#I need to look up everyone in the Stone Ocean dub now

[quibbs126]

So I’ve learned more Stone Ocean dub stuff

So I was looking up Donatello Versus clips because I was curious what Isaac sounded like in this role (also while I do know Jojo’s, I consume it by reading the manga, I stopped watching the anime at the beginning of Part 2, mostly because I thought reading would take less time), and I found one where he’s basically just wanting Pucci to shut up, and so I wonder “hmm, what if Pucci’s voice actor is also in Cookie Run? That’d be funny” so I look up his voice actor, and it’s someone called Yong Yea, whom I hadn’t heard before. So I pull up his IMDB and look at his roles and yes in fact, he is in Cookie Run. As the voice actor of Madeleine Cookie

So basically this clip is just Dark Choco repeatedly telling Madeleine to shut the fuck up, and for some reason that is hilarious to me

(Though it’s a little lessened by the fact that Pucci doesn’t sound like Madeleine. I mean granted, it makes sense, those two are like complete opposites in personality)

[hailsvvanronson]

I was annoyed at the attack on titan ending at first, but it was for different reasons than everyone else (i thought he teased a sequel), and after the full chapter came out and i read it again, I was basically okay with it.

Now, with the anime adaptation of the ending, I am MORE than okay with it.

Dunno why I'm trying so hard not to be a spoiler...satute of limitations is about to expire...but hey, it's an ending for cynics of which I am one.

MAPPA stuck the landing.

Now, DON'T TAKE ANYMORE SHOWS.

I don't know what anime I am watching until Steel Ball Run is greenlit. I DO kinda have to catch up on My Home Hero and SpyxFamily, but I got sidetracked by MONSTER.

I was looking through Netflix one day over the summer, and saw that they got fuckin' MONSTER.

I always said I was gonna watch that show eventually, even with it being so bloody long but I forgot about it. Come to find out, up to now, if I would have gone to try and watch it it would have been a pain in the ass. The home video release was CANCELLED IN THE MIDDLE. THEY NEVER FINISHED RELEASING THE DAMN DVDS/BLU-RAYS! Even after running the entire show dubbed in English on cable! It was in license limbo, and even now Netfkix DOESN'T HAVE THE ENGLISH DUB! (Which is allegedly very good) HOW IN THE FUCK?!

You can find the english dub on random websites, but whatever, I watched it subtitled on Netflix and I actually BINGED that fucker. I can't remember the last time an anime captivated my attention like this. It might really be Psycho Pass 1. . . . No....Jojo 4. I finished MONSTER in 2 weeks. 74 episode show.

It is the WIRE of anime.

(i had said True Detective, but that's Psycho Pass because everyone will tell you only the first season is good, but it's actually only the second season that's bad).

Not only that, the sadly recently departed Sakurai Atsushi of Buck-Tick could have totally played Kenzo Tenma (dammit I knew i forgot something that post the other day)

This show has probably ruined anime for me now, because i know they'll never make a show like that again. It's not otaku pandering enough (it's not otaku pandering at all). They couldn't even get a decent studio to do My Home Hero. They should have pitched that to Netflix, Netflix would have tried and got Production IG or somebody like that. It gets compared to Breaking Bad for fucksake. You can't go wrong, Netflix!

I think Monster was after I saw Psycho Pass Providence in the theater. That movie was pretty fucking good........but man......i fucked up....I saw the announcement. I was basically waiting for streaming or whatever. I didn't look into anything about it really. Also, I haven't rewatched season 3. What I'm saying is, somehow I completely missed the fact this movie takes place BEFORE SEASON 3 🤣😂😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣

I know, like, what?

So all lf that combined made the ending a big a shock, and i kinda enjoyed it more because of that. 🤣😂🤣😂🤣

I guess I know what I'm watching next, season 3......which is now on Crunchyroll. Eventually they will do a dub since Amazon didn't 🤣😂.

(side note: I'm the guy who was always saying "why did they make Akane sound like Mila Kunis?" but I do tend to forget she's barely 21 when the show starts. 🤷🏿‍♂️)

Lastly, I loved Stone Ocean.

I hope David Studio get the fuck away from Netflix though, eh?

I think that's all I gotta say. I could have a ball dragging the FLCL sequels, but what is there to say? FLCL should not be a franchise not everything needs to be a franchise. Not even Psycho Pass (that's right, it could have just been one season LIKE EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US EXPECTED. Don't lie. That show is not otaku pandering enough, or they would have confirmed that stupid Akane/Shinya ship they keep teasing 😂🤣).

I guess I'm posting again now. Hi.

I am changing the username eventually.

[cinnamonest]

Darling is Osial’s little sister

Hey Lena I lewd some lore!!! 😊😊

Tw dub con, subtle hate sex

Water comes in many forms, as the Oceanid once said.

Osial and you were born out of the same body of water, but he has always been more prone to violence(tsunami go brrr). You on the other hand, is far more gentle and willing to compromise. Of course, you are not as powerless as Harvria, but you are not fond of fighting and would often scold Osial when he returns to you with wounds. Hydro powers work well with healing, so your brother relies on you for fixing him up.

His fights are usually nothing life-threatening since Osial is a force to be reckoned with, and you were sure he was going to win the position of the Hydro Archon. You even already started to tinker with the idea of building a city for humans. Unfortunately, the location you chose happens to be the grounds of Guili, which was under the protection of two gods. But Osial doesn't care, if that is the land you want, then you shall have it.

Morax is incredibly powerful, even your brother is having a hard time taking him down. A worthy adversary, as Osial describes. But your worries are growing deeper as his wounds become more and more frightening battle after battle. Fearing for his safety, you suggested searching for another place. But Osial had grown to love the thrill of battling another formidable being.

This time you saw a catastrophic commotion. Usually, you would sit in a high place in human form and watch the fights.

“No, Osail-” You run towards the battlefield with tears in your eyes, after seeing Osial endured a close to mortal blow from the Dragon god. Suddenly you have the tip of a polearm pointed at your throat, along with Morax’s golden eyes on your trembling form.

“Please do not kill my brother, I beg of you!” You know your powers are no match for him, if Osial had been defeated, you stand no chance to land a single hit on Morax.

Do you have any idea what grave sins your brother had committed? Guizhong...She is gone. Half of the city, destroyed.

Morax will not tell you how he had secretly watched the two of you from afar more then once, you would pout when you scold Osial for being careless. How you would sing a little serenade as you let the water swirling around you close the open wounds is lovely. If Osial is a destructive flood, you are more like those clear little lakes, gentle and nurturing. When Morax told Guizhong about his discoveries, she even mocked him for having a little crush. It was foolish of him to think Osial can be reasoned with back then.

“Please spare him, we’ll go far away immediately! What has he done? I’ll do anything to make up for it.” Even though Morax’s mind is clouded by intense fury, a voice in his head tells him to listen to your desperate pleas. How could he not when you were kneeling in front of him, with those teary eyes.

“Anything you say? I am touched by your desire to save your family, but Osial cannot be permitted to roam free any longer. It’s either death or being sealed for him. But if you wish for the latter, you will need to sign a contract with me.”

You? What do you have to offer besides your healing powers? But you have no other option. It’s because of you that your brother had challenged Morax, therefore you must bear with the consequences.

Did you sign that without even looking at its term of conditions? How reckless, but it’s not like you are in a position to refuse either.

Once Osial is pinned to the bottom of the Ocean ground by stone pillars, it’s time for you to fulfill your end of the deal.

“You will serve me in any way I see fit.”

He did not listen to your pleas this time, no matter how loud you cried for him to stop or go slower.

Those hours were long and painful. Morax simply discarded your clothing and had his way with you on the beach, just beside the Ocean where your brother is trapped. (he kind of wants Osial to hear it tbh) At the time he was done, you were too tired to even lift a finger, not to mention healing your own bruises and bite marks. Unfortunately, he had found ravaging you to be a great way to calm his raging temper.

All you need to do from now on is sit in a domain and spread your legs for him whenever he comes back. Morax does love you, but he can never be gentle as long as his burning rage is still present. You are the reason Osial had targeted him and Guizhong, yes he did take advantage of the situation, but who are you to say no when your brother is dying beside you? You are even allowed to visit your brother from time to time, under Morax’s supervision of course.

(Also it would be a shame that Osail cannot see you looking after some little dragons)

I would like to call it to the attention of everyone that I am now... As they say... Horny

Just UGH may I say one of my biggest things is like... Being used as a stress reliever... Being used to calm down his temper is just 👌😩

[pokedash55]

Raincloud HC and Mini Fic

BENTHOMAAR/VANIA HC DUMP.

