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Vlad the Impaler between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire

Authors: Ileana Căzan, Eugen Denize

When discussing the complex personality of Vlad the Impaler, we believe that there are two fundamental issues that need to be addressed and two questions that require an answer based on a thorough analysis of the data and facts available to us. The first question is whether or not Vlad the Impaler was a bloodthirsty tyrant, ready to kill for the simple pleasure of seeing innocent blood spilled. We believe that this question can be adequately answered by looking at how his war with the Turks began in 1462. Was Vlad Țepeș, a bloodthirsty tyrant, acting under the blind impulses of unleashed instincts and unjustifiably provoking the Turks, or was he obliged to wage war against the great Ottoman power under conditions unfavourable to him but imposed on him by the course of events?

Secondly, despite his bravery and the sacrifices he made fighting for his own people and for Christianity, Vlad the Impaler fell victim to the propaganda and misinformation that Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary, unleashed in the West to justify his inaction in 1462. That the King of Hungary resorted to less than chivalrous methods, incited and supported by the Saxons who could not forgive the Highlander for his actions against them, is easy to understand. But how does one explain the great success of these lies, which have survived through the ages and helped Bram Stocker's literary creation and fantasy to transform the hero of the anti-Ottoman struggle into a true model of the vampire, the famous Dracula? Matia Corvin's propaganda power was not enough for this, but it received unexpected and essential help from the most informed power of the time in relation to the Ottoman Empire and the general political life of Europe, from Venice, a true bridge of contact between East and West, not only in economic terms but also in terms of information. The credit given by Venice to the untruths propagated by Matthias Corvinus, even though it knew exactly the political reality of the Lower Danube, ensured their particular success, because the other Christian powers were much less informed and interested in the situation in this part of Europe and therefore had no reason to dispute what the Venetians accepted as true. All these problems, questions and possible answers will be dealt with in the pages of this chapter, as far as the available documentation allows.

As far as Vlad Țepeș is concerned, whether he took over the reign between 15 April and 3 July [1] or in July-August [2] or at the end of August 1456 [3], the fact is that he did so with the help of Iancu de Hunedoara, at a time of maximum clash between his armies and those of Mehmet II, the conqueror of Constantinople, who was also preparing to conquer Belgrade, the key to Hungary and Central Europe. By ascending the throne of Wallachia at such a time, he could only be the exponent and continuator of the anti-Ottoman political line advocated by Iancu, as is clear from the act, dated 6 September 1456, in Targoviste [4], in which he offers to help, with all his powers, Hungary against the Turks, from the letter sent to the Brașovs from the same place on 10 September [5], and from the help he would give to Stephen the Great to take over the throne of Moldavia in the spring of the following year [6]. In spite of these intentions and deeds, due to the premature death of Iancu de Hunedoara, which significantly changed the political situation in the Romanian area and not only here, Vlad Țepeș was obliged to pay his tribute regularly to the Porte [7] , until 1459, when he stopped doing so, invoking to the Sultan the conflictual situation in which he found himself with the Saxons of southern Transylvania and the Hungarian king Matia Corvin [8] . The truth is that, obliged to respect the Turkish-Hungarian co-residence established over Wallachia by the armistice concluded by Iancu de Hunedoara with the Sultan on 20 November 1451-13 April 1452 [9] , Vlad Țepeș never reconciled himself to this situation and tried to manoeuvre between the two powers with the ultimate aim of opposing one another and easing the situation of his own country [10] .

Here we believe it is appropriate to bring into question the way in which the war between Vlad Țepeș and the Turks started, whether Vlad Țepeș started this war driven by reprehensible bloody instincts or whether he was forced by circumstances to accept a war with the great power south of the Danube, a war that could only be total, in the sense that this word can have for the time, if he wanted to achieve victory and save the country from total disaster. We believe that there are three essential aspects of the moment of the real rupture between Vlad Țepeș and the Ottoman Porte, aspects that must be analysed very carefully.

Of course, Vlad the Impaler was determined, right from his accession to the throne, as we have shown above, to pursue an anti-Ottoman policy of defending autonomy and state integrity, but this policy could not be pursued under any conditions and at any risk. Vlad Țepeș, as a good politician and a remarkable military commander, realised that to start the fight against the Ottoman colossus meant waiting for the most favourable moment, when his reign would be strengthened internally, and externally he could hope for help from other countries also interested in the anti-Ottoman struggle. But let's look at the three key aspects of this problem.

First of all, there is an alleged expedition of the vizier Mahmud Pasha against the Romanian Country, which two Italian sources place in 1458 [11], but, in fact, there is a chronological error [12], which excludes the hypothesis of a clash between Vlad the Impaler and the Ottomans before the winter of 1461-1462.

Secondly, in our opinion, the cessation of the payment of the tribute of 10,000 ducats per year [13] did not signify an immediate and irreparable rupture with the Porte as is considered in a number of more or less recent works [14] . If things had been different, if Vlad Țepeș had openly broken off relations with the Porte, Sultan Mehmet II, who wanted to mark each year of his reign with a new conquest, would probably not have hesitated to attack Wallachia. But what did he do until 1462? In 1458 he conquered a large part of Moreea [15] , in 1459, the year Vlad the Impaler stopped paying tribute, Mehmet II conquered Semendria and all that remained of the Serbian state [16] , in 1460 he completed the conquest of Moreea [17] , and in 1461 he conquered Sinope and Trapezunt [18] , the last remnants of the Byzantine Empire. In our opinion, the Sultan and the rulers of the Porte did not interpret the non-payment of tribute as an act of hostility, nor did Vlad Țepeș have any interest in deliberately provoking the Turks at a time when he was in open conflict with the Saxons of southern Transylvania and the Hungarian king, Matia Corvin [19] , who supported hostile claimants to the throne and Bohemian groups. Through this conflict, which was also determined by important economic aspects [20], but dominated, above all, by political causes [21], Vlad Țepeș sought to achieve two objectives that were absolutely necessary to be able to fight successfully against the Porte: the internal consolidation of the state and the institution of the reign and the affirmation of the independent position, de facto, of the Romanian Country against the claims of suzerainty of the Hungarian royalty. Both objectives were achieved by the treaty concluded with Brașov around 1 October 1460 [22] . The 1460 reconciliation between Vlad Țepeș and the Saxons unquestionably restored to them the commercial freedom in Wallachia suppressed during the conflict [23] . The reconciliation also took place in the context of Vlad Țepeș's return to the alliance with Hungary, in the preparation of the anti-Ottoman action, which remained, all along, the dominant direction of the Romanian prince's foreign policy.

Thirdly, in our opinion, the Turks begin to show distrust and hostility towards Vlad Tepes only in 1461, during or immediately after the end of the expedition against Trapezunt and, in this situation, having no other choice, the lord decides to take open action against them in the winter of 1461 and 1462 [24] . He considered himself to be fairly strong internally, he realised that a confrontation with the Porte had become inevitable, especially after the unsuccessful attempt to capture him at Giurgiu, and he was also counting on possible external support that could come either from the eastern enemies of the Ottoman Empire or from Matthias Crovin, or from Venice, because the time for the formation of an anti-Ottoman coalition including all these seemed very near, despite the failure of the Congress of Mantua in 1459, at which Pope Pius II (1458-1464) had hoped to set up a great anti-Ottoman league, with the broad participation of the Christian powers [25] . It was decided here, among other things, that the Christian army would be led by the Duke of Milan, Francesco Sforza, and the Duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good [26], but the decision would have no effect.

The contemporary chronicler Laonic Chalcocondil states that Vlad Țepeș did not start the anti-Ottoman struggle until he felt that the situation in Dacia was secure, and this happened after the Sultan's campaign against Trapezunt in the winter of 1461 and 1462 [27] . But let us see what were the elements that led to this rupture and to the great confrontation of 1462.

In the second half of 1460, Vlad the Impaler re-established good-neighbourly ties with the Saxons of southern Transylvania, as we have shown above, and concluded a secret treaty with Matthias Crovin [28] , which provided, among other things, for his marriage to a relative of his [29] . Also in this year, a soldier of the eastern princes of Georgia, Mingrelia, Guria, Trapezunt and Uzun Hasan, the Turkoman ruler of Persia, crossed the Danube to Hungary, who were preparing to attack the Ottoman Empire and were looking for allies in Europe. They were accompanied by the monk Lodovico da Bologna [30] - the Pope's legate in Georgia - and held talks in Hungary [31] , with Emperor Frederick III [32] , in Venice, where they were received with great respect and politeness [33] , then in Florence, Rome and with Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, considered as the possible leader of the European anti-Ottoman coalition [34] . But the result of this veritable European tour of the Eastern solons was nil. The fact is that the 1458-1461 actions of the Eastern coalition under the leadership of the Turkmen state of Uzun Hasan, which included Trapezunt, Armenia, Georgia and Sinope, led to anti-Ottoman campaigns in northern Anatolia in 1459 and 1460. This was known to Vlad the Impaler, which leads us to believe that he also held talks with the Eastern soldiers in 1460, when they were travelling on the Danube. Although there is no evidence for this, it is unlikely that the lord of Wallachia, who was preparing for war with the Turks, did not take advantage of the presence of the soldiers of the Eastern Coalition, which already existed and was acting against the Ottoman Empire, while at the same time heading for Central and Western Europe, where they hoped to build a similar anti-Ottoman coalition. In this way, Vlad the Impaler hoped to receive important aid from both East and West, and that his anti-Ottoman action, simultaneous with the other two coalitions, would be successful. Vlad Tepes also realised that dispersing the Ottoman forces on several fronts, where they could be engaged in heavy fighting, would have favoured his own action [35] . But this did not happen, as the coalition in the East was dealt a heavy blow by the sultan's conquest of the cities of Sinope and Trapezunt in 1461, and the anti-Ottoman coalition in the West was not formed until 1463, after the Turks had started the war with Venice. Vlad the Impaler's attack in the winter of 1461-1462 therefore took place without any outside support, at the very moment when the Turks were free to act militarily as they wished, which leads us to believe that he did not want the attack and therefore the outbreak of hostilities with the Ottoman Empire at the very moment when it was under no outside pressure. But as we shall see below, the lord of Wallachia had no choice, the Turks did not let him choose the moment of the attack, but, on the contrary, by their actions and intentions they provoked him just when they knew they could strike a devastating blow.

The negotiations with Matthias Corvinus and the Saxons of southern Transylvania, as well as the possible negotiations with the soldiers of the anti-Ottoman eastern coalition, naturally provoked the displeasure of the Porte, for whom continued non-payment of tribute was beginning to be considered a sign of insubordination. The vast majority of narrative sources agree that this change of attitude of the Porte towards Vlad Țepeș occurred in 1461, either during the campaign against Trapezunt or immediately afterwards [36] and do not suggest any previous disagreements regarding the non-payment of tribute. On learning of the agreement between Vlad Țepeș and Matia Corvin [37] , the sultan sent, for a start, a message to Wallachia in order to ask the prince to abandon the alliance with Hungary and the planned marriage [38] , but the expected results were not obtained. Vlad Țepeș accepted to pay the haraci, but refused to give children for the janissaries, a blood tribute that his country had never given [39] and refused to appear in person at the Porte [40] .

This time, the reasons given, among which the threat from Hungary was the most important, could no longer be believed by the Sultan [41], who decided to replace Vlad Țepeș from his reign. Mehmet II, however, sought to avoid a major campaign against Wallachia, whose chances of success were doubtful, and therefore tried to capture Vlad Țepeș by deception, but the trap set for the prince by Hamza bei and the Greek Catabolinos, near Giurgiu, ended in disaster, the two being captured and impaled [42] . Now appear in the Turkish chronicles the most serious accusations against Vlad Țepeș, accusations that justify the action and failure of Giurgiu, but also the sultanal campaign of 1462 [43] .

However, after the execution of the two Ottoman rulers, things had become very clear for Vlad Țepeș. There was no way back and the only plausible option, with some chance of success, remained war, a war that had to be fought with all determination and harshness, given the huge disproportion of forces in favour of the Turks.

In the political context created by the Congress of Mantua (26 September 1459-14 January 1460) [44] , by the coalition of states on the eastern borders of the Ottoman Empire [45] and by the Moreea uprising [46] , by the Venetian preparations for a decisive conflict with the Porte for predominance in the eastern Mediterranean [47] , the war waged by Vlad the Impaler in the winter of 1461-62 against the Ottoman Empire was undoubtedly the first major military action in Europe that preceded the great Turkish-Venetian war of 1463. Unfortunately for the lord of Wallachia, his action came at a time of calm on all the anti-Ottoman fronts, with the coalition of Eastern states in a period of ebb and the Western, Christian coalition not yet formed. In fact, the latter coalition was never formed and was only replaced by a system of alliances that revolved around Venice, but this from 1463 onwards. So, as we have already pointed out, Vlad the Impaler found himself alone against the Ottoman Empire, not because he wanted it out of an uncontrolled warlike impulse, but because he was forced, we repeat, by circumstances.

Vlad the Impaler was fully aware of this fact and that is why, in his famous letter of 11 February 1462 to the King of Hungary, Matthias Corvinus, after detailing the results of his expedition south of the Danube that winter, he emphasises his adherence to and identification with the Crusader ideal and consequently asks for the absolutely essential help he needed to face the huge Sultan expedition that was preparing against him. But let the Lord of Wallachia himself speak: "For we do not want to leave what we have started on the road, but to see it through to the end. For if the Almighty God will hear the prayers and desires of Christians and incline His ear with kindness to the prayers of His poor, and thus give us victory against the heathen, enemies of the cross of Christ, it will be the greatest honor and use and help of soul to thy great and holy crown and to all true Christendom.... And if, God forbid, we should come to an evil end and our country should perish, neither will your highness have any use or help in this matter, for it will be to the detriment of all Christendom" [48] .

It must be pointed out, however, that Vlad the Impaler, as a skilful politician and military commander, like Stephen the Great a little later, understood to fight against the Turks as a modern monarch, which in fact he was, a monarch who had the interests of his state at heart and not as a medieval crusader who threw himself headlong against the infidels. His adherence to the crusading ideal at this time can only be explained by a desire to gain support from other Christian powers, but he was aware that they too were far removed from the medieval crusading ideal and were fighting, if they decided to do so, only for their own interests. This explains the quite clear threat to the Hungary of Matthias Corvinus, who, in the event of the collapse of the Romanian Country or the installation on its throne of a prince allied to the Porte, would have found himself alone, face to face with the Ottoman Empire.

In launching his anti-Ottoman action in the winter of 1461 and 1462, because he had no other choice but to strike first and with all his might, Vlad the Impaler therefore counted on possible help from his ally, Matthias Corvinus, or even Pope Pius II [49] and on the fact that the main Ottoman forces were still dispersed in several directions (Sinope, Trapezunt, Moreea, etc.) [50] . Unfortunately, as we have already pointed out, his action was at odds both with that of the Turks' Asian enemies, defeated in 1461, when Sinope and Trapezunt were occupied by Mehmet II, and with that of Venice, which would not enter the fray until 1463, after the Turks had attacked first and taken Argos by surprise. As for the King of Hungary, despite the alliance he had with the voivode of Wallachia, his requests for help in his letter of 11 February 1462, the subsidies he had received from the papacy and the promise he had made to go in person against the Turks [51] , he had no intention whatsoever of confronting them [52] , for two main reasons: on the one hand he was still caught up in the conflict with Emperor Frederick III [53] , and on the other hand, from the beginning of his reign he was determined to direct his main efforts towards Central Europe and not against the Ottoman Empire [54] . The only concrete measure taken by Matthias Corvinus was to strengthen only the defence of Transylvania [55] .

In fact, the King of Hungary, from presumed ally, became Vlad the Impaler's enemy, whom he arrested on November 26, 1462, at a time when no one expected such a thing, tried to take credit for the summer victory against the Sultan and, in order to justify his action before Europe, which expected great feats of bravery from him in the anti-Ottoman struggle, he launched a veritable propaganda campaign to slander the brave prince of Wallachia, accused of treason, of collusion with the Turks and of abominable cruelties [56] . All this served, we repeat, as a pretext and justification before the Pope, Venice and the whole of Christian Europe for his own renunciation of the anti-Ottoman campaign he had promised to undertake.

So, if we were to formulate a few conclusions up to this point we have reached with our analysis, they might be as follows: Vlad Țepeș was forced to attack the Ottoman Empire in the winter of 1461 and 1462 due to the manifest hostility of the Sultan, who refused to accept on the throne of Wallachia a lord considered rebellious, the cessation of the payment of tribute in 1459 not having, in our opinion, the significance of an open break with the Porte. The voivode of Wallachia did not receive any concrete help from anyone, because the enemies of the Porte and his potential allies had either been defeated or had not yet entered the battle [57], his main ally, Matthias Corvinus not only did not help him but, probably reaching an agreement with the Porte regarding Wallachia in order to have peace on its southern borders, arrested him and threw him in prison where he stayed for almost 13 years. Because of this, the great victory achieved by Vlad Țepeș in 1462, when the Sultan was forced to retreat south of the Danube without having achieved any of his original objectives, could not be exploited in any way by the European powers, especially Venice, which in a year's time would go to war with the Turks, a decisive war for the balance of power in the Eastern Mediterranean. It should also be borne in mind that the expulsion of Vlad Țepeș from his reign, just after his victory, can also be explained by the attitude of part of the nobility, of the political class, which was willing to fight only in moments of great hardship that threatened its own existence. When these times passed, it preferred to reach compromise solutions with the great power south of the Danube [58] . This was also the case with the accession of Radu the Handsome. Nevertheless, Vlad Țepeș's victory over the Sultan was of particular importance, as it managed to save the existence of the Romanian state and made it possible to reach a compromise with the Porte, which would have been impossible in the event of defeat. Basically, Vlad Țepeș saved his country from being turned into a pashas.

However, it is also interesting to note how Venice, the main Christian power in the Mediterranean at that time interested in the anti-Ottoman struggle, followed the events of the Lower Danube [59], how it knowingly became the mouthpiece of Matthias Corvinus, even though it was well aware of the political reality in the area. In 1459, in the year of Vlad Țepeș's supposed open break with the Porte through non-payment of tribute, Venice was not very interested in the events in this area, which, moreover, did not herald anything special. This may be one of the explanations for the permanent obstacles to Pius II's crusading plans, as set out at the Congress of Mantua. Thus, in exchange for her participation in a possible anti-Ottoman coalition, Venice demanded 8,000 men to equip her fleet, payment of all expenses incurred for war preparations, and the organisation of an army of 50,000 horsemen and 20,000 foot soldiers to go to the borders of Hungary [60] , conditions impossible to achieve. Moreover, after the peace concluded on 23 April 1454 [61] by Bartolomeo Marcello with the Sultan, the Republic of the Lagoons did its utmost to preserve the status quo in relations with the Turks, to reduce any of their sensitivities, to avoid at all costs the outbreak of a new war with the Ottoman Empire. Such a war was regarded as inevitable, sooner or later, by Venice, which had begun to realise that the Turks were gradually becoming a formidable maritime power,[62] but it should not be started before the Republic was fully prepared. Of course, the Republic was never fully ready, so after a nine-year peace, the war would be triggered, somewhat surprisingly for the Venetians, by the Turks.

Until then, however, the Venetians sought to spare the Sultan as much as possible and at the same time avoid papal invitations to join the preparations for an anti-Ottoman crusade. Thus, on 2 December 1456, in the instructions that the Senate sent to Lorenzo Vitturi, the Bailiff of Constantinople, he was asked to tell the Sultan that he had no reason to fear Venice [63] , and on 3 September 1459, in the instructions given to the new Bailiff Domenico Balbi, he was asked to resolve the conflicts and commercial disputes that had arisen in the meantime with great diplomacy, without reaching a rupture [64] .

On the other hand, the instructions that the Senate gave on 21 June 1458 to Niccolň Sagondino, envoy to Pope Calixtus III (1455-1458), are particularly significant. He was to show the Holy Father that the accusations levelled in Rome against Venice were intolerable, since Venice had always done its duty to Christianity. In this regard, Sagondino was to insist on the victory of Gallipoli in 1416, where a Turkish fleet was completely crushed, he was to show that in 1423 Salonium was occupied and held for seven years with great effort by the Venetians, that in 1444-1445 Venice armed galleys that fought all winter, while Pope Eugenius IV did not pay what he had promised. And all this while the other Christian powers did not respond to Venice's requests for help. Rather than listen to its accusers, the pope should consider the fact that the Turks are closely surrounding the Venetian possessions and that Venice's situation is therefore totally different from that of the other Christian states. For this reason, Venice cannot think of attacking the Turks in the given circumstances, because it would be premature, but it defends the island of Negroponte and maintains 12 galleys in the Aegean Sea to guard the Straits, and no Christian state can boast of comparable efforts [65] . It must be admitted that these instructions, intended to reach the ears of the pope, faithfully respected both the historical truth and the present situation, ruthlessly debunking all the accusations that could be levelled at Venice at that time. Due to the death of Calixtus III, a letter, almost identical, was also sent to the new Pope Pius II, on 30 October 1458[66] .

About a year later, on 11 October 1459, the Venetian Senate gave a very interesting reply to the delegates of Pope Pius II, who insisted that Venice participate in the preparations for the crusade. It was thus pointed out that the battle plans proposed by the pope were grandiose, but it was doubtful that the Italian states would find the necessary resources to maintain a sufficient army capable of defeating the Turks, who were very powerful [67] . The adversary should not be underestimated, especially now that Mehmet II is much more powerful than Murad II because he rules Constantinople. It is recalled that Murad defeated at Varna and the Christian powers hardly fought back, and that a long war is now to be foreseen, which will need financing without hesitation. Thus, thorough preparations must first be made and then war can be launched. As far as it was concerned, Venice was making such preparations [68] , but wondered what the other Christian powers were doing [69] . On 10 November 1459, about a month later, the Senate addressed a new letter to the Pope. In it the Venetians were more than surprised at the extent of the preparations for the crusade. They asked the pope how he could believe that the 240,000 ducats needed to arm 50 galleys could be raised quickly, and pointed out that it would be preferable to draw up plans for a crusade that were really feasible and not mere utopias [70] .

From all that has been said so far it is clear that in the years following 1454 the Venetians pursued a policy of obvious undermining of the Ottoman Empire and rejection of the Crusade, but we cannot but agree that, to a large extent, the arguments they used were fair and hard to refute. Everyone was aware, despite the pope's efforts, of the disappearance of the crusading ideal and the ideal of the unity of the Christian world, and no one could accuse the Venetians, with real grounds, of not wanting to fight the Turks. It would have meant asking them to commit a real act of suicide, which neither they nor the other Christian states were willing to do.

