#( i am feral for the tunes and jams ) | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

tttinytrash · 4 years ago

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Ok fine, I caved again. Originally I said I’d at least attempt to not kidnap @shamedump‘s boys again, but their boys are so sweet (and also have to convenient distinction of not actually wanting to hurt their little reader buddy). Dumpling gave me the green light so with their blessing I’m going ahead with Shy’s final prompt for spoopy hide-and-eat with the Bad Sans Gang using Dumpling’s version of the spooky boyos. I hope I channel their personalities adequately, and I hope you guys enjoy!

Movie night with they guys was always a highlight of your week.

You all met as Archer’s castle on a regular basis to just hang out, piling into one room. Thank goodness this was a whole freaking castle, because your gang was pretty big. Despite the size of the room, the couch really wasn’t big enough for your whole group. As per usual Chain, Mage, Dusty, and Mason were crammed on the couch leaving Deca and you to nest on the floor. The plethora of cushions strewn about made that a non issue, luckily. Crash had made himself a hammock out of his own strings overhead, knitting a scarf absently as the movies served as background noise. This week, the reason the seven of you were sprawled over the couch in the first place was the horror movie marathon going on the TV across the room.

You turned away as the blood curdling screams shrieked from the speakers, the delightful sounds of the hot blonde being torn apart by the feral werewolf on screen acting as your backing track as you cried “Oh come on! That’s just gratuitous!” You laughed, entertained by the campiness buried in the gore but still refraining from watching until the wet squelches subsided.

“you ok?” Chain asked, looking you over. (You didn’t miss Mage glancing over at you either.)

“I’m good. Having a good time, but so not looking forward to the nightmares tonight.” you respond, flapping a hand as if to waft away the concern.

“scared of horrible monsters coming to get you in the night?” Mason teased, abandoning his spot on the couch to push at your shoulder and attempt to loom.

Despite the blank sockets and black tears, the goof didn’t scare you so you laughed easily. “Not like that, and you know it. Stoppit.” You started to push him off, which made him double down on the game and try to knock you over into the pillow pile.

Mage broke up the game before it turned into proper rough housing, wrapping one tendril around your waist and another around Mason’s ankle. He yanked you both off the floor, chiding “enough, you two.”

Mason ended up limply hanging upside down, clearly unabashed and jokingly making grabby hands at you.

To prevent further childishness, Mage dumped you into Chain’s lap and dropped Mason into the thickest portion of the pillow pile.

You giggled when Chain wrapped himself around you, setting his chin on the crown of your head and purring about the newfound proximity.

Deca spun around to look at you, “you get nightmares after scary movies?”

“I mean yeah, but it’s a price I’m willing to pay for a good time.” You shrug, as best you can while wrapped up in Chain’s arms.

“Y-y-you know you’re just about the best guarded human-n in the multiverse, right?” Crashed asked, setting hit knitting aside.

“Yeah, I’m well aware that anyone who wanted to get me would have to go through you guys. My brain is just dumb.” You pat the skeleton wrapped around you as best you could, which in your position was patting the thick ecto on his middle since that’s all you could reach.

His belly reacted to the attention by growling, which you could feel while being pressed into it. You could practically feel the mischief coming off Chain as he said “well, i’m plenty willing to make that more literal if you want.” To emphasize, he licked your head.

You pulled away from the intruding tongue, and Chain let you tumble away from him and back onto the floor, laughing as you squealed about him being gross and trying to fix your hair from the huge cowlick Chain had gifted you.

You noticed Dusty quietly saying something to Mason, which was a pleasant surprise as Dusty usually preferred not to speak much if at all. You asked Mason what was up, curious what made the reserved skeleton speak up.

“he’s asking if i think you being taken in would help with the nightmares. so, would it?”

“Uh... dunno. Never tried it before.” You said truthfully.

“why don’t we try it out, then. but make it a game?” Mage asked, grin quirking predatorily.

“Game?” You asked, curious to see where this went.

“yes. you run, we chase. winner gets to keep you for the night.”

“Hah! Am I player or the prize?”

Mage shrugged, “both.”

You glanced around the room and saw several hopeful gazes and a few curious ones. Crash rolled his eyes and went back to his knitting, but you couldn’t deny the puppy dog eyes you were getting from some of the others.

“Alright, game on.”

-----

Crash made a seat for himself and another for Deca high up in the canopy of the woods by the castle, which would serve as your arena for the game. (Thematically appropriate, plus no one could tumble down unforgiving stone stairs.) Crash and Deca tapped out before the game began, neither of them really wanting a guest your size. The others still seemed gung ho, so they were on the forest floor with you.

You waved your flashlight around the area, already scoping out routes, as Mage explained that a victory meant catching you, no shortcuts allowed, and stipulations about magic to keep you from getting hurt during the chase. You kinda tuned it out, instead strategizing. Not like you had to worry about limiting spells you couldn’t cast in the first place.

You got a minute head start, and your heart was pounding as you ran. 60 seconds had gone by in your mental countdown, which meant you were officially being hunted.

You were mildly nervous, but far from afraid. You did try to tamp down on the nervous feeling and instead focus on your excitement about a new game. Hopefully a more positive feeling would be harder for Mage to track.

You weren’t left alone too terribly long, as Dusty had a habit of popping up randomly, forcing you to run away with him snickering behind you. You quickly caught on that he was just there for jumpscares, which made you laugh. You weren’t totally positive where the others were for now, though. That made you more paranoid.

The first time you actually felt the game was afoot was when Mason suddenly appeared on your right and made a grab for you. You dodged the grab, and darted in the opposite direction. Being chased by Mason, you almost missed the dark chuckle in front of you. Luckily you didn’t, as your quick turn saved you from Mage’s tendril’s snapping out towards you. The realization that the tendrils were significantly harder to dodge than Mason had been made you realize Mason wasn’t actually trying to catch you, instead herding you towards Mage.

The realization that Mason was helping Mage rather than himself wasn’t surprising, but definitely amusing. You had to dodge plenty more of Mason’s divebombs, and Mage quickly caught on that you knew what was going on and actually had to chase after you now as well, rather than waiting for Mason to bring you close enough for a grab. You heard Deca laughing from high above when Mason lunged at you but missed, ending in a face plant. Good to know the two non participants were still entertained. Given this opening, you took off yet again only to be stopped by Dusty springing from a shrub.

It was no effort to get away from him, as per usual. But how did he keep finding you so easily?!

Oh, Delta. It was the freaking flashlight! You realized the bright light was all but a beacon in the dark woods. Mason had given it to you, hadn’t he? Ooh, that cheeky little-!

Fine, you could use their trick against them. You jammed the light in the crook of a tree and took of running, leaving the bulb alight. The laughter from both Mason and Mage meant they’d found your trick, but you were far from your boobytrap and felt a sense of victory.

Your skeleton sightings became fewer now, and your night vision had finally adjusted to the dim light of the moon. But it also heightened the nerves instinctual for humans in the dark. You actually screamed the next time Dusty caught you by surprise, and while you backpedalled you didn’t miss the surprised look on Dusty’s face before you felt two solid somethings wrap around from behind you and lock you in place.

You wriggled with all your might out of a pure fear reaction but stilled when you realized two things. 1) The things holding you were big, thick arms. 2) The plushness of the body you were being held to meant it was Chain.

You looked up, breathy laughter tinging your words as you said “I only saw you once this whole game, but wow did you make it count!”

Deca shortcutted to the ground beside you, while Dusty and Chain chuckled at your outburst.

“figured ambush was the way to go. picked a spot and waited for the right moment, and dusty gave me the perfect window.” Chain explained.

“did you even know he was there, dusty?” Deca asked.

He shook his head, smiling wide.

Crash seems to have been the one who called Mason and Mage that the game was over, as all three approached in a group.

“well played, chain. and you did pretty well too, human.” Mage said as he approached.

Once the trio joined, the group was left in a loose ring and you still being held by the large skeleton who’d caught you. Conversation was immediate and comfortable, reliving some of the more lively moments and near misses with glee and laughing over mistakes made. After a bit, the chatter was cut by a rolling growl from Chain’s stomach which served as a reminder as to what victory entailed.

“well, the wager was already set. we’ll go set up the sleeping arrangements and meet you back at the castle. see you later, human.” Mage said, leading the others away and leaving just you and Chain out in the cool night air.

“you ready to get in your sleeping bag?” Chain asked, adjusting his grip on you at last to a more bridal style.

“Hah, yeah. Sounds pretty comfy to me.”

Chain smiled before gently fitting your head into his mouth while you went limp to make the next few moments easier on your host. Chain started swallowing with an easy, steady rhythm and you felt yourself relax in response. This was far from your first time being taken in by one of your skeletal companions so you knew the drill. It was with a happy sigh from Chain that you finished your downward journey and slid into the more open space of his stomach. The magic around you was mildly cool but comfortable, and the softness let you sink in a bit and feel cradled and safe.

Chain’s hand pressed in from outside to steady his newly added weight and you felt the light sway as he began to walk back into the castle. You began to rub at the surrounding walls in a successful attempt to get the monster to purr, and he even started rubbing back at you with your free hand.

He did you the favor of turning his magic transparent for you once you were back in the castle. He knew you preferred being able to see people if conversations were happening, and knowing how these nights went sleep wasn’t on the itinerary just yet despite the bedding being set up and pajamas being on.

Once you host had settled where he’d be sleeping, conversations flowed and jokes were made amongst the group with little difference from before despite your seating arrangements. Eventually, Mason approached and started to lightly pester you through the barrier of magic between you two. Chain seemed more entertained by the banter than bothered, but you hadn’t missed the black puddle that formed on the floor behind Mason.

A tendril emerged, wrapped around Mason’s ribs, and dragged him in. The satisfied look on Mage’s face would have clued anyone in the group in to where the troublemaker had ended up even without seeing him be puddled. Any nonexistent doubts also would have been dashed by Mage’s hand remaining on his belly the rest of the evening.

After a while, sleep was imminent and everyone settled comfortably strewn about Mage’s room. Mage and his internal guest were of course veiled on Mage’s four poster bed while everyone else was on various cots and cushions. Even without the luxury of a king sized mattress you felt exceedingly comfortable.

“doin ok in there?” Chain asked quietly.

“Oh, peachy on my end. How ‘bout you?” You kneaded at the wall the way you knew he liked.

He purred at your attentions, rubbing back as best he could from outside. “just wondering if this nightmare cure will do you any good, but i’m feeling pretty peachy too.”

“I will say, pretty hard to feel vulnerable in here. I’ll let you know come morning.”

“good. night, y/n.”

“Goodnight, big guy.”

You both settled in, and it felt like Chain falling asleep took mere seconds. You smiled fondly at the soft sounds of his slowed breathing and his body working around you.

As you drifted off, you couldn’t help but wonder if the chasing game would be played again at some point.

...

Maybe next week you could watch the sequel to tonight’s movie.

