#BANANA BOAT CURSE OH MY GOD | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

woahajimes · 4 years ago

Text

So I have this little headcanon (well,,,, not really a headcanon but more of a nice-to-think-about headcanon because it would never happen but it’s- like the title- nice to think about so im sharing it here) in which they’re all going to the beach in this sorta mini-van that bruce rented. And take in mind that this is the wayne family, but at the same time most people that wear a bat on their chest,,,, so they had to whack some things up.

BUT ANYWAYS, it was Bruce’s dumbass idea to buy a van and call it a road-trip, and honestly? no one was ready. That usually happens with big families, even with one that has most kids over 18. And how everyone was on board with the idea doesn’t matter because this is my headcanon and they are all now squished in a minivan and there are bags in the back and towels in the seats and there’s a cooler on top because it didn’t fit.

and just for reference the van was like SMALL. it was sort of like the school buses but way smaller, so they’re like buses in which there are three seats in front, driver, and then like two others (the middle one doesn’t really count because that’s where you put waterbottles and stuff). There’s a sort of space in the back, where you usually put the backpacks (these are like elementary school buses and every single kid has those backpacks with wheels and it’s a pain in the ass-) and then there is another set of four seats (that’s more like a sofa but no armrest- god please have patience there is literally not a single image on google im trying to be specific- and those are facing the back of the bus (so the backrest (?) is facing the place with the bags).

THEN we have another seat that’s close to this one but facing the opposite way but it’s only THREE seats so there’s a space for the next row of three seats and then there’s the back one that’s four again.

In conclusion, you can fit 18-ish people, driver counted.

and continuing with my story, it’s Bruce driving, Alfred as shotgun, a water-bottle or two in the middle, the bags in their respective places... and then...

disaster.

Babs is the only one sitting in the four-seat closer to the bags, harper is in the three-seat, Dick is there as well.

and then there’s the rest. Steph, Cass, Duke, Jason, Tim, Damian, they’re all screaming in the back and they’re throwing towels around and there’s an “OW! THAT WAS MY HAIR YOU DICKHEAD!” and a “THAT’S MINE!” and so many other things because. the back of the bus, it’s cURSED. And Bruce is just driving with a strained smile because he wants so badly to turn around and throw a waterbottle at each of their heads to get them to shut up (of course, it wouldn’t work because not even god can calm down the back of the bus)

Tim and Jason somehow get into this argument of how tim ‘has no friends’ and Tim shoots back that in fact he DOES, that he’s calling them right this instant. And bruce doesn’t even have a chance to yell at them, because now there’s a speedster and a cloned kryptonian right beside the moving minivan and Bruce is lowkey freaking out because none of them (the ones in the van and the ones out) are wearing their superhero costumes, and then Tim is just with his hands pressed on the window and he’s like practically banging the glass and waving and they can’t hear him but he’s like “HEY! HEY HYE HEY YOU GUYS MADE IT!!!” and then dick is just telling them to cut it out and slow down because you know, identities, and Steph is like HOLY SHIT THEY DID MAKE IT and Damian is just sitting upside down with his legs in the backrest off the seat and Duke is in the same position, making fun of Damian because his feet don’t reach.

Kon and Bart seem to get the hint because they slow down, but not before bart has literally jumped towards the MOVING VAN and vibrated through (i’m like 99% sure he is able to do that so-) and then he literally landed on Tim (tim actually softened his fall, because Tim’s back literally made a ~crack~ sound by hitting somebody’s knee) and stood up real quick and then started waving and laughing at kon, who was now running normal-speed beside the van.

And then bruce went FASTER and kon was like WHAT THE HECK OLD MAN and he can’t use his powers so he’s literally running behind the van and bart is laughing his ass off and then tim is like “BRUCE STOP THE VAN!” and then Bart is already calling cassie and telling her what happened and you can hear cassie laughing from over the phone and then Tim is just yelling at bruce in the background. Bruce eventually DOES stop, and Tim opens the door for him and Kon crawls in and Bart’s still laughing, and he’s practically leaning onto Dick and Harper, and they’re squished together and bart’s just laughing on the phone while Kon sits on the really far end of the opposite seat (practically on the door) so he’s the furthest from babs as possible because he’s actually terrified of her. Tim is just sorta awkward because he now realizes that he was a bit TOO excited to see kon, and then the back of the bus/van is staring at them and like what the hell and then Tim goes “who doesn’t have friends, huh?”, and Jason goes ‘pfft’ and he calls roy but he’s spending time with lian; he calls artemis and she goes, “but wasn’t this a family trip? what do you need me for?”, SO jaosn calls bizarro and then he barely answers the phone when bizarro goes “RED HER SAID NO. BYE” so Jason slumps and it’s quiet for a second when steph goes “is that GUM IN MY HAIR”. And then jason laughs and its chaos all over again. (i might make a ‘things that were heard from the back of the road trip bus post bc i have so many ideas oh my god)

and then they are at the beach, the bus barely stops and there’s a few bags thrown out the window, and people yelling at Kon to open the door, and Kon not being able to work under pressure so tim opens it and everyone’s pushing each other and Steph has an uneven strand of hair, because Damian went to ‘extreme measures’ and cut it so now steph’s hair is uneven and they were going to keep cutting it “to make it even” but then Alfred was like “you’re all going to clean the van afterwards so think carefully” and then nobody did anything and there’s literally a ziploc bag with steph’s strand of hair (damian didn’t even cut to where the gum was, he cut even FURTHER but yes, the gum is in the bag).

As I was saying, they get out of the van, and the bags are out and Bruce has NO IDEA what to do. none. It’s alfred that rents a tent and then Damian’s chasing duke into a random restaurant’s changeroom and showers and then cass is dragging harper that’s dragging steph that’s dragging jason and tim is getting the bags with Kon and bart and bart realizes that he doesn’t have a swimsuit and then he stops walking and Kon seems to realize too and it’s like OH MAN and they can’t run back (because no powers, rule set by bruce when two super-powered bros came in the bus) and They’ recarrying the bags to this tent (do you guys know what im talking about? i feel like we’re imagining completely different things- it’s this but much more people and there’s a bunch of people selling stuff like sunglasses and doign hair, piercings, tattoos even - for the tattoos thing it’s just promo for an actual shop they don’t tattoo you in the actual beach - ) and It’s literally Kon, tim and bart carrying the bags (which they CAN carry between the three, it’s not like they packed up half the manor) and then a minute later or so Steph is sprinting towards Tim and she’s yelling something Tim can’t understand and then Steph points at her bag (that tim’s carrying) and she screams something like “SAND! HOT!” and then she’s like high-knee-ing/sprinting even faster and Cass is just walking barefoot in the sand, super calm, but she’s got Harper on her back. Damian and Duke are racing towards the shadow (because the sand is cooler there), and next thing you know Jason’s aready in the tent with a coconut.

And if you haven’t thougth about how the Batfam would be in the beach then let me tell you, you don’t have enough spare time because i know for a FAT FACT that:

It was Jason that insisted on Bruce buying sand toys (a whole bag, i swear)

Damian tried coconut water, didn’t like it all that much (altho he loves the inside- idk what it’s called but it’s edible i swear)

Bruce put on an excessive amount of sunscreen

Duke has swimming trunks with the robin logo just to piss damian off (also Damian has matching ones but with the batman one)

Steph, Cass and Harper rented a banana boat (here’s a picture) and they dragged Jason and Tim along, just to toss them off in the end

Jason 1000% got stung by a jellyfish

Bruce bought like seven friendship bracelets from this guy that made them because they looked deadass cool

They played beach volleyball and let me tell you Damian can throw a really mean overhand serve (actually, i don’t think you THROW a serve, but like,,, serve one-)

dick got buried in the sand, courtesy of Jason

bart was pissy because he couldn’t go in the water, so he and Kon sprinted with normal speed (they both had water-proof anklets that sucked their powers, so it was REALLY a no-powers vacation, courtesy of Bruce, again.)

the only ones in stock were neon, and they settled real quick so now theyre sprinting back and cardying a bag of keychains they thought looked rad as hell and now tim caught up to them and all three are practically skipping towards the water

,,,,they forgot to put sunscreen on.... all of them,,, they forgot....

tim made a sand castle

in teams of two (kon/bart, tim/cass, duke/harper, steph/jason, dick/damian) got on each other shoulders and basically spent five minutes trying to see who would be the last team standing, splashing water everywhere and stuff

first team to go down was Dick and damian, because steph pushed damian and by trying to keep himself on Dick's shoulders, damian accidentally poked dick's eye (sort of CLAWED in so you know what i mean).

second team to go down was steph and jason, because damian doesnt play fair and so he swam down and literally just scratched Jason's ankle, knowing damn well that the jellyfish sting was there. Jaosn shrieked and steph lost her balance. so much for vigilantes at night with stealth and talent, huh.

third team to go down was tim and bart because kon insisted on being on bart’s shoulders and that’s easy peasy because i mean, bart’s not WEAK, but he’s not TALL either and it’s not like Kon weighs a feather and they’re on the deeper side,,,,, you can imagine the rest

Now there’s two teams, and they call it a tie because otherwise someone’s gonna end up injured (altho tim likes to say that he and cass won)

There’s music playing in the background, with really vulgar lyrics that alfred disapproves of, but you know. It’s not his beach.

THIS IS REALLY JUST A SCREAM POST SORRY IT’S NOT WHAT YOU GUYS SIGNED UP FOR BUT TAGLIST ANYWAYS: @red-hood-redemption @screennamealreadyused @bikoncon @catxsnow @thesporklecat @thesesickfics-justmakemesick @hauntingsonofrobin anddd i think i forgot someone sorry

403 notes · View notes

remakethestars · 4 years ago

Text

CABIN 7 — APOLLO

Headcanons.

❝There ought to be more drama, I think. A musical crescendo. Confetti.❞

— Jess Cooper, I Am Still Alive

Headcanon masterlist.

Oh, boy — this is my cabin, y'all; buckle up! 😁

Not all Apollo kids are good at everything their dad's good at, okay? I sure as heck can’t paint or play an instrument.

TRIGGER WARNING: mentions of violence?

They run an underground tattoo parlor.

That's where Will & Butch got their respective sun & rainbow tats.

Apollo kids with lyrics tattooed into their skin.

Rick says there isn't much by way of décor inside, which is f*in' B.S. Apollo's the god of art; those walls have been graffitied Tangled style.

🎶 i'll paint the walls some more — i'm sure there's room somewhere! 🎶

The east wall is covered in a landscape of a sunrise, & the west has a sunset (because the sun rises in the east & sets in the — yeah, I'll see myself out).

The north & south walls & the ceiling are white, though, because it really brightens/opens up the space (C7 has the 2ⁿᵈ most campers under C11 because Apollo's a slut; things can get a little crowded in the summer).

When there’re celebrations, the artistically inclined kids bust out the face paint. Especially for the younger campers.

The artistically inclined are the ones that paint the camp beads for the end of the summer. Despite the numbers, it doesn’t take them as long as one might think.

Rick said the ceiling had cedar beams, but we're not gonna do Cyparissius dirty like that. Cypress wood is good for building; the beams are cypress. You know what? F*ck you — the whole dang cabin's cypress!

There’s a massive, potted aloe vera plant by the steps that gets moved into the C4 greenhouse in the winter. It’s one of those old ones — because everyone knows the old aloe plants work better for burns & blisters than these sh¡tty new ones. (It’s constantly getting broken off to heal burns & stuff.)

Rick said there are potted red & purple hyacinths in the window & yellow flowers from Delos. That's true.

I'd say the flowerbeds around the cabin are full of healing plants, but I feel like they'd be better off around the infirmary for obvious reasons.

I do feel like there's a laurel tree planted outside C7, though, because Apollo's a pining b¡tch.

And there's an actual infirmary building, okay? Rick's kinda inconsistent about that. Sometimes he says "infirmary," sometimes he says the Big House is running over with injured, & apparently there's a cot dead center for injured in C7? B.S.

Or maybe I've just read too much fanfic, and the authors don't get it right?

Either way, there's an infirmary building with surgery & delivery rooms. One floor. Locker room for C7 kids to store their scrubs & sh¡t.

They go for yellow scrubs, though, because orange C.H.B. scrubs make them look like escaped convicts.

Fun Band-Aids™

They give out little orange stickers with laurels around the edges that are like I voted! stickers, but they're injury-specific.

I got my leg(s) reattached! & Percy Jackson shot me in the butt! & I ticked off Clarisse! & I made out with an Aphrodite kid in the poison ivy! & I fell off the lava wall! & I got pranked by the Stolls!

After a war or just when there’re a lot of campers in the infirmary, there seems to be a constant flow of Apollo kids singing one hymn to their father in unison to heal someone.

Sometimes, an unconscious camper wakes in a cot & thinks they’ve died & gone to the wrong afterlife for a moment because their singing sounds like angels.

The medically inclined wash their hands like surgeons.

Kind of germophobic?

They also go around tying surgeons knots in everything.

In the summer, they’re walking Banana Boat sunscreen & after-sun aloe lotion dispensers.

The medically inclined also have the world’s sh¡ttiest handwriting.

They have to work hard to fix it if it bothers them.

Can check your vitals & run a blood test just by touching you.

A lot of them casually touch their loved ones (at least, the ones that aren’t in C7) every morning to check their vitals & see how their health’s doing.

They do it subconsciously every time they touch someone & don’t notice it until they pick up something’s wrong.

They can do this for themselves as well. Though it may not be as accurate? And they take daily vitamins depending on what they need.

Organize their lives via pill box (never lose an earring).

Fight surgically. Every blade in their hands becomes a scalpel, & every time they’re going in for a kill against an armed anthropomorphic monster, they slice the tendons in its arm required to grip its weapon to disable it before going in for the kill.

Back to C7, it’s got a little porch with a porch swing. The kids sit on it sometimes & teach people how to play instruments.

They leave the porch light on at night when they’re waiting for one of their siblings to come home from a quest.

Jumping into the depressing sh¡t, they never found Michael’s body, so they only presumed him dead. They leave the porch light on every night now, hoping he’ll come home.

Apollo kids are afraid of the dark. They use the buddy system after the sun goes down.

The cabin’s central light fixture is a papier-mâché sun that’s been charmed to glow when someone sings 🎶 clap on 🎶 & stop glowing when someone sings 🎶 clap off. 🎶

The curtains are a gold fabric. They’re only closed at night. Because, again, C7 kids are afraid of the dark.

The Wikipedia says Apollo kids are cursed to be afraid of snakes (I assume by the Python Apollo killed). I feel like they’d burn a lot of aster leaves then. I read somewhere it was said by the Greeks to ward off evil spirits & snakes.

They play Go Fish with their tarot cards. They’re really good at tarot games.

Hand-drawn tarot decks featuring figures form Greek myth.

There’s a target on the back wall they practice throwing cards at. They can throw them in combat for a distraction with terrifying accuracy.

There’s a Magic 8 ball that’s passed around on the Winter Solstice (the longest night of the year), when — as a headcanon I’m sure I’ve read somewhere has indicated — they’re up all night.

Crystal balls are allowed. However, they must be covered with a cloth or placed in a box when not in use because they’re double-convex lenses, & we don’t want another incident like the fire of 1993.

Sometimes, they make little predictions throughout the day other campers may find disturbing. Such as whipping around and catching a stray arrow without warning (spidey sense?). Or cutting you off when you’re talking about someone moments before they walk into the room.

There’s a tea cart in the corner. Because tea is good for healing & they’ve accumulated an addiction.

The cart has a radio on it that’s always on at night because a lot of C7 kids can’t sleep without noise. (Inspired by @sugarandspiceandkindanice.)

Most of the time, it’s on a nearby country station that actually plays good country at night. But sometimes they switch channels — especially when there’s a new kid settling in & they could use the comfort.

There’s a portable record player there too. The shelves under the cart are full of C.D.s & records.

I’m sure I’ve read a headcanon somewhere that they sing every morning while getting ready for the day. That’s true.

The number of times it’s been “When Will My Life Begin” from Tangled is disturbing, though.

🎶 seven a.m., the usual morning lineup! 🎶

Luke said in The Lightning Thief C11 is up at 07:00 & breakfast is at 08:00, I think, but we all know Apollo’s waking his kids up when the sun rises.

A lot of the time, someone will just start out with whatever song they have stuck in their head & everyone else will pick it up.

Sometimes, this leads to members having the aforementioned song stuck in their head for the rest of the day.

Even the people who aren’t musically inclined will sing along, as they’re usually drowned out by the music kids that get really into it.

So sometimes those not-music kids will find themselves singing by themselves during the day years later & are surprised to find — they actually sound good?? Or at least not bad??? And it’s because singing is a learned skill & they picked it up.

I’m sure I’ve also read a headcanon somewhere that they sing “Look Down” from Les Mis when they have to do menial chores, but I'm adding “It’s a Hard-Knock Life” from Annie, “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White, “Happy Working Song” from Enchanted, & the Smurf song.

They break into song all the time.

Lee was glaring at Tantalus once & made the mistake of saying, “Sometimes, I wish —” and the entire cabin broke out with “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

🎶 — i'd never been born at all! carry on, carry on… 🎶

As mentioned in at least The Lightning Thief & The Lost Hero, they spend a lot of time playing basketball. You can bet your butt they do a rendition of “Getcha Head in the Game” from High School Musical every time there’s a new camper passing by.

They have a sister named Jubilee, and every time someone greets her — "Hey, Jube!" — the entire cabin breaks into “Hey, Jude” by The Beetles.

🎶 hey, Jube! don't make it bad. take a sad song & make it better… 🎶

Sometimes, if there are two campers that really need to get together, C10′ll commission C7 to sing “Kiss the Girl” from The Little Mermaid (or the same song with different pronouns, obviously).

It’s usually a capella unless someone happens to have an instrument on them.

Rickrolling.

The “Macarena.”

Apollo takes clandestine recordings of their jam sessions & distributes them professionally. Whatever money’s made goes directly into their college funds or they periodically find it under their pillow tooth-fairy-style.

There’s a lot of denim because the artistic members like to paint on the backs of jackets & the pockets of jeans.

A lot of them have excellent aim with most projectiles, so they toss stuff to each other a lot. This results in them being oddly in sync, so they can catch something from another sibling without warning & without looking like Sam & Dean Winchester do in Supernatural.

Their life looks like a Dude Perfect trick shot video.

It also results in some funny looks when they hurl things halfway across camp to each other. Namely, the whistling Nerf football.

C7 is two stories. The second story has paint on every wall.

The east wall upstairs has arrows mounted that got Robin Hooded along with a little tag with the name of the C7 kid & the date it happened.

They also have arrows mounted from the first bullseye if there’s a member being taught.

Lots of musical instruments & art supplies up there.

There’s an old T.V. up there. They have all of Bob Ross’s show on V.H.S.

C7′s south wall (ground floor) holds the door to the bathroom on one side & a door leading to the stairs.

It also hosts framed photos of Charlotte, Lee, & Michael.

Instead of saying “shoot,” they say “loose.” For everything. Instead of saying “Shoot!” when they drop something, they say “Loose!”

It's kinda one of those things — like your friend starts saying something & you just integrate it into your vocabulary subconsciously.

They like to play a game where you shoot an arrow straight up & try to catch it as it comes back down.

That sounds really stupid on their part, but it actually comes in handy when someone tries to shoot them in combat & they catch the arrow, dumbfounding whoever's attempted to skewer them.

The cresting on their arrows is in Morse code of their nickname (·—— ·· ·—·· ·—··). They can take one look at an arrow & tell what’s whose.

And the paint color of the cresting tells them what kind of arrow it is — bullet tip, broadhead, explosive, etc.

Every bunk in C7 is made with hospital corners. No exceptions. The kids who aren’t medically inclined learn because all the beds being made the same way makes it look cleaner for inspection.

I can’t decide if Apollo kids have really good eyesight so they fit the Hawkeye bill or if they’ve all just read — Apollo’s the god of knowledge — & painted so much they’ve messed up their eyes.

The number of times one of them has used bowstring wax on an art project in a rush instead of glue is hilariously large.

I use String Snot, and it comes in a container that looks like a glue stick.

A lot of them wear bracers all the time.

When the time it takes to sling one’s quiver onto one’s back, grab one’s bow, knock an arrow, & draw is so long, one really doesn’t have time to also strap on their bracers before rushing out of the cabin to threaten a giant bronze dragon.

Not to mention if they use a recurve, they’ll also have to string their bow.

And a number of them do use recurves due to the abilities to both knock multiple arrows at once & to restring in the field.

Bows with risers coated in golden, reflective paint & limbs painted with artistic strokes.

Trick arrows are their jam. C9 is constantly being asked for new arrows.

Explosive arrows, sonic arrows, grappling hook arrows…

That’s another saying they’ve all taken to: “___ is my jam!”