It seems that it was not until 1460, when the Turks attacked Moreea again and reached the borders of the Venetian possessions here, that Seria really began to worry about the intentions of the Ottoman Empire towards it[71] . So in 1461, the year in which we consider that the rupture between Vlad Țepeș and the Turks really took place, the situation of Venice was completely different, which explains its increased interest in the events of the Lower Danube.

In April 1460, after having noticed suspicious preparations by the Turks, the Senate ordered the captain of the Gulf, Antonio Loredan, to leave with the greatest haste for Negroponte [72] . On 20 May, the military preparations of the Turks became so worrying that Venice was forced to take several preventive measures: it requested the preparation of 300 crossbowmen in Crete, so that they could be sent to Negroponte if necessary, it decided to send supplies of wheat to Modon and Negroponte, and to arm three new galleys [73] . On the same day, the new captain of the Gulf, Giacomo Barbarigo, was ordered to leave immediately for Negroponte and to make short calls at Corfu, Modon and Nauplia [74] . On 16 June, instructions to Lorenzo Moro, who had replaced Barbarigo as captain of the Gulf, required him to first of all put Coron, Modon and Nafplio in a state of defence, and if he found out that the Sultan was heading for Albania or Negroponte to take the necessary measures [75] . Finally, on 1 August, the information received by Lorenzo Moro and the castellan of Modon and Coron proved very clearly that the Sultan intended to establish his authority over the whole of Morea and that he was the enemy of Venice. The Turks had reached the borders of the Venetian territories in the Peloponnese and, in order to better probe the Sultan's intentions, the Senate decided on 9 August to send an extraordinary ambassador to the Porte in the person of Niccolň da Canale [76] .

In 1461 the tension generated by the Ottoman military preparations persisted in Venice. On 28 April, the Senate sent its instructions to Vittore Capello, supreme commander of the Venetian fleet (Captain of the Sea), asking him to visit all Venetian ports in Romania, to watch the movements of the Ottoman fleet, but with great discretion, and not to attack Turkish ships leaving the Dardanelles. Such actions would be dangerous at a time when Venice was holding talks with the Sultan [77] . On 21 July the same Vittore Capello was asked to disarm part of the fleet, the Ottoman danger being less pressing after the Sultan left for the Black Sea [78] . But Venetian fears were far from being allayed. In the autumn, on 18 October, the Senate came to the conclusion that, owing to the general circumstances and the dangers threatening the territories of Romania, it was more than ever essential that men of merit should be elected as governors, and that they should be given all the necessary advantages [79] . Only two days later, on 20 October, although it had learned that the Turkish fleet had disarmed, Venice could not be reassured about the Sultan's intentions, and so Capello was asked to keep watch, with the galleys that remained at his disposal, over the waters of the Aegean archipelago [80] . On 9 December, the Senate also decided that the fortifications of Negroponte should be strengthened, that arms should be sent to them and that a detailed defence plan should be drawn up [81]. At the end of the same year, Venice also alerted the King of Hungary, Matthias Corvinus, to the imminence of war with the Turks [82] and also tried to bring about a reconciliation between him and Emperor Frederick III [83], but without success.

However, on 4 March 1462, the Venetian envoy to Buda, Pietro Tomasso (Petrus de Thomassis), announced to the Senate that he had been summoned by the king, who gave him to read some letters he had received from one of his soldiers to Vlad the Impaler, informing him of the damage he had caused to the Turks, of the multitude of those killed whom he had seen "according to the number of heads depicted, apart from those who were burned in those places". From this letter, which in fact refers to the one sent by Vlad Țepeș on 11 February, it appears that Matia Corvin used the results of the victorious expedition of the prince of Wallachia - whom he considered his vassal - in order to obtain funds from Italy, the Venetian envoy asking for "denarij per sovvene" [84] . It is also noted that the echo of Vlad Țepeș's deeds of bravery was quickly received in Venice, which, almost immediately, on 20 March, made them known in Rome [85] .

Having reached this point in our investigation, we feel that we must highlight a particularly important aspect that we will find again in Venice's attitude towards Vlad Țepeș until the end. Namely, it is the fact that, although it knew very well who was the author of the victory against the Turks in the winter of 1461-1462, i.e. Vlad Țepeș [86] , Senioria accepted all the propaganda of Matia Corvin and acted to help him and not the brave prince of the Romanian Country. Thus, on 20 March 1462, the Venetian Senate wrote to the Pope, as we have shown above, explaining the critical situation of Hungary and not of the Romanian Country, as if Hungary had entered into battle with the Turks and not the Romanian Country. Moreover, the Senate proposed to the Pope to send monthly the 10-12,000 florins to Hungary for the maintenance of 400 horsemen. This project was also presented to Matthias Corvinus on 29 March [87] . Pope Pius II knew as well as the Venetians who was the real winner over the Turks. This was because he had been informed by the Venetians themselves, but also from a letter of the Cardinal of Mantua, dated April 1462, who informed him of the following: ,,Adi 29 di Marzo venne nuova come li Valacchi chi hevevano dato una rotta al Turco nelle paesi della Va(la)cchia, e morti di loro piu di vintimilla soldati..." [88] . But for the pope, as for the Venetians, the Catholic king of Hungary had to be the hero of the anti-Ottoman struggle, and therefore he had to be helped.

Venice, although it probably wished to do so, avoided entering into direct contact with Vlad Țepeș, thus seeking to play down the sensitivities of Matthias Corvinus [89] , who claimed to be his suzerain and thought himself entitled to deal on behalf of the man he considered his vassal. Therefore, all Venetian information comes from the Hungarian court, some from Constantinople as well, but it proves that the events of the Lower Danube were followed with great attention in the "fortress of the lagoons", the political factors here seeking to find out their true significance and extent.

A second letter, known to us, sent by Pietro Tomasso to Venice, is dated 27 May 1462. In it, the ambassador describes to his superiors the situation on the Lower Danube as it was on the eve of the outbreak of the great Sultan campaign. First of all, he talks about Mehmet II's huge army, which, according to some rumours, he considers to number 200 000 men, including 20 000 janissaries, and points out that there could be three areas of attack: Wallachia, Transylvania and Belgrade, the first two being the most likely. Then a river fleet of 300 ships is mentioned, which the Sultan introduced on the Danube to help him cross the river. This is followed by information about Vlad the Impaler, who is said to have sent all his women and children to the mountains while he and his army guarded the Danube. It is also said that everyone at the court in Buda was surprised that Vlad Țepeș had not sent for help, and that the king was determined to go and fight the Turks [90] . At the end of the letter the ambassador makes some considerations about the future course of events as he envisaged them, some of which will be refuted, but others confirmed. Thus, he believes that either Vlad Țepeș will be easily defeated by the huge Ottoman army, which will not happen, after which the Hungarian kingdom will be defeated just as easily, which again will not happen precisely because Vlad Țepeș will not let himself be crushed, or King Matthias will reach a shameful agreement for the whole of Christendom [91] , which will indeed happen, despite the splendid victory of the Romanian lord [92] . From this letter it can be seen that the Venetian ambassador in Buda had become quite familiar with Hungary's military capability and her king's "desire" to confront the Ottoman Empire. At the same time, he did not doubt that Vlad the Impaler was determined to make every sacrifice to defend his country but, not knowing the military situation of the Romanian Country, he believed that a possible success would have been impossible in the face of the Ottoman onslaught.

More than two weeks later, on 14 June, the same Pietro Tomasso wrote again to the Doge, showing him that the Turks led by a Pasha, probably Mahmud Pasha, had crossed the Danube with 60 000 men, including 25 000 janissaries. In fact, this is the closest figure to the truth for the entire Ottoman army led by Mehmet II himself [93]. The Venetian ambassador went on to say that the prince of Transylvania was preparing for battle, and that Matthias Corvinus had told him that the Sultan was in camp and would probably attack Belgrade. He also indicated that the king had ordered the general assembly of the army at Seghedin, from where it could move either to Belgrade or to Transylvania and Wallachia, depending on Mehmet II's intentions. It can be seen that with this news Matthias Corvinus was trying to create confusion in Venice and probably in Rome about the Sultan's intentions. He spoke of the possibility of attacking Belgrade at a time when it was very clear that the Sultan intended to attack with all the forces at his disposal, precisely because he did not intend to support Vlad Tepes and openly confront the Ottomans. At the same time, however, he asked Venice to call on the Pope and other Christian princes to send him aid, showing that his treasury was empty. The ambassador said that Vlad Țepeș, unable to stop the Turks at the Danube, had retreated to the mountains and predicted his complete defeat, feared by the court of Buda, which could have led to the loss of Transylvania [94] .

Some of this information, however, was contradicted by other information from different sources. Thus, regarding the fact that Vlad Țepeș had not asked for help from the King of Hungary, information transmitted by Tomasso on 27 May [95] , another letter, that of Ladislau de Vesen, also addressed to the Doge, indicated that the lord of the Romanian Country "... every day asks to be helped, because he will not be able to support such a strong attack alone" [96] . Even Pietro Tomasso, in his letter of 15 June, indicated that the Sultan had already entered Wallachia, but, under the influence of the court of Buda, he maintained his opinion that from here he could move against Belgrade and continued to express doubts about Vlad Țepeș's ability to resist [97] . Of course, all this information, although some of it was contradictory and could leave room for justified suspicions, turned Venice's attention primarily on Matthias Corvinus and less on Vlad Tepes, with whom it avoided, as we have already shown, to enter into direct links.

But the reality was different, and the one who knew it best was the King of Hungary himself. Thus, after having tried to demonstrate to Venice that Vlad Țepeș was incapable of resisting the Turks and after having received subsidies from the latter for the anti-Ottoman struggle, [98] Matthias Corvinus tried to make the most of the splendid victory of the Romanian prince, to which he had contributed nothing. Immediately after learning of the victory and the Sultan's retreat, he sent a message to Venice announcing the crushing of the Sultan by "Hungarians and Romanians", the echo of which was recorded by the Milanese ambassador in the lagoon city, A. Guidobonus, on 30 July 1462 [99] .

But in spite of these attempts, which in today's terms we might call intoxication and misinformation, Venice, whose diplomacy was very skilful in such matters, could not be misled. It gathered its information not only from Buda, but also from elsewhere, and was thus able to form a picture very close to the real course of events in the Lower Danube. Particularly significant in this respect is the letter of the Constantinopolitan bailiff Domenico Balbi, who, on 28 July 1462, gave an almost complete and truthful picture of Mehmet II's campaign in Wallachia. He showed that, once north of the Danube, the Sultan found the country empty of men and provisions, all retreating to fortified places in the mountains. He then tells of the harassing war waged by Vlad Țepeș, of the night attack against the Sultan's camp, of the great losses suffered by the Turks, which finally forced them to retreat, Mehmet II being already at Adrianopol on 11 July. It is also mentioned that the Sultan left his brother, none other than Radu the Handsome, with some Ottoman troops near Wallachia, to try to overthrow the prince with the help of possible internal complicity: ,,... lasso al fradello de Dracuglia cum alcume bandieri dei Turchii per tentar li animi de Valachi de quanto volesserro lassar al Dracuglia convenir de quest altro" [100] thus, an accurate picture of the 1462 campaign and Vlad the Impaler's victory, but not a word about the so often mentioned help of Matthias Corvinus, which of course made the Senate, the Doge and the other ruling factors of the Republic realize also the real position of the Hungarian king.

True information about what happened in Wallachia in 1462 reached Venice through other channels, probably letters from its representatives in the Balkans and the Aegean islands, echoed in several chronicles of the time, which also reveal the opinion of Venetian public opinion, i.e. the informed circles of the Republic, about the events of that year at the Lower Danube. Thus, an anonymous Italian chronicle, also circulating in Venice, which goes on to narrate events up to 1481, records, under the year 1462, that '... the Turks who had gone against Dracula in Wallachia were beaten and chased away" [101] , the chronicle of Domenico Malipiero also states that the lord of the Romagna region met the Turks with a strong army and defeated them with mighty will [102] , and the Venetian Annals (1433-1477) of Stefano Magno wrote that in 1462 Mehmet II, "emperor of the Turks and Greeks", sent ,,... a strong army into Wallachia; but the Wallachians rising against it were defeated..." [103] . We note, therefore, that in all these sources, which refer to the great confrontation that took place in Wallachia in 1462, there is no mention of any contribution by Matthias Corvinus, whose claims, brought to the knowledge of the Republic by the July solia, are appreciated at their fair value, i.e. at their rhetorical-propagandistic value, without any real support.

The suspicions that Venice had about the intentions of Matthias Corvinus also result from the fact that when he left Buda on his so-called campaign to help Vlad the Impaler, arriving only at the beginning of November 1462 in Brasov, he was accompanied by the Venetian ambassador Pietro Tomasso. His mission was to inform the Senate about the evolution of the conflict and other important events [104] . Unfortunately, the only information that the ambassador sent and of which we are aware was that of 26 November, concerning the arrest of Vlad Țepeș, after some time the leadership of the Republic confirmed the receipt of this letter, as well as that of the King of Hungary about the "case" Vlad Țepeș [105] .

We suspect that the Venetian authorities, usually very well informed about events, especially if they were of direct interest to them, had found out by the end of the year the truth about the relations between Matthias Corvinus, Vlad the Impaler and the Turks, because as early as 9 November it was known in Vienna that the King of Hungary had concluded a secret treaty with the Sultan [106] . As relations between Frederick III and Matthias Corvinus were tense, we do not see what obstacle could have prevented Venetian diplomacy from finding out everything that might interest it about this treaty. But, although it knew the truth, Venice continued to undermine Matthias Corvinus in the hope that he would eventually decide to attack the Turks. This was at a time when Venetian-Ottoman relations were becoming increasingly tense, with Venice's preparations for war intensifying especially after the appointment of a new Captain General of the Sea (supreme commander of the Venetian fleet) in December 1462, an appointment that did not become effective until 31 January the following year, with the election of Alvise Loredan to the post [107] .

Thus, on 15 January 1463, the Venetian Senate confirmed to the Hungarian King the receipt of letters informing him of "... the enmity case of the former Montenegrin lord, who tried to commit such a great crime against Your Majesty and the kingdom" [108] . Matthias was also praised for having taken some timely defensive measures [109] . This was, however, we repeat, a diplomatic language that Venice used against Hungary only because it needed to ally itself with it at a time when a major confrontation with the Ottoman Empire seemed unavoidable and Vlad Tepes had lost his reign. In fact, despite the letters and 'proofs' of treason sent by Matthias Corvinus, the Venetian Senate could not be convinced of Vlad the Impaler's guilt.

Five months after his arrest, on 18 April 1463, it asked the new ambassador in Buda, Giovanni Aymo, to discover the truth about Vlad Țepeș, to find out about the relations between the King of Hungary and the new ruler of the Romanian Country and to find out whether a peace had been or could be made between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, in which case it had to do everything possible to prevent it [110] . Two important things emerge from these instructions: on the one hand, Venice's distrust of the political and military intentions of Matthias Corvinus, and on the other, its imperative need to establish an alliance with Hungary in the face of the growing Ottoman threat. The information she possessed about the secret treaty between Matthias Corvinus and the Sultan, probably obtained through Vienna but also through her diplomatic agents in the Balkans, she wanted to have confirmed or refuted by investigations on the spot and, if possible, to turn the situation in her favour. For this reason she was willing to accept the explanations and arguments of the Hungarian king, the veracity of which she doubted, but she did not derive much benefit from the hoped-for alliance with him, since Matthias had his sights set on Central Europe, preferring to maintain a situation of military balance and territorial-political status quo on the borders with the Ottoman Empire [111] . On the Lower Danube, the main de facto allies of Venice in the long war with the Ottoman Porte between 1463 and 1479 were the Romanians and not the King of Hungary. The Romanians led by Vlad Tepes defeated the Sultan in 1462, they too, but led by Stephen the Great, would achieve the brilliant victory of Vaslui in January 1475, a victory which for a time eliminated Ottoman pressure on the Venetian possessions on the Balkan coast of the Adriatic, and in 1476 a new Sultan expedition would crush their fierce resistance. In this period, as in others of the Middle Ages, the main factor of resistance to Ottoman pressure on Central Europe was the Romanian countries and much less the feudal Hungarian kingdom. It is true that the Hungarian royalty tried to take credit for all the major victories achieved against the Turks on the Lower Danube, but this could not hide the undeniable truth of the facts. For the ruling politicians in Vienna, Venice, Rome and others, Matthias Corvinus' behaviour in 1462 was very clear, his treachery was obvious, but the hopes, unrealised, moreover, that he would change his attitude and fight the Turks led them, like the Venetians, to give him credit, undeservedly, for it.

How, however, can this attitude be explained? We believe that two factors played a primary role, both for Venice and for the papacy. The first is Hungary's status as a great power, recognised throughout Europe. So, in comparison with the Romanian countries, which had a much lower political and military potential, Hungary was preferable, from which they expected not only a defensive confrontation policy towards the Turks, but also important offensive actions against them. For this reason the papacy intervened energetically to conclude a peace treaty between Matthias Corvinus and Frederick III [112] , after which it played an essential role in the conclusion of a treaty of alliance between Venice and Matthias Corvinus, a treaty concluded on 12 September 1463 [113] . But it seems that this alliance with Hungary was already too late. By that time Hungarian foreign policy had already changed direction and Hungary was no longer aggressive towards the Turks [114] . After Matthias Corvinus had secured his hold on the Jajce region of Bosnia and after the failure of the papal crusade project in 1464, he abandoned the anti-Ottoman struggle for a long time and, at the urging of Pope Paul II (1464-1471), turned his forces against George Podiebrad (1458-1471), king of Bohemia, his former ally and father-in-law, but who had meanwhile become a heretic and enemy [115] . The situation could not be prevented or changed by the agreement signed on 19 October 1463 between Pope Pius II, Venice and Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy [116], which provided for an anti-Ottoman alliance for three years.

Secondly, it is the fact that Matthias Corvinus was the Catholic king of a Catholic state, Hungary. For the Pope it was essential that the anti-Ottoman crusade be led by Catholics and that it be carried out with the participation, first and foremost and on a large scale, of Catholic forces, Catholic states. For this reason, one of the constants of papal anti-Ottoman crusade policy was to seek participants within Catholic Europe. Once they had offered their services or refused to take part in the crusade, papal diplomacy turned its attention to the Orthodox world and even to the Asian world, from where formidable enemies of the Ottoman Porte could emerge. This is why Venice, which desperately needed the help of the papacy, did not dare to bypass the Catholic Matthias Corvinus and enter into direct contact with Vlad Tepes. For Pope Pius II, all the victories of Vlad the Impaler were, in fact, victories of this Catholic king of Hungary. Nor could the pope have conceived of an anti-Ottoman crusade being started by an Orthodox prince, and of his placing himself at its head. That is why there was not even the question of helping, even symbolically, the brave prince of the Romanian Country. All eyes were on Matthias Corvinus, the only leader capable, in the Pope's view, of leading the anti-Ottoman forces. Significant in this respect is the firm rejection by Pius II in 1462 of a project for an anti-Ottoman crusade, which had been initiated by the Bohemian king George Podiebrad, suspected of heresy. The latter, through a Frenchman from Dauphiné, Antonio Marini, who had arrived in unclear surroundings at his court, proposed an anti-Ottoman alliance to Venice, Burgundy and France. But Podiebrad wanted to bypass the pope, to leave him out of the alliance, which, as Venice pointed out to him, was an impossibility [117] . And indeed, absolutely nothing came of this project.

We believe that these are the two main reasons why the Italian powers, in particular Venice and the papacy, avoided engaging in direct relations with Vlad Țepeș, leaving him to the good pleasure of Matia Corvinus, who threw him into prison for more than 13 years without anyone holding him to account.

Things would become very clear towards the end of Matthias Corvinus' reign, however, when he repeated his behaviour, in a similar situation, towards Stephen the Great, Lord of Moldavia. Although he had an alliance with the latter, which provided for mutual aid in the event of Ottoman attacks, Matthias Corvinus did not hesitate to conclude a treaty with the new sultan, Baiazid II (1481-1512), in 1483. Thus, while the Turks attacked and captured by surprise the two key cities of southern Moldavia, Chilia and the White Fortress, he launched a major campaign against Frederick III in the summer of 1484, which resulted in the occupation of Vienna the following year, where he remained until his surprising death in 1490 [118] . The "champion of Christianity", the "defender of Europe" thus ended his days in "glory" in Vienna, having conquered, in hard and bloody battles, almost all the hereditary possessions of the Habsburgs, and not in the anti-Ottoman struggle as he had promised throughout his reign.

In fact, in our view, Hungary was not and could not be that "wall of defence" of Europe against the increasingly insistent Ottoman assaults, for two main reasons. The first, less important, is that Matthias Corvinus, its last great king, deliberately turned his efforts to a policy of expansion in Central Europe, the exact opposite of what his father, the great Iancu of Hunedoara, had done, a policy which necessarily involved the maintenance of the Ottoman Porte. The second and most important reason is that the overall development of Hungarian society in the 15th century and at the beginning of the following century led to an intensification of feudal anarchy, through the increase in the power of the great magnates and a corresponding weakening of state structures and the strength of the state, which explains why a single battle (Mohács, 1526) was enough for this state to disappear from the political map of Europe. The same was not true of the Romanian countries, which have experienced uninterrupted state continuity and have recorded in history numerous glorious feats of anti-totalitarian struggle.

At the end of these brief considerations, we believe that a few conclusions are in order regarding Vlad Țepeș in the context of the anti-Ottoman struggle. First of all, it is noted that there was no direct link between him and Venice, this being impossible due to the claims of suzerainty manifested by Matthias Corvinus towards Wallachia, theoretical claims, but which Venice, for the reasons indicated above, did not want to contest. Secondly, we can say that Venice, in spite of Matia Corvin's disinformation action, knew, even with very significant details, the heroic struggle of Vlad Țepeș, as well as the less than chivalrous behaviour of the Hungarian king, in contradiction with the medieval obligations of a suzerain towards his vassal, as Matia Corvin claimed to be towards Vlad Țepeș. But, thirdly, Venice preferred to turn a blind eye to the evidence, hoping to obtain the effective collaboration of Matthias Corvinus in the anti-Ottoman struggle. The result was that it passively witnessed the downfall of a sure ally, Vlad the Impaler, and in return obtained only a very inadequate amount of help from Hungary, which at the time did not have, even if it wanted to, the capacity to wage a major offensive war against the Ottoman Empire.