#extreme cuddling #safe vore #soft vore #undertail vore

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sternbilder · 4 years ago

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that holst post from earlier awakened the slumbering basic orchestra bitch in me and now i’m wild about classical music again all of a sudden for one (1) night only, i’m going through my old classical playlist and here are some unsolicited opinions?? recommendations?? top 10 piece rankings?? from yours truly, most of which i have played personally

10. rossini, barber of seville overture - SPEAKING OF BASIC let’s get this one out of the way, literally everyone in the universe knows this piece but it’s just so goddamn catchy and also fun to play?? sometimes it just gets stuck in my head at random times for no reason but i do not care it is welcome to live rent-free in my brain always

9. bizet, intermission from l’arlesienne suite no. 2 - ok this one is a slower piece and i never see anyone talk about it ever but imo?? highly underrated with a gorgeous, well-developed melody from beginning to end not to mention an INCREDIBLY satisfying build-up & payoff and ok maybe the ending is a little dragged out but that climax makes me cry real human tears pls give it a chance?? it kind of reminds me of a soliloquy in a musical where the main character like. breaks down and spills their entire heart out at the audience and it’s so dramatique™ and good

8. von suppé, poet and peasant overture - the violin part in this is SUPER fun but that’s not important compared to the fact that that cello solo is the reason i lowkey have a crush on every single cellist tbh,

7. dvořák, largo from the new world symphony - this is probably the most Basic Opinion on this list but idc i love this melody to death, even all the dumb corny choir boy editions of it, a+, top 10 songs to die to if i’m gonna b real

6. bruch, finale from violin concerto no. 1 - i just ADORE how the violin solo in this piece manages to balance being playful and light with being colorful and interesting, it def makes me wish i was good enough to be a soloist LMAO?? also this lush middle section (which kind of reminds me of the tchaik romeo & juliet a little bit??) makes me want to die, it’s so beautiful

5. dvořák AGAIN, slavonic dances op. 46 - everybody loves the brahms hungarian dances yes but my favorite “collection of folksy fun orchestra tunes” is DEFINITELY the slavonic dances, really all of them but ESPECIALLY no. 7 bc it starts off sounding like it should be accompanied with an animated montage of a dopey little cartoon knight or something plodding along, fantasia style, but then it swells into this GORGEOUS sweeping middle section for just a few bars then back to cute cartoon nonsense for the rest of the piece?? i don’t think i actually ever played no. 7 myself now that i think about it but i love it anyway. also no. 8 bc i love how FUCKING dramatic it is

4. rimsky-korsakov, capriccio espagnol - i got to play this for a summer camp once and again recently with my company orchestra, it’s so fun?? it’s so light and festive with great solos and great melodies and with all its short sections it’s both SO listenable but also v cohesive, i’m a huge fan

3. márquez, danzón no 2 - i think this is a pretty modern piece actually but i’ve also played this multiple times at this point and love it a lot, it has a lot of really great solo bits (like this sexy little trumpet solo) and it just makes me want to dance, i love watching dudamel conduct this bc he looks exactly the way i feel the entire time

2. shostakovich, allegro non troppo from symphony no. 5 - listen i know for sure this has some deep symbolic or ironic political meaning about something something living under an oppressive, propaganda-and-censorship-controlled state or whatever but it just. fucking rules. my favorite part is that eerie little part with the high violins near the middle which i’m SURE i fucked up when i played it back when i was a wee high schooler just kiddding it’s actually this OTHER part with the soaring violins but anyway. my favorite performance is the bernstein one bc it’s the only one i can find that’s as fast or aggressive as i remember it being

1. beethoven, egmont overture - i’ve always thought that if you threw a slow punchy drum loop over the beginning of this you’d get some epic trailer bgm tbh?? idk maybe a controversial opinion but this is my favorite beethoven symphonic work bc the entire piece is a BANGER that’s not only fun as hell but also incredibly listenable all the way through, and also the ending fucking slaps!! anyway not to be lowkey sacrilegious but here’s a space jam remix of the ending part which i love but my fellow orchestra members did not appreciate so now i am sharing it all with you all instead,

honorable mentions:

holst, jupiter from the planets - this honestly deserves to be on the list, i just didn’t want to talk about it AGAIN bc i already started ranting in the tags a little bit but really this is self-explanatory, the i vow to thee section is one of the most beautiful pieces of music i’ve ever had the pleasure of playing or listening to and that’s THAT

saint-saëns, bacchanale from samson and delilah - danse macabre is also fun and carnival of the animals is ok but bacchanale is the saint-saëns piece that makes me go absolutely feral. it may be a go-to “we need something to spice up this concert program to make it not sound just Totally old and bland and white” but man. what an absolute party of a piece to play

mussorgsky, the great gate of kiev from pictures at an exhibition - i really love grandiose, epic pieces like this but this one in particular holds a special place in my heart bc (i think) this was the finale for my last high school orchestra concert which, while not the most rigorous group, was definitely the one with the fondest memories for me 😭i’m not gonna link it but i found a youtube clip of that performance and man. i miss.....this part through the end brings goosebumps to my skin and a tear to my eye aaaAAAA IT’S SO GOOD

#/#//#///#////#/////#cam thoughts #this got. so long #but sometimes u feel like having a one night stand w an old interest again and you just. gotta braindump..

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blkmxrvel · 5 years ago

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Haven’t Forgotten My Way Home (16) - [CONVERTED]

Pairing: Kara Zor-El x Female!Reader

Summary: In the D/s society of National City, men and women abandoned by their Dom/mes or otherwise deemed unfit for life “outside” end up at the Mount Overland House for Orphaned Submissives. It is here that Kara Zor-El finds Y/N Hastings, broken and fearful from mistreatment at the hands of her former Dom. Can Kara coax Y/N back into the world that once so terrified her, and show her the true meaning of care and submission?

Warnings: Domestic Violence (Flashbacks, Mentions and Descriptions), Misogyny, Domination/Submission.

“Come here.”

She shook her head. “Please, Sir, I don’t want to.”

Her eyes were fixed on what he held in his hand. The end of it glowed white hot, casting an eerie shine on his smiling face. Feral.

His smile left in an instant. “I said, come here. You’re my bitch, you do what I say.” He waved the rod. “And this will make it permanent.”

She scrambled backwards, scarcely able to do so with her wrists bound to her ankles. She was nearly hogtied, helpless, and there was nowhere to go except further back into the wall that she pressed up against. She wished with all her might that it would open up and swallow her.

The wall didn’t open up, but her mouth did. “No.”

Time stood still. The earth froze and so did he, so did she, locked in the staring of disbelief and anger. He advanced towards her.

“You stupid slut.” Her head rocked sideways with the force of the slap, then back as he sent another. “You will never, ever say no to me again.”

His hand to her throat held her against the wall as his other hand brought the rod closer. She felt its heat touch her skin like a kiss from the devil himself.

Y/N screamed.

“What do you think you might like for dinner?”

She shrugged. “Just whatever.”

From the doorway of the kitchen, Miss Kara turned to look at her. “Are you all right, Y/N? You seem rather tense.”

“I’m fine.”

The nightmare had woken her up at 4 a.m. The morning before that, it had been 2 a.m. And before that, three. And each time, Y/N hadn’t been able to get back to sleep.She’d talked to her therapist about them before, but no amount of deep breathing exercises, no warm milk or bath, no calming music had been able to stop them. Although the calming music might have been a problem; she’d asked Miss Kara for some cds, and maybe going to sleep to Seventy Six Trombones wasn’t helping.

The nightly phone calls and texts from Miss Kara, though, those did help. After every nightmare, when she’d lay in her bed at Nia’s unable to sleep, Y/N would grab her phone and read the texts with a small smile on her face. Full of smiles, good cheer, and little stars, Miss Kara’s messages were comforting, and Y/N would soon find herself curled on her side with the phone held close to her. It wasn’t Miss Kara’s hand in hers, like that first night, but it was something.

But she was tired. She sat on the couch in Miss Kara’s house, aimlessly flipping through the TV channels, trying to settle on something, and she couldn’t. Her eyes burned, her hands shook as she held the remote, and her mind was full of the images from her past. Images that weren’t forgotten, but had mercifully been pushed back in favor of Alex and Maggie, Theo and Nia, soft pillows with warm blankets tucked around her and Miss Kara’s lips on hers.

They’d kissed more since their “first date” a few days ago; shy, awkward brushes of lips against lips, Y/N never having known what a gentle kiss felt like, and Miss Kara afraid to cross already tenuous boundaries. It frustrated her even as it made her feel safe; there were things going on in Y/N’s mind and heart (and her body, if she was being honest) every time she kissed Miss Kara that confused her. But Miss Kara always had the power to bring her back to herself with just a touch of her hand on Y/N’s cheek. With a smile.

A smile that now seemed strained as she came back from the kitchen and sat next to Y/N on the couch. She glanced out the window, at the rain that fell hard and heavy against the glass. “It’s a day for comfort food,” she announced. “Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, what do you think of that?”

“Like I said, just whatever.”

If she’d glanced over, Y/N would have seen a twitch in Miss Kara’s face as her jaw tightened, but she didn’t tear her eyes away from the television as she finally paused on cartoons. She’d always liked them when she was little, and the fact that James had liked some of them too, and she’d get to catch a glimpse of them every now and then, was one thing to be grateful for.

The only thing.

Yesterday, Y/N’s therapist had warned her against getting “too far inside her own head.” “It’s good that you’re thinking,” Miss Grant had said, “Good that you’re starting to work through things. But remember to put aside past Y/N sometimes and just be Y/N.” She’d tried to drive home the point by making Y/N write a list of things she liked, now that she was on her own and could discover for herself. Y/N had come up with five things. Miss Kara. Miss Kara’s cooking. Miss Kara’s house. Reading books with Miss Kara. Seeing Maggie and Alex with Miss Kara.

Cat had looked at the list, and then brought out another blank piece of paper. “Now write things you like that don’t include Miss Kara.” Y/N had glared at her, but the message was loud and clear.

So was Nia’s message about the grocery store, when yesterday Y/N had found herself standing at the door of one, staring in at the seemingly endless aisles of things she didn’t know. Her first instinct was to turn around and get back in the taxi, because it was too much; she had no idea where to get started. Her heart thumped wildly and her breath came hard and fast as she’d walked through the sliding doors.

She’d come home with a pack of bacon, a box of Lucky Charms cereal, and a bone to give to Theo the next day. Nia had hugged her, beaming and effusive with her congratulations. Miss Kara had chuckled on the phone, telling her that Theo was going to get far too spoiled. And Y/N had felt awkwardly proud, and more than a little scared.

“What would you do if you let go of all the pain he’s caused you, all of the memories, and just gave in to the happiness?” Cat had asked her.

Y/N didn’t have an answer.

“If there’s something else you’d rather have, Y/N, you can tell me. I assure you I won’t be offended if you reject my culinary offering.”

Y/N couldn’t help it; she rolled her eyes. She loved Miss Kara’s voice more than anything, and she couldn’t wait for the time when maybe, maybe, Miss Kara might sing for her. She’d heard little snatches of it in the last week, Kara humming in the kitchen or singing softly to herself as she did paperwork for the department. And her voice was… magical. It was as if everything stopped for her when Miss Kara spoke, or when she heard those soft little tunes sung absently around a pen jammed in her mouth.

But Y/N was tired and Miss Kara sometimes used a lot of words to say, well, not much of anything.

“I said it was fine, Miss Kara.”

“And it’s clearly not,” Miss Kara said, and this time her lyrical voice had an edge to it. Y/N tensed with a little shiver running up her spine. “You’re clearly not fine, and I’m just trying to make sure you choose what you want.”

“Well, I don’t want to choose,” Y/N snapped before she could stop herself. “Maybe I just want you to fix something and not force me to make up my own mind.”

There was silence, and out of the corner of her eye Y/N could see Miss Kara pinch the bridge of her nose. She heard a breath of frustration being let out, and finally, Miss Kara said quietly, “Y/N, sweetheart, I know you’ve been having a rough week but I really don’t think taking it out on me is the solution, for either of us.”

“Then do something about it.”

“Excuse me?”

“I said, do something about it. Punish me.”

What was she doing? Y/N asked herself. This was too much, she’d pushed too hard. Images began to flash through her mind again. Herself, bent over. A belt, lashing across her bottom and her thighs. A rough hand in her hair, holding her in position as the belt was relentless in its cuts. Only when she lifted her head, when she forced back against the hand holding her to look, it wasn’t James behind her. It was Miss Kara. Y/N felt herself begin to shake; she wrapped her arms around herself.

She turned on the couch to face Miss Kara, who was staring at her with her mouth slightly dropped open. Y/N steeled herself, not sure if she should wait for harsh and angry words to come tumbling out that same mouth, or if Miss Kara was going to drag Y/N over her lap.

“Absolutely not.”

Y/N blinked. “What?”

Miss Kara stood up and then sat back down, shaking her head and running a hand through her hair. “I am not going to punish you.”

“So you’d just let your submissive speak to you that way?”

Miss Kara looked at Y/N, and the expression on her face made Y/N swallow hard. “You can be sure,” she said evenly, “That if my submissive were to speak to me with the manner in which you’ve been speaking to me today, they would learn a swift lesson about why it’s unacceptable.”

“Well, then—“

“What would you have me do, Y/N? Get out a paddle?” Y/N froze; she stared wide-eyed at Kara. “Do you want me to drape you over the back of this couch and whip you? Put you in the corner? Humiliate you? Because if that’s what you’re hoping for, if that’s what prompted this behavior—“

“It’s not!” She felt suddenly frantic; this wasn’t what she’d intended at all, and now Miss Kara was acting as if Y/N had manipulated her. But she’d thought it was just a simple request… “I wouldn’t do that to you, Miss Kara. I’m just… you said you wouldn’t let your submissive talk to you that way.”

“You’re not my submissive.”

“Yes, I’m aware of that,” Y/N bit out, her hands clenching into fists and digging into her thighs. “You keep reminding me of it at every point.”