 CAN BE READ PLATONIC OR ROMANTIC BUT THESE TWO WOULD BE PERFECT FOR EACHOTHER EITHER WAY

Inspired By @parachutingkitten

- They saw each other at the nya tribute but didn't get to actually meet

-Bentho became king of merlopians but struggles with citizens seeing him as a real king, as many still are distrustful of the surface world

-He has gluttonous there as the royal scientist and Gripe helps him out, but the citizens still don’t view him has a true king after what happened with Kalmaar

-Bentho and Vania have a cordial meeting for royal business

-Vania is struggling less with her people and more with her city economically recovering.

-Bentho wants to bind the kingdoms somehow, since her kingdom is so inland that if they had good relations with a mountainous region it's one step closer to accepting him.

-They are skeptical of SURFACE DWELLERS not humans so it's a good try. 

-establishes trade and economic relations with each other. Maybe trade or sell deepstone and bioluminescent stones for jewelry and architecture in return for some shintaro product unavailable under the sea. Maybe a metal or type of cuisine? Not sure. Flowers perhaps since they have so many in the garden. 

-Both relate to having less than respectable family members and share experiences with defeating them

-share new ruler problems they face and can relate to each other very well

-benthomaar can keep up with the bubbly energy of Vania and they both have a backbone to keep their bond from being too unhealthy, fluffy and overly optimistic.

-bentho has trauma from kalmaar's abuse and goes overboard to try and impress vania and thinks he has to be the best damn guy and best royal ally possible to keep her current friendship

-Vania is pretty easily impressed and is very vocal with her admiration so he'll be overwhelmingly happy and confused when she latches on so quickly.

-she'll show him around the sky city, bentho never been so high up, and can introduce him to her allies down below.

-Bentho loves the caves much more than the city in the sense that it's more comforting and all the underwater streams and lakes remind him of home.

-all streams lead to the ocean so I'm not surprised if they find out the water is connected to merlopian seas some how

- this can also work to compliment the kingdoms

- Like Merlopia can reach out and achieve diplomacy with another kingdom instead of being so islationist, and shintaro struggles with moving on from a unsustainable and horrific economic system so they could help eachother alot. 

-Both very isolated so coming together may be a good step for both countries’

-Merlopians could be accepting of geckles and munce since they live below the surface, and the shintarins live high above it (so they couldn’t flood it even if they wanted to). It’s baby steps towards liking the rest of NINJAGO as a continent. 

-When they become closer friends she Opts for calling him Ben or Benny, since she is so outgoing and bubbly like that, but immediately backtracks and asks if it was ok and apologizes, saying she went over the line

- He would stand up for himself and deny BENNY but I think Ben would be a cute name between the two uwu

-Benthomaar is naturally formal in his ruling and has to push himself to relax while Vania is very lax and friendly with her ruling but needs to push herself to be demanding and formal (She took awhile to use the “Princess” card against Halmaar, opting instead for mutual understanding)

-ok quasi-fic time

___________________________________________________________

FIC SKELETON (might finish writing someday but here’s the basics with some interaction)

 summary: : They spend the day learning about each other kingdoms, and in turn eachother. 

________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 1: Shintaro

Vania goes about giving Bentho a tour of her city and he is overly courteous of her. She finds it cute at first but then she starts worrying if Benthomaar thinks she can’t handle herself.

Introduces Bentho to Chompy. He finds the dragon very cute and that gets a big smile out of him, really showing off his very sharp teeth. Chompy loves him immediately and starts to climb over him and sit on his head and stuff. Bentho reciprocates pretty much immediately, no stranger to the values of an animal's unconditional love. (The only love that ever seems unconditional in his experience.)

 He has trust issues from Kalmaar and tries extra hard to earn love so he goes overboard sometimes, he’ll be the sort to open doors literally all the time, agree with her ideas more aggressively than is really needed, go out of his way to try and physically protect her from perceived threats, etc. Not knowing this fact, and being insecure about her own leadership skills, she thinks he is babying her, or worse, pitying her. She eventually tells him that she can indeed handle herself. 

“I can handle myself Benthomaar, you don’t have to do all these things for me.”

“I… Know that”

“You’re very sweet and I appreciate your generosity but… this”, gestures to all the things he bought or given or made for her, and gestures to the situation they were in where he immediately went to protect her from, “simply is too much”

The walk back is a tad awkward after that. Bentho remarks he’s never been so high up before and he does seem very dry from the heavy winds and cold air. 

Good thing it’s about time to show him the lower parts of the Kingdom anyway. 

“Halmar, I am escorting Benthomaar down through the mountain. Can you be in charge while I’m gone.”

“As you wish my queen”

Benthomaar looked the armored man up and down. “Halmaar? Are you of royal blood too?” he asked.

“What?” Halmar bluntly questioned aloud to the merlopean king before sputtering out in a bow, “I mean, Pardon?... Your majesty” 

“Benthomaar this is Halmar. My right hand advisor and head of our defensive force.”

“Oh. In my people, -Maar is given to that of royalty. ‘Halmaar’ means Brave Sea. ”

“Well I can assure you he’s very brave.” Vania beamed as Halmar recovered from his bow. “And will protect the city while I'm gone” she reminded him playfully, as she moved benthomaar out of the temple. 

________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 2: The Dungeons

Going through the dungeons vania remarks on her father’s previous ruling over it. They share stories and struggles. 

Talks about her father and how the ninja came to help. Goes into the topic of her ruling struggles. 

“Now that I have helped bring King Vangelis, my father I mean, to justice, people expect me to fix everything. They come to me asking for plans to retain Shintaro's glory, or with pleas for more funds. The people put so much faith in my father and, although his actions were Terrible… it made the city so wonderful for everyone living here. I don’t think I’ll be able to make Shintaro prosper the way he did. I love my people but they expect so much of me all at once. I admit It is very difficult to keep track of it all.”

“That sounds rough, but at least your subjects care for you. The people of Merlopia don’t see me as their king...and they have every right to. I helped the surface dwellers and my actions led to Kalmaar’s death. In their eyes I am a traitor…. Many don’t follow my commands unless they are directed through Gripe. It’s understandable they won’t respect me… I was adopted after all...”

“Well I respect you. Why, from the past--” counts on her fingers with a tongue sticking out “-- three hours I’ve officially known you, I’d say you’re a wonderful ruler! I hereby royally dub you a great king! You can tell your people that!”

*Small air laugh recovering from his Sadness* “Thank you, Vania. I don’t know how much they’ll regard a compliment from the mouth of a ‘surface dweller’, though”  

*Smol vania /hj sad pout to one side*

“But I appreciate it, really!!” He corrected arms waving at his front, trying to recover from his previous, in his eyes, disrespectful remark (also in his eyes failing horribly at doing so. He needs to queen to like him. This isn’t going well and-)

“I know you do.” she beamed, “ Now Come on, I see the cart tracks we’re getting closer!!” she happily stated, almost skipping past the new King.  

Bentho looked onward at the long haired blond who was trying to walk and balance on the rim of the track, and smiled with relief that she is so easy going at him. He essentially disregarded her royal decree to her face and she brushed it off like nothing. Trimaar had always honored heavy respect towards other royals but it seems this Queen runs things very differently. Even the day had been tame. It felt more like some playdate than an official royal gathering,but with how stressful becoming King had been it was a pleasant change of pace. 

“Hey Bentho! We’re HEeeereee!” Vania waved excitedly as the other royal caught up to her standing near a steep ledge leading down to an opening with a large passageway. 

Have to go down a large mountainous trench first to reach the dungeons. Benthomaar prepares to scale down the cliff but Vania brings out her wings and tells bentho to hold on. She flies him down the cave--

(Flying is vaguely exciting, but also vaguely terrifying. He’s never really had to deal with the possibility of falling before. Buildings in Merlopia aren’t that tall and you literally can’t fall underwater, there’s always something supporting you.) 

The two meet up with the chancellor of the geckles first. He welcomes Queen Gania and her friend Genthomaar and he asks first for trial by mino, but Vania orders him off. Scoffing at her majesty’s boring overriding of their usual procedures he opts for a simple vote for bringing the new unfamiliar face to the munce queen. Bentho gets rocks thrown at him and the geckles cheer as they escort the two to where murtessa is. Vania giggles at him.

 Next up is the muntz. 

So she'd challenge him to a quick duel to see if he is a fitting ally. Naturally Benthomaar rocks with a spear, so he's good, but he'll be really confused at first and probably not want to fight her.

