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thornedrose44 · 4 years ago

Note

Supercorp prompt-

Lena takes an art class to de-stress and Kara is the nude model. Awkward semi- naked flirting ensues.

(A/N: So, I put my own twist on this (hope that’s okay), I made Lena a teacher just because I liked the idea of Lena having to keep her lack of chill under control and be professional in front of a class funny - though this fic went down just a really light, fluffy route which I hadn’t expected when I started it.)

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It had been going well, the first term had passed with only a few missteps and one trip to the emergency room - though, the Dean had told her that Zach had yet to make it through a single class without some sort of accident and had been preemptively banned from taking Chemistry classes for fear of taking out an entire graduation class.

Lena had never expected to return to her alma mater as a lecturer but the stars had aligned at just the right time. The youngest Luthor had reached a stage in her career where she had finally proven her adoptive mother wrong about not finding success as an artist and had made enough money that she need never paint another picture in her life again. The lack of necessity and the return to a more Luthor-esque lifestyle - galas, fancy balls and paid talks - had subsequently impacted her inspiration. She needed a change. A return to her roots and some sort of stability without losing her ability to make a personal impact with her work.

Her mentor - J’onn - was stepping down from the art department and had recommended her as his replacement; National City University had jumped at the chance of the world renowned Lena Luthor taking up a teaching position there.

She was now a third of the way through the school year, settled comfortably into her new role, and absolutely loving it. Her spark was back, and she was enjoying being in one place surrounded by her old friends. She was reconnecting with skills and techniques she hadn’t touched in years whilst simultaneously giving advice and encouragement to students that reminded her of herself when Lillian had cut her off to force her into attending business school and abandoning her dreams. She was finally able to return the kindness J’onn had given her all those years ago to the next generation of artists.

It was the second term that Lena experienced her first set of real nerves.

Lena had an artistic weak spot, an achilles heel that she had been able to keep out of her signature artistic style but she would now be forced to confront.

Life drawing.

It had been her lowest scoring class by a mile and she had avoided the advanced elective classes like the plague. Lena knew practice made perfect but she’d never had enough interest to develop her skills. Her interest had always lied more in natural landscape beauty - J’onn had said her true inspiration lied with trying to recreate her childhood memories of Ireland: emerald rolling hills, rocky cliffs, dense forests ensconced by a mystical fog that lended her artwork a fantastical element that she was now known for.

The problem lied in Lena’s lack of interest in people.

She had never really seen the ‘art’ in them.

Kelly, Sam and Andrea had spent hours over evening drinks psycho-analysing just why that might be, their two favourite theories were Lena’s family (the loss of her mother and the general unpleasantness of the Luthors) or Lena’s truly terrible dating history (their favourite topic of conversation due to the sheer number of embarrassing stories it elicited).

Lena refused to acknowledge the accuracy of both theories.

It was therefore with a sense of dread that Lena prepared for the first Life Model Drawing class that Tuesday afternoon. The one small silver lining was that she didn’t need to arrange a model - she had vague memories of J’onn trying to entice volunteers and grumbling under his breath about some of the less than pleasant eager volunteers. J’onn had a list of regular volunteers that he had accrued over the years that were reliable and just liked to help out - most of them older with an appreciation for the arts and more time on their hands than they knew what to do with. The University admin team had organised everything and simply told her to expect a Kara Danvers at the studio some time before the class.

Lena had finished prepping the studio well in advance, reviewed the relevant techniques for most of the morning and even phoned J’onn for a much needed pep talk over lunch. She had just convinced herself that everything might be okay, that she just might be able to do this, when the most beautiful woman Lena had ever laid eyes on burst into the studio.

A toned body that glinted with a light sheen of sweat barely covered by a white v-neck tucked in at the front of a pair of dark jeans that merely brought all of Lena’s attention to the bronze belt buckle that locked away a thousand dirty thoughts. Glorious golden ringlet curls bounced up and down as the woman stumbled to a sudden stop as the most piercing blue eyes imaginable behind thick glasses locked with Lena’s green ones.

“Hi, I’m Kara!” The goddess announced, swallowing thickly and stumbling forward in her hefty black boots as she extended out a hand for Lena to take.

Lena only reached out due to years of Luthor training that had ingrained politeness into her muscle memory - her brain still not firing on all cylinders at the sight of the woman in front of her. Kara’s warm palm connected with Lena’s, long fingers curling gently yet firmly around the edge of her hand and sending arcs of lightning through Lena’s body and causing her breath to stutter.

“I hope you haven’t been waiting for me for too long.” Kara continued, a bright apologetic smile lighting up her entire face and grinding whatever gears were still turning Lena’s mind to a dead - permanent - halt. “I try to always get here early to help set-up but the interview I was conducting overran - I’m a journalist, by the way - and then my bike - motorbike that is -” Lena’s mind caught on the motorbike and turned it round over and over and over again, “didn’t start and… I’m rambling. Oh, golly! I mean heck, I mean sorry.” Kara huffed, cheeks filling with air before releasing into an adorable pout. “Sorry.”

It was then that Lena realised two things.

One, it was her turn to say something and there had now been at least ten prolonged seconds of silence as they stared into each other’s eyes.

And two, they were still holding hands because that’s what it was now, it most definitely could not be considered a handshake.

“Umm… hi…” Lena choked out whilst simultaneously jerking her hand back to her side, hoping the somewhat stifling heat of the studio would hide the red blush perfusing her cheeks. “Lena. I’m Lena, that is…”

“Hi.” Kara murmured, smiling soft and sweet at her causing Lena’s heart to flip and melt and dance and do a million impossible things all at once.

“Hi.” Lena repeated dumbly - so dumbly.

“I should…” Kara chuckled, hands miming grabbing the edge of her t-shirt and lifting it up, “You know?”

Oh, god the goddess is going to undress, Lena’s brain screamed in gay at herself.

“Yeah, definitely do that.” Lena encouraged with a flap of her hand towards the centre of the studio where a solitary illuminated stool awaited. “Do you need anything? Is the lighting okay? Stool… umm… sturdy?”

Kara grinned at her, blue eyes barely sparing a glance at the studio’s set-up, “Looks perfect.”

“Great.” Lena cheered, jerking her thumb over at her desk in the corner where she had prepped her teaching materials, “I’ll… uh… be over there.”

“And I’ll be right here.” Kara shot back with a cheeky wink as she walked over to the stool, a towel awaiting her to provide suitable covering until the class had settled, shucking her white shirt over her head and revealing back muscles that would star in Lena’s fantasies for the foreseeable future.

“Yep.” Lena popped, taking a deep breath and trying to work out if she should be murmuring a thank you to God or screaming a desperate why me.

***

The class had gone well - except for the long periods where her brain shutdown whenever she studied the play of shadows across Kara’s defined musculature. She managed to cover it quite well by making it seem like she was just assessing her students’ work closely, analysing their line work and shading rather than going through an extended gay crisis that eclipsed seeing boobs for the first time in college.

Kara, on the other hand, was a consummate professional, holding a steady pose throughout and utterly unfazed by the concentrated gazes on her - though, Lena could have sworn that she caught deep blue eyes tracking her movements round the half-circle every now and again.

“So, you’re experienced doing this?” Lena asked, once the last student had departed and Kara was finishing re-tying her sturdy boots back up.

“Taking my clothes off?” Kara chuckled, shooting the teacher an amused smirk, getting to her feet and strolling easily over to where Lena was examining the product of her class’ efforts.

Lena faltered, “I meant-”

“I’m just teasing.” Kara reassured, reaching out to squeeze Lena’s forearm in a half-apology that Lena could have sworn burnt Kara’s hand print into her skin, “I’ve done this for a while now. I did an interview with J’onn a few years ago and his model bailed at the last minute and I was here already and…” Kara shrugged casually like stepping in was the obvious thing to do, like kindness was the only option - which Lena didn’t doubt for a second was something Kara genuinely believed. “I like helping out where I can. And I just kept coming back…” Kara explained, clasping her hands behind her back as she took a tentative step closer to Lena, “I was never really sure why until-”

“Hey, babe, you ready to go?”

Lena’s head snapped round to see Andrea strolling through the doorway, eyes fixed on her phone utterly oblivious to the moment she had just trampled all over. Lena wasn’t sure whether Andrea was naturally such a good cockblock or if she practiced at it - regardless of either option Lena’s sexlife had vanished into thin air since she’d returned to living in the same city as Andrea. (Not that Lena thought that her and Kara were heading that way but Lena had been enjoying the hope of it at least).

“Andrea, you’re early for the first time in.... well, ever…” Lena snarked, rolling her eyes before glancing over to Kara, only to find the blonde had taken a large step away from her and her expression was far more neutral and guarded than it had been only moments before.

“Wait, we weren’t meeting at 4?” Andrea frowned, still not bothering to look up.

“Ah, so you’re not early, you’re over an hour late.” Lena remarked.

“God, you’re such a drama queen…” Andrea sighed, finally lifting her gaze from her phone, her eyes immediately alighting on Kara with undisguised interest. “And who is this?”

“Andrea, this is Kara the model for our life drawing classes.” Lena introduced taking a protective step in front of the blonde, an action that did not go unnoticed by the other two occupants in the room. “Kara, this is my supposed best friend who is regularly trying to lose that title.”

“Oh, best friend?” Kara repeated; the familiar brightness from before returning to her expression as she looked excitedly between the two friends.

“Yes.” Lena answered, smiling shyly at Kara and immediately forgetting Andrea’s existence, let alone presence in the room.

“That’s great.” Kara grinned, blushing a light pink a second later as her hands fidgeted with her keys, “I mean… ummm…. That you have a best friend. My sister is my best friend, though I have other friends. I just mean that… friends are cool.”

Lena laughed lightly at Kara’s ramble, leaning closer towards the blonde without realising until Andrea appeared at her shoulder looking far too pleased with herself.

“Kara,” Andrea greeted, holding out a hand for the blonde to shake (Lena was comforted to see their handshake was quick, almost professional in comparison to the lingering touch Kara and Lena had shared earlier). “The pleasure is all mine.” Andrea declared, winking surreptitiously at the teacher - Lena instantly dreaded the upcoming girl’s night.

“Nice to meet you.” Kara replied friendly and sincere, before smiling softly at Lena and muttering a hopeful, “I’ll see you next week?”

“I’ll be here.” Lena reassured, watching as Kara nodded farewell to Andrea and departed, waving on her way out.