Vlad the Impaler tried to break out of the system of Hungarian-Ottoman co-occupation established over the Romanian Country in 1451-1452, but without adequate external support he was unable to do so. His action showed that this system could not be removed, that, overcoming mutual hostility, the two great powers intended to keep it in place, which would happen until the disappearance of Hungary in 1526. At the same time, however, his action also brought to light a particularly important fact, namely that the balance of power in this system was increasingly tilted in favour of the Ottoman Empire. This also explains Stephen the Great's repeated failures to bring Wallachia into his sphere of influence and to oppose the Turks, the victim of which was Vlad the Great himself in 1476. However, his struggle was not in vain. It showed the Turks that Wallachia could be defeated but not destroyed. ___________ Sources: [1] Ioan Bogdan, Vlad Țepeș and the German and Russian narrations about him, Bucharest, 1896, p. 11; Ștefan Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula) between legend and historical truth, Bucharest, 1976, p. 59; Manole Neagoe, Vlad Țepeș, heroic figure of the Romanian people, Bucharest, 1977, pp. 21-22. [2] Nicolae Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, Bucharest, 1976, pp. 33-37; Radu Ștefan Ciobanu, Pe urmele lui Vlad Țepeș, Bucharest, 1979, p. 95. [3] History of Romania, vol. II, Bucharest, 1962, pp. 465-466. [4] Hurmuzaki, Documents concerning the history of Romanians, vol. XV, 1, Bucharest, 1911, p. 45, doc. LXXIX. [5] Ibidem, pp. 45-46, doc. LXXX. [6] Olgierd Górka, Cronica epocei lui Ștefan cel Mare, 1457-1499, Bucharest, 1937, p. 110; see also Ion Const. Chițimia, Cronica di Ștefan cel Mare (Schedel's German version), Bucharest, 1942; Slav-Romance chronicles of the 16th century, Bucharest, 1942. XV-XVI published by Ioan Bogdan, revised and completed edition by P. P. Panaitescu, Bucharest, 1959, pp. 28, 49, 61 and 178; Grigore Ureche, Letopisețul Țării Moldovei, edition P. P. Panaitescu, 2nd edition, Bucharest, 1958, p. 90. [7] See in this regard the statements of Critobul of Imbros, From the reign of Mohammed II. Anii 1451-1467, edited by Vasile Grecu, Bucharest, 1962, p. 290; Laonic Chalcocondil, Expuneri istorice, edited by Vasile Grecu, Bucharest, 1958, p. 283; Tursun-bei, ,,Tarih-i Ebu-l Fath-i Sultan Mehmed han" (History of Sultan Mehmed-han, the conquering father), in Cronici turcești privind țările române. Extracts, vol. I, Sec. XV-mid sec. XVII, ed. Mihail Guboglu and Mustafa Ali Mehmet, Bucharest, 1966, pp. 67-68; Șemseddin Ahmed bin Suleiman Kemal-pașa-zade, ,,Tevarih-i al-i Osman" (Histories of the Ottoman Dynasty) in ibidem, p. 198; Constantin Mihailovici de Ostrovița's account in Foreign Travellers about Romanian Countries, vol. I, Bucharest, 1968, p. 126. [8] The hostile attitude of Matthias Corvinus towards Vlad Țepeș is confirmed by the order he issued from Buda on 10 April 1459, forbidding the Brașovs to sell arms in Wallachia (Hurmuzaki, Documents, XV, p. 52, doc. XC). [9] See Chapter I of this work, note 124. [10] In support of this assertion, we believe that the historian Șerban Papacostea comes to the conclusion he reaches after a meticulous research of the causes that generated the conflict between Vlad Țepeș and the Saxons of southern Transylvania. Here is what he says: "The fierce confrontation between Vlad Țepeș and the cities of Brașov and Sibiu was therefore not a commercial war with political manifestations, but a political conflict with commercial excesses" (Șerban Papacostea, ,,Începuturile politica commerciale a Țării Românești și Moldovei (secolele XIV-XVI). Road and State", in Studies and Materials of Medieval History, X, Bucharest, 1983, p. 30. [11] This is an anonymous history up to 1500, La progenia della cassa de' Octomani, apud Nicolae Iorga, Acte și fragmente cu privire la istoria românilor, vol. III, București, 1897, p. 13 and Donado da Lezze's chronicle, Historia turchesca (1300-1514), ed. I. Ursu, Bucharest, 1909, pp. 24-25, which

indicates the year 1458 for Mahmud Pasha's expedition against Vlad Tepes, information considered true by N. Iorga in Istoria Românilor, vol. IV, Bucharest, 1937, pp. 130-131. [12] The chronological error of the two Italian sources, which place the events of the beginning of the 1462 campaign four years earlier, is demonstrated with solid arguments by Ștefan Andreescu, op. cit., pp. 91-92 and idem, ,,Războiul cu turcii din 1462", in Revista de istorie, tom 29, nr. 11, 1976, pp. 1673-1674. See also Const. A. Stoide, ,,Vlad the Impaler's battles with the Turks (1461-1462)", in Anuarul Institutulului de istorie e arheologie "A. D. Xenopol", XV, 1978, pp. 16-17. We share this opinion. The confusion in the two Italian sources may also derive from the fact that in early October 1458 Hungarian troops led by Mihail Szilagyi defeated an Ottoman army commanded by Mahmud Pasha near Belgrade (I. A. Fessler, E. Klein, Geschichte von Ungarn, III, Leipzig, 1876, p. 16; N. Iorga, Geschichte des osmanische Reiches nach den Quellen dargestellt, vol. II, Gotha, 1909, pp. 107-108; C. Jireček, Geschichte des Serben, II, 1, Gotha, 1918, p. 213; Franz Babinger, Mahomet II le Conquêrant et son temps. 1432-1481. La grande peur du monde au tournant de l'histoire, Paris, 1954, pp. 189-190). [13] For the haraciul of Wallachia during Vlad Țepeș's reign see M. Berza, ,,Haraciul Moldovei și Țării Românești în sec. XV-XIX", in Studii și materiale de istorie medie, II, București, 1957, pp. 28-29. [14] Istoria României, II, p. 470; N. Stoicescu, op. cit., p. 86; idem, ,,La victoire de Vlad l'Empaleur sur les Turcs (1462)", in Revue Roumaine d'Histoire, XV, no. 3, 1976, p. 377; Șt. Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula)..., p. 99; R. Șt. Ciobanu, op. cit., pp. 170-171; Emil Stoian, Vlad Țepeș. Myth and historical reality, Bucharest, 1989, p. 79; Constantin Rezachevici, ,,Vlad Țepeș - chronology, bibliography", in Revista de istorie, tom 29, nr. 11, 1976, p. 1748; idem, ,,Vlad Țepeș - Chronology and historical Bibliography", in vol. Dracula. Essays on the Life and Times of Vlad Țepeș. Edited by Kurt W. Treptow, Columbia University Press, New York, 1991, p. 257; Kurt W. Treptow, Aspects of the Campaign of 1462, in ibid, pp. 123-124. Matei Cazacu considers that Vlad Țepeș stopped paying tribute to the Turks in 1460 and links this decision to the work of the Congress of Mantua in 1459 (Matei Cazacu, L'histoire du prince Dracula en Europe Centrale et Orientale (XVe siècle), Geneve, 1988, p. 📷. [15] In this year Mehmet II undertook an important campaign in Moreea, succeeding in conquering a third of the Peninsula, with the cities of Corinth, Patras, Vostitza, Kalavryta. The two despots of Morea, Thomas and Demetrios, are obliged to pay an annual tribute of 3,000 ducats (Denis A. Zakythinos, Le Despotat grec du Morée. Historie politique, London, 1975, pp. 256-260). [16] F. Babinger, op. cit., pp. 199-201. [17] Ibidem, pp. 210-215; D. A. Zakythinos, op. cit., pp. 267-274. On 1 August 1460, the Captain of the Gulf, the title borne by the commander of the Venetian fleet in the Adriatic, Lorenzo Moro, as well as the castellan of Modon and Coron, received very clear information that the Sultan intended to establish his authority over the whole of Morea, that he was the enemy of Venice and that he had already reached the borders of the Venetian territories in the Peninsula (F. Thiriet, Régestes des délibération du senat de Venise concernant la Romanie, tome III, 1431-1463, Paris, The Hague, 1961, pp. 233-234, no. 3118). [18] F. Babinger, op. cit., pp. 228-238; Ș. Papacostea, ,,Relațiile internazionali în răsăritul și sud-estul Europei în secolelele XIV-XV", in Revista de istorie, vol. 34, no. 5, 1981, pp. 916-917; Tahsin Gemil, Românii și otomanii în secolelele XIV-XVI, București, 1991, p. 140. 19] For this conflict see Hurmuzaki, Documents, XV, 1, pp. 50-51, doc. LXXXIX; I. Bogdan, Documente privitoare la relațiile Țării Românești cu Brașovul și cu Țara Ungurească în sec. XV-XVI, vol. I, 1413-1508,

Bucharest, 1905, pp. 101-103; C. C. Giurescu, Istoria românilor, vol. II, 1, 3rd ed., Bucharest, 1940, pp. 43-49; Istoria României, II, pp. 468-469; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, pp. 70-73; Șt. Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula)..., pp. 66-77; R. Șt. Ciobanu, op. cit., pp. 150-159; E. Stoian, op. cit., pp. 60-70. Tursun bei shows that Vlad Țepeș ,,... trusting in the High Porte, overcame the Hungarians, killing many of them..." (op. cit., ed.cit., p. 68), and Chalcocondil also states the following: "And the Peons (Hungarians - n.n.), not a few, whom he believed to have some interference in public affairs, not killing any of them, killed them in very great numbers" (op. cit., ed.cit., p. 283). In fact, Vlad Țepeș's incursions into Transylvania were directed against all those who were working against him, hostile boyars or pretenders to the reign, and who were thus violating the country's aspirations for independence (Pavel Binder, ,,Itinerarul transilvănean al Vlad Țepeș", in Revista de istorie, tom 27, nr. 10, 1974, pp. 1537-1542).

[20] One of the reasons for the hostility of the Saxons, craftsmen and merchants par excellence, was probably the adoption of protectionist trade measures by Vlad Țepeș (Gustav Gündisch, ,,On Vlad Țepeș's relations with Transylvania in 1456-1458", in Studies. Revistă de istorie, vol. 16, 1963, pp. 684-686; Radu Manolescu, Comerțul Țării Românești și Moldovei cu Brașovul (secolelele XIV-XVI), Bucharest, 1965; Dinu C. Giurescu, ,,Relațiile economice ale Țării Românești cu paesi de Peninsulei Balcanice din secolul al XIV-lea până la mediados la XVI-lea", in Romanoslavica, XI, 1965, pp. 167-201; M. Cazacu, ,,L'impact ottoman sur les pays roumains et ses incidences monétairs (1452-1504)", in Revue Roumaine d'Histoire, XII, no. 1, 1973, pp. 188 ff.).

[21] We find the opinion of the historian Șerban Papacostea particularly interesting, who considers that Vlad Țepeș did not pursue a protectionist policy towards the Saxon merchants of Brașov and Sibiu: "Vlad Țepeș's relations with Brasov and Sibiu, the meaning of his conflict with the two cities, as well as his entire personality and activity are distorted in historiography, partly because of some of the sources that recorded his deeds, stories in Slavonic and German, a mixture of reality and legend, partly because of an historiographical approach that placed the thesis before the source and research" (Ș. Papacostea, ,,The Beginnings of Commercial Politics...", p. 27). In the continuation of the argument of this point of view it is pointed out that it is certain that Radu the Handsome, brother and successor in the reign of Vlad the Impaler, instituted the obligatory deposit, which considerably restricted the activity of the Brașovs in Wallachia and at the same time intercepted their direct link with the Lower Danube (Ibidem, p. 28). Returning to the throne in 1476, and with the assistance of the Hungarian royal armies, Vlad Țepeș undertook, in fact, to annul the measures of Radu the Handsome: ,,... that from now on the scale of what was shall be nowhere in the land of my reign" (I. Bogdan, Documents concerning the relations of Wallachia with Brasov..., I, pp. 95-97; Ș. Papacostea, ,,The beginnings of commercial policy...", p. 29). If this is the case, and it is very probable, it follows that Vlad the Impaler's war with the Saxons of southern Transylvania and with King Matthias Corvinus was purely political (Ș. Papacostea, ,,The beginnings of commercial politics...", p. 30; G. Gündisch, ,,Vlad Țepeș und die Sächsischen Selbstverwaltungsgebiete Siebenbürgens", in Revue Roumaine d'Histoire, VIII, no. 6, 1969, pp. 981-992). It is also possible that the payment of tribute to the Porte, which Vlad Țepeș made regularly in the first years of his reign, until 1459, was interpreted by the King of Hungary and the Transylvanian Saxons as a gesture of hostility (M. Cazacu, L'histoire du prince Dracula..., p. 5). Also, as Matthias Corvinus had been holding secret talks with the Turks since the end of 1458 to conclude an armistice (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, vol IV, Budapest, 1875, pp. 36-40; Lino Gómez Canedo, Un español al servicio de la Santa Sede. Don Juan de Carvajal, Cardinal of Sant Angelo, legate in Germany and Hungary (1399? - 1469), Madrid, 1947, p. 199), it is quite possible that the Sultan saw Vlad Țepeș's action as an act of pressure on the King of Hungary, that he even gave his approval for the military actions in southern Transylvania and that he accepted, as something absolutely normal, the non-payment of tribute from 1459.

[22] G. Gündisch, ,,Vlad Țepeș und die Sächsischen...", p. 992. It seems that this peace and alliance agreement was a direct consequence of an earlier agreement with Matthias Corvinus (N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p.89, n. 17; Radu Lungu, ,,À propos de la campagne antiottomane de Vlad l'Empaleur au sud du Danube (hiver 1461-1462)", in Revue Roumaine d'Histoire, XXII, no. 2, 1983, pp. 149-150).

[23] Ș. Papacostea, ,,The beginnings of commercial policy...", p. 29.

announced the crusade on 14 January 1460 (N. Iorga, Notes et extraits pour servir à l'histoire des croisades au XVe siècle, IV, Bucharest, 1915, pp. 166-168). Also, on 20 February 1460, Pius II offered Matthias Corvinus 40,000 ducats in case of war with the Turks, on condition that he did not conclude a separate peace with Mehmed II (Augustino Theiner, Vetera monumenta historica Hungariam sacram illustrantia, vol. II, Rome, Paris, 1860, pp. 351, 356-357). In turn, during the Congress of Mantua, Matthias Corvinus promised through his soldiers that he would participate in a possible crusade with a contingent of 12,000 soldiers (L. Gómez Canedo, op. cit, p. 212).

[24] The opinion that Vlad Țepeș openly took action against the Turks in 1461 and not in 1459 was expressed by Nicolae Iorga: "Only in 1461 does he change his behaviour: he returns to the traditional policy that had been his father's" (Scrisori de boieri. Scrisori de domni, 3rd ed., Vălenii de Munte, 1931, p. 163) and repeated by Sergiu Iosipescu, ,,Conjunctura și condiționarea internazionale politico-militare a cea seconda domnii a Vlad Țepeș (1456-1462)", in Studii și materiale de muzeografie e istorie militară, nr. 11, 1978, București, 1978, pp. 179-180. However, in the case of the two historians this opinion is not sufficiently scientifically substantiated. That is why we, being in agreement with this point of view, will try to support it with all the arguments at our disposal. 25] G. B. Picotti, La dieta di Mantova e la politica de'Veneziani, in Miscellanea di storia veneta, seria terza, tomo IV, Venezia, 1912. Pope Pius II, who was preparing the anti-Ottoman league, appealed for peace in Hungary, torn by fighting between the partisans of Matthias Corvinus and those of Frederick III of Habsburg (I. A. Fessler, E. Klein, op. cit., III, pp. 20-21; K. Nehring, Mathias Corvinus, Kaiser Friedrich III und das Reich. Zum hunyadisch-habsburgischen Gegensatz im Donauraum, Munich, 1975, pp. 15-16) and, despite the opposition of Venice and the imperial delegates, read the bull announcing the crusade on 14 January 1460 (N. Iorga, Notes et extraits pour servir à l'histoire des croisades au XVe siècle, IV, Bucharest, 1915, pp. 166-168). Also, on 20 February 1460, Pius II offered Matthias Corvinus 40,000 ducats in case of war with the Turks, on condition that he did not conclude a separate peace with Mehmed II (Augustino Theiner, Vetera monumenta historica Hungariam sacram illustrantia, vol. II, Rome, Paris, 1860, pp. 351, 356-357). In turn, during the Congress of Mantua, Matthias Corvinus promised through his soldiers that he would participate in a possible crusade with a contingent of 12,000 soldiers (L. Gómez Canedo, op. cit, p. 212).

[26] Luigi Bignami, Francesco Sforza (1401-1466), Milan, 1938, pp. 275-276.

[27] L. Chalcocondil, op. cit. ed., pp. 283-284.

[28] I. Bogdan, Documente privitoare la relațiile Țării Românești cu Brașovul..., I, p. 107; Urkundenbuch zur Geschichte der Deutschen in Siebenbürgen, VI, București, 1981, pp. 90-91, doc. 3237; G. Gündisch, Vlad Țepeș und die Sächsischen..., pp. 986-992; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 89, n. 17; Șt. Andreescu, ,,En marge des rapports de Vlad l'Empaleur avec l'Empire ottoman", in Revue des Etudes Sud-Est Européennes, XIV, no. 3, 1976, p. 374; S. Iosipescu, art. cit., p. 182; R. Lungu, art. cit., pp. 149-150.

[29] I. Bogdan, Vlad Tepes and the German and Russian narratives..., p. 78.

[30] Lodovico da Bologna is one of the most controversial figures of the age, who undertook numerous journeys to the East, as a soldier or papal legate, almost always with the mission of making anti-Ottoman alliances with the Eastern powers. His missions of 1437, 1454-1455, 1460-1461, 1465, 1472 and 1477 are well known. For his life and work see, among others, Moriz Landwehr von Pragenau, Ludwig von Bologna. Patriarch von Antiochien, in Mitteilungen des Österreich Instituts, Wien, 1901, p. 293; B. Bughetti, ,,Nuovi documenti intorno a Fr. Lodovico da Bologna O.F.M. (1460-1461)", in Studi Francescani, series 3 a, 10, 1938, pp. 128-134; Angelo Bargellesi Severi, ,,Nuovi documenti su fr. Lodovico da Bologna, al secolo Lodovico Severi, Nunzio Apostolico in Oriente (1455-1457)", in Archivum Franciscanum Historicum, annus 69, fasc. 1-2, 1976, pp. 3-22; Richard J.Walsh, ,,Charles the Bold and the Crusade: politics and propaganda", in Journal of medieval history, III, 1977, pp. 70-72, Jean Richard, La Papauté et les misisions d'Orient au Moyen Âge (XIIIe - XVe siècles), Paris, Torino, 1977, pp. 274-278.

[31] I. A. Fessler, Die Geschichte der Ungarn und ihrer Landsassen, V, Leipzig, 1822, p. 77; A. Bryer, ,,Lodovico da Bologna and the Georgian Embassy of 1460-1461", in Bendi Kartlisa. Revue de kartvelologie, XIX-XX, 1965, Paris, p. 181; Lajos Tardy, ,,Il ruolo di Venezia nei rapporti persiani e georgiani dell'Ungheria", in vol. Rapporti veneto-ungheresi all'epoca del Rinascimento, edited by Tibor Klaniczay, Budapest, 1975, p. 258.

[32] L. Tardy, art. cit.

[33] Ibid; A. Bryer, art. cit., p. 184.

[34] A. Bryer, op. cit. p. 191; L. Tardy, op. cit. p. 258.

[35] Ș. Papacostea, ,,Die politischen Voraussetzungen für die Wirtschaftliche Vorherrschaft des osmanischen Reiches Schwarzmeergebiet (1453-1484)", in Münchner Zeitschrift für Balkankunde, 1, Münich, 1978, p. 230; R. Lungu, art. cit., p. 151.