There’s a bookshelf or reference material on Apollo for new C7 kids (as Rick’s indicated), but the rest of the case is full of medical journals & textbooks & books on art & poetry & divining the future.

A lot — if not all — of them have either gold flecks in their eyes or central heterochromia.

Freckles across their noses & shoulders & on the tips of their ears. Tans. Sun-bleached hair.

Long, nimble fingers perfect for playing musical instruments.

Either they hate the winter because the sun's out for less time (so you’ll find them walking around with blanched skin & faded freckles & with both a hoody & a parka on), or they’re perfectly fine with winter & are used by everyone around them as walking space heaters.

They spend a lot of time with Castor & Pollux.

Rachel sits at T7. She’s practically an Apollo kid at this point.

While her cave was being renovated, she stayed in C7.

Their dad’s the god of truth; none of these M.F.s can lie worth a sh¡t.

But, by the gods, they can tell when you’re lying.

And they take it as a personal insult. That you (A) would dare do something as immoral as lying in the first place & that you (B) would dare to insult their intelligence in such a way because you thought they couldn’t tell.

C6 & C7 are both known for reacting outrageously when their intelligence is insulted (see: chapter 10 of The Battle of the Labyrinth).

The more civil of the reactions of a C7 kid being lied to is cursing the liar to tell the truth, which I believe they can.

They can curse you to speak in rhyming couplets; they should be able to curse you to tell the truth.

You mean to tell me none of these kids have created a functioning Lasso of Truth yet?

This one's really long. 😅

A lot of people fancast Sam Claflin as Apollo, but I'm going with Ross Lynch. 'Cause I do what I want. 😎

Visit my Apollo cabin Pinterest board or my headcanon masterlist.

DISCLAIMER ━━━ These headcanons are what I consider to be canon in my fanfictions. They may be others’s headcanons I’ve subconsciously filed away in my noggin. If one’s yours and you want it removed or credited, please send me your post and let me know.

#Apollo #Apollo kids #children of Apollo #Apollo cabin #headcanons #headcannons #Percy Jackson #PJO #HOO #TOA #remakethestars #art #archery #painting #healing #doctors #sun #hcs #TW: mentions of violence

240 notes · View notes

gumnut-logic · 4 years ago

Text

Minerva (Bit 4)

Bit 1 | Bit 2 | Bit 3 | Bit 4

Really just some brotherly fun :D I’ve posted a couple of snippets from this bit, but there is plenty more, a whole 1600 words worth :D

Thanks to @vegetacide and @scribbles97 for the reading and support ::hugs you guys::

I hope you enjoy this fluff :D

-o-o-o-

“Scotty! Bro! How ya doin’?”

Virgil had to smirk at his little brother. Gordon was acting like his hand had been caught in the candy jar.

“Gordon, what are you doing in Minerva?” One lowered just slightly. “Virg? What the hell? Gordon!”

“What?! He needed some fresh air!”

“He has two broken legs!”

“Yeah, but Grandma was cooking up a storm.”

“Oh.”

“Exactly.”

Virgil twisted his lips. “You do know I am a sentient being and can both speak for myself and make decisions on my own.”

“Did you hear something, Scott? There was interference on the line. Sounded like Virgil was claiming he was able to look after himself.”

The snort from the hovering Thunderbird was loud.

“Hey!”

Gordon actually cackled. “Sorry, Virg. Great at looking after everyone else, total shit at looking after yourself.”

The glare he shot his brother should have scalped him.

Gordon only grinned more. “We all have our strengths and weakness, bro.”

“Shut up, Gordon.”

Thunderbird One began lowering as if to come into land.

“Hey, don’t you dare land that tin can on the reef, Scott. Mel will have your hide, right after I kick your butt.”

“Keep your pants on, Fish, I’m well aware how attracted you are to my butt.” Thunderbird One pirouetted midair like the graceful craft she was under his brother’s hands, shifting towards the centre of the lagoon. Her landing struts unfolded from her fuselage.

“He’s not going to...” Virgil’s eyes widened.

But Gordon was grinning. “Oh, yes!”

A crack in the air and pontoons at the end of her landing gear inflated with a snap, One suddenly sprouting what looked like fat ski blades. Her front strut shot out extenders either side for stability and Thunderbird One settled on the calm ocean like the prim and trim bird she was.

“That’s not something you see every day. I thought Scott hated landing on water.”

Gordon snorted. “He does.”

“If Brains asks, it’s practise and equipment testing.” Scott’s voice was smirking on comms. In the distance his brother’s flight chair slid smoothly out of the cockpit to hang above the water. Scott reached beneath the seat and pulled out a package. With a yank of a cord, he inflated his own little lifeboat, chucked it onto the water surface, and lightly stepped onto it. He sat there fiddling for a bit, enough to have Gordon frowning across the water, but then Scott was moving in their direction.

“So, dropping by for a swim? Or just checking up on us?” Gordon’s voice was flippant, but Virgil sensed a touch of concern under it all.

“Does it matter?” As Scott got closer Virgil frowned. The blue of his uniform was smudged with something black.

A flick of the water seat’s controls and Gordon yelped as Virgil flew off the edge of the reef and splashed his younger brother with water as the contraption forced stability in a way it really wasn’t quite designed for. Virgil cursed as the seat hit its maximum speed which was little more than walking pace, a limitation he had put in there himself to stop Gordon from killing himself. But it got him across the water, however slowly, those few moments faster to his eldest brother. As Scott pulled up alongside him, Virgil raked him with his eyes.

His brother was filthy, but there were no obvious injuries. “What the hell happened to you?”

Scott rolled his eyes. “I’m fine. Took a bit of a tumble down a coal mine.”

“A coal mine? Are you okay?” Scott still looked a little off with his pencilled-in eyebrows still growing back. Wasn’t the first time one of them had had to use makeup to hide an injury from the world at large. Scott had more soot on his face than anything else. “Did you wear your helmet?”

His brother’s shoulders slumped with the most put-upon whole-body expression he could manage. “Of course, I did. I’m fine, Virgil. A few bruises and a lot of grime. That’s all.”

Virgil didn’t stop frowning as he grabbed a handle on the inflatable and held himself steady. “Why didn’t you go home and get cleaned up?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Just happened to find a brother with two broken legs sitting on a reef out in the middle of nowhere. What the hell are you doing out here, Virg? You’re supposed to be resting.”

“I am! I’m still sitting on my ass. Andre and Cecil, not to mention, Gords, have me wrapped up in bubblewrap. I’m fine!”

Scott arched a wonky eyebrow at him.

Virgil’s lips twisted and he combed his brother with his eyes for injury one more time before conceding. “Fine. We’re both fine.”

The grin that split Scott’s face was kind of worth it.

It was a sign of how involved they were in each other’s medical condition that they both startled as Gordon suddenly surfaced beside the boat. Their fish brother flicked his wet hair out of his eyes forcibly enough to get both of his brothers with the spray.

In the distance, and still on the reef, both Andre and Cecil were staring at them.

“Hey, bros.” Gordon pretty much hovered in the water like the water seat his movements were so practised. “How goes?” In others words, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ When both brothers just stared at him, his eyes narrowed. “Scott you’ve dragged Two Broken Legs out onto the water by your mere presence. You look like shit, he worries. Go back to A Little Lightning and get cleaned up. Meet you on the reef when you are more respectable.” The Fish’s glare turned to Virgil. “And you. You are giving Andre conniptions. You fall off this seat, there is drowning in your future. I know you know this because you drummed it into my head multiple times.” His brother parroted Virgil’s own words from years ago. “‘Its use must be accompanied by adult supervision at all times’. While I know ‘adult’ in my case can be a grey area, we didn’t hire two suitably respectable nurses for you to fly out of their reach and go drown yourself. Now, get your ass back on that reef before I throw it onto my boat, take you straight back home, and force feed you Grandma’s cooking!”

Virgil stared at Gordon. Okay, perhaps he had acted a little irresponsibly. Of course, Scott took the opportunity for what it was and turned his own glare on Virgil for reinforcement.

Gordon’s glower upped a notch at the lack of movement. “Now!”

“Okay, Gordon. Fine. Whatever.” Virgil somewhat meekly let go of the life raft and turned back towards the reef, the seat humming quietly beneath him. Gordon growled further words at Scott and a moment later the life raft took off for A Little Lightning.

It wasn’t often Gordon put his foot down, but it was usually a good idea to agree with him when he did.

But then it wasn’t like he could fall out of the seat, being strapped in an all.

The whole tone of his own thoughts screamed pout and Virgil was forced to acknowledge that yes, Gordon was right.

The aquanaut swam alongside him, quite capable of keeping up with the seat’s easy pace.

By the time they reached the edge of the reef, Virgil had worked himself up to an apology. “I’m sorry, Gordon.”

His brother had stopped swimming a little way back and was now wading. Looking down and watching where he put his feet, Gordon sighed. “Don’t beat yourself up about it, Virg. Just keep yourself safe and in one piece, and we won’t have any problems.”

Virgil brought the seat to a halt and turned to his brother. “Gords, thank you. For all of this.”

Gordon stopped and stared, a small smile curving his lips. “Anytime, bro.” And of course, he had to take it that step further. He flung his arms wide. “My boat is your boat. Mi Casa, es su casa. Yours, mine, ours. Happy families and all that.”

Virgil stared at his goofball brother a moment. Then a flick at the controls, he darted over, grabbed two armfuls of Gordon and hugged him until he squawked.

“Oh, god, Virg, getorff!” Gordon struggled, but even in the water, he was no match for heavy lifting biceps. If Virgil closed his eyes and just clung for a moment, he wasn’t going to admit it or care. If it wasn’t for the fact that the seat was on the verge of flipping, he would have hung on longer.

It was Gordon stumbling and righting him before he took a swim in the drink that finally broke the clinging.

“God, Virg, don’t you dare get all teary on me or I’m telling John the combination to your personal refrigerator.”

Virgil grinned, if a little sloppily. “He already knows and it is not what you think.”

“What, it’s not Two’s launch date?”

“What?” Oh shit.

Gordon’s grin split his face in half and he cracked up laughing. Virgil was reduced to grabbing at him again in either an attempt to throttle him or give him the biggest noogie since he hit adulthood. That explained the mystery of the damned banana caramel pie from last week. He’d have to change it again.

His brother ducked out of reach basically by throwing himself underwater. Sure, the water seat was designed to follow, but damnit! “You owe me pie! Cecil made that for me, you brat!”

Gordon just kick-splashed his brother and laughed harder.

-o-o-o-

TBC

#thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds #thunderbirds fanfiction #Virgil Tracy #Gordon Tracy #Scott Tracy #Kermadec AU #minerva reef #minerva

47 notes · View notes

aer-in-wanderland · 4 years ago

Photo

구미호뎐 | Tale of the Nine Tailed - Lost in Translation EP03

The saga continues: part three in a series in which my sister and I pick our way through all the (mis)translations, humour, and cultural subtext that dropped from the fan-subbed version of TotNT. Thank you so much to everyone who bought us coffee - this one’s for you. ;)

Before we begin, for anyone just joining us: EP01 / EP02.

We pick up back where we left off last episode with Yeon dressing Ji Ah’s wound.

Yeon’s line that’s subbed, “Stop being a crybaby” can be a bit hard to translate. The word he uses is ‘eomsal,’ which literally means, ‘the exaggeration of pain; feigning pain; a great fuss about nothing.’ So he’s essentially saying she’s overreacting. I'm not a fan of the use of the word ‘crybaby’ here though personally.

“Long time no see, Lee Yeon.” > > > 12 Hours Earlier.

We see Thirsty meet his ignominious end in a toilet (we never got character names for these guys so I’m just going to call them ‘Thirsty’ and ‘Hungry’).

Elsewhere on the island, Rang fishes a curse doll with the man’s picture on it out of the surf. That’s quite the atmospheric shot. Point to the director.

Episode 03 Title Card: The Secret of the Dragon King

We open the following morning as Ji Ah and the man who found the body (who Ji Ah refers to as ‘Captain’) examine the scene.

Sub: “Being at sea wasn’t enough and he drowned himself to death.” I’m not sure that sentence even makes sense. I would have translated the man’s line as: “Ho~ Let no one say he wasn’t a seaman. He managed to kick the bucket by drowning [even on dry land].”

Sub: “Talk about it being all for nothing. This is what he gets after throwing himself at his life.” Um, what now? The line is: “Human lives are so futile. And after he clung so viciously to life, too.”

Lol Yeon. “I see someone threw a party.” I like this sub. What he literally says though is: “Oh~ Looks like it was a really special night.” (‘special’ here is in English).

Sub: “He smells like a stinky fish.” What Yeon literally says is: “Ugh, a smell like rotting fish is coming from this kid!” Yeon refers to the man as ‘yae,’ which literally means ‘this kid,’ but can also be used to refer to inanimate objects. So, either way...pfft

Appropriately, the BGM playing as Pyung Hee casts her curse is ‘Shaman.’

Back over to Yeon and Ji Ah as they investigate the body. The chyron on the screen reads: ‘The first survivor of the Milky Way (Deceased)’ Irony-(probably)-not-intended.

We get another chyron not long after, over a shot of Pyung Hee’s father’s head being returned to shore that reads: ‘Seo Gi Chang (Died aboard the Milky Way)’

Lol None of this has stopped Yeon from nomming on his banana milk. I had thought the milk made him seem like a little kid, but according to Korean fans, it’s also, apparently, commonly enjoyed by old men. heh

Sub: “Besides, they’re not good looking enough.” This is a mistranslation. Yeon’s line is literally: “And besides, I don’t like the look of their faces.” What he means, though, is the feeling they give off, rather than their actual ‘looks.’ It’s a common expression in Korean. If I was translating instead of explaining, I would probably render this as, “I don’t like the look of them.”

As Ji Ah drags him out, however, Yeon can be heard saying, “Ah~ I judge people by their looks~!” I’m 98% sure this is another LDW ad lib. Basically, LDW made a joke of his previous line, as if to say Yeon cared about the look of them because they weren’t attractive enough, when really his line meant they seemed shady. It’s almost as if he predicted the bad sub...

We get a brief scene featuring the second (and only named) survivor of the Milky Way, Jin Shik. Oh, and his headless ‘visitor.’ Creepy.

The music underscoring Hungry gorging himself on raw meat is making everything worse (or possibly better, if disturbing is your jam)

I’ve said it before, but I would watch an entire series of Yeon and Ji Ah being a supernatural investigative duo.

Pfft Yeon refers to Seo Gi Chang as ‘the head’ (mogaji). I’m not sure if I should call that indelicate or irreverent. It’s a bit of both, really.

Yeon’s line here is subbed as, “What happened on the boat?” but it should more properly be: “What did you do on the boat?” He’s not just asking after the sequence of events; the line is a clear accusation.

Sub: “We met an unexpected storm that day.” Actually: “Rough wind and waves hit the side of the fishing boat.” (i.e. causing it to capsize)

I appreciate that Yeon sits back here and allows Ji Ah to take the lead.

So, as it turns out, the 11th hell is actually a fishing boat (I’m sure the cast of 1N2D will back me up on this).

Fun fact: This sequence was filmed in a green screen pool and then made to look like the middle of the ocean with CG.

As an aside, I love that Ji Ah deduced the whole story on her own and that she uses that knowledge to corner Hungry psychologically. Also, that her strategy proves more effective than Yeon’s threat of violence. It’s not so much a ‘you catch more flies with honey,’ as a ‘brain over brawn’ sort of deal.

Ji Ah: You were frightened, weren’t you? Twenty-eight days straight on a perilous life boat without water or food. They’re the perfect conditions for a person to go mad, aren’t they? First-degree burns from the hot August sun striking your body mercilessly, the boat pitching about all day; despite not having eaten, you feel as if you’ll throw up. Clenching your teeth and waiting to be rescued only works for a day or two. The more you think about it, the angrier you get. ‘Why, me? Why?!’ Around the fifth day was the crisis point. Since, in that time, not a drop of rain had fallen. Dehydration would have set in first. [...] But it’s odd, isn’t it? For having starved for 28 days, you lost too little body mass. [...] What did you eat?

Meanwhile, Yeon’s contribution to all of this is: “And you couldn’t have used a delivery app in the middle of the open ocean where there’s no wifi signal.” Pfft He has, of course, caught on to her strategy. As usual, though, he decides to take the cheeky route.

Side note: I find it interesting that, in this universe full of monsters, the first incident Yeon and Ji Ah end up investigating together turns out to be an entirely human horror.

Yo. Hungry deciding Ji Ah is food is just...ugh. Never trust a cannibal.

Luckily for Ji Ah, her guard dog fox is on the job.

Over to Rang, who asks a weeping Pyung Hee what she’ll give him in return for granting her ‘wish’. We don’t get to see her answer him, but it was included in the backstory collection.

It’s unclear to me just how much Rang is involved in ‘granting’ Pyung Hee’s wish. Like, is he the one fueling the curse somehow, or did he just teach her what she needed to know? I’m inclined to believe it’s more the latter.

We cut to Taluipa at the Afterlife Immigration Office, who’s pissed that someone’s messing with her Death List. There’s a fun mythology-related chestnut in this scene: when Hyeonuiong comes running in, he’s carrying a watering can. Taluipa accuses him of having been watching dramas, but Hyeonuiong insists he was watering the Uiryeongsu.

The chyron for it reads: ‘The Uiryeongsu. A tree that measures the sins of the dead by the weight of their clothes when they’re hung on it.’ The hanja for ‘Uiryeongsu’ (衣領樹) literally mean ‘clothing-amount-tree,’ so its name is essentially its function. In traditional mythology, it grows on the near bank of the Samdocheon. This is also the same tree that the Uiryeong’geom (geom = sword) mentioned in EP13 is made from.

“You watered a tree for 3 hours?” Pfft Hyeonuiong and watering can, exit stage right.

Minor detail: I just realized I can actually see from Taluipa’s List in this scene that one of the two fishermen is named Kim Gil Sang. Still not sure which one though, so I’m going to stick to calling them Hungry and Thirsty.

The Dragon King Scroll

Back over to Ji Ah, who examines a creepy scroll hanging in Jin Shik’s vacant quarters. Once again, the show cuts into its own dramatic tension with a moment of levity as Yeon startles both Ji Ah and me by popping open his bag of snacks with a massive bang. The contrast between Ji Ah, who’s in serious investigator mode, and Yeon, who just continues his one-gumiho snack parade, blasé as can be, adds humour to an otherwise grim situation.

Yeon’s response of, “Oh. Sorry.” is in English, making it sound, if possible, even less sincere.

On the off chance that anyone was wondering, the snack Yeon claims as his favorite here is 솜짱 (somjjang). According to the Korean fans again, this is also a food commonly enjoyed by elderly people.

Subs: “Do you know how many people in Joseon died during the 50 years of war? 3.5 million. I’ve seen more deaths than all the funeral companies in this country.” This is another case of diagonal translation. Yeon’s line is more properly:

Yeon: Between the Imjin War and the Manchu War, do you know how much of the population of Joseon-era Korea was lost in just 50 years? 3,500,000. I’m a guy who’s seen more funerals than all the funerary companies in Korea put together.

[Note: Yeon is talking about The Japanese Invasions a.k.a The Imjin War (1592-1598) and The Qing Invasion of Joseon a.k.a. The Manchu War (1636)]

As a linguistic aside, Yeon refers to himself here as a ‘nom’ (rhymes with ‘home’). If you read the breakdown of EP02, you’ll recall that ‘nom’ can mean anything from ‘guy’ to ‘bastard.’ It’s not that Yeon means to call himself a bastard, though. It’s only that the typical alternative here (i.e. ‘person’) carries the implication of 'human.’ Since Yeon is, of course, not human, he opts for ‘nom’ instead. The word gets a lot of mileage in this show in relation to all the supernaturals for that reason.

Lol This exchange about the Dragon King was great. Point to the writer. I would translate it as:

Yeon: You’re right, but it looks nothing like him.

Ji Ah: You’ve...seen him?

Yeon: Back when I was a mountain god. Well, in today’s terms you’d say we attended a leadership conference together. They over-glamorized him. He’s not this good looking.

Ji Ah’s reaction is perfect too. Her, ‘I don’t even know where to begin with that statement so I’m just going to move on’ look came across loud and clear.

Yeon’s line as he leans over Ji Ah’s shoulder is subbed: “This is just like ‘Where’s Wally?’” In Korea, the game is called ‘find the hidden picture’ (‘sumun keurim chatgi’). So the line is actually: “What is this, ‘find the hidden picture’ or something?” I’d say there’s a 50/50 chance this line was another ad lib by Lee Dong Wook.

On an entirely different cultural note, ‘Where’s Wally?’ is know as ‘Where’s Waldo?’ in North America and exactly nowhere else. Don’t ask...