She saw Miss Kara close her eyes and reopen them, before she reached out and gently untangled Y/N’s hands, holding them in hers. “Sweetheart,” she said, and the tears sprang to Y/N’s eyes at the softness of the word, at the care and the small touch of disappointment in it.

She’d made Miss Kara disappointed in her. And that was worse than any blow, any mark. Miss Kara had been so good to her, and Y/N had been a complete brat, just because she was tired, just because she was cranky.

“Y/N, I know that this dynamic is strange for you. It’s strange for me too, it’s very hard for me to… well, not be dominant with you.”

Y/N tilted her head and looked at Miss Kara; she imagined it looked a lot like Theo, when he was confused. “It is?”

“It is,” Miss Kara nodded. “But sweetheart, you’ve been through some of the most horrific experiences a person should never have to go through. You’re still learning about yourself, about what you like and what you want. I want you to see what life is like when you can have your own choices.”

Y/N let out what sounded like a growl and got to her feet, beginning to pace around the floor. “Everyone keeps saying that. ‘Make your own choices, Y/N.’ ‘Do what you want, Y/N, not what someone tells you to do.’ ‘A good Dominant would never be like him, Y/N.’” She whirled around to face Kara again, her fists once again clenched.

“How do I know what a good Dominant is if no one will dominate me?”

“Y/N—“

“No!” The word spilled out of her with more force than Y/N had ever felt, except for that night months ago. She began to shake again, but she tensed her muscles and held her ground. She took a deep breath… and deflated immediately. The tears began to course down her cheeks.

“Everyone keeps telling me what a good Dominant is. What a good Dominant will say, what a good Dominant will do… and then they tell me – you tell me, I can’t have one. I have to choose, everyone says. You, Nia, Alex and Maggie, Miss Grant. I have to choose what I want. But to do that I have to ignore who I am.”

Miss Kara was silent, staring up at her, and for a split second Y/N was confused. Why wasn’t she saying anything? Y/N was stood there, the words tumbling out of her in a rush and all Miss Kara was doing was watching her.

… listening.

No one had ever really listened to Y/N before, except for maybe her grandfather. And that had seemed so long ago. Her parents hadn’t, James certainly never had. But now, here was Miss Kara, looking at her and quietly waiting… It hit Y/N like cold water, and then it was as if she’d never be able to give voice to all of the thoughts coursing around in her head.

“I’m not your submissive, Miss Kara, I understand that, I do. And I-I would never manipulate you into dominating me, I’m not like that but I am submissive. And… and nobody seems to remember that.”

Miss Kara shook her head. “It’s not that we don’t remember, Y/N, it’s just that you’ve had your choices taken away for so long—“

“But what if that is my choice?” Y/N protested. “What if at the end of… all this,” She gestured around Miss Kara’s house. “What if at the end of my time at Nia’s, after all my therapy, maybe when I move into my own place and-and I don’t know, get a job, what if I still want to be submissive? What if my choice is to be dominated, to be punished when I’m bad—“

“Hold on,” Miss Kara held out her hand, palm up. “I’m going to stop you there for a moment. I know that he said horrible things to you, but let me say this now: no matter what behavior you exhibit, you are not bad. Your choices might sometimes be unfortunate, but you are not bad.”

Y/N wasn’t sure she believed that. How many times had she heard James say those words to her, while he was beating her?

Bad girl.

Bad slut.

Stupid, bad bitch.

Every single day. Every possible moment. His words were like a mantra of negativity, a list of everything that was wrong with her. Never once had he said “good girl” to her. The first time anyone had said it to her was when Miss Kara had given her a bath. And even though Y/N had had to ask for it, Miss Kara had said it so many times since then, for no reason at all other than she actually believed Y/N was a good girl…

“Y/N, come sit down, please.” Kara patted next to her on the couch.

Y/N hesitated, and then sat. “It’s all gone,” she whispered. “All of it. I-I mean I don’t hurt anymore, the bruises are gone and even the scars are fading thanks to that cream you got me but… so’s everything else.” She turned to Kara, and smiled a little when Kara lifted her hands and brushed Y/N’s tears away with her thumbs.

“Everything I know is gone. I don’t even have a home of my own, Miss Kara. And I don’t have anyone to… to help me do what’s right, to teach me and guide me. I-I know no one wants me to be hurt again but how am I supposed to know what a good Dominant is like if no one will be that for me? How am I supposed to choose between being submissive and… not living that way anymore, if I don’t know what it’s like to be submissive to someone who’s good? Someone like you?”

“It’s too much,” Y/N confessed. “Choose what I want to wear, choose what I want to have for dinner, where I want to go, what I want to do, what I want to think, what I want to say. I-it’s easy for everyone else, I guess, maybe it’s just stupid—“

“You are not stupid, and I don’t want you to say that again.”

Y/N smiled a little. “I don’t have any control, Miss Kara. And I want it. I need it. I-it’s all gone,” she said again. “My rules, what’s expected of me, and maybe I do need to learn to make choices but what if it’s my choice to be… to be little? To be taken care of, to be taught, to be controlled? I need… I need to feel safe. I need someone to guide me. I need someone to dominate me.” She turned to look at Kara. “I need it to be you. Please.”

Miss Kara leaned over and kissed Y/N gently.

“No.”

“Miss Kara—“

“No.” Miss Kara got up and stood in front of Y/N, looking down at her. She felt herself tense, and Miss Kara smiled sadly.

“You look scared,” she said. “You look scared, and it’s just me; I would hope you’d know that I’d never hurt you. But I’m also a Dominant, and thatis what scares you.” Miss Kara shook her head. “I know that all of this is very frightening to you and unknown, but you’re doing so well, Y/N. You’re adjusting, you’re learning, and I am so proud of you.”

Y/N blushed and ducked her head. She was beginning to realize just how much she loved it, how much she craved to see Miss Kara smiling at her with those sparkling brown eyes, telling her proud she was of her. And Miss Kara was always so beautiful, whether she was dressed up in her work clothes or as she was now, in a simple pair of sleep pants and a tank top. This was the thing that was warring inside Y/N the most: she wanted to be like those birds outside, free to go wherever she pleased, whenever she pleased.

But then there was Miss Kara, with her soft smile and her laugh, the gentle way she ran her hand through Y/N’s hair just now even as Y/N’s heart was breaking. And Y/N wanted nothing more than to be on her knees for this woman, arms wrapped around Miss Kara’s stomach in adoration, doing whatever she could to please Miss Kara, to make her happy, to hear those few words that meant everything.

You’re such a good girl, Y/N. My good girl.

“You’re learning, and pretty soon it’s not going to be so scary and you’re going to love it. You’re going to discover so many things, about life and about yourself. And if you decide you want to be submissive, then that’s okay. But right now, you’re not ready.”

“When will I ever be ready?” Y/N asked bitterly. “Everyone else seems to know I’m not ready, should I wait for them to make the decision for me?”

“And that’s exactly what I mean,” Miss Kara said. “You want the authority, but you’re still struggling against it. You want the punishment, but the idea of me taking you over my knee or pulling you over the arm of this couch and disciplining you until you cry scares you. The very idea of a Dominant scares you, Y/N. And until it doesn’t, we can’t. We just can’t, sweetheart.”

“How can I stop being scared if you don’t give me a reason not to be?”

Miss Kara sighed, her hand still lightly tangling in Y/N’s hair, fingernails absently scratching at Y/N’s scalp like she’d done that day when giving her a bath. “It’s quite possible I’m not the person for you, Y/N. It’s entirely possible that somewhere down the road you will find the perfect Dominant for you, the one who is everything you need and more.”

“Neither one of us know until we try.”

“And I could get in trouble!” Y/N winced when Kara snapped, and Miss Kara moved to kiss her quickly. “There are rules in the department against this sort of thing, Y/N,” Miss Kara explained. “I am already on very thin ice maintaining a friendship with you while you are still in recovery; and now we’re dating?”

Y/N knew what Miss Kara was saying was seriously, but still she felt her blush deepen at the words. They were dating.

“The department prefers that recovering submissives stay in the company of other subs until their therapy is complete. Just because they don’t want the subs becoming influenced. If the department finds out we’re dating, that’s one thing. If I started dominating you and the department found out, Y/N, I don’t want to think about what could happen.”

“They’d hurt you?” Y/N said, her voice high and alarmed.

Miss Kara hugged her. “You see, that’s always your first instinct, is that you or someone will be hurt. No, sweetheart, they couldn’t hurt me, but I could lose my job. And I need it.”

“You wouldn’t need it if you’d go to New York and sing like you want to.”

Miss Kara’s eyes flashed. “We are not talking about this right now; in fact I’ll thank you not to bring that up again.”

She had told Y/N, late one night on the phone, again about how her father had gotten ill and how she had put off going to school in New York. Y/N had caught the wistfulness in Miss Kara’s voice, had wondered what was holding her back now. Miss Kara had only said that she had work in Lima to do. “Maybe someday,” she’d said, and quickly changed the subject.

“Why not?” Y/N countered. “Afraid that I’ll start talking about you not being ready? You keep saying that I’m not ready because I’m scared, well, you’re scared to. I don’t see why we can’t be scared together. Who knows, I might not be the only one who learns about herself.”

“We are done with this segment of the conversation,” Miss Kara said. “And I do believe that this entire conversation needs to be closed. I am not going to dominate you, Y/N. I’m sorry, but that’s final.”

She didn’t know what to say, then. The tears had stopped but were on the edge of falling again, and Y/N stared wordlessly at the television, at the cartoon cat constantly being foiled by the mouse. She wondered which one she was in this game called her life: the cat or the mouse. She looked up when Miss Kara’s voice found her again.

“What do you say we have those sandwiches now?”

“I think I should go.”

Miss Kara stopped and turned, her face falling. “O-oh,” she said, sounding shaky. “If that’s what you want to do, of course.”

It wasn’t what she wanted to do. What she wanted was for Miss Kara to tell her not to leave, to tell her to sit down and have her sandwich and stop being ridiculous. She wanted Miss Kara to put her in the corner, or pull up her baby doll dress and spank her for being such a brat earlier. She could handle the pain, if it was Miss Kara. She wanted Miss Kara to pull her into her lap and rock her as she cried, to tell her that she’d been brave, she’d taken her punishment well, and that she was a good girl.

But there would be none of that.

Y/N stood up. “I-I’m just going to go back to Nia’s and read.”

Miss Kara nodded slowly, and Y/N’s heart sank when she saw a tear streak down her cheek. “Okay, sw- Y/N.” Y/N winced, and the pain only got worse at what she said next. “You’ll call me later?”

Miss Kara. The Dominant. The sweet, caring, gentle, perfect person. Asking if Y/N would call her. Asking, when all she wanted was to be told.

“Maybe tomorrow, Kara.”

There was a hitch of breath, a stifled sob, and Kara nodded again. “Right, that’s... that’s… I’ll just call the taxi.” She did so quickly, and then came back to Y/N. “Oh, here.” She picked up Y/N’s coat from where it lay on the arm of the couch. “It’s still raining; you need to put this on.”

The tears were falling again as Y/N allowed Kara to put the coat on her; Kara’s hands were gentle, fastening each button and adjusting the coat’s collar against Y/N’s neck. She hesitated, then tipped herself up to kiss Y/N’s forehead. Kara managed a smile, though it wavered, and she squeezed Y/N’s arm.

“C-can’t have you catching cold out there. I… I need you to be warm.”

“Thank you…”

They stood there saying nothing, standing together awkwardly with Kara’s hand on Y/N’s arm, until a car horn outside signaled the arrival of the taxi.

“A-are we going to be all right?” Y/N asked, looking toward the door then back at Kara.

“I don’t know,” Kara said. “I hope so… but I don’t know.”

In the taxi, the driver looked at Y/N in the rearview mirror. “You okay kid?”

“Just take me home,” Y/N sniffled, not able to wipe her eyes fast enough as the tears fell. “I’m fine.”

#kara danvers x reader #kara danvers #supergirl #supergirl x reader #kara zor el #kara zor el x reader #madi converts

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kgbunny101 · 4 years ago

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I have got! A huge list of questions. I will say I am sorry, but I am not because I am feral for Hecate.

10, 23, 24, 30, 33, 34, 35, 40, 60, 78, 84, 85, 91. ily

You should not be sorry. I love questions. Anything for a mutual.

10. What is their favorite food/kind of food?

Besides Ambrosia, fresh fruits and bread. She tries to make the fruit in to Jam herself. It reminds her of her time on the surface.