[36] L. Chalcocondil, op. cit., ed. cit., pp. 283-284; Critobul of Imbrosa, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 290; Ducas, Turkish-Byzantine History (1341-1462), ed. V. Grecu, Bucharest, 1958, p. 430; Tursun-bei, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 68; Șemseddin Ahmed bin Suleiman Kemal-pașa-zade, op. cit., ed. cit, p. 200; Enverî, Düsturname (Book of the Wazir), in Turkish Chronicles, I, p. 42, Asîk-pașa-zade, Tevarih-i Al-i Osman (Histories of the Ottoman Dynasty), in ibid, p. 92; Mehmed Neșri, Djihannuma. Tarih-i al-i Osman (History of the Ottoman Dynasty), in ibid, p. 125; Sa'adeddin Mehmed hodja efendi, Tadj-ut-Tevarih (Crown of Histories), in ibid, pp. 317-318; Mehmed bin Mehmed, Nuhbet-ut-tevarih ve'l ahbar (Chosen and Informative Chronicle), in ibid, pp. 406; Kodja Husein, Beda'i ul-veka'i (Wonderful Events), in ibid, p. 455; Solakzade Mehmed Hemdemi, Tarih-i Solakzade (Chronicle of Solakzade), in ibid, vol. II, sec. XVI - early sec. XVIII, ed. Mihail Guboglu, Bucharest, 1974, p. 139. It should be noted that all the Ottoman chronicles we have been able to consult place the time of Vlad Țepeș's battle in 1461 and do not mention any previous suspicion that the sultan may have had about him regarding non-payment of tribute. [37] Probably from spies infiltrating Hungary (F. Babinger, op. cit., pp. 246-247). [38] These details are known from the famous letter sent by Vlad Țepeș to Matia Corvin on 11 February 1462, after the attack on the Ottoman positions on the Danube (I. Bogdan, Vlad Țepeș și narațiunile germane și rusești..., p. 79; N. Iorga, Scrisori de boieri. Scrisori de domni, ed. cit., p. 165; Andrei Corbea, ,,Cu privire la corespondența lui Țepeș cu Matia Corvin", in Anuarul Institutului de istorie e arheologie ,,A. D. Xenopol", XVII, 1980, p. 677). Without these details the solia is also mentioned by L. Chalcocondil, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 282; Ducas, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 430; Enverî, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 42; Tursun-bei, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 68. Asîk-pașa-zade states that the sultan's message was preceded by one of Vlad Țepeș (op. cit., ed. cit., p. 92), the same statement can be found in Mehmed Neșri (op. cit., ed. cit., p. 125). [39] For this blood tribute ("devșirme") see B. D. Populia, Ursprung und Wesen der "kuabeulese" im osmanischen Reich, Munich, 1963, with the mention on p. 58 of Vlad Țepeș's justified refusal, apud N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 91, n. 24. [40] Ducas, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 430; Tursun-bei, op. cit., ed. cit., p. 68. [41] Radu Florescu, Raymond T. Mc. Nally in Dracula. A Biography of Vlad the Impaler (1431-1476), New York, 1973, argue that Vlad the Impaler's refusal to appear at the Porte is evidence of Turkish suspicion of his improving relations with Matthias Corvinus (pp. 90-91). [42] Most of the Ottoman chronicles I have been able to consult, of course, accuse Vlad Țepeș of cunning and deceit, showing that Hamza bei and Catabolinos had no hostile intentions. That this is not the case we can learn from the Turkish chroniclers, namely from Kodja Husein and Solakzade Mehmed Hemdemi, who show that the Sultan, before sending the two in solie, gave the order for the gathering of the armies (Turkish Chronicles, I, p. 455 and II, p. 139). [43] An eloquent example of this is Enverî, op. cit. ed. cit. p. 42, but also many other Turkish chroniclers to whom we do not return. But here is what Enverî says: "After the Shah conquered Trapezuntul/ He set out from here to Rumelia/ He filled that land with great riches/ And the enemies on all sides were punished// While the Shah was on that side/ And the Rumanian on this side,/ He made so many uprisings, that whoever saw them was astonished/ Ishak-pasha sat in residence/ He did not go out of the word of the Shah by heeding his advice/. The Shah summoned the viceroy/ Then Iunus left on his solie/ Iunus-bei and Hamza-bei died like martyrs/ And that unworthy man also scorched the banks of the Danube/ When the year reached 866 (1461-1462 - ed.)/ The Pashah began a holy expedition against him". [44] The

Congress of Mantua was one of the main initiatives of Pope Pius II to organize an anti-Ottoman crusade, an idea that was dominant throughout his pontificate but never materialized. See, among others, G. B. Picotti, op. cit.; A. S. Atiya, The Crusade in the Later Middle Ages, London, 1938, pp. 236-240; R. Eysser, ,,Papst Pius II und der Kreuzug gegen die Türken, in Mélanges d'Histoire Générale", published by C. Marinescu, vol. II, Bucharest, 1938, pp. 1-138; Giacchino Paparelli, Enea Silvio Piccolomini (Pius II), Bari, 1950, pp. 210-222; G. Valentini, ,,La crociata di Pio II dalla documentazione veneta d'archivio", in Archivum historiae pontificiae, XIII, 1975, pp. 249-282; K. M. Setton, The papacy and the Levant (1204-1571), II The Fifteenth Century, Philadelphia, 1978, pp. 196-270; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 87; Șt. Andreescu, War with the Turks in 1462, p. 1677; S. Iosipescu, art. cit. See also note 25 above. [45] Pius II's crusading aspirations were also based on possible collaboration with the Ottoman Empire's Asian neighbours (the Turkmen state of Ak-koiunlu in Persia, Uzun Hasan, Sinope, Trapezunt, Georgia, Armenia), who had already in 1458-1459 concluded an anti-Ottoman alliance and forced Mehmet II to turn his main forces eastwards where, in 1461, he conquered Sinope and Trapezunt (The Cambridge Modern History, vol. I, The Renaissance, Cambridge, 1931, p. 78; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 89; Ș. Papacostea, ,,Caffa et la Moldavie face à l'expresion ottomane (1453-1484)", in Romanian-Italian Colloquium Genovesii la Marea Neagră în secolele XIII-XIV, București, 27-28 March 1975, București, 1977, pp. 139-140; Șt. Andreescu, War with the Turks in 1462, p. 1677; S. Iosipescu, art. cit. [46] Ducas, op. cit. ed., p. 422 et seq.; E. Stoian, op. cit. p. 79. [47] Freddy Thiriet, La Romanie vénitienne au Moyen Âge. Le dévélopement et l'exploitation du domaine colonial vénitien (XIIe - XVe siècles), Paris, 1959, pp. 384, 385. [48] I. Bogdan, Vlad Țepeș și narațiunile germane și rusești..., p. 81; N. Iorga, Scrisori de boieri. Scrisori de domni, ed. cit., p. 166; A. Corbea, art. cit., p. 678. [49] In Pius II's crusading plans, Matthias Corvinus, the Catholic king of Hungary, was to play a leading role. Thus, on 18 January 1460 he urged him to continue his military preparations (Hurmuzaki, Documente, II, 2, Bucharest, 1891, pp. 128-129; A. Theiner, op. cit, p. 329), and in the course of that year he sent him as a subsidy the sum of 40,000 ducats (Monumenta Vaticana, Mathiae Corvini Hungariae regis epistolae ad Romanos Pontifices datae et ab eis acceptae, Budapest, 1891, p. 13; Stephan Kaprinai, Hungaria Diplomatica temporibus Mathiae de Hunyad Regis Hungariae, II, Vienna, 1771, p. 393). With this money 12,000 men and 10 ships could be armed (Hurmuzaki, Documente, II, 2, pp. 130-131; A. Theiner, op. cit., II, pp. 351, 356-357), and the king promised 40,000 men and his personal participation in the anti-Ottoman struggle (N. Iorga, Notes et extraits, IV, p. 182; St. Kaprinai, op. cit., pp. 354-355), but none of this happened. [50] Ș. Papacostea, ,,Die politischen Voraussetzungen...," p. 230. [51] See notes 48 and 49 above. [52] The very fact of the capture (in the autumn of 1460) and execution of his uncle Mihail Szilágyi (5 February 1461) (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, p. 67; L. Gómez Canedo, op. cit., pp. 215-216), although it caused a certain tension in relations with the Turks (F. Babinger, op. cit., pp. 443-444), did not lead Matthias Corvinus to go to battle against them. [53] In 1462 he was still in conflict with Emperor Ferdinand III (1440-1493) who, on 17 February 1459, had been elected king of Hungary by a group of magnates from the western and north-western counties, headed by the palatine Ladislaus Garai. The conflict was not resolved, following papal mediation, until 19 and 26 July 1463, when, in Buda and Wiener Neustadt, the two sovereigns ratified a treaty concluded the previous year (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera,

IV, p. 143; Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini, Historia rerum Friderici III Imperatoris, Helmstadt, 1700, p. 49; A. Theiner, op. cit., II, pp. 382-391; I. A. Fessler, E. Klein, op. cit., III, p. 31, A. Hoffmann, Kaiser Friedrichus III. Beziehungen zu Ungarn in dem Jahren 1458-1464, Breslau, 1877, p. 16; V. Fraknói, Mathias Corvinus König von Ungarn 1458-1490, Freiburg im Breisgau, 1891, p. 95; K. Nehring, op. cit. pp. 209-213; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 128; Șt. Andreescu, En marge des rapports..., p. 508). [54] The foreign policy of King Matthias Corvinus was strongly influenced throughout by the dynastic struggles with the Habsburgs and the Jagiellons, each of whom sought to expand their influence and power in Central Europe as much as possible (Lajos Elekes, La politica estera di re Mattia e gli Stati italiani nella seconda metà del secolo XV, in vol. Rapporti veneto-ungheresi all'epoca del Rinascimento, edited by Tibor Klaniczay, Budapest, 1975, p. 246). [55] V. Fraknói, Mátyás kiraly levelei (Correspondence of King Matthias), I, Budapest, 1893, pp. 18-19. [56] Ș. Papacostea, ,,Cu privire la genza și spreaddirea povestirilor escritas despre faptele lui Vlad Țepeș", in Romanoslavica, XIII, București, 1966, pp. 159-167. This study shows that the appearance, at the end of 1462 and during 1463, of the first texts recounting the deeds of Vlad Țepeș (the Vienna manuscript, incorporated in Thomas Ebendorfer's chronicle, Enea Silvio Piccolomini's Commentaries and Michael Beheim's Povestirea in verse) is only one aspect of the propaganda campaign intended to cover the abandonment by the King of Hungary of the anti-Ottoman action to which he had committed himself (p. 162). The testimony of the papal legate Nicholas of Modrussa, who carried out an important mission for Matthias Corvinus at the end of 1462 and the beginning of 1463 (p. 163; G. Mercati, ,,Notizie varie sopra Niccolò Modrusiense", in Opere minori, vol. IV, Città del Vaticano, 1937, pp. 217-218, text of the account on pp. 247-248. For stories about Vlad Țepeș see also Ion Stăvăruș, Povestiri medievale despre Vlad Țepeș - Dracula, Bucharest, 1978. [57] Vlad Țepeș also tried to obtain help from the Genoese of Caffa, one of his soils being recorded in the town's accounts on 17 and 20 May 1462 (N. Iorga, Acte și fragmente, III, p. 39; idem, Studii istorice asupra Chiliei și Cetății Albe, București, 1899, p. 124; Sergiu Columbeanu, ,,Acțiuni navale în timpul lui Ștefan cel Mare", in Revista de istorie, tom 28, nr. 1, 1975, p. 76; Șt. Andreescu, War with the Turks in 1462, p. 1685), but here too he was not successful. [58] Barbu T. Câmpina, ,,Complotul boierilor și "răscoala" din Țara Românească din iulie-noiembrie 1462", in Studii și referate privind istoria României, parte I, București, 1954, pp. 599-624; E. Stoian, op. cit., p. 116; the sources even show the existence of a group of philoturci boyars, who betrayed Vlad Țepeș and demanded an intervention of the sultan against him (I. Bogdan, Documente privitoare la relațiile Țării Românești cu Brașovul..., I, pp. 149-150; see also the account by Nicolae de Modrussa in Ș. Papacostea, Cu privire la genza..., pp. 163-164, Șt. Andreescu, En marge des rapports..., pp. 377-379). [59] The attitude of Venice towards Vlad Țepeș's anti-Ottoman struggle was analysed in general terms by Șerban Papacostea in his study ,,Venise et les pays roumains au Moyen Âge", in vol. Venezia e il Levante fino al sec. XV, Firenze, 1973, pp. 608-611. In the present chapter we intend to provide only a few additions and developments. [60] N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș..., p.87. [61] J. de Hammer, Histoire de l'Empire ottoman, tome III, Paris, 1836, translated from the German by J. J. Hellert, p. 17; Samuele Romanin, Storia documentata di Venezia, II edizione, tomo IV, Venezia, 1913, pp. 261-262; N. Iorga, Geschichte des Osmanischen Reiches, II, pp. 45-46; F. Thiriet, La Romanie..., pp. 383-384; W. Heyd, Histoire du commerce de Levant au Moyen Âge, translated by Furcy Raynaud, vol. II, Leipzig,

1886, p. 318; G. I Brătianu, La Mer Noire. Des origines à la conquête ottomane, Monachii, 1969, p. 320; William H. Mc. Neill, Venice, the hinge of Europe (1081-1797), The University of Chicago Press, 1974, pp. 86-88. The new peace guaranteed the Venetians freedom of trade in Ottoman territories in return for a 2% customs tax on the value of goods. [62] Andrew C. Hess, ,,The Evolution of the Ottoman Seaborne Empire in the Age of the Oceanic Discoveries. 1453-1525", in The American Historical Review, LXXXV, num. 7, 1970, pp. 1900-1903. [63] F. Thiriet, Régestes..., III, p. 227, no. 3088; F. Babinger, ,,Jaqubpascha, ein Leibarz Mehmed's II", in Rivista degli studi orientali, 26, 1951, pp. 87-113. [64] F. Thiriet, Régestes..., III, p. 227, no. 3088. [65] Ibid, p. 221, no. 3059. [66] Ibidem, pp. 223-224, no. 3071. [67] The Venetians were not wrong in their assessment, since scientific research today will confirm that the Ottoman army can be considered as the most developed form of the horsemen armies of the steppe, benefiting also from a strong artillery support, which made it particularly feared during sieges of various types of fortifications (A. S. Atiya, op. cit., p. 329). [68] Indeed, on 7 December 1458, 16 February and 7 May 1459, the Senate had adopted measures to reinforce the military positions at Modon, Lepanto and Nauplia (F. Thiriet, Régestes..., III, pp. 224-225, nos. 3073, 3075 and 3081). [69] Ibid, p. 227, no. 3090. [70] Ibid, p. 227, no. 3091. [71] Gyula Rászó, ,,A strange alliance. Some thoughts on the military and political history of the alliance against the Turks (1440-1464)", in vol. Venezia e Ungheria nel Rinascimento, edited by Vittore Branca, Florence, 1973, p. 98. [72] F. Thiriet, Régestes..., III, p. 230, no. 3101. [73] Ibidem, p. 231, no. 3106. [74] Ibid, p. 231, no. 3107. [75] Ibid, p. 232, no. 3110. [76] Ibid, pp. 233-234, No 3118. [77] Ibid, p. 236, No 3129. [78] Ibid, p. 238, No 3137. [79] Idem, Déliberations des assamblées vénitiennes concernant la Romanie, tome II, 1364-1463, Paris, 1971, pp. 229-230, no. 1598. [80] Idem, Régestes..., III, p. 239, no. 3141. [81] Idem, Délibérations..., II, p. 231, no. 1604. [82] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 92-93; Ș. Papacostea, Venice and the Romanian countries..., p. 608. [83] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 111 and 120.For the diplomatic action of Venice in this period and at the beginning of the war with the Turks see, among others, Roberto Lopez, ,,Il principio della guera veneto-turca nel 1463", in Archivio Veneto, serie V, XV, 1934, pp. 45-131. [84] Ioan Bianu, ,,Ștefan cel Mare. Câteva documente din Arhivele de stat de Milano", in Columna lui Traian, January-February 1883, pp. 34-35. [85] On 20 March 1462, the Venetian Senate sent to Rome the report of its ambassador to Buda and a copy of what might be called a real war bulletin sent by Vlad Tepes to Matia ,,... simul cum certis exemplis litterrarum per vaivodam Valachiae scriptarum Regi Hungariae nonnulla nova felicita continentium" (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 121-122; Ș. Papacostea, Venise et les pays roumains..., p. 608; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 95). [86] This is clear from Pietro Tomasso's report of 4 March 1462 and is recorded just as clearly by Domenico Malipiero, with reference to the Sultan's campaign of the same year, in his famous Venetian annals: "Ma'l Turco e sta chiama in Valachia in difesa del fratello del Signor Viacola, che e sta scazzado da esso Signor Viacola; e condutto l'esercito in quella provincia, Viacola se ghe ha opposto con potente esercito, e l'ha rebatudo gagiardamente" (Domenico Malipiero, ,,Annali veneti dall'anno 1457 al 1500", in Archivio storico italiano, tomo VII, parte I, Firenze, 1843, pp. 11-12): also an anonymous Italian chronicle, up to 1481, probably also known in Venice, mentions in 1462, also referring to the Sultan's campaign: ,,... Turco andato contra Dracula in Valachia: sonno fugati Turci e malmenati" (N.

Iorga, Acts and Fragments, III, p. 39). [87] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 122, 127 and 131; L. Gomez Canedo, op. cit., pp. 222-223. [88] Bucharest State Archives, Microfilme Italia, roll 57, frames 501-502. [89] Ș. Papacostea, Venice and the Romanian countries..., p. 609. [91] It is interesting to note that the Venetian Senate had shared this opinion for some time, from the beginning of 1462. On 22 January this year, in the instructions it sent to its ambassadors in France, the Senate asked them to show King Louis XI (1461-1483) that, without effective help, Matthias Corvinus was on the point of being crushed, since he was fighting simultaneously on two fronts, against the Emperor Frederick III and against the Turks. It was pointed out that only a shameful peace would bring him glory. Obviously these arguments were of no value to the French king, who was more interested in Italian affairs than in fighting the Ottoman Empire (P. M. Perret, Histoire des relations de la France avec Venise du XIIIe siècle a l'avenement de Charles VIII, vol. I, Paris, 1896, pp. 381-384). [92] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 142-143. [93] The Venetian ambassador here confuses two distinct actions, namely: the attack of Mahmud Pasha, which occurred in May and was a prelude to the Sultan's campaign (Sts. Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula)..., p. 107), with the campaign itself, attributing to the former the number of troops with which Sultan Mehmed II himself came. [94] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 146-147. [95] The court of Buda, by supplying this information to the Venetian ambassador, as well as that concerning the weakness of Vlad Țepeș's forces and, therefore, his probable defeat, sought, of course, to prepare the ground for Matia Corvin's future explanations of his apathy in the face of the Ottoman offensive and to cast a shadow of doubt on the Romanian prince's sincere desire to fight. See also note 90. [96] "Vajvoda quotidie hic sollicitat ut adjuventur, quia solus tantos impetus sustinere non valet" (Epistolae Mathiae Corvini regis Ungariae, ed. Johannes Hajdo-Michael Kuun, vol. I, Claudiopoli, 1745, p. 74). Here we would like to point out that the Sultan, before setting out on his campaign, had asked Matthias Corvinus to leave him the Romanian Country and Bosnia (the latter he would indeed conquer the following year, in 1463), offering him peace for his kingdom in return and threatening that if he did not accept these conditions, he would invade Hungary with his large army (Pius II (Enea Silvio Piccolomini), Comentarii, ed. G. Bernetti, vol. III, Vienna, 1973, p. 176). This threat, in addition to the conflict with Frederick III, which was still unresolved, led the King of Hungary, who did not even have large forces at his disposal, not to intervene, in fact not to respect the terms of the agreement he had concluded with Vlad Țepeș, not to respect his obligations as his suzerain as he claimed to be. He was content only to take some measures to defend Transylvania and did not leave Buda until August, when the defeated sultan had long since left Wallachia (see notes 55 and 90 above). [97] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, p. 147. [98] Ș. Papacostea, Venise et les pays roumains..., p. 610. [99] Barbu T. Câmpina, ,,Victoria oștirii lui Țepeș asupra sultanului Mehmed al II-lea" (On the occasion of the 500th anniversary), in Studii. Revistă de istorie, vol. 15, no. 3, 1962, p. 550; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 117; idem, La victoire de Vlad L'Empaleur sur les Turcs (1462), p. 395. [100] Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 167-168. [101] N. Iorga, Acts and Fragments, III, p. 39; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 118; Șt. Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula)..., p. 119. [102] D. Malipiero, op. cit. [103] N. Iorga, Acts and Fragments, III, p. 86; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 118; Șt. Andreescu, Vlad Țepeș (Dracula)..., p. 120. [104] "... dando nobis notitiam per litteras tuas quanto diligentius

poteris de successibus Majestatis suae in illis partibus Valachiae et de omnibus que occurent" (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, p. 181; Ș. Papacostea, Venise et les pays roumains..., p. 610; N. Stoicescu, Vlad Țepeș, p. 128). [105] "Casum retentionis Draguli olim voivode..., circa quam rem idem serenissimus Rex etiam per suas littetras nobis scripsit" (I. Nagy, B. Nyáry, Magyar diplomacziai emlékek. Matyás király korobol. 1458-1490 (Sources of Hungarian Diplomacy. The Age of King Matthias), vol. I, Budapest, 1875, p. 172). [106] Fontes rerum Austriacarum, II, Diplomataria et acta, 42 (Urkunden und Aktemstüke zur ósterreichischen Geschichte im Zeitalter Friedrichs III und König Georg von Böhmon (1440-1471), ed. A. Bachmann, Wien, 1879, p. 442, no. 329 (9 November 1467): 'Nich lanngt an, wie sich, nein gnädiger Herre (Johann von Mergenthal, chancellor of the emperor - n.n.) der König zu Hungern mit dem Turcken fünff Jär die nächsten, in Besicht vertragen habe, und in die Walachey zuziehen in Furnemen angetzogen sey, das ich euch zu verkunden nicht verhalten kan wollen'. This is the renewal of Turkish-Maghreb pacts every five years, including those of 1452, 1457 and 1462. See also Radu Constantinescu, Codicele Altenberger, Bucharest, 1988, p. 15. However, the peace with the Turks may have been concluded even earlier, in 1461. The fact that the Hungarians did not attack the Turks in this year, when the Danube line was poorly defended due to the campaign in Asia, fuelled rumours of a possible secret Turkish-Hungarian peace (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, pp. 101-105; N. Stoicescu, La victoire de Vlad L'Empaleur sur les Turcs (1462), p. 383, n. 23, R. Lungu, art. cit., pp. 147-158; M. Cazacu, L'histoire du prince Dracula..., p. 10). Ileana Căzan considers that Matia Corvin's first armistice with the Turks was concluded only in 1468, "Matia Corvin, securing the Danube frontier and the Turkish-Hungarian armistice of 1468", in Revista istorica, Seria Nouă, vol. 3, no. 7-8, 1992, pp. 769-782). [107] F. Thiriet, Régestes..., III, p. 247, no. 3171. [108] "Libuit Serenitati Regie Vestre litteris ejus super ad nos delatis, significare infestum casum Vaivode olim Valachie, qui adversus Mejstatem Vestram, regnumque vestrum tantum facimus perpetrare molitus erat..." (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, p. 171). [109] Ibid. [110] "Studiosus eris intelligere conditiones regni illius et in specie volumus, quod nos advises, qualiter se habuit negocium Dragulli Vallachie, dando etiam nobis administrationem de illo, qui in presentiarum reperitur Vaiovoda in partibus illis et qualiter se intelligit aut non intelligit cum Rege Hungarie. Significabis quoque nobis provisiones factas, etque de cetero fient in Regno illi. Et si sentires, quod teneretur aliqua praticha, vel tractatus pacis, aut sufferentiarum inter Regem et Turcum diriges spiritus et cogitamina queque tua ad obviandum et turbandum tractatus hujusmodi per omnes illos prudentes, bonos et acommodator modos, qui videnbuntur tibi" (Ibidem, IV, p. 202; Sime Ljubić, Listine o odnosajh izmedju juznoga slavenstva i mletačke republike, vol. X, in Monumenta spectantia historiam slavorum meridionalium XXII, Zagreb, 1891, p. 241, doc. CCXXXVIII; Ș. Papacostea, Venise et les pays roumains..., p. 611). [111] Ferenc Szakály, ,,Phases of Turco-Hungarian Warfare before the Battle of Mohács (1365-1526)", in Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, tomus XXXIII, fasciculus 1, 1979, p. 109. [112] The peace treaty was drawn up in 1462 by Bishop Ion Vitez and the papal legate Geronimo Landus, Bishop of Crete, but was not concluded until 19 July 1463 (Monumenta Hungariae Historica. Acta extera, IV, p. 143; I. A. Fessler, E. Klein, op. cit., III, p. 31; K. Nehring, op. cit., pp. 18-19 and 202-217). [113] A. Theiner, op. cit., II, pp. 380-382; N. Iorga, Acts and Fragments, III, p. 40; Hurmuzaki, Documents, II, 2, pp. 149-151. [114] G. Rászó, art. cit. [115] L. Elekes, art. cit., p. 249;

L. Ernest Denis, Fin de l'indépendance boheme. Georges de Podiebrad. Les Jagellons, Paris, 1890, p. 152. It should be noted that between 1464 and 1466, although he had abandoned the fight with the Turks and had not yet entered into war with Podiebrad, Matthias Corvinus continued to receive important subsidies from the papacy (I. A. Fessler, E. Klein, op. cit., III, p. 43; G. Valentini, ,,La sospensione della crociata nei primi anni di Paolo II (1464-1468) (Dai documenti d'archivio di Venezia)", in Archivum historiae pontificiae, XIV, 1976, pp. 71-101; K. M. Setton, op. cit, pp. 273 ff.) and even of Venice (I libri commemoriali della republica di Venezia, V, Venezia, 1901, pp. 153 and 155, apud M. Cazacu, L'histoire du prince Dracula..., p. 14). It seems, according to some calculations, that the total amount of papal subsidies during the reign of Matthias Corvinus amounted to 300,000 ducats (A. Kupelwieser, Ungarns Kämpfe gegen die werdenden Macht der Osmanen bis zur Schlacht bei Mohács, Wien-Leipzig, 1895, p. 149). [116] P.M. Perret, op. cit., I, p. 409; L. Gómez Canedo, op. cit. [117] For Podiebrad's crusade project and the work of his soil Antonio Marini see E. Denis, De Antonio Marini et de Bohemiae ratione politica, eo oratore, Angouleme, 1878; idem, Fin de l'independance boheme..., pp. 112 and 115; P.M. Perret, op. cit., I, pp. 391-393. [118] For this major conflict between Matthias Corvinus and Frederick III see, among others: V. Fraknói, Mathias Corvinus König von Ungarn 1458-1490; pp. 208-212; Peter Rassow, Histoire de l'Allemagne des origines à nos jours, vol. I, Lyon, 1969, p. 285; L. Elekes, art. cit., p. 249; I. Barta, T. Berend, P. Hanák, Histoire de la Hongrie des origines à nos jours, publié sous la direction de E. Pamlényi, Budapest, 1974, p. 130; K. Nehring, op. cit. pp. 163-164

#vlad tepes #vlad the impaler #article #book #Vlad the Impaler between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire #wallachia #dracula

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thosewickedlovelies · 3 years

Text

Be the Girl You Wish to Meet in the Bar Bathroom

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x F!Reader

Summary: You make a new friend in the bar bathroom. She and her friends help you lure in the hottie she spots checking you out ;)

Rating: T for suggestive themes

Tags: Brief mention/implications of alcohol use.