“Well…” Andrea murmured mischievously.

“Don’t.” Lena said sharply, holding up a finger to deter whatever torment Andrea had brewing. “Not a word. Not a single word.”

“Ooookay.” Andrea lied.

***

“You okay?” Lena asked tentatively, watching as Kara sluggishly slung her bag over her shoulder the pep to her step nowhere near as present as it had been last week.

They hadn’t had a chance to talk before the class even though Kara arrived much earlier to help set-up - Lena had been helping a student struggling with deadlines and a sudden crisis of confidence which prevented them from interacting. Despite being occupied, Lena had seen the fatigue weighing heavily on the reporter, saw how her impeccable posture dropped and how her students added weary lines to her expression in their artwork.

“I think you fell asleep on that stool for ten minutes at some point.” Lena murmured, brow creasing in concern.

“Pfft… what?” Kara reassured with a light-hearted wave of her hand. “Impossible.”

Lena arched an unimpressed eyebrow, “You snore. Quite loudly.”

“Oh…” Kara pouted guiltily, rubbing at the back of her neck, “My sister is going through a rough patch and I stayed up late with her last night.”

Lena’s amusement drained away to be replaced with soft, supportive care, “Is she okay?”

“Yeah, she’s doing better.” Kara replied, blue eyes twinkling at Lena’s inquiry that had them both ducking their heads coyly and sharing furtive glances. “I should get going.” Kara coughed out, though she made no move to leave.

“Or…” Lena began hesitantly, heart fluttering in her chest, “we could go for coffee? You should probably have a coffee before driving,” Lena rationalised, nervously stepping back from the blatant romantic line she was toeing, “you know for safety…”

“For safety.” Kara repeated carefully, blue eyes glowing with warmth, “That sounds wonderful.”

***

It didn’t take them long at all to settle into a comfortable routine.

Kara came early to the life model classes, helping set-up the room as they talked about the students' progress and what Lena was going to make the focus of the class. During the class itself, Lena no longer needed to flit as regularly between her students, they had learned the basic techniques enough to practise for themselves, now only requiring light guidance which allowed Lena time to either do some marking or her own art. Kara posed perfectly throughout, though Lena was becoming more and more aware of Kara’s still gaze on her as the weeks passed by.

After class, it was now custom for them to grab a coffee and go for a long walk around the university campus as they talked about everything and nothing. They would have been building towards a strong friendship if it wasn’t for the lingering touches, blatant flirts, blushes and wandering gazes.

Lena wasn’t overly sure why they hadn’t crossed that line, made that final move, but she found she didn’t particularly mind the wait. She was convinced that they had both decided that the journey was making the destination all the more desirable.

It became abundantly apparent, though, that Kara thought differently if their conversation after the class midway through the term was anything to go by.

“So do you not like my body?” Kara asked, quick and fearful, eyes looking down at the sketch Lena had done during class of a vase of flowers in the corner rather than of the readily available model.

“What?” Lena muttered in disbelief looking up sharply from her desk to see Kara paling considerably having clearly not intended to ask the question that she had blurted out.

“I… uh…” Kara squeaked, mouth opening and closing rapidly, before lifting her bare wrist up with a jerky motion and whistling in exaggerated surprise, “Wow, look at the time. I’m late for… uh… this thing. Work thing. Interview! That’s a work thing.”

And just like that she was gone - Lena wouldn’t have been surprised if there was a Kara shaped hole in the studio wall with how fast she disappeared - leaving Lena with a sinking, twisty feeling in the pit of her stomach that told her she might have lost more than her regular coffee with Kara over that one interaction.

***

Lena had Kara’s phone number and they had taken to texting throughout the day; however, since Kara’s panicked question - which probably revealed some deep vulnerability in the blonde - there had been complete and total radio silence. No memes, no cute animal pics, no sweet check ins… Lena’s phone remained silent when it once vibrated with life.

Lena wanted to text or call Kara the second she had left the studio but Lena didn’t feel like this was a conversation they could have over text, so she waited impatiently for them to be face to face again, counting down the days until the next class.

Lena even took to repeatedly checking in with the admin office to confirm that Kara hadn’t pulled out of modelling; reaching the stage where Jess, the most senior admin in the team, had taken to emailing her every couple of hours to reassure her that Kara still hadn’t cancelled.

When Kara appeared, nervously stepping into the art room, fingers playing with the hem of her shirt, it was like Lena could finally breathe easy again. The fear and loss eeking away in an instant, giving Lena the necessary courage to stride forward and bare herself in a way that Kara had been doing every week without Lena fully realising.

“I don’t like drawing people.” Lena announced, shoving her hands into her pockets to resist the temptation to reach out to the other woman as the blonde blinked at her in surprise, listening intently. “It’s kind of a thing with me.” Lena winced, pushing down all the reasons for why that is. “When I draw something I… kind of let whatever it is into me, let it consume me and it… stays with me for a long time after that. It’s why I draw what I draw. I draw my home because it's a part of me already. Drawing someone means carrying them with me and… that’s scary for me.” Lena breathed, glancing at the blonde to see soft understanding in blue eyes. “I just wanted you to know it’s not you.”

Kara nodded, shuffling closer and dipping her head so that she could whisper into the still space between them, “Thank you.”

“Right,” Lena murmured, swallowing thickly before jerking a thumb over her shoulder, “I should-”

“Do you want to get dinner?” Kara inquired earnestly causing Lena to freeze in hopeful surprise. “After class, that is?”

“Um… Yes.” Lena replied, nodding her head eagerly.

“Awesome.” Kara grinned brightly.

***

Kara took her to a tucked away italian restaurant that was one of National City’s hidden gems. The food was outstanding and the company was even better.

It wasn’t a date, but it wasn’t just friends going out for dinner either.

Lena would call it a test-run but that would imply that Lena wasn't already one hundred percent certain that she wanted an actual date with Kara. It was more of a date-appetiser if Lena was going to call it anything, a taste to build interest before the real thing.

Once they had finished their food, Kara didn’t hesitate to interlace their fingers as they went for an evening stroll around a nearby park, both wishing to prolong their time together.

“Can I see your art?” Kara requested; they had been sitting on a bench in front of a lit-up fountain for the last twenty minutes or so in comfortable silence. Lena had expressed an interest in sketching the fountain and Kara hadn’t hesitated to find them a seat and encourage Lena’s desire without complaint, occupying herself with people-watching in the meantime.

“I’m pretty sure the images are all over the internet.” Lena replied drolly.

“Yeah, I know it’s just…” Lena’s pencil froze in it’s movements finally noticing how hard Kara was trying to act casual, “what you said about it being a part of you, I thought-”

“You want me to show it to you…” Lena inferred, setting her pencil down and closing her handy sketchbook in an instant.

“It’s stupid, I’ll-” Kara laughed awkwardly, shaking her head in an attempt to brush over the request like it wasn’t a big deal

“I don’t have many pieces here in National City,” Lena said thoughtfully, getting to her feet and holding out a hand for Kara, “but I have some works in progress that I can show you… if you want that is?”

“I would love that.” Kara beamed, jumping to her feet as Lena tugged her back towards her campus studio, already picking out her favourite pieces in her mind that she wanted to share with the blonde.

***

Lena and Kara’s ‘friendship’ continued to blossom into something neither could have anticipated that day Kara sprinted into the studio all those weeks ago. The weekly class they shared was now always followed by dinner, taking it in turns to share their favourite cuisines and restaurants. They had also grown beyond only seeing each other on their allotted class day, sharing lunches and movie nights and spontaneous coffees as they learned each other's schedule and needs.

Lena read all of Kara’s articles and spent many an evening asking countless questions about the background to each of them. Likewise, Kara would appear for coffee with one of Lena’s artworks saved in her phone, burning with curiosity about what had inspired it.

Time spent with Kara flew by and, before Lena knew it, it was the final class prior to spring break. Her last class with Kara until the next school year and Lena was finally ready.

She had finally figured it out.

Why she had waited.

Why she had yet to seize the numerous opportunities to transition her relationship with Kara into a romantic one.

It was because she knew.

She knew from the second that she had taken Kara’s hand in hers when they first met that this was it. That Kara was it.

And that was, and still is, terrifying.

When they had first met, Lena hadn’t been ready for Kara. Hadn’t been ready for everything that Kara represented and would come to mean. She had needed the time, the time to lower her guard, to trust and hope.

And now, she was ready and she knew exactly how to let Kara know.

The class came to an end with Lena giving her students a quick speech on how proud of their progress she was and wishing them a good spring break. Kara lingered behind as was now custom, helping Lena tidy up the area before they headed out together.

“Kara?” Lena called out nervously, sweaty palms rubbing against her black denim covered thighs as her heart beat thunderously in her chest. “I was wondering…” Lena began, clearing her throat as Kara stopped what she was doing to give Lena her undivided attention. “Can I… can I draw you?”

Kara’s brow instantly furrowed in confusion, “I thought-”

“Yeah…” Lena laughed shyly, staring into deep blue eyes, practically begging for Kara to understand what she was really saying. “Can I?” Lena repeated.

Kara pursed her lips thoughtfully as she studied Lena’s expression - it was then Lena realised that Kara understood exactly why they had been waiting. Kara wasn’t replying because she wanted to check that Lena was sure, was giving Lena a chance to delay, was saying - without really saying it - that she could wait longer.

Lena didn’t take the escape Kara offered, instead she lifted her head higher and arched an eyebrow at the blonde.

A thousand-watt smile of excitement took up residence on Kara’s face as she nodded eagerly, “Of course.”

“Clothes on.” Lena clarified - she had promised herself that the first time she truly studied Kara’s body it would be in a setting where touching would not break any professional standards.

***

Lena had Kara sit opposite her in her private studio, their knees pressed tightly against one another providing a warm point of contact to keep them grounded. Lena’s gaze flickered from her sketchpad to Kara’s features; occasionally, she would reach out to adjust a lock of golden hair so it caught the light. Kara, meanwhile, had an ever constant soft smile that didn’t diminish for the entirety of the session even as she was forced to rein in her boundless curiosity to stop herself from sneaking a peek at Lena’s sketch until it was ready to be revealed.

Lena only drew Kara’s head because, though, she had spent countless hours in the presence of Kara’s naked body over the course of the last few weeks - when Lena thought of Kara (really thought about her in the way that made her heart skip), it wasn’t her abs or her biceps that Lena pictured (though she did think about them regularly when she was in her bed alone at night).

