne quite rightly warned: ‘For God’s sake, let’s have no more of it, Ma’am. If you once get the English people into the way of making Kings, you’ll get them into the way of unmaking them.’ 

The following year, he called a general election, lost it and resigned. A year later, he suffered a stroke from which he never fully recovered. He died in 1848. Anyone who likes the sound of him is urged to read Lord David Cecil’s wonderful two-volume biography of him, which captures better than any other the Whig attitude to politics.

#lord melbourne #william lamb #lord m #andrew gimson #martin rowson

[icharchivist]

I think Link and Lavi are excellent foils who's stories can parallel each other. Both are watchers. Both are suppose to remain neutral over certain areas. Both got attached when they shouldn't. Both were willing to sacrifice themselves for Allen. Allen thinks they're both dead. But Link is too weak willed right now to truly stand for his own beliefs. He's willing to let Allen fade away while desperately hoping he won't. Lavi has made a lot of strides to become more aware of himself and what-

2 life means to him. He probably still has ways to go but he’s far enough to know what to die and not to die for. It’s too bad Link didn’t meet Allen sooner. Maybe his friends wouldn’t have become Thirds/Noah slaves thanks to him handing over the akuma egg shard w/o question.

yESS my thoughts kinda??

For now Link is still “in progress” tbh, where Lavi went perhaps a little further already in how he pictured Allen. 

I mean, Lavi experienced a time where he thought Allen was dead, had to face his murderer and at that time, was lectured like hell by his grandfather/his duty for letting this emotion get to him: to the point of having confronted his duty about it in Road’s dreamland and, while not yet to have a full solution, still had made progress in the acceptance of this part of himself.

Link didn’t experience any of Allen’s close call before Apocryphos and there was no grief from it since he jumped into it to protect him (and died) , there can also be guilt on realizing that he stopped Allen from saving Tokusa as well that might hold Link back for different reasons, and while he reminds himself to not be conflicted, Lveille didn’t even NOTICE this conflict, believes in Link’s loyauty, and for now is adamant in “protecting Allen” (until the 14th can take all control) so this loyauty doesn’t have to be put back in question about it right now, or at least it’s not an emergency.

I think that’s also a key of the problem right? Lavi had Bookman lecturing him, because well, as much as Bookman treats him, he treats him like a peer, a grandson figure, an apprentice who will be just as important as him later. Lveille meanwhile treat Link more like a tool. (The worst is that both party “cares” about Lavi and Link in their own way but it kinda makes me despair to have to call Lveille going to multiple length to save Link because his loyauty left an impact on Lveille and it makes him a good tool “caring”.) Lveille isn’t even doubting in Link, he probably doesn’t even think Link could let his feelings change his path, while Bookman considers Lavi with enough humanity to consider it. 

The thing is that Link’s conflict is mostly internal at this point, he’s the one who’s raising his own questions, who noticed the conflict in his soul, and so far he’s allowed to carry on his duty and still keep an eye on Allen. He still hadn’t figured an answer either but as he’s also caught in the crossfire of “Wanting to Protect Allen” and His duty to protect Nea, he is forced to watch the situation and intervene to protect Nea. Which he did, and when he discussed with Nea he did no attempt to save Allen (not that he could have done anything anyway), just showed his major dislike to the event, and left as soon as Allen took control back. He’s still held back by his duty. 

Which is not something I’m holding against Link btw, this is just an ellaboration of what i’m saying about Link still starting on this path of self doubt and tbh I think it is more normal when you were raised to be a weapon with unquestioning loyauty, than with Lavi who as a Bookman can afford to at least be social with people so he can get more information out of them, therefore still managing to access some sort of feelings by procuration.In comparaison, Lavi’s duty is not linked at all to Allen’s internal conflict, so Lavi could express his care of Allen’s situation without jeoparding his duty. Which Link cannot.

