Wednesday, December 29, 2010

When Fiction Comes To Life

2010 recap and update!

In 2010 Twislash Unveiled introduced a new segment where we discussed real world crossovers with slash fan fiction readers. We learned that all of the authors were bringing to light real world issues and concerns as experienced through the fictional characters, and that by doing so, they were changing hearts and changing minds, for the better.

We saw that gay bashing is very real and still occurs in this day and age.  However, there are also organizations like The Matthew Shepard Foundation that battle the atrocities.

We realized that there is real life pain being caused by Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.

We found out that there is more to Gay Pride than just parades (but those are fun too)

We learned that Marriage Equality is really about human dignity and human rights.

We discovered that areas outside of fan fiction are recognizing that the impacts that slash writers are having on the real world.  

We discussed what real family values were.

We saw instruction on how to be a real Straight Ally.

We faced a real tragedy caused by all the homophobic nonsense and bullying and learned how to help and how to support organizations that helped.

And last but not least, we learned that sexuality is not always black and white, but many shades of grey.

I am very pleased to announce that there have been two very significant and very positive breakthroughs on two of our topics.

First, my home state of Illinois voted to legalize Civil Unions!!! And while I am the first to say that separate is not equal, this is still a huge step forward.  Much like in Washington State, the law actually specifies that Civil Unions will have the exact same rights and everything as marriage, and is open to everyone.  This does pave the way for full equality some day.  Please enjoy a very good speech by a state senator:

It’s just fairness ya’ll that’s all.

(Pat Quinn that he mentions is the Governor of Illinois and he promised Civil Unions)

And for the big news!!!

After many had given it up for impossible, Our Congress passed and our President signed into law the bill that will repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell!!!  I actually cried – how did you react?

I think President Obama says it best:
(I recommend viewing the whole video, some very good lessons and some very good points)


That was it for 2010.  What articles did you like?  Did you learn anything new?

What kind of topics do you think should be discussed in 2011?  

Please comment.

Thank-you!!

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Tuesday's Best 12-28-2010

Good morning, my lovelies! I trust y'all have made it through the holidays with (most of) your sanity intact? No? Hmm, well let's see if the good Captain and I can help you find a moment just for yourself, enjoying some fuckawesome slash as we're wont to do every Tuesday. So grab some towels, and some Kleenex, and let's get started, shall we?

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*kisses for my slashies from the Cap’n*   Hello my darlings, glad to be back this week with some more yum yums for ya. Anyone that read my gift to Naelany for her bday this year will know that I am a fan of some Paul/Emmett loving. So when I came across The City by artbeatsandlife I was quite delighted, add to this that it’s set in my hometown NYC and it features the subway prominently and I am in heaven. Seriously I am going to geek out and say she wrote it specifically for me, even though that is not the case.

Emmett is a successful designer in a bit of a slump has his world shook up when he spies beauty; in the form of a bruised, tatted up, leather wearing sex god , on the subway. After their brief encounter in which their gazes literally lock into one another, Emmett is left with this longing when his sexy stranger leaves abruptly breaking the spell. Imagine his surprise when a week later the star of his fantasies walks in to his favorite hangout and immediately steals Em’s attention from the boy that his friends were trying to set him up with.

‘Sexy’ as Em named him, turns out to be Paul; a smart beautiful man that moved to NYC from Washington state. Paul is a boxer, and all the thoughts that come with that begin to excite Em in ways he never thought possible. Their connection is undeniable and the author writes them in such a way that you feel the heat between them as you read.

I smiled, and he rested his palms on either side of the counter, trapping me. "Yes? Can I help you?"

That dazzling smile broke, and I was done. He wet his lips, glancing to mine hungrily, leaning closer until they were pressed softly against mine.

It was like magic.

He kissed me like he knew me, like he knew my body, and I was his. His lips were so soft and so warm. Actually, his whole body was warm, hot really, and I briefly worried that he may be getting a cold, or the flu or something. That thought was just a fleeting one, though, because he sucked me into what his lips were doing to mine. His tongue slid across mine, tentatively, asking me if it was okay, and I stepped closer to him, wrapping my arms around his neck, pulling him to me.

His kiss was insane. It was addictive. Everything about him was.