It was Kara’s eyes that Lena thought about most.

How they were so bright and hopeful whilst simultaneously melancholic and lost.

There were whole galaxies in those blue eyes and Lena knew that she could spend the rest of her life drawing them and never get bored, nor get them exactly right.

“What do you think?” Lena asked, slowly turning her sketchbook round for Kara to see.

It wasn’t finished. It was mere line work that would require further detailing but it was a good start and she hoped Kara could see its potential like she did with everything else in the world - like she did with Lena.

“It’s…” Kara began, licking her lips as she pulled the sketchbook closer to her chest like it was something treasured and infinitely rare. “It's incredible.” Kara breathed, the sincerity of her words undeniable due to how they were accompanied by a watery film to her blue eyes.

“I like your body.” Lena whispered, shattering the companionable silence they had drifted into as Kara admired Lena’s artistry.

“W-w-what?” Kara stammered, head jerking up at the out-of-the-blue declaration.

Lena reached out for the sketchbook, lifting it out of Kara’s hand and placing it on the nearby table so that she could take Kara’s hands in hers.

“You asked if I liked your body a while ago,” Lena reminded the blonde, “and I just thought you should know that I do. I really, really do. I mean really.” Lena emphasised, glancing appreciatively down at Kara’s body prompting the blonde to blush a pleased pink. “But it's more than just that. It’s become more than that. Talking after class, getting coffee, going for dinner… it's the best part of my week. You’re the best part of my week.”

“Lena-” Kara began, her mouth suddenly snapping shut as her jaw clenched and her chin lifted in determination. Blue eyes studied Lena for a long moment and all Lena could do was hold her breath and wait.

Lena made Kara wait weeks, she could therefore wait the stretched seconds that Kara needed in return without complaint

Kara got confidently to her feet, tugging Lena up with her, squeezing their hands once before releasing her so that she could reach up to tenderly cup Lena’s face. “I’m going to kiss you now.” Kara declared, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Thank fu-” Lena sighed gratefully, cut off from offering up her thanks by Kara’s perfect lips sliding over hers.

#supercorp #supercorp fic #supercorp prompt

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askfacultystaff · 3 years ago

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Enemies Of Emnity

Today, i discussing my hatred of some characters from Loud House and Casagrandes. Why? Because i always hating them like in these versions of drawings, always thinking they are criminals to my favorite characters from all fandoms i love.

Criminals and their informations in order:

Chandler McCann - Chandler is a redhead boy, with light fair skin, and a hairstyle similar to Luna's. Like Lincoln, he has freckles on his cheeks. He wears a yellow long sleeve shirt with white sleeves, which has a print of a blue gear, black pants with a black belt, and white sneakers with green stripes.

Liam Hunnicutt - Liam is as tall as Lincoln and has freckles on his cheeks. He has orange hair styled into a bowl cut, and two buck teeth. His regular clothing attire consists of a light and dark green striped t-shirt, brown shorts, white sneakers with green stripes, and white socks with red and blue stripes.

Taylor - Taylor is a teenage girl with tanned skin and long wavy brown hair. She wears black t-shirt, white vest, red jeans short pants, brown stockings and brown boots.

Zach Gurdle - Zach is a short kid with wild unkempt red hair, glasses, buck teeth, and freckles on his cheeks. He wears a white and blue striped polo shirt, blue jeans, and white sneakers.

Pablo - Pablo is the shortest of the three with tanned skin and short dark brown hair. He wears black round glasses, white short-sleeved shirt with collar, grey jeans, white socks and brown shoes.

Ronnie Anne - Ronnie Anne is a Mexican-American girl with dark tan skin, black hair worn in a low ponytail, freckles on her cheeks, and two buck teeth that stick out of her mouth. She wears a purple hooded jacket, dark blue jean shorts, a white tank top, and dark purple flats with light pink socks worn high.

Anderson - Anderson is the tallest of the trio with light skin, short black hair stylized on match. He wears grey t-shirt, red shorts with vertical white stripes on each side and black-white training shoes.

Clyde McBride - Clyde wears circular glasses with thick black rims and blue-tinted lenses. He has freckles and black hair styled into an Afro. Just like Lucy, his hair always has a bright outline. He is normally seen wearing black pants, and a yellow-and-blue striped shirt with a white-collar. He wears black tennis shoes with three white stripes, and white laces on each.

Lindsay Sweetwater - Lindsay is a young girl who is the same height as Lola, and has long orange hair that curls up at the bottom. She wears pink lipstick, a teal bow on her head, white pearl earrings, long cyan evening gloves, a long teal dress with frills at the bottom, and a belt to hold it up.

Rusty Spokes - Rusty Spokes has fair skin and curly orange hair. He wears blue baggy pants, a light green T-shirt with a yellow collar, and white shoes. He also has buck teeth, and freckles all over his face.

Stella Zhau - Stella is a tall and slender Filipino-American girl, with tan skin, freckles, black hair that curls up at the back end with two strands of hair standing out, two pairs of eyelashes, and noticeably slanted eyes. Her main attire consists of a white short-sleeved sweater, with a red star in the middle, a red collar, and red sleeve edges, a knee-long black skirt, white knee-high socks with a red and blue stripe at the top, and green sneakers. She also wears a wristwatch on her right hand and a red hair clip on the back of her head.

Note: If you like or dislike these characters in these drawings, i respect your opinion. But seriously, no bashing, okay?

#chandler mccann #liam hunnicutt #taylor #zach gurdle #pablo #the loud house #ronnie anne santiago #the casagrandes #anderson #clyde mcbride #lindsay sweetwater #rusty spokes #stella zhau

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multimetaverse · 4 years ago

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HSMTMTS 2x01 Review

New Year’s Eve was a great way to return to HSMTMTS especially after such a long gap. Let’s dig in!

Vladimir Lenin once said that, ‘’ there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen". It’s been almost a year and half since S1 ended but this past week has seen revelation after revelation as the fandom has resurrected itself and promotion for S2 kicked into high gear: Joshua Bassett came out, Frankie and Joe confirmed that they are a real life couple, Larry seemingly confirmed that S2 will only have 11 eps rather than the 12 initially ordered, and perhaps most importantly Olivia revealed that she and the main cast are under contract for 4 seasons and made clear that she’s leaving the show as soon as her contract is up.

I really enjoyed this premiere, it felt like picking up right back where we left off. I’m guessing that S2 was originally supposed to premiere around Christmas or New Year’s but the holiday decorations and real Utah snow add a charming aesthetic to the ep. Tim Federle deserves credit for giving HSMTMTS more of an ensemble feel which is no easy feat with a cast as large as this show has. It likely won’t last due to covid restrictions but at least for tonight we got to see all the characters hanging out together acting like a real group of friends.

The dialogue tonight really reminded me of Glee and I think I mean that as a compliment. Miss Jenn in particular seems to be doing her best April Rhodes impression minus the alcoholism.

The rini scenes tonight were lovely. Perfect gift was a great song and I loved the rini duet during the music in me as the world faded around them leaving just the two of them. The Harry Styles reference is funny in light of Josh’s coming out interview. Of course, it’s hard now to separate Nini and Ricky and Olivia and Josh. Their chemistry shines through as 2x01, 2x02, and possibly parts of 2x03 were filmed pre Jolivia breakup which seems to have happened around summer 2020. Whether they can keep that same chemistry later on in S2, not to mention future seasons, remains to be seen.

A major theme tonight was communication and clearly Rini need to work on theirs. Poor Ricky had to learn that Nini’s moving to Denver the night before she leaves town which has to remind of him of his mom effectively abandoning him. Ricky saying that he’s never gonna breakup with Nini ever again sure sounds like foreshadowing for a disaster though the odds that this time Nini initiates the breakup are pretty good.

I’m glad that the show is continuing to delve in the Bowen’s divorce story with their house being sold and Ricky and his dad having to move into an apartment. Divorce is expensive and the division of assets typically leave people less well off. Mike Bowen needs to work on his communication skills but he’s rocking that beard; it takes him from depressed divorced dad to depressed divorced daddy.

Seblos was cute and in a nice change of pace Disney doesn’t seem to be cynically teasing them then cutting their scenes. It was refreshing to see them just being a couple and to hear Carlos casually refer to himself as gay. In that regard tonight’s ep didn’t seem like it was a Disney show at all and it’s major progress that there are now two main gay characters on HSMTMTS. We learn that Carlos is rich which seems likely to be a source of conflict with Seb who comes from a large farming family.

Bet on It was really fun and I liked that Ricky apparently couldn’t stop singing it. The medley of HSM 2 songs was fun but I’ll be real with you wildcats, I never thought HSM 2 or 3 were nearly as good as the first movie so I’m not sad that they’re doing something else this year.

Wild that Big Red’s mom also calls him Big Red. Salt Lake Slices seems poised to be a big part of S2 both as hangout spot and work location for some of the characters. Redlyn are sweet together but sometimes Big Red comes off as a closeted gay guy which isn’t ideal for a het pairing that is supposedly a big part of S2.

Nice to see Gina so excited to have sleepovers with Ashlyn. We know from 2x03 that Gina contends with being single on Valentine’s day and from her glances at Ricky tonight she’s clearly not over him. Tim’s playing with fire and I can only hope he knows what he’s doing. I liked the little detail of Kourtney having AOC on her vision board, it feels true to the character (hopefully AOC gets elected president one day if the USA doesn’t collapse into a fascist dictatorship or civil war before then). EJ’s beard has got to go but I like that he seems committed to being a better version of himself; very doubtful his plan to go straight to Duke like his forefathers doesn’t change by the end of the season.

Derek Hough did a good job of playing Zach as a subtly condescending man who managed to swiftly undermine Miss Jenn’s confidence, we’ll see what he and North High bring to the table.

Looking Ahead:

Next week are auditions for Beauty and the Beast, we know Ashlyn gets the role of Belle and EJ has conveniently removed himself from the running for Beast which presumably clears the path for Ricky to take the lead. There’s been some controversy over the casting choices and I’ll save my comments about it for the 2x02 review.

We get to see Lily who looks like a meaner version of season 1 Gina, we’ll see how much depth she actually ends up getting. Howie is introduced in 2x03 and Antoine likely shows up later on. Jack likely shows up towards the end of the season.