The moment Lavi’s conflict was voiced externally with Bookman putting spotlight to it, Lavi had no choice but to pounder it, to question it, to put it into perspective. And Road furthered that as well, pushing Lavi to find answers to questions, even if it was only acknowledging those questions existed: In comparaison to Link, Lavi questions the details of his loyauty to the Bookmen in a way Link hadn’t started to process with the Order.

and ye i’d go as far as to say that it’s the two things: the meddling or therefore, lack of, from Bookman/Road and Lveille, and how long they had been staying at Allen’s side.

Besides, Lavi discovered Allen as “the young naive recruit”, if he knew of the prophecy, he probably just raised an eyebrow like “seriously? that punk?”, and had to be a silent watcher, not having any involvement in this destiny. and then he went on a journey to discover what kind of person Allen was, and the tragedies that befell Allen where just as new for Allen as they were for Lavi at the time. 

Link was asked to watch over Allen the moment it was known Allen had connection with the 14th, when Central started to meddle. He discovered Allen as “that fishy guy with links to the Noah and that shady Mareshall who is already suspected for his bad behavior”. There is a whole other journey in discovering Allen’s softer sides if only because Link was introduced to him as a potential enemy, someone who could become one, and had to be watched over for signs of said takeover.

And that’s also why it’s not innocent that Link opened to Allen right after Link wrongfully judged Allen’s attempt to save Tokusa and thinking “Allen joined the bad side”. The fact Link jumped into that conclusion is because it was the starting thought of the reasons he  had to investigate Allen to start with. If Allen had challenged him so far, this moment was so shady to him that he jumped back on his duty and stopped Allen completely- leading to everything that went wrong afterward. With Link also realizing that he was too quick to jump on conclusion when he realized how all of this unfolded. 

If Lavi’s major moments with Allen were linked to how much he shouldn’t get attached, with a battle in his own heart, and dealing with the grief of losing Allen, therefore challenging the very feelings Lavi had when he met Allen, Link’s major turning point was the moment he realized that by jumping right back on his duty at the first suspicion actually doomed Allen AND his found family. Link directly fucked up BECAUSE of his duty, not just “because his duty is there in the background”

The fact Link was wrong in his judgement and that his duty actually had Allen and the Crows suffer was the turning point for Link’s development. Before that, it was say like Lavi from the Vampire Arc to Allen’s death: sure, Link was softening up to Allen, especially in Paris after what happened with Cross, but he stayed focused on his duty and had no reasons to Challenge it. But wrongfully thinking Allen was hurting the Order was what caused Link to have to face his bias. Just like Lavi, it’s the wrongfull assumptions on Allen’s situation that challenged their views on their duties and had them conflicted ever since.

So in a way it’s fascinating because Link and Lavi has a similar journey for vastly different reasons due to their different background and the different people watching over their duties.

And in term of where they are now…. Lavi spent some time with Allen after Allen’s death. He had to process some of his feelings, dazzling light yada yada, Road’s dreamworld, the fight against Joyd, discovering the 14th ect….Sicne “Link’s turning point” Allen had been in jail, Link almost died protecting him, he was resurected at the last minute to watch over Nea and protect Nea. For now, Link didn’t have enough confrontation to anything else to challenge those feelings back, except for that one conversation with Kanda. And that’s also another thing: Lavi had to think about it and talk about it with Bookman and Road, and well, since his turning point, he had also others interreactions with people.  (we can even count his outbrust toward Lenalee as a way to proceed that information). Ever since Link’s turning point, he only talked with Lveille who imposed him his new goal, Kanda who did further the questioning, and Nea, his duty. In opposition, Link is still far from being able to question it fully.(now my wishfull thinking would be the return of the Thirds if only to fuel Link’s views on that. If anyone can actually help Link emotionally proceed something, aside Allen, it would be them).

Had Link known Allen before the 14th mess.. it’s hard to say. His characterization was so much linked to his ties to Central that it’s hard for me to picture him trying to see something in Allen was he not asked to do so. It could have helped but i admit i don’t have the necessary projection for that.as for “Allen preventing the Thirds” i think i remember Link being mad at the Third because he didn’t know they partaken that experiment? It’s blurry for me.. but i seem to recall Link not being found of it to start with and i doubt Allen could have changed much to that situation. Although, had Link known Allen before, he perhaps wouldn’t have jumped to the conclusions with the Tokusa’s scene, so perhaps we would be in a totally different manga right now.