Instantly, I felt his hardness pressed against mine, felt him softly grinding against me, felt him nipping at my bottom lip, and I knew I needed to stop this before we got too carried away.


*drools and falls off chair* Oops! *wipes mouth and gets back into chair looking embarrassed* Yes these boys are quite the delicious pair I tell you. And the sexy tone between them only gets better from here, and quite a bit before this excerpt as well.  This is the authors first time writing slash, and I have to say it didn’t show much at all. She did a kick ass job, and I know this slash lover thoroughly enjoyed it. Please give it a read, I mean what is not to like? Sweaty, sexy, inked up, Paul with rock hard abs; in silk boxing trunks. Hot, sweet, inked, pierced, and intelligent Emmett , just looking for a good man. Sexy boy lovin....It’s all here. Leave her some love if you decide to give it a read.

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Okay, folks. I’m giving you fair warning. Bring out a box of Kleenex before you settle down for this read. Ealasaid77 has written something beautiful, that despite its brevity will bring you to tears. I know it did me. In Goodbye, My Angel, you see Edward as he lays his husband to rest. You get to hear about how they met, and lived. Feel the bond that they shared.

Short as the story is, it is no less powerful for it. There isn’t much I can tell you about it, due to the length of it, because then I’d give too much away. I will encourage you to read for yourself, as it touches upon things you or I might take for granted. It certainly does make you think.


And cry.

Definitely cry.

Their first meeting, however, will make you smile, so I will give you that much. There’s more though, so be sure to check it out, and leave Ealasaid77 some love. And maybe a hug or two.

My angel's eyes spotted me watching him in stunned awe. He came closer to me and I shook, not knowing what to say or do, afraid I'd fuck it up. I couldn't figure out why it would matter, I didn't plan to give myself to anyone ever again, in any capacity.



As he stepped up to about a foot in front of me, he tilted his head and waited for me to say something. All the while with that brilliant smile. The only thing I managed to stumble out was, "My angel." I wasn't even sure he heard it, until his smile became impossibly wider.

"I'm no angel, beautiful," he denied


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 There you have it, folks. Be sure to leave these two wonderful authors some well-deserved love, and check back next week to see what Aradi and Stolenxsanity have in store for you then.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Tuesday's Best 12-21-2010

Good morning, y'all! Everyone getting ready for Christmas? Lights brightly shining, carols playing, gifts wrapped, tree decorated? I'm sure y'all are more than ready for a bit of a breather by now, so let's see what we have in store for you today.

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 December kind of snuck up on me, as did this date. I swear it was just Thanksgiving and now it's only four days away from Christmas. Am I the only one that thinks this year has gone by way too fast? No, I didn’t think so. I seriously cannot believe that it’s December, and past the halfway point of the month, too. Where has the time gone?

Rhetorical question. It’s disappeared into the unknown abyss never to be seen or heard from again, unfortunately. So, instead of dwelling on the fact that the older we get, the faster time flies, I’m here to bring you another rec of the slashy variety, and in the spirit of the holiday season.

The Great Mistletoe Hunt by BeCullen.

Not gonna lie, the opening sentence  - and even the entire first paragraph - made me laugh probably more than I should have. In my defense, I am rather easily amused but that’s neither here nor there.

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this. I don't even know how to use a shotgun." Stomping through the woods with my best friend Jasper, we looked for, of all things, mistletoe. Laughing at myself, I slowly shook my head. The great mistletoe hunt of 2010. Looking at him in disbelief, I couldn't fathom why he let our sisters talk us into this. Apparently, he didn't value our lives, because I was going to end up shooting him or myself or both probably; I just knew it. Huffing at the craziness of this situation, I followed him deeper into the woods.

Jasper and I have been friends since my family moved to Tennessee my junior year of high school about four years ago. My father got offered and accepted the head surgeon position for the Cardiac Unit of a level 1 trauma hospital in Tennessee. He and my mother told my twin sister and I that we were moving to a small town with a population of twenty-five thousand in a county that had only one high school. They told us that they always wanted to move out of the city and so here we were. I couldn't really complain though. If we had never moved, then I would have never met the boy that would become my best friend. We did everything together. Even now, we attended the same college in the city that my father's hospital was located.