Howie seems to have a connection with Kourtney though the character synopsis does say he gets close to a wildcat or two which certainly leaves room to slide him into Gina’s plot. We know Antoine is into Ashlyn so that’s another love triangle to look forward to. Jack was described as having wanderlust and most of the cast seems not to have filmed with him so I think it’s likely that he plays a role in convincing EJ to take a gap year rather than head straight to Duke.

A translation leak on TikTok reveals that in 2x03 Gina is sad that she’s only gotten a Valentine’s Day gift from her mom. A brief clip from the promo shows up her on her porch at night holding a heart shaped box of chocolates. If that’s supposed to be from a secret or semi-secret admirer than it has to be from either EJ, Ricky, or Howie. If it’s a platonic gift then it could be from anyone, we’ll see what Tim has up his sleeves.

Nini moving back to SLC is a question of when not if. It’s going to be very difficult to bring her back in a way that’s justified and also doesn’t leave the time she spends in Denver looking like a total waste. Frankly, I’d rather the show just bite the bullet and bring her back with as little fuss as possible.

We’re possibly around a quarter way through HSMTMTS given that the mains have 4 season contracts and presuming that the show is not cancelled earlier. At the very least the show will be radically different after S4 if they try to continue it as Olivia has made very clear that she’s going to leave asap to pursue her burgeoning music career full time (notably she’s only done the bare minimum of promo for S2).

Looming over the remaining seasons of HSMTMTS is what the professional relationship between Olivia and Josh looks like especially since in many ways the show is built around Ricky and Nini. Off screen relationships have often caused on screen problems and dating a co-worker is rarely a good idea since even clean breakups leave lingering resentments. Obviously the Jolivia breakup was not clean, Driver’s License, Deja Vu, and Good 4 U (which is a certified bop) were clearly written from a place of hurt and in some ways were written to hurt. It’s no surprise that Joshua has dropped his duet with Sabrina Carpenter from his EP; someone on his team at least is trying to stop the damage to his reputation. There’s a decent chance that Olivia’s songs becoming such hits has irreparably damaged Joshua Bassett’s reputation among the same pool of largely young women that he’s targeting his music towards thereby cutting off his music career at the knees. If nothing else this behind the scenes drama should keep things entertaining for a while.

Until next week Wildcats

#HSMTMTS #Rini #Seblos #Ricky Bowen #Nini Salazar-Roberts #Carlos Rodriguez #Seb Matthew-Smith #Gina Porter #ej caswell #HSMTMTS Reviews

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silver-state-knights · 3 years ago

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Zach Whitecloud for the gear ask thing 🥺 i know nothing about gear

hi there anon! thank you so much for the ask!!! this is gonna be a long one, so i'm going to put it under a cut! there will be a summary at the end of these, since I know these are all gonna get pretty long. i'll also be trying to include game footage and pictures of every player i do for this ask game! also...if you guys want further explanations on what i'm saying about the gear itself, i'm always happy to go more in depth!

so, without further ado, let's get into the essay i'm gonna write about the VGK's Zach Whitecloud!

---

So first, here's Zach Whitecloud's current gear specs (via. GearGeek):

Helmet: Bauer, Re-Akt 150

Glove: Bauer, Vapor 2X Pro

Stick: Bauer, Vapor Hyperlite

Skates: Bauer, Vapor Hyperlite

So, my first impression with Whitecloud, even if I didn't know who he was and just by looking at his gear, is that when he's playing, he likes to be as quick and as agile as possible.

The fact that almost all of his equipment is in the Vapor family might as well be a big bright neon sign telling me that- the Vapor family of Bauer's products are specifically designed to be lighter so that the player using it can be more mobile, agile, and quick.

The players using Vapor skates like to be able change directions at the drop of a hat, and while they may not be getting those super powerful and aggressive strides that other players have, they're pretty quick.

Players who use the Vapor line of sticks typically take a lot of snapshots and wrist shots, and want a quicker release on their shot vs. a more powerful/harder one. These players are more of your "sniper" archetype when they're taking shots.

Keeping in mind that Whitecloud also isn't super big for a defenseman, standing at 6'2" and weighing in at about 210 lbs, this kinda makes sense. I feel like being a bit of a smaller guy is a key feature of his playing style. He often plays on a pair with Nic Hague, who is pretty much a giraffe (6'6" and 230lb)- but if you look at how they play together, you'll often see that Hague sticks closer to the net while Whitecloud is usually chasing the puck carrier. Usually your quicker defenseman will be doing that, while the bigger/slower of the pair will stay closer to the net to prevent the other team from scoring that way.

Whitecloud also is far from what we would call a "stay at home" defenseman. He is often moving, often following the puck, and often doing everything he can to make sure the puck is either in the VGK's offensive zone, or far from their net. Another thing of note is that Whitecloud has quite the offensive streak for someone who plays defense- he scores quite a few goals in a season, and often knows what to do to get his forwards that puck if he can't score it himself. He can play both sides of the game pretty well, which is always an asset to any team.

For the more "off ice" aspect of things, Whitecloud definitely strikes me as someone who knows what he likes. He's entirely using Bauer, and clearly it's working very well for him.

He also seems like somebody who's pretty practical; his skates and his stick are the newest top line Vapor model, while his gloves and helmet are ever so slightly older (the Re-Akt 150 helmet released ~2019, while the 2X Pro glove released about the same time). I say that because the gloves and helmet, as far as pure performance goes, are not really as important as skates or sticks. They also tend to be able to take more of a beating than your skates or your stick, especially when you're on the ice as much as an NHLer is. In short, he's got great priorities as far as his gear goes and probably wants to maximize his skillset as much as possible.

Here's some stuff I found that might be able to show this a bit better than just words):

First, I found some example videos of Zach Whitecloud on the ice, some even going back to juniors:

Video 1

Video 2 (*this is Whitecloud's junior team, he is wearing #29 in these clips, and not his usual #2)

Video 3 (**shows footage from junior (where he is wearing #29), and his stint with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL (where he is wearing #32), and even has some neat background info on him!)

The TL;DR on Zach Whitecloud: Whitecloud is a competitive player who knows what his strengths are, and capitalizes on them. He really loves the game, and only wants to grow as a player as his career goes on. I see a lot of drive looking at his gear AND looking at footage of him playing. There's really nothing unhinged about him gear wise, but it is very fascinating to see what makes his brand of hockey work!

side note, but Whitecloud has one of the most normal tape jobs I've ever seen:

anyways...that's my analysis on Zach Whitecloud! I hope you enjoyed, anon! :)

got a player you want me to talk about? send me an ask about them!

#vegas golden knights #zach whitecloud #anons #hockey gear personality tests #gear nerd ramblings

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wrestlingarsenal · 1 year ago

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In their description of this recent match, the Muscleboy Wrestling website promises lots of classic pro wrestling by Zach Ramos and Tripp Evans. The captions beside my animations are copied directly from the promo page for this video. I swear they may be speaking directly to me when they promise to please their "most avid fans of old school pro." Thanks boys, I am pleased!

It pleases me to know that Muscleboy (and most of the other Underground wrestling producers) continue to pander to my demographic: wrestling fans of a certain age who still love this fake old pro style shit and want to see lots more of it, so they go out of their way to include some classic rasslin videos among their products.

And it pleases me that they take the gaity up a notch by utilizing attractive models in skimpy, bulge-enhancing trunks as the performers of the good old classic rasslin moves. Yet they still capture the essence of vintage pro wrestling: the look of the gear and accessories (e.g., wrist tape, bicep straps), the iconic holds of yesteryear, the exaggerated suffering and selling (such agony!), the muscular physiques, the strutting and posing, the campy flamboyance -- it checks all the boxes for a fan who grew up enjoying the apparently devastating impact of Big Elbow Drops just like these...

The mainstream televised wrestling promotions transitioned away from this antiquated format long ago, now giving their fans a faster performance with less body contact, less selling, and less homo-eroticism. So I definitely appreciate Underground producers for recognizing the continued demand for classic pro style action and for filling the demand by giving us plenty of what we crave.

You guys keep making 'em and I'll keep buying 'em.

#zach ramos #white trunks #tripp evans #tall wrestler vs shorter wrestler #helpless male #elbow smashes #in the style of classic wrestling #male bulge #hunks in trunks #wrestleporn

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teecloverbr · 21 days ago

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The Baltimore Ravens 29th Anniversary 1996 2025 thank you signature shirt

Here’s a content draft tailored to the new product link with icons for a festive and engaging tone:

🎉 Celebrate the Baltimore Ravens’ 29th Anniversary in Style! 🏈

Looking for the perfect gift for the die-hard Ravens fan in your life—or a way to treat yourself? The Baltimore Ravens 29th Anniversary Signature Shirt is a tribute to nearly three decades of legendary football and unforgettable moments.

🌟 Why This Shirt?

🖤 Honor the Legacy: This exclusive design celebrates 29 years of Ravens excellence, from 1996 to 2025, with a stylish "thank you" signature detail.

👕 Premium Comfort and Style: Made with top-quality materials, this shirt is perfect for wearing to games, watch parties, or casual outings.

🎁 A Thoughtful Gift for Fans: Whether you’re gifting it to a lifelong Ravens supporter or adding it to your own collection, this shirt is a must-have for any fan’s wardrobe.

💜 Perfect for Any Occasion

🎄 Holiday-Ready: Make your Christmas celebrations extra special by repping your team’s history with pride.

🏈 Game Day Essential: Show up to the stadium or your living room in gear that screams loyalty and love for the Ravens.

🦅 True Fan’s Collectible: This shirt isn’t just apparel—it’s a piece of Ravens history you’ll treasure for years to come.

⏳ Don’t Wait—Order Now!

🛒 Click Here to Order Today! Stocks are limited, and Ravens fans everywhere are grabbing this collector's item fast!

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🎁 Exclusive Offer: Be among the first to own this anniversary shirt and celebrate Ravens pride in style.

🔗 Order Your Baltimore Ravens 29th Anniversary Shirt Now!

Here’s the content for each of the new links you provided, along with a catchy title idea for each:

1. Nurse It’s a Work of Heart Indianapolis Colts Shirt Title Idea: “Heartfelt Cheers: Nurse It’s a Work of Heart Colts Shirt!” Description: Show your dedication to both nursing and the Indianapolis Colts with this special shirt. Featuring the “It’s a Work of Heart” design, this shirt combines your passion for healthcare and football, making it a perfect gift for nurses who are Colts fans. Whether you're on the job or cheering for your team, this shirt is both comfortable and meaningful.