This scene features the first mention we get of Imoogi. Imoogi are among the most famous Korean mythical creatures. In most tellings, they are essentially proto-dragons, though occasionally they can be baby dragons. For example, one imoogi tale claims its imoogi was the son of the Dragon King (the same one Yeon attended a ‘leadership conference’ with). Most of the lore agrees that if an imoogi stays submerged in deep water for a thousand years, it earns the chance to become a dragon, though the caveats vary widely, and many imoogi fail. Finally, while the imoogi in TotNT is evil, imoogi aren’t categorically so; some are good, some aren’t.

Rang and the Mudang

Fun fact: Kim Beom explained in his Instagram LIVE that he chose to wear a red suit partially because the color gave off the feeling of a villain, but also because it contrasted well with the green of the forest. He also named this as his favorite Lee Rang outfit.

For anyone keeping track, Rang speaks to the mudang in banmal. She, in return, addresses him as ‘Lee Rang-nim’ and speaks very respectfully.

Okay, there are a couple of things to unpack in Rang’s following exchange with the mudang:

Mudang: The Corrupt God, King of the Wicked. He is Lee Ryong-nim.

Rang: [Laughs] What’s with that? Ugh, I seriously just cringed! If you slap a fancy title* from the next world in front of its name, does a snake become a dragon?

First, the mudang’s line here is said in an archaic cant. Second, ‘Lee Ryong’ (properly pronounced, ‘i-ryong,’ since there’s actually no ‘L’ in ‘Lee’), is another name for imoogi.

Finally, when Rang says ‘a fancy title from the next world,’ he’s referring to a posthumous name/title. Nearly every kingdom to have occupied the Korean peninsula has used posthumous titles (시호), most often for deceased royalty. By giving one to Imoogi, the mudang is venerating him. Rang mocks this, seizing on Imoogi’s failure to become a dragon. (Let no one say he and Yeon aren’t brothers).

The subs have Rang referring to Yeon as just ‘Yeon,’ but he actually calls him ‘Lee Yeon.’ That’s a very impersonal way to refer to one’s older brother, which is, of course, intentional on Rang’s part. It serves as another linguistic cue to the audience as to how Rang regards Yeon at this point.

A note on the evening primrose: tvN released a short blurb about it, since, as far as I can tell, the mythology was invented for the show. It reads:

Evening primrose that has grown while feeding on the blood and flesh of corpses is the same as poison to gumiho; if they so much as touch its powder, their bodies catch flame.

While the subs consistently just say ‘evening primrose,’ this should more properly be ‘burial ground evening primrose,’ which is how the various characters refer to it.

Fun fact: ‘Evening primrose’ in Korean is ‘dalmaji-kkot’ (달맞이꽃), which means ‘flowers that welcome the moon’.

Sub: “Half-brothers, to be exact.” The term Rang uses in Korean is quite literally, ‘brothers from different stomachs,’ so it refers specifically to half brothers who share a father but who have different mothers. I mention it only because Korean viewers will have been given slightly more information about their familial relationship here than was provided in the subs.

Back over to our leads, as Yeon urges Ji Ah to leave the island post-haste. His line is subbed: “I’m saying you may die if you stay here.” That’s a perfectly fine translation. For anyone curious, though, his line is quite literally: “I’m saying if you stay here, [the conditions are] perfect for dying.”

Sub: “That’s none of your business.” Yeon’s line is more properly: “That’s not for you to know.”

Ji Ah’s response to this is very literally: “I have no intention to go home for a reason I don’t know. So Lee Yeon should find the person Lee Yeon came here to find. I have to know why my parents came to this island.” This is the first time Ji Ah uses Yeon’s full name as a second person pronoun (so basically to mean ‘you’) when speaking to him. It’s hard to make generalizations about any form of address that don’t have multiple exceptions, but in this case, using his name is a more neutral, and somewhat more familiar, alternative to some of the other pronouns she’s been using when speaking to him. To my sense, it softens her rejection of his advice a little bit.

Back to Rang. His line is a bit awkward to translate, but essentially what he says is, ‘Calling my brother a ‘mountain god’ is an overstatement/ putting it nicely.’ I might approximate this as, ‘Sure, my brother was called a mountain god.’ This is the only time in the entire drama that Rang refers to Yeon as ‘uri hyung,’ and it kills me a bit that it’s not out of fondness, but rather derision. ㅠㅠ

Similarly, when Rang says, “I’m a fox, after all. I have to repay eunhye properly,” he is, of course, using eunhye sarcastically.

The subtitle here once again says ‘the underworld,’ but Rang’s line is actually: “I’m going to go to hell, without fail. Together with Lee Yeon.” The subs really need to do a better job of distinguishing between hell and the afterlife.

We see Ji Ah instruct Jae Hwan over the phone as to what to search for in the library records. She’s split off from Yeon since we last saw them.

Elsewhere on the island, Yeon also makes a call, only his is to Halmeom (Taluipa) to ask about Imoogi. When this episode first aired, I thought it was odd that Yeon was using ‘Imoogi’ as if it were a name, since this would be like referring to Yeon as ‘Gumiho.’ He later taunts Terry-Imoogi about just that though (i.e. not even having a proper name), so obviously it was an intentional decision on the writer’s part.

Sub: “If by chance Ah Eum was born again into this world, I can’t let that thing coexist with her.” This sub went a bit sideways. The ‘by chance’ has been mis-attributed. The line is properly: “There’s no way I could possibly (i.e. by any chance/under no circumstances can I) let such a thing exist in a world in which Ah Eum has been reborn.” Yeon is already sure that Ah Eum has been reborn at this point. He’s saying that because she’s been reborn, he can’t allow Imoogi to coexist with her under any circumstances.

Rang vs Ji Ah

Ji Ah returns to Pyung Hee’s to find ‘Pyung Hee’ reading Moby Dick. This is an ironic enough choice of literature to clue her in to the fact that this isn’t really Pyung Hee. Smart cookie.

On a character note, I loved that Ji Ah’s knowledge of, and love for, world literature was threaded believably throughout the drama in a way in which it feels natural that she caught on to Rang’s hint here. Point to the writer.

Again, for anyone keeping track, Ji Ah and Rang speak to each other in banmal, as has been the case since Rang revealed himself at Ji Ah’s house in EP01. Not because they’re close, obviously, but because they have zero respect for one another. It’s a bit of a power play on Ji Ah’s part, too, since she’s (hundreds of years) younger.

Over to Yeon, who barges into the local market owner’s personal quarters to interrogate him. His line when he catches sight of the scroll on the wall is subbed: “Look at this.” This should more properly be: “Check these people out. There’s one here too.” The word he uses that I translated as ‘these people’ is ‘i-geot-dul,’ which is very literally ‘these things,’ so I sort of understand the confusion in the subs. He means the islanders though, not the scrolls. In contrast, ‘there’s one here too’ does actually refer to the scroll.

The knife Yeon throws hits directly over the slit pupil of the scroll dragon’s eye. Nice aim.

Back to Ji Ah and Rang. When Ji Ah accuses Rang of orchestrating the deaths of the Milk Way survivors, ‘to distract us,’ what she says quite literally is ‘to cover our eyes and ears.’

When Rang applauds Ji Ah’s deductive abilities, his line is subbed, “Awesome.” This should more properly be, “Outstanding,” or, “Exceptional.” I honestly believe he’s being sincere in his praise. Being Rang, though, he’s probably just delighted this makes her more challenging to toy with.

Having completed his interrogation, Yeon’s eyes change as he erases the man’s memory of the event. I suspect the reason Yeon is so cavalier about revealing he’s a gumiho is because he can basically ‘undo’ it whenever he wants using this power.

Ji Ah’s quiet, “I decline” is so satisfying. Also the way Rang pulls back in surprise haha I guess he’s not used to being turned down.

Rang’s exchange with Ji Ah is subbed as: “Loosen up. Why be so stiff when it’s just good old me?” / “Let me give you some advice since that’s how you feel. Don’t gamble with another’s tragedy just for kicks. There’s a word for people like you, you know. A colossal jerk.” This is difficult to translate, and I think the subs have done a pretty good job, but a closer translation would be:

Rang: Augh— So uptight! Are you going to keep acting this uptight, just between us* (literally, ‘between you and me’)?

Ji Ah: Between you and me, then, I’ll give you just one word of advice: Don’t carelessly role the dice atop others’ misfortune. People call jerks like you ‘sleazy bastards.’

[*Note: Rang’s phrasing implies that they’re somehow close/on good terms, but he’s being sarcastic, of course.]

First off, the word Rang uses for ‘uptight’ (빡빡하다) means ‘stiff; uptight; rigid; inflexible; strict.’ By this, he’s referring to how she never lets her guard down. I don’t know that any of those words properly conveys that, though.

Second, while I translated Ji Ah’s line about the dice very literally here (in keeping with the spirit of this post), I actually like how the subs handled it from a translation/subtitling standpoint.

Finally, the subs have Ji Ah calling Rang ‘a colossal jerk,’ but the term she actually uses (‘yang’achi saekki’) is a much stronger expletive. ‘Yang’achi’ is a term for a thug, gangster, or hoodlum. ‘Saekki’ literally means ‘child of.’ In practical use, though, it’s close to ‘bastard.’ (I really didn’t think I’d be explaining the finer points of Korean expletives when I started this series, but here we are). I approximated this as ‘sleazy bastard’ above.

Pfft Rang being genuinely offended at Ji Ah’s language. Jo Bo Ah talked a bit about what she thought of all the explicit language Ji Ah uses towards Rang in her wrap interview.

Subs: “When he finds what he wants, you’ll be begging for mercy.” No idea where they got 'begging for mercy.’ What Rang actually says is, “When he finds what he wants, you’ll see hell.” Unlike in the subtitle, Rang’s warning actually has substance to it, since he’s referring to the fact that, once Yeon identifies Ji Ah as Ah Eum’s reincarnation, their fate with Imoogi will repeat itself.

By the time Yeon rushes back to Pyung Hee’s, Rang is long gone. His line subbed as: “What did he say?” is, quite literally, “Lee Rang, that nom, what’d he say?” This use of ‘nom’ manages to come off as fairly mild. (He may be a jerk, but he’s Yeon’s jerk).

Ji Ah’s response has undergone cultural translation to become: “Even when I order pizza, I never go for half-and-half. I always choose just one.” Honestly, though, I don’t know that it was necessary. What she actually says is: “Even when I order chicken, I don’t go for half-seasoned, half-fried; I’m the type to just pick one.”

This scene was originally longer but part of it got deleted. They released the clip, though, so I’ll translate the full exchange here:

Ji Ah: I'm saying I turned him down, your younger brother. Since I bet on this fox.

Yeon: Let no one say you aren’t a learned (wise) woman. Is that all?

Rang (voiceover): Don't trust Lee Yeon too much.

Ji Ah: That's all. But...you said the two of you are brothers.

Yeon: Yeah. We’re brothers.

Ji Ah: Why are you so hellbent on destroying each other?

Yeon: It seems like you don’t know since you’re an only child, but, as a rule, the relationship between siblings is a lot like noir, just without the guns.

Ji Ah: There you go, deflecting the question again. Is that a secret, too?

Yeon: If you ever happen to run into that guy again just the two of you, no matter what, run fast. That kid* despises humans. Especially humans that look like you.

Ji Ah: Why do you keep taking cracks at people's faces?

Yeon: ...I'm hungry.

Ji Ah: Why don’t you take the opportunity to pack up and leave while you still can? Your younger brother...it seems he’s preparing some sort of special event.

Yeon: That’s what I’m waiting for.

*Note: The word Yeon uses that I translated as ‘kid’ is ‘jashik.’ This is another word that, depending on how it’s used, can either be fond or rude. ‘Jashik’ literally means ‘[one’s] child,’ but it’s also commonly used in the sense of ‘punk.’ It’s a bit softer than nom. You wouldn’t use it to refer to yourself, though.

Ji Ah’s “Why do you keep taking cracks at people’s faces?” (meaning he’s insulting/taking issue with how she looks), is referencing their exchange the previous night when he told her not to smile because she was ugly.

We cut briefly to Shin Joo eating at the Snail Bride as he sizes up Yoo Ri from a distance. Come to think of it, we never got this BGM for the Snail Bride, either...

Ramen Heart-to-Heart

Lee Yeon’s one-gumiho meokbang continues. I feel like Yeon has been nomming on something in nearly every scene this episode.

The BGM while Yeon and Ji Ah eat is a remix of Yeon’s theme, ‘The Fox’s Wedding Day.’

Sub: “Just because these ladies wear baggy pants in floral prints doesn’t mean they have kind hearts. Get digging, and you’ll find all sorts of dirty secrets.” Yeon’s line is more literally:

Yeon: Living is all the same [everywhere]~ Just because grannies in the countryside wear flower-patterned pants doesn’t mean that even their insides are flower-patterned. If you start digging, venomous and insidious years come pouring out.

Ji Ah’s response then plays off of Yeon’s turn of phrase: “Is that the case for you too? I just wondered, ‘With what pattern did you live all those long years?’” (referring to the ‘pattern’ of his heart).

On a minor cultural note: the word Yeon uses is ‘mombbae pants’ (몸빼바지), which are a fashion(?) staple in the countryside. You’ll know what I mean if you run the hangeul through a google image search. That’s where the subs got ‘baggy’ from even though Yeon doesn’t explicitly say it.

Sub: “Why have you been searching for your parents all this time?” Yeon’s line is more properly: “Then what about you? What has made you wait for your parents for such a long time?”

Sub: “I’m the same. I’m waiting for the one I miss.” I would have translated this as: “I’m waiting for someone I miss,” which is literally what he says.

Sub: “Why did you part ways when you still miss her this much?” This is a bit hard to translate into natural-sounding English. The word Ji Ah uses is ‘mi’ryeon,’ which means ‘lingering attachment.’ So her line is quite literally: “Your face is so full of lingering attachment, how did you come to part ways/break up?”

Sub: “The first being I loved was a human girl who ended up dying. It’s why I’m still hung up on her. Happy now?” Hmm... I would translate Yeon’s line as:

Yeon: My damn* first love was a human of all things, but she died, so I’m foolishly unable to let go of my lingering attachment. Happy now?

[*Note: Yeon is cursing is the phenomenon of first love itself, not Ah Eum.]

His statement is witty, because the word he uses for ‘foolish’ is also pronounced ‘mi’ryeon.’ In this case, though, 'mi’ryeon’ means, ‘foolhardy and dense enough to be stubborn to a preposterous degree.’ Which is probably a fair assessment given he’s been waiting 600 years. The sub for this line made it sound like he’s saying, ‘I’m hung up on her because she’s a human girl who died,’ which would just be weird.

Shin Joo Meets Yoo Ri

Okay, minor detail, but what exactly was Yoo Ri trying to accomplish here before Shin Joo stopped her from entering an off-limits area of the Snail Bride?

The BGM here is called ‘Skip a Beat’ (‘Kanju Jump’). I found the track title slightly surprising since it’s actually taken from an ad lib made by Kim Yong Ji (Yoo Ri) in a later episode.

For anyone keeping track, Shin Joo and Yoo Ri are speaking in a mix of banmal and jondaetmal in this scene.

We next see Shin Joo on the phone with Yeon, whining about the whole ordeal and asking an unsympathetic Yeon to come back and retrieve his necklace for him.

Yeon’s line that’s subbed as, “Deadly?” could mean more than one thing. The line is literally, “What? The thief was deadly?” The word for ‘deadly,’ though, could equally mean that she was a knockout (i.e. gorgeous). It’s probably a bit of both.

Subs: “There’s nothing more pathetic than being blinded by a woman’s beauty...” / “But you also ruined your life by falling for beautiful woman.” For the record, neither of them actually uses the word ‘beauty/beautiful’ here. I would translate this exchange as:

Yeon: You... The most pathetic thing in the world, is being blinded by a woman, and...

Shin Joo: But being blinded by a woman and wrecking your life is something Lee Yeon-nim did too, isn’t it?

Yeon: What, you punk?!

Lol Yeon’s “What, you punk?!” is a familiar refrain whenever Shin Joo unwittingly(?) insults Yeon. The word is ‘imma’ (임마) or sometimes ‘inma’ (인마). Yeon consistently uses the former.

‘Bad Fate’

Subs: “Why is that branch broken? It must’ve hurt.” Yeon is actually personifying the tree here, which makes sense seeing as he can communicate with it. So his line is more literally: “Now why has this kid gone and made a fuss breaking [his] branch? It must’ve hurt.” Which is cute.

I actually really appreciated this short scene of Yeon healing the tree. Yeon may no longer be the master of Baekdudaegan, but this scene showed that it’s still very much a part of who he is; not just his powers, but the care he has for the forest.

Fun (?) fact: It turns out this simple scene was actually a huge pain to film.

Subs: “I hope you grow well.” Actually: “Eat well and grow well.” I realize that sounds awkward in English, but the line is a directive. He’s once again speaking to the tree.

Sub: “The wind is blowing from the northwest. Something is coming.” I would have translated this as: “A northwest wind blows... Something is coming.” That’s partly a tonal choice, but it’s also a more literal reflection of the original Korean.

We finally catch back up to the end of EP02, as Jae Hwan calls Ji Ah from the library to tell her what he’s found. This time, we see her connect the first dead body in 1954 to what the forest spirit told them more explicitly.

The dates of the four incidents are: August 13, 1954; August 25, 1961; September 6, 1979; and September 7, 1987. Ji Ah quickly deduces that these all work out to be the same date on the lunar calendar: July 15th. In 2020, that works out to be Wednesday, September 2nd. If you’ll recall, the wedding at the start of EP01 was held on August 29, so it’s only been 3 days since Yeon and Ji Ah crossed paths at the wedding hall.

“Long time no see, Lee Yeon.” What is it with Imoogi and choking Yeon?

Subs: “You should’ve let me go.” More precisely: “I know, right? You should have let me go.”

Yeon’s final “What are you?” should probably have been subbed as: “I’m asking what you are!” since both his tone and phrasing have grown more insistent.

Subs: Our ill-fated relationship would’ve ended if you hadn’t stopped the boat from crossing the Samdo River. More literally:

Jimoogi: Our ak’yeon should have ended. That is, if only you hadn’t stopped the boat from crossing the Samdocheon.

The word the subs translated as ‘our ill-fated relationship’ is ‘ak’yeon’ (悪縁), which literally means ‘bad fate.’ In contrast to the broader, ‘destiny’ sort of fate (‘un’myeong’) however, ‘yeon’ (縁) is inherently relational. It refers specifically to the fate between two people (or even between a person and a place). ‘Ak’ (悪) means ‘evil.’ So 'ill-fated’ is a bit misleading as a translation since the word actually refers to the relationship between Yeon and Imoogi (i.e. mortal enemies), rather than the fact that Yeon and Ah Eum’s story ended tragically (as in, ‘an ill-fated love’).

WAIT. Subs: “No. That woman is born with a face that only I can recognize. And I don’t see it in you.” What?? That doesn’t even make sense. Yeon’s line is:

Yeon: No. That woman is born carrying a sign that only I can recognize. You don’t have it.

Obviously, Yeon is referring to the fox bead, and I’m fairly sure that was apparent since the line was intercut with the scene in which he imparts the bead to Ah Eum, but that seems like a pretty critical line to fudge up.

Jimoogi: “You really don’t know anything, do you, Lee Yeon?” It’s weird to me that they have Imoogi addressing Yeon as just ‘Yeon’ in the subs. That makes it seem like they’re friends or something...

Subs: “The scar is gone.” Actually: “The wound disappeared.”

Deadball

Subs: “We hate each other too much to play catch. I actually meant to kill you.” Wait, WHAT?! Yeon’s line is:

Yeon: Our relationship is too makjang for that. That was meant to be a deadball, actually.

Makjang, for the uninitiated, is a slang word taken from the phrase ‘the final scene’ (‘majimak jangmyeon’) that has come to refer to an entire genre, as well as particular dramatic elements or conventions of Korean storytelling. Dramabeans explain the term here. When Yeon says his relationship with Rang is ‘makjang,’ he’s essentially saying it’s overly fraught, not that he hates his brother.

He also doesn’t say he meant to kill Rang. ‘Deadball’ is a Korean baseball term for a pitch that hits a player (typically causing the game to be paused). So Yeon’s just saying he meant for the ‘ball’ to hit Rang, rather than for Rang to catch it.

On a personal note, it really bothers me when the subs spread all over the internet and they’re wrong like this. I don’t mind slight changes in phrasing or wording, but when they grossly misrepresent the characters like this it can be a bit upsetting. It’s no wonder I sometimes feel like I watched a completely different drama. ㅠㅠ

Yeon’s cheeky smile™ XD

The BGM in this scene is actually ‘The Forest of the Agwi.’