Jasper and his twin sister, Rosalie, had lived here their entire lives. Jasper was raised in the country and was a country boy through and through. However, I was born and raised in the city, until we moved to this small town located forty miles from anything remotely civilized. All right, maybe I was exaggerating a little bit. Alice immediately became best friends with Rosalie and the four of us had been inseparable ever since.

Which brings me back to my current situation, trailing through the woods, carrying a loaded weapon, and looking for mistletoe. Alice and Rosalie convinced Jasper that we had to have mistletoe for our Christmas decorations. Every Thanksgiving, both our families got together to celebrate and decorate for the Christmas holiday. The tree and all the trimmings got put out over the holiday weekend. We had been celebrating this way since the Thanksgiving that we moved down here. It had become a tradition.

Jasper, Edward, and loaded weapons. No, that wasn’t an innuendo - or at least it wasn’t meant to be but …

If the shoe fits.

And Edward, oh Edward, to say that he feels awkward about the realizations he’s been having in regards to how he feels toward Jasper? Well, that would be a little bit of an understatement. It’s written beautifully, though, and it perfectly showcases his confusion on the issue of his reactions to Jasper.

"I can't be sure, but I think this is where we always found it," Jasper stated as he stood, turning in a circle to look up into the canopy of trees above us.

Watching him as he searched skyward, I once again gazed at his form. His curly blond hair was a bit longer than I had ever seen it and flowed over the collar of his jacket. He had lost a few pounds these past two years since his parents' death, but he still had about twenty pounds on me. We were about the same height, but I was built slimmer.

"Hey, are you looking or daydreaming on me?" I was caught off guard with how close Jasper was to me when he asked me this.

"Sorry, where are we looking?" I asked as I tried to shift away from him to hide my half erection. I had been getting this kind of reaction from Jasper's close proximity for a few months now, and I didn't know exactly what to think about it. We had always been close, but not close like that. There was no way he would be interested in me that way; and I definitely didn't want to do anything to jeopardize our friendship. So, I pushed all these thoughts and feelings back and concentrated on just our friendship.

Do they find the mistletoe they’re looking for? And, more importantly, does anything happen if they do? Well, you’ll just have to take a moment to read this one-shot if you want to find out.  

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 I was all ready for posting recs, having worked ahead a bit, and felt good about being on top of things... And then it came time to post today. Silly me, I forgot to take into account the date when I did all my working ahead, and neglected to find something festive for the season!

Shame on me!

Lucky for me, however, I managed to find a little gem that I’m looking forward to sharing with y’all.  

It’s called A Merry Christmas, by unwantedone, and it’s about Edward and Jasper sharing their first Christmas as a couple. It’s a short story, told in short bits, almost like drabbles (but with more than 100 words at a time). The idea is the same though, and the story moves along very nicely as you get to read about our boys.

They’re spending the holiday at Edward’s parents’ place, and though the family has met Jasper already, Edward can’t help but feel a little nervous. After all, this is one first they won’t get again, and Christmas has always been special for him.

Of course, when you visit with family - especially when your parents are Carlisle and Esme Cullen - you can count on a bit of friendly teasing:

Mom bustles us all to the kitchen where she's got the hors d'oeuvres laid out. The air is filled with the spicy scent of mulled wine and cookies. Taking a deep breath, I smile at the memories the scents evoke. This is Christmas... this is home.

My mother hands Jasper and I steaming mugs of wine and settles us at the kitchen table with my dad. We chat about work and the holidays and it's easy and comfortable. Jasper is relaxed and at ease. We sit, leaning against each other, fingers entwined. My father watches us, smiling at our interactions. Raising an eyebrow, I give my father a questioning look.

"You remind me of your mother and I. The way you follow each other's movements and that you're always touching each other," he says.

Jasper smiles as a faint tinge of pink colors his cheeks. My mother giggles as she sits next to my dad, her body coming to rest against his.

“It's true. You do act like us. It's cute."

Now, there are of course certain traditions to uphold, which we get to enjoy. And Jasper has one surprise in store for our man, Edward. What that is, you’ll have to go read for yourself.  Merry Christmas!