2. Zach Freemantle Big East Conference Xavier Musketeers Shirt Title Idea: “Xavier Musketeers Fan Gear: Zach Freemantle Big East Shirt!” Description: Represent the Xavier Musketeers and Zach Freemantle with this stylish Big East Conference shirt. Whether you’re at the game or showing your support from home, this shirt is the perfect way to honor one of the standout players in college basketball. A must-have for Musketeers fans looking to boost their game day wardrobe.

3. Penei Sewell Angry Runs Detroit Lions T-Shirts Title Idea: “Penei Sewell’s Power: Angry Runs Detroit Lions Shirt!” Description: For fans who love a bit of power and aggression on the field, this Penei Sewell “Angry Runs” Detroit Lions T-shirt is a perfect pick. With a bold design that captures Sewell’s fierce playing style, this shirt is made for die-hard Lions supporters who want to show their pride in style.

4. The Baltimore Ravens 29th Anniversary 1996-2025 Thank You Signature Shirt Title Idea: “Celebrating 29 Years: Baltimore Ravens Anniversary Signature Shirt!” Description: Celebrate the Baltimore Ravens’ incredible 29-year history with this special anniversary shirt. Featuring signatures of key players and commemorative details, this shirt honors the team’s legacy and their journey from 1996 to 2025. Perfect for fans who have supported the Ravens through thick and thin.

5. Official Owen Freeman Iowa Hawkeyes Basketball 90s Graphic Signature T-Shirt Title Idea: “Iowa Hawkeyes Throwback: Owen Freeman Signature 90s Tee!” Description: Step back into the golden era of basketball with the Owen Freeman Iowa Hawkeyes 90s graphic signature t-shirt. Show your love for the Hawkeyes with this retro-inspired design, paying tribute to a standout player and a beloved time in college basketball. This shirt is a must-have for Hawkeyes fans and those who appreciate classic sports fashion.

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tabloidtoc · 4 years ago

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Star, January 25

You can now buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Meghan Markle’s life is a lie

Page 1: Emma Stone’s baby joy -- after months of speculation thrilled mom-to-be Emma debuts her baby bump during a hike with a pal

Page 2: Contents, Sutton Foster and Nico Tortorella and Debi Mazar filmed a scene for Younger’s final season

Page 4: Candace Cameron Bure came out swinging again against commenters on a holiday pic she posted on Instagram of her and her husband Valeri Bure and kids Natasha and Lev and Maksim and she got a load of snark for the heavily retouched pic

Page 5: Karlie Kloss usually steers clear of dishing on her sister- and brother-in-law Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner but on January 6 Karlie broke her silence after Ivanka tweeted and quickly deleted a post calling a pro-Trump mob storming the U.S. Capitol building American patriots and Karlie begged to differ tweeting that accepting the results of a legitimate democratic election is patriotic and when one Twitter user urged her to tell her brother-in-law and sister-in-law she lamented I’ve tried

* Olivia Jade Giannulli posted a clip of herself dancing maskless at a beach-house party and the New Year’s Day Insta came days after her mom Lori Loughlin was sprung from prison and the clip which featured her toasting with a glass of vino came less than a month after she aired her regrets in an interview -- the party girl feels she’s suffered too from the scandal and she was just letting off steam

* Rege-Jean Page has sent pulses racing with his groundbreaking role as the rakish Duke of Hastings in Bridgerton but it was his reference to James Bond’s legendary martini preference in a tweet that had fans speculating he’s in line to take over from Daniel Craig as the next 007 -- the biracial actor has been vocal about the importance of inclusive casting

Page 6: Jessica Simpson whose own father once bragged about her double Ds is enjoying a very particular benefit of her recent 100-lb slimdown which is she’s gone down two cup sizes and she says she feels more athletic and her body is more in proportion -- in addition to easing back pain she feels a different sort of weight has lifted because all that talk about her breasts made her feel they overshadowed her as a person

* Drew Barrymore is nursing a private pain as her ex-husband Will Kopelman went public with his new love Vogue staffer Alexandra Michler and the two are serious while Drew is still single and she is alone and feeling like the odd man out -- there are times when Drew absolutely regrets divorcing Will especially now that he’s dating again and Drew was holding out hope for a reunion but when she discovered Will was seeing someone new she knew there was a good chance it may not happen and even worse her own attempts at finding romance have fallen flat as she’s tried online dating a few times but had no luck

* Star Spots the Stars -- Jimmy Fallon and wife Nancy Juvonen, Jennifer Lopez, Eva Longoria, Ryan Seacrest, Jenna Dewan, Aubrey Plaza, JD Martinez

Page 8: Star Shots -- John Legend gave his son Miles a zip around the water on a jet ski during a vacation in St. Barths, Ellen DeGeneres on a bike after lunch with friends in Santa Barbara, Brooke Burke dressed in wintry workout gear sipped a hot drink

Page 10: Leslie Jones on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune, Christina Aguilera playing video games with her son Max

Page 12: Kit Harington takes his dog for a walk in London, Sean “Diddy” Combs passed out gift cards and gift bags to those in need in Miami, Mindy Kaling online shopping

Page 13: Gabrielle Union and her husband Dwyane Wade on a hike, Jenny McCarthy maneuvered her trash bins to the curb in Chicago

Page 14: Coach Tom Jones on The Voice UK, EJ Johnson at the beach in Miami, Margaret Qualley and boyfriend Shia LaBeouf on a hike in L.A., Dua Lipa eating during a getaway in Tulum, Mexico

Page 16: Normal or Not? Tori Spelling out in Los Angeles with her dogs and husband Dean McDermott -- normal, Nicole Kidman and an alpaca -- not normal

Page 17: Jennifer Garner playing the drinking game from The Crown in which participants who can’t repeat a phrase correctly must smudge their faces -- not normal, Kate Bosworth celebrated her birthday with husband Michael Polish and some bubbly in Beverly Hills -- normal

Page 18: Fashion -- stars stun in Pantone colors of the year Illuminating Yellow and Ultimate Gray -- Mindy Kaling, Thandie Newton, Jorja Smith

Page 19: Ariana Grande, Zoey Deutch

Page 24: Olivia Wilde made news stepping out as Harry Styles’ plus-one to his agent’s wedding in Montecito and he introduced her as his girlfriend as the two mingled and held hands -- the next day Harry and Olivia who hit it off on the set of her upcoming psychological thriller Don’t Worry Darling in which he stars were spotted heading into his L.A. home -- wedding guests weren’t the only ones surprised by the new couple as Olivia’s ex Jason Sudeikis dad to her kids Otis and Daisy has been nurturing hope of a reunion since their split in late 2020 and he was surprised she’d go for one of the actors in her movie -- now Olivia is conflicted because she’s having fun with Harry but there’s no denying her feelings for Jason continue to linger and some are betting her romance with Harry will flame out in no time and no one would be surprised if Olivia and Jason ended up getting back together

Page 25: Florence Pugh and Zach Braff had Hollywood abuzz after a pal wished her a happy birthday on social media and cryptically referred to her as FPB -- that extra B caused many to surmise that Florence has quietly exchanged vows with Zach and taken his last name and Florence hasn’t done much to shut down speculation by strategically hiding her ring finger in photos shared on Instagram

* Zoe Kravitz filed for divorce from Karl Glusman after 18 months of marriage because she was fed up with having an MIA husband -- things between the two hit a breaking point after Karl failed to check in with his wife while filming Please Baby Please in Butte, Montana -- Zoe couldn’t take being ignored and when she and Karl finally spoke they had a big fight and she pulled the plug shortly afterwards

* They called it quits in October after two years together but Bethenny Frankel and Paul Bernon are now giving their relationship another shot -- they split up because their long-distance romance proved too difficult but Bethenny really missed him and it turns out Paul missed her too and it seems second time’s a charm because a loved-up Bethenny and Paul indulged in PDA at a Miami studio as they watched her daughter paint with the artist

Page 26: Cover Story -- Meghan Markle exposed -- Meghan’s older half-sister is dishing some major dirt about the former actress’ rise to royalty in her new bombshell book

Page 30: Inside Kim Kardashian’s escape -- Kim reached her breaking point with Kanye West months ago but took many steps before she finally left him

Page 32: It Ain’t Over Till It’s Over -- these celebs more than made up after breaking up and they made it all the way down the aisle -- Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos, Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo

Page 33: Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, Prince William and Kate Middleton

Page 36: Beauty -- sweet dreams -- get better ZZZs and wake up looking gorgeous with products that nourish

Page 38: Entertainment

Page 48: Parting Shot -- Splashing out on a romantic getaway in Tulum, Mexico Bella Thorne and boyfriend Benjamin Mascolo made time to keep it tight on the sand

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pilot-kratts-au · 5 years ago

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Random: If the Wild Kratts Characters would exist, what Cars would they drive?

Well, guess that one's surprising! But alas, a Car can tell you a lot of things about a person, you cannot tell me a Car is not important! So, your friendly neighbourhood future car sales(wo)man has picked the cars that would fit the best to our lovely animated heroes and villains!

Chris Kratt: Jaguar F-Type Convertable

He gets a Jaaaag. And yes, it has to be a green one because, well I guess you know why. The Convertability gets Chris even a little more close to nature during his drives!

Martin Kratt: Audi A4 Saloon

Our Boy in Blue would be definitely an Audi-type of person. Clumsy, unorganized but with his goals and priorities! (I left out my Audi Driver experience at this point) He would also be the guy that would go on a sunday drive just for the sake of being on the move!

Aviva Corcovado: Audi e-Tron

First I thought a Tesla would suit her but an e-Tron has more of that... aesthetic that fits her better! Also it has to be an electric Car because our loveable science-gal is probably very optimisic about the future of the EV!

Koki: Volkswagen Arteon

She is strong but does not take up the spotlight like others do, just like her car. Power and elegance out of something that looks like just another side-character. With an Arteon she can keep up with the Jags and Audis with ease!

Jimmy Z: Volkswagen Polo

Jimmy is laid-back and doesn't need anything apart from food, sleep and something to keep him busy. So, here is a simple, not very demanding car for him! And if he ever needs to pull over because he gets scared, this little thing can fit into a narrow space with ease! (Also the colour fits just perfect!)

Now to our Villains, they need some wheels and gears too! Starting with...