He doesn’t win, but Murtessa sees through his fighting that he has a good heart, and a brave one. She declares him an ally of the Munce. King Menthomaar. And then gives him a hearty slap on the back and invites them all to dinner. They politely decline (Vania, to preserve her stomach. Munce food is, ah, something else.) 

Murtessa thinks Bentho is a good kid and a good fighter. She thinks it's funny how polite he is, though. Gives him some royal advice that he’d be a little better off if he would carry himself like a king. “Confidence! Important in every Munce ruler!” 

Bentho finds her and Munce a bit...much, but they also kind of remind him of the Maaray back home so he also finds it kind of familiar. (Also he doesn’t know it, but shark Merlopians are kind of rough and tumble, too. Like Munce, but without tight knit families or a set kingdom.) 

________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER 3: Merlopia

Goes back to the temple to discuss whats next. 

“If we are going to be partners in this royal engagement, I think you should see My homeland. Merlopia”

Vania just laughs at his wording

“What did I say?” Genuine confused babi just trying to be overly courteous cause he feels like he must be a GOOD KING. ULTRA KING.

Brings her to the beach. He signals her to wait there and he dives into the water to ask nya for some help in bringing Vania down the depths. She knew the bare basics of what happened but seeing nya in such a state made her a tad saddened. 

“Nya. Can you help bring my friend to Merlopia?”

Nya nods all slow and goddess like. “You helped me defeat Wojira, correct? For that I’ll grant you this.”

“Thank you, nya”

“That’s NYA??” 

“Do I… know you.”

She just frowns at that question. She knew she and nya were not super close but to be forgotten like that. Ouch. “I guess not”

Nya makes a large air bubble and descends quickly down the depths. And like cool camera pans and junk and bentho is riding the wave nya is making outta the bubble and vania sticks her head outta the bubble for a sec to meet his gaze and feel the current go by. Fluff insues

“Don’t worry there is air in the palace”

Vania just loudly exclaims in relief cause honestly she was prepared to be living in a bubble forever. 

Nya just...disintegrates. Which is a bit strange to see, even for Vania who usually likes weird stuff. But she doesn’t linger on it long because ooooohhh Merlopia is so pretty! I mean Shintaro is pretty too but this is a whole different kind of pretty. It’s like the gardens of Shintaro, but that’s the whole city. It’s so colorful compared to the flawless Ivory City. 

They tour around a little bit, with Vania looking at everything in interest. She even likes the Royal Ripper Sharks (who are being treated a bit nicer now that Kalmaar is gone, and are sicced on people far less frequently than before.) Benthomaar gets a bit nervous when Gripe runs up to him with a bunch of kingly concerns and kind of tells him a lot of noncommittal responses. 

Since they declined dinner with the Munce, Vania’s stomach starts rumbling, and she embarrassedly admits that she was pretty hungry. 

Benthomaar invites her to dinner in Merlopia. 

They eat  while discussing trade stuff and diplomacy? (And also their day and the G&M and such.) 

Also a fun chance to make up some Merlopian culture and food, and for him to share it with her. Unsurprisingly, it’s a lot of fish. But that’s honestly great because they don’t have a lot of that in Shintaro. There are a few streams a hike away that she's had every now and again, but for the most part fish isn’t something eaten often in Shintaro. 

Benthomaar is pretty happy with this set-up because he had been eating dinner all by himself which was very lonely and wistful.  It's much nicer with her company, and he needs her to know that, and really wants her to stay around and to like him so that they can do this again. So his super-manners-having-to-prove-himself-worthy-of-friendship kick in again and he starts getting super formal and passing her stuff and offering dishes a little overzealously and such and she's like "this again what the huh?"

“My lord, you're...doing it again.” 

“Sorry, I’ll do better.” 

“Better? You’re doing just fine. Really. The meal is great, the presentation is beautiful, and you’re being so kind. I just...don’t need this much attention at once, that’s all.” 

No I’m not it’s not good enough. I’m not good enough. * frowns silently * *internal screaming * 

They decide to meet again later to discuss trade and commerce deals and both bow goodbye after dinner, but soon as she leaves the dining room and gets lost roaming the temple (this palace is constructed like the caves how do they find anything) eventually ends back up at the dining room, where benthomaar is cleaning up the table and stacking the used dishes and they both realize that she can't get back up on her own. They share a laugh and Bentho promises to escort her back up.

Vania wonders why he is cleaning and not the palace servents so she decides to help him clean up, since it seems his people weren’t going to. 

The end

(Also Nya is busy being a goddess somewhere else, so they’ll have to get her transportation back at a later date. With any luck there’s an air-breather-friendly manta saddle that they can use for her.)

________________________________________________________________

They are too precious for this world someone please do more of thisssss

[ameftowriter]

5738 A.D. 4,1 (UPDATED) (Dr. Stone fanfic)

From here: https://ameftowriter.tumblr.com/post/188742703889/5738-ad-41-dr-stone-fanfic

This is the updated version of the fic above. After watching Episode 22 I had to change this a bit and edited it better to make sure it flowed smoothly. Also I may plan on putting more chapters but I’ll have to see to that later.

Anyway, I love Episode 22 so much and it touched my heart so! I have two more fics incoming that I posted along with this, so that will be incoming soon.

Ao3 | ffnet

Part 1 (This!) | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 ???

Gen still has a hard time taking everything in. Was it really the year 5739? The mentalist just couldn’t wrap his head around it. On top of it all, those statues. So many statues.

They were people, turned to stone.

He realized that something terrible has happened and it affected every human being on earth.

He was affected too, considering the position he woke up from. The last thing he remembered was that he had just finished his act. Hearing the cheers and applause from a delighted audience, that's when everything went dark.

And the next thing he knew was a bright light, and faced an open ocean.

He wondered if this was a prank, he’s seen a lot of celebrity prank shows, to be a victim of that disgusted him. He was a mentalist, being subjected to a prank like this defies his very image. He grumbled at the thought of it as he stood up from his position.

That is until he heard a deep commanding voice from the background.

“Welcome to the year 5739 AD”

He felt cold sweat drip off his currently naked body. He turned to recognize the man who broke him out of the dark stone prison. It was Shishio Tsukasa… the strongest primate high schooler.

He heard him say something about making a choice. That him and those statues behind him were selectively chosen for his new world…

Gen looked up and just could not believe what he saw...

He was then given some clothes to wear, made by their resident tailor named Yuzuriha. He didn’t know who she was, but was grateful for her.

It was… clothes he supposes. It was a tunic of sorts that reached up to his knees. Made of animal skin. He wanted to ask for a T-Shirt and Jeans. Then again… if it really was year 5739, and everyone was petrified…

He nearly stumbled on a statue lying around. He gained back his footing and turned to see what tripped him. His eyes widened to see that it was his manager.

Memories of the man flooded his head. When he first started, he would try to use him, booking his shows back to back, expecting him to nearly give up his own education, family life, and his private life for his acts.  He tried to milk so much money from him, Gen was sure it was borderline illegal. But eventually, he found a weakness to the man and he became an easy target for Gen’s manipulation. Sometimes he used him as a guinea pig for any new acts he had thought of. He nearly had him prance around the streets naked once as a form of revenge.

But if it wasn’t for him, he wouldn’t have become this popular and famous…

He wouldn’t have had the money to…

Tsukasa shattered the manager’s head beneath his feet.

Gen nearly jumped back at the sudden destruction in front of him.

“I apologize for startling you.” Tsukasa spoke up, “I remember this man once, he was your manager yes?”

Gen could only nod.

“He tried to charm me to having you and I do more shows together, he treated us as if were freaks in a carnival. I simply cannot stand adults like that…”

It didn’t take a mentalist to know that every word he spoke dripped of hatred and loathing. Gen looked at the remains of the destroyed statue, and felt his stomach churn.

He hated his manager yes, but…

For someone to just mercilessly destroy that…

They had arrived at the Empire of Might as Tsukasa had called it. Gen could only look at it with awe as he saw various forms of treehouses and caves formed from the mountain. But most of all, he saw that almost every man and even women around him were muscular and looked like they would be able to carry him like he was a feather.

Then Gen met the said tailor, Yuzuriha, and the big oaf that he was pretty sure was her boyfriend, Taiju.

They were friendly and chipper. Gen was surprised to see this. After all it's been about 4000 years and everything around them is gone. For them to act this way.

Well… he wouldn't verbalize it without any sort of evidence. But to him it seemed to be just an act.