Subs: “Run away.” Yeon’s line is quite literally: ‘Get away from here,’ or even, ‘put distance between here and you.’ I mention it because I really appreciated that, despite all the danger she confronts, Yeon never once tells Ji Ah to ‘run away’ (‘domang ga’). His second ‘run away’ in the subs is also just him telling her to hurry up (literally ‘go quickly’).

The following banter between the brothers is something I mentioned in an ask a while back because all the humour had been lost in translation. To recap, though, one recurring joke the show uses plays off the word for ‘bastard/son of a bitch,’ which translates literally as ‘child of a dog’ (kae-saekki). As you might imagine, this gets a lot of mileage in relation to Rang, our resident ‘baby fox’ (agi yeou) a.k.a. ‘child of a fox’ (yeou-saekki):

Rang: This is domestic violence, you know?

Yeon: (Nodding) They say you’re supposed to raise wild children* with a firm hand (literally: hit them as you raise them), but I couldn’t do that, so I ended up raising a fox child into a dog child (son of a bitch), didn’t I?

Rang: And who was the jerk who kicked that child (saekki) to the curb? You treat me like a stray dog any chance you get.

Yeon: My little brother, I’ll have to gift you a muzzle this Christmas.

Rang’s line was subbed: “You keep blaming it on me, when you were the one who turned me into an orphan.” which I find fairly problematic since that makes it sound like Yeon killed Rang’s parents. It’s also just plain wrong; to the extent that I’m not even sure what went wrong in the translation process.

The word Yeon uses here for ‘wild children’ is ‘horo jashik’ (호로자식), which many Koreans understand to mean something like a barbarian child, but the true origin, as it turns out, is a parentless child. It’s also a term used predominantly by elderly people heh

Finally, because the dog jokes dropped out ‘muzzle’ became ‘mouth guard’ in the subs, which is both less funny and less sensical. The two are also conceptually opposed, since ‘muzzle’ implies that Yeon means to protect the world from Rang whereas ‘mouth guard’ is more about protecting Rang.

As Ji Ah continues to put distance between herself and the brothers, she happens upon the mudang’s house, which she immediately clocks as such from the obangi.

I like that Ji Ah doesn’t immediately call the mudang out for lying, but instead continues to question her knowing she’s lying. Sometimes the lies people tell can be as telling as the truth.

When Ji Ah questions her, the mudang tells her the fishing ritual is held during the ‘Ghost Festival’. This is a Buddhist festival similar to All Souls Day. In Korean it’s called ‘Baek Joong Nal’ (literally ‘hundred-gather-day’) meaning ‘the day when all the spirits gather.’ It falls on the full moon of the seventh lunar month (so July 15th of the lunar calendar), which is, of course, the date Ji Ah identified as the day when the murders were taking place. That’s why we get the zoom in and the flash to the newspaper dates: Ji Ah has put everything together.

Chyron: “Obangi (五方旗) A five-colored flag symbolizing ‘life, death, illness, sacrifice, and ancestors’”. This is the quick quotes version. Obangi have their roots in the Chinese philosophy of Wuxing, but for more on that, I’ll refer you to Wikipedia. In Korea, the colors of the obangi (red, blue, white, black, and yellow) are known as the five orientation colors, and are closely tied to both shamanism and fortune telling. You’ll notice these same colors flying outside the fortune teller’s in EP06.

I also appreciated that Ji Ah didn’t just foolishly drink the tea here. She was properly on her guard. It’s only that she mis-identified the source of danger.

Back over to our fox brothers. Rang’s line is subbed: “That was plenty of time.” This is more properly: “I think I’ve bought more than enough time by now.” So he’s actually quite overt in telling Yeon exactly what he'd been up to.

Subs: “Don’t you know why she ended up on this island?” More closely: “Do you still not get it? Why that woman ended up coming to this island of all places?”

We see the mudang encircle the creepy well with burial ground evening primrose to ward against Yeon, who is currently searching the island for Ji Ah to no avail.

Subs: “You tricked your mom while you were in her womb.” This is a bit difficult to translate. The word the mudang uses that was translated as ‘tricked’ is ‘ggweda,’ which means to ‘lure’ or ‘entice.’ So what she means is that the part of Imoogi that was reincarnated with Ji Ah ‘lured’ her mother to the island by sending her recurring dreams.

Gumiho

Lol Yeon: “I am the original mountain spirit, the master of the mountains and streams. Lift this darkness and lead me to her!” This is more literally:

Yeon: I am the original mountain god, the master of your mountains and streams.* Part this darkness and lead me to that woman!

[*Note: ‘Mountains and streams’ here can also be taken to mean ‘nature’ at large.]

Lol The line is met with silence and the soft hoot of a lone owl. That’s basically the director’s version of *crickets* isn’t it?

This line is another rare case in which Yeon speaks archaically, and it serves to make the command sound more formal and potentially magical. It’s also worth noting that he’s addressing the forest directly as a whole here (thus the ‘your’).

Fun fact: When Lee Dong Wook did his TotNT VLIVE, his promotional team made him perform this line again live just to mess with him haha

The BGM here as Yeon heads off through the forest led by his (supernatural?) fireflies is ‘Opening Title: The Legend of the Fox.’ It sounds vaguely Harry Potter-ish to me (not complaining).

For the record, Ji Ah is now speaking to the mudang in banmal out of disdain.

Sub: “Be a sacrifice. You are a very special child.” Pfft ‘Be a sacrifice’ sounds oddly funny to me. Her line is: “Become a sacrifice. I’m told you’re a very special child.” So the implication is that this information came from someone/something else.

Does anyone know what BGM this is as Yeon sprints though the forest? I think it might be another unreleased track, but I’m not positive...

Yeon’s “Halt!” is once again in olden speech. It indicates linguistically that he's in Gumiho mode.

Out of curiosity, is it not odd for people watching with subs when Ji Ah’s only utterance is ‘Lee Yeon’ but the subs just say ‘Yeon’?

Subs: “This has nothing to do with the old master of the mountain. Why don’t you keep walking?” I would have translated this as: “It is a matter unrelated to the former master of the mountain. Beg, go along your way.” She’s once again using olden-speech in her second sentence.

Lol Sub: “Says the living corpse.” I like this sub. Yeon’s line is quite literally: “With the ‘juje’ of a living corpse...” ‘Juje’ is essentially your station or lot in life, and it’s used almost exclusively derogatorily.

Sub: “Who was it that provided you with longevity you don’t deserve?” More closely: “Who was it? The one who gave you a lifespan so much longer than you deserve?”

Yeon: “I asked you whom you serve!” (literally ‘what’ you serve). Yeon once again drops into an archaic cant for this line. It serves to underline his full age and gives his demand an extra air of authority.

Yeon’s TAILS. I can’t believe this was the last we saw of them. ㅠㅠ Personally, I interpreted the firey tails as being a sort of ‘shadow’/ projection of his actual tails, which I assumed were actually more physically there (since he talks about shampooing them in the teaser interview). My sister thinks differently, though. Guess we’ll never know...

The BGM for this sequence is naturally ‘Gumiho.’ If you read our EP01 breakdown, you’ll know I was fully expecting this to be Yeon’s theme. But no, it’s the whimsical 'The Fox’s Wedding Day’ instead haha

Okay, Yeon just casually smiting the mudang is pretty badass. Seeing as he can command lightning, I’m pretty sure he was joking when he told Ji Ah, ‘even gumiho are afraid of electricity.’

If by chance you wondered what was going though Yeon’s mind when he smote the mudang, it’s featured in the EP03 subtitle poster.

I appreciated that Yeon just accepts Ji Ah at her word here when she tells him all she needs from him is one arm for support. I feel like in most dramas the male lead would have just forcefully swept the heroine off her feet amidst her protests, which I always find more problematic than romantic.

For that matter, when it became clear that Ji Ah really did need help, I appreciated that she didn’t act shy or coy and just accepted being carried without making a big deal of it.

Pfft The way Ji Ah’s eyes flash when Yeon tells her the mudang was just a human being says it all.

Yeon: “So you say... Excuse me, but you nearly died just now, you know?” This line is once again cheekily in jondaetmal.

*Ominous close up of the well*

Thank You

We catch up with Shin Joo at the supermarket as he talks to Yeon over the phone.

Shin Joo’s ‘PD-nim’ has once again become, ‘the director lady’ in the subs. *Sigh*

Subs: “Your love story is more than just famous among us.” Actually: “Just how famous is Lee Yeon-nim’s love story in our world? It’s obvious your younger brother* must have been playing tricks!”

Shin Joo refers to Rang here as ‘donsaeng-bun’ (younger sibling + polite word for person) for the same reason he calls Rang, ‘Lee Rang-nim.’ It’s an extension of his regard for Yeon, rather than for Rang himself.

Lol Shin Joo hanging up on Yeon. His love for supermarkets and fried chicken are actually in his character profile. Apparently, they’re what convinced him living as a human was worth the existential crisis that came with it.

Sub: “I’m too much of a human to easily fall asleep after such an event. Join me.” More literally: “I’m human, so on a day like today I can’t sleep sober. You* have a glass, too.”

The word Ji Ah uses for ‘you’ here is ‘ja’ne’ (자네), which is a polite term... except it’s only used to refer to people younger than you. So’s she’s talking down to him politely haha This is what prompts Yeon’s line that follows it:

Sub: “I never said anything since it could make seem old-fashioned, but you’re too informal with me when you don’t even know my age.”

Yeon: I kept holding it in thinking you’d call me an old fart, but you’re [using] banmal really blatantly. Just how old do you think I am?”

Yeon’s ‘Just how old do you think I am?’ is rhetorical. It’s not that Ji Ah is necessarily unaware of his true age, but rather that she acts as if she is.

Sub: “Those over 60 are universally considered as grandpas.” Actually: “You know everyone over 60 can be called a grandpa, right?”

Pfft Sub: “Be as informal as you like.” What Yeon literally says is, “Please lower your speech,” but he uses very respectful language to say it. I’m not sure if he’s being sarcastic, or if he just hates the thought of being considered a grandpa that much haha It’s probably a bit of both.

Aww Ji Ah promising to protect Yeon. I luff her.

Ji Ah: "Do I perhaps have something you’re looking for?” I love that she doesn’t miss a thing.

Lol Yeon: “Who am I, Jesus? Just drink what you have.”

The Vanishing

Subs: “Don’t ever resort to cursing people again. Karma can sting.” Quite literally: “You were lucky you kept your life, but don’t do such a thing* as cursing others ever again. They return, you know. Back on the one who casts them.”

*Yeon uses the disparagement marker ‘ddaui’ (따위) to refer to the act of cursing someone here. You may recall it from our EP01 breakdown.

Ji Ah chooses this moment to come running in to announce that the island has turned into a ghost town over night, which is enough to make even Yeon pause, perplexed.

I love the way Yeon and Ji Ah exchange looks here on the dock. They don’ t know what’s up yet, but they intend to find out.

‘Blue Moon’~~~ This worked great scored over the drone-camera pan out. I may be slightly biased, though.

And that concludes Episode 3. Once again, thank you to everyone who commented or left feedback on the last episode! Never hesitate to send me your thoughts, even if they’re just to say what you found funny or surprising. It helps me to know what’s of interest for one thing, but I also just enjoy chatting about the show. ;)

A brief note on pronunciation/notation: for words like ‘sa’ingeom’ and ‘mi’ryeon,’ the apostrophe is there just as a pronunciation guide. So in the case of the former, to indicate that it’s pronounced ‘sah-in’ and not ‘sine’ or ‘sane.’ Similarly, for the latter, the apostrophe is just to indicate that this should be pronounced ‘mi-ryeon’ and not ‘mir-yeon.’ I could have just as easily done this with ‘Hyeon’ui’ong’ except that’s a lot of apostrophes and I set an earlier precedent of not. It’s not an aspiration or anything fancy. Hopefully that makes sense.

Once again, I’d like to credit my sister for being the main researcher and fact-checker for these, in addition to weighing in on all the translations. I don’t always take her advice, but I do always appreciate it haha.

Thank you also to everyone who bought us coffee! Your support is truly felt and appreciated ♡ As usual, this took an ungodly amount of time, so every coffee helps haha. For anyone just joining us (or not), if you’d like to see more of these, please consider buying us a coffee. If you follow the link, you can buy a $2 cup of virtual coffee. This helps me to gauge how much interest there is, and also how much value people place on these. If you cared enough to read all the way to the end, please at least consider it. Once I’ve established there’s enough interest, I’ll proceed with Episode 4. ;)

#tale of the nine tailed #totnt #lost in translation #구미호뎐 #kdrama #korean language #happy new year!

26 notes · View notes

fandomoblivion · 5 years ago

Text

Ella Enchanted (part one)

Fandom: Stranger Things season 3

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Summary: (Y/N), also known as Nine, was a girl being experimented on all her life by the Hawkins Lab, conditioned into following every command her brain heard. She managed to escape the lab, with the help of her little sister Eleven, and was taken in by Hopper. Now, it’s a year later, and the three of them are a happy family. She just got her first job, where she works alongside Steve “The Hair” Harrington… who her father doesn’t much like.

Warnings: Swearing

Word Count: 1,570

Notes: Part one! Here we gooo!

prologue

“Bye Hopper!” You called, giving the old grump sitting in his Lazy Boy a kiss on the top of his head.

“Bye, Kid. Be safe.”

“You know I always am. And please, don’t spy on them all day.” You said, referring to El and Mike, alone in the bedroom the two of you shared.

“Eh. No guarantees. Have a good first day.”

“Thanks.” And, with that, you were out of the house. You didn’t know how to drive yet, so you had to leave extra early to be able to walk all the way to the Starcourt Mall, where you’d be on your feet for a couple more hours, before walking home again.

This was your first day at the ice cream place, and you were psyched to say the least. Your uniform was in your bag so you could change there--no way in hell you were walking over wearing it, listening to your Walkman and excited beyond words to start being a normal teenager.

When you got to Scoops Ahoy, you walked up to the girl who had previously met when your boss interviewed you. Her name was Robin, and she greeted you with a kind smile.

“Hey (Y/N)! First day, right?” You just nodded, still not super comfortable with human interactions yet… even though you were about to work in customer service. “Well, I should introduce you to our shift partner, Lord Himbo himself, Mr. Steve Harrington.”

The shudders behind her opened, revealing a guy with very… tall hair. He had on a wide smile, which dropped when he saw your face. He replaced it quickly, though, and Robin didn’t even seem to notice. You for sure did, though.

“Hi there. Steve Harrington.”

“I’m (Y/N).” You said quietly. You held up your bag with the uniform in it and asked, “Is there a…”

“Yeah, there are bathrooms in the back,” Robin replied. You thanked her, went, and got changed.

And your shift had begun. Honestly, it was pretty easy. Robin and Steve worked like a well-oiled machine, you could pretty much sit back, watch, and take notes in your mind.

When your shift was almost over, you and Robin were at the counter together, making awkward small talk, when a boy with dark hair came up and rang the bell repeatedly, continuing after you had acknowledged his presence. He looked familiar, you just couldn’t place the face.

Robin sighed. “Hey, Dingus! Your children are here!”

Steve opened the back window. “Again? Seriously?” The boy said nothing, and just hit the bell again. “Alright, come on. Don’t let people see you.” Steve said, ushering them into the back.

“Hey! Mike!” You said cheerfully, smiling at him. He just looked at you and gave an awkward smile.

“Steve sometimes likes to use his privileges here to help his friends that are like eighth graders for some reason.”

“Yeah… that’s my little sister’s boyfriend.”

And things were back to normal, until the lights flickered and went out a few minutes later. You jumped slightly, remembering all the times lights flickering were associated with otherworldly things. You had to remind yourself now, that these lights were just lights.

“That’s weird.” Steve mumbled. He went and flicked the light switch, but nothing happened.

Robin crossed her arms. “That isn’t gonna work, Dingus.”

“Oh really?” Steve asked, before flicking the light as fast as he could.

“I don’t think they’re turning back on.” You whispered, hugging your arms to yourself.

Steve groaned and put his hands on his hips, assessing the situation. “Alright. You guys can go home, if you want. Shifts are almost over, I can cover until we close.”

“Hey, thanks, doof.” Robin said. You nodded in agreement and went into the bathroom to change with Robin. “So, how was your first day?”

“Good.”

“You’re not much of a talker, are you?”

You shrugged. “I talk when I want.”

“Do you want a ride home? If all the lights are out, it’s gonna be a difficult walk.”

You shook your head. “That’s alright.”

Robin laughed. “Nah, come on. Let me give you a ride home.”

Your brain went fuzzy, as it did whenever you heard a command. You couldn’t think or do anything, and you heard the words “Okay, thank you,” come out of your mouth.

When you two finished changing, you bid Steve farewell, and Robin drove you home. It was a nice drive. She mostly talked about the mall: what to expect from the job, how to read different customers, the works. When she dropped you off, she made a joke about you living in the middle of nowhere. You did your best to laugh.

“Thanks for the ride.”

“Don’t mention it.” Okay, you wouldn’t. “I’ll see you tomorrow, yeah?”

“Yeah.”

---

The next day was the same. You walked to work, changed, and tried your best to help out. Steve tried flirting with different customers, but the uniform, along with the cocky personality, set him back far too much.

Just as another pretty girl walked away, giggling to her friend, Robin opened the back window and slid a whiteboard into view. You walked over from the corner to see what it said. It was a T-chart, with “YOU RULE” with an empty column under it, and “YOU SUCK” with five tally marks.

“And another one bites the dust,” Robin said, drawing another tally mark. Steve just scoffed. “You are oh-for-six, Popeye.”

“Yeah, yeah, I can count.” Steve retaliated.

“You know that means you suck.” You said, laughing.

Steve glared at you. Robin laughed. “Exactly!”

“Yeah, I can read too!” He huffed.

Robin put the whiteboard away. “Since when?”

“It’s this stupid hat. I’m telling you, it’s totally blowing my best feature.”

You paused. “Which is…?”

“My hair!”

“Yeah, company policy is a real drag.” Robin said, leaning through the window. You moved to stand next to Steve, so you were all around the window. How cute. “You know, it’s a crazy idea, but have you considered telling the truth?”

“Oh, you mean that I couldn’t even get into Tech and my douchebag dad’s trying to teach me a lesson, I make three bucks an hour, and I have no future? Hm? That truth?

“People don’t always like the truth.” You said, knowing from your stupid curse.

“Ah, shut up.” Steve groaned. Damn it. You hated it when people said that, because you couldn’t talk until they left, or until you were told another command. El used this tactic whenever the two of you would fight, since she couldn’t really leave, you couldn’t talk.

“Hey, twelve o’clock.” Robin said, pointing behind the two of you. You looked behind you, at the cash register, and a group of pretty girls were walking up.

“Oh shit. Oh shit. Okay, uh… I’m going in. And you know what?” Steve took off his hat and threw it at Robin. “Screw company policy.”

“My god, you’re a whole new man.” Robin said sarcastically. You quickly went and joined Robin in the back, watching Steve with her.

“Ahoy ladies!” Steve yelled, making the girl in front yelp. “Didn’t see you there! Would you guys like to set sail on this ocean of flavor with me? I’ll be your captain. I’m Steve Harrington.” The girls laughed nervously. You and Robin just watched in awe. “Can I get you guys a little taste of the Cherries Jubilee? No? Anybody? Banana Boat? Four people, four spoons? Share it in the booth? Anybody? It’s hot out there!”

Robin rolled her eyes and added a seventh tally to the board.

The girls just laughed and walked away. Steve groaned, running his hands over his face. “Damn it!” He said, joining the two of you in the back. “What’s wrong with me?” He asked, looking at you.

Robin laughed. “Yeah, (Y/N), tell him what’s wrong with him.”

Your brain went fuzzy and you heard yourself say, “You hold yourself to a standard you can’t meet.”

Steve looked surprised and Robin snickered. “Shit, too real.” Her head perked up when she heard the bell being rung by a customer. “Be right back, guys.” She left the two of you back there, alone for the first time.

“Sorry.” You said.

“Nah, nah. I did ask. I’m just… Where do I know you from? Did you go to Hawkins High?” You shook your head. “Do you have a sibling at the middle school? I might have seen you.”

“No. Do you?”

“Well, no, but I have a friend who goes there. I don’t know, maybe I might have seen you while dropping him off.”

“My little sister’s dating Mike Wheeler.” You said, remembering that Steve took Mike into the back room the previous day.

“Mike’s girlfriend… El. Wait, El?! Your sister is Eleven?!” You nodded. “That’d make you one of the-”

Robin opened the window. “Hey, dingus, there’s a girl here who you might have a shot with.” You looked up and saw a girl walking in. Oh, you understood the joke. She’s in middle school.