Zach Varmitech: BMW 750Li

Some say: "The biggest cars are always driven by people with the biggest ego" So this one is prestigious, large and also fits his aesthetic very well! But as any other Bavarian mashine, it requires some good care, which he'll be surely able to give. Also that menacing grin in the front screams that this car has some chaotic evil energy lurking!

Donita Donata: Mazda 3 Hatchback

Sleek and slender, and another pretty viscious looking front! And with all it's elegant streaks this little Hatchback will surely satisfy our Fashionista! Nad the Hatchbacks won't stop here!

Dabio: BMW 135i M Sport

The Duo with their Hatchbacks! This one is a more powerfull one than the Mazda but isn't as stylish. Whilst being good-looking in it's own way, this one has to be the perfect fit for Dabio.

Paisley Paver: Posche Taycan

As she puts it: "Time is money" That why here is a fast one for her to get her from A to B in a flash. It is an EV but maybe this will give her company some good press lol Now last but not least...

Gaston Gourmand: Jeep Wrangler

I admit it, this one is very obvious but what else does he need? This thing handles rough terrain but lacks style, elegance and possibly comfort but that won't bother him probably.

So that's the end of that! I tried my best matching a car to the characters and I know that this is toootally random! (I had this thought in my head for some good time now and I wanted to make it a reality-)

#wild kratts #random #characters in real life #headcanon/au thingy #idk what to call this tbh

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the-mic-drop · 4 years ago

Audio

Shonen Jump Rap Cypher by Rustage

Lyrics below the cut

If anyone wants to break down some lines that you think not everyone will get, please feel free!

Monkey D. Luffy- One Piece (Performed by Rustage)

Starting with the number one, hey

How’d a pirate get this long, hey

‘Cause I eat the gum-gum, see them run run

when I hit that gun, hey

Sailin’ I’m taking no breaks when my crew’s on the move as we pillage the grand line

Looting the treasure we can find

I’m blowing up like a landmine

Going gear second, I reckon that I’m a weapon

I’m wrecking up those who threaten in messing with my own brethren

Stay reppin’ look where I’m headin’

No question the Yonkos sweatin’

I’m bettin’ in words I’m yellin’

I’m the king and there’s no forgettin’, UH

Gon Freecss- Hunter x Hunter (Performed by Fabvl)

I’ll jump the competition, really there’s no contest

Channeled future Nen and most of y’all ain’t even bomb yet

It’s nonsense

Pro exams completed as a child

Hisoka, I think these clowns are living in denial

So don’t make me power up, I’ll call the thunder at my right hand

If you want the strongest Shonen, then you called the right man

They might stan

Treat you all like Pitou, it won’t take long

Name is Gon and this time, I’mma make sure that you stay gone

Naruto Uzumaki- Naruto (Performed by None Like Joshua)

Oh, better believe it’s Naruto

Who’s the best hero? All of you know

My legacy is happening, I got a type of running named after me

while you’re slow

Can’t keep up with my chakra flow

Except Hinata, I’m her Ho

Kage

All I did was call her and I told her to come over ‘cause my parents are not home

Out of these ninjas, you can watch my dub

Even all my filler is so far above

When it comes to Boruto, why y’all givin’ up

like I did with simpin’ on Sakura?

Killer B’s rapping, but I get the encore

With the power that I bring, I don’t really want yours

‘Cause I came from the swing, everybody shunned more

Now you’re looking at the king of this Jump Force

Yami Yugi- Yu-Gi-Oh! (Performed by Connor Quest!)

I’mma master, you be

practice newbies

That’s a doozy

for Yami Yugi

Puzzle did something like a hadron tunnel

‘cause now I got Atem through me

Champ of the match see fans fawn, no matter what hand’s drawn

I’m kicking up dust, metal tanks in land form

When we d-d-d-d-duel there’s sandstorms

Cards are flippin’ I need an answer quick

and I might find my Dark Magician

If I wish, and believe hard enough in the heart that’s in ‘em

(Heart of the cards)

I see Seto’s fear

Pull the fifth part of Exodia

Guess it’s all came to a head, so clear

that your deck’s gonna get X’d, oh dear!

Asta- Black Clover (Performed by Eddie Rath)

Welcome to the magic

It’s a tale that’s tragic

Filled with a pain that’s harder than plastic

especially when you discover you don’t have it

When I started I was less than amazing

But now that I’ve been chosen by the Grimoir, I’m rising to the occasion in a blazing flame of

Magic

Ain’t no Hocus Pocus and Abracadabra

Not a wizard you joke with

This is not Gandalf the Grey, but you shall not pass hopeless

Better be ferocious

Was the poorest orphan living in darkness

but now that I’m focused, I be thanking all my hardships

Ichigo Kurosaki- Bleach (Performed by IBDL)

Uh, hittin’ back with that Bankai

Got that power like I came out of the Dangai

Pops passed the torch; now I’m the fam’s Don guy

Think you Aizen, but you lookin’ like that Don guy

Y’all like Soifon, your raps barely sting

My bars are Getsuga Tensho, got that masterful swing

They say, it ain’t over til the fat lady sings

But you’ll know it’s really over when that black lady sings

Koro-sensei- Assassination Classrom (Performed by CDawgVA)

Mach speed

Blow up the moon and now I’m making these children write essays

Comin with tentacles teach you a lesson in why you don’t mess with the sensei

I amaze

Used to be the Reaper, now I run this class

I can turn a loser to assassin, do it real fast

Light Yagami- Death Note (Performed by Zach Boucher)

I think I’ve been out of my head

Gift was given, made some poor decisions, that I wish I didn’t, but I’d do it again

Feeling different, I was on a mission to achieve my vision with a page and a pen

Sit and listen to the words I’ve written

I ain’t even finished ‘til I see that they’re dead

Don’t even try to pretend

There’s no malicious intent

Stay in my thoughts, stick to the morals I’ve got,

and kill everyone who is not

Just never get caught, ‘til every criminal rots

They’ll consider me as a god

At whatever cost, that’s how I excel

Cannot be stopped, even if I fell

I’m taking them off if you couldn’t tell

I gave up a lot to give you this L

Shoyo Hinata- Haikyuu!! (Performed by Shwabadi)

Yah, here comes Hinata

When I’m on the court the enemy has got their guard up

Never gonna fall off, bet I’m gonna pop off

Way short, but I’m packing punches like a sawnoff

Hot like a sauna, this ball of fire don’t know nada

but I’m gonna chase desire to go farther

every jump will take me higher

They put walls up, so I had to learn to fly

Putting up points, spiking it, or clearing the way

Best decoy, got a little something to say

to anyone that doubts that I’m here to stay

Only got one goal, that’s to play the game

Underestimated, I’m the ace, you just wait

when I spike it past the net, you might take it to the face

Izuku “Deku” Midoriya- My Hero Academia (Performed by Divide Music)

Coming in with 100% of me

I got you all trembling

Oh just with a flick of a finger

put you back where you’re supposed to be

I’m not, holding back

I got you so calculated. I’m

one step ahead, One for All gon’ be demonstrated

Get it? Got it? Good.

Nothing better and you should know

Started at the bottom

but I made it to the top so

Step aside, I’m climbing to great heights

with All-Might by my side

Reppin’ U.A. with pride, oh

Yusuke Urameshi- Yu Yu Hakusho (Performed by GameBoyJones)

Giving you the finger, Spirit Gun

Send you off with Botan, then you done

Hit you with the stick, and I didn’t need a grip when I’m pulling from the hip, then click!

Because I’m, locked loaded, the clip is ready to go

Got a, shotgun in my hand that’s ‘bout to blow

Cause I’m hittin’ you quick fast

givin’ you whiplash

wearing these Spirit Cuffs

You could be human or demon, cause honestly, I just don’t give a fuck

If you’re looking for the best, just know there’s no other

‘cause I’m flexing out here like I’m the youngest Toguro brother

Gintoki Sakata- Gintama (Perfomed by Shao Dao)

They call me, Gintoki, slim not stocky

Lemme Shonen Jump on your leg and your body

Odd Job Gin, don’t mess with my possee

If you touch my hair, then you will be sorry

Ne, boge (Hey, bloke)

Nanikore, uruseena (what is this? Not good.)

Cause you’re way too sloppy

Got a silver soul, Shiroyasha

Swing my sword and Amanto scatter

Gintama, not Kintama

Tell Shinpachi we need money

If Kagura or Katsura bring more trouble, we keep running

Pay rent? That’s a waste of time

That weather girl, I will make her mine

You can beat me up and that’s fair and fine

But if you hurt my friends, then prepare to die

Tanjiro Kamado- Demon Slayer (Performed by DizzyEight)

Look, slayin’ demons that’s what we do

If you filled with evil, then my blade is highly lethal

If you comin’ at my people, pray to god I never meet you

Ever mess with Nez, you KO’d when I see you

I’ve grown stronger from that fateful day they found me

I trained hard to hone the skill, the progression so astounding

My style like breathing water, that mean you can never drown me

Whirlpool, that mean I’m slicin’ everything around me

Emma- The Promised Neverland (Performed by FrivolousShara)

E-M-M-A 63194

Listen to what I’ve gotta say

The others walked, seems now we’ve gotta run away

Don’t you talk, adults are the enemy

You can break every bone in my body, I won’t falter

and if the plan fails, the idea simply alters

Ah, these demons scheming, but they ain’t the only monsters

Our combined IQ breaks the safe, strength in numbers

Now we’ve woken from the slumber

Never ending perfect Summers

Across the farm, you can’t help but wonder

Soma Yukihira- Food Wars! (Performed by DiggzDaProphecy)

See I’m the anime Raekwon

The chef baby, stay calm

You can’t stand the heat

Stay out the kitchen, get a day job

Word, and the finale’s superb

I take a sec, put on my band, an’ I’ll be happy to serve, uh

So ma, tell me what you like and I can hook it up

Ya boy’s got them recipes the best couldn’t cook it up

And she gon’ bust from the taste of my meat

Chef, boy are these boys always cookin’ up heat

Jotaro Kujo- Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure (Performed by Dreaded Yasuke)

It’s my go, they call me Jotaro

Don’t get me mad, I’mma go fat only with jabs you go through silos

Got that drip from Cairo, girls will simp my silhouette

I know think it’s a typo fighting with a platinum psycho

None of y’all is a threat

What you gotta say in your breath

Better speak with a bigger chest

Now you lyin’ down with my pet,

while Iggy piss on your neck

All types of disrespect, what you expect?

Go against a vet, better get your techs

wanna get swept through the complex,

now who is next?