Word Count: 3,359

A/N: This one goes out to all the drunk girls you've ever met and been uplifted by in bar bathrooms <3 Also for @nathan-bateman ❤

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“Ugh, my feet are killing me,” your new friend groans as she lowers herself onto the toilet. “This always happens when my friends make me dance with them.” Still seated, she bends over to rub what she can reach of her heel.

Despite the thumping music and the din of bar conversation in the background, you can hear her perfectly fine, seeing as you’re sealed in the tiny bathroom together. You met her a moment ago in line, after you almost stumbled into her and she immediately proceeded to compliment your dress. Now you’re chatting like longtime pals.

A universal feminine experience, a distant part of your mind thinks, with a fuzzy sense of warmth.

“Yeah but you’re so lucky though,” you tell her earnestly, while washing your hands. “My boys hardly ever dance with me, they’re soo lame.” You make an exaggerated pouty face.

You only ever went out with your boys- Frankie, Will, Benny, and Santiago. You had other friends at work, but weren’t quite at the “let’s go out dancing together” stage with any of them yet. Benny and Santi actually did dance, but while you loved them to pieces, it wasn’t quite the same.

Tonight you had reunited at one of your usual spots- a basement bar that was a bit on the divey side, but just trendy enough to have designated space for a dance floor.

“Oh my gosh, you should totally come dance with me and my friends! Every girl needs a girl friend group to dance with.” She looks at looks at you with wide, serious eyes and all the sage certainty of a perfectly tipsy person.

“Oh my gosh, that’s so nice!” You’re genuinely touched at her invitation. “And so true,” you add a beat later, nodding with conviction. You shift away from the sink as she flushes the toilet.

“Yeah!” The brown-haired woman continues to rave about her friends while she washes her hands. “Ready?”

Arm in arm, you leave the bathroom together. You halt almost immediately, however, as the colored lights of the dance floor change abruptly, blinding you with white strobes. You both shriek and giggle as you throw your hands up in defense. You decide to remain where you are while you try to locate her friends.

She spies something else first. “Oooh, don’t look, but there is an absolute Adonis of a man checking you out right now at one of the tables.”

You don’t look, keeping your intrigue under wraps as you continue to scan the room. “Ooh, what does he look like?”

Santiago Garcia had been keeping an eye on the restrooms waiting for you to return, but his relief at your reappearance turns to curiosity as you exit with a woman he’s never seen before. His interest in her fades quickly, though, as the sweeping lights highlight your grinning face and that close-fitting dress. Everything else seems to fade to his peripheries.

He doesn’t know what it is, but he’s captivated by you tonight. Maybe it’s that you haven’t seen as much of each other lately, everyone busy with work and life. He thought he’d been elated at the prospect of a group get-together this evening, but when he kept finding himself frustrated at the guys stealing your attention from him, he wondered if it was just you he’d been excited to see.

Maybe it’s the fact that he can see every man in a ten-foot radius of you right now doing the same thing he is: checking you out. Sizing you up like nothing more than a trophy to add to their collection, as if any of them were good enough for you.

His fingers tighten around his beer as Santiago drags a dark gaze down you. Thinking of all the memories he has associated with you, all the things he’s seen your body do- a connection none of these other suckers can claim. In his brooding, he doesn’t notice the woman beside you noticing him.

“There they are!” Brown Hair squeals. She drags you around the edge of the dance floor to where several people are waving.

There’s a flurry of introduction, but you don’t catch any of their names over the music. A tall woman with noticeably muscled arms; another with deep brown skin and a halo of dense, tiny, blue-dyed curls; a third whose accented greeting you’re just able to catch as the music fades briefly.

Taking advantage of the quiet, Brown Hair speaks. “All right girls, now listen. There was an obscenely gorgeous man checking out our new friend a second ago, and I bet he still is. A few tables behind us, with the hair?”

With the hair? She and you are facing the dance floor, but her friends are facing the bar’s tables, one of which your future man is apparently sitting at. With outstanding coordination and nonchalance, they all manage to identify him over your shoulders, and whistle their approval.

The one who…?” You strain to hear Arm Muscle’s question, but it’s lost beneath a suddenly surging bassline.

Brown Hair darts a quick glance over shoulder and nods.

“That is some nice hair, and I would know,” the blue-afroed beauty smirks and winks at you, before grabbing your hand and tugging you slightly further onto the dance floor. Still close enough to the edge to be plenty visible to anyone seated at a table. “Don’t you worry, we’ll get you that man.”

“I haven’t even seen him!” You protest with a laugh, even as you follow her willingly.

“Girl, all you need to know is that he is insanely hot.” The one with the accent speaks from close behind you. “As your designated girl friend group for tonight, it’s our duty to help you lure him in.”

Conversation becomes impossible in the rhythm of the crowd. You follow their lead, let their hips and hands guide your movements, losing yourself in the uninhibited joy of moving your body to the thumping music. In the whirl of unself-conscious beings all around you, you momentarily forget what brought you out here in the first place.

Until, after some unknown amount of time, Brown Hair twirls to face you. “He’s on the move!” She waggles her eyebrows.

You remember then that you’re supposed to be dancing for some guy. You’re still facing away from the tables, but from in front of you Blue Hair has a clear view over your shoulder. “Mmm, look at his hunky blond friends,” she purrs. “Think he’ll bring them over too?”

Wait. Surely they couldn’t mean…? There had to be more than one table in here with two hunky blond men at it, right??

She spins you around, and you follow her pointing to where Benny and Santiago are standing at their table, the former clapping the latter on the back. Eyes widening, you’re nearly beside yourself wondering which of your boys the girls could possibly be referring to- until Santiago detaches himself from the group.

“Your man is coming!” Accent squeals.

“Wait, he was the one checking me out?” you hiss frantically.

“Undressing you with his eyes, babe,” Brown Hair nods knowingly. The others make sounds of confirmation.

Pope’s dark eyes pin you as makes his way across the room. He weaves through the tables like they aren’t even there, like you’re the only thing worth his attention. Your lips part in shock.

You’d always thought the vague chemistry between you and Santiago was merely a side effect of his natural sexual charisma. Like a power he could turn on and off at will, you’d seen it in action enough times to recognize it. Although...it had never occurred to you to wonder if the chemistry was not, in fact, a side effect, but rather an intended result. Had Santi been deliberately using his powers on you?

Watching him go, Benny chortles. His gaze slides past Santiago to the other women who are still blatantly eyeing their table. “Looks like you might be DD for just yourself tonight, Catfish.” He smirks devilishly and runs a hand through his hair. “Come on, brother.” Will doesn’t react to his sibling’s invitation as he saunters after Pope, only sipping his beer contemplatively.

Frankie snorts at the older brother’s obvious interest. “Get out of here man, they’re definitely checking you out, too. I’ll hang here for a little while longer.”

Will cracks a smile. Draining his glass, he unfurls himself from the table, bright blue eyes roving appreciatively over the women flanking you.

“You’re the man, Francisco.” The taller blond gives him a nod of thanks before following his brother.

Frankie only shakes his head, a faint smile on his lips as he observes the scene unfolding between you and Pope. Finally.

With the hair, indeed. That should have tipped you off straightaway. You’ve been encouraging Santi to grow out his gorgeous curls for probably as long as you’ve known him, but he rarely took leave for long enough to gain any measurable growth. Even short, however, his greying locks reflect the colors of the roaming spotlights as he approaches, making his beauty even more otherworldly.

Dumb with surprise, you don’t have time to plan any kind of reaction before Santiago is there, standing before you with one upturned hand outstretched. “Can I cut in?”

Cooing, your new friends part to allow him unhindered access to you. Although there’s a suave sort of expectancy on his face- he knows what the girls were doing- even in the dim, shifting light you can see the genuine question in his eyes.

You’re still unsure of what he’s playing at, but Santi has never let you down before. Your hand doesn’t waver as you place it in his.

His fingers curl around yours, warm and reassuring. He tears his gaze from you only to briefly address the girls: “My friends are single, by the way.”

As if on cue, you all become aware of Benny and Will sidling up in Santiago’s wake, like two blond, shameless, bad ideas.

Santi is wearing that big shit-eating grin when he turns back to you, and you can’t help but smile at his familiar antics. Laughing, you let him sweep you away, guiding you toward a more remote corner of the dance floor and into a sway that’s breathtakingly gentler than what you were expecting, given the moves with which you and the girls were taunting him.

(If his hold feels gentle, he makes sure it doesn’t look that way: flexing his arms where they rest around your waist and brushing his nose along your hairline, breathing you in and sending menacing glowers to anyone still looking at you.)

You’ve never been this lost for words around Santiago. You’ve danced with him before, technically; but it had never felt like this. You want to speak, but your tongue feels clumsy in your mouth, heavy with the energy between you. As your thoughts churn, his hold shifts, one arm wrapping all the way around your waist to draw you nearer, the other sliding up your spine, fingertips tracing the skin above the back of your dress.

It may have only been a song or two during which you held each other, but it felt like much longer. His light caress sets the blood fizzing in your veins, sparkling like drink mixers, sweet with the promise of bright memories to come.

Finally he speaks. “Is this okay?” Santi murmurs.

Hearing his warm voice in your ear, instead of making you more nervous, grounds you. That familiar, steady timbre, his quiet confidence and trust in you to answer him truthfully. Which you do, because you trust him, too.

“Very,” you profess into his neck. Your nose nearly tucks beneath the collar of his button-down. “Santi…” you hesitate, knowing you want to ask but unsure of what the question is.

He waits, his subtle swaying never faltering.

“Why tonight?” It’s a vague, possibly lame cop-out of a question, but it’s the only way you can think to phrase it. He’ll understand though. Santi can play the fool when he wants, but he knows you, and now isn’t the time.

For several heartbeats, the only response is the rasp of his stubble against your jaw. You swear you feel his lips brush your skin, but before you can properly register the sensation he’s withdrawing to answer.

“Mmm...Well, I don’t need to tell you what those dance moves of yours do to me.” He pinches your side in emphasis, but despite your squirm and flush, you scoff. Santi has seen you dance like that before- he’s been the one dancing with you like that before.

Santiago chuckles, the sound liquid dark. He knew you wouldn’t buy that. “Honestly, I don’t know. Seeing all these other assholes eyeing you up like they’d have a chance...I couldn’t stop myself. I’m just putting them out of their misery, really.”

You snort at his dismissive shrug, knowing his irreverence masks real emotion. You can read it in the lines of his face, each one as dear and familiar to you as the beauty marks on your own. Green and red lights stripe his skin as you study them.

He can’t quite meet your gaze, suddenly. “What are you staring at,” Santi grumbles, burying his face in your neck again.

You giggle at his gruffness, at his breath huffing on the sensitive skin.

“Just your pretty face, Santi,” you croon. You tighten your arms around his shoulders, deliberately wiggling closer so you’re pressed more firmly against him.

His sharp, surprised inhale juts into your chest. But any response he might have given is lost beneath the sudden blare of trumpets from the speakers.

The familiar melody makes you both pause. You lean back just far enough to meet Santiago’s eye; you know he’s anticipating the same thing you are and you both shout: “Shakira, Shakira!”

You squeal as Santi leaps back from you, grabbing your hands and twirling you in a familiar routine. ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ had become, thanks to Benny, Pope’s song, a claim he always pretended to roll his eyes at when the boys brought it up. But he secretly loved it, and rarely missed a chance to show off why.

Your muscles leap into action as he does just that, dancing you to the Latin beat. You’re breathless with laughter, sweat beading on your hairline.

I don’t, don’t really know what I’m doing, but you seem to have a plan...

The tripping guitar notes swirl around you, but Santiago doesn’t let you stumble. He guides you in time with the pounding percussion, his whole body undulating to the rhythm.

All the attraction, the tension...

His arms cross above your head as Santi spins you so your back is pressed to his chest. He holds you close, hands low on your hips, and you lean back into him, relishing the strength in the muscles shifting against your spine. Warmth radiates from him, all-encompassing. He hooks his chin over your shoulder and you turn your head to look at him.

His face is much closer than you were expecting; a thrill bursts in your chest. Curiosity kindles, however, as you take in his expression. You’re not sure if you recognize it. Happy, but searching- like he’s gauging your reaction, or seeing something he hasn’t before.

You don’t have time to dwell on it, though- the song is approaching Benny’s favorite line. You tip your head as if listening, raising your eyebrows at Santi expectantly.

His eyes widen, sparking with recognition at your signal. You jump away-

Let me see you move like you come from Columbia…

The saxophone trills its long, fluttering note and you whoop in admiration at the sight before you. Santiago loops his hips rapidly, letting them sling him in a circle, his elbows held square at chest level. His lips form an “o” of concentration in a spicy expression that would make anyone else look ridiculous. But Santi’s obvious skill and the self-assured confidence with which he always carries himself only makes the whole thing ridiculously sexy.

Santi’s movements cause his shirt to ride up, exposing a sliver of taut, tan skin. Shamelessly you appreciate the visible, flexing muscles in his arms and thighs. His butt in those jeans.

He is grinning and giddy when he faces you again, one corner of his smile crooking higher as he witnesses your glee. Laughing, Santi pulls you back into his arms.

“How many times have you seen me dance like that, cariño? And every time you have the same reaction.” His voice is breathless in your ear.

You bite your lip at the warmth of his broad hands, at what is definitely the kiss of his mouth on your skin.

“I like your dancing, Santi,” you say simply. His pulse thrums beneath your lips as you slowly skim them up his neck in return.

Into the line of his jaw you admit “...I like when you dance with me.”

Santiago brings one hand up to cradle your head, leaning back slightly to look at you. His brown eyes are full of affection. “I love dancing with you.” Creases fan out from his eyes as he smiles and he is so beautiful it makes your heart squeeze.

The moment hovers, both of you hardly daring to hope. Your gaze skips down to his lips despite your best efforts.

You know he sees it when his grasp tightens, his hold at the nape of your neck becoming more deliberate. His face is merely a breath away.

“Cariño?” he murmurs. You’re surprised to see the faintest trace of uncertainty, the question in his eyes. He’s asking if you’re sure.

One eyebrow quirks the tiniest bit. “Santi?” You are.

The uncertainty vanishes, and you kiss him.

He lets out a soft groan in the back of his throat. He hauls you as close as he possibly can, and you arch into him, trying to get closer.

You plunge your hands into his silvery curls with a sigh of satisfaction. You’ve touched his hair before, but never like this- never used it to hold his face to yours. The damp traces of sweat as you twist your fingers in it only add to the surreal euphoria of it all. The flashing lights leave colored impressions against your closed eyelids; the music is a muffled, fading pulse as your senses fill with him.

The sturdy press of Santiago’s body, the smell of him- lingering cologne and the musk of his earlier exertions. His mouth velvety hot, his tongue curling against your own in a way that makes heat expand low in your belly. Increasing desperation infects both of you as you realize you should have done this ages ago.

Dimly you become aware of raucous cheers coming from somewhere nearby. With a gasp you pull your mouth from Santi’s, chest heaving. His lust-blown eyes clear somewhat as you share a shy grin.

Then he looks up, toward where the Miller brothers and your girls are hooting at you. Benny cackles as Santiago gives them a one-fingered salute. You shrug helplessly at the girls, noticing with delight the way they’ve paired off: Benny with his arms around both Accent and Arm Muscles; next to them, Blue Hair’s beautiful brown skin contrasting with Will’s paler complexion.

Overcome with mischief, you duck your head into Santiago’s neck again. Placing your lips where it curves into his shoulder, you flutter your tongue delicately against the flesh before biting down with purpose, laving and nibbling to leave a mark.

Santi sucks in air and you feel a subtle shudder wrack his body. He is still facing your friends; scandalized oooohs sound from their direction, and you're impishly delighted to have made him react in some visible way.

His grip on your head shifts so that one thumb is pressed beneath your chin, guiding your head back up to look at him. He breathes your name, his expression dangerous- but questioning all the same.

Radiating innocence, you grin in answer. “Wanna get out of here, Santi?”

Relief quickly vanishes beneath the promising gleam in his eyes as he takes your hand.

#santiago garcia x reader #santiago pope garcia x reader #triple frontier fic #santiago garcia #oscar isaac #oscar isaac characters #if it sounds like a straight white girl wrote this...i write what i know 🤷🏻‍♀️💀

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bthump · 3 years

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I hate the fact that Griffith has to be with Charlotte/marry her to become king even now that he is a powerful god and could very well do that without being with the Princess of Midland. I get that it's to validate him becoming king and all but it feels totally unnecessary. Also that scene where we see Charlotte in bed naked and Griffith also naked by the window (meaning they had sex) kinda irks me because I wonder, after everything that happened when he was still human how can he still do the same thing that got him tortured for an year (with that same person)? Is he not traumatised by it? Or maybe it doesn't affect him because he's a demon now and supposedly doesn't feel anything (even tho I think it's bullshit and that he still has feelings and not because of the fetus). What do you think?

This is exactly how I feel except that I have a reach-y thematic explanation for it that makes me like it lol.

Like yeah it absolutely feels kind of ridiculous wrt the worldbuilding that Griffith has to be with Charlotte to rule Falconia. Midland doesn't even exist anymore, he's got the backing of the world's pope equivalent, he saved the world and the city-state he rules is magic and appeared out of nowhere with his preferred desktop theme already installed. He's got magic charisma, a free pass from fate to do whatever he wants, an army of monsters at his beck and call, and magic powers. Charlotte's pretty redundant by now, right?

Human Griffith only pursued Charlotte to get to the throne, we're told and shown this over and over and over. When he fucked her after Guts left it was in a moment of total emotional irrationality and personal loss, and "he did it because he's into her" is the least plausible explanation for it lol.

And even if he did bang her because he liked her, as impossible to imagine as that is lmao, NeoGriffith has no feelings anymore, certainly none he wants to admit to himself, so he sure wouldn't be demonstrating them by pursuing Charlotte for no reason except love or lust now.

EVEN IF we still assume he still has to marry her for the sake of his kingdom for some reason, they're not married yet so there's no reason they need to be having sex right now, and Griff has a good excuse not to have premarital sex considering what happened last time.

But despite all that I think it makes perfect sense for Griffith to be having sex with Charlotte.

Because of the way Charlotte is so consistently tied to his dream in opposition to Guts, basically, in a way that gives off major heteronormative emotionally repressive dream vs being in love with Guts vibes, yk? Add that underlying recurring thing of sex for human Griffith always highlighting his own powerlessness, and there’s some potential interesting takeaways from Griffith and Charlotte being together currently.

Like there’s no compelling reason for him to still be with Charlotte except that it’s thematically appropriate because that’s the bed Griffith made when he chose to sacrifice Guts and pursue his dream, and now he has to lie in it.

(To be fair I don’t necessarily think Miura would’ve put quite that much thought into it, but I do think that Griffith and Charlotte sort of looking like an ideal hetero prince and princess couple is relevant, even if it’s just for the shallowly perfect yet hollow NeoGriffith vibe. My take just extrapolates from that a lot in a fun way lol.)

#ask #a #b #theme: repression #theme: dreams #ship: griffith x charlotte #anonymous #character: neogriffith #theme: heteronormativity #arc: f #thanks for the ask!

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mcbride · 3 years

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TWD S11 Predictions - Carol/Daryl focused

disclaimer: i don't know anything. i have no sources. just my predictions, thoughts and wishful thinking based on filming tracking, intuition, some theories, images from the teaser/promo trailers and more wishful thinking!

solely focused on Carol and Daryl's storylines, cause apparently that's all my heart cares about anymore! as a wise person once said (Espy, my positive fairy! if you're reading this, ilysm), our baes need to be dealing with their own issues and demons, separately, while getting some closure with other people, so they can finally move forward together.

so i don't expect many actual caryl scenes in part 1 of s11, but i fully expect them to keep each other in mind, and even make some decisions based on a future they wanna have together even before they resolve the awkward tension between them atm.

imo the perfect caryl arc in 11a would include a lot of emotional encounters, drama, disappearances, fake deaths, torture, tragedy, dog, closure and make up and make out... after the jump....

it appears that Carol and Daryl will be involved in different missions at the start of the season - he will head out with Maggie's group to search for food when they are caught up in a storm and have to hide out in the subway tunnels; while i presume she stays back to defend and help clean up ASZ or goes on her own mission with Kelly and Magna.