“Ha ha. Very funny.” Steve said, rolling his eyes. Robin shrugged and closed the window. There was a long pause. “Are you?” He asked quietly. You held out your wrist reluctantly. “009.” Steve read to himself. “Fuck. You got out?” You nodded. He let out a breathy laugh. “Shit. Well then,” he said, drawing up two chairs to the little table back there. “Tell me your story.”

Fuzzy mind.

---

TAGLIST

@alina-margaret . @almostsecretmusic . @american-duchess . @anamcg317 . @annaewww . @blackandwhiteimagines . @bubblegumcat229 . @bucky-newtlock . @canny1902 . @christinawxxx . @cosmickha0s . @creativedogs . @darkcrystal-wolf . @decaffeinatedtachycardia . @djisprobablydead . @eyeballtoes . @fandomsstolemylife00 . @fredweasleysupportgroup . @ggclarissa . @ginger-swag-rapunzel . @gracelynns . @grippleback-galaxy . @gruffle1 . @hananabee . @harrys-kiwi . @heavenlyholland . @hellhoundschewtoy . @in-my-dreams-2000 . @lilyhw1 . @mackycat11 . @megsell99 . @metuel18 . @morganmindflayer . @phluffyphantom . @potterhead-witch . @pppsssyyyccchhhiiiccc . @princessrow12 . @queen1054 . @rainbowmarta . @sheridans-dynamos . @thecaptainsgingersnap . @thegloryofliterature . @thoughstofaredhead . @ucantknowmeyet . @whataloadofmalarkey

112 notes · View notes

captainmarvels · 5 years ago

Text

ahoy, ladies! | steve harrington

Summary: Chance encounters at a particular ice cream parlor lead to a miracle of sorts!

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Word Count: 1165

A/N: thank you @witchever for this wonderful fic idea, you’re a genius and I appreciate you! enjoy this fic and pls pls pls participate in steve weekend :) xx

Right on Erica’s heels, you found yourself in the sailor parlor of Scoops Ahoy, the new ice cream place of StarCourt Mall. You spotted Erica’s colorful hair ties in the crowd of kids in front of you; how did she get to the counter so fast?

You made your way through the sea of children, silently cursing your mother for secretly volunteering you to be Erica’s babysitter at the mall. When you finally got up there, you sighed deeply.

“Are you trying to lose me, Sinclair?”

Erica looks up at you, brows furrowed as she licks her sample spoon clean.

“I’d like to try the Cherries Jubilee now, please,” She said, not breaking eye contact with you as she held out her hand.

You heard an exasperated sigh and glanced over, catching Robin rolling her eyes as she pulled out her scooper once again.

“Hey dingus, get out here and help, would ya?” She shouted over her shoulder, sighing loudly as she opened one of the freezers.

You had never realized there was another person that worked at Scoops, since Erica was always in and out of the parlor, never there for more than five taste testers a day. You leaned against the counter, looking over right as the ‘dingus’ Robin had called for appeared.

Holy shit.

He was really cute - the sailor hat and suit aside - and you couldn’t stop the nervous warmth from invading your cheeks, even if you wanted to. Catching your glimpse, the cute stranger made his way over to you, smile growing wider with every step.

“Ahoy there, ladies!” He said, eyes shining under the bright shop lights. He glanced at Erica and her friends before looking right at you. “Would you like to set sail on this ocean of flavor with me, m’lady? I’ll be your captain - Steve Harrington,”

He stuck out his hand, smile faltering just a bit as you took longer than humanly possible to react.

Shit, oh shit, okay,

You took his hand in yours, squeezing gently before letting go, and smiling back at him.

“And where exactly will you be taking me, Captain Harrington?” You giggled when you realized you caught him off guard - as if no one ever took him seriously before - and nodded in the direction of the freezers.

Steve, panicked like never before, began to fumble over his words as he walked over to the ice cream.

“Wha- I - Well - Where shall we begin? A plain chocolate for the lassie, or will a Banana Boat catch her wandering eye?” You couldn’t help but laugh at his cheesy lines, but you were appreciating the effort he was putting into them.

Before you could get a word out, Erica appeared at your side, tugging at the side of your shirt.

“Banana boat, c’mon! You know you want to!” She frowned at you before you could answer, her grip on your shirt not loosening one bit.

“How about a banana boat, Captain? This one,” You poked Erica’s head, smiling tauntingly when she grimaced and let go of your shirt. “... will let you know what to put on it, yeah?”

Erica immediately forgot about you and went to the other side of the counter, already instructing Robin on which flavors and toppings she needed to have.

You moved back to the register, Steve following right on your heels. As he rang up the order, you wondered if this was hopefully not the last time you’d be seeing him.

“I - I don’t think I’ve ever seen you before. You new to town?” Steve handed you your change, his words hanging between you.

“Sort of. I just moved here after graduating high school, and now I’m stuck babysitting that little terror,” You motioned in Erica’s direction, watching her tell Robin that she needed more whipped cream on top.

“Well… you know, if - if you ever need some help, I- I’d be more than happy to help,” You turned your attention back to Steve as his kind offer settled in your mind.

“We could also um- I dunno, take them to the movies and-”

“This is starting to sound like a date, Harrington,” Your confidence had come out of nowhere, and there was no way to stop it now. “If you want to ask me out, you can. Nothing to lose, yeah?”

Steve was blushing hard and you couldn’t help the smile growing on your face as you took your receipt and a pen from the counter to write down your phone number. You slipped it in the brim of his sailor hat, lightly tapping the top of it before turning away.

You only took two steps before you heard a rushed “I’ll call you tonight!” followed by a loud “Maybe you don’t suck, dingus!”, and you didn’t know if it was possible for your smile to get any bigger.

------------

“Today is a tragic day,” Robin said dramatically, sighing loudly as she grabbed her white board and marker. “Today… is the end of an era.”

“For the love of God, would you just mark the tally already? I want to bask in the glory of my success, Robin,”

She turned around, glaring menacingly as she uncapped the marker and feigned a sniffle.

“Today… the dingus does not suck. Today… the dingus… rules,”

Steve cheered loudly as he watched her mark a red tally in the ‘You Rule!’ side of her chart. He couldn’t stop smiling, thanking you for being the reason he didn’t feel so crappy about himself anymore.

Maybe things were finally starting to look up.

---------

“I’m so glad you finally found a new use for that board, Robin!” You giggled when Steve smacked the top of your thigh, his arms wrapped around your waist as you sat on the counter of Scoops Ahoy’s back room.

“It’s your fault, you ruined my wonderful experiment with the dingus - I mean, Steve, I guess,” She stuck out her tongue when Steve flipped her off.

“Well maybe I can use the board and see how well you do at asking the next gal that walks in the door, huh? Remember, we gotta work on that god-awful taste of yours-”

“Just because you think Tammy was bad doesn’t mean everyone I like is gonna be terrible!”

“We’ll see about that, won’t we, dingus!”

Robin threw her hat at Steve, the two of you erupting in laughter when it struck him right in the nose, causing him to shriek out.

“Why do you two always conspire against me?” He said breathlessly, chucking the hat back at Robin before looking up at you.

“Because I love you and sometimes that ego of yours need to lose some air every now and then,” Before he could argue with you, you kissed him, sticking out your middle finger at Robin right on cue as she faked vomiting noises in the background.

When you pulled away, Steve smiled sweetly, dropping his head into your lap.

“You’re lucky I love you, lady,”

“I really am lucky, huh, Captain?”

tagging: @bitessathompson @novaddictx @connors-my-boy @fragcc @jurassicbarnes

#steve harrington #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington fluff #stranger things #steve weekend

432 notes · View notes

rainycl0udss · 4 years ago

Text

Chapter 3;

The morning after party

//When can I say "I love you"?//

Written Chapter!

Word count; 1780

Moons POV

I lay peacefully in my bed, sleeping.

That was untill I heard one of the most annoying sounds of all time.

My alarm.

Don't get me wrong, I love the song Euphoria but I wish I didn't have to wake up right now.

I turn my head to the noice and pick up my phone so I can turn of the sound of my alarm playing.

I check my phone on social media and I check my mails aswell.

I look at the time, it's 8:35 am.

Way to early for my liking but I don't really have a choice. I've got plenty of things to do today. I'll probably have to go grocery shopping too. I don't think Mimi is going to be in the right state of mind to do it today.

With a sigh I get out of my bed and walk to the kitchen.

Just like I had suspected, nobody else is awake yet. They're probably going to be sleeping till noon.

I walk to the fridge and take out some banana milk, cheese and eggs. I'll probably make an omelette with some cheese, drink some banana milk and call it breakfast.

After preparing my meal and eating it it's already 09:48 am.

That's not as late as I thought it would be.

I have to be in the studio around noon, so I've got plenty of time to get ready.

I clean my dishes and decide I'll take a shower to clean myself. Something that is definitely needed because my hair smells like liquor.

I walk back to my bedroom and grab a black jeans and a grey hoodie. I also take some fresh underwear and head to the bathroom.

There is one positive about waking up before everyone else and that is,

The bathroom is not occupied.

I undress, step in the shower and start washing my hair.

I'm not really a morning person, I like to sleep in and I probably would never leave my bed if that was an option. Sadly it's not. I'm also normally not a person who showers in the morning. Normally I shower before I go to sleep. I like it better that way. That way my hair can dry naturally at night and I'll feel fresh in the morning. Obviously I had no time for a shower yesterday night. I was way to tired to do anything else but sleep.

I'm curious if the others remember anything about last night. I have a feeling Mimi probably doesn't. She never does.

Jae, that's debatable. She normally remembers everything, but she normally isn't that drunk so I guess we shall see.

For some reason Yun will probably remember everything, even tho that girl can get so drunk she almost dies, she'll always remember everything. It's kinda scary really.

Jae and Mimi, mostly Mimi, complain that she doesn't remember anything and that Yun should be happy she could remember.

Yun always responds with "It's more of a curse then a blessing, sometimes I wish I didn't remember."

I think I understand what she means, in that perspective I'm the same as Yun.

I can drink as much as I want, I'll remember everything. But I don't drink much so it's never a problem.

Ones I'm done showering I change in my clothes and head back to my room.

My hair is still wet so I decide to wear a beanie.

I look at the clock and see it's 10:27 am.

There is still no sign that my friends are waking up anytime soon.

I put on my boots and take my jacket. I take my keys and my bag and leave for the car.

I guess it's time for me to go grocery shopping.

Ones in the grocery I buy whatever I think we'll be needing. I'm normally not the one to do it, but it needs to be done.

Ones I'm back home I see that Jae is awake.

"Good morning." I say while unpacking the groceries.

"Hey Moon. Do you know where the painkillers are?" Jae asks me in a quiet voice.

She's definitely hungover.

"I think in the cabinet next to instant noodles." I exclam while still unpacking.

I hear her open the cabinet and take a painkiller.

"I found them, thanks." She says after taking a painkiller.

"You seem pretty hungover Jae." I state to her.

"I AM pretty hungover. This fucking sucks." She huffes.

"You shouldn't have drunk as much as you did. Then you wouldn't be in this position." I claim.

"Shut up will you. I know I shouldn't have but you know how it goes..." She argues back.

Honestly, I don't know. I'm pretty good at holding my liquor so it's never really been a problem for me.

"Whatever floats your boat Jae." I chuckle.

"How long have you been awake?" She asked me while she goes to sit down.

I look at the clock and see it's 11:36 am.

"About three hours now. I'm guessing you just woke up." I reply.

"Why the fuck would you wake up that early?" Jae exclames

"Because unlike some people I actually have things to do today and wanted to get it done." I articulate.

Jae just rolls with her eyes.

"I made y'all some breakfast btw, it's more like brunch right now but whatever. It's in the fridge." I announce to Jae.

I get up from the table to walk to my room but I get interrupted by Jae.

"You made us breakfast? That's a first." She interjects.

"It's not a first you bitch, I always make y'all breakfast when you're hungover." I remark.

Without waiting for her to respond I walk to my room.

I grab my bag and put all my work in it.

I walk back to the kitchen to see Jae eat the food I made for her.

She's watching her kdrama while eating.

I go to the cabinet and grab a pot of instant noodles and a banana milk out the fridge. I put them both in my bag and walk to the front door of the apartment.

"Where are you going?" I hear Jae ask me before I could leave.

"To the studio." I answer without looking up.

"It's not even school today." She nags.

"That doesn't mean I can't work for school. Besides, now I'm behind on schedule because of yesterday." I persist.

"Are you leaving already?" I hear a different voice say.

I turn around and look at both Yun and Jae.

"I have to get my work done guys." I sigh.

It's not like it's fun for me to leave them alone all the time. They're my friends and I care about them. But I also care about my future.

"Can't you go to the studio around 1 pm?"

Yun begs me.

I take a deep breath.

I guess I can do that.

I sigh but place my bag on the floor and walk back to the table and sit down.

"I'll stay till 12:30 pm alright." I confirm.

Yun smiles at me.

"Good to hear." She smiles.

"So how are you?" I ask after a short silence.

"I'm oke. I guess." She mumbles while stuffing her face with bacon.

"I honestly don't remember much." Jae confesses.

I'm not surprised about that.

"I fucking wish I didn't remember anything. It was so embarrassing." Yun grumbles.

"I only remember that Mimi started puking and that you were grinding against some guy." Jae laughs.

"Euw, Don't remind me of Mimi puking. You know I hate puke." She recalls disgusted.

"Who was the guy?" I hint in a joking matter.

"Just some guy I made out with, he wasn't my soulmate." She whines.

I just shake my head an laugh a little.

This is typical behavior for her. Same goes for Mimi. Always going around and have one night stands with random guys from clubs. The only rule we have is to not go to his home. Luckily that didn't happen yesterday.

"I really hoped I would have found my soulmate." Jae whimpers.

"Same here, I'll probably just die alone." Yun dramatically states.

"I actually enjoyed myself for and hour are so." I suddenly confess to them.

The both turn their heads to me at the same time and just stare at me.

"Can you both stop staring at me please, it's unsettling." I accuse.

"You enjoyed yourself? At a party? Do I even know you?" Yun jokes while she punches my arm.

"Then what did you do? Because I didn't see you dance even ones." Jae questions.

"I talked to a someone. Her name was Areum. She was very nice. She also helped me find Soo-Yun." I inform them.

"I'm glad you actually enjoyed yourself. Maybe you'll come with us again." Yun smiles at me.

She trying to hint me to go with them again. Oh hell nah.

"I don't think so, but good try." I laugh and pet her on the shoulder.

"But I'm leaving now." I inform them.

I get up and walk to the front door.

"Don't come home to late!" Jae yells.

I pick my bag from the ground and open the door.

"I won't, tell Mi-Hi that her food is in the fridge!" I yell before I close the door.

I decided that I'll go on foot. The studio isn't so far from our apartment it's only a 20 minute walk. I plug in my headphones and start blasting Dimple from BTS.

God I love that song.

Ones I get to the studio I start looking for my ID to show them I have promision to use the studio.

When I look in my wallet for my ID I found an familiar looking card.

It's the card that Ari unnie gave me.

I put it in my pocket and walk in the building.

I show them my ID and walk to my studio.

I poof myself in my seat and pull the card out of my pocket.

Coffee shop Blooming.

It look aesthetically pleasing.

I'll definitely go there this week. I would really like to talk to Ari unnie again. She was very nice.

I put it back in the pocket of my jeans and start to work on my final project of this semester.

I have alot to catching up to do. Definitely now that I'm leaving in a few weeks to Busan for Hanas birthday.

I can't afford to waist time.

I sigh one last time before I take of my headphones and plug them in my computer. I'm in work mode ones again.

This is going to be a long day.

<<Previous// //Next>>

🏷️Tags;

1 note · View note

nostalgiaispeace · 7 years ago

Text

622.

5000 Question Survey Pt. 31

2901. have you ever written a letter to: a friend: yeah a lover: no a celebrity: yes. congress/house/reps: no the president/leader of your country: no. 2902. Why are cigarette companies allowed to manufacture and sell cigarettes when they are so unhealthy and dangerous? same reason alcohol companies can i guess. 2903. Do you chat with people in an elevator? no 2904. What’s your favorite Jack Nicholson movie? hmm...The Departed?

2905. Who should play the part of Superman? don’t care. wouldn’t watch it. 2906. Do you like when your friends and your mate’s friends hang out? i don’t care? 2907. Doritos or Cheetos? doritos 2910. Do you brush your teeth three times a day? no 2911. Should I stop making questions with multiple parts and just count each actual question as a question? i don’t care 2912. What gives your ego a boost? dunno 2913. What knocks your ego down? bullying 2914. Live and let live or live and let die? dunno 2915. What do you think of Damien Hirst’s art piece Mother and Child, which is half a cow in formaldedhyde? dunno it. 2916. Why is it that 70 percent of americans Do Not want to go to war with Iraq and yet we are going to war with Iraq anyway? ummm Is this democracy? no 2917. Imagine you have two choices of what life you can live: One: You are provided with meals, medicine, clothes and shelter. You are always with your family. You can lie in the sun and smoke, drink, play, cook, etc.. There will be certain rules you must follow such as no killing, no hurting others, no leaving the commune you were born in, no stealing, no tv, no newspapers and no books. OR Two: You are turned loose in the world with nothing. You start out cold and hungry. You may stay cold and hungry forever but you also have the opportunity to try and make a life for yourself. This will take a lot of hard work and there is no guarantee you will ever live comfortably. Which life do you choose? both seem shitty WHY? because first has no books and the second i’ll be cold 2918. Why is there no ‘Mr. America’ pageant? who cares Should there be? no. pageant life seems stupid. What qualities would YOU look for in a Mr. America if such a contest were to exist (like miss america he would have to be a role model)? pageants are stupid. 2919. If something offends you do you feel that it has no right to exist? sure. but that’s not reality 2920. Why do advertisers seem to believe that guys will buy any product that a hot girl in a bikini is sitting next too? because sex sells 2921. What would you do if your mom had a fight with a male acquaintance and you heard an answering machine message he left her cursing at her, calling her names and being very disrespectful? i’d call him and cuss him out 2922. What do you represent? myself? 2923. What message does ___ send when given as a birthday present?flowers: nice? slippers: i dunno but i love love it candles: you didn’t know what to get me? diamond necklace: you like me alot? gift certificate: you know what i like cash: you know what i like books: you really know what i like 2924. Have you ever completed a paint by number? probably If yes of what? i dunno 2925. How long has it been since you colored in a coloring book? years 2926. What have you been caught doing? dunno? 2927. Does temptation make you do what you love? no 2928. Do you have an gadgets in the house that you don’t know how to use? What? probably...technology 2929. Do you read the instructions to things or skip them? skip 2930. Will you ever reach your full potential? probably not 2931. Who is your biggest fan? no idea. 2932. Who do you take care of? myself and my husband Who takes care of you? same as above, and my mom 2933. Do you think that lawyers should only argue cases when they feel like the client is in the right? i think they should do their job. If you were a lawyer would you argue cases when you felt like your client was completely wrong? same as above 2934. Is it sexy in here or is it just me? it’s just you. 2935. You are giving out your phone number to a HOTTIE by writing it on a napkin. Do you write a little note or draw a picture too? If yes, what? i wouldn’t do this. 2936. Can you fold paper into anything (a hat, a swan, a boat, etc)? What? no 2937. How can a girl get a guy-she-is-dating’s mom to like her better? i don’t know? 2938. What is one theory about life or anything that you came up with that no one else has? no 2939. Do you like answering questions about: (bold) your life? your taste? tv? music? art? politics? life? religion? issues? sex? loved ones? favorites? objects? math? philosophy? hypothetical situations? things that require lots of thought? 2940. The mortuary science department is having a bake sale. Does this strike you as funny? no 2941. What would you think of a new reality tv game show where real life criminals on death row competed in life threatening tasks for the prize of a reduced sentence? that’s stupid as fuck. Did you know that they are considering making this a show? no Would you watch it? no 2942. What was the last song you looked up the words to? dunno 2943. What Saturday morning cartoons do you like? i don’t have cable 2944. If anything’s possible, then is it possible that nothing’s possible? no..? 2944. What does the T in T-Shirt really mean? dunno 2945. Would you alter your routine if there was a sniper in your area? probably? If so how? i wouldn’t leave the house 2946. Is castration a good punishment for extreme or repeat sexual offenders? just put them in prison and keep them there. 2947. If you are a girl have you ever experienced penis envy? no If you are a guy would you still want to live if you had to be castrated? 2948. Imagine you are teaching a class of sixth graders. A the start of the year you tell them, “If you come away with class and have learned only ONE THING, I hope that you learned….(finish the sentence) no 2949. If you were being interviewed for a job in a clothing store how would you sell yourself to the prospective employers? lolol i wouldn’t work in a clothing store 2950. How do you stop pop up ads? adblock...i think 2951. You are alone. You take a bus to the mall. The stop is right in the mall parking lot. You window-shop. You don’t buy anything. You want to get back on the bus to go home when you realize you have lost all your money. You have no cell phone. All the payphones are jammed with gum. You can not get it out. How do you get the $1.50 you need to get on the bus and get home??? i would ask someone to borrow a phone to call someone 2952. How long would it take you to organize your bedroom? probably a whole dat 2953. Make up a nickname for your bedroom: no 2954. What comes after: I’ve got a love-a-lee bunch of coconuts (diddly dee) There they are a-standing in a row. Big ones, small ones, some as big as your head… 2955. Where ARE the wild things? our imagination 2956. You get a six cd changer for the car, only problem is that you know that once you put in six cd’s you can NEVER take them out. Which 6 cd’s do you put in? oh god fuck you 2957. Let’s play Jeapordy. (Do-Do-Do-Do-Do-Do-Dooooo-) I’ll give some answers..you give the questions. Ready? Begin. The answer is: Purple what colour is barney the dinosaur? Yellow what colour is a banana? Candle what’s something you can light up during a romantic dinner? Pepsi who’s coke’s biggest competitor? Peace i dunno Lisa what’s the name of the eldest simpsons daughter? Cotton what type of fabric are most t-shirts made out of? Flag what does america take too seriously? 42 i dont know 2958. Pick a letter. A List some great words starting with that letter: no 2959. Is eight days a week enough to show you care? no 2960. Have you told your parents you love them today? no. 2961. What is the difference between a number two pencil and any other kind of pencil? no idea. 2962. Have you ever cross-dressed? no. 2963. Are we living in a world without end? seems like it 2964. What do you think of that couple that was just on the news who kidnapped a 16 year old girl for a week and forced her to be their sex slave? that’s disgusting. 2965. Wanna watch a movie about a cheerleading competition? no 2966. Are you singing in the rain? no but i love that film 2967. Should the sopranos actors have been allowed to march in the St Patrick’s Day parade? i don’t care 2968. Is oral sex, anal sex or regular sex more intimate? regular. 2969. Is it time to switch to Decaf? never 2970. Why is it that the truth hurts? some people are pussies 2971. How do you feel about: ticketmaster? meh scalpers? i don’t trust them 2972. What are you guilty of? being a bitch 2973. Have you ever done any of the following in order to catch a buzz or get high? sniffed glue: no sniffed magic markers: nope. ate paste: no. drank Nyquil, rRobitussen or any other Over-the-counter drug: no. 'huffed’ (inhaled or sniffed) any kind of fabric softner, cooking spray or other household product: no. whip-its: no. 2974. What gives you inner strength? dunno 2975. ::eyes you suspiciously::Where have all the COOKIES gone? i don’t have any cookies ever so 2976. What is a good gift for someone you don’t like so that it SEEMS to be nice but really 'gets’ them somehow? they don’t get gifts 2977. If you don’t like the service at a restaurant would you skip the tip? they would get a small one Why or why not? because they wouldn’t deserve a good one. 2978. Apples or peaches or pumpkin pie? none. 2979. What Race/nationality was Jesus? Jewish 2980. What was one evening you’ll never forget? getting proposed to 2981. Name 13 ways to look at a blackbird: no. 2982. Trick or Treat? treat. 2983. If you had money to burn, what 'toy’ would you spend your money on (think monopoly game with real money, luxory boat, a train layout that takes up a house, etc.)? probably something harry potter related 2984. Are you having trouble with aol 8.0? LOL what? how old is this. Or if you don’t have aol…have you ever been to a podiatrist? no 2985. If you could write your own ten commandments, what would they be? 1 no 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 2986. When people lose weight, where does it go? don’t care 2987. Your mate/partner/wife or husband/longterm boy or girlfriend/etc. has SOMEHOW gotten his or her FAVORITE celebrity’s attention. Your sweetie has always thought this celeb was so sexy and now the celeb kinda fancies your sweety as well(although the celeb is not interested enough to stick around for more than one night). Your sweetie wants to have a one night stand with the celeb. Knowing that this is your sweeties one and only chance to bang (or even hang out with) a celebrity (ESPECIALLY their FAVORITE celebrity) you would say: do your thing. 2988. Have you ever seen an Ed Wood film? probably? maybe? it’s possible. i watch a lot of films. if yes, what one(s) and what did you think? If no, aren’t you curious to see a movie by the person known as the worst director of all time? 2989. What kind of bread do you like to eat (white, rye, potatoe, grain, whole wheat, etc)? honey wheat 2990. Are you emotionally articulate? maybe 2991. Does everything happen for a reason? seems like it. 2992. Do you take a piece of those you have loved and carry it around forever? yeah If yes, than aren’t they still with you even when you are gone?