Bobobo- Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (Performed by BassedOlaf w/ ThighHighSenpai)

Bobobo making the foes stare

Call me the master of nose hair

Look at the hair on the heads of these anime characters,

brother, it’s no fair

But I’m better than these guys, don’t you understand?

I came second place at screaming face-to-face with desk fans

Afro is full of surprises, look at my power’s immense

Leaving beauty screaming-

(Bobobo, that makes no sense!)

Hunting hair hunters, Saitama, I’m coming for you

Don Patch a better Super Saiyan God than Goku

Son Goku- Dragon Ball (Performed by DaddyPhatSnaps)

Oh they went and called Kakarot

had to be danger

Leave em flat-footed like they in the gravity chamber

I’m just looking for a challenge, can you battle me stranger?

Shonen legend in the saddle and the power is major

Level up on the track, flow Ultra Instinct

Bye bye bye fusion dance is always in sync

Wink

And they wonder why I’m last on the song

‘Cause when all of y’all were talking

I just formed a Spirit Bomb

14 notes · View notes

nellied-reviews · 5 years ago

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Succulent Rat-Killing Tar Re-listen

Hey! So, I’m new here, but I’ve recently been re-listening to the podcast Wolf 359, and I'm obsessed again, so I kinda wanted, in true Self-Indulgent fashion, to record my thoughts about it, see what stands out now I know how the series plays out. I don’t know if anyone will actually want to read this, but I enjoyed writing it, at least!

If any of you don’t know Wolf 359, but are still, for whatever reason, reading this, a) you should go listen! It’s a sci-fi podcast with some awesome characters, and a really great balance of creepiness, wackiness and actual plot. But also, b) I will be posting spoilers here, sorry. It’s been a while, so I think they’re pretty much fair game now? But just so you’re not caught out: here be spoilers.

With that cleared up, then:

Succulent Rat-Killing Tar

In which we meet the disaster that is Douglas Eiffel, Hilbert blows things up, and the Hephaestus receive a strange transmission from deep space.

In some ways, re-listening to this episode was an odd experience, because the characters don’t quite feel solid yet. It’s the same in a few early episodes - tonally, they’re just really different to a lot of what comes later - and I don't think that’s bad, per se, especially since there are things, on a re-listen, that connect this to later episodes. But this episode is particularly weird, I think, even for the early episodes.

Gabriel Urbina actually talked about this in the writing notes he posted to his Tumblr, how he conceived of Wolf 359 as a one-man show, and what we get here is basically the Doug Eiffel! Show, with what are essentially cameo appearances from the others. As a consequence of this, Minkowski, Hera and Hilbert don’t get much characterisation, and even things like their voices seem ... odd? Hera, especially, feels more like Space Siri than the snarky AI we know and love, while Minkowski... eh, I don’t know why I don't like her here, but I remember not liking her when I first listened to it either. I think she sounds kind of flat, like she's not quite a real person?

It’s probably good, then, that Eiffel comes onto the scene fully formed and really freakin' funny. Zach Valenti is a funny man, and he kills it here, from the very first lines. I particularly love how much information he gets into his opening monologue. He takes what looks, superficially, like a lazily-written infodump - because seriously, who would start their log like that on day 448? Does Eiffel open every single log like this?! - and just runs with it. It's such a ludicrous thing to do, and the whole reason I buy that yes, Eiffel totally does just sit there every single night talking to himself, is Zach Valenti’s performance. It's so good, guys, seriously!

On a side-note, I am also endlessly amused at the way in which Eiffel’s utterly bonkers decision to narrate his boring chores like an exposition-heavy radio show gives the Dear Listeners ammo later on. Like, if Eiffel were not such a fundamentally ridiculous character, they would not have his voice to contact the crew. So much of the plot just hinges on Eiffel being a dumbass, and I can respect that.

Besides the fact that he’s this weird, lovable dumbass, we do also get some nice character moments for Eiffel. For one, it’s buried under a lot of funny stuff, but we get our first hints at him having an addictive personality - his love of cigarettes certainly hits differently when you know about his past with alcohol.

There are also, sticking to things I picked up the first time round, hints that Eiffel is perhaps more competent than he lets on? Certainly, he kicks into a different gear when the transmissions come through - the goofing around stops straight away, and he genuinely seems keen to make contact. I like that, I think.

That said, he blows his moment of competence by ignoring the signal and getting coffee. For such a pop culture-savvy guy, he sure falls hard into the "I’m sure it was nothing" trap here. Ugh, Eiffel. Come on. You’re better than this.

I’m not complaining, though, because it does give us time to listen to Alan Rodi's beautiful music. Words cannot convey how much I love it. I don’t know if it's just nostalgia from last time I listened to Wolf 359, but hearing the music again here nearly made me cry, genuinely. I especially love the acoustic piano. I think it'd be easy to go with a technological, electronic sound for a podcast set in space, so the choice to use a more traditional, old-fashioned instrument like a piano is a pleasant surprise, grounding the show in something older and more Earth-bound, and providing the same kind of connection to Earth history and culture that the old music does at the end. You've got electronic bleeping going on, sure, which adds a layer of space-y weirdness to it all. But it's still, underneath the noises, something lovely and comforting and nice. So congrats, Alan Rodi. You made a 30 second coffee break into something really beautiful.

Then we're back and Minkowski has Eiffel reading Pryce and Carter - another mainstay of the show being introduced right there - and then Hilbert's lab is on fire. This whole section is solidly funny, and I especially love the tone of the Pryce and Carter entries. From the muzak in the background, to the disturbing, sort-of-aphoristic style of the entries, which kind of feel like something from Welcome to Night Vale, to the fact that this book seems to have no structure and is just one giant, non-user-friendly list, everything about this is hilarious to me. I also noticed the reference to the idea that somebody might be in space for disciplinary reasons. Which totally won’t be relevant later. Nope. Definitely not.

Hilbert, although his voice is much less growly than I’m used to, feels closer to his later self, character-wise, than the others. He’s maybe a bit too dotty, but then again, literally everything he does during this season is a front anyway, so I'm willing to give that one a pass. Stuff blowing up is always fun, either way, and it also introduces another idea that will stick around: the idea that everything on the Hephaestus is either broken or is about to break. Mentions of a power outage last week, in particular, suggest that this ship is already... less than shipshape.

And the we get the episode's climax, the arrival of the alien message which turns out to be... an old transmission of The Entertainer, by Scott Joplin?

And look, I think this was what sold me on Wolf 359. Sure, it took a while to find it's feet. But this moment was what convinced me that hey, I'll hang around a bit longer. Because it’s such a smart choice.

Already, by having an audio drama series whose main character is a communications officer, and whose plot centres round him using radios and making audio logs, you have the ingredients for an intensely self-reflective, metatextually interesting show. It makes us think about radio and broadcasting and how sounds are transmitted through space.

But by using a real recording of The Entertainer, something from the very earliest age of radio, with its gramophone-y crackle, you’re widening the scope, linking us all the way back to the birth of recorded sound. And Eiffel's joy at it all, his glee at finding a connection back to Earth, is a reminder of the power recorded sound can have. Eiffel, listening to Scott Joplin, is transported somewhere new and intriguing. Meanwhile we, listening to some podcast about stars and toothpaste and spacefaring dumbasses, are also transported away from our lives and our world. It’s a lovely idea.

Of course, I could be reading too much into this. It could just be that the piece is out of copyright, and hits the right balance of strange vs. familiar.

Either way, it makes for an ending that’s beautiful, wholesome and surprisingly sweet. I’m charmed, particularly, by how earnest Eiffel seems when he’s talking about how the music makes him feel. After spending a whole episode goofing around, it’s a refreshing change of pace, and it made me smile the first time I listened to it. This time round, it feels a bit more bittersweet, I think. We know that Eiffel won't be going home for a good, long time, after all.

In any case, it's a solid end to an episode that, while it has its issues, still mostly holds up. A surprising amount of plot-relevant stuff is established. Eiffel, at least, is properly introduced. And I get weirdly emotional about radio shows. Nice job, Wolf 359.

Miscellaneous thoughts:

Eiffel not understanding Hilbert when Zach Valenti voices them both is peak comedy and you can fight me on this

Eiffel joking about everyone on the ship have “series trust issues”. You ain’t seen nothing yet, hun.

The noises they made for Eiffel slurping coffee are so gross and childish I love them

Ooh, when he’s mocking Minkowski, Eiffel pronounces her name right!

Eiffel calling Hera “sweetheart” ^-^

Hilbert passing the explosion off as a hairdryer omg

#wolf 359 #wolf359 #w359 #wolf 359 relisten #succulent rat killing tar #nellied reviews #aka nellied rambles extensively about radio #because damnit i have feelings about this show

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makoeycd · 5 years ago

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thewasandshouldbeking replied to your post “why tf does cloud only have protective gear on one shoulder tho like...”

// Angeal and Zach might be entirely practical, but Seph and Gen brought STYLE into SOLDIER so Cloud following that lead isn't so unbelievable. If you think you're badass enough, all armour is just decorative, isn't it?

YOU KNOW WHAT, YOU MAKE A VERY VALID POINT.

#thewasandshouldbeking #and with my cloud he's very much about style so akjskjsjks

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canyouhearthelight · 6 years ago

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The Miys, Ch. 40

Typing that title is just bizarre. I never imagined I would ever write 40 chapters of this, and right now I feel like I am nowhere near the end of the story. I’m not even sure how it will end, honestly. This may be what it’s like writing episodes of a Star Trek show....

Special shout out to @baelpenrose for his help in the background on this chapter. I am pants at military knowledge, while he is super knowledgeable in that area and has been a huge help.

I woke up to a low growl in my ear. “I thought we talked about this, Conor,” I groaned as I rolled over. However, instead of six plus feet of overprotective Irishman, I ended up with a mouthful of fur.

Growling, snarling fur. Lyric, I remembered before snapping into a sitting position. The enormous dog was lying on my bed in a very calm but alert position, belied by the absolute promise of pain to whoever she was looking at. Mac sat next to her, nonplussed and blinking slowly. Turning my face to the potential victim, I suppressed another groan. A familiar face and leather jacket stood in the doorway, hands up to show he meant no harm. “Lyric, it’s fine,” I told my canine protector, resting one hand on her back. “Maverick, what in the world are you doing here?”

Keeping his eyes on the dog, he slowly dropped his hands to his sides. “Tyche cancelled our simulator session today, so I thought I would come check on you.”