Carol, Kelly and Magna end up stumbling upon Connie's journal, a symbol of hope for all of them. they might even decide to search the area for any more signs of Connie. i really want Carol herself to find Connie and bring her back to Kelly. and not cause Carol is a hero who saved Connie, nooooooo cause Connie can save her own self. she is strong, not a damsel in distress. she went through hell but she made it back. i think we will see Connie and what she has been through, however, i don't believe she will reunite with anyone from team family before the MSF (11x08) or even MSP (11x09). no idea who she and Virgil are running from in the trailer - it could either be a whisperer, a stray reaper or just some crazy random motherf*cker they run into.

while Maggie's group are in the tunnels, dog runs off and Daryl goes to search for him, never making it back to the group for some reason. after the storm is over, Maggie and the group search for Daryl but not having been able to find him (?) they just assume he is gone, possibly dead? i don't know why Maggie would give up so easily searching for family, but it seems like her current MO to just leave people behind.

along the way, Carol and Magna will find common ground and actually become besties cause she desperately needs some female friends. please and thank you. they can bond over the hope to find Connie alive and well, or the fact, both of them are currently in a very awkward position with their boos while having no idea where the heck they are.

Daryl probably got separated from the group while escaping a small herd in the tunnels (cue to Daryl's face covered in blood in the woods) and when he finally finds dog, he comes face to face with a masked reaper formerly known to him as Leah. he is shocked to learn she's part of the group that targeted Maggie. Leah is probably bitter Daryl chose his family instead of her a few years ago cause she has no idea he came back for her... so she and her friends take (willingly or not!) Daryl prisoner... possibly torture him and play mind games to gather information on team family.

in the sdcc trailer, there are some very heartbreaking scenes with Carol (and Aaron?), i cannot wait for it. i know it's gonna make me cry so hard and i've been needing Carol/Aaron friendship for years. at the same time, i expect Carol to also have some badass fighting scenes with her daughter-in-law and new bestie, Lydia, and tia Rosita! YES girl power!! people need Carol and she's totally there for them.

Aaron seems to be in a bad place emotionally (possibly something happened to Gracie, or just the fact they lost a lot of people in the whisperers war!) and Carol will be there to urge him not to make the same mistakes she did. hopefully, these 2 can join forces and come up with a masterplan to defeat the reapers.

Daryl being Daryl who always wants to save people even from themselves, tries to convince Leah to change sides, join team family, or convince her own family to leave his family alone. he's unsuccessful and when Daryl tries to escape, setting the whole place on fire and killing a few men on his way out of the reapers compound, Leah threatens to harm dog. cause why not? she obvi loves nothing or no one! they take Daryl back to another cell, and dog manages to escape.

meanwhile, Maggie's group returns to ASZ, where they tell Carol they believe Daryl is lost or dead. please give me all the angst that comes with Carol thinking she may have lost Daryl forever! she has been pretty committed to the group and rebuilding their home, but i believe her first instinct will be to run, to leave... TO FIND DARYL!!! cause no way in hell would Carol just accept he's gone unless she sees it with her own eyes.

WELL in true 'if you can't beat them, then join them' fashion, after a few brainwashing sessions with Leah, Daryl tells her all about the note (FIND ME) he left for her at the cabin, how he knows he made the wrong decision then, declares his loyalty to her and joins the reapers...

dog arrives at ASZ just as Carol is about to leave to search for Daryl. good boy always comes back home to mama and together they will find and save dada. (bear with me! from now on i'll be totally running wild with my wishful thinking... it will pretty much read like some fanfic plot!)

Daryl keeps trying to fit in with the reapers group, but he's only taking a page from Carol's undercover book - fake it till you make it + destroy them from the inside. what he doesn't know is that Leah and her new/old bf (Pope!?) have been planning an attack on ASZ behind his back. they simply let him know, this is his chance to prove himself to the reapers. he has to go along with the plan (or DIE!), but he hopes to be Alexandrians' inside man, helping them protect their family at all costs (ironically, exactly what Negan did when he joined the whisperers and they attacked Hilltop... just not the same motivation! i guess Carol wasn't so wrong about Negan after all!)

at night, Daryl puts on his reaper costume and they head to ASZ. reapers learned the location of the place by tracking dog. the plan was much bigger and more explosive than Daryl expected, the reapers destroy a big part of ASZ brand new rebuilt wall and set fire to a bunch of houses and the mill before Daryl can even react.

Alexandrians and reapers fight as Daryl sneaks out to lead the kids to safety. he finds Maggie, asks for Carol, and is glad she is out there looking for him, relatively safe, rather than around to fight and watch ASZ fall.

while out looking for Daryl, Carol hears the explosions, sees the fire and she and dog return to ASZ as fast as they can. they are greeted by Leah at what used to be front gate...

i realize this is getting extremely long, so i'll just say that i absolutely don't want Carol to have anything to do with Leah's possible imminent death. i don't want that guilt on her conscience, and i don't want her to feel like Leah is just another person she took from Daryl (like Connie!). i don't even want Leah to die! unless she's trying to hurt or kill Daryl.

somehow i think it would be a good twist, if for a quick second Carol thought Daryl had betrayed them and joined the reapers for Leah. of course, Carol knows better. SHE KNOWS DARYL. he would never, but for a brief panicked moment, it would be good to see her react to that. i can only imagine the pain in her eyes. but she also trusts Daryl with her life.

we have no idea what Leah knows about Carol, but i'd like the pocketknife Daryl regifted to come back. how would Leah react? likely angry to see another woman with something that was hers. i want to believe Daryl would never tell Leah anything about Carol because she is just too important and too personal to share. but maybe Leah can tell there was someone else !? who knows.

i just want it to be completely clear Daryl is done with that part of his past. Daryl is not alone and lost in the woods anymore without his brother Rick and his bestie Carol. ever since Carol brought him back, Daryl has acted like he knows exactly what he wants and he's done playing games. and what he wants is not Leah or Connie. he wants for ALL his family to be safe and happy, and he wants to run away with Carol and see the world. AND i want both Carol and Daryl to feel free to be free and live freely.

as for the make up and make out part... (that's saved for 11b, hopefully!)

team family won, most of the reapers are dead, except for Leah. Daryl (with Carol's nod of approval!) decides to spare her, gives her some supplies and tells her to get lost. at the same time, Eugene arrives with the troopers from CommonWealth to help with the whisperer war. WHOOPS. 2 wars, 2 late, bruh! but the group leaves to join the good people at CW.

Carol and Daryl have a very long conversation about everything that happened and what they have been feeling. Daryl telling her exactly why he was so mad at her (she kept leaving, can't commit!), her actions (almost getting herself killed!) since Henry's death and how he needs her in his life. no matter how she sees herself or whether she thinks she's worthy or not, he just wants her to be there next to him for whatever is to come.

plus Carol realizing she needed to get closer and let people in without fear, not give up hope and actually fight for a better future for herself. and finally, admitting to Daryl that it was horrible to think he might've been gone forever, promising to never make him feel the way she felt. basically, a promise to never ever leave him again (cue to making out!)

#caryl #caryl rants #caryl predictions #carol peletier #daryl dixon #dog dixon #s11 spoilery #good lawd this is long af #did i go full td here?#or plausible possibility territory?#wishful thinking #speculation

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petite-ely · 4 years

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Afraid // JJ Maybank

one - the five secrets of JJ maybank

Pairing : JJ Maybank x fem routledge! reader

Warnings: language, mention of abuse and starvation, fear of storms and ocean, fear of losing sibling, mention underage drinking, very slight mention of sex

Description: first real chapter (yay!!!) JJ Maybank has secrets, just like anybody else, but his are very hard to keep. Especially when it concerns the girl he’s head over heels in love with.

Previously Next

Afraid masterlist

A/n: here it is!!! So sorry for the wait, I had things going on in my life and I had a huge block for a while. Anyways hope you enjoy!!!!

Song recommendation :

Gif found on internet all credits to rightful owner

JJ Maybank was like an open book. When he was surrounded by his friends, he would not hesitate to tell them what was on his mind. He spoke honestly about how he felt and always openly stated his opinions. It could be brutal sometimes or really strange, but no one really cared. That was just how JJ was.

Sometimes he would slip small secrets in conversations without realizing it, especially if he was drunk or high (which frankly happened often). But JJ was really good at keeping bigger secrets, his more than anyone else’s. He had collected over the years a total of five secrets that he had (and would) never reveal to anybody. Even his friends. Here’s what they are.

#1 He had his first real kiss at 14

He always told everyone that he had his first kiss at 11, with a ‘hot touron’ (his own words). He had lied to impress his friends - and others too - and it worked. His real first kiss had actually happened in a game of truth of dare, three years after the rumour was spread. He had wanted to tell the truth for a while, but he was ashamed of the story he had made up.

#2 His Dad was an asshole and often used his son as his own punching bag.

This one was the only exception. (Every rules have some exceptions anyways) JJ never wanted for his friends to find out about his abusive father, but they all eventually knew. The first to find out was John B. The two of them hung out almost every day. One time, John B simply asked where the bruises that decorated JJ’s body came from and the blond spilled everything. He was too tired of hiding this secret to himself. It was a huge burden for a boy like him. Not long after, he told his other friends. He didn’t want to hide it from them anymore. It was the hardest thing he ever had to do, but once it was all out, he was relieved they knew.

#3 He had once gone almost a week without eating.

It happened when he was younger, not long after his mother left. His dad had been so angry that he purposely deprived his son of any food. As a kid it was hard for him to find any food by himself and he was ashamed of asking for help. He couldn’t tell anyone. After five days, y/n had noticed that JJ didn’t have any food at lunch and she told her father. Big John, having known Luke when he was younger, had decided to take the boy under his wings. He invited him to eat at the château whenever he could and overpacked John B and Y/n’s lunch so that they would share with him. He was sort of a second dad for JJ.

#4 He had a mild fear of storms.

As a kid, he always compared them to his dad. The quick and bright lightning bolts represented his short temper and the loud thunder claps represented his anger and all the violence he could create. So JJ always made sure to be surrounded by his friends during storms. It brought him reassurance and peace.

#5 He was completely in love with y/n Routledge and she had no idea.

He had know for a long time now, but he couldn’t do anything about it. Instead he drowned his sorrow with alcohol and one nighters with tourons. She was his best friend’s sister and a fellow pogue. The rule was clear, no pogue on pogue macking. Besides she deserved way better than anything he could offer. She could never love him, there was no chance she’d ever feel the same. Right?

>>>

The wind was blowing harshly at this point, whistling as it travelled between the thick branches of the trees. Y/n felt a small shiver slide beneath her shirt and dance along the line of her spine. She tightened the blanket wrapped around her body, readjusting the grip on the book she was reading.

Well, reading wasn’t really the word to use. It was more like staring. She had brought her favourite book outside with her as a way to distract herself, but it didn’t quite work. You see y/n had a twin brother and as much as she loved John B, sometimes he could be really stupid. Like when he decided to go surfing right when a hurricane was hitting the island.

Y/n was absolutely terrified of anything involving the ocean, so at the moment she was practically shaking with fear. She tried to breathe as slowly as she possibly could. She hated being outside during a big storm like this, but she also hated the thought of her brother drowning in the wild waves. So she sat down on the old couch on the front porch of the château, with a warm blanket and a book, waiting until John B came back, hopefully in one piece.

She had always been an anxious person. As a child she would often worry about small things like speaking in public, different events coming up and a bunch of other stuff. She had been diagnosed with anxiety at 10 years old, after having a panic attack in the school hallway. She never received any treatment for it though. Doctors thought she was too young for medication and well therapy was expensive.

Nonetheless, she found ways to cope with it. Tips and tricks that helped her manage it. With time her levels of stress and anxiety lowered and the attacks were rarer. It hadn’t completely disappeared of course, but it was better.

After her father disappeared, it became much worse. It was like she suddenly had a hundred more things to worry about. She and John B had to find enough money to pay for electricity, water and also food. Plus she had to deal with DCS who threatened to send them to foster care. It was unbearable.

“Hey there,” a familiar voice spoke.

“JJ?” Y/n squinted trying to see the boy standing in the dark. “What are you doing, it’s raining you’re gonna get sick.”

He was drenched, completely soaked with water. She didn’t know how long he had been walking in the storm. The rain was falling down so heavily it could soak you to the bone under five minutes. She stuck her hand inside the open window of the living room and reached for a towel. Since they lived near a beach, there was always some lying around on the floor or onto the couch.

“Here,” she handed him a large fluffy towel. “ I can’t guarantee it’s clean, but at least it’ll keep you dry.”

“Thanks.” Y/n let her book fall on the porch.

“Are you okay? You seem, tense.” Her voice was tinted with worry. JJ was one of her closest and oldest friend, she knew perfectly how to read his emotions.

“Yeah, I’m good. Just tired, I guess,” he shrugged nonchalantly.

“JJ you- ” She was about to finish her sentence when the thunder clapped loudly above their head, making the girl flinch at the same time.

JJ was just as scared as she was - maybe a bit less or more he couldn’t really tell - but he didn’t show it. Knowing that she was sitting beside him completely terrified made him feel braver in a way. She seemed so small and vulnerable, he didn’t want her to feel unsafe. He knew that admitting his own fear would only make hers worse. So he hid it in a small box at the back of his mind, hoping he’d eventually forget about it.

“You know, John B might be an asshole sometimes,” he paused, ruffling his wet hair with the towel, “but he’s not dumb. He knows when to stop, when it gets too dangerous. Besides Pope’s with him, he couldn’t be in safer hands.”

“Thank you J. That, um, that made me feel better.”

Her hand was resting on his shoulder. Her touch was warm against his bare skin, sending small ripples of goosebumps throughout his body. A soft smile was drawn onto her lips, her cheeks slightly flushed by a sunburn and her eyes glinting in the darkness of the night. She was so beautiful, it was almost painful. It made him feel warm and fuzzy inside.

“Do you mind staying with me?” asked y/n with a small voice. “At least until John B comes back.”

“Sure.” A smile stretched itself onto his lips. “Wasn’t planning on going home anyway.”

“So,” he got up from the couch, removing his dirty shoes, “wanna go in and watch a movie before the power goes out?”

“Can we watch Peter Pan?”

“Peter Pan it is.”

And as JJ disappeared into the warmth and comfort of the château, y/n’s smile grew even bigger. She was so deeply in love with him, how could he not see it.

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@drewswannabegirl @kaelyn-lobrutto24

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initiumseries · 3 years

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Hey! I love your thoughts on bad tv and I’d love to hear a series wrap up on CAOS if you want to make a post about it. If not no worries and thanks for posting your thoughts on the show over the last year. Loved them and love your blog too!

Thank you!! Sure I can totally do a series wrap up, pretty much right now, in response to this ask.

So, if I had to distill my issues with this series into a few bullet points it would be:

-plot -world building/continuity -characters

Plot

CAOS struggles with plot, and I think the biggest reason why, is they just seemed to completely lose track of what the hell they were doing lol. Season 1, ends up being the tightest season because the plot was simple: Sabrina’s dark baptism and her leaving her mortal life behind to become one with witchkind. They beat us to death with the Satan stuff, and they cram as much corny imagery as possible in, even if it doesn’t really make sense.

why are they having class in a hallway? Do witches not use technology? Why is that blackboard so small? Why isn’t this just a normal classroom setting?

Sabrina’s Season 1 character arc is also clear: she decides, fuck the rules, she’s going to straddle both worlds and everyone’s just gonna have to accept it. It’s not good, but it’s clear. S2, 3, 4 get completely lost in all this other weird stuff. Sabrina is actually not her father’s daughter, but Satan’s, and that plotline goes absolutely nowhere when Sabrina conveniently doubles herself (and experiences 0 consequences for it) and rules hell while also staying in Greendale as herself (seriously, it’s not like satan was dying or anything, he was perfectly fine. For what reason did Sabrina need to become Queen? There’s no answer or explanation for that, she just...did. Ok :/). Father Blackwood goes apeshit and pulls a Jonestown, for no real reason, CAOS starts leaning heavily into this white feminism stuff (for godsake, the coven kills a DEMON, with the fucking pain of childbirth?! Are you SERIOUS??) Then, s3, it’s about losing their powers because Satan is childish and petty, and a new group of spellcasters are out to kill the witches, and Prudence and Ambrose hunting Blackwood. S4, the eldritch terrors, which honestly, make so little sense, I couldn’t even be bothered. Each season, CAOs falls deeper into the trap of trying to up the ante, make the danger BIGGER, WILDER, more insurmountable, while being completely unprepared to stay consistent with their characters/motivations and undercutting their own BIG ideas with stupid, nonsensical solutions (let me trap this all powerful eldritch terror by taking it to a party, proposing and luring it into a magicked dollhouse...wtf?).

Worldbuilding/Continuity

What I hate most about these writers for Riverdale and CAOS is that they just don’t feel beholden to being consistent in their worldbuilding and continuity. I don’t find anything cool about kids living in houses with old tvs and rotary phones, but then having a cell phones or wearing modern clothes. Historical anachronisms like that should serve a purpose.

It COULD be interesting if the conceit is that Zelda and Hilda are OLD, so they take comfort in old things like that, but then that should be specific to the Spellman house, and it should be weird. People should take note of it when they’re there, Sabrina should be conscious of it because she grew up in a time where TVs didn’t look like they were stuck in the 50s. But instead, it’s just...a stupid mess of aesthetic anachronisms for no reason other than they can do it and I just find that to be lazier than utilizing those details in an interesting way.

In season 1, we get a relatively clear idea that the witches have a certain way of life, that bleeds into season 2. It’s still very sloppy; the anti-pope, using satan where we’d use “god”, introducing the feast and other dangerous parts of being a witch, and essentially just doing the opposite of christianity (except for the racism/sexism ofc. That would require too much thinking I guess). But by season 3, essentially the witches’ way of life have been completely turned upside down. And we never...unpack that. There’s no mourning for literal millennia of supposed tradition, there’s no real floundering or struggling. There are apparently no other adults AT ALL in this magical world outside of Blackwood, Zelda and Hilda, so there’s no real way to get a sense of the REALITY of losing their way of life for these witches, or this world. Is it even a world? Or just a handful of people? Lol. What it means to have to choose a new god to pray to, and is there an divisiveness over who? In Harry Potter, the kids’ parents are tangentially involved when they start pulling their kids out of Hogwarts. Do any of these kids’ parents pull them out of the school when they start praying to Lilith and then Hecate? Do any of the boys have issues with moving from a male god to a female one? Where did all these kids come from if they didn’t have parents and families? Is this witch world just...the school? Why? It would have been interesting watching the witches struggle and scramble to regain their powers while also being hunted by this new, threatening group whose magic seems to be much older, much darker. But instead, they just pivot, and have a fucking picnic before the full moon.

There’s nothing interesting about characters just constantly pivoting around obstacles without having any real emotional reaction, any real struggles. Obstacles like losing their powers, should be an actual obstacle. They should struggle, there should be emotional weight, and consequences. Instead, Sabrina continues to break rules to suit her agenda, put her friends and family and risk and everyone just...rolls with it. No one is angry at Sabrina for the loss of their powers? Her choice to not become Queen of hell is why they lost their powers right? No one has feelings about that? Sabrina isn’t ostracized? We never see the way these choices, or the overarching plot obstacles impact the characters emotionally. Instead, they’re doing this stuff:

Which is completely ridiculous to me. It all just...HAPPENS. Which is this entire series. Stuff happens, and the characters just, do stuff in reaction to it. Harvey, Theo and Roz are ostensibly human, living human lives. They end up getting pulled into Sabrina’s world, and no one has any strong feelings about that? Harvey’s brother is killed, Roz is turned to stone and Theo talks to his dead great aunt and none of them are haunted by any of that? No? They just decide to create a faux scooby club to fight demons? Ok. And that cheerleading things is over as quickly as we see it. Stuff like this is insanely frustrating to watch because it makes the show a nonsensical slog to sit through. There’s nothing interesting or engaging to latch onto because they just hammer through it all and make up stupid solutions to get themselves out of the impossible stakes they threw the characters in in the first place. They introduce ideas and discard them just as quickly. An ex:angels show up, start killing people, Sabrina channels satan and kills them, and then that’s the last of those guys. Metatron (jfc even the name is stupid) shows up and is killed just as quickly. Why bother introducing them then? Why bother do any of the things you’re currently doing in this show if you have no intention of seeing it through?

Characters

No one on this show gels, at all. I don’t believe Theo/Roz/Harvey/Sabrina have been friends for ages. I don’t believe Sabrina and Nick are “end game” (why the hell do we keep saying this riverdale? It’s stupid and senseless). I don’t believe any of these relationships at all. Part of this is because the cast have no chemistry with each other:

they do not look like a friend group or couples at all, these are a bunch of people paired together.

But also because they weren’t consistent at all.

Father Blackwood went from a witch/warlock purist, to a raging sexist, to a cult leader who killed his followers, to a raging maniac bent on hitler-esque destruction in 4 seasons...for nothing. It served no purpose. He didn’t even DO anything. He was nice to the Eldritch Terrors, and became immortal...for nothing. He killed the coven, for nothing. He killed his wife in childbirth, for nothing. Zelda stole the baby, for nothing. None of that amounted to anything worth while in the entire series. So what was the point? Zelda marrying Faustus also made no sense and only happened to show JUST how sexist he was! But why? WHY? We don’t receive explanations for character behaviour, and when we do, it still makes no sense.

Sabrina breaks all these rules and experiences ZERO consequences. At all times, and it makes her a terrible main character. Everyone else abides by the rules but she doesn’t and doesn’t have to pay for that? Why? She straddles both worlds instead of committing to one, and that was the closest we got to seeing consequences for her. Everyone rushes in to help Sabrina break rules instead of holding her accountable for feeling above them. Sabrina creates 2 versions of herself, and they sloppily tie in that all the realms are converging in on each other because of what she did. Except she and Sabrina Morningstar had been hanging out...ostensibly for days/weeks/months (who knows? Not this show!) before we saw any potential issues, and then we end up finding out that this is about the next eldritch terror, not about Sabrina existing as a double in 1 universe. People get upset for a second and then move on to help her. So why have rules in this world at all if it means nothing to break them?

Nick goes through literal hell, and immediately cheats on Sabrina because of how a man made of clay looked at her. That’s laughable to me. It makes no narrative sense. Their relationship doesn’t even make sense.

Roz and Harvey spend 90% of their time almost fucking. It’s bizarre. Their getting together was random and every single scene with them alone in it is like a precursor to fucking and I don’t get why. This show does not grasp how to build up relationships. Also do these kids not have parents? Theo and Harvey stay having constant sleepovers with their respective partners, in their parents’ houses? Really? At seventeen? Lol k.

I feel like, if CAOS were better thought out, it could have actually been interesting. But it was just a smorgasbord of stuff happening, and characters doing stuff, and none of that following in any real narrative way. Storytelling has structure for a reason, and a show with a good story structure usually yields an enjoyable watching experience. CAOS is a pretty strong example of how throwing that out and relying so heavily on aesthetics and still taking the show so seriously it’s not even fun terrible, gets you nowhere. Ultimately I’m glad it’s over.