23. Do they collect anything?

KEYS. I collect keys, therefore Hecate collects keys. Are they useful? no. Are they pretty? yes. Am I projecting again? absolutely.

24. Do they prefer either hot or cold weather more?

Neither. Both are uncomfortable. But if she had to pick, the cold.

30. Sunrise or sunset?

Sunset. It is when her realm starts to show itself in its true beauty. When she lived on the surface, it also marked the time when she could see Artemis.

33. Do they own any objects of significant personal importance?

She has a few things: an old golden laurel that no longer fits, a strip of green ribbon she used to tie her hair with, her first knife now too small for her hands, dried herbs packed between pieces of parchment, old jewelry Nyx gave her.

34. Least favorite food?

She is not very found of olives. Olives are for the hounds.

35. Least favorite color?

A burnt orange or sickly green

40. Do they have any scars?

She has a few on her hands, received from everyday activities. But whenever a god dies, they emerge from the styx without any. It has been awhile since she’s died though.

60. What is something that they’re sure to laugh at?

Misfortune on those she dislikes. Or any of Zag’s post game deaths. He ran into a wall that was painted to look like a door. HE GOT LOONEYTUNED. He stepped on a rake and bashed himself in the head. THATS SOME TOM AND JERRY SHIT RIGHT THERE. She and Hypnos will laugh at them together on their off time

78. How do they act when they’re particularly happy?

She’ll hum softly to herself or bob her head to a tune only she can hear. If she’s moving she’ll drift a little higher and not use proper floating etiquette. (keep your feet below the waist/ don’t float sideways/ please remain upright).

84. What are some physical features that they find attractive on people?

Hands and voices.

85. What kind of personalities do they find attractive?

Honesty. She never much cared for all of the half-truths and secrets running around. / Happy people, those with joy in their hearts. Just because your stuck in a dour place does not mean you have to surround yourself with dour people.

91. What is their sense of humor like?

She enjoys Hypnos’s sarcastic quips. She likes listening to the funny stories Aconite has heard and will repeat. She likes Meg’s dry one liners. Her humor doesn’t come from one place but rather a dozen smaller ones. Hecate herself is not funny though. She cannot make people laugh.

ILY2

#Hecate #hades oc #Hades Supergiant

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cardest · 4 years ago

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Boston, Salem & MA playlist

Ever been to Boston and Salem in Massachusetts? I hope to someday soon. Salem, Bruins, Cape Cod, Edgar Allen Poe, the history! Many great bands hail from Boston and Massachusetts, like Dinosuar Jr, Aerosmith and Guerilla Toss...ugh! So many bands. Converge, Isis, Cave-In, Pixies, Magic Circle....Not to mention the songs about Salem, MA and the witch trials, Edgar Allen Poe, Emily Dickinson and even Lizzy Bordon (in RI section). The history of this region is fascinating. The Pilgrims and the Boston Tea Party etc. Many songs about this period of time. Hope you enjoy this playlist. Also I threw in a little Rhode Island and New Hampshire too.

Remember people, live life deliciously!

001 Times Of Grace - Strength In Numbers 002 Boston - Peace of Mind 003 Dinosaur Jr - Freak Scene 004 Pixies - trompe le monde 005 Cheers TV show - Opening 006 Aerosmith - Beyond Beautiful 007 The Byrds - Boston 008 Dave Loggins - Please Come To Boston 009 The Sensational Alex Harvey Band - Boston Tea Party 010 Buffalo Tom - Crutch 011 Escuela Grind - No Worship 012 Made Out Of Babies - Grimace (The Ruiner) 013 dropkick murphys -for boston 014 Lemonheads - Hate Your Friends 015 The Cars - Drive 016 Morphine - Honey White 017 The Breeders - Cannonball 018 Isis - Ghost Key 019 Better Than Ezra - Normal Town 020 Killswitch Engage - Starting Over 021 Converge - Sadness Comes Home 022 Grief - Come To Grief 023 Aerosmith - Draw The Line 024 Dinosaur Jr. - Watch the Corners 025 Friend & Lover - Boston is a lovely town 026 Magic Circle - Departed Souls 027 All Pigs Must Die - Hungry Wolf, Easy Prey 028 Shadows Fall - The Light That Blinds 029 The Bee Gees- 'Massachusetts' 030 Belly - Feed The Tree 031 Boston - Rock and Roll Band 032 The Pixies - Planet Of Sound 033 Amanda Palmer & The Grand Theft Orchestra - Massachusetts Avenue 034 Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch - Good Vibrations 035 The Rosebuds - Back To Boston 036 Cave In - Inspire 037 Pearl Jam - Brain of J. 038 Tool - Sweat 039 Adam Ant - Bright Lights Black Leather 040 Tristania - My Lost Lenore 041 Nevermore - This Godless Endeavor 042 The Kingston Trio - MTA 043 Ylvis - Massachusetts 044 Captain Beefheart - 25th Century Quaker 045 Elder - Deadweight 046 Morne - Coming Of Winter 047 Lou Reed - I Wanna Be Black 048 Lyres - Boston 049 Rotting Christ - The Raven 050 Killswitch Engage- Rose Of Sharyn 051 Macabre - Boston Strangler Albert de Salvo 052 Dar Williams - Flinty Kind of Woman 053 STEELY DAN, The Boston Rag 054 The Beach Boys - Do You Like Worms 055 The Freeze-This is Boston not LA 056 Art Gruthie - Massachusetts 057 THE CARS _ Good Times Roll 058 Richard Band - Re-Animator OST Prologue - Main Title 059 Gang Green - Skate To Hell 060 Guerilla Toss - Come Up With Me 061 Karyn Crisis' Gospel of the Witches -Salem's Wounds 062 Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Agorapocalypse now 063 the MODERN LOVERS _Roadrunner_ 1972 064 Edgar Allen Poe - Black Cat 065 Rammstein - Stein um Stein 066 The Necromancers - Salem Girl Part I 067 Orange Goblin - Sons Of Salem 068 Danny Elfman - [Sleepy Hollow OST] Main Titles 069 King Diamond - Abigail 070 The Cult - The Witch 071 Witch - Eye 072 Cavalera Conspiracy - The Crucible 073 Queens Of The Stone Age - Burn The Witch 074 Salem - Witch Burning 075 Danny Elfman - [Sleepy Hollow OST] Into The Woods (The Witch) 076 Clutch - Sucker for the Witch 077 Bewitched TV show - Theme 078 John Zorn - Witchfinder 079 Blood Ceremony - The Witch's Dance 080 Billy Talent - The dead can't Testify 081 The Misfits - Witch Hunt 082 Rob Zombie - Lords Of Salem 083 Acid Witch - Witchfynder Finder 084 King Diamond - Salem 085 The Cramps Big Black Witchcraft Rock 086 Mount Salem - Lucid 087 Sleepy Hollow TV SHow - Main Theme 088 Demons & Wizards - Beneath These Waves 089 Hexvessel - Woman of Salem 090 Cradle of Filth - Her Ghost in the Fog 091 Metal Church - Of Unsound mind 092 Lich King - Ed-209 093 Disrupt - Religion is a Fraud 094 The Witch OST - Witch's Coven 095 Fuming Mouth - Out of the Shadows 096 Abigail Williams - Acolytes 097 Clutch - Worm Drink 098 1476 - A Circle Of Hope & Despair 099 Sleepy Hollow (2014) Soundtrack 100 Pixies - All Over the World 101 Sonic Youth - New Hampshire 102 Meliah Rage - Absolute Power 103 Albert Goes West - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds 104 Symphony X - King of Terrors 105 Alan Vega - American Dreamer 106 Van Der Graaf Generator - Pilgrims 107 ZZ Top - I Thank You 108 Walt Disney's Johnny Tremain, _The Sons of Liberty 109 Paul Simon - American Tune (LP version) 110 SAXON - Sailing to America 111 Old Man Gloom - Skullstorm 112 Mastodon - I Am Ahab 113 Patti Page - Old Cape Cod 114 Ty Seagull - Archangel Thunderbird 115 Morphine - Buena 116 Manticora - On a Sea of Grass 117 Young Widows - Old Skin 118 Hurriganes - Slippin And Slidin 119 Glacier - O World! I Remain No Longer Here. 120 Marissa Nadler - Blue Vapor 121 SEA - Penumbra 122 Vital Remains - Infidel 123 Throwing Muses - Bright Yellow Gun 124 Ike and Tina Topless Turner - Sweet Rhode Island Red 125 Flotsam and Jetsam - She Took an Axe 126 Lizzy Borden - Council for the Cauldron 127 Rob Noyes - Further off 128 The Real Kids - All Kindsa Girls 129 Immunerable Forms - Puritys Demand 130 Blonde Redhead - Inside You 131 Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Agorapocalypse Now 132 Wear Your Wounds - Adrift In You 133 Howlin' Rain - Phantom In The Valley 134 J Mascis - Every Morning 135 Killswitch Engage - The Signal Fire (feat. Howard Jones) 136 Refuse Resist - _Still in Massachusetts 137 Church of Misery - Boston Strangler 138 City On A Hill TV show - Opening Theme 139 Pixies - U-Mass 140 Warhorse - Amber Vial 141 Zozobra - The Cruelest Cut 142 REVOCATION - Scattering The Flock 143 Metal Church - Of unsound mind 144 Seven Spires - Drowner Of Worlds 145 Boston Legal - TV show theme song 146 Converge - Trespasses 147 Cave In - Anchor 148 Give up the Ghost - Love American 149 Dinosaur Jr. - Tiny 150 Boston Bruins theme song - Lets Go Bruins 151 Buffalo Tom - Staples 152 Trap Them - [Crown Feral #02] Hellionaires 153 Knights Of Bostonia - State Radio 154 Juliana Hatfield 3 - Feelin Massachusetts 155 The Red Chord - Hymns And Crippled Anthems 156 CLUTCH - Emily Dickinson 157 New Kids On The Block - Step By Step 158 MELIAH RAGE - Decline of rule 159 Belly - Gepetto 160 AEROSMITH - Get A Grip 666 Denis Leary - ASSHOLE Also, check out the awesome L.A Witch Halloween Quarantine playlist at: https://floodmagazine.com/82347/l-a-witch-quarantine-helloween-playlist/?fbclid=IwAR3QRJEIMt57z-X_Zrfx5Ae7rjLkLdpOnjes6iv4yczqxAvLcG3OdfCulWw

#boston playlist #boston bands #music from boston #salem witches #lizzy borden #salem witch trials #bands from Massachussets #Old Man Gloom #dinosaur jr #Pixies #edgar allan poe #edgar allan poe music

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taste-in-music · 5 years ago

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Strap in folks, we’re going to Cape God.

It’s here, folks! Allie X is keeping us well fed with new content. Ever since stumbling across the “Paper Love” video on YouTube a few years ago, I’ve been in love with Ms. X’s moody, eccentric brand of electropop. The singles for this album have really sucked me in and I haven’t done one of these longer reactions to an album in months, (I think the last official one was to Charli?) Listen to album along with me if you want, and let’s get right to it.

Fresh Laundry

We’re starting off with a single I see.

I love the spare, bass-heavy production on this track. The way the bright synth riffs and swarming backing vocals cut in and out builds such a creepy, tense atmosphere.

God I love it when she does those little shouts of “hey!” in songs. It’s one of the reasons I love “Good” off of Collxtion I so much.

Devil I Know

Not gonna lie, I’m not too hot on this track. Not that it’s bad, it’s just kind of bland. “You are the devil I know / Better than a devil I don’t” just isn’t a strong enough lyric for me to fully get behind.

But dang if she doesn’t sell it. Her vocals are great on this track.

Regulars

This was probably my favorite single leading up to the album. The groove is so tight, it balances a propulsive quality with a chillness at the same time.

In short, it’s a bop to slit throats to.

THE BASS LINE ON THIS SONG IS SO GOOOOD. I’m seeing her in concert in a few months and I can’t wait to hear this bass line rattle my ribcage live and in person.

The way the instrumental builds up with the glittering keys and snare under Allie’s vocal gymnastics? Art.

Sarah Come Home

We’re getting our first non-single! I’m so excited.

The chorus comes out of nowhere. It did not have to go that hard. And yet it did.

Whistles! Record cracks! Flutes! Fluttery backing vocals! I’m into it. It feels like I’m in a haunted pound cake commercial from the 1950s.