He wondered why.

Gen thanked her for the clothes. But wonders if he could ask her for something more… sophisticated. Something that suits his style.

Tsukasa agreed, he saw Gen as a valuable member of the Empire, but he also needed him for a mission.

Yuzuriha agreed to do it without any questions asked.

Gen missed paper and pencil or any kind of writing instruments. But it seemed that the girl understood his directions nonetheless.

Now, he’s curious as to why they're acting this way.

While they waited for his new outfit, Tsukasa then began explaining to him his goals. Goals of creating a new and better world without the adults who tainted it. Gen listened to him intently, and felt himself get pulled into Tsukasa’s ideals. He knew what he meant and fully understood his words and reasonings. After all, he made a living using and exploiting the naivete and idiocy of the adults that ruled the earth. He knew and understood the pain and suffering Tsukasa has mentioned. He had experienced it himself as young as he was. And yet the scene of his manager being crushed underneath Tsukasa’s feet kept playing over and over his head….

Sometimes Gen wondered if that's what kept him from being swayed by Tsukasa's words…

But at this moment he was afraid. Very afraid for his life. He was reborn into this "Stone World" and was spared from a fate worse than death. To even show any resistance to Tsukasa or any of his people would equal his untimely demise.

So he as it was many years ago, put on his mask and showed his agreement to the man's ideals and goals. Even showed support and gave suggestions on who to pick and revive. The mentalist was a master of weaving words into the most believable of sentences, right down to the inflection of his syllables.

Tsukasa was pleased. And that was good enough for him.

That night, Gen just could not sleep. He tossed and turned endlessly as he made the effort to close his eyes and forced his body to sleep. He thought of everything he could remember on how to go to sleep, but that failed him too.

It was strange to him. He remembered during his performance that he was so exhausted that he could collapse the moment he let his body relax. Yet when Tsukasa broke him out of the stone prison that he felt so energized that he could run a marathon and not feel winded. And he certainly still feels that way. He wonders if being asleep for so long had made him catch up to his lost sleep. All nineteen years worth of it.

Well, he did the math and technically he is now 3739 years old…

If there was any kind of sleepiness in him at that moment, Gen had completely lost it.

3720 years…  is a really, really long time…

Yuzuriha finished his new outfit the next day, he was very grateful for her. Especially after hearing the fact that she spent all night with it. Gen felt a bit bad for her, until he heard her voice crack just a little…

Gen did not have supersonic hearing, but as a mentalist, he taught himself to pay attention to people’s subtle noises. He wondered if Yuzuriha was lying to him.

He tried the new outfit on, and it fits him just right. He was definitely impressed with her.

Later, Tsukasa began explaining to him about a certain “miracle fluid” that had broken him out of the petrified state. And that it was located in a special cave. Which was also dubbed, Cave of Miracles.

A miracle fluid that undid the petrification? He couldn't believe that it was even possible. That peaked his interest, not that he would show it.

As Tsukasa brought him to a cave and along a few other muscular men with him. It seemed that he wanted to show respect to nature's bounty and sorts. It was something that lost his interest, and it fell into deaf ears. Thanks to that distraction though, Gen had tripped over a giant root, but he quickly gained footing and held himself against a tree near the cave. He brushed his fingers against a tree without realizing it.

He felt something odd.

He knew tree bark was rough and could hurt depending on the tree, but even so, this sensation felt weird to him. To him it was like… like… Something was engraved into the tree.

He moved his hand away and saw a carving into the tree he held on.

A.D. 5738 4, 1

“Fifty-seven, thirty-eight… Four, One…” Gen read the engraving. “5738, 4, 1…”

It was like everything he had known right now had changed.

His thoughts came back to when Tsukasa told him the current year. He wondered so many things that day, that even today he was still trying to take it all in. He wondered how… how would Tsukasa be able to determine the current year. From what he saw of the strongest primate high schooler, he was more than just a muscleheaded idiot. He had strength, he had skill, he had smarts.

But even so that did not give him a proper answer as to how and why he knew the current date.

Does Tsukasa even know this engraving?!

Was it even really the year 5739?

But this engraving shows it. 5738… It’s been a year since the engraving was written in the tree. April 1st… How did the writer knew of the exact date even…

“5738… April 1st…” Gen repeated himself, “H-How…. How did… How could someone…?”

“No…” Gen gathered his thoughts, “Someone… someone must have carved this after breaking out… They had to. But… How would… would they know the exact date…”

“Is it even possible…?!”

He read again the crude kanji and the numbers written on the tree. It was clearly there. It wasn't some sort of hallucination… It was actually written there…

The mentalist's heart swelled with hope.

“This… this is…” Gen shuddered in excitement at the realization of someone like that ever existed, and broke out first, and to do this, “This is too antastic-fay! Whoever did this… Must be…”

Then his thoughts were interrupted by Tsukasa calling him to the cave.

Gen quickly dashed inside. To see Tsukasa standing in front of a pile of… bat guano. Gen’s nose scrunched up at the awful smell and saw yellow liquid dripping down from the cave’s ceiling, to a clay bowl.

He quickly deduced it as a so called “miracle fluid” that Tsukasa had mentioned. But when he read Tsukasa’s expression and listened to his voice, he felt there was more… than just that fluid…

That night, he couldn’t stop thinking about that engraving.

5738 A.D. April 1.

He wondered who could even do that. In that darkness. For almost 4000 years, calculated the year, month and date. The exact date?! He wondered why would the person even bother to calculate. When normally you'd think of surviving first.

He thought of possibilities. He knew you can tell how old a tree is by cutting it and counting the number of rings… But that would have been a gigantic tree. He considered the number of natural disasters that could have destroyed it way before the next millenia… So he scratched out that idea. He thought maybe some sort of machine that could tell the time had survived, but he hasn’t seen a sign of any kind of civilization, let alone a machine that could tell the time. His thoughts wandered of any kind of sci-fi theory he’s seen. But just like before, he saw nothing…

Nothing from the year 2019.

Gen curled up onto his sheets. It has hit him again, the realization that there was nothing left from the year he knew. No buildings, no cars… no cola even…

He felt the sudden urge for a bottle.

As he realized he couldn’t sleep once again, he stepped outside of his living quarters and saw the stars in the sky. It was numerous, more than he could ever count.

Count…

That's when he thought of something… a completely ar-fetched-fay possibility...

Yes, there was no machine or anything that could tell the time, but the fact remained that time still moved forward, no matter what…

It was something insane. Something that no human being should be able to do, but it was possible…

He had heard rumours of a kid who counted the exact seconds within a month, and he had counted it exactly.

“To count the passing seconds…” Gen thought to himself, “To do that during all that time in the darkness…”

Many feelings he suddenly felt for this mystery counter. Excitement, pity, delight, fear... In order to do that, he would have had to remain conscious all that time… Gen eventually felt nothing and his mind went completely blank after a while. When Tsukasa revived him, he thought everything before was just a dream… a long 3720 year dream…

Gen gritted his teeth, he was nervous, he was scared, he was so lost in this new world, but to even think that there was a person like that, a human being that could do such a thing...

He had to find them… he had to find the person who could have done this feat… He had to know. He had to know this person. He had to pick him apart and understand his own way of thinking. He had to analyze everything about him. He had to know how and why would he do such a ridiculous yet logical thing.

He hadn't felt this eager in knowing a person he hasn't even met.

The rest of that night spent thinking about this person. He smiled at the thought of someone else being this unique.

It was like… to him it was like getting excited over a book he had heard only good reviews about.

Yes, he was skeptical, but the thought of someone like this.

It got him excited.

The next day, the third day, Tsukasa called for him after his meal.

He was called to be given a mission…

“Those dusty old fossils who used to be in power…” Tsukasa began as he led Gen to a path in the forest, it was a bit further from the Empire, “Are even less necessary in this natural world of stone…”

Gen didn’t hear a hint of hesitation from those words. In fact to him Tsukasa spoke of his ideals in such great confidence and conviction, that the mentalist felt a bit swayed by those. Especially when he said…

“But I see a massive amount of potential in you… Gen.”

Gen felt himself snap out of that trance. He knew Tsukasa had a lot of natural charisma, but even he as a master of minds, felt like he was grabbed instantly and quickly, as if he got there by himself. He cursed himself mentally, as he remembered how Tsukasa crushed the statue of his manager, again. And all of the other pieces of statues he has seen scattered everywhere, crushed with his bare hands or by his men.