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Both stories today are the first ones these authors have written, so be sure to give both of these wonderful authors some love. Maybe, if we get lucky (and I sure hope we do!), we will see more lovely tales from them. 

We hope you have a wonderful holiday, and that your every wish may come true. We'll be back next week with the good Captain and myself, with more goodies for you to read. 

Merry Christmas!

Monday, December 20, 2010

Slash Guest Author Rec - Lou-La

I can’t even begin to express how honored I am to have been asked to write a guest recc for TU! I can’t, so I’m not even going to make an ass of myself trying. Instead, let’s jump right into it, shall we?

When I started thinking about what stories I’d like to recc, I was slightly overwhelmed by the fact that every single one that came to mind was Jasper/Edward, and extremely well known and popular. I know that Edward and Jasper are by far the most well received slash coupling, but I will be the first to admit they aren’t even my favorite couple in slash pairings!

Yes, you read that right.

I am definitely a Carlisle/Edward fangirl. But I really appreciate the more eccentric pairings as well, which is why I made it a point to recc everything BUT Edward/Jasper today. I hope you enjoy these fics as much as I have.

Nightfall by MySlashyFriend
Summary: On September 13th, 1987, Renée gave birth to William Matthew Swan. Seventeen years later, he moves to Forks. Original Character/Edward

Excerpt: Chapter 4- When he felt my eyes, he turned back toward me, again examining my face. He didn't seem particularly annoyed or shocked, the reactions I'd expect if he just heard me figure out what he could do. Instead he looked a little guilty.

"You're an asshole," I thought clearly and distinctly.

No reaction. He just kept staring, his jaw set, his lips drawn in a tight line. He looked really good. Every now and then it still hit me.
Feeling more confident, I took another deep breath and held it, then kept my face still.

"I wish you liked me."

Again, he didn't move, so I slowly let out the breath. Not a mind-reader, I concluded.

Dear Agony by TwiBoy
Summary: Emmett suffered a staggering loss following a car wreck. He struggles to heal and find closure with the help of the last person that he thinks would give it. Emmett/Jasper

Excerpt: Chapter 5- Once I'm under the covers, I lie awake, listening to the creeks of the house and the hoot of the owl in the tree outside the window. I refuse to look at the clock, because the fact that I can't fall back asleep is fucking depressing and knowing it's that much closer to daybreak will just serve to piss me the hell off even more.

I finally hear the sound of Jasper's bare footsteps coming up the stairs, and the groans and whines of the hardwood floor as he makes his way across the room.
Feeling the bed dip beneath his weight brings back the questions that have been plaguing me for the last month since my first physical therapy appointment with Edward. My mind is so desperate to wrap itself around something that's not Rose or Bella that I speak before completely thinking things through.

"I'm quitting Physical Therapy," I announce as Jasper gets beneath the covers.

He immediately stills before he asks, "Why? I thought you've been making progress. You rarely use the cane any more and you've actually been exercising. Why screw up a good thing?"

This time I think before I open my mouth. "I think I can just handle this from my own now. I know what I have to do," I reply.

"Not that that's not a good thing, but is that the real reason?"

I swallow hard a couple of times before answering. "Edward's pretty fond of you, and I know it wouldn't be quite ethical for him to be seeing a family member of someone under his care, otherwise he would have already asked you out. If I was no longer a patient of his, he would no longer have that problem."

Jasper's so silent that I suspect he's holding his breath.

Potential by Rosmarina
Summary: Edward Cullen, journalist for the college paper, has despised jocks since high school. What happens when he's assigned to interview Emmett McCarty, a decathlon athlete who challenges Edward's every stereotype? Emmett/Edward

Excerpt: Chapter 4- When he started moving toward me, I was the one fixed in place.

He crossed the room, fisted his hand in my shirt and tilted his face up to mine. I was tensed in an excruciating anticipation but my mind and body were in agreement. I'd put it all on the line, I'd come running over here, and Edward would have to close that last inch between us now to prove how he felt.

In those romance novels Rosie read there was always some kind of spark or electricity when the potential lovers eventually kissed. No, when Edward finally pressed his mouth against mine it wasn't electric, it was fucking kinetic. It was a triggered spring that set us both in perpetual motion.