This song is giving me flashbacks to the bubbly feel of Collxtion I a bit. It’s a switch-up from the first three songs in the best kind of way. It’s such an upbeat bop.

Rings a Bell

We’ve got another single here.

The several crackling percussive elements in the mix, (especially the clave,) are amazing. Matched with the low bells, glistening chimes, and churning bass, it all comes together for a creeping, cryptic tune that never stops marching forward.

This song slaps with headphones on. The whispers on the bridge are heaven.

June Gloom

This song charges right out of the gate. It knocked me clean off my feet with the first note.

There are so many things going on in this song. There might be a saxophone? I’m not sure.

I have no clue how I feel about this song. It might be a mess, but I also might love it. I’ll have to give it several more listens in order to collect my thoughts.

Love Me Wrong ft. Troye Sivan

I always found this song a little dull, but it does its job as a ballad. The build in dynamics with the distorted synths help pick up the pace.

If there’s anything to praise about this song, it’s the performances. Allie and Troye sound lovely here, and they sound lovely together.

Allie’s range really gets to shine. She’s hitting the high notes. She’s hitting the low notes. She’s hitting me right in the heart.

Super Duper Party People

Let’s cut to the chase. Allie X is doing slam poetry about “a lady in a hat with a Siamese cat and a really, really bouncy butt” over a disco loop.

Fun fact: Allie X actually had to change recording studios midway through making this album because the beat to this song was so fire the studio burned down.

This song is like if you asked Brooke Candy to write “Here” by Alessia Cara. It’s so absurd that it loops back to being great.

Susie Save Your Love ft. Mitski

There is no song on this album I am more excited for than this one. There is no collaboration this year I am more excited for than this one.

THE BASS. God help me.

MITSKI IS HERE. I am ascending. I wasn’t sure how the two would sound together because their bodies of work are so different, but Mitski’s cooing, more grounded vibe works very nicely in contrast with Allie’s brighter and otherwordly tones.

IDK how I feel about that distorted guitar. Everything else is really good. This didn’t disappoint!

Life of the Party

Okay, pick up the pace! I’m getting some 60s vibes from this.

I was grooving along with the beat but oh my god these lyrics... they’re so troubling and dark. I’ve always said that putting sad lyrics over dance music makes them all the sadder, and well, this song proves that sentiment true.

That slurred, autotuned bridge hits hard. Wow.

Jesus, this song turned out to be an emotional gut punch that I did not expect.

Madame X

We’re getting a ballad moment here.

Those sparkly synth arpeggios in the mix. It’s straight-up ear candy. The audio equivalent of Sprite.

So she’s singing to a “Madame X...” Is she talking to her stage persona? To herself? Someone else? Is it a clue into a new era? Lots to think about with the lyrics here.

Learning in Public

Oh this is a total driving jam. It’s just the right balance of relaxing and energetic that keeps you chill and alert at the same time. I can practically see the open highway in front of me.

Not only that, but it’s all about being insecure in social settings. Same Allie. Same.

I love how the first lyric is “I want to be near fresh laundry / It’s been too many years of not folding“ and the last one is “Everything I thought I wanted / I changed my mind and I forgot it all.” Okay recurring themes! I love it when albums do that.

This might be one of my new favorite tracks.

My Thoughts Summarized: If there’s any one thing this album is, it’s cohesive. It takes you to a place and keeps you there, even as it explores different sonic textures and emotions. I loved how the solid mix of uptempo and downtempo tracks this album had, with both bops and ballads. While the production can feel a bit crowded at times, it also has moments where its lush, energetic, and memorable. Overall, this album marks a clear evolution for Allie X, but it’s also so viscerally hers. I can’t imagine anyone else making it.

God I love the visuals for this album. The whole couture private school meets feral goth forest nymph aesthetic drives me bananas, I’m obsessed. Major props to photographer Brendon Burton, who she worked with for the promo photos during this album’s roll out.

What did you think of Cape God? Agree or disagree? Comment or reblog with your thoughts, I’m excited to hear what you think.

#music #album review #allie x #cape god #taste in music

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rwbyconversations · 6 years ago

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RWBY Volume 6 Vocal Songs review

Well, we finally have it people- the Volume 6 soundtrack is out. And hopefully this time Spotify mains won’t feel left in the corner like the Ladybug fandom does during the inter-RWBY shipping discussions.

I’ll say overall I adored the songs this year and there weren’t any duds- in fact this is probably my new overall favorite lyric soundtrack since Volume 4, which was just overflowing with bangers. This year was similarly jam-packed, with every new song being the usual outstanding fare that RWBY has become known for.

... and then there’s the remixes which continue to be absolutely awful and will never go onto my playlists but this is the token mention of the remixes. Why do they keep doing them, the only good one’s been Sacrifice.

But regardless, this is my review of all the vocal songs in Volume 6. Enjoy! (forward warning I’m not a music critic so don’t expect anything too deep here)

All GIFs were made by @edelblume, someone actually proficient in talking musical theory.

1) Rising

Rising was already one of my favorite openings to date for RWBY, if for no other reason than the superb opening animation itself. But fortunately, the song itself more than met my expectations. Featuring an incredibly strong riff from Jeff from Alex along with a surprising synth appearance in places, Rising kicks off the soundtrack with gusto, a defiant acknowledgement that their road is faced with a permeating darkness, but it won’t last, and much as nature simply knows how to be, they were born with the knowledge to do the right thing and stand against evil. For they are paragons, and death can’t hold them down for long. After years of ranking Time To Say Goodbye as my favorite opening of the show, Rising supplants it and takes its new spot on the throne.

2) Miracle

Miracle was a surprise- for the first time since Volume 3 and It’s My Turn, we got a new song in the premiere alongside the opening itself, capping off RWBY, Oscar and Qrow’s desperate struggle to buy the Argus Limited time to escape with its civilian cargo. It’s a much bleaker song than Rising, coming right as the heroes are about to have their senses of morality tested by the truths that Ozpin had been hiding from them for years. Miracle laments how they’re running out of time and that their own triumphs don’t matter- a reckoning is near and they have to answer the question of whether or not the path they’ve been walking was the right one, or just one made of lies. As the heroes scramble for a miracle, they’re dismayed to find that none’s in sight, but as they realize they’re fighting on the sight of light and all that’s good in the world, they’re determined to stand and fight until their miracle arrives.

Miracle can be seen as a proper theme song for the first half of Volume 6, as it more deeply examines the themes of the volume, especially the team’s inner conflict. The final verse especially can be seen as almost an abridging of the Brunswick arc, as the team reach their lowest points and despair at how nothing they do is worth anything before they take a breather and decide that even if the end time are coming, they’ll face it head on and give it a bloody nose before it consumes everything, still hoping for that miracle to arrive- just like a young silver eyed girl arrived in Brunswick to cleanse its tainted halls of apathy.

Miracle was a surprising song back in October last year, and now that it’s out in full it’s honestly my favorite song lyrically on the track. It’s a perfect assessment of the situation the heroes wind up in this volume, capping off with their blunt refusal to let the end take them quietly.

3) Lionized

I know they spell it Lionize but I don’t care, they say Lionized in the song for Christ’s sake!

I’ve been waiting for this song for nearly an entire year since RTX and the short that won me back onto RWBY, and fortunately Lionized didn’t disappoint. Adam finally got his solo song to bow out his character after sharing From Shadows with Blake, and much like his character short, it offers a compelling, if truncated, account of his rise and fall into darkness.

While Amity Arena’s bio had already revealed Adam’s early life to be horrific- born into slavery in an SDC dust mine, dreaming of looking up at the sky with his own two eyes one day- Lionized also makes no point of hiding the details, having the lyrics open with Adam reflecting on how he was “Insulted and reviled, Enthralled by human overlords since I was a child” (which gives off serious vibes of Adam being a sex abuse victim as a child to me and Jesus Christ). That punishment broke Adam and drove him mad in his desire to make humanity pay for what it had done to him and the hundreds of thousands of Faunus in those mines.

Jeff kills it in this song- it’s easily my new favorite solo from him as we get a deep dive into what drove Adam past the brink of madness, as his revenge dovetails into building him up and making him more of a figurehead than an actual hero- “Watch them fall as I am glorified,” “You’ll see, I’m their hero/I’m here, I’m your savior, I’ll be lionized!” And the guitars are something else, a constantly churning ripping and shredding beat that combines with Jeff’s voice sounds like a feral animal about to attack. And if there’s one way to get me hype for a villain in anime, grab some guitars and start shredding.

While Miracle might be my favorite song of the OST on a lyrical level, Lionized just knows how to get me hyped and this’ll probably be the one that gets the most replays on my playlist. It captures the old spirit of RWBY’s original music and delivers with a rip-roaring track that matches its narrators madness with shredding gusto.

4) Big Metal Shoe

I had no expectations for Big Metal Shoe. In fact I figured this would be the weak link of the soundtrack. Surely what seemed to just be a diss track at a villain I wasn’t especially fond of wouldn’t make for a good song, right?

And then we got Caffeine 2.0 and... it was actually kinda good. Again, I’m a simple man- throw some guitars at me and I’ll smile and nod like a kid watching fireworks. This sound wound up being a fun little darkhorse for the soundtrack, alongside a seeming self-imposed challenge by Williams and Abraham to make as many fairytale references in two and 3/4 minutes as physically possible.

There is one downside though- this song’s actually incomprehensible. I don’t understand half of it. Jeff and Casey have this problem a lot of the time where it’s hard to understand them but this is just peak “Are you even speaking English anymore?” And then Lamar shows up for the Token Lamar Rap Verse that every RWBY OST includes and then it gets even worse.

While I wasn’t expecting much from Big Metal Shoe, it still made for a fun few minutes. Now I can’t wait for Flynt’s lyric video so I understand most of the song!

5) Forever Fall

RWBY’s track record with ballads can be generously described as “hit or miss.” For every Cold or Home, we have Wings or All That Matters. Forever Fall has a crucial advantage over those weaker examples in that I actually like most of the characters featured in the song. Being about Pyrrha encouraging Jaune from beyond the veil while Jaune struggles to press on, much as she did in the Boundless Jaune Amity Arena bio, it’s a somber tune, and easily one of the better attempts Jeff and Casey have made at a slower, more quiet song. I’m not the biggest fan of how RWBY has handled Pyrrha’s death since Volume 3, sometimes it feels a little like they keep JNR around just to more easily have access to angst fuel for it, but Forever Fall definitely helped set the bitter stage for the statue scene, which does still stand as one of the better scenes of Volume 6 (even if it does lose some of its weight once you realize Pyrrha probably wouldn’t have actually liked the statue due to her hatred of being put on a pedestal). Casey knocks it out of the park with her voice and the piano plays a beat on many a fan’s heart.

I’m especially fond of the theory that this isn’t so much a Pyrrha singing to Jaune song as it’s a song that can symbolise both of them at the same time. Credit to the crew for that.

6) One Thing

Neo’s far from my favorite character in RWBY, and I’ve made no secret of how I think she’s dreadfully overhyped outside of being a good luck charm for well animated fights. Luckily for her and fans then, her charm status made it into Maya unscathed, and Neo was protected by the universal rule of soundtracks.

The villain songs are always really fucking good.

Casey finally lives out her dream of voicing Neo in One Thing, a bitter revenge fantasy where Neo makes no reservations about how much she’ll love putting down anyone and everyone responsible for Roman’s death. She talks (heh) of how she had nothing before Roman came- not a voice, not a home, maybe not even a name if I’m hearing that one line right. “Then a brand new flame brought a brand new name.”

Add in a badass as all hell chorus and Neo jumped up a few places in my personal RWBY polls thanks to the presentation of her musical debut alone, to say nothing of her fantasies about killing Cinder (can relate). One Thing shows just how effective a great song can be, setting the scene for a fantastic fight scene, a solid return for a fandom-beloved character and then even making someone who considered her the Boba Fett of RWBY start to like her. I’m eager to learn more of Neo’s past before she met Roman, whenever that day comes.

(btw is it bad if I kinda ship Neo and Roman now?)

7) Nevermore

I don’t have a lot to add that hasn’t been said since the finale aired- it’s a pretty great song and a fantastic closer for the volume, I hope Atlas means we finally stop getting Blake or Yang-focused credit songs because this was the third in a row and it’s getting tiring, the disconnect between the writers and actors calling Adam “the worst” while the songs and bios paint a far more complex picture is a bit of an odd disconnect that I hope doesn’t repeat if they ever remember that Cinder’s an abuser too.