“There’s something I need you for…” Gen’s attention was grabbed again as Tsukasa cleared some branches to reveal a treehouse, made by… concrete? He wondered. “And your skills as a mentalist will be invaluable…”

Gen saw on the side a few empty jars, crude makeshift spears… he was surprised that even the ladder that leads up to the treehouse was still sturdy. To him it looked like it was all abandoned.

But that wasn't where they went, rather, Tsukasa led him to a hut near the tree house. It had a worn out sign that said, “Laboratory”.

Tsukasa led him inside and the mentalist saw broken clay pots everywhere. He watched his step, as he moved in closer to see more and more broken pieces scattered everywhere. To him it was an obvious sign that whoever lived here scrambled to take everything and left. To the untrained eye that is.

Gen saw this was too intentional. It was too much of a mess for him. He thought maybe a scuffle, but that would have caused those shelves to fall apart. To him, it is as if the previous occupants just intentionally took those jars and smashed them.

“Follow them for me.” Tsukasa gave him his mission, as it also confirms Gen's deductions. “And get inside of their minds… Perhaps I'm being overly cautious, but I want you to track down this man Senku and tell me if he’s dead or hiding out somewhere…”

Senku…

That is the name of the person he was tasked to look for.

‘Senku…’ Gen thought to himself. He tried to think of anyone he knew by that name, none came to mind.

So he asked, “Who is Senku?”

“He, was the first of us to revive…” Tsukasa replied.

‘First? Don’t tell me…’

“He used his knowledge of science to create a formula to undo the petrification.” he continued as Gen took in this invaluable information, “That’s how he revived me…”

Gen couldn’t hide his surprise anymore.

‘This Senku person… revived Tsukasa? He created a formula to undo the petrification?’ The pieces started to fall into place...

“This man…” Tsukasa continued as Gen felt the man’s voice grew bitter, “His only desire is to revive everyone, no matter who they were…”

‘What? He… what? He wants to revive… everyone…?!'

“He’ll bring back the same people who ruined our world.... And they’ll make weapons…” Gen felt every word laced with pure hatred, as he still tried to take in everything.

“He was the most intelligent man alive, and that’s why I killed him myself…”

He saw Tsukasa’s eyes narrowed as he finished his sentence.

'He killed him…' Gen held back even his own expressions, 'He killed this Senku…'

When he first met Tsukasa in this new world, he was kind, considerate, gentle to everyone in the Empire and even to the animals. He would ensure that every part of every animal killed was put to use, even the organs. For Gen to hear him say that. For Tsukasa to kill another human being… he got even more scared of him.

Gen started to doubt himself. He wondered if there really was someone who could take down the Strongest Primate High Schooler. To kill the "smartest" man alive, as he called this Senku.

But even so, the fact that Tsukasa had to send him, a mentalist… to make sure that Senku is alive.

There was no doubt. Senku is alive.

He finally understood what he had to do.

Gen enjoyed it. He enjoyed experimenting and toying with the human mind and the limitless possibilities of the human psyche. He mostly used it for his own benefit and gain, but that's what the world, the previous world, taught him. To him adults were easy picking, even more so than teenagers and children. He knew as one grows older, the ideals and beliefs, and biases a person has learned will stick longer and thus harder to change or remove. Gen knew of this and exploited it to his heart's content. So it was child's play for him to figure out what had occured in this laboratory.

He asked Tsukasa if he could stay a bit more to inspect the area. The man let him, and asked if he knew the way back.

Gen knew the way back.

When he realized that he was finally alone, he quickly observed the area. He looked at the pieces of the broken jars, the stains on the floor and at the walls, he saw the various broken tools nearby. He then rushed into the tree house and saw the same mess as the lab. Gen saw this as a laughable way to make it look like they got scared and escaped.

Smartest man alive? More like the world's worst crook if he had ever seen one.

He remembered Tsukasa’s expressions, the hatred in his words and the shakiness of it. That was also obvious. Tsukasa was scared. Very scared. He only knew of Tsukasa as a fearless man who would stare down other fighters bigger and stronger than he was, and took them down easily. For someone to induce such paranoia and fear in him...

He has to know. He has to know who this Senku person is.

He just has to!

After gathering what he can from the area, he went back to the Empire. He gave Tsukasa what he could deduce from it, and said that he and his companions that he too figured this out from the tracks, that they probably dashed at around southeast to where the Empire was.

Tsukasa was impressed by him. He mentioned that the two companions were Taiju and Yuzuriha.

Gen faked a shock, well to everyone it looked like a real shock. He knew some of the bigger and heavier footsteps belonged to a heavyweight like Taiju, and smaller, lighter footsteps belonged to a woman, Yuzuriha fits that description.

Tsukasa explained to him that they returned after he had subsequently killed Senku and buried him in that direction. Gen was right it was southeast to where they were, Hakone (or it would have used to be considering the lack of any buildings).

He also mentioned that they were Senku's best friends.

That's what stood out the most.

Gen wondered to himself as to why they were kept under surveillance. Now it made sense, Tsukasa was worried that they might turn on him eventually. Even with the power difference, there was an instilled fear that Senku would come back for them and have a scientific weapon that could be used to defeat him.

That's what the mentalist deduced at least.

So Taiju and Yuzuriha were… no are Senku's friends. He filed that important tidbit for later.

Tsukasa had given him information that was more valuable than even he thought.

He was also told of a blond haired, blue eyed girl that seemed to have no knowledge of science and had a very primitive way of thinking. He was (truly this time) shocked to hear that there is a possibility of a village of primitives in that area, and that Senku might have made contact with them if that was the case. So now he had a destination in mind.

Hakone. Around a two day walk from where they were now. Gen didn't particularly like the idea of walking so far and so long, but his desire to meet this Senku was what pushed him further.

Before he left, he asked Yuzuriha for some extra materials and a cutting tool. Part of him wanted to tell them that he was going to see Senku, just to gauge their reactions. He knew if they didn't react to what he expected it, then it was truly confirmed that Senku is alive.

But he held his tongue on that. He didn't want to risk then getting caught on this mess.

Gen himself haven't really decided on if this Senku really is the person he was looking for. If he was the mystery counter. All he knew was that, he was a threat to Tsukasa's ideal world.

The smartest man alive vs the strongest man alive.

A typical brain vs brawn...

His journey was long and painful, especially since he didn’t wear any shoes. Along the way he picked up many nightshade flowers and stored them into various hidden sacks underneath his clothes. He even found many berries and even some small animals he could use to make fake blood bags for his own protection, just in case everything went downhill for him. He knew when to expect the worst. After all, he made a living from expecting the worst in people and exploiting it.

His journey took way longer than two days. He was exhausted, yes, but every step further was one step closer to meeting this Senku. He thought it was worth it.

From what he knew about the positions of his shadows, he had deduced it was around noon. He walked further and further through the forest, and that's when he heard something, music. He heard music playing nearby, he walked closer to the source, and saw it, clear as day. A village, built on two small peninsulas connected by a bridge.

It was the primitive village that Tsukasa told him about. There were primitives living in this area.

And in front of it was…

Well to his surprise. It was a ramen stand.

Gen approached the stand closer then was quickly given a bowl of said ramen by a child wearing a melon mask over her head. He thought it was kind of cute.

He felt a pang of hunger as he took a whiff of the bowl on his hands. It was a crude version of ramen that he knew, but well, he supposed it was still ramen. So he took a bite.

Gen nearly gagged from the taste.

He remained very quiet despite the complete awfulness the dish had. He couldn’t even call this ramen. He heard this was foxtail millet ramen.

Once again he nearly gagged at the thought of foxtail. Foxtail, was what the noodles were made out of. He could feel the grainy texture and the bitter aftertaste of the ramen.

It was ositive-pay awful!

But he heard nothing but praises for this dish. Gen peered to see other people wearing similar clothes like the one the melon girl wore. It looked like they were almost inhaling the ramen. It was a complete consensus that it was the best thing they've ever had.

That's one other thing that hits Gen.

He sighs and misses something way more than ramen right now.

One of them quickly asked for seconds and Gen sighed and realized with the stereotypical glutton man. He supposed that in any kind of era there's always a glutton.

Then his attention quickly changed when he saw the man at the stand itself, putting the ramen together.

His hair stood out the most, literally. Even at the year 2019, he would have easily stood out. He wondered if it's dyed or if he used any hair products. Almost every bit of his hair stood upwards defying gravity. To Gen he looked like a walking giant leek or bok choy. Then when he turned sideways, that's when Gen finally saw his face. He looked sweaty and tired, but his face is full of eagerness and pride, that admittingly seemed contagious. The most noticeable features were the two jagged scars that lined and bent up from his forehead down to this eye line and just below the eyelid. The Mentalist instinctively touched his own scar.