feels that way 2993. Is it true that the child is worth ten of the parent? i don’t know? 2994. Can you think of a door that has closed in your life? yes Can you think of a window that has opened? maybe 2995. What does this mean to you: 'Necessity is the mother of invention’? nothing

Do you believe that necessity is also the mother of: courage? idk survival skills? idk independence? idk 2996. What helps you to get over a Major heartache? i wish i knew 2997. Can you depend completely upon yourself? yes have you ever tried? i have to 2998. How can you tell the difference between the end of one part of your life and the beautiful beginning of the next part? i wish

2999. Have you ever read an stories by Kate Chopin? no If not, I suggest that you do. okay

3000. Do you often make the best discoveries when you really weren’t looking for anything (or anyone)? yes

#me #survey

1 note · View note

nocandnc · 7 years ago

Photo

I have to say. I’m madly in love with this pairing. Pardon me while I attempt to drag the rest of you into obscure shipping hell by explaining why. First and foremost, they look great together! I love contrasting pairings - light and dark, royal and rags, princess and thief, blonde and brunette, bubbly and gruff, soft and sharp, pink and blue, protect and attack, stovepot and throwing knives! I can go on, but let’s make this a little meatier…

When the princess first arrives at the Thieves’ den, she’s very nervous and uncomfortable with the leers she’s being given…

But the boss keeps his chill and talks to her like a normal person. The princess is still scared of him at this point, but I thought the man deserved praise for this, and it sets as good a first impression as any for her. And…

He’s not really eager to see her go?

When Kukuri and Nike first arrived, his first instinct was to kick them to the curb. But he sat down with a member of the royal family, which should be way more trouble for a thief than he made it seem. Is it because she’s a pretty face? Because she was in distress? Because she’s not a kid like our main protagonists? Probably a mix of all three. But no matter the reason, he was willing to hear her out and didn’t want her running off scared.

After asking for her reasons for being there, Miluka begs him to save her kingdom by stealing the Banana Moon. He’s her only hope. The princess is appealing to the boss’s sense of justice and honor - she’s assuming he has these things, despite being a thief. And he does! He’s moved by her words, discreetly. After all, he didn’t have to mention selling the Banana Moon back to the kingdom at all - he could have just taken it as planned. The ransom money for it is basically the same as receiving a reward for helping the kingdom and returning their jewel. Then he turns to exit the cave, and she sees, uh…

Let me just say? This is not the face someone makes when they see a man’s rear end and think, “gross!” or “what the hell!?” - this is a pure “oh my” face.

Her stare lingers…and then she clutches her face and ducks away in embarrassment. But she is by no means repulsed or offended at the sight of his bare bottom. I’ll even dare to say she might be a little impressed. Remember, the boss is a master thief who can jump to great heights in a single bound. He’s fast and nimble. His lower body must be in fairly decent shape…including his gluteus maximus muscles. In other words, in a world of childish anime drawings, he’s got a tight ass yo.

Furthermore…

The boss is viewed by others as attractive in canon.

In comparison to everyone else, the princess is most shocked by the (fake) revelation that the boss is bald. She must have thought him a handsome young man as well, only to be startled beyond belief to find that beneath his bandana was a (not actually) bald head. But let’s backtrack a little.

Before heading off to find the Banana Moon, Miluka asks the boss to give her a nickname as he’d done with Nike (Cricket) and Kukuri (Chestnut Bun). He’s hesitant - she is a princess, after all, but his formality is paper thin. He quickly dubs her ‘Princess Stovepot, and she’s thrilled at the title. Her reasoning for the nickname was to allow for better communication between them, when in truth…

The princess dreamed of having a nickname, being called ‘Her Highness’ all her life. She looked to the boss to fulfill this lifelong dream of hers, showing that despite her initial fears, she’s already holding him in high regard.

But wait a minute! Earlier, the boss claims that the nickname ‘Princess Stovepot’ was due to her having a pot on her head the first time they met. But while wearing the pot…

Kukuri was the first to encounter her. The boss was busy training Nike at this point.

The princess then introduces herself to Kukuri…by taking the pot off her head. They’re both hiding in the bushes at this point, so I wonder when the boss would have seen her wearing the pot? Was it when he was training Nike, spotting her from afar?

Or maybe he’d noticed her presence much earlier, like after they met the chancellor here:

It’s possible she’d caught his eye by this point - she’s hardly stealthy, and he had just noted that the situation was turning into ‘a real pain’ - and maybe not just because of the chancellor’s appearance. But I digress.

After the Banana Moon is taken by the chancellor and the princess captured, the gang sneak into the castle to save the day, and the boss steals some food. I just found it cute that he’s been curious about palace food the whole time. This also ends up sparing the princess from a fate which would later befall him…that is, turning into a duck. But one more thing, real quick -

The boss doesn’t peek at girls changing. I just like that he’s a gentleman is all.

A little while later, they’re facing the chancellor, the gang boards a boat from god, and Juju recites a prophecy depicting all the human characters as animals. Something about this caught my eye:

Runrun, the boss’s other potential love interest, is described as a snake. This connection is obvious given her main magical abilities. But the princess is described as a frog. This might be due to the popular ‘princess and the frog’ trope from classic fairytales. Another important thing to note is that snakes eat frogs. You know what else eats frogs? Ducks, which the boss currently is at this point. This hammers out their odd little love triangle pretty firmly. One could say that the duck and snake go together due to sharing the same food source, but you could also say that the duck might see the snake as a fellow predator and something to be wary of (as the boss, being a thief, fears magic users like Runrun) while the frog is more to the duck’s ‘tastes’. Or not! This isn’t meant to be a ‘my pairing is better than this other pairing’ kind of post, so let’s move right along, shall we?

When all the fuss is over, the princess takes the initiative by carrying the boss in her arms, wondering what will become of him? She’s not at all reserved about hugging him either, and quite aggressively at that.

They’re told that receiving a kiss from the one that loves him should be enough to break the curse. The princess pauses, closing her eyes in thought. The boss also looks thoughtful…but with a slight blush on his cheeks. As if he’s already thinking about who might kiss him - probably the woman holding him - and getting just a little bit excited at the idea. The princess announces with a small blush of her own that she will kiss him, and the boss blushes in full! They’re both sweating nervously at this point, but it has to be done, right!?

Miluka admits that she doesn’t know for sure if she’s in love with the boss, but she does know that he’s very important to her. He gave her a nickname after all! The boss stares as the princess makes her declaration.

The princess closes her eyes and leans in, and the boss continues to stare, his blush returning in full as his brows raise as if to say “is this seriously happening!?” - he’s totally going to get a kiss from the princess and that’s a situation he probably never thought he’d be in.

But. Just. You. Watch.

Such. TENDERNESS. And the very slight movement of his…uh…lips? Gives the impression that the kiss was returned. At least in comparison to the kiss that happened next.

The princess looks a tad unhappy to see that it took another kiss from someone else to finish breaking the curse. Is it simple dissatisfaction she’s feeling, or a bit of jealousy as well?

But all’s well that ends well. Peace returns to the kingdom, and the king is able to greet his subjects alongside his daughter. After sharing a smile with her father, Princess Stovepot looks to the sky with rosy cheeks…

…and the scene fades to the boss. I can’t think of a more obvious way to say “I’m thinking of my loved one.” Now, I know the princess said earlier that she wasn’t sure if she loved him or not, and her kiss was only enough to transform his body while his head remained a duck’s. But let’s think about the situation a little more. When they first met, she was scared of his mean expression, but her opinion of him quickly changed for the better. She came to see him as an important person…and I think the reason why it was his body that changed is because she cared for his ‘heart’, the center of who he was, more than any physical feature. This is on the opposite spectrum of Runrun, who fell for him immediately after catching a glimpse of his face - and continued to stick to that, even forcing him to shave his stubble to her liking. And so for her kiss, it was his head that changed back. Again, not trying to say one is better than the other - nothing wrong with liking a good-looking guy! I’m just trying to put logic into the whole transformation bit (but it’s anime? Logic why? I don’t know either.)

Anyways. The princess probably isn’t madly in love with the boss, nor he with her. But what people forget is that love often doesn’t happen all at once, and the trigger doesn’t have to be anything grand - rather, it’s usually something small, like seeing a new side of someone (nice ass), receiving a precious gift (a nickname), going on an adventure or overcoming difficulties together (saving the kingdom), or sharing something special (a kiss) - that builds up into something bigger.

Soooo yeah. Those are all my points. I love this ship. Come join me if you like.

#Magical Circle Guru Guru #mahoujin #princess stovepot #thief boss #miluka #sly #I love my obscure pairings #rarepair #some kind of essay?#I spent way too much time on this #because I'm a crazy person #better go to sleep #I have work in the morning hahaha #anime screencaps #gifs

11 notes · View notes

josueguerrero-blog2 · 7 years ago

Text

Loi Krathong vs Loneliness

Loi Krathong was this past week. Wao. What a nice festival! I hear a lot happens all around Thailand on this day, but it consist of making little boats of banana leaves and you decorate yours with flowers and anything that you want pretty much, and you go to a river and put your boat down as you wish all the bad things away. Here at the garden, it’s a day where people have fun and dress up in their fancy clothes and get to be pretty and fantastic all evening. I even got a special shirt for this! There was activities, dancing, raffles, and awards for everyone.

Few pics:

My amazing Krathong was made by Gawd, KUDOS to him and his amazing artistic skills! The boat floated all the way through because HE made it… Oh, and btw if your boat sinks its bad luck, so THANK GAWD mine didn’t :P

It’s also good to note of how open everyone is of LGBT people here. The "First Place” was awarded to our amazing Chef, who was fired from the hotel he worked in Bangkok after they found out he was infected with the virus and now he cooks for all of the people in the garden. He was a shining star that day.

...

This week I made huge progress at work with the new sales system and inventory system. Welcome to 2017 Hands Of Hope! Still working on bugs here and there and figuring out the best way to customize it to their needs, little by little we are getting there. Artisans are busy with a few orders that came in, so it seems we are going to end the year in a good pace. We are also starting to visit the producers’ homes for lunch on weekends. This has helped me to create a more special bond with them, as I get to share one on one with them as they welcome Antonia and me to their homes. It also helps us realize their actual state and their needs, to see where we can help them out. Because language, it’s been hard to pass the superficial talks and greetings, and mostly because I’m in the computer working all day. After I get a little more language and I’m done installing the new system, I plan on spending much more quality time working directly with them in the floor. In the meantime, home visits are opening up that space for us.

...

How am I doing personally you ask? Close friends and family have asked me if I’m feeling lonely living so remotely. Well, being in such a rural state, as I knew it would be, has had its challenges, especially on weekends. Like, I’m really missing those GGP happy hours or going out with friends in the big city, but this is something we prepared for. I’m taking this time for myself, REALLY. To pray, to meditate, to think on past experiences, relationships, mistakes, and grow. I’m allowing myself to simply BE.

I’m also doing great on all my readings, which is something I was really looking forward doing in my free time here. I found this little book in the House called Quiet Journeys that said something that really hit the mark:

“There’s a difference between solitude and loneliness. Both refer to this idea of one being alone, but they are very different experiences. Loneliness is more of an emotional state; you can’t really choose to be lonely – it just happens […] Solitude, on the other hand, is a voluntary choice to be away from people. And yet, you are not lonely because solitude allows you to commune with God alone, and draws you into all that is alive and active. At the same time, solitude allows you the space for much-needed reflection to understand yourself better and become more aware of where you are heading in life.”

BANG. Right in the mark.

Next weekend I’m taking a little brake though and I’m visiting Andres and his girlfriend Yub, It’ll be good to be amongst family and speak English/Spanish + have a few happy hours of our own. <3

Until next time, Joshy from Thailand.

OH! OH! There’s a story about THE CURSED MATTRESS FROM HELL that you should deeeeefinitely ask me if we talk ;)

#thailand #travel #volunteer #solitude #loi krathong #lgbtq #journey

2 notes · View notes

plasticgardenicons · 7 years ago

Text

Revisionist Histories

…and so the boat people watched the sky for signs of rain. Stories of old floods found their way around the ship as the wind circled around loose clothing and torn sails. In the crow’s nest a disheveled man with a torn tricorn praying for land, and below, prisoners and slaves in rat infested rooms waiting for hunger to take them or the gods of their land to come back and reclaim the withering flesh that at one time had worshiped in the sun, and sent offerings from fire in scented smoke.

Columbus watched the sun break into a thousand shards upon the water’s face. He dreamed of a holy conquest. God’s blessing was to him a golden key to these new Indies. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella appeared in the pocket of clouds above the ship like proud parents.

The rain descended upon the ships and waves broke at the sides. The telescopes were turned inward and Columbus dreamed of a new place named for his rival—Americo Vespucci. Columbus dreamed of dolls and gods buried deep in the hearts of churches and great devastations of humanity raped and pillaged, holding on to the old gods disguised as Christ.

Americo, in the name of all that is money, bowed before great trees bearing bananas and plantains, he could smell the ocean on his breath and the people on his hands.

Listen, the people wailing jeremiads into the wind until the storm clouds of god grew grim and brought the sky down in hail stones and there was much gnashing of teeth. Above the clouds American fighter pilots joked and read radar screens diffused with light. American broadcasts sang of the homeland and anarchy and craterous dreams of homecoming.

In the sky the arch-angel Michael, perched himself on a cumulonimbus and began reciting the psalms: By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon willows in the midst thereof.

On a Nimbostratus next to him, Lucifer accompanied on the harp. The fighter jets whooshed beneath him.

If you listen, Michael told Lucifer, you could hear their prayers. Lucifer let out a single tear that fell like napalm and lit the earth beneath him.

I’m tired of the gnashing of souls and the cries of the despised and despaired. I was truly hoping for a new dispensation, he said.

it wasn’t really part of the plan, Michael said, puzzled.

Because I would not kneel to those who made a monster of me? I only remember millenniums now through degrees of pain.

Michael turned slowly, his wings drooping against the setting sun, I have a place in my heart for you.

Lucifer smiled, but there are no places like that left, he said, almost angrily.

Michael remains silent. Lucifer lets another tear fall. The pilots cheer from their cockpits.

III

Slowly, as if the noise were creeping up to the top steps like auditory insects, Joseph placed his coat on the bed. His brothers had wished for a coat like his. When he wore it he thought he could hear the voice of god. The pigeons outside his window spoke in soft coos of indifference and the cars on 42nd street rushed down 10th avenue. In two hours he would be at the port authority and on his way to Memphis. The sun poured through his window. Joseph counted the money in his jeans. Thirty-seven dollars and fifty two cents. But he had the coat.

Staring into a mirror, its polyester dazzled him. He imagined angels. He watched a man wrestling an angel through the night and heard the name Israel whispered from the heat pipes. He saw great pharaohs and great cities buried in the sand.

Slipping on his sneakers and taking a last shot of whiskey, he shut the door of his hotel room, Rebecca, still sleeping, fifty dollars by her breast.

Through the flames, Joan of Arc feels the presence of an angel. She looks up towards the sky. The men stand around her spitting, cursing, imagining her breasts naked in the moonlight and blaming such thoughts on the devil, who will burn with her naked breasts. Joan smiles. She smells the burning of her flesh. Her tears sizzle on her cheeks and rise in puffs of smoke and light. She no longer feels her legs.

Joan of Arc hears the cursing of the men in the background. She no longer inhabits their hell. Marilyn Monroe hands her a wooden bowl filled with water, everyone is cursed, she says, it’s OK, you’re good now.

Joan holds back tears by staring at her reflection in the bowl. She can smell her hair burning. Marilyn watches the sticks grow flames from burning embers. Joan counts her fingers and toes. They can’t see god, Marilyn says, so they make everyone the devil. Joan smells her hands. They smell like burnt logs.

Joan of Arc and Marilyn Monroe walk along a road into the sunset. I heard god before I died, Joan confessed, he said there would be no crying here. I didn’t recognize the voice.

Marilyn looks at her smiling, I’ve been looking for a way through for a long time.

Where do we go now, Joan asks.

To a city in the moon, where the wounds of this world become stars.

Helen of Troy sits on the shore. She dreams of being abducted. She dreams of Paris’ hands; his eyes.

I would’ve loved him better, Alice says. She is sitting on a rock drawing pictures of walruses and carpenters.

--his love wasn’t real love.