8) Armed and Ready Acoustic

Nice song, shame it’s gonna get ruined by all the fucking Beehaw/Yorse jokes. You weren’t funny in February, you’re not funny now. You’re not even worth a comment about beating a dead horse. Not sure I like the acoustic going full country but whatever. Wake me up when I’m The One gets the acoustic treatment.

9) Indomitable

Indomitable was the song I was probably the most hyped for in the V6 OST alongside or even surpassing Lionized. Ruby’s Silver Eyes scene was a strong contender for the best scene of the season and single-handedly made up for what otherwise could have been a Breach-level anticlimax of a finale, and part of what made it work was Indomitable, the short but powerful song that played as Ruby gave Bubbles The Leviathan both ocular barrels. Ruby finally getting a song after five straight albums was ambrosia to my soul, after years of having to make due with “Maybe Ruby’s song is meant to be the OP?” as Weiss, Blake and Yang got song after song after song, oftentimes getting multiple songs in a single year (Hi Yang. Stop hogging the jukebox. Please.). Finally, I thought, she’d get a track, and one that appeared to be about her accepting her role as the light standing against the darkness, all capped off with a beautiful quiet tribute to Monty in the form of his old blog quotes about the human spirit.

So I must admit, when I listened to Indomitable proper, I was... disappointed on the first listen. It’s still a lovely song, but it wasn’t what I hoped and wanted it to be and it took a little while to appreciate it in spite of that.

Indomitable is a tribute song to Monty, a la Cold from Volume 3. But while Cold had a double meaning that made it work in and out of universe (being a song from CRWBY mourning Monty that could also reflect on Jaune mourning Pyrrha), Indomitable is far less connected to RWBY in-universe unless Ruby had a dream offscreen where she met a tired looking guy who made worlds based off his ketchup stains then woke up and made a Christian Rock song out of it.

Rather sadly for me at least, this also hurts the original Indomitable scene in question as well. It doesn’t truly fit the original scene now, as much as it did when we thought the song was about Ruby recognizing her spirit. It was a great way to cap off a volume that was overall great for Ruby. As she finally got to take center stage as protagonist in her own show, we finally got a new song about her standing unyielding against the darkness. What was a great character moment for Ruby has now rather sadly been hurt by the song. Not terribly, I still love the climax of Volume 6. But now the song just feels a touch out of place.

I know some people have already been rather critical of anyone who didn’t like the song because it wasn’t what they wanted (I’ve seen a fair few people express disappointment that the song wasn’t the Ruby-focused song the chorus and placement in the show led us to believe) and that tired old “subverting expectations” argument came up. To which I must reply that “What did you expect me to take from a song showing up during Ruby’s most powerful moment, that the song was actually about Port?” While what we got was still a powerful song that makes for an interesting trilogy of songs of RWBY dealing with Monty’s death in Cold, Let’s Just Live and Indomitable, I think Ruby’s fanbase especially are very fairly allowed to be disappointed that they were stripped of the chance to finally get her first focus song in half a decade. Instead we get another Ruby song where she’s not even the real focus (much like Blake’s trailers get hijacked by her supporting cast, Ruby’s songs get hijacked by anyone within a mile of the recording booth),

I still liked Indomitable, and it does become a stellar song after the first chorus.. It still has Ruby’s overall attitude and the lyrics do still allow one to reflect on Ruby and her growth over Volumes 1-3 and 6. It’s a lovely, touching and very emotional tribute to Monty and a rousing anthem to celebrate his legacy (wait does this mean Indomitable breaks the Monty Rule? ;) ) and had it been a simple bonus track that we only learned about when the OST dropped a la BMBLB or Dream Come True it would have been a lot better in my opinion. We still got a lovely song and in the heat of the moment, it worked really well for Ruby. But at this point, I really just want a new inarguable Ruby song above all else, and this probably should have been kept as a bonus song instead of being used in-show. Still good, but I’m just a bitter bitch and wanted something else

Conclusion and ranking

Volume 6′s vocal tracks were a near-perfect selection this year. After Volume 5′s tracklist was more comparatively disappointing (Smile and This Time are the only ones I’d really go back to at this point), the V6 tracklist was far more impressive and a near constant streak of home runs. While Indomitable wasn’t what I hoped and wanted it to be, it was still a touching tribute to Monty and proof that his soul lives on in RWBY. If Jeff, Alex and Casey are as on fire next year as they were this year, the wait for the Volume 7 OST will be even more painful. Round of applause for the music team this year, they did a stellar job and I wish them all the best for Volume 7.

1) Miracle 2) Lionized 3 One Thing 4) Rising 5) Forever Fall 6) Nevermore 7) Indomitable 8) Acoustic Armed and Ready 9) Big Metal Shoe 10) The music that played during Merc and Em’s scene in Lost. 10) The godawful Triumph and Path to Isolation remixes. Please. Leave the songs alone, I hate Volume 5 but even it didn’t deserve that torture.

Thank you for reading.

#rwby #rwby volume 6 #rwby volume 6 soundtrack #rwby volume 6 ost #rising #miracle #lionized #forever fall #one thing #indomitable #big metal shoe #nevermore #armed and ready #ruby rose #neopolitan #rwby analysis #rwby review

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passionfruitys · 7 years ago

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strike a chord. pairing. terudai chapters. 1/? rating. m summary. terushima yuuji is the lead singer of rock band FERAL that debuted a year ago. he's known as a playboy, a wild child, unpredictable and electric. no one can tie him down and his only love is the music he makes with his bandmates. he doesn't see himself ever tying himself down to anything or anyone else. then comes in sawamura daichi, a normal college student who doesn't care about the entertainment industry or any flair or fanfare terushima has to offer. at first, terushima's interested because daichi's so uninterested. but soon, terushima finds that daichi and all his normalcy are more than just a game for him to play with until he gets bored.but is he in love? no absolutely not. never. think again!

Someone was in his bed.

A female someone, if the smell of perfume and the taste of curly hair jammed in his mouth was any indication to go by. His eyes cracked open slowly, sleep and eye gunk weighing them down. Beside him was someone he didn’t recognize. A normal reaction would be to freak out. For Terushima Yuuji, waking up in a bed with a stranger was a normal Wednesday morning routine.

“Go home,” he croaked.

The girl beside him stirred, yawned, and opened her eyes. “Go home ,” he pressed.

She scowled. The smeared lipstick made her less intimidating. “What do you mean go home? You’re the one who brought me here! Begged me, no less.”

“Sounds fake,” he yawned, turning onto his side so his back was now facing towards her. She sputtered, called him some not so pretty names , then stormed out his room. Hopefully with all her things in tow. If not he’d have his manager mail them to her.

Well, probably not since he didn’t know her name or where she lived or what her favorite color was. But it was the thought that counted.

He sighed, now able to properly sprawl out on his bed. Maybe he’d crawl out of bed to bring his guitar in for a snuggle. Mornings were definitely meant for solo missions where he could just exist and sink into the mattress and bury under pillows. He was drifting back to sleep when his door opened and someone sat on his bed.

“Morning, princess.”

“Die, Bobata.”

“Rude!” Bobata chirped, crossing his legs and leaning his weight against Tersuhima’s side. Terushima frowned and reached blindly for his friend to push him off but to no avail. “I come in here, minimizing your damage by the way, and wake up you yet I’m treated with such hostility? Being your best friend has no perks!”

“What damage did you minimize?”

“Youko-chan. The model you rudely kicked out of bed after nicely asking her to get into it last night.”

“That was her name,” he vaguely remembered meeting her last night. In the band’s usual night hangout. He remembered her voice in his ears and his hand on her thigh and then her tongue in his mouth and after that it was all darkness.

Again, literally a typical wednesday night for him.

Realizing that sleep was no longer an option, Terushima pushed himself up into a sitting position. He blinked sleep from his eyes, yawning. His hair was all over the place, bleach blond kicked up towards the ceiling in all sorts of directions like lightning bolts. He glanced at Bobata who was texting on his phone. “You going for her next?”

“Nah,” Bobata clucked his tongue, “Not my type. I like a challenge.”

“Are you saying I can only get them easy?” he shot back, but there’s no real malice in his tone. Not like his next yawn did anything to help make him sound more aggressive.

“I would never allude to such a thing,” his tone was airy but the shit-eating grin on his face said otherwise. Terushima flipped him off and rolled out of bed. He scanned his room and sighed. His pants were at the door and his shirt was on a chair. At least Kyou--Youko-chan had gotten her stuff before storming out. He scratched at his stomach as he headed for the shower. He smelt like sex and felt like booze replaced the blood in his veins.

“We have our meeting in 10 minutes, by the way!”

“Cool so I’m showing up late, thanks for letting them know!” Terushima hollered before heading into the shower. He was pretty sure he heard Bobata yell fuck you, a perfect harmony to the chaotic laughter that bubbled from his throat in response.

As promised, Terushima arrived to their meeting 30 minutes later. But it’s fine because he no longer felt like ass and he was stepping out . Hair styled, earrings polished, leather jacket looked just beat up enough to be vintage but with the price tag to show it was definitely modern and expensive as anything. He strolled into their meeting room with his hands in his pockets and a grin on his lips.

“Hello friends! What’s popping?”

“You’re late ,” his manager, Kagami, cut no corners with him. Kagami was the band’s manager, and then some. Sometimes team dad, sometimes team mom , and Terushima’s well... guardian? Savior? He didn’t know what title appropriately fit Kagami and no words could really describe it. Kagami was gruff, tall and well built--could fill out suits with ease. He always had his hair styled and cut short, curling around his ears. And his lips were generally slotted in a frown. Mostly from stress, but for the most part because Kagami and happiness were never synonymous in any context.

Which was why Terushima enjoyed fucking with him the most. “Ah, am I? Technically time doesn’t really exist so if we’re following that logic I’m really on time. Because, you know, it’s a social construct.”

“He’s not wrong,” Bobata chimed from his chair, now playing with a DS that oddly looked like--

“Oi! Is that mine?” Terushima lunged across the table and reached for his DS. Bobata moved just in time, pushing his rolling chair back with a cackle and a spin. “Bastard how could you take my shit like that!”

“You left me unsupervised. I’m not responsible for your missing property because of your lack of caring. Also I beat the gym leader for you. You’re welcome.”

“I wanted to beat the gym leader!”

“You’re the only one in our group who hasn’t beaten her yet,” Takeharu hummed, drumming his fingers on top of the table. “She’s the easiest one in the game, dude!”

“Isn’t it because, and I quote, she’s too cute to fight~ I want to make her my wife not another step on my way to victory ahhh~ ” Arata also commented, chin in hands and pencil perched on top his pursed lips.

Rintaro yawned, “Isn’t it just because he sucks at Pokemon?”

“You shut your damn--!” Terushima got cut off by Kagami’s sharp whistle that brought the entire group back to focus. Kagami lowered his hands and clasped them together in front of him. “You could have just said shut up. That works like, every time.”

“Act like animals, be treated like animals.” was Kagami’s simple response.

“That was deep--” came Bobata from the side.

“Anyways,” Kagami continued, “You’re late. You know the rules and no excuses. Sit down so we can finish this meeting and get into the studio.”

“Kaaaaay!” Terushima sat down in his chair but immediately rolled over so he was sitting next to Kagami. He rested his chin on the man’s shoulders and hummed. “Lay it on us, Kags!”

Kagami exhaled slowly and started running off their itinerary for the day. FERAL had a studio recording session today in the afternoon. After that a reporter from Rokkyou was scheduled to get an inside scoop on a typical session in the studio with the band, plus some hints about their next album. Following that would be a photoshoot for the cover and then solo activities.

“And Yuuji,” Kagami flipped to the next page, “You’ll be coming with me to meet the dean of the university we’ll be performing at next week.”

“Why me!”

“Because you’re the leader of FERAL. The face of the group. And the only one free at that time to come meet with me.” Kagami replied evenly. “If I could take someone else, I would.”

“Ouch, that’s rough. You could have said because I was your favorite.”

“And lie?” Terushima gasped, snickers and whistles erupted around the room. He pouted and Kagami grinned. “Favoritism isn’t a tenant I practice.”

“Sounds fake ,” Terushima heard Arata say. He opened his mouth to make a very witty and well thought out remark when Kagami cut in.

“Don’t start,” he warned Terushima. Then he turned to the rest of the group. “Today’s studio session is all out. We hit the ground running the minute we’re in there. Our album release is scheduled next week and I want everyone sounding like they’re pros. ” he made eye contact with every band member before locking eyes with Terushima, who had sat back now that conversation had turned serious. “You guys were an experiment, and you’ve passed your first trial. We can’t afford any mistakes on our second run. Go it?”