He pulled; I pushed. He fell backwards onto the mattress and dragged me with him. I shucked his t-shirt off him and followed as he scooted towards the middle of the bed. I dipped my head to reconnect our mouths. He clawed my ass and bucked his hips against me.

My hand went to his zipper; his teeth clamped down on my neck. We rolled back and forth over the bed, wrestling each other's clothes off, mouthing, licking, biting. His hands dove down the front of my pants; my head snapped back against the headboard.

It was friction, gravity... momentum.

There was no stopping this.

Aberration by shoefreak37
Summary: Aberration: distortion, deviation, wandering. For centuries, Carlisle held fast to the plan he was sure had been laid out for him by a force much more divine than himself. After he takes Edward for a companion, the direction of his path becomes skewed. Edward/Carlisle

Excerpt: Chapter 8- Unexpectedly, Carlisle's face split into a wide grin, eyes travelling to his hands in his lap, his two perfectly straight rows of teeth making the right side of Edward's mouth upturn the tiniest amount.

"What?" Edward chuckled, Carlisle's sudden joy infectious. Carlisle's thoughts began flitting through numerous occasions on which he had sat outside of Edward's church, listening to the rich notes of the pipe organ as they filled the air, feeling the balm of solace that came along with the sounds.

Knowing that Edward plucked the memories as he thought them, Carlisle answered, "It seems as though you offered me comfort and companionship well before either of us knew it."

Edward reveled in Carlisle's musings, full of affection and gratitude. A tiny rush of delight circulated through Edward. Logically, he knew that Carlisle would never consider that something that had presented itself in Edward as something more, but he could not stop the hope that someday Carlisle would change his mind. For the time being, he pushed it down and filed that hope away along with all the other urges he had experienced since his turning. He would have to remain content with pleasing Carlisle in any way he could, survive off the small bursts of joy he experienced when Carlisle smiled.

"I will play for you as much as you desire," Edward said.

College Ruled by allryans
Summary: He spends his days in college filling up spiral notebooks with meticulous notes, feeling listless and uninspired, until he recognizes himself in the mirror image of someone impressively bold. Edward/Riley

Excerpt: Chapter 2- "Kate went to look for you in the bathroom. You ok, man?"

A choke. He wanted to speak, but instead, he nodded affirmatively. Then, "She didn't say she was looking for me. She acted like she busted in on me on accident."
"Did she, like, see you?" Riley smirked.

"No! No. I was at the mirror, just ... I don't know." He wanted to hide inside his own skin.

"Well, I think she's trying to hide her interest a bit. But she, um, saw your ... notebook, and I guess, decided it was ok or whatever."

There was an interminable pause. Kate had seen and so had Riley. And she ... what? The confusion must have shown on Edward's face, as he couldn't bring a thought to the forefront of his mind, much less out of his mouth. Finally he choked out, "Thinks it's ok?"

"Well, yeah, it's kind of written there in black and white, if you know what I mean ... I mean, you're interested, right?"

Something wasn't computing. Riley was too affected in his nonchalance. Edward looked directly into him and knew the reflection was all wrong. But, for the first time, he wanted to be transparent.

"Yes." Resolute. Firm. "I am. Yes."

Darkest brown fell for just a moment, and then steeled. "Well, then, what are you doing out here with me?" Too casual. Too forced. "Knowing Kate, you could have her against the wall of that literal shithole by now." Steel. Hard. Wrong.

His resolve faltered with the realization that Riley didn't see him, didn't see what was evident on his page, didn't know he wanted him in so many ways. That is, until he saw the shadow of his own disappointment cloud Riley's black, down-turned expression. Of course. Riley had to know. He was the astute one, the observant one. Kate had come to the wrong conclusion - that Edward's page showed his affinity for her - and voiced her assertions with characteristic candor. As usual, she was loud and sure, but she was mistaken. And just like every other time, Edward knew that Riley saw the flaws in her thinking, but this time, Riley had wanted it to be false too much to deny it. Edward needed to be the one to claim it this time.