--tell me again about the big horse, Alice finds a shell and traces it with her finger, I’ll tell you about wonderland and all the wonderful ways to alter one’s perceptions.

--Herodotus says the poets lied about me you know.

--What does he know?

--It hurt for centuries. Men still read Herodotus.

Alice places a cup of water on the beach.

--I can catch the moon in a glass of water. This way I can visit it anytime I want.

--I’ve heard many strange stories about the moon. Of cities more plentiful than Troy, with more riches than Persia.

--Oh pooh. Tell me again about the horse.

Helen thinks again about how men hated her, as if wars were ever really fought for beauty or love.

--I look at you Alice and think you could be my child, or you could be me.

--we are forever looking into our own reflection.

--If you love me then I can learn to love myself. Then, these ships you see before you will sail away, without ever spilling blood.

--They’ll spill blood anyway. Sit with me. Look at the moon with me. I will grow to trust you.

#poems #poems on tumblr #poetryriot #writerscreed #spilledink #savagewords #revisionist history #alternate facts

63 notes · View notes

michelemoore · 6 years ago

Photo

Takhuk

May 28, 2019

Michele Moore Veldhoen

Glow Worms, Men in Stone, Boiled Octopus, and More...

Hello, I hope you are well and heading in your intended direction!

As for me, I am enjoying the wonder of the shrubs in the nearby forest releasing their green scent, and watching a great horned owl mother guard her growing owlet.

Meanwhile, Rogerio and I have been scratching our travel itch.

Whenever we talk about where we might go next, we like to recall past adventures. We make it a rigorous mental exercise, beginning with trying to identify the actual departure date. (I’m happy just coming up with the right year.) Then, before consulting Google Earth we try to name each place we visited, how long we stayed, and what we did there. This is the biggest challenge because we are usually gone for a month or more and travel by train, car, bus, and boat to see a country or a chunk of a country.

Of course the pleasure in this re-take on our trips is remembering the details. The things we did, the human activity we observed, and the amazing natural landscapes we witnessed. Such as, on a pitch black night, finding our way through Australia’s stunning Otway Forest to Melba Gully in hopes the glow worms (not actually worms but rather gnat larvae) would be on display. Which they were. Imagine standing in total darkness, on a wooden boardwalk in a cool damp rainforest hollow (likely crawling with poisonous snakes and spiders), under a forest roof made of leaves the size of picnic benches, surrounded by millions of twinkling white lights. Above, below, and beside us, glow worms displayed their bioluminescent magic, creating a sense of floating in space enveloped by stars. A miraculous display of nature’s playfulness.

Another bright image in my mind is sitting at the top of the centre stadium at Rome’s Foro Italico, a sports complex (originally named Foro Mussolini) watching Swiss tennis legend (and my favourite player) Roger Federer perform his ballet like moves in a match against French player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. While the unexpected (and dirt cheap) opportunity to see Federer had me giggling on the bus all the way to the Foro, it was the setting of the match that sent me into fits of joy. We were at the very top of the stadium which seemed as steep as the Coliseum, and the sun was just beginning to set. Decorating the perimeter of the stadium were classic Italian marble statues, all of scandalously over-sized muscular male athletes. (Not sure if Mussolini was making a tribute to himself or the Gods). I happen to love love love the marble statues of Italy, so this view of incredible male form in stone lit in all their splendor by the setting sun, along with the living version down on the court, was almost more than I could bear. I giggled so much at the spectacle the hot calzone in my hand that I had grabbed on the street on my way in became stone cold.

There are stories of hilarity too. Like the crazy bus driver (we thought he was drunk) in Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, who either did not understand or did not care that in the dark night and pouring rain we could not be sure of our bus stop. Wanting to get as close as possible to our hotel, we requested the help of others on the bus to try to figure out the right corner. This resulted in several false stops, each of which caused an increase in the driver’s voluminous expressions of contempt. His shouting and cursing (I’m sure he was cursing), did not seem to be disturbing the Vietnamese people on the bus, nor even the other English speaking people trying to help us. Meanwhile, I was whispering to Rogerio that it might be better to ‘just get off the bus right now before the driver slams into a cluster of motorcycles’. But Rogerio was not to be dissuaded, the rain was coming down in sheets and we had no umbrella. (It helps to travel through insane cities like Saigon with someone raised in Rio).

As we squinted out the dirty steamed up windows trying to identify a landmark, the driver seemed to be getting angrier. Suddenly, he hit the brakes and came to a squealing halt, opened the doors, shouted and swung his arm. We looked blankly at the people around us. “He wants you to get off”, someone said. Below us on the road was a pool of water deep and wide as the bus itself. “No no!” we called out, “not here, not here!” But this time the bus driver was not to be dissuaded. With a demented laugh he yelled at us while millions of motorcycles and cars ripped by, lights flashing, and brakes and engines screeching. “Rogerio, we have to get off!” We stepped down into the shin deep lake of rainwater and ran through it and toward the nearest building before the driver could douse us in more water. We looked at each other and laughed. Our hotel was around the corner.

But on the hilarious scale nothing can top the octopus story.

Octopus is a very popular appetizer, or tapas, in Spain. On our trip to the Spanish Canary Islands, we first spent a week in Madrid, where we discovered a tapas dish called pulpo a la gallega, which is boiled octopus served in bite sized pieces each floating in delicious olive oil and sea salt, and topped with something (pimento?) to become this chewy, sweet and salty snack served appealingly on a wooden board. I have never liked octopus but learned in Madrid that when it is truly fresh and properly prepared, it can be delicious.

Octopus and all seafood also happens to be one of Rogerio’s favourite things to eat. So when he discovered on Gran Canaria Island that fresh octopus is as plentiful and cheap as bananas, he went overboard. Meaning he decided he wanted to make and eat his own pulpo a la gallega – everyday.

When we arrived at our little apartment tucked away in the far southwestern reach of Gran Canaria, we went grocery shopping. While I went about selecting the basics, coffee, bread, milk, and so on, Rogerio beelined it to the seafood department. “I’m just going to see what they have”, he said. We agreed to meet at the checkout and I tried to caution him not to buy anything complicated for dinner that night.

Twenty minutes later my basket was filled and I was in the queue waiting for Rogerio. When it was almost my turn and he still had not appeared I abandoned my position and went to the seafood department.

There he was, with the kind of childlike Christmas morning grin on his face he only gets when he has discovered something that I know I am not going to be excited about.

“Michele, look at this octopus, did you get olive oil? I’m going to make it the same way they did in Madrid!”

I looked at the case of ice on top of which lay a display of freshly caught squid and sardines and, in the middle, stars of the display, were at least a half a dozen huge creamy pink octopuses, laid out to showcase their key body part, the tentacles.

“Oh no, not tonight, please Rogerio, it’s too complicated. Let’s have something simple or just go out.”

“Don’t worry, you can relax, I’ll do all the work.”

“How much did you buy?”

“It’s so cheap I bought a whole one!”

He pointed to a man in a white apron hunched over a cutting table, working a big knife around the limp body of an octopus.

“That’s Alberto*, he’s chopping it for me, isn’t that great!”

“But you don’t know anything about how to prepare it properly.”

“Alberto gave me a lesson, no problem, you just boil it!”

I stood by, dreaming of a simple dinner of chorizo, cheese, bread, and wine, while Rogerio shouted to Alberto in Spanish something or other, and Alberto laughed and nodded as he handed over a large white plastic bag so heavy he kept one hand under the bag to pass it over the seafood case.

“My God Rogerio how many pounds is that?”

“I think maybe 6 or 7, it’s a lot I know, but it was so cheap Michele!”

“Rogerio, I am not going to eat octopus every day. I want you to know that right now.”

“That’s okay, don’t worry, I’ll eat it.”

Then he dropped the bag in my basket and said, “I’ll meet you at the checkout.”

He had gone to find plastic containers for the 6 or 7 pounds of chopped octopus we were taking home.

Unfortunately, Alberto’s advice to just ‘boil it’, was not the entire story of how to properly prepare pulpo a la gallega. However, Rogerio came up with his own twist and was immensely satisfied with his results. I stuck to the cheese and bread, and stayed out of the kitchen.

Two weeks later, when we took a three day trip to another island, Rogerio packed the two remaining containers of his now frozen because he could not eat it all himself concoction and took them with us. “But Rogerio”, I said, “we will be there only three days let’s just eat out, it will take too much time to shop and cook.”

“What, you want me to throw it out?”

And so, by car and ferry, we travelled between islands with our light luggage and Rogerio’s frozen containers of boiled octopus.

In the end, he did have to throw out some of his octopus but this did not prevent him from wanting to buy another one when we were back on Gran Canaria for another two weeks.

“If you buy another octopus I’m going out to eat every single night, with or without you.”

Fortunately, in our new location in the mountains, there were no octopuses for sale. Up in those delightful mountain villages, one must be satisfied with chicken or pork with one’s gofio and papas arrugadas and mojo picón. All of which was beyond delicious!

We have all known for decades that tourism brings economic benefits to both developed and developing countries and increases collaboration and co-operation (and therefore peace) in the world. But we also know that there have been devastating environmental outcomes from tourism. I have thought a lot about this in the past couple of years, as I watch the world struggle more and more with huge environmental challenges. The good news is that travelers are aware of this and choosing to visit countries that are addressing these problems. It seems tourism has become a key driver of environmental remediation and protection. Certainly this is the case in famous examples such as Uruguay and Costa Rica. In Africa, game parks that cover vast areas anchor that continent’s hope for a burgeoning commitment to sustainability. And then there’s home. Canada attracts millions of visitors because of our sustained commitment to preservation through our national park system. In fact, there are more and more countries seeking recognition as sustainable destinations. For more information take a look at the website for a non-profit that has been tracking these issues for years: Ethical Traveler.

Great to be writing to you, thanks for reading!

www.thetreeswallow.com

0 notes

neverisalongtime-ja-blog · 7 years ago

Text

Chapter 25: #ThePinkAndBlueDay

Hello everyone! I want to say that today’s chapter is on of my all time favorite! I love it, is different but is so cool! I want to read what you think about it so leave feedback!

BTW Next week is the turn of the Josh POV chapter so I hope you all are as excited as I am!

Thanks to everyone who reads the fic, much love to you all! ♥

Remember to visit Anastasia’s IG profile:

Anastasia_Truman ❤️️

Read chapter 24

Those days in Los Angeles were weird for Anastasia. She didn’t feel comfortable with herself, she couldn’t stop comparing to Josh’s new girl, who was younger and obviously more vibrant than her. She locked herself in her house for a couple of days, alone. She did it as an exercise to find herself again, to learn and love herself again. She took long baths, cooked nice food, watched Netflix, wrote songs, recorded some of them and even swam in her heated pool.

She was starting to enjoy being alone. The past months she spent all of her nights with either Josh or Mandy. This time, she was all by herself and by the third day she was liking it. That didn’t mean she was over the situation, the image of Josh and Lauren didn’t leave her head for a second. Anastasia kept feeling empty, sad and hopeless, the natural stages of a breakup, a breakup that happened almost two months ago and that she was still suffering from. When she thought she was over it she found out that Josh had cheated on her and she believed things couldn’t get worse, but she didn’t want to say it because things could always get worse.

One Thursday morning, the blue-haired girl received a call from Eric, saying that in the afternoon they would have an appointment to get matching tattoos with the band logo. It was something they’d been planning for a while, it had been Mandy’s idea and finally Eric made the appointment. The band’s logo was Nick’s creation, Anastasia has always been obsessed with the moon as it involved an important part of her life and beliefs. One night at Nick and Mandy’s childhood house, looking at a sky dressed with plenty stars and a full moon in all its glory, the blonde guy came up with the idea of two circles forming a full and crescent moon, representing ups and downs of the career they chose to have. It was an instant yes for the rest of the band members and now they were on the way to have it forever on their skin.

It was the first tattoo for Eric and Anastasia; the siblings were much familiarized with ink. Mandy already had seven small tattoos and Nick had four large marks on his right arm and on his back. Anastasia was excited and nervous, which was normal, Eric had a little more confidence. Anastasia decided to make her double moon in dark blue with four vertical dots in the lower part representing the four members of Dead Curse; she chose to have it on her right forearm, in the middle of it. Mandy had it on her left ribs and the design was the logo in light blue with a watercolor style background simulating the night sky, remembering the day the sign was created. Nick chose the circles in black on his right shoulder with four stars also in black, and the spot chosen by Eric was under his left elbow, just the circles in dark blue because he like it how it looked on Anastasia’s skin.

That was a great afternoon, the four Dead Curse members were already very close but to share that experience created a new bond between them.

- How have you been feeling? – Eric asked Anastasia while giving her a ride back home, just the two of them.

- I don’t know, I fear this is a never ending thing – Anastasia said.

- With Josh? – Eric asked again.

- I don’t know what’s next and at the same time I’m afraid there’ll be nothing more – She said looking out the window – Like he’s going on with his life and I’m stuck in this hole waiting for… I don’t know what I’m waiting for to be honest.

- You hope to be back with him – Eric said as if he were reading Anastasia’s mind. She looked at him.

- That’s not gonna happen – Anastasia said – I don’t want it to happen. I don’t know if I can forgive him. How can I trust him again?

- Time heals – Eric said – And I recognize real love when I see it, I have it with Hannah and I know you had it with Josh.

- You said it: had it.

- You don’t love him anymore? – Eric said and laughed – Bullshit – He parked his car in front of Anastasia’s house – Do you want to know the reason he broke up with you?

- He found a better girl.

- No. I had a conversation with him last night, I’m gonna email it to you – He said taking his phone. Anastasia’s phone beeped letting her know she had new mail – Read it.

- Thanks for the ride, it was a great day – She said, shut the car door and didn’t look back.

Maybe Eric was right. No, Eric was definitely right. She still loved Josh and she didn’t want to because it was very obvious that he didn’t love her back. He loved a younger, fitter, blonder girl and that’s the scene she tried to tattoo on her mind, she wanted it to be etched in her head like the mark that had been made on her arm that afternoon: forever, so to have a reason to lose the love she had for Josh.

She looked at her phone and saw the message with the conversation Eric sent to her. She was tempted to open it but after thinking about it she let her phone down. She just wanted to forget Josh and maybe that email wouldn’t help. She walked up the stairs to do the tattoo cleaning proceeding the tattoo artist instructed her to do. She took a bath, laid down in her bed, and turned on the TV, on a channel that just showed old movies. Breakfast at Tiffany’s appeared on the screen, she stayed there watching her favorite movie about a high level prostitute, because that’s what Audrey Hepburn character was, read between the lines. After the movie she felt asleep.

Next day she woke up late, her phone alarm didn’t go off and then she remembered she left her phone downstairs the night before. She brushed her teeth thinking about that damn email Eric sent her yesterday. She still wasn’t sure about reading it, it could change everything… or it could change absolutely nothing. She decided to have breakfast first, a nice avocado toast, well, she went for two avocado toasts, orange juice and a banana; she felt so healthy it was weird. She did the dishes and then she noticed the phone on her kitchen island, she took it impulsively, moved her fingertip to the mail app and opened it, and at that moment, at that precise moment, the screen turned black and a call went through. It was Mandy. Anastasia, frustrated, picked it up.

- What are you doing? – Mandy asked with her sweet voice.

- I just had breakfast and you? – Anastasia asked back.

- Not much – Her friend replied – Do you want to spend the day at Venice with me?

- Even if I want to say no, I can’t – Anastasia replied with a laugh.

- You can but I wouldn’t accept it – Mandy said – I’ll pick you up in half hour, is that alright?

- Sure!

The phone went back to the original position and Anastasia ran upstairs to get a shower and dress up forgetting about the email.

Venice was a place where the two friends always found peace. That crazy place filled with unique people, the shore and all the activities around made them feel like it was home. Venice was the place they went when they sneaked out of class back in the day; if they didn’t have plans on a Saturday they always visited Venice Beach.

Mandy always had this dream of living in a colorful house in front of the Venice canals, with flowers in every window and a small boat on the canal in front of her porch.

The girls were thrift shopping on the main street in Venice near Pacific Ave, thrifting was a hobby they both had, finding amazing pieces with history always filled Anastasia with joy; she was a real fashion lover.

- Look at this jacket! – Anastasia said to Mandy showing her a biker jacket in electric metallic blue.

- I love it – Mandy said going through her own rack of clothes – Oh my God! Look! – Mandy opened her eyes big; she found the same jacket in metallic pink.

- It’s like heaven sent – Anastasia said and both laughed.

- We should stop wearing clothes the same color of our hair, though – Mandy said.

- Says who? – Anastasia asked looking at a pile of t-shirts.

- Yeah… That’s not going to happen – Mandy said.

After buying five pairs of pants, four skirts, the two jackets and almost ten t-shirts between the two, the friends walked to a sunglasses vendor spot on the boardwalk.

- Look, nineties babe – Anastasia said showing Mandy a pair of round sunglasses with a white frame.

- Every damn shape of sunglasses looks good on your face. How is that possible? – Mandy said.

- It is what it is – Anastasia said shrugging and trying on a wood frame this time.

- Do you think that we’re childish? – Mandy suddenly dropped while trying on a heart-shaped frame in pastel pink.

- No! – Anastasia answered – Why do you ask?

- I had a fight with Peyton this morning – Anastasia understood why Mandy wanted to go to Venice – And he told me that I needed to grow up and stop wearing “stupid pink hair” – She said making quotation marks with her fingers.

- I think Peyton is stupid – Anastasia was also wearing heart-shaped sunglasses in blue – Does Peyton think it’s stupid to match your clothes with your hair too? – Anastasia asked remembering the comment Mandy made at the thrift shop earlier.

- Yes, he said that too – Mandy said still wearing the pink glasses.

- Mandy! You don’t have to change because a man says so. Peyton felt in love with who you are, no matter if your hair is blonde, like when you met him, or pink – Anastasia said.

- I know…

- Why was the fight for?

- I don’t really remember, something really stupid like leaving a glass were he doesn’t like – Mandy said – Every start of a season is the same. He becomes this anxious monster and everything bothers him.

- It’s normal. He is nervous.

- Yes, but he doesn’t need to take it on me.

- I know, what an asshole – Anastasia saw her friend smile – I say you are going to buy those pink heart sunglasses and the ones with the blue crystal, and I’m going to get these ones in blue – She referred to the also heart-shaped glasses – and the ones with the white frame. But you have to wear the pink ones right now and I’ll be wearing the blue heart-shaped sunglasses.

- We should wear our pink and blue jackets too! – Mandy said smiling.

And so they did. The two girls looked like cartoon characters with jackets and sunglasses matching their hair but they were in Venice Beach so they blended right with the rest of the people there.

- Did you like your tattoo? – Mandy asked Anastasia walking on the boardwalk again.

- I love it. It wasn’t half bad as I thought it would be – Anastasia answered.

- See? I told ya – Mandy said – You know what I’m thinking? We have been friends for so long and have shared so many things, we shared high school, we share our career, we tried to share a house once, didn’t work out as we thought, but anyway. You’ve been a huge part of my life and have helped me during so many times of awe and suffering, you are my rock and I know I’m all of that to you too.

- Oh God! Are you going to propose to me?

- Anastasia Truman – Both girls stopped walking – Would you like to make me the happiest girl in the world and share a friendship tattoo with me so you can take me with you to eternity? – Anastasia covered her face with her hands and faked a huge smile.

- YES! – She screamed – Aren’t you going to bend on one knee?

- No, that would be too much.

- That’s probably the only half proposition I will have in my life.

- Let’s find a tattoo shop.

- Oh! Are we gonna do it right now?

- Yes! – Mandy laughed – There are many shops here, but I know one! Nick has a friend there.

The two girls walked a little bit more until they found the tattoo shop Mandy was referring to. They went in and saw the guy Mandy was talking about

- Fred! – She called him. He was sitting on a table working on some drawings.

- Amanda! – The guy said Mandy’s full name back. He was short, with short black hair and green emerald eyes in glasses with thick black frame, he was wearing a shirt with a black and white grip print and black pants. His body was full of tattoos, obviously.

- Nobody calls me that way so don’t start – Mandy said – Fred did some of my ink work and some of Nick’s too. This is my friend Anastasia – Mandy introduced her to the guy, she smiled and they shook hands – We want tattoos, like right now.

- Well, I don’t work on anybody without an appointment but for your luck I’m very free today, what do you want? – The girls looked at each other.

- Good question – Anastasia said.

- I don’t know. Not our names, that would be too cliché – Mandy said and Anastasia noticed she was still wearing her sunglasses.

- I know! Hearts! A heart! In the left ring finger! It has the love vein which is connected to the heart – Anastasia said excited.

- That’s why she is my friend; she’s the smart one – Mandy said to Fred.

- Let me guess, you – he pointed to Anastasia – want it in blue and you – He pointed to Mandy – want it in pink – Fred said making reference to their outfits.