“You thought you would, or she thought you would?”

A bashful glance at the floor gave him away. “A little bit of both? I asked how you were doing, and she said she wasn’t with you, she was resting. I may have asked if you were up to visitors, and she may have told me to come by whether you were up for it or not? Just to make sure you were okay?”

“That sounds about right,” I sighed as I folded my legs and patted the bed for him to sit down. It was obvious my nap was over, but I didn’t feel like getting out of bed.

Slowly, Maverick made his way over and gingerly sat down to make sure Lyric wouldn’t object to him being closer. When she just glanced at him and put her head down, he got more comfortable and leaned against the wall. “Who’s the old lady? When did you get a dog?”

“The nice lady who let you in is Grandma Kim,” I scowled. “And this is her dog, Lyric. They’re professional companions, like Antione, but more for people who need a little mothering and – may – have some paranoia?” I looked at my lap and scratched the back of my neck. It wasn’t a very comfortable topic.

“So that’s an attack dog?” His eyes got wide as he swung the topic around. My sister and I were always amused talking with Maverick, mostly because he shared our tendency to have several conversations with the same person at the same time. “And I get being good for people with paranoia, but you aren’t paranoid – you have every reason to be scared shitless. Isn’t that what the saying is? ‘It’s not paranoia if they’re actually out to get you’?”

“Attack dog, sidekick to the attack grandma. What did you mean by simulator session?”

“Tyche asked me to teach her how to fly literally everything possible. Not being able to help when the ship was damaged did not make her control freak side happy. She’s not going to make me eat gross food, is she? That’s what grandmas do, isn’t it? Make you eat gross stuff?”

“That’s a stereotype, for one,” I pointed out. “Second, I promised you that you never have to eat anything you don’t like ever again, and I meant it. I don’t care if you live on miso soup and pizza, as long as you are eating. Food, with calories, not just vitamins and black coffee. Also, don’t ever let Tyche hear you talk about her ‘control freak side’. Why didn’t either of you tell me she was training to become a pilot?”

He just shrugged. I waited, staring him down pointedly. Finally, he huffed. “I figured she would tell you. You two are super-close, right? Besides, this is the first time I’ve seen you since you got out of the medical bay, so technically, I told you as soon as I saw you. It was literally the first sentence I used.”

I nodded reluctantly. “Okay, yeah, you did tell me. But you could have sent me a message, you know?”

“She is your sister, not me.”

“Stupid technicality,” I muttered. “Anyway, how’s everything going?”

“She’s really good,” he admitted. “Like everything else about her, it’s kinda scary. Super determined, ridiculous reflexes. She definitely has what it takes to be an incredible pilot.”

“I’m glad she’s doing great at learning to fly, but I meant how are you?”

“Oh,” he jerked a little in surprise. “Why? No one ever asks me that, and then first Tyche, now you.”

My eyebrows popped up at that. “Wait, no one ever just asks how you’re doing?”

He shook his head. “Just, like, doctors and stuff.” He shrugged like it was no big deal.

I shook my head and dropped it into my hands. Deep breaths. Can’t kill the people who made him think this was a normal thing. Nope. They’re probably already dead, and Tyche frowns on necromancy. I raised my head and took a calming breath. “It’s actually normal human behavior, a way of making sure our friends and family are doing well, or a way of inviting them to tell us about any good or bad things that have been going on.”

“But I’m not your family, and we aren’t friends,” he sounded so confused.

Me, too. “We aren’t?” I asked, puzzled. “I thought we were…. I mean, you asked my sister how I was doing and came by to check on me….”

“Well, yeah. You’re nice to me, and something bad happened to you, and Tyche’s nice to me, and it upset her, so I wanted to make sure the people who are nice to me are okay.”

“Maverick?”

“Yeah?”

“That is literally what being a friend is. What you just said. It’s when people are nice to each other and want to help each other, or just want each other to be okay.”

“Oh. Does that mean we are friends?”

I laughed and resisted the urge to hug and/or strangle him. “Yes, it means we are friends.”

“Well, that’s pretty cool!” he grinned.

“So, other than teaching my sister to fly, how have you been doing?”

For the next hour, Maverick filled me in on helping with the sensor repairs, training new pilots – not just my sister, apparently – and new foods he had tried. It turned out that he, Zach, Derek, and Sam frequently got together for moral support with trying foods that had been suggested to them. It was early days, but they had each found a couple of new foods they liked and several foods they knew to avoid. I was asking him to send me a list of the foods they tried and what the verdicts where, when Grandma Kim poked her head in the door.

“I just wanted to grab Lyric and let you know I’m about to be on my way, Miss Reid,” she explained and she called Lyric with a silent gesture. “Were you able to get some rest?”

“I was, thank you. And thank you, Lyric,” I told my nap partner directly, receiving a lolling tongue and doggy grin in return. “She really did help. I’m going to think things over for a couple days, and let you know what I decide.”

“Of course,” she nodded approvingly. “I’ll be out of your way, now. Have a good night, you two.” With a nod at Maverick, she left.

“And you said she’s an attack grandma?” Maverick asked as he watched her go. “How does that even work?”

“She told about some of her training…. I think she was special forces for some government agency at one point. Lots of combat and weapons training. She said very few people on the Ark can land one hit on her, and that no one can do it twice. She was very certain when she said it, too, like it wasn’t a boast, it was just a simple fact.”

“Sounds like a Green Beret or SAS, honestly,” he nodded. “She’s American, but that doesn’t mean she couldn’t have gotten the training, especially depending on when she was enlisted. If it was after the inception of the Global Parliament, chances are higher that’s the case. It would be easier to tell you if I could see her sparring – different countries have different fighting styles, even once the Parliament was established. Lyric tells me definitely the North American or European Council, though, for sure.”

I shook my head with a smile. It was always interesting to watch someone who was so bad at being people flip gears and remind you that he really is incredibly smart. I really wanted to watch Conor and Maverick interact one day. Preferably soon, and hopefully after being released from my medication schedule so that food could be involved. The prospect was very entertaining. Which reminded me. “Have you ever met Conor?”

“Who?”

That answered that question. “A very close friend of mine and Tyche’s,” I explained. “In fact, if you hang around long enough today, you’ll probably get to meet him. He heads over here after work most nights, stays with me so I can sleep.”

“Your sister said something about that,” he confessed. “She said you haven’t been sleeping well since you came out of your coma. So, when she said you still can’t sleep alone, that’s where this Conor guy comes in?”

“Yeah. It just makes me feel safer,” I shrugged.

“And the dog?”

“Tyche and Antoine recommended I consider Grandma Kim as a companion, to help me transition back to something vaguely resembling normal. I don’t want to keep depending on people as much as I have been lately. I’m already in the process of returning to my position on the Council, and I sent over my approved selections for a new assistant so my sister can focus on her actual job and quit burning the candle at both ends.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “That makes sense. I could tell you like helping people, but Zach was constantly reminding you to eat, so I don’t think you’re very good at taking care of yourself. It’s got to be hard needing to lean on other people when you’re used to being the one momming all over people.”

“That was… surprisingly insightful,” I admitted.

“I have my moments,” he grinned. “Do you think you’ll do it?”

“Maybe?” I tilted my head side to side. “Grandma Kim made a good point about the fact that needing her wouldn’t be a burden to her – it’s literally her job. And it would let me get back on more familiar ground with my friends and family. You only saw part of it.” It was my turn to grin. “We used to have what we called ‘family dinner’ once a week. It was like a sacred time for all of us, but fun and messy at the same time. Tyche and I would take turns making dinner for everyone, we would try new foods. Sometimes it was a bunch of us, sometimes it was just me, my sister, Conor, and – “ I choked mid-ramble. Arantxa. Clearing my throat and fighting back tears and the urge to vomit, I tried to soldier on. “Yeah. Sometimes it was just us.”

Maverick tilted his head, eyebrows furrowed. “You really were close, weren’t you?”

I nodded silently, a lump forming in my throat.

“Dude, that sucks,” he stated emphatically. “I knew what she did was pretty bad – I mean, I saw what she did. It’s hard to deny something like that when it’s right in front of your face. But I didn’t realize that you two were so close other than working together. What kind of monster does that to someone they are so close to?”

I held up a hand to stop him from going any further. He just pushed it back in my lap. “No, you need to hear this, even if I’m a jerk for saying it. When we were on Level One, you barely knew me but you were so nice to me. You didn’t have to be, no one asked you to be, not even me. You could have let me keep on the way I had been for the majority of my life, but then I found out it is literally impossible for you to not care. No one had cared that much about me since I was six. And then, I had to walk in that room and find you beaten beyond recognition, almost dead. I was about to lose the only person who seemed to give a shit about me and see me as more than an appliance – all over again, just like with my parents. And now? Now I find out that you considered her family? If you went so far above and beyond for a guy you barely knew, how much did you do for her? And she still did that? That’s a monster. That’s worse than any boogeyman in the closet or under the bed. That is a living, breathing monster. And that sucks.”

I sniffed as hard as I could and wiped the tears that were rolling down my cheeks. “I really don’t like talking about it,” I whispered. “I just want to forget about it.”

“You told me I didn’t deserve what my aunt did to me, what the military did to me. I’m telling you now, you didn’t deserve what happened. I think you need to hear that, because I don’t know if anyone has told you, or if you believed them.”

“I just want my life back,” I cried. “I want everything back to normal! I want to sleep in my bed like a fucking adult! I want to take a hot shower, instead of having my teeth rattled in the sonic cleanser! I want this big gaping hole in all my stories to go away!!”

“Yeah, I get that. I feel like that sometimes, too. I want to eat foods that other people seem to like. I want to be able to socialize normally. No one should have an aversion to rice, you know? It’s like, the most boring food in existence, but I can’t even look at it. Kind of how you can’t shower. I’ve spent my whole life wanting to just be like everyone else, to stop being the weirdo in the room.”

“Maverick, you’re aren’t a weirdo,” I shook my head.

“Neither are you,” he said pointedly. “I’ve never known you any other way, remember? This is all perfectly normal Sophia behavior from where I’m sitting. And I’m so bad at being normal, how am I supposed to know if you’re not doing it right?”

That got a reluctant giggle out of me. “Let’s just be weird together. You, me, Tyche… Derek, everyone. Except Conor. He’s actually pretty normal.”

“That’s weird enough,” Maverick said in a horrified tone.

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