Everyone nodded. Terushima double nodded. His legs bounced up and down with unbridled excitement. Going to the studio, just the idea of it alone, could always boil his blood like no other. “Alright bet,” he jumped out of his chair. “What are we sitting around for? Let’s get started.”

Slipping the strap of his guitar over his shoulder would never stop feeling so natural. A kiss could never compare to the pure electricity that ran down Terushima’s spine from his lips touching the metal of the mic. He strummed his guitar, adjusting the nobs at the end as he tuned. The rest of his band mates got into position. Bobata on the second guitar, his right hand man. Arata on piano. Takeharu on drums. And Rintaro on bass. Together they made the band FERAL the powerhouse, rock group of 2018 that they were.

They were, in every essence of the word, just as wild as their band name described. The music they produced always jostled social norms, boundaries. Their first album, JUNGLE WARS was an eclectic mashup of different genres. The men trying out find out what genre they liked best only to decide they wanted everything. It was, as Kagami had described it, an experiment. The band’s existence was a whim by the president who wanted to try something totally . . . unpredictable.

And unpredictable they were. FERAL quickly gained notoriety for their outbursts. No TV host or interviewer could guess what they would say or do or think next. The president said that sort of electric movement, haphazard and dangerous, was just what the music world was missing. Terushima didn’t really get it. He assumed the entertainment industry was used to people who followed social conventions to the letter. Yet, when he gazed around the studio at the guys who had quickly become family in the past months since their debut, all he could see were people who loved making music more than anything else in the world. Fuck everything else.

They were fun, a true and unadulterated riot to be around. Being with them, his band, was like waking up to a different adventure everyday. Sure, they definitely gave their manager a chronic headache but they were living their best lives while doing so.

“Alright boys,” Kagami’s voice crackled over the speakers. “We’re going to do the first half of the album today due to our schedule. So, go ahead.” he leaned back, arms crossed, and suddenly the ball was in their court.

Terushima grinned. “Okay. Let’s do the first song. I wanna try a new opening I thought of last night.”

“Before or after you hooked up with Touko-chan,” Takeharu asked.

“Youko-chan,” Bobata corrected.

Rintaro scrunched up his face, “Seriously dude we just changed the opening two days ago!”

“Before!” Terushima responded. “Also, I know. But I woke up yesterday and hated it so I decided to change it before we went out. I was gonna tell you guys then I...forgot.”

“Cool, cool, love being kept in the roller coaster loop that’s your mind,” Bobata strummed a few chords on his guitar. “So you gonna play it or what?”

“Yup,” Terushima took his stance by the microphone and gave Kagami the thumbs up that they were going to start. Kagami pressed a button and the light above the glass window separating them from outside the booth switched from offline to recording.

The thing about FERAL was that they never played the same track twice. So rather than having a track play and them sing over or play over it, they would hit the recording button and capture whatever magic bloomed from the chaos.

For another band, such a tactic was risky as hell with the potential to end in disaster. Never for FERAL and not if Terushima Yuuij had anything to say about it.

He was excited, itching to show everyone what he’d come up with. The idea had struck him last night after taking a shot of tequila right out of the gates. The same burning, explosive, throat-scarring sting of the shot reverberated with the kind of sound he wanted for their first song. Their opening song, the very first thing their fans would hear once they started the album. He wanted that same feeling--a burning that hit you right to your bones and sat with you for the rest of the night.

He steadied himself. His grin was pure electricity.

The first chord he played was powerful. Loud and sharp , the note rattled everyone to their bones. Then, Terushima swiftly went into several chords, his fingers flying up and down the neck of his guitar. Explosive and reverberating, the sound only lasted a minute but when he was done his fingers were tingling and his lips--they were pulled in the most satisfying , crazed grin. He turned his head and looked back at his bandmates who were all mirroring his grin.

“Whatever the hell that was I’m here for it,” Kagami’s voice crackled once more. “Guys? Think you can piggyback off that?”

“Say no more,” Bobata replied. He turned to Terushima, “You’re a genius sometimes, dude.”

“Thanks, I know.”

After that, the session went on pretty much the same way. The band worked together in chaotic harmony. Someone would change a line, a verse, would hate a phrase of lyrics one minute and completely rewrite a bridge or chorus. By the time the reporter from Rokkyou came through the boys had utterly changed their first sound for their upcoming album.

“Now, FERAL’s known for their pretty unorthodox method of songwriting,” the interviewer, Shou, talked with his hands a lot. His smile was wide, stretched across his face, so much so that Terushima felt his mouth hurting in sympathy. The band had left the studio to sit outside on the benches, taking a much needed water break as they tackled the second portion of their schedule. “Can you tell us a little more about that? I’m sure your fans are dying to get inside that head of yours.”

“Pretty sure that’s not all they’re dying to get inside of,” Terushima muttered low enough that Rintaro snorted. Bobata, who by default was the most mature out of the five took to answering the question.

“Ah, it’s pretty--I don’t even know how to describe it… all over the place? We pretty much creative freedom to do whatever we want and we normally don’t leave the studio until we’re all happy with the sound we’ve made.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Terushima leaned in, arm slung over Bobata’s shoulder. “You see, our albums all have bits and pieces of our own style and ideas. But that’s ‘cause we work so hard to get the right mesh. We could spend hours on a song one day then the next we hate it so we start all over again. But we never end with what we started which I think is pretty cool.”

“How does that even work? If you don’t mind me asking. Surely you guys must worry that you could spend all that time in the studio and end up with nothing?”

The band members exchanged glances. “Nah not really,” Takeharu answered, his tone light. “Our producer wouldn’t let us do what we do if we didn’t get results. We’re a mess, but we’re an orchestrated mess. His words, not mine.”

“We’re also at the mercy of Terushima Yuuji,” Rintaro added with a smirk. “Just the other day the dude walks in saying: GUYS WE’RE CHANGING SONGS 1-5 ON THE ALBUM! Which is like, over half the album and we stayed in there for two days trying to match this dude’s pace.”

“Hey sometimes a tune just doesn’t vibe anymore!” Terushima huffed. The snickers that erupted lightly ruffled him. He frowned and pointed a finger towards Rintaro. “Sides you’re so stuck up with perfection if you don’t get the beat right we have to start all over.”

“It’s called setting the bar .”

“No it’s called being anally retentive.”

“Oh my God he really just said that out loud,” Arata put his face in his hands, slowly shaking his head.

Terushima didn’t care, because now he was engaged in banter with Rintaro with Bobata as the chaotic neutral that neither egged nor stopped them from going at each other’s necks. The reporter could get all this done and publish how much of a highly functioning discord they were. As long as he was able to get the last word in, regardless, he didn't really care. Arata sat in the corner, tired as all hell while Takeharu sneakily captured it all on his phone.

Shou, sadly, was left to navigate himself through the wild that was FERAL .

“AND ANOTHER THING--!”

“Enough, Yuuji.” Kagami’s stern voice cut through their antics. The boys settled down, Terushima even more so sinking into his chair with a pout. Kagami sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I apologize for them. They’re hooligans.”

“Rude,” Bobata said under his breath. Terushima butted him with his elbow. He jumped with a yelp only to be met with Terushima’s childish but oh so satisfied grinned. “ Whipped .”

“Eat my ass,” he whispered in return. He turned to Shou who seemed to have survived their trip in the wild. He was still all smiles and laughter, apparently amused by their display. Good, another positive review for them. Terushima grinned only to feel it falter as Shou asked his next question.

“Alright. So as I’m sure you guys know, you’ve repped quite the name for yourself as being Japan’s resident new bad boys.”

“Oh word?” Terushima’s smirk was lazy. “We wear leather pants one time and suddenly we’re hooligans!”

“I wouldn’t say it was just the pants,” Shou continued, eyebrow raised. “If there’s a party in the city there’s no doubt one or all of you won’t make an appearance. Or cause a scene somewhere . Japan’s hooked on you guys! Saying whatever you want, doing whatever you want. Especially you, Terushima-san.”

Shou’s eyes cut to him and Terushima, relaxed against the couch, raised an eyebrow. “Tabloids love writing about your many exploits, romantically or otherwise. You’ve capitalized yourself on being this wild, playboy who takes no names and all the prisoners.”

“I dunno if I liked how you said that,” Terushima joked, but he didn’t deny it. He was all for strings when they weren’t attached. Tersuhima and commitment were like night and day. Never to touch, never to coexist in the same realm, always to miss each other by running parallel lines. This wasn’t the first time a reporter commented on his exploits, it probably wouldn’t be the last either. So he laughed it off, as he usually did.

He let the world paint him as a playboy. Getting upset every time someone brought it up would be stupid.

Shou didn’t look too perturbed. Asshole. “Sorry, sorry. I can rephrase if you like. What I want to know, if we’re going to be honest, is if you ever see yourself falling in love? Surely you must have met someone in this industry that’s caught your interest for the long run.”

All five of them looked at one another before breaking out into laughter. Terushima laughed the hardest. He clutched his stomach and hollered, tears forming at his eyes. Then they felt ice on their backs and a cough that no doubt came from Kagami. The men gathered their wits, Terushima being the last to come down from his high before answering the question.

“Love? Yeah no, not in this century dude. Unless it’s to the music I’m never getting married. But that’s just me, Arata over there is a huge hopeless romantic. Lemme tell you about this female singer he’s hilariously in love with but she doesn’t even know his name,” it’s so easy to deflect, to move the attention from him and his behavior to someone else. Arata sputtered and Bobata beside him snorted. Though Terushima catches the quick side glance he sends his way. Terushima, of course, ignored it. There was nothing to talk about, and he wasn’t bothered by the question. His life was on display, of course people were going to poke holes.

That’s why he always smiled and waved and gave them what they expected. No need in putting in extra effort to do otherwise.

Terushima kicked his feet up into the dashboard, arms resting behind his head as Kagami drove them to the university FERAL would be performing at next week. He shot a glance at his manager who kept concentrated on the road. Even as Terushima haphazardly changed songs on the radio through his phone every thirty seconds.

“Seriously can’t you drop me off at home? I don’t wanna go!”

“You’re being a child,” Kagami chided, not having any of Terushima’s bullshit today or tomorrow or the day after that.

Terushima frowned (read, pouted). “I’m not! I’m tired! I worked and slaved long hard hours in the studio! Got grilled by a reporter! And now you won’t even treat me to food!”

“We’re getting fed once we get there. You also ate five minutes ago.”

“I’m a growing boy, Kags!”

“You’re twenty.”

“A growing twenty-year old boy!”

Kagami shook his head, chuckling despite himself. Terushima beamed, proud of himself for getting the stoic Kagami to crack even if it was only a little bit. Honestly he was happy to accompany his manager on the trip. He owed Kagami a lot. He dealt with a lot of his bullshit over the years even before his debut. If it weren’t for Kagami he had no idea where he’d be right now. Surely not living in a nice place surrounded by people, fed, warm…

Terushima skipped to the next song.

“Remember my rule?” Kagami asked as they made a right turn. Terushima caught the sign for the university, Sendai University 3km away as they did.

“Uhhhh, no sex before marriage?”

“I’m fairly sure you already broke that but no.”

“Say my prayers before bedtime?”

“Do you get off on being difficult?”

“Yes, incredibly. It’s my kink.” Terushima stuck his tongue out, tongue ring flashes while Kagami’s grip on the wheel tightened. Riling him up would never not be fun. “Sorry about the songs! You know I get bored easily. I can only focus for like, fifteen seconds before the part I like plays and I wanna move on.”

“It’s amazing how your mind works,” there was a pause and then Kagami quickly glanced at Terushima. “How are you feeling?”

There was an undercurrent to his words. Terushima’s mind flashed to the interview and he shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I know what I’m doing and how people like to talk. If it gets us more attention that’s a good thing, yeah?”

“Not at the expense of reducing yourself to…”

“Kagami, seriously. It’s all good. I claim my man whoreness,” he smiled lazily and scrubbed through the song to get to his favorite part. The piano grew louder, the drums softly following suit, and the singer’s voice rising with the crescendo. “Honestly it could be worse. I don’t even wanna know how they’d treat me if I were a girl.”

“All hail the patriarchy,” Kagami’s tone oozed sarcasm. Terushima laughed and changed the song again which caused Kagami to growl and Terushima to laugh even harder.