Take care!

#I don't think i've ever talked about Link for this long wow #I don't even think i've thought about Link this much in length before #try to get me on there though: I was in the fandom back when BEFORE the Alma's arc was released #we didn't know what to do with Link back then we had no clue what sort of character he would be #when the Tokusa stuff happened we were quick to jump on conclusions #and we DID believe him dead #his survival was revealed so close to the hiatus too (and personally it's when I stopped reading ) that I didn't take the time to process it #and him actually voicing how conflicted he is is pretty recent i think??? #so ye Me overthinking Lavi for ten years VS me only thinking about Link for about 4 years: fight. #ichafantalks dgm #ichameta dgm #Anonymous #ichareply

[thewalkingdeadimaginings]

All Coming Back To Me

Oh my gosh could you please do an imagine where Abraham and Reader were like pen pals before the break out and the reader is a member of Alexandria and something that Abraham says kind of clicks and she knows it the man she'd been writing to? 😆

Ah, I’m nearly caught up with my backed up requests. Since I’m getting so close to being caught up, maybe I’ll update Beauty of a Secret in the next few days since I updated No Regrets a few days ago. Although I do have some requests coming up that are gonna take a while to finish because they’re pretty long requests. Not that I mind, I absolutely love the ideas you guys come up with and I just hope that I do your visions justice.

ALSO, just a reminder for anyone who’s new here or put in a request: I am not ignoring your requests. I see them and I’ve made note of them but I don’t usually respond to the requests until I post them although I haven’t done that lately. I’m nearly caught up although the more recent ones I’ve gotten are falling a little behind now so I’m TRYING TO HURRY so this doesn’t happen again. Anyways, enough gab.

You were the kind of person that couldn’t part with a lot of things. You could find the sentimental value in everything. And one of the many things you kept were a stack of a letters that you had been getting from a pen pal somewhere in Houston, Texas. His name was Abraham Ford and even his written words were energetic and full of fire. His gentler writings were about his wife and his children. He adored them and that’s what always brought you back to reading old letters. He had a big heart and you admired that about him. Whether or not you ever actually met him in person, he was a kind and passionate man and you were glad to have him as a friend and hear his stories about his family or even war stories even though most of them didn’t have happy endings. He had quite a colorful way of telling stories. The term “bitch nuts” and “motherdick” came up quite often in his letters. Maybe one day, you’d be able to meet the man you knew as a close friend.

But when the world ended, you had to leave those letters and those memories behind and that broke your heart more than anything. If you could’ve carried those letters with you, you would have. But there was only space for the essentials. You hoped that on the day the world was restored, you could go back home and find those letters again. You hoped they’d be safe from harm. But knowing how desperate everyone was, you had doubts. Someone might stay in what was once your home to get away from the dead, find the letters and use them as kindling to make a fire. As angry as the thought made you, you also knew it was something you would’ve done if you were staying in an abandoned house. You couldn’t be too angry at the idea of someone trying to survive any way they could. You had to learn to let those letters go. You had to let Abraham go. He had probably died a long time ago. What were the chances of him getting out of Texas alive and reaching Virginia? Slim to none. So, you had to move on.

And eventually you did move on. You soon came across a newly established community called Alexandria and thrived. Over time, you were able to bury every memory of Abraham and his letters. Soon, you even forgot his name. Forgetting was much easier than living with the fact that your friend was dead. You made new friends, created new memories.

One friend you’d made, Aaron and his boyfriend, Eric left for a few days to recruit new people to live in the community. He had good judgment and knew who to bring back and who to leave behind. In the past year and a half he’d been doing this, Deanna, the community’s leader, only had to banish one or two people. When Aaron returned, he brought a huge group back with him. At least fifteen people in the group including a baby. You hadn’t seen a baby in so long. Who knew there would ever be a baby in the world again.

“Wow, Aaron,” you said once everyone came through the gate, “You brought back an army.”