#caos #caos netflix #the chilling adventures of sabrina

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loove-persevering · 4 years

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I Can’t Take It (JJ x Reader)

Description: hii i love your writing!! could you maybe write for jj x reader where reader has an anxiety attack because of her parents treating her like trash or something? make it extra angsty pls

WARNINGS: ABUSE, SWEARING

Growing up you were always thankful for the things you had, the advantages you were given, the effort your parents put into making your life as easy as possible. Those things were all appreciated but never asked for, and most importantly never expected. You never thought of yourself as better than anyone because you had money, hell it wasn’t even yours to begin with it was your parents.

You were a kook and sometimes you were even ashamed of that word. You grew up in a nice private school that your parents paid a pretty penny for and saw first hand what the effects money did on children when they had easy access to it. People would do drugs, impulsively buy things, spend the money as if it was their own and that was a bad spiral to go down. In all the years you went to school in kook territory you never found a single friend that was genuine, that wasn’t so caught up in the thought of money, drugs, and themselves.

Then you met Kiara, who then introduced you to Pope, JJ, and John B. The most selfless people you knew, your best friends. The sad things was your parents didn’t know about them, you couldn’t bring them around the house because how they felt toward pogue kids. Especially kids like JJ who had a reputation for being a little reckless, even though you knew his recklessness mostly came from a place of defense.

Your parents sadly were skeptical of kids that didn’t come from the same type of wealth you did, it scared them. So when you’d head out with your real friends they thought you were somewhere else, you had made up names of people so they would never actually call any real kooks.

You were at midsummers tonight with your parents dressed in the most beautiful dress you could think of but you were absolutely miserable. You managed to sneak a glass of champagne off a waiter without him noticing and you practically down the whole thing in one chug. You set the glass down on a table wiping your mouth with the back of your hand, ‘’Not very lady like,’’ You mother says to you forcing a smile.

You immediately straighten up your hands pulling up the straps of your dress, you don’t need to say anything and you realize your father make his appearance right next to your mother, ‘’Were socialites why aren’t we socializing?’’ He asks through his smile.

‘‘You’re daughter is being a handful as usual,’‘ Your mother says and you bite your lip trying to hold back your anger.

‘‘Why don’t you go talk to your friends hunny,’‘ Your dad says gesturing over to Rafe and his friends, ‘‘Rafe’s always been a great kid, why don’t you go talk with him?’‘ Your dad says completely oblivious to the fact Rafe was not only doing hard drugs but a complete psychopath. You sigh making your way over to the group standing far enough away from them to remain off their radar.

You saw Pope from a distance helping out his dad and he offers you a kind smile from afar, it was nice to know you had at least one person that wasn’t a total douche around. You aimlessly try to avoid your parents the rest of the night and you eventually find yourself wandering around the halls of the house from the inside of the mansion midsummers was being held at. You were walking around a corner when a certain blonde haired boy runs into you, ‘’JJ,’’ You breath out a sigh of relief, ‘’You immediately embrace him in a hug, the last time you saw him he was in handcuffs but when you went back to the station later his bail had been posted. He doesn’t hug you back he just pulls away turning around panicked as if he was being chased. ‘’You’re face JJ,’’ You say reaching up to caress his cheek.

He takes his hands gripping the sides of your arms, ‘’I need you to stall,’’ He says breathlessly, ‘’Just stall for me okay?’’ He says pointing at you rushing into the mens bathroom. You turn around completely unaware of who you were suppose to stall that was until Rafe rounds the corner with a bunch of his goons.

‘‘Going somewhere?’‘ You say laughing, ‘‘Actually Rafe I’ve been looking for you,’‘ You say resting your arm against his bicep. ‘’You’re a hard guy to track down,’’ You say laughing lightly, he tries to move around you but you step in front of him blocking his way around.

‘’Move,’’ He says to you pushing you out of his way and you fall slightly your heels not helping your balance at all. The rest of the guys rush past you and you sigh taking off your heels wanting nothing more than the aching pain in your feet to subside. You were just about to enter the mens restroom seeing why JJ was running when you hear your dads voice.

‘‘Y/N!’‘ He voice seems to echo down the hallways. ‘’What the hell are you doing?’’ You hear him ask glancing from you to the mens restroom. ‘’Come on,’’ He says grabbing your arm pulling you back to the direction of the party.

‘‘Can you just wait a minute-’‘ You protest but he only jerks you harder.

‘‘They’re letting anybody into this party,’‘ He says rolling his eyes finally loosening his grip on your arm straightening his tie. ‘‘Why are you’re shoes off?’‘ He asks looking at you as if you were stupid.

‘‘I just- my feet they were hurting and-’‘ You stutter trying to explain to him.

‘‘Just put them back on,’‘ He says his face scrunched up in disgust his hand on the doorknob, he gives you a glare before stepping back out to the party. You sigh sitting down on a bench inside that was until you heard the once again another familiar voice echoing down the hallway.

‘‘Look man I can walk myself out,’‘ You hear JJ tell the man in the suit.

‘‘JJ?’‘ You call out, he glances up catching your gaze, ‘‘He’s my guest!’‘ You tell the man but he still aggressively pushes him out the door. You stand up from the bench following them out, ‘‘He’s my guest!’‘ You yell again now gaining the attention of the other midsummer guest.

‘‘I got lets. Can you see that Brother?’‘ JJ asks gesturing to his feet but you still followed in pursuit. The man just keeps pushing him through the crowd JJ making snarky comments in hope to mostly likely gain some sympathy so he wasn’t being so man handled. You run behind him still trying to get the mans attention away from JJ.

JJ takes a swig of a drink still being pushed out the door, ‘’He’s my guest! I invited him!’’ You yell following from behind.

‘‘Y/N!’‘ You hear your moms voice call out from behind you. Your father surely not far behind. You ignore her call and keep moving forward only a few feet from JJ.

‘‘Let go of him! You can’t just boot him I invited him here.’‘ Kie yells out gaining the attention of those around her as well her parents protesting from behind her. ‘‘I’m a member of this club.’‘ She says.

JJ pushes the man who had been escorting him away pointing up to Kie, ‘’Hey mandatory power hour at Rixon’s Kie, Y/N?’’ He says looking back at you gesturing out of the party. You glance back noticing your fathers tall demeanor making it’s way through the crowd no doubt pissed to catch you caught up in it all. You glance back to him for a moment then back to JJ, he holds out his hand winking at you and you couldn’t help but smile knowing the only way this night was going to end up somewhat decent was if you took his hand.

You reach out grabbing his hand and he smiles pulling you into his side for a hug, he spins you around and while doing so you catch a glimpse of your fathers face, utterly pissed was a good way to describe it. You took a big gulp slowly moving on past JJ wanting to put as much distance from you and your father as you possibly could. Kie followed in pursuit of JJ and so did Pope you all practically ran off Kook territory away from your parents, away from the guards, away from any responsibility you had to upkeep at the party.

______________

When you arrived home later that night you had noticed all the lights off, John B was in the van JJ in the passenger seat. ‘’Good luck,’’ JJ says raising his hand giving you a salute. You smile trying to play it off but you knew all hell was about to break loose as soon as you enter your house. You walk up the back steps carefully your heels in your hand, the entrance to the kitchen was open thankfully and you slowly open the door trying to not make any sound. You make it inside successfully with out any loud sounds that could possibly wake your parents up, you let out a sigh of relief as you lock the door laying your heels next to the door carefully.

You walk through the hallway your foot upon the first step when you hear someone cough, you close your eyes knowing what was about to happen. ‘’What the hell was that tonight?’’ You hear your father ask. ‘’Who the hell were those people?’’

‘‘They were my friends,’‘ You tell him moving away from the steps so you were standing in front of the entry way of the living room. Your father turns on the lamp next to him and you wince at the sudden brightness.

‘‘Your friends?’‘ He says letting out a merciful laugh, ‘‘I’ve never seen those people a day in my life, hell two of them were the help.’‘ He says. ‘’Since when do you hang out with those low lives?’’ He asks.

‘‘Those low lives are the best people I’ve ever met,’‘ You tell him. ‘‘You don’t even know the half of it.’‘ You say rolling your eyes.

‘‘I don’t know where this spunk of whatever the hell this is came from but it better be gone by the morning,’‘ He taunts, ‘‘Your mom was in distress the entire night, because of you.’‘

‘‘What if it’s not then?’‘ You ask him. ‘‘What if this is how I want to spend my time?’‘ You ask him.

‘‘We give you everything!’‘ He screams not doubt waking your mom up. ‘‘We give you everything you could ever ask for and you want to run around with the damn help?’‘ He says.

‘‘They’re my friends!’‘ You yell back finally raising your voice.

‘‘Y/N?’‘ You hear your mother call out and you glance up noticing her at the top of the stairs in her robe.

You glance back to your father who had gotten up from the chair making his way over to you only a few feet from you, ‘’You’re ungrateful,’’ He tells you. ‘’You don’t appreciate anything-’’ He begins to say.

‘‘That’s a lie!’‘ You groan back at him. ‘’You two are so stuck up on this damn high horse you don’t even see that I am around people I like!’’ You tell him. ‘’You think they’re below us because they don’t have enough money?’’

‘‘I think they’re trouble, and obviously they’re a bad influence on you. I mean look how you’re acting! And for what?’‘ He says his hand waving around him. ‘‘That kid was getting pushed out that you were so over the moon to follow was in jail this morning, did you know that?’‘ He asks you.

‘‘I did,’‘ You say simply. ‘’And for a good reason too.’’

‘‘You’re defending criminals now?’‘ He asks.

‘‘I’m defending my friend,’‘ You tell him staring him straight into the eye, ‘‘My family,’‘ You clarify.

‘‘Family?’‘ He says letting out a laugh. ‘‘You think those people are your family?’‘ He asks you.

‘‘They’re more of a family than I’ve had in years.’‘ You spit out. Then all of a sudden it happened your hand instinctively reached up to cup your cheek where your fathers palm had just hit. You felt the tears in your eyes as you held your hand against your face. Your father had never hit you before, ever. You could hear your mother coming down the stairs but by the time she had gotten down you had made your way back down the hall and running out the back door.

‘‘Y/N!’‘ You heard your mother yell from the door. You kept running, your body was at a high as if you were running on full adrenaline. Your knees felt weak as if they would give out any second but you could only hope they would get you where you wanted to go, the one place you felt like you needed to go.

_______

Sometime later you arrived at John B’s house, you hadn’t even realized how much time had passed by the time you got there. You walk up to the window knocking on it gently a few times your hands were shaking you weren’t sure from if it was how cold you were or if it had something to do with the slight pressure in your chest. It takes a few knocks before you finally see the light turn on in the bedroom and a few seconds later the blinds fly up exposing JJ his hair a mess and his clothes all messed up from sleeping.

He was rubbing his eye when he noticed your state, immediately waking him up. He holds up a finger to you and you nod your head watching him walk out the bedroom door, the light on the porch turns on and JJ comes stumbling out over to you. ‘’Hey, hey.’’ He says rushing over to you pulling you into a hug. You didn’t bother hugging him back you just stay still allowing him to embrace you. He pulls away slowly from you his hands gently touching the sides of your arms, ‘’What happened?’’ He asks.

You open your mouth but the words fall short- JJ looks at you and you feel his hand come up wiping away the tear you hadn’t realized had fallen. ‘’I just-’’ You start but can’t finish and you feel your self gasp for air slightly. JJ wraps his arms around you pulling you into his body the warmth felt good on your cold skin.

‘‘You’re freezing,’‘ He says, ‘‘Come on.’‘ He says guiding you inside.

‘‘Woah,’‘ John B says coming out of his room noticing you.

‘‘I got her,’‘ JJ says to him and John B just stares and watches. ‘‘Give me a minute alright?’‘ He says walking you into his room and you take a seat on his bed. He wraps his blanket around you and tells you he will be right back and when he leaves you could hear him and John B outside the door.

‘‘What happened?’‘ John B asks.

‘‘I don’t know she just showed up here like that, fuck.’‘ He sighs.

‘‘Did you uh-’‘ John B pauses, ‘‘Did you see her cheek?’‘ He asks.

You don’t hear an answer to that, but a few moments later JJ comes barging back in the room which makes you jump a little, ‘’Sorry,’’ He says shutting the door with his foot and making his way over to the bed. ‘’Can you tell me what happened?’’ You close your eyes shut forcefully shaking your head, ‘’Alright, alright.’’ He sighs.

You let out a shaken breath before you look up at JJ concern was written all over his face, ‘’My dad,’’ You sigh. ‘’He just-’’ You try to explain once again but fall short.

‘‘Hey you don’t have to talk,’‘ He tells you wrapping his arm around you. ‘‘You don’t have to say anything,’‘ He tells you. ‘‘You’re safe here.’‘

‘‘That’s why I came here,’‘ You tell him looking up offering him a small smile. ‘‘Could I borrow some clothes?’‘ You ask him quietly not wanting to bother him more than you already had.

‘‘Oh yeah,’‘ He says standing up from the bed. He rummages through his drawers and finally hands you a t-shirt of his and some basketball shorts. ‘‘I’ll just step outside-,’‘ He says awkwardly making his way over to the door shutting it.

After you had finished changing you walk over to the door slowly opening it and JJ turns around his face still laced with panic, he looked relieved when he saw you weren’t still crying. ‘’I’m done- you can come back in now.’’ You let him know. He nods his head opening the door more, you watch as he grabs a pillow of the bed and a blanket, ‘’JJ?’’

‘‘Yeah?’‘ He turns around to face you immediately.

‘‘Could you stay with me?’‘ You ask him, ‘‘If you don’t want to that’s fine I just-’‘ You begin to say but he cuts you off.

‘‘Y/N, of course.’‘ He says offering you a small smile. You smile back at him making your way onto his bed and he goes to turn out the light and you feel him slowly crawl into bed next to you.

‘‘Thank you,’‘ You tell him finally feeling calm enough to talk. ‘‘I was scared you wouldn’t answer,’‘ You let out a small laugh.

‘‘I’ll always answer for you,’‘ He lets you know. ‘‘Did your dad hit you?’‘ He asks.

‘‘Yes,’‘ You answer immediately and you hear him take in a deep breath. ‘‘He’s never done it before,’‘ You let him know. ‘‘It was the heat of the moment, I was just pushing him and-’‘ You let him know not really sure as to why you were defending your dad.

‘‘Nobody should ever hit their kid,’‘ He says simply. ‘‘Especially you.’‘ He says.

‘‘I don’t know if I can go home, face him again I mean.’‘ You admit to him. ‘‘This feels more like home than any other place,’‘ You tell him. ‘‘You feel like home too,’‘ You tell him.

‘‘Me?’‘ He asks shifting in the bed on his side so now he was looking at you. He had one hand under the pillow and the other resting on his side.

‘‘Yeah, you feel like home. You make me feel safe.’‘ You tell him offering him a smile. And although you couldn’t see him fully you could tell he was smiling too.

_____________

A/N:

I LOVE ME A SOFT JJ FLUFF EVEN THOUGH THE BEGINNING WAS TENSE

THANKS FOR SENDING IN THIS REQUEST!

#jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj x reader #jj obx #obx fanfiction #obx netflix #obx #outer banks #rudy pankow #rudy #rudy pankow fanfiction #rudy pankow imagines

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fatesdeepdive · 3 years

Text

Entry 6: Dicklips has a Point

Chapter 5: Mother

After a few days in Hoshido, Corrin is finally getting used to the massive emotional baggage that is her backstory. Mikoto invites Corrin to sit on the Hoshidan throne, which is infused with the magic of the First Dragons and destroys magic that alters the body or mind. Mikoto hopes that it will allow Corrin to regain her memories. Before Corrin can sit on the throne and become king of the Westeros or whatever, Mikoto’s strategist Yukimura enters. He looks like a nerd, but I suppose that’s better than being a steampunk MCR cover band dropout like Iago.

The Hoshidan siblings enter and Mikoto tells Corrin that they’re having a ceremony to quash spy rumors and formally reintroduce Corrin into the family. We’re properly introduced to Corrin’s other brother, Takumi. He’s assigned to show Corrin around town and is grumpy about it, because his defining character trait is being a dick. As Takumi and the princesses leave, Ryoma muses that he feels uneasy and predicts that something bad will happen soon.

The gang tours a Hoshidan marketplace. It’s so vibrant, and colorful, and full of life. I haven’t been talking much about this game’s music because I’m not a music guy, but I love the upbeat theme they use for this scene. It feels like something out of Okami and matches Hoshido’s idealized feudal Japan aesthetic perfectly.

Corrin points out that Shirasagi is way better than the Nohrian fort she was held prisoner in for years. Takumi rants that he doesn’t trust Corrin, saying Just don’t get too comfortable…SISTER. I know he’s supposed to come across as a dick, but he has a point. Corrin’s an enemy soldier who invaded Hoshido and killed a dozen people less than a week ago. It doesn’t matter that they share DNA, Corrin should be treated with suspicion.

Takumi also acts suspicious to Azura and says she can’t call him by his first name, which is dumb. What’s she supposed to do, call him Dicklips? Corrin points out that Dicklips is being an idiot and Dicklips tells her to shut up. And really, he is being an idiot. Either hate Corrin for growing up in Nohr, or hate Azura for having Nohrian DNA. Either nature matters, or nurture matters. You can’t have it both ways.

Then again, Azura and Corrin will totally join Nohr and try to destroy Hoshido if we chose the conquest path, so maybe Dicklips has a point.

Corrin tells Sakura that she’s friends with a girl around Sakura’s age, presumably Elise. If the coin flip had gone the other way and I was playing as boy Corrin, Sakura would have asked if Elise is Corrin’s girlfriend. And that’s ridiculous. Can you imagine, Corrin dating their teenage sister? That’s messed up. Good thing that isn’t a thing that happens in this game.

We go to the plaza for the festival. Side note, all shots of Corrin and Mikoto in the festival are positioned so that Corrin’s face is covered by something, like a man wearing an oversized hat, for instance. This is because Corrin is customizable and that means the game can’t show their face. They can show the clearly male body model, but not their face. Awakening had Robin wear a hood to get around this problem, but who needs fashion choices when you can just censor the main character’s face like it’s Austin Powers’s mojo.

While Corrin’s standing next to Mikoto, a weird ghost man wearing a hood walks to the front of the crowd and holds out his arm. Red smoke starts coming off Ganglari and an eye opens up on its hilt, because it is very clearly a cursed sword. Ganglari flies over to the man and he stabs it into the ground, creating a massive purple explosion ball. The sword explodes and Mikoto jumps in front of Corrin to shield her from the shrapnel. As she dies, Mikoto asks Corrin if she’s okay.

Fire Emblem has a lot of dead parent scenes, and I honestly think this is the best. Marcella Lentz-Pope’s scream when Mikoto dies is phenomenal. Mikoto begging Corrin to be alright and dying with a smile on her face is beautiful.

Ryoma cuts down the hooded man but his cloak just falls to the ground, leaving no body. Corrin screams, her hair glowing and her eyes white, physically holding back the pain as waves of energy burst from her body. In a moment, Corrin is gone. In her place is a dragon.

I really like Corrin’s dragon form. It looks so inhuman, more like a machine than a traditional dragon. It really gets across that Corrin has completely lost any semblance of humanity she had as she falls into this pit of despair.

The level proper starts up as an army of dark mages and mercenaries storm into the ruined plaza. Their leader is the ghostly man from before. Interestingly, he’s a swordmaster, a Hoshidan exclusive class that he shares with Ryoma. This level adds Sakura and Azura to our team and gives Corrin an absolutely monstrous boost to her stats, fitting for her rage dragon form.

Sakura

Corrin’s shy, gentle Hoshidan younger sister. She’s a Shrine Maiden (Cleric) and wields healing staves. Her personal skill lowers the damage taken by nearby allies. Her design is fine; I don’t really have any thoughts on it. She seems to be going for this “cute shy healer” personality, which isn’t bad, but Fire Emblem has done it a dozen times before.

Azura

Azura is our Dancer...I mean, Songstress. She sucks at fighting, but allows other units to attack twice, which is really helpful in battle. Her personal skill heals nearby allies at the start of their turns. Her design, despite its bright colors, does a good job conveying how calm and mysterious she is. Azura is an enigma. She clearly knows more than she lets on, but currently seems content to just follow Corrin around.

All of the mercenaries in this chapter wield special, dragon killing swords, which would be a problem, if Corrin didn’t have as much defense as the rest of the party put together. This chapter boils down to letting dragon Corrin smash everyone while Sakura, Azura, and Kaze provide support. Ryoma attempts to take on the ghost man, but is defeated. Then Corrin fucking stomps his translucent ass and saves the day.

Corrin continues rampaging and Azura begins singing LITAA. Her necklace, the one from the title screen, starts glowing. Ryoma runs in to protect Azura, but Azura blasts him away with a pillar of water, which is a thing that she can do apparently.

Dragon Corrin freaks out at the music and slashes Azura across the chest. Azura keeps singing and Corrin attempts to strangle her to death. Azura tells Corrin, Kill me if you want, but do it as yourself, which is a fantastic line that shakes Corrin out of her madness.

Corrin turns back into a human and has a flashback of Garon’s murdering Sumeragi and kidnapping her. Garon says You are my child now and grabs baby Corrin, which is so creepy its comical.

Corrin apologizes to Azura, saying she’s disgusted with herself. Ryoma explains that both royal families have dragon blood, the Nohrians from the Dusk Dragon and the Hoshidans from the Dawn Dragon. Corrin looks out over the destroyed town, a town full of innocent people destroyed by Nohr.

Ryoma points out that, because Garon gave Corrin an evil bomb sword, everything must have been his plan. Cool plan, by the way. Let’s see if I have it straight:

1: Give Corrin a bomb sword.

2: Have her commit an act of war.

3: Have Hans try to murder Corrin.

4: Hope he fails.

5: Hope the Hoshidans bring Corrin to their Queen, instead of imprisoning her for being an enemy soldier.

6: Have ghost soldiers invade Hoshido and take the sword from Corrin.

6: Cursed sword explodes, killing Mikoto and destroying her mind control barrier.

I mean, sure, there are probably simpler ways to kill Mikoto, ways that don’t involve praying that Hans fucks up and fails to kill Corrin. Garon could have, I don’t know, had the ghost soldiers kill Mikoto. Maybe their existence is tied to Ganglari, but that’s never actually stated, and the fact that they stick around and kill people after Ganglari explodes makes that questionable.

You know how, at the end of Naruto, Kishimoto had the villains reveal that they were behind every bad thing that happened in the series, and how it didn’t make sense and was dumb and convoluted? I’m getting Naruto vibes from this chapter.

Takumi blames Corrin for Mikoto’s death. And I mean, he has a point. Corrin’s the one who brought the clearly cursed sword her war criminal father gave her with her. Azura tells Takumi that it’s fine if he doesn’t trust her, but it's wrong for him to distrust Corrin, because Corrin is his blood. And that’s fucking stupid. Fire Emblem is filled with characters with evil relatives. Soren, Guinivere, Edelgard, Robin, the list goes on. Shit, there are evil blood relatives within this game.