By the time they pulled into the parking lot Kagami had angrily jammed the off button on his radio and almost confiscated Terushima’s phone. But he was took quick. He unbuckled himself and leapt out of the car, stretching his arms out wide as the spring sun hit him square in the face.

“Wow, nice campus,” Terushima whistled, watching as college students mingled and chatted amongst one another. Terushima was concealed with the stereotypical civilian starter pack: a hoodie, hat, and shades.

Sendai University was large, with white buildings separated by lush green grass with sidewalks running in between. College, a world in the past that Terushima was assaulted with constantly. Now, that time period and the entire prospect seemed like a far off, blurry dream. He never thought he’d end up on a campus. Granted, he’s here for his job but still…

“Our guide is meeting us in the gymnasium.” Kagami adjusted his tie, loosening it around the neck.

“Why the gym?” last time he checked they were performing in an outside venue provided by the college.

“You’ll see,” Terushima was not a fan of such a cryptic message but his curiosity was winning him over. He followed with a grumble as Kagami led him towards the gym. He seemed to know his way around, and Terushima was scratching back in his memory if a conversation ever popped up about Kagami’s university days. He knew being a manager wasn’t his first choice. But the blanks weren’t being filled…

They arrived at the gym and the first thing Terushima heard was the sound of sneakers squeaking against the floor. He immediately flashed back to highschool. To days where his jersey was soaked and his muscles were sore and he stood on a court surrounded by teammates that felt more like family than his own.

He’s grabbed out of his thoughts by the sharp sound of a whistle cutting through the air. Terushima watched as the volleyball players huddled together around someone, probably their captain. He said something that got the men energized before they all broke apart to clean up. Only the captain remained, who was approached by some old guy. The coach maybe? They exchanged words when Kagami called after them.

“Yo, Ukai!” Kagami hollered. Terushima watched as Ukai, some blond dude, turned his head. The minute their eyes met Ukai’s face broke out into a brilliant smile and he hustled over to Kagami for a hug.

“Kagami! It’s been ages, buddy!”

Kagami patted his back. “I know. Work’s been time consuming, but I’m glad we can cross paths like this. Thank you for meeting with us.”

“No man, I should be thanking you.” Ukai pulled back and patted him on the shoulder. “The fact that your band could perform at our school’s music festival is… honestly amazing. The principal hasn’t stopped kissing my ass since! Honestly this year’s Christmas bonus is looking pretty hefty and I have you to thank for that.”

“You two know each other?” Terushima asked, still shaken up from seeing Kagami actually hug someone.

“Ah, right. Introductions are in order. Yuuji this is Ukai Keishin A friend from my university days. He’s the volleyball coach here.”

“That’s me, Kagami and I go way back. When he told me you guys would be performing here I couldn’t resist hitting him up again. Ah,” Ukai turned around, back to the captain who was still in the gym doing a workout. “Daichi! Come over here for a minute.”

Daichi, Terushima figured, was built like a house. Broad shoulders and impressive muscles, especially in his arms. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to the shoulders so as he ran, and his arms moved, Terushima could catch the glimpse of subtle flexing. He was taller than him, that’s for sure, and the way he carried himself as he strode over to them exuded casual confidence.

This man was sure of himself, grounded in whatever concept or idea of his being he held true.

Terushima lowered his shades and whistled, “Oh you’re cute.”

“Yuuji!” Kagami hissed. Daichi blinked and Ukai choked on his laugh. “I’m sorry. He has no filter.”

“Wrong. I have a filter i just don’t use it.”

“Which is a problem .”

Terushima’s grin was lazy as he, without shame, gave Daichi a once over. Daichi remained unphased, matching Terushima’s gaze. Terushima’s grin only increased. Would he break? Would he show discomfort? Or would he go on seemingly unphased by his behavior? The possibilities were endless and Terushima hoped he wouldn’t disappoint.

Daichi, after a beat, simply grinned with his eyes closed. “Oh this is your friend, Ukai-san? A pleasure,” he bowed slightly to Kagami who bowed back in return. When he opened his eyes the gaze he gave Terushima was brutal. Burnt, empty embers that held no amusement in their gaze. It rocked him to his core and he was frozen up until Daichi bowed towards him.

“And you’re Terushima Yuuji?” the way he said his name made ice prickle on Terushima’s skin. As if saying his name bored him, tasted like acid, or was a waste of breath to even utter.

Oh. Well then.

Terushima didn’t bother bowing back, hands in his pocket. “Yup. Lead singer of FERAL and Japan’s resident bad boy hottie at your service.”

“With all due respect I think I’ll stick to calling you Terushima-san.” Dachi’s voice was clipped. Terushima’s lips twitched.

“You can call me whatever you like, babe~” Flirting came as easily as breathing to Terushima and really, he wanted to see Daichi crack, twitch, do something but Daichi was impenetrable. It was like Terushima’s words were going in one ear and out the other.

“Okaay uh, well!” Ukai cut in, clearing his throat. “Daichi like we talked about you’re gonna take Terushima on a quick tour around campus. I’ll catch up with Kagami and we’ll meet back here in an hour to meet with the principal about the concert.”

Terushima wanted to claw out his eyeballs. He’d much rather explore the campus on his own, or with Kagami, rather than Daichi. Sure, teasing him would be fun just to see how many cracks (if at all) he could put into that armor but at the same time the dude seemed like a stick in the mud. No fun and definitely a pain in the ass if and when Terushima got into trouble. However, he knew Kagami wouldn’t let him roam free without some form of leash. And, when he looked back at his manager, Kagami looked pretty pumped to hang out with an old friend.

The things I do for the people I love, he sighed, jamming his hands in his pockets and pushing his shades back up his nose. “Yeah okay. Whatever. Let’s get this show on the road.” Terushima drawled.

Kagami nodded, “Right. Enjoy your tour and don’t give Daichi too much trouble, Yuuji. I’ll see you in an hour.” he turned and Ukai threw an arm over his shoulder as the two fell into comfortable chattering over the past, the present, the future, the whatever it was two old men talked about when they reunited after years apart.

They left Daichi and Terushima in awkward, uncomfortable silence. Terushima looked down at his adidas then back to Daichi. “So, the tour?”

Daichi nodded, it was a tight jerky movement. Man this dude really didn’t like him. Who knew a little flirting was enough to set him on edge? “Right. Can I shower really fast, and then we can go?”

It’s on the tip of Terushima’s pierced tongue to offer assistance. And the voice in his mind that sounded oddly like Kagami told him to hold back but alas, Terushima was a man of no restraint so his flirtation fell easily from his lips. “Sure. Mind if I tag along?”

“Very much so,” Daichi had this way of saying things so politely yet so sharply. Like he’d stab you and smile through it all as you bled out onto the floor. Terushima laughed, watching Daichi turn on his heel and head for the showers.

This tour would either end up being the death of him, the death of Daichi, or the death of them both and honestly? He was kinda looking forward to it.

#haikyuu fanfiction #terudai #hq fanfic #hq fanfiction #my fanfic.

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iliadshq · 5 years ago

Photo

WELCOME TO ILIADS HQ !

We are so, so thankful for all the attention this group has received; we know, we said this a hundred times by now, and we’ll keep saying it every chance we get. The staggering amount of talent, love & attention to detail that went into these apps ? We were absolutely mesmerized. It was a pleasure to read each and every one. Without further ado, here are the applicants we could find a place for at iliadshq right now. Everyone not on this list is encouraged to reapply, both for roles that haven’t been taken up & for the characters we will doubtlessly include very soon in a second batch ! For those who were accepted, please turn in your account within 24 hours.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: We will be contacting applicants shortly about faceclaims, as some of them have to match the ethnicity of the other accepted role(s).

i. mali as ACHILLES

— the way you captured Achilles’ flammable temper, the almost unhinged dynamic he has with Thetis, his readiness to dismiss heroism as fool’s gold if it interferes with Patroclus’ safety.... whoosh, I sure am hurting ! He is disaster in promise, a pile of yearning & power ready to be ignited.

ii. flint as AGAMEMNON

— beautiful, captivating insights into his thinking ! The symmetry, the devious practicality of his thought process, was superbly rendered in your app. I especially liked the blood & gold imagery, and the unequivocal sentence: “He will do anything for his brother, but he won’t share”.

iii. meg as ANDROMACHE

— every storyline you could possibly wring out of andromache’s bio, you have. and we have to say, you did it enticingly, fleshing her character out to such an extent that we were instantly gripped. we cannot wait to see what paths she will take in the future, and this excitement owes entirely to you !

iv. rachel as ARES

— your application perfectly encapsulated what the god of war is: you made him exist out of the battlefield and brought him to every moment of adrenaline and fear, made him come alive and leap out of the page. by the very last line, we were all left kind of shookt by what we just read.

v. gubse as ATHENA

— gubse. wow. can I just say your Athena is absolutely transcendent? in reading your application, we were in awe of your brilliant writing, but also in how spectacularly you crafted Athena's ambition and motivations, clear for all to see - she seeks queendom because Olympus is sick - and she is the cure. i daresay you've made an acolyte out of all of us.

vi. grantaire as BRISEIS

— her passion for the healing arts, the way she carved a place for herself in troy, and would now go as far as defiance for the protection of the citadel she calls home... this is every bit the briseis we hoped to see ! your sources of inspiration were a great completion to the plots we outlined in her skeleton.

vii. tilda as CASSANDRA

— the plot points in your app had us all teetering on our seats, like stunned onlookers before the scene of a carnage — not only perfectly constructed, but devastating. We adored your portrayal of Cassandra, and were very touched at how closely you followed the little hints we left in the app.

viii. JJ as HADES

— it’s hard to strike a balance when portraying the most liminal character, one seated at the very interference between life & death, passion & detachment. we think you did a dazzling job ! in particular, i loved his definition of ‘ loyalty ’, as well as the scorn he has for Olympians, carefully woven through every sentence in your app.

viii. jam as HECTOR

— oh, hector ! i must admit i have a soft spot for the trojan, and your application just underlined what exactly it is i loved about him: his duty to his family, his chivalry, his loyalty and sheer strength of love towards his family; yet you also made sure to draw out the conflicts in him, making for a very compelling—and very human—picture.

ix. taryn as HELEN

— you took the most beautiful woman in the world and made us look beyond what is only skin deep. your helen is fresh, exciting, and a force all by her own; you reminded us that helen, in the very beginning, is first and foremost a child of zeus, and that she is divine in her own right.

x. mal as HERA

— mal, you've done it again. how perfectly you've shown us how Hera has suffered through endless slights, how she has never wavered and bore it at all, never silent but always steadfast. but it is clear through your writing that she does not intend to bear another humiliation, and rightfully so. her throne is being challenged, "it is time the world remember how she earned it."

xi. grantaire as HERMES

— the trickster god arrives in all his glory ! your hermes was cunning and playful, yet so very insidious too. you wrote him like the pied piper of hamelin—and by god, may god have mercy on anybody he has singing to his tune, myself included because i find myself utterly charmed by your interpretation !

xii. tilda as MENELAUS

— i let out a squeal of delight when i read over your plots for menelaus ! there’s nothing more dangerous than a desperate man, and i do fear that your menelaus is clawing at any chance to be recognised—and i’m going to love watching every single second of his pursuit for glory.

xiii. mal as ODYSSEUS

— you've painted an incredibly whole picture of Odysseus, of his cleverness, his foresight, his unwavering pursuit of the truth, but also the spot of softness he possesses for Penelope. you've written the perfect Odysseus, and we can't wait to see what he does next.

xiv. amal as PAN

— we were so happy to be able to give you a skeleton you had muse for & you certainly made us even more glad we did. Pan is feral, sacred, a wild card we desperately want to see unfold. the way you approached their detachment, yet still underlining their reasons for involvement, were absolutely masterful.

xv. winter as PENELOPE

— it is perhaps easy to make penelope a passive character, but i was absolutely chuffed when you took the road less travelled and made her presence keenly felt. there’s a certain sentimentality in the way you wrote penelope, but a certain kind of strength too, and it’s this union that makes penelope so very interesting !

xvi. flint as PENTHESILEA

— we could wax poetic about how you've summarily captured the essence of this child of Ares, 'no pawn of the gods' but also 'having no great love' for mortals either. Her sights are fixed on a far bigger picture beyond petty squabbles and contests (despite participating in one of the latter), and you've truly established her as a neutral force to be reckoned with.

#ihq:admin #ihq:accepted

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