“I know,” Aaron replied, “I never expected to find so many people at once. I think they’re really gonna fit in here.”

They were all filthy and looked so exhausted and uncomfortable. They needed some warm food, a hot shower, and clean clothes desperately, “Look at them. God, who knows how long they’ve been out there.”

“Weeks,” Aaron said, “At least that’s what their leader told me. But they’ve still stuck together through it all.”

“That is pretty great,” you said. Before finding Alexandria, you didn’t really have a group with you. You were at first but they were all dead by the time Aaron found you. To have such a group was a blessing. They were truly a family.

“Could you do me a favor and set them up with their houses for me?” Aaron said, “They’re gonna need them.”

“Of course,” you said, “You get their weapons from them?”

“We’re about to,” Aaron said, “Just want them to get used to us first before we go and demand their weapons. I kinda made us sound shady when I was trying to tell them about this place. Don’t wanna give them an even worse first impression.”

“No doubt,” you murmured. With that, you left to get the group’s new home set up. At the moment, you only had two for the fourteen of them. Finding a space for the baby shouldn’t be too difficult though. You managed to find a crib and a playpen for the baby and ran into one of the members of the new group as you were carrying the playpen a bit awkwardly in your arms. His friendly smile was hidden a bit by his horseshoe moustache but you were still at ease looking into his blue eyes.

“You need some help with that?” he asked.

“Oh, no thank you,” you replied, using the playpen to gesture to the house in front of you, “Just gotta get this into the house for the little girl you brought with you. She’s so precious, by the way.”

“She is,” he said, “She’s Judith, Rick’s daughter.”

“Oh I see,” you said, “So, what do you think of this place so far?”

He looked around, taking in the sereneness around him. Even though you’d lived here for such a long time, the peacefulness of it all still took your breath away sometimes. To think it was possible to live in such tranquility in a world like this seemed impossible. You could see the awe and bewilderment in his eyes.

“Seems too good to be true,” he said finally, “But, for now, it’s nice. What about you? How long have you lived here?”

“I got here kinda at the beginning,” you explained, “The walls had just barely been put up when I arrived. But I’m still so surprised by this place sometimes like I’m new here all over again. I can’t even imagine how you and your people are feeling right now.”

“It’s surreal,” he said, slowly nodding his head, “So, I never even asked you your name.”

“Y/N.”

He paused as if you’d startled him, raising his eyebrows a bit. Before you could ask, he spoke up, “Sorry, it’s just I knew someone with that name once. A while back.”

“Oh,” you murmured, “Sorry to hear that. What’s your name? Aaron didn’t mention any names.”

“Abraham.”

The name sounded so familiar but you couldn’t place it in your mind. God, the end of the world had really messed with your memory, like you had to put your past to rest and adapt to the new world as a new person.

“Nice name,” you said, “Well, it was nice to meet you, Abraham. I gotta get this playpen into the house now before the rest of your people get here. I wanna make sure everything’s set up for all of you.”

“That’s nice of you, Y/N,” he said, frowning slightly at the mention of your name. Whoever this person was, losing them was hard on him. Seeing him so upset simply because of your name made your heart break for him. This person must’ve been important to him.

“It’s no problem,” you said, “I’ll see you around, Abraham.”

Abraham. Abraham. Abraham. You repeated his name over and over again in your head and the answers still wouldn’t appear before you. It drove you mad that his name was right there in the back of your mind but you couldn’t grasp where you’d heard it before. Had you known someone with that name? Had you met someone during your brief journey before discovering Alexandria with that name? You’d met a few people before meeting Aaron, it was definitely a possibility. But it would bother you until the end of time unless you figured it out. If you could only remember, you might’ve gotten a restful sleep that night.

The next morning, Deanna had asked you to take some clean linens and clothes to the new group after breakfast. They’d kept to themselves for the most part. They explored a little and met a few people around the community but were still cautious and jumpy. You weren’t surprised though. Who knows what this group had endured before arriving here.

When you knocked on their door, one of the women in the group, Rosita, opened the door, “Oh, hi. Y/N, right? What’re you doing up so early?”