Corrin suggests leaving and Yukimura tells her that Mikoto wouldn’t have wanted that and that Mikoyo knew she would die soon. He also mentions that there may be darker forces than Garon at work. Yukimura also points us towards a statue destroyed in the blast, a statue containing Yato, a diving golden sword that is said to be the key to peace. Yato flies up and over to Corrin.

Kaze runs in and reports a massive Nohrian force assembles at the border and the family marches off to war, with Ryoma declaring that he will not show any mercy. Corrin decides to follow Ryoma, in hopes of stopping the war. Azura tells Corrin to calm down, because getting into a fight could cause her to lose control and turn into a dragon again. Spoiler alert, this is literally the only chapter where Corrin loses control, because screw interesting characterization.

Azura gives Corrin her necklace, which turns out to be a dragonstone. Dragonstones and manaketes, people who can turn into dragons, are not new to Fire Emblem. Manaketes are normally uncomfortably young girls. Corrin is the first and currently the only manakete main lord. What’s more, Corrin is unique in their ability to wield both swords and dragonstones. It fits with the duality motif.

The necklace allows Corrin to control her dragon form, which is a bit of a disappointment. Corrin losing control and destroying stuff in this animalistic rage was really interesting characterization that is never seen after this chapter.

Azura decides to follow Corrin, because Corrin makes her feel safe. Apparently.

This chapter was really, really, good. Mikoto’s death was heartbreaking and Corrin going apeshit was some really strong character work. I forgot how absolutely terrifying Corrin’s transformation scene is. That said, this chapter hammers the final nail in the coffin for this story being morally grey. There is absolutely no reason to side with Nohr after this chapter, except for loyalty to the Nohrian royals.

At the start of the next chapter, we’ll choose our side in this war. And, not to tip my hand, but I don’t exactly think it’ll be a hard choice.

#fe #fire emblem #fe fates #fe 14 #fe14 #fire emblem 14 #fire emblem fates #corrin fe #ganglari #takumi fe #ryoma fe #azura fe #hoshido #sakura fe

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maria-scribbles · 4 years

Text

glitter + crimson (let’s start a riot)//part two

summary: the pogues get up to a few shenanigans, burn the shit out of some marshmallows, and have a group hug of epic proportions. the dynamic duo of kiara and sailor brings out girl power in full force before getting real about a certain golden group rule.

word count: 4.2k+

ship: jj maybank x oc (sailor flynn)

warnings: mentions of abuse/neglect/parental abandonment/anxiety, underage drinking, weed usage, more fluff, flirting, reference to absolute legend kobe bryant

a/n: hello again! thank you all for the great response to part one, i’m seriously blown away and so grateful for your support! <3 i’m happy y’all enjoyed reading about sailor’s adventures with the pogues! here’s part two, which had previously been combined with part one but i decided to split it because it was getting wayyyy too long (over 8k words, oops). also i’ve never even seen weed with my own two eyes before so my bad if that part’s not realistic, i did my best lol. unbetaed, so i apologize for any mistakes. enjoy!

gif credit goes to @toesure

~Masterlist~

part one | part three | part four | playlist

part two: treading water

The pogues spend the next few hours among the waves, surfing their hearts out until they’re waterlogged, exhausted, and hungry. As the sun starts to sink over the island they pile into John B’s beat up Volkswagen, all their boards tied together on the roof, and head to The Wreck, where Kiara’s dad begrudgingly feeds his daughter and her ‘delinquent’ friends.

That word seems pretty harsh at first but as the evening goes on and the group gets a little louder, it’s kind of well-deserved. Pope can’t seem to stop dropping his fork, sending the rest of them into hysterical laughter each time, and everyone knows when Taylor Swift comes on the radio, Sailor has an obligation to get up and dance. The fact that she knocks a chair over in her haste to show off her moves only makes them laugh harder. When they finally leave and head back to the Chateau for the night, she makes sure to put forty bucks on their table for the food and the twelve pack of beer Kiara swipes from behind the bar when Mr. Carrera isn’t looking.

While it may not look like much, John B’s house if home for more than just him. It’s a safe port for all the pogues when they get lost in the storm, a place where they can all be themselves, be real, without judgement, and it’s Sailor’s second favorite place on the island. She’s lost count of how many nights she’s spent here, sleeping in the spare room, on the pull-out couch, and the hammock in the yard (sleepovers have become even more common in the eight months since Big John’s disappearance at sea, no one willing to leave his son all alone in an empty house.).

The hammock is where she finds herself now on this warm June night, sitting beside JJ with his arm around her shoulders, clad in his sweatshirt that she unashamedly stole last year, passing a joint back and forth while the others lounge around the small bonfire, roasting the old marshmallows John B found in the very back of one of his kitchen’s cupboards and drinking beer. One of her long legs dangles over the edge, toes pushing against the cool grass as they lazily swing back and forth, watching Kiara burn her third marshmallow in a row.

“Kie, what did those poor things ever do to you?” Sailor asks, exhaling smoke through her nose before passing the joint to JJ, and the brush of his fingers against hers sends warmth through her whole body. Kiara just shoots her the bird in response as she stabs her fourth marshmallow and holds it over the fire. The redhead laughs and rests her head against JJ’s shoulder, her limbs light as air. In the distance, lightning arcs between the clouds and creates a dazzling show over the water as thunder rumbles but none of them care enough to notice.

Although she never outright asks to smoke, she also never refuses the chance to get high with her best friend and let their problems drift away with every hit, if only for a little while. Lines get a little blurry between them, too, as both become oh so affectionate with each other when their inhibitions disappear like the sun over the horizon. She sighs contentedly at the blissful feeling of his fingers running through her hair and burrows further into his side, turning so she can throw an arm over his waist and curl her own fingers into the soft material of his shirt.

“Damn it!” John B yells as his marshmallow, in the span of a few seconds, catches fire and unceremoniously falls into the flames with a hiss.

“Ha, I’m not the only one on the struggle bus!” Kiara laughs gleefully, delicately turning her fourth attempt to keep it from burning like the other three. “We can’t all be Pope, I guess.”

The other boy looks up at the mention of his name and grins, holding out a perfectly toasted marshmallow on the end of the stick in his hand. “It takes talent, Kie.” He jokes, chuckling as she sticks her tongue out at him.

Sailor can’t help laughing, too when the two of them dive headfirst into a heated discussion about the finer points of roasting things over a campfire, their voices becoming louder and louder as they try to talk over one another while John B, unfazed from his spot between them, just holds another marshmallow over the fire and ignores them completely as he takes a sip of his beer.

“Aaaand JB’s totally checked out of that particular conversation,” She says to JJ under her breath and she feels more than hears him laugh in response.

“Poor bastard,” He whispers back before taking one last hit of the joint, now burnt down to a nub in his hand, and flicking it into the fire with a shout of “Kobe!”

“Nice one, hotshot.” She shifts her head up on his shoulder as her eyes unabashedly trace his profile in the warm orange glow of the fire, from the golden hair falling haphazardly onto his forehead and down the straight slope of his nose to the curve of his lips before she’s caught -not that she was being subtle in any possible way-, his ocean blue gaze holding hers with an electrified energy that would’ve normally set her whole face aflame. She’s not Normal Sailor now though, she’s High Sailor and High Sailor has positively zero shame so she just looks up at him with a saccharine smile on her face and blesses the fact that weed makes her bold as hell.

The flickering flames throw JJ’s features into sharp relief and highlight the dimples that she loves as he returns her smile, the hand in her hair now twirling a single curl around his finger. His free hand settles on the strip of bare skin at her waist where her sweatshirt has ridden up and her heart beats a little faster when he starts drawing agonizingly slow circles with his thumb. Her hand releases its grip on his shirt and before she even realizes it, she’s reaching up and brushing a finger along her jaw, just like he’d done to her that afternoon on the beach, and she feels the fingers at her waist press against her skin.

It’s moments like these that make her wish she could freeze time and live in them forever. Just the two of them, looking at each other like they’re more than just friends, touching each other like they’re falling into something beautiful and all they need to do is stick the landing. The possibility of taking that final leap teases her. He’s so close, it wouldn’t take much to just reach up and make that minuscule distance between them disappear and from the way his eyes flick down to her mouth and back, she’s sure he’s thinking the same. They won’t though and for now that’s okay, but deep down she wonders just how long they can balance on the cliff’s edge before they both fall.

As much as she’d like to stare at his stupidly handsome face all night, the weather has other plans as lightning flashes white across the sky, immediately followed by a big crack of thunder that makes Sailor jump and accidentally headbutt JJ right in the forehead. The stick in Pope’s hand goes flying somewhere into the bushes when he startles, too, and there’s a pause as everyone looks at each other before bursting into wild laughter.

“Jesus, Sail,” JJ says, reaching up to rub at the spot she hit, “you have a hard head.”

Her reply of “speak for yourself!” is drowned out by another clap of thunder and seconds later it starts pouring rain, sending the group scrambling to head back inside the Chateau before they get too drenched. The duo, in their haste, get tangled together in the hammock and nearly fall to the ground in a heap but manage to hold each other up with their hands clasped tight, both laughing so hard she’s sure the water on their faces is more than just rain.

“The beer! Don’t forget the beer!” Someone yells and John B, halfway to the porch in front of them, does a smooth 180 on the wet grass and runs back for the booze sitting beside the dying fire, sending them a lazy salute when he passes by.

“We honor your sacrifice, Captain!” JJ calls over his shoulder before they clamber onto the porch alongside a giggling Kiara.

“Oh my God, you two almost bit it so hard.” She says while wringing out her shirt, adding to the steadily growing puddle of water at their feet.

“But we didn’t, all thanks to me and my impeccable balance.” He says proudly, grinning down at the girl still snug against his side before she lets go of his hand to slug him in the shoulder.

“Ow, what was that for?”

“Oh please, J, I was the one who kept you from falling on your face. Now, hold still.” Sailor orders and places her hand on his arm, using him for balance as she brushes the grass from her feet.

“Yes, ma’am.” His reply is low in her ear, his hand settles even lower on her back, and she pretends the shiver her body makes is just from the cool rain.

“You like being bossed around, Maybank?”

Her hand grips his strong shoulder a little bit tighter, and she feels his fingers tighten on her sweatshirt as he replies, “Depends on who’s doing the bossing, Flynn.”

Kiara coughs pointedly, staring at them with her eyebrows raised and Sailor feels her face begin to flush bright red because, to be honest, she’d kind of forgotten she was even there as they both let go of each other. The other girl snickers and drawls, “If you two are quite done-”

Thankfully, a thoroughly soaked John B joins them and interrupts whatever Kiara was going to say, his hair plastered to his face and dripping onto the soggy carton of beer protectively cradled in his arms.

“Mission accomplished.” He says with a satisfied smile, setting the drinks down on a chair before shaking his head like a dog and splattering rainwater on everyone, including Pope as he emerges from the house carrying a pile of towels. A few drops land on his cheek and he wrinkles his nose in disgust, wiping them away with his own towel hanging around his neck.

“I was just kidding about the beer.” He says, throwing one and smacking John B right in the face, then kindly passing out the rest. Sailor barely grabs the last one before Pope’s suddenly put in a headlock by the brunet boy, yelling something about mutiny and a captain “not standing for this” as they start to grapple back and forth. JJ pauses in the middle of drying his hair and instantly jumps into the fray after tossing his towel to the floor, the scuffle quickly turning into a three way wrestling match.

She and Kiara both glance at each other and roll their eyes before scooting by the melee and heading into the house, leaving the boys to do their thing. They quickly dry off and change into pajamas, hang their wet clothes up to dry in the bathroom, and then tiredly flop onto the bed in the spare room together.

“How long do you think it’ll take until Wrestlemania out there’s done?” Sailor asks, rolling onto her stomach and reaching to pull her phone and glasses out of her bag on the floor; under her newly acquired hat, the lightning whelk peeks through its towel and the sight of it makes her smile softly. Kiara snorts and sits up, crossing her legs and running her fingers through her damp hair. “Knowing those fools, too long.”

The redhead laughs and mirrors the other girl’s position before slipping her glasses on and glancing down at her phone in trepidation, where no new texts block the lock screen picture of her and the rest of the pogues, and she does her best to ignore the hurt coiling in her chest, the smile fading from her face. She places the phone screen down on the bedside table and when she raises her head, she’s not surprised to find Kiara, ever so perceptive, staring at her with sympathy in her soft brown eyes.

“You okay?” She asks and Sailor takes off her glasses, then pulls her knees to her chest and wraps her arms around them.

“Could be better.”

Lightning illuminates the room, followed by an impressive crack of thunder a few seconds later as rain continues to pound against the window and down the hall, they hear the door slam closed as the boys finally storm inside after their scuffle, still yelling like banshees. The other girl reaches over and quickly squeezes her wrist before shooting her a bright smile.

“If you ever need to vent, I’m all ears.”

She knows she means it. Aside from JJ, Kiara’s her closest friend and from the moment they met, the two had quickly bonded over being the only girls in the group and their love of the environment: she’s lost count of how many times they’ve volunteered, both themselves and the rest of the pogues, to help raise money for animals. Despite Kiara’s kook year, Sailor considers her a sister and knows that Kie feels the same about her. Having each other’s backs no matter what is just what they do.

The redhead looks away from watching the storm outside and matches Kiara’s smile, then scoots closer to wrap her arms around her in a grateful hug.

“Thanks, Kie.”

The dark haired girl eagerly returns the embrace. “Any-”

“Comin’ through, gotta get me some of this group hug action!” JJ yells, storming into the room like a hurricane and throwing his arms around them, all but tackling them onto the bed before they even realize what’s happening.

“No, no, you’re still wet!” Sailor cries as his head rests against the back of her neck, his damp hair slowly beginning to soak into her shirt while Kiara growls, “Oh my God, get off!”

“And miss out on this? No way.” He says cheekily and pulls them both closer, ignoring the dark haired girl’s venomous glare and attempts to pry his hand away from her arm. Sailor, resigned to her fate, just laughs and calls over his arm to John B and Pope as they curiously poke their heads in from the hall, “Get your asses in here!”

She doesn’t have to tell them twice. They throw themselves into the hug faster than she can blink and with such contagious enthusiasm that Kiara can’t fight the affectionate grin making its way onto her face, even as she threatens, “I’m gonna kill all of you.”

Sailor rests her cheek on JJ’s outstretched arm and smiles to herself. This, right here and now, is where she belongs, surrounded by the best friends she could ask for, living each moment to its fullest. No matter what comes their way, she knows this is true: as long as they all stand together, the pogues will be just fine.

Some time later, the hug comes to an end as JJ jokingly complains about Sailor’s big head making his arm numb, which earns him a swift elbow to the stomach from the redhead.

“Weak.” She replies, smirking at the little oof he makes before grabbing his arm and pulling them both up from the bed. “Now get out.”

“Please.” Kiara agrees and pushes John B out the door, followed by Pope. “This room is girls only.”

“Since when?” The latter asks, sidestepping to avoid JJ as he’s playfully shoved into the hall by Sailor, who replies, “Right now.”

“Why?”

“’Cause we said so!” Both girls say in unison before they slam the door shut and then lean their backs against it, giggling. On the other side, they hear Pope ask in a very amused voice, “I thought this was your house?”

John B sighs the deepest sigh they’ve ever heard before replying, “Yeah, I did, too.”

“Ten bucks they’re gonna talk shit about us.” JJ says and there’s a not so subtle bump against the door that gives away the fact that he’s got his ear pressed to it, trying to listen in on them; a fact that gets proven when Sailor smacks her hand on it and makes him stumble back with a yelp of surprise.

“Dream on!”

“You wish!”

She and Kiara call at the same time, then glance at each other and burst into another fit of giggles.

“Tough break, dude. You’ll feel better in the morning.” That was John B’s tactless way of saying he’s tired without actually saying it and seconds later they hear his footsteps disappear down the hall to his room as he makes his escape, followed faintly by the sound of his door swinging shut.

“You don’t talk about us at all, Sail? Seriously?” JJ asks and Sailor can almost feel the sheer force of Pope’s inevitable eye roll when he mumbles under his breath, “Oh my God.”

Kiara’s on the same wavelength as him because she rolls her eyes, too and all but yells, “If we say yes will you fucking leave?”

There’s a pause and then: a slightly miffed “...yes.” along with Pope trying and failing to disguise his laugh as a cough.

“Then yes, we do talk about you. Now go.”

“Okay, okay! Jeez.”

“Goodnight, boys!” Sailor calls in a singsong voice before hearing them retreat to the living room, arguing about who gets the sleeper sofa and who gets stuck with the regular couch. When she’s sure they’re gone she shakes her head fondly (she doesn’t see why they can’t just get over themselves and share the damn thing) and turns back to Kiara, who’s already in the middle of pulling the damp comforter from the bed, her face the picture of disgust.

“Ugh,” She shudders, tossing it to the floor and then wiping her hands on a discarded towel from earlier. “Don’t touch that.”

“No shit.”

The dark haired girl jokingly flips Sailor the bird and then joins her in lounging on the bed, watching the fan spin in circles above their heads while the storm outside continues to rage on. The silence is comforting, soothing, and goes on for so long that the redhead’s nearly sent off to dreamland by the sound of the rain before Kiara finally speaks, “Hey, Sail?”

She hums in response, slowly turning her head to face her and blinking the sleep out of her eyes.

“Can I ask you something?”

“You just did.” She replies with an impish grin, but it slips from her face when the other girl shoots her a flat, unamused glance.

“Ha ha. I’m being serious, okay?”

Well that wasn’t worrying at all. “Is something wrong?” Sailor asks, rolling onto her side to face her friend completely and propping her head on her arm, all traces of lethargy thrown out the window. Kiara does the same with an unreadable look in her eyes as she answers, “No, I’m just a little...okay, a lot curious about something, and I want you to be honest with me.”

“I mean, I kind of have to. You know I suck at lying.”

She frowns when Kiara doesn’t even react to her comment and instead starts to worry her bottom lip between her teeth. “It’s kind of a personal question, though.”

Oh, Jesus. She’s gonna ask about her dad, Sailor knows it, and that’s something she’s just not ready to talk about -she hasn’t even told JJ the whole story yet and she tells him (almost) everything- but before she can think of a semi-decent excuse, or run to the bathroom, or pretend to just pass the fuck out, Kiara blurts, “What’s the deal between you and JJ?”

Okay, that’s decidedly not what she expected to hear and it completely throws her for a loop, her brain blowing a fuse in epic fashion. A long stream of gibberish comes from her mouth as she tries and fails to articulate a response because holy hell she’s so not prepared for this; she’s a listener, not a talker! She’s the confidante not the confider, the asker not the answerer, and she can feel herself getting a little sweaty at just the thought of talking about her feelings, even with someone as close to her as Kiara. She almost wishes the other girl had asked about her dad.

To be honest she should’ve seen this coming, considering the looks Kiara’s been sending her recently and especially today, the ones that clearly meant that the dark haired girl’s seen what’s been happening and wants. that. tea. What Sailor doesn’t get though, is why she’s being so serious about it: she expects at least an overexaggerated wink or a teasing comment or two from her friend but she’s just waiting patiently, the slightest hint of mirth in her eyes.

Finally, the redhead manages to collect her panicked thoughts enough to squeak oh so eloquently, “Me-him-nothing!”

Kiara arches one eyebrow. “Sail, you really do suck at lying.”

Sailor flops back onto the bed and slides her hands down her furiously blushing face with a groan. “I’m not lying.” She mutters insistently but even she can admit it sounds weak as hell.

“It’s obvious there’s something-”

Something in her snaps and before she can stop them, words just start coming out with the force of a wave crashing against the shore, rough and callous. “It’s obvious there’s nothing going on, okay? Nothing. And even if there was -not that I’m saying there is- it can’t happen. That’s the golden rule, Kie.”

Kiara looks momentarily taken aback at the redhead’s outburst and then rolls onto her back, staring at the ceiling for a moment before she whispers quietly, like a secret she’s reluctant to share, “Maybe I think that rule is stupid.”

“Stupid?” Sailor glances over incredulously, the brief flash of anger aimed at her friend slowly morphing into confusion. “You’re the one who came up with it in the first place!”

“I know...” The dark haired girl sighs, tiredly running her hands through her hair, “I wanted to keep things from getting weird! It’s worked pretty well so far but I’m kind of, sort of, maybe starting to think it might not have been the best idea.”

“Why?” She asks, brow furrowing.

Kiara appears deep in thought as she keeps staring at the ceiling, working her jaw until she seems to come to a decision and turns her head to look Sailor in the eye. “Because I don’t think something as simple as a rule should be able to dictate who you can or can’t...love.”

Oh, God. Anxiety starts to take hold in her chest and she tries to keep her brain from going into five-alarm fire mode, her fingers tapping nervously against her leg. Why oh why did she have to say the L-word? Who said anything about that? Hell, it’s been a few months and she’s still getting used to her world-changing, panic-inducing, everything-clicking-into-place epiphany that made her realize that she does, in fact, like JJ as more than a friend (how and when her feelings changed, she hasn’t quite figured that out yet.). She’s not even close to thinking about love. Noticing her friend’s distress, Kiara reaches over to place her darker hand on the paler girl’s and gives it a reassuring squeeze.

“I’m not saying you love him, okay? But there’s obviously something good going on between you guys and I’m not cool with some dumb rule we made when we were twelve getting in the way of your happiness,” Her mouth curls into a lighthearted smirk, “even if it happens to be with someone as, uh, distinct as JJ.”

Despite herself, Sailor snorts a laugh and the tight feeling in her chest slowly starts to become a little more bearable as its replaced by a swell of gratitude that she has a person as wonderful as Kiara for a friend. She really did luck out in that department, she thinks, and the corner of her mouth lifts in a small smile.

“Distinct?”

“Hey, I was gonna say idiotic but I’m trying to be nice here.” The dark haired girl says, laughing as Sailor affectionately rolls her eyes before continuing, “But you do know that if he messes this up I’ll kick his ass, right?”

“Trust me, I do.”

“Good.” She punctuates that with a massive yawn, then rolls away from her and pulls the sheets higher over her chest, mumbling, “Now I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for bed. All this deep talk made me tired.”

“Big mood,” Sailor replies, reaching over and flicking off the bedside lamp, the only light now coming from the occasional flash of lightning through the windows as she rolls comfortably onto her side, tucking her arm under the pillow. Silence settles over them, dark and calm and stretching for who knows how long before she says quietly, “Thanks, Kie.”

There’s no answer. Realizing she must’ve already nodded off, the redhead’s just about to crash herself when her friend’s reply softly cuts through the silence like a knife.

“You’re not the only one I did it for.”

Kiara doesn’t say anything after that and Sailor falls asleep wondering what, or rather who, exactly the other girl meant.

let me know what you think!

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