- No – Mandy said – I will have the blue one and she will have the pink one – Anastasia smiled.

- Let me warn you that fingers are a little bit painful but it will be alright because it’s just a small heart.

- God! I’m so excited! – Mandy said hugging Anastasia – I’ll go first!

Mandy took her turn and then it was time for Anastasia to sit. Fred was right, it hurt as hell but in a couple of minutes the pain was over and the tiny pink heart looked really cute in contrast with her pale skin, it almost looked like a birth mark, she was pleased and happy to see Mandy so joyful. They girls thanked Fred and hit the boardwalk one more time. Mandy took more snaps than Anastasia could count and posted a handful on Instagram, declaring that Friday with the hashtag #ThePinkAndBlueDay.

Anastasia heard her stomach roar and decided it was time for food, they walked to a very nice place on Rose Avenue, it was a colourful café with a wall full of neon color graphic art and mini cars full of books. Everything was overwhelming at first, those bright tones, but once inside it fell cozy. Service was fast even though the place was crowded, within minutes Anastasia was enjoying a plate of Bucatini Carbonara and Mandy went for spaghetti with a miso sauce that was, surprisingly, pretty good. After a couple of drinks Anastasia remembered the email Eric sent her the day before.

- You know – Anastasia started to say – Yesterday while Eric was giving me a ride home he said that he knew the reason why Josh broke up with me and sent me an email of a convo they had.

- And what does it say? – Mandy wanted to know.

- I don’t know. I haven’t read it – Anastasia said.

- Do you want to know the reason after all?

- I’m a little bit curious, to be honest.

- Well I’m curious too. Why lie?

- What if it makes me feel worse?

- What if it makes you feel better?

- Do you really think knowing the real reason Josh broke up with me will make me feel better?

- I don’t know. Maybe the reason is that he got into some kind of trouble with the mafia and he was forced to date the young daughter of the mob boss to pay for his debt.

- Mandy! – Anastasia said laughing hard.

- You’ll never know! You should read it and then think about it. I will be here to support you – Anastasia grabbed her phone – No! Not here. I don’t want people see us cry.

- Do you think it will make me cry?

- You never know – Mandy said repeating herself – Let’s go to your place and read it there. With a bottle of wine just in case.

- You are quite a character – Anastasia kept laughing.

- But before that, you have been through so much pain today – Mandy said pointing at her new tattoo– And you deserve ice cream.

Before heading home the friends did a pit stop at an ice cream shop on Abbot Kinney Boulevard to grab some “Wildflower Honey Ricotta Walnut Cookies” ice cream for Anastasia and “Strawberry Honey Balsamic” for Mandy.

- Man! I didn’t even understand the name of the flavor but is so good – Mandy said while both tried each other’s choices of ice cream.

The ride back home was filled with happiness. Anastasia loved to spend days like that with Mandy and she was more than happy with her new tattoo. It’s true what people said, the first time after having some ink it creates a kind of addiction and so far her ink marks were very pretty. Now they were at her place, sitting on her couch with her Macbook on her lap opening Eric’s email. Before clicking on it, she took a large sip of wine and opened the message. There was no turning back.

It was a series of screenshots. Josh and Eric were having a conversation by text. Eric asked him about Anastasia and then the text exchange took a wild turn.

Eric: How are things going?

Josh: Well... You know.

Eric: Did you get to talk to Anastasia in New York?

Josh: I didn’t have the balls to do it. Are you going to question that too?

Eric: No man, you are my friend after all.

Josh: She is too.

Eric: I’m not here to judge anybody. You must have a reason to do what you did.

Josh: I can control Lauren. Anastasia is a girl with her shit too together. – Anastasia and Mandy shared a glance.

Eric: Don’t you want a girl with her shit together?

Josh: An doesn’t need me. I have nothing to offer her. I’m making Lauren’s dreams come true. Which dreams can I make come true for Anastasia, a girl who has it all?

Eric: The dream of having a relationship?

Josh: I don’t know. I can’t assure you anything right now ‘cuz I know as soon as she comes back to regular touring I’m gonna fall for her again. I don’t know how to explain this. I love her but I can’t be with her, not right now. All the fame and the magazines thing don’t help. It freaks me out that she is too strong; she doesn’t need me, Eric. She doesn’t need me.

Eric: A relationship isn’t about needing, it’s about loving and you two love the shit out of each other. You literally have NOTHING in common with this girl yet you share so many passions with An.

Josh: I don’t know. I’m happy, though.

Eric: You are?

Josh: I’m having fun!

Eric: I have no doubt about that.

- So Josh is a pussy – Mandy said sipping some wine.

- I don’t even understand. He left me because he can’t control me? – Anastasia said indignant – What kind of misogynist shit this is?

- I don’t think it’s that way. I believe it has more to do with his low self-esteem. He found a girl, you, who was at his level, a little higher I would say, and he freaked about because he didn’t know how to handle himself in the relationship. I do believe he loves you, though. He is just lost.

- I don’t give a fuck. He can get lost out of my life right now.

- You know that’s going to be hard; especially now that we are gonna start touring again.

- You’re right but this was an eye opener, definitely. I mean… Josh is a pussy – Both friends laughed. And after all Mandy was right, Anastasia felt immensely better now.

Read chapter 26

8 notes · View notes

btsmutimagines · 8 years ago

Text

Astray -Part 32-

*Have your daily dose of Jungkook everyday kids*

Your name: submit // <![CDATA[ document.getElementById("submit").addEventListener('click', myHandler); function myHandler() { var v = document.body.innerHTML; var input = document.getElementById("inputTxt").value; v = v.replace(/\by\/n\b|$y\/n$/ig, input); document.body.innerHTML = v; } // ]]>

He waited on his couch, sitting cross-legged as time slipped past him. You left an odd occurrence since it was an early Sunday morning and you were the time to sleep in.

Of course, he had no say in what you do in the morning but he couldn’t let go of his observant behaviour. He just got back to a place where you could actually look him in the eyes, where there wasn’t another shoulder looming over your shoulder, no banana peeled bastard holding your hand. He snorted at his new nickname for your best friend, knowing you would flick his head for having such a thought but he couldn’t help it. He’s waited far too long for that bastard to get out of his spot, he wasn’t going to waste time this time.

He was going to make you his, no matter what.

His tail popped out of surprise when he hear your front door slam.

Be cool, Jeongguk, she just got home.

His ego wasn’t enough to tame the adrenaline rush he got from knowing you were just footsteps away. Were you lying on the couch with your arm over your eyes and sighing? Did you not bother to kick off your shoes as you entered your living room? Shit. Why can’t I calm down?

He figured the only way to stop his mind from running wild was to talk to you. He looked in front of the mirror that Mira made him install on the closet door, seeing his messy hair and his Iron Man boxers. Not exactly boyfriend material, Jeongguk. He went into his closet, finding clothes that say, “I just woke up but I still look half decent” and readied himself to knock on your door.

With a shaky fist, his hand made contact with your oak door and he waited impatiently. You swing the door open, looking annoyed until you made eye contact.

“Wasn’t expecting me, Bambi?”

“Good morning to you too, Jeongguk.” You let him in, laying down on the sofa and he opted for the chair near it. He eyed your outfit, a white shirt with red stripes, blue jeans and yellow sneakers. Where were you off to?

“What happened to you, Bambi? Usually you’re prancing around.” Prancing around? When the fuck did I become Jin hyung with his lame ass jokes?

“I’m not an actual deer, Jeongguk.”

“You’re just as cute as Bambi.” Jesus fuck, Jeongguk, how the fuck was she interested in you in the first place? God, you can do so much better than this.

“Thanks? I guess…” You sighed, the sound setting off alarms in his head. Maybe he was on edge from losing you once but he’s overthinking everything. It could just be the bakery didn’t have your favourite cake and you’re moping about it. Or you miss home, staying with your mom who supported you for most of your life. He didn’t notice you were staring at him until he turned his head.

“Did you just wake up?”

“Yeah.” Yeah, 40 minutes ago.

“Hm, never seen anyone wake up with perfect hair.”

“I’m not just anyone, Y/N.” God, am I always this cocky? Shit what if she calls me out on it- You giggled at him, making him lose his train of thought and he smiled comfortably.

“I see your confidence hasn’t changed.”

“I’m still your Jeongguk…”

“My Jeongguk?”

“You know, the awesome, handsome, manly guy that you’re head over heels for.”

“Never heard of him? Do you know where that man is, perhaps?” He tossed a pillow at you while you laughed at your own little joke, it wasn’t that funny.

“Haha, very funny.”

“Oh come on, Gukkie.”

“Oh, so now you use my nickname.”

“I thought you hated it.”

“I like the way you say it.”

“Is that so,” you got up, moving closer to him and resting in his lap. He stopped breathing as your lips brushed against his ear.

“Guk~kie~” Fuck. Were you always this much of a tease?

“Oh my, is the great Jeon Jeongguk blushing? I need to document this.” You took out your phone, ready to snap a picture. He had to think fast, the one thing that would distract you. He pressed his lips against yours, catching you off guard with your phone in your hands. You dropped it in your lap, placing a hand in his hair and another on his cheek.

He became drunk on the taste of your lips, the sweet taste of vanilla overrode his sense and he couldn’t pull his lips away for more than a few seconds.

He liked the way you tugged on his hair, your hands carefully not to touch his ears and he almost groaned at the sensation. His lips traveled along your jaw, a trail of sweet kisses trailing down your neck until he found your sweet spot.

“J-Jeongguk.” If he heard you say his name like that again, he doesn’t know if he can keep any self control. Instead he stopped, hearing you whimper and he almost gave in. The lingering thought of you still not fully knowing his hybrid status was still pending in his mind of the list of things he wants to tell you but he decided to check off a different one.

“I love you.”

You were in a relatively better mood than earlier, playing with his hair as he watched TV. His ears twitched against your jeans, himself forever cursed of hearing other people and things. If he had his way in life, he would mute the whole world to listen to just your voice for the rest of his life.

“I went to see Jimin this morning.” What the fuck would you go see him? He’s with my sister, something I still reject but that’s beside the goddamn point. He has nothing to do with you anymore.

“Oh.”

“Are you angry?”

“Did you do it to get me angry?”

“Not necessarily, seeing as he liked me.”

“And he likes Seulgi now. I think they look great together.”

“Jeongguk.”

“Why did you see him? What did you say?”

“I didn’t say much but he had plenty to say.”

“What did that banana peeled bastard-I mean Jimin- say to you?”

“Banana peeled bastard?”

“Would you prefer ‘custard coloured cunt’?” You laughed, making him smile and you rolled your eyes as well.

“I’d prefer if you call him Jimin.”

“He doesn’t deserve that liberty.”

“Says who?”

“Says me.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“And you’re avoiding my question, Bambi.” He looked at you, his mind running every possible things that bastard could have told you. Jimin wouldn’t dare to cheat on his sister, would he? Fuck, even the thought made him want to murder that guy. Considering he flirted with his sister even though he was supposedly with you, he shouldn’t expect more from him but he wouldn’t be able to handle know he would treat his sister that poorly.

He would punch him from cheating on his sister, another for trying to mess with you and a third for just being him. God, the thought of him could make shake with bouts of anger. Fucking-

“Earth to Jeongguk.”

“Yes?”

“You zoned out with a scowl on your face. What’s wrong?”

“I was just thinking about why you haven’t told me.”

“It’s because there wasn’t much said but the unsaid.”

“I love you and all but quit being Shakespeare, I don’t need that read between the line bullshit, babe.”

“Seulgi opened the door when I went over; wearing Jimin’s clothes and she couldn’t even look me in the eyes. I didn’t want to stick around much longer, especially with Taehyung in his Superman boxers.”

“Superman boxers, why were you-”

“I-I wasn’t looking there.”

“Then why are you stuttering about it?”

“I’m not.”

“Trust me, babe. I’m bigger than whatever you saw.” He said with a smirk, seeing your eyes widen at his statement.

“Jeongguk!” You squealed as he pressed a kiss to your ear, receiving a hit to his chest and you turn your face away with your hands on your cheeks.

“Bambi, are you blushing?”

“S-Shut up!” He laughed at how cute you were, nuzzling his head in your neck and you tried to push him off you. You were successful, running into your bedroom and he followed you to the door, which you promptly shut, in his face.

“You’re thinking about it, aren’t you?”

“God, you really haven’t changed. You’re still a pervert.”

“I’m not the one staring at some dude’s junk-”

“I wasn’t staring!”

“But you admit you were looking?”

“You’re the most irritating man I ever met in my life.”

“I’d prefer most attractive man you’ve ever met…”

“You’re not Woo Bin, last time I checked.” Woo Bin? She thinks Woo Bin is more attractive than I am?

“Woo Bin? Baby, have you seen me? I’m on a different scale.” He heard you snort, slightly hurting his ego but he wasn’t going to let you notice it.

“If you mean of arrogance, then I totally agree with you.”

“Babe. I’m sweeter, handsomer and overall better than Has-bin.”

“Prove it.”

“What?”

“You heard me. Prove. It. Or are you sure your ego is up to the challenge, Gukkie?” He huffed at your mockery. Did you really think that he would let his ego get the better of him? Alright, you think I can’t be sweet, Y/N? I’ll be so sweeter you’ll get into a sugar induced coma? God, I need stop hanging out with Yoongi hyung and Jin hyung, they’re making me soft.

“You’re on, baby.”

He went to his apartment to change, settling on a white shirt, a pair of black jeans and his black sneakers. You skipped into his apartment, sitting on his couch and he joined you.

“We’re matching.”

“We’re going to be that couple?”

“What’s wrong? It’s cute.”

“Whatever floats your goat.”

“Isn’t it boat?”

“I said goat, Bambi.” You put up your hands up in defense and he slipped his fingers into the gaps between your fingers. He would never tell you, since it was quite silly and embarrassing but he loved the way your hands molded together. Your relatively smaller hands fit perfectly with his, reminding how perfect you were for him. He liked the way your palm felt against his, warm and soft and your thumb would rub against the back of his hand whenever you felt nervous or wanted him to calm down. The simple stroke of your thumb could instantly calm him down. He loved the way your hand s would leave the breathtaking scent of lilac and jasmine. The scent of you could take him from edge of madness to stable ground.

All these thoughts were just words that he could never say to you. He wouldn’t dare to let one slip out of his mouth.

“Goat, it is.” He led you out of his apartment, holding onto your hand tightly as he walked down the street with you.

“You have somewhere in mind?”

“I’ve been meaning to take you but we never really had the chance.”

“Oh, where?”

“The market.”

“Don’t knock it until you try it.”

“So, you think grocery shopping is a sweet gesture?”

“Bambi, give it a chance, for me?” He kissed your hand, calming you down a bit and you two walked through the market. The first stand he took you to was grilling meat, the smell of beef and pork easily luring him in and the man grill the meat smile fondly at the two of you.

“Ah, youth! It’s nice to see young people come to places like these. Miss, does your boyfriend here spoil you enough?”

“Oh, he’s-”

“Not enough, sir.”

“Spoil her more often; pretty young girls like her won’t stay for long if you don’t!”

“Yes, sir. Babe, do you want anything?” You looked down shyly, were you taken back by the fact he hadn’t denied that you were boyfriend and girlfriend. You succumbed to shaking your head and he just ordered enough for himself. You barely got past the stand when you took a piece of his meat.

“You said you didn’t want any?”

“I didn’t want you to spoil me.”

“It’s fine, Bambi.”

“Don’t hold back, unless it’s a million won then yes be proceed with caution.” You laughed at his silly joke, looking around the market and going to different stands. You were sifting through a carton of oranges and he grabbed a pair of tomatoes.

“Hey babe.”

“What?”

“I love you from my head tomatoes.” You tossed an apple at him, thankfully it he caught before he had to pay for the potentially smashed apple.

“Apologize*.”

“You laughed.”

“Nope.”

“C’mon~”

“So corny.”

“At least I’m not stalking you.”

“Can I break up with you?”

“Okay, I’m done, I’m done. You can’t leaf me like that, I can’t romaine alone.”

“I’m breaking up with you.” You bought a bit of produce, Jeongguk following behind you, He slipped his fingers between yours, knowing you were just messing with him.

“Oh, what a pretty girl!”

“Me?”

“Your boyfriend is very handsome as well.”

“He doesn’t mind being called pretty.”

“I-”

“Oh, this jewelry is so cute.”

“You have a keen eye; these are my more precious pieces.” He stood there, watching you gush over pieces the woman was showing you and he smiled as you held up a pair of earrings near your ears.

God, you were so beautiful.

“Gukkie?”

“Yes?”

“Let’s go.”

“There isn’t anything you liked?”

“Not really.” You bit your lip, wanting to tug him along but a vibrant blue scarf drawn you to another stand.

“She really liked these.” They were simple and classic, dangling strings of gold wrapped around a gold frame. The white gems that hung from the golden strings sparkled in the light, easily catching his eyes and he understood why they caught yours. They were beautiful.

“How much are these?” He knew they would be pricey but he was whipped. He would do anything for you. The lady wrapped up nicely and he slipped the little box in his inner jacket pocket, catching up to you searching through racks.

“See something you like?”

“Besides you, no.”

“Come on, Bambi. You’d look great in anything here.”

“Oh, yeah. How about this?” You lifted a shirt that reminded him of that one weird grandmother he has. She was sweet to talk to, sure, she always smelled like a rose garden and had strangely tasty candies in her purse, she wasn’t that-

“Sexy.” You laughed, muttering to yourself ‘yeah, right’ before picking out something. He waited for you to come out, seeing you peek your head out the curtain.

“Come on, Bambi. I want to see you.”

“D-Don’t say it like that.”

“Don’t hide behind the curtains.” He got up, walking over to the curtain and not opening it. There were other people around, usually he would open the curtain without hesitation but he wasn’t about give a show of his girl to everyone in the vicinity.

“I look weird.”

“No, you don’t.”

“How would you know?”

“Bambi, I know.”

“Don’t laugh.”

“I won’t.” You opened the curtain, stumbling a little at Jeongguk’s close proximity and he placed his arm around your waist to help you stabilize.

“You’re tantalizing…” You could be wearing a garbage bag and you would put all the other women in the market to shame. He glances at your outfit, it was a peach tiered skirt with a little white too that you tied up.

“J-Jeongguk.” He stepped in the small area, closing the curtain behind him before kissing you again. There was something hypnotic about the way you looked at him, the glimmer in your eyes, the perfect tint in your lips, how a brush of your fingers against his his arm could set his whole body on fire.

He just couldn’t quit.

“Jeongguk, they’re going to notice-”

“We just have to be quiet, Bambi-”

“Is everything ok in there?”

“Yeah, everything is fine!” He teased you, kissing your neck while you tried to communicate with the woman.

“Okay… Would you like me to look at different style for you?”

“It’s okay; I think I’m okay with this one-”

“Just be quick, then. There are other patrons that want to try on the other styles.”

“O-Okay.” You flicked his ear, easily getting him off and he smirked at you.

“I hate you so much.”

“Think you pronounced ‘love’ wrong.”

“That’s cute, Gukkie.” You put your hands on either side of his face and squished his face.

“So damn cute.”

“B-Bambi.”

“You’re so cute.” You pinched his cheeks, stretching them as far as you could with a smile on your face.

“You’re hurting me-”

“So. Freaking. Cute.”

He bought what you were wearing after having a ‘discussion’ (there was no way in hell you were leaving without it, but he kept that to himself) and brought you to the beach. You managed to convince him to buy some ice cream, claiming it would be the perfect thing to end the day with.

You giddily took your cone, happily licking the frozen treat. He took your hand, holding yours and his shoes as you held your ice cream cone in your other hand. He pulled you by the coastline, walking by the calm waves.

“You’re so cute.” He took a swipe of your ice cream, placing it on your nose and you pouted at him.

“Gukkie~”

“I couldn’t resist. Here, you can retaliate.” You happily return the gesture, laughing at the silly face he made while your finger touched his nose.

“That was oddly satisfying.”

“You’re such a weirdo.”

“I’m your weirdo.” You smiled, looking away from him and he smiled back. There was a comfortable period of silence, you taking your time with your ice cream and him just admiring the sight.

“Did I prove myself?”

“Hmm, you were definitely cheesy, I’ll give you that.”

“I’ll take it.”

“You were sweeter than usual, Jeongguk.”

“Would this give me brownie points?” He pulled out the box, handing it over to you and you opened the box. You covered your mouth, your eyes flickering between the earrings and him.

“Jeongguk…”

“You have great taste, Bambi. They’ll look beautiful on you-” You kissed him, catching him a bit off guard. He held you tightly, you pulling away and gently stroking his fringe.

“You’re the sweetest.”

“Sweeter than Woo Bin?”

“Sweeter than Woo Bin, Jeongguk.”

~Admin Blake

246 notes · View notes