He remembered the explanation Tsukasa gave him. That these scars are just a side effect of the depetrification process.

Gen remembered the day when he saw his reflection at the river and saw the scar running underneath his left eyelid, where it turned to shape his mouth then went straight down his chain and his neck. To him this was a reminder that he was petrified and awakened. Which meant, this man was…

“Are you the man who made this incredible food?” He heard a young girl approach the man with such eagerness and obvious intent of flirting, “the one called, Senku?”

Senku…

This green haired, prideful, obviously exhausted guy...

Is Senku?

Gen tried hard to cover his laughter. This was the man that Tsukasa, the strongest primate high school, was scared about? He looked physically weak. Everything about him was so lanky and skinny. It completed the giant walking vegetable set. Big green leaves and a nimble easily breakable stem.

He was….

'This was the man who wrote that date on the tree isn't it?'

He saw a familiar equation written on Senku’s outfit.

E=mc2

'Yeah… definitely the science nerd around here.' Gen chuckled internally, 'Who the hell writes that on their own clothes?!'

When the girl asked Senku what kind of girls he liked Senku simply answered this:

"A kind that would pump a ton of oxygen into my furnace"

Gen groaned internally at that answer

'And he's uninterested at romance. Like he's some sort of a Shonen protagonist…'

Gen managed to breathe and calmed himself in order to prevent getting noticed by the villagers. Senku had made the ramen for them. It was errible-tay. He could barely call this food.

'So this is what Tsukasa was talking about.' Gen just placed everything together in his head, 'This Senku is a scientist, through and through. He made the depetrification formula, he made this ramen, he has that silly equation on his clothes, he even has a furnace! I see why Tsukasa-chan fears him… but…'

Gen had to make sure. He wasn't going to just mingle with him and the primitives.

The blond villager girl whom Gen deduced as quite strong, and possibly the girl that Tsukasa ran into before, even expressed her displeasure at that answer. He wondered if she had some feelings for this Senku person.

The Mentalist admits that Senku is quite handsome. It was a shame to him that he isn't interested in romance. He would have loved to have gotten closer to him. But he supposed that he still has a job to do.

Well to everyone in the Empire of Might it was his job.

To Gen….

It was some assurance.

If this Senku is what he thought he was, that this Senku is the man that striked fear into Tsukasa's heart.

This handsome, nerdy, passionate man…

Might be the counter he was looking for.

Better strike while the iron's hot….

"Ah… this ramen is making me wickedly thirsty…" Gen admitted to himself, out loud for everyone else to hear. "A cola, would be great…"

And with that, Gen had Senku's undivided attention.

The Mentalist then went to work, fully analyzing this Senku to his heart's content.

Little that he knew what would happen later that within the past 3700+ years of his life, would change for the better.

'This is worth it…'

[raptorginger]

Ear-sy Rider II: Reconnect chapter 1 - New Bacon-ings

for @ever-so-reylo

Not sure why I haven’t been posting this here from the beginning.  Maybe cause I was doing it on my phone and that’s hard to do?  I dunno

Anyway, here is a gift fic for Ever So Reylo, fellow Bob’s Burgers fanatic and amazing writer (but y’all already know that)

Former mortal enemies, nemeses even, Rey and Ben reconnect after Ben comes back into town.  A Bob’s Burgers/Reylo mashup

“Oh my God, Poe!  You can’t just let him in here!” Rey shouted as her sister Rose’s long time friend and sometimes romantic rival opened the front door of her family’s restaurant to let in a very round, very old raccoon.  The critter’s nails clicked across the worn linoleum floor as it scampered toward Poe’s stool at the bar and sat, waiting expectantly.  She couldn’t muster much malice in her voice, though.  She was about to close up shop and join Maz and Chewie upstairs, and the raccoon was practically a family pet at this point.  She heaved an exaggerated sigh and retrieved the little bowl Maz had set aside under the counter, the name “BB8” painted lovingly in grey and orange around the cracked porcelain vessel.  She carefully sloshed a couple of ounces of Merlot into the bowl and handed it to Poe, who set it on the floor.  The animal lapped it up greedily and used his paws to judiciously wash up when he was finished.

“He’s neater than you,” Rey teased.

Poe rolled his eyes and made a sound that sounded like air hissing out of a pipe.  He twisted his hips on his stool while he finished his beer and the rest of his fries, the once sparkly red vinyl cracking and squeaking as he spun.

Rey suppressed a groan.  They’d need to replace the seats again soon.  It had been ages since it’d been done last.  She hoped the supplier was still around.  Rey picked up a clean bar rag and and wetted it so she could start wiping down the counter.  Poe got up and let BB8 back outside, flicking the main light switch and “Open” sign off.  Only the small lights over the bar were on now, the entire restaurant cast in a soft dim light.  The sickly yellow pallor from the street lights could barely reach through the glass, and Rey could just make out the sign for Sheev’s Pizzeria (the Original!) through the fog and mist.  She rubbed the Formica counter a bit harder and started muttering under her breath.  Although Sheev Palpatine was no longer around to harass her foster dad Chewie, she felt like he’d put up that sign just to annoy him.  Palpatine had franchised his restaurant years ago and moved away from Seymour’s Bay “for his health.”  He came back every now and then to check on things and trade barbs with Chewie and Maz, but otherwise he was no longer a part of their lives, for which Rey was grateful.

She set her rag aside and began to pick at The Spot on the counter, the one no one had been able to get out since the damn thing had been installed decades ago.  She huffed into her palm.  Pick.  Pick.  Pick.

“Something on your mind, Sport?”  Poe asked as he brushed fry crumbs and ketchup from his mouth.

Rey pushed back against the counter’s edge and went to grab her own beer from the cooler.  Snapping it it open, she took a long thoughtful sip before she answered.  She’d moved back a couple of years ago to help Maz and Chewie go through old things and ended up sticking around.  As Chewie and Maz had gotten older, it was impossible to miss how they struggled to accomplish the tasks needed to keep the business going everyday.  Rey didn’t mind.  She’d always wanted to take over Takodana Cantina when she was older, but she couldn’t help feeling like something was missing.  Maybe things left unsaid or undone.  To whom or what, she had no clue.  Moving back to Seymour’s Bay had dredged up strange feelings of yearning and nostalgia that she had no idea how to deal with, so she often shoved them aside and chose to live in some strange emotional purgatory.  It worked for her.

“Arthritis is a bitch,” Rey muttered finally, taking another swig of her beer.

Poe barked a laugh, but it didn’t reach his eyes.  Rey knew Poe was going through his fair share of strange feelings too.  Well, maybe not strange.  Just, a lot.  He and Finn had broken up, again, and Finn was dating Rose now.  Again.  Rey didn’t see why the three of them couldn’t just be together, but apparently Rose couldn’t stand Poe.  Or something.  Rose always mumbled when she talked about Poe.  To be fair, Poe had a tendency to mumble about Rose, too.

Rey was pretty sure they were all in love with each other, but just couldn’t admit it due to years of childhood rivalry.  She gave Poe a sympathetic smile.  They’d figure it out.  They had to.

“Hey, you about done?  I need to lock up here,” Rey said.

Poe wiped his face with his napkin and chugged the last swig of his beer.  “Yup,” he coughed as he tugged his worn leather jacket on.  “Thanks for listening.”  

He pushed his way outside, turning up his collar at the damp, and flipped a wave goodbye.  Rey tried to plaster a smile on her face as she waved back, thankful when Poe stepped out of view.  Her face fell back into its familiar morose expression as she continued to sip her beer and wipe down the counter and tables.  Overall, she enjoyed this time of day, closing time.  The air was still and mostly quiet, the only sounds the groaning of the large refrigerator in the kitchen and the pipes in the crawl space.  She could hear the hum from Biggs’ furnace next door, and tried not to think too hard about why it was on and instead focused on the soothing white noise.

Absentmindedly, perhaps to cover up the sound of the furnace, she started to whistle the theme song from her favorite Hawk & Chick movie, Hawk & Chick versus Seaweed Monster, a genuine smile creeping up on her.  She remembered when she and Chewie had to improvise the dubbing on stage during an impromptu film festival.  Rey laughed to herself and decided she’d pop it in the VCR when she got back upstairs.  Maybe make some popcorn.  Rey stopped wiping the table she was cleaning and took a step back, holding her arms around her middle.  She wrapped the nostalgic feeling around her like a blanket, allowing herself to bask in the warmth of her memories for just a moment.