Charming Beauty Bright by evilgiraffe82
Summary: Sometimes little epiphanies can be life-changing. Jasper/Jacob

Excerpt: Chapter 2- I watch him as he talks. His long legs are stretched out under the table, his mug of tea swamped as he holds it in one hand. His expression is gentle as he speaks of his mother and how she used to make cakes and he and Bella would fight over who got to lick the bowl. I envy him, that he can speak of someone he has loved and lost like this. He drains the last of his tea and sits up, looking right at me.

"I'm going to go home now. It was good to meet you, Jasper."

"Thank you." I think he knows that I'm not just talking about the tea.

I follow him to the door and he shakes my hand, folding his fingers around mine for a fourth time.

"See you again sometime. Take care." It sounds like both a hope and an instruction. I watch the lights of the little car until they disappear around the corner before I shut the door.

I go back into the kitchen to tidy up, but the sight of the two mugs on the table without coasters stops me. I look at Edward's chair, pulled out at an angle where Jake left it. No. It's not Edward's chair any more. It's just a chair. I smile, thinking of how cross he'd be at the potential damage to the table from the hot mugs. I decide to leave it all for the morning, turn out the lights and go to bed.

Say Something Else by vampireisthenewblack
Summary: When he suffers the worst kind of heartbreak, Edward returns home, resigning himself to a lifetime of loneliness. But he had not counted on old friendships and old crushes. Edward is torn between old love and new... Edward/Alec, Edward/Seth

Excerpt: Chapter 1- I looked closely at the photo on the card and then up to the face that leaned over the bar towards me, a wide smile showing straight white teeth. I looked down again, and then up into the big, innocent blue eyes. I studied him carefully, but I was already satisfied that the licence was legit, now I was taking the opportunity to check him out properly.

He started laughing. "See anything you like, love?" he asked, and my cock twitched at his London accent, his face, the cheekiness of him.

I blushed, embarrassed at being caught out, but I refused to get all stammery and stupid over this cute kid, so I put on my sternest expression. "You don't look twenty," I said, pointing at the date on the card in my hand. "Now if this said eighteen I might believe it, but twenty's a stretch. Come on, this isn't your I.D. is it?"

His lips parted, his eyes opened wide, and then he pulled his lower lip between his teeth and bit down as a gentle flush coloured his pale skin. "Wow," he breathed. "Say something else."

Wood (The One-Shot) and Wood (The Continuation) by algonquinrt and d0tpark3r
Summary: Single father Carlisle moves into a new house and finds more than he bargained for in his new neighbor. Edward/Carlisle

Excerpt: Chapter 1 (The One-Shot)- "It must have been difficult to uproot your entire life to keep your son close to your ex. You, uh, didn't leave anyone else behind?"

Subtle, Edward. Very subtle.

He catches on quickly, and rewards my bull-in-a-china-shop efforts with a huge fucking grin.

"No, Edward. I didn't leave anyone else behind in Washington. I haven't met anyone that I've wanted a relationship with since my wife and I split. There's something about meeting a man in a club that defies the possibility of a long-term relationship for me."

I'm sort of gaping at the fact that he came right out and answered my unspoken and totally fucking obvious question when I realize Jasper has returned with a soda, and is inhaling what must be his third piece of pizza. I haven't even managed a second bite yet, which is a damn good thing because I'd probably have choked, realizing that I pretty much hit on this kid's dad in the clumsiest way possible.

I glance over at him, praying to a god I probably don't believe in that he's got some deathcore blaring in his ears via iPod, but he's heard the whole thing, and rolls his eyes at us.

"Jesus, Dad, get a room. Quit eye-fucking the neighbor dude. He already admitted he was interested when he asked if you were seeing anyone back home. God, I hope I'm not this lame when I'm hitting on girls. I'll die a virgin if that's the case."

I spit a mouthful of beer all over myself, noting that this is the second shirt I've trashed today because I'm unable to drink and freak out at the same time. Maybe I should look into the use of a straw at all times.

Jasper grabs another two slices of pizza and takes off down the hall toward what I assume is his room, leaving me alone with Carlisle. Fuck. Maybe the kid isn't half-bad after all.

Carlisle chuckles. "I'd apologize for my son, because he's blunt to a fault, but he usually manages to cut right to the heart of an issue in a way I can't ever manage."

That’s all, folks! I hope you enjoy straying from the dynamic duo into some (potentially) uncharted territory. It’s been real...