“I could ask you the same question,” you chuckled.

“Habit,” Rosita said with a smile, “We’re used to being up at dawn. Wanna come in?”

“Sure, thank you,” you said. You and Rosita walked into the house and you set a laundry basket full of bedsheets, pillowcases, and clothes of various sizes down on the back of the couch, “Deanna asked me to bring your more stuff. We wanna make sure you’re comfortable.”

“That’s nice,” Rosita said. Taking the basket from you, she nodded towards the kitchen, “You wanna stick around a while? Carol was heating up some water to make tea if you wanted some.”

“Yeah, that would be great,” you replied, leaning against the couch, “Thank you.”

“No problem,” Rosita said, “I’m just gonna take this basket upstairs. Be back in a sec.”

As Rosita walked up the staircase, she passed Abraham coming down. He had just gotten out of the shower, water dropping off the ends of his red hair onto the towel wrapped around his neck. He had trimmed his moustache a little, making it easier to see the smile he greeted you with.

“Morning, Y/N,” he said, “You’re up kinda early.”

“So are the rest of you,” you said, “Rosita invited me to stay for tea.”

“That’s cool,” Abraham said, “Deanna’s got me a job in construction.”

“Oh, working on the expansion?”

“The very same.”

“That’s awesome,” you said, “Glad to see you’re excited about it. Were you in construction before?”

“No, I was a sergeant in the US army,” Abraham replied, “Had a wife and two kids, lost them after the world went to shit.”

“Oh wow, I’m so sorry,” you said, reaching out to touch his shoulder. Abraham nodded, hanging his head. Then, out of nowhere, it hit you. Abraham. Abraham…Ford. Abraham Ford. From Houston. US Army, wife, two kids. Letters. The letters. The letters!

“Oh my god,” you whispered. You’d never seen what he looked like before but this had to be the same man, the man you’d befriended all the way from Texas. Your friend. He’d made it. He’d made it after all. You’d waited so long to meet him face to face and now that you had, you weren’t even sure what to do. You’d forced yourself to forget about him because the pain of losing a friend had been too much. But there he was, standing in front of you and he had no idea who you were.

“What?” Abraham said.

“You’re Abraham Ford,” you said, “From Houston, Texas.”

“How in the holy fuck did you know that?” Abraham snapped.

“I’m Y/N,” you said, “The one who you were writing to back and forth. Before the world ended, we were pen pals. That’s me.”

Abraham’s blue eyes widened and he gasped, pointing at you, “Y/N! Holy shit balls I can’t even believe it! It’s you! I never thought we’d ever fucking meet! What a way to meet, right?”

You laughed. Abraham hadn’t changed one bit, “Totally. I’m so relieved to know that you’re alive. I don’t even know how to feel right now.”

“Me neither,” Abraham said, “Ya know, I saved all your letters. They were in a drawer in my desk back home.”

“I saved mine too,” you said, “I had mine in a shoebox in my closet. I wish I’d brought them with me. Oh my god, I still can’t believe this.”

Abraham nodded in agreement. There was a long pause, neither of you sure what to say or what to do. Despite being old friends, this world had changed the both of you. Your friendship might have to start over from scratch.

But you knew it would be worth it.

Without another word, you rushed towards him and threw your arms around him, holding him in a hug that you’d waited so long to give him. He didn’t hesitate in hugging you back, squeezing you tightly against him. This was a huge moment for the both of you. The timing and circumstances of your first meeting were awful but you didn’t even care. You finally met your closest friend, the person that always made you laugh and made your days better. You had forgotten how badly you missed him until now. But now, you wouldn’t have to miss him anymore. You had your friend back.

YAY I FINISHED THIS IN ONE DAY! Does anyone ever actually read these little “author’s notes” at the end of every one shot? I dunno, just wondering. But anyways, thanks for reading and as always, thank you so much for your patience as I catch up on these requests 😊 <3

#The Walking Dead #TWD #The Walking Dead Imagines #TWD Imagines #imagines #TWD one shot #TWD fanfiction #one shot #fanfiction #Abraham Ford #Abraham Ford fanfiction