holdover snack for the ‘anointed’ universe / a couple of cool guys series:
helloooooo my beautiful blueberries! (thanks to everyone who commented or submitted a question 💖) I’m going to give y’all something to tide you over until the next meal because I’m not sure when my next story will be done. so from here on out, you’re risking spoilers! beware all ye who enter here, etc
(splitting here just cuz too many long text posts stress me out)
after the conclusion of ‘fairytale’, I know I left things on a bit of a cliffhanger (I have been warning y’all about a romencken divorce, however temporary it might be) so I’ll give you an idea of what’s coming up / some easter eggs you might’ve missed until the next story.
I have said this before on here, but I’m bringing Tabitha back (because I LOVE her and I will not apologize for having correct opinions ♥️) but before you freak out pls remember I said the romencken divorce is temporary. Also, as many of you reflected in your distress in the comments… Mencken is not being a great partner right now or giving Roman what he needs. 1) the premise of their entire situation ofc but 2) Mencken is not capable of the empathy and emotional support Roman needs. He can barely recognize his own flaws and issues, much less support Roman getting help. Roman needs some space so he can heal and focus on himself for a bit. Obviously we are out of canon by now and while one of the great and terrible tenets of a tragedy is how people seem incapable of change or locked into their positions with no way out… I do think the ending of Succession showed that Roman, above anyone else, might be capable of breaking out of that cage. That bittersweet smile about leaving it all behind? He’s going through it right now but he’s clearly wanted a way out for a long time. (see more Tabitha/Roman hc at the end, moving on to other spoilers!)
Roman’s watch. 😈 so i have committed a crime against you all which I will now reveal, because it’s too delicious to wait for the next story:
there is no tracker in Roman’s watch.
yeah. Mencken had it repaired and didn’t replace the tracker. he already has the app in Roman’s phone, he figures, so it’s unnecessary (he’ll have fun figuring that out later). but in his own head, Mencken thinks he’s basically got Roman back and he won’t be needing it anymore with Roman taking a job in the White House and Mencken not traveling as much. So when Mencken gave him the watch back… it wasn’t a trick or a creep move (for once). It was just about wanting Roman to have it 💔
Who was the person on the other end of the phone call? While technically none of your guesses were wrong about who will be returning… it’s Tabitha. He called Tabitha and invited her to London for this NYE party his mother is throwing. (Shiv will be there also)
What’s going to happen, besides Mencken losing it? I know I said spoilers already, but I’m going to try not give away everything. But there’s going to be Roman going to therapy (yay!) and Tabitha gently blackmailing him to be honest in said therapy (FINALLY), Roman thinking over what Caroline said to him, more scenes with Chloe, and also some dark fash stuff with Mencken entering the White House. (and to answer those questions; yes, Mencken will make it into the White House if it’s the last thing he does *ominous music begins*). I’m still toying with what Roman’s going to do, job/life-wise, potentially bringing Matsson back in, and what all of this means for Roman’s relationship with Shiv.
Do you have any of it written yet? I do have some scenes already. Summer ‘23 the first thing I wrote after the scene of Mencken and Roman in the martini bar in ‘after the end of the world’ was him finally having a real conversation with Tabitha. Then there’s some Chloe stuff, some Mencken stuff (where he is predictably so normal and chill), and today I started an Aiden-Dan scene off camera where they discuss their insane boss.
How does Mencken plan to have Roman in the White House, would he live there? Nope! Even Mencken’s audacity wouldn’t extend that far. He is likely envisioning that Roman would be like other senior staff, namely that Roman gets a security clearance and hard pass—this is important because otherwise, Roman would have to sign in and out of visitor logs and go through security every time he comes to the White House. I think we can all imagine why Mencken doesn’t want an official government record (which are also public) of what time Roman’s leaving the White House or how often he visits. That being said, I don’t think even Mencken thinks they’d be able to have sex there on a regular basis, way too many cameras, staff, and security. Not to mention his wife.
But Mencken also genuinely wants Roman as part of his administration. If he thought Roman was only good for sex, he wouldn’t bother buttering him up because they already have that arrangement. If he wanted to pay him off for the Election Night heist or the other things Roman’s done for him, he could give him a cushy ambassadorship to Brazil or Jamaica (most big-time donors are rewarded this way) or put him in charge of some bullshit committee. But Mencken was being honest; he thinks Roman is good at this and he wants him on his team.
Oval Office sex? What do you think I am, some kind of hater? (♥️) Of course there will be kinky Oval Office sex with both of them making gratuitous gross blue dress jokes. Mencken is such a freak; obvi transgressive sex in America’s most sacred room (to republicans) is a must.
What’s going to happen with Mencken and Roman, happy ending? I really don’t want to give away too much, but I think you can all assume how Mencken is going to feel about Roman going back to his ex. So! 🫠
For an ending overall… I’m really torn. Because most of me wants Mr. Fascist to die alone and miserable, just like Ayn Rand. But. Roman loves him. Maybe Roman should get the things he wants, for once. The hazy ending I’m imagining will have everyone (the characters) getting most of what they want if not all.
Will Mencken ever use the ‘L’ word with Roman? Ahh…🥺. So. this exact scene is maybe the third thing I wrote after the finale. I’ll try to answer without spoiling everything… yes and no. He’s been saying it to Roman for a while now. And when this comes up, Mencken addresses it head on. If that helps?
Will Connor start a war with Slovenia? Maybe!
Hope this is enough to soothe y’all for a while! (and fingers crossed it’s not too long)
The rest of my Tabitha/Roman hc:
The other reason for Tabitha returning is 1) she and Roman are still in contact through the end of s4 in the script books. I didn’t know this either until I read them last winter! 2) I just don’t care what people might say, I really think Roman liked her a lot. Like Roman has lesbians beat for U-Hauling speed; he brought her to his sister’s wedding after 4 dates, introduced her to his whole family, and proposed to Tabitha after a MONTH of knowing her. And while she says no, they’re living together when s2 opens. Also… I know this is controversial, sorry! but 2) both the sex things with Gerri happen directly after he fails to consummate a physical relationship with Tabitha. LOOK I also think he loved Gerri, but I just can’t believe he didn’t care about Tabitha, and probably loved her. Roman is kind of a love slut. And 3) let’s contrast his relationship with Grace and his relationship with Tabitha: Grace calls him a cheater at family thanksgiving and purposefully shows the kids the movie that (maybe?) ended his tenure in LA—and Roman dumps her. Not great, but did it have to be a dealbreaker? Whereas Tabitha calls them EUNUCH BESTIES in front of his father, which for Roman was almost bad as the dick pic debacle—and he doesn’t dump her or even appear to be angry with her. This man is in love with her.
I also believe it’s mutual. Tabitha seems very laissez faire and unbothered about life in general, I don’t think that’s an indication of her feelings about Roman. And here’s my biggest piece of evidence: does anyone think Tabitha isn’t doing whatever she wants all the time? If she didn’t want to be with Roman, she would have left. The tenderness in her voice when she says, “I am not uninterested in figuring you out,” 🥺♥️♥️. I think Roman’s refusal to communicate about any of his issues when she kept asking him to just got to be too much for her. But if Roman called her and was like, hey you were right, um, wanna hang out? I can see her giving him another shot.
So! Tabitha’s coming back. However, Tabitha’s not a doormat. While she’s clearly a kinky person without a lot of hangups (re: her entire introduction)... we’ll see how far that extends to the Mencken situation 👀 Because Mencken is not letting his man go without a fight.