Rey finished the rest of her cleaning quickly and switched off the bar lights.

“Good night, Restaurant,” she murmured to the dark interior as she pushed open the door.  The night air was thick with mist and fog, the smell of sea salt strong in her nose.  She could hear the rush of a car here and there a couple of streets away from Ocean Avenue and the sounds of the late night revellers at Wonder Wharf as she turned the key in the stubborn lock and headed for the apartment door.  Her hand hovered over the handle for a moment, the mist in the air clinging to her skin.  Distinctive laughter cut through the night air like a knife, shrill and biting.  Hux and Phasma.  Rey groaned inwardly.  They had always been more of Rose’s problem than hers, but that didn’t mean they ignored each other.  Unfortunately.  

Rey tried to hurry and unlock the front door when Hux’s simultaneously deep and whining voice called out to her, “Hey, Rey!”  He and Phasma snickered at the rhyme.

Rey rolled her eyes and plastered on her fake smile and turned around to see the pale red headed man and the fabulously tall platinum blonde behind her, inseparable as always with knowing smiles on their faces.  Rey didn’t like that look.  It meant they knew something she didn’t and were about to burst a bubble she didn’t even know she had.  “Hey, guys!” Rey replied as cheerfully as she could.  “What’s up?”

Hux and Phasma shared a look between each other before Hux spoke in a mock conspiratorial tone, “Did you hear who’s coming back to town?”

“No, I didn’t.  Tourists?” Rey replied in a wry tone, dropping her fake smile.

“Don’t be thick,” Phasma said, rolling her eyes and snapping her gum.  

Rey turned fully around and crossed her arms defensively.  “Look, I just want to go upstairs and relax.  Why don’t you just say what you came here to say and go to The Desire Dungeon, or whatever the hell it’s called, thinking you pissed me off, and we can all have a pleasant evening, okay?”

“Geez, don’t get so defensive,” Hux said in his weird nasally voice.  “We just thought, as friends…,”

Rey gave Hux a speaking glance.

“As acquaintances, we should tell you that Doctor Ben Solo will be back in town.  You guys knew each other right?”

Rey felt the color drain from her face.  Oh, she knew Ben Solo.  Practically everyone in town knew she knew Ben Solo.  Her nemesis as a child, her torment as a teenager, a fleeting dream as an adult.  And, if she was honest with herself, probably the reason she felt so weird about being back in town.  Hux and Phasma smiled in an infuriatingly superior way.  She rammed her keys back in her jacket pocket and shoved between them.

“Fuck you, Hux,” she snarled as she strode down the sidewalk, heading she knew not where but trusting her feet to get her there safely.  Hux and Phasma headed in the opposite direction, cackling wickedly.

Rey stalked quickly down the sidewalk, head down and hands fisted in her jeans pockets.  She slowed when she eventually turned off Ocean Avenue, her pace becoming more shuffling.  Pebbles and stones bounced against the rubber heel of her black Converse as she kicked them half heartedly, only to encounter them again after a few feet.  It was darker here, quieter, colder.  The sounds of the rocks clattering along the pavement seemed to echo all around her as Rey came to a stop.  She was at The Steps.  The stone steps where she’d first met Ben when she was nine years old.  He’d been a teenager then, and a bully.  He’d taken her hat, a silly pink thing with rabbit ears, probably her most cherished possession at the time.  She’d gone...a bit overboard in her response perhaps.  But, if a nine year old has access to the leader of an outlaw biker gang, it’s only natural she’d call him up to help deal with a bully.  Yeah, just a little overboard in hindsight.

Rey sat down on the steps and stared at the tops of her shoes, hands limp between her knees.  He’d tormented her all through her childhood with pranks and, just, his general existence.  It was easy for a nine year old Rey to make him into her nemesis, and her into his.  What sixteen year old wants to lose face to a nine year old?  He’d tormented her in a much different way when she reached her teens and he started college, although he seemed to have forgotten her completely by then.  That hurt worse than the childhood teasing and jokes to a scrawny high school girl with a crush on a college boy.  She thanked whatever God was out there for Rose, who had helped her get her feelings out on paper, and for Dopheld who insisted she practice all of the ridiculous dance routines he made up on the fly so he could “visualize his art.”  It helped her forget.  She still thought about Ben sometimes, especially now that she’d moved back and saw reminders of their shared past everywhere she went.  She wondered how college had gone for him.  His parents had pushed him into a very prestigious university, and he’d gone on to medical school.  She wondered if it had been what he wanted.  He was a doctor now, as Hux had so kindly pointed out, so he must have been okay with it.  

She was grateful Maz and Chewie had never been that way.  Then again, they’d always struggled to keep their heads above water, so maybe that was just a result of their focus needing to be on the family’s survival rather than their futures.  Things seemed to have turned out well enough, however.  Dopheld was a choreographer in New York and Rose was a fairly successful author.  And Rey had more or less taken over the restaurant, which had now seen a fair share of success thanks to Millennials who tended to shun chains and franchises in favor of local places like hers.

Rey heaved a loud rumbling sigh and chastised herself for feeling so maudlin.  Why did she let him occupy her thoughts at all?  There was no way she occupied his.  He’d probably stopped thinking about her the second he became a high school senior.  A junior even.  Chewie would say something about how she was letting him live in her head rent free, or some other weird parent bullshit that sounded helpful but ultimately wasn’t.

Why had she even stopped here?  Damn subconscious.  Rey pushed on her knees and stood up, straightening her My Chemical Romance t-shirt back over her hips.  She turned to head toward Wonder Wharf, thinking she might ride the Ferris Wheel or the Scream-i-cane when a voice called out to her from behind, stopping her dead in her tracks, soft and low and deep, like caramelized sugar.

“The only thing missing is your ears,” Ben Solo murmured.  “I’m sure I gave those back to you when we were kids.”

Rey blinked at him, completely overcome with something.  Something fragile and precious that left her awash in warmth and pain and softness.  It was too much, too many conflicting things and she hated it.  And he stood there, appearing completely unaffected and looking better than anyone had a right to look.  Rey knew she had grown since she was nine, and he still towered over her as he always had, but he was broader now, the perfect tailoring of his jeans and his well fitted black jacket making him appear even more so.  His hair was still thick and dark, his mouth teasing and expressive.  He looked expensive, like something in a store she’d been told not to touch in case she broke it.  Like something so out of her sphere of existence it was a surprise they’d crossed paths at all.

And yet, he’d remembered her ears.  Rey fingered the hem of her oversized jacket.  She’d dressed much the same in high school.  Jeans and band t-shirts and Converse.  And her ears.  He’d remembered her ears.  

He’d remembered her ears.

[mykidsgay]

Defining: Bi Erasure

By Pip Williams

Welcome to another installment of our “Defining” series, where we unpack various terms and identities. Do you have a word that needs defining? Let us know!

Define It:

Bi erasure occurs when bisexual people are systemically invalidated and underrepresented in our society. This usually occurs through assumptions that everyone must be either gay or straight, often depending on the gender of their partner(s).

Explain It:

“Gay icon” is a common phrase in the public lexicon, but when was the last time you heard anyone talk about a “bisexual icon”? Plenty of so-called gay icons—from Freddie Mercury to Oscar Wilde—are or were actually bisexual. Even Sappho wrote poems about both men and women. Surprised? That’s bi erasure for you.

Singer Frank Ocean provides a more modern example of bisexual erasure, with both LGBTQ folks and straight people alike often mistakenly labelling him as exclusively homosexual. Then there’s Cynthia Nixon, the bisexual actress and candidate for governor of New York, who was recently dubbed an “unqualified lesbian” by former council member Christine Quinn. While Quinn’s attack made headlines, few seemed to notice the major inaccuracy. Again, we can see bi erasure in action.

There is, of course, the flipside, where queer relationships are written out of the lives and histories of bisexual people altogether, leaving us with a falsified picture of them as heterosexual individuals. From Virginia Woolf to Kristen Stewart, the world seems determined not to see these household names in their full bisexual glory. No matter how often chart-topping singer Halsey reminds us that she is bisexual, she’s still subject to scrutiny and attempts to straight-wash her image. It may be functioning in the opposite direction to my previous examples, but this is still bi erasure.

So, now that you know what it is, how can you avoid contributing to bi erasure? First up, just remembering that bisexual folks exist is a good start! Not everyone dating someone of the same gender is gay, and not everyone dating someone of a different gender is straight—and someone’s dating or sexual history may not reflect the entirety of their sexuality. Once you’ve got that in your mind, it will help you to stop making assumptions about the people you meet and sorting them via a likely inaccurate straight/gay binary. If we keep spreading this mindfulness when discussing sexuality, hopefully we can eradicate bi erasure altogether some day!

While the concept of bi erasure might be a complex one to tackle head-on with your kid, it’s still something you can address indirectly with them. Confronting bi erasure in your own home will make it a safer, more validating environment for a bisexual child or teen, and it’s super easy to do! When talking about LGBTQ issues, be sure to mention bisexuality too. Find examples of bisexual role models that your kid can look up to. Correct each other if you notice family members calling bisexual people “straight” or “gay”.

Debunk It:

• You can tell someone’s sexuality just from meeting them

As a bisexual person, my sexuality is always perceived as either gay or straight, unless I explicitly state otherwise. Without my partner, I’m constantly assumed to be heterosexual. With my partner, I’m read as half of a lesbian couple, even though neither of us identify as lesbians. While I’m always pleased when I’m recognized as queer, it makes me sad that my true identity is so rarely acknowledged. We need to stop making these binary assumptions about people’s sexuality and let them define their own identities if we want to tackle bi erasure at its root.

• Bi men are really just gay, and bi women are really just straight girls faking it for attention

Often, bi erasure boils down to the assumption that all bisexual women are actually straight while all bisexual men are actually gay. These beliefs are rooted in both biphobia and harmful gender stereotypes. Is it really so hard to believe we could also be attracted to women!?

It’s important to listen to and believe bisexual people when they are open about their sexuality. Even if someone’s identity doesn’t seem to align with your first impressions or gut reaction, we have to trust that bisexual people know more about their own sexuality than we can ascertain just by guessing.

• Bisexuality is just a stepping stone to coming out as gay

It’s true that many people do come out as bisexual before later revealing that they are exclusively gay. Even though bisexual identities can be a point on a journey for many people, that doesn’t mean that static and fluid bisexual identities can’t coexist. One person who previously identified as bisexual coming out as gay doesn’t suddenly mean we’re all gay!

• Bi erasure doesn’t matter because it doesn’t hurt anyone

Actually, bi erasure does hurt people, and this is why we need to take a stand against it. Bi erasure makes it harder to come out to people when there are no cultural touchstones for the identity you’re sharing. It’s harder to find role models, resources, and community when both straight and gay folks alike seem determined to homogenize our identities into their own. It’s nearly impossible to address the specific barriers and oppressions bisexual people face when we we fail to center them in our organizing—either by simply tacking them onto “the gay community” as an afterthought, or forgetting them altogether.

If your kid is bisexual, it’s possible that they’re experiencing the negative impact of bi erasure on their life. Ask them if they feel their identity is validated and respected by their family and their peers, and if not, ask them what needs to change. Resist any urge to “simplify” their sexuality to “straight” or “gay”. Speak proudly about your bisexual child (with their permission, of course), and encourage others to do the same. The antidote to bi erasure is bi visibility, and having allies who champion us is an absolutely vital part of that.

Be sure to check out the rest of The Defining Series right here!

***

Click through to read about our brilliant contributors!

[princeklassen]

A Few Of My Favorite Things: 2017 Albums (In)

The last of the A Few Of My Favorite Things series! While the rest of the entries covered the lesser known, the final installment covers possibly the most known or rather ‘In’ of them all. I’ll try and keep this short as most people have surely come across these fantastic albums IRL or by some sort of algorithmic means.

Again more Jazz, but certainly a much more ‘household’ name these days... Kamasi Washington follows up his epic LP, The Epic (yeah I did that), with a new EP of recordings that could easily be outtakes from said LP. The stand out on Harmony Of Difference is the 13 minute ‘Truth’, which also has a lovely video to accompany it.

While not quite Jazz but still very Jazzy, the Texas native / Brooklyn inhabiting Sly5thAve dropped an album paying tribute to Dr. Dre’s wonderful creations. The Invisible Man: An Orchestral Tribute To Dr. Dre is banger after banger of Jazz Funk rawness. While the LP doesn’t have the 14 minute long extended version of ‘Let Me Ride’, def worth seeking out digitally.  

More Funk fo dat a$$, Tuxedo dropped their second album earlier in the year and they have dialed in the formula to heavy slap levels. Sure, some songs are mostly bites of classic Boogie cuts but they are done so well that can be forgiven... plus they have some GREAT original moments on here. ‘Back In Town’ needs its own 12″. 

A bit of cross pollination from New Zealand’s Lord Echo on his 3rd LP, Harmonies, in a true mish mash of styles... or stylee for the rude boys. More soulful hybridization from Reggae to Disco & most things in between. Somehow he managed to record sunshine and press it on a record. Just like on his first LP, Lord Echo closes this album with a fantastic cover. This time with a reggaefied version of The O’Jays ‘I Love Music’. 

More Reggae greatness that dropped in 2017 comes from Brooklyn’s The Frightnrs. Their 2016 debut, Nothing More To Say, is still high in rotation for me and in 2017 they dropped the accompanying dub versions, More To Say Versions. Recorded at Daptone studios, pressed in Mono, I’m surprised they didn’t go for the authentic JA press off center special delight. So sad the band lost their lead singer just after the debut dropped but so happy we have this to commemorate him until the end of time. RIP Dan Klein.

Going to the home of Reggae, the Kingston born Chronixx has quickly rose to fame with a handful of features, originals, and one fantastic LP under his belt. Chronology is the perfect blend of the roots sound for the modern listener sprinkled with dancehall & rocksteady flavors... white dudes with dreads LOVE this. Peep Majesty & feel me nah... EU press only cuz America doesn’t get down like that. 

The 6 God himself, Drake, blessed us with another album errr ‘mixtape’, More Life: A Playlist By October Firm... this time mostly ditching the melancholic sounds we’ve come to know and love Aubrey for, and going for a strong Afro / Caribbean / UK vibe... What am I doing, you already know this shit. Anyway, thanks 6 God. 

Speaking of blessing, the first lady of TDE, SZA, finally dropped her debut album CNTRL & it couldn’t be anymore perfect.... well maybe there could have been a little more diversity in production but whatever. Two things about this album... 1: I find myself going to sleep to this album A LOT & 2: This is what I wanted Frank Ocean’s Blonde to be. I mean she even borrows some of Frankie’s flow a few times ‘bet they fucking for real...’. 

Here are three albums that came out and people seemed to not care...

1: Little Dragon’s ‘Season High’ - Yeah it wasn’t their best, but goddamn Yukimi’s voice tho. The lead single ‘High’ brought me back to their debut feelz.

2: Z-RO’s ‘No Love Blvd’ - I don’t expect the masses to fuck with this because they’ve essentially turned their back on Houston rappers in general. However, Z-Ro was in top form on this album. Peep Bye Bye & try not swangin.

3: Illa J’s ‘Home’ should have been much bigger than it was & maybe I have lame friends that don’t fuck with it but the kin of Dilla is finally finding his own voice & I’m excited to hear where he takes it. Watch the video for ‘Home’ & peep Detroit from a Native’s perspective. 

The last two spots are reserved for more funky weird dudes. People either love em or hate em, and me saying this will prolly make me lose friends but I’m due for a solid unfriending anyway... That said, Mac Demarco just keeps getting better & better. ‘This Old Dog’ is Clearly Canadian in music form. Check out ‘My Old Man’ & wipe those tears with your floppy 6 panel. Coming out of the terribly named Chill Wave movement, Washed Out has managed to stay ahead of the pack while simply refining his excellent production & writing skills on Mister Mellow. Peanut Butter Wolf over at Stones Throw manages to find artists that, while they create vastly different styles of music, their is an umbrella of a certain sound that is uniquely Stones Throw... Washed Out’s Mister Mellow certainly tucks nicely under that umbrella. Peep the Mister Mellow Show, no acid necessary.

Again, I don’t really need to say anything about most of these albums because they’re the mainstream of the indie world but still great listens. Could I have made Spotify playlists and made this task much easier for everyone to listen, yes. Could I have given up on this as I usually do every year, yes. But I didn’t. Now I’m going to go back to looking for old records that excite me so much more... Oh shit, I didn’t talk about Kendrick’s ‘Damn’ (enters black fist & flame emojis) 

Thanks for tuning into A Few Of My Favorite Things 2017. If you haven’t read the other entries here are some simple links to follow....

Reissues  Compilations  Singles  Album (Out)